The series had a short turnaround and aired within a few months. Shot on a shoestring budget with fresh film school grads, there was zero hype before launch. But within a month of airing, word-of-mouth picked up, and the series exploded in popularity. It had just wrapped up its final episodes a month ago—and left a mark on the entertainment scene.
When a show becomes a hit, the money naturally follows. As both the investor and the screenwriter, Qingli made a substantial profit. And since she wrote the script, she started receiving a flood of offers. Zhao Qi, who had just started gaining popularity, used to be virtually unknown. She had added Qingli on WeChat during filming, and over time, their conversations made them familiar with each other. They even started meeting up regularly for meals.
Zhao Qi’s agency was decent, but her manager was another story—he heavily favored another artist under his care. Especially now that Zhao Qi was becoming popular, some of the resources that should’ve gone to her were instead given to that other person, leaving her furious.
She dreamed of changing managers, but she didn’t have enough clout. After finally rising to fame, she barely had time to enjoy the benefits before being completely aggravated.
Qingli knew about this situation, which is why Zhao Qi was her first choice when it came to selecting a spokesperson.
It also helped that Zhao Qi’s recent popularity came from a food-related drama, making her a fitting choice for the product.
Since they had switched to a more affordable celebrity, the advertising budget opened up.
Qingli, feeling a creative itch, decided to expand the original script into two versions—one was a three-minute emotionally engaging piece, and the other a thirty-second, ultra-catchy jingle designed to get stuck in people’s heads.
Once that was finalized, the ad shoot went into full swing.
Qingli personally supervised the shoot, which lasted five days in total.
Once filming wrapped, post-production began immediately. The company had initially planned to outsource this part, but Qingli took it on herself.
By the time the new product line officially launched, the ad campaign was also live.
That very day, people without streaming subscriptions, TV viewers, and even random passersby near supermarket ad screens all found the same jingle playing on a loop in their heads:
“Tianshui Self-Heating Hot Pot—The Best Choice This Winter!”
It sounded like a simple line, but it was sung to a lively tune—repeated five times in just thirty seconds.
And that wasn’t all. In the ad, a slightly chubby, cute girl devoured the bright red hot pot with wild enthusiasm. Her eating was so appetizing that anyone watching felt their stomachs rumble.
The ad started airing in the morning, and by noon, sales—especially online—had started climbing.
Even better, the hot pot was on sale!
A 30% discount—too good to pass up.
By the time evening rolled around, after just twelve hours of ad placement, the sales data clearly showed a sharp increase.
On top of that success, the three-minute emotional ad also became a viral hit across all short-video platforms. Likes skyrocketed, and the phrase “Tianshui Self-Heating Hot Pot” began trending everywhere.
By the next day, sales exploded.
In this day and age, online consumer power is massive. And with the discount still active, hesitant buyers rushed to place orders before the promo ended.
The 30% discount lasted for three days, with the third day hitting peak sales.
The momentum was astonishing.
After all, Jiang Qingli was only seventeen years old.
At that age, she had walked into the branch office and skyrocketed both new and existing product sales. It was impressive, to say the least.
Naturally, Jiang Zheng heard about it. He immediately called the branch office’s marketing director with a scowl on his face:
“Didn’t you say the ad campaign would be a disaster? What do you have to say now?!”
The director broke out in a cold sweat and responded helplessly, “Mr. Jiang, I don’t know what happened! I can confirm that both the script and editing were entirely done by your cousin! I mean… she’s only seventeen, practically still a kid. Who would’ve thought she’d pull this off?”
“Damn it!” Jiang Zheng cursed. “Didn’t I tell you not to underestimate her because of her age?!”
The director looked miserable but didn’t dare argue. He just tried to explain as best he could, sweating bullets:
“Right now we’re selling at 30% off, and after accounting for labor and development costs, we’re operating at a loss. Once the discount ends tomorrow, sales will drop.”
Jiang Zheng wasn’t from this industry, so his understanding of e-commerce wasn’t deep. He hesitated and asked, “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely sure,” the director affirmed.
Jiang Zheng relaxed a bit and said coldly, “It better be. Otherwise, you won’t be marketing director much longer.”
The director nodded firmly. “Don’t worry. It’ll happen just like I said.”
After the call ended, the director wiped the sweat off his forehead and gave a bitter laugh. All he could do now was hope Qingli’s product didn’t taste that good.
But…
Day four arrived quickly.
Sure enough, once the discount ended, sales plummeted—almost in a straight drop. Both Jiang Zheng and the director, who had been closely monitoring the numbers, finally let out a sigh of relief.
But that sigh didn’t last long.
By evening, their expressions darkened again. Across every major social media platform, food reviewers and influencers were posting evaluations of the hot pot—and giving it glowing reviews.
The day wasn’t even over yet, and by 8 p.m., the previously stalled sales figures began to climb again—and this time, at an even faster pace.
The next morning, Jiang Zheng arrived at the office and sensed something was off. He called the marketing director to ask about the latest numbers.
As soon as the call connected, the director said:
“No need to rush me, sir. I’m already drafting my resignation letter.”
Jiang Zheng: “???”
“Also,” the director added, “before I leave, I’ll be sending Jiang Qingli a full record of all our conversations.”
“You wouldn’t dare!” Jiang Zheng roared.
But the call had already been disconnected.
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152