Chapter Thirty-Seven: Lackluster Box Office Results

October 1st, National Day.

Today, the 2000 Sydney Olympics concluded successfully in Australia. China secured a total of 28 gold medals, 16 silver medals, and 15 bronze medals, ranking third in both gold and overall medal counts worldwide—a remarkable achievement.

Gu Zhi had been busy with his film recently and had no time to pay attention to the Olympics.

Speaking of the Olympics, it is a significant international event that showcases a nation's strength. Yet, it is lamentable that the games, lasting less than half a month, require at least four years of preparation from a country, with expenses measured in the billions of dollars—a tremendous burden of time and money.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics were organized to perfection, setting standards that were almost too high.

The benefit was that it reshaped the world’s perception of China, marking its emergence onto the international stage. The overall gains for China far outweighed the enormous expenses.

The downside, however, was that it set such a dazzling example for the world.

Because the Games were so well hosted by a “developing country” like China, other developing nations were misled into believing they too could host the Olympics successfully with their own resources.

Take Brazil, one of the renowned BRICS nations, which hosted the 2016 Olympics. In the end, some Brazilians took to the streets daily in protest, not to mention the abysmal organization and the scandals that plagued the Rio Games.

Among the BRICS, only China is truly gold; Russia might just about qualify as silver, while the other three are more like bricks than anything else.

But that's enough digression... the matter of the Olympics can wait for another time.

Today was a public holiday. Han Siping had invited Gu Zhi, Ning Hao, Liu Ye, Tang Wei, as well as Zhang Yishan, Yang Zi, and the rest of the main cast and crew of “The Butterfly Effect” to dine and gather at Boiling Fish Village, Yansha branch.

Boiling Fish Village’s spicy boiled fish was famous in Beijing, and this branch was conveniently located near the Great Wall Hotel, Kunlun, and Kempinski, as well as close to Sanlitun, Workers’ Stadium, and other nightlife hotspots. It had become a favorite spot for celebrities to fill their stomachs and socialize.

When Gu Zhi learned the location for dinner, he breathed a sigh of relief.

“Third Master has finally decided to change things up. Otherwise, we’d be eating spicy food again today.”

Han Siping’s invitation wasn’t just for old time’s sake; there was business at hand.

Three days after the release of “The Butterfly Effect,” the box office numbers were finally in!

Smartphones hadn’t yet appeared, nor was there any software to tally ticket sales on the computer. Only after theaters around the country finished counting their data could the distributors and producers get the official figures.

This process took at least a day. Han Siping had only received the news at noon and promptly contacted the others to arrange dinner for the evening.

At 7:13 p.m., Tang Wei hurried into Boiling Fish Village. Guided by a waitress, she dashed straight to the private room booked by Han Siping.

Opening the door, she saw that everyone had already arrived—she was the last.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry! I had a movement class this afternoon, and the teacher ran over by half an hour. I’m so sorry to have kept you all waiting…”

She apologized profusely, bowing repeatedly to everyone.

She was drenched in sweat, a few strands of hair clinging damply to her forehead, her breath coming in gasps. Her face alternated between flushed and pale, her lips almost bloodless.

Tang Wei had run most of the way, and now that she’d stopped, she was nearly out of breath.

“It’s all right. Dinner is dinner, but you can’t miss class for it. As a university student, your studies should come first. Sit down.”

Han Siping seemed in particularly good spirits today. Since he had spoken, no one else at the table had any objections.

Gu Zhi sat to Han Siping’s left and beckoned Tang Wei over, offering her the empty seat beside him and pouring her a cup of hot tea.

Tang Wei nodded gently to Liu Ye beside her and Ning Hao sitting diagonally across.

She sipped her tea and, when no one was looking, stuck out her tongue at Gu Zhi, her expression adorably startled.

She had truly been frantic on the way over, and her heart was still pounding.

Gu Zhi couldn’t help but chuckle at her antics. He was just about to reach out and pinch her flushed, delicate cheek when he suddenly realized where he was—Han Siping was sitting right next to him!

He quickly composed himself, straightening up and putting on a solemn, proper expression, his eyes never wandering.

Once everyone had arrived, the waitress began serving the dishes.

Han Siping glanced around the room. In addition to the main cast and crew of “The Butterfly Effect,” Zhang Yishan and Yang Zi’s parents were present. Ning Hao’s girlfriend, Xing Xiuna, had also been brought along, sitting beside him, looking a little nervous.

Of course, Liu Qi, the somewhat amateurish producer, was there as well.

Everyone knew why Han Siping had called them here tonight. Inevitably, there was a measure of anxiety and anticipation in the air.

It was like waiting for exam results at the end of term—the time just before the answer is revealed is always the most exciting and nerve-wracking.

Gu Zhi was no exception. Though he appeared calm, inside he was a storm of nerves.

Of all those present, only one was completely unfazed.

Zhang Yishan!

He was as boisterous as a monkey, giving no thought to the others at all. If his parents hadn’t been there, he’d probably have been running wild across the table.

Eight-year-old boys truly have boundless energy.

Fortunately, after filming together for so long, everyone was used to the antics of the little rascal. He was naturally outgoing and had started joking with Han Siping from their first meeting, but the director, amused, didn’t hold it against him and was instead kindly indulgent.

Yang Zi, on the other hand, sat quietly in her seat, hands clasped, silent and composed.

Her gaze occasionally drifted to Gu Zhi and Ning Hao, her eyes betraying a hint of nervousness and excitement.

As one of the young leads, she too cared about the box office results for “The Butterfly Effect.”

Same age, but what a difference between the two.

“Ahem.”

Han Siping cleared his throat, and everyone immediately quieted down. Zhang Yishan’s parents quickly held him close to stop him from causing further mischief.

“I’m sure you all know why we’re here tonight, so I’ll get straight to the point. Let me give you the results first—otherwise, I doubt any of you could eat in peace,” Han Siping said with an easy smile.

“From September 28th to September 30th, ‘Mission: Impossible 2’ earned 3.2 million yuan nationwide over three days.”

“For an imported blockbuster, that’s passable. ‘A Sigh’ is sure to surpass it,” Gu Zhi speculated to himself.

“Feng Xiaogang’s ‘A Sigh,’ 4.09 million!”

“Middling, as expected—not as good as his New Year releases.”

Just one more to go…

Han Siping paused deliberately at the crucial moment. After a while, under the crowd’s anxious and impatient stares, he finally announced the last result.

“‘The Butterfly Effect,’ 6.9 million.”

At that moment, Han Siping felt a wave of satisfaction and relief wash over him.