Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 595 The Qing Dynasty is Gone!
A roadshow is basically going to the cinema to interact with and chat with the audience.
The format was very old-fashioned, but the effect was surprisingly good.

The main reason is that audiences in this era have fewer opportunities to see celebrities in person.

Roadshows are actually a win-win situation. Audiences can get up close and personal with their idols, the media can get news and more material, theaters can boost their popularity, and they can even get some advertising...

Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou—three cities in two days, two to three cinemas in each city…

Every movie theater is pretty much the same: packed with people, noisy and crowded.

Moreover, the time is actually very limited, with each cinema only offering about half an hour.

So tired!
But Zhang Chen felt as if he had returned home.

That's right, returning to China is like returning home.

This is, after all, his home turf.

Although I'm tired, it feels familiar and fulfilling.
In fact, the more domestic the market, the less effort is needed in marketing.

Because the audience has enough recognition for Zhang Chen.

Domestic box office is progressing steadily. June is not a popular release month, and there are no strong competitors to rival "White House Down".

Somewhere, several members of the Anti-Chen Alliance gathered together again.

"His new movie has been released, what should we do?"

"What can we do? Zhang Chen is the only one who can hold sway in the country. No one can mess with him anymore. What can we possibly do?"

"We really can't do anything about him on the mainland, but I still have some friends in Taiwan. I can't let him have absolute power..."

Among these people, Wu Baige had already given up somewhat. He hadn't gained any advantage in the several encounters with Zhang Chen, and he had long since lost the will to fight back.

On the contrary, Cai Yinong kept pressing the issue.

The fact that "Palace" snatched away "Scarlet Heart" left her feeling resentful.

Chen Guofu had a similar mindset.

The more successful "The Message" became, the more unbalanced he felt.

He had his eye on this book back then, but Zhang Chen intercepted it and gave it to his teacher.

"I've asked some friends to predict the downfall of 'White House Down,' what about you?"

When asked about Chen Guofu's involvement, Cai Yinong said, "I also found someone to annoy Zhang Chen. Although they can't do anything to him, annoying him is enough..."

……

Zhang Chen had no idea that he had been tricked again. After finishing the roadshow in China, he and his group flew directly to London.

Even though it was business class, I still didn't feel very comfortable.

Zhang Chen longed for the private jet he had reserved. Once the plane was delivered, he wouldn't have to suffer like this anymore.

After getting off the plane, the group didn't even go to a hotel, but went straight to the movie theater.

The number of British viewers was significantly smaller than that in China, but their enthusiasm was just as high.

"Zhang, I'm a fan of yours!"

"Jason, you're the only big man in Hollywood!"

"Jason, I absolutely adore your hairline!"

There are all sorts of opinions among fans, but what's different is that Jason has significantly more fans in London than in other places.

After all, it's his hometown.
During promotional events in other countries, Zhang Chen was undoubtedly the main person in charge of the film's publicity, and he was usually the one in charge.

In London, however, audiences were equally enthusiastic about Jason Statham. His name was mentioned much more frequently, and some media outlets even conducted interviews specifically about the relationship between Zhang Chen and Statham. Zhang Chen, naturally, gave scathing praise to Statham, after all, he's Statham's go-to leading man.
"How does it feel to be back in my hometown?"

London was the last stop on the roadshow, and it was also Jason's hometown.

It can be considered a triumphant return home.

If Jason weren't British, there would never have been a stop in London.

"Boss, Director James Wan just called you. I told him you were attending a business event, and he said he'd call you back later."

When the promotional event in London ended, the assistant informed him of the situation.

When Zhang Chen attends public events, he always hands over his phone to his assistant for safekeeping.

Okay, I understand.

Just as Zhang Chen was about to call Wen Ziren back, the other party called first.

"James, I was just about to call you back~"

"Oh, it seems my call came at just the right time~"

"Haha, that's right. I just finished a roadshow and am on my way back to the hotel. What's up, did you need something?"

"It's nothing, the 'Wah-la' gang hasn't had a get-together in a long time, and everyone asked me to ask you when you're coming to North America so we can get together sometime~"

"That's great! I'll be going in a few days. I'll contact you beforehand. Also, I have something to discuss with everyone..."

"Okay, I'll contact you in a couple of days~"

Zhang Chen hung up the phone and then closed his eyes to rest.

As soon as Wen Ziren hung up the phone, several people around him asked in unison, "So, what did he say?"

Surrounding Wen Ziren were the guys from the Hula Gang.

James Wan shrugged: "Zhang said he'll be in North America in a couple of days and will treat everyone to drinks. Also, he said he has something to tell everyone."

His words immediately piqued people's curiosity: "If there's something to say, say it. What is it? Did he say anything?"

James Wan shook his head: "He didn't say anything specific, only that we'd talk about it when we met."

"Oh, never mind then~"

The crowd was somewhat disappointed, but they couldn't help but speculate.

"Do you think his independent production company might be about to release a new movie project?"

"It's hard to say. Twilight was such a hit recently, it's hard to say whether Cube Entertainment will continue making horror movies..."

Looking at everyone, Wen Ziren felt a pang of sadness.

Over the past year, none of the members of the Huala Gang have fared very well.

Last year, his collaboration with Lionsgate, "Dead Silence," did not perform well at the box office.

The production cost was over 2000 million, and the global box office was also over 2000 million, resulting in a loss.

It's a good film, but unfortunately, it didn't do well at the box office.

The other members weren't much better; they all had income but no income.

Today at the gathering, we happened to talk about Zhang Chen, which reminded me of how Zhang Chen had taken care of them.

Although Zhang is now considered a major director of commercial films, he has his own independent production company.

A horror movie produced by Cube Entertainment definitely needs a director.

Unfortunately, we'll only know for sure once we meet Zhang Chen.

……

As soon as Zhang Chen landed at Los Angeles International Airport, his phone started ringing.

It's Dong Jianqiang~
"Brother Dong, what's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Zhang Chen instinctively felt that something must have happened, otherwise Dong Jianqiang wouldn't have called him in such a hurry.

Sure enough, the voice on the other end said, "It seems we're being targeted by the Taiwanese media." "Huh? How so?"

"Several public figures in Taiwan have publicly expressed their pessimism about 'White House Down,' and the Taiwanese media are adding fuel to the fire. Among them, Niu Chengze was the most rude. He even registered a Weibo account to publicly rant in mainland China..."

"What are you yelling about?"

"He's just trying to badmouth you or something. What, do you have a grudge against him?"

Zhang Chen frowned: "No, I don't know this person at all."

"That means standing up for someone else."

Zhang Chen also thought this was possible: "Alright, I understand. I'll be careful. Is there anything else?"

"Nothing."

"Okay, that's settled then."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Chen instructed his assistant, "Go and collect the negative comments about me and 'White House Down' that have been circulating online these past two days..."

A few hours later, his assistant presented him with the collected information, and he finally figured out who his opponent was.
Isn't this the guy who got arrested and imprisoned for four years for using his finger?
So he is Niu Chengze.

Let's look at his comments:
"White House Down" is a fantasy film riddled with plot holes.
As he watched, Zhang Chen smiled.

This person even claims to be a Manchu nobleman?
Not only Niu Chengze, but several others, but Niu Chengze was the most vocal among them.

To his surprise, Zhang Tielin was among those who were pessimistic about the situation.

Zhang Chen thought back for a moment and realized that he didn't seem to have offended him.

However, it was only after being reminded by his assistant that he realized what was happening.

What made this person famous?
Princess Pearl.

The main investor in "My Fair Princess" was Chiung Yao from Taiwan.

Thinking about it that way, I felt relieved.

In the past two years, as his status has risen, his temper seems to have become less cynical.

In the past, if he heard someone bragging, he would definitely retort.

Who do you think you are?
Now that his mindset has changed, even if the other person says he can fly, Zhang Chen will only tell them to "be careful".

If it doesn't concern me, I'll mind my own business.
It concerns me, so it doesn't really matter.
As long as you're happy.

"Director Zhang, do we need to respond?"

The assistant stood by for a long time, and seeing that Zhang Chen had not yet made a statement, he couldn't help but ask.

"Ignore him. Let him say what he wants; it won't hurt us."

To Zhang Chen, these people were like flies.

The buzzing won't do him any good, and its impact on box office revenue is limited.

He doesn't care about Taiwan's box office numbers.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Chen's concession was perceived as weakness, and Niu Chengze became even more outrageous and spoke with increasing impunity.

He publicly declared on a Taiwanese TV program that "White House Down" would be a box office flop and that the film would be Zhang Chen's Waterloo.

Zhang Chen still didn't want to talk to him.

Then this guy continued on the third day.

As the saying goes, don't punish the greedy, don't punish the lazy, punish the blind.

Zhang Chen didn't want to talk to him, but the other party became even more aggressive, so Zhang Chen simply posted a Weibo post:

My assistant told me yesterday that I've been targeted by someone named Niu Chengze these past few days.

I simply asked, "Who is Niu Chengze?"
Then I looked up the information and found out that he was a Taiwanese second-generation official.

Her father was a Kuomintang officer, and her mother was the daughter of a general.

In our country, they'd be called remnants of warlords.

He's supposedly a filmmaker too, and he has a lot of disapproval of me and my work.

Then I looked through his works, and I hadn't heard of any of them.

I really don't know where you got the nerve to try and scam me?

Furthermore, and most ridiculously, he was extremely proud of his Hesheli surname and had a strong sense of identity as a Manchu.

I can't help but remind you, the Qing Dynasty is long gone.
There are so many Manchu people in the entertainment industry, like Yehenara Ying, Hesheli Yingda, and Ulanara Jing, but I've never seen them boast about this.

I advise this guy to face reality. You should be thankful that the new China doesn't have a habit of persecuting remnants of the previous dynasty, otherwise, given your status... well, you know...

There's another actor named Zhang Tielin who has some complaints about me. I'm formally informing you that I just returned from a promotional tour in London, the capital of your home country, yesterday. The audience in London really loved "White House Down," quite unlike you, a British citizen...

Zhang Chen's pen moved more and more smoothly as he wrote, and after posting this one, he simply wrote a second one:
The more I think about it, the angrier I get. I thought I was no longer 'emotionally swayed by external gains or losses,' but I still can't help but rant about this ignorant caste and bloodline theory.

What era are we living in? Why are we still so particular about this?

In China, only livestock are classified by caste, while pets are classified by lineage.

A caste system like India's would not work in China.

Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?

We've heard this since we were little.

Are surnames really that important?
Judging from surnames, whose ancestors didn't include a sage?
The Liu surname has produced more than 70 emperors, the Li surname was the imperial surname of the Tang Dynasty, the Zhao surname is the first among the Hundred Family Surnames, the Zhu surname may be descended from Zhu Yuanzhang, and the Zhang surname does not need to be exempt from the title because the Jade Emperor's surname is Zhang.

Even if there were no famous ancestors, the Ji surname of the Zhou emperor evolved into 411 surnames (accounting for 82% of the Hundred Family Surnames). With the integration of the eight ancient surnames, everyone has imperial blood.

If you were born in India, you might even be proud of your high caste.

Brahmins are born noble and are God's agents; Dalits, on the other hand, are of lowly birth and can only hope to transcend class in the afterlife.

But in China, this is not a problem at all.

China is not without nobility; it's just that their status has been repeatedly overthrown throughout history.
-
The pre-Qin aristocracy disappeared after the Warring States period reforms, the Qin unification of the six states, and the uprisings at the end of the Qin Dynasty;
The kings of the Western Han Dynasty who were not of the Liu clan were wiped out by Liu Bang, and the kings of the Liu clan were divided due to the "Decree of Grace," with Liu Bei reduced to a weaver of mats and a seller of shoes;
The powerful clans of the Wei and Jin dynasties and the prominent families of the Sui and Tang dynasties were eliminated by forces such as Huang Chao.
The Mongol Yuan dynasty's four-class system was short-lived, and the Qing dynasty's Eight Banners also came to an end with the Wuchang Uprising.

All 600 million people in China are like the legendary emperors Shun and Yao!
One emperor and one courtier!

We are all descendants of Yan and Huang, why should we be divided into different classes?

……

Zhang Chen's two consecutive Weibo posts immediately swept away the previous slump.

Especially that line: The Qing Dynasty is gone!
Many people suddenly realized, "Yes, what's wrong with the Manchus?"
What's wrong with having the surname Hesheli?
All the Aisin Gioro clan members have undergone labor reform, so why distinguish between high and low, noble and base?
In no time, Niu Chengze's Weibo was flooded with comments, which frightened him so much that he closed the comment section overnight.

Zhang Tielin was also criticized and trended on social media along with Niu Chengze.

Zhang Tielin is actually British?
The British look down on us while making money off us?

Suddenly, the search for nationalities began to take place online.
Zhang Tielin secretly changed his nationality to British. Does that mean there are others who have done the same thing?

You won't believe what you find until you dig it up.

Liu Tianxian, Chen Chong, and Ning Jing are all American citizens;

Gong Li, Jet Li is a Singaporean citizen;
Zhang Tielin and Karen Mok are British citizens;
Siqin Gaowa is a Swiss citizen;

People in our circle cry wolf every day, but it turns out these wolves are actually lurking right beside us.

In response, netizens raised a thought-provoking question:

Why change nationality?
Why would someone who has changed their nationality return to China to make money?
If you want to make money in China, why change your nationality?

These three issues are interconnected, and no matter how many people turn sour under their influence, these three issues will always affect them.
(End of this chapter)