Chapter 491

The stage performance lasted about an hour; after that, the main creators took a group photo, and the event officially ended.

Said to be an hour, but with preparations, wandering here and there, two hours had already passed.

And not a single clip from the movie was shown—just fooling around on stage, cracking jokes and bantering.

For a film like *The Four Great Constables*, they no longer dare to release previews early; doing so means early exposure, early backlash, and damage to box office performance.

They'd already been criticized twice; this third time, they barely dared to release it in the summer slot for fear of getting crushed.

They only dared to release it on August 22.

"If you want to sell, just tell me," Fang Hong said, tapping Wang Zhangtian's leg and standing up.

The stage show had ended; Liu Tianxian and the others went backstage to tidy up—gathering their personal belongings and gear.

The audience and reporters on-site had also all dispersed.

"Director Fang, let's have dinner together."

Wang Zhangtian also stood up and invited, fastening his suit jacket: "I've reserved a private room in this hotel."

"That's fine," Fang Hong agreed.

Liu Tianxian would probably go too, since it was a gathering of the *The Four Great Constables* main crew.

They didn't know how the box office was doing, but dinner was still necessary.

And he and Wang Zhangtian had no real personal conflict—just business competition, perfectly normal, you see each other every day.

And Fang Hong rarely targeted Guangxian directly.

Soon, Chen Jiashang, Deng Chao, Jiang Yiyan, Liu Yan, Bao Beier, and Zou Zhaolong gathered together and headed to the reserved private room.

Almost all of them were from Guangxian; Guangxian's team was still very large.

Liu Tianxian was dressed exactly as before: a silver long dress with high heels, tall and slender, her long hair flowing loose, exuding a mature, powerful woman's aura.

She held her handbag, walked to the front desk, and found Fang Hong: "Are we going back, or what?"

"Let's have dinner, then leave," Wang Zhangtian said beside her.

Seeing Fang Hong had no objection, Liu Tianxian nodded happily and handed him her handbag.

She had no pockets; carrying things was inconvenient.

Fang Hong took it, noticed her strapless dress exposing her shoulders and arms, her skin very pale, and asked: "Aren't you changing clothes?"

"It's fine, I'll change when I get home," Liu Tianxian brushed back her thick, slightly wavy hair.

Changing here was inconvenient; she'd come dressed like this, and underneath was just her underwear.

Female stars are very strict about changing locations, fearing someone might sneak photos—wasn't Tang Yan already photographed like that?

In public, some female stars even have bodyguards stand outside the restroom, afraid of being photographed—yes, I'm talking about Liu Tianxian; she's cautious even when using the toilet.

Soon they arrived at a luxurious private room with one large round table; the others had already arrived and were chatting and laughing noisily.

But when they saw the Principal and General Manager Wang enter, they suddenly fell silent.

"Principal, General Manager Wang, Liu Tianxian, come sit here," Deng Chao, quick to read the room, immediately stood and vacated his seat.

Bao Beier and Liu Yan also stood up to make way.

Jiang Yiyan, seeing the Principal, avoided eye contact, as if terrified he'd notice her.

The three didn't refuse; they sat directly—Fang Hong on the right had Liu Tianxian, on the left had Wang Zhangtian.

And beside Liu Tianxian was Jiang Yiyan! After sitting down, Liu Tianxian took the initiative to start chatting with Jiang Yiyan, laughing and talking as if they were close—though Jiang Yiyan occasionally glanced nervously toward the Principal.

Seeing the two bosses, everyone at the table became much more restrained, no longer as loud or relaxed as before.

"Today, just eat casually—the Principal is our guest, no need to be so formal," Wang Zhangtian said.

"We usually eat casually, with few rules; this is our first dinner with the Principal—if anything's lacking, please forgive us," Deng Chao said, unsure of the Principal's habits, wanting to avoid offense.

None of those at the table truly understood the Principal.

"No problem, don't mind me—just be yourselves," Fang Hong said casually.

Liu Tianxian added: "He's never had many rules—just act naturally."

This eased the others somewhat, though they still remained slightly tense, unable to fully relax.

Soon, servers brought out dishes—each one fragrant, colorful, and delicious, with mountain delicacies and seafood, and poured red wine with low alcohol content.

"It's rare for the Principal to join us for dinner, so let's raise a toast to the Principal—and wish *The Four Great Constables* a smashing box office success," Deng Chao, well-versed in social etiquette, stood and raised his glass.

The others followed, standing and clinking their glasses with his; Fang Hong, Liu Tianxian, and Wang Zhangtian also stood and clinked.

With a few "ding" sounds, everyone tilted their heads and took a sip, then sat back down.

Among the actors, Deng Chao held the most weight—he not only starred in and directed his own films, but was also a Guangxian partner, and primarily the biggest money-maker.

After drinking, Wang Zhangtian whispered to Fang Hong: "Can you license the rights to *Ghost Blows Out the Light* and *The Grave Robbers' Chronicles* to Guangxian for filming?"

He'd kept Fang Hong back just for this—these two novels had huge influence and made excellent source material, suitable for both film and TV adaptations.

"Sure, if you want to film them, go ahead—we can collaborate. But I'll remind you: we've already made a movie called *Mojin: The Lost Legend*," Fang Hong said indifferently.

The rights to these two novels were always meant to be shared—to increase their influence; he wasn't that stingy.

As long as when signing the cooperation agreement, Chang'e Video is included—only with Chang'e Video's involvement can content be supplied to Chang'e Video.

He reminded him that *Mojin: The Lost Legend* was already being filmed—it was the previous life's Guangxian investment.

Guangxian also invested in multiple TV and web series adaptations of these two novels.

Guangxian doesn't just do films—it participates in TV and Variety too, playing a comprehensive game; films alone couldn't sustain it.

While the two were discussing collaboration, Deng Chao set down his glass and turned to Liu Tianxian: "Tianxian, I want to invite you to star in my next film—would you consider it? You'd have to play an ugly role." "I'm fine with playing ugly!"

Liu Tianxian perked up at the idea of playing ugly—she wanted to change her image—but still kept her sense: "What movie? Who's directing?"

"*The Bad Angel*—I'm directing it," Deng Chao pointed to himself.

Liu Tianxian fell silent for a moment, expressionless: "Then it depends on when you shoot—I've just signed on for *Lucy 2*."

She'd assumed it was someone else directing; now that it was Deng Chao, she had no interest—it was clearly going to be a flop.

Although the previous film, *Breakup Master*, had high box office numbers, its reputation was abysmal; making another such trash film would likely get you vilified to death.

This one, *The Four Great Constables 3*, was unavoidable!

Besides, *Breakup Master* starred Da Mimi—if she again acts in Deng Chao's films, someone will inevitably compare her to Da Mimi again.

She didn't want to be compared to anyone; comparisons easily sparked conflict!

Liu Tianxian wanted to make good films, desperately wanted to make good films, but previously no one had given her resources in this area—only exploited her fame.

In the previous life, Deng Chao cast his wife Sun Li in *Evil Angel*; in this life, Liu Tianxian's value was higher, her popularity hadn't been drained—on the contrary, she was even more of a box office guarantee.

In the one-and-only flawless version!

So Deng Chao wanted to cast Liu Tianxian, to play an ugly role for contrast—likely a big selling point, and good for propaganda.

But Liu Tianxian knew he was making trash, so she used *Lucy 2* as a shield.

"Probably by year-end," Deng Chao didn't know Liu Tianxian's thoughts.

Liu Tianxian asked Fang Hong, who was chatting with Wang Zhangtian beside her: "My movie is also year-end, right?"

"Yes, we're clashing on release dates," Fang Hong knew she didn't want to take it, and played along.

In truth, *Lucy 2* hadn't even been scheduled for filming.

"Then there's nothing to be done," Liu Tianxian expressed regret, looking as if she wanted to accept, but the dates conflicted.

"No problem, we can collaborate next time," Deng Chao wasn't disappointed, appearing very magnanimous.

Everyone else remained silent, wanting to tell Deng Chao they could act in it, but couldn't bring themselves to speak.

Some resources meant nothing to Liu Tianxian, but were top-tier for them—but resources weren't something you begged for; you needed your own voice to get them.

"Are you making *Lucy 2*?" Chen Jiashang had just heard Liu Tianxian mention the film and was very interested.

He'd seen the first one—it was sci-fi action, his specialty; he'd previously made *Fist of Legend*, so he was still capable.

"Still in planning," Fang Hong said.

"Have you found a director? If not, we can talk," Chen Jiashang was eager, wanting to take over.

Mainly because no one in Neidi was hiring him for films anymore—he had to fight for opportunities himself.

"Choosing a director requires the producer's comprehensive consideration; I can't decide on my own. Let's not discuss this today," Fang Hong didn't want to elaborate—he was waiting to see if Xu Laoguai would take it.

If Xu Laoguai didn't take it, then we'd talk—Chen Jiashang was far inferior to Xu Laoguai.

"Alright!"

Chen Jiashang saw the Principal wasn't interested in him, and couldn't hide his disappointment.

He looked at Liu Tianxian and said: "I still have great chemistry with Tianxian—she's a very professional actress."

He was trying to go through Liu Tianxian's connections, knowing he couldn't get through the Principal.

"Director, you're also very tolerant and humorous—I remember once I spilled coffee on you and you didn't get angry." Liu Tianxian was very talkative.

"Hahaha!" Chen Jiashang laughed.

They started chatting freely; Liu Tianxian didn't mention *Lucy 2* at all—just casual conversation.

Everyone at the table watched Liu Tianxian become the favorite and center of attention, envious beyond words.

Either someone was feeding her resources, or big directors were fawning over her.

But one person quietly drank and ate, glancing at Liu Tianxian with occasional fondness—this person was Zou Zhaolong.

As the banquet neared its end and people were preparing to leave, Liu Tianxian specifically called out: "Brother, come visit my home sometime when you're free."

She truly regarded Zhou Zhaolong as a brother—not saying it for show or attention.

"Okay," Zhou Zhaolong spoke little, but his eyes held tenderness, and he stood to see her off.

For such a tough man, this was rare.

Later, the two really did keep in frequent contact; once, when they met, paparazzi tried to follow them for gossip and lay in wait for hours.

But they were only discussing *Zen Talks on Zhuangzi*—nothing else was mentioned, just pure sibling affection.

Liu Tianxian bid farewell to the others, then left with Fang Hong; the rest also saw them off, telling them to go slowly.

Once they left, the banquet was over.

The film was premiering tonight; post-release work was essentially done—contact if needed.

On the way, Fang Hong said: "Why do you call someone your brother like that? Don't you care about my feelings?"

"What feelings of yours? You didn't even acknowledge me as your brother." Liu Tianxian linked arms with him.

"You call him brother, call him 'brother'—does that make me the younger brother? Do I have to call him brother too?" Fang Hong was speechless—he'd inexplicably gained a brother.

At the banquet, he hadn't said a word to Zhou Zhaolong, fearing exactly this kind of familial claim that lowered his rank.

"We each call our own; you don't have to call him anything."

Liu Tianxian added: "You don't know—he's had it rough. His father died early; his mother raised over ten children alone."

(End of Chapter)