Chapter 170 170 Premiere

Chapter 170 Release

"Lu Xu is taking forever."

Outside the cinema, Zheng Xiao, holding bubble tea, glanced toward the elevator several times but still didn’t see Lu Xu.

This season in City C was the coldest time of the year. A cold snap had hit before Lunar New Year, and the low temperatures made people reluctant to go out. Fortunately, there was no rain or snow, or else even fewer audience members would be willing to visit the cinema.

Luckily, it was Lunar New Year, so the cinema wasn’t worried about ticket sales.

Zheng Xiao looked a few more times before spotting a figure that might be Lu Xu. The person was bundled up like a yeti, wearing a hideous hat that looked like it’d been sitting on a clearance rack. If Zheng Xiao hadn’t been so familiar with him, he might not have recognized him at all.

"Did you stuff a spare tire in there?" Zheng Xiao took a closer look and realized Lu Xu was wearing a new down jacket with a Gucci logo.

This year, puffer jackets were all the rage.

Zheng Xiao concluded that if Lu Xu weren’t tall enough or didn’t have this face, even he couldn’t rock this jacket.

He, Shao Yao, and Lu Xu had arranged to watch the movie together, naturally to support *Fearless Life*—since the film was released during the Spring Festival, paparazzi keeping an eye on Lu Xu were especially numerous. Occasionally, Lu Xu would fulfill his duties as a spokesperson.

Lu Xu had already seen the final cut of *Fearless Life*, but Zheng Xiao and Shao Yao hadn’t yet.

The two rented out a theater for Lu Xu but only informed him without splurging on social media promo. Lu Xu originally had no free time during the Spring Festival, but today he somehow scored half a day off. As soon as Zheng Xiao mentioned the cinema’s address, Lu Xu followed along.

*Fearless Life*’s promo blitz was underway, and Lu Xu estimated he’d be busy until early March.

The cinema was warm inside. Considering the Lunar New Year crowds, Zheng Xiao had deliberately chosen a low-key mall outside downtown. However, once inside, they realized that although the mall was somewhat remote, the theater was still pretty packed.

Zheng Xiao handed Lu Xu his bubble tea, and the three bought some popcorn before strolling into the theater when the time came.

Next to the usual families and date-night duos, their trio stuck out… In fact, even within the entire entertainment industry, few spent their days cycling, fishing, or strolling the streets like they did.

To them, others in the industry were odd, but in others’ eyes, the three of them weren’t much different.

"*Return Undecided*’s showtimes are insane," Zheng Xiao murmured.

Shao Yao nodded slightly.

They didn’t even need to check the official screening data—just looking at the cinema they’d chosen today was enough to see that *Return Undecided* had screenings back-to-back, totally eclipsing *Boundless Ambition*. Compared to the former, the latter seemed more likely to succeed during the Spring Festival.

Zheng Xiao couldn’t shake his worry for *Fearless Life*.

Although Lu Xu’s box office performance had never been bad, *Fearless Life*’s lack of screenings was brutal. *Return Undecided* represented Liu Rennong, while *Fearless Life* represented Miao Zhi.

On the surface, the two had no direct conflict in this year’s Spring Festival lineup, but in reality, no matter how hard *Fearless Life* fought, it couldn’t secure even a little more screening time. Call it paranoia, but… it was hard not to suspect Liu Rennong’s involvement.

Of course, Liu Rennong would never admit it.

Zheng Xiao hadn’t ventured into filmmaking yet—he was still a TV A-lister. But even from a distance, he could sense the unfriendly atmosphere from Liu Rennong’s side toward Lu Xu.

This feeling was almost mystical, much like how he and Lu Xu had become friends because they just clicked.

…

Once inside the screening room, Zheng Xiao relaxed a little. He noticed that even in this less crowded cinema, the audience for *Fearless Life* was larger than he’d expected.

The three entered early. After settling in and placing their popcorn, Zheng Xiao started complaining about Lu Xu’s thick down jacket. The screening room’s heating was strong, and after taking off his jacket and draping it over the seat, Lu Xu looked like a linebacker, taking up way too much room.

Once the movie began, the screening room quickly quieted down. Zheng Xiao took a sip of his bubble tea—it was no longer hot. The opening credits rolled, displaying the logos of the production and distribution companies—both well-known in the industry.

The first scene of the film shows seagulls soaring over the azure sea. Bai Qianshan, now accomplished in his studies, is about to return to his homeland—young, handsome, and radiating youthful energy.

"So handsome!"

A soft gasp rose from the audience behind him.

It wasn’t that Lu Xu’s look was especially striking. In terms of appearance, his character in *Fearless Life* might not be as dashing as in his previous works. But on screen, Bai Qianshan stood tall and spirited, capturing the spirit of that time.

From an actor’s perspective, Zheng Xiao felt Lu Xu’s portrayal perfectly fit the period, never breaking immersion.

Despite the arduous journey home, Bai Qianshan overcame countless hardships to return. The moment he set foot on his homeland, his eyes seemed to glisten with tears.

Conversations, idle chatter, and even the sound of chewing popcorn in the theater grew quieter than before.

Yet, the reality Bai Qianshan faced was a desolate land and facilities so basic they were almost comical. In the distant foreign land, he had led an independent team and worked with cutting-edge equipment—something the domestic officials clearly knew, their gazes tinged with awkwardness.

Even so, the conditions Bai Qianshan encountered here were already the best available.

The people were genuine and kind, bursting with tireless energy and the most sincere enthusiasm for him. No one discriminated against him or treated him as an outsider—he was completely accepted as one of them.

Beyond Bai Qianshan, the project also included other geniuses. Unlike others desperate to leave, they chose to stay, contributing their intellect and wisdom amid the hardships.

*Fearless Life* wasn’t fast-paced, nor did it dump a flood of details on the audience or resort to forced sentimentality.

From an outsider’s perspective, Zheng Xiao could only describe it with one word: real.

The interactions between characters were there, as was Bai Qianshan’s intense, almost urgent dedication to his academic pursuits. Nothing was superficial, nor were any characters reduced to mere backdrops. While the film focused on Bai Qianshan, it also portrayed those who, like him, toiled anonymously at the base, dedicating their lives to the nation.

They weren’t the vague "sacrificing heroes" of popular imagination but real people with real struggles.

After losing a basketball game and coming in second? He woke up an hour earlier every day to practice high jumps.

Then there was the father who traveled thousands of miles from his hometown to see his son. The two could only meet at the home of an unfamiliar farmer. The father brought cotton clothes and shoes stitched by the mother, fine flour specially bartered from the village, and meat preserved as salted pork after being saved for so long.

The son took the clothes and shoes back, only to reveal socks practically in tatters—only one toe remained without holes.

The food brought from home was carefully divided, with everyone reluctant to take more than a spoonful, cherishing every mouthful.

Tears slipped into their bowls as they ate.

Director Miao Zhi didn’t overtly dramatize love. Even with the protagonist Bai Qianshan, he rarely used direct dialogue to convey emotions, choosing instead to show, not tell. The only exception came in a letter Bai Qianshan wrote to his mentor: *"This is the land that raised me. If I don’t love it, who will?"*

His mentor, far across the ocean, had repeatedly written urging him to return, but Bai Qianshan refused every time.

The same was true for other characters. The father never said he missed his son, nor did the mother. The mother’s love was woven into every stitch of her needlework, while the father’s love was written in the miles he traveled, transfer after transfer—from village to township, county to city, and beyond—until holes wore through his soles.

Media and later generations would only emphasize sacrifice and dedication, as if these people had been born extraordinary. But the vividness of their lives, their finer and deeper struggles, were barely touched on.

To Zheng Xiao, *Fearless Life* felt like a bridge connecting these real individuals and historical accounts, making viewers want to know them.

The scene where Bai Qianshan saved lives hit him hard.

Who would have thought?

The revered Bai Qianshan, nearly sacred in the eyes of many, would have such an epitaph.

But this didn’t make him seem any less great; instead, it left him in awe, truly believing Bai Qianshan was extraordinary.

To everyone else, Bai Qianshan was great. To himself? Not at all.

Everyone sees Bai Qianshan as noble, yet he sees himself as no different from anyone.

In the film, Bai Qianshan has Lu Xu's face, but Zheng Xiao can't stop thinking about Bai Qianshan—even though Lu Xu is sitting right beside him, and Zheng Xiao knows him as well as anyone in showbiz.

That raw sense of awe makes him feel as though he has touched the heights actors dream of reaching.

Zheng Xiao and Shao Yao know Lu Xu well. After this scene in the movie, their eyes instinctively shift toward Lu Xu in the middle.

Because they understand Lu Xu, they know his acting style and how mature his skills are. Yet at this moment, Zheng Xiao feels even more strongly that Lu Xu's performance has taken another step forward.

It’s nearly invisible.

There’s no overacting, no flashy technique—in this scene, Lu Xu’s performance leaves barely any trace.

Understated, but just as powerful.

*Fearless Life* seems to possess a kind of magic, drawing the audience completely into the film.

Whether it’s Bai Qianshan or the other characters in the movie, each carries a heart-stirring presence.

*Fearless Life* tells the story of these people’s lives and their experiments—not just depicting hardship, but also joy and happiness. Hardship alone can't build something extraordinary.

No one enjoys suffering. They endure it only for the sake of others’ happiness.

As the experiments progress again and again in the film, Bai Qianshan frowns in concentration, while outside the screen, the audience shares the same nail-biting tension, hoping for the experiment’s success and for these people’s efforts to bear fruit.

Even though, decades later, everyone knows the experiment did indeed succeed.

Yet, immersed in the story, the audience’s hearts still flutter with nervous anticipation, wishing for these people’s dreams to come true.

One can only imagine that, looking back decades earlier, when Bai Qianshan and his comrades gazed at the quiet night sky, their hearts must've been pounding harder than in this moment.

At the end of the film, the scene of the experiment’s success unfolds. On screen, Bai Qianshan and his comrades sing, dance, and cheer, singing their hearts out to *"A Great River Runs Wide"* in various dialects. Off screen, the audience in the theater are just as pumped.

It isn’t until the credits roll that Zheng Xiao realizes *Fearless Life* has ended.

His bubble tea has long gone cold, and the popcorn was only touched a few times after the movie started—then left untouched entirely.

Truly, *Fearless Life* is only a biopic.

In many people’s eyes, such films are hard to pull off. When Zhang Zhizhen criticized *Fearless Life*, he called it "nothing but empty praise."

Yet Zheng Xiao feels regret—regret that *Fearless Life* has barely 10% of showtimes. More audiences should have the chance to watch this film.