CEO's Sweetheart is a Super Idol-Chapter 354 - 346 Internal Chaos

After the audience had dispersed,

all the staff came to find the 11 members for a group photo. During the recording of the program, many staff members cried terribly, especially the editors.

"Xiao Yue, it’s over."

"Yeah, it’s over. Three months—like a dream."

Yang Xiaoyue sat blankly in the control room, feeling this kind of empty fatigue for the first time.

"The show as a whole went according to our planned trajectory." As the chief screenwriter, Sun Miao thought about things much more deeply than others.

The reason she said this was to remind Yang Xiaoyue to start preparing for the second season.

"Xiao Miao, there won’t be a second season."

"Won’t there?"

"Not for us. The second season will be handled by Penguin’s own production team."

Sun Miao froze for a moment as she listened to Yang Xiaoyue’s words, then smiled bitterly.

"They really know how to kick people to the curb after using them!"

"It’s fine. We can still go to another company," Yang Xiaoyue said nonchalantly. Ever since she failed to win the operation rights, she knew Penguin would inevitably push her out.

"Xiao Miao, let’s go! We need to attend the celebration banquet."

Sun Miao suddenly felt very upset, her throat constricting a bit. But she understood—this was business, unrelated to personal feelings.

Many times, when filming a project, people say that some actors become so deeply immersed in their characters that they can’t snap out of it afterward. But who would’ve thought that staff members experience this, too?

At the banquet hall,

the 11 members were on the verge of collapse as they received congratulations from Penguin’s higher-ups.

The entire program had been a massive success, and Wan Kai had gained considerable recognition throughout the company.

Meanwhile, Penguin’s board of directors was also highly praising the talent show.

Not only was Wan Kai present, but Penguin’s highest-ranking executive had also arrived and was speaking with a slightly nervous Long Zitao.

"Zitao, you’ve done very well this time."

"It’s what I should do."

"We’ll have long-term collaborations in the future."

Hearing these words, Long Zitao couldn’t help but feel extremely excited.

His current focus wasn’t on acting and singing anymore, but on investments.

Although he held significant influence, it was limited to Deep City.

Compared to this big-shot who could sway the entire Huaxia, Zitao was still far behind.

Wan Kai also smiled and said, "Zitao, you’ll need to perform well going forward."

"Of course, Mr. Wan. I’ll make sure of it," Long Zitao immediately pledged.

Elsewhere, Zhou Dan was chatting with Lv Fangxin and the others.

All the girls had learned that she was their team’s manager now.

"It was perfect. Today’s performance was absolutely outstanding." Zhou Dan praised them generously.

Meng Meixuan and the others were thrilled as well. Naturally, they treated Zhou Dan enthusiastically, knowing she was in charge of managing them.

"Mr. Zhou, when are we releasing a new song?" Meng Meixuan asked.

Everyone else stopped talking when they heard her ask such a formal question.

In everyone’s hearts, since she was the center position, it was only natural for her to lead in official contexts.

Zhou Dan smiled and replied, "It’s already planned out. Don’t worry about that. Tomorrow, you’ll be participating in Tomato Channel’s program, ’Graduation Song.’"

Everyone was stunned upon hearing this.

Lv Fangxin was shocked. Wasn’t this just throwing them onto the stage with barely any rehearsal time? They’d only gotten five or six days to practice here, and now, they were expected to perform as soon as the group had formed!

"Mr. Zhou, can’t we get some rest?" Yang Ni couldn’t help but ask.

During this period, the others were mostly physically drained, but Yang Ni felt both mentally and physically exhausted.

Ye Yuwei couldn’t hold back either and said, "Mr. Zhou, we haven’t had any group cohesion or focused rehearsal time. Our stage performance might turn out underwhelming, and isn’t the first showcase meant to debut a new song?"

Zhou Dan observed the reactions of the girls, and a fleeting, unreadable expression crossed her gaze.

"I understand you’re all very tired, and I acknowledge your concerns. But this is how the entertainment industry works. If we don’t ride the momentum to appear on more shows now, we won’t have any platforms to perform later."

Ye Yuwei couldn’t help but feel her heart tremble at these words.

She understood Zhou Dan’s meaning—this was about treating them like fast-moving commodities.

Although they were idols, without lasting works, their chances of maintaining a foothold were slim.

Just as Long Zitao had mentioned, while they were popular now, what would happen once the thrill faded?

Wu Meng and several others also wore grim expressions, while the rest showed their displeasure.

These girls were all perceptive; how could they not grasp the underlying message?

Yet, with the contracts in their hands, there was nothing they could do.

Seeing how stifling the atmosphere had become, Zhou Dan tried to lighten the mood with a reassuring smile. "Let’s offer a toast to everyone here, then you can all head back to rest. Tomorrow at 10 a.m., we’ll catch a flight."

Ye Yuwei glanced at the wall clock. It was already 4 a.m.

She could only follow Zhou Dan’s instructions and bid farewell with a toast to everyone present.

Lv Fangxin wanted to continue chatting with Chen Yinghan, but staff members hurriedly pulled her away.

The same went for the other girls—they didn’t even have a chance to exchange a few words with familiar teammates and friends.

Meanwhile, night owl Li Ke was just about to go to bed when he habitually refreshed the "Heavenly Gifted Girl" official website. He suddenly saw an announcement that shocked and angered him.

Heavenly Gifted Girl 505 would be participating in tomorrow’s Tomato Channel program, "Graduation Song."

What? They just formed the group today, and tomorrow they’re going on a show? Big Ship Entertainment really knows how to play this game.

Zhou Dan’s company was called "Big Ship Entertainment," so fans abbreviated it to "Big Ship."

Originally planning to sleep, Li Ke now felt increasingly anxious. He was aware of Lv Fangxin’s capabilities.

At the same time, he was deeply concerned for this newly formed group.

Fans of Lv Fangxin, Ye Yuwei, and Lai Ruoxuan tended to be group-centric, looking at situations more rationally and comprehensively compared to fans of other individuals.

Li Ke noticed that Meng Meixuan and Yang Ni’s fans were currently venting their frustrations on Lv Fangxin.

They claimed that the upcoming performance would undoubtedly be ruined by her and that she would just drag the entire group down.

Their remarks were venomous, as if failure was already a foregone conclusion and Lv Fangxin was the culprit.

They even mocked Ye Yuwei, saying, "Isn’t she supposed to be capable? Let’s see how she manages to carry her ’besties’ through this performance."

The level of maliciousness in these comments was truly absurd.

Li Ke didn’t bother engaging with these people. At that moment, he stumbled upon an article that deeply resonated with him:

I’m a fan of Ye Yuwei, and when the group was formed, I became a fan of them as a team.

Penguin’s handling of this situation is nothing short of draining the pond to catch the fish, exploiting these girls’ popularity.

They initially promised to create "Huaxia’s Number One Girl Group." Is this their method?

If their debut flops, what do Penguin’s executives gain from it?

How can we fans cope with this?

Maybe you regard them as disposable commodities for quick cash, but we believe they can become legends in the entertainment industry.

From the finals to now, only two days have passed. Considering the challenges they’ve overcome in the competition, the physical and mental strain must be immense.

We hope Penguin will let them rest; only then can they deliver a high-quality performance.

To all who love this group—whether you support an individual or the team—do you want Penguin to gamble with your ’idols’ like this?

We are not enemies. The real enemy is the entity trying to squeeze every last bit of value from these girls, exploiting their popularity until they’re drained, only to discard them when they’ve served their purpose—that Penguin.

Let’s stand together and resist.

Upon reading this, Li Ke felt like the author had voiced his innermost feelings.

He immediately shared the post and started composing his own messages in support.

But within half an hour,

the internet was flooded with marketing accounts spreading articles slandering Lv Fangxin as the group’s liability.

Many even went to the Weibo accounts of Meng Meixuan, Wu Meng, and Ye Yuwei to ridicule them.

Li Ke inspected these accounts and quickly realized they were bots, evidently set up to stir conflict.

He didn’t know who was orchestrating these malicious actions, but many fans of the girls took them seriously, reacting by both condemning Penguin and fighting among themselves, attacking their idols’ teammates.