Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 424 Untitled
When I returned to the villa that evening, the Border Collie's cage had already been moved to the backyard.

Chen Hong and her daughter-in-law Sun Xiaohong were using playing cards to tell fortunes in the living room, while the nanny was cooking in the kitchen. But Zhang Xingguo was nowhere to be seen.

"Your dad said he wanted to get some kebabs."

As Sun Xiaohong flipped the cards, she said, "They're busy in the backyard with Xu Wei and his wife."

"Then I'll go over and take a look."

Zhang Yan leaned over and pressed his cheek against Chen Hong's. They went out the front door and circled around to the back alley, where they could smell the cumin from a great distance.

When they arrived in the courtyard, they found that Xu Wei and his wife were not by the charcoal fire. Instead, Ye Pei and Gao Xiaosong, the folk singers who had been signed this year, were sitting opposite Zhang Xingguo.

"Yo~"

Zhang Yan greeted him with a smile, "Xiao Gao is here too. When did you arrive in Tianjin?"

Gao Xiaosong stood up awkwardly and said, "President Zhang, I just arrived not long ago. Ever since I heard Ye Pei sing in the finals, I've been inspired, so I wanted to get to know her better."

I ran into Uncle Zhang and Xu Wei as soon as I got to the dormitory building, and then…

He had actually wanted to join Yuanmeng for a long time, but for some reason, although Boss Zhang was generous with the money, he never seemed to want to recruit him.

This made Gao Xiaosong uneasy, wondering if he had offended General Manager Zhang somehow, so he became even more cautious around Zhang Yan.

Ye Pei, standing to the side, was even more apprehensive. She was a singer signed by the third season of "I Am a Singer" and was only 20 years old this year.

Zhang Yan did not participate in the entire process of "I Am a Singer". The TV station's directing department took the lead. Because of this, Ye Pei had only met Zhang Yan once when signing the contract. This was the first time she had dealt with him privately.

Therefore, she appeared particularly nervous in front of this music godfather.

[PS: Ye Pei's most famous song is probably the theme song from Disney's "Mulan".]

"It's good to have inspiration."

Zhang Yan laughed and said, "Why don't we just give you Ye Pei's first order? We'll stick to the old commission rates and you'll definitely be treated well."

"That would be great!"

Gao Xiaosong feigned excitement: "It's a pity that Ye Pei has such a voice, but she doesn't sing folk songs. Don't worry, I'll definitely give her a good makeover and help her become an overnight sensation!"

"Thank you, Mr. Zhang! Thank you, Mr. Zhang! Thank you, Brother Song!"

Ye Pei bowed repeatedly to the side.

"All right."

Zhang Xingguo handed over a skewer of lamb: "Let's not talk about work while we're eating. Try my cooking first."

Zhang Yan took the lamb skewers, shared some with Gao Xiaosong and Ye Pei, and casually asked, "Where are Xu Wei and Yuan Feng?"

"Isn't it Xiao Gao and Xiao Ye who came? We didn't have enough things prepared, so they went to buy some."

"Oh~"

While eating skewers, Zhang Yan observed the situation in the backyard. This garden was at least four or five times larger than the courtyard attached to the small villa. The dog cage was under the west wall, and Xu Wei's elegant pavilion was parked under the east wall.

Xu Wei had once used the car to pay off a debt, but Zhang Yan later helped recover part of the debt and redeemed it for him.

However, Yuan Feng was worried that Xu Wei would lose control of his emotions while driving, so Zhang Xingguo was the main driver at the moment. This was also one of the reasons why the old man took Xu Wei with him wherever he went.

"dad."

After finishing his own, Zhang Yan saw that the old man had grilled two more bunches, so he suggested, "Don't rush to grill any more. It's too much trouble to bring them home after they're cooked. Why don't we go back to the little villa instead..."

"Need not."

Zhang Xingguo brushed oil onto the meat skewers and said enthusiastically, "I've already discussed it with your mother. We'll pass them over the wall to her in a bit—I even prepared a ladder."

"Then give me these two as well."

Zhang Yan stretched out his hand to him: "I'm going back to the front yard, otherwise you won't be able to eat properly with me here." He took the two skewers of meat, said goodbye to Gao Xiaosong and Ye Pei, and left the back yard.

Zhang Xingguo didn't lift his butt, but Gao Xiaosong and Ye Pei wished they could take him to the alley entrance.

Seeing Zhang Yan disappear around the corner with the meat skewers, Ye Pei breathed a sigh of relief and said excitedly, "I didn't expect President Zhang to be so approachable in private."

"Approachable?"

Gao Xiaosong sneered: "Didn't you read today's evening paper? Even the tough guy on screen, Jiang Wen, was almost driven to despair by his scolding. He even hid in his room and cried for a while."

"real or fake?"

"Of course it's true. I have a friend on set, and he saw Jiang Wen hiding in a room for ages without coming out..."

…………

"What does this have to do with me?!"

Seeing his mother pointing at the newspaper and asking him, Zhang Yan said speechlessly, "That day, Jiang Wen went out to dinner with her old classmates, and she became withdrawn afterward. I guess they had a falling out."

Just then, Zhang Yan saw Gao Xiaosong peeking out from behind the back wall with a skewer of grilled meat in his hand, and he quickly climbed the ladder to greet him.

Sun Xiaohong hurriedly instructed, "Have your Uncle Zhang grill some vegetarian dishes, otherwise eating too much will make you feel greasy."

"Okay, Auntie, please wait a moment, I'll go bake it right away!"

Gao Xiaosong readily agreed, and the large-faced man disappeared behind the wall.

Zhang Yan put the meat skewers on a plate and said to Chen Hong, "I plan to go to Beijing the day after tomorrow to talk to Jiang Wen and Dong Ping. I'll pick Fangfang up on my way back so she can go to the factory to inspect the goods."

Hearing her son say he was going to the factory to inspect goods, Sun Xiaohong asked with some concern, "Can your sister handle this? She was doing perfectly well as a TV host, why is she suddenly selling clothes?"

"What's there to be afraid of? Anyway, I'm the one who's covering her losses. If she makes a profit, it's hers; if she loses, it's mine." Zhang Yan said nonchalantly, dipping his food in the garlic chili sauce before popping it into his mouth.

"Yes."

Chen Hong also put her arm around her mother-in-law's arm and said with a smile, "If we, as the older brother and sister-in-law, don't have the spare money, that's fine. But since we do, we can't let Fangfang live a frugal life in the future, can we? Getting Fangfang a small business in advance is definitely more appropriate than giving her other gifts."

Hearing her daughter-in-law say that, Sun Xiaohong didn't say anything more.

Zhang Yan secretly gave Chen Hong a thumbs up. Chen Hong glanced at him meaningfully with her beautiful eyes and asked, "Have you read the script?"

"I just flipped through it briefly."

Zhang Yan recalled the contents of the script and said, "If we polish the details of this script a bit more, it's definitely worth investing in."

What aspect of your training do you want to refine?

"First, we need to elevate the male lead's image." Zhang Yan held up a lamb skewer and drew a circle, speaking eloquently: "At its core, this script is actually a wish-fulfillment novel, but it's not enjoyable enough. If we cast ordinary actors, this drama would be a good one, but it won't be easy for it to become a hit."

But if we elevate the male lead's image and cast someone like Chen Daoming, I believe the ratings will definitely be high.

"Chen Daoming?"

Chen Hong thought for a moment and hesitated, "After 'A Messy Life' airs, he should become popular again. If he plays the male lead again then, I'm afraid it will lack contrast and surprise, right?"

The plot of "Walking with a Millionaire" has many twists and turns.

For example, when the millionaire Lu Lin first appeared, he was so slovenly that he didn't look like a rich person at all, but in the blink of an eye, he pulled out a million dollars in cash from a tattered quilt.

The male protagonist initially appears as a lowly worker hired by Lü Lin, and is initially underestimated by the female protagonist, but gradually reveals his extraordinary abilities.

If Chen Daoming were to play the role, this kind of plot twist probably wouldn't be as effective.

This is what people in later generations often refer to as the issue of 'celebrity exposure'. Once you get used to seeing a certain celebrity on a daily basis, it's easy to lose immersion when you see them acting in movies or TV dramas.

Hearing Chen Hong say this, Zhang Yan finished his skewers, put down the signature, and spread his hands, saying, "So what I said was to find an actor like Chen Daoming, not to find Chen Daoming to play the role—this is not urgent. You should first confirm whether the other party is willing to make changes. If they are willing to make changes, then invite them to Tianjin for a meeting."

(End of this chapter)