Chapter 214: Mutual Probing

Lu Kuan had drunk a bit too much in the evening and was preparing to close his eyes and rest for a while before going downstairs.

But fate had other plans; his cell phone rang again.

He couldn't be bothered to check the caller ID and answered directly: "Hello? Who is this?"

"Lu Kuan! I'm going to be on the Spring Festival Gala!"

Liu Yifei's jubilant expression seemed to be right before his eyes. Boss Lu asked in confusion, "It's already December. Shouldn't the first round of rehearsals for the Gala have been finished long ago?"

"Why are they looking for you now?"

Yang Siwei, who was on the side, took the phone: "We're also very confused. But I asked around with Sister Hua, and it's said that a professor from the Central Academy of Drama is suspected of sexual assault, and then an actor was implicated, so they might have to miss the performance."

Boss Lu was stunned, thinking of the other party involved in the incident where Hei Zi hit someone: Huang Dingyu from the Central Academy of Drama.

Another damn old case, bloody and melodramatic to the extreme.

"Hmm, alright then. Let's talk later; I have something to do."

Liu Yifei heard the "beep-beep-beep" sound coming from the phone and was furious: "Why did he hang up?"

Yang Siwei was dumbfounded: "Boss Lu said he has something to do."

Something to do! What could he possibly have to do late at night!

Filthy thing!

Liu Yifei was extremely stifled. She fell backward onto the bed, slapped the soft quilt cover hard, and buried her head inside.

Yang Siwei looked at her as if she were a lunatic. Suddenly, the young girl poked her head out from under the quilt: "Siwei, are you familiar with Fan Bingbing?"

"I am. I'm interning with Sister Hua, and she is Sister Hua's artist."

Liu Yifei narrowed her eyes: "Call her now and see what she's doing."

"Ah?"

Yang Siwei was dumbfounded, then suddenly thought of Lu Kuan's "something to do" just now.

"This... this isn't very good, is it?"

The female manager panicked. Can you two not drag me into these kinds of plays!

I'm innocent!

If Boss Lu takes his anger out on me, I'll die a miserable death!

I still have the dream of becoming the number one female manager in the country that I haven't realized yet!

Liu Yifei clamped her shoulders with both hands.

Although Yang Siwei was a size larger than her, Little Liu had been practicing everything from Baji Quan to black-market boxing during this time, and her hands were incredibly strong!

"Siwei, are we on the same side?"

"... Yes!"

"Then help me make this call. Just ask her where she is. Say you haven't seen her in a long time and invite her out for a late-night snack."

Liu Yifei only felt that her train of thought had never been so clear, much more focused than when she was filming!

A woman's IQ at this time is comparable to Einstein's. Although she was still a virgin, the power of a maiden is doubled!

Yang Siwei's face was ashen, but with her back against the wall, she had no choice but to bow her head and dial the number.

The phone didn't ring many times before it was answered.

"Hello? Siwei?"

"Ah... haha, Sister Bingbing, where are you?"

"I'm in the car. I just landed in Ningxia and have to come back to continue working."

Yang Siwei turned on the speakerphone. Liu Yifei held her breath and leaned in. There seemed to be the sound of traffic.

"Ningxia? Oh, oh, you're filming *The Legend of the Twin Dragons*, right?"

Fan Bingbing didn't suspect anything, just found it strange that Yang Siwei hadn't contacted her for a long time. What was she up to?

"Yes, what's wrong?"

Yang Siwei laughed it off: "Nothing, just seeing if you've left yet. If not, let's have a late-night snack together. Haven't seen you in a long time."

Bingbing had always had high emotional intelligence. When Yang Siwei was interning under Wang Jinhua, she hadn't looked down on her because of her status.

"Thanks, Siwei, for still thinking of me."

The big star suddenly had a flash of intuition and asked: "Siwei, are you... with anyone?"

Liu Yifei frowned and looked "fiercely" at Yang Siwei.

The manager felt like she was acting in a damn movie: "No. No one, why?"

Bingbing asked casually: "Oh, nothing. How are you getting along with Liu Yifei?"

"Pretty good, pretty good. We get along quite well."

"Then she..."

Fan Bingbing wanted to ask about the relationship between Liu Yifei and Lu Kuan, but felt it wasn't appropriate to ask such things over the phone.

Besides, Yang Siwei was Liu Yifei's manager; would she tell her the truth?

Better to wait until next time when she gives her some small gifts to probe the reality.

"Siwei, I've arrived. Let's talk next time."

"Okay, goodbye, Sister Bingbing."

Yang Siwei had been on the phone for a few minutes and felt more tired than if she had run a thousand meters.

Putting down the phone, her palms were full of sweat.

Liu Yifei stared at her for a while and then stood up happily.

"Siwei, I'm going to take a shower."

She took her bath towel out of the suitcase. Before entering the bathroom, she suddenly turned around, giving Yang Siwei a fright.

"Siwei, we're the best in the world, right?"

"Ah? Yes!"

"Hmm, that's good."

The sweat on Yang Siwei's palms became even denser. She didn't know if it was because she hadn't eaten enough at night and had low blood sugar.

Just now, looking at Liu Yifei who had turned back to stare at her, it seemed...

It seemed she saw the shadow of her former boss.

The former boss also didn't know that he had already been investigated by Liu Yifei once.

Otherwise, goose-feather snow would fall in Shanghai this December, ten times heavier than the day Dou E died.

He was looking at the revelations about the Hei Zi incident on the blog site on his computer. The whole thing was actually very simple.

Hei Zi was dating Tong Yao and suspected that Tong Yao's role in *Tracks in the Snowy Forest* was obtained through Huang Dingyu's connections, the latter being a notoriously lecherous man in the industry.

Thus, the incident occurred, causing a huge uproar on the internet.

This incident had a very bad influence.

Why is the entertainment industry cursed by later generations as being so dirty and having its reputation ruined? It's because of these vermin!

Don't look at the washing machine; you had a hand in this too!

Whether students can take roles in their freshman or sophomore year was originally a regulation based on student cultivation.

In terms of economic remuneration, the salaries of teachers in art colleges are lower than those in general universities, especially at the Beijing Film Academy.

You can tell from the name, Beijing Film Academy; it is a municipal university and has no central financial appropriation.

The Central Academy of Drama is slightly better, but also limited.

In 2003, the monthly salary of an ordinary lecturer at the Central Academy of Drama was only 1,000 yuan. Professors had more position and title allowances, and teachers taking private jobs was a common occurrence.

According to the regulations of the Central Academy of Drama, freshman and sophomore students who want to take roles must first pass the hurdle of their head teacher and acting teacher.

Then they must get the department head to stamp and approve it. The department will sign a contract with the crew and extract a certain percentage of the labor fee.

And Huang Dingyu was the current head of the acting department at the Central Academy of Drama.

Everyone says the entertainment industry is dirty, messy, and poor. How many can keep themselves clean?

Lu Kuan met with Zhang Guoli on the 8th floor of the Peace Hotel. The latter's dusty look and stubble-covered face gave him a shock.

Don't look at how polite and humble he was in front of Han Shanping and Ren Zhonglun. In terms of strength, at least in the TV drama circle, he was also a big shot.

It's just that this matter was indeed something he had to beg Lu Kuan for. Hei Zi was born to him and his ex-wife and had been raised by his side since childhood, so they were very close.

"Director Lu, nice to meet you. You see, I came at an inconvenient time and didn't catch the evening dinner party, otherwise I could have toasted you a few times, haha."

Lu Kuan smiled and asked them to sit down, pretending to ask about their purpose.

Having found the main person, Zhang Guoli knew it wasn't good to hide things when begging for help, so he told the whole story.

"That child of mine is just a hothead. It's his first time dating, and he didn't know the weight of things. He felt he lost face, so..."

"Sigh, it's really hard to talk about. He's about the same age as you, Director Lu, but his realm of being a person is really far behind!"

As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears, and he was almost choked up and unable to speak.

An old actor indeed!

Ren Zhonglun chimed in at the right time: "Director Lu, I heard you are slightly familiar with a few leaders of the blog site. If it's convenient..."

With Lu Kuan's character, he never let a thief go empty-handed. If I help you, Old Zhang, I have to get something, right?

Actually, there really was a loophole for him to pick up.

At the end of 2003, that is, at the end of this year, Feng Xiaogang's contract with Yanda Huayi would expire.

In later generations, Kuzi and Old Zhang partnered to establish a company. Kuzi specialized in making movies, and Old Zhang specialized in TV dramas.

The two had a beautiful vision, aiming for a listing.

As a result, reality was very skinny. They weren't willing to take out their own money to smash into the entertainment industry, hoping for investors to buy shares.

Later, the investors stood them up, so Small Steel Cannon returned to Yanda Huayi, renewed a long-term contract, and cashed out until 2009, making a fortune of over 200 million.

Hearing Ren Zhonglun's probing tone, Lu Kuan frowned and said: "I really don't know about this. Wait a moment, I'll make a call."

As he spoke, he paced out of the VIP room. When he came back, his brows seemed to be furrowed even deeper.

"Director Lu, what is this?"

Boss Lu suppressed first and then raised, smiling: "Zhang Laoshi, President Ren, I have not failed the trust."

"Look again tomorrow morning. Your son's matter, at least on the blog site, will not have any heat."

Zhang Guoli walked over exaggeratedly and grabbed Lu Kuan's hand: "Director Lu! Thank you so much!"

Immediately, he said excitedly: "Director Lu, should I go and thank President Wang? If you introduce me, I won't be lacking in what I should prepare. What do you think?"

Boss Lu sneered in his heart. This is trying to probe his true relationship with Wang Xing.

"No need. A fellow villager of mine is a Tsinghua alumnus with Wang Xing. I asked him to plead for mercy. We are all our own people, not worth all this."

Ren Zhonglun also said some polite words: "That's why they say Director Lu created these foundations at a young age. There are no commoners in his circle!"

"Yes, yes, yes. Oh my, Director Lu, you see I came empty-handed in such a hurry, I'm really sorry."

"How about this, I, Old Zhang, don't mention anything else, but my word is as good as gold in the industry. In the future, whenever you need a hand, Director Lu, you must speak up, okay?"

Boss Lu watched him acting vigorously and listened patiently, but he was a bit tipsy and wanted to send him away quickly.

"Zhang Laoshi, don't be polite. We are all eating in the same circle. Take care of each other in the future."

Zhang Guoli had already lowered his posture enough. Seeing that Lu Kuan, who was always eccentric, had a lower posture than him, he really had no bottom in his heart.

The three of them exchanged pleasantries and parted ways. Boss Lu went upstairs on his own.

He had thought about inserting a wedge between Yanda Huayi, Small Steel Cannon, and Zhang Guoli, and buying shares in their newly established company.

But thinking carefully, the practical significance was not too great.

The entanglement of these two people with Yanda Huayi was deep into the bone marrow. Ordinary small favors could not divide them.

Whether it was the high-level officials standing behind Yanda Huayi or the Beijing cultural circle, that was the class foundation that Small Steel Cannon and Old Zhang relied on to become famous.

No one will betray their own class.

Old Zhang was a smart man. This time, he established a connection first.

When Yanda Huayi and the inquiry realm were truly at odds, and he wanted to deal a fatal blow to Yanda Huayi, this person might be able to be a trump card.

Because the contrast of strength at that time would give him enough bargaining chips for betrayal.

Just like when Old Zhang abandoned his wife and went north from Chengdu with Deng Jie years ago.

Zhang Guoli, who walked out of the Peace Hotel, also quickly restrained his low posture just now, and expressed a true feeling to his old friend Ren Zhonglun.

"I always heard that this Director Lu was young and vigorous, and thought he was someone who relied on his talent and was arrogant. Today I know it's far from the case."

Ren Zhonglun asked suspiciously: "A favor bought you over?"

Zhang Guoli smiled bitterly: "It's not a matter of being bought over or not."

"He knew my relationship with Yanda Huayi, and even the movie *Cell Phone* I acted in has to compete with the inquiry realm's movie during the Spring Festival, but he didn't mention a word, didn't ask a word."

"If he wanted to take something or exchange something from me, that would be fine."

"He helped me without a word for three or five minutes. I'm panicked! What he's aiming for is clearly not this little bit of favor."

Ren Zhonglun laughed: "You people have too many thoughts and live too tired. Maybe he just has a pure heart, saw eye to eye with you, Old Zhang, and helped with a small favor."

Zhang Guoli curled his lips and shook his head.

"If it were someone else, I would believe it. Him? Impossible."

The next day, accompanied by the host Shanghai Film Group, Lu Kuan led the foreign friends of the *Exotic* crew to visit Oriental cultural attractions such as Jing'an Temple, Yu Garden, and the City God Temple.

Then he flew to Beijing for the next stop of promotional warm-up.

To avoid the Hollywood stars being besieged by fans, the crew chartered a plane. Lu Kuan, Yang Siwei, and Liu Yifei chatted in first class.

"Are you singing solo or in a duet?"

"Solo! I'm planning to sing *Warm*. What do you think?"

"Solo is fine. A duet is meaningless. You have to leave a schedule of more than a month just to show your face."

Boss Lu immediately asked: "Are you really not planning to continue releasing records?"

Liu Yifei's expression was firm: "Not releasing anymore. I just want to be an actor, especially now. I've never been more certain!"

"Alright, suit yourself. But when you go back this time, go to the inquiry realm and record the ringtone first."

Yang Siwei probed: "President Lu, the income from this ringtone..."

Lu Kuan glared: "How much income can a ringtone have? Ten thousand or eight thousand, are you embarrassed to ask for it?"

"I'm just aiming at Little Liu being sixteen now, with a sweet voice, letting her record a few cute-style ringtones. It's not bad that I'm not charging you for promotion."

Boss Lu fired like a machine gun: "Besides, if I collect money, don't I have to give it to me? What a waste of effort!"

Liu Yifei raised her eyebrows at Yang Siwei, with an expression of "see, I told you."

Whoever can take advantage of him, that's really impressive.

"By the way, Sister Mei and Jielun will arrive in Beijing the day after tomorrow. They are participating in the Spring Festival Gala rehearsal like you. You and Auntie Liu come over for dinner."

The young girl was jubilant: "Okay! Haven't seen them for a long time!"

On the afternoon of the 3rd, Boss Lu took charge and handled the backlog of official business in the inquiry realm.

The first thing was to check the accounts with Sun Wenwen and Li Shanshan of the Finance Department.

The inquiry realm (USA) account had 3 million USD in second-phase DVD revenue from *Ghost Shadow*, and 20 million USD in theater distribution.

This part was not moved for the time being, and was kept as a deposit for the early filming of *Exotic* to stabilize the completion guarantee company.

The main expenditures of the domestic company recently were the 30 million investment in the joint venture with Xi'an Film Studio, the inquiry realm Xi'an Film;

The 35 million investment in the new company New Horizon established with China Film and Dong Shuangqiang;

The 70 million expenditure for the acquisition of 51% equity of Focus Media;

These three funds alone had exhausted the total profits of *Candy*, *Blind Shaft*, *Stone*, and the two phases of *Sword* combined.

The 10 million USD for the *Exotic* project was equivalent to breaking even because it had been recovered in advance from the pre-sales of China Film and Emperor.

Currently, the remaining balance in the inquiry realm domestic account was about 72 million in total profit from *Thief*.

It still had to pay about 40 million for the remaining production costs of *Love*, *Lurking*, and *Crazy Racer*, so there was basically nothing left.

Future foreseeable income included the Spring Festival slot for *Crazy Racer* and the Valentine's Day slot for *Love in 33 Days*.

As well as the highlight of next May, the global distribution of *Fahrenheit 9/11*, and *Exotic* in mid-to-late June.

2003 was a year in which the inquiry realm had been high-profile for two consecutive years, acquiring and buying shares in the industry, greatly enriching and expanding the industrial chain.

2004 would be a year of great harvest, but the funds had also been planned for use in advance, such as the acquisition of Golden Harvest, which would at least eat up all the profits of *Fahrenheit 9/11*.

The best news was that the blog site could temporarily be self-sufficient by relying on the ringtone business.

Like internet companies such as Penguin and NetEase in later generations, they all came back to life in this wave of SP and began a virtuous cycle.

It was just bitter for a group of venture capitalists who had been waiting silently and were jealous for a long time. This damn money couldn't be stuffed in!

Outside the chairman's office of the inquiry realm, various departments lined up to report.

First, Little Jin from the cash cow ringtone studio brought a few poached singers to say hello. Phoenix Legend, Dao Lang, and others all returned with satisfaction and increased confidence.

The boss told them that he would invest in Wang Fei's exclusive producer Zhang Yadong's studio in the near future to tailor records with different styles for them.

Lu Kuan was deeply involved in film and television production and derivative businesses, and had no plans to enter the music scene and record industry. This operation was just to eat up the profits of these ringtone big shots.

Investing in Zhang Yadong's studio didn't cost much money.

Then it was the distribution work of the two movies by Ning Hao and Xue Xiaolu of Beijing Film Academy, which were the most important at the moment.

As a sequel to *Stone*, *Crazy Racer* had a natural advantage in audience word-of-mouth. Sequels to blockbuster movies generally had relatively stable results.

*Cell Phone* in the same period was already dead or disabled. Only *Infernal Affairs 3* was relatively popular and was the biggest opponent.

But with the artifact Focus Media in hand, it naturally had an advantage in exposure over opponents in the same period, and I believe it wouldn't be pulled too far apart.

The slot for *Love in 33 Days* was relatively special, on Valentine's Day. It was no problem to win the first prize with Zhang Baizhi's box office appeal. The box office trend below would depend on the movie's word-of-mouth.

The two movies were still fully buffed with deep distribution, Focus Media, and topic marketing.

In the domestic movie market in 2003, if you didn't use all kinds of means, you really couldn't make any money.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 215 =====