Chapter 2107 - 2105: The Hall of All O (It’s Been Raining Since Yesterday)

As for the subsequent experiences of Aki Tomoya, Fang Zheng didn’t pay much attention. However, according to what he heard from others, Aki Tomoya was sued again afterwards. This time, no one was able to help him, yet even so, Aki Tomoya still did not go to prison.

Because during the trial, a psychiatric appraisal found Aki Tomoya to have mania and dangerous aggressive tendencies. As a result, the court ultimately determined that Aki Tomoya had a mental illness and sent him to a psychiatric hospital for treatment...

Of course, this had nothing to do with Fang Zheng.

Incidentally, as a gesture of care towards Michiru Hyodo, he had his agency sign a development agreement with her band, requiring them to undergo training and learning over the next year. After all, the band was entirely made up of amateurs, and they were still far from being ready for a formal debut.

When it comes to idol training, Fang Zheng actually leans more towards Junko Konno’s perspective, which is that idols need extensive study and accumulation before they can debut once they have developed their skills. Although in today’s rapidly digitized society, idol groups like AKB48, which grow along with their fans, are not uncommon, as someone born in almost the same era as Junko, Fang Zheng clearly appreciates idols who have real prowess themselves.

As for the idea of growing with fans, Fang Zheng considers it utter nonsense. Things like AKB just serve to boost traffic and topics; how much real skill do they have? Fang Zheng still remembers the entertainment stars of his childhood, who truly excelled in singing, acting, and dancing. Real strength is the foundation of existence. Back then, the songs and TV series performed by those entertainment superstars could remain popular for years, if not over a decade. And those internet celebrities?

They go out of vogue in a year, fall apart in three, and in five years, no one even remembers if they existed.

What kind of idol superstar is that?

Of course, some would argue that the idols who grow still train. Oh, they work so hard, even practicing when they have a fever of 42 degrees... What good is that?

Back then, people trained 24 hours a day. Now, these pop stars spend three hours working on a show, three hours on TV, three hours at a signing event, and then spend three more hours training—what effect can that possibly have?

When Fang Zheng was managing 765, he also followed the principle of one week of training for one day on stage, which is how he developed them. Do you think the saying "ten years of practice for one minute on stage" is a joke?

So Fang Zheng despised the AKB group model of Yasushi Akimoto, which completely treats idol stars as fast-moving consumer goods, akin to scammers, swindling those who are foolish. After all, there are 7 billion people on Earth, and as long as there are enough fools, the scammers can make a fortune—which is essentially no different from a Ponzi scheme.

Moreover, in Fang Zheng’s opinion, stars should attract fans with their skills. What about things like internal group voting? That’s just forcing idols to pander to fans. How is it different from those brothel girls in ancient times, smiling fakely at their clients and saying, "Come back when you have time, sir, and be sure to ask for me again"?

Even the famous musicians of old knew how to sell their image. Do you think waving the banner of being "down-to-earth" can hide the essence of "pandering"?

Of course, entertainment companies have their own problems. Developing a qualified idol takes too much time and money and has too much instability. If a company invests tens of millions in a person, and then this person has a problem or a scandal that ruins them, it’s like those tens of millions are flushed down the drain.

By contrast, fools are indeed the majority in this world, male and female. As long as the girls in the girl group are a bit cute and youthful, and the boys in the boy band are a bit tender and handsome, there’s no need for skill or training, and they can earn loads of money. It’s huge profits with no investment. Compared to the exhausting and unrewarding task of nurturing superstars, this is much more convenient and easier to make money.

All those boys and girls chasing boy bands or girl groups are essentially no different from the old men and women who get deceived by Ponzi schemes.

Of course, this is why there are virtually no more Emperor Superstars or triple-threat stars in modern times.

On this point, Fang Zheng and Junko Konno can be said to be like-minded, both believing that those pop idols are simply an insult to the audience’s intelligence and aesthetics. But Junko Konno, after all, was just a regular little idol, and she turned into a zombie after her death, lacking influence.

But Fang Zheng is different!

Laozi has money, so he can be willful! If he wants to train a few, he will; if he wants to spend money, he will. Losses don’t matter; he can just get more from the FBI if needed.

So Fang Zheng gave Michiru Hyodo and her group a strict order: train to death. Only when they’re qualified can they go on stage. If they’re unqualified for a day, they shouldn’t expect to debut for a day. If they never qualify, then they can get lost!

That commercial model of Yasushi Akimoto, treating idols like brothel commodities? Laozi doesn’t fancy it at all.

After putting Michiru Hyodo and her crew through special training in Hell, Fang Zheng conveniently headed over to the Yamada Elf’s place. After all, she mentioned wanting to discuss a new book with him, but...

"Is this the place?"

Fang Zheng looked at the address in his hand and then at the house in front of him, which was covered in ivy and looked like a Ghost House.

Although he could sense that there were indeed living beings inside, just from the exterior, it definitely looked like a Ghost House.

The front gate was also rusty. Doesn’t anyone come to help with maintenance?

Fang Zheng pushed open the iron gate and walked into the yard. But at this moment, he suddenly heard the sound of a piano coming from inside the house.

Hmm? This is...?

Hearing the piano sound, Fang Zheng curiously walked towards the source of the sound. He came to a window, peered inside, and the scene before him left Fang Zheng speechless.

He saw that in the empty room, there was a piano, and in front of it, a petite figure with golden-blonde hair was sitting, immersed in playing. If that’s all there was, it would still be okay. But what left Fang Zheng speechless was... the figure was completely naked, wearing no clothes at all!

What the heck?

Seeing this, Fang Zheng was also at a loss. He silently walked to the front door and rang the doorbell.

Soon, Yamada Elf’s voice came from the doorbell.

"Who is it? If you want a manuscript, there isn’t one now!"

"It’s me."

"Eh?!"

Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s reply, the voice on the other side immediately became tense.

"Fang, Mr. Fang Zheng? Please wait! I’ll be ready in a moment!"

Soon after, accompanied by a clattering noise, a while later the dressed Yamada Elf finally opened the door and appeared in front of Fang Zheng.

"Ha... Mr. Fang Zheng, you really startled me. Why didn’t you call before coming?"

"I was just passing by and thought I’d drop in... What’s up with you? If you’re going to play the piano, just play it; why aren’t you wearing clothes?"

"Because... because... it’s my hobby!"

"...Ha?"

"After taking a bath, playing the piano in the nude brings wonderful stories to my mind, doesn’t it?"

"Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold before that?"

Faced with Yamada Elf’s smug reply, Fang Zheng helplessly reached out to press his forehead.

"Also, although I don’t have to criticize others’ interests, you are quite unguarded. What if someone else secretly records it and blackmails you?"

"..."

"Hey? Are you listening to me?"

"That’s it!"

However, what Fang Zheng didn’t expect was that at this moment, Yamada Elf suddenly jumped up and cheered loudly.

"That’s it! Mr. Fang Zheng, you’re truly my savior!!"

"...What the heck?"

Can’t we just talk normally?

Afterward, Yamada Elf invited Fang Zheng into her house, then prepared some refreshments before she started to speak excitedly, gesturing animatedly.

"Honestly, I’ve been stuck on ideas for my new book! But just now, hearing what you said, Mr. Fang Zheng, I suddenly thought of a great idea!"

"Oh? Let’s hear it."

"It’s like this—the protagonist is a pure-hearted young boy who loves photography. Then, on his way to school, he encounters a beautiful girl with no facial expression. This girl moves the protagonist’s heart, and he wants her to be his model, so he follows her to her house, hoping to meet her and get her approval. Unexpectedly, he sees the girl playing music in the nude, and he can’t control himself, so he captures the moment!"

Upon saying this, Yamada Elf excitedly clenched her fists, while Fang Zheng curiously raised his eyebrow.

"Oh? What happens next?"

"Normally, like you said, Mr. Fang Zheng, he could use the photo to blackmail the girl, but he’s a pure-hearted young boy who feels that such secret photography is wrong, so he goes to apologize to the girl. But to the protagonist’s surprise, the seemingly pure and innocent icy beauty is actually a hentai manga artist! She notices the protagonist’s photography skills and instead uses ’If you don’t listen to me, I’ll release the photo and say you’re a peeping tom’ as leverage, wanting him to be her research assistant! Then, a wonderfully entertaining romantic comedy unfolds between them!"

Having said all this in one breath, Yamada Elf was incredibly excited.

"How about it, Mr. Fang Zheng!?"

"Hmm... it sounds indeed intriguing."

After hearing Yamada Elf’s pitch, Fang Zheng thought for a moment and nodded. Indeed, the collision between a seemingly pure but experienced hentai manga artist female lead and a pure, simple photographer male lead could produce quite a comedic effect... From this standpoint, Yamada Elf being a bestselling author isn’t without reason.

At least the opening is very captivating.

"Well, I’m looking forward to your story..."

"Hehehe... don’t worry, oh, but Mr. Fang Zheng, there’s one more thing I need your help with."

"What is it?"

"I hope Eiriri can illustrate the novel."

"Illustrate?"

"Yes, I’m mainly discussing this with you now. I initially wanted to ask Eiriri, but she said she’s busy helping you with something... So I want to ask..."

"Oh, I see."

Hearing this, Fang Zheng finally understood Yamada Elf’s intention.

"No problem, I’ll talk to her. She doesn’t have anything else pending right now; you can contact her directly."