Chapter 56: Sensation

At seven in the morning, as Xiang Qian just pushed open the hotel room door, he was startled into stepping back half a pace by the mountain of newspapers piled up in the corridor.

"Whoosh—"

A stack of "Xiangjiang Daily" slid down from the doorframe, the front-page headline clearly imprinted: "Historic Breakthrough for Chinese-Language Cinema! Wins the Palme d'Or!" The accompanying photo showed the entire crew last night, holding the Palme d'Or trophy high.

"Qianzai! Look at this!" Cheng Long burst out of the next room with a bird's-nest of hair on his head, waving a copy of "The Hollywood Reporter" in his hand, "Even Variety gave it a full-page report!"

Xiang Qian bent down to pick up a copy of "Taiwan Times"; the front page was written in gilded font: "Xiangjiang Director Wu Xiang Qian Creates History, New Benchmark for Asian Cinema Born." The inside pages also included a close-up of him toasting Quentin Tarantino at last night's celebration banquet.

"BBC and CNN are both reporting on a rolling basis." Hui Yinghong walked over elegantly with a cup of coffee, her silk robe shimmering with a pearl-like luster in the morning light, "I just received a call from TVB; they want to arrange an exclusive interview."

In the corner, Zhou Xingxing quietly flipped through the newspapers; when he saw his name appear in "Ming Pao," his fingers trembled slightly, and he immediately folded the paper and stuffed it into his backpack. Lin Qingxia noticed his movement and asked softly, "Xingzai, aren't you going to read the reports?"

Zhou Xingxing shook his head, revealing a shy smile: "I... I'm still not quite used to being watched by so many people."

At ten in the morning, in the hotel's largest conference room, Fang Yihua was negotiating with more than twenty international distributors.

"North American rights start at three million US dollars," she pushed the quotation sheet toward the Paramount representative, "This is the basic market rate for a Palme d'Or winner."

The vice president of Warner Bros. frowned: "Miss Fang, this price..."

"But it's 15% cheaper than ," Fang Yihua calmly flipped open the rating section of "The Hollywood Reporter," "and our Rotten Tomatoes freshness is 98%, Metacritic score 92."

The glass door of the conference room was pushed open; Xiang Qian poked his head in for a look and was immediately stopped by the sharp-eyed representative of Japan's Shochiku Eiga: "Mr. Wu! We are willing to pay six million US dollars to buy out the Japanese distribution rights!"

"Please direct all commercial cooperation to Miss Fang." Xiang Qian nodded politely, his gaze sweeping across the conference room, and he discovered Zhou Xingxing sitting alone on a sofa in the corner, head down, writing something in a notebook. Xiang Qian walked over and sat down: "Writing a new script?"

Zhou Xingxing was startled by the sudden voice and instinctively closed his notebook: "Ah... no... just jotting down some random thoughts..."

"I didn't see much of you at the celebration banquet last night."

"I... I'm not very adaptable to that kind of occasion..." Zhou Xingxing's voice grew quieter and quieter, "I went back to my room early..."

On the hotel rooftop, Xiang Qian could finally catch his breath. He was surprised to find Zhou Xingxing already sitting there, staring blankly at the distant horizon of the sea.

"Do you mind if I sit here?"

Zhou Xingxing shifted uneasily to the side: "O-of course I don't mind..."

The two sat in silence for a while. Xiang Qian spoke up: "Actually, I've always wanted to ask you, why didn't you refuse to act in back then? Given your personality..."

"Because the script was too good..." Zhou Xingxing said softly, "And... and Brother Qian said this role was made for me..." His fingers unconsciously rubbed against the railing, "Although I'm not very good at dealing with people... but when acting... I can become another person..."

Xiang Qian nodded thoughtfully: "Last night, Quentin specifically asked about you, saying your performance had a special kind of realism."

Zhou Xingxing's ears turned red instantly: "R-really? I thought I didn't act well enough..."

"Excuse me." Quentin Tarantino suddenly appeared at the rooftop entrance, "Aiven, can we chat? Oh, Zhou is here too!"

Zhou Xingxing immediately stood up: "I... I'll take my leave first..."

"Wait!" Quentin stopped him, "I was just looking for you! That monologue of yours in the movie was amazing! That kind of restrained explosive power..."

Zhou Xingxing stood there at a loss, and Xiang Qian stepped in to resolve the situation: "Director Quentin wants to discuss the remake rights."

"I... I still won't participate in the discussion..." Zhou Xingxing said in a small voice, "Miss Fang probably needs help more..." With that, he quickly left the rooftop.

Quentin watched his back: "The contrast between him on screen and off screen is truly great."

Xiang Qian smiled: "That is where his charm lies."

In the evening, the crew rented out a seaside restaurant to celebrate. Cheng Long held up a wine glass and shouted: "Qianzai! Our movie is going to be released globally!"

Dillon, with a cigar in his mouth: "Heard it's already passed censorship in the mainland?"

Fang Yihua nodded: "The mainland film bureau personally pushed it through."

Hui Yinghong, deep in thought: "This time, the media from all three regions are reporting together."

In the corner, Zhou Xingxing quietly ate cake. Lin Qingxia walked over and sat down: "Not celebrating with everyone?"

"I... I am celebrating..." Zhou Xingxing pointed to the cake in front of him, "In my own way..."

Lin Qingxia smiled: "Xingzai, do you know? Your quiet temperament is actually especially captivating in front of the camera."

Zhou Xingxing lowered his head shyly: "Th-thank you, Sister Qingxia..."