Actor: Thank you.

After discussing important matters with the old foxes in Hong Kong.

Actually, no results were reached in the discussions, and everything remains unresolved.

But Zhang Yuan achieved his goal and expressed his thoughts and plans.

"Hong Kong has truly declined."

On the plane, he looked out the window at the scenery and sighed.

"These people have lost their will to live."

"When I heard that I wanted to build the strongest and largest company in the country, all I got in return was a mocking smile."

"They only think about how to make as much money as possible, and live on in the afterglow of yesterday."

Before the abdication of the Xuantong Emperor, the Qing Dynasty was still a powerful nation in East Asia.

Before its collapse, Big Brother was the world's leading power.

Some things are actually dead long ago, but are buried very late.

If humanity loses its drive and ambition, it will never be able to escape the solar system.

This is why the United States, the "beacon of light," can't even build a space station.

Enjoying life and living off one's savings is so wonderful.

Zhang Yuan increasingly understood why Hong Kong was the birthplace of cyberpunk.

Because the defining characteristic of cyberpunk is "high technology, low lifestyle".

The economy and technology are advanced, but the quality of life for ordinary people is very poor, and there is a lack of trust between people.

Environmental degradation, resource monopolies by giant corporations, alienation of people into tools, and ultimately the complete loss of individuality and free will.

There's the Terry Corporation in Blade Runner, the Arasaka Corporation in Cyberpunk 2077, and in real Hong Kong, there are four major families and the Li family.

They only want to rule over their own little corner of the world.

"Alright." Zhang Yuan thought for a moment, resting his chin on his hand. Being half-dead might not be a bad thing.

At least he didn't have any ambition to possess anyone; he just wanted to make money.

Today I rely on you, but tomorrow who will rely on whom is uncertain.

The plane landed in Shanghai, and then we took a car to Hengdian.

Hengdian Airport is under construction, but it will be several years before it is officially opened.

With such a large flow of people, this place should have had an airport a long time ago.

The Xu family of Hengdian is essentially the equivalent of Tairun Company and Aragaka Group in Hengdian.

He didn't go home, but went to Hengdian to attend a meeting of three film crews.

Interestingly, all three productions tell stories set against the same backdrop.

"It's an honor to have you all here, Mr. Zhang."

Not long after, he arrived at Dongyang Huanyu's office.

Yu Zheng turned his lips upside down, revealing his teeth in a fawning smile.

Zhang Yuan nodded, satisfied with his attitude.

It seems that letting him watch Zhang Ziyi dance last time had a good effect.

Zhang Yuan was satisfied, but not entirely convinced.

A smiling face doesn't mean you're a good person.

Anyway, Yu Zheng wasn't a good person to begin with, so I didn't really care.

"Drink tea, drink tea."

"You should have received the final payments and profit sharing from those previous films, right?" Yu Zheng brought up the matter proactively, indicating that he was very "obedient".

"I received it. I've been short of money lately, and you've helped me a lot."

"Of course." Yu Zheng also took out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes from under the coffee table, opened the package, and gave it to him.

It's obviously meant for him; he doesn't smoke it himself.

"After all, you are an investor. This company is where it is today because of your support."

After Zhang Yuan lit it, he glanced at him.

His expression was natural, his features vivid, and there was no sign of pretense.

What great acting skills!
His acting skills are far superior to those of the actors under his command.

"You're here?"

As they were talking, a woman with cleavage peeked in from outside the door.

"Here you go, sit down."

Yang Mi naturally sat down next to him.

She was also called in because the play they were going to talk about next was the one she starred in.

"palace".

Or it could be called "Palace: The Lock of the Heart".

It was originally called "Princess Hours" (宫), but there is a Korean drama from 06 that also has the same name, so they have the same title.

In addition, Yu Zheng later came up with a sequel, so he added a suffix to it.

It became the TV series trilogy: "Palace 3: The Lock Heart Jade", "Palace 4: The Lock Pearl Curtain", and "Palace 5: The Lock City".

Later, there were also movies and web series, basically pushing this IP to its limits.

When it comes to making money, Yu Zheng is a leader in the industry, which is directly proportional to his shamelessness.

And the source of all this is Yang Mi and her novel, "Palace".

Yang Mi entered the industry at the age of 3 and has been in the business for over ten or twenty years.

Is it red?

After playing Guo Xiang in "The Return of the Condor Heroes", she gained some popularity and became known to some people on the street.

After playing Xuejian in "Chinese Paladin 3", she became very popular, with more advertisements, more events, and a constant stream of film and television offers.

What truly made her stand out and become a top-tier actress, or even a top-tier actress plus, was the drama "Palace".

Regardless of whether "The Power of Love" is a dark chapter in her history, she herself couldn't bear to listen to it later.

But its nationwide popularity is undeniable.

After this drama, she became a top star and highest-paid actress in mainland Chinese television dramas.

The reason this drama and its female lead, Qingchuan, became so popular is not only because they followed trends, but also because they were a perfect match.

Yu Zheng wrote the script based on Yang Mi, so she found it easy to act and could just be herself.

It perfectly covered up her lack of acting skills.

The behavior and logic of the character Qingchuan in the film are about 7% similar to Yang Mi himself.

That's exactly the feeling I wanted—the sense of incongruity that modern people feel in the ancient palace.

Zhang Yuan came to Hengdian to visit three film crews: "Palace", "Scarlet Heart", and "Empresses in the Palace".

All three stories are set against the backdrop of the Yongzheng Emperor.

However, the first two stories take place during the Kangxi era, focusing on the identity of the fourth prince, and mainly revolve around the struggle for the throne among the nine princes.

The Legend of Zhen Huan, on the other hand, is set during the Yongzheng era.

The seriousness of these three films increases proportionally.

"Palace" is purely a period idol drama.

"Scarlet Heart" is considered a historical romance novel.

"The Legend of Zhen Huan" is a serious palace intrigue drama.

The three have similar backgrounds, but their content and styles are completely different.

But these three dramas triggered a massive inflation in the salaries of Chinese television actors.

Zhang Yuan glanced at Yang Mi and pursed his lips, thinking.

He remembered that when he watched this film in his previous life, he didn't have a very good impression of Yang Mi.

I actually find Tong Liya quite charming, even though she always wears that garish Barbie pink lipstick.

Just like in "Scarlet Heart", he felt that the strongest overall performer was not Ma'ertai Ruoxi, played by Liu Shishi, but Liu Xinyou, who played Ma'ertai Ruolan.

Tut tut...

As for "Empresses in the Palace," he thought the characters like Zhen Huan and the Empress were just average. He actually found Jiang Xin's Consort Hua and Re Yizha's Ye Lanyi more interesting, as both of these characters were strong-willed women.

It's common for supporting characters to be prettier or even more outstanding than the main characters.

Many later film clips focus on the memorable scenes of supporting characters.

"The theme of our play is time travel," Yu Zheng said as he began to tell the story.

He wrote the script, or rather, he "stitched" it together.

It's an old Frankenstein's monster.

"You understand time travel, right?"

"You've done more serious dramas, so you might not really believe in this kind of science fiction setting."

As Yu was explaining, Zhang Yuan quickly raised his hand.

"I believe."

No one believes it more than I do.

If there's only one person left in the world who believes in metaphysics, it's me.

Besides, there are many things in this world that are hard to explain.

Take Stephen Chow for example.

His decision to film "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" was somewhat driven by a desire to prove himself.

After all, he valued "A Chinese Odyssey" so much, but it didn't gain market recognition.

Before filming A Chinese Odyssey, he had recently broken up with his beloved Law Wai-kuen.

When Law Wai-kuen asked him if he wanted to get married, he called her "crazy." It's possible he didn't mean it intentionally, but rather used a joke or similar offensive response to cover up his insecurity and avoid the question.

Just like when children argue with their parents, and the parents realize they are wrong in the end, they become angry and resort to hitting and scolding.

The themes of love and loss in "A Chinese Odyssey" are somewhat related to the relationship between Stephen Chow and Law Wai-kuen.

The male and female protagonists in "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" once again revisited the old story of love and loss.

But this time it's really over.

Before the film's release, Law Wai-kuen passed away from cancer.

The two films, one after the other, are not only stories of love and loss experienced by the two male protagonists.

As for Zhang Yuan, he had another chat with Sister Xu Qing this time. Before going to Hong Kong, he went to a temple to burn incense and make offerings.

Otherwise, he was afraid the plane he was on would crash...

In addition, the films I recently planned to invest in, "The Piano in a Factory" and "The Adventures of Li Xianji," are likely to lose money, so I guess I've weathered this storm.

Seeing that he seemed to be deep in thought, I noticed that his eyes were darting around mischievously.

"Anyway, I'm very satisfied with the script for this play."

"It's a period drama with a lot of entertainment value, but it incorporates the currently popular time-travel culture."

"Sure, as long as you're okay with it."

"I agree that the company should fund the project."

"That's great!"

"There are still a few dividends from previous investments coming in. How about... putting them into this project?" Yu Zheng asked tentatively.

“Okay, just tell Boss Zhao that I agree.” Zhang Yuan put away the project proposal, intending to review it more carefully when he got back.

"I heard that you and director Zheng Xiaolong are working together on a big production, and you've built sets worth tens of millions." This guy had a sly look on his face.

"I will help you make the arrangements. If you want to use some scenes, just make sure the shooting times are different."

"Okay." Yu Zheng was stunned. He didn't expect that his intentions would be seen through before he even spoke.

They filmed everything in Hengdian, using sets they paid for themselves. Saving costs was a way of making money in disguise.

He not only planned to let the "Palace" production team use it, but also wanted "Scarlet Heart" to use it.

Using all three together will significantly reduce the average cost.

After chatting for a while, Zhang Yuan realized it was almost time and he had to attend another meeting, so he decided to leave.

"You have something else to do?" Yang Mi asked, somewhat annoyed that he was about to leave. "I was hoping to invite you to dinner."

"Next time."

"Wait a minute." Before Yang Mi could even speak, Yu Zheng stopped him first.

"Mi, do you still remember the drama you filmed before, 'Beauty's Rival in Palace'?"

"Remember, what happened?"

"Hehehe." Yu Zheng said, while secretly glancing at Zhang Yuan.

"The lead actress, Ruby Lin, is planning to make a similar film herself recently."

"We got a bunch of people to help us."

"They are all members of our previous team from 'Beauty's Rival in Palace'."

"It's so troublesome that I have to find a team again to start my new film."

Yang Mi blinked twice, looked at Yu Zheng, and then at Zhang Yuan.

Something!

"Just say what you want to say, stop beating around the bush." ​​Zhang Yuan had little patience for him.

He understood.

No wonder they were so polite to me today.

He even specially summoned Yang Mi, not only for the sake of "Palace".

He'll sweet-talk me and then find me another girl to keep me entertained.

Ultimately, they were the ones who suffered a loss and came to me for reason.

When Lin Xinru and the "Beauty's Rival in Palace" team were mentioned, Zhang Yuan suddenly remembered them.

It's that drama, "The Glamorous Imperial Concubine".

Because of the huge success of "Beauty's Rival in Palace", Ruby Lin plans to replicate it.

Without saying a word, they poached Yu Zheng's men.

Around the same time, she had just left Huayi and started her own company, and this was the first film produced by her studio.

And it was this drama that led her to get involved with Wallace Huo.

Although Lin Xinru presents a gentle and charming image in mainland China, this old woman is actually quite formidable.

It would have been better if I hadn't known about this, but now that I do, my company's team has been poached to film other movies. If I don't react at all, what does that mean?
The signal being sent is that peers can take it for themselves.

In the future, anyone can poach my people at will.

You could have at least said something.

I need to film a movie and I need a professional team. Could you please lend me your team for a while?

No, she felt guilty, afraid that Yu Zheng wouldn't agree.

So they secretly contacted them and took the person away.

Although this kind of thing is common in the entertainment industry, it's still not a good thing.

"I understand." After the other person complained for a while, he raised his hand to interrupt.

"There are a few questions."

"First of all, Ruby Lin is making a movie, and a big one at that, with a budget of at least tens of millions of yuan. She can't possibly pay for it all herself."

Who are the investors she found?

I replied with a servile attitude.

"The previous broadcast of 'Beauty's Rival in Palace' on Hunan TV was very successful."

"So this time she directly took the proposal and team list to Hunan TV to seek investment."

Good guy!
Zhang Yuan wanted to applaud and cheer for Lin Xinru.

Using Yu Zheng's dramas and team to entice Hunan TV to invest, this woman is quite cunning.

"So the show will be broadcast on Hunan TV?"

"Not only that, I heard they've also approached online platforms and are discussing selling the copyright."

"Which one?"

"Youku".

Even if the other party hadn't said anything, Zhang Yuan had already guessed it.

No wonder Yu Zheng was looking for me.

"Also, I'm in contact with Hunan TV to discuss our project, 'Palace'."

Zhang Yuan scratched his chin.

No wonder Yu Zheng himself didn't dare to interfere.

The new film is still relying on Hunan TV for its broadcast. Go ahead and fight with Ruby Lin. She's also relying on Hunan TV, so you won't get anywhere with her.

"What do you think?"

"What do you want now?"

After getting a general understanding, Zhang Yuan asked his final question.

"I'm very upset that my people hire me without asking..."

"Stop talking nonsense and get to the point," Zhang Yuan raised his voice.

"We'll split the money," Yu Zheng said bluntly.

"That's right, speak your mind, stop babbling." Zhang Yuan crossed his arms and leaned back on the sofa.

Yu Zheng could only laugh awkwardly after being scolded by him.

Yang Mi glanced at the two of them.

Yu Zheng is, after all, a company boss and a well-known producer in the industry.

She always treated him with great courtesy, and would often invite him to meals and give him gifts, hoping that he would think of her more and give her more acting opportunities.

But as the saying goes, every creature has its nemesis.

The person who was usually polite to Zhang Yuan acted like a grandson in front of him.

It seems that if I want to find someone to rely on, it has to be him.

Zhang Yuan didn't have time to consider her thoughts; he was busy figuring out what to do.

Yu Zheng himself is a plagiarist, and now that someone has targeted him, he's unhappy about it.

Is this considered retribution?
But this "The Glamorous Imperial Concubine" should be quite valuable.

As the saying goes, a horse that doesn't eat night grass won't get fat.

Yu Zheng wants to trick me into coming up the mountain to help him solve his problems, but I'm not willing to do that.

But if there's money to be made, it's not impossible.

"it is good."

"Leave this to me."

"Have someone talk to Ruby Lin's agent about this first."

"Let her come to me herself, so I don't have to go through all the trouble."

"I have other things to do this week, so I won't be available later."

Zhang Yuan laid down the groundwork for this matter. (End of Chapter)