Chapter 124: The Aftermath

Chapter 124: The Aftermath

"To put it bluntly—who are you?"

"No! Why do these unknowns who haven't made a name for themselves always act all high and mighty just because they're older? Have you ever even been famous?"

"Honestly, I don’t know who Meng Xun is either. I’m not just siding with Lu Xu—I genuinely don’t know him."

"Same here..."

Given that countless netizens expressed similar sentiments at the same time, the hashtag #WhoIsMengXun quickly climbed to the top of the trending list.

"He’s a ‘renowned’ film critic, an ‘obscure’ screenwriter, the ‘creator’ of a series with a peak popularity of 6500, and the ‘mentor’ who guided 15 actors to win zero awards... Meng Xun."

"With this kind of resume, I could slap together a fancy title for myself too."

"Hilarious, Lu Xu and the others seriously looked up who Meng Xun is. So earnest!"

"So diligent and studious, how impressive!"

Meng Xun was speechless.

After reading Lu Xu’s comments, Meng Xun was shaking with anger. Nothing infuriated him more than being disrespected. He prided himself on his years in the industry, believing he had earned both fame and respect. How could Lu Xu not even recognize his name?

Even Zhang Zhizhen treated him as an equal!

The hashtag #WhoIsMengXun felt like a public humiliation.

In a rage, Meng Xun fired back on Weibo: "Who I am doesn’t change the fact that ‘Feather of Youth’ is a terrible movie."

Netizens were speechless.

A quick scroll back reveals that during the National Day holiday, Meng Xun had gushed over ‘Song of Tears,’ calling it ‘an unrivaled masterpiece’ that would ‘revolutionize the youth film genre.’

Netizens joked that they knew about the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous, but the ‘Dog Shit Era’ was news to them.

Despite Meng Xun’s furious rants, ‘Feather of Youth’ continued to earn heartfelt praise from viewers.

Critics like him may have sway, but audiences don’t see them as authorities. Take Meng Xun’s glowing review of ‘Song of Tears’—it reeked of a paid endorsement. Then again, maybe Meng Xun truly believes in these ‘happy family’ tales—his outdated views might explain it.

The audience skews young, while ‘authorities’ like Meng Xun, often over 50, are increasingly out of touch.

‘Feather of Youth’ debuted with a 9.5 rating, which dipped to 9.4 over time. Yet, the top review stood out for its raw honesty.

"I used to be a badminton player—I made it to the provincial team and nearly reached the national level. Like Yin Pei in the movie, the reason I didn’t make it was—I got injured, and from then on, badminton was no longer in my future."

"Training was grueling. I poured everything into reaching the international stage. I once described those days as pitch-black. Yet, when I completely left the court, I realized that not being able to compete anymore was the true darkness."

"Now, I can't bear to hear anything about badminton—every time fans lament the lack of successors, I can't help but wonder, if I had made it to the international stage, would I have performed better than the current players? When I was young, my teammates and I all dreamed of being the chosen ones."

"Competitive sports are brutal, far more so than depicted in ‘Feather of Youth.’ But I was truly inspired by Yin Pei in the movie. I know very well that with my current physical condition, I can't return to the provincial team, let alone join the national team, but I can still play."

"Even though my body has failed me, my soul still loves badminton. I want to play again, for the younger me who once lived for the sport."

This review garnered tens of thousands of likes and was naturally written by Zhong Wei.

Although other reviews may not have as many likes as this one, many viewers said they were inspired by Yin Pei and his friends' experiences.

"It's my senior year, a crossroads in my life. I want to go to grad school and do research after I graduate, but my family doesn't have the means. Although my parents love me and are willing to support me fully, I can't burden them with debt for my dreams."

"I'm actually afraid they might feel guilty towards me. My mom once told me that if we lived in the city with better conditions, I could have attended a better university and lived a better life."

"But I don't feel any resentment. I think things are fine as they are. I was really inspired by 'Feather of Youth.' There's hope in everything. I can work and study at the same time, and one day, I will become a great person and work with great people! You got this!"

Although the plot of 'Feather of Youth' is more understated compared to 'Deception,' it excels in evoking emotions and is more grounded in reality. So, 'Feather of Youth' has gotten a lot of heartfelt comments, all stemming from the real experiences of the audience.

Even though it's a niche theme, the film has still attracted a considerable number of viewers.

Some movies have mainstream stories and commercial appeal, but these films require large investments and face fierce competition. Only if the quality is really high can they beat out their competitors and draw audiences into theaters. 'Feather of Youth,' being a niche theme, only needs to attract that specific group of viewers who enjoy youth sports films, and its box office won't be too bad.

As for whether it can attract audiences, it depends on the abilities of the director and the main creators.

You could say 'Feather of Youth' doesn't have this problem because the film's lead is Lu Xu.

...

Hu Yan and Guo Yingyu are doing a roadshow for the first time.

Although they have acted before, they only played minor, unknown roles and naturally never had the chance to participate in roadshows as main creators. This time, for 'Feather of Youth,' they were super nervous, worried that the audience might not know who they were.

When they walked into the screening room, they were blown away by the excitement—following the entry order, the director went first, then Lu Xu, and then them. The moment Lu Xu entered, the venue erupted with thunderous applause.

It felt like the roof was going to come off.

Guo Yingyu was practically speechless.

Even though she knew Lu Xu was super popular from working together, it was only at such live events that she realized just how overwhelmingly popular he was.

It's... kind of enviable and totally awe-inspiring.

Actually, looking at 'Feather of Youth's' first-day box office, out of 130 million, over 30 million was definitely because of Lu Xu.

This is something both Guo Yingyu and Hu Yan are sure of.

Even after working together on set for so long, Guo Yingyu couldn't help but notice how ridiculously good-looking Lu Xu is with just a little touch-up, which puts immense pressure on others.

So she gave Hu Yan a look, hinting he should stand next to Lu Xu.

Hu Yan blinked innocently: "You're not standing there, but you want me to?"

"Who else would?" Guo Yingyu continued with her eye signals.

Hu Yan: "..."

He then quietly moved around to the outside of director Feng Rui, and Guo Yingyu stepped to the outside of Hu Yan.

The director doesn't care; he doesn't have to worry about his image.

They were both impressed by this perfect setup.

The roadshow turned out to be more fun than they thought. On stage, Lu Xu even played a couple of games of badminton with the audience, during which Feng Rui and Hu Yan had to lift Lu Xu's long T-shirt to show off his toned abs.

The audience's screams got even louder.

"Is this something I'm allowed to see?"

"Benefits! Absolute benefits!!"

"Quick, snap the photo! Director, stay steady, steady, steady!"

"Feather of Youth" has already conducted several roadshows, and the audience at this one was the most excited. The GIF of Lu Xu flaunting his physique instantly went viral.

"?????"

"...What is this! What! Is! Going on!"

"@Feng Rui @Hu Yan, please check with me before making such moves, thanks!"

"I’m done complaining, I just want to drool drool... Here I just want to protest, why doesn’t Lu Xu take more photos!! No need for photoshopped pecs, no need for muscle stickers, the natural look is just fine."

"After watching the Z brand commercial countless times, I demand, now, immediately! Show me the pictures! More and more pictures!"

"Shocking! Famous actor sells his looks to boost box office!"

"Little dog, you wouldn’t want to lose at the box office, would you?"

"...Upstairs, your wording is really bold, this is Jinjiang we’re talking about!"

The GIF of Lu Xu flaunting his abs was wildly shared. Meng Xun, who had just dropped off the hot search for #Who is Meng Xun#, then ranted about "the decline of public morals" and "selling looks won't last," which finally made his long-suffering fans unable to hold back.

"But you don't have any."

"But you don't have any."

"[Clown][Clown][Clown][Clown][Clown]"

"[Clown]"

"Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked."

"Just love to watch, can you stop us?"

Clown emojis flooded Meng Xun's comment section, and later, no matter what he posted, the comments were a rainbow of clown faces.

Meng Xun: "...Can’t the platform just delete the clown emojis?"

To this, fans replied: "Even more fitting."

...

In summary, after this roadshow, "Feather of Youth" saw a slight bump in box office, leading to a bizarre trend in the movie's box office trajectory—

Drops were small, rises were also small, yet it consistently maintained a daily box office of around 50 million, slightly more on rest days, less on workdays, but the overall figures were not bad at all.

Thus, "Feather of Youth" wobbled past the 400 million mark, slowly climbing to 500 million, 600 million... until the total box office surpassed 1 billion, causing a wave of shock in the industry—

"Was this the expected box office for 'Feather of Youth' at the beginning?"

"How did it reach 1 billion again?"

"????"

But the total box office of "Feather of Youth" did not stop at 1 billion.

Objectively speaking, the crew’s decision to release in the relatively quiet late October was indeed smart. From the premiere day to the Christmas and New Year holidays, there were no highly competitive movies in the market.

Thus, the screening schedule for "Feather of Youth" was secured.

When the total box office of the movie reached 1.5 billion yuan, the industry was left speechless.

"Feather of Youth" is just a low-budget coming-of-age film, yet it managed to rake in 1.5 billion yuan at the box office. In terms of the box office performance of the films he starred in, Lu Xu undoubtedly leads the pack among the younger generation.

The key point is—

"If his films consistently turn tens of millions into hundreds of millions, imagine the potential of a film with a budget over a hundred million."

Even though Lu Xu hasn't been invited yet, the potential for profit is already palpable.

Author's note:

I plan to stabilize the narrative next, ensuring the plot doesn't feel rushed—expanding where possible, simplifying where necessary, and adding some everyday life elements.

Let's go!