1979 Golden Age

Chen Qi waited downstairs for a while, and then an old acquaintance, his former boss, came.

Liu Zhigu of the Bureau of External Cultural Exchange.

The two of them didn't exchange pleasantries. Liu Zhigu dragged him into the inner room and whispered instructions: "The crew of The Last Emperor has temporarily stopped production. Old Bei and Thomas have been invited back to the Beijing Hotel. The relevant personnel are questioning them."

"What do you want to ask?"

"Why would they film those things? The evidence is solid!"

"You can't tell the answer. No matter what you ask, people will talk about art," Chen Qi said happily.

"Don't be so frivolous. I'm letting you take full responsibility now because you're familiar with the Western film industry. The key is how to get this done properly..."

Liu Zhigu sneakily opened the door and took a look, then sneakily came back, lowering his voice even more: "This play was approved by the higher-ups, we can't just kick them out. Lao Bei is an internationally renowned director after all, and it would damage our image if he went back to Europe and talked about how great China is."

"Oh~"

"Don't talk like your wife!"

"Oh, what should I do then?"

"I'm asking you!" Liu Zhigu was anxious.

Chen Qi thought for a moment and said, "We can't chase them away, we can't stop them from filming, and we don't want them to say bad things about us... It's simple, isn't it just to ask them to change the play?"

"Change the play?"

Liu Zhigu frowned and said, "Even if Lao Bei agrees, won't he still say whatever he wants when he returns to Europe?"

"Bai was ridiculed in Europe because his several films failed to make a splash. Some said he had run out of money and was receiving psychiatric treatment. The Last Emperor was a gamble for him, and he was counting on this film to turn things around. The shots and intentions in it did not come out of thin air. He was just deliberately catering to Western public opinion."

Chen Qi said: "Then let him not be able to turn over! Let's go and take a look."

"good!"

As they talked, the two of them went out, got in the car, and headed straight for the Beijing Hotel.

…………

The Beijing Hotel was naturally the top foreign-related hotel in the 1980s, and ordinary people could not afford to stay there even if they had money.

These foreigners come here, and the ordinary rooms cost about 30 dollars a day, and the suites cost more than 50 dollars. However, since the production period of "The Last Emperor" is long, there must be discounts, which is still a lot of money.

At this moment, in the room.

The Chinese staff asked questions very politely, but Bertolucci and Thomas were very angry.

Old Bei was almost having a brain congestion. He clutched the spoiler article from the Hong Kong media and cursed with his tongue beating like a spring 12 times per second: "A bunch of shameless thieves! Robbers! Where did they get the scripts and photos from? The Chinese crew must have been bribed. You will all go to hell!"

"You have absolutely no professional ethics! I am extremely disappointed in you. You have ruined a classic that will go down in film history!" Thomas also cursed.

But I have to admit that foreigners’ swearing skills are very poor, and are far less crazy, cruel and fun than Chinese swearing.

No matter what they said, the Chinese staff remained calm and asked politely: "So Mr. Bertolucci, why did you shoot it this way? This is inconsistent with the attitude of the documentary you claimed, and you distorted many facts."

“This is art!”

"We hope you can revise it, for example, Puyi was beaten in the management office..."

"I won't change it. No one dares to change my film. Not only that, I want to ask you for compensation. You actually closed the crew and forcibly took me back to the hotel to interrogate me like a prisoner! I am so disappointed with everything in China. I will tell my European friends that China has no open attitude at all!"

After hearing this, the interrogator's expression changed slightly.

This is what I am worried about now.

At this moment, someone came over and whispered something in his ear, and he was immediately overjoyed. Then the door opened, and Chen Qi and Liu Zhigu came in.

"Comrade Chen Qi!"

"Thank you for your hard work, leave it to me!"

After shaking hands, several people left, leaving only four.

Bertolucci's eyes twitched when he saw him. What the other party hated most was not winning any awards, but knowing the rules of Europe and the United States very well. He snorted, "No matter what you say, I will not accept it. I demand that the work be redone immediately and that everyone apologize to me, especially you!"

"Don't pretend at this time. It's a waste of time."

Chen Qi sat opposite and took out a crumpled piece of paper that he had just written on the bus, saying, "Let me tell you how to deal with this. The original story of The Last Emperor is scrapped, and you have to film a real Pu Yi based on historical facts.

I will provide you with an expert group to give you guidance, focusing on the content of Puyi's socialist transformation in the management center and his transformation from a feudal emperor to an ordinary citizen.

If you have no idea how to rewrite the script, I can provide you with the script of a TV series of the same name that our TV station is currently filming for your reference.

“Alright, alright!”

Chen Qi waved his hand, stood up and said: "I will not restrict your freedom, you can still shoot. But because you were unfriendly first, I decided to withdraw all Chinese staff! I admire your toughness, I hope you can keep tough, so that when you go bankrupt, I will give you a bouquet of flowers.

Well I have to go, I have a drink with James."

Bang!

He slammed the door and walked out. Liu Zhigu didn't say a word, but he was very straightforward and they went back to the days when they worked together.

In the room, when they heard James' name, they were as if they had eaten shit. In fact, they were not afraid of Chen Qi, nor the government, but only of the iron fist of capitalism represented by James.

Insurance companies are so powerful!

…………

On the way back, Chen Qi explained to Liu Zhigu.

"The Last Emperor borrowed 25 million US dollars from a European bank and sold the pre-authorization in exchange for insurance coverage."

"The good result is that the film was completed successfully, the word-of-mouth and box office were a big hit, the loan was paid off, I made some money, and the insurance company didn't have to spend any money, so everyone was happy!"

"The bad outcome is that the film is completed but the performance is very poor, and the money earned is not enough to repay the loan, and then they will go bankrupt."

"There is another outcome. If the film fails due to non-force majeure factors, such as running out of money before the film is finished, the insurance company has the right to audit the accounts and seal off the crew... Old Bay will also go bankrupt and be in debt."

"What about the movie?"

"After all, the movie still has some value. Maybe it will be completed under the supervision of all parties, and the proceeds will be used to repay the loan first. It depends on how they agree."

"Oh~"

"Don't talk like my wife!"

"Oh, so there are so many hidden stories? Then I won't worry about Lao Bei rebelling anymore."

Chen Qi smiled and muttered like an evil god: "It is most important that the film can be completed within the budget. I plan to let them shoot first, and when there is a little bit of film left, we will cause overspending, and James will close down the crew. We will take over and complete the film, get a commission, and release it in Europe under Bertolucci's name.

The West hates our kind of narrative the most. This movie won't do well at the box office, and they will be ruined, in debt, and disappear from the film industry. This is called a never-ending struggle!"

Liu Zhigu spent a long time sorting it out.

First of all, The Last Emperor was approved by the higher-ups, so Bertolucci had to continue filming.

Then the content needs to be changed to portray China in a positive light.

Finally, we have to deal with Bertolucci himself.

"Fortunately, we are friends..."

Liu Zhigu sighed sincerely and asked, "I thought you were going to take over this play?"

"How can I have the time? I have to go to the United States to promote Black Mask in August and Happy Death Day in October. That's the real work!"

Chen Qi also scratched his head. He casually derailed The Last Emperor. How could a film about socialist transformation have any box office success in Europe and America? How could it win an Oscar?