Chapter 571: Birthday Gift, It's Poisonous

From the early morning, the film and television circle and entertainment circle didn't stop, and the internet was in an uproar, very lively.

When the first day of December arrived, the sky was just dawning.

The information related to Shu Chang's birthday had already strongly topped the entertainment headlines of major portals and the top of the Weibo trending list.

The reason is not because of the blessings left by actors and stars in the circle.

It is because the "horrifying" "birthday gift" that Liu Yifei wants to give to Shu Chang is simply luxurious to the extreme!

When the sun rose, Lin Dao had just woken up.

In his arms is a fragrant demon, the touch is a piece of warmth, softness, smoothness

Her long hair was scattered casually across the pillow, a faint fragrance adorning Liu Yifei's exquisite, rosy face; her long eyelashes fluttered every now and then—a beautiful sight.

"It's time to sleep, yet you're still provoking me? Not feeling energetic now, are you? You certainly slept soundly, heh..."

Lin Nan muttered softly with a smile, then carefully climbed out of bed. He leaned over to tuck the quilt in for her, covering that hint of fair skin.

Half a minute after he left the room, a soft, sleepy, nasal sound came from under the covers, sounding a bit coquettish: "Hmph, I'll provoke you if I want..."

After arriving at the company, Lin Nan finally remembered to check the news online. As expected, the industry had truly exploded!

"Friends for 12 years, Liu Yifei and Shu Chang share a deep bond. The most special birthday gift—a lead role in a movie."

"Movie title unknown, script title unknown, director unknown, screenwriter unknown, team unknown, project not yet filed... but the lead actress is already decided!"

Besides the media, industry insiders and netizens were also discussing it heatedly. The exclamations, envy, and playful teasing were countless.

"First time I've seen a birthday gift like this! A movie lead role? Producer Liu is domineering!"

"To be honest, I'm envious; I need a good best friend too.

Yifei, how much closer do I need to be to you? Give me a straight answer, and I'll strive to work harder!"

"I'm sour too; we've been best friends for over a decade, Lin Dao really should learn a thing or two from their Producer Liu."

"Old Zhu, have some shame. Are you saying the male lead in '33 Days of Breakup' wasn't you?"

"But I didn't receive a birthday gift, did I? Old Luo, what's your goal in backstabbing me?"

"I checked the calendar, hmm, my birthday isn't far off. But, where are my good best friends or besties?"

"Since Producer Liu is giving a 'movie lead role' as a birthday gift, there must be a ready-made script or film project to give.

It definitely wouldn't be an empty promise that takes time to fulfill! The answer, isn't it right here?"

A single sentence awakened quite a few industry insiders.

That's right, everyone remembered that at the beginning of last month, Lin Nan Film Industry had just submitted a movie script for review, and many actors in the industry were eyeing it.

And in other words, what movie could she, Liu Yifei, possibly have to give away?

Hmm? Wait! Anything from Lin Nan Film Industry, isn't it hers?

This is the established boss's wife, the great director's lady!

"Having a good best friend is truly great. 'Painted Skin' and 'Bad Genius' were personally guided by Lin Dao, and he even helped her win the Golden Horse Award for Best Supporting Actress.

The lead role in 'Brotherhood of Blades 2' was also given to her... This time, Liu Yifei even gave her a movie lead role as a birthday gift.

To put it bluntly, it's easier for her to get top-tier resources from Lin Nan Film Industry than for the artists at Shanhai Media! I just don't know who the director of this movie is. Is it Lin Dao? Or Director Guo? Director Lu Yang shouldn't be, he just finished a film not long ago. Teacher Xue..."

Yang Mi looked at the news, feeling an indescribable sense of envy.

Although "Silent Separation" is a popular IP, the four characters "Lin Nan Film Industry" are an even bigger IP.

To date, there hasn't been a small-time director among those who directed films produced by Lin Nan Film Industry.

Ceng Jia, standing on the side, was also feeling a bit emotional; she had previously confidently belittled Tang Yan, saying that few actresses of the same age in the mainland could compare to Yang Mi.

But the Shu Chang before her eyes was indeed among those she had dismissed. An actress who could call Lin Nan "Brother" in public naturally couldn't be compared to an ordinary person.

"Teacher Xue?"

Yang Mi suddenly muttered. She had always remembered Xue Xiaolu saying that if the box office for "Finding Mr. Right" was good, she would make it into a series.

It had been nearly three years since the filming of this movie, and it had been released for almost two years; the timing should be about right, right? After all, it's not good if the interval between series films is too long!

At this moment, many actresses of the same age were feeling a toothache, because they were sour.

Even Huang Xiaoming was being nagged at early in the morning, but his connections and resources really couldn't compare to Lin Nan's.

Moreover, Huayi is a big company, so it's impossible to give all the good resources to Yang Ying!

Not paying too much attention to the inquiries and teasing from industry insiders, Lin Nan was busy handling work.

The New Year's release period also meant that another year was coming to an end.

The company had many documents, reports, receipts, and tax declaration materials that required his signature.

After finishing in the morning, he went back at noon, just in time to prepare for a gathering on the villa's lawn.

"Lin Dao, Noon Sunshine has started auditions. Producer Hou Hongliang called to ask if we should send someone over to join?"

"Notify Director Jiang and see what she thinks."

Lin Nan said without lifting his head; the taxes to be paid this year were truly substantial.

"Lin Dao, Director Jiang has been attending an industry conference for the past two days and is not here."

Lin Nan then remembered that it seemed the television drama broadcast format had been reformed again, with the "one drama, two channels" policy set to be implemented starting New Year's Day.

In the future, television dramas could only be broadcast on a maximum of two television stations during prime time.

It was said to be for balancing the composition of satellite TV programs and forcing film and television companies to improve the production quality and competitiveness of their dramas.

But in Lin Nan's view, the original intention of "one drama, two channels" was too idealistic.

If a television drama can only be broadcast on two stations during prime time, it means the number of buyers will plummet.

For production companies to break even and make money, they have to quote higher per-episode prices, even doubling or tripling them. But television stations buying dramas are definitely trying their best to suppress prices!

The intention from above is for production companies to make better quality dramas, and television stations will naturally be willing to pay.

But from the perspective of production companies, especially in the internet era, if you want a drama to sell well, the safer and simpler method isn't to spend great effort improving filming quality, nor is it to refine the script or find good actors.

It's to film whatever the audience likes, use whichever actors have traffic, and preferably add a big IP—this is the simple and profitable way! Because the resulting drama comes with its own traffic and topics!

However, this is yet another vicious cycle!

Inertia will cause production companies to deviate from the original intention of "one drama, two channels," and production funds will tilt heavily toward "promotion."

"Actors" with traffic will become rampant and increasingly expensive... further driving up the entire industry's salary costs...

Finally, continuously raising the production budget for dramas until the "actors'" salaries account for a huge proportion, making them the "masters" of the crew, ultimately leading to less and less money spent on filming and production... resulting in shoddy work that relies on promotion...

You have to know that "data" and "traffic" can be faked.

When the entire industry is held hostage by "traffic," whether a "hit drama" is actually a hit? Then only the ghosts know!

Anyway, amidst the truth and falsehood, the audience is definitely hard-pressed to know and can only follow the "promotional information" online!

This is the major trend, and it cannot be stopped.

But there are certainly companies and people who film with heart; it's just that relatively speaking, they will be very few.

"Reply to Noon Sunshine that we won't send anyone over; just send the preliminary list before the roles are finalized," Lin Nan instructed.

"Understood, Lin Dao."

…………

There was less than a day left until the public release of "The Crossing (Part 1)."

This movie and "Coming Home," released on the 5th, were the most competitive domestic films in the first half of the month, full of hype.

As for television dramas, they were equally impressive.

"The Romance of the Condor Heroes," which started airing on the 3rd, had been constantly mocked and ridiculed by netizens, occupying a place online through negative publicity.

And the big-female-lead drama "The Empress of China" starring Fan Bingbing in the latter half of the month was truly the focus and big hit of the entire internet.

Because the stills and trailers were truly eye-catching—so many balls, big and round!

Lin Nan heard from Wang Wei that Tudou had already bought the exclusive online broadcast rights for "The Empress of China," and it wasn't cheap.

Just before 12:30 PM, the great Lin Dao drove back.

He found that the courtyard had already become lively; a huge blanket was spread on the lawn, and there were many simple dining tables and grills on the side.

Many restaurant delivery staff were plating food—cooked dishes, raw food, snacks, etc. —the variety was quite extensive, and the cake Liu Yifei had ordered was also in place.

But after a glance, he didn't see any sign of Miss Liu or Shu Chang and the others.

Seeing the great Lin Dao, the person in charge of the restaurant immediately greeted him, "Lin Dao."

"Sorry for the trouble."

"You're too kind; this is our job."

Lin Nan walked into the villa and vaguely heard voices coming from the direction of the wine cellar on the first floor.

"These few cases were gifts from Brother Xiaoming... those few bottles over there were brought by Huo Wenxi last time, and those were from Yang Shoucheng... those over there I bought..."

"... Don't touch that bottle of champagne, that was brought by Ma Te last month... How about opening this bottle today?"

"I think that bottle looks good; it's placed so high, it must be very expensive!"

With only five or six meters left to the entrance, Lin Nan heard Shu Chang's voice. Good heavens, did they come to rob the place?

"So it turns out more than half of the red wine in your house was gifted by others?" Zhu Yawen said with a click of his tongue.

"You talk too much; if you're not convinced, you can have them gift you some too, haha," Luo Jin retorted directly with a laugh.

"Let's go with this bottle; it was a gift from Leon early last year, it seems to be from 2004."

Standing at the entrance, Lin Nan happened to see Liu Yifei being a spendthrift!

However, the person he greeted was another unexpected face: "Oh my, a rare guest, Tang Tang."

Only then did the group notice Lin Nan. Tang Yan smiled, feeling slightly embarrassed: "Lin Dao, is it too abrupt?"

"Not abrupt at all, not abrupt at all. Luo Jin... ah no, Old Zhu, why didn't you bring your wife?"

"She's on set."

How could the group not see that Lin Nan was teasing Luo Jin? One by one, they just laughed without saying anything.

"Hurry up and go out; we're ready to start."

Liu Yifei walked out first, handing the red wine to Lin Nan; she was going upstairs to the study.

It was a rare sunny day, and it wasn't cold. The few of them sat on the lawn, surrounded by delicious food.

Shu Chang was the birthday girl today. After blowing out the candles and cutting the cake, she stared impatiently toward the villa entrance.

"Why aren't they coming out yet? Xixi is deliberately keeping me in suspense... Brother, is it that script your company submitted for review?"

"I don't know."

Lin Nan clinked glasses with Luo Jin and the others, ignoring Shu Chang and letting her stay anxious for a bit.

In less than two minutes, Liu Yifei walked out slowly, as if taking a stroll, with a playful smile on her face.

"Xixi, hurry up, you're going to kill me with anxiety."

Lin Nan, Zhu Yawen, Luo Jin, and Tang Yan all looked over; the great Lin Dao was a bit dumbfounded.

No wonder it took so long, and she even found a box to pack it in!

"Here, for you. Don't say I'm not generous; you were the first person I thought of."

Liu Yifei tilted her beautiful chin slightly, looking incredibly proud.

"Oh, I'm opening it right now."

The three people on the side all crowded around, and sure enough, they saw that inside the opened gift box was a script!

"'Go Away Mr. Tumor'!"

"Sour."

"Envious."

Just as Shu Chang was nervously putting it away, preparing to go back and read it herself.

Liu Yifei spoke unexpectedly, and she said it while unable to hold back her laughter:

"That, Changchang, this is the movie. The content is about the same as the name; the lead actress has a terminal illness.

As for, cough cough, as for whether Director Guo Fan will require you to shave your head when filming, I can't make that decision; you'll need to be mentally prepared in advance."

As Liu Yifei's words fell, the scene fell into dead silence.

Two or three seconds later, the group all burst into laughter:

"Haha, you're killing me.

Good news: The birthday gift is a movie lead role! Bad news: The lead actress has to shave her head!"

"Changchang, hurry up and eat the cake. That head of long black hair of yours might not be saved; let them eat their fill and have a safe journey!"

Although they were all teasing Shu Chang, Zhu Yawen and Luo Jin both had a different light in their eyes, and Tang Yan on the side was also very envious.

"I, I, I'll go all out!"

Shu Chang sat there, annoyed, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"You guys don't even think about it; I've already helped Xixi secure the lead role from Guo Fan, so I can't speak up again. When he auditions for roles later, you guys can go and try."

"Sure, no problem!"

……

A photo of the six of them was updated on their Weibo accounts just like that.

Shu Chang stood in the very middle, surrounded by the group, laughing heartlessly. And the background was filled with delicious food, as well as the huge lawn and garden.

The others' Weibo posts were all wishing Shu Chang a happy birthday, while hers was a crying-laughing emoji and the caption:

"The birthday gift Xixi gave me is poisonous..."

……

"Let's end the 'Silent Separation' matter here, stop tearing each other apart..."

"Okay."

…………

Time finally arrived at the 2nd.

Major media headlines and entertainment news searches were all about that "Oriental 'Titanic'," followed by other gossip.

"Jointly produced by China Film, LeTV, Huayi, Youzu, and Xiaoma, directed by the master of violent aesthetics, John Woo.

Starring Zhang Ziyi, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Huang Xiaoming, Song Hye-kyo, Tong Dawei, Masami Nagasawa, and others:

The war epic masterpiece 'The Crossing (Part 1)' is officially released today. The first-day screening rate in domestic theaters is as high as 34%!"

"Three weeks after release, the imported sci-fi blockbuster 'Interstellar' has a total box office of 1.222 billion, with the daily box office dropping to over 8 million.

It is reported that the total global box office for 'Interstellar' has exceeded 700 million USD, achieving high profits and is still growing."

"The lawsuit between Chiung Yao and Yu Zheng opened in court today, with the former seeking 20 million in damages. Wang Hailin, Vice President of the Film Literature Association, served as Chiung Yao's assistant, answering professional questions regarding plagiarism and adaptation."

"Jointly produced by Tang Ren and Sohu, starring Han Dongjun, Jin Chen, Zhang Ruoyun, Chen Yao, and others, the Republican fantasy drama 'Wu Xin: The Monster Killer' officially started filming today!"

……

Actors and stars in the film and television circle were all posting their movie tickets for "The Crossing (Part 1)," shouting for the movie with all their might.

Lin Nan saw it and felt that these people were trying too hard; this wasn't how you suck up to people. They didn't consider the consequences of being scolded by the audience at all!

On the desk, the phone vibrated with a buzz. Lin Nan checked the caller ID and then answered.

"Hello."

"Lin Dao, when do you think it would be appropriate for us to come over for measurements?"

"Anytime in the next two days is fine. I'll send you the specific address later; just give me a call before you come."

The person on the other end paused: "Lin Dao, then let's make it tomorrow. I'll bring people over myself.

You can rest assured; we are a time-honored brand with old craftsmanship, and we have a name in places like the Beijing Film Studio and Xi'an Film Studio. We know the standard for the phoenix coronet and ceremonial robes inside out. Very few people can make the full set nowadays; there are too many 'castrated' versions outside, which is just laughable..."

Listening to the phone, Lin Nan couldn't help but laugh; this master craftsman was quite talkative, perhaps because he hadn't seen anyone wanting the full set in a long time.

Although the phoenix coronet and ceremonial robes are dignified, grand, and exceptionally beautiful, wearing them is quite cumbersome, and the full set is a bit heavy for an ordinary girl! So, the most widely circulated versions on the market now, while also beautiful, are all "castrated" or "beggar" versions.

But for Liu Yifei, these weren't problems; after all, Miss Liu is a martial artist!

"Hmm, of course I trust you. You were recommended by my teacher, after all."

"That's good, that's good. Then did Director Tian tell you..."

"You just go ahead and make it; those aren't problems. Let's talk in detail when we meet tomorrow."

"Alright, alright, then I won't disturb Lin Dao anymore."

"Goodbye."

Lin Nan wasn't angry at all that the other party hesitated to ask about the money on the phone.

Because for a whole set, pure manual labor would take a long time, and it would require dozens of people.

Using the best of all materials, plus Lin Nan's requirement to rush the work, the cost would definitely be in the eight-figure range.

How much exactly, would have to wait until tomorrow to decide.

It can only be said that when it comes to true luxury goods, China's luxury goods are the ancestors!

…………

"We can't let outside reports get ahead of us. This time, after confirming he has finished reducing his holdings, we will issue the announcement ourselves.

Before going public, borrowing his name as a Golden Lion director was indeed very useful. But now we must take precautions and pave the way for his complete liquidation; we cannot let his departure cause us too much impact."

Huayi, Chairman's office. Wang Zhongjun pondered repeatedly and instructed.

"The people below reported that he has already dumped over 1.5 million shares over there. I guess this time it will still be around 2 million?" Wang Zhonglei guessed.

In fact, the two brothers occasionally did cash-outs themselves, but they were always cashing out at highs and buying at lows, not like Lin Nan, who was aiming for a complete liquidation and departure!

"If he were willing to lower the price, we could actually buy out the shares in his hands all at once."

"Then he probably wouldn't agree. Looking at his cash-out frequency, he doesn't look like someone who is short of money at all," Wang Zhonglei dismissed this idea of Wang Zhongjun's.

Large equity transactions definitely couldn't be at the stock market price. Lin Nan would also absolutely not agree to a one-time discounted transfer.

"Alright then, keep an eye on it and do as I said."

"Okay."

……

Sometimes, it's just that coincidental.

Liu Yifei had just said online that she wanted to give a movie lead role as a birthday gift to Shu Chang, and the industry was guessing and discussing whether it was that one from Lin Nan Film Industry? Then the Film Bureau issued the public notice!

The media all have dog noses, sensitive to smell, and immediately reported it. The film and television circle became even more chaotic all of a sudden.

"Transferred from the Film Bureau's official website, December script review results public notice:

Submitted by Lin Nan Film Industry, the movie script 'Go Away Mr. Tumor' has passed review, is approved for filing, and can receive a film production permit."

"According to the Film Bureau's official website, the synopsis of the approved script is: 'Go Away Mr. Tumor' is adapted from the comic of the same name, a romantic inspirational comedy film, telling the story of a female lead suffering from cancer who still smiles at life during her days of fighting the disease."

What a great subject! The first reaction of many actors in the industry was this!

A large number of netizens and industry insiders were tagging Shu Chang, asking if the birthday gift she received was "Go Away Mr. Tumor"? Did she know who would be directing the movie?

Liu Yifei naturally didn't escape unscathed, and her Weibo was also flooded.

And the film and television circle was also eyeing this "Go Away Mr. Tumor." Because a movie from Lin Nan Film Industry is top-tier resource for building a resume!

Many media reporters blocked Lin Nan Film Industry, but fortunately, they didn't block Lin Nan.

When Yue Jun accepted an interview, he didn't give a clear answer, but said that it would naturally be made public when the movie was filed and roles were cast. A little bit of mystery is still necessary!

"Sigh, I wonder if Chairman Han is online reading movie reviews right now?"

Lin Nan leaned against Liu Yifei's teddy bear pillow, lying lazily.

He looked at the movie reviews for "The Crossing (Part 1)" online, where the "public indignation" and topic volume and heat had already gone off the charts, and couldn't help but mutter.

It's truly too miserable!

As the director of "The Crossing," John Woo was receiving abuse, belittlement, ridicule, and sarcasm from 99.9% of the audience who had already seen the movie online! It was practically comparable to cyberbullying.

"The landscape is shattered into a comic, and the life story is like Chiung Yao! 'The Crossing' is indeed a 'piece of shit epic'!"

"The shattering of the country and the ups and downs of personal life, what a good, simple subject; even if it couldn't be filmed as an epic, it could have been filmed as the encounter of a 'Gone with the Wind' story. But the great Director John Woo stubbornly turned it into a bad movie, with three emotional lines all broken and incomplete, like a mix of multiple movies, fragmented and without a theme."

"If it weren't for the three unbelievable releases of white doves, reminding us that this is the signature of Director John Woo, I would have almost thought I was watching a third-rate movie mix with unclear primary and secondary themes and different subjects!"

"Frankly speaking, I was very disappointed and suffered a lot after watching this movie. One-sentence spoiler: Low-level romance drama alternates with the game Contra, and after two hours, they haven't even boarded the ship yet! How do they have the face to call it the Oriental version of 'Titanic'?"

"It's been 6 years since 'Red Cliff,' and facts prove that Director John Woo still can't film large-scale, big-production movies well!"

"He talks about filming epic movies, but deep down, John Woo is still about the gunfights and shootouts in poor streets and alleys; he completely cannot control the magnificent and profound epic and historical background!"

"I won't go to see the second half of 'The Crossing' anymore; the first half is already so bad, the second half doesn't need to be thought about, it's definitely also a piece of 'shit epic'!"

"'The Crossing' is called a war movie, but it's actually just a large-scale gunfight movie!"

"Can I get a refund? It's so bad and so expensive!"

"I heard it invested over 400 million, nearly 500 million; it's completely money down the drain!"

"I sincerely suggest everyone, don't buy tickets for 'The Crossing,' otherwise you'll scold yourself for being an idiot! It's too bad!"

……

A group of main creators were clearly still shouting for promotion in the morning, but at this moment, they were all silent, with no one coming out to say a word.

Because looking at the situation online, it was truly a bit scary; the scolding was overwhelming, and the bad reviews were like a tide.

"This blow to Chairman Han is probably a bit big! Yesterday in an interview, he even said 'The Crossing' was the closing work of his career at China Film."

Liu Yifei was wearing a tight skirt, sitting on her butt next to Lin Nan, sighing as she spoke.

"Look, even at this moment, Chairman Han hasn't called me. What does that mean? It means he has seen the large-scale movie reviews online."

Lin Nan also just realized; if the movie reviews were good, wouldn't Han Sanping have called to show off and slap Lin Nan in the face?

"It's so bad, don't even think about overseas rights; there aren't that many idiots! Actually, I quite sympathize with Chairman La."

"Ah?"

Miss Liu leaned against Lin Nan, a bit confused.

"Think about it, if the movie is a big hit, it's Chairman Han's credit, and it has nothing to do with Chairman La. Because this is a film project that was decided for investment at the end of 2011. Chairman La wants to sponge off the credit, but he can't get a piece of it.

But if the movie is bad and loses a fortune, Chairman La has to pick up the tab; who told him to be the current Chairman of China Film!

As for Chairman Han, sigh, he just didn't preserve his integrity in his later years and became a big joke in the industry. But for someone like him who values face and reputation, this is no different from an immediate death sentence; it's a huge loss of face, haha..."

"Thinking about it, it's true; this kind of large-scale scolding, nearly 500 million in costs, it feels..."

"No need to feel; it's a total failure. This movie will definitely enter film history, but it will be entering as a negative example."

Just as Lin Nan was about to compliment Liu Yifei's tight skirt, a call came in.

"Hmm? Xiaoma? What kind of note is this?" Liu Yifei asked in surprise.

"It's from Xiaoma Pentium. That day at the premiere of 'The Crossing (Part 1),' I chatted with the current Chairman of Xiaoma for a few words.

I suppose, after seeing the movie reviews online, he figured it out and gave up struggling, right?" Lin Nan said thoughtfully.

…………

(End of chapter)