Entering the Chinese entertainment industry is like entering a deep sea

Chapter 736: The old boss died before he could accomplish his mission
Beijing Youth Daily
"After the release of "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch" starring Fan Bingbing, it received a lot of negative reviews. "Fan Ye" admitted that facing it frankly, he said that time will change everything."

"As long as you work hard, no matter if people are haters or fans, their opinions will change. In terms of love, she also said "domineeringly" that she will not forgive those who betrayed her."

Sina Entertainment News

"Fan Bingbing and Li Zhiting are busy with filming together, fearing that the mystery of the boyfriend will be revealed."

"The large-scale historical drama Empress Wu Zetian started filming at the end of last year and has been filming in low-key studios in Wuxi and Hengdian since then."

"Fan Bingbing plays Wu Zetian in this drama, while Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Zhi, is played by Li Zhiting. This is the second collaboration between the two after One Night Surprise."

"In the past year, there have been endless rumors about Fan Bingbing and Li Zhiting, and media staff who visited the filming location recently witnessed the two of them "staying together" like conjoined twins.

"Even though he was overloaded with work all day, Li Zhiting still had a "midnight private talk" with Fan Bingbing. It seems that Fan Bingbing's "boyfriend mystery" will finally be solved."

The news about Fan Bingbing's love affair was flying all over the Internet just like when "One Night Surprise" was released.

This kind of topic hype is nothing but a side job. It may be useful if used once, but if used too much, it will just be a topic of conversation for the audience after dinner.

However, these online press releases made Li Chen smell something different.

After filming "Empress Wu Zetian", Fan Bingbing will not choose "us" as he did in his previous life, right?

My boyfriend’s last name is indeed Li, and he has so many stones at home that I can’t give them all away.

Li Chen guessed correctly. Fan Bingbing not only did it, but also told Yang Siwei about it.

Yang Siwei didn't know how to describe Fan Bingbing: "You've got your brain kicked by a donkey. Why go find someone who can stab you in the back? I think you're digging your own grave! Don't you know how much my boss hates these people? Aren't you and your young hunk in a sister-brother relationship?"

Fan Bingbing puffed his cheeks and said angrily, "Don't mention it!"

Yang Siwei paused, then suddenly realized, "Could it be that you were acting on impulse and ended up turning your fake play into real one?"

Fan Bingbing really didn't want to mention her and Li Zhiting anymore, and said upsetly: "I told you this so that you would have a clear idea in your mind, in case Brother Chen finds out and draws a line between us. Anyway, it's impossible for Brother Chen and I to be together, so I'll have fun!"

Yang Siwei snorted twice: "You are too immersed in the role. You really think you are Fan Ye. Be careful not to overdo it."

Two days later, "The Blade of the Assassin" premiered in Beijing, and Li Chen and Yang Siwei went together to pick up Liu Yifei.

The box office of "Vientiane Island" has exceeded 30 billion yuan, and Liu Yifei recently shot a golden September cover blockbuster for VOGUE.

The simple and elegant style of black, white and gray, the elegant and pure beauty of primary colors, undoubtedly demonstrate the aura of a superstar.

"Boss, Xixi makes me, a woman like her, feel ashamed of myself." Yang Siwei sighed.

Li Chen ignored her. Is it hard to find an actress who makes you feel inferior? Apart from Jia Ling, I'm afraid there is no other actress who can beat you in weight.

As soon as the director shouted "Cut" and announced the end of the filming, Liu Yifei's expression changed immediately. The queen temperament just now flashed away, and she turned into a happy little bird, jumping and trotting towards Li Chen and Yang Siwei.

"When did you two get here?"

"If you don't finish, my boss and I will be dried up!" Yang Siwei said with a smile.

Li Chen patted his wife's face and said, "Hurry up and change your makeup. If we don't leave now, we will be late for the premiere again."

Liu Yifei nodded and said "hmm", then quickly went to the dressing room to remove her makeup and change into her battle robe.

"Boss, Xiao Fan and that stabbed Li Chen are now together." Yang Siwei mentioned this casually when he saw Liu Yifei entering the dressing room.

Turning her head, she saw that her boss didn't seem to be very surprised. He just said lightly: "Fan Ye, Fan Ye? Where is the master? I don't want to marry a rich family? Or do I just pick up rags?"

Compared to "The White-Haired Witch", "Knife of the Assassin" does not rely on scandal hype. The new martial arts film promoted by Rongchen Pictures and the brand of Rongchen Pictures have made "Knife of the Assassin" profitable before it was released.

During the Shanghai Film Festival, the copyright of "Assassins Spring Blade" in Japan, South Korea, Britain, France, Germany and North America alone sold for 2150 million US dollars.

The premiere won high praise from the school leaders and directors of the Beijing Film Academy who came to watch the film.

This is especially true for the stars who came to watch the movie. Countless people on Weibo spoke up for "Knife of the Assassin".

Jinghua Daily reported
“The premiere of “Blade of the Assassin” shocked the whole city! Stars praised: This is the real martial arts.”

"Beijing Film Academy put up a 10-meter banner to support Lu Yang in creating a new chapter in mainland martial arts."

"Today, Rongchen Pictures' new-style martial arts epic "Blade of the Assassin" held its premiere at the National Grand Theater with a crowd of 1,000 people. After the screening, the audience burst into applause that lasted for five minutes."

"Jia Zhangke, who came to watch the film, said frankly that 'Hero' can be turned over a new leaf! Xu Ke praised Lu Yang for having developed his own style after being polished by 'Ip Man'."

"This event, which the industry called the 'Martial Arts Film Renaissance Night', instantly sparked heated discussions across the Internet."

On Weibo, many celebrities spared no effort to support "The Blade of the Assassin".
He Jiong: Shen Lian’s knife stabbed into my heart!

Ning Hao: The martial arts director for the next movie must be lent to me.

Xu Ke: There are many talented people in the mainland film industry, and fortunately I retired early.

Zhou Xun: The villain Ding Xiu gave me nightmares, he must pay me!

Li Chen also joined in the fun: This knife has been sharpened for five years! The costumes and props are definitely an encyclopedia of the Ming Dynasty. Netizens are welcome to find faults after watching the film.

Li Chen’s Weibo post received over 10 comments in just one hour.

"Lu Yang: Thank you Teacher Li Chen for the book. I'm afraid I'm going to break your Ip Man record again!"

"Are you planning to take over all the types of films in China? For science fiction, there's "Vientiane Island", for martial arts, there's "Blade of the Assassin"! For comedy, there's "Happy Twist"!"

Just one day after the premiere, all pre-sales for "The Blade Strikes" were sold out.

Lu Yang's unlimited glory makes some people excited but hesitant.

"Li Chen already has the dominance of a godfather in the industry. If we rashly poach his core team, it would be tantamount to suicide."

"Although Lu Yang's director contract is about to expire, it is impossible to have no non-compete clause, and the legal team of Rongchen Pictures is not just there to do nothing." Xiang Shaokun is a lawyer and provides support to Dong Ping on a professional level.

Dong Ping also knew this. In fact, he just mentioned it just now to see if it was feasible.

His real target is Ning Hao. After all, Ning Hao is one of the few creative directors in China.

All of Lu Yang's scripts are written by Li Chen. Without Rong Chen's brand effect, it is hard to say whether Lu Yang can make a name for himself.

A typical example is Xu Zheng, who was instrumental in the production of "Lost on Journey" and "Lost in Thailand".

But when it came to "Hongtu" which Xu Zheng operated himself, it was a complete failure.

This is even more true for Wu Ershan. After "Painted Skin 2", "Swordsman" also failed to make any splash.

Only Ning Hao has truly gained a firm foothold.

Someone next to Xiang Shaokun said, "Boss Dong, I don't need to say much about the strength of Rongchen Pictures. Just a few of its allies alone have an aircraft carrier."

"For Rongchen Pictures, the best strategy is cooperation, not confrontation."

Two days later, Bad Monkey welcomed a celebrity in the circle: Dong Ping. Dong Ping took the teacup handed over by Xing Aina and stated his purpose straight away: "Director Ning, "Heart Flower Road" is about to be released, but you should know that Rong Chen is like a quagmire. Once you fall into it, even if you pull yourself out, it's all mud."

"Wu Ershan and Xu Zheng are examples. On the surface, they seem to be supported by Li Chen, but in fact, they have abandoned their own martial arts."

Xing Aina glanced at Ning Hao and thought to herself that this man was really bold. If these words were to get out, it would definitely cause a huge uproar.

Ning Hao chuckled and said nothing. Dong Ping pushed a plan over to him.

Ning Hao and his wife took a look and the general idea was to set up a directors alliance and form a top production company that could rival Rongchen Pictures and have many big directors as shareholders.

As long as Ning Hao nods, the couple can obtain 20% of the company's shares, with an estimated valuation of million.

Moreover, they will never interfere with Ning Hao's creative freedom and promised to invest in at least three films of his in the next five years, with no budget limit.

There's also a commitment to work with CAA on international projects and so on.

Xing Aina was overwhelmed but not very moved. She was a producer and was used to being calm: "Mr. Dong, are you okay? Just say this to us. We will take it as a joke."

Dong Ping smiled and continued to stare at Ning Hao without getting discouraged: "If the box office of 'Lost in Thailand' is a big hit, are you willing to let Rong Chen take the lion's share?"

Ning Hao also grinned: "You don't know Li Chen. Even if he gets the lion's share, he won't let me down."

Xing Aina also laughed sarcastically and said, "Mr. Dong, you may not know the affection between my husband and me and Director Li. Bad Monkey doesn't welcome you. Please go."

Dong Ping cursed in his heart that the rotten wood could not be carved!
Dong Ping came out of the bad monkey in disgrace and spat in hatred.

After Dong Ping left, Ning Hao and his wife looked at each other.

"Should you tell Li Chen about this?"

"Of course I have to say it. If you don't say it, and he hears about it later, our friendship with him will be gone."

Ning Hao nodded and felt that his wife was right.

Xing Aina added: "But what Dong Ping said just now is correct. We bad monkeys really can't always be Rong Chen's vassal."

"If this drama, 'Lost in Thailand', really becomes a hit, we will symbolically invite Li Chen to help with the next drama."

Ning Hao chuckled and said, "Why, are you afraid that he will do something dirty? No, he is a very kind person to his friends."

Xing Aina laughed and said, "What do you know? You've been following behind others for so long, but you haven't made any progress at all."

"Is he short of money now? Why does Vientiane Island have five producers? Let's see who the other four are besides Rong Chen?"

Ning Hao understood immediately and gave Xing Aina a thumbs up: "Good wife, good wife!"

"Nonsense, they are all just as stupid as you, the bad monkey closed the shop long ago!"

Ning Hao laughed out loud.

The next day, Ning Hao and his wife came to Li Chen's house in person and told him about this.

The couple saw that Li Chen's expression didn't change much.

Liu Yifei knew her husband very well.

To put it nicely, her husband is scheming, and to put it bluntly, he is deep-minded.

Ten years ago, I had already mastered the art of remaining calm in the face of adversity.

Liu Yifei thought that even if someone came to tell her husband today that Zhang Yimou had been poached, he would probably have the same expression.

"Sister Na, Director Ning, have some tea. This aged white tea has just been delivered. It is said that it has been stored for twenty years." Liu Yifei made the tea herself, and the tea set was a celadon handmade by a master of intangible cultural heritage in Jingdezhen.

Li Chen sat opposite the couple.

Xing Aina took it with both hands and said with a smile: "The treatment we receive as a couple is really beyond words."

Li Chen stretched out his hand and motioned Ning Hao to try it.

Ning Hao didn't understand anything about this. It was like a cow chewing on a peony. He finished drinking it but didn't understand anything.

Li Chen smiled and said, "There is a saying about white tea: one year as tea, three years as medicine, and seven years as treasure. You and I have known each other for more than seven years, right?"

Before Ning Hao could react, Xing Aina quickly said with a smile: "It's been more than seven years, it's been ten years. Time can prove everything. If we hadn't had your support back then, we wouldn't be where we are today."

Liu Yifei secretly praised Sister Na for her ability to understand the meaning of her husband's song. It was obvious that she had understood his subtext.

"Sister Na, what are you talking about? We are friends. Li Chen, Director Ning and I are also schoolmates. We are of the same blood."

Xing Aina began to look at Liu Yifei with increasing respect, and thought to herself, is this what it means to be like the people you follow?

"You've changed so much that I can't recognize you. When did you learn the skill of making tea? How many other skills do you have that I don't know about? Mr. Li is really lucky to marry you."

Liu Yifei glanced at her husband with a smug look and said with a smile, "Did you hear that, Mr. Li?"

Li Chen laughed and said, "I heard it. Sister Xing said I found a treasure. But if it was a treasure, it would have been taken away by someone long ago. How could it be my turn to pick it up?"

Ning Hao also laughed out loud, but was glared at by Xing Aina and choked.

After chatting and laughing for a while, the couple got up and said goodbye.

After coming out of Li Chen's villa, Ning Hao was still muttering: "Why didn't he react at all?"

"With your brain, you can only be a director. Just wait and see. I'm afraid this old boss is not well anymore."

After seeing Ning Hao and his wife off, Liu Yifei asked her husband, "What are you going to do?"

Li Chen looked relaxed, with his hands crossed behind his neck, and smiled at Liu Yifei walking backwards on the lawn of the villa like a child, "What do you want to do?"

"I want to see who he can poach and who dares to follow him!"

Liu Yifei trotted a few steps and said with a smile: "Boss Li is amazing. When I first heard you, I thought you were Director Han."

Li Chen laughed: "If Director Han were in my shoes, he would definitely be much crazier than me."

"How can an imperial envoy enjoy the world of martial arts like a leader?"

Li Chen said this, but he had made up his mind in his heart, regardless of whether Huanxi Media could be established in the end.

As soon as it is established, he will strangle it in the cradle at the first opportunity.

With his current influence in the industry, he only needs to reveal a little bit of information to the outside world.

From China Film Group to Shanghai Film Group, to Wanda and Light Media and even several other major cinema chains, they all have to give him some face.

Not to mention celebrities, even that "Fan Bingbing" has to report her relationship to him with concern.

(End of this chapter)