Chapter 549: Refusal, Xu Guangtou's courage, nourishing Li Jie

Regarding Wei Jin's instructions, Hunter was very attentive, and the past and present of the project could be said to have been investigated clearly.

The result was just as Wei Jin expected; with Chen Jinfei's current situation, he really couldn't come into contact with any high-quality projects.

This project had existed as early as 2003. The earliest script was named *The Song of Akhenaten*, and the story was set in a gloomy England, but producer Jeremy Bolt (producer of the *Resident Evil* series) had never found an investor.

In 2005, he was filming in the country with the crew and was deeply attracted by the local scenery, so he changed the background of the protagonist's journey from the dark ages of Europe to the ancient East, and the project was renamed *Outcast*.

But in Hollywood, this kind of oriental-background script was truly a bit neither fish nor fowl, so for seven or eight years, no one invested.

Perhaps because of nostalgia, Jeremy Bolt thought about making it a co-production, which was how he came into contact with Chinese capital.

And in order to get the investment, it was packaged well, and the script name in Hollywood was also changed; now it was called *Outcast*.

"Yifei, Auntie, President Chen should be acting as a broker for his friend and was fooled. This is not a good project; don't take it."

Wei Jin spoke relatively tactfully, but his attitude was very firm.

Although he didn't know the detailed content of the script, a Hollywood film with an oriental background, wasn't that exactly the same as *The Forbidden Kingdom*?

For Liu Yifei, who had just debuted not long ago and transferred to the big screen, an investment project like *The Forbidden Kingdom* was barely useful; after all, being able to partner with Cheng Long and Li Lianjie was an improvement in status.

But times were different now; with Liu Yifei's current status, acting in this kind of movie again would be too much of a pit.

Liu Yifei also understood this principle and nodded heavily, "Hmm, brother, I will represent the two of us and refuse him."

As she spoke, Liu Yifei took out her phone and wanted to dial, but was stopped by Liu Xiaoli.

"Yifei, let me make this call; you two shouldn't interfere..."

"But, Mom..."

"There's no 'but'; it's most appropriate for me to say it."

Liu Yifei still wanted to say something, but was stopped by Liu Xiaoli's firm gaze.

Wei Jin could see from the side that after two consecutive unreliable suggestions, Liu Xiaoli had already developed the idea of parting ways; she didn't want others to use her daughter's future as a bargaining chip again.

So he took Liu Yifei's little hand and comforted her: "Yifei, leave it to Auntie; believe her, she can handle it well."

"Then... alright."

Leaving Liu Yifei's house, Wei Jin went directly to the company.

After solving the investment problem, Wu Jing had completely let go, and his efficiency was terrifying.

In less than 10 days, he completed the film's storyboard, and today he specifically made an appointment with Wei Jin to ask for guidance.

After some pleasantries, Wei Jin didn't stand on ceremony, took the thick storyboard, and flipped through it.

Ten minutes later, he closed the materials and nodded.

"Not bad, just follow your own ideas."

Honestly, this storyboard wasn't flawless, but some films were purely handmade films with a very strong personal style.

For example, this *Wolf Warrior*; if someone else came to do it, it wouldn't be that flavor.

Therefore, he only wanted an investment share and didn't interfere with the specific filming.

Of course, the film's promotion and post-production special effects would be handed over to Shanhe Media, which could be considered a one-stop service.

"What stage is it at now? Is the filming plan out?"

"President Wei, the script was submitted for review after the holiday, and it should be passed soon. Regarding roles, I have already invited Yu Nan for the female lead. For the others, I plan to get them done within half a month..."

Speaking of this, Wu Jing seemed to remember that the person in front of him was the investor, scratched his head, and asked: "President Wei, do you have any requirements for the roles?"

"No, you decide for yourself."

This kind of war-themed film didn't promote people, and Wei Jin was too lazy to interfere.

Wu Jing breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and then continued: "After the roles are selected, it will take about a month for pre-training. It is expected to start filming before July, and the approximate filming cycle should be about 3 months.

In addition, I have already communicated with the military region these past few days. When filming, they will provide tanks and cannons, all real stuff..."

Wei Jin raised his eyebrows upon hearing this and teased with a smile: "It seems you didn't spend those few months in the army in vain; this face is not small..."

"Hehe, I also have to thank President Wei for your support."

Wu Jing touched his crew-cut head, appearing a bit honest, and then suggested: "By the way, President Wei, when filming, please come over to give some guidance."

"Guidance is not worth mentioning; when the time comes, I'll come to take a look at those real things, haha..."

Wei Jin responded with a smile. As a producer, it was only right to go to the set to take a look; anyway, it wouldn't delay anything.

After sending Wu Jing away, Wei Jin continued to bury his head in the office drawing the storyboard.

At night, Wei Jin heard from Liu Yifei that Liu Xiaoli and Chen Jinfei's communication today was very unsmooth and they quarreled very fiercely.

"Brother, listening to Mom's meaning, perhaps they won't have any dealings in the future..."

Speaking of this, Liu Yifei was slightly sad, "Brother, do you think this is right?"

Wei Jin could actually understand the little girl's thoughts very well. She had known Chen Jinfei since she was a teenager, and she had been calling him godfather for more than ten years.

When she first debuted, Chen Jinfei's help to her was indeed very great, paving the way with all kinds of money and throwing resources.

And Liu Xiaoli had been divorced for many years, so Chen Jinfei inevitably played the role of a father on Liu Yifei's growth path.

Now that they were strangers, it was naturally inevitable to have some sighs.

So he tightened the little girl in his arms and comforted her: "Yifei, the help he gave you, you have basically paid back in the past few years. If you really feel sorry, at worst, support him financially. Anyway, he does these projects to make money."

"Hmm, that's all we can do."

Seeing the little girl was in a bad mood, Wei Jin didn't want to chat too much on this topic and chatted with the girl about *The Fault in Our Stars*.

The little girl was indeed distracted and analyzed the various psychological journeys of the female lead with Wei Jin.

It could be seen that Liu Yifei was indeed very serious about this play partnered with Wei Jin and was very well prepared.

"Brother, this play will definitely become a beautiful memory for us..."

"Hmm, it definitely will."

Wei Jin said affirmatively, then reached out to touch the girl's black hair, feeling some regret.

"Yifei, according to the script, you have to cut your hair short when the time comes, what a pity..."

The female lead in this play was a cancer patient, and the style was short hair to the ears; after all, she had to carry an oxygen device at any time, so long hair was definitely not suitable.

"Where is it that exaggerated? It's not shaving the head. I don't care, but you are reluctant..."

Being arrogant on her lips, the smile on the little girl's face obviously betrayed her. It could be seen that she was very happy about Wei Jin's concern.

"By the way, brother, can you let Changchang make a guest appearance this time..."

"Sure, what kind of terminal illness do you want to arrange for her?"

When Wei Jin wrote the script before, he thought about the age problems of all the characters.

The male and female leads basically used their real ages, which was about between 25-30 years old.

Most of the other sick friends also adjusted their ages accordingly, which was slightly different from the original work.

"Just let her play that leukemia patient, haha..."

Looking at Liu Yifei's heartless laughter, Wei Jin's index finger moved, and his hands began to wander along the thin and silky pajamas.

"Alright, no problem, but Yifei, what benefits does this director have?" Liu Yifei's beautiful face flushed, she gave Wei Jin a white look, and slowly lowered her white swan neck.

"Hiss~~~ Oh~~~"

Compared to Wu Jing's efficiency, Xu Guangtou's delay was not short; it took nearly half a month before he came to the company.

Wei Jin didn't stand on ceremony with him and went straight to the point.

"You came over today, presumably you already have a plan?"

"Yes."

Xu Guangtou took a deep breath, trying his best to restrain his nervousness, his tone calm:

"President Wei, my plan is like this: a one-time payment of 100 million for copyright buyout, and then on this basis, add 5% of the net profit. What do you think?"

"Oh? Such a big hand, is it Ali or LeTV?"

Wei Jin didn't answer immediately, but looked at Xu Guangtou with a smile that wasn't a smile.

He didn't believe that relying solely on the makeshift team Xu Zheng established last year, he could come up with such a large sum of funds. It was obvious that he had found a backer.

Xu Zheng's face was slightly embarrassed. After all, he was able to rise because of Wei Jin's promotion. Now running for other capital, it was somewhat like betraying his master for glory.

However, Xu Zheng's face was very thick. He pushed the glasses on the bridge of his nose and tried his best to make a very sincere look: "President Wei, it's Ali; they are very optimistic about this project..."

Seeing that Wei Jin didn't say much, Xu Zheng continued to probe: "President Wei, what do you think?"

Wei Jin shook his head: "You should know the situation of *Lost in Thailand*; the net profit exceeds 400 million. Your plan has no sincerity..."

Xu Zheng looked embarrassed, "President Wei, the account can't be calculated like this. No one can guarantee how much the box office will be. You take a large sum of cash to leave, and then enjoy the net profit share later. Why not do it?"

Wei Jin admitted that Xu Guangtou's words made some sense, but the reputation of the *Jiong* series had already been established. Even if the sequel was a bad film, the audience would definitely pay for it.

Therefore, how could he possibly agree to such a one-off deal?

"Old Xu, how long have we known each other?"

Xu Zheng was stunned, "President Wei, seven or eight years, right?"

"Yeah, seven or eight years in a flash..."

Wei Jin leaned slightly on the soft guest sofa, picked up the teacup and took a sip: "So you should know very well that I like gambling very much."

"President Wei, how do you want to gamble?"

"Very simple, how much do you think the sequel's box office can be conservatively estimated?"

Xu Zheng thought about it, slightly probing: "600 million?"

"Good, let's take 600 million as the dividing line. Below 600 million, I want 30% of the priority distributable box office; above 600 million, I want 40%. In addition, the subsequent sequels are all 30%."

Wei Jin's words made Xu Zheng swallow his saliva unconsciously.

The box office distribution of a film must first deduct expenses such as the film special fund, and the remaining part is 91.7% of the total box office.

This part is then deducted by 57% of the cinema's distribution ratio, and the distributable box office belonging to the distributor only accounts for about 40% of the total box office.

This part must also deduct the distributor's promotion expenses, and the remainder is the producer's income.

And Wei Jin's plan was to prioritize the distributor, without bearing any costs at all.

This appetite could not be considered small.

"Of course, it doesn't matter if you and Ali can't accept it. The company has many projects. If we delay for a few more years, it will be the same if I operate it myself."

Without waiting for Xu Guangtou to answer, Wei Jin directly threw out his trump card.

"This..."

These words directly forced Xu Guangtou into a corner. He saw his eye corners twitch slightly, and his heart seemed to be fighting between heaven and man.

Wei Jin didn't urge him, because the initiative was always in his hands.

After a long while, Xu Zheng gritted his teeth, "President Wei, let's do it as you said."

"Oh? No need to discuss, can you make the decision?"

Listening to Wei Jin's slightly mocking words, Xu Guangtou didn't care at all.

"Hehe, President Wei, Ali and I are also in a cooperative relationship. Even if they don't agree, I can accept your gambling method."

Xu Zheng thought very clearly. If Wei Jin wanted money, he really couldn't take it out, but it was just the share afterwards, what was he afraid of? "Courage."

At this moment, Wei Jin was really surprised by Xu Zheng's decisiveness. In his previous life, he could rise, and he really had something.

"Alright, leave the rest to the legal department."

"Thank you, President Wei, I will arrange it as soon as possible."

This kind of business contract involving gambling had too many twists and turns and couldn't be signed in a short while.

"Hmm, are you still planning to do it in Hong Kong?"

"Yes, I think adding something with connotation will have a better effect."

Xu Zheng was still very confident in his conception, and Wei Jin didn't say much.

"Alright, Old Xu, then I wish you good luck."

Leaving the company, Wei Jin returned to the Yanjiao villa and saw Zeng Li packing her luggage because the Cannes Film Festival was about to open.

The company had already arranged relevant personnel to be responsible for the sale of copyrights. After all, for Lao Mouzi's literary film, the price shouldn't be low.

"Li Jie, how long are you going to stay in Cannes this time?"

Wei Jin hugged the beauty's slender waist from behind and lowered his head to take a deep sniff in her black hair.

"Estimated to be half a month; there are still several announcements after the closing ceremony..."

"It's going to be so long; what should I do if I miss you?"

While talking, Wei Jin's hands began to be dishonest, climbing all the way up to the proud snow-capped mountains.

"Slap!"

Zeng Li slapped away the mischievous hand, turned around, and gave him a white look, "I believe you, a ghost; so many little girls are pestering you..."

"Li Jie, this is wronging me; how can little girls be as caring as you?"

Wei Jin fought repeatedly, and the two armies never gave up, continuing to occupy the high ground.

"Stop, stop, stop, I'm packing things, don't make trouble~~"

"Oh, it's not urgent; let's talk later. Let husband nourish Li Jie well first..."

Wei Jin immediately paused, his arms holding the inside of the beauty's knees, and with one rise, he hugged her horizontally.

During this period, he had indeed neglected the big beauty, and Wei Jin really wanted to make up for it, but Zeng Li didn't appreciate it, and a pair of snow-white calves swayed in the air.

"Oh, it's broad daylight..."

"Li Jie, don't worry, I will remember to close the curtains..."

After speaking, Wei Jin strode towards the bedroom.

Soon, bursts of fairy music sounded in the room. (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 550 =====