[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta":3,"chapter-the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-chapter-19":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Playboy of Huayu: How Did a Celestial Immortal Transform Me?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2297645,4495,"Chapter 19: Giving a Gift","the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-chapter-19",19,"\u003Cp>\"Boss Lu, what is it that you do, how come...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan laughed: \"Director Li, you are more than twenty years older than me, just call me Little Lu.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I am not any kind of boss, I am also an insider, an actor, but I am quite interested in the directing profession and know a little bit about it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His suggestion for Li Yang to use handheld photography came from his learning experience at USC in his past life; it was a mockumentary teaching shoot imitating *The Blair Witch Project*, which required visiting several slums where Black people lived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Due to the complex and ever-changing shooting environment, large-scale equipment could hardly meet the flexibility requirements, and handheld photography was instead better at highlighting authenticity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To be honest, we had considered it before, but we were just afraid the clarity would be too poor, and there is too much dust under the mine, plus lighting is also a problem.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan laughed: \"Director Li, you are standing in the mountain without seeing the mountain; lighting is the least of your problems.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You mean...?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yang’s brows were tightly furrowed; he had completely forgotten his previous disdain for this excessively young investor and was treating him as a filmmaker of equal standing to converse with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Right, it’s exactly the miner’s headlamp!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The dusty environment and the requirements of the oppressive atmosphere make using 16mm film with an ISO of only 500 more suitable; although it doesn't have the high definition of 800, pairing it with the searchlights on the miners' helmets should be extremely appropriate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan described to him a world at the bottom of a mine with no sun or moon, where dust drifted about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The slightly shaky shots from the handheld camera, the rough graininess, and the dim lighting revealed a real and dark conspiracy in the mining area before the audience's eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brilliant!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yang excitedly slapped his thigh and looked at the investor in surprise: \"Boss Lu, could I invite you to be the producer of our film?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having such insight after only skimming the script, he believed that with the two of them working together, they could definitely brainstorm even better suggestions for the film.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan pondered without speaking; the shooting cycle for this film was not long, but it was full of twists and turns, and working at the bottom of the mine also carried a certain level of danger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Director Li, my schedule probably won't allow for the time, but if you have any needs, you can come to me at any time. I will invest 1.5 million in this film!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yang’s heart, which had gone quiet due to his refusal, became lively again. 1.5 million—this almost solved all his worries!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the extra budget, they could be more at ease regarding film testing and the safety of the creative team, without worrying about it falling through halfway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining money could also be used for promotion at film festivals; in his later life, Li Yang had mobilized a group of old friends in Berlin to generate buzz for love, handing out flyers in person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In these two days, I will first transfer 400,000 to you, we will sign the contract, and the subsequent funds will arrive very quickly according to your shooting progress.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Film production funds have special accounts; under the Hollywood-standard industrial process, they are even monitored by the investor and the completion guarantor company, and the funds are not provided in a lump sum—this, Li Yang understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sighed heavily; although he hadn't managed to invite this knowledgeable young man to help out, he had at least solved the bulk of the budget.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan, sitting in the taxi, also sighed heavily. Where could he find the rest of the money?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like pyramid schemes and insurance, one has to slaughter acquaintances; for the remaining million or so, he would still have to find his senior fellow student, Sister Jiang, Sister Xun, and the others to stir up some business.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The compensation at China International Capital Corporation was generous; the author’s cousin joined with an undergraduate degree in 2004 and received a compensation package of 180,000 plus bonuses that year, and in some years, this bonus was even higher than the annual salary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that year, the average annual wage for urban employees nationwide was 16,000...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time the sponsor system was introduced later, it became as common as drinking water for investment banking elites to have a net worth of over a million overnight; this system was also jokingly called \"a production line for the middle class.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having worked for over four years, borrowing 500,000 from his senior fellow student to spend should not be a problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having finalized the investment intent, Lu Kuan rushed to Wuxi without stopping, preparing to find a good opportunity to \"solicit alms\" from his two good sisters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a bald monk can solicit alms, why can't I, a Daoist priest?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After getting off the plane, Lu Kuan specifically found an exquisite, high-end Western restaurant, not worried about the two actresses being surrounded and disturbed while eating, and it was also convenient for the few of them to talk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What is this?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Qinqin and Zhou Xun exchanged a glance, looking at the two elegantly colored gift boxes on the dining table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A gift! Open it and see.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tiffany?\" Jiang Qinqin opened the packaging in surprise; it was a pair of diamond stud earrings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The platinum-set round brilliant cuts had exceptional size, color, and clarity, and the style was vastly different from the jewelry currently available domestically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Xun’s was a classic 80s Tiffany graffiti series rose gold pendant necklace, which was still at the cutting edge of fashion even twenty years later in 2001.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Qinqin had signed with a Taiwan agency early on and had studied jewelry more than Zhou Xun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, she was playing with the earrings, unable to put them down, and asked with a smile: \"Little Lu, where did you buy this Tiffany? It wouldn't be a fake, would it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan feigned anger: \"How can you look down on people! This store just opened, I queued for a whole night in Jingcheng to buy these!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was half-true and half-false.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tiffany had just opened its first mainland store in Wangfujing, Jingcheng, this year, officially entering the mainland market as a jewelry brand claiming a century of heritage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Saying he queued for a night was pure flattery; the two pieces of jewelry, totaling over 30,000, were not yet accessible to the average consumer at this time, so there was no need to queue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Xun had already let Jiang Qinqin put the pendant on for her; stroking the unique heart-shaped design with a small arrow, she found it quite interesting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the two actresses, these were light luxury embellishments for daily wear; they couldn't be paired with evening gowns for formal occasions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why did you give your Sister Jiang earrings and give me a pendant?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The little Daoist priest started being mysterious again: \"Sister Xun, you belong to Metal and Fire, Sister Jiang belongs to Water; this is matched for you from the perspective of the Five Elements, which is beneficial to your fortune!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Also, the day you got drunk, Sister Jiang and I were exhausted from taking care of you, and her earring was lost that night because we weren't careful.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two red clouds flew onto Jiang Qinqin’s pretty face; she gave him a charming, coquettish glare, and remembering the intimacy of that night, a trace of itchiness rose in her body again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Little Daoist priest, it was clearly bitten off by you...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She calmly stretched her jade foot under the table and lightly stepped on Lu Kuan, telling him not to talk nonsense; Zhou Xun was an experienced person and could easily see the clues.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan chuckled, the waiter served the appetizers, and the three of them chatted while eating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Little Lu, did you invest in Li Yang’s film?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Qinqin had always been a rather indifferent person, but she didn't know why she was always so concerned about the little Daoist priest’s spending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah, I invested 1 million.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Kuan was skillfully cutting his steak, not avoiding the destination of his expenditures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What? Where did you get the money?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now Zhou Xun couldn't stay calm either; in this day and age, coal bosses and internet capital had not yet entered the market on a large scale, and the salaries of top actors were nowhere near as exaggerated as the later \"one Shuang = 160 million.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some famous actors in the country around the turn of the millennium, such as Li Baotian who was filming *The Divine Doctor Xi Lai Le*, were getting 80,000 per episode, Wang Zhiwen was getting 60,000, and Ning Jing was getting 60,000.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, Zhou Xun and Li Yapeng received the top rate of 80,000, while Jiang Qinqin and Zhou Jie were both around 60,000.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This 1 million was not much for Zhou Xun, but it was far from something Lu Kuan could spend easily without blinking an eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1530,"2026-06-20T06:05:17.358Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","f03255a5bfd91e37efbec89c26bf640c56a9ca3558e6a1ef6b318ff75deeabf9","the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-chapter-20","the-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-chapter-18",343,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-playboy-of-huayu-how-did-a-celestial-immorta-cover.jpg"]