As a Magnate, I Started Checking in at a Convenience Store - Chapter 434
Chapter 434: Support!
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Currently, at Zhu Ying Ear East Legendary Cinema, Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue were positioned at the corridor’s far end, offering them a clear view of the cinema’s parking lot.
“Xiao Yueyue, did Zhou Chao confirm that he’s coming today as he told you yesterday?” Lao Guo craned his short neck to look out of the window at the parking lot.
“Yeah, Zhou Chao personally confirmed it, and it’s the second time, so he’ll definitely come. If he wasn’t coming, he would have called us by now.”
Lao Guo agreed after considering this logical explanation. However, the premiere ceremony was about to start, and if Zhou Chao didn’t arrive soon, they would have to proceed without him.
“Teacher Guo, Teacher Yue, the premiere ceremony is about to start. Do you think it’s time for you to go to the venue now?” At this moment, a crew member jogged over to them.
Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue exchanged glances. Lao Guo nodded reluctantly and was about to follow the crew member to the venue when he heard an excited shout from Xiao Yueyue beside him.
“Master, Master, Zhou Chao is here! I saw him getting out of the car. Look!”
Lao Guo, who had just taken a few steps, quickly turned back to look out the window. The crew member couldn’t help but mutter to himself as he watched Lao Guo’s agile movements, “How can this chubby guy be so agile?”
Following Xiao Yueyue’s finger, Lao Guo did indeed see Zhou Chao and Lin Wu walking towards the cinema.
“Let’s go, let’s go down to greet him.”
Lao Guo hadn’t taken the first step when Xiao Yueyue stopped him, saying, “Master, if we go down now, we’ll only be a bother to him. Think about how many fans there are downstairs. If something happens to Zhou Chao, it would be a disaster!”
“Sigh, you’re right. So, what should we do?”
The two of them exchanged glances and then looked at the crew member beside them, their mouths curling up in an evil smile, sending shivers down the crew member’s spine.
“I told you to wake up earlier in the morning, but look at the time now. Do you really need to dress up so stylishly just to meet your idol? People who don’t know might think you’re the boss!” Zhou Chao teased, looking at Lin Wu, who was dressed in fashionable casual attire, beside him.
“Boss, 1 don’t know how it happened, but half an hour just flew by. I clearly just took a shower, changed my clothes, and tidied up a bit,” Lin Wu replied quietly, lowering his head.
“Is that just changing your outfit?? You’ve probably switched through your entire wardrobe,” Zhou Chao remarked, eyeing Lin Wu’s attire from head to toe.
“Not all of them, at most two-thirds!” Lin Wu muttered under his breath.
“You!” Zhou Chao gave him an unimpressed look and continued walking towards the cinema.
As soon as they entered the cinema, a man stopped them.
“Mr. Zhou, I was sent by Teacher Guo to pick you up. He and Xiao Yueyue are waiting for you on the second floor. Originally, Teacher Guo wanted to come personally, but there are too many fans on the first floor, so he sent me instead.” The man was the same crew member as before.
“Alright, I understand. Thank you!” Zhou Chao replied with a faint smile.
“No trouble at all!” The crew member waved his hand and led them towards the second floor.
Soon, the two of them arrived on the second floor, and Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue had been eagerly awaiting their arrival.
Seeing Zhou Chao come out of the elevator, Old Guo warmly greeted him, “Welcome, Young Master Zhou.”
“We’re all friends here; you don’t need to be so formal. Let’s go, I suppose the premiere ceremony is about to begin, right?” Zhou Chao asked casually, glancing at the time on his left wrist—it was already 9:58 AM.
“You’re right, no need for formalities. Let’s go.” Lao Guo led Zhou Chao and the others towards the premiere venue.
“Sun Yue, why haven’t Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue arrived yet? The premiere is about to start, and even the main actor, Xiao Yueyue, isn’t here. These media outlets have probably already prepared tomorrow’s headlines: ‘Xiao Yueyue Shows Attitude at Premiere Ceremony by Not Showing Up!”‘ Tian Yu, who was sitting next to Sun Yue, whispered.
“Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue went to pick up a big shot, so they should be here by now. Why haven’t they come in yet?” Sun Yue glanced at the time and kept looking towards the entrance.
“A big shot? What kind of big shot would make Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue personally go to pick up? Is he also from the entertainment industry? He must be quite something.” Yuan Hong also approached the two and asked.
Sun Yue pondered for a moment before saying, “Let me put it this way, if you can get close to him, you can dominate any circle in the country!”
“Impossible!” Yuan Hong and Tian Yu said in unison.
“Even someone like Si Cong, who is known as the National Husband, wouldn’t dare to say such a thing. If he’s that incredible, why hasn’t there been any information about him at all?” Tian Yu still had some doubts, as he had never heard of such a person in the second-generation circles of Jingdu.
“Just because you haven’t heard of him doesn’t mean he doesn’t exist. He just rarely shows his face in public. He attended Brother Qian’s movie premiere before, but he keeps a low profile.” Sun Yue had just finished speaking when he saw his master walking in with a few people.
“He’s here!” Sun Yue stood up as he said.
Tian Yu and Yuan Hong also stood up and looked in the direction of the entrance. The three of them drew the attention of many people, and soon, everyone’s gaze was fixed on Zhou Chao and the others who had just walked in from the entrance.
“Who is that? Why did Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue have to personally pick him up? Look, Xiao Yueyue is even walking behind him.”
“Who knows, but that man is really handsome!” a chubby female journalist looked at Zhou Chao with admiration in her eyes.
“Maybe he’s the son of that client’s father!”
“Let’s take a few pictures first and figure it out later. Tomorrow’s news will be covered.”
Many film critics and major media outlets sitting in the back row were discussing. Most of the media friends were holding cameras and taking non-stop pictures.
“Teacher Guo, Xiao Yueyue, you finally made it. If you hadn’t come, we would’ve been trending tomorrow.” Shao, the director of Shu Dan Films, complained softly as he looked at Lao Guo.
Lao Guo also knew that he had delayed them, and this blame could only be placed on himself. Otherwise, should he make Zhou Chao take the blame? He must be kidding.
“I’m sorry, Director Shao. My mistake!” Lao Guo quickly apologized.
Hearing Lao Guo’s apology, Director Shao quickly said to him, “Lao Guo, I’m not blaming you. I was just too worried earlier. The premiere is about to start, but the male lead hasn’t arrived. I was getting anxious. I hope you can understand my feelings.”
“I understand, 1 understand!” Lao Guo patted Director Shao’s arm warmly and said. He didn’t take Director Shao’s complaint to heart, after all, the premiere was about to start, and he had left with the male lead. If it were him, he would also be very anxious.
Director Shao didn’t really want to offend Lao Guo either, as Lao Guo’s position in the entertainment industry was not simple. His complaint earlier was just due to his momentary anxiety.
“Let’s take a seat first; the premiere is about to begin. Zhou Chao, you can sit next to Sun Yue for a while.”
“No problem, sitting anywhere is fine.” Zhou Chao replied, and then he walked over to where Sun Yue was sitting. After all, it was their movie promotion, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to sit in the front row center, drawing too much attention. Lin Wu, on the other hand, moved to a seat further back.
Once Zhou Chao had walked away, Director Shao led Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue to the middle of the first row. He asked softly, “Lao Guo, who was that just now? Did you really need to personally welcome him?”
Without changing his expression, Lao Guo glanced at Zhou Chao, who was chatting happily with Sun Yue, and whispered, “If that person likes your movie, it can make it to the annual box office rankings. The condition is if he’s willing to help.”
“Is that for real? Is there someone that influential in the movie industry?” Director Shao couldn’t believe it. After all, he hadn’t heard of such a figure before.
Lao Guo didn’t say much in response to this, but he just smiled mysteriously.
The movie began shortly after, and within a few minutes, the entire theater was filled with laughter.
Even Zhou Chao couldn’t help but burst into laughter when he saw Xiao Yueyue’s character, the sailor with tattoos, appear on the screen.
“I have to admit, Xiao Yueyue’s performance is quite good.” Zhou Chao whispered to Sun Yue, who was sitting next to him.
“This is the most dedicated performance I’ve seen from him.” Sun Yue couldn’t help but admire her partner’s progress.
In Zhou Chao’s mind, the memory of the movie Xiao Yueyue had filmed in Fog City came to mind.
“Yanzi, I can’t live without you!” Thinking of this, Zhou Chao couldn’t help but laugh again.
Time flies when you’re enjoying a movie, and before they realize it, the film was nearing its end. As the lights in the theater brightened, a heartfelt round of applause filled the room, and Zhou Chao joined in enthusiastically.
All the cast and crew members went up on stage, gave a brief introduction, and then there was a Q&A session with the film critics and the media. The whole process took about half an hour, mainly focusing on the performances of the lead actors and some guest speakers. Once this routine was completed, the film critics and the media left, leaving only the crew and some guests behind.
“Zhou Chao, I wonder what you thought of the film.” Lao Guo approached Zhou Chao and sat down beside him.
Director Shao and the other actors were all eager to hear Zhou Chao’s thoughts, as they had briefly exchanged pleasantries earlier, and everyone was curious about this mysterious guest.
“It was good, not bad at all. It’s a comedy film that 1 enjoy, and Xiao Yueyue’s performance was excellent.”
With Zhou Chao’s affirmation, Lao Guo and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing their reactions, Zhou Chao smiled and asked Lao Guo, “How is the film doing in terms of screenings at major cinemas?”
As soon as he heard this question, Lao Guo’s heart was filled with joy, but he kept a troubled expression on his face.
“The number of screenings is not very high, and some cinema chains don’t have ideal scheduling.”
“Alright, I’ll give Si Cong a call and ask him to schedule more screenings in the Yida theaters. In addition, I’ll ask the Modu Union to support your film with the maximum number of screenings.”
Hearing Zhou Chao’s words, Lao Guo and Xiao Yueyue couldn’t contain their excitement, their faces beaming with joy.
“Thank you, Young Master Zhou!”
“It’s nothing, we’re friends, and I’m just helping out a bit.”
“Young Master Zhou, if you don’t mind, how about joining us for the celebration banquet at noon?” Director Shao seized the opportunity and said loudly.
Young Master Zhou checked the time and realized it was almost noon. Without much thought, he nodded in agreement..