Black Technology Director Can Make Anything Come True (16): 

Si Qi knew about his uncle and aunt’s release from prison.

Although from Si Lin and Chu Feng’s perspective, Si Qi was always busy in the editing room, working on film cuts and completely unaware of outside matters. They did not want these things to disturb Si Qi, who spent every day happily, so they carefully protected him inside an ivory tower, leaving all matters of revenge to themselves.

Xiu Xiu was the same.

He was glad that he could contribute beyond just gathering intelligence, spending his days busy selecting and editing scenes from the cosmic war back then, skillfully integrating them into the film.

If in some commercial movies, in pursuit of realistic scenes, they were willing to blow up a building or destroy a car, with a single second of footage costing millions—a huge expense.

Then in Si Qi’s film, where even an ordinary starship that appeared casually would have cost at least tens of billions of imperial credits to build, just one battle scene filmed could mean that the destroyed starships and energy consumed would be enough to bankrupt the entire planet Si Qi was currently on and bury it in massive debt.

For a planetary-level civilization whose only resources were oil and electricity, in the age of the great universe they were still considered very poor.

Through the day-and-night efforts of master and servant, in just over a month, Si Qi’s first film was finally completed.

To release a film, the finished cut had to be submitted to the proper department for review in advance. Only after approval could a distribution license be granted for public screening. If there were any inappropriate scenes, they would be sent back for revision; elements of violence, gore, or profanity would be rated accordingly. Each country had different review standards—what passed easily in one place might be stubbornly rejected in another, forcing changes.

Some countries’ review speeds were highly unpredictable; sometimes the approval process could drag on for a year or more.

Si Qi still wanted to have a worldwide simultaneous release at New Year, with less than two months left until Spring Festival. How to push all these review departments in so many countries to approve his film quickly became a technical challenge.

Si Lin patted his chest and promised: “Don’t worry, brother, I’ll negotiate the terms with them.”

Holding the trump card of AR technology in his hands, there were countless forces eager to connect with the two brothers. The price to pay was only to add a clause in the agreement—“let Si Qi’s movie be released early.” Such a condition was practically costless; no one would deliberately oppose Si Qi over something like this.

But negotiations took time, and each had to be handled one by one. Even with Si Lin’s ability, he was stretched thin.

Chu Feng cleverly seized this chance. Without Si Qi needing to say a word, under Si Lin’s frustrated gaze, Shi Feng Corporation took over the negotiation work. With its influence spread worldwide and abundant manpower, this was something they were already extremely skilled at.

In just a month, from negotiations to reviews to securing licenses, everything was settled.

The first to notice something strange were veteran directors long active in the film industry. Many who had constantly pulled strings and begged favors just to get approval—and still had their works delayed endlessly—felt very unbalanced in their hearts. Especially when they learned that Si Qi had obtained not only domestic approval but licenses from every country with cinemas worldwide in one go. They were furious, torn between envy and resentment, muttering things like, “Capitalists are here to ruin the rules of our film industry,” “This is too unfair,” and so on.

Directors who could be stuck for so long without approval were not insignificant figures. The more such people, the more they liked to make noise without real ability. One director, whose film had been sent back and recut for over three years without getting approval, grew increasingly bitter.

While drinking with friends and venting, filled with resentment, he could not hold back. He opened his AR glasses and posted sarcastically on his public account: “Some young people are really something. At just a teenage age they already know how to use money and power to get special treatment. Don’t you feel guilty cutting in line by stepping on the heads of your seniors?”

This director wasn’t well-known domestically, with only a few thousand pitiful followers on Weibo. After posting, the replies were very few, until someone suddenly said: “You said you’re his senior—so that means he’s also a director? A teenage director… I suspect you’re hinting at someone specific.”

Seeing this reply, the director snorted coldly, set down his wine glass, and with malice and a desire to see Si Qi suffer, he tapped on the air keyboard: “That’s right!”

After sending the message, it was already 2:30 a.m. He said goodbye to his friends, went home, washed up, and went to bed.

The next morning, he was jolted awake by the sound of notifications. With a headache, he opened his eyes, glanced at the sunlight filtering through the curtains—it was only around six or seven in the morning.

Damn, what was going on? Tens of thousands of Weibo replies and a flood of messages from friends—was this real? Had something major happened to him?

Panicked, he opened the alerts. The more he read, the more horrified he became, a chill running through him—not because of the cold floor under his bare feet, but because of what he saw.

In fact, as long as something was tied to a nationwide trending topic, even the most obscure account could instantly become a gathering point for countless netizens.

The Weibo he posted last night, after his reply, was apparently forwarded by that netizen to their acquaintances. Those acquaintances shared it further, and within the time he took to bathe and sleep, his post had shot to the hot search list. After hours of fermenting, by morning, people waking up saw the trending topic of “attacking Si Qi.” Crowds swarmed in, demanding explanations, and the more emotional ones simply hurled insults.

Reading the scolding comments and questions from bystanders who didn’t understand the situation, the director’s tongue felt bitter.

He had just been venting as usual. He’d criticized and mocked others before—his Weibo history was full of sour remarks and sarcasm.

So why had he suddenly kicked a hornet’s nest this time?

But the director didn’t think he had said anything wrong. The situation was indeed unfair—why could Si Qi do what he couldn’t? It had to be because Si Qi had more money, pulled strings, and called in favors, that things ended up this way.

He completely forgot how many times in recent years he had tried the same things—inviting people to dinner, sending gifts—to get his film approved, and still failed.

Because he failed at what Si Qi succeeded in, he felt unbalanced, believed people were targeting him on purpose, and convinced himself his words weren’t wrong.

So he thought about how to phrase it and posted a new Weibo: “Here’s the situation. Four years ago, I shot a movie. It’s been stuck in review for more than three years and still can’t be released. But Si Qi’s film, just submitted, was approved immediately—less than a month in total. Think carefully about what this means. I was angry, helpless, so I vented a little.”

After the new post, because of the traffic from the last one, netizens immediately saw it. Outsiders who didn’t understand the industry were suspicious, while half-informed self-styled experts came out to explain: “I remember domestic reviews do take time, on average about three months. Director, if yours has been stuck for three years, maybe you offended someone? Also, didn’t Si Qi just say in September when school started that he was filming a new movie? Now in December it’s already done and approved? That’s insanely fast.”

There is never a shortage of conspiracy theorists in the world, nor of people overly harsh on famous figures because they themselves lack privileges. Seeing the director’s situation, they immediately sided with the weaker party, speaking with insinuations: “This director probably just didn’t know to give gifts, too straightforward in character, so he ran into trouble.”

“So it’s true the rich can do whatever they want. A capitalist who created AR glasses comes into the film industry and is just as unstoppable, stepping easily on the heads of old seniors. Tsk tsk, that’s the power of capital.”

“This director has been making films for years. Do you think he doesn’t know what needs to be avoided for approval? Three years is outrageous—there’s definitely a conspiracy!”

“Heh, whatever else, Si Qi getting approval in just a month is definitely abnormal. A teenager already knows how to pull shady strings—this black mark can’t be washed away.”

“I admit Si Qi is indeed very intelligent, but his character is really questionable.”

Fans saw so many people siding with the director and badmouthing Si Qi that they were furious to the point of going crazy. But since they didn’t really know the full situation and were misled by the director and so-called “experts,” they felt they had no solid ground to argue on, so they could only defend Si Qi blindly.

“Pfft! Isn’t it normal for 77 to be this capable and know how to pass review? Why can’t he pass on the first try?”

“Why do you all insist on dragging everything into conspiracy talk—just how dark are your hearts!”

“Who even is this director? If it weren’t for 77 I wouldn’t even know him! Shameless to call himself a senior, tch.”

“You’ve been in this industry for so many years and still aren’t as famous as our 77, just retire already!”

“I don’t know what the real situation is with the review process, and I don’t care if the glasses’ inventor is morally flawed or not—so long as the product works and the film is good to watch, that’s all that matters~~”

Many bystanders had only been watching for the drama, eating melon rationally and not taking sides. But seeing the fans’ attitude, their impression of Si Qi immediately soured. They felt his fan circle was way too toxic, and that with such fans, Si Qi himself probably wasn’t a good person either.

And so, Si Qi inexplicably took the hit, and for no reason at all became the so-called culprit of “moral corruption,” “pulling strings,” and “indulging fans’ unruly behavior.”

All this happened within just one morning.

While Si Qi was busy editing films, completely unaware of what was happening, people were convinced that “so much time” had already passed and that Si Qi obviously knew but was too guilty to explain. To them, this was ironclad proof.

As a result, wave after wave of scandal about him rose on the trending list, each rumor sounding more outrageous than the last.

When Xiu Xiu finished the task his master had assigned him and casually browsed online before returning to work—

Xiu Xiu: 【…………】
Xiu Xiu: 【？？？？？】

How did my master go from being a universally praised genius to being cursed as a villain overnight, just in the few hours I left the internet??

You humans are way too fickle!!

Fuming, Xiu Xiu was about to tell his master about this, but discovered that Si Lin and Chu Feng had already sprung into action.

Both were cunning, and their quick, sharp methods of handling public opinion were strikingly similar. Even though each wanted to solve the problem alone and push the other away to avoid sharing Si Qi’s favor, that little rivalry was nothing compared to protecting Si Qi’s reputation. So they temporarily set aside their differences and worked together, attacking the issue from both sides.

From the moment the scandal hit the trending list to the time everything was resolved, it took only eight or nine hours—and that was including several hours in the middle of the night when both had been asleep and completely unaware.

Just as netizens were enjoying the drama, sighing, “I didn’t expect Si Qi to be this kind of person,” the reversal came.

First, the usually aloof review department, rarely speaking on matters outside official duties, released a statement. Its wording was cold and stern:

“The national standard for film review is ‘a result must be given within six months.’ Therefore, the shortest is one week and the longest half a year, but there will definitely be an answer. Director Si passing review within one month is a normal situation. There is no such ‘conspiracy’ as netizens have speculated.

“As for Director Huang’s claim of ‘failing to pass for over three years,’ in fact he submitted the film a total of eight times over those three years. Each time it was rejected for containing pornographic content. Each time he resubmitted the same unaltered version. The repeated rejections were a normal process.

“We ask netizens to think rationally, not to believe rumors and not to spread them.”

Netizens: “………………”

Their metaphorical melons crashed to the floor. Barely two minutes after the announcement went out, the entire internet exploded again.

“Damn it, after so many years online I still managed to get fooled.”

“Who said average review time was three months? What kind of fake science was that—I believed it!”

“They said ‘average,’ didn’t they? With an average, being two months earlier is perfectly normal.”

“Sh*t! Give me back my genuine feelings! I thought you were forced into desperation and came for help, so I joined in scolding Si Qi with you. Turns out Si Qi did nothing at all, and you twisted black into white and took advantage of my kindness. I’ll curse you to hell!”

“Porn in a film for the entire nation? Is this director’s brain intact? And to keep resubmitting the exact same cut without edits—how confident were you, thinking repeated submissions might sneak it past someday? Our department was too kind, letting you waste their time eight times without blacklisting you.”

“So it’s just because Si Qi became famous too young and stood out too much—every jealous hater came crawling out to take a bite. Truly a disaster he didn’t deserve.”

Watching the sudden shift in public opinion online, the director’s smugness quickly vanished, his face turning pale.

He never imagined a government department would speak up on Si Qi’s behalf. Wasn’t he just making a casual remark? Was it really necessary to take it this far?

And they even brought up his own case specifically—that was obviously a deliberate move to humiliate him before the whole internet. It had to be intentional!!

Damn Si Qi, he must have done something. Otherwise, why would a department that normally ignored the petty matters of the film industry intervene like this? It had to be Si Qi!!

Thinking that, his drinking buddy from the previous night called to ask what was going on.

The director immediately poured out his grievances over the phone: “I’m so unlucky! Why can Si Qi enjoy such good treatment? Is there no fairness in this world?”

His friend was speechless: “If you already knew Si Qi could get the so-called ‘special treatment,’ how did you still have the guts to challenge him head-on? Do you really think you can outplay him?”

Director: “…………”

Friend: “Besides, you know full well the truth about your own review problems. Out of all the issues you could’ve brought up, why pick this one to attack Si Qi? Isn’t that just handing him the leverage against you?”

The director flared up: “Whose side are you on?!”

Friend: “Fine, I won’t say more. I just called to tell you not to dig your grave any deeper—hurry up and apologize.”

The director exploded: “Apologize? Apologize my ass! That bastard wants me to bow my head? To hell with him—”

The friend listened to a stream of filthy words, frowned, and moved the phone away from his ear. Only when the shouting grew a little quieter did he impatiently say: “Do as you like then! But let me remind you, if you really piss off Si Qi and he actually lays a hand on you, it’ll be too late for regrets.”

After saying that, he shrugged and hung up the call, ignoring the sudden explosion of furious roaring on the other end.

As a result, this director really was stubborn. When public opinion on the internet had already shifted, he still stiffened his neck and ambiguously said: “What did I say? I only stated the truth. You’re the ones overthinking it. And besides, Si Qi getting global permits done in one month is absurd. Did I say anything wrong?”

If he hadn’t said that, things might not have gotten worse. But once he did, the scolding from netizens only intensified.

If the matter had ended there, forgetful netizens might have cursed him for ten days or half a month and then moved on. The director could’ve kept a low profile for a while and still managed to get by in the industry.

But things aren’t that easy.

Others might forget, but Si Lin and Chu Feng absolutely would not.

Just as he had tried to ride on Si Qi’s popularity to attract traffic, other directors, actors, and people in the circle could just as easily step on his corpse to grab the spotlight. With a little “reminder” from Si Lin and Chu Feng’s people, they obediently stepped forward to say:

“When did filmmaking become ranked by years of experience? You’ve never even won an award, yet you dare call yourself a senior in front of someone who won an international award upon debut. I feel embarrassed for you!”

“Hey, I once worked on the crew of that movie that got stuck for over three years. I saw with my own eyes this director telling a young actress in front of everyone to show more skin, and then even more, preferably not wear anything at all, just rely on camera angles to cover it up. Please, just because the camera doesn’t capture it, does that mean our eyes don’t see? The poor actress was driven to tears.”

“Isn’t this the same director who got caught drunk and made the news? He shouted at the camera about being a public figure… I felt secondhand embarrassment just watching through a screen.”

“You should check out his old Weibo posts. They’re absolutely vile. He even insulted tons of popular idols, saying they were overpriced and basically selling themselves… Tsk, tsk, if their fans see this, this director’s career is over.”

Sure enough, netizens started digging through his past Weibo posts, gleefully taking screenshots and spreading them through every celebrity fan group.

Half the film industry blew up.

The foul-mouthed director ended up reaping what he sowed. Even if the storm eventually quieted and netizens forgot for a while, the internet remembers. With so many celebrity fans watching him, no matter what project he worked on in the future, sharp-eyed fans would dig it up again and again, mocking and boycotting him.

By the time he realized things were going wrong and thought about apologizing like his friend suggested, it was already too late.

With his reputation ruined, it became even harder for him to survive in the circle. When investors he contacted learned about his scandals, anyone with half a brain wouldn’t sink money into him—that would be like throwing money into a river.

The director was left in tears. Out of frustration, he went back to drinking and even started a livestream, cursing Si Qi, accusing him of targeting him, driving him out of the industry, and leaving him no way to survive. But apart from fans who came to curse at him and a few onlookers, most people couldn’t even be bothered to click into his stream and simply ignored him.

Then viewers watched as the drunk director actually dared to drive on livestream. People immediately called the police, and the scene of traffic officers arresting him live was recorded and posted online. Netizens exclaimed that they never expected this to turn into a series of scandals. The director was practically sacrificing his career just to keep everyone entertained. The whole thing was more exciting than the movies he had made.

And so, with Xiu Xiu, Si Lin, Chu Feng, and the others quietly shielding him, Si Qi remained blissfully unaware of the mess, completely spared from trouble. By the time he happily left the editing room, uploaded the trailer, and told everyone the film was complete and would be released soon,

everyone praised his efficiency and said, “We already knew your movie was done.”

Si Qi, who had wanted to surprise his fans: “…???”

Utterly baffled, he rushed to the comment section, skimmed through the whole chain of events, and could only laugh helplessly.

Turns out the whole scandal had blown over, and as the person involved, he was the last to know.

Without commenting right away, netizens eagerly clicked on the trailer video. Finally, after watching, they rushed to leave their impressions.

Refreshing the comment section, the latest batch was filled with exclamation marks.

“Oh my god!!”

“Is this really a movie made in the 21st century?!”

“It’s actually a stereoscopic film. The moment I clicked, my whole body broke out in goosebumps!”

“Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap! When that battleship flew past my eyes, I screamed out loud right in the office in front of my boss! Damn! I seriously thought I had time-traveled! It’s way too realistic!!”

“…I don’t even know how to describe it. I’m completely stunned. Is this really just because of 3D projection? I feel like even watching it on my computer screen is enough to make me insanely excited!”

“As expected from a director who started with short films, this PV editing is phenomenal. I want to rush into the theater right now. When will it be released? My kid is already crying with impatience.”

“Oh my god, I saw 77 in the film! I took so many screenshots my hand went numb. He’s way, way, way too handsome! The moment he appeared in uniform, I was done for. I’m declaring him my idol and my ultimate crush from now on!!”

“Eh? That little guy clinging to Si Qi’s arm—is that his real younger brother? Oh my god, he’s so cute! No wonder Si Qi spoils him so much. If I had a little brother like that, I’d pamper him to the skies too!”

“There are so many good-looking people in this movie… Clearly in the interstellar era ugly people don’t exist. Honestly though, that second male lead with so much screen time—his looks crush half the male stars out there, right? I searched everywhere and found nothing about him. Could he be a newcomer?”

“Can you guys stop focusing only on looks and notice the movie’s settings? Those effects are insane! I almost suspect it was filmed on location. The details and physical reactions are way too real!!”

Author’s note:

Netizen: “I almost suspect it was filmed on location!”

High-tech system: “Actually, you don’t need to suspect…”