Chapter 11

The show continued airing with the new cast member, but the already filmed content still had to be broadcast.

Since the network knew Wei Sheng had gained popularity, they still wanted to use his face to draw in viewers. In the second episode, they even gave him a dedicated 80-second long shot at the beginning.

Realizing how profitable reselling was, on the third day, Wei Sheng expanded his business beyond dried poplar mushrooms. He started collecting dried gourds, string beans, eggplants, and radishes from the locals. With a few phone calls, he sold over a thousand pounds of these local specialties.

One of the show’s highlight moments was a long shot of Wei Sheng skillfully using an abacus while weighing goods. He calculated the cost to the decimal point, stunning the production team. Viewers rewatched this scene the most online.

Producer Wang Yang and the director were furious. They knew the show’s success was riding on Wei Sheng, but when Wang Yang took the data to Vice Director Pu Xiangdong, not only did he fail to reinstate Wei Sheng, but he was also assigned a new task—writing a hit script for Pu’s favored newcomer, Cheng Xinghui.

The director was outraged. “How? Can Cheng Xinghui use an abacus with one hand? Can he even do three-digit arithmetic?”

The new filming session was cursed. First, a flash flood delayed them, and when they finally borrowed a local van, they were charged 500 yuan per trip.

Then, upon arrival, Cheng Xinghui offended both the villagers and officials. The villagers had prepared a feast for them, but Cheng sneered, “You can afford all this food, but not a villa or indoor plumbing? I’ve never seen a rural area still using pit toilets!”

Even Chen Mengjie, a billionaire’s daughter, was stunned. Did he think farmers wouldn’t prefer better homes if they had the money? Worse, he might not even realize the feast was a collective effort from multiple households.

Angered by his remarks, the locals stopped letting them use their bathrooms and water. The region faced water scarcity, so they carefully reused every drop—washing faces, then feet, then saving the rest for crops.

By the afternoon, Cheng Xinghui refused to continue filming and demanded a hotel stay. The director explained there was no budget for hotels, and previous guests had also stayed in villagers’ homes. But Cheng didn’t care—he had his assistant drive him to the county for a hotel stay mid-shoot.

The entire crew was speechless.

Even Chen Mengjie was baffled. “Is Cheng Xinghui the new director’s savior or something?”

Wang Yang smirked. “He’s the pet of Zhu Mei, a wealthy fashion mogul close to our new station head.”

Chen Mengjie gagged. She knew Zhu Mei—a woman who climbed the social ladder by seducing rich men and kicking out their wives, only to start a new affair soon after her husband’s death.

Who would’ve thought? Less than a year after the old man was buried, Aunt Zhu had already found her second spring.

Maybe she’d just had enough of being with the old man all those years, because Aunt Zhu had a special fondness for young, handsome, sweet-talking little puppy boys. She liked them, sure, but she wasn’t foolish—she knew exactly what they were after. Spending some money or giving them resources was fine, but marriage? Splitting her assets? Absolutely not.

Looks like this Young Master Cheng was just one of many little puppy boys in Aunt Zhu’s harem!

(ˉ▽￣～) Tsk~~

Just a kept boy, yet he had the nerve to act so arrogant?

True rich woman Chen Mengjie was immediately displeased.

Happiness is all about comparison. Compared to Cheng Xinghui, who threw tantrums left and right with zero emotional intelligence, Wei Sheng was basically an undefeated little cutie, okay?

Everyone was really starting to miss Wei Sheng.

And where was Wei Sheng?

He was in the post-production department, staring blankly at the raw footage that had just been sent over with his colleagues.

“This… how the hell are we supposed to edit this? We air this, and the audience won’t just curse us out—they’ll tear us apart.”

This show followed a “shoot as we go, air as we go” model, and what they had just received was footage from the first day of filming at the location.

After watching the raw clips, Director Jiang was so furious her head hurt. She grabbed the phone and immediately called the producer, the two of them arguing over the line for a good while. The rest of the team was left staring in shock.

Honestly, variety shows always followed the same few formulas: either you became famous in a good way, a bad way, or a mix of both. Was Back to Hometown with My Bros really planning to take the controversial route?

After hanging up, Jiang Fei felt as if a dark cloud had descended over her entire being, like she was seconds away from going full villain mode. The post-production team could barely resist the urge to edit her into a blackened cartoon character and slap on some classic “returning home for revenge” background music.

Looking at her subordinates standing there like a bunch of dumb geese, Jiang Fei’s headache worsened.

“Wake up! We’re pulling an all-nighter tonight!”

“WHAT?!” The entire production team howled in despair.

“What are you whining about? Do you all not want your year-end bonuses anymore? The higher-ups said the new guest was personally brought in by our station head, so open your eyes and make sure they’re edited to look both outstanding and likable.”

The team thought back to that one particular guest they had just seen in the raw footage and nearly threw up their dinner.

What a disaster! With that kind of behavior, they had the audacity to push a “hardworking, kind, and positive” persona?

And they actually wanted to steal Wei Sheng’s fans?

Please! Wei Sheng had never even tried to craft a public persona!

Speaking of which, poor Wei Sheng…

Ever since he skyrocketed in popularity, some in the post-production department had made a few sour remarks. After all, they’d been working there for years, yet somehow, a newbie intern had managed to surpass them all.

They were both envious of Wei Sheng’s luck and convinced that if they had been the ones in his position—right when the audience’s attention was peaking—they might have gotten even bigger than him.

If they had blown up on the show, why the hell would they still be working as post-production techs?

They could’ve switched careers, signed with an agency, or even transferred within the network. J Province TV Station had its own entertainment company—any of those paths would be better than staying in post-production!

But unfortunately, this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity had landed in Wei Sheng’s lap instead…

People in the system often had this mentality: when resources were readily available around them, they wouldn’t care. Even if the higher-ups handed them an opportunity, they’d hesitate, thinking, I make the same salary no matter how much work I do. Why give myself extra trouble? Mess up, and they might even get labeled as “not up to the task” by leadership.

But the moment someone they looked down on seized that same opportunity and shot to the top? That’s when the imbalance kicked in.

They all conveniently forgot that the “backup guest” slot was originally open for sign-ups within the station. No one wanted it, so the higher-ups had to force each department to send at least one person.

When Director Jiang pushed Wei Sheng forward as their department’s rep, everyone else had been secretly relieved. Thank god we just got a newbie. Otherwise, one of us might’ve been stuck with this chore.

Yet Wei Sheng had actually stepped up, taken the opportunity, and even saved the show from tanking. And now they were feeling salty about it?

While they were all busy being jealous, a little rumor started making rounds—

Apparently, now that the show was taking off, someone had pulled strings with station leadership to get an artist added to the lineup!

But the show had only four fixed guests. If someone was coming in, that meant someone had to be kicked out.

Word was, Wei Sheng had been the one replaced by that industry insider.

One second, his colleagues had been bitter. The next, they couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

Anyone with half a brain could see the show was about to explode in popularity. Once the fixed cast gained a fan base, they wouldn’t just be ordinary people anymore—they’d debut as celebrities on the spot.

Such an amazing opportunity… Poor Wei Sheng.

(End of Chapter)