Page 31

Whether this third season could surpass the first two and restore its reputation all rested on President Cai and Vice President Xuan.

Cai Jinbai and Xuan Yu sat in the middle of the judges' table. On either side were familiar judges from the first two seasons, as well as newly invited ones.

Among the actors participating in the show were popular contestants who had failed to advance in the first two seasons, along with many new faces. Some had only just graduated and did not even have agencies. As for some familiar actors who had wanted to join the third season, after hearing that Cai Jinbai would be a judge, some withdrew for certain reasons, though others stayed.

Once the judges had taken their seats, the actors appeared one after another.

After delivering the opening remarks, the host turned the topic toward the two presidents.

"Do the judges have anything they would like to say to these actors?"

After the other judges had spoken, the microphone was passed to Cai Jinbai.

Cai Jinbai said, "Since you have chosen acting as your profession, I hope that no matter what role you take on, you will treat it seriously. Memorize your lines in advance, understand the character you are playing, study their personality, make preparations before you begin—these are all basic skills. I do not need to say more."

"I can guarantee that this show will select its champion under the principles of openness, justice, and fairness. The stage and opportunities have already been placed before you. In return, you must give it everything you have. Remember, this is an extremely precious opportunity for you. There may not be another one in the future."

Because he only intended to participate in this season. Afterward, however The Actors developed and whatever it became would have nothing to do with Cai Jinbai.

Moreover, the eventual champion of this season of The Actors—even those in the top five—would receive extremely generous rewards funded by Jinbai Entertainment.

All of this was exceptionally rare for struggling minor actors and newcomers.

Before participating, they had read the contracts. After winning the championship, they could even choose for themselves whether to sign with Jinbai Entertainment. The signing contracts had also been distributed to them in advance. The terms were of a high grade, every clause was especially fair, and the generous rewards and conditions were undoubtedly tempting.

Clearly, if they won the competition and gained signing eligibility, they would receive Jinbai Entertainment's full support afterward. There would certainly be no shortage of resources in the future. How could that not be a blessing falling from the sky?

After the contracts were handed to them, some people signed their names on the spot.

They were especially confident. They only had to wait until they won the championship, and once President Cai added his signature, they would become members of Jinbai Entertainment.

Qiu Ziyao was also deeply tempted by this. He had participated in the first season of The Actors and had been a popular contestant beloved by viewers, yet he lost his chance to advance when facing a veteran actor. In the viewers' eyes, Qiu Ziyao had clearly performed better, with more detailed and nuanced acting. Unfortunately...

Chu Rong, meanwhile, had been a popular actress in the second season. She was beautiful, with the glamorous, seductive sort of looks. Unfortunately, her family was very ordinary. When she first entered the entertainment industry, her agent had nearly tried to pimp her out. Fortunately, she was clever enough to avoid it.

But afterward, her agent found fault with everything she did and nearly ignored her entirely, dragging her down and forcing her toward compromise and submission. Some opportunities to act in dramas had been secured entirely by Chu Rong herself, only for her agent to sabotage her in all sorts of ways afterward.

Chu Rong endured all of it. Fortunately, the contract she had signed at the time had not been for many years. After finally breaking free from her agent, she was lucky enough to join the second season of The Actors. Yet she failed once again, because her opponent was backed by capital. Not only was she alone, but while participating in the show, her former agent also kicked her while she was down online and hired paid trolls to smear her.

Fortunately, viewers had eyes and could judge for themselves. There was clearly no questioning Chu Rong's acting skills.

There were also some newly graduated actors. After hearing Cai Jinbai's speech, they could not help thinking—

As long as they worked hard this time, they would definitely have a chance to make it, right?

Chapter 29

After Cai Jinbai finished speaking, the host wanted to cue Xuan Yu and have him say a few more words, but one look from Xuan Yu frightened him into pulling the microphone back. Maintaining his composure with impressive professionalism, he said, "The show begins!"

To preserve the fairness of this season, even the titles of the performance prompts were selected by livestream viewers.

A viewer was selected and connected to the show. Only their voice was heard, not their face, so there was no way to fake it. Under the viewer's selection, the title scrolling across the big screen finally stopped on two short words—"Overbearing CEO."

[Wow, the classic idol drama character setting. Male overbearing CEOs, female overbearing CEOs—there's always one for you, hahaha.]

[This is actually really hard to act. If you do it badly, it comes off greasy, or expressionless and stiff as a plank. That isn't an overbearing CEO—that's some country bumpkin trying to act tough. An overbearing CEO isn't just someone with a cold face; they need extraordinary presence. So many actors these days can't pull it off.]

[I'm dying. I don't even watch overbearing CEO idol dramas anymore because they're too awkward and ridiculous. The sets are shoddy, the leads aren't handsome, and they have zero flair when they speak. They don't look like overbearing CEOs; they look like nouveau riche. They can't even fill out a suit—just skinny sticks.]

[I'm more looking forward to the actresses playing overbearing CEOs. There are so few female overbearing CEOs on TV.]

[What does a real overbearing CEO look like? Hmm... There seem to be two right here, hehe.]

[Hehe, I know what you mean.]

Director Zheng clearly understood what the viewers wanted to see. Once the words "overbearing CEO" appeared, he first swept over the expressions of every actor, then immediately switched to Cai Jinbai and Xuan Yu. The camera zoomed in, and two devastatingly handsome faces appeared in high definition, flawless from every angle.

The two sat very close together. Xuan Yu was leaning sideways as he listened to Cai Jinbai speak, utterly focused. But the instant the camera aimed at him, he sensed it sharply and lifted his eyes. The faint smile at the corners of his lips slowly faded, and his softened features turned cold and hard again. The contrast between how he treated Cai Jinbai and how he treated the camera perfectly demonstrated what it meant to play favorites. He made no attempt to hide it.

Cai Jinbai also turned toward the camera, his expression unchanged. His posture was casual yet elegant.

But Xuan Yu stared directly into the camera. Seeing that it still refused to move away, he raised a brow. Then every subtle detail of his expression shifted, and his face abruptly became intensely oppressive. The corner of his mouth curved slightly, yet there was not a trace of a smile on his face. His eyes grew much deeper. He did not seem to do much, but anyone could sense his displeasure.

The camera captured every bit of the change in Xuan Yu's expression. When that oppressive aura emerged, it even trembled slightly.

Then, carrying an unmistakable sense of I'm out of here, the camera quickly moved away, vividly embodying the words "going with one's heart."

The comment section fell silent for an instant before exploding.

[Holy shit, holy shit, is this the majesty of a real overbearing CEO?! I was genuinely scared just now!]

[Oh my god, Vice President Xuan is completely different when facing President Cai and when facing the camera. He feels like a lion—no, something even fiercer than a lion. Like some kind of savage beast staring straight at you. The pressure is insane, do you get it?]

[I get it, I get it! The moment Vice President Xuan looked over, my heart trembled. Not from excitement—from fear.]

[Is this what subordinates feel when they tremble before an overbearing CEO? Master, I have attained enlightenment!]

[After seeing Vice President Xuan, I feel like every other actor's performance will pale in comparison. I don't think any actor can portray Vice President Xuan's aura. It's incredible. Vice President Xuan is the overbearing CEO, while our President Cai is a noble young master from an aristocratic family—elegant and refined, yet still able to keep Vice President Xuan in check.]

[Hehe, on the surface President Cai keeps Vice President Xuan in check, but in private... These two have such an obvious size difference. Haven't you noticed?]

[I noticed. Vice President Xuan has such broad shoulders, he looks so safe. President Cai is so pretty, I want to kiss him, hehe.]

[You want to kiss President Cai? You really aren't afraid of dying, huh.]

The comments flew by at lightning speed, while the viewer count surged.

On Weibo, the trending topics [#VicePresidentXuanGaze#] and [#XuanYuRealOverbearingCEO#] also shot upward into the top ranks.

Confused passersby clicked in, then immediately widened their eyes. Holy shit, that really was an overbearing CEO!

Then, following those trending searches to the third season of The Actors, the viewership broke through another threshold.

The third season of The Actors was destined to become a hit. Nothing could stop it.

And this was only the beginning.

Sure enough, with Xuan Yu's dazzling example before them, no matter how well the actors performed the "overbearing CEO" prompt afterward, they somehow paled in comparison. Even if they were not compared with Xuan Yu, President Cai was still there—a different kind of overbearing CEO altogether.

No matter how the actors chose to interpret the role—cold and ruthless overbearing CEOs, gentle yet scheming overbearing CEOs, or other styles—the comparison with Cai Jinbai and Xuan Yu was rather brutal. The actresses did somewhat better, and their final scores were a little higher.

Even some of the judges joked, "If it were President Cai and President Xuan, I would give full marks."

[Hahaha, I'd give full marks too. Those two don't even need to act. Just sitting there, they already are overbearing CEOs.]

The third season of The Actors aired once a week, on Saturdays.

The number of people watching the livestream that day was already astonishing. The next day, trending topics kept appearing, and the replay began taking over major platforms.

Watching the popularity and discussion surrounding it, Director Zheng smiled so broadly every day that his gums showed.

Taking advantage of the momentum, the production team pressed on and further refined the actors' styling, costumes, and set designs.

Lou Xiaoxiao recommended it to her classmates in the group chat: [Have you all watched the third season of The Actors? It's definitely different from the first two seasons. The competition is very transparent and fair. Though in my heart, Vice President Xuan played the best overbearing CEO, the final champion truly deserved it too, hahaha.]