Huayu: As a child star, I just want to be famous

Chapter 599: Earning Me to Join the Liangshan Rebels?
[Chen Linfeng rakes in 10 billion yuan in 5 days! Another Spring Festival box office miracle is born, setting a new benchmark for domestic commercial films]

[Now You See Me surpasses 12 billion yuan at the box office, setting a new record for the fastest-growing domestic film!]

[With a first-week gross of 13.2 billion yuan, the box office ceiling for domestic films has been raised again; "Now You See Me" surpassing "Your Name" is now a certainty!]

[The combination of magic and fast-paced editing delivers a devastating blow! "Now You See Me" achieves an 8.3 rating on Douban, proving that commercial films can also reach legendary status.]

【…】

Domestic media outlets are constantly hyping it up, and although they haven't been able to get Director Chen to come out for an interview, it's still quite a spectacle.

Meanwhile, Chen Linfeng and his wife had already boarded a plane to Los Angeles.

The Oscar nomination luncheon is on the 10th. Chen Linfeng hasn't decided whether to attend in person yet, but since we're at the most crucial moment of the second round of Oscar competition, he'd better come to the Americans first and see how things go.

At least show some respect to the judges; you have to save face.

"Aren't you tired? I already told you I could manage by myself this time, but you still insisted on coming with me, Sisi."

"Hehe, I'm not tired. I'm always there when you win an award, and this time is no exception."

Sisi's eyes darted around. "What if I'm not here this time and you don't win the award?"

"What a coincidence," Chen Linfeng was about to say, but considering the special circumstances this time, it might really be different if Qianqian were there.

This is in light of Pitt's previous suggestion that the child should be born in North America.

Sissi is now showing signs of pregnancy, and her arrival at Emily Kent might actually mislead some people.

Even if you don't actually intend to do it, just making a feint is still not entirely useless.

So Chen Linfeng changed his mind and said, "Yes, yes, we can't do without you, our lucky mascot."

"Hmph, that's it."

After spending some time adjusting to the time difference, Chen Linfeng focused on learning about the situation in the United States.

After deciding on the strategy four or five days ago, Bolton acted quickly, releasing the news through the media.

The assistant team has collected recent newspaper articles and seen related reports.

The article uses a third-person perspective, which is the "according to so-and-so" or "so-and-so said" often seen in news reports. This "so-and-so" is basically someone who is close to Chen Linfeng and directly related to him, and it also mentions Sister Mei.

In contrast, there were fewer reports that focused on his identity.

Judging from the current situation, the related public opinion has not escalated further.

That's good; the remaining minor noises won't affect the overall situation.

It seems the deception tactic has worked.

Of course, it could also be the effect of throwing money around.

Judging from the operating principles of American society, the effect of spending money might be even greater.

As long as it doesn't involve the core of American hegemony, many things here can be solved with money.

The two methods don't conflict, so Chen Linfeng isn't bothered about which one has a larger share.

In the afternoon, Sister Mei came to the villa to discuss the follow-up work.

"Sister Mei, what kind of tea would you like?"

"Orange juice is fine, thank you."

Mei replied as usual, then suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Oh dear, Miss, you're not feeling well, so please don't bother."

"It's okay, I can handle it."

Chen Linfeng's lips twitched. "Sister Mei, don't worry about her. Ever since Qianqian left home, she's been like a bird soaring into the clear sky or a fish swimming in the sea, no longer bound by any constraints."

"Do you think I'm Liu Bei?" Liu Qianqian wrinkled her nose at him, smoothly picking up the joke.

She didn't do anything complicated; she just poured bottled orange juice into a glass and pretended to do it.

After all, I know I need to be careful now.

I also got Chen Linfeng a Coke.

I hadn't been able to drink it for a while because I was trying to conceive, but recently I've been thinking of making up for it by drinking more.

"Sister Mei, you don't know, when I was in Yanjing, they didn't let me do anything at all. At most, they let me walk around the yard twice a day, and that wasn't allowed. I was so bored."

"Your aunties are concerned about you," Sister Mei said with a chuckle, wisely refraining from further comment.

After chatting about everyday things for a while, we got down to work.

"Xiao Feng, are you and Sissi going to the nomination banquet the day after tomorrow? If not, I'll arrange for Leonardo to go in your place."

"Better go."

Where is Sisi?

Chen Linfeng turned to look at Qianqian and asked for her opinion.

"With me."

"OK, then we need to prepare in advance the day after tomorrow morning." Sister Mei took out her notebook and wrote it down.

"Following the nomination banquet, the general schedule is as follows:"
The meeting with Nolan was mainly about the script;

Robert Friedman hopes to report to you face-to-face on this year's work plan;
There were also meetings with partners like Disney and Warner Bros., and invitations to parties, among other things.

Chen Linfeng listened to Sister Mei explain the details of each meeting and invitation, and then discussed the time arrangement with her.

"For the party, let's pick a few close friends to go, like Leo, Bruckheimer, Hendrik Willem Van Loon, and Ang Lee. Let's skip the others."

Hollywood celebrity parties range from the extravagant to the clubbing, including nightclub parties where celebrities are paid to attend.

Mei Jie would filter these out immediately; they would never even appear before him.

The celebrity parties that Anita Mui listed were mostly those where the relationships were relatively close, or where the chances of trouble were relatively low.

In his early years in Hollywood, Chen Linfeng never attended parties, mainly to guard against unforeseen circumstances.

Let's not even talk about things like flour slurping, which are unique to Europe and America; any random person could hand you a drink that might contain an addictive substance.

Even those with close relationships don't dare to trust him, like Robert Downey Jr., who is clearly involved in this stuff.

On the surface, they say they've turned over a new leaf, but who knows what's really going on behind the scenes?

People giving you information doesn't necessarily mean they're trying to harm you; they might think they're showing you something good.

Then there are the more subtle forms of illicit relationships, such as brothels and recruiting others.

If it were just the former, it might be okay; it would just be being tricked into having sex. But the real danger is being involved in something like a Lolita island scam.

You might fall into a pit without even realizing it.

After all, girls in Europe and America generally mature earlier, so who knows if the other person is even an adult?

Chen Linfeng, being an outsider with little influence in Hollywood, might be the target of a setup.

Therefore, he was always extremely cautious and never gave anyone a chance.

It was only in the last two years, with his achievements proving that he had endured enough time and was no longer a complete novice, and with his status gradually rising, that he was able to relax a little.

However, having already formed this habit, he still doesn't usually attend parties.

But isn't this a gesture of goodwill, like attending a few parties and dinners hosted by Hollywood filmmakers, to show that you're gradually integrating into American society?

The Oscar nomination luncheon was held at noon on February 10th.

There's not much to say about this; it's essentially a promotional event organized by the Oscars to give the nominated film crews some exposure.

This might be particularly useful for certain film crews, such as those nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, or filmmakers who have won less popular awards like Best Documentary or Best Live Action Short Film.

They lack this.

However, it's not very effective for large production teams.

The nomination results were announced in the middle of last month, and the subsequent voting period lasted for more than 20 days. This current exposure will not have a significant impact on the final result.

Especially the film crews vying for several of the most important awards.

Chen Linfeng paid special attention to the production teams of "12 Years a Slave" and "Dallas Buyers Club".

Based on the final outcome of the previous life, these two films pose the greatest threat.

One film won Best Picture, and the other won Best Actor.

Based on my personal experience, there was nothing particularly unusual about him. Steve McQueen, the director of "12 Years a Slave," flattered him immensely, claiming that "Joker" was too powerful to compete with, and he spoke as if it were the truth.

Indeed, everyone who works in the world of fame and fortune is a good actor.

Chen Linfeng had been trying to figure out who was behind this whole mess.

Although some political and cultural elites in the United States may have disliked him for a long time, this incident points to such a clear fact that the party in charge must be a stakeholder.

After all, it costs money to influence public opinion and publish articles in newspapers and other media.

Who would waste money just to vent their anger?

The sporadic accusations and criticisms were normal in the past.

His primary suspect was the team behind "12 Years a Slave".

Putting aside the time traveler's perspective and working backward from the outcome, it's perfectly normal for the biggest competitor to trip them up.

In addition, "12 Years a Slave" overlaps somewhat with "Joker" in terms of market share, making it the most competitive film.

Although one is a film about Black people and the other is a superhero villain movie, they seem to have nothing to do with each other.

However, Joker has a class narrative, which naturally makes it more appealing to the lower and middle classes.

And Black people, well, are mostly concentrated in the lower and middle classes.

The two have a large overlap in their scope of influence.

Previous reports have mentioned the impact of "Joker" on other nominated films in terms of public opinion, with "12 Years a Slave" being particularly affected.

From this perspective, it is highly suspicious.

However, since it was just speculation and Chen Linfeng couldn't find any evidence, he could only let it go for the time being.

Following the nomination banquet, there was a celebrity party.

The location is a luxury villa in Beverly Hills that covers nearly 10,000 square meters.

A large number of Hollywood's top stars, directors and producers are gathering here.

The party was ostensibly a charity dinner hosted by Beyoncé and her husband Jay-Z, but according to Meryl Streep, it likely had ties to the American Democratic Party.

Given that the couple had previously held fundraising events to support the current president's campaign, this is understandable.

What Sister Mei said is most likely true.

"Chen, you've finally arrived!"

As soon as Pete saw Chen Linfeng and his wife enter the hall, he immediately went up to them and gave them a hug.
"I thought you were going to refuse these kinds of social events again."

Chen Linfeng smiled and hugged him, while also blocking him from hugging Qianqian.

That old rascal loves to make jokes like that.

"I can't afford not to come this time, after all, the Joker situation isn't settled yet."

Pete showed no embarrassment at being looked down upon, and instead gave Sissi an exaggerated gesture of praise, "CC, you look absolutely gorgeous tonight."

Then, lowering her voice, she said to Chen Linfeng, "Beyoncé just asked about you; it seems she's quite interested in you."

Then she turned to May and started chatting with her again, "May, you look especially beautiful today. Do you want me to help you find a handsome young man? You know, Hollywood has plenty of guys like that..."

Chen Linfeng ignored Pete's banter, only his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

He wasn't familiar with Beyoncé at all; they weren't even in the same circle.

"Director Chen!"

A voice with a heavy Cantonese accent came from the side.

Chen Linfeng turned his head and saw an Asian man in a sharp suit walking towards him, followed by two other people who also appeared to be Asian.

"you are?"

"Wang Yalun, Special Advisor to the Democracy Foundation"

The other party handed over a gold-embossed business card, their smile warm and eager. "I've long admired Director Chen; it's a pleasure to finally meet you today."

Democracy Foundation?
In the US, there are at least 30 to 50, or even 10 to 80, people with that name.

Chen Linfeng casually picked up the business card and noticed the English abbreviation "ned" on it.

Damn, a notorious traitor.

Chen Linfeng has finally recovered, but he's been targeted by this kind of organization.

And the Democracy Foundation? Ha!
In later generations, this kind of organization was exposed long ago. It was one of the non-governmental organizations under the United States Agency for International Development, essentially a front.

They use the guise of aid but never do anything worthwhile.

However, its reputation hasn't completely faded yet, or rather, people who don't follow related news wouldn't know about it.

Chen Linfeng's heart was churning, but he maintained a calm and composed demeanor on the surface.

"Consultant Wang, you're too kind. May I ask what advice you may offer?"

Wang Yalun looked around and lowered his voice: "It's not convenient to talk here. We have a small gathering next week, which is for Chinese elites who have achieved outstanding success in the United States."

If Director Chen is interested, how about we discuss this further? The location is a private club at xxx.

Chen Linfeng noticed that when Wang Yalun mentioned "Chinese elites," his expression held a strange sense of pride.

But he just groaned inwardly, feeling a sense of pride in being a dog.

Instead of calling it a gathering of Chinese elites, just call it a gathering of traitors.

The unconventional Klein Fool Tarot belongs to this category.

It seems that the signal released was accurately captured by some people.

"Oh? They're all Chinese compatriots in Emilyken? Well, I might as well go and join in the fun."

"However, my schedule is quite packed lately, so I need to check the times with my assistant."

"It should, it should."

Wang Yalun secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He had always heard that Chen Linfeng was a difficult person to deal with, but it seemed that after his mindset changed, he was no different from the other people he knew.

My confidence soared, and I naturally switched to speaking English.

As long as it's not a mix of Chinese and English, it's fine.

Chen Linfeng chatted with him for a while, then watched him leave.

"Xiao Feng, what does this person do?"

Sisi, who was chatting quietly with Sister Mei not far away, quickly came over when she saw that this was over.

"What else can I do? If I want to make money, I'll go to Liangshan." Chen Linfeng handed her his business card.

"They really came to our door? So quickly!" Sisi exclaimed in surprise.

They had made contingency plans and anticipated that someone might come knocking on their door, but they never expected that someone would come to them during their first public appearance in Hollywood.

"Yes, they acted swiftly."

Chen Linfeng briefly explained what had just happened.

Are you going then?

After looking at the business card from Xixi, Sister Mei handed it back to Chen Linfeng and then asked a question.

"Only a ghost would go."

I already said I needed to confirm the itinerary, so when the time comes, I'll definitely say I'm too busy or don't have time.

Chen Linfeng wasn't really going to surrender, so why would he get involved in that mess?

Sister Mei nodded, not at all surprised.

These people aren't really in the film and television industry, so they're not that sensitive.

The key to deception is timing.

If the invitation is sent within the next couple of days, then it's really in a bit of a dilemma.

But next week, even the dishwater won't be hot to drink.

(End of this chapter)