The soul of '5 Centimeters per Second' lies entirely in the final "train scene."
If you were to rate '5 Centimeters per Second' out of ten, then everything before that final moment—the plot of the first three chapters, the visuals, the music—could maybe get it up to a seven.
But pushing it from a seven to a ten—that was all thanks to that final train scene, which elevated the entire film.
So, after watching 'Cherry Blossom', while viewers across Great Zhou were moved, they didn't necessarily think it was a masterpiece.
The general sentiment was that the story was compelling and emotional, but it didn't quite carve itself into their memories. When you think carefully about it, the plot, visuals, and music in 'Cherry Blossom' were all of high quality—but that's it.
If you compared it to Jing Yu's previous works like 'Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal' and 'Love Letter', both of which had already achieved iconic status, the difference in emotional impact was still noticeable.
Even so, it still sparked significant discussion across the major film and TV forums in Great Zhou.
It didn't go viral, or dominate the conversation—but in terms of topic volume, it was already leading among the current season's releases.
And all of that… was reflected in the sales numbers.
With over three million pre-orders, the film surpassed four million paid views on the second day after release, 5.5 million on the third day, and by the sixth day, it had reached over 6.6 million.
At 6 yuan per chapter, that many paid views meant the first chapter alone had already brought in close to 40 million yuan in revenue within just one week.
However, since the film was split into three chapters, and given that most films earn the bulk of their revenue in the first month of release, analysts began using theater box office logic to estimate its final performance.
By comparing it to the proportion of box office earnings from opening weekends, many media outlets predicted that each of the three chapters of '5 Centimeters per Second' would average around 10 million in total paid views.
At 20 yuan for the full three-chapter bundle, and with that kind of viewership…
By Friday, Great Zhou's media and film critics began boldly sharing their evaluations:
[Genius screenwriter Jing Yu's new film performs modestly—abandoning theaters for streaming may cost him over 100 million in lost revenue.]
[Even if '5 Centimeters per Second' averages 10 million paid views per chapter, the total revenue would only reach 200 million yuan—and that's before revenue sharing with Qingyun. While the reviews are positive, low pricing and an immature online distribution model have drastically undercut Jing Yu's earnings.]
[Judging by the quality of its first chapter, if the entire film maintained the same standard—and combined with Jing Yu's fanbase and reputation—its box office in theaters could've easily surpassed 400 million. But now, as an online-exclusive release, it has lost prestige and profit. A serious misstep.]
[Losing both face and fortune—'5 Centimeters per Second' is undoubtedly a fine film, but it could've earned far more. One wrong step has led to a cascade of missed opportunities.]
These critics avoided pointing out any flaws in the film's storytelling—
Only one chapter had aired so far, and making premature narrative judgments risked embarrassing self-contradiction later on.
Instead, they chose to attack the distribution strategy, using it to stir up controversy and generate heat.
Truthfully, compared to the over 1 billion yuan box office of 'Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal' and the 800 million+ of 'Love Letter', the revenue split received by Jing Yu and BlueStar Media was nearly 400 million and 280 million, respectively.
Jing Yu had only released two films before this—yet both yielded 5x to 6x returns on investment.
But based on the current sales trajectory of '5 Centimeters per Second', while it would definitely turn a profit, its return ratio would likely drop to under 3x.
A film that could've been a major theatrical hit was now reduced to a minor financial success. From a certain angle, it was fair to say Jing Yu had "taken a loss."
And of course, all those who were jealous of Jing Yu's success jumped in to fan the flames with these numbers.
But the ones feeling the most pressure… were the people at Qingyun Video.
Right now, '5 Centimeters per Second's first chapter has glowing reviews.
While no one was hailing it as a "god-tier" movie, no one was saying it was bad either.
At the very least, if it maintained this quality through all three chapters, '5 Centimeters per Second' was destined to be remembered as a masterpiece.
Yet despite the Yindou Net rating of 9.1, despite strong support from Jing Yu's fans, its projected viewership was still hovering around ten million.
Qingyun's internal team was under enormous pressure.
Covering Jing Yu's guaranteed 200 million income wasn't the real concern—what they feared more was losing investor confidence.
That afternoon, Qingyun's head of operations personally contacted Jing Yu—who was, after all, the second-largest shareholder in the company—and suggested dropping the slow rollout.
They proposed releasing the remaining two chapters of '5 Centimeters per Second' together on Saturday, hoping that the full story might stir public opinion and boost revenue.
But Jing Yu declined.
"Don't panic. This film has only just begun. Its true impact won't be clear until the third chapter has aired."
Honestly, Jing Yu was already quite satisfied that 'Cherry Blossom' had pulled in 6.5 million paid views.
He hadn't expected such strong numbers in the first week.
Back in his past life, when Makoto Shinkai first released '5 Centimeters per Second', its commercial value was mediocre.
Of course, that was because Shinkai wasn't well-known at the time.
If he'd made '5 Centimeters per Second' after 'Your Name', the box office would've been huge.
Now, in Great Zhou, Jing Yu was already a household name.
He could casually shoot any film and still earn over 100 million.
Given that, these results weren't surprising.
This movie's true potential would only shine after the final train scene aired.
So why the rush?
The Qingyun manager, thoroughly disheartened, could only nod and slink away.
This wasn't just any partner—it was a shareholder. Offending him was not an option.
"You're surprisingly calm, huh?"
Xia Yining bounced into Jing Yu's office right after the man left, grinning.
"What's there to panic about? Worst-case scenario—I just earn a bit less. It's not like I'm losing money," Jing Yu said plainly.
"Well, that's true," Xia Yining nodded.
"You came for something?"
"I wanted to ask… did something happen between you and Sister Yu?"
"Otherwise, why would she be obsessively studying '5 Centimeters per Second' like she's possessed? I could understand if she was researching you as a person, but your work?"
"…She didn't tell you?" Jing Yu paused.
"Then maybe it's better if you don't know."
"Ooooh, mysterious."
Xia Yining narrowed her eyes. "Let me guess. Did you promise her a date—or a trip or something—if she figured out the '5 Centimeters per Second' easter egg?"
She wasn't dumb.
Yu Youqing had been stuck to Jing Yu like glue in the 'Clannad' set, and now spent every free moment online, digging into '5 Centimeters per Second' easter egg theories.
That could only mean one thing:
Figuring out this easter egg was more important to her than just spending time with Jing Yu.
Jing Yu's expression froze.
Xia Yining's face immediately fell—she knew she'd guessed right. But she still probed further:
"Ugh, not fair. I've been chasing you for two years, and you're giving her private, shady deals behind my back? You still treat me like I'm just some classmate you don't want to talk to."
"Cough cough cough—"
Jing Yu choked at her bluntness.
He didn't refute her guess, which to Xia Yining was as good as confirmation.
"So it was a date reward! For cracking the '5 Centimeters per Second' easter egg!"
Xia Yining leaned down to look up at him from below, and—
She caught that flicker of guilt in his eyes.
Guilt?
Not anger.
Not denial.
Worse than a date?
Her heart sank. She stopped teasing and stood in silence.
"Hey, Jing Yu… do you think I'm worse than Sister Yu?" she asked, eyes serious but smiling.
"Of course not!" Jing Yu replied immediately. He wasn't stupid—there was only one right answer.
"Then you should treat us the same, right?"
"It's obvious you and Sister Yu have some secret deal going on about the easter egg. I don't care what it is—I want in. I'm going to research it too. And if I figure it out first… then you have to keep your promise to me, not her. Deal?"
Jing Yu hurriedly tried to deflect.
"Hey, hey, that's not how this works. You don't get to make that call."
"Too bad." Xia Yining flopped into the chair next to his, stretching in a not-so-subtle pose to show off her curves.
Unfortunately, she was fairly flat in the places she was trying to show off.
Still, she had a great figure overall—not that Jing Yu was paying attention.
"Fine, fine. Go guess. If you get it right, there's a prize," Jing Yu sighed.
Yu Youqing had already obsessed for over two weeks without success. Even with millions of fans online digging through the film, no one had cracked it yet.
He didn't think Xia Yining's joining the hunt would change much.
She wasn't exactly the "galaxy-brain" type.
Let them chase it—at least they'd stop pestering him.
"Alright, it's a deal!" Xia Yining stood up confidently, looking proud.
"Don't underestimate me. I spent four years in university and three years in the industry. I might not be able to write a hit drama, but I can crack an easter egg—especially in a film where I know the entire plot and can access all the footage. Just wait. You'll owe me."
She stormed out, brimming with resolve.
Jing Yu rubbed the back of his head and sighed.
What a mess.
I really feel like flipping a table, just like Crow Bro…
The next day, Saturday.
Jing Yu had refused to release all three chapters at once, so Qingyun Video had no choice but to stick to the original rollout schedule.
During the day, they ran a livestream with Jing Yu and Yu Youqing, and in the evening, they launched major discounts on Chapter Two's pre-sale.
Of course, the discount was Qingyun's problem. Jing Yu's revenue share was still based on the original price. He wasn't going to lose out.
At 9 PM, the next chapter of '5 Centimeters per Second'—
'Cosmonaut'
—premiered on schedule.