Chapter 234: 234 Release

Chapter 234 234 Release

This year's Lunar New Year movie slate offers a wide variety of genres. *Reign Supreme* is a historical drama, *Dragon Palace* a mythological fantasy, and *The Robot Creation Guide* a sci-fi film. The holiday season always features a children's movie alongside family-themed and inspirational films, giving audiences plenty of choices.

*Dragon Palace* had the highest budget, with the bulk of its funds going into sets and VFX. While *The Robot Creation Guide* also uses special effects, its settings are more limited, making it less expensive than *Dragon Palace*.

*Reign Supreme* currently ranks second in screenings, just behind *Dragon Palace*—no surprise, given Lu Xu's star power.

Tan Qi hit the movies again with a friend. She rarely goes to the cinema these days, partly because she can’t always find company, but also because so many films feel like rehashes with nothing new. Tan Qi would rather spend her time elsewhere.

But with *Reign Supreme* out, she wasn’t about to miss it.

Milk teas in hand, Tan Qi and her friend gushed about Lu Xu’s new role as they braved the howling wind on their way to the theater.

"Lu Xu’s past his college-boy roles," her friend sighed.

"Would he even go for those?" Tan Qi shot back. "He’s not hung up on idol dramas."

As a fan, Tan Qi doesn’t need Lu Xu to look perfect in every part. *Feather of Youth* and *Number A77* give her plenty to obsess over—even without his looks, he could still kill it on acting chops alone.

But both she and her friend loved his *Reign Supreme* transformation. Every new role feels like a revelation, from *Dough Figurine* to this latest imperial epic.

At the cinema, the crowds for *Reign Supreme* and *Dragon Palace* were about even. Tan Qi noted that *The Robot Creation Guide*, screening earlier, also drew a long line of young viewers. The place was packed, but once inside, the theater felt comfortably spacious.

Settling in, Tan Qi focused on the screen. After the ads, the opulent imperial court of *Reign Supreme* came to life before her.

Qi Yi was an actual historical emperor. Official records praise his brilliance, but some texts paint him as kind of a jerk.

The film opens with the Empress Dowager’s prophetic dream, dropping the audience into a web of intrigue. Concubines, courtiers—characters emerge one after another.

Yet everyone knows Qi Yi alone rules this palace.

Concubines die. Witnesses vanish. Though these figures once wielded power, under the palace’s shadow, they get swallowed up without a trace.

"Who’s pulling the strings?" her friend whispered.

Tan Qi shook her head.

The trailer had pointed to Hu Qing (Zheng Xiao) as the villain, but halfway through, he didn’t give off big bad vibes.

Her attention stayed on Lu Xu.

Amid the palace’s scheming, Qi Yi remains ice-cold—yet when the camera catches his gaze, even a glance gives you goosebumps.

He doesn’t investigate personally but commands his ministers with precision. Doubts linger, yet before him, all fog clears.

"Our Majesty is the cleverest under heaven. Never underestimate him," crows Chief Eunuch Ding Fu—only to immediately grovel at Qi Yi’s feet like a whipped dog. The whiplash from arrogance to humiliation is a total mic-drop moment.

But what truly stuns Tan Qi is Lu Xu’s performance.

The actor playing Ding Fu is a seasoned pro, and here he nails the eunuch’s mercurial presence. Ding Fu holds nothing back—if Qi Yi couldn’t dominate the scene, their power dynamic might flip.

Yet Qi Yi, through barely a word or glance, radiates imperial majesty.

Others might seem unworthy of Ding Fu’s kowtow. Not Qi Yi.

Even the mightiest eunuch, before the emperor, is just a lapdog.

Lu Xu perfectly embodied the phrase "the sovereign's mind is inscrutable." Even though he was merely acting, it still sent chills down the audience's spine.

The pacing of *Reign Supreme* wasn't particularly fast, yet it never felt dull. The film steadily advanced the plot without lengthy exposition, enhanced by the suspenseful atmosphere deliberately crafted by the production team. From Tan Qi's perspective, she was more than willing to wait for the entire film to unfold.

Emperors appear in all kinds of works, and the role of Qi Yi has been played by various actors. Yet Tan Qi felt that Lu Xu was undoubtedly the most convincingly portrayed Qi Yi.

Emperors are often solitary figures, but Qi Yi was a rare one who relished that solitude. He wielded power effortlessly, and the world's brightest minds served him.

When Qi Yi's gaze fell upon someone, that palpable pressure... Audiences who had seen *The Son of Heaven* couldn't help but marvel at Lu Xu's powerful performance.

Qin Zhao was gentle and timid, while Qi Yi was far more domineering than Qin Zhao's father. Though both were period drama roles and members of the imperial family, Qin Zhao and Qi Yi were diametrically opposed.

The story of *Reign Supreme* continued to unfold. Despite the many false leads, the ultimate mystery still revolved around rebellion. These conspirators sought to undermine Qi Yi’s resolve with the Empress Dowager's dream, aided by accomplices both inside and outside the palace. With insufficient evidence, superstitious dread gripped the court.

There were even rumors among the common folk that Qi Yi's claim to the throne was illegitimate, that his tyrannical rule had incurred divine punishment.

Yet Qi Yi never faltered.

When announcing the execution of a rebel, Qi Yi's eyes held a trace of disdain: "To think of using a dream as your ploy—there are indeed clever minds among you. But choosing the Empress Dowager? That was your mistake."

"My throne may have come easily, but even though the late emperor was mild-mannered, safeguarding my crown prince status was no small feat. The Empress Dowager was far from the ordinary woman you took her for."

"If the Empress Dowager were to send a dream, she would choose me." Qi Yi seemed to recall her fondly, a flicker of emotion crossing his face. "She always claimed to know whenever I indulged in leisure in the palace—no doubt she'd scold me for it now."

The rebel’s eyes blazed with staggering despair. If that despair could manifest as real flames, Qi Yi might have been consumed entirely. But alas, Qi Yi would never fear him.

In the following scene, Hu Qing was identified as the mastermind behind the entire scheme. *Reign Supreme* had laid so much groundwork, yet Hu Qing appeared utterly harmless. Even if some viewers suspected his involvement in the palace intrigue, no one guessed *he* was the mastermind.

The revelation elicited gasps in the theater. Tan Qi was even nudged by her friend: "It could *end* like this?"

They had even wondered if this plotline was orchestrated by Qi Yi himself to expose the traitors. They had suspected Qi Yi, suspected Ding Fu, run through every civil official they could think of—yet never imagined Hu Qing would be the final villain.

Given that this was a collaboration between Lu Xu and Zheng Xiao, convention suggested Lu Xu should’ve played the villain.

Sitting in the theater, Tan Qi had expected to witness a dramatic face-off between Lu Xu and Zheng Xiao. After all, if Hu Qing was the final boss, it only made sense for the two to deliver a riveting performance.

But the story took a turn no one saw coming.

Hu Qing did indeed descend into madness, like every classic villainous boss in film, primed for a villainous rant—lamenting the injustices he'd suffered, expressing utter disdain for the world under Qi Yi's rule. The next moment, he could have thrown himself into flames or brandished a weapon, sacrificing his life to make Qi Yi pay.

But Qi Yi never gave him the chance.

Hu Qing was cut down without ceremony, denied even the villain's cathartic outburst—the powerless get no say. No matter what he wanted to say, the strong have no patience to listen.

Tan Qi: "..."

Well. That was decisive.

*Too* decisive! Wasn't Hu Qing supposed to be the villainous boss?

Yet after watching *Reign Supreme* in full, Tan Qi didn't feel the need to demand justice for Hu Qing. Instead, she found this narrative direction fitting for the story.

Throughout the film, Qi Yi remained the undisputed ruler. The majesty of imperial power was something only those who experienced it firsthand could comprehend. Even the so-called rebellion Hu Qing instigated was nothing more than a minor irritation to Qi Yi.

Of course, *Reign Supreme* was still a highly engaging tale. Though after finishing it, Tan Qi felt the title didn't quite emphasize the "reign" aspect, nor did it delve into how Qi Yi ruled the realm.

The film took a small-scale approach, focusing primarily on a single rebellion.

But upon reflection, Tan Qi decided the title actually worked rather well.

Here is the edited translation incorporating the expert suggestions:

In the era of imperial power, even though Qi Yi did not appear frequently, his authority cast a shadow over the entire empire. It reminded Tan Qi of a palace drama she had watched, where the emperor made few appearances and seemed almost invisible. Yet, single offhand remark or a casual mention of his color preference could set the imperial harem ablaze with intrigue, costing countless lives.

There was no need to analyze imperial authority from a modern perspective. Tan Qi felt that if she had lived in that era, she probably wouldn't have lasted a single day.

When it came to Lu Xu's performance in *Reign Supreme*, Tan Qi could only describe it with one word—daunting.

Qi Yi was a fearsome emperor, and Lu Xu's portrayal of him was equally intimidating.

Lu Xu's appearance was undeniably handsome. Dressed in imperial robes, he looked dignified and majestic. In his 30s, the maturity of both his looks and experience made him even more charismatic. In the film, even when wearing casual attire, his imperial bearing was undeniable.

Yet among period characters, Qi Yi stood in stark contrast to Qin Zhao and Nie Yunzhang. The latter two didn't create a strong sense of distance from the audience, but the former did.

Tan Qi had watched every film and drama Lu Xu starred in, including his cameos, without missing a single one. The character Qi Yi felt most alien to her.

This was a role entirely different from Lu Xu's previous ones. Even in their aloofness, Qi Yi's indifference was distinct from Luo Ying's in *Reversal City*.

This portrayal left such an impression that as soon as she got home, Tan Qi couldn't help but write a viewing note. She didn't reveal the plot of *Reign Supreme*, focusing instead on the character Qi Yi.

Though Tan Qi wasn't a professional film critic, she considered herself an avid viewer, having watched plenty of movies and TV shows. Personally, she felt Lu Xu's performance in *Reign Supreme* marked another breakthrough.

Despite Qi Yi's age in the film matching Lu Xu's actual age, the character was far more mature, beyond most young actors' range. He was more mature than any character he'd played before, naturally making the performance more challenging. Tan Qi's note was merely an expression of her thoughts. To her surprise, shortly after posting it, she received tons of likes.