Huayu 2015, the Artist of Light and Shadow

Chapter 199 Super Celebration Banquet! Amidst the Film and Television Winter, Lu Yunzhou Stands Alone with 12 Billion US Dollars.

airport.

The short holiday is over.

Take care of yourself, see you next time.

Lu Yunzhou, Zhang Jingyi, and Zhou Ye are preparing to leave Chongqing together.

However, Lu Yunzhou returned to Shanghai, while Zhang Jingyi and Zhou Ye returned to Yanjing to attend school.

As November arrives, autumn in Chongqing is already bringing a touch of melancholy.

The wind blowing from the Jialing River already carried a hint of coolness.

Lu Yunzhou gave him a look, and his assistant immediately took out a brand new Kourui silk scarf from his suitcase.

Seeing this, Zhang Jingyi understood immediately. She craned her neck, narrowed her eyes, and couldn't help but smile, as if she was expecting something.

Lu Yunzhou chuckled softly and then neatly tied the silk scarf around Zhang Jingyi's neck.

Zhang Jingyi immediately chuckled.

"Big brother, remember to think of me."

Because there were other people present, Zhang Jingyi couldn't act too intimately, but the love and tenderness in her eyes were hard to hide.

There's a saying in the fandom: fans resemble their idols.

The characters Lu Yunzhou plays in movies are always the kind of tragic figures who appear cold on the surface but are actually compassionate, willing to save the world, and even sacrifice themselves.

His fans like the roles he plays and are attracted to him as a person because, although they appear calm on the surface, they are just as romantic as Lu Yunzhou himself.

Zhang Jingyi is a typical example.

In this lonely and desolate world, she met the one she loved most, and she wished she could rush towards him like a moth to a flame, crossing mountains and rivers, going through fire and water for him.

"Go back to school. I've prepared a little mystery gift for you. Someone will tell you when you get back."

Lu Yunzhou gently patted Zhang Jingyi's little schoolbag.

"oh."

Zhang Jingyi wondered what mysterious gift Lu Yunzhou had prepared for her.

She was genuinely curious.

Moreover, she has always been very obedient and understands that Lu Yunzhou does have a lot of things to deal with, and she is nothing and can't help Lu Yunzhou at all.

For now, she can only improve herself as quickly as possible.

She had already read the script for "The Sky of Wind and Dogs," and she already knew what kind of girl Li Anran was—she also understood what kind of personality a girl from Chongqing would have.

She felt that she had become Li Anran.

She will definitely play this role well and make a name for herself!

At least, Zhou Ye's acting skills are not as good as hers.

At that moment, Zhang Jingyi glanced at Zhou Ye, whose face was full of sourness, smiled at Lu Yunzhou, and then turned and entered the waiting hall.

Sitting on a chair in the waiting hall, she couldn't help but touch the soft, cloud-like silk scarf around her neck.

How many times has this happened? She's lost count.

All she knew was that every time she deliberately let herself get cold, her neck slightly chilly, Lu Yunzhou would always appear out of nowhere, as if by magic.

He found a silk scarf and gently tied it around her neck.

She absolutely loved that feeling.

Only at this moment did she feel truly alive, and her heartbeat would involuntarily pound like a drum.

That burning sensation, that feeling of wanting to fly like a moth to a flame, was particularly intense.

She will probably never feel anything like that from anyone else again.

Perhaps, this is love?

At least for this moment, she didn't want anything else but Lu Yunzhou.

"What's there to be proud of? I have that too."

Just then, Zhou Ye walked over unhurriedly, plopped down next to Zhang Jingyi, crossed her legs, and stretched her neck.

She deliberately stretched her neck out in front of Zhang Jingyi, wanting her to see her.

Who doesn't own a Cornet silk scarf?

"childish."

Zhang Jingyi thought Zhou Ye was probably sick; her jealous expression was as sour as lemons.

However, Zhang Jingyi still couldn't understand why Zhou Ye was jealous.

Just because Zhou and Lu Yunzhou had a meal together and rode horses together once, she felt that Lu Yunzhou was hers?

Where did Zhou Ye develop this domineering possessiveness?

"Zhang Jingyi, have you seen the trending topics on Weibo?"

The two sat together waiting for their flight. There was no one else around. Zhou Ye didn't turn her head, as if she were talking to thin air.

However, Zhang Jingyi knew that Zhou was trying to get her attention.

"no."

Zhang Jingyi shook her head slightly, her heart skipping a beat. Had her affair with Lu Yunzhou been exposed and made headlines?

That can't be right.

She hasn't left the hotel in the past few days.

Moreover, the crew's security is guaranteed.

In the entertainment industry, it's rare for a romance to be revealed on set. It usually happens after work, when someone is careless and gets caught by paparazzi.

Fortunately, what Zhou Ye said had nothing to do with Lu Yunzhou.

"Wu Yifan's newly released album 'Antares' has seen a massive surge in downloads on iTunes in the US, dominating six of the top seven spots on the US download chart and even pushing Ariana Grande's new song off the charts."

"It's one thing for them to secretly manipulate data, but to do it so blatantly makes them a laughing stock for foreigners."

"Ariana Grande's manager questioned the chart manipulation, and Ariana Grande herself even liked a sarcastic tweet asking: Who is Wu Yifan?"

I only know Lu Yunzhou.

"This sentence went viral on Twitter."

"Immediately afterwards, Wu Yifan's song was removed from the charts, and his ranking dropped to outside the top 100."

"Those [Megni]s have brought shame to the country. They're utterly toxic."

"Our Brother Zhou is still the best—his film performance is solid, with a box office of 12 billion US dollars, which has made many Hollywood directors take notice."

"My sister told me that her European classmates were shocked when they found out that Zhou Ge and I were friends! They all suspected that my sister was photoshopping the pictures until my sister posted a screenshot of the trending topic of the two of us going horseback riding together, and then they believed it."

"It's conceivable that Brother Zhou is probably more famous in Europe than in North America."

While chatting with Zhang Jingyi, Zhou Ye was also engrossed in her phone, frantically arguing with Wu Yifan's fans on Weibo.

Zhang Jingyi was very interested in the topic of Lu Yunzhou.

After hearing Zhou Ye's words, she couldn't help but open Weibo and take a look.

She soon discovered that a user with the ID "Coconut Island Road Returns to Bay" was going all out, relentlessly provoking all of Wu Yifan's fans in the popular comments section.

There are coconuts, roads, and a harbor for returning travelers.

Zhou Ye certainly knows how to pat herself on the back.

Moreover, this ID immediately brings to mind the once-famous Coconut Island Deer and Turtle Wine. Everyone should have heard of what this stuff is used for.

Zhang Jingyi was too embarrassed to say what Zhou Ye was thinking!

She just wanted to drink porridge!

They didn't even bother to pretend!

At this moment, Zhou Ye was seen with her head down, completely absorbed in arguing with someone online.

With nothing to do, Zhang Jingyi opened her phone and took a look at Weibo.

Captain Meg: [Wake up! Your master's girlfriend in Switzerland is about to give birth to their son, and you're still here protecting him? Does he even know how filial you are?]

Coconut Island Road Returns to Bay: [Don't you know what happened to your Xiaoqian in July? Bringing two women home—whether they were drunk or had eaten something else, you fans know best.]

Captain Meg: [Your master's womanizing is common knowledge in the industry, and he's never hidden it. You idiots think he's a saint, a one-of-a-kind innocent young man in the Chinese entertainment circle.]

Coconut Island Road Returns to Bay: [Your family is the chosen one for sewing machines. Don't say I didn't warn you. When the time comes, we'll hear you sing "Tears Behind Bars."]

Captain Meg: [Your master hasn't responded to anything about Wang Ran's situation. And you're still protecting him? I advise you to wake up.]

Coconut Island Road Returns to Bay: [Little bean, purple eggplant, hyaluronic acid — three keywords for you.]

Upon hearing this, Wu Yifan's die-hard fan, who had just been arguing with Zhou Ye, completely lost his composure and stopped responding.

Fans know best what kind of person their idol is.

Zhou Ye knew that Lu Yunzhou did have a girlfriend and was quite a womanizer.

Both Wang Ran and Zhang Jingyi had ambiguous relationships with Lu Yunzhou.

But so what?

Wang Ran has already ruined her own life; there's no way Lu Yunzhou will appear in the same frame as her. Even dating in private needs to be avoided as much as possible.

Needless to say, Zhang Jingyi is a total green tea b*tch, two-timing Lu Yunzhou. Once he finds out, he'll only hate Zhang Jingyi for deceiving him.

How could he possibly be with Zhang Jingyi?

Once all the rivals are eliminated, won't I become the eldest sister-in-law?

Moreover, a woman must pamper her own man and never allow outsiders to gossip about him—if anyone dares to say anything wrong about my brother, no one in heaven or on earth can save you!

Zhou Chi knows Lu Yunzhou's situation, but don't Wu Yifan's fans know what their idol's situation is?

Getting hyaluronic acid injections is something that's really hard to resist.

"How about that? I'm pretty good, aren't I?"

After driving away Wu Yifan's fans, Zhou Ye gave Zhang Jingyi a light snort, a hint of smugness on her face.

"Hmm. Impressive."

Zhang Jingyi smiled at Zhou Ye as if coaxing a child and praised her.

Lowering her head, Zhang Jingyi couldn't help but grip her phone tightly, cursing inwardly, "You incompetent idiot! What trouble have you gotten me into?"

Zhou Ye is clearly an extreme fan of Lu Yunzhou.

These extreme fans are completely unreasonable. Zhou Ye probably already considers herself on her kill list.

From now on, I need to stay away from Zhou Ye at school to avoid being pushed down the stairs by her.

Magic City.

After "The Fairy Tale of the Haunted Castle 2" grossed over $12 billion, its subsequent performance has slowed down, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to break through $13 billion.

However, this result is already quite impressive.

Therefore, Ji Rujing, on behalf of Lu Yunzhou, sent invitations to all major partners to hold a celebration banquet for the film.

The main purpose was to give Lu Yunzhou a chance to shine.

She felt something was missing if she didn't throw a celebration banquet for Lu Yunzhou during such a glorious moment.

After all, the opportunity to stand at the pinnacle of the world is not very common in a person's lifetime.

Every single time is worth cherishing.

Every single one of them deserves a big celebration.

Moreover, this was a shining moment for Chinese films.

If Ji Rujing doesn't celebrate, other companies might gossip behind her back, saying she's stingy. Lu Yunzhou made such a successful movie, and she didn't even throw a celebration party?

On the banks of the Huangpu River, Ji Rujing, full of extravagance, booked an entire hotel to host the celebration party for the movie "Fairy Castle 2".

This celebration banquet was unprecedented in scale.

Many company chairmen personally attended the event.

After all, this is the highest box office record for a domestic film to date, and its overseas box office performance is equally impressive.

The mobile game of the same name, "Fairy Castle 2", is under development and operated by Tencent. Lu Yunzhou has found a game studio in Montreal to develop it. It is expected to be launched in the Middle East around the Spring Festival in three months.

At that time, everyone will be able to make a fortune by following Lu Yunzhou.

Therefore, they all willingly attended this celebration banquet, and also took the opportunity to curry favor with Lu Yunzhou, hoping he would not retire.

That's right, it's about currying favor.

In 2018, domestic film and television capital had a terrible year.

Wanda Film was the first to be affected. After being suspended from trading for 17 months, it resumed trading shortly after, only to experience four consecutive days of limit-down trading, completely breaking its initial public offering price. Its current market value is just over 10 billion yuan.

Even worse off is Tangde Film & Television, a company deeply intertwined with Fan Bingbing, which made a strong investment in "The Legend of Ba Qing," starring Fan Bingbing and Gao Yunxiang.

Fan Bingbing herself collapsed without saying a word.

Gao Yunxiang also encountered trouble in Australia.

This company encountered two exceptional talents in one year, which is like "double misfortune," and there was no way to avoid it.

This company's estimated loss this year is around 10 billion.

However, these two companies are not the worst off; at least they are still operating.

The worst off is probably Star Media Holdings, a cinema chain that is reportedly unable to even pay salaries. Its flagship store in Yanjing had its power cut off in November due to excessive rent arrears.

"Shishi, have you heard? In a few days, a policy might be introduced to limit actors' salaries to a certain percentage of the total investment. It might be 30%, or it might be 40%."

Yang Mi wasn't originally qualified to attend the celebration party for "Fairy Castle 2".

But Yang Mi believes that she is now Lu Yunzhou's number one servant and a shareholder of Kiko, so she should at least come and entertain the guests.

So she came.

Right now, Yang Mi is chatting with Liu Shishi, who is heavily pregnant, in a corner.

Liu Shishi was leisurely sipping her freshly squeezed orange juice when she heard this, and her hazy eyes lit up: "Isn't capping actors' salaries a good thing?"

How can this be a good thing?

Our salaries are going to decrease.

Yang Mi was stunned for a moment before she realized that Liu Shishi was different now; she was a boss lady.

Straw Bear and Kiwi Fruit have partnered to start a company, with Liu Shishi as the boss. Since the actors' salaries are low, their company's production costs will also decrease.

This is essentially saving the company money.

Saving money for the company is essentially helping Liu Shishi, the boss's wife, make money, right?

"Yes, it's a good thing."

Yang Mi thought to herself, "I don't make money from acting anymore. I mainly rely on my older brother Lu Yunzhou to carry me."

After the release of "The Fairy Castle 2", Kiko's sales also increased significantly.

During the movie's release, the online marketing never stopped, claiming that the makeup in the movie used the Kiko Luxury Oxygen series.

Therefore, the makeup looks so natural and so beautiful.

In addition, with the pre-sale period for Double 11 starting, Kiko's sales also surged, and Kiko has now entered the ranks of top-tier beauty brands in China.

Big brother is truly a golden Pixiu!

It's not an exaggeration at all!

Even a jinx like me can be carried to victory! Absolutely invincible!

Yang Mi is a notorious jinx.

I went to Rongxinda; Rongxinda is almost finished.

I went to Amazon.com, but Amazon.com is almost finished.

He went to Huanrui as a celebrity shareholder, but Huanrui is also on the verge of collapse.

Becoming a shareholder in Jiahang almost turned the company into a criminal den. However, Jiahang learned its lesson and kicked her out before she could react.

After wreaking havoc on a whole circle, she finally ended up at Lu Yunzhou's Kiko Company—luckily, Lu Yunzhou's fate was truly amazing, he wasn't hampered by her, but instead strongly carried her to new heights.

"Yang Mi and Liu Shishi, didn't they have a falling out a long time ago? How come they're hanging out together again? They seem to be on good terms?"

From a distance, Zhao Liying saw Yang Mi chatting away with Liu Shishi, both of them smiling, seemingly having a good relationship.

She found it somewhat unbelievable.

Yang Mi and Liu Shishi had already fallen out over a game endorsement deal.

Mr. Cai, the owner of Tangren, repeatedly told Liu Shishi not to hang out with Yang Mi.

How come you've made up again?

Why won't Liu Shishi listen to advice?

As for why Liu Shishi came to the celebration banquet, Zhao Liying did not ask.

Liu Shishi's husband is Wu Qilong, the owner of Straw Bear, and a capitalist, so of course he would be invited.

In addition, all four of the "85 Flowers" (a term referring to actresses born in 1985) came, but Liu Shishi was absent, which made it feel a bit incomplete.

"Shishi has a good temper. She's probably long forgotten about her past dirty deeds."

Tang Yan smiled but didn't explain further.

She and Yang Mi were only superficially sisters, and since Yang Mi was flexible and adaptable, she forgave her past grievances.

After all, Tang Yan has the upper hand now. After teaming up with Lu Yunzhou, she can easily crush Yang Mi with a single step.

Tang Yan understands why Zhao Liying dislikes Yang Mi.

The main problem is that Yang Mi is prejudiced and looks down on Zhao Liying. She thinks Zhao Liying is just riding on her coattails. She made "Palace" a hit, and Zhao Liying's "Palace: The Lost Daughter" is just a substitute for her, and she doesn't deserve to share the stage with her.

Zhao Liying came from a humble background, a truly ordinary person. Relying on her strong and indomitable character and powerful professional skills, she forcefully carved out a place for herself in the industry and achieved fame on par with Yang Mi.

If it were just because Yang Mi looked down on her, Zhao Liying might think Yang Mi was a troublemaker and would just walk away from her without giving it much thought.

The key point is that Zhao Liying had a boyfriend before—the handsome guy everyone knows.

The other party felt that Zhao Liying's family background was not good enough for him and that her education level was too low. When interviewed by the host, he did not dare to admit the relationship, feeling ashamed and only said that it was a publicity stunt.

Only Zhao Liying herself knows how hurt she was at that moment.

Zhao Liying was most afraid of having this deep-seated pain brought up again—that Yang Mi actually looked down on her because of her humble background.

Zhao Liying will remember this grudge for the rest of her life.

Of course—Yang Mi's opinion of Zhao Liying may not be so simple.

The main reason is that when Yang Mi was pregnant for ten months, Zhao Liying and Yang Mi's husband were being affectionate on screen.

After this thorn was planted in her heart, Yang Mi will probably never forget Zhao Liying for the rest of her life. Even now that they are divorced, it will still be the same.

It's understandable that these two would never speak to each other again.

"Sister Zhao!"

Just as Zhao Liying and Tang Yan were chatting, the cute, lively, and invincible beauty, Tian Xiwei, appeared.

Seeing the energetic Tian Xiwei, Zhao Liying's mood inexplicably brightened, and she waved happily towards Tian Xiwei, "Little Tian, ​​over here!"

Tian Xiwei skipped over, took Zhao Liying's hand, and said gratefully, "Sister Zhao, thank you so much for the role of the female lead in 'A Writer's Odyssey'."

"No need to thank me."

Zhao Liying told Tian Xiwei not to worry, and whispered, "You're from Chongqing. This film is mainly shot in Chongqing, so you'll gain more from it than I would. Besides, my health doesn't allow it."

Tian Xiwei nodded firmly: "Sister Zhao, once you've given birth and regained your figure, don't worry, your brother will definitely give you an important position. He actually admires you a lot. We both came from ordinary families and it wasn't easy for us. Your brother knows how hard we'll work to seize this opportunity."

"Um."

Zhao Liying knew that Lu Yunzhou respected her very much.

Lu Yunzhou was very casual with Yang Mi, and sometimes he would even make a few sarcastic remarks. But Yang Mi always acted like a sycophant in front of Lu Yunzhou, never showing any arrogance.

This made Zhao Liying sneer inwardly. Yang Mi, that old viper, always liked to treat people differently depending on their appearance, especially when she saw a handsome guy, she wanted to stick to him like glue.

"By the way, Xiaotian. Why did Big Brother stay in Chongqing for so long this time? I saw online that he had food poisoning?"

Zhao Liying suddenly remembered a piece of gossip she had seen online.

Lu Yunzhou went to Chongqing to scout locations. At first, everything seemed normal, but then one day he started staying in his hotel room and wouldn't come out.

Rumor has it that Lu Yunzhou got food poisoning at dinner that day, causing him to have diarrhea for several days in a row.

Many people online have shared their experiences, saying that it's normal for people from Zhejiang Province to get sick from eating bad food when they go to Chongqing and have difficulty adjusting.

Another netizen with the ID "Sichuan and Chongqing's Number One Gentleness" spread rumors online that Lu Yunzhou's stomach is really fragile, he's practically a gold digger, and he should find a Chongqing girl to experience the gentleness and thoughtfulness of Sichuan and Chongqing girls.

"My elder brother is simply in seclusion for cultivation."

Tian Xiwei smiled awkwardly, feeling a pang of sadness in her heart.

Zhang Jingyi ran off to Chongqing to hang out with Lu Yunzhou, how could she not know? Liu Haocun kept whispering sarcastic things in her ear, urging her to go to Chongqing and give Zhang Jingyi a hard time.

Just then, Lu Yunzhou walked over and gently put his arm around Tian Xiwei's shoulder: "You've lost some weight. Is the 'Zhu Xian' crew working very hard?"

Tian Xiwei shook her head hastily, flashing a sweet smile: "It's not hard work. I specifically went on a diet. My face is still a bit round, not photogenic enough."

The shots on the small screen are enough.

However, on the big screen, wide-angle lenses make people's faces appear wider, so if Tian Xiwei wants to act in movies, she would have to make her face a little more concave.

Tian Xiwei believes she is much prettier than Liu Haocun. However, on camera, Liu Haocun does appear more natural.

That brat got so proud.

"Xiao Tian, ​​after a while, go to Chongqing first to film 'A Writer's Odyssey' with Lao Dong. It'll take about a month. After filming is finished, come to Italy to meet up with Xiao Hezi. We'll film 'The Killer's Shopping Mall' together."

Lu Yunzhou has already made Wang Ran a top-tier celebrity. For at least the next two years, Wang Ran's popularity will remain at this level.

There.

His top priority is to promote Tian Xiwei as well.

This year, Tian Xiwei has three major projects!

The second female lead in "Zhu Xian".

The female lead in "A Writer's Odyssey"!

"The Killer's Shopping Mall" could be considered the second female lead.

These three are all S-level projects. Tian Xiwei knew in her heart that if it weren't for Lu Yunzhou's strong support, she wouldn't have been able to get even one project on her own.

"Brother, I'll do whatever you say. I'm yours in life and in death. Even after I die, my ashes must be buried in your family's ancestral graveyard, and I will never scatter them outside to benefit other people's land."

Tian Xiwei said in a double entendre.

Upon hearing this, Lu Yunzhou gently pinched Tian Xiwei's cheek: "Little Tian, ​​out of all these people, you are the most sensible. You never cause me any worry."

After praising him, Lu Yunzhou, knowing full well what was going on, asked, "So, what is it?"

Tian Xiwei's behavior was so sensible; she must have something to discuss with me, otherwise, her intentions would have been too obvious.

These kinds of things are best said in private; there's no need to say them in front of so many people.

Tang Yan almost chuckled to herself just now.

Zhao Liying was still puzzled, not understanding what it meant. Tian Xiwei suddenly started talking about ancestral graves and ashes out of the blue?

Only Tang Yan knew that the Lunar New Year was just three months away, and this year it was Tang Yan's turn to go back to her hometown with Lu Yunzhou to register their family genealogy.

Next year will be Tian Xiwei's turn.

Tian Xiwei was reminding Lu Yunzhou that some principles must be upheld to the end, and the rules cannot be changed suddenly when it comes to her turn.

As the fourth child in the family and the gatekeeper, Zhang Jingyi could only obediently become an outer disciple and receive the same treatment as Nazha if she disagreed.

Lu Yunzhou had to appease her before she would open the door.

Tian Xiwei glanced at Zhao Liying, then said to Lu Yunzhou, "Big brother, I want the company's brand promotion department to sign Sister Zhao and make her Kiko's top star."

Kiko, Yang Mi has shares.

Yang Mi and Zhao Liying are mortal enemies.

Under normal circumstances, Yang Mi would never agree to sign Zhao Liying—but it's hard to say; for the sake of making money, Yang Mi might still agree.

However, Yang Mi had no decision-making power at all.

If Lu Yunzhou agrees, Yang Mi will have no choice but to accept it, even if she has to grit her teeth. If Yang Mi doesn't want to accept it, then she'll have to sell her shares and leave Kiko.

Is Tian Xiwei putting extreme pressure on Yang Mi?

Neither Tian Xiwei, Tang Yan, nor Wang Ran wanted the shares to fall into Yang Mi's hands.

Because Yang Mi offended Tang Yan, although Tang Yan said on the surface that he was not angry, he must still have a thorn in his side.

On this point, the group of girlfriends are quite united in their stance!

It's all thanks to Lu Yunzhou's excellent teaching.

The sisters in the family may have some minor conflicts, but when faced with external enemies, they are very united and stand together against them.

"I have no objection."

Lu Yunzhou nodded in agreement. Older women tend to have higher needs when it comes to skincare and makeup.

Seventeen or eighteen-year-old girls are naturally beautiful; they look good no matter what they wear. But women over 30, if they don't take care of themselves, are past their prime.

Zhao Liying is not a conventionally beautiful actress, but by making good use of science and technology, she has become more and more beautiful, and her charm is almost on par with Yang Mi's.

These are all the results of hard work.

These hardworking geniuses are the most effective at promoting products, far more convincing than those who are naturally beautiful.

It's worrying that a beautiful woman like Wang Ran would be less effective at selling products through live streaming.

Any normal woman knows that no matter how much makeup she wears, she can't compare to Wang Ran. The difference in appearance cannot be bridged by makeup.

The only solution is to be reincarnated.

Therefore, even if Wang Ran becomes a top-tier celebrity, her ability to drive sales is quite limited; at most, she can only increase brand awareness.

"You two continue chatting, I'm going over there to entertain some friends."

Lu Yunzhou waved to Liu Haocun.

Liu Haocun was chatting with Wang Ran when he received the signal. He pointed to himself, looking somewhat uncertain.

After Lu Yunzhou nodded, Liu Haocun gave Wang Ran an apologetic look, turned around, and immediately ran over, automatically taking Lu Yunzhou's left arm to act as his female companion.

After all, she is the female lead in the movie, and she has no choice but to take the lead on this occasion.

Lu Yunzhou has not made any official announcement.

Wang Ran wanted to run over and grab Lu Yunzhou's arm, which might attract strange looks.

Wang Ran watched Liu Haocun walk away with resentment, only one thought in her mind: "It's all that incompetent man's fault! Why hasn't he returned to China yet?"

If Cai Xukun were to return to China, he should step forward now, pull Liu Haocun away, and reserve the leading role for himself!

After all, Zhang Ruonan isn't in the country, so I'm the eldest sister here!

"Mr. Lu, Wanda Cinema would like to invest 10 billion yuan in your company, in exchange for 5% of your shares. How about that?"

【Yun Jingyanran】Now that she owns the “Fairy Castle” series IP, even if she doesn’t film anything else in the future, she can still make a lot of money just by slowly developing this IP.

But they only gave it a valuation of 200 billion?

Lu Yunzhou thought to himself, "Jiahang is such a lousy company, yet it's valued at 50 billion. My legitimate film production company, with multiple blockbusters and the super IP 'Fairy Castle,' is only valued at 200 billion."

Whom do you look down on?

He definitely wouldn't be willing to accept such a price.

However, he also understood that Wanda was actually quite sincere.

Because Wanda Film's own market value is only 100 billion yuan, and it has suffered a really bad drop this year.

In Lu Yunzhou's memory, at the end of 2018, all listed companies in China were at the bottom of their valuations.

After thinking it over, Lu Yunzhou still refused, jokingly saying, "Cooperation is fine, but no investment. I might get tired of it someday. If you end up with an empty shell company, Lao Jiang, how are you going to explain that to Boss Wang?"

Wanda Cinemas primarily operates cinemas and also produces some films.

In the past two years, cinema chains have expanded very rapidly, but the increase in box office revenue has not kept pace, resulting in a significant decrease in the earning power of a single screen.

Investments in cinema chains are considered fixed assets and are subject to depreciation.

Once the output capacity of a single screen decreases, the depreciation rate of the cinema chain's fixed asset investment will also increase.

Therefore, they are under a lot of pressure.

If one could acquire some shares in Lu Yunzhou's film company, it would be a huge boon for the secondary market.

Wanda Film's current market value of 100 billion yuan could quickly double if news breaks that they have acquired shares in Lu Yunzhou's company.

"Mr. Lu, this is what you said—'Fairy Castle 3,' so please reserve a larger share for Wanda. This share is too small. Even Mr. Wang said I'm stingy and don't know how to spend money properly."

Mr. Jiang, the general manager of Wanda, said this half-jokingly.

They thought at the time that "The Fairy Castle 2" might be a flop because Lu Yunzhou actually went to make a Middle Eastern mythology story. Would anyone actually watch it?

Lu Yunzhou was not afraid.

Because he himself didn't contribute much money at all; it was all paid for by the Qatari royal family.

However, since they were co-investing, they were losing their own money, so they naturally had to be careful.

Who knew that Lu Yunzhou truly lived up to his name, a world-class top-tier director, no joke. A box office of 12 billion US dollars—that'll easily rank in the top five for the whole year!

One word: awesome!

"Mr. Jiang, regarding 'A Writer's Odyssey,' would Wanda like to increase its share? We don't need you to actually pay; we can use the usage fee from Oriental Cinema to offset it."

Lu Yunzhou offered an idea.

The Oriental Movie Metropolis in Qingdao was built by Wanda Group.

500 billion was invested.

Years later, when it comes to calculating depreciation, won't Old Wang suffer a heart attack from the stress?

"I can't make that decision myself, but I can go back and discuss it. It shouldn't be a big problem."

It's a business opportunity that doesn't require personal investment and can still help the company make some money. Mr. Jiang immediately took note of it.

There aren't many people making big-budget films these days.

Even if "A Writer's Odyssey" and "The Wandering Earth" each bring in 200 million yuan in revenue for Oriental Film Studio, that's only 400 million yuan a year.

But things should get better in the future, right?

"President Wang, President Fu, it's been a long time."

"Why the long face? Did you lose a lot of money on stocks?"

After entertaining the Wanda representatives, Lu Yunzhou then met with Mr. Wang from Enlight Media and Ms. Fu from Huace Media.

The two were chatting casually at that moment.

The person chatting with these two bigwigs, interjecting with jokes and banter, was Zhou Yanxi, the CEO of Xitian Media.

As the current top female star of Xitian Media, Zhang Tianai is relegated to the sidelines as a decorative figure.

This year, the stocks of film and television companies have collectively plummeted, and Enlight Media and Huace Media haven't fared much better.

Both companies are still profitable, making them standouts in this year's film and television industry downturn.

However, Xitian Media, in which they invested, is not doing well.

"Yunzhou, you've come at the perfect time!"

Upon seeing Lu Yunzhou approach, Fu Bingxing, the young lady of Huace Media, immediately pulled Lu Yunzhou over and said to Zhou Yanxi of Xitian Media, "Old Zhou, Old Wang and I can't save you, but if Yunzhou is interested, we can lend you a hand."

Lu Yunzhou raised an eyebrow and turned to look at Zhang Tianai.

Zhang Tianai lowered her head and gave an awkward smile.

Zhou Yanxi, the owner of Xitian Media, came over and grabbed Lu Yunzhou's hand: "President Lu, how about buying our company?"

Xitian Media was ruined by Uncle Xiubo.

In the first half of 2018, Xitian Media made a lot of money, but the incident with Uncle Xiubo in October directly caused Xitian Media to lose hundreds of millions of yuan.

Uncle Xiubo hasn't shown off his secret weapon yet.

However, Zhou Yanxi had already heard rumors.

Uncle Xiubo plans to lure the woman back to China and then sue her for extortion—otherwise, Uncle Xiubo will be finished.

However, this method is extremely dangerous.

Now, with the internet becoming more and more developed, there are more and more self-media marketing accounts, to the point that good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast.

Uncle Xiubo's actions will definitely result in 800 kills and 8000 losses for himself!

Xitian Media will also be dragged down.

"Old Zhou, I know what you're thinking. I only have one suggestion: handle it discreetly, don't let the whole internet know about it, otherwise..."

"You'll get what's coming to you."

Lu Yunzhou knew very well what Zhou Yanxi was worried about.

It must be said that her concerns were quite valid.

Uncle Xiubo is completely finished.

I heard that Uncle Xiubo has 13 collaborative projects with external partners—Xitian Media. The financial statements can still be slightly modified, but he's definitely going to go bankrupt next year.

"Old Zhou, my only suggestion is that your company should focus all its limited resources on Xiao Ai from now on."

"As long as Xiao Ai doesn't date, she's perfectly safe."

If Xitian Media were to promote Zhang Tianai, it could also help Kou Rui sell her products, which would be a win-win situation for Lu Yunzhou.

Old Wang from Enlight Media also advised, "Old Zhou, you need to handle Xiubo's matter carefully. Once it ignites public opinion, the public has zero tolerance for this kind of thing. Also, don't drag others into it. Make sure you handle it cleanly."

Among the shareholders of Xitian Media are Enlight Media and Huace Media, and Uncle Xiubo is also a shareholder of Xitian Media.

Therefore, when Uncle Xiubo got into trouble, Zhou Yanxi immediately contacted people from Enlight Media and Huace Media, hoping that the two companies could help suppress the matter.

But now that social media is so developed, it's impossible to suppress it.

"Xiao Ai, go keep Mr. Lu company. He doesn't like to drink, so you can help him avoid drinking too much."

Zhou Yanxi clearly had something to discuss with Lao Wang from Enlight Media and Miss Fu from Huace Media, so she sent Zhang Tianai away for the moment.

She left Zhang Tianai here so that she could ask Lu Yunzhou for help.

Out of respect for Zhang Tianai, Lu Yunzhou would not embarrass her even if he did not agree, and would speak more tactfully.

Lu Yunzhou did not agree, and his words were indeed very tactful.

But the problem remains unresolved.

"Okay, boss."

Zhang Tianai was very obedient and followed Lu Yunzhou.

However, since Liu Haocun was still with Lu Yunzhou, it was impossible for Zhang Tianai to have any close contact with Lu Yunzhou.

The group went to the bar, where Lu Yunzhou poured Zhang Tianai a glass of orange juice. He glanced at Zhou Yanxi and casually asked, "Xitian's PR department is a bunch of shoddy operations. They actually want to sue the woman for something as serious as Uncle Xiubo? What good would it do if they won? It would make the whole world know, and Uncle Xiubo would be finished."

"Hitian handled this matter very poorly."

Lu Yunzhou shook his head slightly and asked Zhang Tianai, "Xiao Ai, how many years did you sign with Xitian Media? This company will definitely mess with you later. Their public relations handling is seriously flawed."

Zhang Tianai just smiled and said with her head down, "The boss has been very good to me. If it weren't for the boss's introduction, I wouldn't have been able to film the 'Fairy Castle' series. Leaving now would be a bit unfair to the boss."

The implication is that no matter how much Lu Yunzhou criticizes Xitian Media, Zhang Tianai won't take it to heart, but she also won't switch jobs and go with Lu Yunzhou.

"Xiao Ai, you're a nice person, I'll toast you."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yunzhou's eyes lit up slightly, revealing an expression of appreciation, and he clinked glasses of orange juice with Zhang Tianai.

People admire those who are unparalleled in loyalty and righteousness.

Even if this person's loyalty is not directed at themselves.

After making a few complaints, Lu Yunzhou suddenly poked his head out and asked Zhang Tianai in her ear, "Does Lao Zhou have any leverage over you? If so, I'll take this opportunity to get it back for you."

"Thanks."

Zhang Tianai glanced at Lu Yunzhou in surprise, a hint of emotion appearing in her eyes, but she slowly shook her head, her gaze somewhat dim: "There's nothing to hold against me. It's just those things. It was inevitable."

Just then, Wu Jing, with Guo Fan by his side, waved to Lu Yunzhou from afar.

I guess there's something to discuss.

Lu Yunzhou waved in that direction, preparing to get up and leave.

However, before leaving, he couldn't help but say to Zhang Tianai, "Xiao Ai, take care of yourself and don't get scammed. Call me if anything happens."

"Thank you, brother."

Zhang Tianai bit her lip gently, hesitated for a moment, and finally called out "Big Brother".

She seemed to understand why those women, like moths to a flame, all wanted to be Lu Yunzhou's fifth or sixth wife.

Lu Yunzhou is clearly a cold person, but sometimes a single sentence can touch people's hearts.

Just now, Lu Yunzhou's single sentence, carrying three parts concern and seven parts domineering, instantly warmed her cold heart, making it beat involuntarily.

She longed to be like the willow tree fairy in the movie, rushing headlong into Lu Yunzhou's arms, hugging his waist, pressing her head against his chest, and letting her tears fall freely.

Silence.

Until the end of the world.