Heartbeat is a romance variety show. The previous seasons were all civilian versions.
With fans eagerly waiting, the new season switched straight to an all-star lineup.
And if they were going to do it, they were going to do it big.
The stars invited this time are all the hottest single male and female artists in the industry.
Female guests: Liu Mian. Twelve years since her debut, countless works.
Although she has relatively few awards, her popularity is incredibly high.
Lin Lin, who debuted through a girl-group survival show, excels at both singing and dancing, is a professional singer, has won countless awards, and is the next queen.
Zhang Xinyao debuted as the lead in an idol drama, and over the years has become the white moonlight in the hearts of countless boys and girls.
Li Shihan, a big-name film star, has appeared as the female lead in many films and is the top acting talent of the new generation.
Super newcomer:
Su Nuan, the female artist who blew up overnight in the past year, full of youthful energy, lively and vivid; every otaku boy had her old cosplay photos set as their wallpaper.
As for the male artists, there is no need to say much, such as Song Tianming.
Mature and steady, with excellent acting skills. In recent years, audiences had suffered through one traffic-driven male artist after another.
Actors with real skill like him are beginning to reclaim the spotlight.
The production team paid 20 million for one season, the ceiling price for a variety show, just to get him.
And with filming about to start, half the fee had already been prepaid.
Facing such a big name, the production team was relatively powerless.
But now, that big name had completely imploded.
“Damn it, tell me who signed this contract.”
“Start filming immediately. Who am I supposed to find to replace him?”
“Who’s responsible for this mistake?”
…
The head director of the show, Liu Qing, roared in anger in the office, and dozens of others were all trembling.
“Director, you were the one who chose him.”
“You also negotiated the contract.”
After a long while, once the assistant director saw that he had calmed down a bit, he dared to speak softly.
An invitation for a big name like that… how could it ever be up to lowly junior producers like us to decide?
“Is this the time to talk about that? What do we do now? Can we get the money back?”
“Who can we find to replace him in such a short time?”
Head director Liu Qing slapped the table. Damn it, this brat is undermining me. If he weren’t my nephew, I’d fire him on the spot.
“We can’t get the money back anytime soon. All the major brands are currently trying to terminate their contracts with him.”
“Compensation will have to wait until after the lawsuit.”
The assistant director didn’t dare say everything. No one knew how much money could actually be recovered.
It was highly likely they would have to count it as a loss.
“Shit.”
Liu Qing was nearly fifty, and at this moment he couldn’t even control his swearing.
Who could have expected this? Even if they didn’t say it, he knew it himself.
This money was trouble.
After the assets were checked, the odds were high that it still wouldn’t be enough to cover the compensation.
Proportionally, how much they could recover would be up to fate.
“Uncle, look on the bright side. If this thing blew up while the show was airing,”
“then it wouldn’t be just 20 million.”
The assistant director chuckled and added another line. At this point, he was the only one bold enough to tug at the tiger’s whiskers.
“Get lost.”
Liu Qing cursed at him. Everyone in the team knew he was a relative, so the two of them didn’t really hold back.
But what the kid said did make sense.
“How much budget does the team still have?”
Although Liu Qing was angry, he wasn’t brain-dead.
After venting, the work still had to go on.
“Boss, there’s still 2 million left in the budget. Should we ask the network for more?”
The accountant was hurting too. Filming was about to begin.
All the ad slots had already been sold. The other income would have to wait until release to be split.
Originally, the show was already making money before it even aired.
This 2 million was what was left after the budget was settled, and it had originally been planned as bonuses for the crew.
“Ask for what? Are you trying to get the network to replace me?”
Liu Qing cursed irritably. These people had all been with him for many years.
They could joke and curse casually, and nobody took it to heart.
“2 million can only get a mid-to-lower second-tier star. Their status isn’t enough.”
The hierarchy in the entertainment industry is clear, and the income gap is enormous.
Everyone fell silent. When money is tight, even heroes are stumped, let alone a last-minute role swap. Not asking you to pay more is already generous.
“How about someone from another field? A big name from the cultural world. They’re cheaper.”
Someone made a suggestion.
“No. How would they cooperate with the acting? Besides, in the cultural world, the people with high national recognition are all old.”
Everyone fell silent again. Tough. No way around it.
“Director, how about we invite him? Li Lu.”
A little girl timidly raised her hand.
“Li Lu? Who’s that?”
For a moment the director didn’t react. The name sounded somewhat familiar.
“Li Lu, the one who acted in Space. He was still on the trending search this morning with Xiao Nuan.”
“But then Teacher Song’s scandal broke, and it got pushed off.”
“Oh, him.”
Someone immediately handed the director a phone, and he remembered who it was.
“He won’t do. Feels like I haven’t seen him in years. He’s way past his prime.”
Liu Qing naturally knew Li Lu, but he hadn’t seen any news about his work for a long time.
He didn’t usually pay attention to scandals like that either.
“Even though he’s past his prime, he was once a top star.”
“His national recognition is still okay. He’s familiar to the public.”
“It’s just that his reputation is a little bad — mostly haters doing the talking.”
Someone analyzed it seriously and felt it was actually quite suitable.
Of course, the specifics still had to depend on the director.
“He seems to have had scandals with every one of the female artists we invited this time.”
The little girl spoke up again, and this time everyone was shocked by her words.
“I’m a hardcore fan of Lin Lin. I’ve followed her for years.”
“Li Lu is the only person she has ever admitted to dating. Old fans all know this.”
“Not to mention Xiao Nuan; the other female artists also seemed to have been on the trending search with him back then.”
Everyone was stunned. Damn, this guy was something else.
Liu Qing was also rapidly weighing the options in his mind. Li Lu’s reputation was too bad, but he really hadn’t been blacklisted; people just didn’t use him.
As a director, he knew all of this very well.
Given the urgent situation, if nothing else worked, they could bring him in to make up the numbers.
After all, he really had been a top star once, which didn’t conflict with the promotional copy that claimed it was an all top-star lineup.
“Hey, you. Ask his agency what the appearance fee for one season of a variety show is now.”
Liu Qing pointed at the little girl. He really didn’t know her; every year, the show brought in a lot of interns.
“Okay, give me a second.”
The girl immediately got busy. The phone numbers for all the major agencies were right at her fingertips.
“200,000.”
“What?”
Liu Qing hadn’t expected it to be that cheap. Not 20 million, not 2 million, just 200,000.
“What’s your name?”
“Jiang Zi.”
“Little Jiang, with this price, lock him in quickly. From now on, you’re his producer.”
“Oh.”
Deep down, Little Jiang was still thinking that she hadn’t even gotten to bargain yet.
But it seemed that she had gone from being a nobody on the fringes to someone with a job title.