After episode 3 of 'Kaiji' aired, the drama's popularity exploded across the board.
Though it wasn't airing on TV, its buzz and discussion levels were equal to — if not greater than — those of mainstream television series.
This… left the Big Six TV networks feeling sour.
What the hell is this?!
Even without partnering with Yunteng TV, Jing Yu's new show was still shaking up the scene.
Especially frustrating was when high-level executives at the Big Six clicked into their own official websites — and saw their long-time loyal viewers posting comments discussing 'Kaiji' in their own comment sections.
Your network's flagship drama gets zero engagement,
While people are on your site, hyping up a web-exclusive drama?
And the one most bitter about this? Yunteng TV.
For years, Jing Yu had been a close collaborator with Yunteng TV. But now he'd bought into Qingyun Video, and his new drama was not only being aired there — it was also doing well.
To Yunteng TV, it felt like something that should've been theirs had been stolen.
Disgusting.
In anger, Yunteng TV quietly cancelled its ad partnership with Qingyun for the next quarter. After all, Yunteng TV's largest viewer demographic was fans of Jing Yu's dramas, and Qingyun's advertisements constantly used his name as their main selling point.
That kind of promo was effectively a stab in the back.
Still, the entire Yunteng TV production department deeply missed the days when Jing Yu was making shows with them.
It wasn't just the network influence — the revenue from his works guaranteed everyone's salaries and bonuses.
After two quarters without him, Yunteng TV's execs even asked Meng Yu to stay in touch with Jing Yu and Cheng Lie, in hopes of reviving their collaboration in the near future.
Because this is how influence works — it creeps up without you noticing.
Two or three years ago, Jing Yu was still trying to get into the Big Six, and they were the ones doing the picking and choosing. But now?
None of the Big Six wanted their own shows competing head-on with Jing Yu's.
Whether it was Yunteng TV or the others — they were all watching closely, waiting to see what kind of scale Jing Yu's collaboration with Qingyun might achieve.
If this model worked, then frankly, not all the higher-ups were rigid old-timers.
They lived in a modern world. Many things didn't need to be taught — they'd figure it out on their own.
In Jing Yu's previous life, co-productions between TV networks and streaming platforms were common — airing a show both online and on TV.
That same idea had already occurred to some in Great Zhou.
Sunday night, 'Clannad' episode 3 aired.
To be honest, the first two episodes were basically slice-of-life with no central plot.
Jing Yu played the male lead, Tomoya Okazaki, a "completely average" high schooler who was obviously good-looking, but everyone around him pretended he was ordinary.
He wandered here and there every day, played pranks, and over two episodes, the audience came to know a bunch of characters:
His goofy best friend, Sunohara
Class rep Ryou Fujibayashi, the shy little sister
Her energetic older sister, Kyou Fujibayashi
From the next class over: cool and cute Tomoyo Sakagami, played by Xia Yining
And finally, the adorable oddball Fuko Ibuki, who spent her days carving starfish and getting pranked by the male lead.
Finally, it was clear: the soft-spoken girl who liked drama, Nagisa Furukawa, was the main heroine.
Honestly, the first two episodes were somewhat effective.
A lot of dramas struggle to even get the audience to remember the main character's name by the end. But this show had viewers remembering multiple names — thanks in no small part to the high visual quality of the casting.
But still — good looks only go so far. If a character has no personality, even a beautiful face won't save them.
(Not everyone can be Tifa — even people who've never played the game know her from somewhere.)
All that said, compared to 'Kaiji', the fan feedback on 'Clannad' was… lukewarm.
Not that it was bad, per se, but in terms of excitement and tension? This was easily one of the least engaging openings among Jing Yu's works.
The only one worse was 'Steins;Gate'.
Still, 'Clannad' had a lot more cute girls — so even with its slow plot, people kept watching.
And then came episode three.
Just when most people had labeled it a throwaway filler series, something unexpected happened — the story got interesting.
After all that early setup, this episode finally introduced real movement.
Fuko Ibuki, motivated by her sister's upcoming wedding, kept carving starfish to hand out at school, hoping everyone would attend.
It all seemed innocent — until the opening of episode three.
Tomoya and Nagisa ran into their art teacher, Kouko Ibuki, on the street, and congratulated her on her engagement.
But during the conversation, something terrifying was revealed:
She had only told her younger sister, Fuko, about the engagement.
But Fuko had been in a coma for two years following an accident — and was still in the hospital.
So… who have we been watching for two episodes?
A ghost?
"What the hell, wasn't this a school romance? Is this a ghost story now?"
"Don't worry — I'd be fine with a ghost as cute as Fuko haunting me."
"You wish. Fuko, come to my house and spook me, please."
"This plot twist is wild. Wasn't this supposed to be a youth romance?"
"Well, Steins;Gate didn't take off until episode 6 either. Maybe 'Clannad' is like that — long setup, then explosion."
"I don't think so. Steins; Gate got criticized for being too complicated. Clannad just feels… boring. Even if this twist adds fantasy, it's probably too late for a Steins;Gate-level breakout."
"Let's not be too harsh. I still think 'Clannad' can reach 60% of 'Kaiji''s pay-per-view numbers."
"Try 30%, max. Kaiji is pushing 7 million views per episode. Clannad just broke 3 million today. That gap's only getting wider."
While fans argued in chat, 'Clannad' continued airing.
Tomoya and Nagisa were saddened by the situation.
Fuko had been handing out starfish, hoping her classmates would attend her sister's wedding — a wedding she herself couldn't attend.
She was trying to fulfill that wish through others.
But then a question hit viewers:
Can Kouko really not see Fuko?
Everyone else could.
Even if Fuko was a spirit, Tomoya, Nagisa, and half the school had interacted with her.
So why couldn't her own sister?
The episode continued.
Students who had received starfish promised to attend the wedding.
To comfort Fuko for missing out on normal school life, the class even recreated a classroom environment after hours, so she could "experience" being in school.
The tone returned to its quirky slice-of-life feel.
But at the school festival, Tomoya and Nagisa took the liberty of inviting Kouko to attend.
And then —
Fuko showed up with a box full of starfish to hand out.
At the gate, Kouko Ibuki arrived with the spring wind, beautiful and graceful.
"Good afternoon, Tomoya. Nagisa," she said, smiling gently.
"I'm so happy to see you both."
"Both?"
The camera pulled back. Standing silently between Tomoya and Nagisa… was Fuko.
Kouko — who stood right there — couldn't see her own sister.
Episode 3 ended here.
🎵 A bittersweet, melancholic melody faded in...
"...Was that really a ghost?"
"Whoa, this just got good. I thought it was all fluff."
"If this were any other writer, I'd think this was a last-ditch twist. But with Jing Yu? This feels intentional."
"Agreed. I was ready to drop this show if episode 3 was still empty — but now, I'll keep watching for a few more weeks."
"I think I get it now. This show isn't about romance through daily life — it's about romance that grows through solving strange events."
"Really?"
"Well, based on how the leads acted this episode, that's how it feels. Fuko clearly isn't the main heroine — if Jing Yu wanted, he could pivot the plot to make her the lead, but this whole episode focused on Tomoya and Nagisa's emotional bond. Fuko felt more like a mischievous kid with two parents."
"Still… it hurts. Fuko did all this just to make her sister's wedding perfect. She's right there, and Kouko can't even see her…"
"Classic Jing Yu — always pulling tragedy out of nowhere. Can't relate."
"A tragedy? In 'Clannad'? It's a school romance!"
"And what? 'Initial D' isn't a school setting? 'My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday'? 'Your Lie in April'? Plenty of school romance stories end in tears."
"Are you saying Fuko might die in the hospital?"
"Don't. If she dies, I'm dropping this show. She's been a huge comfort the past two weeks. Losing her would wreck me."
After 'Kaiji', 'Clannad's third episode finally sparked interest.
While it still lacked the raw novelty of Kaiji, audience feedback began rising, and online discussion grew as well.
When Cheng Lie — the man most anxious about both of Jing Yu's shows — saw the weekly stats report on Tuesday, he finally looked relaxed.
No more doing squats with barbells in Jing Yu's office to release stress.
"Seems okay! Up through episode 3, 'Clannad' hasn't lost too many viewers."
"Naturally," Jing Yu sipped his tea.
The show's weaker start only felt that way when compared to its phenomenal later arcs.
It was never going to be a breakout hit in episode one — but the lighthearted, humorous tone had its niche audience.
Now, starting with episode 3, the story would begin gaining momentum. The entire school arc would form a tightly written, emotionally strong romance tale.
It wasn't a masterpiece — but it was high quality.
But when the show entered the post-school arc — the adult lives of the main couple — and especially after the birth of their daughter Ushio, the narrative would shift toward family.
That's the part that made 'Clannad' a legend in Jing Yu's previous life.
"Let's hope the school arc can pull in enough viewers to hit an average of 10 million plays per episode on Qingyun," Jing Yu exhaled.
The more people got hooked early, the bigger the buzz would be later.
"By the way, how's our contact with the effects company?" he changed the subject.
"They said prep work is almost done."
"I see." Jing Yu paused.
"Then we'd better get busy too," he said to Cheng Lie.
"It's time to start casting for 'Fate/Zero'. We can't be casual about this one. If we're putting in top-tier investment everywhere else, we need top-tier actors too."
"You're really going ahead with three productions at once?" Cheng Lie asked.
"It's not like they're airing simultaneously," Jing Yu replied.
"'Fate/Zero' won't hit screens until late this year — at the earliest. Starting the production now is just to sync with the effects company's schedule."
"But stretching the shoot that long… costs will balloon."
Normally, Great Zhou dramas are shot just a month before release — easier to control budget.
But Jing Yu wanted 'Fate/Zero' to have a long-term production schedule — and that meant higher costs.
"No need to worry," Jing Yu said.
"We're still bringing in royalties from all our past dramas every month. That covers most expenses. And if we fall short — 'Clannad' and 'Kaiji' are projected to make a killing."
"'Fate/Zero' may not end up being my most beloved work.
But it will almost certainly be one of my most commercially successful."
"The investment… will pay off."