Chapter 86 – Best Supporting Actor
The hotel they were staying at was familiar—he had stayed there during the Imperial Garden shoot. Chen Bai finally reunited with his good friend Qian Jin.
He arrived in the afternoon, just in time for the premiere. Stylist sister Jing worked her magic on his hair and outfit, quickly getting him ready and sending him off to the event.
The premiere venue was luxurious, resembling a banquet hall, with a long red carpet stretched out.
The number of media and reporters present far exceeded expectations, several times more than at the wrap-up party. Cameras and flashes were everywhere.
As one of the leads but not the main character, Chen Bai was clear about his role and felt relaxed. He breezed down the red carpet, quickly signing his name on the backdrop before joining Qian Jin.
Chu Mingyuan, one of the leads, was the last to arrive. He greeted everyone and was surprisingly polite, shaking hands with all the other actors.
Qian Jin, standing next to him as the second male lead, was the first to shake his hand. Their energies clashed so strongly that Qian Jin nearly shuddered with goosebumps.
Chen Bai also shook Chu Mingyuan’s hand, though there was nothing remarkable about it. Like Qian Jin, it was brief. But just as their hands touched, Chu Mingyuan said, “Long time no see.”
“It’s indeed been a while since we last met,” he nodded and said the same thing.
Chu Mingyuan didn’t linger, moving on to shake hands with the next person.
“Very good, everything seems normal on-site.” Chen Bai felt relieved and shifted his gaze. Qian Jin leaned over, giving a slight shake, and said, “He’s quite pretentious in front of the media.”
The microphone in his hand was off, and his voice was soft enough for only the two of them to hear. Chen Bai turned his head to listen, smiling.
Unlike them, he was the main character, and with the weight of box office success on his shoulders, it was normal for him to want to leave a good impression.
Once the director and producer were ready, they began the formalities.
The process was very long, especially during the actor interaction and media questioning segments, which could make one’s legs feel sore. Everyone was seated on small sofas, chatting away.
Supporting characters had it easy; they didn’t need to say much. With only a smattering of his current knowledge still in use, Chen Yi Bai didn’t just collapse onto the sofa. He sat upright, watching the others speak while subtly turning off the microphone.
He nodded when others spoke, clapped when they mentioned glorious pasts, and worked with his nearby friend to be the life of the atmosphere.
It wasn’t until the media questioning segment that Chen Yi Bai finally turned the microphone back on.
The media inexplicably loved to ask him questions, and once the mic was on, it couldn’t be turned off again.
Besides the usual questions, there were some pointed and even somewhat sharp inquiries. He could have chosen to skip them, but he didn’t.
A qualified social butterfly’s basic skill is to speak aimlessly without fear of any question.
After answering the media’s questions without changing his expression, he hid his achievements and fame, smiling as he turned off the mic.
Throughout the process, the one continuously being questioned was Chu Mingyuan. On this side, the mic was off, while he was still responding on the other, quite busy.
Just as Chen Yi Bai tucked the microphone away, he initially wanted to lean over and chat with his friends, but another media member raised their hand to ask a question.
Fortunately, it wasn’t directed at him. The target was again Chu Mingyuan, so he leaned back, settling in comfortably.
The reporter asked, “I recently watched the new trailer, and I saw that Teacher Chu’s character ends up with the female lead. I want to ask if there’s someone in reality that you hope to end up with?”
This was a very explosive question. For a moment, all the other reporters turned to look, and the cameras were silently rolling. It had been a long time since there were any rumors about Chu Mingyuan. Some even speculated that he had completely changed his temperament, but those were just guesses, and he had never answered.
Chu Mingyuan took the microphone, and as the flashbulbs went off, he said, “Yes.”
It was concise and clear, with no ambiguity at all. His straightforwardness caused the director and producer next to him to look over, and there was a collective intake of breath from the audience.
The atmosphere suddenly became more lively; he remained calm, smiled, and added, “I was just rejected.”
The unexpected revelation stirred up quite a buzz, and the previously noisy chatter became truly lively.
Even his colleagues were unaware of this, with Qian Jin, a semi-insider, shutting off his microphone and leaning toward his good friend, wide-eyed, saying, “We didn’t even know about this.”
News spreads quickly in this circle, especially since they had all been in the same crew; normally, he should have been the first to know.
Chen Bai replied, “Uh-huh.”
Qian Jin activated his clever brain and thought carefully before saying, “Maybe it’s fabricated, just to create a topic.”
Chen Bai responded, “Maybe.”
This friend, who usually never stopped chatting, was surprisingly concise this time. Qian Jin finally turned to observe Chen Yi Bai’s expression and asked, “Are you feeling unwell?”
Chen Yi Bai leaned slightly to the side, saying he was fine.
What should have been a relaxed and pleasant questioning segment was finally endured through Chen Yi Bai’s unspoken silence.
Next came the part where they could finally watch the movie without having to speak.
An even more awkward experience than watching familiar faces act is when familiar people gather together to watch each other’s performances. Caught between watching stiffly and resting his eyes, Chen Yi Bai chose to quietly slip out of the screening room during the darkness.
All sounds faded away, and he felt considerably more relaxed.
The building was large, with both screening rooms and a small garden. Today, the crew had booked the entire place, so there were plenty of places to go.
Though there were many options, Chen Bai resolutely avoided the small garden and found a spot in the corridor by the window to sit down. He casually sent a message to his friend Qian Jin, asking him to give a shout if anything came up.
Sure enough, Qian Jin wasn’t watching the movie either and replied quickly with an incredulous tone, filled with indignation: [Why is everyone sneaking off behind my back?]
Attached was a meme of someone furiously attacking.
No one understood the feeling of closing his eyes and opening them only to find the space next to him completely empty.
Chen Bai didn’t grasp which “everyone” Qian Jin referred to and didn’t ask further. After the message was sent, he happily switched to look at the drama schedule.
With nothing to do, he reviewed the details on the notice and yawned slowly. Habitually reaching to ruffle his hair, he remembered the stylist’s watchful gaze and stopped mid-motion.
The corridor was quiet, and any slight noise could be heard clearly. Just as he lowered his hand from the yawn, footsteps approached from the end.
He raised his head slightly, seeing well-tailored black suit pants, and further up, a hand holding two bottles of water.
It was a fairly familiar person, after all, they had just been on stage together.
Chu Mingyuan walked over and sat down at a not-too-close distance, greeting him with, “What a coincidence.”
Chen Bai glanced at the two bottles of water in his hand.
“I got caught,” Chu Mingyuan smiled and didn’t explain much, casually handing over one bottle, saying, “This is for you; you spoke quite a bit during the questions, right?”
Chen Bai eyed him and didn’t immediately reach for the water.
His vigilance was almost written all over his face. Chu Mingyuan chuckled and said, “Don’t worry. I just happened to come out for some fresh air and wanted to chat.”
The water was freely supplied by the production team, with the title ‘Record of Blossoms’ printed on it. Chen Bai accepted it and thanked him.
Chu Mingyuan watched him take a sip of water and casually asked, “Is Xu Sinian your friend?”
He asked naturally, like in a regular conversation. Chen Bai reflexively nodded and replied, “Yes.”
Then he realized and added, “He’s not just a friend.”
They were very good friends, on a deeper level.
Chu Mingyuan didn’t say much more, simply commenting, “That’s nice.”
He shifted his gaze, as if just chatting or perhaps making an offhand remark, saying, “He’s quite capable.”
He really just chatted, without bringing up any of the topics that were still sensitive for Chen Bai. When the time came, they both returned to the screening room.
When Chen Yi Bai, the one who had sneaked away, returned, he was met with the angry gaze of his friend, who had been left behind in the screening room.
He handed him a new bottle of free water, saying, “Calm down.” His timing was perfect, just in time for the finale, where swords clashed and flashed. From the back, he heard someone say “Holy crap!”
Simple and direct, it perfectly expresses the person’s emotions.
It turned out that while those in the front row, who already knew the plot, were less interested and quietly slacking off, the people in the back were watching attentively.
“You managed to sneak off and return just as it was about to end,” Qian Jin nudged him with his elbow and whispered, “How will you know how it turned out if you didn’t watch?”
Chen Bai slumped back in his chair and said, “I have to watch it again when it premieres in a few days.”
With Mrs. Jiang and the others.
Mrs. Jiang and Mr. Xu both agreed that the first film was of great sentimental value, so they had arranged for the whole family to watch it together.
Since he was included in this “whole family,” it was inevitable that he’d have to watch it again.
Qian Jin just nodded.
The movie played from start to finish. When the final credits rolled and the screen went black, the lights in the screening room came on.
In addition to industry insiders and the media, there were also film critics and lucky audience members who had scored tickets. During the free-for-all networking time, Chen Yi Bai once again became a walking autograph machine.
The production team had prepared gift bags for all the guests attending the premiere. These included custom merchandise with a full set of promotional stills of all the main actors, though the styles were randomized.
Apparently, due to probability, most of the stills he signed were of him in his beggar costume. Regardless of how the people asking for autographs felt, he found it rather amusing.
The premiere ended, and ‘Record of Blossoms’ quickly hit the trending topics list.
As always, gossip dominated people’s curiosity. At the top of the list was Chu Mingyuan’s revelation that he liked someone but had been rejected, and the topic was gaining unstoppable traction.
Some enthusiasts tried to guess who had rejected him, going through all the actresses he had worked with recently, but none of them seemed to fit.
Some speculated it was the leading lady of this film, but those who were present at the event immediately chimed in, saying they didn’t think so.
There wasn’t any special reason—it just seemed that the two hadn’t interacted much. Aside from the basic exchanges, there was hardly any eye contact or conversation between them; their interactions were strictly professional.
The online comments suggested that instead of guessing the leading lady, they should guess Chen Yi Bai. After all, Chu Mingyuan had looked at him several times, significantly more than anyone else.
The comment section was filled with people laughing.
As the premiere buzzed on, media articles began popping up, and film critics posted their reviews late into the night. Finally, topics actually related to the film started trending.
Unlike other films, also entering their premiere promotional stages, ‘Record of Blossoms’ managed to achieve a rare consensus of positive reviews.
While avoiding spoilers, the most mentioned points by those who saw the premiere were the plot twist at the end, the solid acting performances, and the costume and set design, which were hailed as top-notch in the industry.
Some audience members immediately posted pictures of their beautifully packaged gift bags and signed stills. One particularly lucky person had managed to collect autographs from all the main actors, a huge achievement, with the photos laid out impressively.
[WTF, how did you do it? There wasn’t even enough time for me to get all the autographs! I barely had time to get Chu Mingyuan’s.]
[My first stop was to get Yi Bai’s autograph, and I only managed to get one signed photo. The guy next to me who got three seemed like a hero.]
[I only got one, but it’s a rare Chen Yi Bai version! Every time I see it, I’m blown away by how good-looking he is [happy cat emoji].]
[Didn’t get a single one, curse all of you who got tickets.]
The show-off war ended with the person who had the rarest stills as the victor, and the comments below were filled with offers to trade for the signed photos, with some even offering multiple photos for a single one. People were willing to pay cash as well.
[How did you get the rare version?! Everyone in my row only got the poster version, it’s so unfair!]
[My friend is in her final year of high school and under a lot of pressure. She said if she could get the rare version, she’d finish three entire physics workbooks out of sheer joy.]
[When I saw that skin on the big screen, I was blown away by how handsome he looked (though maybe the beggar costume lowered my expectations).]
[If anyone has it, can I say something? Yi Bai looks strangely tempting with his eyes covered [shy emoji].]
[So what does the rare version even look like? As someone completely in the dark, I’m really curious! Can’t ‘Record of Blossoms’ just release it already?!]
No matter how much the fans begged, they couldn’t get any more details out of the lucky ones who attended the premiere. These people suddenly became united, saying that once the movie was released, everyone would be able to see for themselves. They claimed to be preserving a bit of excitement for the fans who hadn’t seen it yet.
A particularly annoying group of lucky ticket holders.
With the premiere tickets sold out, fans turned their attention to snatching up movie tickets.
After a two-week promotional tour, ‘Record of Blossoms’ premiered on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Due to various reasons, on its opening day, ‘Record of Blossoms’ had fewer screenings than the other popular comedies that were released at the same time. By midnight, it ranked third in the box office, with a slim margin between it and the fourth spot, making it at risk of being overtaken at any moment. This was in line with the earlier predictions of some industry experts before the release.
On the second day of release, ‘Record of Blossoms’ still didn’t see an increase in the number of screenings, but the attendance rate was exceptionally high. By midnight, it had not overtaken the second-place film, with the gap with the fourth-place film had widened.
Contrary to some predictions that the film’s box office would start to decline after exhausting the fanbases of the male and female leads and Chen Yi Bai in the first two days, the opposite happened. Thanks to the explosive word-of-mouth during the first two days, many enthusiastic fans, and the high attendance rates, starting from the third day, the number of screenings for ‘Record of Blossoms’ increased, and its rise began.
On the third day, it surpassed the second-place film. By the fourth day, halfway through the Lunar New Year movie season, ‘Record of Blossoms’ overtook the previous box-office leader and claimed the top spot for the day.
Once it claimed the top spot, ‘Record of Blossoms’ didn’t let it go. Thanks to massive word-of-mouth promotion by netizens, the film’s box office continued to soar over the next four days of the New Year holiday, with the gap between it and the second-place film widening further.
As the days passed, the audience numbers surged, and the film maintained a steady rating of 9 on a certain review platform, achieving both box office and critical success.
When the New Year holiday ended, the film concluded with over 4 billion yuan in box office revenue, nearly 1 billion more than the second-place film. With the current buzz, it was likely to glide past 5 billion in a few days.
The investors made a hefty profit from the film. Chu Mingyuan secured his position as a billion-dollar actor, the leading actress saw a career revival, Qian Jin, who had previously been lukewarm in the industry, finally broke through, and Chen Yi Bai, who went head-to-head with the Best Actor in acting, seamlessly transitioned from being labeled a “traffic star” to a bona fide actor.
After watching the movie, netizens finally understood what the premiere audience had meant by the “hidden version.”
The “Beggar Bai” character only appeared for about ten minutes in the movie, but those ten minutes were heavily edited into highlights, spreading across major video platforms and giving many editing creators ample material to work with.
The lucky fans who managed to get the “hidden version” signed by the actors remained trending, and the number of people offering large sums for these autographed rare versions skyrocketed.
On the day the box office passed 5 billion, the production team released a special behind-the-scenes video as a celebration and to thank the audience for their support. It included footage not shown in the movie, such as a certain friend repeatedly mentioning the word “friend,” and a scene of “Beggar Bai” gathering food from a hundred households.
[LOL, the manager really looks like she wants to strangle the friend.]
[Brother Chu, I’m dying! You actually gave Yi Bai your only drumstick!]
[If this isn’t love (just kidding).]
[I just remembered the sign at the palace’s side courtyard that says “No Jumping.” I didn’t see that the first time I went, but now it’s there—turns out it was you, Chen Yi Bai!]
[LOL, Chen Yi Bai asking for food in the movie wasn’t out of character at all—it was like watching an extra episode of the show.]
[Are there more behind-the-scenes videos? Please, my friend desperately needs more.]
There was only one behind-the-scenes video. No more.
—
When Chen Bai heard the good news about the box office, he was on his way to an awards ceremony after taking a break.
As expected, ‘Record of Blossoms’ was sweeping the awards. The overseas submissions had just been sent in, and the nominations hadn’t been announced yet, but domestically, the news was out: the film had received multiple nominations across various prestigious awards.
Getting nominated was a good thing, but the downside was that it meant attending many award ceremonies.
The sky outside was already dark. Sitting in the car, listening to his manager, Chen Bai quietly closed his eyes and said, “None of it is my money.”
The movie’s box office had skyrocketed past 5 billion, but he was still stuck with his own 400 million, or rather, after rounding, 300 million—the result of his efforts over the past three years.
His manager patted him on the shoulder and reassured him, “You’ve got a share from the upcoming TV drama. You’re the lead actor.”
While TV dramas don’t bring in billions like films, as long as they do well, there’s still plenty of money to be made.
Chen Yi Bai acknowledged this with a response.
There was still some distance to the awards venue. His manager scrolled through her emails and said, “There’ve been a lot of film scripts sent in recently. Two of them are quite good. I was thinking of waiting until after tonight to decide.”
They had offers for films, TV dramas, and variety shows, but they were only considering film scripts for now.
Chen Bai had no objections. He turned his head slightly and asked, “Why wait until tonight?”
With only trusted people in the car, there was no need to be careful with words. The manager replied candidly, “What if you win an award?”
The award being presented tonight was one of the three major domestic film awards. Winning it would elevate him to the next level, and the quality of scripts he received would improve.
One important key to making money is patience—knowing how to wait. And she could wait one night.
Chen Bai objectively thought it was unlikely.
His manager almost went to smack him but held back, patting his shoulder instead and saying, “You’ve got to have ambition.”
The most frustrating thing about naturally talented people is that they never realize they’re naturally talented. They always think they’re just ordinary. If he were really ordinary, he wouldn’t have been nominated for this award.
Before he could muster up any ambition, they had arrived at the venue. Even with the car windows closed, they could hear the excited shouts from outside and see the flashing lights. Chen Yi Bai walked the red carpet alone, while his manager headed to the venue from another entrance. He got out of the car.
Bending as he stepped out of the car and onto the red carpet, the first thing he saw were the cameras on both sides of the carpet, aimed right at him.
Instantly, the sound of shutters and flashing lights surrounded him.
All he could see were the flashing lights, but he kept a polite smile, lifted his foot, and walked forward, with only one thought in his mind:
The lights are going to blind me.
His steps unconsciously quickened, and when he reached the end, he gave a brief autograph, stood there for a moment out of courtesy, and then swiftly retreated.
Once inside the awards venue, he joined the rest of the production team. Most of them had already arrived, and the producer, looking radiant, was probably still thrilled about the box office success.
After greeting everyone, he sat down next to his friends, noticing his manager sitting on the other side of the room.
The actors and crew gradually took their seats, and at 9 p.m. sharp, the awards ceremony began.
‘Record of Blossoms’ came in strong, immediately taking home awards for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Art Direction—three wins right out of the gate, a dominant start.
The dominance didn’t stop there.
Shortly after, the most highly anticipated award for Best Actor, which hadn’t been won by him in a few years, was claimed once again by Chu Mingyuan.
Amidst the applause, the smile on his manager’s face dimmed slightly.
Even Qian Jin understood the situation. As Chu Mingyuan stepped off the stage with the award, Qian Jin, while clapping, leaned over to Chen Bai and whispered, “It’s over. Your chances of winning Best Supporting Actor just dropped.”
Best Producer and Best Actor were already two of the biggest awards and with the movie having already won four awards, including two major ones, getting another big award might seem excessive.
After Best Actor was announced, the room quieted again as the host began to announce the award for Best Supporting Actor.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, the host opened an envelope, glanced at the name, and then looked up, sweeping his gaze across the audience as he said, “The winner is an actor with a two-character name.”
Qian Jin’s expression became even more regretful. He patted Chen Bai’s shoulder sympathetically, trying to ease his disappointment, saying, “It’s over. You don’t have a two-character name.”
Chen Bai “?”
Chen Bai’s eyebrow twitched, and he finally turned to look seriously at his friend, asking, “May I ask what my name is?”
“Chen Yi Bai.”
“Chen Bai.”
In the silence, two voices could be heard.
One was Qian Jin, confidently and assertively shouting “Chen Yi Bai,” while the other was the host on stage.
