Starting Tuesday, Sakura TV officially launched promotional campaigns for the final episodes of both 'The Gilded Ones' and 'An Ancient Love Song'.
For the production team behind 'The Gilded Ones', the pressure from 'An Ancient Love Song' was becoming impossible to ignore.
Their drama had received the biggest investment of the season, the top promotional resources, and still, not a single episode had broken the 4% mark.
That alone had already made Sakura TV fall behind its two major competitors.
Embarrassing enough.
But if 'An Ancient Love Song' ended up surpassing them in ratings, then for some of 'The Gilded Ones' core staff, their value in the eyes of upper management would plummet.
That said, things looked different from the network's perspective.
The better 'An Ancient Love Song' performed, the more glory it brought to Sakura TV.
'The Gilded Ones' had plateaued. Even its finale was unlikely to break 4%.
At this point, it made more sense to push support toward 'An Ancient Love Song' and see if it could make history.
Unsurprisingly, Ogata Aya played a key role in shifting that internal support.
'The Gilded Ones' wasn't made by a producer under her.
It didn't even belong to Department Head Yoshizaki Shigeyoshi's faction.
Its producer, Matsumoto Jun, was a direct subordinate of Akasaka Yoshitoki.
Which meant the show's performance was tied directly to Akasaka's record.
Naturally, Tamada Aya wasn't going to pull any punches.
—
That night, Akasaka Yoshitoki sat at home watching Sakura TV.
During primetime, a new commercial aired—an ad collaboration between the two leads of 'The Gilded Ones' and a fitness brand, followed by the final episode promo.
Immediately after?
A full promotional ad for the final episode of 'An Ancient Love Song'.
Akasaka's face darkened.
He snapped the TV off without hesitation.
The situation was now completely out of his control.
A drama that started out ranking in the twenties for viewership had, somehow, clawed its way to the top.
He would never have imagined it possible.
"Dear, Kiyota called this afternoon. He wanted to ask if the station—"
The moment his wife mentioned Kiyota Sanji, Akasaka exploded.
"Tell him to stop dreaming. He needs to spend a year or two grinding and learning. The station will absolutely not shift resources back to him now."
"If he hadn't screwed up 'Pure Breeze', Ogata Aya and Su Yan wouldn't have gotten their opening. Without him, 'An Ancient Love Song' would've stayed buried in the streaming-only space. It never would've threatened 'The Gilded Ones'!"
Akasaka was getting more worked up by the second.
He grabbed a water glass from the table and smashed it to the ground.
His wife, startled, stepped back in fear.
Just thinking about that arrogant look Su Yan had the day they met—and the success he now held with 'An Ancient Love Song'—made Akasaka furious.
He knew.
People across the industry were waiting to watch him fall.
Wednesday.
Promotion for 'To the Moon' officially began.
The first three days of January fell on the weekend, thanks to New Year's—meaning national holidays, variety shows, and year-end events dominated the schedule.
So most dramas for the winter season would begin airing in the second week of January.
But 'To the Moon' had secured a Saturday 9 PM slot on Sakura TV.
There was no way the promotional campaign would be half-hearted.
The 25 million yuan production budget was only the base.
The station was now backing it with high-value primetime ads—meaning the true investment was even higher.
In just two days, fans of 'An Ancient Love Song' and 'Rurouni Kenshin'—as well as industry insiders—all learned the news.
B-tier drama.
25 million yuan investment.
And—
The return of two legendary actors:
Takezawa Kayano and Qiu Junlin, a real-life married couple who had once ruled the screen fifteen years ago, would co-star in the drama.
They'd been retired for a decade.
And yet—here they were.
As it turned out, they were close friends of Shinozaki Ikumi's mother.
And as a favor to her, the couple agreed to a rare appearance, portraying the older versions of Johnny and River, the main characters of 'To the Moon'.
By Thursday, the news was trending on all four major streaming platforms, placing in the top 10 search rankings.
This couple had become icons in the memories of older drama fans.
They had long achieved financial freedom and did not need to act again—
This was a one-time exception.
Even the younger roles—young Johnny and River—were cast with once-popular second-tier stars whose fame had waned in recent years.
The childhood roles were filled by two of the most beloved child actors in Xia.
And of course, Su Yan and Gu Qingyuan, the breakout stars of this season, would appear again in supporting roles.
The drama didn't rely on large-scale scenes—it would live or die on acting.
So Shinozaki Ikumi had wisely directed most of the budget toward securing a top-tier cast.
Suddenly, 'To the Moon's cast lineup became a major topic of discussion across the industry.
Middle-aged and older drama fans found themselves reminiscing—
Add to that the momentum from 'An Ancient Love Song' and 'Rurouni Kenshin' fans, and 'To the Moon' was generating hype on par with the four A-tier dramas planned for the next quarter.
Online discussion exploded:
[Wait, 'An Ancient Love Song' isn't even over yet—and 'To the Moon' is already in production?!]
[How is Su Yan this creatively unstoppable?!]
[Just from the title alone, I'm dying to know what this story is about.]
[Relax—give it two weeks. We'll get trailers and official cast photos soon.]
[Su Yan and Gu Qingyuan are in this, too? No way, is this gonna be another tragedy?!]
[I heard they're not the leads this time. Just important supporting roles.]
[The main leads are that couple—Takezawa Kayano and Qiu Junlin.]
[Haha, married in real life and in the show? Must feel like filming at home.]
[My dad didn't care for 'An Ancient Love Song'—not into historicals. But the moment he heard Kayano was back? He got hyped. She was his generation's goddess.]
[And Qiu Junlin was the dream guy for moms everywhere. It's a shame they retired so young.]
[To be fair, when you get older and can't compete with younger stars, it's better to step away gracefully. But it's nice to see them make a rare return like this.]
On set, dressed in hospital garb and covered in prop medical patches, Qiu Junlin chuckled:
"Su Yan, this script is really something. My first scene, and I'm already playing a dying old man.
But seriously—what's the deal with River folding all those origami rabbits and asking strange questions? What's the lighthouse mean to her?"
Su Yan smiled.
"Teacher Qiu, you don't have to ask. The answers will all reveal themselves by the end of filming.
And I promise you—the final ending will move you. You'll be satisfied."
He turned to Takezawa Kayano, who—despite her age—still had striking elegance.
Once fully made up on camera, she was a vision of beauty.
"Ms. Takezawa, we'll be counting on your guidance during the next few weeks—for Gu Qingyuan."
"Su Yan, you're too polite," she replied with a gentle smile.
Then her gaze turned to Shinozaki Ikumi, a trace of nostalgia flashing in her eyes.
"You've grown so much. I remember the day you were born—I even held you, right in your mother's arms."
"Aunt Kayano—!!" Shinozaki's face turned red, immediately tried to change the subject.
Saturday.
The finale of 'The Gilded Ones'—episode thirteen—aired smoothly.
But as expected, the plot was average at best.
The next day, ratings were released: 3.91%, even slightly lower than the week before.
Akasaka Yoshitoki's heart sank.
Later that night, after 'Lone Doctor' aired—
Huge crowds of viewers switched channels to Sakura TV.
Everyone was waiting for midnight.
Waiting for the final episode of 'An Ancient Love Song' to begin.