Chapter 163: The Rebellious Liu Yifei and the Malice of Orange Sky

Beijing, inside Wei Jin's office.

"Yifei, you believe my judgment now, don't you?"

Looking at the netizens' reviews of "Learning to Meow" on Yinxiang Net, Wei Jin suppressed his laughter and said to the young girl with a straight face.

This single was released at the end of October, and as soon as it was launched, the addictive, brainwashing music quickly became popular all over the internet.

Especially in the music video, a short dance segment by Liu Yifei made many netizens overjoyed.

Many netizens uploaded imitation videos under Liu Yifei's blog, continuously pushing the song's popularity higher. The three major carriers quickly seized the opportunity to launch the song as a ringback tone, miraculously reviving the ringback tone business that had been facing death.

"Brother Wei Jin, don't even mention it. I'm so embarrassed; Changchang and Ruyi are both making fun of me."

There was a hint of resentment on Liu Yifei's face. Although the song brought her great popularity and the monthly revenue from the ringback tones exceeded five million, she just couldn't bring herself to be happy.

"Pfft, hey, Yifei, I'm not laughing at you; it's just that this netizen's comment is too funny."

Liu Yifei, who was just about to lose her temper, had her attention successfully diverted and unconsciously leaned closer to Wei Jin to browse the page.

My Love for Xihua: The song is too sweet, I can't take it anymore. Liu Yifei, please stop your magic, I'm about to fall for it. Dancing in the Sea Breeze: The dance is too addictive, too. Whose cat is like this? Give me a dozen.

Sweet Autumn Ball: Has Director Wei written any other songs for Xixi? Begging for this style, it's so sweet it makes my bones go soft.

I Want to Sleep: Am I the only one who thinks Wei Jin and Liu Yifei are acting strange? Are they together? Can any knowledgeable netizen give a hint? "Yifei, you heard the fans' voices too. You used to give people a feeling that was too cold and detached; audiences actually prefer to see your real, down-to-earth side. Think about it, isn't that the truth?"

Wei Jin wasn't trying to fool her; Liu Yifei's past roles were all a bit too ethereal, making it easy to create a sense of distance from the audience.

However, the focus of Liu Yifei's attention was the netizens' speculation about her relationship with Wei Jin. She sighed slightly in her heart, wondering when she would finally get her wish.

"Brother Wei Jin, what you said makes some sense. Should I try this style more in the future?"

Setting aside the social embarrassment, the netizens' reviews of the song were actually quite good, so Liu Yifei stopped being stubborn.

"Hey, that's right. Listen to advice and you'll be well-fed; you have to trust my judgment."

Wei Jin realized his transformation plan was starting to work, so naturally, he had to paint more big pictures for young Liu.

"By the way, why isn't your aunt with you today?"

Liu Xiaoli was so worried about her daughter that she followed her everywhere. Wei Jin hadn't seen her today and found it a bit strange.

"How old do you think I am? Mom can't control me anymore."

When Liu Yifei said this, she felt a bit guilty. She had lied today, saying she was going to play with Yao Beina; otherwise, Liu Xiaoli would definitely have followed her.

Thinking of this, Liu Yifei felt a bit annoyed. The biggest obstacle between her and Wei Jin was actually her own mother.

"Hmm, 20 years old, you're a grown young lady. In ancient times, you'd already be a mother."

As he spoke, Wei Jin stood up and pulled Liu Yifei into his arms. How could he not see that the young girl was lying?

However, Wei Jin was happy to see this; one must know that strong fortresses are often broken from within.

"Brother Wei Jin, you don't have to worry, I will definitely convince my mom, but you must not lie to..."

Before the young girl could finish her sentence, her red lips were already blocked by Wei Jin. He never lied to people; it was all genuine emotion.

Liu Yifei also began to respond enthusiastically. Under Wei Jin's lead, she gradually fell into this intimate contact. —— For the premiere of "Assembly", Wang Zhonglei called personally to invite Wei Jin, insisting he grace them with his presence.

Since he went to "The Warlords", Wei Jin had no reason to refuse; there was no need to give people something to gossip about.

This year's New Year Slot was mainly contested by "The Warlords" and "Assembly". Plus, Huayi Brothers had just completed their third round of financing and were now wealthy and powerful. This time, Huayi was eager to show off their strength, and the scale was completely on par with their rival.

In the words of Wang Zhongjun: We aren't afraid of losing money to make a splash.

And they really weren't afraid; the scale of the premiere was so large it even made the news broadcast. Who knows how much money was actually spent.

There were over two hundred celebrity artists on site, as well as many industry bigwigs like Zhang Guoli, Zhao Benshan, Zhang Jizhong, and so on. Almost all the actors from Feng Dapao's past films came to show their support.

Fan Bingbing held Wei Jin's arm, walking elegantly on the red carpet, nodding frequently at the media cameras.

She had taken the initiative to invite him today, attending as Wei Jin's partner. It was both to give face to her old employer and to show her relationship with Wei Jin to the industry.

"Where did your aesthetic sense go? Go back and fire your stylist."

After walking past the red carpet, Wei Jin couldn't help but complain. Fan Bingbing's look today was truly a bit of an eyesore.

A small red hat paired with a silver mid-length mink coat, and the key was that the inner lining was a high-waisted dress in red, white, and silver—it was a bit of a mismatch.

"Is it that bad? Don't you think it's very cute?"

While speaking, Fan Bingbing pouted at Wei Jin, looking all cute and playful.

"Don't you know where your strengths lie? You are still better suited for a mature and sexy path."

The temperament Fan Bingbing carried had a hint of allure; in common terms, she had a very strong air of worldliness, which really didn't suit a sweet style.

"Alright, I trust your aesthetic."

As the two spoke, they had already arrived inside the venue at Gong Ti. The staff enthusiastically guided them, and before long, Wang Zhonglei came out to greet them.

"President Wei, Bingbing, please come in." "President Wang, wishing you great box office success, haha."

Everyone helps carry a flowery sedan chair; when there was no competitive relationship, Wei Jin didn't mind saying a few nice words.

"President Wei, I'll take your word for it. You must come to the celebration banquet when the time comes, haha."

Wang Zhonglei was in a very good mood and was full of confidence in the film.

"And Bingbing, you must come too. Even though you've left, our relationship shouldn't be broken."

"President Wang, what are you saying? I will definitely come to show my support." —— Without continuing the commercial mutual flattery with Wang Zhonglei, Wei Jin led Fan Bingbing straight inside.

Ning Hao was also there today, and at this moment, he was surrounded by Li Bingbing, Ren Quan, and others. It was clear the big director was very popular.

Jiang Wen was talking to Ge You on the side, wondering if he was already planning to start a new film.

What made Wei Jin a bit unhappy was that he actually saw Lu Chuan here, with Qin Lan and Jiang Yiyan tagging along.

But that made sense; Lu Chuan made his name through Huayi Brothers, and they had always maintained a good relationship.

But how did Jiang Yiyan get involved with this guy? She had signed with Orange Sky last year; did this mean Lu Chuan had hooked up with Orange Sky?

After pondering for a moment, Wei Jin began to get a sense of it. It seemed Lu Chuan's new investor included Orange Sky, which was normal—the Japanese side would certainly support his script.

"Junior brother, you're here."

Ning Hao, having escaped the crowd, walked over to greet Wei Jin.

"Senior brother, when do you plan to release the film? After May Day, it won't be a good release window anymore."

A few days ago, the higher-ups issued a notice that starting in 2008, the May Day holiday would be reduced from seven days to three, meaning the box office potential would drop sharply, and another good release window was gone.

"I'm not in a hurry, let's just leave it for now; you're not short of this bit of money anyway."

Ning Hao already had two films with over 100 million in box office as a foundation, so he was no longer in a rush to prove himself, and he seemed very relaxed in his speech.

"Junior brother, you don't know yet, do you? That guy Lu Chuan has already started filming, and he's being quite low-key this time."

"Oh? Started filming so quickly? Have the investors been confirmed?"

Having been in North America, Wei Jin really didn't know about this news.

"Yeah, it's Starmei and Orange Sky; I don't know how he managed to talk them into it."

Wei Jin secretly thought, "As expected." Was this move by Orange Sky because the investors behind them were optimistic about the script, or did they want to express their dissatisfaction with him? After all, he had intercepted Golden Harvest, causing Orange Sky's plans to fall through, so the two sides had essentially formed a grudge.

"Junior brother, do you think we should save *Crazy Racer* for him?"

Ning Hao was actually considering sniping at Lu Chuan, and even seemed a bit eager to try.

"Haha, let's forget it. It was hard enough for Huang Bai to get a lead role; don't make him wait two years for it to be released."

Wei Jin didn't bother with Orange Sky's plans anymore; it was nothing more than soldiers coming to block and water coming to cover, and he chatted with Ning Hao as if no one else was around.

"Li An is really something; he is worthy of being the favorite son of Taiwan."

Ning Hao's words were a bit sour. At the Golden Horse Awards a few days ago, Li An had swept seven major awards with *Lust, Caution*, including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Actor, which was terrifying.

The key was that this somewhat arthouse drama had swept 66 million USD at the global box office and also taken 140 million in domestic box office, which was not a bit worse than *The Room*.

"No way around it, who told them he's a hometown boy? I only blame the domestic awards for not being impressive enough, otherwise, it wouldn't be the turn of the Golden Horse Awards to show off."

While the two were talking, the premiere performance soon began.

Li Bingbing sang the ending theme song for *A World Without Thieves*, and Huang Xiaoming performed "Don't See, Don't Part." Wei Jin almost forgot that this guy had even released an album in his past life, and it was truly ear-piercing.

The new BB group signed by Huayi Brothers also went on stage to show their faces. After watching the film, Wei Jin admitted that it was shot well; he hadn't expected Feng Dapao to have some skill with large-scale war scenes.

Zhang Hanyu and Deng Chao's performances were also good, especially the latter; Wei Jin pondered that they could collaborate sometime in the future.

During the subsequent interview session, they were inevitably asked about the box office by reporters.

"If we're talking about the film's content, I don't think it's inferior to the other side; it's just that the cast isn't as good as theirs. As for the box office, there are many directors here, why not ask them to make a prediction?"

The guests present were very supportive, and almost all the directors gave estimates of over 100 million. After all, *The Warlords* had been released for a week, and most of its potential had already been exhausted.

Wei Jin naturally couldn't avoid being interviewed, and he gave his own answer:

"Director Feng should be entering the 200 Million Club very soon."

Once these words were spoken, the whole room was shocked. Currently, the only directors in the Mainland China 200 Million Club were Zhang Yimou and Wei Jin.

Feng Dapao was even more delighted and thanked Wei Jin: "Then I'll take Director Wei's auspicious words."

It was no wonder Feng Dapao was happy; the film's cost was 80 million, and the overseas rights had already been sold for several million USD. If the box office really reached 200 million, Huayi would earn at least tens of millions, and he would surely get his share of the benefits.

The subsequent results were just as Wei Jin had said. *Assembly* was released and took a whopping 18 million in single-day box office. One must know that this was a workday! Huayi Brothers and Feng Dapao were just short of popping champagne to celebrate.

Conversely, *The Warlords* saw its daily box office cut in half, falling below 10 million. After 9 days of release, the box office was 130 million; one wonders if Han Sanping can sleep well.

The second update of the day, a total of 6200 words, is presented. I earnestly request all book friends to reward me with subscriptions, follow-up readings, and collections. Please flip to the last page for the follow-up reading, thank you everyone! (End of chapter)