Chapter 37: 237. Win The Prize

Wei Changfeng and the two children sat on the carpet in the living room. There was a long blanket glittering with lights on the huge television.

“Will he appear?” An Cheng stared at the screen with his unblinking eyes.

It was difficult for the little boy to call Qi Le’an Papa and he tried to avoid using this word. But in his heart, Qi Le’an was undoubtedly their guardian.

Wei Changfeng nodded and looked at the clock, “Yes, this is a live broadcast. He will arrive soon.”

Little Orange held a toy in her hand and watched TV seriously. There weren’t many opportunities to watch TV when she was at the orphanage. Only children who performed the best could watch it!

Besides, the person who would appear on the TV was their father… The teacher said that she would call them Papa in the future.

Little Orange tittered.

When Wei Changfeng saw it, he gently caressed the girl’s head.

The phone vibrated twice. Wei Changfeng picked it up and looked at the two children, “Qi Le’an is coming out.”

The two children immediately sat up straight.

Wei Changfeng also smiled faintly and looked at the television screen.

Finally, that person whom thousands of people had been waiting for appeared! Qi Le’an was wearing a sapphire suit, which made him look energetic. Emma beside him wore a champagne-colored dress, which made her look like a queen.

The two of them walked to the red carpet hand in hand and the strobe light flashed non-stop. The presenter of the TV station was excitedly introducing something.

The appearance of Emma was always followed by a lot of comment and news! Wherever she went, she was the clout herself! The Chinese beside her were the legendary Chinese actor of the year, and this two people would be introduced emphatically tonight!

It was the first time that Little Orange and An Cheng saw Qi Le’an get dressed up like this, which made them stunned for a moment. Qi Le’an, who was present, also felt it very hard to keep his spine straight.

As Emma smiled, she whispered, “Hurry up! Support me! I get a cramp in my leg!”

Then she put her arm on Qi Le’an.

When Qi Le’an heard this, he quietly supported her. The cameras with flash of the media were still flickering. The reporters of domestic media called his name in Chinese while Qi Le’an stood there for everyone to take photos of him.

During the interval, Emma’s leg recovered slightly and therefore she said in a low voice, “I can walk myself now.”

Qi Le’an asked in a low voice, “Are you alright? Shall I support you?”

Emma shook her head slightly. Qi Le’an let go of her hand and finished going through the red carpet with Emma, who was in her high-heeled shoes with ten-centimeter-high heels.

In front of the signature wall, there was another wave of a big fuss from the media. Qi Le’an wrote his Chinese name on the wall and walked into the venue with Emma. The Chinese characters among the numerous English autographs with showy flourishes made the media take photos of it crazily and transmit the photos back to the country. The fans saw them and screamed, “Look, that’s my idol!”

When they entered the venue and took their seats, everyone waited for the final moment. Emma’s face was still relaxed, but Damien pursed his lips and didn’t speak.

“Damien!” Emma smiled and hugged the director. She whispered beside him, “Are you nervous?”

Damien didn’t answer her, but Emma still continued, “Tell you secretly, I’m super nervous too.”

On the side, Qi Le’an couldn’t help but smile, and Emma blinked at him.

“Where is Tresse?” Qi Le’an tried to adjust the atmosphere with some relaxing subjects, “Didn’t he arrive here very early?”

“He has gone to the toilet,” Damien finally replied to him.

Everyone was talking and laughing.

After waiting at the venue for half an hour and all the stars had finished walking through the red carpet, the auditorium on the fifth floor was filled to capacity. There was an announcement on the screen that it was about to start and everyone sat in their seats. Qi Le’an saw Amco in the distance and Amco, who was dressed in a handsome black suit, smiled at him.

He took a deep breath and exhaled again. It was hard to see the faces of Asian people in the large venue. On one side, Emma asked in a low voice, “Are you nervous too?”

Qi Le’an admitted it frankly and smiled, “I’m nervous in a reflex action.”

“Who is not? Can you recite the content on your little note?” Said Emma secretly.

According to tradition, every nominated person would prepare an acceptance speech. The content of the speech was written on a small note. If one won the prize, he or she would go on stage and recite it.

Qi Le’an knew that his chances of winning the prize were very small, but he couldn’t avoid preparing a small note either.

He said in a low voice, “I don’t remember it, and I’m waiting to read it on the stage.”

Emma could not help but smile.

After all, it was a grand event that represented the highest standard of the showbiz, and it also gave everyone great pleasure to be filmed by the cameras. So everyone sitting here actually felt nervous, right?

Finally, the lights in the venue turned off and the annual movie editing started to appear on the screen. It was a mash-up combining scenes of hundreds of movies in three minutes. Qi Le’an saw many familiar scenes on the screen and also heard his voice.

The lights lit up and the 89th Academy Awards officially started!

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the female host shouted, “Give it up for the host, Jimmy Kimmel!”

The entire audience was clapping. The famous American talk show host went on stage from behind with a dancing and sing show and introduced the candidates of the Academy Awards with a casual talk show.

Jimmy introduced them with easy and humorous words, which made the audience laugh from time to time. Qi Le’an clapped and smiled as he watched the host introduce the elders of the showbiz.

The Academy Awards were not as serious as those domestic ceremonies, and they managed to slip in a few performances. The actors also had self-mockery on stage, making people unable to control their laughters.

Finally, it was the first award for “Lala Land”!

“The field of art involved in a great movie is beyond imagination. This year, the artistic conception of the movies nominated is all-embracing. And the nominations for the Best Art Direction include…”

“Arrival, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Lala Land, Passengers…”

“And the movie winning the award for Best Art Direction is… Lala Land!”

The crowd burst into cheers as Qi Le’an and Emma clapped wildly. The two art directors for “Lala Land” stood up and went on stage.

During the award ceremony, “Lala Land” got 14 nominations, which was equal to that of the movie Titanic in the history of films. Qi Le’an and Emma had imagined with interest how many awards the movie could get the night before. Emma guessed it could get five awards while Qi Le’an guessed one more.

After the award for best art direction, “Lala Land” got another award for best cinematography. The crew’s photographer expressed his gratitude for receiving help and encouragement by Damien on stage. Qi Le’an secretly saw Damien’s eyes glistened with tears.

“Good movies can make you laugh or make you cry. But my test for a good movie is that after watching the movie, whether I can still hum the music in the movie. This year’s Best Original Score has passed my test. Their music aroused the atmosphere of the movie and cleverly expressed the plot of the story…” The famous musician, Jackson, said on stage, “The one who wins the award for Best Original Score is… Justin Hurwitz of ‘Lala Land’!”

This was the third time Justin Hurwitz was nominated for the award for best original score, but it was the first time he had won the award. Emma’s eyes were wet while Qi Le’an couldn’t help but applaud when he thought of how hard Justin had worked in the filming.

After getting the award for best original score, Justin Hurwitz got another award for best original song.

As the atmosphere became increasingly tense, it finally came to the award for the best director!

Even though they already got three Oscar statuettes, the atmosphere in the crew was still tense!

Qi Le’an snatched a glance at Amco in the distance. Amco was also nominated for the award for best director, but they didn’t know who would win the award! Both directors were very excellent, and the two movies were also the highlight of the current Academy Awards. So who would won the prize?

A black actress stepped on stage in a black hollowed-out yarn skirt and said, “What do you need to be nominated for the award for Best Director? The heart of a dreamer, the mind of an author, the courage of being willing to take risks, the will to overcome the difficulties of thought and life, the unlimited love for movies, and the unwavering determination of your own work. In short, these perfectly interpret the best director.”

Qi Le’an couldn’t help but hold his breath.

“Damien Chazelle of ‘Lala Land'”

Everyone in the crew stood up. Damien hugged and kissed with Emma whose eyes brimming with tears, then he hugged Qi Le’an. Qi Le’an even felt the director’s hands tremble!

“This is the first time he win the award. He’s only 32 years old, and he is the youngest person in the history of the Academy Awards to win the award for Best Director!”

The hostess introduced him like that on stage while Qi Le’an saw that Damien  was hugging people all the way up to the stage, holding the Oscar statuette and saying his acceptance speech.

After the award for best director, it came to the award for best actor, Qi Le’an was in a trance when they gave the award. He suddenly thought of Wei Changfeng and his two children sitting at home. He didn’t know if they were looking at him.

At home, everyone was holding his or her breath. An Cheng couldn’t help but ask Wei Changfeng, “Will he win the prize?”

Wei Changfeng smiled and said, “No matter whether he wins the award or not, he is the best actor in my heart.”

An Cheng nodded, but not fully understood.

“The one who get the award for Best Actor is …Casey Affleck of Manchester by the Sea!”

Hearing the result, Qi Le’an was not disappointed. He knew that his qualifications were far from enough for this award. But the world-class Oscar-winning actor was still his goal!

Emma smiled and said, “After we go back tonight, you can invite Damien for dinner and let him make an Oscar statuette for you next time.”

Qi Le’an couldn’t help but smiled and said, “It’s your turn!”

Emma shrugged and made a cavalier expression.

Leonardo DiCaprio, who won the award for best actor in the last Academy Awards, went on stage. He looked down and said, “When the great actress perform on the screen, what you see are not the actress themselves, but the roles they are auditioning for. The one who wins the award for Best Actress is…”

This was one of the most valuable awards for the Oscar, and each nominated movie would be played for twenty seconds. As for “Lala Land”, the scene of Emma arguing with Qi Le’an and restraining herself was excerpted. Qi Le’an could see his own shadow all the way.

From the side, Emma could not help but smile.

“Emma Stone of ‘Lala Land’!”

With cheering shouts across the field, Emma stood up and hugged Damien and Qi Le’an! Qi Le’an sensed her tears and whispered beside her, “Go on, don’t cry.”

Emma smiled with tears and walked towards her Oscar statuette lifting the hemline of her dress.