In Jing Yu's previous life, when the anime 'Fate/Zero' began gaining explosive popularity among fans, it coincided with the airing of the plotline surrounding Kiritsugu.
Oftentimes, for a work to reach "masterpiece" status, it only needs to be solid overall, and then have one particularly moving arc — that alone can be enough.
For 'Fate/Zero', that arc was everything from Kiritsugu's flashbacks to the very end of the show.
As for Artoria, the true female lead, the part that truly moved people's hearts was actually in the 'Fate/Stay Night' storyline. The reason she was so beloved in 'Fate/Zero' in Jing Yu's past life was largely because 'Fate/Stay Night' came out first, and fans viewed her with a favorable filter.
In Jing Yu's eyes, 'Fate/Zero', written by Gen Urobuchi, stood out because it portrayed two characters exceptionally well.
One was the great emperor Iskandar.
The other — Kiritsugu Emiya.
In fact, those who were first exposed to the 'Fate/stay night' plot often found the protagonist, Shirou Emiya, extremely hard to relate to.
Would someone really want to be a "champion of justice" to such an extreme?
Just because Kiritsugu saved him, he made it his life's mission to save others, even becoming a Heroic Spirit after death to continue rescuing humanity — until that very wish consumed him, leaving him hollow and turning him into Archer?
Players often struggled to understand how a personality like that could even exist.
But after seeing how Kiritsugu, in 'Fate/Zero', held fast to his ideals — killing his own father, killing Natalia, and breaking down emotionally — only then could one truly grasp Shirou's character arc in 'Fate/Stay Night'.
Turns out, such "fools" really do exist in the world. And turns out, even we can find ourselves resonating with those selfless acts.
Yes — watching Kiritsugu's actions in Episode 10 made fans uncomfortable, but deep down, everyone knew he was doing the right thing.
It's like giving someone three life options:
Top-tier: Put down your phone, study hard, don't waste a single second — and climb to the peak of life.
Mid-tier: Work and study moderately — become a productive member of society.
Bottom-tier: Slack off, play when you want, scroll through novels on your phone while on the toilet instead of using the time to study.
Most people know the top and mid-tiers are better, but they refuse to choose them — they'd rather be happy, average people.
That's the nature of "the right thing" — it's often against human nature.
That's why Jing Yu personally felt 'Fate/Zero' was better than 'Fate/Stay Night' overall, and why he chose to adapt 'Fate/Zero' for TV first.
In terms of supporting characters, both series had their strengths. But when it came to main character portrayal, both leads were "champions of justice." Even after playing through the entire 'Fate/Stay Night' game in his past life, Jing Yu still couldn't agree with Shirou Emiya's saint-like self-sacrifice. If he were in Shirou's shoes, he definitely wouldn't make those choices — he'd just lurk in the shadows like some scheming villain.
But with Kiritsugu, it was different. Jing Yu could really project himself into that character — he truly felt the pain behind Kiritsugu's choices, and deeply experienced the helplessness that came with them.
This kind of emotional response spread across the drama-watching crowd in Great Zhou as well.
After Episode 10 aired, discussions about Kiritsugu Emiya surpassed those of Iskandar and Artoria for the first time, making him the most talked-about character in 'Fate/Zero'.
Audience opinions on Kiritsugu were polarized.
"I still think Kiritsugu is just a cold-blooded maniac. Killing his father and friend to save a bunch of strangers he doesn't even know? That's insane."
"Just because you don't know them doesn't mean they don't exist. Your family and those strangers are all living beings. What's the difference? Sacrificing one to save many is totally logical."
"Not at all! Your world consists of the people around you. If they're gone, it's like your whole world turns dark. Sacrificing your loved ones for strangers? I could never."
"Same. I couldn't do it either. But I can clearly see that Kiritsugu is right — and that's what changed my view of him the most."
"I'll never be someone like that, but it doesn't stop me from thinking such people are incredibly compelling. As long as I'm one of the people saved — not sacrificed — in his decisions."
"There are real people like Kiritsugu in our world — like regional leaders or top decision-makers. If they weren't like him but instead played favorites, society would collapse. These people are wise leaders — yet often treated like outcasts by ordinary folks."
"So really, Kiritsugu and Artoria are the same kind of people. Kiritsugu only cares about achieving the correct outcome — no matter the cost. But Artoria wants both the process and the result to be right. Kiritsugu feels like an upgraded Artoria."
"After watching Episode 10, I suddenly feel this master-servant pair is oddly well-matched."
"Teacher Jing Yu is just... indescribably amazing. I thought this was just another flashy effects show. Didn't expect him to pull something like this in Episode 10 — reversing two months of 'the male lead has no charisma' criticism in a single episode."
"Seriously, you can't let your guard down when watching Jing Yu's shows. One second you're watching casually — the next, he hits you right in the feels. I'm going back for a rewatch now. Gotta reanalyze Kiritsugu's behavior."
"Totally. Watching Episode 10 made me reevaluate all his past actions. Suddenly, they all make sense."
"You can't judge someone until you've lived through their pain. That's what this is all about, right?"
For days afterward, viewers, critics, and media outlets alike were full of praise for Episode 10 of 'Fate/Zero'.
Across the three major streaming platforms, due to this surge of positive word-of-mouth, 'Fate/Zero' hit an average paid view count of over 16 million, and it was closing in fast on 17 million.
In the weeks leading up to the finale of 'Fate/Zero', Jing Yu began making regular appearances on various shows with the main cast.
Most of these appearances were coordinated in collaboration with Qinyun Video.
But come Saturday night, Yunteng TV also cleared a special one-hour slot, negotiated in advance, to broadcast a variety show for 'Fate/Zero'.
Of course, beyond using the last window before the show's finale to squeeze out a final wave of buzz, the main goal was—
To kick off promotions for the Fate series of games.