Start by Spending One Billion [Entertainment Industry]-Chapter 76
The production line issues for the guide robotic dogs have been resolved.
However, demand still far outstrips supply.
All because Star Wars has become a massive hit.
Even Sheng Quan hadn’t anticipated such explosive popularity on the very first day.
As a rare sci-fi film in China, the audience turnout for Star Wars on its premiere day was downright unbelievable.
Why unbelievable? Because viewers spanned every age group—men, women, the young, and the elderly.
Cinema staff watched as an elderly woman, leaning on a cane and supported by a younger companion, made her way inside. One employee couldn’t help but whisper to a coworker:
"In the year I’ve worked here, I’ve never seen as many elderly moviegoers as I have today."
Movie theaters are usually among the least likely places to spot seniors, especially for large-format, high-tech films like this.
Fortunately, while elderly audiences are uncommon, China’s theaters have adapted well to the global entertainment era. Though there are restrictions for older patrons (e.g., those with heart conditions can’t buy tickets for intense films like horror), as long as they’re in good health and sign a safety waiver, they’re free to enjoy the show.
Still, even with these accommodations, few seniors typically choose the cinema over TV or the internet. If they rarely attend regular films, why would they show up for a sci-fi blockbuster?
"It’s because of the crew’s flood relief efforts earlier," explained a colleague whose own grandmother was among the audience. "After seeing the news, my grandma kept saying Sheng Quan is such a good person—that she had to support her movie. She even gave us money to buy tickets."
"One of her friends, an old man, bought his own ticket to watch it. She was so jealous!"
The staff member was stunned. Without elderly relatives of her own, she’d only seen young netizens raving about the film online. She had no idea Sheng Quan had such a sterling reputation among older generations.
"My parents don’t even follow entertainment news, but they know who Sheng Quan is. They even know her company owns the Luosifen brand," the colleague added.
"One night, I was eating instant Luosifen, and my mom came out, first scolding me for the smell—then suddenly saying, ‘Next time, buy Xiangxiang Luo. Support a business with a conscience.’ I was shocked!"
Her coworker nodded. "But Xiangxiang Luo is legit delicious. Affordable, too. I only bought a pack because my grandma wanted to support Sheng Quan, but it blew me away!"
"And my stomach’s super sensitive, but Xiangxiang Luo doesn’t bother me at all."
"Wow! I’m buying some tonight!"
The two were quite the pair—one mildly allergic to chemical-heavy cosmetics (even a dab would make her skin flush), the other with a delicate stomach that reacted instantly to unclean food.
Most people would find these quirks annoying, but together, they were a dream team: one tested new beauty products, the other screened takeout and instant meals. Pure bliss.
"Guess the rumors are true—Sheng Quan only bought Xiangxiang Luo because she loves eating it herself. Even better if the boss eats it; you know the quality’s guaranteed."
While they chatted, two more elderly patrons entered the theater.
The staff couldn’t help but worry: "It’s a sci-fi film, with massive screens and booming sound effects. Could it be too much for them?"
Though seniors had to sign waivers (absolving the theater of liability), no one wanted an actual emergency.
Neither had seen the movie yet, but they knew the gist: set in a future where humanity has mastered space-time, scientists predict a cataclysmic explosion threatening most of the universe. The only solution? Traveling back 3,000 years via parallel timelines to alter events and create a temporal entanglement that saves their world.
One faction risks the mission; another opposes it, fearing accelerated doom. The premise sounded wild, yet the film somehow made it work.
But space battles, explosions, time jumps—was this really for grandma and grandpa?
Thankfully, when the credits rolled, the audience emerged unscathed.
Well… mostly.
"I want to watch it again. Isn’t it just buy a ticket and go in? Why can’t I?"
The speaker was a man in his sixties, silver-haired but cane-free—clearly healthy enough for the cinema.
At this moment, his eyes were slightly red, clearly having just cried in the cinema, yet his emotions carried a hint of excitement. As he spoke, he pulled out cash—a rare sight in modern times—and handed it to the staff with slightly trembling hands:
"I have money. I brought money."
The staff member was both amused and exasperated, patiently explaining:
"Grandpa, there’s a limited number of tickets each day. It’s not that I don’t want to help you buy one, but all tickets for Interstellar War are sold out today. You can’t get any."
"Sold out already?" The old man was disappointed but didn’t take back his money. Instead, he quickly shifted his goal: "Can I buy tickets for tomorrow?"
The staff checked: "Tomorrow’s sold out too, but there are seats available the day after at 10:30 AM. The seats aren’t great, though—they’re way in the back. Would that be okay?"
"Yes, yes, please get them for me."
Though he couldn’t watch it today, the old man was satisfied. After a moment’s thought, he added, "Can I buy two? I’d like my wife to come too."
In the end, he happily purchased two tickets. As he turned to leave, he noticed another elderly man approaching and kindly informed him:
"You want to buy tickets, right? Today’s are gone. Only the day after is available."
"The day after? Then the day after it is." The newcomer quickly accepted the situation and shuffled unsteadily toward the staff.
"I’d like to buy tickets. How many are left? I want my friends to come too."
On its first day of release, Interstellar War had already drawn crowds eager for a second viewing. The comments section was flooded with reactions like:
[Mind-blowing!]
[Wow, I’ve seen so many foreign sci-fi films and had low expectations for Chinese sci-fi, but I came because of Jiang Zhen. I never expected it to be this good—so futuristic yet so real. I was completely immersed!]
[Ahhhhhhh scientists go go go!! I want to step into the future world ahhhhhh!]
[The special effects are insane!!!!! When the sky filled with spaceships rushed to rescue Gu Li on the planet—ahhhh, I was shaking with excitement!!]
[Gu Li never expected 3,000-year-old China to acknowledge him, nor did he think the people of the present timeline would sacrifice everything to prevent the catastrophe three millennia later. That was the moment he understood what it truly meant to carry pure Chinese bloodline. Who else gets this feeling? Who else??]
[Oh my god oh my god oh my god, I can’t even form words except ‘oh my god.’ The time and space plotline is just next-level!!]
[Just one question: do we actually have mechanical war dogs now? Has the Strategic Deception Bureau been lying to us this whole time?! We DO have war dogs, right??!]
[The timeline is set 50 years in the future. I really hope we achieve that level of tech by then—full-dive VR games! Robot butlers! I can’t wait!]
Most of these comments were from young people. Elderly viewers, who rarely frequented forums, expressed their enthusiasm by word of mouth in real life.
He Ai, a colleague at the cinema, scrolled through the comments and found almost no posts from older viewers.
Her surname was rare, but her daily life was ordinary. As cinema staff, they got free movie tickets.
Yet despite Interstellar War’s massive popularity, she hadn’t watched it once.
At first, it was simply disinterest in sci-fi. But after seeing so many elderly patrons flock to the film—many of them eager for repeat viewings—she had a bold idea.
He Ai was very close to her grandmother. She still remembered her childhood, when Grandma He carried her along the village paths. To little He Ai, her grandmother—who could weave grass grasshoppers and always brought back her favorite treats—seemed practically omnipotent.
So when she realized elderly audiences loved the film just as much as younger ones, He Ai wanted to watch it with her grandmother.
Grandma He was surprised by the invitation. But since she’d been following flood relief news and admired the young philanthropist Sheng Quan, she didn’t outright refuse. Hesitantly, she asked:
"Would I even understand this kind of movie?"
The last film she remembered watching was one screened in the village decades ago—black-and-white, no subtitles. Back then, young Grandma He had loved it, watching intently.
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But that was in her youth. Now, she was old.
"Of course you can! Your heart’s fine, and your eyes and ears still work well."
He Ai kept coaxing her: "I thought older folks wouldn’t like sci-fi, but so many do!"
"Even Grandma Si—you know, the one who always chats with you—she’s seen it."
That made Grandma He hesitate further. Finally, she nodded in agreement.
Mostly because, well, Grandma Si had already watched it.
If she didn’t, she’d feel left behind.
"Then let's give it a watch. If it's not good, I'll just take a nap—consider it my way of supporting that young lady Sheng Quan."
In the end, there was no napping.
The moment the film began, its dazzlingly realistic special effects captivated the entire audience.
Planets exploded one after another, breathtaking and magnificent. On the giant screen, it even felt like the meteorites were crashing toward them, immersing everyone in the spectacle.
At first, Grandma He couldn’t help but flinch away from the "falling meteorites."
As the movie progressed, her expression grew more and more engrossed, her eyes shining brighter.
—"Do you know why I’m the one here? Because in the future, only a handful of people retain pure Blue Planet Huaxia lineage. Most prefer to mix in some strange bloodlines or install mechanical hearts—basically, they’re all trying to make themselves less human."
—"Pure humans like me are always seen as weak. Who would’ve thought that in the end, it would be us 'weak' pure humans who’d save the world?"
—"You’ve verified your identity. Even though you’re a citizen from three thousand years in the future, Huaxia will still protect you."
—"I’ll protect you, just like you protected Blue Planet."
—"But your current technology is nowhere near what’s needed. You can’t breathe in space, you don’t have mechanical hearts, and you’re so fragile. I honestly can’t imagine what you could do."
—"We can give everything we have."
When Gu Li reconciled with his "weak" human identity and said, "I thought this would be a backward era, but I forgot—our future evolved from this very moment," He Ai couldn’t even put her emotions into words.
Gu Li had always despised technology because, in a world dominated by it, pure humans like him were left behind.
But the determination of a nation three thousand years in the past—still developing its technology—changed his perspective.
—"Technological advancement exists to serve humanity. That’s why it was created."
—"Do you know fishing? The moment a fish bites, the angler uses their strength and wits to fight it. They might win or lose, but no matter the outcome, the thrill and joy of that moment never fade."
—"Technology can change everything. And all it needs is time. We’ll fight for that time."
In the end, Gu Li couldn’t survive unscathed due to his fragile human body—but he had come to accept technology.
—"Don’t apologize that I can only stand in the holographic world. I’m grateful, because you’ve created an entire world for me."
The film was a collision of technology and reality. Though just a movie, it felt so genuine it might as well have happened.
When the final shot pulled back, revealing Gu Li—once confined to a hospital bed—now sitting peacefully in the holographic world, fishing, He Ai laughed and cried at the same time.
As the credits rolled and the lights came on, she wiped her tears and glanced at her grandmother.
Grandma He’s eyes were also red-rimmed. She seemed reluctant to leave until He Ai promised a second viewing, finally letting her granddaughter carry her out.
Outside, Grandma He settled back into her wheelchair, still dazed but with a sparkle in her eyes.
"Ai’ai, do you think that holographic tech will be real in a couple of years?"
He Ai didn’t know, but she answered with absolute certainty:
"Of course, Grandma. Did you see the robotic dog in the movie? Sheng Quan’s company developed one just like it in real life—it’s so lifelike, it’s amazing."
"In a few years, holographics might be here too. I’ll get you a pod, and you can adjust your age to twenty."
"Hahaha! If I could adjust, I’d set it to eighteen!"
"Eighteen works too."
"Who was that Gu Li guy? Such a fine young man."
"That’s Jiang Zhen, an actor signed under Sheng Quan’s company."
Pushing her grandmother’s wheelchair, He Ai spotted a familiar elderly man ahead, also wheeling an older woman who couldn’t walk.
Their conversation sounded much like the one she and Grandma He had just had.
After the movie, Grandma He’s mood stayed bright, especially after He Ai promised a rewatch.
She even ventured onto an online forum for the first time, guided by her granddaughter.
First, she learned to post a simple 【Thumbs up!】.
Then, scrolling through a flood of 【xxx yyds!】 comments, Grandma He studied carefully before confidently typing out her own:
【Jiang Zhen yyds!】
