Actor: Thank you.

"Hey, I get it."

"I understand, you don't need to feel pressured."

"I understand, we're all friends."

Zhang Yuan, who had originally planned to leave Hong Kong to go home for the Lunar New Year after having dinner with Chen Long, was stopped by someone and had to stay.

Hua Ge called out to him first.

They just helped me so much, acting as a go-between for Thai Red Bull. If I have something really important to do, I have to be there for them immediately.

On his way to the appointment, he received a call from Zhao Wei.

The other party started with a standard New Year's greeting, and then gradually steered the conversation toward Chen Kun.

They recently filmed a movie called "Mulan," not the Disney version starring Liu Qianqian.

It's a Hong Kong remake; remakes have become popular in recent years.

The director is Jingle Ma, the same director who made "Summer Holiday".

The script was also handed to him; the director hoped that Wang Sheng and Pei Rong could work together again.

But he simply didn't have the time, so he declined the offer.

Now, there are almost no TV scripts for him; nobody dares to submit them anymore.

Who would dare hand TV scripts to Hollywood movie actors?

He has an unusually large number of movie scripts; Zeng Jia can get a bunch every time she asks him for one.

He usually just looks at the name and then throws it away.

But Zeng Jia will call each person individually to explain that she is busy and that they can work together again next time.

Even the smallest film crew must respond with a gentle attitude.

Even if a deal falls through, goodwill should remain; one should not offend anyone.

After receiving the book "Mulan", he put it down without much hesitation.

Because "Ip Man" was scheduled to be filmed at the same time.

Moreover, the "Mulan" IP is strange; no one can make a film about it.

Besides the fact that the Disney animated version was once a huge hit because she was Disney's first Asian princess.

Disney used to be very inclusive, with princesses of all skin colors, and they weren't just colorful for the sake of being colorful; they were genuinely telling good stories.

However, live-action versions, especially movie versions, generally don't do very well at the box office.

The version starring Zhao Wei had an investment of 100 million yuan, but the box office was not even as high as the investment... so I can't act in it, it would ruin my reputation.

Even with a cast including Chen Kun, Zhao Wei, Hu Jun, and even Vitas, who is currently famous for his dolphin-like vocals, the film couldn't save its box office.

The later Sissi version had a budget of 2 million US dollars, but only grossed 4.4 million US dollars worldwide.

If you include streaming and DVD revenue, it shouldn't be considered a loss, but it's not profitable either.

However, it ranks last among all Disney's live-action princess movies.

However, the film's failure was also due to external factors, namely the flu pandemic at the time.

Moreover, "Black Snow Princess" later broke this record, with a budget of 4 million US dollars but a box office of only 2 million US dollars.

The truth is, comparisons are the best teacher. In this comparison, Xiaolongnu is far superior to Xiaoheimei in both appearance and the quality of her work.

Because films like "Mulan," featuring a strong female lead, don't sell well in the global market, especially in China.

In the mainland Chinese film industry, apart from the so-called "chick flicks," which are urban romantic comedies like "Love is Not Blind," most female-led films have flopped; it's considered lucky if they don't lose money.

Of course, Jia Sheng is an exception; never try to fight a comedic character.

Zhang Yuan then dropped the show without even investing in it.

Zhao Wei called at this moment, saying that she wanted to ask him to help with publicity later.

He readily agreed, but whether he would have time at the time was uncertain.

Old Swallow then talked about Chen Kun's performance and attitude on set, as well as their relationship.

After going around in circles, we finally got to talking about recent online events.

It's about Chen Kun replacing him in "Painted Skin 2".

"Kun is honest and straightforward, he doesn't know how to be tactful, he does whatever he thinks."

"But he certainly didn't mean any harm."

The old swallow was scared.

Because Pang Hong has recently been making huge moves, going to great lengths to promote Chen Kun, putting pressure on Zhang Yuan.

They gave a bunch of announcements to online and offline media, all saying that Chen Kun was extremely popular, creating the effect of "I can replace him".

Because Zhang Yuan doesn't have any films airing recently, Pang Hong's actions have even made him more popular than Zhang Yuan.

When you search for "Painted Skin" on Baidu, the first results are questions like "Is Chen Kun the next Wang Sheng?"

You have to turn the page to see the real one.

These were all purchased with money.

That old fox Pang Hong went to great lengths to outwit me.

Because of this, Zhao Wei was a little scared.

She knew very well that if Zhang Yuan got angry, she didn't know what he might do.

It's hard to guard against!

You never know when they might stab you in the back, and that stab could be fatal.

She was afraid that her good friend Chen Kun would get into trouble again... Why did I say "again"?

I'm afraid that if things go wrong, it might affect the film "Mulan" which was just finished filming.

If Zhang Yuan goes to the top and ruins the show so much that it can't be released, wouldn't I suffer a huge loss?
After thinking it over, I decided to make a phone call anyway.

Try to gauge Zhang Yuan's opinion; if that doesn't work, have that silly boy Chen Kun come over for a chat. Don't be so heartless.

But to her surprise, Zhang Yuan didn't care at all.

"It's okay, I know someone is causing trouble, but it's not Kun."

"Okay, I'll tell him and ask him to come to my house for dinner during the Chinese New Year."

"Okay, sure." They've already invited us to dinner, so it should be fine.

But Old Swallow put down her phone and thought about it.

"He didn't invite me to come along... he didn't even ask me to come."

I called Chen Kun myself and arranged it, taking the opportunity to get closer to him.

They arrived at the restaurant where they had arranged to meet Brother Hua.

"Coming."

"I've ordered drinks, would you like to see what you'd like to eat?"

"I've been eating out every day lately, and it's making me feel sick."

"What do you want?" he asked after sitting down.

What struck him as odd was that the agreed-upon meeting place wasn't at his home, but outside.

There's someone I'd like to meet with you.

"Let's try to resolve the conflict at the same time."

"Contradiction, who?"

Just as he was asking, a round-headed, chubby figure entered the restaurant.

"Jing, over here," Hua Ge called out, raising his hand.

Zhang Yuan turned around and saw that the person who had come was none other than Wang Jing, the famous Hong Kong director known as the "King of Bad Movies," whose physique was becoming increasingly similar to his father's.

His father is Wang Tianlin, who played "Uncle Deng" in the movie "Election" and was known for his quick descent downstairs.

No wonder I saw him outside; there were outsiders there.

Not just anyone can go to Wah Gor's house. He is very low-key in his private life and is extremely self-disciplined.

Just like Hua Ge said, the two of them have a conflict.

The feud that started on the set of "The Little Fish and the Flower Without Flaws" has never been resolved.

Zhang Weijian remains "blacklisted" to this day.

But things are different now!

At that time, Zhang Yuan was just a minor supporting actor. He only managed to suppress his opponent by taking advantage of the long-standing conflict between the mainland and Hong Kong film industries.

Now he doesn't need any power; he himself is power.

They couldn't overpower their opponent, but they were evenly matched.

If you want people to talk to you properly, you have to have the ability to back it up.

"Long time no see, you've become even more handsome." Director Wang blinked and took the initiative to shake hands with him.

This would have been unimaginable a few years ago.

So-called forgiveness and reconciliation often simply mean that the power and status of both parties have changed.

Those contradictions naturally cease to exist.

"Long time no see, please have a seat." Zhang Yuan gave Hua Ge face and greeted him as well, and everyone sat down.

After pouring the wine and raising his glass, Brother Hua began to speak.

"Let's not talk about what happened before; everyone here is very generous."

"I'm hosting today, so we'll all be friends from now on."

"Okay." Zhang Yuan had no objections and wanted to see what Brother Hua was up to.

Wang Jing actually has high emotional intelligence and IQ, and she's not stupid. She's extremely kind on the surface, as if there's never been any conflict between them.

"The reason I invited you here today is actually to discuss investment matters," Hua Ge said after eating for a while, glancing at Wang Jing at the same time.

"As I told you before, there's a sci-fi movie that Jing is preparing to produce. I've taken on the script and plan to star in it."

"Are you interested?"

Zhang Yuan felt extremely distressed.

I've been in Hong Kong for the past few days and have only been filming terrible movies.

"True Legend," "A Simple Noodle Story," and now it's "Future Police," which I've heard about before.

I didn't try to persuade Brother Hua not to act, but unexpectedly, the blame came back to me.

Almost every major film produced with Hong Kong involvement has been a flop.

With this kind of taste in Hong Kong's entertainment circle, it's no wonder it's declining.

But it was difficult to refuse Brother Hua's request, since he had helped them a great deal.

He offered to mediate, but she firmly refused, which seemed unreasonable.

But even knowing that he was going to lose money, it would be one thing if the loss was small, but this was a huge loss, so it was impossible for him to just pay up for nothing.

"The film's total budget is around 100 million yuan; it's a sci-fi blockbuster."

"What's popular now has potential," Hua Ge thought to himself, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Actually, the older brother's ability to choose scripts is average. He mainly acts in many of the dramas, and although many of them have flopped, some of them are still masterpieces.

Wang Jing is the same way; the more photos he takes, the more masterpieces he will eventually produce.

So calling him the "King of Bad Movies" isn't entirely accurate.

Back then, Charles Heung sold the film to Taiwan before the Lunar New Year, and then told Stephen Chow and Andy Lau that he was going to make "Tricky Master".

He called Wang Jing again and said, "I've sold a movie called 'The Tricky Master,' starring Stephen Chow and Andy Lau. You can film it."

It will be released in two months.

There was no script, no production crew, and only two main actors, both of whom looked completely bewildered.

They just filmed it all anyway, writing the script on set every day.

Even with this method, the box office still reached over 3000 million.

Moreover, Fatty Wang often takes on this kind of job.

When filming "Island of Fire" in 90, Wang Yu invited Liang Jiahui to play a supporting role.

Jia Hui refused, but Wang Yu told him to take a look at the script first.

When they opened the script, they found two bullets inside.

Are you going to act or not?

Moreover, those two bullets were just placed in a gun a few days ago, pressed against Andy Lau's head, and used to force him to sign the contract for this film. This kind of practice used to be common in the Hong Kong and Taiwan film industries.

It was during this time that Wang Jing took on many roles that involved helping others, and in many of these roles, she saved lives.

He takes on the tasks that others can't film, and when he makes a film, everyone has a chance to survive.

So even though he makes a lot of bad movies, he has a good relationship with many people in Hong Kong.

Brother Hua is one of them.

Therefore, Zhang Yuan felt it was difficult to handle.

"Don't be fooled by how many movies he makes; he rarely loses money."

But this one lost money, and it was a huge loss!
Zhang Yuan seized the opportunity to catch Hua Ge talking and quickly took over.

"Brother Hua, this film has a very high production cost."

"One hundred million is not a small amount of money. Add the publicity and marketing expenses, and it will be tens of millions more. That's impressive."

With that money, I could make a movie called "Let the Bullets Fly".

And he just happened to use this film as a starting point.

"You know, I recently had the company take on Jiang Wen's 'Let the Bullets Fly,' which is worth over 100 million."

"And as you know, I spent over 100 million to invest in the racing team."

what?
Upon hearing this, Wang Jing's eyes widened, and she turned to look at Andy Lau.

Why does it keep changing from over 100 million to over 100 million?

This...this...it's been years since we last met.

Wang Jing counted on his fingers under the table.

It's only been five years since we last met, and he's gone from earning hundreds of thousands in film fees to becoming a big shot making hundreds of millions in investments?

He's on a rocket, his advancement is too fast!
Wang Jing had heard that he was doing well, but she didn't expect him to be doing this well.

The old man is shameless by nature, so when Brother Hua suggested that he could invest, Director Wang had no objections.

As long as you have money, you can call the shots.

He's always been like this.

Having no principles is his principle.

Hua Ge gave him a reassuring look; what Zhang Yuan said was true.

"So this film has such a large budget that neither I nor the other bosses can necessarily come up with that much money."

After listening to him finish speaking, Wang Jing looked at Brother Hua again.

Hua Ge was a little embarrassed.

Because he had made a big promise before he came.

Zhang Yuanzhun, listen to me. I can settle this matter for you with just one sentence.

He's very generous and will definitely forgive and forget. Not only will he not give you a hard time, he'll also invest in you...

Hua Ge opened his mouth, thinking to himself, "It's almost Chinese New Year, and you're not giving me any face."

Upon seeing this, Zhang Yuan quickly added words.

"I think Director Wong's works have always been very interesting, especially the period when he collaborated with Stephen Chow."

When Wang Jing heard Zhou Xingchi's name, he squinted and waved his hand, looking like he didn't want to mention it.

Another person who fell out with Stephen Chow over money and ideals.

"Xingxing is the best comedian, but not the best person," he remarked.

"No matter what," Zhang Yuan said, refraining from speaking ill of Stephen Chow behind his back, "what I mean is, I'm willing to invest in low-budget films."

"It's just a funding problem."

"Okay then." Before he could finish his polite remark, Wang Jing spread his hands and said, "I happen to have some low-budget works as well."

"A comedy, or a movie that imitates stars, do you want to vote?"

Zhang Yuan didn't expect the other party to take advantage of the situation.

Wang Jing was also a bad seed; she deliberately talked back to him, while also wanting to see if what happened back then was truly over.

"Please go ahead," Zhang Yuan said, feigning attentive listening.

"In 96, Sing and Vincent Kok directed a movie called 'Forbidden City Cop' and I was the producer. Have you seen it?"

Are you hungry? I'll cook you some noodles... Upon hearing this name, Zhang Yuan immediately thought of Liu Jialin's famous line that has been passed down through the ages.

Vincent Kok is the actor who played Tang Niu in the movie "The God of Cookery".

The style of this show is bizarre, but it's still quite interesting.

Furthermore, Stephen Chow used the latter half of the film to satirize the Golden Horse Awards.

"The winner is Afa's father-in-law!"

"His expressions were affected and somewhat exaggerated."

I bet Stephen Chow has been holding back for a long time, and he's been itching to yell at us.

Moreover, the story of this play, especially the emotional part, the entanglement between Afa and his wife, as well as the emperor and Qin Cao disguised as Wuxiang Wang, is not original, but rather based on an old movie called "The Lion's Roar" in the courtyard.

Anyway, it's all just copying each other.

"Seen."

"That's good. I'm planning to make something similar, called 'The Spy Who Loved Me.' Are you interested? It's not expensive."

Wang Jing also used a pun: in Cantonese, the "fa" in "linglingfa" sounds similar to "ba," and the "gou" in "linglinggou" sounds similar to "jiu."

Riding the wave of popularity of an old movie, it sounds like a sequel.

Hey!
Zhang Yuan became interested when he heard the title of the film.

These are typical low-budget comedies in the style of Wang Jing.

It's the kind of movie where he can write the script in a week or two.

Ironically, it's precisely these kinds of "reckless" films that Wang Jing has never lost money on!
He makes films that lose money, but most of them are serious dramas.

Especially with Tony Leung Chiu-wai as the leader, Wang Jing has probably lost money on about ten times more films in his life, half of which were collaborations with this top Hong Kong film emperor.

So Wang Jing kept a close eye on Liang Chaowei, constantly criticizing him for all sorts of bad things.

The less money it makes, the more the award judges like it.

Zhang Yuan glanced at Hua Ge, who was also waiting for his reply.

They shouldn't have lost money; they should have actually made a profit.

"Okay, let's discuss it in detail. We also need to control the costs."

"Also, I want to use my actors."

Wang Jing never expected that he would actually agree.

Perhaps they don't have a problem with me, but are genuinely broke.

For Zhang Yuan, enemies or not, nothing is more important than making money.

If Poet Chen could make money, he could cooperate, but others wouldn't be interested in him.

"You're not targeting me, are you?"

After hearing his agreement, Brother Hua thought for a long time before finally managing to utter this sentence.

"You won't invest in movies I'm in, is that it?"

Knowing the other person was joking, Zhang Yuan repeatedly emphasized that he was genuinely poor.

The budget for this film, "The Spy Who Loved Me," was only 20 to 30 million yuan, and the filming period was only two months. It is a prime example of being fast, efficient, and economical.

Wang Jing has made a living from these kinds of plays all her life.

As for "Future X-Cops," Zhang Yuan recommended that they approach Huayi Brothers or Orange Sky Investment, as they have the funds.

He was still kind-hearted and thought of introducing the "good business" to the Wang brothers.

"By the way, the selection process for the new batch of young directors has also been completed."

Hua Ge was referring to the Asian New Star Director Project, which he invested in Ning Hao back then.

It's also because of Ning Hao that things have gotten even bigger, and it's now called the "Asian Star Gravity Project".

However, expanding it can also have drawbacks, as it involves more interests and becomes less pure.

"I'll select a new director and introduce him to you when I have time."

"Okay, what kind of person?" Zhang Yuan was quite interested. If another Ning Hao appeared, he would be very lucky.

“She is from an ethnic minority and, like Ning Hao, has an arts background.”

Zhang Yuan: …

Hearing these two characteristics, he already knew who it was.

That's the 523rd Lord.

523 isn't a nickname given to him by the audience; it's the name of his own studio.

"Sure, let's meet sometime." He didn't want to refuse Hua Ge's request.

At the same time, I kept telling myself, "I can make money, I can make money..."

If I dare to use Jia Shikai, what wouldn't I dare to use?

Just invest in what you can make money; don't miss out on opportunities that are free.

Hua Ge noticed that Zhang Yuan was conflicted about the people he recommended, whether it was Wang Jing or 523.

Hua Ge probably still doesn't understand why he's lost money on every investment he's made over the years, while the ones that have made money are all those he's followed Zhang Yuan's lead.

The people he picked, the plays he chose...

After agreeing to discuss the investment issues of "The Spy Who Loved Me" with Wang Jing after the New Year, he finally felt relieved and boarded a flight back to the capital.

After a year of hard work, it's finally time to take a break.

Unlike most families, the Lunar New Year, especially the actual holiday, is the quietest time for his family.

To avoid "unequal distribution," he doesn't go to anyone's house.

Let Cheng Hao and Shu Chang go back to their own homes and celebrate the New Year by themselves.

The little lion invited him to his house for dumplings, but he didn't go.

Because I went to this place, and that place found out, I couldn't celebrate the New Year.

The housekeeper and gardener have both gone home.

Assistants, makeup artists, and bodyguards also celebrate the Lunar New Year.

He had planned to visit Mr. Yuan to pay his respects for the New Year, but unexpectedly, Yuan Tian took him back to his hometown.

That courtyard house, which is about 1,000 square meters, usually feels cramped when people come over, but now that he's all alone, he feels a bit lonely.

It has to be said that Brother Qian was thinking of him.

Knowing that no one was home, I went to his house ahead of time and put a bag of dumplings I had made in the refrigerator.

They have meat and seafood fillings, and vegetarian fillings, but I don't know if they have the filling for Brother Qian's cold dishes.

Actually, he asked the aunt to save some vegetables for hot pot, which he was preparing for himself.

But as the saying goes, nothing tastes better than dumplings, and nothing is more fun than the dumplings made by Sister Qian...

I spent the whole afternoon preparing at home, including vegetables, meat, a copper pot, and a small electric pot for boiling dumplings... The dumplings had to be cooked separately, otherwise the broth for the hot pot would become cloudy.

With everything prepared, I sat comfortably in front of the TV, ready to watch and eat at the same time.

Although he can't get on the Spring Festival Gala himself, and it gets more and more boring every year, he still turns it on just to listen to the noise and enjoy the excitement.

08 is coming to an end. This year was the Year of the Rat, and it was also the beginning of a new cycle.

With 09 fast approaching, whether I can live up to my potential in this Year of the Ox depends on whether my well-prepared plans can be implemented step by step.

Slurp!

He picked up his small cup and took a sip of the wine.

We have a long future ahead of us.

Meanwhile, Harvey, far away in the lighthouse, also burst into laughter.

"Son of a bitch!"

His smile wasn't just a result of the New Year's atmosphere.

The Jewish New Year is in September, which has long passed.

He was happy because he had received the "signal" Zhang Yuan had mentioned earlier... (End of Chapter)