The first preview screening of "Law of the Jungle" was held at the Shanghai Everbright Cinema.
It was almost nine o'clock, and the cinema entrance was bustling with people. Many of those who came to watch the movie had already entered. Most of the people waiting outside were fans of Liu Zehang or Xiao He. Although they hadn't managed to get tickets for the preview screening, they were still willing to wait at the entrance.
Zhou Bowen and Lin Zhuwan are not in these teams.
"Sorry I'm late!"
Zhou Bowen glanced at the time on his phone and breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, we finally made it.
Lin Zhuwan, who had waited for more than 30 minutes, was all smiles and showed no impatience whatsoever. She even took Zhou Bowen's arm and said, "Thank you for your hard work, baby. Let's go in quickly!"
Looking at his "understanding" girlfriend, Zhou Bowen couldn't help but puff out his chest.
There's no other reason than that Zhou Bowen managed to snag the tickets for this preview screening by snagging them from a fan group.
A prominent fan in the group had to cancel their attendance at the preview screening due to unforeseen circumstances, so they decided to transfer two tickets to other fans at the original price within the group.
Zhou Bowen happened to see the message, and with his quick reflexes, he was the first to seize the opportunity.
Upon hearing the news, Lin Zhuwan was naturally overjoyed and hugged her boyfriend tightly, giving him a big kiss. Thus, the young couple successfully secured the first preview screening of "Law of the Jungle" as a gift.
Upon entering the hall, the first thing they saw was a poster about the law of the jungle.
The movie posters these days are all pretty much the same; the two main characters from "Law of the Jungle" are featured in the very center of each poster.
Liu Zehang, who plays Lin Yu'an, stands in the center of the jungle, holding a deck of cards in his hand. Some of the cards have fallen to the ground, revealing the three jungle factions: wolf, fox, and rabbit, from the "Jungle Game." Xiao He, who plays Xu Ning, stands sideways behind Lin Yu'an, holding a Tang sword, staring coldly at the camera.
In the dark jungle behind them, the figures of other characters stood scattered about, most of them hidden in the shadows, their eyes fixed intently on the people in front of them, like beasts in the jungle lurking in the dark, ready to devour their prey at any moment.
At this moment, standing in the middle of the jungle, they have fallen into an abyss of humanity that is even more cruel than the law of the jungle. What will their final fate be?
Will they sit and wait for their doom, or transform into a ferocious beast and devour their prey?
Lin Zhuwan couldn't help but clench her fingers, her heart filled with anticipation.
"Hurry up, let's get in."
Zhou Bowen whispered a reminder from the side.
"OK."
Lin Zhuwan couldn't wait to start watching the plot.
They managed to snag some pretty good seats, on the edge of row 14. While not exactly in the center of the big screen, the viewing distance was just right.
Lin Zhuwan took the opportunity to look at the seats in front, hoping to see if Xiao He and his team were there. Unfortunately, there were many seats and filming areas specially set up for the media in front, and people were coming in and sitting down one after another. She did not see any members of the main creative team of the production crew.
Lin Zhuwan was somewhat disappointed, but it was understandable, so she simply sat down and prepared to start watching the movie.
-
About ten minutes later, the lights in the theater went out.
The familiar dragon logo moved across the large screen, finally settling in the very center of the image.
As the light dimmed, a gray rabbit sat quietly in its cage, occasionally grooming its fur.
The surroundings were very quiet, except for occasional rustling sounds, which seemed to be getting closer and closer, as if some danger was about to strike.
"Boss, this is the one I'll keep—"
A finger painted with red nail polish suddenly appeared in the scene, pointing at the gray rabbit. The next moment, the whole world began to have white noise in the background, as well as the noise of pedestrians passing by.
The rabbit in the cage was grabbed by the boss without expression, and then, with a swift and skillful knife, he skinned and butchered it.
As the camera pans across the stall, a woman with a somewhat mean-looking face stands in front of the owner.
She was cracking sunflower seeds, spitting them onto the ground every now and then, and then said to the poorly dressed young man in front of her, "Money, money, money, it's really difficult for me to suddenly ask me for money. Besides, how come the dean was perfectly fine all of a sudden?"
"Pooh--"
She spat out another handful of sunflower seeds, and the burly boss moved the counter slightly, rudely reminding her, "Don't spit sunflower seeds here! How am I supposed to sell if you spit on me?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry."
The woman immediately changed her tune, fawning over the burly boss and apologizing profusely. Then, she shoved the sunflower seeds in her hand and continued to glare at the young man with undisguised disdain: "Let me make this clear first, I don't have any money. If she wants money, let her come to me herself! Besides, the boss next door owes more than I do. Don't think you can bully me and come after me. If you're so capable, go ask that big boss for your money."
Lin Yu'an pursed her lips and watched as the boss behind the chopping board butchered the rabbit, put it in a plastic bag, and handed it to the woman in front of her.
"67.5 yuan".
"Boss, you want it for 50 cents? Can you round it down?"
"Take it or leave it."
The boss made a move to take the pocket back.
"Hey, I gave it to you, I gave it to you."
The woman immediately took the bag with an awkward smile and handed over the boss's money without missing a single penny.
Then she turned her head, rolled her eyes at Lin Yu'an, and pushed him aside: "Move aside, don't block the way. You're supposed to be a college student, and your manners are like this—"
Then the woman picked up the butchered rabbit and left without looking back.
Lin Yu'an watched the woman leave, looking disheveled.
"Hey, are you buying or not? If not, don't block my way and ruin my business!"
"I'm so sorry—"
Lin Yu'an subconsciously apologized, then turned and left...
As his figure gradually disappeared into the distance, the camera shifted back to the cage of rabbits behind the boss.
The protagonist's narration came through—
"This world ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ is a giant hunting ground."
"The so-called adherence to rules is nothing more than a trap they set for their prey, in order to better discipline the weak."
"—As prey in a cage, they have never had a voice."
"The law of the jungle is survival of the fittest..."
Lin Yu'an, a college student who grew up in an orphanage, embarks on a dangerous and mysterious journey of no return with Xu Ning, a woman with a mysterious identity, in order to raise money for the orphanage's medical expenses.
Lin Yu'an seemed to be born out of place here.
He is kind, somewhat cowardly, and easily trusts others.
On the contrary, Xu Ning seemed to be a natural hunter in this hunting ground, mysterious and powerful, decisive and ruthless.
Their combination is like two extremes in a card game: one is a rabbit, and the other is a wolf.
In this jungle game built upon human civilization, Lin Yu'an's existence is so fragile.
What's slightly reassuring is that Lin Yu'an has a brilliant mind and a reliable teammate.
Thanks to these two important figures, Lin Yu'an escaped danger many times and continued to explore this "game" island with Xu Ning.
As Lin Zhuwan watched the plot unfold, she couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat for Lin Yu'an.
But at that moment, her boyfriend had to come closer and whisper in her ear, "I have a feeling that Xu Ning is a bad person."
Lin Zhuwan: ?!
No way! If Xu Ning betrays us, Lin Yu'an will be doomed!
Lin Zhuwan immediately saw Xu Ning through a villain's lens, but at the same time, she couldn't help but stubbornly say, "No, really?"
Lin Yu'an is now preparing to use himself as bait to hoard Rabbit Brand on the island. What if Xu Ning betrays him halfway through...
"The main problem is... Xiao He hasn't played many good guys."
Zhou Bowen's words chilled Lin Zhuwan to the bone.
No! Stop it!
