The Best Director

Chapter 384: Chapter 384: Extreme Enthusiasm! (Requesting Monthly Votes)

“Please keep order and pay attention to safety, you have already disrupted the normal operations of the airport, which is extremely impolite. Please, let’s not have any more accidents…” n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Tokyo’s Narita International Airport was in a near state of paralysis due to an emergency! Since last night, Wang Yang’s fans had excitedly converged on the airport from all directions to wait for his arrival, numbering over a thousand by dawn. Many hurried over in the dim light of early morning, only to find they could hardly get into the building. By now, the arrival hall was packed with a predominately young crowd of chatting girls, creating a chaotic scene.

This was no ordinary celebrity arrival with fans coming to greet him. It was a magical craze that had garnered the utmost attention of the Japanese authorities, one that surpassed even Pei Yongjun’s level.

With less than half an hour left until the flight’s arrival, the number of fans rushing to the airport was increasing by the minute! The police had just refused to let more people in due to safety reasons, leaving them to crowd outside the airport, occasionally chanting the star’s nickname: “Magical Yang! Magical Yang!”

Previously, to prevent accidents, the police let groups of 500 fans enter the building in the order of their arrival, repeating the process over and over. Now, inside the airport, there was a long line of Magical Yang enthusiasts starting from the immigration entrance. Fans sat on the ground behind makeshift barriers, with no space to spare. They held fans with the Chinese and English words “Go, Magical Yang!”, wore T-shirts with Wang Yang’s portrait and name printed on them, and had their cameras ready… The media area was just as packed, with absolutely no gaps.

Just as another group of 500 fans, escorted by subordinate staff, were coming from afar to take their seats, the security chief of the airport, Yoshioka Jiro, looked at the spectacular scene of security personnel, fans, and journalists squeezing together, and his face turned dark! He lifted his walkie-talkie and notified his department, “Send more people right away, yes, there are over ten thousand people now, Hayaku!” The security department anxiously replied, “We have no one left!” That’s right, already 300-plus people had been deployed. Yoshioka Jiro frowned intensely and urged, “Implement the emergency plan and call other staff members to stand in!” The security department was prepared: “Hai.”

No sooner had Yoshioka Jiro put down the walkie-talkie than he stormed off toward the people from the fan club’s organizing committee. They had sent 300 security guards to assist, but was it enough? He approached Hase Daiyu, the head of security, and vented, “What are you doing? Our airport is not an amusement park.”

“Yoshioka, talking about it now is pointless,” Hase Daiyu clicked his tongue secretly. If Pei Yongjun was a housewife’s heartthrob, then Magical Yang was truly a girl’s dream. Hollywood stars’ arrival numbers were never high, with Tom Cruise and Johnny Depp rarely exceeding 500 people. Taiwan’s F4 perhaps attracted around 5000, and Korea’s Pei Yongjun as well, with slightly over 5000, but now Hollywood’s major director Magical Yang, it was over ten thousand.

Pei Yongjun, who shot to fame with the TV series “Winter Sonata,” visited Japan twice last year. The first visit attracted over 5000 drama fans at Haneda Airport. Originally, the housewives were orderly, but when Pei Yongjun passed through immigration, they overwhelmingly broke through the barriers in excitement, resulting in an incident that left nearly 20 people injured by trampling, prompting Haneda Airport to request that he depart through the larger Narita Airport. The second time, he arrived at Narita Airport, greeted by over 5000 fans, and a car chase that caused nine injuries and hospital admissions.

The Japanese authorities had explicitly stated before that they refused to allow Magical Yang to enter through Haneda Airport, precisely because they anticipated the terrifying popularity of his first official visit to Japan. Now he indeed set new records for fan reception at Narita Airport.

“Only 5000 of them are our members. Wang Yang is just too popular,” Hase Daiyu sighed as he looked at the crowd of predominantly young girls and women. The official Japanese fan club for Magical Yang already had more than 50,000 members, and together with non-member fans, they had created the current situation. Yoshioka Jiro swallowed his frustration: “Sokka…” These stars just cause trouble for the airport! These foolish women!

The number of people who come to pick up a celebrity at the airport can be said to be an important indicator of the celebrity’s popularity and influence in the local area. Previously, the champion holder at Narita Airport was Pei Yongjun, whose fans set a record of 5,000 people on November 25, 2004, the runner-up was David Beckham with 1,200 people on June 18, 2003, and the third place went to “Harry Potter” Daniel Radcliffe with 700 people on December 15, 2002. The Japanese are never low on fervor when it comes to chasing stars, taking in Korean, Chinese, European, and American celebrities alike, but the differences can be stark, with Pei Yongjun drawing 5,000 people, and Rain, another Korean idol and singer arriving at Narita one hour later, only attracted 200 people.

Since “Paranormal Activity,” Japanese girls have had a long-standing fascination with Wang Yang. Countless housewives claim “Pei Yongjun is the most handsome man in the world No1”, countless F4 fans say F4 should hold that title, while young girls all agree: “Wang Yang is too handsome, too mature, too charismatic; Japanese men just can’t compare.”

The number of fans picking up at the airport set a new record at Narita, and other aspects followed suit. Former champion Pei Yongjun had 300 media outlets, 250 security personnel, and 200 police officers at the airport for his arrival. Now, the number of media outlets for Wang Yang has broken the record, reaching over 350.

Whether it was Long Valley’s security staff or Jiro Yoshioka’s airport police force, the over 600 people were all on high alert and worried. Now there were 10,000 people! No one knew how this miraculous crowd of Wang Yang fans would erupt in enthusiasm. They had been looking forward to this day for years, for months, hoping no safety incidents would occur! A slight relief for them was the arrival of dozens of strong men temporarily rounded up, increasing the security force.

After a busy day in Taiwan, Wang Yang flew to Tokyo early the next morning. Since the recording of “Kangxi Lai Le” didn’t have a live audience, there wasn’t much buzz online, but according to Cai Kangyong, who himself revealed to the media, Wang Yang had easily left Little S without a leg to stand on.

“There are only 5 minutes left until the flight arrives,” college student and film enthusiast Ogawa Mizuko excitedly discussed with her friend Takaya Mongetsu what Wang Yang would say upon his arrival. They had come all the way from Kobe to see their idol, and since the night before, they had secured good spots by an entrance gate, taking turns to watch their spot whenever one of them had to use the restroom.

But among these ten thousand people, many had gone to greater lengths. They came from Osaka, Nara, Kyoto, Nagoya, Fukushima, Sendai, Iwate, Akita, and even more remote places compared to Tokyo, like Yamaguchi and Sapporo, covering nearly all of Japan.

High school student and movie buff Maeda Genki from Nagano started working part-time months ago to save money for today’s trip when she heard that Wang Yang would come to Japan to promote “Firefly.” Seeing Wang Yang was a dream come true and she would have no regrets in this lifetime. She even heard that some of her classmates had engaged in compensated dating just to buy a ticket to the premiere. Takayanagi Sakura was a local university student from Tokyo who had liked Wang Yang for many years, and her wish was fulfilled today! Along with countless office ladies, both young and middle-aged housewives, and a small number of male movie enthusiasts, everyone eagerly awaited the arrival.

As the seconds and minutes ticked by, the announcement of the flight’s safe landing sent a thunderous wave of applause and cheering through Narita Airport, followed by more waiting, with the ticking of the watches…

“He’s coming out, he’s coming out!” Although it wasn’t a private jet, the airport had made temporary arrangements, and the first to emerge from the immigration checkpoint was the figure everyone was waiting for—Wang Yang! Seeing him in a shirt and jeans, nearly 700 police officers instantly went into emergency mode. Ogawa Mizuko, Takaya Mongetsu, Maeda Genki, and others suddenly felt electric currents race through them, their hearts pounding with excitement and anxiety as they inadvertently stood up and cried out, “Yang, Mr. Yang!”

“YOUNG!!” “Mr. Yang!!” “Magical Yang!!”… Over ten thousand fans went wild, as did hundreds of media photographers, their flashes blinding the people at the front, while sweaty security guards tried their best to maintain order: “Stay calm! Be safe!!”

On the other side, Wang Yang looked visibly surprised but quickly smiled and waved to the crowd: “HELLO, EVERYONE!” The screams from the fans grew even louder: “Ahhh! Ahhhh!”

Ogawa Mizuko couldn’t contain her excitement, her mind already blank, and she cried out with a sob, “Yang-kun!” Next to her, Takao Mochizuki dashed forward recklessly; on the other side, Maeda Genki was suddenly pushed from behind and nearly lost her balance, yet she kept on screaming, “Magical Yang—” Waving her fan, Takayanagi Sakura also suddenly launched an attack toward the security guards and the barriers, “Yang-kun”…

“Uh, THANK YOU! I’m very happy to be in Japan…” Wang Yang was certainly taken aback. He thought the fans from the three regions of China were fervent enough, but who knew there was always a higher mountain! The entire airport lobby was filled with people; he had never seen such a scene before. Surrounded by a host of bodyguards and assistants, Wang Yang greeted everyone in English as he walked, “It’s great to meet all of you, thank you for the warm welcome… Oh my goodness!! Hey— Ah!! Don’t move!! Someone has fallen, hey!!”

The idol’s startled cry couldn’t stop the fans’ frenzy. The girls, now in a state of delirium as if high on drugs, forgot about taking photos, calling out the name, or being satisfied with just a glance. They wanted to embrace their idol! Out of control, the fans surged forward, and another long-haired girl screamed as she fell. The domino effect caused the second and third girls in the area to fall, and the oncoming fans trampled over them, their cries of pain drowned out by screams: “Ahh…” “Yang-kun—”

“Everybody, stop! Someone has fallen!” While the security guards struggled to hold them back, leaders like Hase Dai had to shout through megaphones, and Yoshioka Jiro reported to the command center with sweat on his brow, “There’s been an accident, get a doctor here!” And then, the airport hall erupted with a siren that stilled the crowd, “Please watch your step, everyone, please…” On the other side, several photographers wanting to capture better angles for their news photos were stopped by the security guards, and verbal conflicts arose immediately, cursing each other out: “Bakka, deteyaro!” “Oh, RUNI! Shizu ka ni shiru!”…

The scene was chaos! Yet the airport’s alarm finally had its effect, bringing the fans back to their senses; they ceased pushing and trampling, and luckily, the unknown number of injured fans were out of danger.

“Keep moving, keep heading outside,” the shocked bodyguards and assistants reminded Wang Yang in a low voice. Of course, he understood this logic; his departure was the best way to defuse the situation.

Though deeply concerned about the injuries of those fans, Wang Yang could only quicken his pace and leave. His expression was a bit grave, and he said to the fans nearby, “I really appreciate your warm welcome today. I love your enthusiasm! But please, be careful! Thank you!” Having said his piece, he simply waved his hand, while the fans continued to scream and hail, “Go for it, Magical Yang!!” “I love you, Yang-kun!!”

Watching the majestic and handsome figure of Magical Yang pause to let them take photos, the fans were extremely excited, their cameras clicking away, “click,” “click,” finally fulfilling their wish to see their idol!!

“Wuu wuu…” But as the idol continued to walk further away, Ogawa Mizuko cried her tears torrentially, her heart filled with waves of loss, and it was really terrible—they must have disappointed Yang-kun with their rudeness! Would Yang-kun ever come to Japan again? Many girls around her seemed to be thinking the same, blaming each other, how could they be so rude, it was so embarrassing! But truthfully, they couldn’t guarantee that if Magical Yang suddenly turned and came back, they wouldn’t fall into frenzy once again…

Doctors on standby at the airport arrived quickly, and the injured were helped up by the efforts of the crowd. Those with minor injuries had already gotten up on their own, and Yoshioka Jiro and other security guards solemnly exchanged reports: three control points, at least 50 people were trampled.

The “highly dangerous person” Wang Yang and his entourage left the terminal building to find that the craziness in the arrival hall was just the beginning! Outside the already congested terminal, more than a thousand fans had gathered, and upon seeing their idol, they immediately erupted into enthusiastic shouts: “Magical Yang—” The doors of the five Mercedes-Benz cars waiting to pick him up opened, and Wang Yang got into one of them amidst the huge waves of fan shouts, followed by car-chasing scenes when the few cars surrounded by fans could hardly move, even the airport’s shuttle buses were stuck.

A traffic chaos erupted! Several ambulances had their emergency lights flashing non-stop, and it was only after the fans made way that the Mercedes-Benz convoy was barely able to drive to the open roads, ready to move out fast, when hundreds of crazed fans fearlessly chased onto the road. As Tokyo’s various media outlets mobilized enough vehicles to swarm around, with reporters and fans following in long lines of cars, the congested roads became the stage for one dangerous situation after another.

“Rumble, rumble, rumble—” With its record-shattering popularity, the scene naturally came with the treatment befitting past champions. TBS and Asahi Television dispatched helicopters to fly low and record the footage, broadcasting live the grand event of “Magical Yang’s visit to Japan.”

“Oh my God, what on earth is going on!?” Inside the speeding Mercedes, Wang Yang asked in astonishment, spreading his hands wide, while his assistant, Susan McCarthy, sitting in the passenger seat, took a deep breath and said, “Clearly, these Japanese girls like you.” Wang Yang was nearly going crazy. Through the car window, he glanced at the helicopters in the sky and pressed his forehead, asking, “That’s not what I mean. How many people are hurt? Has anyone died? Oh! Shit… Have they gone mad?”

The middle-aged, round-faced driver, Murai Taizo, seemed to have experienced the scene firsthand. He sighed, “Mr. Wang, it seems you still don’t fully understand your status in Japan.” Susan McCarthy took out her phone and started dialing, “I’ll check on the latest situation.” Wang Yang shook his head helplessly, “It’s too dangerous! They kept rushing, and then some girls fell. I saw one of them get stepped on several times! Bloody hell!” Murai Taizo turned the steering wheel and then said, “Kimura Takuya, Domoto Tsuyoshi, David Beckham, Pei Yongjun… none of them are as popular as you, Mr. Wang. You’re like Doraemon, who doesn’t like that?”

“Well, thanks for that.” Wang Yang said, leaning back in his seat and taking a breath. He was thrilled to have such high popularity in Japan, but people getting hurt was not a cause for celebration. At that moment, Susan McCarthy turned with a smile and said, “Yang, I asked the airport. 52 people have minor injuries, nothing serious, no deaths.” Wang Yang leaned forward, laughing, “That’s great! 52 people, oh my! Haha, these unlucky lucky girls.” Murai Taizo, unsure whether it was meant as comfort or not, said, “Mr. Wang, if they knew how concerned you are for them, I’m sure they’d be glad for their injuries.”…

However, the frenzy of extreme enthusiasm continued! When the Mercedes carrying Wang Yang arrived at Hotel New Otani, where they would stay, more than 6,000 movie fan fans cheered exuberantly, welcoming their idol with chants of “Magical Yang” from outside the hotel up to the lobby, which was swarmed with people. The Hotel New Otani had already been trembling with apprehension, clearing out an entire floor of rooms for Magical Yang and his bodyguards, assistants, and other staff. While Wang Yang, exhausted in body and mind, collapsed on the suite sofa, there were still over 500 people unwilling to leave the hotel lobby downstairs.

“Magical Yang arrives at Narita, 10,000 people surge to the airport,” “Stampede incident at Narita, over 50 movie fans injured,” “TBS is now broadcasting Wang Yang’s arrival at Hotel New Otani”…

Japanese online media were all posting the latest reports, and according to preliminary statistics, whether it was the number of people at the airport, the number of security personnel, the number of fans waiting outside the hotel, etc., the crazy Magical Yang fans had broken all records! This included the number of injured people; aside from the stampede inside the airport terminal, there were at least 10 movie fans who needed to be sent to the hospital by ambulance for emergency treatment due to excessive emotional excitement or spraining an ankle while chasing the car.

This made the already tense Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department even more nervous. On one hand, they were urgently reanalyzing the plans for Wang Yang’s visit to Japan to see where adjustments were needed; on the other hand, because the area outside the venue for the premiere of “Firefly” was overcrowded, and the numbers were increasing, with very strong concerns for safety incidents, the police had already called Hotel New Otani, hoping that Wang Yang could cancel the Shinjuku premiere that evening and reschedule or change the venue.

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