MC Bookstore Chapter 42 premiered successfully; we'll celebrate tonight.
Chapter 42 premiered successfully; we'll celebrate tonight.
Soon, the trailer for "The Beginning" spread online. In the short one-minute video, the shocking scene of the bus explosion, the terrified eyes of Li Shiqing and Xiao Heyun, and the tension of the loop restarting instantly grabbed the audience's attention.
The style of the bullet comments suddenly changed:
"What show is this? It looks so exciting!"
"A loop setting? That's interesting!"
"Compared to a certain treasure-protecting drama, this seems more anticipated?"
"June 20th? I can't wait!"
Wang Man couldn't stop smiling as she looked at the number of shares the trailer for "The Beginning" had received. She called Raymond Lam: "Director Lam, the results are amazing! So many people are asking when 'The Beginning' will air, saying they'll abandon 'The Lost Tomb' and wait for ours!"
"As expected," Lin Feng said. "Next, we'll edit together the negative reviews of 'The Lost Tomb' into a compilation, compare it with our trailer, and then have marketing accounts promote it."
"Brilliant!" Wang Man exclaimed in admiration. "I'll get on it right away!"
As Li Yitong watched the changing online sentiment, her admiration for Lin Feng grew even stronger. She had initially worried that a head-on confrontation would be unwise, but he hadn't expected her to play by his own rules, letting her perform to her heart's content before striking decisively at the opportune moment.
"Boss, you're amazing!" she said, handing over a glass of warm water, her eyes full of admiration.
Raymond Lam took the water and smiled, "This is just the beginning. Once 'The Beginning' airs, let's let our talent speak for itself; that's when we'll truly win."
On the morning of June 13th, Tencent Video's official account went into overdrive, releasing the release date announcement trailer and the "Time and Space Gap" poster for "The Beginning".
In the trailer, the flames from the bus explosion illuminate half the sky, and Li Shiqing's terrified face and Xiao Heyun's tense jawline flash alternately. The Canon bell ringing during the loop restarts is like a fine needle, gently pricking the audience's memory.
"This concept is pretty interesting!"
"Time loop + bus explosion? Chinese dramas are finally daring to try something new!"
"The moment 'Canon' starts playing, I get goosebumps. I'm already waiting for June 20th!"
The comment section instantly became lively. Looking at the backend data, Li Yi finally felt relieved. The boss had made the right move.
She immediately arranged for those accounts "pretending to be fans of the original Tomb Raider Chronicles" to post: "I was just heartbroken by a certain drama, but this 'Beginning' looks pretty good. Anyone want to wait for it together?" "The loop setting is much more reliable than the drastically altered plot. I'll bookmark it for now!"
In the following days, the promotion for "The Beginning" went all out. In the special episodes, the veteran actors' scenes were full of tension. Officer Zhang's line "I believe in you" brought tears to people's eyes. In the character posters, everyone's eyes held a story, and even the bus driver's eyes revealed an indescribable complexity.
In contrast, the negative reviews for "The Lost Tomb" after the third episode aired on June 19th were like a tsunami.
"Can Chen Chengcheng and High Shao please get out of the tomb raiding industry? Their excessive screen time is making me want to smash my phone!"
"A 'corpse cave' turned into a 'wet cave'? Corpse beetles turned into plastic toys? Screenwriter, are you kidding me?"
"Could the Red Bull product placement be a little more thoughtful? Wu Xie brought Red Bull with him while tomb raiding—was he afraid the rice dumplings would get thirsty?"
The barrage of criticisms was faster than the actual plot itself, with even casual viewers joining the fray: "I came for Li Yifeng and Yang Yang, but the plot was so cringeworthy I wanted to dig my toes into the ground. Their acting is worse than the security guard downstairs from my house." "80 million investment and this is it? Even 50-cent special effects are too much. They might as well have bought me candy."
At 8 p.m. on June 20, the bell rang for the premiere of "The Beginning".
As soon as the words "Playing the first episode of 'The Beginning'" popped up on the Penguin Video playback interface, a flood of comments poured in.
"It's here! It's finally here!"
"I got so angry reading 'The Grave Robbers' Chronicles' earlier that my liver hurt, so I came here to cleanse my eyes."
"The moment Canon started playing, I got goosebumps all over! The atmosphere was amazing!"
When Li Shiqing first experienced the explosion, and her face showed a mixture of fear and bewilderment, the live chat exploded: "This actress acted so well! The despair was so real, it made me cry!"
In the second episode, Xiao Heyun is caught in a loop. When questioned by the police, his fingers tremble unconsciously, and even the veins on his forehead throb. The comments section is flooded with: "This male lead's acting is amazing! Even his muscles are shaking; the immersion is incredible!"
When Officer Zhang appeared, his single glance was incredibly imposing, immediately drawing a flood of comments: "Officer Zhang's eyes killed me! Such a veteran actor!"
After the first two episodes aired, members could directly watch the remaining four episodes. Many people immediately subscribed, and the comments section was filled with messages like, "Subscribed now, not sleeping tonight!" and "Bathed out six episodes in one go, awesome!"
Lin Feng looked at the numbers sent by Tencent: 2000 million views in 10 minutes and over 5000 million views in two hours, and he felt reassured.
In the office of Tencent Video, Wang Man stared at the playback curve in the background, smiling from ear to ear.
The operations manager next to him excitedly reported, "Mr. Wang, our new member acquisition has hit a new high for this year! Many people came from iQiyi, saying they've 'abandoned Tomb Raider and started watching The Beginning'!"
"Great! Great!" Wang Man slammed her hand on the table. "Immediately increase the votes and put the 'Beginning' clips on the splash screens of all the major apps so more people can see it!" She picked up her phone and called Raymond Lam, her excitement barely contained: "Director Lam, we've hit the jackpot! We've really hit the jackpot!"
"As expected." Lin Feng's voice remained calm, but the smile on his lips was unmistakable. "President Wang, strike while the iron is hot and have the publicity follow up."
"Don't worry! I've already ordered them to send more people!"
Because it was the weekend, discussions about "The Beginning" exploded. On Weibo's trending topics, hashtags such as #TheBeginningLoopSettingIsAmazing#, #OfficerZhang'sActingSkills#, and #TheBeginningDetails# accounted for 12 spots, and the #TheBeginning# topic gained over 1 million views in a single day.
On Douban, "The Beginning" maintains a stable rating of 8.5, with over 80% of users giving it four stars or higher. In the comments section, casual viewers enthusiastically recommend it: "I've never seen such a captivating domestic drama! The plot is tight, the acting is superb, and it's a hundred times better than some tomb-raiding dramas!"
"I initially started watching 'The Lost Tomb' because I was annoyed by it, but I ended up really enjoying it and binged all six episodes in one go! Please add more episodes!"
The atmosphere in the company was even more lively than during the Chinese New Year. Li Yi rushed into the office with reports in hand, her voice trembling: "Director Lin! Our promotional account has gained a lot of followers! Many people have sent private messages saying 'thank you for the recommendation,' and brands are even contacting us for collaborations!"
"Thank you all for your hard work," Lin Feng said with a smile. "Let's work overtime tonight and push the hype up a bit more. Overtime pay will be doubled, and everyone will get a bonus."
"Yay!" Cheers erupted instantly in the office.
Standing to the side, Li Yitong watched Lin Feng surrounded by the crowd, feeling both proud and excited. She knew she might really be about to become famous; when she opened Weibo that morning, her private messages were flooded with comments praising her acting skills.
"What are you standing there for?" Lin Feng walked over and pinched her cheek. "We'll celebrate when we get back tonight."
Back at their lodgings, Lin Feng leaned back on the sofa, scrolling through his phone. Seeing the positive reviews of "The Beginning" online, he was in a great mood. Li Yitong blushed as she went to take a shower, her heart pounding faster as she thought about what he'd said that morning.
When she came out wrapped in a bath towel, Lin Feng was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at her with deep eyes. "Come here." He reached out his hand to her.
Li Yitong hesitated for a moment, but still walked over, and he pulled her into his arms. The bath towel slipped off, and the moment their skin touched, they both couldn't help but tremble.
"Do you remember what you promised me?" His deep, husky voice rang in her ear.
Li Yitong's face instantly turned red, and she nodded gently, her eyes glistening with tears.
Afterwards, Li Yitong nestled against his chest, her face still streaked with tears, her voice a mixture of grievance and reproach: "Boss, you don't care about me at all. I almost fainted from crying."
Lin Feng stroked her hair, his fingertips tracing her sweaty back, and smiled: "Isn't it fine?"
"Ugh!" Li Yitong punched him and buried her face even deeper.
At the same time, Tian Xiwei in Chongqing was glued to her phone, binge-watching all six episodes of "The Beginning," and excitedly spinning around in her room. "Brother Feng is amazing! Sister Xue's acting is superb too!"
She opened her chat with Raymond Lam and sent him a message: "Brother Lam, 'The Beginning' is amazing!"
In her dormitory at the Affiliated High School of Beijing Dance Academy, Liu Haochun had also finished watching the latest episode. Seeing Li Yitong's performance in the show, she felt both envious and admiring, and was amazed by Lin Feng's talent. She wanted to send him a message to praise him, but felt it was too late, so she gave up.