Dressed in an apron, Lu Yi placed down the cake, which was freshly out of the oven and, frankly, not very appealing. Even so, Yan Huan rested on the table and stared at it intently like a cat, as though she was afraid someone would steal a bite.
Lu Yi sliced off a piece of cake for Yan Huan, and then a smaller piece for Little Bean served in its bowl. Little Bean had already grown from a kitten to a large cat, and was now using a pot as its bowl.
Yan Huan ate a slice contently. She loved the sweet taste of cream. It was too tasty.
And all of the large cake belonged to her. How blissful.
Lu Yi wiped a smudge of cream from her face, thinking to himself that she was like a little girl. Let go of everything and forget what happened in your previous life, he thought, and live only in the moment. He doted her like a child, the child they may or may never have. At least he had her.
He rubbed her head. “Don’t eat too much. It’s fattening.”
“It’s fine,” said Yan Huan blithely. She never worried about putting on weight, since her body type made that impossible. People tend to gain weight during their middle age, but there are also exceptions like her mother, so she was confident that she would be the same.
There was a month left before the screening of White Fox. She was feeling rather unsettled.
“What if it turns out to be a bad investment?” she muttered, propping her chin on one hand. It was impossible to not worry. What if she really ended up losing money? The Lu Family had scraped the money together for her movie; if she lost the money, would they end up on the streets?
“Doesn’t matter,” said Lu Yi indifferently. “I won’t let you starve anyway.”
He sliced off another piece of cake for Yan Huan. Eat and don’t worry too much. Desserts always lift one’s mood and bring happier times.
Yan Huan took another bite. Yes, sweet things were indeed uplifting. Even she felt like she might have been overthinking. White Fox was the only 3D film during the New Year season.
Plus, she had put in tremendous effort in both the plot and production, and gone as far as to hire a famous international post-production team. That’s where all the budget went to. There’s no way anything would go wrong.
Lu Yi was certain that Yan Huan was too high-strung from the way she was losing sleep at night. All he could do was take her out on walks when he was free, in the hope that it’ll help relieve her stress. He didn’t want her to fall sick from her anxiety before the movie even screens.
At long last, the gruesome month passed by. There was a leap month during that year, so it was already February when New Year came. Many people came to the gala premiere; Yan Huan’s popularity aside, Liang Chen’s friends in the sphere had brought in almost half of the entertainment industry. Su Muran and Lu Qin weren’t present, as expected, but Director Yan came.
It was a lively gala premiere with all the people that came to support them. For the first time, Yan Huan realized how lucky she was to ride on Liang Chen’s large coattails. Yes, she was popular, but she hadn’t been around in the entertainment industry for as long as Liang Chen, nor did she have as many friends. Liang Chen had friends at every corner, and her connections paled in comparison.
Still, she was tight with the few she knew.
And don’t forget; the more popular you are, the more scandals are likely to follow.
Deep inside, she felt that it was okay for White Fox to not do too well. A huge success in the box office would bring her a lot more enemies. After all, she had used knowledge privy to her from her past life, and who knows how many people she might have offended with her course of action?
To put it bluntly, despite White Fox’s enormous budget and impressive cast, including the internationally famous Liang Chen, it was produced by a new company.
That gained the film many naysayers, who firmly believed the film to be subpar. Even after White Fox released Hollywood-level trailers, some chose to remain skeptical.
Sometimes, Yan Huan wondered if the Chinese had too little faith in local movies. It wasn’t as if they couldn’t make good movies. She was confident that Chinese movies could easily reach the quality of an international blockbuster.
Haven’t there been many good films in recent years?
Worst still, the box office number-one spot was taken by a film from another country. They were in desperate need to take back that position with a local production.
The gala premiere of White Fox kicked off the start of the annual New Year season, and soon it began to hit the cinemas. Thanks to the word “3D” and the audiences’ taste for visual effects, White Fox was a lot more popular than its 2D counterparts. It was also being shown on 3D giant screens, which cost more than normal tickets, but tickets were selling fast nonetheless.
Yan Huan and Lu Yi went to the cinema to watch the movie, like a normal couple. They went into the theatre with two cups of coke and a box of popcorn.
When they first sat down, Yan Huan was a little disheartened by the unimpressive attendance rate.
She heaved a sigh. Beneath the black-framed glasses was Lu Yi’s stoic and handsome face. Lu Yi reached out and pressed a hand against her face.
“Don’t worry.”
Yan Huan nodded, but still worried.
That soon changed when more people began showing up near the start of the movie. In the end, the attendance rate was almost 85%.
It got livelier in the cinema.
Until the studio lights went off and left the cinema in silent darkness.
But the darkness was cheery and not scary.
When Lin Lang Entertainment’s logo appeared, Yan Huan was shaking with emotions. Sensing her excitement, Lu Yi grasped her hand tighter.
The movie screen lit up, introducing a snowy scene. At that moment, it felt as if the snowflakes were actually falling on the audience, making them feel a little chilly.
As expected from some of the best FX artists in the world, the effects were extremely stunning and convincing. Of course, part of the reason it seemed so realistic was because they actually shot it on a snowy mountain.
Yan Huan had almost frozen to death during the sets.
At the peak of the snowy mountain, there seemed to be nothing but snow. Suddenly, a patch of snow moved, and a long tail came wriggling out, whipping at the white snow. It was a long, soft, and furry tail that made people want to grab it.
