Chapter 406: The Release of 'Stupid'
It was June.
After secretly filming for 3 months, 'W.H.' finally reached it's last scene. In this scene, the wife gave birth to a child in the rain and the village was finally freed from the virus. The disaster was lifted.
Towards the end of the film, when the wife found out her husband was the carrier of the virus and everyone wanted to kill him, she spent her days in fear and anxiety. She needed to protect her husband, but she also wanted to save humanity…
Within these last few scenes, the thrill and excitement allowed Tangning and Bei Chendong to both feel a sense of satisfaction.
From start to finish, Tangning's character was stuck in a predicament.
She risked being infected but she also risked misunderstanding her husband. The predicament she faced, pushed her into a dead end.
The production crew cheered in joy. They felt, based on Tangning and Bei Chendong's acting, if the film wasn't a hit, something was wrong with the world. Actually, Tangning's scenes within 'W.H.' were a lot more difficult than Bei Chendong's, but she completed her scenes a lot faster. As a result, the entire crew including An Zihao were completely convinced by her.
"Tanging, congratulations," An Zihao said as he approached her with a bunch of flowers. "Happy Filming Completion. After 3 months of hard work, you're finally free."
"Thank you Director An, I look forward to the day the film starts screening," Tangning gently hugged An Zihao.
"How come President Mo isn't here on such a speciall occassion?" An Zihao asked curiously after he scanned the room and saw no sign of Mo Ting.
Whenever something important happened to Tangning, Mo Ting would never miss out on it. The couple always supported each other and no matter how busy they were, they would always put the other person first. A relationship like this wasn't common.
"He will definitely appear at the celebration tomorrow," Tangning smiled.
"I heard Luo Xing entered a singing competition and received first prize in popularity. Have you congratulated him yet?" An Zihao asked. Not many people knew that Tang Jingxuan was her younger brother; only her closest friends and family.
An Zihao knew their relationship because he had seen Tang Jingxuan visit Tangning on set. He also knew that Tangning had been busy filming so she probably wouldn't have seen the entertainment news.
"Of course," Tangning lifted an eyebrow and replied. She then waved her phone at him, "He's already reported to me."
Previously, after the awards ceremony incident, K&G were boycotted and shamed by the entire nation because they had been caught with drugs. On the other hand, because Tang Jingxuan volunteered to cooperate with the authorities and was found innocent, his popularity began to rise. Plus, with the help of Hai Rui, Tang Jingxuan received a lot more opportunities to appear behind cameras and even participated in a large-scale singing competition programme. So, the Tang Jingxuan today had already exceeded the one in the past.
"I was thinking of asking him to sing the theme song for the film. I wonder…"
"When it comes to business, you should speak to his manager. I will not get involved."
After Tangning expressed her thoughts, she held onto her bunch of flowers and left with Song Yanshu. Meanwhile, An Zihao watched as she walked away and smiled; this mysterious woman always seemed to bring happiness to the people around her.
Not long after, Bei Chendong also completed his filming. Of course, this cool and uncaring national treasure actor would not need any flowers. All he wanted was his little assistant. Even though, to this day, she still thought he wanted her by his side because he liked to play tricks on her.
3pm. The production crew officially announced that filming was complete and the film would move into post production.
But…this did not mean Tangning could rest because, at this time, 'Stupid' was due for release at the end of June.
Also due for release at the same time was another popular film called 'Devil Shooter'. It featured a few hot young actors and actresses and was a fantasy film with a budget in the hundreds of millions. It was highly anticipated by the youngsters.
After all, there now existed a category of films called 'idol films'…
Even if the special effects were full of flaws and the storyline didn't make sense, ticket sales would still be through the roof. This was because of the popularity of the actors. All they had to do was act cool and look good and the fans would be smitten.
This was a huge challenge for 'Stupid', because when it came to popularity, there was no way they could beat 'Devil Shooter'.
Since no one had seen Tangning act before and a few months had passed since the commotion of her career change, people had long lost interest and trust in her acting.
Even though the top actor Lin Sheng was in the film, it wasn't enough to save it from the youngster-dominated market.
From the time that Tangning changed career paths, she no longer appeared on the runway and news about her ceased for a good few months. As a result, the public's impression of her had paused with the last time they saw her a few months ago. If it wasn't because her name was mentioned every now and then, they perhaps would have already forgotten how hard she had fought for her glory in the fashion world.
Plenty of people felt pity for Tangning, including Tang Jingxuan. After seeing negative discussions from film fans about his sister, he couldn't help but question her, "Sister Three, have you ever regretted changing to acting? If you weren't acting, you'd definitely get a part in the August Victoria's Secret show."
"Look at you. You're practically starting all over again…"
"Do you want me to announce our relationship?"
"I'm not at the stage where I need you to help boost my popularity," Tangning laughed. "Either way, don't you trust your brother-in-law's abilities?"
"Of course I do, but I'm getting anxious because he hasn't made a move in so long," Tang Jingxuan complained. Right now, he was known as the prince of the singing industry and his popularity was no joke. If he was to reveal his relationship with Tangning, her fame would definitely jump back up to top.
"As a model, I did all I could as a model to achieve the best. Now that I'm an actress, I will do all I can as an actress to get to where I want to be. No one can stop me." Seeing Tang Jingxuan's impatience, Tangning said with confidence, "Your brother-in-law isn't even anxious, why should you be anxious?"
"I'm worried about the sale numbers and reviews for 'Stupid'."
"That's not something for you to worry about. Sing your songs and focus on your own career," Tangning said firmly. After 3 months of keeping a low profile, Tangning had become even more mature and calm. "Hurry and get going. Don't you have an appearance on a show tonight? You don't want to participate in it anymore?"
"I'm just worried about you."
"When has your sister ever needed you to worry about her?" Mo Ting asked as he entered the room and removed his jacket, "You need to have faith in her!"
Tang Jingxuan thought about it and nodded his head, but he still had a trace of doubt, "I'll tell my fans to watch the movie. If you need me for anything, just tell me."
"Your status is still miles from you sister's," Mo Ting said without holding back, "Even when she was a model, her popularity was higher than yours…"
"I will prove to you that I can be the top singer in Hai Rui." After speaking, Tang Jingxuan left Hyatt Regency, leaving the couple to look at each other helplessly as they shook their heads.
"To be honest, I'm not as optimistic as you think," Tangning said honestly after Tang Jingxuan left. "'Stupid' was my first film. It holds a lot of importance in my heart. But I'm not sure if my acting will be acknowledged; I'm actually quite nervous."