Huayu became famous overnight

Chapter 231 Wearing a Crown, It Feels So Good!

Mudanjiang.

Weihushan Film and Television Base.

Artificial snow covered the entire mountain valley, and was piled up on a section of the city wall.

Xu Ming was wearing a mink hat and a mink coat, covering himself up completely, and stood in front of a machine gun.

Crackling!

Gunshots rang out in a chaotic manner, and a group of extras could be seen climbing up the mountainside.

"Brothers, drop the flag and kill the enemy!" Xu Ming roared.

"Ninth Master is a jerk!"

The actor playing the eighth brother shouted.

Immediately afterwards, Xu Ming grabbed the machine gun and began sweeping down the mountain.

Bang bang bang!
Sparks burst forth from the snow; these were props that the props team had buried in advance.

Later on, his machine gun will also have special effects added.

"Cut, that's a good take," the assistant director called out.

Whether it was Xu Ming firing a machine gun or the extras playing soldiers down the mountain, they immediately started tearing off their clothes.

It's so damn hot.

It has been more than ten days since he returned from the capital.

Before he could even savor the glory brought by "The Unknown," he threw himself into filming.

He didn't treat himself like a human being, and the crew didn't treat him like a human being either; they treated him like dirt.

The two film crews were running back and forth, and they finally managed to catch up with the schedule.

"How is it? Can it be used?"

Xu Ming let Xiao Juan wipe the sweat from his forehead with a towel, then walked behind the monitor to watch the replay of the clip.

"Passed, let's prepare for the next one."

Xu Ke nodded, "You have a good grasp of the character's traits. These scenes won't be difficult for you. At this rate, you should be able to wrap up filming in another twenty days."

He originally thought that the other party had just returned from a promotional event and would definitely need to get back into the swing of things.

Unexpectedly, the performance was still in great form, saving a lot of time.

"Thank you all for your hard work in putting in the effort. If it weren't for my intermittent work, we would have finished filming much earlier," Xu Ming said with a smile.

Compared to his initial confusion about acting, he is now gradually able to feel the joy in it.

Especially after being coached by several renowned directors, she has become increasingly adept at acting.

Unfortunately, being in the world of fame and fortune, his identity meant he couldn't be a true theater fanatic; his occasional detachment from the role inevitably had a negative impact on his acting.

"It's okay, everyone has their special times, we all understand."

Liang Jiahui stood behind him, patted the former on the shoulder, and laughed, "Besides, you were breaking box office records and even surpassed Hollywood blockbusters. We should thank you for helping Chinese films to hold their heads high."

“Yes, those foreigners have always been arrogant, but they’ve really stumbled this time,” Xu Ke said with a smile.

Given the momentum of Transformers 3 when it was first released, it would have been a certainty for the film to break 1 billion yuan at the box office even without the unexpected emergence of The Unknown.

However, two tigers cannot share the same mountain during the summer movie season.

With the pressure from "The Unknown", the box office is now settling at around 800 million.

Paramount was furious, criticizing the theaters' scheduling and their propaganda.

I've never seen a Hollywood entertainment group look like this before.
As "The Unknown" got closer to reaching 1 billion yuan at the box office, the crew members looked at Xu Ming with increasing respect.

In today's mainland Chinese film market, this box office figure is practically a miracle.

Xu Ke then realized that he had underestimated Xu Ming.

"It's just a matter of luck; I can't compare to the two seniors."

Xu Ming cupped his hands in apology, begging for mercy repeatedly, otherwise he would float away if the two continued talking.

After another round of pleasantries, he finally mentioned that he would need to take leave again in a few days.

The celebration banquet for "The Unknown" was prepared by China Film Group and Wanda Group for a long time.

It wouldn't be appropriate for him, as the absolute main character, not to go.

Xu Ke agreed without hesitation; he would never refuse such a nice bonus.

We've finished filming today's scenes.

That evening, Xu Ming went to the set of "How Long Will I Love U".

Needless to say, when filming with Yang Mi, he had to deliberately hold back his acting skills.

Otherwise, it's easy to lose balance; his progress far exceeds Yang Mi's talent.

The latter questioned his existence for a while, and finally could only conclude that Xu Ming was too monstrous, not human.

They simply refuse to admit that they've regressed.

"Cut, this one passes."

"Let's take a break, then we'll shoot one last take and then we'll call it a day."

Upon hearing Guo Fan's voice, Yang Mi relaxed and glanced at Xu Ming across from her.

"Come to my place after you finish work to go over the script?"

"What's the point of rehearsing the script? I'd rather get some more sleep."

Xu Ming refused without hesitation.

He's so busy he's spinning like a top, he doesn't have any time for anything.

"Are you really unaware or just pretending?" Yang Mi bit her lip, her eyes filled with suspicion.

In this old forest, there are no other actresses who pose a threat besides her.

How can the other party be so tolerant?
Setting aside the possibility that your own attractiveness has decreased, there is only one possibility: the other person's sexual orientation has changed.

"You shouldn't be..."

Yang Mi bent her fingers.

Xu Ming was taken aback at first, then a black line flashed across his forehead: "Stop talking nonsense, I'm just tired, and I've been practicing Tongbei Quan, which Zhao Wenzhuo taught me, so I've temporarily given it up."

"Lust is a bone-scraping knife, do you understand?"

His packed schedule caused him to miss a lot of time practicing boxing, and the time he spent abstaining from pornography was thus postponed.

Seeing Yang Mi's disbelief, he didn't bother to explain and instead asked, "Yu Zheng's side is planning to make a sequel to 'Palace,' what are your thoughts on that?"

The viewership ratings for "Palace" were even stronger than those for "Scarlet Heart," and the revenue it generated far exceeded expectations.

Yu Zheng's side plans to strike while the iron is hot and start a second part, so Yang Mi, as the female lead of the previous work, will have a very important attitude.

Although Xu Ming can directly arrange the schedules of his artists, he still shows them respect.

After all, it's considered the company's biggest cash cow.

"Two Qing Dynasty time-travel dramas have been filmed in a row. The audience isn't tired of them, but I am."

Yang Mi shook her head and carefully said, "However, I would like to recommend a good friend. We were roommates in college. She has a pretty good appearance and acting skills."

Xu Ming raised an eyebrow, guessing who it was.

"Her name is Yuan Shanshan. When can you and Director Yu meet her at the company?" Yang Mi asked.

"Hehe, aren't you afraid I'll get any funny ideas?" Xu Ming gave a deliberately wicked smile.

Yang Mi glanced at it and chuckled, "Should I organize another gathering and introduce you to Shi Shi? Tang Yan and I will both dress up in our 'Chinese Paladin 3' costumes then..."

hiss~
Sri Lanka, No. 1.

That was absolutely fantastic.

Xu Ming's heart fluttered at the thought: "It would be even more perfect if we invited Liu Tianxian along."

"Pah, dream on," Yang Mi spat.

"I'm beautiful, so of course I should think beautifully too."

Xu Ming paused for a moment, "But if we can't get four, we can start with two. When will you and Tang Yan..."

"Heh, if Tang Yan agrees, I don't mind."

Yang Mi sneered. In her opinion, given Tang Yan's personality, there was no way she would agree to such an absurd request.

“It’s a deal,” Xu Ming said decisively.

This time it was Yang Mi's turn to panic. She dodged the question, saying, "What exactly did my good friend say? She doesn't have a management company yet, but she can sign with Qiming."

"Take her to witness the process. Do as he says. Qiming won't sign anyone for now."

Xu Ming shook his head. The company had already passed the initial stage and was no longer in a state of desperate need.

Given Yuan Shanshan's qualifications, he didn't think she was worth training; he'd rather have none than a bad one.

"By the way, Yu Zheng has been wanting to sign someone to his studio. You could ask your friend to give it a try," Xu Ming said.

"alright."

Yang Mi nodded. Although the other party had unexpectedly refused, she felt a sense of relief.

On the surface, she didn't mind her friend signing with the company, but in reality, she didn't want Xu Ming to have too much contact with her friend.

Because she knew how attractive the man opposite her was to female celebrities in the industry, she even changed the subject to "woman".

He is good-looking, rich, and capable in all aspects.

If he could be faithful, he would be the partner she dreams of marrying.

It's just that Xu Ming didn't hear the inner voice, otherwise he would have mocked him, saying, "How come you're eating and taking things at the same time?"

……

8 month 25 day.

The Unknown has been in theaters for 34 days.

Xu Ming was filming on set as usual.

"A cloud hangs in the northwestern sky, and a crow alights among a flock of phoenixes."

"The room is full of heroes, but who is the ruler and who is the subject?"

He was blindfolded and speaking in the slang of bandits during the Republic of China era.

"Manager Hu, which mountain are you standing on?"

"Speaking at midday, no one has a home..."

hum~
The quiet filming location suddenly became chaotic.

The unrest even escalated and showed no signs of abating.

Xu Ke frowned: "What's wrong?"

"The Unknown has officially surpassed one billion today."

The assistant director had just heard the news, and his face was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

Even though this film wasn't made by them, as fellow Chinese filmmakers, they share the same glory in the face of this historic moment.

Moreover, the person who set this record was not far in front of him.

The commotion quickly spread to everyone on set.

It's obvious that filming can't be done.

"Card."

"I have some news to announce: the box office of 'The Unknown' starring Teacher Xu has exceeded one billion. Tonight, the crew will treat Teacher Xu to hot pot."

Xu Ke simply went with the flow and opened up the conversation to everyone.

"Director Xu is so generous. Thank you, Brother Ming. I'm so grateful to you."

"Wow, this is a new record for domestic films. I can't even imagine that Happy Beans could beat this many at the box office."

"With four movies released, four of them are in the top five. Xu Mingnian is definitely going to be the star this year."

The group discussed excitedly, feeling a sense of pride in spending time with Xu Ming.

Xu Ming didn't have time to celebrate with everyone right now.

As soon as filming wrapped, I was bombarded with phone calls.

The key point is that he had no choice but to accept them.

"Hey Mom, the box office has broken 1 billion, but it doesn't mean I made 1 billion. You're overthinking it. People from the county came? Don't worry about it, just relax."

"Uncle Han, I'll be going back to the capital tomorrow, I definitely won't be late."

"Uncle Jiang, you and Director Ning both have to go then. I can't be the only one to get the limelight."

"Sister Gong Li? A billion is nothing to me, it's just a drop in the ocean."

After finally managing to answer all the calls one by one, he quickly realized in his mind that he hadn't missed any important people.

Then he turned off his phone.

Otherwise, if things continue like this, he won't have a single day of peace and quiet.

Call ~
Xu Ming let out a long breath, but it wasn't as easy and comfortable as he had expected.

On the contrary, my heart feels heavy.

If you want to wear a crown, you must bear its weight.

It's completely impossible for him to feel as carefree as before.

He is now considered a benchmark for Chinese filmmakers.

The level of attention that is about to be received will be incomparable to that of the past.

He shook his head, clearing these thoughts from his mind, deciding to focus on the present before worrying about the future.

When he turned his head, he saw that the once noisy film set had suddenly become quiet.

Everyone, including Xiaojuan, looked at her with admiration.

It was as if they dared not continue speaking unless he spoke.

A sense of accomplishment arose spontaneously.

Xu Ming couldn't help but clear his throat.

"Cough cough."

"A billion yuan in box office revenue is a process, not the end. It is a milestone for Chinese films, but I believe we can create even higher records."

"Chinese films are awesome!"

The crude slogans, however, completely ignited the atmosphere on set.

The crowd shouted "Awesome!" while simultaneously wailing and howling.

Filming a movie out of season in the desolate wilderness of Weihu Mountain must have been incredibly frustrating for these people.

It's rare to have a chance to vent.

Moreover, many of the crew members who participated in the filming of "The Unknown" came to help out on "The Taking of Tiger Mountain".

The success of this film is also a shining achievement for them.

The group surrounded Xu Ming, lifted him up, tossed him into the air, caught him, and tossed him up again.

Xu Ming gazed at the azure sky, a smile spreading across his face.

Putting aside the weight of the crown, it is indeed comfortable to wear.

……

The news that "The Unknown" has grossed over 1 billion yuan.

It swept across the country like a tsunami, and even overseas filmmakers took notice.

Converted to US dollars, that's over 100 million.

This achievement can be considered a success even on a global scale.

Not to mention that this film only has the mainland China box office market.

Xu Ming's Weibo followers surged again.

The comment section was also full of joy.

"I remember when the movie was first released, quite a few people mocked it. Where are they now?"

"Damn it, just to slap these guys in the face, I took my three girlfriends to see three movies. I can recite the lines by heart now. That's love!"

"Three girlfriends? I love you, I'm selling my love."

The strange thing is that the reason why these extremely active male accounts are following Xu Ming is because of the stimulation from the Qiming Internet Publicity Department members who are pretending to be haters.

They have no idea that the idol they are now idolizing is the leader of those haters.

And this moment.

Inside Huayi, there was an eerie silence.

The atmosphere in the office was like that of someone who had just attended a funeral.

The staff even had to control the volume of their breathing, for fear of upsetting their boss.

"Actually, a billion-dollar box office isn't that much..."

Wang Zhonglei spoke up to break the silence in the room, trying to ease the tension.

I got stuck as soon as I started to say it.

If a billion-yuan box office is nothing, then what are other domestic films? A mountain of garbage?
Even if we don't consider box office numbers as the sole indicator, a billion-dollar box office means that at least tens of millions of viewers are willing to pay to watch this movie.

At this scale, even a single spit from each of them could drown them.

"Let's not dwell on the past."

Wang Zhongjun sighed, his eyes sharpening as he gritted his teeth: "We also have to thank Xu Ming. He set a good precedent for mainland films. If he can break 1 billion, we can too, or even more."

"I've decided to increase investment in '1942,' I refuse to believe I can't hold onto it!"

(End of this chapter)