Chapter 52 Securing Investment

Su Xiang was left speechless by such a direct approach. While other people seeking investment would praise their own dramas to the heavens, Qi Fei was something else. Even if she didn't want to boast, she didn't have to be so blunt about lacking money.

"Alright, how much?"

"You're agreeing just like that?"

Qi Fei was a little surprised.

Given Qi Fei's martial arts skills, handling a historical drama was second nature to him. Moreover, Su Xiang had seen the behind-the-scenes footage of Qi Fei on set. Coupled with their personal friendship and the fact that Qi Fei had just helped him out, there was no way he would refuse now that Qi Fei had come to him.

"What? Was it too easy? Should I reconsider then?"

"No, no, no! Thirty million. By the way, can you handle the promotion?" The importance of promotion for a television drama went without saying.

It wasn't that she looked down on the director, but she truly had her doubts about whether this director could handle the promotion properly.

If she hadn't forked out ten million, it would be one thing, but things were different now. The quality of the promotion directly determined whether she could get her money back.

As for whether Su Xiang could produce thirty million, Qi Fei had zero worries.

He hadn't even blinked when he casually coughed up over thirty million for hush money. What was this small sum compared to that?

When it came to promotion, Qi Fei had indeed found the right person.

Su Xiang actually owned a professional promotional company, and its reputation and capability were well-known in the industry.

What Qi Fei did not know was that Su Xiang was also the big boss behind the famous streaming media platform Mushroom, and naturally, an entertainment company was an indispensable part of the platform's portfolio.

When he learned that Qi Qi was actually Qi Fei, he had considered signing Qi Fei to his own entertainment company. But just as the matter was resolved, Qi Fei opened her own studio, so he didn't bring it up.

"No problem. I'll have someone go over and sign the contract today."

Looking at the phone that had just hung up, Qi Fei tasted the sweetness of so-called resources for the first time.

The director never expected Qi Fei to move so quickly, nor did he expect her to have such immense capability. Not only did Qi Fei's manager arrive with funds, but the thirty million was also credited to their account the moment the contract was signed.

In just a single afternoon, the production crew's account swelled by forty million.

He had truly underestimated Qi Fei. Was this the confidence that allowed Qi Fei to go solo?

Being able to pull in thirty million in investment with just a single phone call, without any hesitation or dragging of feet, giving the money cleanly and directly based solely on trust in Qi Fei—that was something not just anyone could pull off.

Yao Kang had thought this was the biggest good news of the day.

Little did he know that at eight o'clock in the evening, behind-the-scenes footage of Qi Fei on set would suddenly trend on search rankings, with its popularity continuing to skyrocket.

They were filming a night scene, and the crew had not yet called it a day. Just as a shot wrapped up, Lu Yi rushed over frantically holding her phone.

"Sister! Sister! You're trending on the search rankings!"

Not knowing until she looked into it, Qi Fei finally understood why the video had suddenly gone viral.

It turned out that Ba Yong had shared the behind-the-scenes action footage of Qi Fei, and Bai Chunle, Dong Xu, and Du Hui had all followed suit by reposting it. This combined push directly propelled the video to the top of the search rankings.

Since all four of them had stepped up to support Qi Fei, their respective friends naturally gave face by reposting it as well.

As the video climbed the search rankings, the promotional clips of Qi Fei previously released by the crew also gained considerable traction one after another.

With everyone trending online, the rest of the crew couldn't possibly miss it.

While Qi Fei was still wondering why she had suddenly trended, Zhou Ying had already acutely sensed this wave of popularity and immediately instructed the studio to maintain the momentum.

Aside from using the studio's official account to repost the video, Zhou Ying also used Qi Fei's personal social media account to tag all four individuals from afar.

The interactions were filled with gratitude.

When Yao Kang saw the online buzz, apart from being pleasantly surprised, he knew that the support from those four actors was entirely due to Qi Fei's personal connections.

Director Yao Kang didn't drop the ball either. He had prepared a promotional video beforehand.

Originally intended as a pitch reel to secure investments, it finally came in handy.

Capitalizing on the trending momentum, Yao Kang posted the promotional video online using his personal account.

The previous online videos were merely behind-the-scenes clips captured on mobile phones by staff or other actors, with low pixel resolution and clarity.

However, the video released by Yao Kang was entirely different. It was a complete promotional feature; neither its visual effects nor its sharp, polished quality could be compared to casual footage.

The promotional video showcased Qi Fei's martial arts skills and acting prowess to absolute perfection.

Backed by the reposts from entertainment industry stars, the video rocketed up the search rankings yet again.

Director Yao Kang's promotional video not only increased Qi Fei's exposure but also conveniently promoted his own drama.

The release of the promotional video caused quite a few netizens to drop their jaws in shock.

At that moment, everyone wondered if there was something wrong with their eyes.

Was the woman in the promotional video—fierce, beautiful, ruthless in her gaze, and decisive and lethal in every single move—really that vase, Qi Fei?

Because Qi Fei's previous image was too deeply rooted in everyone's minds, seeing the promotional video made the shock all the more intense.

It wasn't that no one suspected a stunt double, but the promotional video featured not only Qi Fei's highlight moments but also rare, unbroken, single-take action sequences. That made even the netizens who wanted to claim it was a double feel that their argument was a stretch.

With popularity dropping straight from the heavens, Su Xiang certainly wasn't going to pretend he hadn't seen it, especially since he was now an investor in this drama.

To be honest, this promotional video was genuinely well-made. Even Su Xiang, who already knew the drama should turn out decently, felt his eyes light up when he saw it.

With Su Xiang joining the fray, soft advertisements promoting Qi Fei flew everywhere within a short span of time.

Major platforms naturally wouldn't miss out. The top three spots on major platform search rankings were directly monopolized by Qi Fei. As long as one scrolled through videos, promotional clips and behind-the-scenes footage of Qi Fei were bound to appear.

When it came to celebrity promotion, the company under Su Xiang was thoroughly professional. As the popularity climbed, they avoided hard selling, knowing that would only yield counterproductive results.

Sure enough, netizens soon noticed that within just a few days, numerous influential accounts had popped up across major websites.

They analyzed Qi Fei's action choreography skills in the drama from various angles. Naturally, it wasn't blind praise—after all, Qi Fei's previous acting skills had truly been mediocre.

The core keywords of the promotion were hard work, mistreatment by her former agency, contrast, and a promising future.

As professionals stepped in to steer the public narrative, others naturally jumped on the bandwagon to ride the coattails of the trend. In this manner, Qi Fei's past identity as a trainee before entering the entertainment industry was also dug up.

In light of Qi Fei's massive transformation, her former agency could not escape being dragged out for public flogging.

By this point, everyone realized that the Qi Fei before their eyes had morphed into an inspirational figure: an exceptionally talented singer and dancer, hardworking, and resolutely refusing to bow down to capital.

Although anyone with a discerning eye knew these were soft ads, the content resonated deeply with many onlookers.

Such a mindset was entirely understandable, given that facts had already proven just how shameless the former agency was and what they had truly done—if they couldn't have Qi Fei, they would destroy her.

In the public eye, acting skills could not possibly undergo such a drastic transformation in just a few months, nor was there any such thing as a sudden epiphany.

If that was the case, why had Qi Fei been branded as a vase in everyone's impression? Guided by intentional parties, the matter suddenly took on a very intriguing flavor.

The only remaining conclusion was that she had been suppressed by her former agency; since they couldn't control her, they refused to give her a chance to rise to stardom.