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It was raining.
Raindrops the size of beans, driven by fierce winds, pounded against the glass windows. The dense pa-pa sounds woke Lu Chen from a deep sleep.
He opened his eyes and took a long, deep breath, feeling the warm, soft body in his arms. He couldn't help but feel a stir of desire.
They had been entwined several times the night before, and even now it still felt far from enough.
Still fast asleep, Chen Fei'er unconsciously let out a soft murmur, frowning and making dissatisfied hmph hmph sounds.
Lu Chen chuckled, lowered his head, and gently nibbled her jade-like earlobe. That finally woke the sleeping beauty, who swatted at Lu Chen's wandering hand as it roamed over her body.
"Annoying!"
Lu Chen hugged her tightly and said with a smile, "Go back to sleep."
But Chen Fei'er was fully awake now. She pouted and said, "I'm not a pig, how can I fall asleep just like that? What time is it?"
Lu Chen had no choice but to let her go. He turned over and picked up the phone placed by the bed.
He checked the time. "Ten thirty."
"Ah!"
Chen Fei'er cried out in shock and immediately sat up in bed, completely ignoring the fact that the thin blanket slid off her body, revealing a springtime scene.
"It's already this late? Get up, hurry!"
Lu Chen said lazily, "It's rare to get a day off. Stay with me and sleep a little longer."
Lately, his daily work schedule had been packed to the brim. He'd barely had any chances to spend time with Chen Fei'er. Being able to sleep in today was a rare treat for himself.
Life was about balance, stretching and relaxing. Pull the string too tight, and it would snap.
"You're the pig!"
Chen Fei'er refused to indulge him. She grabbed the clothes scattered by the bed and hurriedly put them on. "The premiere ratings for 'Full House' are already out, and you can still sleep? Hurry up and check them!"
She cared deeply about the second TV drama she and Lu Chen starred in. Last night, when it premiered simultaneously on Capital City TV and Zhedong Satellite TV, she had even gone home early on purpose to watch it.
This Heavenly Queen had a competitive fire burning in her heart, she hated losing!
Lu Chen sighed helplessly. "What's the difference between checking early or later? Checking early won't raise the ratings."
Chen Fei'er angrily pinched him. "Get up, now!"
Faced with the roar of the "lioness of Hedong," Lu Chen had no choice but to get up, wash up, and head into the study to turn on the computer.
"How is it?"
Chen Fei'er called out loudly while frying eggs and making breakfast in the kitchen, poking her head out as she spoke.
Lu Chen logged onto New Vision Company's website and quickly found a familiar title on the homepage rankings.
For 'Full House''s premiere episodes one and two:
On Zhedong Satellite TV, the ratings were 0.67% and 0.71% respectively.
On Capital City TV, they were 0.43% and 0.45%.
The combined average rating was 1.13%, with a peak of 1.16%.
Ranked third!
And ranked first in domestic TV drama ratings was none other than Xiangnan Satellite TV's 'Vast Seas of Love'. Episodes three and four of that drama achieved ratings of 1.46% and 1.50%, averaging 1.48%.
A head-on clash on the same day and in the same time slot, 'Vast Seas of Love' surpassed 'Full House' by 0.32%.
That gap was no small matter, considering many TV dramas never even reached a peak rating of 0.3%.
Chen Fei'er brought over breakfast, looking deeply disappointed. "How could this happen?"
Lu Chen took the tray and set it aside, then pulled her into his arms and seated her on his lap. Smiling, he said, "It's only just begun. I'll call and ask about the ratings in Korea."
'Full House' had premiered simultaneously in China and South Korea, something unprecedented for a domestically produced drama.
While Lu Chen was on the phone, Chen Fei'er began tapping on the keyboard and opened Guangying.net.
Guangying was a well-known domestic community website, mainly focused on recommendations and reviews of films, television dramas, and books. Its "Guangying score" largely reflected a segment of the audience's evaluation of film and television works.
This segment of viewers mostly consisted of more artsy, petite-bourgeois netizens, so their ratings didn't necessarily correlate with box office results or TV ratings. Instead, they represented a particular critical orientation.
Chen Fei'er herself was a registered member of Guangying.net, of course, using an alternate account.
In the TV section, she quickly found the review page for 'Full House'.
So far, a total of 1,278 members had rated 'Full House', with an average score of 8.7 out of 10!
That score genuinely surprised Chen Fei'er.
Although Guangying was a niche website, its rating system was very strict. Even registered members needed sufficient seniority points before they could rate films, TV dramas, or books. This largely eliminated score manipulation and cheating.
Moreover, the site administrators handled abnormal data promptly. So while Guangying's ratings couldn't represent the mainstream audience, they still carried a certain degree of authority.
Most Guangying members were urban white-collar professionals who preferred artistic works and were often dismissive of trendy idol dramas. For a TV series like 'Full House' to earn a high score there was truly no easy feat.
It was worth noting that 'Autumn in My Heart' had a Guangying score of 7.5, and its reviews were extremely polarized, those who loved it praised it to the skies, while those who disliked it loathed it intensely.
The reasons for dislike included melodramatic plotlines, abusive romance, and the death of the heroine.
By contrast, 'Full House' was clearly rated much higher than 'Autumn in My Heart', with a large number of positive reviews.
"Watched 'Full House' last night. At the very least, the story hooked me, so I'm giving it an 8.5."
"A modern Cinderella-and-prince story, thumbs up to the screenwriter for bringing freshness to an old trope."
"I feel Chen Fei'er's acting has improved significantly. She's better here than in 'Autumn in My Heart'."
"Lu Chen has serious star presence. I'm giving it a 9 just for him!"
"Jeju Island's scenery is very beautiful."
As she browsed through the comments section for 'Full House', a joyful smile appeared on Chen Fei'er's face.
She had debuted many years ago and experienced both glory and hardship. She was long past being easily shaken by praise or criticism. But for this TV drama, into which she had poured immense effort and dedication, she held great expectations and hoped to earn recognition and affection from the audience.
To better portray the heroine of 'Full House', Chen Fei'er had even invited two highly respected senior figures in the industry to coach her acting.
Her hard work had clearly not been in vain.
After finishing with 'Full House''s scores and reviews, Chen Fei'er clicked on 'Vast Seas of Love'.
6.2 points!
In stark contrast to the ratings battle, where 'Vast Seas of Love' had firmly outperformed 'Full House', its Guangying score lagged far behind, trailing by a wide margin. With over 3,000 members voting, the average score had only just scraped past 6.
That kind of word-of-mouth was barely passable.
Although Chen Fei'er knew very well that Guangying's ratings couldn't represent mainstream opinion, and that plenty of highly rated works still flopped, her lingering sense of frustration instantly vanished.
At the very least, it was a good start, wasn't it?
(End of Chapter)