Chapter 5: Official Obituary
At 8:40 p.m. local time, Yin Chang boarded the plane, on his way towards the crash site. As the plane took off, news of his trip to Kenya appeared on the Internet at the same time. Photos of him at the security checkpoint in the airport were posted on the internet.
Yin Chang didn’t know it at the time, but in addition to Lu Lingxuan, there was a stylist, two photographers, and four bodyguards shadowing him. The entire Nova Entertainment ace team was involved behind the scenes.
While the fans were really present at the airport, both the content written about Yin Chang and the photos taken of him were all by the staff at Nova Entertainment. From the moment he set off to the airport, the people watching him were all planned by Yao Manhuai.
At the airport in Kenya, Yin Chang also encountered a group of fans. While there weren’t many Chinese fans in the crowd, the total numbers of fans were no less. Holding banners with Yin Dong and Yin Chang names printed on them, the fans gathered at the exit. When they saw Yin Chang, someone in the crowd took the lead and started singing —
“Dear people, I miss you, I miss you…. with love in my eyes…”
“Don’t be afraid and don’t cry. I will give you all my tenderness …”
Yin Chang heard it right away. The song was Yin Dong’s song called, ‘I Will Give You All My Tenderness’.
Although he was primarily an actor later in life, Yin Dong sung pop-songs early in his career. The song, ‘I Will Give You All My Tenderness’ was the end song of a popular art film he helped make. Even though he didn’t sing many songs, it was the most famous song he had ever performed.
Although the lyrics were ordinary, his tone was smooth and he made the melody soar. Over the years, there were many different artists who covered the song.
Due to Yin Dong’s busy work, they were separated more often than not. Yin Chang and his father rarely had time to spend together. As most children do when their parents aren’t home, Yin Chang missed his father greatly. He often listed to Yin Dong’s song because it remined him of his father and hearing his father’s deep voice brought him comfort. The tenderness that he sung about spoke volumes to his soul. More than once, Yin Chang thought the song was about vulnerability and desire and thought his father was singing it for him.
As Yin Chang approached the crowd, the song’s melody flowed outward and became clearer as the fans sung in unison. ——
“Lonely people, think of me and wait for me……”
“Don’t be afraid and don’t cry. I’ll give you all my tenderness …”
……
They repeatedly sang the refrain over and over again. They were probably thinking of Yin Dong and many fans cried while they were singing. At the airport where the families of the victims were gathered, the sad atmosphere brought tears to the eyes of countless people.
Yin Chang also shed tears. For the first time, he experienced the warmth of these strange fans. When passing by the fans, Yin Chang slowed down his pace and glanced over at everyone one by one. With a small nod, his eyes were full of gratitude.
Various stills and scenes with Yin Chang’s interaction with fans were also caught by the accompanying photographers. After they were sent back to Nova Entertainment for post-production, the photographs and videos were posted online, causing a heated debate.
When looking at the images online, many people were rather empathetic towards the eighteen-year old youth who lost his father, especially Yin Dong’s original fans. Many comments like, “Little Yin, don’t be afraid!”, “Don’t worry Yin Chang”, and “We’ll be with you for your father!” were posted on various social media sites.
Through their encouragement for Yin Chang, they were also expressing their sorrow and regret for Yin Dong’s death.
Yin Chang rested for the night at the hotel next to the airport. Early the next morning, he rode a bus filled with embassy staff to the accident site. What was once an uninhabited wilderness, now was covered with scattered debris from the time of the crash. Five days later, the debris continued to smolder and the air was heavy with burnt odors and other chemical smells. As if the accident wasn’t sad enough, the overcast day made people feel even more depressed and gloomy.
As Yin Chang walked around, the thought of his father’s remains being scattered all over the wilderness made his heart tight. A wave of sadness overwhelmed him. Off to the side, Lu Lingxuan stood far away and dared not disturb him.
The two photographers that accompanied them held up their cameras and captured the scene. While taking pictures of the accident site, they also sneaked in some shots of Yin Chang.
At first, the photographer respected the emotional strain of the occasion, but after a few shots, Yin Chang’s actions excited them. The more photographs they took the more invigorated they felt and couldn’t help mumble how amazing he looked in the images: “This expression… beautiful….. ah, perfect….”
Another photographer overheard and asked: “Hello? His father is dead! What you are saying isn’t normal.”
The person put down his camera and whispered in his defense: “I think that every expression of his is in keeping with his image and temperament, you know? It’s not suitable for a handsome man to come here and give us a howling performance, right?”
He showed the other photographer the camera screen: “Look here. This one, and this one…. It’s the perfect role model for a lead as a tragic hero.”
As a fan of Yin Dong, the scene was tough to swallow when the photographer first arrived. When he heard the other photographer, he felt a bit offended that the person wasn’t taking the moment seriously. “Then, just shut your mouth and shoot. Don’t think of him like one of the idols in the studio for the week!”
“Okay …” After a break, the photographer saw Yin Chang squatting down not far away. Immediately, as he saw inspiration, he lifted his camera and quickly pointed it at Yin Chang and pressed the shutter button.
“Didn’t I just say, don’t…!” The other photographer exclaimed. “Shoot more scenes. Don’t keep pointing the camera at Yin Chang. It will be embarrassing if he finds out!”
When his photography buddy didn’t respond, he turned his head to look at him and was caught by surprise. With red eyes, his buddy had tears down his cheeks.
“…… What happened to you? “
“I saw him bow his head and I starting crying …”
Knowing that his buddy did have feelings, he was deeply relieved because he wasn’t the only one affected by the scene. However, when he looked at the image that had been captured, he was truly enraptured: “This one… It’s amazing!”
“…………”
Late at night domestic time, Yao Manhuai was shocked at what she saw when the images were sent to her after the company’s post-processing department were finished with them.
Amazing, heartbreaking, and beautiful … When she looked at the photo, she didn’t know which words to use to describe Yin Chang’s image.
Yin Chang was crouching on the barren landscape covered by the wreckage of the crash and his long fingers loosely held a handful of soil. With his eyes closed and head lowered, he had tears glistening on his cheek.
In the moment the image was captured, the breeze had been blowing his hair away from his forehead. As a result, his pale skin and fan-like eyelashes were revealed. With the pain and sadness expressed on his face, he looked like an angel kneeling with folded wings, an elven king, a lost spirit…..
When Yao Manhuai looked at this photo, her heart couldn’t stay calm because she couldn’t help but think of Yin Dong, who died.
……
For more than ten years, they had known each other. Together they experienced a series of trials and tribulations, but eventually they parted ways. He became a movie-star and she became a well-known agent.
In the early years, she had considered Yin Dong as a partner. However, she wanted more and turned her attention to her career. As his agent, Yin Dong let her leave his side to fulfill her dream. He even helped her set up her company.
After all these years, although they were nothing more than friends, she still thought of him fondly. She always thought the both of them had a long successful future ahead. No one would have expected Yin Dong’s end to be so sudden.
……
Yao Manhuai looked up and took a deep breath. In front of everyone else, she put on an indestructible façade. Finally, she was able to let go and shed tears.
Yao Manhuai gathered her emotions and telephoned Yang Jiajia. “Tomorrow at 12 noon, use Yin Dong’s Weibo account to post a formal obituary and prepare the memorial service for him.”
Yang Jiajia was surprised: “Tomorrow night? So fast!”
“Fast? The whole world knows that Yin Dong is dead and you’re still not making a sound. Are you pretending that he isn’t dead and he will walk into the building at any moment?” Yao Manhuai’s hoarse voice was so harsh and sarcastic that it was impossible to imagine that she had wept a few minutes ago.
Yang Jiajia’s emotions also came up: “Sister Yao, Yin Dong’s death certificate hasn’t even been issued yet!”
Yao Manhuai was silent for a moment. Her voice softened slightly: “You know, for the sake of Yin Dong’s reputation, we can’t drag this on for too long …”
Yang Jiajia winced and immediately understood Yao Manhuai’s meaning.
On the internet, a certain event can trigger a frenzy of up to 10 days, with popular sentiment typically peaking in three to five days. If prolonged, the influence it had wouldn’t be so great and sometimes, it would trigger a negative effect instead.
It’s like someone saying ‘Yin Dong is dead’ in your ears every day and after 30 days, even if you have any sympathy for the deceased, you will gradually get tired of it. Therefore, they can’t sit back and wait as they do in real-life cases.
Although Yao Manhuai’s quick decision was abrupt, the fact that Yin Dong died in the plane crash wasn’t actually news. Wasn’t making everyone wait for his death certificate an unrealistic fantasy?
He was reluctant to admit it, and tried to delay her again: “But Yin Chang hasn’t returned yet.”
Yao Manhuai: “When his comes back, you will issue the obituary so they don’t conflict. I’ll speak with him later to be mentally prepared. You just have to make the necessary arrangements”
Yang Jiajia said helplessly: “Okay.”
Shortly after hanging up, Yang Jiajia received another email from Yao Manhuai, which read: “I forgot to tell you, the memorial service should be held within ten days after the posted obituary and remember to use this photo with the invitation.”
Having been put off by Yao Manhuai’s attitude, Yang Jiajia was feeling irritated. However, once he saw the image, his mind became blank. He no longer had anything to complain about.
At noon the next day, the official blog of Yin Dong’s studio sent out his obituary.
In just one hour, the post had been retweeted three-hundred-thousand times, making it to the top of the hot-search list. Neither was the public relations department involved in its promotion nor the marketing department. The entertainment community spontaneously forwarded the message and observed a moment of silence for the loss of the most famous movie star.
At the same time, the studio had confirmed the time and location of the memorial service. In seven days, it would be held at the Huaxing Hotel. Yang Jiajia sent electronic invitations to various media outlets, celebrities, and friends of Yin Dong. The invitations were accompanied by a photo of Yin Chang mourning his dead father at the accident.
At ten in the evening, Yang Jiajia reported the results to Yao Manhuai with excitement: “As of now, eighteen media companies and thirty-two agents of stars have confirmed with me that they will be there!”
More than that, even some media outlets that had little business dealings with them before, who weren’t in the scope of their invitation took the initiative to request an invitation.
Yang Jiajia asked: “The e-mails are written very sincerely, how should we reply?” “
Yao Manhuai said: “As long as they can get the guarantee from the formal media, we will send an invite.”
Yang Jiajia: Ok, I see. “
Yao Manhuai reminded him: “Don’t forget to prepare this memorial service with the highest regard. Don’t let Yin Dong down.
Yang Jiajia: Of course! “
Yao Manhuai stood up, walked to the window and looked at the city’s skyline at night. If everyone’s life was a movie, then Yin Chang was the best curtain caller in Yin Dong’s life and the departure of Yin Dong was the best prologue for Yin Chang to go on stage.
