Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 407 Have you ever listened to the rain on the grassland with Liu Yifei?

"Tiny Times 3" grossed 1.1 million yuan on its opening day, breaking the record for domestic 2D film box office once again. However, negative reviews such as "childish plot, lack of logic, and bizarre presentation" still relentlessly besieged "Tiny Times 3".

However, Director Guo doesn't seem to care at all. He made it clear last year that all he cares about is the box office.

When "Tiny Times 3" was released, "Transformers 4" grossed over 18 billion yuan in mainland China, and "The Invisible Guest" grossed 3.2 million yuan.

Li Qiutang, who was filming "Mojin: The Lost Legend" in Ulanqab, specially recorded a short video and posted it on the official Weibo account of "The Invisible Guest" to thank the audience for their support.

7月的第三周过去，《小时代3》首周末4天票房报收3.1亿，《看不见的客人》票房达到4.1亿。

On the Huanghuagou Grassland in Ulanqab, Li Qiutang sat at the entrance of her tent, feeling troubled.

It's raining!
That's the downside of shooting on location; even though the crew checks the weather forecast, it's not always accurate every day.

Filming just started today, and we'd only been shooting for less than an hour when it started raining in Huanghuagou. It wasn't heavy, but it was enough to disrupt the crew's work.

The photographer said it was a sun shower and wouldn't last long, so just be patient and consider it a break.

Li Qiutang sat at the entrance of the tent, holding a water cup and looking out at the grassland.

In July, the grassland is an endless expanse of green, the sun is nowhere to be seen, and in the distance, a hazy mist obscures the mountain peaks that were visible yesterday, but the small rivers that dot the grassland can still be faintly discerned.

Several cattle and horses still roamed the grassland, grazing leisurely.

The clouds were thick, but the sun's white light still pierced through them, casting the distant grasslands in shades of white and pale gold, like a bride donning a beautiful wedding gown.

The area closer by was greener, and a cool morning breeze, carrying moisture and the fragrance of the meadow, made Li Qiutang, who was sitting at the entrance of the tent, feel relaxed.

Liu Yifei sat beside him, silent.

The raindrops made a pattering sound on the tent, but the two ignored them and just sat quietly together.

Li Qiutang took a sip of water and handed the cup to Liu Yifei, who also took a sip and let out a "ha!" as the hot water chased away the chill from her body.

Have you ever seen the grasslands and heard the rain with Liu Yifei?
The staff around them tacitly avoided disturbing them.

"The rain has lessened." But Liu Yifei really wished time could stand still here; she was willing to sit with her lover like this for a very long time.

"Mmm," Li Qiutang responded softly, but did not get up immediately. Instead, she took another sip of water.

Then he stood up and said to the photographer, "Can we take the picture now?"

The photographer glanced at the monitor screen and nodded: "It's ready."

"Look, a rainbow!" someone exclaimed.

The rain lessened, but the clouds in the sky were still thick. A colorful rainbow arched across the horizon, and the sun had already peeked out. Looking up, it was quite hot and dazzling.

Liu Yifei happily ran out of the tent, picked up her camera, aimed it at the distant rainbow and mountain ridge, and pressed the shutter.

"Cindy, take a picture of me, quick, quick, it'll be gone soon."

Liu Yifei stood under the rainbow, her hand raised high as if to touch it, her smile as radiant as the rainbow in the sky.

Li Qiutang turned her head and glanced at her, then gently scolded her, "All you ever do is play around."

The next day, Liu Yifei finished her first scene on the grassland and returned to Yanjing to participate in the promotional work for "Lucy".

"Lucy" is scheduled for release on the 25th of this month, simultaneously in China and the United States, one day later than "The Continent" directed by Han Han.

"Lucy" entered the mainland market as a batch film, and its import and release date were only confirmed at the Shanghai International Film Festival at the end of June. In addition, the purchase cost of batch films is relatively low, so domestic film companies generally do not invest too many publicity and distribution resources in batch films.

However, "Lucy" is an exception. Although it only took a month from the confirmation of its import to its release, based on the performance of "Pacific Rim" in mainland China, I am very optimistic that the boss lady can once again make this low-budget sci-fi film a success.

Therefore, the autumn season invested a significant amount of promotional resources in "Lucy". However, this "significant" investment is only relative to other imported films. The promotional treatment of "Lucy" in China is still not comparable to that of Li Qiutang's own "The Invisible Guest".

The premiere in Beijing, plus a roadshow in each of the eight major box office cities across the country, that's about it.

If "Lucy" achieves satisfactory results, the company will naturally increase its promotional investment accordingly.

The premiere of "Lucy" was held in Beijing. Director Luc Besson, lead actress Liu Yifei, and Hollywood veteran Morgan Freeman attended the premiere.

Li Bingbing, who rose to fame with "Transformers 4," also appeared as a guest at the premiere to support the film. Other guests present included Yang Zi and Huang Shengyi.

But the leading lady at the premiere was naturally Liu Yifei.

Liu Yifei's popularity in China is incomparable to that of international stars Luc Besson and Morgan Freeman.

The three main creators walked the red carpet together.

"Sissi!"

"Yifei!!"

The screams of fans on the red carpet seemed to lift the roof off the movie theater. Even Luc Besson was amazed by Liu Yifei's popularity in China: "I knew Crystal was the most popular actress in China, but I didn't expect her to have so many fans. Amazing!"

Veteran filmmakers like Luc Besson and Morgan Freeman certainly know that the Chinese market depends on Liu Yifei, so they didn't hold back in praising her. Anyone can say nice things, right? Morgan Freeman went straight to the point, saying Liu Yifei is "one of the best young actresses in Hollywood."

The compliments were almost like rainbows, making Liu Yifei a little embarrassed. She returned the compliment, saying it was her honor to work with two senior actors she had long admired: "I've been watching your movies since I was a child."

There's an unspoken rule in the entertainment industry: "Kings don't meet kings," meaning that popular celebrities generally don't appear on the same stage. For example, Yang Mi and Tang Yan, both very popular actresses, are close friends in private, but they won't appear in the same drama.

First, the production team couldn't afford to hire more people; second, the amount of exposure was limited, and deciding who got more or less screen time was a hassle.

Therefore, Li Bingbing's appearance at Liu Yifei's premiere caused a great stir. The two had a "dispute" in "The Forbidden Kingdom", and their appearance together on the same stage inevitably aroused speculation.

Li Bingbing said, "Yi Fei and I have been good friends for many years, and I am also a fan of Luc Besson and Morgan Freeman."

Only she herself knew that she came to promote Liu Yifei's film "Mirage".

"Mirage" and "The Invisible Guest" were launched at the same time. Now that "The Invisible Guest" has achieved remarkable results, "Mirage" should also be put on the agenda.

Li Qiutang is currently filming "Mojin: The Lost Legend," and industry insiders speculate that his next film will be this long-awaited "Mirage."

Moreover, Li Bingbing found out through his personal connections that Qiu Tian also wanted to start preparations for "Mirage," and the script had already been finalized.

The female lead in "Mirage" is a mother, and her age is just right, making her a strong contender for the role.

It's good to sell Liu Yifei now; it will make it easier to negotiate roles in the future.

Today's premiere will not feature the film itself, but will instead show the audience some behind-the-scenes footage and trailer clips. Most of the time will be spent sharing and exchanging ideas with the main cast and crew.

After the premiere, Liu Yifei rested backstage.

"Yifei." Huang Shengyi greeted Liu Yifei as she entered the lounge.

Liu Yifei wasn't familiar with this senior student, but when the senior came to greet her, she greeted her with a smile.

After exchanging some meaningless pleasantries, Huang Shengyi took out a small box, saying it was a premiere gift for Liu Yifei, wishing "Lucy" a soaring box office.

Liu Yifei didn't want it at first, but Huang Shengyi said, "It's nothing valuable, just a little trinket."

Upon opening the box, Huang Shengyi introduced the two dzi beads to Liu Yifei: "One is for you, and the other is for Director Qiutang. You can wear them for fun."

Liu Yifei had no idea about this; it just looked like a worthless little trinket, so she accepted it.

"Yifei, let's take a picture."

Liu Yifei readily agreed and took a photo with Huang Shengyi, holding two dzi beads.

Huang Shengyi returned to the car, and Yang Zi anxiously asked her, "Did she accept it?"

"Received."

"Where are the photos? Did you take them?"

"I took the picture. Why did you insist on having someone take the picture?"

“You don’t understand,” Yang Zi said, not intending to explain to Huang Shengyi. “Send me the photos.”

(End of this chapter)