Chapter 248: Fan Bingbing

In the fourth week, *Lucy* grossed 72 million, a drop of over 40% compared to last week; there was no helping it, there was too much piracy.

Even so, *Lucy* delivered a perfect report card: after 23 days of release, the cumulative Mainland China box office was 451 million, and the global box office was 275 million USD.

For a time, the media began to cheer; the record of *Transformers 2* had been broken, and Wei Jin's prediction was truly too accurate—this film had high hopes of breaking through 500 million.

Watching the news online, Fan Bingbing's thoughts drifted; why couldn't she walk into that man's heart?

She believed that if she had starred in it, she definitely would have performed better than Jing Tian; a female-led film was truly something to covet.

Shaking her head, she forcibly suppressed these unrealistic thoughts, and Fan Bingbing began chatting with Yang Siwei about the latest project.

"Sister Bingbing, are you really going to take on this project?"

After hearing Fan Bingbing's description of the project, Yang Siwei found it somewhat unbelievable; given her artist's status, starring in a television drama that couldn't be broadcast on satellite channels was too much of a waste of talent, right?

"This is a project Wei Jin is optimistic about; I trust his vision."

Fan Bingbing was very clear-headed; she had to accept what Wei Jin gave her, otherwise, she feared she wouldn't have any resources in the future.

Although she was the second female lead in *Bodyguards and Assassins*, with the hype from the Studio, the exposure was not inferior to Liu Yifei's in the slightest; it could be considered the highest-quality work she had appeared in over these years.

There was *Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame* to follow, and she believed her ranking among the Four Dan Double Bing would rise once again.

"President Wei's vision is beyond reproach, but Sister Bingbing, we still need to plan ahead."

Yang Siwei was very clear that Fan Bingbing's prime years were numbered; in the past half-year, Wei Jin had rarely "flipped her sign," and although the two sides were effectively in a cooperative relationship, whether or not resources were given was up to Shanhe Media, so it was very necessary to prepare more backup plans.

"Hmm, what you say also makes sense."

Although she had confidence in her own beauty, there were too many beautiful women in the entertainment industry, and Wei Jin's range of choices was too vast; Fan Bingbing was also very worried about subsequent resource issues.

"In that case, help me agree to that *Guanyin Mountain* project."

Although Fan Bingbing hadn't starred in *Apple* back then due to Wei Jin's interference, she had maintained a good relationship with director Li Yu over the years, and she felt it was time to make use of it.

"Okay." — North America, Beverly Hills.

The two most important men in Ceng Li's life began their first meeting.

"Hello, Uncle."

Looking at the middle-aged man before him, Wei Jin really didn't know what to say; after holding it in for a long time, he could only offer a greeting—after all, what he had done was truly bastardly enough.

Asking himself, Wei Jin felt that if he had a daughter who was knocked up by some little blond-haired guy who didn't want to give her a title, he would probably subject him to all ten of the Qing Dynasty's cruelest tortures.

"Have you handled your affairs back in the country?"

Seeming to notice Wei Jin's unease, Ceng Li's father took the initiative to start a conversation; he had been paying attention to Wei Jin's movements recently.

"Yes, I don't need to worry about the company side, and the previous film is also in post-production."

Wei Jin answered honestly: after accompanying Liu Yifei in Hong Kong for over a week, he had come to North America alone; compared to Ceng Li and the child, other matters were not important.

"That's good. With you accompanying her, Li Zi will be happy, and it's also good for the child."

Ceng Li's father was relatively satisfied that Wei Jin could put down the things in his hands to focus on accompanying his daughter during her wait for childbirth; at the very least, it showed that this kid was serious.

"Alright, go accompany Li Zi; I'll come to see her again in a few days."

Ceng Li's father hadn't been staying here during these days, even though his daughter had asked him to stay multiple times; perhaps it was the last bit of an old father's pride at work.

"Then Uncle, take care." — August 28th, a film titled *Ocean Heaven* was released.

It was very rare, but Wei Jin, who had not appeared in public for a long time, posted on Weibo to promote the film.

"This is a warm film full of healing, warmth, and the affection between After This Our; highly recommended!"

Wei Jin hoped that this type of public welfare film could receive more attention, and that these special groups could also be treated gently by society.

Several of the main creators also forwarded this Weibo post, and Li Lianjie was no exception, even adding directly:

"The filming process of this movie was the most moving experience of my acting career; I ask everyone to please show your support."

Although they didn't know the situation of the film, it didn't affect Wei Jin's status and appeal; many stars and artists forwarded this Weibo post and helped promote it.

Benefiting from the protection in theater scheduling and the promotion from a host of stars and artists.

On its first day of release, *Ocean Heaven* grossed 6.7 million.

Seeing this result, Teacher Xue was so happy she didn't know what to do; it had completely exceeded her expectations.

Unfortunately, *Ocean Heaven* was destined to be a film that most people couldn't empathize with.

On the second day, the box office dropped significantly, grossing 4.1 million; on the third day, it grossed 3.1 million.

In its first three days of release, the cumulative box office was 13.9 million; the word-of-mouth online was good, but almost no one was willing to go to the cinema to watch it.

At the same time, *Lucy* officially ended its run, with the Mainland China box office stopping at 487 million and the global box office at 303 million USD.

While the media scrambled to report it, there was also some regret; it was just a little bit away from breaking 500 million.

In fact, the distribution department had consulted Wei Jin's opinion on whether they needed to apply for an Extended Key to break the 500 million box office mark.

But Wei Jin felt it wasn't necessary; the box office drop in the final week of *Lucy* had already exceeded 50%, and the daily box office had fallen below one million, so there was no need to linger.

500 million in box office might look like an incredible achievement now, but in a year or two at most, it would be nothing.

Besides, a female-led film achieving this result was enough to make Jing Tian one of the top-tier actresses in the country; there was really no need to seek perfection.

The person involved, Jing Tian, was very open-minded; for her, being able to pass 200 million was already a success, and the current result was simply beyond imagination—a female lead who single-handedly carried 487 million in box office was undoubtedly the number one person in the country.

In her spare time from filming, the young girl was already pondering what kind of "sweet treat" to give Wei Jin. — North America, Beverly Hills.

In the study, Wei Jin was drinking the nourishing soup Ceng Li had brewed while browsing domestic film news.

As the months progressed, Ceng Li's morning sickness had gradually improved, and with Wei Jin accompanying her, her mood was also great.

Now she lived a life of listening to music, sunbathing, and occasionally going out shopping with Wang Zixuan.

Sometimes she would even cook for Wei Jin herself; this bowl of nourishing soup was Li Jie's masterpiece. The study door was pushed open, and Ceng Li stood outside the door, rubbing her belly, and said softly:

"Xiao Jin, it's almost ten o'clock; I'm going to sleep first."

Wei Jin put down the bowl in his hand, walked up, and took Li Jie's hand.

"Li Jie, you made me this nourishing soup; what am I supposed to do tonight?"

"Xiao Jin, that's not allowed; go sleep over at Zixuan's place."

A blush appeared on Ceng Li's face. In truth, a pregnant woman's libido is extremely strong, but she was afraid of hurting the baby, so she hadn't been intimate with Wei Jin for these past few days, and she had already endured it very painfully.

"Li Jie, it's okay. Didn't the doctor say that during the 4th to 8th month, we just need to be careful about the method..."

"Xiao Jin, I'm scared. I'm already 33 years old; I don't want any mishaps."

Despite her strong physical needs, Ceng Li felt she had to be responsible for the child. In fact, many women who are mothers for the first time have such thoughts.

"Alright, then you go to sleep first; I'll come to keep you company in a while."

Seeing Ceng Li insist, Wei Jin didn't force it. With the Assistant Zixuan there to help him release, his needs weren't actually that strong.

After Li Jie left, Wei Jin tilted his head back and finished the nourishing soup, continuing to look at the computer page, unable to help but shake his head.

Normally, if a company wants to go public, shares are a very important thing; it is impossible to give them to outsiders easily.

For example, Huayi; even for internal artists of the company, they set a limit of 1.8 million shares. Wei Jin also only managed to secure 50 million shares by relying on projects and his own status in the entertainment industry.

Yet LeTV is practically wishing for as much as possible. Recently, many stars and artists in the film and television industry have been buying shares and purchasing LeTV stock.

Seeing this, Wei Jin took out his phone; it was just morning over in the country.

"Lao Chen, regarding this LeTV matter, tell our company's artists not to participate. This company is very complicated; don't have any dealings with it."

"Don't worry, President Wei. This matter is spreading very quickly, but everyone isn't a fool. Except for a few whose heads aren't clear, the vast majority have ignored it, and those in our company even more so."

"Mm, by the way, what's the word on the expansion of the Artist Department?"

Since they wanted to get a piece of the pie in the trend of sky-high acting fees, they inevitably had to sign a large number of top-tier artists. But doing so would surely require paying out a large amount of resources, and subsequent projects might then affect the reputation of Shanhe Media, so choosing a reasonable method was very necessary.

Wei Jin also felt that ever since they started artist management, the scope of choices had actually become smaller in many instances. This was, in fact, the film production business and artist management starting to conflict.

"It's like this: the Artist Department has already drafted a preliminary plan. Their suggestion is to establish a new company specifically for artist management. It just so happens that the contracts of our own artists are also coming to an end one after another, so it's perfect to transfer the contracts over."

Following Chen Zhiming's introduction, Wei Jin was quite satisfied with the Artist Department's plan.

The newly established management company would have no apparent connection to the group on the surface. This way, no matter the public opinion or reputation, it wouldn't be able to transmit back to Shanhe Media.

And the company's new projects each year would prioritize cooperation with the management company, and resources traded within the circle would also tilt toward this side, so naturally, they wouldn't fall into a resource trap like the Wang Jinhua team.

There were also subsequent plans targeting mature artists. For artists signed for more than five years, if their status reached the first tier, the company would provide funding to help establish a celebrity Studio; seeking a future public listing would not be out of the question.

"Since the plan has been set, then get to work on it quickly. But I'll say it again: make sure to sign clean ones."

In a few years, there will be no shortage of celebrities whose reputations collapse. Wei Jin was terrified of the bitter fruit brought by rapid expansion.

"President Wei, you can rest assured about this. Zhang Xu will be the head of the management company in the future; if an artist really gets into trouble, he's the one who has to clean up the mess, so he'll have to be careful, haha."

"Mm, Lao Zhang is a sensible person. By the way, keep an eye on the situation over at Zhouyi."

"Understood." — Time entered mid-September, and the premiere of the tribute film *The Founding of a Republic* was about to begin.

Han Sanping's invitation call had even reached North America, but Wei Jin naturally couldn't go back specifically to attend a premiere, so he could only politely decline.

"Xiao Jin, won't it be too disrespectful to Han Dong if you don't go?"

Watching the man hang up the phone, Ceng Li suddenly spoke up.

"My situation is stable now; you don't have to stay with me every day."

Sensing Li Jie's concern, Wei Jin reached out and pulled her into his arms. Smelling her hair, he said softly:

"Li Jie, I can't give you a wedding, nor can I announce it to the world like Liu Tianwang, but at least during this time while you are pregnant and giving birth, I hope to be by your and the baby's side as much as possible."

Ceng Li could naturally feel the deep affection contained in the man's words. She reached out and interlaced her fingers with Wei Jin's: "Xiao Jin, you've already done well enough. I feel very happy; don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Ceng Li's personality was truly gentle and virtuous. Her words moved Wei Jin deeply. With a wife like this, what more could a husband ask for? "Li Jie, the luckiest thing in my life was the first moment I opened my eyes after the car accident and saw you."

Hearing this, Ceng Li said no more, quietly resting her head on Wei Jin's shoulder. The two rarely enjoyed such a warm moment.

After a long while, Ceng Li suddenly felt a bit emotional.

"Xiao Jin, tell me, how much courage did Liu Tianwang have to muster?"

At the end of last month, Liu Tianwang announced the news of his marriage, causing a sensation throughout the entire entertainment industry.

Everyone hadn't expected that Liu Tianwang would make such a choice, openly announcing the news and even apologizing to his fans on his official website, saying he shouldn't have hidden this matter.

They had thought fans would engage in crazy or irrational behavior, but unexpectedly, everyone was very understanding this time. A large number of fans went to the official website to send blessings to Liu Tianwang, even directly causing the website to crash.

The media also hyped it up to the skies; the news had even reached North America, showing just how shocking it was to the entire circle.

When Wei Jin learned the news at the time, he also had to sigh; he was worthy of being a superstar who had worked hard for decades. In this stage of 2009, he was a well-deserved top-tier celebrity.

"Li Jie, I'm not sure about that."

At the time, Wei Jin had sent a message expressing his blessings immediately, and Liu Tianwang had returned the call quickly. He was indeed a very forthright person, but he couldn't exactly drag Hua Ge into a conversation about his psychological journey over the phone, right?

"But without a doubt, this kind of behavior is very manly."

Although Liu Tianwang's matter this time was considered satisfactory, it would definitely have some impact on his career. At the very least, a large number of female fans might change their allegiance; it truly required great courage.

Wei Jin asked himself if he could reach that level, which was why he admired Liu Tianwang all the more.

However, this incident did provide Wei Jin with an idea. In Las Vegas, one can get a commemorative marriage certificate. Although it has no legal effect, I imagine it still has some meaning for a woman, right? Perhaps in the future, I can rely on this to balance family relations? First update of the day.

(End of this chapter)