Chapter 436: Another New Year's Day

On the morning of the 30th, Galloping Horse simultaneously published a long announcement on its official website and Weibo.

The announcement reviewed Galloping Horse's years-long journey to go public.

Starting from receiving forty million US dollars in investment in '08, it had set listing on NASDAQ or A-shares as its goal.

And at the beginning of '11, to speed up the listing process, it signed a 750-million-yuan investment listing gambling agreement with Jianhang Wentou.

Now that the three-year period had arrived, they regretfully and with immense disappointment informed the outside world: due to a series of reasons, Galloping Horse had failed to complete its listing within the stipulated timeframe as required by the contract…

One announcement sent shockwaves through the entire film and television industry.

Because everyone had originally assumed that Galloping Horse's announcement would be news of successfully acquiring some listed company, thereby planning a backdoor listing.

After all, at mid-year, Zhong Zhong Lifang had represented Galloping Horse and domineeringly rejected Huayi's acquisition intent—at the time, she was absolutely in high spirits!

Yet in the blink of an eye, what arrived was instead news of the listing failure?

This is no trivial matter.

One must understand that within the mainland film and television industry, beneath the listed companies, Galloping Horse is one of the top private firms.

Listing failure means it must, per the gambling agreement, immediately produce over one billion yuan in cash to repurchase at a premium the Galloping Horse shares that Jianhang Wentou had acquired three years ago with its 750-million-yuan investment.

Is that even possible?

"That's absolutely impossible! What film and television company could produce that much cash in one go? Even Huayi couldn't—and even if it could, it would take a long time to turn the funds around."

Yue Jun sat in Lin Nan's office, declaring this with great conviction.

"I'd guess every company in the industry is talking about this right now?" Lin Nan said with a light chuckle.

Galloping Horse lost the gambling agreement, but the money has already been spent—where would it find the funds to repurchase shares?

Capital shows no mercy; it only seizes the moment to suck the marrow from your bones, striving to recoup as much loss as possible from Galloping Horse and saddling it with enormous debt.

"The landscape of film and television companies in the industry is about to change. At the very least, Galloping Horse will drop out of the first tier, even the second tier. It's not even out of the question that some peers might come right out and kick it when it's down."

Yue Jun glanced at the news on his tablet, speaking from the heart.

"If Galloping Horse hadn't taken that gambling agreement back then, even if it hadn't successfully listed now, it would still be one of the few major companies in the industry—where would all this trouble come from?"

"Ha, there are no 'ifs.' Following your logic, if it had agreed to sell to Huayi half a year ago, wouldn't things be even more comfortable? Take the huge sum of money and directly become a shareholder and executive of a listed company!"

Lin Nan was thoroughly amused.

It's exactly as the industry says—since the gambling agreement, Galloping Horse has had nothing but bad luck, forever just missing the right answer.

At this moment, plenty of industry companies must have their eyes glowing green. Galloping Horse is like a Miss who's been stripped of her clothes, being sized up and drooled over by a crowd.

News from the mainland film and television circle is dazzling, and Hollywood film information keeps making its way back to the country as well.

*The Invisible Guest*, over four weeks, has raked in 220 million US dollars at the North American box office.

According to Tom on the phone, daily box office has already dropped below one million, closing at a little over eight hundred thousand US dollars.

Moreover, after these three days at month's end end, theaters will keep only the minimum screenings, and from then on box office figures will be reported once a month.

Lin Nan knew the film's box office was about at its end here—it all depended on whether it could get nominated, or even win an award, in half a month.

Even with just a nomination, *The Invisible Guest* would enjoy a second spring.

Outside North America, the European rights would sell for a decent price, and it would maintain a steady, long-tail presence in theaters.

"Whether or not it gets nominated, we still need to make a trip to the Berlin Film Festival's market."

…………

Apart from *Taking Mount Mount Weihu*, the other Spring Festival films have all begun their final promotional sprint.

Especially the Hong Kong-produced *Journey to the West: The Monkey King*—behind-the-scenes footage, and most importantly makeup videos of Zhen Zhen Zidan, have been released in a steady stream.

The message is crystal clear: they've put great care into this film, and Zhen Zhen Zidan has had an incredibly tough time!

Every single makeup session took five hours just to glue on the fur.

Across the entire shoot: 20 life casts front to back, over 70 Hollywood makeup artists working thousands of hours, and a whopping 200-plus kilograms of monkey fur consumed!

That said, these numbers do sound genuinely impressive to audiences.

Zhen Zhen Zidan likely also views this film as his hope for a last-chance, desperate counterattack in his future career.

He changed his usual "aloof" act and, unusually, frequently posted on Weibo, desperately "wooing" audiences and fans.

It's just that this sudden, utilitarian behavior, in the eyes of the mainland film and television circle, is just laughably ironic.

Once so high and mighty, looking down on this and that.

Now that he's down on his luck, he's started lowering his head and begging for sympathy? From the very mainland netizens and audiences he always looked down on!

In the blink of an eye, another year had passed.

On New Year's morning, Lin Nan slept in late.

Because the night before, he had gone to Beside La La Peikang to show support, attending the premiere banquet of a Sino-British co-production, *Prehistoric Monsters*.

Faced with the toasts of several foreign actors, Lin Nan couldn't dodge them all, and by the end he was a little tipsy—Liu Liu Yifei had brought him home.

"I feel for Chairman La—another mess of a garbage film to clean up."

Lin Nan yawned, tossed out a quip, and went to shower.

Outside, at nine in the morning, Noon Sunshine officially announced the finalized cast list for *Nirvana in Fire*.

It also announced the start of filming: right after the Spring Festival holiday.

Online, both original novel fans and audiences were immensely excited.

After all, Hu Ge truly has considerable pulling power in the period TV drama space.

Lin Nan had originally wanted to check if Miss Liu was up yet, but when he went next door he learned Liu Liu Yifei and Watching Shu Chang had left early that morning, each with their own schedules.

"Oh right—today's New Year's Day!"

Lin Nan patted his own head, chuckling to himself.

For a holiday like New Year's Day, how could the brands possibly have no events? Eight-figure endorsement fees aren't taken for nothing.

A buzzing came from his pocket; Lin Nan pulled out his phone—it was Huang Bo.

"Sure, you've moved your New Year greeting up from the Lunar New Year to the Gregorian calendar this year?"

"Ha, right. Happy New Year, Lin Dao. I'll come by again when it's time to hand over the shift on Lunar New Year's Eve and the first day."

Huang Bo's laugh was hearty, but Lin Nan could tell he had something else on his mind.

"Cut the nonsense. Spill it — why call so early in the morning? What's up?"

"Lin Dao, it's almost eleven already…"

"Oh, that's all small stuff. Get to the point."

"How about I treat Lin Dao to lunch?"

Hearing Huang Bo say that, Lin Nan paused — looks like there really is something serious going on!

"Fine, send the address."

An hour later, Lin Nan met Huang Bo at a hotpot restaurant near Beijing Film Academy.

The latter was wearing a jacket, with absolutely none of the bearing of an A-list actor and Best Actor winner — just like an ordinary person.

"Back in freshman and sophomore year, when Lao Zhu, Luo Jin and the others were always freeloading, I'd treat them here."

Huang Bo and Lin Nan followed the server toward a private room.

In the hall on the first floor, plenty of Beijing Film Academy students could be seen chatting in twos and threes over their meals.

They didn't notice Lin Nan and his companion walking past, masked.

"Who told you to already be famous and successful back then, Lin Dao?" Huang Bo teased in a low voice.

Once inside the private room, the server naturally arranged everything — there was even a separate condiment station where you could mix your own.

Once the others had left and the two started eating, Lin Nan finally spoke.

"Currying favor for no reason — the movie I'm shooting next can't fit you in, it's a foreign-language film." Lin Nan joked.

"So this counts as an unexpected bonus? Probably no one in the circle knows about Lin Dao's new film yet, right?"

"Pretty much. In the country, only Liu Yifei knows."

Lin Nan smiled lightly and nodded, then looked at Huang Bo again:

"Out with it. I don't believe you're just treating me to a meal. If it were just a meal, you'd have invited Ning Hao and the others too."

Huang Bo gave a thumbs-up and clicked his tongue twice. "Lin Dao's sharp."

He dropped two slices of beef into the pot and said:

"Xu Zheng came to talk to me about 'Lost in Hong Kong' yesterday. I want to know if Lin Dao is completely hands-off on this film?"

Lin Nan answered instinctively: "The rights are all his. I only get 20% of the final box-office share and 20% of the other ancillary revenue. I have no say in anything else."

The moment the words landed, Huang Bo's expression visibly relaxed — and he even seemed a little pleased?

"Then I understand. Thank you, Lin Dao."

"Thank me? For what?" Now it was Lin Nan's turn to be baffled.

"I want to talk to Xu Zheng about joining the box-office split — for zero pay, or even adding investment on top of it…"

Huang Bo was straightforward, cheerfully laying out his thoughts, and his tone made it clear he'd already made up his mind!

Lin Nan just listened as Huang Bo prattled on at length, unable to get a word in edgewise.

Even when they parted around one in the afternoon, Lin Nan still felt a bit dazed.

Huang Bo's resolve was firm, but what kind of person was Xu Zheng? How could it possibly be that simple?

"Sigh…"

Lin Nan really didn't know what to say — better to let Huang Bo try it himself.

…………

At noon, the Film Academy released the 2014 arts-entrance examination admissions brochure — sure enough, recruiting more students every year.

Although the undergraduate acting program only added a few slots, the other related majors within the Acting School had nearly a hundred more openings.

Not to mention majors like voice-acting and animation.

The calculation behind it spoke for itself.

After all, becoming an actor doesn't necessarily require an acting major background.

First you have to find a way into the circle; after that, it depends on each person's fate — namely, opportunity and "connections."

'The Invisible Guest' had been in theaters for a full month, and mainland media were republishing Hollywood news one after another.

"Directed by Lin Nan, starring Leonardo 【DiCaprio】, Jessica Chastain, and Naomi Watts,

the foreign-language film 'The Invisible Guest,' after one month in North American release, has accumulated a total box office of $222.8 million. Theaters have moved it to routine handling, with showtimes reduced to a minimum."

"Co-produced by Crystal Pictures and Lionsgate, the R-rated romance 'Fifty Shades of Grey' has officially landed in North America, with subsequent releases planned across multiple countries and regions."

"The Academy announced that this year's Oscar nominations will be released on the 16th of the month. Directors Lin Nan and Feng Feng Xiaogang will respectively compete for nominations in the regular categories and for Best Foreign Language Film."

Not only will the Oscars announce their shortlist on the 16th, the Berlin International Film Festival has also chosen mid-month to release its nominations.

The mainland film circle was suddenly buzzing with excitement.

After all, this year several major directors are competing for awards on both fronts — just thinking about it is thrilling.

The sunset dyed half the sky red. Lin Nan sat like a lonely soul waiting for Liu Liu Yifei — she should be back soon.

He sat in the garden, watching a group of cats and dogs frolicking nearby, and took a call at the same time.

"Didn't expect it, did you — Director Ning gets nervous too? Ha."

"Bullshit. This is the Jin Xiong — my first time. Speaking of which, you made it to the final round twice and still missed the Jin Xiong, didn't you?"

Ning Hao fired back, and for a moment Lin Nan was at a loss for words.

"But at least I brought back two Silver Bears for Best Director, didn't I? Next time, who knows — maybe it'll be the Jin Xiong."

"Next time? Then I'll say who knows — maybe this time I grab the Jin Xiong straight away!" Ning Hao quipped.

"We'll see. Berlin's two days earlier than the Oscars, so when the nominations come in, remember you're treating." Lin Nan said with a smile, picking up the thread.

Sure enough, hearing this, Ning Hao's mood improved considerably.

"Haha, no problem. But then again, even without the nomination, I still have to bring *No Man's Land* over after the opening to sell the rights…"

The sound of a car in the distance drew Lin Nan's attention — it was a Red Star Factory shuttle van.

"Alright, Liu Qianqian's back, I'm not chatting with you anymore." Lin Nan was about to hang up instantly.

Hearing Lin Nan's words, Ning Hao froze for a beat, then immediately laughed and cursed:

"Fine, damn you, that's ruthless! Wait till you get married, then you'll know how blissful it is to squeeze even one extra minute on the phone with a friend…"

Without waiting for Ning Hao to finish his rambling, Lin Nan hung up. "We'll talk about married life after the wedding — I'm not dodging the debt…"

At the villa entrance, the car door opened.

Liu Liu Yifei hopped down wearing a green down jacket, paired with that bun hairstyle — looked like she'd just come back from the set.

"Were you waiting for me?"

Liu Liu Yifei, all smiles, bounced over to Lin Nan in a few steps, wrapped both arms around his neck, and snuggled up against him.

"Yeah, waiting for the sunset, waiting for you."

That answer, apparently, was pretty good.

Miss Liu, beaming, hooked Lin Nan's arm. "Mm, let's go, let's head back. Today's event was really interesting…"

……

In the evening, Lin Nan's side finally wasn't just one person anymore — Watching Shu Chang, that third wheel, had been blinding him for days now!

After a long absence, Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei spent a shameless night together; only in the small hours did the two finally collapse, exhausted, and fall asleep in each other's arms.

"I… want the afternoon… afternoon to get up…" Liu Liu Yifei curled up in Lin Nan's arms, mumbling in her sleep, all cute and dopey.

Lin Nan wanted to make a sound, but couldn't even muster the energy. "Mm, sleep… sleep… then."

He didn't know how long had passed — probably late morning by now?

The buzzing of a phone in his dream became real, and Lin Nan was woken up.

Liu Liu Yifei, meanwhile, was curled up under the covers with only the tips of her hair showing outside — clearly hiding from the "noise."

Lin Nan knew that if the phone kept ringing, Miss Liu was probably about to lose her temper.

He quickly grabbed the phone, switched it to silent, got out of bed gently, tiptoed outside, then closed the door.

"Phew…"

The tension Lin Nan had been holding finally eased.

"I say, Director Yue, disturbing someone's sweet dream first thing in the morning — that's pretty immoral!"

"Uh… Lin Dao, it's 11:30 already…"

Lin Nan moved the phone away from his ear and glanced at it. Well, it was almost noon — he'd been sleeping late two days in a row!

"What is it?"

"Lin Dao, something big happened in the wee hours!"

…………

(End of chapter)