Chapter 439: Shameless, Specializing in Infighting, and Breaking One's Word

"What? You're in China?"

Hearing the voice coming from the receiver, Chen Nuo immediately rolled off Liu Yifei.

"Yep, hahahaha, yes, I just arrived. By the way, I applied for a long-term visa this time, I can stay for up to a year. Your consulate's visa officer asked me why I wanted to stay in China for so long. I said I wanted to discuss a new movie with you. He stamped it immediately and even asked me to get your autograph for him. Hahaha."

Quentin didn't seem to be affected, and his strange laughter was the same as ever. Chen Nuo couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and asked, "So where are you now?"

"Hujian."

"……Fujian?"

"Yes."

"Be more specific?"

"I don't know either. I got off the plane, got into a random car, and just found a small inn to stay in. This is a very small county town; no one speaks English, and no one recognizes me. There's a sea nearby, and on the road, I saw a small bookstore, which is nice—quiet, suitable for writing. I like it very much and plan to stay for a while."

Hearing this, Chen Nuo felt very conflicted.

He actually had a lot to say, but after listening to Quentin's chatter for so long, he suddenly didn't know how to start.

Liu Yifei, on the other hand, leaned over at this moment, looking at him with curiosity. The clothes she had just taken off hadn't been put back on; her upper body was smooth as jade, like a little white lamb that had just finished bathing, pink, fragrant, and soft, carrying a faint warmth.

Chen Nuo weighed his words in his mind, while his hands unconsciously touched that medium-sized white porcelain bowl on her body. He accidentally used a bit too much force, which immediately earned him a not-too-light, not-too-heavy pink fist from Liu Yifei.

"Damn..." Chen Nuo sucked in a breath.

Damn, this woman's palm strike really hurts.

On the other end of the phone, Quentin ignored his silence and continued on his own:

"The reason I called is actually to say I'm sorry. I think... I might have messed things up."

Chen Nuo quickly replied, "Don't say that, this isn't a big deal, just wait for the storm to pass."

"No, no, no, you don't understand..."

"I understand!" Chen Nuo interrupted quickly, "What's there not to understand? To tell you the truth, I actually have a similar... hobby. It's very normal, really, a small matter. Don't say sorry, it's just those people making a fuss."

"Oh?" Quentin's tone shifted, and he suddenly asked with interest, "You have one too?"

"Something like that, haha."

"Hahahaha, although I know you're bullshitting, thanks for the comfort." Quentin's voice sounded very sincere, "But that's not what I wanted to say. It's something else."

"What?"

"I... registered a Twitter account."

"Huh?"

Quentin's words surprised Chen Nuo even more than his sudden arrival in China.

Because they had been in contact for long enough, he knew very well—like Nolan, Quentin was the type of person completely insulated from social media accounts.

In fact, it wasn't just the two of them.

From Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg to Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie, and even Kate Winslet, most of these true A-list directors and actors in the film circle maintained an innate sense of distance from social networks. It wasn't a boycott; they just didn't bother to touch them at all.

Let alone now, even ten or twenty years later, they still had no trace of any social media accounts, going against the grain of the traffic era.

And for Chen Nuo—who two weeks ago had become the first super social media user in the world to have 40 million followers—these people's attitudes were all different.

People like Nolan and Leonardo DiCaprio were still tolerant, feeling that "since you already have one, using it occasionally is nothing," which was a pragmatic attitude.

But Quentin was the complete opposite; he was the type of guy who would repeatedly urge you to delete your account whenever he got the chance, and he was incredibly naggy.

He had told Chen Nuo more than once:

"Social media accounts destroy the mystery of a film; the work itself should be the way a filmmaker communicates with the public."

"Stars should live on the screen, not in likes and comments."

"The more you are seen, the harder it is for your work to move people, because you have placed yourself in front of people too cheaply."

These were all reasons, and Quentin could talk for hours about any one of them, chatting from Akira Kurosawa to Jean-Luc Godard, from Charlie Chaplin to Béla Tarr.

Ever since the two started collaborating on the script for "The Chinese Workers," Chen Nuo had been "brainwashed" by these remarks more than once, and he was indeed somewhat influenced.

Originally, in his past life, he was an influencer who started out on social media, and subconsciously he always felt that "having many followers is a good thing," so naturally, he would instinctively want to maintain a certain level of activity so as not to let his popularity drop. But recently, that had changed a bit.

Especially after he acquired shares in Facebook, let alone daily interactions, he hadn't posted a single update on Facebook for over a month, and the same went for Weibo—his last Weibo post was "@Liu Yifei Happy Birthday" posted on Liu Yifei's birthday a few months ago.

Last month, "No Man's Land" was released, and he was too lazy to even post a poster, let alone write a caption to promote it.

Fortunately, he was the boss, so no one dared to say anything about this state of lying down and doing nothing.

If it were someone else, the management would have jumped out long ago demanding he "exert influence," "mobilize fans," and "build word-of-mouth." After all, in this era, a Weibo account with tens of millions of followers that doesn't post "long articles," doesn't talk about "reflections," and doesn't show off stills or behind-the-scenes footage is practically a war criminal level of resource waste.

However, in the end, the box office result of 405 million for "No Man's Land" was quite good, just 1 million short of tying with "The Founding of a Party." Chen Nuo didn't know if Han Zong's current situation had any influence on this, but he would ask when the time came.

So, at this moment, Chen Nuo was quite surprised to hear Quentin say he had registered a Twitter account.

He asked in disbelief, "What? You must be joking with me, right?"

"Haha, not joking. After I finish this call with you, I'll throw away this number, hahaha, and then no one in the world will be able to find me. I plan to spend a year polishing the current script again. I was actually never satisfied with it before. I can't lie to myself; the current script is not my best script. Just like you said, do I understand China? I don't. Then how can I dare to say I can write a good story about Chinese people?"

……

After hanging up the phone.

Chen Nuo felt a mix of emotions.

It was clearly his own failure to handle things properly, yet he let Quentin take the fall for him, which meant he owed Director Quentin a favor. At the same time, he secretly admired this "foot-licking freak's" ability to let go.

No wonder people say Quentin's greatest strength is his scripts.

And no wonder this guy has said since his debut that he would only make ten films in his life.

The former is ability, the latter is mindset.

With the ability in place and a good mindset, willing to spend time polishing and studying, how could he not succeed?

Knowing that the most Chinese people working in the US are from Hujian, he decided to take this opportunity to simply pause his filmmaking and spend a year collecting first-hand material along the Hujian coast to re-solidify the script and bring the characters to life.

If he could learn this spirit, his achievements wouldn't be limited to this. Sigh. At the very least, after reading Mr. Iris Chang's book, he wouldn't have given up the opportunity to continue studying, and he might have become some kind of historian by now. When Quentin mentioned it, he wouldn't be caught knowing nothing. It's really shameful, sigh.

Liu Yifei asked, "What's wrong? Did he come to China?"

"Yeah, he's here. I'll tell you in a bit, let me check Twitter first."

Chen Nuo opened the Twitter app on his phone.

There was no need to search. As soon as he clicked in and refreshed, a tweet posted by ABC News immediately caught his eye.

"Breaking News: According to the latest sources from this station, the suspected account was indeed registered by Quentin Tarantino himself. The Hollywood director, caught in a private life scandal, chose this flamboyant and impolite way to respond to outside accusations, which caught everyone by surprise. His agency was previously unaware of this."

Below this news was a censored photo of a middle finger.

A large man's hand, with distinct knuckles. Chen Nuo had reason to believe it wasn't a stock photo, but that the man had taken a picture of his own hand.

Liu Yifei also leaned her head over to look with him, and at this moment, she exclaimed, "Wow, he posted this? Isn't he afraid of being scolded to death?"

"Afraid of what? He's already run to China, with such a thick wall standing there, who can scold him?" Chen Nuo's emotions were truly complex, even his Xichuan dialect came out.

This guy Quentin is really fucking awesome.

Come to think of it, this is the true style of a protagonist: the world is drunk while I am sober, here's a middle finger for you. If this were 10 years later, Chen Nuo would definitely send him a rocket.

No wonder he said he ran to China and planned to spend a year fixing the script. Having done something like this, it really would take a year or so to calm the storm.

Chen Nuo suddenly felt he should ask if this tactic was learned from him?

But when he picked up his phone to call back, the other side was already turned off. Well, now it's really impossible for anyone to contact this crazy director. Quentin had made it very clear just now that he would take the initiative to contact him if there were any follow-up matters, so don't disturb him.

Liu Yifei asked again, "Then what about your movie, are you not filming it?"

Chen Nuo sighed, "What else? The director is like this, how can we still film?"

"Really!?" Liu Yifei looked pleasantly surprised, "That's great! Then can't you rest for a long time this time? Good, good, good, then you can accompany me to Shuchang's birthday party next week."

"Why would I go? I wasn't invited, wouldn't it be awkward? My skin isn't that thick."

"What are you talking about! It definitely won't be, I've known Shuchang for a long time, she won't say anything if I bring you."

"Not going, I still have to invite Han Sanping to dinner, no time."

"It's not now, it's December 1st, it's still early."

"Hey, we'll see, we'll see. Come here, we're not done yet."

"I won't. If you don't promise me, I won't let you do it."

"Oh, then I'm putting on my pants... Damn, you're hitting people? You come here... don't move."

Slap, slap!

"Are you wrong? Will you hit people again in the future?"

"Ahhhhh, you actually dared to hit me, I'll fight you!"

Facts proved that Liu Yifei was different from Fan Bingbing—she would actually resist when being hit. The two rolled and wrestled on the bed for three or four rounds, and in the end, she was still pinned under Chen Nuo with her arm twisted behind her back.

"Ah—!" She was still unconvinced, struggling while screaming.

Her body was soft, fragrant, and her butt was fleshy, just like a meat cushion, twisting back and forth under Chen Nuo's crotch. "Stop messing around." Chen Nuo's hand reached down, kneading like he was kneading a bun.

"You actually dared to hit my butt!" Liu Yifei said, pouting.

"You hit me first."

"Then you can't hit back!"

"What kind of logic is that?"

"This is—this is—ah!"

Liu Yifei suddenly screamed, and then, as if she had been acupunctured, her body suddenly went limp.

Her face was buried in the pillow, so her expression couldn't be seen clearly.

Chen Nuo didn't speak, and Liu Yifei didn't make a sound either. The only sound left in the room was the creaking of the mattress. After a while, Liu Yifei's legs opened a little wider, and her butt tilted up a bit.

……

Chen Nuo knew that Shuchang was Liu Yifei's friend, the kind of old friend of many years.

Not long ago, on Liu Yifei's birthday, Shuchang sent her a "Happy Birthday" WeChat message right at 12:00 AM on August 25th, and just like Chen Nuo, she posted a public blessing on Weibo, which made Liu Yifei extremely happy.

Not only Shu Chang, but insiders like Zhang Liangying, Hu Ge, and An Yixuan also had good relationships with Liu Yifei. Added to that were some friends from outside the circle who visited often, most of whom were her classmates from different periods, both from China and the United States. Among them, quite a few were also very close with Liu Xiaoli; some, like Xu Qing, had even been best friends with Auntie Liu for over a decade.

But as for Chen Nuo, he had almost no interaction with these people. When the two were together, Liu Yifei rarely mentioned things between her and her friends. Chen Nuo couldn't say what she was thinking; due to his own personality, he was too lazy to ask much.

However, this time, Liu Yifei rarely took the initiative to say she wanted him to accompany her to Shu Chang's birthday party. Although he joked around with his mouth, he actually felt too embarrassed to truly refuse in his heart. Once he had coaxed little Liu into being completely obedient and let this girl, who claimed to be a germaphobe, willingly "serve" him once, he went with the flow and nodded.

Then, Shu Chang was truly frightened by this news.

When she heard Liu Yifei say "Chen Nuo is coming to your birthday party" as if it were nothing, she was stunned, and only after a long while did she stammer back: "A-a-are you serious? Don't tease me, Xixi."

"Why would I tease you? He even said to let you send an extra invitation," Liu Yifei rolled her eyes. "But don't take it too seriously; that's just how he is, always talking in a mysterious way."

"I..." Shu Chang opened her mouth, unable to speak. After a while, she came back to her senses. "When did he get back? There isn't a single piece of news about it on Weibo."

"He came back the day before yesterday. He takes a private jet everywhere now, so it's not that easy to be discovered."

"No wonder..." Shu Chang nodded, then asked: "But didn't you say before that the plane he ordered wouldn't be delivered until next year?"

"Yeah, that's next year; that one was bought. This one is rented. He even said I spend money recklessly, but I think he's the one doing it, splashing it around, not saving at all."

"Haha..." Shu Chang gave a dry laugh, still unable to fully recover. "How does he have time to come to my little party... Isn't *Let the Bullets Fly* going to the Golden Horse Awards? Is he not going?"

"What would he go for!" Liu Yifei took a sip of juice. "Did you forget about what happened last year? His Golden Horse Best Actor trophy is still left in Taipei. With his temper, do you think he'd still go?"

"Oh, right, right, I forgot..." Shu Chang said with a bitter smile.

Liu Yifei sighed, "I thought he could finally rest for a while this time, but he ended up taking on a TV drama. After your birthday is over, he has to fly to Hong Kong to film a TV drama."

"A TV drama? He's still going to film a TV drama? What kind of TV drama?"

"Yeah, I'm not clear on the specifics, but it's a collaboration with a company over in the United States. From production to filming, it's all in Hong Kong. He has to go over there this time to do some pre-production preparations."

"Then are you going with him?"

"Why would I go?"

"No, you forgot, that... she's right there in Hong Kong, isn't she? Aren't you worried, ah?"

"I... it's fine... I heard that his TV drama will need a lot of actors this time. Are you going to go when they hold auditions? Do you want me to sign you up?"

"Yes!" Shu Chang said without hesitation.

Liu Yifei said with a smile: "It just so happens they need people who can speak English, which is your strong suit. I think if you go, you might just make it."

Shu Chang was a bit excited. "Really?"

"I'm not lying to you. He's collaborating with a DVD rental company in the United States this time, so all the actors need to speak English."

Shu Chang said: "Good, then it's a deal. You must tell me when the time comes, no matter what."

"Hehe, then you're treating me to this meal?"

"No problem. If I really get selected, I'll treat you to a luxury feast."

"Hahaha, okay."

The two girls laughed for a while, and Shu Chang asked: "By the way, can Auntie come back this time?"

"No, she's busy as hell in Japan. She told me to wish you a happy birthday and said she'd make it up to you next time she returns to the country. Also, she bought you a birthday gift; it'll be mailed back in a couple of days."

Shu Chang said sincerely: "Thank you, Mother Liu. I'll send her a text in a bit. Xixi, I have to say, the Japan branch of Huanxin has your name on it, and she even let Mother Liu manage it. It seems he really treats you well and doesn't treat you like an outsider."

Liu Yifei pursed her lips and smiled, then hummed and said: "It's just using me... what's so good about that."

"Don't worry about what a man says; you have to look at what he does. He handed such a large family business over to you; he really treats you like family. Have you two talked about when you're getting married?"

"Ah? Married? No, no, what are you talking about."

"Hehe, that's not necessarily true. He loves you so much, maybe one day he'll propose to you."

"Impossible, impossible." Liu Yifei's face was a little red, and she shook her head: "Impossible, he's not that kind of person."

Shu Chang said: "How is it impossible? You're so cute, kind, and virtuous. If I were him, I'd definitely marry you off early, otherwise, I wouldn't be at ease."

"Hee hee, it's not that exaggerated."

Seeing that Liu Yifei finally seemed truly happy, Shu Chang couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief in her heart. She really shouldn't have been a busybody just now, sigh.

Afterwards, she couldn't help but feel a bit excited again.

Chen Nuo was coming to her birthday party; she should tell her manager about this news as soon as she finished eating. If she played it well, this matter might be more useful than her acting in two *Palace 2* dramas!

Shu Chang pretended to ask casually: "By the way Xixi, you came to find me for a meal, where did he go?"

Liu Yifei said: "He went to find Mr. Han."

"Mr. Han? Which Mr. Han?"

"Han Sanping."

Shu Chang was slightly surprised. "Ah? Didn't they say they had already fallen out?"

It was exactly as Shu Chang said.

The fact that Han Sanping and Chen Nuo had fallen out was actually an open secret in the entire mainland entertainment industry today.

Why couldn't it even be considered a secret?

Because, although major media had never reported it, in articles by some entertainment accounts on Weibo, there were always some gossipy rumors, mysteriously recording scattered, unsourced, seemingly true or false news.

For example, how *Inception* had such a difficult start and was not favored by anyone. Originally, a large domestic film and television company had promised to invest, preparing to create a domestic masterpiece to let Chinese cinema hold its head high in the world, but they ultimately broke their promise.

Or for example, it was precisely because of this incompetent person who was in a high position but whose words were worth nothing that Nuo Nuo had to mortgage all his properties and borrow money everywhere, betting his entire net worth on this one film, *Inception*. It could be said that success meant life, failure meant death; it was a desperate gamble, a narrow escape from death.

Or for example, when *Inception* was released, as a Sino-foreign co-production, especially one where Chinese capital held the majority, it should have been released simultaneously with the rest of the world, but it ended up being nearly half a month later than even South Korea. The reason for this was not because the Huanxin company discriminated against Chinese audiences, nor was there any problem with the censorship, but because that bastard who broke his promise was holding a grudge against all the "Nuo Rice" (fans) and moviegoers in China, and also against Nuo Nuo, wanting this film to fail miserably in China to save his own face.

So, who is this shameless, incompetent person who only knows how to fight internally, breaks his word, and specializes in holding people back?

Sometimes, these people writing the articles call him Han X Ping.

Sometimes, they call him Han San X.

Other times, they refer to him as X Sanping.

Besides that, there is also a more obscure way of calling him, which is just referring to his position and nickname, calling him the "Mountain-Sitting Eagle" Chairman of China Film.

In short, that's how it is.

I don't know how it happened, but netizens seem to have guessed this person's identity, saying he is the helmsman of China Film, the old Mr. Han Sanping. And they spontaneously offered their condolences to Mr. Han's ancestors for eight generations. One can only praise the netizens in the Weibo comment section; their average IQ is indeed 130.

And this was part of the pressure Han Sanping spoke of.

As for the final part of the pressure, it had to do with the IPO wave currently rolling through the Chinese film industry.

So far, there are already three listed film and television companies on the A-share market: Zhejiang Huace, Beijing Enlight, and Hualu Baina. At the same time, Huayi, New Classics, Shanghai Film, and China Film are also in the audit and IPO preparation stages.

It can be said that the Chinese entertainment industry is currently fully embracing the arrival of the capital era.

As the national team in the film market, China Film naturally cannot miss this.

This is not the first time China Film has planned to go public. As early as 2004, there were plans, but they were suspended due to policy.

This time, China Film Group, in conjunction with China National Radio, Jiangsu Broadcasting, China Unicom, China International Television Corporation, and 3 other companies, jointly invested to establish China Film Shares, with China Film Group holding 93% of the shares and the other companies holding 1% each, and they are preparing to submit China Film Shares to the IPO initial review list in December.

As a result, unexpectedly, during the process of submitting the prospectus, they suddenly encountered pressure from within.

"Little Chen, I am here to apologize to you."

Han Sanping slapped the table in righteous indignation and said bitterly: "If it weren't for the villains around me at that time, making me listen to slander, I would never have gone back on my word, nor would I be talked about like this today. Believe me, I, Han Sanping, consider that I have also done some insignificant small things. I dared to invest 200 million in *Red Cliff*, would I be afraid of this?"

(End of this chapter)