Chapter 527: Spring Festival Film Season: Ceng Li's Valentine's Day

The concept of the Spring Festival Film Season was first mentioned by the media in 2006, but at the time, the total box office for the holiday was only over 80 million, so it was not recognized by the industry.

It wasn't until 2008, when *CJ7* raked in over 150 million at the box office during the Spring Festival holiday, that the industry gradually adopted this concept, though few filmmakers still chose it.

However, last year, *Once Again* and *Flying Swords of Dragon Gate* swept up nearly 500 million at the box office during the Spring Festival holiday, with the total market box office exceeding 700 million, which truly allowed the Spring Festival Film Season to leap into becoming a popular slot second only to the New Year Slot, Summer Slot, and National Day Slot.

Therefore, nearly 10 films are being released during this year's Spring Festival Film Season, all wanting to get a piece of the pie.

But among so many films, none have received as much attention as *Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons*.

There is no helping it; the drawing power of the Chinese comedy legend Zhou Xingxing is truly no joke, plus it is the *Journey to the West* subject matter familiar to the nation, and with the addition of the newly minted 1 billion box office lead Huang Bai, the buffs are simply fully stacked.

The theater chains are also very optimistic, with an average first-day screening rate as high as 42%, which can be called unprecedented among Hong Kong films.

However, Zhou Xingxing did not disappoint, and the first-day results for *Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons* were explosively good.

The result of 80.68 million strongly declared that "one film emperor a year, one Zhou Xingxing a century" is truly not just for show.

That was not all; on the second day of the Lunar New Year, the box office hit a new high, closing at 88.42 million.

After two days of release, the box office for *Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons* approached 170 million, and with its overwhelming momentum, it made the entire film circle realize once again the powerful drawing power of Zhou Xingxing, which can be called unsolvable.

The key is that the word-of-mouth online is also very good, with a rating as high as 7.5 on Yinxiang Net, which is truly eye-catching for a Hong Kong-style comedy.

Following this start and word-of-mouth, even if the Spring Festival Film Season cannot compare to the New Year Slot, *Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons* surpassing *Lost in Thailand* is also a high-probability event.

At this moment, the big and small Wangs of Huayi feel very regretful.

When they were negotiating with Zhou Xingxing initially, they were stingy, letting Shanhe Media pick up the scraps, and later, when the share transfer came up, they failed to make a decisive move to take it.

Now they can only watch others feast, which is truly heartbreaking.

As for Huaxia Culture, which jumped on the bandwagon halfway, they are very excited; this is the first time they have participated in such a successful film since listing in Hong Kong, and the announcement they released to the public was quite high-profile.

"Surpass *Lost in Thailand*, catch up to *Gravity*, and strive to set a new box office record for Chinese films!"

Just at this time, Six Teacher, as the "spokesperson for the classic," once again stood up to defend the status of the orthodoxy.

Behind him, he was followed by a large group of loyal fans and supporters of the original work.

But no matter how he made a scene, cursed, or expressed his heartbreak online and in front of the media, the several major producers and Zhou Xingxing, and even the cast and crew, all ignored him, and even the netizens did not want to pay him any mind.

However, this monkey show can also be considered to have added quite a bit of heat to the film.

The violent results of *Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons* made Yang Mi, who is currently promoting *Seattle*, slightly regretful.

Although that role's screen time was indeed not too much, looking at the comments online, the memory is indeed very deep, perhaps more substantial than that *White Vengeance* which didn't make a splash.

If she had taken it back then, this Spring Festival Film Season, she, Yang Mi, could have shouted the slogan of dominating the world and become the biggest winner.

Different from Yang Mi's regret, Huang Bai has been riding high these past two days.

*Lost in Thailand* just finished its run, and immediately *Journey to the West* took the baton; with films expected to dominate the top of the box office charts for two consecutive months, he is simply the chosen one.

The producers of *Proposals* are also very happy and decisively seized this opportunity, starting to ride on Huang Bai's popularity with all sorts of hype regarding his rumors with Lin Zhilin.

Unexpectedly, the effect was very good; the film's first-day box office actually reached over 20 million, creating the best result for a Taiwan film in Mainland China.

For a time, the unremarkable-looking Huang Bai became one of the most box-office-drawing character actors in Mainland China.

By comparison, Zhen Zidan, who lost the *Ip Man* series, offended Emperor Group, and ruined his reputation because of *Special Identity*, is truly a long story.

When the first-day box office for *Together* came out, even the media was embarrassed to give a specific number, only reporting it in general terms:

"The romance film *Together*, starring Zhen Zidan, Yang Ying, Ady An, and others, had a box office of less than 500,000 on its first day of release."

Once the report came out, it stunned peers in the circle; what kind of result is this? You have to know, the total investment for this film exceeded 50 million; with less than 500,000 on the first day, let alone breaking even or making a profit, it might not even earn enough to cover Zhen Zidan's salary by the time the film finishes its run, right?

This was a death sentence as soon as it was released.

The most ridiculous thing is that there is actually no rating for this film on Yinxiang Net because the number of viewers is too small, and the rating system is not open.

But even so, it could not stop the poisoned audience from suppressing their desire to complain; the film's comment section was full of condemnation: "Heaven knows how I spent this hour or so; using the word 'cliché' to describe this film is an insult to clichés; this thing has no plot at all."

"An old cucumber painted with green lacquer; Zhen Zidan's romance film is simply disgusting."

"An action star, just act in action films properly; why do you have to come to a romance film to show off your acting? Don't you feel awkward? Honestly, Yang Ying acted better than you."

While the domestic Spring Festival Film Season was in full swing, Wei Jin was not idle in North America.

While accompanying his wife and child, he also timed his calls or WeChat messages to wish a Happy New Year to his familiar friends, confidantes, elders, and some leaders back home.

Jing Tian finished her work before the New Year and spent these two days in her hometown accompanying her parents; she also took the time to visit her father and uncle's homes, truly a good daughter-in-law of Huaxia.

Liu Yifei's schedule was about the same; she spent the Spring Festival accompanying Liu Xiaoli to her grandmother's house. It is said that the old lady's health is not very good and she needs to use a wheelchair.

Wei Jin comforted her well over the phone because he remembered that until he passed away himself, Liu Yifei's grandmother seemed to have no problems and was long-lived.

Liu Shishi returned to Beijing and stayed at her parents' house, occasionally going to Xishan Villa to reminisce about the happy times the two spent together.

Others such as Nazha, Liu Yan, Zixuan, Xiaobai, and others also expressed their longing for Wei Jin to varying degrees.

Especially the few assistants, who sent all kinds of flirtatious photos and voice messages, making Wei Jin exclaim that he couldn't handle it; it was a pity about this year's annual meeting program.

Besides the comfort zone, Wei Jin did not forget his business and took the time to attend two public relations cocktail parties for *Gravity*.

After all, the final list deadline is the 19th, and as the director, he still has to show his face a few times.

It is worth mentioning that at the cocktail party, Wei Jin met that Disney executive Bob again, and both sides reached a cooperation to a certain extent.

On the afternoon of the third day of the Lunar New Year, Wei Jin took Ceng Li and Dudu to the new location for filming—Badlands National Park in South Dakota.

South Dakota is more than two thousand kilometers away from Los Angeles. When the Wei Jin family arrived at Rapid City Airport, it was already night, and Chen Xi had come specifically to pick them up. After meeting, Wei Jin looked him up and down and couldn't help but laugh.

"Chen Xi, the food at your place is quite good; it's only been a few days, and you've gained weight."

"Boss, I only gained two pounds; you can tell that?" Chen Xi looked incredulous.

"It can't be just two pounds; your double chin is already showing."

"Ah? Could it be that the fat all grew on my face?"

Watching Chen Xi touch his own cheeks with a look of annoyance, Ceng Li first rolled her eyes at Wei Jin, then comforted him: "Chen Xi, don't listen to his nonsense; you can't tell at all. Besides, you aren't in front of the camera, so don't be too thin; it's fine as it is now."

Realizing he had been teased by Wei Jin, Chen Xi gritted his teeth bitterly: "Boss, you are really too bad."

"Hahaha."

After some teasing, Wei Jin asked about the crew's arrangements, and Chen Xi answered them one by one.

"You've worked hard, Chen Xi. Once this film is finished, I'll give you a proper vacation."

Wei Jin's tone was very sincere. As a Producer, Chen Xi had been extremely busy during this holiday; she had rushed back to the country on New Year's Eve, flown back over on the evening of the second day of the Lunar New Year, and started arranging work on the third, keeping everything organized. She was truly a very worry-free head housekeeper.

"Boss, isn't it like this for everyone in our line of work? Didn't you not get much rest either?"

Chen Xi expressed that she didn't mind at all, and she was already very satisfied with the treatment Wei Jin provided.

In fact, in the entertainment industry, there is no such thing as a vacation for actors above the third tier, and it is even more so for those working behind the scenes.

After all, the film is more important than anything; many people want to work but don't have the opportunity, and besides, after filming is done, one can rest whenever they want.

Chen Xi even felt a strong aversion to those celebrity artists who frequently shouted about being tired, claimed to be working hard, acted pitiful, or complained that the film and television industry was not easy on Weibo just to gain media attention and fan sympathy.

What are they putting on an act for? If they really find it tiring and fear hardship, why not just change professions? Why not change? Hanging around in the entertainment industry and refusing to leave—what are they after? Do they think others don't know? This kind of behavior is truly pathetic.

After resting for a night, the next day Wei Jin began filming Nomadland, while Ceng Li took Dudu and a bodyguard out for a stroll.

As a major agricultural state in the North America Midwest, South Dakota had a very beautiful environment, but the filming location, Badlands National Park, was almost entirely badlands terrain.

This type of geological structure usually forms in semi-arid climates and is characterized by countless canyons, ridges, and sparse vegetation.

Although it couldn't be called pleasant scenery, it was very unique, and neither Ceng Li nor Dudu felt it was boring.

Once the day's filming tasks were finished, Wei Jin took Ceng Li and her daughter to taste the local specialty snacks—chislic and knoephla.

It had to be said that North America really was a place barren of history, completely lacking its own food culture.

The so-called chislic originated in Russia and was just deep-fried marinated meat, with varieties including lamb, pork, and beef.

The taste was passable, but compared to authentic domestic aged cured meat, it was far inferior.

As for knoephla, it was a soup with chicken, dumplings, potatoes, celery, and carrots mixed together; the taste wasn't necessarily great, but it was truly filling.

After sighing at how the people of North America weren't picky eaters, Wei Jin walked slowly back to the hotel with Ceng Li and Dudu, just to help digest the meal.

Back at the hotel, Ceng Li was busy giving Dudu a bath; after all, the air in South Dakota was dry, and there was quite a bit of dust from the outdoors.

Wei Jin took the opportunity to check on the two films produced by the company.

Zhou Xingxing was truly impressive; the daily box office for Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons was around 80 million, occupying nearly 70% of the market share.

After 4 days, the box office had already reached 336 million, which could be called explosive.

However, Wei Jin expected that it would be affected today, as the last two films of the Spring Festival Film Season, Seattle and Sophie's Revenge 2, had officially been released.

With the reputation of Xue Xiaolu as a 500-million-yuan director and the addition of Yang Mi, who had just been named one of the Four Dan Actresses, theaters were generally optimistic about Seattle, and the screening arrangements were quite good, averaging as high as 28%.

"Now it just depends on the seat occupancy rate."

After muttering to himself, Wei Jin posted a message on Weibo to help promote Seattle.

Afterward, Wei Jin called Jing Tian and Liu Yifei one after another; after all, it was already Valentine's Day back home, and a sense of ritual was still necessary.

Of course, Wei Jin hadn't forgotten about Liu Shishi either.

By the time he finished his tasks, over an hour had passed, and Wei Jin noticed that the Weibo post he had just made had already been reposted by quite a few celebrity artists.

Returning to the room, he saw the great beauty, who had already bathed and changed, radiating an alluring fragrance, looking at him with a half-smile.

"Finished dealing with those little girls?"

Wei Jin walked over and wrapped his arms around the beauty's slender waist, applying a light pressure with his hands, and the fragrance rushed toward him. He lowered his head to take a deep sniff at her full bosom, then looked up with a beaming smile: "Li Jie, they can only listen to my voice; tonight, I am all yours."

Ceng Li rolled her eyes at Wei Jin. "Give you an inch and you take a mile. Yuanyuan and I aren't bothering you, so don't push your luck."

It was rare to see Ceng Li show such a girlish demeanor, and Wei Jin found it quite interesting. He didn't speak, but his hands wandered restlessly over her silky, smooth pajamas.

"Mmm~ Xiao Jin~~~"

Before the Spring Festival, Ceng Li had been on her period and hadn't "eaten meat" for nearly a week. At this moment, she was also itching with desire, and soon she became immersed in Wei Jin's gentle yet provocative Kung Fu Hustle, unable to help but send out a signal.

"Don't be in a rush, Li Jie. Tonight, let's have a proper Valentine's Day."

After saying this, Wei Jin's hands flew up and down, freeing himself while also stripping the beauty clean.

Her delicate skin, as white as frost and snow, was exposed to the air, and Wei Jin couldn't help but swallow his saliva.

As he grew older, he seemed increasingly unable to resist the charm of this mature woman.

(End of this chapter)