Creating History

"Impossible!"

A common show like Young Bao Qingtian showing a trend of completely surpassing The Coroner? This made Xu Jun's most proud achievement instantly seem ordinary.

"What about the number of ratings?" Xu Jun asked again.

If the number of raters was too small, the high rating wouldn't mean as much.

"Currently, Young Bao Qingtian has 150,000 raters, and our Mortuary has... 140,000," Li Jianxue said, looking up at Xu Jun. "President Xu, Young Bao Qingtian's number of raters has already surpassed Mortuary!"

In less than three hours, 150,000 people had rated it, giving it a high score of 8.5. Combined with over 20 million views, both Xu Jun and Li Jianxue understood what this meant, but neither was willing to believe it.

Li Jianxue added, "President Xu, we've long heard that Penguin Video uses paid reviewers to control ratings in the early stages of a new drama's release, and they're quite skilled at it. Perhaps the biggest contributor to Young Bao Qingtian's high rating is Penguin Video's public relations department, not their production department?"

Xu Jun leaned back in his chair, silent.

Li Jianxue continued, "Don't worry, President Xu. While capital manipulation might succeed for a while, it can't always be foolproof. As time goes by, as the voting base expands and the number of voters increases, Penguin Video's little paid votes won't be as noticeable, and their impact on the rating won't be as significant as it is now."

After speaking, Li Jianxue looked up at the large screen in the data center.

Currently, Mortuary's viewership was 27.8 million.

Good, the viewership was still steadily increasing. Mortuary's trend was very good.

Li Jianxue refreshed the Eagle Eye data again, and his expression turned grim.

"What's wrong?"

Xu Jun asked, seeing Li Jianxue's expression.

Li Jianxue stammered, "Manager, Young Bao Qingtian's viewership is now... 26.2 million, only 1.6 million behind Mortuary's data!"

At this moment, Xu Jun suddenly stood up and said, "I'm going home to sleep. I won't stay here watching."

Just now, it was a 5 million difference in viewership, and now it's only 1.6 million. What about another hour? Two hours?

"Forget it, I'm going home to sleep!"

Xu Jun had lost the desire to keep watching the real-time data.

Eight in the morning.

After Li Xun got up and washed, he fried an egg, boiled a bowl of instant noodles with ham and half a tomato, and took out a bag of milk.

After breakfast, he lay on the bed and picked up his phone. There were already dozens of unread messages in the Young Bao Qingtian main creative group.

Yesterday, 22:03.

Kong Teng: "Young Bao Qingtian's viewership has exceeded 29 million, topping the real-time viewership charts for the entire network."

Tang Jiahe: "Awesome, speechless. It feels like a dream."

Kong Teng: "Brother Tang, are we famous?"

Tang Jiahe: "Maybe. The current data is even better than The Coroner a few months ago. Let's see the later curve. As long as the word-of-mouth doesn't collapse later, okay, I think I need to change my house. I want a large flat!"

Kong Teng: "@Yingying, President Dai, President Dai? Brother Tang wants to change to a large flat. Hurry up and scold him!"

Yingying: "There's hope. I'll try my best to fight for it."

Kong Teng: "???"

Yingying: "A large flat in my hometown county!"

Kong Teng: "You scared me! I thought you meant in Jing City."

Yesterday, 23:45.

Tang Jiahe: "Young Bao Qingtian's real-time viewership has broken 30 million!"

Kong Teng: "Brother Tang isn't asleep yet? Anyway, I'm completely sleepless. I check the data every few minutes, and every time it's a surprise. It's addictive."

Tang Jiahe: "Yeah, it's too exaggerated!"

Kong Teng: "Exaggerated? Wasn't The Coroner's curve a few months ago like this?"

Tang Jiahe: "But that was The Coroner!"

Kong Teng: "What's so special about The Coroner? The Coroner's Dou Miao eventually got a rating of 8.9, starting at 8.2 when it first launched, and then increased by 0.7 points later. Now our Young Bao Qingtian has a current rating of 8.6. As long as it increases by another 0.3 points later, it can match The Coroner's rating. I think there's a great chance. So, be confident, our Young Bao Qingtian is a hit, not a small hit, but a huge hit. The perfect curve comparable to The Coroner is gradually taking shape!"

After Li Xun finished browsing the messages in the main creative group, he opened Dou Miao Net and searched for Young Bao Qingtian.

"The rating is 9.1? Not bad, 0.7 higher than the rating in my previous life."

Li Xun happily read the comments:

"A divine show, no explanation needed!"

"When I first heard that Huang Zhou quit Director Zhao Guocheng's new film, a national treasure director, to act in a web drama, I thought Huang Zhou was brain-dead. After watching this Young Bao Qingtian, well, I was the brain-dead one. Successful people are never simple. Hurry up and watch if you haven't, I guarantee you won't regret it."

"It made me laugh so hard! A unique suspense drama. Huang Zhou's portrayal of Bao Zheng is so honest and simple, and Ms. Feng Lan too. This mother and son pair is hilarious."

"The sounds of wind and rain, the sounds of reading, all enter my ears; family affairs, national affairs, world affairs, all concern me. Don't ask me why I'm kneeling to write this film review. This couplet will be my motto from now on."

"Ten thoughts, thinking of you, thinking of the country, thinking of the state; eight eyes appreciating, appreciating flowers, appreciating the moon, appreciating the osmanthus."

"Upstairs, who is Gui Fang?"

"My girlfriend!"

"It's my mom!"

"It's my aunt!"

"The neighbor, Auntie Er, is also called Gui Fang."

"Anyone who knows someone named Gui Fang, please report in."

"I'm here."

"I do."

"I know more than three."

"My grandma is also called Gui Fang."

"Are there this many people named Gui Fang in the country?"

"Amazing!"

"Good change!"

"My girlfriend hasn't seen this drama yet. I'm going to use this couplet to test her, and then change the second line to her name."

"Young man, you've got a plan. I'm rooting for you!"

"Does anyone think this drama is better than The Coroner?"

"The comment section is full of positive reviews. Too fake, don't want to watch. It's obviously paid shills!"

"Finally, someone said it? Good heavens, I scrolled through hundreds of short comments, and they were all positive, some even... sickeningly complimentary. Too fake, not interested."

"The Coroner is forever a masterpiece in my heart. Any paid shills promoting this drama as better than The Coroner have crossed my bottom line. I will never watch this drama."

"I second that. Penguin Video's paid shills truly live up to their reputation!"

"If the ratings were just a little worse than Mortuary, I might have watched it. But now? Not only does it far exceed Mortuary, but the rating even surpasses The Coroner? Could it be any more exaggerated?"

"The rating broke 9? Alright, the production team has big ambitions! But you also have to consider the audience's intelligence, right? Web dramas with ratings over 9 in China? Does anyone really believe that?"

"Why are so many people calling it trash without even watching it themselves, just based on their imagination?"

"Too many elementary schoolers. Can't you just watch it yourself?"

"Those who are calling out the paid shills and saying they won't watch it – maybe tomorrow, maybe next year, maybe in a few years, you'll eventually watch this TV series by chance. And when you do, you'll realize how foolish you were today!"

"This is the correct way to open a suspense drama."

"Filming and airing simultaneously. We'll have something to look forward to."

"Does anyone think Ren Yi's portrayal of Gongsun Ce is incredibly handsome?"

"Finally, someone mentioned Gongsun Ce! I love him, he's a bit tsundere too!"

Li Xun was engrossed in reading the comments when his WeChat notification chimed. He picked up his phone and saw that Director Kong Teng had @ed everyone in the main cast group.

Kong Teng: "@everyone, Young Bao Qingtian's rating has successfully broken 9, reaching an astonishing 9.2! Brothers, our Young Bao Qingtian has achieved an unprecedented success!"

Tang Jiahe: "I've already received over a hundred calls this morning, all congratulating us. I knew this drama would do well, but I didn't expect it to become this popular."

Kong Teng: "I think after finishing this drama, I can retire peacefully. This is a qualification I can rely on for the rest of my life."

Li Xun couldn't help but reply: "Unprecedented success? Retirement? It's not that exaggerated, is it? A 9.2 rating is indeed good, but it's not the best achievement, is it?"

Kong Teng: "???"

Tang Jiahe: "???"

Li Xun: "What I mean is, there are probably still quite a few TV dramas with ratings higher than 9.2, right?"

Kong Teng casually threw Li Xun a link. Li Xun opened it and saw a news article published that morning.

News Headline:

"Shocking! The First Chinese TV Drama with a Dou Miao Rating Over 9 is Born! Young Bao Qingtian Makes a Stunning Debut! Bao Heitan Becomes the Well-Deserved Dark Horse!"

Li Xun was a bit bewildered—the first Chinese drama with a rating over 9? Then...

A series of TV dramas flashed through Li Xun's mind.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms with 9.5, Dream of the Red Chamber with 9.7, Journey to the West with 9.6, Ming Dynasty 1566 with 9.7—weren't these all Chinese dramas with ratings over 9?

"Wait?"

"Ming Dynasty 1566?"

"Where did Ming Dynasty 1566 come from in this timeline? Am I time-traveling again?"

"Young Bao Qingtian seems to have indeed made history, becoming the first Chinese drama with a Dou Miao rating over 9!"

"It seems I've accidentally gone too far?!"