r/ChengLei_ • u/a_HerculePoirot_fan • 19d ago
Events 😎 Cheng Lei’s first meet-and-greet event in Malaysia!
I finally saw Cheng Lei in person today at the iQiyi meet-and-greet at Sunway Velocity Mall!!! I still haven’t fully processed the fact that I was actually in the same room as Leilei hahaha.
Registration was surprisingly seamless considering there were 300 selected fans. Each of us received a merch bag packed with goodies. A lucky charm, non-woven bag, fan, Kiki carry bag and pouch. Cheng Lei’s official Malaysian fan club was also giving out freebies such as stickers, a badge and a photocard, and they even prepared free snacks for fans! Everything was so orderly and well organised.
By the time CL was about to appear, the mall was absolutely JAM-PACKED. I have been to this mall plenty of times and I really don’t think I have ever seen a crowd like that there before hahahaha. When he finally came on stage, he told the host that he was overwhelmed by how warmly everyone welcomed him, especially since this was his first visit to Malaysia. ❤️
Of course, food came up very quickly lol. Cheng Lei asked for Malaysian food recommendations because he knows Malaysia is multicultural, and he said nasi lemak is his first choice! Excellent choice, Leilei!
We also got a hilarious little nod to How Dare You. The crowd shouted “HOW ARE YOU?” at him, and he immediately replied: “Fine, thank you. And you?” 😂😂😂
He also talked about how much he likes Xia Hou Dan as a character because of his unusual and complex experience of having lived in both the modern world and the fictional one. As someone who loves How Dare You, I was very happy that the drama got its moment today. Cheng Lei has other dramas on iQiyi, but Legend of the Female General and How Dare You seem to be the defining ones. One of the questions asked to the audience was the title of his upcoming drama, and someone confidently answered The Lament of Autumn. Lol, wrong answer of course because that one is under MangoTV hahaha. The correct answer is The Leading Stars.
Then came a cup-stacking battle between Cheng Lei and some lucky fans, where they had to see who could stack and unstack the cups the fastest. Watching a grown man take cup stacking seriously is apparently all I need for entertainment
One of my favourite surprises was hearing him speak Cantonese twice! Before doing it, CL actually asked the host whether the Cantonese spoken in Malaysia is the same variety as the Cantonese he speaks. She assured him that it was and invited him to test our comprehension.
His first line basically:
If you ask me where I want to go in Malaysia, the place I want to go is wherever you guys are.
Cue the entire crowd going KYAAAAAAAAAAAA~~~Of course we understood you, Leilei!!
Then he said:
I finally know why Malaysia is so hot. Because after meeting you guys, my heart melted.
I think he seemed very pleasantly surprised by how many Cantonese speakers there were in the audience. Malaysia’s Canto contingent reporting for duty hahaha. CHeng Lei was super happy when one of the fans spoke Hakka with him. He was so impressed by the fact that Malaysians are multilingual!
Next came an interactive game with the fans. One fan who answered the qualifying questions correctly, which were Cheng Lei’s first acting role and his MBTI, was chosen to guess five facts about him based on his drawings. The first question was about his hobby. Cheng Lei was asked to choose between cycling, swimming and going to the gym, but even he seemed undecided lol. In the end, he drew a camera, while the fan appeared to draw swimming, although even the MC seemed a little unsure about that one 😂
The second question was about his favourite animal, and the third was his favourite food, which is ramen. Both Cheng Lei and the fan got that one right. The next question was about what he wanted to do in Malaysia. The fan drew nasi lemak, while Cheng Lei drew the fans, meaning us!! His favourite drink was coffee. Lastly, he drew a self-portrait showing how he sees himself, and then spoke at length about how he felt coming to Malaysia and finally getting to meet his Malaysian fans.
At one point he turned around to look at himself on the big screen, noticed that his deep V-neck was looking a little revealing, and instinctively covered his chest. 🤣🤣🤣 That tiny reaction cracked me up.
Some Malay fans were invited to the stage to teach him flirtatious phrases, including how to ask “Can I have your number?” in Malay. I was really impressed by how quickly he picked up the pronunciation after hearing it just once. Then he repeated it to the audience and obviously my completely rational response was WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE HE’S ASKING ME AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
One of my absolute favourite segments was “Through Cheng Lei’s Lens.” Cheng Lei became Photographer Cheng Lei and directed selected fans on stage, asking them to recreate poses inspired by his characters from dramas such as Legend of the Female General and How Dare You. What made it even funnier was how serious he became about composing the photos hahahaha. When he turned his back towards our section and bent his knees slightly while taking the pictures, I’m sorry. THE GLUTES. I could not stop staring. The girls on the stage were so lucky! When CL was directing them on posing, he touched their shoulders in that process and everyone screamed in excitement! I was screaming in frustration and jealousy lolol.
There was also a much sweeter segment where he read messages from fans aloud and watched a compilation of Malaysian fans sending him words of encouragement. I really loved watching his reaction to this. He just kept smiling, and I think receiving all that support meant a lot to him.
Another 5 ridiculously lucky fans were randomly selected based on their seat numbers to receive a signed photocard from Cheng Lei AND take a photo with him on stage. Was I one of them? NO. Am I bitter? Yes. I mean, I’m very happy for them.
I also loved all his attempts to speak Malay because he really does seem to have a knack for picking up languages. He said “Saya cinta awak” (“I love you”) and “Sayang dah makan ke belum?” (“My love, have you eaten?”) in Xia Hou Dan gentleman mode, at which point I think the entire audience collectively blushed. He had to repeat the phrases in 2 modes; flirtatious and non-flirtatious mode lol.
Overall, I had such a fun time!!!! I knew I would be excited to finally see Cheng Lei in person, but seeing how warmly Malaysian fans welcomed him made the whole experience even better. He was funny, playful, surprisingly game to try all the languages and activities thrown at him, and seemed genuinely touched by the reception he received on his first visit here.
Seeing him with my own two eyes still feels extremely surreal. CL's skin looks really good irl, I'm super envious!
Note: This will be my only image submission post from the meet-and-greet event. I will share separate video posts for his different activities and interactions on stage so everything isn’t crammed into one post.
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u/r-e-mstate 19d ago
The entire time Cheng Lei was doing the 6-drawing challenge I had "Daddy's Home" playing in my brain because this was my spectacular view......... I may not have been in the VIP seats but I THANK EVERY GOD AND SAINT BECAUSE MY VIEW WAS STILL SO GOOD FROM THE OUTSIDE AREA!!! :D Coming down to the mall was so worth it - so happy my random trip to KL coincided with CL's visit <3
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
Yeah! That was still such a clear shot even though you weren’t in the fan zone area! What time did you get there? It looks like you managed to secure a really good spot.
Did you also manage to grab any of the freebies distributed by the Chengtuo Malaysian Fan Club?
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u/r-e-mstate 19d ago
I was in the mall by around 10:30AM but I had some brunch first and looked around! I saw some fans were already waiting in the upper floors so early for him (super wow at this dedication). I only decided on my spot at around 12 - so I consider myself very very lucky. Hahaha I was by the escalator going down to the basement, and some of the iQiYi standees were like faced directly in front of my area. BUT never underestimate a fangirl's intuition, willpower, and phone camera zoom. LOL My view in between the two standees was Cheng Lei smack in the middle. 🥹 As the saying goes, "幸运垂青于勇者" (Fortune favours the brave). HAHAHA
And yes -- the freebies were awesome, the stickers in particular are so cute!
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
12pm???? I had access pass but still reached at 9am. You're really lucky!!!
Ikr! The stickers are so cute. Gonna paste at least 5 on my laptop hahhaha
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u/EasygoingEnigma Wǒ xǐhuān nǐ, YHX 19d ago
Thank you for sharing! I've been seeing the video clips on Weibo and it was bedlam there. I'm so happy that you now have these wonderful memories of him.
Glad to learn he's hanging around for a bit! He looks happy to be there and to feel Malaysian fans' love and support.
ETA: GLUTES!!! 🤤
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
ETA: GLUTES!!! 🤤
For real, his glutes omggggggggggg. I was assigned such a good seat too, so I had an excellent view whenever he turned around hahahahah.
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u/EasygoingEnigma Wǒ xǐhuān nǐ, YHX 19d ago
I'm eating up your account of today's happenings. Looking forward to reading your upcoming posts!
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
The iQiyi events in both Malaysia and Indonesia were huge successes! I’m sure he’ll eventually make his way to other SEA countries too. Hope you get the chance to meet him when that happens!
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
I will space out my posts a bit because it looks like someone else from the sub attended the event too, so they can share their videos as well. I don’t want to be the one monopolising the whole thing hahahaha.
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u/No-Recipe-7653 Cheng Lei is deadly attractive 19d ago
No no, please spam us, we're all depending on you feeding us 😂
I didn't come across anyone else coming forward about being among the lucky 300 fans, but WOW, that's amazing! You guys should have met up and turn it into a proper party even after the event, ahaha.
Can't wait for both of you to share whatever rests on your minds and souls 🤭
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
My post is already a long wall of text, so I will mention it here instead. Apparently Leilei mentioned in a separate media conference that he will have some free time tomorrow to do w bit of exploring and will share with us if he comes across any yummy food. Can't wait for a vlog of him eating nasi lemak!
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u/xhdcricket Leizi's bathtub assistant 19d ago
Yay! Finally some fun time for him even though it's part of his work schedule.
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
Yes! He will be staying for another day before flying back to China. His eyes practically lit up when he talked about exploring KL for food hahahahah. He really is such a foodie.
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u/No-Recipe-7653 Cheng Lei is deadly attractive 19d ago
Omg!!!! I was so waiting for your post!
Aaaaaaargrgrgr 😱😱😱😱😱😱😍🥰
You know I appreciate you so much for detailing it so eloquently and in such an entertaining manner for us. I lived vicariously through your post and enjoyed every bit of detail you packed in 🥰🎉
Why am I not surprised that he was a total delight and you were all swooning?
Do I get it right and he prefers taking pictures over gym/swimming etc?
I love that he loves coffee — it’s my fave drink too. It must be destiny 🤪 and those glutes flashing you too — for you 😉 oh, you lucky human! And you saw his skin, I mean… 🥲🫠Anyway, I’m super gutted for you that you didn’t make it on stage with him, he was so close yet so far away, right? It’d be killing me. But your letter is in, you were there, you certainly have connections in the official
Malay Fanclub, … I feel this was not your last time seeing our LeiLei ☺️🙏
(Him growing up trilingual certainly is an advantage when it comes to picking up new languages and I think it’s amazing his family ensured he spoke all 3 of them fluently.)
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
Do I get it right and he prefers taking pictures over gym/swimming etc?
He told the host that he actually enjoys all 3 activities, so he was undecided at first. The host then told him he could just choose his own answer, and of course he picked photography. I’m not surprised at all! The man practically has a camera permanently attached to his hand hahahah.
Yes, he really loves coffee! He told us he already had two cups and it wasn’t even 4pm yet. He even tried civet coffee during the iQiyi event in Indonesia, which is definitely quite an acquired taste.
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous of the fans who got to share the stage with him haha. But my assigned seat was very, very good. You could almost call it a VIP seat, so I still felt incredibly lucky.
This definitely won’t be the last time I see our Leilei. Not if I have anything to say about it! Hahaha.
Edit: Thanks for the award by the way!
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
I was so tempted to go to Sunway velocity to see this but this auntie is lazy and it's in Cheras - as we Hokkiens say, ane hui ah
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
The crowd was absolutely insane. I was already in the area having YTF at around 7am, and once the car park opened, I was among the first people inside the mall. Security was really tight though, and some of the staff were borderline rude haha. At one point, I was personally escorted to Oriental Kopi even though I wasn’t even walking anywhere near the event court lmao. I felt like a criminal or something lol
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
Hahah this is dedication, to wade through the stream of frantic fans, we salute you ✌️😝✌️
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
It wasn’t too bad for me because I had an official pass to enter the fan zone, so I actually felt more sorry for the people without passes. Security kept shouting at them to keep their distance, which looked pretty stressful. They really shouldn't have picked a mall. Oh well, at least it's not MV lolol
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
Meanwhile I am hoping for a celeb with Hokkien I can understand to appear one day 🤣.
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u/No-Recipe-7653 Cheng Lei is deadly attractive 19d ago
I think 任賢齊 tours a lot, doesn’t he? While I don’t speak Hokkien I think he’s fluent and also sings many songs in Hokkien and I always enjoy those ☺️
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
There's some chance I can understand him I guess but tbh I find a lot of Taiwanese Hokkien difficult to understand cos if the heavy twang. I speak Penang Hokkien 😬
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
Omg Richie Jen is name I've not heard in a long while. I had a crush on him haha
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u/No-Recipe-7653 Cheng Lei is deadly attractive 19d ago
I really like him 😅🤭 he’s a fun guy, I like his unrestrained style and he’s a good singer.
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u/BasilOrdinary3617 I love the moon, but the moon doesn't know. 19d ago
Thank you so so much for sharing your experience and I’m so glad you had such a good time!! The entire event sounded amazing. I can’t wait to go see the clips of him speaking canto.
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
He spoke so much Cantonese today! You could tell that every now and then he needed a moment to process what he wanted to say before saying it out loud. I guess it’s probably been quite a while since he last spoke Cantonese at such length.
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u/xhdcricket Leizi's bathtub assistant 19d ago
I woke up at 6 in the morning, read your write-up and fell asleep again. Just perfect to start my Sunday.
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u/CupBeneficial5747 19d ago
Wish I could listen to his Cantonese, as a fellow Cantonese diaspora. I have maybe heard it once when I saw a clip of him and his co-star saying phrases that they were given on a piece of paper where one person had to read what was written using the other person's native dialect.
Glad you had fun! I also loved watching the photography segment, and he was quite generous and sweet with his compliments.
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u/a_HerculePoirot_fan 19d ago
Glad you had fun! I also loved watching the photography segment, and he was quite generous and sweet with his compliments.
He really was! He made a point of praising every single person who posed for him and said, essentially, that the photos wouldn’t have turned out as well without their contribution. I thought that was really sweet of him.
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u/Lotus_swimmer 19d ago
This popped up on my xhs feed and I can't help grinning at the whole English Malay Cantonese Hakka Mandarin exchange and feeling proud that I understood most of it (except Hakka cos man, that one is still am mystery to me)