Chapter 58: A Man Who Isn't Greedy Can't Get Rich

The three exchanged pleasantries for a while, sensing the atmosphere was right.

Fang Hong spoke up: "Manager Lei, we've come today to request an advance on our payment. Would that be possible?"

"Ah, I see."

Manager Lei paused thoughtfully; he knew these two had a purpose, otherwise they wouldn't have come now.

He didn't hide the truth and explained: "The cinema's payment hasn't come in yet—settling now wouldn't follow procedure."

That meant the cinema's funds hadn't been settled to them; to get it now, China Film Group would have to cover it!

"We don't need much—three or five million will do," Fang Hong said.

Manager Lei considered it; compared to their tens of millions in outstanding payments, this sum was trivial.

It could simply be deducted from that larger sum later.

"Wait a moment—I'll make a call."

Manager Lei said, not even bothering to step away, picked up the desk phone and dialed: "Hello, Lao Han, busy? If not, come over."

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At this address, Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi exchanged glances; both guessed who was on the other end.

The famed Zuoshandiao!

After hanging up, Manager Lei said: "I can't decide this myself—wait a moment, Director Han will be here shortly."

"Thank you, Manager Lei," Fang Hong said.

"No need to be so formal—we all have tough times," Manager Lei replied, understandingly.

He admired this young man, which was why he was helping out.

As the three chatted, the door opened and Director Han strode in.

Manager Lei stood to greet him and introduced: "Lao Han, these are the two main creators of Those Years, as I mentioned."

Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi immediately rose and greeted:

"Director Han, good day!"

"Director Han, good day!"

Zuoshandiao sized them up, gave a slight nod in response, then said: "I've heard of you from Lao Lei—you've done well."

"Thank you, Director Han. We still need to work harder," Fang Hong replied.

Manager Lei explained the situation to Zuoshandiao: "They're facing some difficulties and need an advance on part of the funds—three or five million will suffice."

"No problem at all!"

Zuoshandiao agreed without hesitation: "The final box office figures are already out—whether we pay now or later, it's all due anyway. Pay them in full."

Hearing this, Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi's faces lit up; they hadn't expected it to be this easy—they'd thought they'd have to negotiate for days.

State-owned enterprise—those who understand, understand!

But they didn't care either way; if this were any other company, they'd never get paid without waiting one or two years.

That's why directors only make a film every few years—the return cycle is slow.

That's also why film productions split investments—the payback period is too long.

"Thank you so much, Director Han," Fang Hong said sincerely.

"Making films these days isn't easy. You're just starting out—you need working capital. This is a minor thing."

Zuoshandiao understood, then added a warning: "When making films, stick to the right path. Don't resort to shady tactics—it reflects poorly."

He was referring to Fang Hong's plagiarism of Those Years.

The fact that he'd reached this position and helped drive Hua Guo's film industry forward showed a breadth of vision and understanding no ordinary person could match.

"I understand. I won't do it again," Fang Hong promised.

He made Those Years only to guarantee his first big profit—now he'd made it, so he no longer needed to do such things.

Zuoshandiao nodded and asked: "Have you prepared your next film?"

"We're already shooting it," Fang Hong said.

"Oh? So soon? Have you secured all the funding?" Zuoshandiao was surprised—this was fast.

"All funding has been secured," Fang Hong still wanted to keep the largest share for himself.

A man who isn't greedy can't get rich!

"Then why do you need the payment now?" Zuoshandiao didn't finish—he made his meaning clear.

"It's like this: when we made our first film, we borrowed a lot of money. Creditors are chasing us, so we have no choice," Fang Hong said, mixing truth with falsehood.

It's common for first-time directors to borrow money to make their debut films—funding is hard to secure.

This is standard in the industry: no opportunity? Create one yourself!

And he wasn't lying—he really had borrowed money!

"Understood."

Since he hadn't invested, Zuoshandiao felt no regret—it wasn't a big-budget blockbuster anyway, and who knew if the next film would even turn a profit?

A film's first success doesn't guarantee the second will succeed.

The film industry is high-risk—profitable projects are still the minority.

He said this, then signaled to Manager Lei: "Lao Lei, handle the details with them—pay them out. I've got other business—I'll be going."

"Alright, let me see you off."

The three escorted Zuoshandiao out of the office.

Fang Hong invited: "Manager Lei, why don't we go have dinner?"

"Sure, just a moment!"

Manager Lei didn't refuse—he went to give some instructions.

Next came the matter of money. Earning money and then treating someone to a meal was perfectly normal, and this meal was one Manager Lei could well afford.

Besides, they'd still need to work together next time!

Drinking-table culture—Fang Hong found it distasteful, but at this stage he still needed it. He shot Chen Zhixi a look that said: your treat.

Chen Zhixi let out a sigh, as if she weren't too willing!

"Expense it!" Fang Hong leaned in and whispered.

Now that was more like it. Then Chen Zhixi was happy to go along—after earning so much money, having her still foot the bill would have been unreasonable.

The three of them found a high-end restaurant and went into a private room.

After a few glasses of wine, Fang Hong asked, "Manager Lei, how do you see the remittance process going forward?"

Although Zuoshandiao had agreed, he wasn't handling the specifics—Manager Lei could drag his feet just the same if he wanted.

Manager Lei understood what he meant, set down his glass and said, "The remittance may take some time. Send someone over to liaise. Also, the funds can only be wired to a corporate account—just provide a corporate account and that'll do."

In other words, the transfer had to be conducted company-to-company, and such transfers required invoices.

They couldn't be expected to send money to your personal account—who knows what tricks might be hidden in there, and what if it turned out to be illegal?

Opening a corporate account required a legitimate company, which guaranteed its legitimacy!

"Good. On our side, we'll have Producer Chen liaise with you."

Fang Hong's company had long been set up; it just didn't have many employees.

Once the money was in hand, he'd still need to get the finance team in order first.

He added, "Then roughly how long until it arrives?"

He was afraid the remittance would take too long—in that case, they'd push the wedding scenes to the end of the shoot, since that sequence burned through the most capital.

"Excluding holidays, within seven days. But don't worry, we'll send it to you as soon as possible," Manager Lei said.

Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi were very satisfied and clinked glasses with Manager Lei.

The money matter settled, Manager Lei asked, "I heard you mention just now that you already have another film in production, right?"

"Yes, in less than a month it should wrap, and when the time comes we'll still need Manager Lei's help with distribution," Fang Hong said.

"Sure, no problem with that. As long as it passes censorship, it's fine. Just don't make the kind of film dwelling on the dark side, on suffering and backwardness—films like that I can't guarantee will get a release."

Manager Lei told them.

That kind of film, even if it passed review, could still be pulled from shelves at any moment.

"We won't!" Fang Hong promised.

He didn't bring up any talk of film as art, of winning awards—that wasn't something to consider at this stage.

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(End of chapter)