164: I'm meeting with Zhang Yimou!

"Xin Xin, the Huabiao Awards are being held at the Beijing Exhibition Center. Why don't you come with me?" Wang Baoqiang asked Li Xin with a smile.

"I won't go. I'll wait for you at home. You can go by yourself; I'll be waiting for you to come back with an award." Hearing Wang Baoqiang's words, Li Xin looked at him, her eyes full of happiness.

She didn't expect Wang Baoqiang to say that, which touched her deeply.

However, she also knew it would be better if she didn't go.

After all, there would be many big shots there, and none of them brought female companions. It clearly wouldn't be appropriate for Wang Baoqiang to bring one.

The day before the Huabiao Awards arrived. Although the awards were held in Beijing, they had to go a day early to familiarize themselves with the venue, so they wouldn't get lost during the awards ceremony the next day.

"Baoqiang, have you arrived?" Just as Wang Baoqiang reached the vicinity of the Beijing Exhibition Center, Li Xin sent him a message.

Seeing the message, Wang Baoqiang immediately replied to her.

"I'm here. There are so many people; it's a pity I didn't bring you along." Wang Baoqiang still felt it was a shame he hadn't brought Li Xin with him.

He walked through the exhibition center's grounds; the site had already been set up.

Everyone was just waiting for the awards ceremony to begin the next day. The Huabiao Awards, held every two years, always drew many people to witness the grand event.

Wang Baoqiang arrived at the hotel arranged by the organizers. After checking in, he opened his phone and sent a message to Chen Le.

"Boss, have you arrived?"

Chen Le replied to his message quickly.

"I'm here."

"Where are you?" Wang Baoqiang asked immediately upon seeing that Chen Le had arrived.

"Over by the exhibition center. Do you want to come find me?" Chen Le replied.

"I'll come find you right away."

After sending the message, Wang Baoqiang hurried toward the exhibition center.

Fortunately, the hotel where he was staying wasn't very far from the exhibition center—only a few hundred meters away—and it took just a few minutes to walk there.

Upon arriving at the exhibition center, Wang Baoqiang sent another message to Chen Le.

"Boss, where are you now?"

"I'm at the main entrance of the exhibition center. You'll see me when you get here."

Seeing Chen Le's message, he immediately rushed over.

Soon, he spotted Chen Le.

Similarly, Chen Le saw him too.

"Baoqiang, how long have you been here?" Chen Le asked with a smile as Wang Baoqiang approached him.

"I just arrived not long ago. I just finished checking in at the hotel," Wang Baoqiang replied with a smile.

"Same here. I haven't gone to the hotel to check in yet. Do you want to come with me?" Chen Le looked at him and continued.

"Sure, I'll go with you," Wang Baoqiang nodded.

Then, Wang Baoqiang returned to the hotel with Chen Le.

Just as they reached the hotel, Chen Le ran into some familiar faces.

Feng Xiaogang, Chen Kaige, and Zhang Yimou.

It couldn't be helped; after all, their status was so high that it was impossible for these awards ceremonies not to invite them.

At that moment, Zhang Yimou and the other two also noticed Chen Le and Wang Baoqiang.

They had been chatting, but Zhang Yimou sensed someone behind him and turned around to find Chen Le.

"Chen Le? What a coincidence, meeting you again." Seeing Chen Le, Zhang Yimou greeted him with a smile.

"Senior Brother, what a coincidence?" Chen Le also stepped forward and greeted him with a smile.

After greeting Zhang Yimou, he looked at Feng Xiaogang and Chen Kaige, saying with a smile, "Director Feng, Big Brother Chen, hello!"

As for why he called Chen Kaige "Big Brother Chen," it was mainly because they shared the same surname, and calling him "Director Chen" felt too distant and a bit awkward.

Since they were both surnamed Chen, he had to differentiate them somehow.

"Oh? Why call Kaige 'Big Brother Chen'? Just call him Brother Kai," Feng Xiaogang said immediately with a laugh upon hearing Chen Le's words.

Beside him, Chen Kaige laughed and said, "Either is fine, either is fine. Chen Le and I share the same surname, so whatever feels most cordial works."

"Alright then, I'll call you Brother Kai," Chen Le nodded with a smile.

"By the way, this is Wang Baoqiang, the pillar actor of our company." After greeting them, Chen Le suddenly remembered Wang Baoqiang standing beside him and immediately introduced him.

Hearing this, Zhang Yimou immediately smiled and said, "So you're Wang Baoqiang. Haha, I've heard your name. I've also seen 'Hello, Mr. Tree,' the performance you're winning this award for. Your acting is very good, and you have great potential! I really don't know how Chen Le scouted you."

"Hello, Director Zhang!" Hearing Zhang Yimou's words, Wang Baoqiang immediately offered a respectful greeting.

It couldn't be helped; the person in front of him was one of the top Great Directors in the country, who had even planned the Spring Festival Gala.

"Indeed, Wang Baoqiang, your acting talent is excellent. To achieve what you have in just two short years makes many actors feel inferior," Feng Xiaogang also added a word of praise with a smile.

"Director Feng, I'm actually not that amazing. Your praise is making me blush," Wang Baoqiang smiled bashfully.

Beside him, Chen Kaige also spoke up with a smile: "Wang Baoqiang, there's no need to be humble. Others have to toil for many years before they get a break, but you've become an overnight sensation."

"Director Chen, I actually toiled for many years too. I used to be an Extra," Wang Baoqiang explained.

"Being an Extra doesn't count. You could say you entered the industry, but you couldn't be considered a true actor," Chen Kaige shook his head with a smile.

Since the founding of China, the number of Extras who have managed to make it big can be counted on one hand.

But how many Extra actors are there in the country? Hundreds of thousands would be a low estimate.

There are 100,000 to 200,000 in film studio location alone.

After a few brief exchanges with Wang Baoqiang, Zhang Yimou and the others continued chatting with Chen Le.

After all, they weren't very familiar with Wang Baoqiang, and no matter how famous he became, he wasn't on the same level as them.

"Senior Brother, Director Feng, Brother Kai, would you like to have dinner together tonight?" Chen Le asked with a smile.

"Sure! My treat!" Chen Kaige offered.

"No need, Brother Kai, it's on me," Chen Le quickly waved his hand.

Seeing this, Chen Kaige could only nod.

Since Chen Le had spoken first, he couldn't insist.

"Alright then, what time are we eating tonight? We should prepare in advance," Zhang Yimou nodded.

"How about seven o'clock?" Chen Le suggested a time at random.

"Fine," Zhang Yimou, Feng Xiaogang, and the others nodded.

Then, they left.

Chen Le also led Wang Baoqiang into the hotel to check in.

"Baoqiang, you should go and meet some people on your own tonight. I have to attend the dinner," after checking in, Chen Le turned and said to Wang Baoqiang with a smile.

"Okay, Boss," Wang Baoqiang nodded.

A dinner of this caliber wasn't something he could attend; he felt immense pressure in front of people like Zhang Yimou.

So, not going was for the best.

Even if Chen Le wanted to bring him along, he would have to decline.

Then, Chen Le left.