Actor: Thank you.

A few days later, in Fuding City, northern Fujian.

Zhang Yuan was slurping down a bowl of Fuding-style sliced ​​meat, a local specialty, in a corner of a small street-side shop.

"Not bad."

"I can't get used to it," Brother Long shook his head.

This is called meat slices, but it's not the kind of meat slices used in stir-fries; it's meat paste made into chunks.

The preparation method is similar to that of "double-knife turkey" chopped beef balls, where the meat is pounded apart with two wooden sticks.

They add pepper and yellow bell peppers to the soup base for seasoning.

Zhang Yuan thought it was alright; it did have some unique features.

It's a local specialty.

Fuding City is under the jurisdiction of ND City, which is the Ningde of the Ningde era.

However, CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited) does not exist yet.

The reason they came to this place is like "a child without a mother, it's a long story."

Moreover, he didn't come alone.

Unlike usual, she only brings an assistant and bodyguards, and finally a makeup artist.

What a grand occasion today!

The bodyguard team consists of 18 people!
They practically used up all the savings the security company had accumulated.

Now the little shop is full of his "soldiers".

He brought so many people with him because he was going to a film crew.

With this kind of commotion, it's enough to start a fight, let alone go to a film set.

This group, composed of either veterans or martial arts experts, could easily take on hundreds of people with just a dozen of them.

Not only were the people skilled, but they were also well-equipped, even bringing several satellite phones, as if they were going to survive in the wilderness.

Because the film crew they were going to was not an ordinary film crew.

We had to talk about it a few days before.

Zhang Yuan was smugly planning to eat hot pot, and asked his assistant to slice the meat, prepare the sesame sauce, and peel the garlic.

Cheng Hao didn't want to eat, saying that her throat hurt and her hands and feet were cramping, and she looked at him with a mournful look.

I'm annoyed that you had your period coming.

Just then, I remembered that I had called Wang Jiawei before dinner.

He indicated that he had reached an agreement with Zhang Ziyi, and that he would also handle things with Mr. Ip Chun, so that Wong Kar-wai could focus on filming.

He even expressed his apology in a very "sincere" manner.

I'm so sorry, please take your time taking pictures now.

Wong Kar-wai's tone was one of speechlessness.

Because Jiang Zhiqiang had already advised him against it.

You should be secretly happy!
This is already the best possible outcome; you haven't lost anything.

It was only then that Boss Jiang realized that you wanted to take Zhang Ziyi hostage.

After going through all this trouble, it all comes down to a woman!

Hearing Sunglasses Wong's submissive and helpless attitude, Zhang Yuan became even more smug.

"I can be willful if I want to be willful, and I can be stubborn if I want to be stubborn."

"Let's see who can do anything to me..."

He was humming a song while eating when the person who could take him arrived.

Wong Kar-wai called him back, but this time his tone was completely different from before.

It was that kind of look where he almost couldn't hold back his mischievous grin.

It is common knowledge that people don't feel tired when they are doing bad things.

Therefore, Wong Kar-wai's voice was loud and clear on the phone, and he seemed full of energy.

“Zhang Yuan, I just told the investors about your settlement with the production team.”

"The other party is unwilling to settle."

Zhang Yuan: …

"They want to challenge me?" He put down his chopsticks and became serious.

"The investors are from North America, as you know."

“You must be quite assertive in the country.”

“But you still have to go to North America, so…”

"Alright, just tell me what they want." Zhang Yuan interrupted the other person's rambling conversation.

Sunglasses King was taken aback, thinking to himself, "Good kid, quick reaction."

I hadn't even finished speaking when you guessed it.

He had intended to use the investors to scare them, as a way to "get revenge" for what had happened.

There's always a price to pay for causing trouble.

Zhang Yuan had considered the consequences beforehand and determined that he could handle them.

After all, Ellison Pictures at that time was not the company that later had enough of Universal and Paramount; it was just a move by Oracle in the early stages.

It's just that the young lady loves this industry, which is why she started the company.

He immediately understood that Wong Kar-wai was playing tricks on him, so he simply ignored him.

Instead of having you relay the message, I'd rather talk to the people at Ellison Films directly.

A transoceanic call was made, and the other company was contacted.

Surprisingly, after the call connected, Megan Ellison, the eldest daughter of the Oracle family, spoke directly to him.

With his connection to F1 and the trouble he caused in China, the other party realized that he had some ability.

Like many business owners, the first question was whether he would sell his shares in the Mercedes-Benz racing team.

Of course he wouldn't sell.

But the other party was just asking casually, and casually mentioned that if she wanted to sell, she could contact her anytime, and Oracle was willing to pay a high price.

But that's not the point; the key issue is that it's embarrassing.

It's not about losing face, it's about losing one's dignity in the literal sense.

This woman knows some independent producers and talent agencies in North America. Two foreign newcomers working for one of her agents have gone missing.

Unable to get in touch.

If someone goes missing in Southeast Asia, then basically they can skip anesthesia and jump straight to the step of preparing the small box.

Maybe the organ is already in some rich man's body.

However, because it's a work visa and it hasn't expired yet,

What if the phone is out of battery?

I can't just find someone for you whenever you want.

So Megan asked him to help her find someone for a favor.

Because the two actors were a couple, they eventually told their agent that they had been taken to a small village in China and had no idea where they were.

Moreover, the filming process was completely different from what I had imagined, and I wanted to go home.

My older sister said that once the person is found, the matter will be considered closed, and we can be friends from now on.

Zhang Yuan knew immediately that Sunglasses King must be involved.

It must be his sarcastic remarks that brought trouble upon himself.

Aren't you amazing?

Aren't you incredibly resourceful?

You're not a local bully, are you?

Come on, let's see how you explain yourself.

Zhang Yuan thought about it and decided to let it go. He had already caused trouble for the other party for a long time, so a little revenge was no big deal.

Furthermore, once the other party told him the name of the film crew, he understood the situation and indicated that he would handle it.

Because this film crew that embarrassed the two foreigners is a "unique" and "legendary" masterpiece in the history of Chinese cinema, comparable to the Xiang family's "League of Gods," a "masterpiece" that perfectly combines all the long-standing problems of the Chinese film industry, "The Mermaid Empire"!
It wasn't the later film "The Mermaid" starring Fan Bingbing; that was a different film, a project produced by Pang Hong, the producer of "Painted Skin".

I don't know why, but Chinese people always seem to focus on the mermaid theme when making blockbuster movies.

"The Moon and the Sun" is at least a classic 007 film starring Pierce Brosnan.

This "Mermaid Empire" is not as good as the one mentioned above.

In addition to "League of Gods," these three all share a common characteristic.

A huge amount of money was spent; the budget was astronomical!
But in the end, it either wasn't released or had almost no box office revenue.

This is a typical example of a "freak" that emerged during the period of China's film and television industry's frenzied expansion.

These films aren't made to generate revenue through release; they're used for currency laundering purposes.

Even foreigners can't find where people are, so how does Zhang Yuan locate them?
It's very simple, because he has a huge advantage.

That is, he himself is a star!
So he had his agent contact the production team of "The Mermaid Empire".

There was no need to check; as soon as the other party heard that he was interested in the play, they happily gave him the specific address.

What should we do next? Call the police?
it's useless.

Therefore, he had no choice but to go in person. That's why he set off with so many people.

Don't be like the Calabash Brothers trying to save their grandfather; you haven't even completed the mission, and you're already getting yourself involved.

After eating Fuding meat slices, they boarded several cars transferred from a neighboring province and, after several hours of driving, finally arrived at a filming location deep in the mountains and forests.

Zhang Yuan came under the guise of checking on the film crew and conducting research.

"Oh my, the big star is here!"

"Your humble abode is honored!"

A short while later, a middle-aged man wearing a baseball cap came to greet them.

"Are these all your men?" the man asked upon seeing the dozen or so burly men behind him.

"You said I'm a big star, so I should have some fanfare, right?" Zhang Yuan chuckled and stepped forward.

"They're all brought in to make a show of things; without some pomp and circumstance, their status wouldn't be apparent."

"Oh!" The person gave me a knowing look.

After introducing himself, this is the director of photography for the film crew.

He has acted in some patriotic films.

"Come on, let's go see the big boss and have a meal together."

“Okay, please.” Zhang Yuan followed the other person with great enthusiasm.

After walking for over an hour along mountain paths, we finally arrived at a small restaurant that resembled a farmhouse restaurant.

The Fuding meat slices I ate earlier were digested along the way.

After sitting down and waiting for an hour, a man and a woman finally arrived.

Before we knew it, it was almost dark.

"This is our General Manager Jiang Hongyu."

Zhang Yuan had never seen such a stereotypical image of a nouveau riche boss.

Compared to him, Xu Jiaying was dressed quite neatly.

This Mr. Jiang is also a real estate developer; the Fontainebleau residential complex in Xisanqi, Beijing, is one of his projects.

It seems they were trying to combine the names Fontainebleau and Champs-Élysées.

That's pretty tacky.

And even more so in terms of dressing up.

What exactly will it look like?

Wearing a white polo shirt with blue, red and green stripes on top and khaki trousers on the bottom.

The polo shirt was tucked into the waistband of the pants with a Hermès belt, the kind with a big H on it, and it was polished to a shine.

On her wrist was a gold Rolex watch, and around her neck was an orange and white Hermès scarf.

She was wearing a pair of white leather shoes.

And then there's the woman with the snake-like face who came in; that completes the setup.

"Can I take a picture with you?" the woman asked, taking small steps forward.

This woman's name is Shi Yufei, she is from Northeast China, and she claims to have 1/8 Ukrainian ancestry.

Zhang Yuan couldn't tell that he was of mixed Chinese descent, but he could see the surgical scars.

It seems like she came out of the same hospital as Wang Shi's lover, Tian Pujun.

Do real estate tycoons all have this kind of taste?

This woman later played supporting roles in many movies and TV series.

She first became famous for filming an advertisement for M-ZONE with Jay Chou, a name that has been around for years.

After that, she hooked up with various wealthy men and acted in all sorts of movies and TV shows, and now she's hooked up with this guy.

The woman wanted to take a photo with him, but Mr. Jiang spoke up.

"He probably wants to take a photo with you."

"Because after filming this movie, you'll be an international superstar!"

Zhang Yuan: …

No wonder I hadn't seen a single cow along the way; turns out you blew them all away with your boasting.

The woman naturally obeyed in every way, praising her husband's prowess.

Zhang Yuan also remains true to his original aspiration.

You have a task to complete, so you must please the other party and not reveal any weaknesses.

It was also a lot of praise.

After they sat down, they started ordering food, but he wasn't given a chance to order anything; all the orders were placed by this Mr. Jiang.

They shouted loudly, but the food that came out wasn't very good.

Since they were deep in the mountains, Zhang Yuan forgave him.

She even asked him, in a pretentious manner, if he wanted to drink, just to get him to reveal that she had brought a bottle of Romanée-Conti.

It's said to cost 20 yuan per bottle.

Zhang Yuan suspected it was fake...

He put it on the table, opened it, poured himself a glass, and praised the wine as excellent.

But I didn't give him a single bite.

This is just one piece of equipment, yet it's used to develop real estate projects in Beijing.

This shows how chaotic the real estate industry was in the early years.

As long as you have some connections and enough guts, even the most worthless person can become a pig riding the wave of opportunity.

He never looks people in the eye when he speaks; he's the kind of person who's talking to you but is either looking at the food or right in front of him.

It seems like my cervical spine isn't very good; I can't turn my head around.

Although Zhang Yuan really wanted to complain, he swallowed it all.

No wonder that when people online saw that Mr. Chen made his fortune in real estate, they said that Qianqian was his "child bride".

Because too many real estate tycoons are keeping female celebrities as mistresses.

However, there is one problem: real estate developers cannot produce top actresses because they lack resources in the film and television industry.

Sisi's success is not only due to Boss Chen's company and financial support, but more importantly, it's because her family already had connections.

Connections and money are needed to make her famous right from her debut.

Of course, her looks, temperament, and abilities are also much better than those female stars who rely on wealthy men for their status.

Women who rise to power solely through sleeping around are too worldly to be able to play leading roles.

Moreover, people who are used to taking "shortcuts" are unwilling to seriously study acting.

The meal took several hours to finish.

It wasn't until it was completely dark that Mr. Jiang spoke, still seemingly unsatisfied.

"Wow, I can't believe how fast time flies."

"It's dark and the road is long now, so it's not convenient for you to go back."

"How about this, I'll take you to see our luxurious film crew tomorrow."

"Let me show you what a world-class blockbuster is all about."

"Ah...this." Zhang Yuan pretended to be embarrassed.

"I'm quite busy with my schedule, I have other things to do."

"Just make some adjustments."

“We hit it off immediately. You should at least check out the film crew before you leave.”

"I'll arrange accommodation for you first."

"Stay one night, and after you've finished your tour tomorrow, I'll personally see you off."

"I'll pack a few more bottles of Conti for you."

"Oh, okay, it's a deal."

"Haha, definitely, definitely!"

Mr. Jiang thought to himself, "You think you can just leave now that you've come?"

They have to cooperate with me to shoot a few scenes, even if it's just wearing an audition costume, so I can post the photos for publicity.

Young people are so easy to fool; a few bottles of wine and they're hooked.

Little did he know, Zhang Yuan was well aware of his trickery.

Too low-level!

They're just stalling for time, trying to keep me there until it gets dark and I can't leave. They're trying to detain me.

I don't use this trick to deal with women.

These are all tricks college students use to coax their girlfriends into going to a hotel.

However, he was also delighted.

Because all he needed was accommodation.

Because once we check into the hotel, we can find out exactly where those two foreigners are... (End of Chapter)