Translator: Yunyi Editor: Yunyi
On the morning of the 16th, the mysterious coupons were finally all handed out. Although it wasn’t hard to find a few lying around in rubbish bins, the majority of coupon-holders planned to attend the event that night.
Soon, a long line formed outside a particular theater. Everyone in line had something in common: they liked ‘The Ant Queen’ wholeheartedly.
Reporters soon arrived on the scene and they all wanted to know what film fans thought about Hai Rui’s event. A large number of people actually answered enthusiastically.
“It’s freezing cold today, so I didn’t really want to leave the house. But, it’s so lively inside the theater and Hai Rui is holding a big and interesting event for ‘The Ant Queen’. Plus, I’m especially curious about the ‘gift’ in my hands,” a young man said.
“Places like this are the best for dates. It’s nice and warm in here.”
“Yes, we’re fans of Tangning’s. We’re attending this event to show support and encourage her to release ‘The Ant Queen 2’ soon,” a couple said.
“As a fan of Tangning’s, I had to come today. Every Tang Fan should be here today.”
After this particular girl spoke, a few dozen other girls swarmed towards the camera from behind her.
The reporters sensed the enthusiasm in the theater and naturally developed their own ideas regarding the mysterious gift, “Looking at this long line of coupon-holders, I’m actually feeling a little envious of them. The way that this gift has been organized is so creative. On this cold winter’s night, Hai Rui’s Anniversary Event is definitely the hottest thing in town. I hope Hai Rui can continue to create new and unique experiences to give everyone warmth and happiness!”
The reporters ended their broadcast there and did not report any further.
Meanwhile, to truly see the audience’s reaction, Tangning had to personally visit the theater.
At that time, the coupon-holders piled into one of the screening rooms and found their seat.
Were they perhaps watching a film to commemorate ‘The Ant Queen’?
“If it’s some kind of commemoration film, then I don’t want to watch it.”
“I don’t think it’s that simple. If it’s a commemoration film, Hai Rui could have released it into the open instead of making it so mysterious and fancy.”
“Exactly. It’s still the beginning so let’s remain patient in case we really miss out on a huge surprise.”
Soon, the entire room was filled with faces of confusion. Afterwards, the lights turned off. Then, after the usual reminder popped on screen asking everyone to remain quiet, a giant ant appeared on the screen.
When they saw the ant, a few of the audience members wanted to get up and leave because they thought Hai Rui had invited them there for another screening of ‘The Ant Queen’, but they’d already watched it a countless number of times.
But, when the film title appeared on the screen, everyone screamed and cheered in excitement.
“Woo! Look! Look! It says ‘2’! It’s not the first film!”
“Oh my God, it really does say ‘2’! Is this just the trailer?”
Everyone in the theater was so excited that they started questioning each other, “Is this real? Oh my God, I wasn’t prepared for this at all!”
Seeing that the audience wasn’t calming down, the staff in charge of the screening, temporarily stopped the film and stepped out to provide an explanation, “Welcome everyone. You guys aren’t seeing things, this is indeed the screening of Tangning’s latest film, ‘The Ant Queen 2’! As you managed to get your hands on a coupon, you are the lucky guests of this film’s premier. I hope you can all remain quiet for the remaining time and enjoy the film!”
“Wait, Miss, let me calm down first. I can’t believe this!”
A young sci-fi fan in the middle felt like he had won a huge prize, so he needed some time to gather his composure.
“OK, sir, we will give you two minutes. After that, the film will resume screening.”
“This is the sequel! Not the first film! I’m so excited! I need to post about this online!”
“Me too! Me too!”
“Oh God, Hai Rui sure knows how to create a surprise. This is like winning a major prize!”
“So, we’re the first ones to watch this? We’re so lucky!”
The audience shared their feelings and quickly released their emotions in two minutes. After that, the film officially started screening. Everyone tried their best to calm down and eventually immersed themselves into the film.
It was normal for them to act this way. After all, it was seriously hard to come across a great sci-fi film…
Afterwards, the social media accounts of the audience members went crazy. Post after post of disbelief fueled that cold winter’s night.
“You guys watched ‘The Ant Queen 2’? How’s that possible?”
“You guys are lying. You must be watching the first film. We haven’t heard anything regarding the sequel yet.”
A particular audience member even had a huge argument online with his friend, until he showed him a photo and he finally believed he was telling the truth.
Afterwards, the friend logged onto the theater’s official app and discovered that, without any prior notification, tickets were being sold for ‘The Ant Queen 2’ – it had officially begun screening!
“WTF, I’m not sleeping! I want to go over to the theater right now to watch it! But, I can’t seem to buy any tickets. Hai Rui, please explain…”
“There are only tickets available for tomorrow. I must book one for tomorrow, then!”
While Elder Nangong was completely oblivious, ‘The Ant Queen 2’ officially began screening. To highlight the importance of that night’s event and to make the coupon-holders feel special, Hai Rui spoke to the theaters and agreed to not have any more screenings until the next day.
When the people that had thrown away their coupons found out it was actually a ticket for the premier of ‘The Ant Queen 2’, many of them ran back to where they had disposed of it and tried to dig it out of the rubbish bins. This was observed in many places around the country.
The cleaners were shocked by this scene!
Why were these nicely dressed young men and women searching through the bins?
This was because Hai Rui’s event was actually more effective than any typical marketing plan.
After all, the first audience members were spreading word like crazy and promoting the film for them, while those that missed out on the coupons, could only listen with envy…
The desperation for tickets created by this event, put a huge smile on the faces of theater owners. Because, overnight, pre-booked ticket sales for ‘The Ant Queen 2’ went crazy…
No other agency was better to co-operate with than Hai Rui, because every time Tangning released a film, they would make a huge profit.
So, even though the weather was cold and they had to work late, the theater staff were brimming with energy.
Was ‘The Ant Queen 2’ going to be a huge hit? Need that be asked?
No one expected Tangning and Mo Ting to pull a trick like this. So, the next day, when everyone was already talking about ‘The Ant Queen 2’, Elder Nangong was still clueless about his situation…
