Chapter 37: We

“Remember!”

“We have no money, no background, no patrons or allies—what we have is the burning passion for our dreams, and outrage at fate’s injustice!”

“We must fight!”

“We have to fight!”

“Only through relentless struggle, by pushing against the current, can we shatter the chains of fate!”

“…”

July 17, 9 p.m.

Night.

Deepened.

Inside the 【Feihe Cinema】 office.

Under dim lighting, Zhou Yang, dressed in a suit, gazed deeply—his demeanor no longer the calm, refined scholar of before, but charged with fervent passion.

On chairs nearby…

Sat several youths with varied expressions, and Zhang Muxue, owner of 【Feihe Cinema】.

At this moment, Zhang Muxue felt her emotions were incredibly complex.

Days ago, with the surge of popularity from *Sun Wukong vs Superman 2*, someone finally came to watch a movie at 【Feihe Cinema】.

But over half the audience walked in full of anticipation—and walked out cursing.

The other half were children, who fared better: they entered excited, exited excited, even debating whether Superman or Sun Wukong was stronger…

Made a lot of money on cotton candy and ice cream…

But this money was earned in the most soul-crushing way possible!

Zhang Muxue didn’t even dare tell anyone she was the owner of 【Feihe Cinema】!

At this moment…

Watching Zhou Yang’s fiery speech…

Zhang Muxue didn’t know whether to thank him or avoid him.

This guy’s actions weren’t illegal—but they were utterly shameless, completely without bottom!

…

“Zhou Zong, I—I don’t mean anything else, I’m just a singer, I…”

“…”

“Zhou Zong, *Superman 2* premieres tomorrow—do we really have to go over there and promote it?”

“I…”

“Zhou Zong, we might get beaten up!”

Shen Hu listened to Zhou Yang’s pre-battle rally and grimaced.

These past days, for survival, he’d temporarily abandoned his dream of being a singer—even donated his prized sound system.

Then he followed Zhou Yang all over Beijing: wearing that thick coat in sweltering heat, pushing this movie to bootleg DVD vendors, slipping flyers everywhere—even today, pasting them onto the very lampposts advertising *Superman 2*’s premiere…

Actually…

He’d endured it all!

But when, this evening, he walked into the office with a group and heard Zhou Zong’s next insane plan—

He nearly fainted from shock.

“Huizi, have I ever lied to you?”

“I…”

“Look me in the eyes, Huizi—when you said your guitar was broken, I got you a new one. When you said you couldn’t survive, I brought you meals every day, supporting your dream. When you said you had no talent and couldn’t go on, I didn’t hesitate—I used your music in the film, letting more and more people hear your soul-stirring tunes. Have I ever lied to you? On your path chasing dreams, when have I ever failed you?”

“…”

When Zhang Muxue heard “guitar” and “brought meals every day”—

Her mind went blank; she stared at Zhou Yang as if seeing a ghost, then felt her skull throb.

At this moment, it clicked: she finally understood why Zhou Yang had taken that guitar from the café when they first met.

This guy was literally spending other people’s generosity!

Under the lights.

Zhou Yang’s passionate voice made Shen Hu tremble slightly.

Shen Hu instinctively lifted his head.

Then he saw Zhou Yang’s handsome face, staring intently at him.

Shen Hu opened his mouth: “But we—I’m afraid, I…”

“Huizi, remember my words: everything I’ve done today—the filming, all of it—isn’t for money. You know what kind of man I am. If I wanted to make money, I could do it anytime. But I’m walking with you because I see glimmers of dreams in you—and I promised you, I’d fulfill your dreams!”

Zhou Yang took a deep breath, looked at Shen Hu’s expression, paused, then patted his shoulder: “I said I’d help you release an album—but not yet. Wait. When the time is right, I’ll help you release a solo album. But right now, I must ensure you eat three meals a day, with plenty of meat and fish. Do you understand?”

After Zhou Yang spoke, Shen Hu trembled again.

Recalling how, when he had no food, Zhou Yang always brought him meals, warmth surged in his chest.

“I—I…”

“Trust Zhou Zong. Listen to Zhou Zong. Zhou Zong won’t let you down!”

Zhou Yang patted Shen Hu’s shoulder again, adjusted his glasses, and turned to Chen Jianfeng: “Jianfeng, I know you want to be an actor, that you’ve always dreamed of being a film star—but this society is complex, hearts are cruel… In big studios, we have zero chance… Haven’t your past experiences proven that?”

“Remember: we must survive. We must eat well. Remember: in this world, no one but ourselves will ever care about us!”

“Jianfeng, I promise you: in August, I’ll take you to the Venice Film Festival. I’ll make sure our film premieres there—and sell it to those foreigners!”

Chen Jianfeng was dazed.

Seeing Zhou Yang’s expression, he opened his mouth, fell silent for a long while, then finally nodded.

Then…

Zhou Yang’s gaze turned to Shen Long.

The team’s director.

At this moment, when Shen Long saw Zhou Yang point at him, he shuddered slightly, incredulous: “Zhou Zong, I’m going too tomorrow?”

“Shen Dao, we wake up to our dreams, not to the urge to pee! You’re indispensable in this team. This film—your core work!”

“But I still need to prepare the film, revise the script…” Shen Long opened his mouth.

“Your talent is obvious. I believe you can handle it…” Zhou Yang spoke earnestly, eyes deep.

“But…”

“Come with us!”

“Then… alright!”

“…”

Shen Long nodded, resigned.

A breeze blew from afar, through the window, brushing against Shen Long.

Shen Long felt utterly disoriented in the wind.

Then, in the wind—

Zhou Yang looked at everyone, adjusted his glasses again.

“Everyone, I know the road to success is hard!”

“I know tomorrow, we may do things that break our limits!”

“But!”

“I hope you all remember!”

“We must seriously consider: is this our only chance in life?”

“To restore the glory of Chinese cinema, to resist Hollywood—this is our duty!”

"To restore the glory of Chinese cinema and resist Hollywood films, it is our sacred duty!"

When Shen Long heard this, he was stunned.

Dazed, he looked down at the film project in his hand: *Lin Daiyu vs Lu Zhishen*.

Then he glanced around at his colleagues, their faces twisted, speechless…

He glanced around again at his colleagues, their faces twisted with complicated emotions, speechless and stifled...

Us, this ragtag group, restore the glory of Chinese cinema?

Are we this motley crew supposed to restore the glory of Chinese cinema?

A knock came at the door.

Then…

Li Dongqiang, the bootlegger, walked in with a complicated expression.

“Zhou Zong, you guys in a meeting? Should I come back later?”

“No need. No outsiders here… How many did we sell these past days?”

“We sold nearly 4,500 discs: 2,000 premium ones at 10 yuan, 2,500 cheap ones at 2 yuan—total profit 12,500 yuan. Here’s the detailed breakdown and split…”

"We sold nearly 4,500 discs total: 2,000 high-end discs at ten yuan each, and 2,500 low-end discs at two yuan each, yielding a total split of 12,500 yuan... Here are the detailed figures and the split amounts..."

“Yes, prepared. You really are going to…”

"We're ready— are you really going to..."

「……」

After Zhou Yang saw Li Dongqiang’s expression, he narrowed his eyes and took the black bag he offered, glancing at it briefly.

He pulled out several plump red envelopes from the bag, then looked at everyone.

“Today marks the one-week anniversary of our first movie’s release!”

"These are our legitimate DVD and VCD sales proceeds!"

“Shen Dao, contact the rest of the team—today, we’re handing out red envelopes…”

“…”

Zhou Yang looked at Shen Long.

Shen Long’s gaze was fixed on the plump red envelopes.

These envelopes can’t possibly contain just one-yuan or five-yuan bills…

As Shen Long was stunned…

Zhou Yang opened one envelope, revealing fifty-yuan notes inside…

Seeing pile after pile of fifty-yuan notes, Shen Long was stunned.

“I once said: anyone who follows me, I’ll make sure they eat.”

“I also said: those who stick with me wholeheartedly, I’ll get them driving Benz and BMWs…”

“I said even more: we will live—and live well! As long as we keep moving forward with me, every one of us will realize our dreams!”

“…”

“Shen Dao, this envelope is for you…”

Zhou Yang shoved the envelope into Shen Long’s hand.

Then he turned to Chen Jianfeng: “Jianfeng, this envelope is for you…”

“…”

“Hu Zi, here’s your envelope!”

“…”

Under dim lighting.

Zhou Yang handed out one red envelope after another.

Then he fixed his gaze on everyone.

“Everyone!”

“This is a movie!”

“But it’s also the beginning of a dream!”

“It’s a piece of trash…”

“But it’s also the battle cry of the brave—us—who refused to give up our dreams in the darkness, rising again and again!”

“Starting with this movie!”

“Let the whole world see us!”

“…”

In the office.

Everyone looked at their red envelopes.

Seeing Zhou Yang’s growing passion, their blood boiled with excitement.

…

But…

“Good news! Good news!”

“Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2 is out! It’s out!”

“An epic masterpiece!”

“Hollywood special effects!”

“More thrilling than Superman 1, more awesome than Superman 2!”

“Don’t miss it!”

“…”

An hour later…

When everyone stepped out of the car…

And saw a battered van blaring these words…

The once-enthusiastic youths instantly deflated.

Shen Hu cleared his throat, leaned close to Shen Long, and whispered in a trembling voice:

"Bro, are we really sure we're driving this promotional van to the Superman 2 premiere?"

“…”

“We’re gonna get beaten to death!”