I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 187 I'll take the responsibility!

2 month 19 day.

evening.

Dong Qichang silently walked into Zhou Yang's office and handed him a screening schedule for "The Mine": "Are you sure you want to release this movie?"

Let's release it.

"Mr. Zhou, this is our last chance to negotiate with the new generation of cinema chains. Although four chains have contacted us urgently, the others are still taking a wait-and-see approach. Things seem calm on the surface, but underneath, undercurrents are swirling. Everyone is watching us. This next film after 'The Spirit of Zhao Zilong' is crucial, and I'd prefer a commercial film..." Dong Qichang sat opposite Zhou Yang, his expression serious. "Based on my years of experience in the commercial market, 'The Mine' is likely to flop, and it will be a disaster..."

Zhou Yang quietly took the data sheet from Dong Qichang's "The Mine," looked at it for a long time, and nodded: "I think it's highly likely that it will collapse."

"Mr. Zhou, if it were one of the three major cinema chains, releasing such a film would be perfectly acceptable. But we're not... If it flops, it's like our invincible myth will be shattered. That would severely damage the market's confidence in us, and more importantly, it would affect the reputation of our subsequent new films. Even worse, all your previous efforts might be wiped out overnight. Right now, we're too strapped for cash, and this is a critical time for the company. There's no room for error..." The setting sun shone on Dong Qichang's face as he looked at Zhou Yang, his expression sincere and earnest.

Zhou Yang silently put down the brochures for the film "The Mine," his gaze drifting out the window: "Let's release it. It's his dream. I remember promising him that a long time ago..."

“The company can’t let someone pursue their dream and stop moving forward. Or, should we slow down? Or release it more quietly?” Dong Qichang looked at Zhou Yang.

Zhou Yang remained silent, but after gazing into the distance for a long time, he suddenly smiled and said, "President Dong, you've always been a very calm person, haven't you?"

"Most of them are..."

"Sometimes, people need to encounter setbacks and face despair to truly understand themselves, ultimately unleash their potential, and undergo a magnificent transformation..."

"But the cost of this transformation is just...too high!"

"It's alright, I'll take responsibility..."

"Okay, then, let's release it quietly?"

"It's hard to keep a low profile, as you know. There are undercurrents going on outside, and countless eyes are watching us. Even if we don't want to create buzz, we'll still get a lot of attention..."

"That……"

"Popularity is a good thing, and..."

"And what?"

“Every battle from now on will be difficult. I hope to have a reliable team, and take advantage of this incident to filter some things…”

"Ok?"

....................................

Night gradually fell.

Shen Long sat silently in his office, holding the film materials for "The Mine".

Yesterday, he spent nearly 10,000 euros to invite a well-known German film critic to watch his film "The Mine" and hoped that the critic would recommend his work.

Today, they replied that the film critic returned all 10,000 euros and told him very seriously that the film has absolutely no commercial value whatsoever!
He was also told that such a semi-documentary film had absolutely no chance of winning any awards, not even the slightest chance, and that film distributors in the market would never consider it.

It received a cold reception not only overseas.

Within [Xuan Shi Entertainment], there was also a wave of opposition.

Just now, he saw Dong Qichang walk into President Zhou's office with the screening schedule for "The Mine".

There seems to be a strong opposition to the release of the film "The Mine".

Shen Long lowered his head and looked at the information in "The Mine"!

A slight sense of unease settled in my heart!

Give me a chance!
I only need one chance to have it released!
This is……

One of his dreams!
He has to try!
Time passed slowly, and at nine o'clock in the evening, Dong Qichang quietly walked out.

He quickly went outside!
Seeing Dong Qichang looking at him with a complicated expression, he said, "Director Shen, you've been staying on the mountain and working on movies all this time. You probably don't know about the crisis our company is currently facing, do you?"

"I..." Shen Long hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head: "I really don't know much about it..."

"Take a look. President Zhou has staked the company's future on this movie!" Dong Qichang patted Shen Long's face, then silently walked out of the hall with the screening schedule.

Shen Long stood there, stunned.

After a long while, he finally returned to his office.

Just then, there was a knock on the office door.

Photographer Xu Yunyi rushed in.

"Director Shen, I just received some internal news from the company about the film scheduling. Your film 'The Mine' will be released tomorrow?"

"Probably..."

"Director Shen! I've seen the movie, maybe... we shouldn't release it!"

"why?"

"This movie is going to flop! Flopping isn't the problem, but flopping it now will bankrupt our company!"

"..."

....................................

Night. It's late.

There was a knock on Zhou Yang's office door.

Immediately afterwards, Shen Long walked in with his head down and his eyes reddening.

"Director Shen?"

"Mr. Zhou, I... how about we postpone the release of 'The Mine'?"

"The screening schedule was already arranged, and the dates were set, so why is it suddenly canceled?"

"I……"

Shen Long wanted to say something, but suddenly became speechless.

Two hours earlier, photographer Xu Yunyi rushed into the office and told him about the current situation the company was facing!

An hour ago, his younger brother Shen Hu also watched the original film. After watching it, his voice trembled on the phone, and he said only one sentence: "Don't rehearse, rehearsing will ruin everything!"

Half an hour ago, he saw many of the things that happened at [Xuan Shi Entertainment] while he was filming a movie on the mountain, and instantly understood the meaning of the phrase "betting the company's future"!
The various experiences in Germany, the tense feelings of every acquaintance after watching the film...

Everything seemed to be telling the same story, which was...

The market response to this movie may not be optimistic!
The company is in a critical situation right now; it would rather not release any movies than have any of them flop!
otherwise!

The momentum of rapid development could be shattered in an instant!

Seeing Shen Long's somber expression, Zhou Yang smiled and patted him on the shoulder: "Don't be so dramatic. It's just a movie... don't make it sound like the end of the world. Go back, get a good night's sleep, and be ready for the premiere tomorrow..."

"I... Mr. Zhou, I'm not going to go on, I'm not going to the premiere, please take it off the air..." Shen Long gritted his teeth and looked at Zhou Yang.

"This is your dream..."

"I'm not dreaming anymore!" Shen Long shook his head violently. "I was a bit willful before. I didn't know, I really didn't know our company was in such a dire situation..."

Zhou Yang didn't speak, but stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the brightly lit city in the distance.

Shen Long lowered his head and remained silent, his emotions becoming even more complicated.

After a brief silence, Zhou Yang turned his head and stared intently at Shen Long: "In this life, we are destined to encounter many hardships and setbacks... In my opinion, these are not important. What is important is that we keep our hearts open and our thoughts clear..."

Zhou Yang looked at Shen Long with his head down and laughed: "Go and get some rest. Don't put so much pressure on yourself. Leave everything to me!"

"I, Mr. Zhou, I don't know, right now, I...right now, I feel, I..."

Shen Long's eyes blurred, and he looked at Zhou Yang with trembling eyes. Tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. He stammered for a long time but couldn't utter a single complete sentence!
"Since it's a dream, then you must finish the dream. As for the ending, it doesn't matter. What matters is giving yourself an explanation."

"..."

"Don't care about anyone's opinions, and don't be a coward and cry at the drop of a hat. Do you see? We have a long road ahead of us. Let's throw off all our shackles, travel light, and go further..."

Zhou Yang pointed out the window.

Looking out into the distance, the vast land stretches out before us, and the brilliant lights seem to disappear into the background.

"everything!"

"Leave it all to me!"

..........................................

The movie "The Mine" didn't get much publicity.

However, Shen Long, who once starred in the movie "The Longest Day in Chang'an: Reboot"!

As a company currently enjoying great success in the Chinese film industry, [Xuan Shi Entertainment] naturally attracts a lot of attention!
It's not just the media that's paying attention; countless cinema chains and the owners of China's five major film companies are also keeping an eye on it!
Moviegoers are even more excited...

The pre-sale tickets sold out within an hour of being released!
But wait until the next morning, an hour before the movie "The Mine" was scheduled to premiere!
Director Shen Long suddenly announced that the film would only have its premiere at Feihe Cinema, and suspended all other film screenings except at Feihe Cinema, delaying the release date by one day!
This move!

This left everyone bewildered, and movie fans began discussing what had happened!
Immediately afterwards...

Zhou Yang, who had just gotten up, received a call from Shen Long.

"Mr. Zhou, I thought about this all day yesterday. I can't use the company's future to pay for my own dreams! Today, I'll only screen one film. If the feedback isn't good, then I'll pull it from the schedule! I'm prepared to subsidize the premiere so that all the movie fans can come and see it..."

"..."

On the other end of the phone, Shen Long took a deep breath!

"Mr. Zhou, I've also prepared a movie ticket for you!"

"Come and see!"

"..."

Zhou Yang got up and opened the window.

Outside the window...

The warm sunlight shone on his face.

Zhou Yang nodded: "Okay!"

[XuanShi Entertainment] At this very moment,
(End of this chapter)