Chapter 95: You Are Here to Accept Awards, Not to Give Compliments! (Seeking subscriptions 9/10)
The awards ceremony officially began.
The host opened with a brief introduction, warmed up the room, and gave a nod to the prevailing values of the mainstream.
Then came the main event: the presentation of the major awards.
There were many kinds of honors in film and television.
From actors to directors, screenwriters, investors and producers, post-production teams, dubbing, and special contribution awards for industry professionals.
It could truly be said to cover the field in remarkable breadth.
Usually, however, the most weighty individual awards were left for the end.
Because those were the ones everyone came to see.
The early presentations went smoothly.
What no one expected was that, in the acceptance speeches of several winners, one person’s name kept appearing again and again for no apparent reason.
Yu Hong said, “To receive this Best Investment and Production Award, first I want to thank the program team, thank every hardworking employee at Penguin, and thank Director Zhang Huai-Mou for his trust.
“But in the end, I also need to thank one person. Without him, perhaps our film and television division would not have been so successful this year! He is a benefactor to our entire content division! Thank you, Su Mu! Thank you for your help!”
“!!!”
“???”
What the hell?
After Yu Hong finished, the people below were instantly stunned.
They all knew that this year Su Mu’s four dramas had all been invested in and filmed by Penguin Video.
So yes, they had a working relationship and knew one another.
But even so, Yu Hong’s last remark was shocking enough to leave people speechless.
Su Mu was the benefactor of their film and television division?
Without his help, they would not have been this successful?
Those words carried serious weight.
After all, Yu Hong had not even thanked Zhang Huai-Mou with such overwhelming warmth.
But the question was, what exactly had Su Mu done?
What had he done to make one of the executives of one of the three giants of streaming speak of him with such gratitude?
Everyone turned to look at Su Mu.
And at that moment, Su Mu’s eyes were also brimming with tears as he looked solemnly at Yu Hong.
It was as though there were countless untold stories between the two of them.
[Expression Proficiency +1]
[Emotional Proficiency +1]
[Skill Points +0.01 + ...]
So that was it.
Seeing this, the crowd suddenly understood.
They must have run into many difficulties while filming, and in the end Su Mu had helped Yu Hong overcome them, forging such a deep bond.
Got it. This was the kind of friendship born of shared hardship!
But then,
Zheng Quan stepped up to the stage and gave Yu Hong a sideways, mocking smile.
Trying that act? You’re still green.
Zheng Quan said, “I’d like to thank the program team for presenting Kiwi with the Annual Best Video Platform Award, and thank all my colleagues for their support. But in the end, I have to thank one person—Su Mu!
“It can be said that he showed me the direction Kiwi will develop over the next few years. He also gave us fresh material and confidence in our new projects. Thank you!”
“!!!”
“!!!”
Stunned again.
Good heavens, one Yu Hong was enough already.
Now even Zheng Quan from Kiwi had joined in.
Su Mu, are you an actor or a corporate consultant?
The crowd turned toward Su Mu once more.
And this time,
Su Mu had shed all trace of the earlier tears and invisible bond.
He looked proudly and self-importantly at Zheng Quan onstage, as if the two of them were the closest of brothers.
[Expression Proficiency +1]
[Skill Points +0.01]
Someone understood again.
The two of them had clearly hit it off at once, kindred spirits with the same dream.
In the end, they had decided to work together toward the direction of the future.
No wonder they were thanking Su Mu. So it was a matter of shared ideals.
Just as that thought surfaced,
Zhao Zhouming strode onto the stage to accept his award.
Looking at Zheng Quan and Yu Hong behind him, his expression was full of confidence.
Trying to riff off one another?
He had studied under a master of crosstalk for this very moment.
Zhao Zhouming took the microphone. “Receiving this Special Contribution Award for Annual Best Copyright, I want to say that Youku’s efforts this year were not in vain. But if you insist on making me thank one person at this moment...”
“...”
“...”
No, please, don’t!
Damn it, don’t do this!
Zhao Zhouming said, “The person I want to thank is Su Mu! He gave Youku new vitality after a year of stagnation!
“Although he took part in the variety show division, he made us realize the importance of content copyright IP. It was also he who taught me how to hold good scripts in my own hands. What matters is the spirit to boldly show one’s cards without fear! Thank you, Su Mu!”
“!!!”
“!!!”
Su Mu, were you filming all year?
So you spent the whole year solving the big three streaming platforms’ problems?
You’re busier than Du Fu, aren’t you?
Scattered applause escorted the three giants of streaming off the stage.
“At last, it’s over.”
“Su Mu is really something. The three major platforms all praising him like this.”
“They probably only praised him because of their collaboration.”
“Exactly. Otherwise it wouldn’t make sense.”
While they were speaking,
Zhang Huai-Mou stepped onto the stage.
The Best Picture winners, including The Storm, Nirvana in Fire, and Joy of Life, all took home awards.
He had won several trophies and was practically unbeatable.
Zhang Huai-Mou began, “Thank you to the program team, thank you to the fans and the crew, but in the end I still have to thank one person. Although he is a junior, he gave me a new understanding of film and television. That person is Su Mu!”
“!!!”
“!!!”
Enough, really enough!
You are award recipients, not praise recipients!
Can’t you thank someone else?
After Zhang Huai-Mou accepted his award and left the stage, the Best Director category was followed by Best Supporting Actor.
“Wow, Chen Yang!”
“I knew Chen Yang could do it!”
“Chen Yang really is hardworking, but he just never had a good script or a good director. If he had been discovered by Zhang Huai-Mou like Su Mu was, he would have won an award long ago!”
The fans in the back were cheering wildly.
The crowd also let out a long breath of relief.
Especially Li Hui and Zhou Wanming. If they kept hearing people thank Su Mu like this, they might not be able to breathe and would have to leave the venue.
Of course, one was jealous, and the other was regretting it.
Zhou Wanming really did feel a bit of regret. If only he had treated Su Mu better back then, maybe they would still be under contract now.
That was a mountain of money.
Chen Yang took the stage and spoke into the microphone: “Thank you to the program team. Honestly, I hadn’t expected to win anything this year, because the dramas I acted in were mostly lead roles, and only this one was a supporting role. Yet I still won.
“But what I want to say is that whether or not you win an award isn’t the important thing. What matters is seeing the gap between yourself and others!
“Even if the person who helped me see myself clearly doesn’t realize that my outlook on life changed because of him, I still want to thank... Ever since the day I saw Su Mu’s performance in Hengdian, I finally understood where I should be heading. Thank you, Su Mu!”
Zhou Wanming: “...”
Li Hui: “...”
Li Xinjie: “...”
Everyone: “...”
The whole room fell into stunned silence.
Hadn’t they had enough yet?
Had this all been arranged in advance so they could hold a special session for Su Mu today?
Su Mu, Su Mu, Su Mu—this is the summit of Chinese entertainment, not the summit of Su Mu!
Onstage, the veteran actor holding the cue cards said:
“The next award to be presented is this year’s Best Screenwriter Award!
“The winning work is Joy of Life. The writer... Ammu?”
“???”
“???”
The crowd stared blankly.
“Who is that?”
“I’ve never heard of that screenwriter in the industry.”
“Ammu? Is that a pen name?”
“Ah—no, why is he standing up?!”
At that very moment.
Su Mu rose to his feet and walked straight toward the stage!
“No, surely not...”
“!!!”
“???”
P.S. Thanks for the support, everyone! I finally got this chapter done. I’m a little dazed and don’t even know what to say. Anyway, I promised ten updates, and I will definitely finish them all. It might be in the middle of the night, so if you want, you can leave this for tomorrow and read it then!
Also: you can check out the bonus chapter. After chapter ninety, refresh once and it should appear. Ugh, I’m speechless. It was under review all day. Originally, once that chapter was done, I was going to put up the Xin Qiji bonus chapter right away. It was insanely cool, and it really had that feeling to it. It would have flowed perfectly with everyone’s emotions, but the review dragged on for a whole day and drove me crazy. Still, I recommend going back to chapter ninety, refreshing, and reading the bonus chapter. It’s really good, and the emotions are completely full!
Nothing else to say. I’m going to finish writing the last chapter now and post a separate note tomorrow to thank everyone for the tips and sum things up. To everyone who made it this far, thank you, masters. You were incredible! We’ve already hit first-order premium, damn it!! Tomorrow we keep going! If I can’t write myself to death, then I’ll write until death itself backs off!!!
End of chapter.