Chapter 719: Crowning as King
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“How does it look? Am I not very handsome?”
Zian put on a suit he had not worn for a very long time, tied his tie, and applied some special hair mousse. He posed from left to right in front of the mirror before he contentedly asked the elfins his question.
He hadn’t worn a suit since he left his previous job and inherited the pet shop. He raised his arms and stretched his legs, but there was an awkward feeling that lingered no matter what he did. It was probably because, ever since he had started training with Old Time Tea, the fat on his body had turned into muscle and his shoulders and chest were now firm and well-developed, which caused the suit to feel a little tight.
“Meow. Very handsome!” Galaxy said while seated on a chair.
“Ga ga! Great for going gay.” Richard descended on the coat rack and a hint of sadness lingered within its eyes. “The late king in the midst of his conquest, the great Billy, has passed on. I shall now appoint you as the successor to the throne. From this moment on, you will be the Billy!”
“I don’t know anyone by the name of Billy,” Zhang Zian promptly rejected. “I’m also not going to inherit the throne!”
All of the other elfins were busy digging into their Turkish barbecued meat, currywurst, and Bavarian roast pork and had no time to waste on Zian.
In the WeChat group chat, Nie Yuan had mentioned everyone who was supposed to participate in the opening ceremony. He requested for everyone to gather downstairs in ten minutes so that they could all take a ride down to the Sony Center together to prevent anyone from being left behind.
Although there were many people heading down, only three people and a dog would be walking the red carpet. Aside from Zhang Zian and Famous, there was also the director, Feng Xuan, and the male lead, Lin Feng. There were no female characters in the film except for the female background characters, which was why there were no female lead or supporting actresses.
Famous, too, started checking itself out in front of the fitting mirror.
They did not go out again after they returned from the pet store earlier that afternoon; instead, they slept off the jet lag with an afternoon nap. After he woke up, Zhang Zian went out alone and returned with a lot of snacks that he had bought. Zian then gave Famous a shower, blow-dried its hair, and brushed it silky smooth. He also carefully picked out a bowtie and dressed Famous up to be a fine-looking dog.
It could be said that there was not a dog in all of Berlin that looked any smarter than Famous did. Zhang Zian did not put the sunglasses on Famous for the time being, since that was their secret weapon.
Executive producer Nie Yuan was a member of the organization and, as the leader of the Berlin trip, he wished for nothing more than a smooth trip. Although he was well-rounded in handling matters, he was also very conservative. If he were to see Famous with sunglasses on, there was a very high chance of Zhang Zian and Famous being reprimanded for being an attention seekers––even putting a bow tie on Famous was pushing his limit.
Of course, even the male lead, Lin Feng, self-proclaimed as the top star from China for the Berlin trip, was not willing to let anyone else or any other dog steal his spotlight.
With all that in consideration, Zhang Zian decided to go with a surprise attack and cook the rice before asking, which would give Famous the chance to show off and leave a deep impression on the others. That way, Famous could rope in more––and better––film contracts. As for how the others felt, it was none of Zian’s concern. The chances of working with Nie Yuan and Lin Feng again were close to nil, anyway.
Since there were many other people that were going to be riding to the red carpet with them, Zhang Zian recalled all of the other elfins aside from Famous back into his mobile phone.
After heading downstairs, they met up with the others at the hotel entrance and got in the car together as they made their way to the Berlin Film Palace.
The vicinity around the Sony Center was already a sea of joy. Passionate fans from all over the world were gathered, congesting the roadways in the area. Colorful neon lights turned the night sky into daylight as the crowd bustled beneath the colorful lights. Cameramen from all over the world, equipped with various different cameras––long to short and big to small––were focused on the red carpet.
Most of the local fans were simply fond of films, but fans that had gathered from other areas, or even overseas, were mostly there for their favorite movie stars. After all, there were not many opportunities to interact with movie stars up close. The fans were hoping that they might even be able to get their hands on an autograph.
Under the direction of the staff members of the organizing committee, incoming vehicles that were chauffeuring the movie stars were to stop in an orderly fashion at the start of the red carpet. One by one, the movie stars stepped out from their vehicles. Their attire and accessories were all carefully prepared––some of them had even made a recent appearance in a fashion week as a representative for some influential fashion designer––and costed large amounts of money. Some costumes couldn’t even be bought with money.
The male stars were all in suits and ties. The female stars were shivering in the cold Berlin weather while in their evening gowns that exposed their chest and bared their backs. Even in the cold, however, they held onto their designer bags. Although seemingly unintentional, they made poses one after another, just like a flock of proud peacocks fanning out their tail feathers to compete with one another, desperately trying to attract the cameras to them. The only difference was that when peacocks fan their tail feathers out in an attempt to impress, they are male.
Some stars waved their hands to the surrounding crowd with a friendly smile on their face after they stepped out onto the red carpet. Others took on a cool, expressionless attitude, which evoked countless screams from their fans.
Zhang Zian saw many familiar faces––faces that he had previously only seen on television or in movies. He had never once thought that the day would come when he would be in the same space as them, let alone even step on the same red carpet as them.
Feng Xuan and Lin Feng were a little nervous; they were both very stiff, constantly rubbing their neckties, and straightening the little creases on their trousers to divert their attention. As a second-tier director and a movie star back in China, both of them treasured the opportunity to walk the red carpet. Lin Feng’s personal assistant kept cheering him on and telling him to remain calm. They told him to pay less attention to the others and to treat himself as the best star.
Nie Yuan and the others who had come down together were in another vehicle. They did not go through the process of walking the red carpet, but instead entered the venue directly.
Zhang Zian overheard from the other crew’s staff that, as a second-tier movie star back in China, his exposure was not that high. Some of the cameramen didn’t even recognize him, which was why he had been communicating with the media from various countries the day before in hopes that he would be able to have more exposure during the featured report.
Famous held a dismissive attitude toward such petty thoughts.
The working staff members kept an eye on the red carpet and then gestured towards Zhang Zian’s driver, indicating that it was time for them to walk the red carpet.
Compared to the other two prestigious film festivals in Europe, the Berlin Film Festival had a relatively flexible requirement for walking the red carpet. There were no limitations on the amount of time each movie star had to walk down the red carpet, so everyone always thought of ways to remain there. They would take a photo in front of the cameraman alone, pull in another familiar star to take a photo with them, or pull in other stars for a group photo before they finally took selfies with their passionate fans and gave out their autographs… A short walk down the twenty to thirty meter red carpet would take more than ten minutes to complete. The stars would remain on the red carpet until there were no cameras focusing on them before they would then make their way into the venue.
The driver stopped the vehicle at the start of the red carpet.
The vehicle door was pulled open and cold air started to pour into the vehicle.
Feng Xuan got out of the car first, then Lin Feng followed after.
Zhang Zian took the opportunity while no one else was paying attention to swiftly put the the sunglasses on Famous. He looked from left to right and felt very satisfied.
“Come on, Famous. You have waited a very long time––it is time for you to make your appearance in front of the world.”
Famous looked at the bustling crowd outside the vehicle. The cheering from outside and the cheering from Hollywood a hundred years ago began to overlap as one in its ears; they could no longer be distinguished.
Zhang Zian and Famous got out of the vehicle together as an ocean of camera flashes welcomed them.