Chapter 650: Because I am the same as you

Lu Yan He looked at Hua Ruzhen in astonishment, and for a moment, he didn't react.

Hua Ruzhen was also surprised to see Lu Yan He's reaction and asked: "What's wrong?"

"I... haven't dealt with him much, just know him," Lu Yan He shook his head and put away the astonishment on his face.

"Hmm," Hua Ruzhen didn't feel anything different, just said, "I know Chen Pinhe's status in China is quite high; he is the top male actor and one of the few domestic actors with international fame and influence. However, you have been the one with the strongest momentum in these few years. Otherwise, Lunei Ries wouldn't have chosen you first. The film *Doomsday* can be considered an A-level big production in Hollywood. Although it is a relatively ordinary commercial blockbuster and doesn't fit your current film selection, setting this aside, except for those top A-listers, this is a very good project for any actor in the world. I tell you this because I want to remind you that Chen Pinhe quietly intercepted the resources that were originally going to find you; he must have means and connections behind him."

Lu Yan He nodded.

"If you value the international market, then you must seriously guard against him."

Lu Yan He said: "Sister, if possible, I would like to ask you for a favor. Help me check and see what kind of person he relied on in Hollywood to win this project."

"Fine."

Lu Yan He hesitated for a moment and added: "There is one more thing, Sister, I have to tell you."

"Hmm?"

"I have an irreconcilable contradiction with Chen Pinhe," Lu Yan He didn't want Hua Ruzhen to be involved in the feud between him and Chen Pinhe without knowing it. "I can't tell you what the contradiction is now, but I have to tell you."

Hua Ruzhen showed some surprise.

"Fine, I understand," Hua Ruzhen nodded and smiled slightly. "Since you call me sister, not to mention anything else, I will definitely stand on your side 100% for this little matter."

"Thank you," Lu Yan He smiled.

Hua Ruzhen: "By the way, here are a few projects I have been looking at recently. You also know that I have started to represent the fund behind me to make film and television investments. Just started doing it, many people are watching, and it cannot fail. I want to ask you to help me see if these projects are worth my investment and what the risk is."

Lu Yan He nodded and took it from Hua Ruzhen.

Among them was a project that surprised him because he had seen it before.

Director Wu Zhouyou's *Yesterday Reappeared*.

This film script had been out for a long time and still hadn't started filming.

At that time, it wanted to find Huang Kai to star. Huang Kai came to consult Lu Yan He for his opinion. Between it and *Hit the Nail on the Head*, Huang Kai finally chose *Hit the Nail on the Head*.

"*Yesterday Reappeared* is actually quite good; I have seen it before," Lu Yan He said. "At that time, this script and another script were looking for Huang Kai to act. Huang Kai wanted to act in both, but because they started filming one after another, Huang Kai finally chose *Hit the Nail on the Head*. Hasn't *Yesterday Reappeared* started filming yet?"

"Yes," Hua Ruzhen nodded. "The previous investors withdrew their capital because they couldn't find a satisfactory lead actor for a long time, so the script went around and around and found me."

"Then has its lead actor been decided now?" Lu Yan He asked.

Hua Ruzhen: "What they told me is that this film has found Li Yuefeng and Meng Li to star; they are both relatively popular actors in China."

"Changed to Li Yuefeng?" Lu Yan He was a bit surprised. "You should know him; he acted in *Seventeen Layers*."

"Hmm, yes, I know," Hua Ruzhen nodded. "They estimate the box office of this film to be 500 million."

"Ah?" Lu Yan He showed surprise. "So high?"

"Do you think this film can't reach it?" Hua Ruzhen asked.

"A bit risky," Lu Yan He said bluntly. "How much investment do they hope to get?"

"60 million," Hua Ruzhen said. "55% share."

Lu Yan He thought for a while and was a bit surprised: "This film, the production cost is over 100 million?"

"What's wrong? Is it not suitable?"

"It's not that it's not suitable, but the concept of this film is mainly soft science fiction, constantly repeating a certain day, and there are no special effects scenes, nor are there any scenes that are particularly expensive. How can there be such a high production fee?"

Lu Yan He was very surprised.

"Even if it's the pay for the two leads, Li Yuefeng and Meng Li, according to the current market situation, it's not very high. Adding the two together, at most 15 million, it's impossible to be higher."

"I really asked the right person," Hua Ruzhen said. "In the cost table they gave me, the pay budget for these two actors is 25 million."

Actor pay is a commercial secret.

The numbers exposed by many media are false reports to raise their own status.

What Lu Yan He said is the real market situation.

The film market is not good enough now, and actor pay is shrinking. This is no longer a secret.

Except for a few actors like Lu Yan He who have outstanding records and are still increasing their pay, most actors have basically halved, or even more, which is completely not on the same magnitude as the pay on the drama side.

But if it's not someone like Lu Yan He who is very clear about the industry situation, the so-called 25 million lead actor pay is not ridiculously high for an outsider investor like Hua Ruzhen, and even fits their impression of the entertainment industry.

After all, the media environment has always been rendering the high pay of actors.

Lu Yan He said: "The most important thing is that I think this film is very difficult to get 500 million in box office. It is not the kind of subject matter with large box office volume. Even if the word of mouth is particularly good, it is only a volume of 300-500 million."

"Then if the box office is less than 300 million, my investment..."

"It's hard to have a relatively large return," Lu Yan He said bluntly. "Sister, why don't you invest in some dramas? The risk of dramas is much smaller than films."

This time, the projects Hua Ruzhen showed Lu Yan He were all film projects.

"In Hollywood, the return rate of film projects is indeed far higher than dramas, but in China, except for those few with box office exploding over 2 billion, otherwise, the profit may not be as high as dramas," Lu Yan He said.

Hua Ruzhen said: "I am also looking at dramas, but it is difficult for us to get our hands on big projects. Several major platforms have fixed cooperative capital parties, and our dividend priority is very low."

"Moreover, we invested in a few dramas before, and they were not very good. *Flowing Light* is also the same. Although it didn't lose money, the profit didn't meet expectations," Hua Ruzhen said. "But actually, *Flowing Light* already belongs to those that broadcast quite well."

Lu Yan He understood. Actually, Hua Ruzhen didn't point out one thing.

The revenue of dramas, with the domestic way of playing, is not too transparent.

Membership revenue, advertising revenue, etc., these data are mastered by the platform side, plus the ambiguity of production costs, making outsider capital like Hua Ruzhen only able to see a muddled account.

Others may not let you lose money, but it is impossible to let you earn too much.

This is different from films.

Film box office is solid and cannot be faked.

In the final analysis, it is because Hua Ruzhen is an outsider, and she doesn't understand the rules of the circle. And no one took her to familiarize herself with these ways.

He thought for a while and said: "For some projects I cooperate with other platforms, I will try my best to strive for some shares for you to see if I can establish other project cooperation channels with them through this way. I really can't say for sure. Although they respect me quite a bit now, when it comes to this kind of real interest, they may be willing to give me an extra 10 million or 20 million in pay, but they may not necessarily be willing to give me an extra 10 million or 20 million in investment share."

"Are you forcing it? If it's forced, forget it," Hua Ruzhen said. "The starting stage is difficult. After all, no one is familiar, and building trust takes time. I have also prepared, just do it slowly."

Lu Yan He said: "I am not forcing it; I just can't promise you how much effect it will have. It's not a big problem for my projects to reserve a little share for you, but it may not necessarily be the case for other projects."

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Hua Ruzhen nodded.

"Being able to establish contact through this method first is also very good," Hua Ruzhen smiled. "Fortunately, I know you."

"Chen Pinhe actually took the initiative to grab your role?"

Afterwards, when Lu Yan He talked to Chen Ziyan about the film *Doomsday*, Chen Ziyan's first reaction was shock.

Chen Ziyan seemed very surprised that Chen Pinhe would do this.

Lu Yan He asked: "What's wrong?"

"It doesn't quite fit the impression I had of him before," Chen Ziyan said. "I don't know what he is like in private, but what he has always shown is an elegant, non-contending appearance. He has always been liked by those so-called upper-class people in China because they feel he has that aristocratic gentleman temperament."

Lu Yan He curled his lip.

"This really surprised me," Chen Ziyan fell into deep thought. "But is this film worth him taking action?"

"Is the male lead of a Hollywood A-level production not worth it?"

"A-level without investment over 100 million are pseudo-A-level," Chen Ziyan said. "I have paid attention to this film before. Of course, I didn't know that the director of this film had the idea to find you to star at the beginning. I only learned that this film has an Asian male lead role, but after I carefully pondered this film, I felt it was not worth acting in. First, its investment is neither high nor low, over 60 million US dollars, which can't be called low cost, nor can it be called a big production. Second, the director of this film has always been someone who shoots commercial special effects films, but his past works have had lukewarm word of mouth, no personal characteristics, and the box office is okay, but not good enough to add to the actor. For a famous actor, it is just a routine acting experience, at most adding a line to your resume."

Lu Yan He suddenly realized.

"Chen Pinhe taking the initiative to act in this film, I can only think that he wants to fight again. In these years, he has more or less had the meaning of resting. Except for acting, he doesn't come out much. The works with some sound are just *White Pearl*."

"He is already in such a status now, what is he suddenly fighting for?"

"Maybe he is threatened by you?" Chen Ziyan smiled. "After all, compared to him now, what you lack is just a few trophies and seniority."

"Heh, so I can also make him feel threatened?"

"Did you underestimate yourself? How could you not make him feel threatened," Chen Ziyan said. "Especially your momentum in the entertainment industry now is no longer limited to the status of an actor. If I were Chen Pinhe, I would be so anxious that I couldn't sleep at all."

"Why?"

"The entertainment industry is his base camp. Why was he able to suppress you at the beginning and not let you emerge?" Chen Ziyan said. "Isn't it because the connections he accumulated in this industry and the power he mastered could firmly suppress you? Even if you worked hard and wrote *Memory* at the time, it was popular for a while, but the company suppressed you and didn't give you work, and your exposure was gone immediately."

Lu Yan He recalled those things before and was silent.

"But with your rise now, is there anyone willing to help him? For the you at that time, others were happy to sell a face. For the you now?" Chen Ziyan said. "In other words, if one day, you suddenly want to take action against him? He could suppress you so easily at the beginning. If his status is gone and people in the circle don't buy his account, can't you also suppress him so easily?"

Lu Yan He was pointed out and suddenly realized.

"I see, Chen Pinhe is probably going to fully resume work," Chen Ziyan said. "Before, his status was already there, no need to fight for his career. Now it's probably not working."

Lu Yan He: "Small-minded, I have never thought about dealing with him."

"Are you sure?"

"At least I haven't thought about dealing with him now," Lu Yan He said. "I just hope he and those messy things stay as far away from me as possible."

Otherwise, how to retaliate against him?

"I can't expose his true face in front of everyone either. Kill a thousand enemies, lose eight hundred. From then on, in front of me, behind my back, I don't know how many people will look at me with colored glasses. When others see me, the first reaction is not anything else, but Chen Pinhe's illegitimate child."

Lu Yan He's face was like frost. Thinking of this scene, he felt suffocated.

Chen Ziyan: "Being able to make this matter never be known by anyone, this is of course the best."

She said again: "But even if it is really known by someone one day, it doesn't matter. You walk straight and sit upright. You didn't do anything wrong. You have worked very hard to make your life good enough. Let others say what they want. No one can bend your spine. Don't belittle yourself."

"Sister Ziyan, I know, but there is no way. Can the son of a murderer say that he has severed ties with his parents and from then on is not affected by the name of a murderer? The three words illegitimate child are the greatest helplessness. He was brought into this world without being asked for consent from the beginning. He didn't know anything, but the moment he was born, he was treated differently by this world. I have always known that people can never get rid of the influence of blood."

Chen Ziyan gently patted Lu Yan He's face.

"There is no forever, there is no impossible," Chen Ziyan looked at Lu Yan He firmly. "All your efforts, struggles, and everything you have worked hard to accumulate are to allow you to fight against secularity and prejudice. Even if you can't change the world, you won't admit defeat. Even if you say the most pessimistic words to me with the most pessimistic attitude, I know you won't compromise."

Lu Yan He was stunned.

Chen Ziyan said: "Do you know why I firmly choose you, support you, believe in you, and stand with you?"

Lu Yan He looked at Chen Ziyan blankly.

Chen Ziyan smiled, the smile was a bit bleak, but also open-minded.

"Because I am the same as you." (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 651 =====