Huayu: Just started as a stagehand, but the director's comeback system

Those who were once out of reach now bow their heads and follow behind.

Jiang Huai had thought he would feel a sense of satisfaction, but upon seeing Zhang Ziyi, his heart remained as calm as still water.

He attributed the reason to Zhang Ziyi, at least because her look today wasn't to his liking.

"Sit down. What brings you here?"

With his legs crossed, Jiang Huai looked at Zhang Ziyi, whose eyes were full of resentment, and wondered why she was not staying in the U.S. but returning to China.

Domestic actors are desperate to go abroad, but the other side is doing the opposite.

"Ha, you really have a bad memory. Director Jiang has become famous, so he looks down on me now."

Zhang Ziyi cursed Jiang Huai in her heart for being so presumptuous in front of her, but she still had to force a smile onto her face.

The words he spoke were sarcastic, but ultimately they carried a hint of humility.

"Hmm... anything else?"

"Jianghuai, is this really how it has to be?"

Zhang Ziyi looked up and found that there were no surveillance cameras in Jiang Huai's office.

Biting her lip, she began to take off her clothes.

"Stop, why do you all think of me as that kind of person?"

Jiang Huai had just finished exercising and hadn't fully recovered his energy, so he had no interest in admiring Zhang Ziyi's body.

He decisively stopped the other party's actions and asked them to sit down and talk things over.

"Stop with this nonsense. There's a second female lead in the new movie. You can trade your resources for it."

Jiang Huai knew that Zhang Ziyi was just pretending to be pitiful at the moment, otherwise she wouldn't be wearing such expensive underwear.

He's not a seed-planting machine; if he thinks too much about things with his lower body, then he should be exchanging them for pure benefits.

Zhang Ziyi's team, which is like a family workshop, has quite a few high-quality resources at its disposal.

"Keep pretending."

Jiang Huai ignored Zhang Ziyi's eye roll and waited for her to get dressed again before seeing the guests off.

"What are you looking at? Never seen a celebrity before?"

Zhang Ziyi noticed that Jiang Huai didn't even get up, and it was Ning Hao who had greeted him when he went out.

Zhang Ziyi, who was already furious, felt a little better after glaring at Ning Hao.

"He's out of his mind."

……

On April 11, "The Beauty Inside," which was originally scheduled to be released on February 9 and run until March 11, was extended for a full month before it was taken off the screens.

The box office of 187 million yuan directly made Jiang Huai the fifth director to have a box office of over 100 million yuan.

Regardless of the methods used in the process, this outcome truly enhanced Jianghuai's reputation.

Jianghuai only received 5% of the film's revenue, which amounted to 4.2 million yuan. After deducting more than 1 million yuan for taxes, they would still have nearly 3 million yuan left.

Jianghuai is satisfied with the result, even though they didn't invest a single penny.

Flowing water does not compete for the first place, the contention is endless.

With this box office success exceeding 100 million yuan, Jianghuai can easily take control of subsequent films and take the lion's share of the profits.

Otherwise, Jianghuai wouldn't have been able to come up with much investment for "The Beauty Inside." Even if they had taken the largest share, without China Film Group applying for a key to extend the screening time, and with Wanda Pictures' full-fledged promotion, the film wouldn't have achieved its current success.

More importantly, Jianghuai is currently pursuing fame, and most of its sixth-generation directors are still working in the art-house film genre.

But commercialism will definitely be the biggest trend in the future. No matter how grand the director's words are, they can't escape the mundane. Without money, you can't even make an art film.

If the goal is to surpass Japan, South Korea, Europe, and America by producing pornographic films to bring glory to the country, then funding is needed to pay the leading actresses' salaries.

As long as you seize the initiative now, everything will be much easier in the future.

Even though Zhang Yimou and his colleagues are very famous now, they are all in their forties and fifties. Movies ultimately belong to young people.

No matter how hard a group of old men try, there will always be a day when they fall behind.

The future of the film industry still depends on Jiang Huai.

Now that Beauty Inside has finished its run, it's time for Black Coal, Thin Ice to Take the Stage.

Although it's just an art film, with the reputation of the Third Middle School Golden Bear winner, and with some additional promotional expenses, making some money is still a possibility.

Acting on his idea, Jianghuai immediately negotiated with Wanda Pictures to increase advertising expenses. Wanda readily agreed and directly added 20 million yuan to the advertising budget.

Now that the negotiations are settled, we should confirm the screening date for "Daylight Fireworks".

The most common understanding in the industry is that, as long as the advertising budget is sufficient, a one-month advertising period is the best.

But this is ultimately a view on commercial films. Even if art films have enough pre-release publicity, they may still be critically acclaimed but not commercially successful.

It's already mid-April, and Jianghuai plans to release the film directly in early May.

With the initial buzz and two weeks of promotion, we can already guarantee high attendance.

They continued to promote the film when it was released, determined to lure as many viewers as possible into the theaters.

If you can drown out the real sounds, then Black Fireworks is a perfect movie.

After making the plan, Jianghuai immediately contacted China Film Group to expedite the release of "Black Coal, Thin Ice".

After hesitating for a while, Han Sanping agreed to Jiang Huai's request.

……

The next day, Jiang Huai, having made all the preparations, took Ning Hao to attend Zhao Baogang's dinner party.

"Director Jiang and Director Ning are both young and promising. The future still depends on you young people."

"Haha, I don't believe other people's praise, but since Teacher Zhao said it, I'll take it seriously."

Jiang Huai really didn't expect that in such a large place as the capital, Zhao Baogang would choose a private restaurant where Zhang Ziyi had a membership card.

But since we're already here, there's no reason to back down. Besides, there's no guarantee we'll run into her here.

"Director Jiang, I ran into a friend on the way here. You know her too, so I brought her along. You don't mind, do you?"

"Could it be Zhang Ziyi?"

Jiang Huai guessed correctly; sitting in the private room was Zhang Ziyi, who had gotten a lot of anger out of him at his company yesterday.

Zhao Baogang met her at a private restaurant. Both of them had been in the entertainment industry for a long time and were quite familiar with each other.

Fearing that Jiang Huai might try to extort too much from him during their first meeting, Zhao Baogang decisively invited Zhang Ziyi to come along.

He didn't know much about the inside story, but considering that the two had been rumored to be dating in the past, there must be some affection between them.

"No problem, please, Teacher Zhao."

Upon entering the private room, Jiang Huai was flanked by Zhang Ziyi on his left and Ning Hao on his right.

In order to avoid looking at Zhang Ziyi's forced smile, he could only keep his head turned to Ning Hao's side.

"Director Jiang, the Cantonese food here is absolutely amazing."

Zhao Baogang sensed that the atmosphere was not right and realized that he had invited the wrong person, Zhang Ziyi.

But now that they're all seated, there's no way we can kick them out.

Otherwise, he would be in a terrible situation, caught between a rock and a hard place. He had already failed to win over Jiang Huai, and he couldn't afford to offend Zhang Ziyi to the point of no return.

"I come here often, let Ning Hao and Hong Lei have a drink."

Jiang Huai picked up some food from the table, but only placed it on his plate.

However, despite the dissatisfaction, resources are innocent.

As long as there are enough benefits, Jiang Huai can suppress a lot of his bad mood.

After watching Ning Hao and Sun Honglei share a drink, Jiang Huai stopped Ning Hao from continuing.

As agreed, today I should play the good cop and Ning Hao the bad cop.

But plans can't keep up with changes, so the only option now is to switch the roles between the two.

Fortunately, Ning Hao understood his new identity after seeing Jiang Huai's attitude upon entering the private room.

They chatted enthusiastically for a long time; to outsiders, the two seemed to be on the verge of becoming sworn brothers.

Seeing that the groundwork had been laid, Jiang Huai understood that it was time for him to make his appearance, so he raised the wine glass in his hand.

"Teacher Zhao, you are a senior figure in the industry. As a junior, I would like to offer you a toast."

"I don't deserve such praise, I was just born a few years too early."

Zhao Baogang really put aside his pride for the sake of Sun Honglei, the leading actor, and even adjusted the position of his wine glass so that it didn't go higher than Jiang Huai's.

"Teacher Zhao, you're too kind. I won't beat around the bush with you then."

I acknowledge Hong Lei's acting skills, but Liu Ye is equally impressive.

Moreover, Liu Ye's resources are always deeper. The two are roughly equal, and I believe Teacher Zhao understands me.

"Brother Huai, you can't say that. Hong Lei still has a very special aura."

"Give me the time of day. If we can talk, you must prioritize casting Hong Lei as my male lead. If that's not possible, then at least we can maintain good relations even if the deal falls through."

Before Zhao Baogang could speak, Ning Hao stood up and interrupted him.

As his best partner, Ning Hao was very clear about when to speak each time.

Just like now, even though he saw that as soon as Brother Huai sat down, Zhang Ziyi's thigh was already draped over Brother Huai's body, he pretended not to see anything and played his role without changing his expression.

"I understand. I believe in Hong Lei's abilities, but Liu Ye has won the Golden Rooster Award, so he can't be underestimated."

"How about this, Director Jiang? I have a new TV series starting filming in the second half of the year, but we haven't decided on the male lead yet. How about you recommend someone?"

Zhao Baogang has a TV series called "Paris Call" starting filming this year.

Originally, the male lead was supposed to be Peter Ho, who was able to bring his own investment to the production. Fortunately, the contract hadn't been signed yet, so everything could be changed.

"Teacher Zhao is very generous; I can definitely accept these conditions."

But as you know, I'm too young, and the actors in the company don't like me.

But as the company boss, I have to be responsible to them no matter what.

They're all used to acting in movies. If I suddenly ask them to act in TV dramas, I'm afraid the company will disobey me even more.

As soon as Jiang Huai finished speaking, before anyone else could make a move, Ning Hao slammed his wine glass onto the table.

Jiang Huai didn't know how others were doing, but Zhang Ziyi's thigh twitched.

"Brother Huai, you're just too soft-hearted. No matter what I say, you won't listen. Otherwise, they wouldn't be so spoiled. Sigh..."

Ning Hao didn't know if he had drunk too much or if he was just being genuine, but tears even fell from his eyes halfway through his sentence.

Before Sun Honglei could get him some tissues, Ning Hao simply used the other man's sleeve to wipe himself.

"It was my oversight. From now on, the male lead and second male lead for the next two TV series, as well as the female lead for the next TV series, will all be arranged by Director Jiang."

Even though the two actors' performances were rather simplistic, Zhao Baogang could see through them but there was nothing he could do.

Having to ask for someone's help is something one has no choice but to let the two of them keep arguing.

So even though Zhao Baogang's heart is bleeding, he can only grit his teeth and raise the price.

After he finished speaking, Ning Hao stopped crying, and Jiang Huai's worried expression disappeared.

They both knew that the male lead was only worth this much, and asking for more would only increase the price.

"Teacher Zhao, you're too kind. I was ready to finalize the deal with Honglei from the start, there's no need for so much."

"Director Jiang, please don't be so polite. It's only natural to reciprocate."

Once the matter was settled, there weren't many more performances afterward, and everyone drank to their heart's content.

Jiang Huai, somewhat drunk, even rubbed a large hole in Zhang Ziyi's stockings.

After the dinner, Zhao Baogang and Ning Hao, who both had a good tolerance for alcohol, helped Sun Honglei leave together.

Jiang Huai was then handed over to Zhang Ziyi, who had never drunk alcohol before.

"Now that you're in my hands, call me 'sister' twice."

Seeing that Jiang Huai was drunk and his hands were not behaving properly, Zhang Ziyi did not stop him from groping him up and down, and helped him into his car.

"Your head is too high, lower it a bit."

Looking at the somewhat blurry Zhang Ziyi in front of him, the drunk Jiang Huai suddenly remembered what happened in Crazy Stone.

He had been longing to reverse the original female-centric narrative, and now, under the influence of alcohol, that idea was brought back to mind.

Zhang Ziyi was stunned for a moment after hearing Jiang Huai's words, but she was still driving, so she had no choice but to step on the gas and drive into the parking lot.

Zhang Ziyi has always lived alone at home. After struggling to drag Jiang Huai to the bedroom, she immediately blinked and stared at him.

"Brother Huai, your heart is beating so fast."

Touching Jiang Huai's chest, Zhang Ziyi originally wanted to call him by his full name as she used to, but the moment the words were on the tip of her tongue, she remembered how he had made her bow her head in the car.

Since entering the entertainment industry, she has always kept her head down. She doesn't care about the other person anymore. What difference would it make if she called him Brother Huai?

"Yeah, you don't look as good as before."

With a hazy look in her eyes, Zhang Ziyi seemed more compliant, but lacked the imposing aura of a superior.

However, given the situation, it would be impolite not to take action. Fueled by alcohol, Jiang Huai directly stripped the other person of their clothes.

"Ha, men, I offer my services but you don't want them; you insist on doing it yourself."

Feeling Jiang Huai's clumsy movements, Zhang Ziyi had no choice but to help him undress.

She was so proactive yesterday but he didn't want her, but now he's suddenly become very impatient.

"I told you, keep your head down."

When drunk, Jiang Huai hates it when others are taller than him. At this moment, Zhang Ziyi is kneeling in front of him, which really annoys Jiang Huai.

Zhang Ziyi reacted quickly this time, pressing her head directly against Jiang Huai's chest.

Their breaths mingled together, a passionate exchange.

Even when drunk, Jiang Huai, as a successor to socialism, still acted very aggressively when faced with bad temptations.

When he finished, both of them were exhausted, and after this intense exercise, Jiang Huai sobered up.

"Now, do I still need to offer something in exchange for your supporting actress?"

Zhang Ziyi felt that since her body was cooperating with him so well, even the most shameless person would have to agree to it by now.

"One thing at a time, but that's still necessary."

As soon as Jiang Huai finished speaking, Zhang Ziyi immediately tried to punch him, but she was not strong enough and was instead pinned down by Jiang Huai again.

"Jiang Huai, you don't even need to wear pants anymore, and you're already starting to disrespect people?"

"Otherwise, I'll have to get dressed up before rejecting you. I'll go change into a formal dress and get a feel for it."