Chapter 367: Betrayal and Shady Operations

Time has entered the latter part of November.

In the film market, *Love is Not Blind* has grossed 288 million after ten days of release.

Currently, the daily box office is still maintaining around 20 million; reaching a final total of 500 million is very likely.

Films set to be released during the New Year Slot have also begun to enter the promotional phase.

As for *Mojin: The Lost Legend*, Wu Ershan, along with Liu Yifei and a host of key creators, has already begun a promotional tour, frequently appearing on various variety shows and news interviews under Shanhe Media.

As for the upcoming *White Vengeance*, it has already entered its final, frenzied stage.

It is worth mentioning that the producers of *White Vengeance* are crazily riding the coattails of popularity, making Yang Mi, Li Tianwang, and Zhang Hanyu the main subjects of the film's promotion.

After all, the former has a blockbuster film currently in theaters, and the latter two are the leads of *Thieves*, which has topped the box office charts.

And it must be said, the effect is quite good; many netizens have shown great anticipation for this film.

At the same time, the conflict between the producers and the cinema chains has escalated, with even overseas media reporting on it, so the General Administration has decisively taken action, announcing an industry meeting to cut the Gordian knot and suppress this matter.

This mediation meeting is of a very high level; the heads of major production companies, well-known directors and producers in the industry, and representatives from 38 mainstream cinema chains have all received invitations from the General Administration.

As the holder of the domestic box office record and the helmsman of Shanhe Media, Wei Jin is naturally among those invited.

Only, considering that the film shoot has entered its final stages, Wei Jin arranged for Chen Zhiming to attend on his behalf.

After all, for a meeting like this, the authorities surely already have a draft in mind; whether Wei Jin goes or not cannot change the result, so it is better to spend his energy on the film.

At 9:30 in the morning, Chen Zhiming arrived at the General Administration.

The reception hall was already crowded with people from the film and television circle, all of whom were prominent figures.

However, the producers and the cinema chains were clearly divided into two distinct camps.

On the producers' side were heads of state-owned enterprises like Han Sanping of China Film Group and Ren Zhonglun of Shanghai Film Group, as well as heads of industry production companies like Wang Zhongjun of Huayi, Wang Changtian of Enlight, Wu Keb of Skywheel, Boss Yang of Emperor, and Yu Dong of Bona.

In addition, many well-known producers and big-name directors in the industry also came; Chen Hong, Gu Changwei, Jia Kezhang, Ma Ke, and Zhong Lifang met as acquaintances and naturally exchanged pleasantries—this circle was all in the same camp.

"Why haven't I seen Zhang Weiping?"

Watching the meeting time draw closer, Ning Hao asked with some confusion.

Many people were taken aback upon hearing this, then looked around, all feeling quite surprised.

"Hey, I really don't see him."

"This guy is the party involved; it's impossible he didn't come, right?"

"Perhaps he didn't fail to come, but has already gone inside..."

Looking at the few figures missing from the cinema chain side, Chen Zhiming said thoughtfully.

"That's right, not just Zhang Weiping; Ye Ning, Zhao Feng, Qin Hong, and the others from the eight major cinema chains are also not here."

Once Wang Zhongjun said this, the morale of the producers at the scene immediately slumped; everyone had a bad premonition. *Bottom-Tier Girl* film set.

Wei Jin sat behind the monitor, carefully watching the playback of the footage in the frame, and nodded.

"Cut, this take is good."

After speaking, Wei Jin raised his wrist, glanced at the time, and called out to the crew.

"Life producer, arrange for meal time; we start shooting promptly at 2 PM."

The crew staff began to organize the props in an orderly fashion, while the main cast and crew came to a table with Wei Jin, Chen Xi, and others; lunch had already been prepared.

"Director Wei, looking at the progress, we're almost finished, right?"

Xu Yajun, who came from the Central Academy of Drama, started chatting while eating.

"Mm, just about; I estimate it'll be a matter of these next two days."

Wei Jin picked up a bite of food, nodded in response, and then looked at Chen Xi.

"How is the situation over at Guo Fan's side?"

"The studio has been set up, and the crew has been assembled; we expect to start filming at the end of this month."

Wei Jin nodded upon hearing this; the vast majority of the scenes for the film *Ex Machina* are completed in a cramped space, so building the sets himself is the most convenient way.

"Who is the producer arranged for this time?"

"It's Wang Xu; by the way, Han Jianv has also joined the crew this time."

Hearing Chen Xi's words, Wei Jin nodded; Wang Xu is from the Beijing Film Academy and has served as a producer for Lu Yang several times, so he certainly has the ability.

As for Han Jianv, after this girl entered the Director Department of the Beijing Film Academy, she actually became more interested in literature and production; she would go to the screenwriting department of Shanhe Media to chat with those female editors whenever she was free, looking like they had met too late.

Regarding this, after Han tried to persuade her several times to no avail, he could only let her be.

This time, Wei Jin arranged for her to join the crew of *Ex Machina* to let the girl intern early and accumulate experience; after all, he had promised Han he would take care of her.

As for what height she can reach in the future, that will depend on her own ability.

Not long after lunch ended, Wei Jin and Lu Yang were smoking when Chen Zhiming actually rushed over.

"President Wei, today's meeting was truly spectacular..."

Listening to the account, Wei Jin also understood why Chen Zhiming was excited; it had to be said that it really was a good show.

The leaders of the General Administration were very capable; adhering to the "principle of not making decisions as a group," they directly separated Zhang Weiping from the producers, not giving him the opportunity to continue to coerce his peers.

They pulled Zhang Weiping and the representatives of the eight major cinema chains together for a small meeting and directly set the tone.

Through the coordination of the General Administration, New Picture and the cinema chains reached an agreement.

The minimum ticket price for *The Flowers of War* was raised by 5 yuan, and the box office revenue sharing adopted a tiered sharing method.

With 500 million as the watershed, for the portion of the film's box office within 500 million, New Picture enjoys a 45% share; for the portion exceeding 500 million, they only get a 41% share.

The key part came: this plan is unique to *The Flowers of War*; other films will still follow the tone originally set by the General Administration—43% execution.

Unsurprisingly, once this result came out, neither the production companies nor the cinema chains could accept it.

As for the producers, so many people voiced support for Zhang Weiping, but was it just to increase the share for *The Flowers of War*?

They had agreed to advance and retreat together, but the leader turned out to be profit-seeking and disloyal, ignoring the other producers after getting his own benefits? This was a naked betrayal!

The cinema chains were the same; the eight major cinema chains, which had previously held a tough stance, actually compromised?

Some of the theater chains that had signed the joint agreement simply exploded, stating on the spot that they refused to screen *The Flowers of War*; this was the right of the theater chains, and the General Administration could not interfere.

"Zhang Weiping is being too ruthless, isn't he? He initiated this whole thing from start to finish, tying the entire industry to his chariot. Now that things have reached this point, he turns around and jumps off? Is he not considering the consequences at all?"

Lu Yang, listening from the side, found it somewhat unbelievable.

"Zhang Weiping is a typical person who forgets righteousness at the sight of small profits; it is no surprise he would do something like this."

Chen Zhiming mocked with a smile, then looked at Wei Jin.

"Come to think of it, President Wei was wise to be on guard against him when signing the joint agreement."

"It wasn't so much being on guard against him; as the leading company in the industry, if we were to pressure the theater chains so blatantly, how would the higher-ups view it?"

At Wei Jin's level, his perspective on things had already changed somewhat. One must know that no leader likes those who take the lead in causing trouble.

Zhang Weiping's move might look like a win, but he not only offended all his peers in production, but also soured all his partners in the theater chains, and even got himself blacklisted by the direct regulatory agency.

It can be said that for the sake of petty gains, New Picture and Zhang Weiping have completely cut themselves off from the entire film circle; it can be called a loss that outweighs the gain.

"Just watch, Zhang Weiping's days ahead won't be easy."

By the afternoon, the content of the General Administration's meeting had been reported by the media, and the industry and the internet were in an uproar.

People in the industry really didn't expect that Zhang Weiping would actually stage such a "betrayal" drama, playing those production companies that signed the joint agreement for fools.

These companies that signed the agreement not only didn't get a single cent of benefit, but also offended the theater chains; they were absolute scapegoats and fall guys.

As for the reason the netizens were in an uproar, it was even easier to understand, because the price hikes were passed directly onto the audience by the theater chains.

At this moment, the comment sections under Zhang Weiping and New Picture's Weibo accounts had exploded.

A large number of netizens and film fans left comments mocking and cursing, and some even called for everyone to boycott the film.

Looking at the comments online, the Assistant was somewhat panicked.

"President Zhang, should these be deleted?"

"Delete what? They're hyping up our film for free, what are you afraid of?"

Zhang Weiping expressed his indifference, then added.

"Don't look at how loudly they're shouting; when the time comes, they'll still be eagerly heading into the theaters. It's typical 'saying no but acting yes'."

Hearing this, the Assistant couldn't say much more and continued to lurk online to monitor information, but soon his face changed drastically and he screamed.

"President Zhang, it's bad! Some theater chains have directly issued announcements stating they won't screen our *The Flowers of War*."

Hearing this, Zhang Weiping walked over in a panic.

When he saw the content clearly, Zhang Weiping's face turned ashen; he really didn't expect these theater chains to be so stubborn—refusing to make money? "This is trouble."

Zhang Weiping was incredibly irritable; although he had already increased the box office split and the minimum ticket price, if he lost the support of a portion of the cinemas, the outcome was truly hard to say.

However, as *The Flowers of War* was solely produced by New Picture and even filmed with loans, could he, Zhang Weiping, allow it to fail?

"No, absolutely not, absolutely not!"

Zhang Weiping had fallen into madness; with red eyes, he went to his computer and opened a file he had already edited. Generally speaking, film producers would release actors' makeup photos and stills during the filming process to attract the audience's attention and improve the final box office results.

But *The Flowers of War* did the opposite; all along, the confidentiality work regarding the female lead had been done very well, and although many photos had been released, none had shown her face.

Until today, a still appeared online, instantly attracting the attention of netizens.

This was a still of the female lead and Bale.

Ni Ni was wearing a qipao, slightly leaning forward, outlining her already alluring curves even more perfectly.

Bale was lying on the ground, looking up at Ni Ni, their eyes meeting.

Although the still was somewhat suggestive, netizens could understand it; after all, the character "Yumo" in the original work was defined as a "prostitute."

Many netizens even praised Zhang Yimou for his unique eye for casting—both pure and seductive, simply perfect.

But what really made the netizens boil over was that shortly after the still was released, the official Weibo of *The Flowers of War* posted an article—"My Bed Scene with Bale"! The entire article, from the first-person perspective of the female lead, used a diary format to describe in detail all her experiences while filming the bed scene with Bale, including physiological reactions and psychological feelings; it could be called a piece of "erotica."

In just one short hour, the entire Weibo was abuzz.

A large number of lecherous fans came to watch, bringing great heat and attention to the film.

Major forums and Tieba were all discussing this matter.

Even Ceng Li, who didn't usually go online much, knew about this, which shows how high the heat was.

In the evening, while snuggling with Wei Jin at the head of the bed, Ceng Li took the initiative to talk about this matter.

"Xiao Jin, what do you think that actress was thinking? How could she write something like this? Is she crazy about wanting to get ahead?"

Wei Jin wrapped his arms around his beauty, around that slender waist that hadn't lost its shape from childbirth.

"Li Jie, this girl is from the Communication University of China, Nanjing. Do you think this elementary school-level essay could have been written by her?"

Ceng Li nodded upon hearing this; this article indeed had no literary merit at all.

"Then it was Zhang Weiping's doing?"

Ceng Li had never doubted Zhang Yimou in her heart; as an internationally renowned director, the latter would absolutely never use this method to promote and hype.

"Mm, it's definitely him."

Wei Jin expressed his certainty without hesitation.

When it comes to hype and promotion, there are many geniuses in the industry, but in Wei Jin's impression, no one would go to this extent.

Even the uninhibited Feng Dapao would at most make some dirty jokes; it would be impossible to write such a long, blatant essay just to ride the wave of popularity.

Only Zhang Weiping, pushed into a corner, would possibly adopt such a low-class method, sparing no cost to build momentum for *The Flowers of War*.

"Xiao Jin, then what do you think Zhang Weiping is thinking? By doing this, doesn't he consider Director Zhang's feelings?"

In Ceng Li's view, the most embarrassing thing about this method of hype wasn't for the newcomer Ni Ni, but for the great director Zhang Yimou.

The outside world would only mock Zhang Yimou for having no confidence in his own film, which is why he used such a low-class way to promote and hype it.

"Zhang Weiping is a person who only sees profit; as for Zhang Yimou's reputation, what does that have to do with him?"

Without a doubt, this move by Zhang Weiping, while increasing the film's heat, was slamming Zhang Yimou's face hard onto the ground, and even stepping on it twice in front of the entire film and television circle.

Wei Jin had a premonition that the breakup of the two Zhangs was right before their eyes.

He immediately made up his mind that once the film shoot ended in a couple of days, he would have to find an opportunity to make contact with Zhang Yimou.

Compared to the directors signed under his banner, Zhang Yimou was far superior in terms of ability, reputation, energy, and efficiency; he was absolutely a qualified tool.

Thinking of this, Wei Jin was in a great mood, his hands firmly grasping Ceng Li's big oranges.

"Li Jie, I remember you have a qipao too. Why don't we try it out tonight?"

How could Ceng Li not know what Wei Jin was plotting, but after spending so much time together, the great beauty had also fallen in love with this dynamic.

Rolling her eyes at the man, under Wei Jin's expectant gaze, Ceng Li changed into the silk qipao with a heart-shaped cutout on the chest and a slit reaching up to the top of her thighs, looking just like a noble lady who had stepped out of a book from the Republic of China era.

"Li Jie, you are truly beautiful."

Wei Jin's hands caressed the beauty's waist, which appeared even more slender due to the qipao.

"Xiao Jin, what are you still waiting for?"

Seeing that the beauty had already sent the signal, Wei Jin gently pressed his lips against her alluring red lips, his hands grasping her big oranges through the smooth silk qipao.

Before long, the mature older sister began to exude an alluring scent, as if summoning the man to taste her quickly.

"Xiao Jin, quickly Amour me."

"Coming, my baby."

Very soon, the sound of applause rang out in the room. (End of chapter)