196: Chapter 196 Repeatedly Whipping the Corpse

The news of Lin Chuyan appearing in Hong Kong eventually leaked out.

This was first broken by the Hong Kong media, then spread back to the mainland, and subsequently blasted across every marketing account.

"Breaking: Lin Chuyan spotted in Hong Kong working with Director Du Qiyu! New film co-starring Uncle Da! I'm so looking forward to this."

"Lin Chuyan went straight back to filming right after winning the Best Newcomer award, and this time it's actually a Hong Kong movie! The creative team is Director Du Qiyu + Director Wang Jiahui + Uncle Da—what's your take on this?"

"Word is that the Hong Kong team is incredibly sincere. Director Du personally invited Lin Chuyan to star in the new film, having taken notice of his performance in 'the hovering blade.' Lin Chuyan's acting skills have finally been recognized; surely no one can question them now, right?"

The fans in the comment section were naturally thrilled to see this.

Their idol was working hard on his career, and they were happier about it than anyone else.

"While other male actors are still fighting tooth and nail for resources in the mainland, Lin Chuyan has already gone to Hong Kong to open up a new market. How should I put this? It feels like he's on a completely different level now; the gap between him and the other young actors has widened instantly."

"Remember how people were talking about the 'New Four Young Actors' and wanted to rank Lin Chuyan among them? What do you say now? Still ranking? You guys can play that game by yourselves~"

"Director Du Qiyu + Uncle Da! Tell me, how could this possibly lose? What's the movie called? Does anyone know? My movie itch is acting up, brothers!"

"There's already a Douban entry for it! It's called 'a moment of romance,' and he's the main lead! Aaaah! Let's celebrate! Our boy is finally acting as the main lead again!"

Seeing that everyone already knew, Lin Chuyan felt there was no need to hide it. After asking for the director's and producer's opinions, he posted on Weibo.

"Hey guys, the script is fantastic. This time it's a passionate romance film. Also, there will be two of my new songs in the movie, which likely won't be released before the film hits theaters, so let's meet at the cinema! Oh, and are there any Haters out there who want to curse a little? I'm afraid I might get a big head."

This move was a clean sweep. He wanted both movie fans and music fans—not a single one was allowed to escape—and he even threw in a little tease to rattle the nerves of the Haters.

The latter, as expected, sniffed out the scent and came running.

"Lol, I checked the plot summary. Playing a street thug again, and he likes street racing? I get it now—it's just an enhanced version of a 'Ghost Fire Youth,' right? Is that it? Is that all Director Du Qiyu has?"

Reply: "I told you that you don't understand love, you old fart! I'm parking right downstairs from your place tonight!"

"The director doesn't seem to be Director Du Qiyu; he's just the producer. Just slapping on a producer title and using it for marketing, huh?"

Reply: "Where did I mention Director Du? You believe whatever the marketing accounts say—if that's not asking for abuse, I don't know what is. Get lost!"

"I've never even heard of the director, some guy called Director Mu Sheng? Who is he? Uncle Da is probably just taking a paycheck. Besides, Uncle Da doesn't do nonsensical comedies, so what's the point of him being in a movie like this? Will it even be worth watching?"

Reply: "Good question. Go to the cinema and watch it when it comes out, and you'll find out if it's worth watching."

"It feels like a pile of crap. They're just using the names of Uncle Da and Director Du Qiyu to dress it up like chocolate, but it's still a pile of crap."

Reply: "If you're so good at looking in the mirror, why bother watching movies? Just stay at home."

"Here's the question: can Lin Chuyan carry the film as the first lead? It's not like we don't know how badly 'hunting blue star' flopped."

Reply: "Wow, if you hadn't told us, we wouldn't have known! You should give Director Du a call and share this top-secret information with him so he doesn't get scammed."

"Lin Chuyan, do you have any idea how annoying you are? Do you have no clue why the box office for 'the hovering blade' was high? You weren't even the male lead—do you really think it was your doing?"

Reply: "Sorry, I already have someone I hate. I'm sure you'll meet someone even more annoying in the future."

Mosquito Hits Cannon: "Lin Chuyan, I'm watching you! Act well!"

It was that familiar ID again. Lin Chuyan was about to start roasting him, but when he saw the words "act well," he froze.

Wait, what does this mean? Is this guy actually trying to hate on him, or what? Why is he giving encouragement?

He couldn't help but ask: "You've been watching me for a long time now—have you gained anything from it?"

He had certainly gained something, but that had nothing to do with Lin the Dog.

Mosquito Hits Cannon: "None of your business. Don't pry, and don't ask. Just act well. It's rare for you to play the male lead, so give me 200% effort!"

Lin Chuyan couldn't figure it out. This Hater wasn't very pure, was he? Why did he sound like a career-focused fan?

But he didn't seem like a fan either; fans didn't speak with that tone. It was bizarre. Who was he to be so arrogant? Besides, he thought he was the only one? He could do it too.

So, he couldn't help but be a bit cheeky and replied: "None of your business."

Mosquito Bro: ...

Mosquito Hits Cannon: "Get lost! Even if I jump off this building and die outside, I will absolutely never go watch your 'a moment of romance'! You can give up on that idea!"

Lin Chuyan replied: "Well done, I'll learn from you! You don't have to love me, but please don't hurt me. One less one-star review—I'm truly grateful."

Actually, Mosquito Bro was really quite good at that.

The novel that Mosquito Bro had been supporting with "powering with love" every day had recently finished, and he was currently going through a book drought. Suddenly, he saw an entertainment novel at the top of the recommendation list titled "My Outdated Idol, and Dating a Heavenly Queen Is Reasonable, Right?"

The plot was quite good, but Mosquito Bro really disliked the songs the author chose. They were too niche, too obscure; he hadn't heard a single one. It felt like the author was deliberately trying to annoy the readers, and there was no sense of immersion at all. He deleted the book the next day. He even wanted to leave a bad review before leaving, but he ultimately held back, since the author had already clearly stated this in the synopsis and the first paragraph of the main text.

Mosquito Bro was still quite reasonable: if he wanted to roast it, he had to find other things to roast.

... After teasing the Haters, even though Lin Chuyan was in Hong Kong, he had Wu Yue book a few movie screenings—he'd taken their million, so booking a few screenings wasn't too much to ask, right?

On July 15th, the movie "a little red flower" was officially released.

To be honest, the movie title wasn't particularly attractive, but many people immediately thought of Lin Chuyan's song.

When they checked, hey, the production team had actually bought the song!

But aside from the fans, to say that netizens would walk into a cinema just for a song was nonsense.

But at the very least, when they were deciding which movie to watch at the cinema, they would take a few extra glances at this one, and maybe even try to learn about the plot or read some short reviews from others.

That was enough.

Because the plot of "a little red flower" itself was quite solid. Following its official release, many people even hailed it as the best domestic cancer-themed film to date.

Countless people walked into the cinema smiling, and then walked out in tears.

Soon, Lin Chuyan's song "a little red flower" climbed to the top of the NetEase Cloud Music trending list once again.

A new batch of listeners crowded into the song's comment section. These listeners were originally passersby who didn't listen to Lin Chuyan's songs much, but this time, they had become fans.

"I know Lin Chuyan... but I'd only heard his previous song 'I Am a Fish,' the one from that commercial. I didn't even know this song was sung by him too."

"It's sung really well. 'a little red flower' connects countless individuals and families who are fighting against illness. It's hard to believe this song was written before the movie."

"I looked it up, and it seems the circumstances when this song was first performed were similar; it had also comforted Zhang Yuan's heart back then."

"After listening to this song, I listened to Lin Chuyan's entire album again. I have a question: so this album didn't win any major awards at the Huayin Awards? They only gave him a Best Newcomer award? Are they sick or something???"

"I listened to the Huayin Best Album winner, and from musicality to the album's concept, Lin Chuyan absolutely crushes it... is there even any point in continuing with this award? Hilarious."

"Trash Huayin, and they call themselves one of the three major awards? How does that saying go... Eat sh*t!"

Poor Huayin. It's been so long since the awards ceremony, yet people still bring it up to scold it over and over again.

Hmm, it's all well-deserved.