Although Su Yan no longer needed awards to prove himself, he would still attend any he was supposed to receive.
Otherwise, the haters would start labeling him as arrogant—claiming he looked down on awards, disdained his peers, and was full of himself.
Moreover, compared to last year, more people from Su Yan's company and production teams had received invitations to award ceremonies this year. While Su Yan himself didn't care much, the employees had already been excited weeks in advance.
Once January arrived, Su Yan returned to his familiar busy routine.
After filming for 'Fate/Zero' and 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' wrapped up, both projects entered post-production. Even though Su Yan was the screenwriter and an actor for both works, he still needed to be deeply involved in post-production.
How the visual effects should be made, how the music should be added, the emotional tone of the dubbing, and the editing of scenes—
You could say Su Yan was stepping into part of the director's role, though he wasn't an amateur trying to guide professionals.
After being in the industry for so long, even if he hadn't "eaten pork," he had at least seen pigs run.
More often, Su Yan would discuss specific details with the directors of both projects. If someone proposed a better idea, he would naturally respect the director's creativity.
If not, they would go with Su Yan's approach.
And besides the post-production work on 'Fate/Zero' and 'Rurouni Kenshin'...
Filming for 'Kimi ni Todoke' and 'Your Name' had also fully begun.
Although Su Yan didn't play the male lead Taki Tachibana in 'Your Name', he still made a cameo as Taki's best friend—after repeated insistence from Shinozaki Ikumi.
After all, Su Yan was currently the biggest traffic star in the Xia Nation's film and television industry. Even a cameo from him could significantly boost box office performance.
On set — street scene
"So, even though you might be tired of hearing this… I still have to say it."
A girl with long black hair, wearing a high school uniform and a bright smile, spoke to the boy.
"Thank you!"
The camera angle shifted. The boy froze for a moment when he saw her smiling, then an unconscious smile appeared on his lips.
Behind him, extras playing students waved and called out for him to go home together after school. The boy subtly blocked their line of sight, not letting them see the girl's expression.
"Sorry… but that expression just now—please let me keep it to myself."
"Cut!" Director Shi Peihua called out.
"It's done…" Gu Qingyuan exhaled deeply, her expression returning to normal.
"Amazing, Teacher Su Yan. Your performance just now was really captivating."
"Not at all—you're the impressive one. I'm already having a headache thinking about how to make your everyday scenes look eerie and gloomy in post-production. No matter how we do it, I feel like Xia Nation's TV audience won't be scared of your portrayal of Sawako Kuronuma."
Su Yan and Gu Qingyuan had known each other for years. This kind of mutual praise during filming had become routine, and neither of them felt awkward about it anymore.
However, the rest of the crew wasn't quite used to it.
In the past, Su Yan mostly worked on emotionally heavy, tragic stories. Everyone had gotten used to the sorrowful, dramatic scenes between him and Gu Qingyuan.
But 'Kimi ni Todoke'…
Just reading the script was already sweet enough.
When the two of them acted it out, it became even sweeter.
It felt a bit strange—like the tone of the entire set was off.
After filming wrapped, Gu Qingyuan asked Su Yan many questions about her character, Sawako Kuronuma.
"You seem to really like this role," Su Yan noticed.
"Because you clearly said this drama has a happy ending! I've always loved stories that wrap everything up nicely. And this is my first TV drama with a non-tragic ending… possibly even the last one in my life. Of course, I have to take it seriously," Shen Liqian said with a smile.
"No need to be so pessimistic…" Su Yan replied awkwardly.
"But strictly speaking, I really like stories like 'Kimi ni Todoke'. School youth romance has always been my favorite genre since I was young. Being part of this project feels like fulfilling a dream. I just don't know if, when it airs, your fans will accept it. I'm honestly worried that fans who love tragic stories might criticize us for making a pure romance."
"No—they'll get used to it."
"But… the script is already at episode seven, and the male and female leads haven't even held hands yet. For a youth romance story, isn't that a problem?"
The two had grown comfortable enough to talk openly, and Gu Qingyuan voiced her doubts.
"It won't be a problem," Su Yan paused, then smiled.
In his previous life, 'Kimi ni Todoke' even had the nickname "the series that drives you crazy," and not without reason.
A romance story spanning dozens of episodes, full of twists and turns—yet the main couple only confessed near the end.
In a way, following the story was its own kind of torture for the audience.
"I see… now I'm really looking forward to the final episode script," Gu Qingyuan said with a smile.
As they chatted, Shinozaki Ikumi came over from the neighboring 'Your Name' set. With her was Shen Liqian, dressed in another style of school uniform, playing Mitsuha Miyamizu.
The two stunning women walked over confidently, their eyes lighting up when they saw Su Yan and Gu Qingyuan.
"Not bad—you two look even better today than before!"
"You're here. Alright, let's go eat," Su Yan stood up.
This meal wasn't just about eating—it was mainly to discuss their planned trip to Hudu. At the same time, they needed to finalize arrangements for promoting the 'Rurouni Kenshin' movie before its release.
After all, the Xia Flame Awards ceremony and the Spring Festival release of 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' were less than a week apart.
Director Shi Peihua, who handled the TV version of 'Rurouni Kenshin', would also be joining them.
Although Gu Qingyuan and Shi Peihua didn't have much involvement in the movie version, nostalgia still mattered.
After all, Yukishiro Tomoe's flashback scenes would still appear.
In the original 'Rurouni Kenshin' films, that "ex-husband" character showed up in flashbacks in nearly every installment—getting emotionally "stabbed" over and over again.
It took Su Yan quite a bit of effort to track down the actor who played that role in the old TV version. The man had already left the entertainment industry, returned to his hometown to open a hotpot restaurant—which failed—and ended up tens of thousands in debt. He was even preparing to work in a factory to repay it.
At that point, Su Yan found him again, offered a generous signing bonus, and brought him into the company as an artist.
In the future, if more 'Rurouni Kenshin: Movie' films were produced, he would also participate in promotional activities.
At the dinner table, the five of them couldn't help but feel a bit sentimental.
"Thinking back, when we left Sakura TV, who would've thought that in just three years, our company would grow to this level?" Shinozaki Ikumi said.
"I really had nowhere else to go back then. I came to you, Su Yan—also suppressed by Akasaka Yoshitoki—just to stick together for survival," Shen Liqian said with a smile.
They were close enough now to speak openly about those past thoughts.
"I had already retired. Thirty years at Sakura TV, and I didn't win a single award. Yet after retirement, you all brought me back—and I ended up winning Best TV Drama Director once. And if nothing unexpected happens, I'll win it again this year…" Shi Peihua, though older, seemed more energetic than ever.
After all, the goals she once had in her youth had now been achieved. And through multiple collaborations with Su Yan, she had earned over eight figures in total compensation—even without holding company shares.
"At this point, I've already achieved my career goals. And Liqian, we're competitors for the Xia Flame Awards this time," Gu Qingyuan said with a smile.
Both she and Shen Liqian had been nominated for Best Actress—thanks to 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica'.
From the current situation, Homura Akemi had a higher chance of winning compared to Madoka Kaname.
"Alright, no need to dwell on the past. We're all still young—our lives are just beginning," Su Yan said.
"At the very least… this year, we should aim for greater achievements in film—and win some awards."
As Su Yan finished speaking, everyone at the table fell into thoughtful silence.
Indeed, judging by the performance and reputation of '5 Centimeters per Second' and 'We Made a Beautiful Bouquet' last year, it was only reasonable that major film awards would recognize them this year.
A few days passed quickly.
On Sunday, episode 2 of 'Fate/Zero' aired.