January 1st — a brand new year.
All across Da Zhou, the nation observed a collective public holiday.
Despite the biting cold and a fresh flurry of snow falling from the overcast sky, the streets were buzzing with life and celebration.
Vendors lined the roads, selling fried potatoes, beef patties, spring rolls, candied hawthorn skewers… and children bundled up in thick winter coats chased each other through the open squares, building snowmen.
Although the people of Da Zhou still leaned more traditional, placing greater importance on the Lunar New Year, celebrations for the Gregorian calendar's New Year had been growing steadily over the last few decades.
Of course, the liveliness outside had little to do with the 'Your Lie in April' production crew.
With only six days left before the show's premiere, Episode 1 was already around 80–90% complete, lacking only the finishing touches in post-production. Episode 2 was also well underway, with its remaining school-life scenes currently being filmed under tight schedules.
Jing Yu was now running a strict three-location routine daily:
The writer's office
The recording studio
The film set
"How was it this time?"
Jing Yu stepped out of the recording booth, wiping sweat from his brow and putting down the violin.
"Amazing."
"You're a legend, Jing Yu."
"This performance is perfect for Episode 1. No doubt the response will be huge."
"Seriously… you're incredible."
These weren't empty compliments. The employees weren't trying to suck up—they were simply stunned by the performance. The emotional depth in Jing Yu's rendition far surpassed anything their hired violinists had recorded.
Music Director Chen Limin set down his headphones.
"Perfect. That last take doesn't need any further editing—we can slot it straight into the episode."
Chen Limin looked at Jing Yu with undisguised admiration.
After several days of working together, Jing Yu's attitude, efficiency, and raw ability had completely blown away his expectations.
"Let's keep up the pace," Jing Yu said, using a towel to wipe sweat from his temples.
"We've only got six days left. And just in case something goes wrong, we should be prepping the teaser trailers for broadcast, too. I'll work with the editing team and stay late if needed."
He was clearly exhausted.
Even though he wasn't moving around much, playing the violin—properly—was still physically demanding.
"Of course. Thank you for your hard work, Jing Yu," Chen Limin replied quickly.
Just then, Liu Neng walked through the door.
Jing Yu could tell something was up and walked over on his own.
"Jing Yu," Liu started directly,
"Episode 1 is about to air, and Episode 2 is already in post. How's that Episode 3 script coming along?"
"No need to worry. It'll be done by tomorrow."
Liu had been concerned that Jing Yu, juggling three roles—writer, actor, and now music producer—might fall behind on the scriptwriting. After all, Jing Yu had insisted on handling the scripts alone, refusing help from the station's writing team.
But no matter how good everything else looked, the script was still the soul of a drama.
Without it, everything else was just set dressing.
Hearing Jing Yu's calm assurance, Liu finally relaxed.
"Starting the day after tomorrow, the station will begin airing 'Your Lie in April's teaser trailers during prime time," Liu continued.
"Then, just like with 'My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday', we'll appear on some station talk shows to promote the premiere."
"Huh. I honestly thought the station was going to ignore us—just let 'Your Lie in April' quietly air and hope for the best."
Jing Yu chuckled, but there was a hint of meaning in his words.
"No way. They still invested over ten million yuan," Liu said, smiling wryly.
"This is just standard procedure. Every in-house drama gets this treatment. Viewers across Lan Province—and even throughout Da Zhou—keep an eye out for new quarterly shows. Whether a drama suits their taste or not, they usually decide based on these trailers and promos."
"Ours is just the basic package," he added.
"Dangerous Girlfriend, though? That one's got the full deluxe treatment. Because of Xu Xiangwen, media outlets outside the province are covering it too. Film critics have been writing columns and airing reviews. There's even speculation that it might—and I do mean might—make it into the Top 20 national ratings for the spring season."
That was no small feat.
Across Da Zhou, there were dozens of satellite TV stations broadcasting nationwide. Every evening after 7 p.m.—the golden time slot—they all aired new dramas.
Exclude reruns and syndicated content, and still, over a hundred new dramas would debut each quarter.
And the Top 20?
Those were nearly always dominated by the biggest stations—especially giants like Xingtong TV.
Their weekend dramas took the top slots, and their weekday dramas filled the rest of the rankings.
For a mid-tier station like Jin Hui TV, breaking into that list was practically unheard of.
Even if a Jin Hui show aired during their prime time, it couldn't compete with a big station airing even a mediocre drama in an off-peak slot.
It was like comparing a no-name website to a major news outlet—the difference in exposure alone created a massive gap.
To illustrate:
Last year, Jin Hui's best-performing drama, aside from White Lover and 'My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday', had a peak average rating of 0.98%.
To make the Top 20 last spring, a drama needed an average rating of 2.06%.
So yeah—more than double.
But there were whispers that this spring might be different.
The big stations were still pushing their flagship titles, sure. But some of their weekday lineups looked noticeably weaker than last year's.
Critics were lowering their expectations.
So maybe—maybe—this year, the cutoff for the Top 20 could dip to around 1.8%.
If so, Dangerous Girlfriend, with its over 30 million yuan in investment, aggressive marketing, and the star power of Xu Xiangwen, had a decent shot at squeezing in.
"So what's the big deal about being in the Top 20 anyway?"
Jing Yu asked, genuinely curious.
Liu Neng blinked, then smiled.
"You know about Da Zhou University of Science and Technology, right?"
"Of course. One of the top-ranked schools in the country."
"Right. But do you know which school ranks 41st?"
Jing Yu was silent for a moment.
"Exactly," Liu continued.
"The Top 40 are classified as key universities. The 41st? Not even close in name recognition—even if the difference is just one spot. The same logic applies here."
"If a writer says they made a show that landed #20 on the national ratings chart, they could take that resume to Modu, to the capital, anywhere—and people will pay attention."
"But if they only hit #21? Even if the difference in ratings is just a few tenths of a point, it's still considered a miss. That's the line between 'made it' and 'better luck next time.'"
He looked directly at Jing Yu.
"So now you understand just how ridiculous your original ratings target for 'Your Lie in April' sounded, right?"
An average of 2%?
If they really managed that, not only would 'Your Lie in April' make the Top 20—it would mark a career milestone for every single person in the crew.
Cast, staff, post-production, marketing… everyone would get a boost in the industry.
Jing Yu, as both writer and lead actor, would gain a shining highlight on his portfolio.
For Liu Neng? It meant he could walk into any mid-tier station in the country and get hired on the spot.
Only places like Xingtong or other major broadcasters might expect even more.
But that was all just a fantasy… right?
The reality was that Jin Hui TV lacked the nationwide appeal of stations like Xingtong.
A 2% rating for them was like climbing a mountain in a rainstorm—with weights strapped to your back.
Even Dangerous Girlfriend, with all its funding, big-name actress, and external media coverage, might just barely get in.
And that was only possible thanks to Xu You, who'd used every trick in the book to funnel resources to Jiang Shiqing's show.
Meanwhile… Chu You?
Liu Neng was getting fed up with that guy.
Not a peep. No moves, no push. Nothing.
"So that's what this is really about," Jing Yu murmured, nodding.
"Being ranked in the Top 20 means everything for stations like ours."
"Exactly," Liu agreed.
"And I know you and Jiang Shiqing have history. But there's no rush—careers are long. We don't have to beat him right now. All we need to do is outperform our own past. If 'Your Lie in April' gets higher numbers than Jin Hui's usual Friday dramas, that alone will be a win."
"Producer Liu," Jing Yu said, smiling slightly.
"Let's not sell ourselves short. I'm an optimist, you see. I know this world doesn't guarantee anything… but even so—"
"'Your Lie in April' will not lose to Dangerous Girlfriend."