NOVPUB
Chapter 864: Chapter 749 Chinese New Year
The next day.
New Year’s Eve.
All across Huaxia, families reunited.
The Tang Family was no exception, only this year’s gathering was much livelier than the last. Last year, when they were in the village, the Tang family, consisting of just three people, spent the night with Lin Jiaxue’s family.
But this year, the roles had reversed, with the Lin family spending it at the Tang’s.
Qin Yugang had become the acting head of the Development Zone.
He had volunteered for duty and hadn’t gone back to his hometown, planning to return only on the fifth day to have dinner, as Tang Qing’s maternal grandparents hosted guests on the fifth, traditionally inviting friends and family on the second day.
However, with Qin Yugang’s promotion this year, he became busier and postponed it.
The Tang Family.
The men were all in the living room watching TV and chatting.
The women were in the kitchen cooking dinner. The New Year’s Eve dinner was home-cooked, not delegated to any Fighter, and all the younger family members were roped into helping, except for Tang Qing, as it was deemed that the women’s topics were not suitable for him.
Tang Qing was quite happy with his leisure.
Watching some shows, chatting away, spending the day like this was pleasant.
He grabbed a handful of spiced melon seeds.
Tang Qing started cracking them contentedly.
As the conversation flowed, it inevitably turned towards Tang Qing, who had made quite the splash. The Annual Meeting had ended two days ago, but they were still excitedly discussing what they had seen and heard that day.
They had been even urging Tang Qing to perform a song on New Year’s Eve.
To this, Tang Qing, who couldn’t resist, responded that he would sing.
"Tangtang, is your company’s movie really that good?" his father couldn’t help but ask again.
"Civilization: Soul of the Stars" would premiere in Huaxia after midnight tonight.
At this time, few cinemas in Huaxia showed midnight screenings, but in the United States, it was morning.
"I’ve arranged tickets for 10 a.m. tomorrow morning, you’ll see then," Tang Qing said cheerily. His father had asked this question several times over the past few days.
But he knew it stemmed from concern and anxiety.
He was worried that his son’s first movie might flop and impact Tang Qing negatively.
Elderly concern usually manifested through incessant nagging, like reminding to put on more clothes when going out. As a child, it felt annoying. As an adult, busy with work, it was hard even to hear such reminders, and once they were gone, one could only regret not understanding the care behind those words in childhood.
Such was the cycle.
Time passed quickly.
The house was just like any ordinary family.
They ate the New Year’s Eve dinner.
Watched the Spring Festival Gala.
This was also a tradition in their family.
Tang Qing, the Reincarnator, actually enjoyed it as well.
If not for its entertainment value, it was still interesting to watch, and Tang Qing wasn’t just watching the performances. The stage shows from a few days ago, in front of thousands, let him deeply feel what it was like to be a performer.
He coped somewhat better.
Those on the TV were facing the billions of viewers across Huaxia.
With so many watching, a single mistake could become a major issue, letting Tang Qing appreciate the immense pressure performers faced. He believed that merely performing under such circumstances was commendable.
Of course, the audience’s complaints were also valid.
It could only be said that it wasn’t easy for anyone.
The audience’s interest in the Spring Festival Gala had not waned yet, everyone happily watching the annual grand gathering of celebrities, finding no faults in this harmonious atmosphere, which Tang Qing felt was quite nice.
As the new year bells chimed.
It signified the arrival of 2006.
...
The next day.
Early morning.
The Tang family had finished their breakfast early.
Together, they headed to the cinema in Qingyan City.
No question about it. no𝚟𝚙u𝚋.c𝚘m
A sea of people.
Just after getting out of the car in the parking lot, they saw people continuously entering the movie theater, and some were coming out looking disappointed.
"It’s really crowded," Qin Yugang remarked.
"Of course, it’s crowded. The annual bonuses at my companies include movie tickets, and I booked almost all the movie sessions in Qingyan City for these two days," Tang Qing explained from the side.
This wasn’t about Tang Qing wanting to inflate the box office or anything - a mere prefecture-level city couldn’t achieve such a feat. It was simply a way for the employees of the company to appreciate the accomplishments of their ’sibling company,’ and it didn’t cost much.
"So you’re saying these are all employees from your company?" Qin Yugang asked curiously.
"Not exactly, there are always some other people who don’t know that the movie tickets are sold out," Tang Qing shook his head.
Checking his watch, Tang’s father said, "Let’s go in, it starts in fifteen minutes."
Having said that,
they headed towards the inside of the movie theater.
An employee who was just about to enter saw Tang Qing and instantly jolted, not expecting to see Tang Qing at the movies but then remembered that this was indeed a film from Tang Qing’s company, so it made sense.
"Good evening, Chairman," he hurriedly called out, not daring to pretend he didn’t recognize him.
"Hello, here to watch the movie?" Tang Qing asked with a gentle smile.
"Yes, the company gave me two movie tickets, so I brought my sister along. Our parents went shopping and to watch the lion dance," the man said nervously, his sister beside him also looking anxious.
"Let’s go in together, the movie is about to start, don’t be nervous, I don’t bite," Tang Qing said with a smile.
"Yes, yes, I’m not nervous."
Despite saying that, he was still very nervous.
This made Tang Qing helpless at times. Sometimes, people really care about status, and when different social strata come together, maintaining a normal state of mind truly depends on ’personal aptitude.’
"Which company do you work for?"
Tang Qing felt it odd to even ask.
The man quickly replied, "Sheng Tang Group, I work in the maintenance department of the clothing factory."
"..."
Tang Qing chatted with him sentence by sentence.
In the end, seeing that he was still too nervous, he chose not to ask further.
Upon reaching the lobby,
they had already started checking tickets.
Naturally, Tang Qing and his group didn’t need to queue; there was a special VIP ticket check lane here, which was the only ’classy’ feature of this old single-hall cinema, with a special VIP hall.
It was on the second level, and just being there felt somewhat elevated.
But as for the VIP hall,
it was really just a little higher and the seats were a bit better, nothing more than an extended platform.
By the time they reached their seats,
many familiar faces had already arrived.
These were all managers or higher from various companies. Gao Ming and Yang Kai had arrived early with their families along with some friends, like Han Leng, Sun Chao, Wang Yan and their families; during a drinking session, Tang Qing had given them a few tickets each.
"Happy New Year, Chairman."
"Happy New Year, Chairman."
"..."
Upon Tang Qing’s arrival,
each hurried to greet him.
Tang Qing could only respond one by one.
"Everyone sit down, Happy New Year to all of you, the movie is about to start." Early that morning, Tang Qing had already received dozens of New Year’s greeting calls. You couldn’t just ignore them; they were all from friends and acquaintances.
Especially Ayman, who called at three in the morning to send New Year greetings. Fortunately, Tang Qing didn’t need sleep; had he called an hour earlier, the next time Tang Qing saw him, he’d just have to give him a good demonstration of Huaxia kung fu.
A few minutes later,
Dou Jiao brought Cui Guangming and their family over, with Dou Jiao holding a big tub of popcorn in her arms; Tang Qing quickly stood up to greet them. Usually, Cui Guangming would visit Beijing every other year, but since he went last year, he didn’t go this year.
"Where’s Brother Pan, didn’t he come here for the New Year?" Tang Qing didn’t see Pan Yue.
"He didn’t come; his family also has lots of things to handle back home, and all the relatives are there, keeping him very busy. Really, that’s the only downside of the New Year—too many eating and drinking invitations. Don’t you agree, boss?" Dou Jiao pouted.
"Heh."
