165: Wang Baoqiang, Best Actor Award!

On the other side, not long after Chen Le left, Wang Baoqiang received a message from Zhang Songwen.

"Baoqiang, have you arrived at the Huabiao Awards venue yet?"

Wang Baoqiang was a bit surprised to see his message and replied, "I'm here."

"Where are you? I'm coming to find you with Director Ning. By the way, have you seen the Boss?" Zhang Songwen's message came through immediately.

"I saw him, but the Boss had something to do and left."

"Teacher Songwen, did you come to the venue too?" Wang Baoqiang asked in great surprise.

"Yes, Director Ning brought me here. I'll come find you now," Zhang Songwen replied.

"Okay."

Soon, Zhang Songwen found Wang Baoqiang, and Ning Hao came along as well.

After all, this was the Huabiao Awards, and Ning Hao had come with the intention of making some friends.

"Is Director Chen not here? I wanted to treat Director Chen to a meal, but it looks like I won't be able to now," Ning Hao said with some regret.

Meanwhile, the time quickly reached seven o'clock.

Chen Le found a relatively high-end restaurant and booked a private room.

Inside the private room, the group ordered their food.

They then began to eat, chatting and laughing together.

Even though Chen Le hadn't met them many times, they still felt like old acquaintances.

"Chen Le, I heard you're filming a new movie, right?" Zhang Yimou put down his chopsticks, looked at Chen Le with a smile, and asked.

"That's right! Senior Brother, I didn't expect you to know about it," Chen Le nodded with a smile.

"Can I ask what genre this new film is?" Zhang Yimou continued.

"It's still a comedy," Chen Le replied.

"Another comedy? Chen Le, you really do love comedies!" Feng Xiaogang, sitting nearby, couldn't help but chuckle as he spoke.

"Haha, I do indeed like comedies quite a bit," Chen Le looked at Feng Xiaogang and nodded with a smile.

Of course he liked comedies; after all, comedies made a lot of money and weren't that difficult to film.

It suited him perfectly right now, and in this era, comedies were simply popular; there was no helping it.

"That's good. I'll wish you a huge box office success for your new film in advance," Chen Kaige said with a smile.

"Yes, it's not easy to make a good comedy, especially one that can achieve such high box office numbers," Feng Xiaogang echoed with a smile.

He truly admired Chen Le.

He had been filming for so many years, yet the box office of a single film of his had never broken one billion, yet it was broken just like that by this young lad.

The group continued chatting.

The next day arrived, and the Huabiao Awards ceremony began.

Upon arriving at the scene, it was a sea of people.

"Baoqiang, there's a high probability you'll win an award this time. Are you prepared?" Chen Le looked at Wang Baoqiang beside him and asked with a smile.

"Boss, I've been prepared for a long time," Wang Baoqiang nodded with a smile.

Just then, Zhang Songwen and Ning Hao walked over.

"Boss!"

Hearing Zhang Songwen's voice, Chen Le instinctively turned around and saw him.

"Teacher Songwen, why are you here? I didn't see you yesterday," Chen Le was somewhat surprised.

"Boss, I came with Director Ning. We arrived yesterday, but since you weren't around, I didn't tell you," Zhang Songwen explained.

"I see! Then let's walk in together," Chen Le looked at Zhang Songwen and Ning Hao and nodded with a smile.

The four of them then walked toward the exhibition hall.

Arriving at the outer hall, there were many staff members maintaining order.

After presenting their invitation cards, the four of them successfully entered the exhibition hall.

"Baoqiang, this is your second time on the red carpet, isn't it?" Chen Le looked at the red carpet ahead and spoke to Wang Baoqiang with a smile.

"Yes," Wang Baoqiang nodded.

Soon, the ceremony was about to begin.

They began walking the red carpet, with many familiar faces ahead of them.

On both sides of the red carpet, the audience and media reporters watched the nominated actors, directors, and guests.

Flashbulbs went off constantly, and there were many exclamations from the audience.

Successfully reaching the inner venue, Chen Le saw Zhang Yimou and the others.

He walked over to Zhang Yimou's side and greeted them with a smile.

"Senior Brother, you've arrived!"

"Yes, we're here. The ceremony will start in a moment," Zhang Yimou nodded with a smile.

After a brief conversation, they headed toward the main hall for the awards ceremony.

Just like last time, his seat was relatively close to the front, surrounded by some of the top directors in the industry.

"Director Feng, Brother Kai, what a coincidence! You're actually right in front of me," Chen Le took the initiative to greet Feng Xiaogang and Chen Kaige.

"Oh, Chen Le, what a coincidence indeed!" Feng Xiaogang returned the smile upon seeing him.

"I remember you're up for another best director award this time, right?" Chen Kaige asked.

"Yes, and besides me, Wang Baoqiang has a nomination for Best Actor," Chen Le nodded.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Wang Baoqiang was with Zhang Songwen and Ning Hao.

Wang Baoqiang was a bit nervous; his chances of winning at this Huabiao Awards were very high.

Although he had previously said it wasn't certain he would win, he deeply desired it in his heart.

"Baoqiang, are you nervous?" Zhang Songwen noticed Wang Baoqiang seemed a bit tense and asked with concern.

"A little," Wang Baoqiang nodded.

"It's fine, have confidence in yourself," Zhang Songwen cheered him on.

Like the Hundred Flowers Awards, the Huabiao Awards began by presenting smaller awards that didn't carry much weight.

The prestigious and important awards were all saved for the end.

Soon, the host, Jing Wei, began to speak.

"Next, please welcome the winner of the best actor award at the 14th Huabiao Awards, Wang Baoqiang, to the stage to receive his award!"

As soon as the host finished speaking, the entire venue erupted in thunderous applause.

In the audience, hearing his name, Wang Baoqiang could hardly believe it.

It wasn't until Zhang Songwen beside him shouted with an excited voice, "Baoqiang, you won! This time the best actor award is yours!"

Hearing those words, Wang Baoqiang snapped back to reality.

His heart was incredibly excited.

He stood up immediately, so fast that he almost tripped.

He then walked toward the stage, the excitement in his heart causing a smile to bloom on his face.

"Hello, Wang Baoqiang. Congratulations on winning the best actor award at the 14th Huabiao Awards. Do you have any words you'd like to share?" Jing Wei asked with a smile as she looked at Wang Baoqiang holding the trophy.

Wang Baoqiang looked at the microphone before him, his mind racing with a thousand thoughts, but after a moment, he spoke.

"I am very grateful to the Huabiao Awards jury for granting me this honor. To be able to stand here and receive the best actor award makes me feel incredibly honored and excited. To be honest, when I just heard that I had really won, my mind went completely blank. This honor is not just a recognition of me personally, but also an affirmation of the entire Film Crew of 'Hello, Mr. Tree'."

"At the same time, I want to thank my director, Chen Le, for his trust in me, giving me the opportunity to showcase this performance on screen and stand here to receive this award."

Wang Baoqiang's acceptance speech was impassioned, with his excitement written all over his face.