Chapter 43: Maybe We Can Create a Masterpiece!

"Need an umbrella?"

"No need, President Zhou. I need to find creative inspiration in the rain."

"Alright! Go for it!"

"Okay!"

Morning of July 21.

Summer weather is like a child's face; it changes in an instant.

The morning had been sunny and bright.

But at 9 a. m., a heavy rain suddenly poured down.

On the overpass, pedestrians hurried everywhere, scrambling for cover.

But...

Shen Hu, guitar on his back, sang a song no one cared about in the rain as if no one else existed, singing with extreme enthusiasm like a fool.

Though he lacked much artistic talent, his pursuit of art was extremely intense.

A few days ago, Zhou Yang had given him some money, which boosted his confidence considerably.

Hmm, now he could beg with his back straighter and more confidently.

Zhou Yang, accompanied by Shen Long and Chen Jianfeng, the two "Hidden Dragon and Phoenix Chicks," passed Shen Hu's stall, chatted briefly with him, then headed straight for the cinema across the street.

Shen Hu watched Zhou Yang's back for a long time.

In the rain...

He suddenly felt a bit melancholy.

President Zhou, you've already shot one film, so when are you going to release my album?

Noon.

Inside the rental apartment.

Cinematographer Zhang Yunyi had locked himself inside for nearly a whole week.

After finishing filming "Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2" and collecting his wages, Zhang Yunyi locked himself in the rental apartment and wouldn't come out, even refusing his share of the profits.

Damn it!

This film was so terrible it reached the skies; now all his peers know he took on such a rotten job, and they are laughing at him behind his back.

The abuse on the internet was growing louder...

The magazine "Huaxia Film Weekly" even dedicated an entire page to tearing this film apart, and in the process, took a shot at him as well.

These past few days, as the film spread more and more within the industry, it seemed Tianyu's higher-ups had issued some kind of statement or something; he seemed to be blacklisted. During this week, he repeatedly hit dead ends while looking for work.

Small and medium-sized film crews in Yanjing simply wouldn't hire him...

"Sigh!"

He, who rarely smoked, lit a cigarette, let out a long sigh, hung his head in extreme regret, and even wanted to slap himself hard.

Now, one wrong step led to wrong steps at every turn; he felt as if he had already fallen into a deep abyss.

"Maybe... I should leave Yanjing and check out other crews in Hengdian..."

After smoking his fourth cigarette, he crushed the butt, sighed again, and stood up.

Just as he was about to leave, the phone rang.

He looked at his phone.

When he saw the number, he froze.

It was Zhou Yang calling...

He hesitated for a moment, then finally hung up the call.

But not long after hanging up, Zhou Yang called again.

Looking at the number on the screen, Zhang Yunyi closed his eyes and finally chose to answer the call.

"Hello, President Zhou?"

"Zhang Laoshi, you still have a profit-sharing bonus of five thousand yuan with me. Come over now, and I'll give it to you... We can discuss the new film."

"President Zhou, I don't want that money. I just have one request: can you remove the cinematographer's name from the film? And I really don't want to shoot that 'Lin Daiyu vs. Lu Zhishen' anymore..." Zhang Yunyi said with a bitter smile.

"Put this film on hold for now. This time, we won't make a terrible film..."

"President Zhou, I..."

"This time, our investment is nearly one million!"

"President Zhou... you said the same thing about the last film..." Hearing the words "one million," Zhang Yunyi's heart trembled slightly, and his expression became incredibly complex.

Damn, President Zhou is using that same trick to fool him again; is he trying to drag him into another pit?

Investment of nearly one million!

What the hell!

An investment of twenty thousand!

That was also "nearly one million"!

"This time it's truly an investment of nearly one million, a big production. Zhang Laoshi, come over, and we'll discuss the details..."

"President Zhou, I..."

"Zhang Laoshi, trust me one more time. This time, we guarantee we won't make a terrible film!"

"Really?"

"Absolutely. Come over first; I'll personally handle the script..."

"Then..."

"Alright, come over; it's still the same old place. Young people shouldn't stand in the way of making money, right?"

"..."

Zhang Yunyi remained silent for a long time, glanced at his meager savings, and finally let out a long sigh: "Fine, President Zhou, I'll come, but don't try to fool me again!"

"I guarantee I won't fool you; I guarantee it's a blockbuster!"

"..."

Afternoon.

Inside the rental house.

The original cast and crew of "Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2" arrived at the rental house one after another.

It was just that everyone's expressions were quite complicated...

The movie "Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2" was not only a terrible flop but also a disaster, a stain on their lives.

Damn it, after filming "Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2," although they earned some paltry fees, several of these bitter souls suddenly found no film crews willing to hire them.

This time...

They had been dragged into the rental house by Zhou Yang again.

"Today, Director Shen, Teacher Chen Jianfeng, and I went to the cinema to watch 'Superman 2.' After watching it, we were deeply moved..."

"Aside from the special effects, the plot of 'Superman 2' had absolutely no appeal. We all predict that this movie's box office is likely to meet a Waterloo..."

"We even unanimously came up with an idea: we could make a movie like this too, and we could even make it better!"

"..."

As everyone gradually took their seats, Shen Long adjusted his suit, and an exceptionally serious expression appeared on his face!

The moment these words were spoken...

Director Shen Long instantly trembled, his eyes widening as he stared at Zhou Yang.

Wait!

I didn't, I don't have!

He only said that the filming of this movie was somewhat disappointing...

But I never said that we, this bunch of misfits, could make it better!

Just as he was about to say something, he saw Zhou Yang looking at him with a serious expression: "We need to be a bit more confident. Remember, we are all talented people; it's just that we were poor before. For the sake of money, we could only film movies that would recoup costs quickly. Don't engage in internal friction; this isn't our problem, but a problem with society... Now, we have money, our funds are relatively ample, and we can completely reinvent ourselves..."

Upon hearing these words, cinematographer Zhang Yunyi's mouth twitched slightly.

He suddenly had a bad premonition!

Why did it feel like the new movie would be even worse, even more unscrupulous?

"President Zhou, just say it straight: how are we going to film our new movie?"

"Zhang Laoshi, you're still so impatient... Haha." Zhou Yang smiled broadly at the aggrieved-looking Zhang Yunyi, then silently took out the script.

When Zhang Yunyi saw "Zhengban Tiao Ren: Hero Reboot," his anus instantly tightened, and he stared at Zhou Yang in shock.

Holy crap!

He knew it!

He damn well knew that President Zhou wasn't brewing anything good!

Seeing this scene, Shen Long and Chen Jianfeng unanimously lowered their heads.

This script...

was written by President Zhou while watching "Superman 2," scribbling away under dim light!

In less than two hours, he had produced the script for "Zhengban Tiao Ren: Hero Reboot."

They hadn't even had time to read it yet!

"The movie 'Superman 2' was truly extremely disappointing..."

"Do you think it makes sense that the omnipotent Superman would willingly give up his superpowers just because a criminal was holding the heroine hostage?"

"Is this reasonable?"

"Imagine, if you possessed superpowers, what would you do?"

"..."

"I dare not guarantee what others would do, but if I had abilities like Superman, I absolutely would not lower my intelligence like that Superman, acting like a fool and honestly going to work..."

"Isn't that just a complete idiot?"

"And another thing: just by wearing ordinary glasses and hiding in a crowd, the whole world wouldn't know who you are?"

"Is everyone a fool?"

"This is unreasonable!"

"Therefore, our new movie must correct the unreasonableness of 'Superman 2'!"

"..."

"I've thought about it carefully!"

"If we were to film this entire 'Superman 2' movie in reverse!"

"Perhaps..."

"Perhaps we could even create a masterpiece..."

"..."

Under the dim light.

Cinematographer Zhang Yunyi subconsciously scanned the first few pages of the "Zhengban Tiao Ren: Hero Reboot" script.

Having flipped halfway through, he stared at Zhou Yang in shock!

This script!

Amazing!

Interesting?

Then...

He saw Zhou Yang squinting, gazing into the distance.

In the distance, sunlight fell on his serious profile; his gaze grew deeper, his voice grew heavier.

"I'll direct Lu Zhishen myself; you all handle... The Tiao Ren: Hero Reboot."

"Let's fight once more!"

"From now on, all the dirty, exhausting work is mine!"

"I know you have dreams; I know you're not willing to give up..."

"Trust me!"

"I'll give wings to your dreams!"

"..."