Chapter 674

In the morning, over a dozen film industry giants—including China Film, Starlight, Wanda, Huayi, Alibaba Pictures, Hengdian, Xiangshan, and Dadi Cinema Chains—issued a joint announcement:

The large-scale fantasy action comedy film "The Journey to the West: Demons and Spirits," written by Zhou Zhou Xingchi and directed by Xu Ke, has officially been scheduled for release during the 2017 Spring Festival, continuing the "Journey to the West" legend…

Wu Wu Yifan, Lin Gengxin, Yao Chen, Lin Yun, Bao Beier, Wang Wang Likun, and others reposted the official release announcement for "The Journey to the West: Demons and Spirits," making a date with fans and moviegoers for the Spring Festival slot.

…

Online, the buzz from yesterday's Tang Ren top star's wedding had just toppled the Hundred Flowers Awards, only to be immediately crushed by "The Journey to the West: Demons and Spirits."

There was no way around it—so many film giants, plus the combined pull of Zhou Zhou Xingchi, Xu Ke, Wu Wu Yifan, and others, made any other entertainment news utterly incapable of displacing it from the top of trending lists.

But the Spring Festival had only just passed over a month ago; this desperate rush to lock in next year's Spring Festival slot made the intent glaringly obvious.

The producers' absolute confidence in the film and their blatant ambition for box office dominance were displayed with startling nakedness!

The casting auditions for "The Painted Cat" appeared to have officially begun;

Numerous Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asian, Japanese, and Korean actors were reported by media to be coming to the mainland for auditions, and photos from Beijing Capital Airport gradually surfaced to confirm it.

On another front, someone had leaked word that Liu Liu Yifei had read the script but declined "The Painted Cat," and the news spread within industry circles.

As a result, for most of the morning, Red Star Studio's phones were ringing nonstop, and the company was packed with reporters; it was safe to assume Shengkai Pictures was experiencing nearly the same scene.

After all, Liu Liu Yifei's status was undeniable, and "The Painted Cat" was Chen Chen Kaige's film—this whole matter of social maneuvering, humiliation, and fury—how could the paparazzi not be thrilled and swarm like flies?

But faced with this situation, Shengkai Pictures and Red Star Studio clearly shared an unspoken understanding: ignore, don't respond, disregard the media and rumors.

Because both sides knew Chen, the great director, was a man who valued face and dignity—and this face and dignity, Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei were willing to help him "preserve" and conceal;

After all, you couldn't truly let him lose face in front of the media and the industry, could you?

Imagine it: the lofty, always-aloof Golden Palm director, publicly rejected by a junior actress like Liu Liu Yifei—how humiliating would that be to his self-image? Would it be any different from killing him?

Shengkai Pictures.

Zhang Zhang Ziyi, in Tang dynasty makeup, had done her utmost to "perform"; but Chen Chen Kaige's furrowed brow left her deeply uneasy.

After the two audition segments ended, Wang Wang Huiling, Chen Hong, and others all turned to Chen Chen Kaige, waiting for his words. Zhang Zhang Ziyi did the same, and she was visibly tense.

"Director Chen?" After a long silence, Zhang Zhang Ziyi asked softly.

Only then did Chen Chen Kaige finally speak; he looked at Zhang Zhang Ziyi and commented: "Your acting is unquestionable—I know that well;

but your physical attributes are indeed a major factor. The two roles you auditioned for are adult women, yet Tang women prized plumpness as beauty…"

The phrase "prized plumpness as beauty" pinpointed Zhang Zhang Ziyi's greatest flaw and gently delivered her answer.

Some things can never be compensated for by acting alone; even if she had just given birth, her underlying physique was simply too poor.

In an instant, Zhang Zhang Ziyi's eyes dimmed, yet she still forced a smile: "Thank you, Director Chen, Producer Chen. I understand."

"Mm, there will be other opportunities."

After Chen Chen Kaige nodded, Chen Hong spoke to comfort her.

A dozen seconds later, Zhang Zhang Ziyi stepped out of the audition room, and two assistants immediately rushed over.

"Let's go. Talk in the car."

With a "confident" smile on her face, Zhang Zhang Ziyi made sure no one outside noticed her distress, whispering quietly.

The three left Shengkai Pictures, amid the flashing of countless media cameras, and before they even reached the luxury vehicle, a lavish car slowly pulled up;

out stepped Fan Li Bingbing, heels high, wearing a floral waist-cinched dress, dark sunglasses, heavy makeup, long hair cascading over her shoulders, radiant and stunning.

The two top-tier leading actresses met eyes—immediately, the difference was clear; neither spoke, only politely nodded to each other, then passed by.

Before getting in the car, Zhang Zhang Ziyi couldn't help but glance once more at Fan Li Bingbing's back… that ass, those breasts, that face—she had to admit, in terms of physical condition, this "bitch" was truly breathtaking.

"Sister Zhang Ziyi?"

"Drive. The audition failed. I need to find new resources for my comeback." Zhang Zhang Ziyi said coldly.

…

For "The Story of a Marriage," Lin Nan planned to carefully select the cast only after the script was approved.

The three major film festivals this year were out of the question, because even Venice in September had already begun accepting submissions.

So Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei planned to take "The Story of a Marriage" to next year's three major European film festivals.

As for which one exactly, Lin Nan intended to decide after filming wrapped—and it truly required careful deliberation.

"The daily box office for 'The Mermaid' dropped from 1.45 million to 820,000. Beside La La Peikang has notified Shanghai Film to prepare for the celebration banquet."

Lin Nan was sketching storyboards at home when Ren Ren Zhonglun called.

The 15% share of "The Mermaid" earned Shanghai Film over 200 million, but also made it the laughingstock of the industry.

Because Ren Ren Zhonglun's earlier decision—deeming a comedy's 300-million budget too high and choosing to "retreat"—had leaked out, likely originating from China Film.

"Then prepare it. No need to wait until after the run ends."

Lin Nan stroked Xiao Hei, who was crouched on his desk, put down his pen, and chatted with Ren Ren Zhonglun.

Chairman Ren wasn't calling just about "The Mermaid"'s celebration banquet—he mainly wanted to tell Lin Nan about another "trick."

"Scheduled?"

"Yeah, just confirmed. Take a look."

Hearing this, Lin Nan immediately opened the news page on his nearby computer—and there it was.

"Produced jointly by China Star and Bona Pictures, with a production budget of 500 million RMB, the grand mythological epic 'The Legend of the Divine Realm' has officially been set for the summer slot on July 29."

"China Star Chairman Xiang Xiang Huaqiang stated: 'The Legend of the Divine Realm' invested heavily in visual effects; its final quality rivals 'Monster Hunt.' Total box office will target 2 billion RMB and beyond." On Dong also posted on Weibo…

Lin Nan saw Xiang Xiang Huaqiang's… call to arms, if you will—quite bold, quite outspoken. On Dong echoed the same hype, vowing to maximize promotional efforts.

"So, what is Chairman Ren trying to say?" Lin Nan had a hunch, since Ren Ren Zhonglun had hinted at this before.

"Didn't Xiang Xiang Huaqiang's wife previously post on Weibo accusing 'The Mermaid' of box office fraud, and you found it disgusting and didn't want to touch it, asking me for my opinion?"

"Right, I remember your exact words: 'Ignore it. If a dog bites you, do you bite back?' I even joked that this wasn't your style, Chairman Ren."

"Well, now that their movie's been scheduled, isn't it time?" Ren Ren Zhonglun sneered.

"And then?"

"On the China Film side, Beside La La Peikang is a 'pious fraud,' and Yu Dong is a China Film man himself… Whether China Film will throw up obstacles, I can't say, but the theater chains under Shanghai Film and the ones it holds shares in—well, I have the final say!"

Good lord, Lin Nan felt his heart jolt at that.

Ren Ren Zhonglun did indeed have one very big virtue, but equally it was also his flaw: he could break the rules for the sake of personal ties and personal grudges.

The former, for instance, was the Jackie Chan issue; the latter was this very moment's "man-made" interference with screening schedules!

Standing from a selfish angle, honestly speaking, Lin Nan couldn't denounce Ren Ren Zhonglun, because he himself was one of the beneficiaries.

"What, scared? Just take it as a joke you heard. Anyway, that's the result of 'the market's spontaneous adjustment.' Ha ha…"

"I'll pretend I heard nothing, and Little Hei heard nothing either." Lin Nan replied with a smile.

"Little Hei? Who's that?"

"Liu Yifei's cat."

"You, you're really something—I'm hanging up."

Staring at the phone screen showing the call had ended, Lin Nan gave a wry smile, picked up his pencil again, and said, "Back to work."

But before two minutes had passed, Liu Liu Yifei's shout came from downstairs: "Lin Nan, lunch is here, hurry down…"

"Okay, coming."

……

"Her figure, looks, acting—every single one meets the requirements."

"I know. Back when we filmed *The Orphan of Zhao*, I already knew. But she's too glamorous; she shouldn't be this type, not the particular feeling I want."

Chen Chen Kaige was a little unwilling. Today's Fan Li Bingbing might meet every condition for Yang Yang Guifei, but in his eyes, she was missing a sense of anticipation and a sense of stunning impact;

most importantly, Fan Li Bingbing didn't have that relatively "pure" quality about her.

"If even she won't do, I'm afraid it'll really be hard to choose—finding the next one won't be easy, will it?" Wang Wang Huiling quipped, muttering to herself that the most suitable candidate had already politely declined.

"Let's leave it pending, keep looking. If someone's right, even a small-time actress will do!"

Chen Chen Kaige said, hammering the decision home. His assistant was already reminding him that lunch hour had arrived.

……

Day after day passed; Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei stayed home— the former drawing storyboards, the latter reading scripts and writing character biographies, and every so often coming to consult her very own great director…

Meanwhile, out in the world, the casting for *The Founding of an Army* appeared to be nearly wrapped up.

Although China Film intended to keep it secret, the confirmed cast list had indeed leaked clean within the industry; among the core roles, there were really quite a few young idols—utterly ridiculous!

As for Little Zhang Zhang Ziyi failing her audition for *Legend of the Demon Cat*, being brushed off on the spot, and being unable to make her comeback in Director Chen's film—that had become an even bigger talking point and source of gossip over tea in the industry;

the once-international Zhang, who'd only gone off to have a baby for Wang Half-Wall—how had she fallen behind like this?!

In the blink of an eye, the date had reached the 25th at month's end.

The news that LeTV Pictures was holding its full shareholders' meeting today had been hanging on Weibo's trending searches and entertainment headlines since early morning.

Most importantly, the stars and celebrity shareholders appearing in the reporters' lenses were really big names—almost all top-tier and second-tier currently in vogue;

among them, Zhang Zhang Yimou, the country's leading great director, the National Master, was especially eye-catching.

After all, people fear comparison. What did Director Zhang look like when he was with Zhang Zhang Weiping, and what does he look like now? Aren't those two completely different levels?

The Zhang Zhang Yimou appearing on camera at this moment did look far more spirited than before, quite a bit younger!

…………