Entering the Chinese entertainment industry is like entering a deep sea

Chapter 837 With the nation and its people in our hearts, why bother with empty words?
The practice of listed companies partnering with celebrities originated with Huayi Brothers.

Before Huayi Brothers went public, it granted Feng Xiaogang 3% of the company's stock. After gradually cashing out, Feng Xiaogang even left Huayi Brothers for a period of time.

In November of last year, Huayi announced that it would acquire 70% of the equity of Dongyang Meila, a company owned by Feng Kuzi, for RMB 10.5 billion.

Through this, Huayi Brothers also secured partnerships with projects such as "Cell Phone 2" and "If You Are the One 3".

Huayi started the trend, and many others followed suit. Why not convert the income of celebrities into the profits of the company, provided that the celebrities you are associated with have that value?

Just like Fan Bingbing, who earned 2.4 million yuan from the movie "Wu Datou", which is equivalent to 70% of Tangde's annual income, how could Tangde not spend a lot of money to buy Fan Bingbing?

Even the artists in Rong Chen's group are talking about it privately.

Currently, many artists under the Rongchen Group have established their own studios, but Rongchen Pictures has not followed the practices of film and television companies such as Huayi Brothers, LeTV, and Tangde.

The reason can be summed up in just three words: money is no object.

After a series of questionable actions, the production team of "No Other Love" quickly responded, stating that they had misjudged Dai Liren and failed to conduct a background check. With the unanimous agreement of the production company and investors, they replaced him with Dai Liren.

This move left everyone in the industry dumbfounded; the underlying power struggle was completely unknown to ordinary people.

However, all the major and minor capital players in the industry are well aware of the immense power behind both sides.

Fan Bingbing felt much more at ease after leaving the Li family villa.

A woman's intuition is very accurate; if Li Chen wanted to implicate innocent bystanders, he wouldn't have greeted them with a smile.

Once in the car, Fan Bingbing finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling immense pressure every time she came to this villa.

Fan Bingbing suddenly thought of Johnnie To's "Three" which was to be released during the summer season. After this "Dai Liren" incident, iQiyi and several production companies, including Huanya, must be regretting it to the core.

"You stubborn little swallow, you'll get what's coming to you!" Fan Bingbing muttered to herself, then laughed.

Yang Siwei had just returned home when he received a call from his subordinate, Hong Xiaogui.

"Boss, something doesn't seem right."

"what happened?"

"Check your phone, I've sent it to you."

Yang Siwei didn't hang up; he opened the link sent by his subordinate.

Then, a well-known entertainment gossip account on Weibo, "Quannei Laogui," published a long article.

The article, titled "The Double Life of International Director Li Chen," infuriated Yang Siwei as she read its contents.

They're all chatting and laughing at European award ceremonies, but completely absent from domestic film festivals.

The article uses a large amount of data to compare the number of times Li Chen has attended the three major European film festivals since his debut with the fact that he has not appeared at the Golden Rooster Awards, Hong Kong Film Awards, Golden Horse Awards, Beijing International Film Festival, and Shanghai International Film Festival during the same period.

It was specifically emphasized that since his debut, Li Chen has only participated in the Golden Rooster Awards once, the Hong Kong Film Awards once, and the Shanghai Film Awards once.

The accompanying image was even more ironic.

Li Chen smiled and waved on the Cannes red carpet, with the text photoshopped next to him: "Sorry, I don't have time to go back to my hometown."

"Boss, this guy doesn't seem friendly! The Hong Kong Film Awards and the Beijing International Film Festival are just around the corner."

"When it comes to playing the information war game, we are their ancestors. We knew long ago that the swallow wouldn't be so easy to deal with."

Li Chen also saw the various posts that surfaced online at this time.

The comments section was filled with various opinions, such as "Li Chen looks down on the Hong Kong Film Awards" and "Mainland directors refuse to go to the Golden Horse Awards: cultural confidence or arrogance?"

"Young people must not forget their roots; the Chinese market is their foundation."

Even Gao Jun, a judge for the Golden Rooster Awards, commented: "The organizing committee invites us every year, but we can never get them to come."

On the trending topic #LiChenDislikesDomesticAwards#, some discordant voices also emerged.

"Making money off Chinese people while licking the boots of foreigners!"

"Liu Yifei married the wrong person; he's so obsessed with foreign things!"

"Thank you, European daddy, for feeding me!"

Liu Yifei was also stunned; such a sound wasn't unheard of before.

Every year during the Golden Rooster Awards season, some media outlets will bring up the husband in an attempt to grab attention.

This time it was just too overwhelming.

"What's going on?" Liu Yifei asked, her brows furrowed as she scrolled through her iPad.

Just as Li Chen was about to speak, the phone rang again. Liu Yifei glanced at it, her brows furrowing even more. The caller ID showed it was an old friend of her husband's, someone he had known for nearly ten years.

Liu Yifei and her husband exchanged a glance, put down their iPads, and began to listen intently.

Li Chen chuckled and put his arm around his wife's shoulder: "Why are you frowning? It's nothing."

Once the call was connected, the other party didn't waste any time with small talk.

"Mr. Li, the bureau has received several anonymous tip-offs alleging tax irregularities at Rongchen Film Industry." The man's voice was cheerful.

Li Chen laughed when he heard this. Such a petty trick could only cause him some minor trouble, but it wouldn't cause him any real loss.

Without concrete evidence, the tax authorities won't come knocking on the door if you report a company of Rongchen's size.

In particular, Rongchen owns a listed company, Yixin Media, and is associated with several other listed companies, so any actions taken by relevant departments will be taken with extreme caution.

The fact that this friend called Li Chen means that nothing is wrong.

What Li Chen found amusing was that someone would anonymously report him for tax evasion.

If you were to report someone else or work for someone else, you'd probably get caught the moment you filed a complaint.

"Thank you, let's have tea together another day," Li Chen replied with a smile.

"Great, your tea has an unforgettable aftertaste, haha."

After hanging up the phone, Li Chen sent several WeChat messages to Yang Siwei and several senior executives of the company.

He then made two more calls to China Film Group and the bureau. At times like this, it was time for Rong Chen's partners, who usually ate and drank with him, to step in.

Princess Huanzhu was quite surprised by Li Chen's reaction: "He didn't delete the post! Nor did he control the comments!"

Huanglong Xianren, a cigar dangling from his lips and an eye-catching emerald ring on his finger, said, “He’s not stupid. How could he let anyone find fault with what we just did? I told you long ago, these petty tricks are no good.”

Princess Huanzhu glared with her bull-like eyes: "Hmph, even if I can't seriously hurt him, I have to make him uncomfortable, otherwise he'll really think I'm easy to bully!"

When Han Sanping received Li Chen's call, he made a private call to Huanzhu Gege.

After all, Princess Huanzhu was once one of his subordinates.

"I don't care about your feud with Li Chen, but I can't tolerate this kind of underhanded behavior! Li Chen's contributions to Chinese cinema cannot be erased by anyone." Han Sanping's tone left no room for compromise.

Now that Princess Huanzhu has grown powerful, she doesn't take people in the film and television industry seriously at all. She pretended to be stupid and said, "Mr. Han, what are you talking about? You don't actually think that I'm behind all this stuff on the internet, do you?"

"Li Chen has offended so many people, you can't wrong an innocent person!"

Han Sanping laughed angrily: "You think you can play tricks on me? Fine."

Before Princess Huanzhu could reply, Han Sanping hung up the phone.

Then he called La Peikang again. On the other hand, Cao Guowei had already received a call from Li Chen, who told him not to use any means to stop these posts from spreading on Weibo.

Cao Guowei immediately understood what Li Chen meant.

After receiving a call from Han Sanping, his immediate superior, La Peikang immediately released a statement on the official Weibo account of China Film Group.

"Director Li Chen has been dedicated to spreading Chinese culture through international languages ​​for many years and has recommended the works of young directors to participate in domestic awards on numerous occasions. Over the past twelve years, he has provided Chinese cinema with a great deal of talent and his contributions to Chinese cinema are evident to all."

"Even if he doesn't participate in any domestic film festivals, it cannot erase the indelible contributions that director Li Chen has made to Chinese cinema."

As soon as China Film Group made its statement, Shanghai Film Group followed suit.

Then influential figures in the film industry expressed their opinions through Weibo and the media.

Wang Jiawei spoke out in Hong Kong: "Artists should not be morally coerced. I didn't have time to accept awards while I was making 'The Grandmaster'."

Andy Lau immediately stated through the media: "Li Chen is my friend and an artist I truly admire."

Yang Mi: "My senior married Liu Qianqian and even claimed Liu Qianqian's nationality. I don't know what these people are thinking."

Countless celebrities spoke out, and finally, the Beijing Film Academy issued a statement on its official Weibo account to support Li Chen, claiming that Li Chen is one of the most outstanding graduates since the establishment of the Beijing Film Academy.

The viewers of "Princess Pearl" were stunned. It had been a whole day, and Li Chen hadn't come forward to respond. The online public opinion hadn't even had a chance to ferment before it was drowned out by the spittle of Li Chen's fans.

Even Huang Xiaoming and her homeroom teacher called to ask if she was behind it.

Princess Huanzhu suddenly realized that compared to her manipulation of public opinion a few days ago, Li Chen was the real mastermind behind it all.

The most ruthless of them all is Liu Yifei, the newly crowned Oscar-winning actress.

Liu Yifei's Weibo post, though only nine characters long, was as powerful as a nine-character mantra, and was instantly reposted by artists from Rong Chen's group, immediately soaring to the top of the trending search list.

"With our country and its people in our hearts, why bother to proclaim it aloud?"

The accompanying image features the panda logos of Rongchen Pictures and Chiyou Pictures!

Yang Mi stared in disbelief: "Wow, who came up with the copy for Liu Qianqian? These nine words make all the evil spirits and monsters vanish into thin air!"

Zeng Jia and Zhao Ruoyao were also dumbfounded. This was the reason why Rong Chen's group was so dominant.

Its reputation is as solid as granite.

The person behind this wants to use reputation to deal with Li Chen. Isn't that like brandishing a big sword in front of Guan Yu? They're asking for death!

Li Chen still didn't attend the Hong Kong Film Awards or the Beijing International Film Festival.

Trying to use public opinion to force him to submit is naive.

Li Chen thought to himself, "Let you be happy for a few more months. Once your dragon V is broken, let's see if you can still jump around like this."

Liu Yifei has never hated anyone so much; Princess Huanzhu is the first.

You can disagree with your husband, you can even fight with him, but you can't spread rumors about him.

This is going to ruin her husband.

Ms. Liu got angry, and the consequences were serious.

He secretly called Yang Siwei without Li Chen's knowledge.

Yang Siwei smiled and said, "Even if you don't give the order, I won't let her get away with it. Don't worry, I know what to do!"

Liu Yifei smiled and said, "If there's anything, just contact Zhang Yiming directly. I've already spoken to him."

"I want to show everyone who doesn't have their country and family in their hearts!"

When Yang Siwei heard the usually good-tempered proprietress's voice suddenly turn cold, he couldn't help but shiver.

Sina Entertainment News

"The film 'Three,' scheduled for release on June 24 during the summer season, is not only Du Qifeng's return to the crime genre, but also the first collaboration between 'Princess Pearl' and Du Qifeng."

"She plays a coerced neurosurgeon in the film, caught between police officer Gu Tianle and high-IQ criminal Zhong Hanliang."

"Princess Huanzhu accused Du Qifeng of favoring Louis Koo, and both she and Zhong Hanliang were brutally beaten by Koo in the film. She even joked: 'I'm not really fat, I got fat from being beaten.'"

The nationwide promotion of "Three's Company" began, while the production of "Without Your Love" was temporarily suspended due to the replacement of the lead actor, which suddenly made the schedule of "My Fair Princess" more available.

Johnnie To is really unlucky; the storm surrounding "Without Your Love" hasn't even died down yet.

Many old videos of "My Fair Princess" have appeared on Weibo and Douyin platforms.

They're just videos that could completely ruin the reputation of "Princess Pearl".

There were people wearing military flag outfits, people taking close photos with "Master" Wang Lin, people making Freemason gestures while taking photos with Baba, and videos of people taking photos with Kiko Mizuhara and Shinobu Dai.

For a time, the stench of "Princess Pearl" spread beyond the atmosphere.

Li Chen immediately realized what was happening, and when he called Yang Siwei, he learned that his wife had lost her temper.

The three production companies of "My Fair Princess" and "Three" as well as director Johnnie To were completely dumbfounded. The videos were genuine, and they couldn't refute them.

Any rebuttal will only fuel the fire!
"Thank you, wife!" Li Chen returned to the villa, got into bed, and immediately hugged his wife and kissed her forehead.

The deed is done, and besides, his wife meant well. However, the operation was too obvious, practically announcing to everyone in the industry that it was Li Chen's doing.

He actually had a backup plan. In just a few months, he could make the little figure that Rong Momo had stabbed disappear and all of his works be taken down.

But you can't tell your wife about this beforehand.

"What are you thanking me for! You always stand up for me. This time, I'm just telling these people that I can tolerate whatever they say about me, but if anyone makes my family suffer, I'll make them suffer too!"

"I don't care what her background is or who's behind her!" Liu Yifei said firmly, leaning against her husband's chest.

"You, Mom, Xiao Wuxia, and Erbao are the people I want to protect for the rest of my life. For you, I'm not afraid of anyone!"

Li Chen gently patted his wife's back, adding in his mind, "Me too!"

-

Princess Huanzhu's face turned green with anger: "Has he gone mad! He's utterly shameless!"

Huanglong Immortal frowned slightly and shook his head, saying, "Strange!"

"What's so strange!"

"Isn't this an open declaration to the outside world that he's manipulating things behind the scenes? Isn't this giving people grounds for criticism? It's not like him!"

"If it's not him, then who is it? Who else can make Douyin's trending list their own?" Before Huanzhugege could finish speaking, she suddenly thought of someone.

He turned to look at the Yellow Dragon Immortal: "Could it be Liu Yifei?"

Huanglong Immortal nodded: "If it's Liu Yifei, then it makes sense. When women go crazy, they're more troublesome than men!"

Huanglong Xianren was right; Liu Yifei not only did it, but she also admitted to it.

He directly forwarded the video of "Princess Pearl" from the trending list, which drew attention from everyone in the industry.

All sorts of voices are coming out.

"The senior and Liu Qianqian are being far too blatant! Aren't they afraid of being summoned for questioning? Isn't this blatant manipulation of public opinion?!"

(End of this chapter)