Chapter 209: Mars Squad Battles Mentor Teams, A Miracle on the First Day

On December 12, *The Martian* was officially released.

Early in the morning, before Wei Jin had even gotten out of bed, he received a call from Han Sanping: "Wei Jin, it's exploded, it's exploded! The midnight box office is 4.52 million; it's incredible!"

Han Sanping's voice was very excited. This figure could be described as earth-shattering—five times that of *Hero* and more than double that of *Painted Skin*.

Upon hearing this, Wei Jin felt a surge of energy. This was definitely an extraordinary number. Although it could not represent the total opening-day box office, it undoubtedly reflected the audience's enthusiasm for the film. Judging by this data, it was truly possible to create a miracle on the opening day.

"Chairman Han, with such a beautiful result, we must hold our ground."

"Rest assured, we were prepared long ago."

At the same time, a large number of viewers flooded into cinemas. Many prioritized choosing IMAX theaters; for a sci-fi blockbuster, one must pursue the visual experience. Only those who truly couldn't grab a ticket would choose a standard auditorium.

With 20 months of production, a 400 million budget, the Shenzhou VII, space walks, plus the premiere news for *The Martian* and the super-high ratings online, movie fans were full of anticipation for this film.

Several production companies were keeping a constant eye on the news on Yinxiang Net.

Several main cast members also began to assemble, preparing for a nationwide roadshow. Wei Jin hadn't personally concerned himself with these matters for a long time, which showed how much he valued this.

However, Wei Jin would not be participating in this roadshow. He was busy with the post-production of his own film and could only provide material support.

The cast members saw Wei Jin's private jet for the first time and truly gained an intuitive sense of his financial power.

Zhang Ziyi was also very shocked. Although her fiancé was a Warner shareholder, in terms of net worth, he might not necessarily compare to Wei Jin; at the very least, he didn't have a private jet like this.

At this moment, the look in her eyes as she gazed at Wei Jin was full of brilliance. If not for Jing Tian being by his side, she might have already clung to him.

Hu Jun, Wu Jing, and Zhang Yi on the side were even more overwhelmed, taking a long while to come back to their senses.

The only one who could remain clear-headed was Liu Tianwang. Having filmed for so many years, he had earned quite a bit, and furthermore, the circles he socialized in included many big shots, so he could be considered someone who had seen the world.

"President Wei, with this plane of yours, let alone a ten-day roadshow, even if it were a month, I wouldn't utter a word of complaint about it being hard work."

The one speaking was Wu Jing. After getting familiar with him, this guy gradually revealed his goofy side. However, his words had some truth to them; a private jet meant freedom to come and go, flying to two cities a day with almost no pressure, and the cabin was luxuriously appointed, so one could rest very well.

"If I really let you do a roadshow for a month, you'd probably be sticking pins in a paper doll to curse me, right? By the way, when is your film coming out?"

*Wolf Warrior* had originally intended to target the New Year Slot, but after seeing the release information for *The Martian*, Wu Jing decisively abandoned that idea. He wasn't that stubborn.

"It's already set for January 17th. You can't hit me now, right? Haha."

In fact, for many films by Hong Kong directors, if they are not controlled by Mainland China investors, it is very difficult to get a good release slot. For example, Zhou Xingxing—his films can only target the Spring Festival period.

"Alright, stop joking around. Brother Hua, Brother Jun, everyone, take care on the road."

Liu Tianwang led the others to board first, leaving the space for Jing Tian.

"Brother, I'm leaving first. Don't miss me too much."

"Mm, Tian Tian, you must pay attention to your rest. If you come back looking haggard, I will feel heartbroken."

Actually, Wei Jin hadn't intended to let Jing Tian go on the roadshow, but the young girl insisted. In her words, the Mars Squad was a team, and not one person could be missing.

Since the time wasn't long, and to avoid leaving a bad impression on the other cast members, Wei Jin agreed.

"Okay, Brother, bye-bye, mua."

With a light peck on Wei Jin's lips, Jing Tian turned and left gracefully—by the afternoon, large-scale reviews began to appear online, the quantity far exceeding the scale of the few thousand people at the premiere.

"Wei Jin is awesome! I simply can't believe this is a film that can be shot domestically."

"Director Wei will never disappoint. From now on, I'm buying tickets for all his films."

"I truly believe this film cost 400 million. A single cent less would be a disrespect to the special effects!"

At the same time, over 100,000 people rated it on Yinxiang Net. *The Martian* had a rating as high as 8.5; although it had dropped from before, its gold content was undoubtedly higher.

Of course, there were also many negative comments, mostly saying the script logic didn't hold up and it relied entirely on special effects.

These comments were mostly published by film critics; if they didn't pick a few bones, they couldn't show off their level of expertise.

However, this was the internet age now. The emergence of Yinxiang Net gave the public a place to voice their opinions, and soon these nitpicking comments were drowned out by the netizens' spit-flying arguments.

But Wei Jin had no time to pay attention to the online war of words; he was still diligently tending to his own fish. — After a fierce battle, Wei Jin held Liu Shishi in his arms, his large hand gently stroking the girl's delicate skin.

"Shishi, there is a TV series at the company next year. I've reserved the female lead for you. I will negotiate with President Cai."

Since he had snatched *Scarlet Heart* from them and also slept with their person, Wei Jin had to make some compensation.

"Mm, I'll listen to you."

After the pleasure, the flush on Liu Shishi's face had not yet faded. Hearing this, she felt extremely happy inside; this man was truly too good.

Last night, he sent her a text message at the first opportunity to comfort her, today he called to invite her out, and even cooked dinner for her personally. If he didn't have her in his heart, Liu Shishi wouldn't believe it.

"Shishi, do you remember what I taught you last time?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Shishi rolled her eyes at the man, slowly moved downward, and wrapped Wei Jin in her tenderness.

While enjoying the tenderness of Liu Shishi's little mouth, Wei Jin turned on the television, waiting for the broadcast of *The Voice*.

This was the special episode for *The Martian* recorded on the stage of *The Voice* on the morning of the premiere.

Since the program was already halfway through its schedule and there was no longer a blind audition round for the mentors, the Mars Squad could only participate in the form of "gate-crashers," and neither the mentors nor the contestants knew beforehand.

After Hua Shao finished reading the advertisements at super-fast speed, he began to explain the competition format for the night.

"According to the previous progress, tonight will feature Mentor Halin's team against Mentor Chen Yixun's team."

Both mentors nodded to show they understood; they had been prepared, but Hua Shao's next sentence left them dumbfounded.

"However, the competition format has changed tonight. It is no longer a two-team PK, but a three-team PK. Now, please welcome our gate-crashing team, the Mars Squad!"

Amidst the background music of *Who Do You Really Love*, Wei Jin led the Mars Squad in a grand entrance.

The reason for using this song was that the production team believed it represented the starting point of Wei Jin's musical journey.

When they saw clearly who was standing on the stage, an incredibly intense cheer erupted from the scene, and the mentors were also full of surprise. "Hello mentors, I am the mentor of the Mars Squad. Today I've brought the squad here to challenge you. Tell me, who is going to take the challenge first?"

As soon as Wei Jin spoke, he was incredibly arrogant, and the recording scene erupted with quite a bit of heckling, directly maximizing the program's effect.

"Ya ya ya, I can't take it, too arrogant! Eason, are you going first or am I?"

Halin was worthy of being a veteran of variety shows; he instantly grasped the secret to ratings.

"Don't bother deciding who goes first or second, just come at me together."

Wei Jin's words directly ignited the atmosphere at the scene, and the two mentors even pretended to be incredibly angry, vowing to defend their dignity.

The trainees in the teams had caught on by now, realizing this was a performance, so they followed suit with excitement, wanting some screen time.

The final result was that each team sent one person for a PK; after the three sang, the live audience would vote.

But the scores wouldn't be revealed immediately; instead, after all the teams finished performing, the total votes would be added up. If the Mars Squad's score couldn't match the combined total of the two teams, they would be directly eliminated—who told Wei Jin to be so arrogant as to take on two teams at once? (I thought about this competition format for a long time, please forgive me.) Then, the remaining two teams would eliminate contestants based on their individual vote counts. This ensured the Mars Squad would inevitably be eliminated while guaranteeing fairness for the two teams competing on site.

For the first round, Wei Jin sent out Wu Jing. Don't let the fact that this guy is a Kung Fu Hard Men fool you; he actually sings quite well.

A rendition of "Loyal Patriotism" was magnificent in its momentum, drawing many in the live audience to sing along.

For the second round, he sent out Hu Jun. Don't let the fact that Brother Jun looks burly fool you; he actually comes from a musical family, and his singing style is quite unique.

An Italian song, "O Sole Mio," blew up the venue. No one expected Hu Jun to have this trick up his sleeve; even Wei Jin felt quite surprised.

For the third round, he sent out Jing Tian. The young lady debuted as a Singer, and she hasn't let her basic training slide over the years; she still has the skill.

A rendition of "Little Luck" instantly quieted the venue. Many women on site hummed along, and even Wang Fei was intoxicated by it.

For the fourth round, he sent out Zhang Ziyi. Although she isn't a professional Singer, she has released albums before.

A rendition of her own song, "Heavenly Maiden Scatters Flowers"—although the response on site wasn't intense, her singing level was at least up to par.

For the fifth round, he sent out Zhang Yi. At this moment, he is no longer an unknown; Squad Leader Shi is famous across the land, and as soon as he appeared, he drew thunderous applause from the audience.

His father was a music teacher who cultivated his musical cells from a young age. Although he didn't pursue that path, he performed on stage many times while in the army, and his level is quite high.

A rendition of "Men Cry, It's Not a Sin" left even Liu Tianwang on site stunned. No wonder people in later generations say never to let Zhang Yi open his mouth; once he does, it sounds like the original recording.

Wei Jin didn't expect Zhang Yi to be so talented, and he pondered that he could agree to his request to join the company.

For the final round, it was naturally Liu Tianwang's turn. The screams on site were simply deafening, almost blowing the roof off. Having debuted for thirty years, Liu Tianwang is definitely one of the stars with the largest fan base.

A rendition of "Today" turned directly into a massive sing-along on site; even Chen Yixun and Wang Fei stood up and started singing along.

Finally, the results were tallied. As expected, the Mars Squad had the highest score, but it did not exceed the combined total of the two teams, so they were "tragically eliminated."

"I'm truly sorry for taking up so much of everyone's time this episode. We came here today mainly to promote our sci-fi movie. Are there any audience members who can name it? If so, the creators can sign autographs for you later."

Wei Jin's words made the venue boil over. Who the hell wouldn't know "The Martian"? Voices rose one after another, which counted as helping the crew promote in front of the television audience.

Wei Jin wasn't lying; the creators had long prepared over four hundred autographed stills of "The Martian" to hand over to the staff for distribution.

"It seems everyone has heard of this movie, so please, friends here and viewers at home, go to the theaters and support 'The Martian' as much as you can. December 12th, we'll see you there! Goodbye!"

The group of creators bowed and slowly exited the stage, bringing this special episode of "The Voice" to a close.

"Shishi."

Wei Jin turned off the television and patted Liu Shishi, who was lying on him and had already fallen asleep. The young lady was exhausted.

"Mm, what's wrong?"

Even while asleep, Liu Shishi was reflexively working with her mouth. Hearing this, she opened her eyes and looked at Wei Jin.

"You've worked hard tonight. Next, let Brother pamper you properly."

To save the young lady some energy, Wei Jin pulled her into his arms and chose the side-entry position.

Soon, Liu Shishi was full of life again—after finishing a day of roadshows, the group of creators rushed to another city. By the time they finished checking in, it was already past 11 o'clock.

"The time is about right. Shall we check the box office together before resting? I never feel at ease without seeing the numbers."

Zhang Ziyi proposed. She was very concerned about the movie's box office, as this would likely be her personal record.

"Sure, I rested enough on the plane anyway, so I'm not tired."

Wu Jing was the first to agree, and the others nodded along.

The group arrived at Liu Tianwang's suite. Jing Tian took out her laptop, logged into Yinxiang Net, and refreshed the box office interface.

It wasn't just the creators; many in the industry were watching the opening day box office of "The Martian." Many filmmakers were waiting for the arrival of the 13th at midnight.

During the wait, the few chatted idly, talking about gossip and the film set, and with the snacks shared by Jing Tian, it wasn't that agonizing.

"It's here, it's here! 49.4 million, close to 50 million! We set a record! Sister Ziyi, Hua Ge, everyone, we set a record!"

Jing Tian was already somewhat incoherent, and the others also appeared very excited.

"That's great! I'm full of energy now; I wish I could continue the roadshow. It's just that I probably won't be able to sleep tonight."

"Haha, you kid, just be proud."

The staff from the major investors who had stayed up late waiting for the box office data also cheered and took out their phones one after another to report the results.

At the same time, major web portals also rapidly updated the opening day box office data for "The Martian."

"'The Martian' opening day 49.4 million, national box office is red-hot!"

"The first domestic hardcore sci-fi blockbuster, 'The Martian' opening day 49.4 million, refreshing the single-day box office record!"

"Domestic sci-fi rises, 'The Martian' gains both box office and word-of-mouth, 49.4 million on the first day, sparking a sci-fi craze!"

The new book is up, here is the second update. I kindly ask all book friends to give a subscription and a collection, thank you everyone!

(End of this chapter)