Chapter 445: Old Wei Comes to the Capital, the Harem is Stable

This year's New Year Slot was jokingly called the "Doomsday Slot" by the media, because in the final 10 or so days of 2012, there were simply too many films being released.

Qin Hong of Stellar Mega, joining forces with the wealthy and powerful Boss Lin of Media Asia, roped in the Hong Kong film crew to assemble *The Guillotines*, taking the lead in raising the banner of rebellion to launch a sniper attack on *Gravity*.

This film was touted as a passionate, youthful, period martial arts 3D movie, produced by Chen Kexin and directed by Liu Weiqiang, with Huang Xiaoming, Li Yuchun, Ruan Jingtian, Wenzhang, Jing Boran, Yu Wenle, and others joining with great enthusiasm; the cast could be described as extremely luxurious.

The pre-release promotion was also done very thoroughly, even going so far as to hype up Ruan Jingtian's shirtless press releases.

Unfortunately, the film was truly disappointing; on its opening day, the box office was less than 8 million.

Crucially, the online word-of-mouth also collapsed directly; the initial rating was only 5.6, not even as good as the 1975 version, and major film review websites were flooded with a massive amount of roasting.

"It's truly rotten to the point of no return, damn, so irritable and crazy."

"The last time I saw such a rotten film in the theater, I'd have to trace it back to *Yang Clan Generals*, hilarious."

"Damn it, am I watching Chun Ge and Zhiming?"

"This is what you call 3D? And the effect blows *Avatar* out of the water? Have you no shame? Take off the glasses and it becomes 2D, completely without ghosting, true naked-eye 3D, huh?"

"."

Everyone in the circle knew clearly that with this opening day box office and word-of-mouth, *The Guillotines*' 15 million USD production cost would definitely suffer a massive loss.

With this, yet another New Year Slot blockbuster became a soul under the gun of *Gravity*.

Whenever Wei Jin thought of the way Huang Xiaoming dragged his "broken body" to the front lines for promotion, he felt a bit of heartache.

He had wanted to give him a call to offer some comfort, but in his mind, he recalled the incident where Huang Xiaoming missed out on *Once Again* because of *The Guillotines*.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Wei Jin decided it was better not to rub salt into someone else's wounds.

After composing his mood, Wei Jin personally arrived at the airport; Comrade Old Wei's flight was about to land.

Originally, Liu Yifei had planned to come along, but after considering it repeatedly, Wei Jin refused.

The old man hadn't seen Dudu for a long time, and his first thought would definitely be to return to the Yanjiao Villa, so he wouldn't let the little girl get involved.

Soon, Wei Jin saw his father walking out of the airport, still with that scholarly and approachable appearance.

Because of his university teaching career, the scholarly aura about him had even grown more intense; he was a proper old handsome guy, and in a few years, Comrade Old Wei could even be an influencer on social media.

"Dad, the journey was hard."

Wei Jin grabbed the luggage first and handed it to the driver.

"Hmph, the journey wasn't hard, but if I had to run it a few more times, I'm afraid my heart wouldn't be able to take it."

Even though he had prepared himself mentally, when Wei Xingbang saw his own son, he still couldn't help but give him a lecture.

"Cough, Dad, what are you saying? There shouldn't be a next time."

"Should? Does that mean you still can't settle your heart?"

Wei Xingbang's gaze tightened, making Wei Jin feel a bit guilty, so he hurriedly changed the subject:

"Dad, let's get in the car. Dudu knew you were coming and was overjoyed; she said she wanted you to pick her up from kindergarten after school."

Mentioning his little granddaughter, Comrade Old Wei's expression indeed improved a lot, and a kind smile appeared at the corners of his mouth: "Mm, Dudu is still the most sensible, much more obedient than you. Let's go."

Along the way, Comrade Old Wei asked Wei Jin about many things, but most were related to family; as for his son's career, he no longer needed to worry.

"By the way, Dad, how is Uncle's health?"

Uncle Wei Anbang had always treated him like his own son, so Wei Jin had called his uncle this time too, but the old man's health wasn't very good, so he couldn't make the trip.

"There's nothing major, it's just that his legs and feet are a bit stiff, so going on long trips or anything isn't very convenient."

Speaking of this, Wei Xingbang sighed: "Son, your uncle has lived a lonely and bitter life for half his life; when you have time, go back to see him more."

Thinking of his uncle's aged face, Wei Jin nodded silently.

"Okay, I will."

Huang Xiaoming was very resilient; despite the poor performance of *The Guillotines*, he did not fall.

Dragging his plaster-cast leg, wearing a pair of large sunglasses, he stubbornly sat in a wheelchair and went to the front lines himself, shouting for *The Last Tycoon* together with the two generations of Xu Wenqiang, including Zhou Runfa.

Unfortunately, this person Wang Jing had a high ceiling, capable of filming classics like *God of Gamblers*, but his floor was also very low; the performance of this *The Last Tycoon* was extremely poor.

With a production cost of 140 million, the result was an opening day box office of only 13 million.

Although the film's rating was 6.7, which wasn't low, with the classic *Shanghai Bund* ahead of it, the audience's expectations were too high; this *The Last Tycoon* was hard to satisfy people, and the online reviews were mostly negative.

"Why does Huang Xiaoming have a sense of déjà vu of Lin Feng? Fa Ge's voice is actually still Huang Xiaoming, it's too shocking; I always feel the plot isn't very coherent, it's simply a *Shanghai Bund* gangster movie."

"The pacing of the early opening plot is as fast as a plane, the ending twist plot is as weak as a paper airplane; Wang Jing's narrative standard has seriously declined."

"Too many plot points, too many messy shots, characters are too chaotic; the whole film didn't even leave as deep an impression on me as that song by the God of Songs at the end. Too disappointed."

"."

Huang Xiaoming had fallen again and again, but the one who should be even sadder was Yu Pangzi of Bona.

Back then, this guy had made high-profile claims in front of the media, clamoring that *The Last Tycoon* and *The Grandmaster* would definitely take at least 1 billion in box office during the New Year Slot.

Now it seems that *The Last Tycoon* couldn't be counted on, and the burden had all been handed over to *The Grandmaster*.

By this point, everyone in the circle had their eyes focused on this *Chinese Zodiac* that had just been released today.

Whether it could withstand the pressure of *Gravity* depended on Cheng Long.

Wei Jin didn't pay too much attention to the situation in the film market; he took Wei Xingbang to meet Liu Yifei and her mother.

The place for the meal was a private kitchen restaurant in Beijing; on one hand, the taste was quite good, and on the other, the privacy was very strong.

After meeting, Wei Jin began to introduce them to each other.

Liu Xiaoli was a bit surprised by the scholarly aura on Wei Xingbang; if not for seeing the similar faces of the two, she would have been afraid to suspect that Wei Jin had just found a random actor to play a cameo.

And Old Wei was a bit surprised that this future in-law was overly young and beautiful; if his own son hadn't said anything, he would have thought the two in front of him were sisters.

After some pleasantries, Liu Yifei had a sweet smile on her face and presented the gift she had prepared.

This was a Qing Dynasty agarwood round-carved brush pot depicting a mountain search; although it was a miscellaneous item in the antique trade, it fit the status of Teacher Wei Xingbang well, and relatively speaking, it was also easier to preserve. Although Wei Xingbang was an amateur enthusiast, he roughly knew the value of this item—at least several hundred thousand—and was truly embarrassed to accept it.

Liu Xiaoli chimed in from the side: "Teacher Wei, we are all one family, don't be so formal."

"This isn't appropriate, it's too valuable." Wei Xingbang still shook his head.

Seeing this, Wei Jin could only smile and say, "Dad, Auntie is right. We'll be family sooner or later, so just accept Yifei's kind gesture. She's quite a little rich girl, haha."

"Well, alright then. I came in such a rush this time that I didn't prepare anything."

Since things had reached this point, and the young girl's big eyes were filled with sincerity, Wei Xingbang really found it hard to refuse, but he still took the string of beads off his wrist and handed them over.

"Yifei, these sandalwood prayer beads have been with me for many years. I'll give them to you as—"

Although a flash of joy crossed the young girl's eyes, she was afraid it was a cherished item of the elder's, so she looked at Wei Jin. Only after he nodded did she take them with both hands, smiling sweetly.

"Thank you, Uncle."

Seeing this, Wei Xingbang's impression of the young girl grew even better.

Because it was their first meeting, everyone was very restrained in their conversation.

However, Wei Jin had to admit that although Liu Xiaoli had many questionable tactics, after struggling in society for so many years, she certainly had the skills to handle social interactions.

At this moment, Liu Xiaoli was chatting with Han about some interesting things she had encountered in the entertainment industry over the years, which made the schoolteacher quite interested; after all, Wei Jin wouldn't talk to him about such trivial matters.

Liu Yifei's behavior was also very appropriate. When the adults were talking, she didn't interrupt, just sat quietly to the side, listening attentively and eating slowly. Occasionally, when asked a question, the young girl maintained a lady-like posture.

Once Han opened up, he also appeared very amiable. During the meal, he talked about many things from Wei Jin's childhood—being naughty, chasing chickens and dogs—which made Liu Xiaoli and her daughter cover their mouths and giggle.

Afterward, they talked about their experiences in the antique circle based on the gift, which made Liu Xiaoli and her daughter exclaim that their horizons had been broadened.

The time spent eating could be described as extremely warm and harmonious.

When it was time to part, Liu Xiaoli suggested, "Teacher Wei, it's rare for you to come to Beijing, and tomorrow is the weekend. Why not let Yifei take you around?"

Liu Yifei immediately chimed in, "That's right, Uncle. Let my brother and I take you to visit Panjiayuan. There are so many old items there, and I can learn how to authenticate them from you while we're at it."

Han looked troubled. He had already arranged to spend the day with Dudu tomorrow and meet Da Meiyuan's parents in the evening, but as an honest man, he really didn't know how to refuse.

"Auntie, Yifei, my dad has already arranged to meet some old comrades here in Beijing tomorrow. It's really bad timing; let's talk about it when there's another chance."

Although he was dissatisfied with Wei Jin's habit of lying through his teeth, Wei Xingbang still nodded in agreement, "Yes, that's right. I have some arrangements tomorrow, let's do it next time."

Perhaps feeling a bit awkward, Wei Xingbang smiled and added a sentence to Liu Yifei.

"As for authenticating old items, Yifei, I'm just a half-baked amateur enthusiast. I wouldn't dare to mislead anyone, haha."

"Uncle is too modest. I've benefited a lot from listening to you talk today."

"Haha, the little girl has such a sweet mouth. If you have the chance, come over to our place as a guest, and Uncle will make you something delicious."

"Mm-hmm, thank you, Uncle."

Waving goodbye to the mother and daughter, Wei Jin took his dad toward Yanjiao Villa.

On the way back, Wei Xingbang was silent for a long time before saying to Wei Jin:

"Son, Dad knows the entertainment industry is different from other places, and you have a successful career now and face many temptations. But you must have a bottom line as a person. This young girl today is quite good. Dad isn't asking you to be devoted to just one, but at least don't let her down."

"Dad, don't worry. I wouldn't have brought her to meet you if I didn't have a plan in mind."

"Mm, as long as you understand it yourself. A good drum doesn't need a heavy hammer."

Perhaps due to the weekend boost, or perhaps due to the appeal Cheng Long had accumulated over the years, or perhaps the tailwind brought by the success of *Dixing Yinxing*, *Chinese Zodiac* had an excellent box office performance on its opening day.

With an opening day result of 48.8 million, it successfully took over the title of daily champion from *Dixing Yinxing*, bringing a surprise to industry peers during this New Year Slot.

However, the film's word-of-mouth online was relatively average, with a rating of only 7 on Yinxiang Net, and it was estimated that it would drop further as the number of viewers increased.

Wei Jin estimated that it would be a bit difficult for Cheng Long to realize his 1-billion dream, because *Lost in Thailand* was less than a week away from release.

During this period, Xu Guangtou, Huang Bai, and Baoqiang frequently participated in various popular variety shows. Such intensity of promotion could even be considered somewhat extravagant for a low-budget production of 30 million.

But the results might also be more eye-catching than in the previous life, and it would look a bit ugly if the big brother was suppressed and beaten then.

However, with the release of *Chinese Zodiac*, the pattern of *Dixing Yinxing* sweeping everything and standing alone was broken, and its daily box office fell to around 40 million.

Wei Jin had been mentally prepared for this; after all, no film could stay on top forever. Being able to capture such massive traffic for half a month was already quite good.

Han, on the other hand, was a bit unhappy and was grumbling to Wei Jin on the phone, because this basically blocked *Dixing Yinxing*'s path to hitting 2 billion.

After soothing Han over the phone for a while, Wei Jin went back to playing with Dudu along with his dad.

Today, he had to enjoy some parent-child time; after all, who told Han and Wei Jin to be the biggest?

In the evening, Wei Jin and his father took gifts and met with Gao Yuanyuan's parents.

Considering that the two elders were older and not in the best of health, Wei Jin chose a hotel near the Hangke Industry Family Compound for this meal.

Unlike the situation with Liu Xiaoli, which was still in the dating stage, the Gao family situation had already resulted in a "human life," so after meeting, Han felt a bit awkward.

Heaven have mercy, as a university teacher from a scholarly family, he had actually encountered such a thing, and the key was that it wasn't the first time. If it weren't for the fact that the Wei family had only this one heir, he would have wanted to take drastic measures.

"Brother Gao, Sister-in-law, don't worry. If this brat ever dares to bully Yuanyuan and the child in her belly in the future, I will break his legs first and then sever our father-son relationship."

Han made many promises in a row, as if that was the only way to reduce the guilt in his heart. Wei Jin stood by and smiled apologetically; without Da Meiyuan present, he was truly afraid that Gao's father would say something unpleasant.

It was fine for him to suffer some grievances, but he truly couldn't accept his old father being scolded.

Fortunately, Gao's parents were intellectuals, or perhaps they could only accept it since things had reached this point, so the two elders' emotions were relatively stable.

They even had a bit of a good impression of the fact that the Wei father and son could host the banquet themselves.

Therefore, throughout the entire meal, even if it wasn't exactly harmonious and welcoming, it was at least peaceful.

With this, the second stage of Wei Jin's harem construction came to an end.

Next, he had to consider how to make them friendly with each other, or even sleep together in the same bed. (End of chapter)