Chapter 385: Chapter 385: A Stick! (Vote for monthly pass)

“I am a leaf in the wind, watch how I soar…”

Night had descended on the bustling Tokyo Shinjuku, and the streets outside Piccadilly Cinema in this city that never sleeps were filled with noise. The short stretch of red carpet from the road to the entrance was swamped with over ten thousand Wang Young fans, creating a massive traffic jam in the area. Although the nearby various stores and entertainment venues were lively, everyone wanted to enter Piccadilly. Surely the screening of “Firefly” must be fascinating?

Fans like Ogawa Mizuko and the slightly injured Maeda Genki, who had just met their idol a few hours ago, didn’t go home but followed in the magical footsteps of Yang to this place. They had seen him once again, walking the red carpet in a black suit. His handsome and charming figure caused countless flashes of cameras to flicker non-stop. They also saw several stars who did the Japanese voice acting for “Firefly”, but who cared about them? They were all very dissatisfied. Who was qualified to dub for the magical Yang? Lousy!

“Magical Yang! Magical Yang!” Suddenly, the streets of Shinjuku were filled with a growing roar of voices, and the fans’ excitement and agitation were far from cooling down. More than 500 security guards and 500 police officers sent by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police knew this well and did not dare to relax in maintaining order.

Although the Tokyo Metropolitan Police had advised with earnest words, Wang Yang and the distributor Herald Film Company still held the premiere with a strong attitude, saying they would use every means to ensure safety. They made it clear: “Under no circumstances will the event schedule change!” Wang Yang asked the Tokyo Metropolitan Police to dispatch police instead of wasting their words. Could they really allow the excessive enthusiasm of the fans and the incompetence of the Tokyo police to become their burden or even a farce? Ridiculous!

So, the premiere happened as scheduled. Since only Osaka and Kawasaki in all of Japan had two IMAX theaters, Herald Film Company arranged for Tokyo’s largest and most luxurious cinema, Piccadilly, to host the event. Naturally, it was in the “Platinum Hall” on the fourth floor, Screening Room 1, with the theater’s highest capacity of 607 seats and using JBL large surround sound systems. At this moment, in Tokyo’s most top-class screening hall, the Battle of New Shanxi was playing on the big screen.

“Rumble…” The Serenity Ship weaved perilously through a fleet of ships engaged in intense combat. Watching the splendid visuals and hearing the rousing music, the audience in front of the screen was filled with passionate excitement mixed with intense anxiety. This film had already surpassed a global box office of 1.5 billion US dollars! “Hahaha! Mal, we’re coming to save you!” As Top-Captain boldly reappeared, the entire screening hall turned into chaos as numerous female fans screamed uncontrollably, “Aaah—”

They quickly covered their mouths, their heartbeats so rapid they set a new personal record. It felt as if their hearts jumped to their throats! Top-Captain was just so manly, so handsome!! Watching this premiere, they felt their lives were complete! Top-Captain did not disappoint them, bravely fighting from melee combat to gun battles, “Bang!” “Bang!” “Bang!” But soon, he was shot by the Star Alliance fighter’s bullets and fell to the ground. The Raiders pounced on him, and it seemed as if Magical Yang himself had died. A wave of girls’ cries and moans rose from the seats: “Ahh wuu!” “YA-ME-TE!!” “YA-ME-RU!” “Yang-kun, TA-QI-A-GA-RE, wuu!!” …

“Where do you all come from?” Just as the audience was overcome by an insurmountable wave of sorrow, the film neared its end amid children’s laughter, and the end credits appeared on the big screen: “DIRECTED BY: YOUNG WANG…”

Applause suddenly erupted in the Platinum Hall. Over 600 spectators, men and women alike, stood up and clapped, loudly praising that man! It was so good!

“Top-notch!” Takano Tsuki, who had taken part in the welcoming in the morning, clapped until her hands were numb from the pain, tears blurring her vision. This was the best, best, best movie she had ever seen. Aside from the fact that Top-Captain had too little screen time, she was left in awe! And weren’t the other viewers feeling the same? Especially the girls, who were wiping their misty eyes while applauding and praising their idol and the movie: “What an admirable person!” “Top-notch!!” “This is so amazing!!” “I admire Yang-kun’s brilliance!” “I’m really impressed!” “Quite excellent!” …

Despite the best seats in the Platinum Hall being the 22 double platinum seats in the central area, the director and voice stars of “Firefly” still took their places in the front row. Now, Wang Yang was being drowned in a sea of admiration and applause, with several Japanese stars beside him praising him just as any ordinary audience member would.

“THANK-YOU.” Wang Yang couldn’t understand Japanese, but he knew the praise meant “a grand slam.” He imagined the rest of the remarks were similar. In fact, he had never been worried about how “Firefly” would perform in Japan, especially after its global dominance. Now that it had indeed reaped sweet success, he naturally felt elated. While clapping, he smiled and thanked everyone, “THANK-YOU! THANK-YOU…”

The thunderous applause continued for nearly five minutes, only waning as the end credits rolled, and the audience gradually quieted down.

Wang Yang then went on stage alone to thank the legion of movie fans, journalists, and film critics for their support. Every time the event organizer’s translator relayed a sentence, there was an excited scream from the fans in the auditorium. When his speech ended, the premiere entered its last “lucky segment,” where Wang Yang would personally draw five lucky fans to come on stage and take a photo with him. All the girls in the hall felt breathless, hundreds of pairs of eyes staring at him as he reached into the transparent box filled with papers, silently praying with fervent excitement, “Let it be me! Let it be me!”

“Who will it be? You’ll get to hug Yang-kun…” The evening’s host, Kasai Nobusuke, added fuel to the fire with his remarks, making it even harder for the girls to breathe. With a smile on his face, Wang Yang pulled out the first slip of paper, looked at it, and read into the microphone, “Number 151.” As soon as the translator said it, a girl’s ecstatic scream pierced the silence of the auditorium: “Ahhh—” followed by a chorus of sighs: “Haa—” Kasai Nobusuke soberly added, “There are only four spots left!” Wang Yang continued and drew the next one: “Number 382.”

Amid more screams and sighs, he drew numbers 37 and 195 in succession. “Only one lucky person left!” Listening to Kasai Nobusuke’s words, Takano Sakura desperately closed her eyes, praying to Amaterasu, “Please, please let it be me! I’d even give years of my life for it!” Other than the four chosen fans who were too excited to think, the girls were driven to the brink of madness by their despair! Tears threatened to spill at any moment—as not being chosen would be a regret for life. At that moment, the marvelous Yang drew a slip and read, “Number 420.”

“Ahhh—” It’s me, it’s me! Takano Sakura sprang to her feet with a scream—she heard the marvelous Yang say “Number 420” in English, and she was number 420!! She was number 420!!! As predicted, the translator immediately announced number 420. Both 421 and 419, young women, let out a cry of anguish and started sobbing. Why?! More girls began wiping their tears as the audience watched with a mix of envy, jealousy, and bewilderment as the five made their way to the stage with disoriented steps; how were they so lucky!!

According to Yahoo Japan’s report, the five lucky girls who were drawn at last night’s “Firefly” premiere were extremely excited to meet the marvelous Yang up close. They were all so overcome with joy that they cried uncontrollably. Seeing this, the marvelous Yang showed his gentle side, taking the initiative to embrace each of his fans to offer solace. The atmosphere on site instantly skyrocketed, and later, the staff at Piccadilly Cinema revealed that there was a large puddle of water where the lucky fans had stood, likely from a girl who was so thrilled she had an accident. However, no one seemed to notice at the time. “They went too far,” the staff member tasked with cleanup wasn’t pleased.

But compared to this news, another incident caused by crazy fans grabbed the attention of all of Japan and the world! Following the trampling incident involving Pei Yongjun’s fans at Haneda Airport, yesterday at Narita Airport, a more serious trampling occurred due to Wang Yang’s fans.

The incident resulted in 52 people with minor injuries and another 13 sent to the hospital due to physical discomfort—a total of 65 people! Japanese fans once again showed the world the extent of their frenzy. The recent global attention of the marvelous Yang and “Firefly” was something not comparable to the attention ‘Winter Sonata’ received. Whether it was America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, and of course, Asia, traditional and online media from around the globe rushed to report the news. Whether this would drive the box office sales for “Firefly” was uncertain, but it had certainly become a hot topic for netizens and fodder for future conversations over tea.

“What are these people thinking? Have they gone mad?”—there were those who found it unbelievable and incomprehensible. “Such a shame, I hope they’re all right!”—”No one wants these things to happen; thankfully, nobody died.”—there were those who offered sympathy and comfort. “Japanese people are too funny!”—”They must be so envious of the invaders!”—there were also those who mocked and ridiculed.

In China, America, Japan, and other countries, this is completely the case. A NetEase user named Big Kuan2003 joked, “These Japanese girls have sinister intentions, wanting to keep the magical Wang Yang in their island country to develop!” Young Zhang San Crazy replied, “That’s not true, the Japanese have this tradition, they call it ‘degree planting.'” Young Master Zhao said, “In 18 years… Wang Yang, do you still remember Sora Aoi by the Lake Daming?” An American Yahoo user, Blithe-P, commented, “I hope Wang Yang isn’t frightened from shooting sci-fi movies anymore, otherwise they’ll have to perform harakiri as an apology.” A critic of Wang Yang, Elliot, insulted, “They’ve forgotten that Wang Yang is also Asian; there won’t be any special size.” Fan of Wang Yang, Myron, said, “You can’t blame them, guys, haven’t you ever done something crazy? That’s how Wang Yang drives people wild!”…

Yesterday Wang Yang had already expressed his condolences to the injured fans through a spokesperson and called on moviegoers and fans to treat their idols with rational enthusiasm. The most important thing, he stressed, was to pay attention to safety, and then to safety again.

“Seriously, I’m impressed with these Japanese girls, everything yesterday was just so, so crazy!” In the suite’s bedroom at Hotel New Otani, Wang Yang talked to his wife on the phone while lying on the bed, laughing and saying, “I’m just a director behind the scenes! I’m not Michael Jackson or Michael Jordan, I don’t want to think about it anymore.”

“They scared me too.” Jessica couldn’t help but laugh with a sense of helplessness as she recalled her feelings upon hearing the news the day before. She had been truly startled, immediately thinking about flying to Tokyo, and that urge and longing lasted until now, with only three days left! On the other end, Wang Yang suddenly said, “Sweetheart, I have to get out of bed and head to a show.” Jessica tenderly replied, “Hmm, make sure you rest!” Wang Yang, however, laughed heartily, “Please! I just slept for a whole night! It’s only me in the bed, yes, and a Pikachu doll.”

“Haha! Good boy!” Jessica laughed crisply, her voice slowly turning seductive and tantalizing, “Baby, do you know? I’ve prepared a surprise for you, it’s waiting for you to come home…” Wang Yang exclaimed “Wow,” threw off the covers and climbed out of bed, laughing “Nice! OK, got it!”

It was still not light out, and the outside of Hotel New Otani was already filled with over a thousand movie fans. Wang Yang’s Mercedes car passed through the main gate, and the enthusiastic fans, undiminished in their fervor, immediately swarmed over to catch a glimpse of the magical Yang. Wang Yang did not disappoint them, lowering the car window to greet them with a smile, and for a moment, a tumultuous wave of fan cheers rose: “Yang-jun—”

The 29th was destined to be another very busy day. In the morning, Wang Yang attended several programs at TBS TV station, including being a guest on a news show and recording for the arts and entertainment program “Sakasusan,” which is a live variety show broadcast in the morning. It has a very high recognition because only big stars are invited, and it has been famous previously for appearances by Tom Cruise, “Spider-Man” Toby Maguire, and others.

Today, with the anticipation of a surprise, Wang Yang brushed off the exhaustion of recent days, exuding a lively and courageous state. He fully exhibited his comedic talents on “Sakasusan,” causing the hosts to burst into laughter again and again, and countless viewers in front of their TVs also nearly died from laughter. The Japanese seem to have a low threshold for humor and are quite odd in that aspect. Since there was a language barrier, Wang Yang didn’t rely on verbal wit to win, using his speech only as a finishing touch, instead focusing on slightly exaggerated body language. Playing a big shot without a shred of seriousness, utterly nonsensical, the Japanese audience found it both humorous and endearing.

Benefiting from the television show’s impact, and the media’s glowing reviews of “Firefly,” the fever for the magical Yang continued to rise.

After leaving TBS TV station, Wang Yang attended a fan meeting in Shibuya in the afternoon, unable to escape and properly see things like the statue of Hachiko the faithful dog. Nowadays, he couldn’t step out of the car and walk anywhere, as many people had given up doing anything else these days except for chasing stars.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and Shibuya Police Station had both requested Wang Yang’s team to cancel the event, as it was pre-estimated that over 2,000 people would attend the fan meeting, filling the Shibuya Public Hall with not a single empty space, and moreover, over 10,000 people gathered outside! The area around Shibuya Public Hall is quite narrow, arguably several times more dangerous than Shinjuku’s Piccadilly! However, Wang Yang and the Pioneer Film remained steadfast, aside from asking Tokyo’s police to deploy forces, they had also prepared a large outdoor screen to broadcast the event live, in the hope of keeping the movie fans and followers a bit more well-behaved.

The Tokyo Police spent an anxiety-ridden afternoon, and it wasn’t until the Mercedes carrying Wang Yang left Shibuya Public Hall and Shibuya amidst the crazy roar that they dared to breathe a sigh of relief! No accidents occurred, and the fan meeting concluded successfully.

After dinner that evening, Wang Yang continued to attend the press conference held at the Hotel New Otani, where a record-breaking 450 media outlets crowded the spacious conference hall. The Q&A session had already begun, and every opportunity to ask a question was met with a flurry of hands from the journalists competing to be called upon.

A beautiful female reporter from Asahi News got the chance and asked in English, “Hello Mr. Wang, how do you view your popularity among Japanese girls? In fact, I’m a fan of yours too.” Wang Yang sat behind the long table on stage, smiling at the journalists in front of him. After the translator had finished repeating the question in Japanese, he replied, “First, thank you. I’m delighted and honored by everyone’s affection. Japanese girls are enthusiastic and beautiful, but I’m already in love and married, so I can only wish you happiness.”

“Hehe!” After the translation, a light laughter spread among the journalists, while the girls blushed with pride, thrilled to receive such a compliment from the amazing Yang! A middle-aged male reporter from Japan Economic News stood up to ask, “Hello Mr. Wang, you just mentioned that you really like Japanese anime. Have you considered adapting any anime into a movie?” Wang Yang nodded with a smile, “The world of anime is full of interesting imagination and often brings a lot of inspiration. Firefly Films will bring excellent anime to the big screen’s live-action world when the right opportunity comes.”

The refined female reporter from the fashion magazine Grazia then stood up to ask, “Mr. Wang, may I ask who is your favorite Japanese artist?”

Everyone tensed up at once; they all had favorite artists to root for knowing well that a single word from the miraculous Yang would greatly boost anyone’s popularity! Wang Yang replied from the stage with a smile, “Compared to games and anime, I don’t have enough knowledge about the Japanese entertainment industry. But I do know that Ken Watanabe is an excellent actor, and I also enjoy listening to Hikaru Utada’s songs.” The crowd couldn’t help but feel disappointed—those two were already big names; they didn’t need your endorsement!

The female reporter from Yomiuri News with tiger teeth smilingly took her turn, “Mr. Wang, do you like watching Japanese movies?” Wang Yang eagerly said YES without hesitation, “I like movies from all over the world; they each have their unique cultural character and features. Japanese movies are the same, they have a lot of excellence. I personally really like movies by Hayao Miyazaki, Shunji Iwai and look forward to a day when I can have a conversation with them; with the likes of Hideo Nakata, Takashi Shimizu, no need—for I don’t want to have nightmares.”

“Hahaha!” The entire hall of journalists erupted into laughter, and soon, another reporter got the chance to ask a question…

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PS: Thank you for supporting with your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets; Wah Lee continues to seek more! Also, recommending a fantasy novel “Summoning Brick Experts,” book number 2236562, for interested friends to check out! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to go to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast recommendation votes and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)