~ "Who am I, behind the mirror's smile? A face they crave, a voice they don't hear "~
~ "But if the stage is mine to claim, Then let them listen, not just leer" ~
Guangxian Media's promotion strategy was the same tired formula: buy fake engagement, blast media outlets with announcements, stir up gossip. This time, the spotlight was squarely on Chu Zhi, with lead actor Hu Fengchi pushed to the side.
Hu Fengchi: …Seriously?
"This won't work," Fei-ge said firmly. "If we market it like Chu-ge's the main lead, we're deceiving fans."
It wasn't unheard of—poster-boy baiting a film with a more famous face despite a minor role. Liu Dehua once did it for The Last Eunuch of China, where his name was in bold, but he only appeared at the end. That film at least had quality.
The problem was, Fei-ge had zero faith in this drama's quality.
Thanks to Chu Zhi's A-list status, his team had enough clout to say no. Lesser-known actors? They'd have to bite the bullet.
Fei-ge remembered the team's internal note: "Do not exaggerate acting skills." That came directly from Chu Zhi.
"Good is good. Bad is bad. I'm just a glorified background prop in this one. If you try to hype something I didn't do, it's like rubbing the audience's IQ into the dirt."
Fei-ge read between the lines. Chu Zhi was saying: don't fake the acting. But the looks? That's fair game.
Sun, the producer from Guangxian, didn't argue. He probably expected the pushback. This kind of tentative pitch was just tossing a stone into the water to see if it made waves. No loss either way—worst case, a few interns would lose some hair.
Soon, both sides agreed on a revised promo plan. Guangxian launched the campaign. Headlines flooded social media:
Tencent News: "The First Chinese Film to Explore Visual Kei Rock—Call from the Center of the World"
Sohu: "Rock Lives On—China's Take on Glam Rock"
Baidu Entertainment: "Chu Zhi's Special Appearance, Hu Fengchi and Cheng Yun Reunite as the Silver Screen's Hottest Duo"
NetEase: "Director Zhang Guti's Latest—A Unique Take on Plastic Surgery and Post-Op Careers. Destined to Go Viral"
Every outlet was pouring sugar like their rent depended on it.
The poster had Chu Zhi and Hu Fengchi flanking the lead actress Cheng Yun, arms outstretched toward her.
"Are you still yourself?"
"Rock King? They only see my face."
"I'll use my voice to make them listen."
Those were the tagline quotes for the three roles.
Even after heavy Photoshop, Hu Fengchi looked painfully outmatched. Chu Zhi's face didn't just steal the show. It made sharing the same poster feel cruel.
With buzz at full volume, the series dropped at 8 PM on Penguin Video.
The views soared. Partly due to the misleading trailer that leaned heavily on Chu Zhi, partly because Chu Zhi's brand power could carry any project on its back. His fanbase—nicknamed the Little Fruits—were already charging in like a tidal wave.
Why pay Chu Zhi one million for two days of work and 20 minutes of screen time? Because he was worth every cent.
Two hours in, the show had already hit 80 million views.
Fei-ge checked it out after getting home. The more he watched, the more his face twitched.
"I thought I had high resistance to trash TV," he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "I was wrong. So wrong."
If he weren't such a cautious person online, he might have snapped already. Instead, he quietly logged into Douban.
Douban username: Third-Gen Corpse Fisher
Bio: Speak cautiously. Act even more so.
Reviews came in fast and sharp. The series had a debut score of 5.3.
Reyn (2 stars):"I thought it'd be a love triangle—two male leads fighting over the girl. I mean, who wouldn't fall for Chu Zhi's face? But no, it's about plastic surgery. And not the good kind."
Yu Yanyan (1.5 stars):"Main guy's so over-the-top it hurts. Where's his agent? Chu Zhi's long hair though—wow. Not soft and effeminate, just... deadly good-looking."
Lantern Master (3 stars):"The line 'they only see my face' was cheesy as hell, but somehow... Chu Zhi made it work? It's like the drama is called Too Handsome So I Had to Get Ugly."
Jun_01004 (2 stars):"A fresh grad throws her resume in the CEO's face? With no sugar daddy backing her up? Please. Only thing worth watching is Chu Zhi's face. I'm weak for handsome men, sue me."
Mo-ke (3 stars):"If Chu Zhi didn't play this role, I wouldn't buy it. He should be cast as a celestial emperor, the most beautiful immortal in six realms. Anyone else? Hard pass."
And so on.
Fei-ge nearly posted: "Trash plot, trash writing, only Chu Zhi's cameo is watchable. Can someone please clip just his parts?"
But he stopped himself.
He'd learned his lesson back in high school, during an online harassment case.
Back then, a female classmate was seen with the school principal. Photos were leaked showing them close together. People started accusing her of being a sugar baby.
Fei-ge did some digging. The girl and the principal had different last names, and her parents were migrant workers. No connection.
But that didn't stop him—and a wave of self-righteous users—from piling on.
Later, the principal clarified: the girl was his biological daughter. She had been kidnapped at age three and only recently found.
It didn't matter. The girl's identity was exposed, her photos spread like wildfire, and the internet never apologized.
That incident made Fei-ge a cautious man online.
Back to today: the show broke 130 million views on Day 1, landing three trending hashtags:
#PlasticSurgeryGoneWrong
#KillMeNowLeadSinger
#PetitionForChuZhiLongHairForever
Two were directly about Chu Zhi. The third wasn't even about the plot.
That last hashtag? Over 300,000 comments in one night. Meanwhile, the drama's actual discussion page barely broke 40,000.
Call from the Center of the World exploded with attention—feeding reaction videos and meme-fodder to Bilibili content creators and social media trolls alike.
The show's quality didn't matter. Fandom loyalty always found a way to defend their idols.
And Chu Zhi's fans? They didn't even bother. He was just a guest star. The real fans, the die-hard Little Fruits, kept quiet. No PR push, no arguments. They just enjoyed the visuals.
Because no matter what the script says, beauty is always the sharpest scythe in the fan-collecting game.
This time though, it didn't reap much new ground.
Chu Zhi's looks were already widely acknowledged. If anything, he had normalized the aesthetic.
To truly expand the fanbase, he had to break out of the bubble.