Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 698 Attention Economy

On Tuesday morning, as the sun began to rise over the office buildings in Beijing, the inboxes of entertainment editors were bombarded with a set of photos—Jiang Wen, wearing a baseball cap, sat in the back row of the China World Cinema, his eyes fixed intently on the screen, which was playing the classic spinning top scene from the National Day box office hit "Inception".

These candid photos, like pebbles thrown into a lake, instantly stirred up a huge wave on Weibo. In less than half an hour, the hashtag #JiangWenWatchesInception# climbed to third place on the trending topics list.

Netizens' curiosity was completely ignited. Some joked, "Is Director Wen here to learn from others?" while others seriously asked, "Director Wen, please comment: which is better, 'Inception' or 'Let the Bullets Fly'?"

Countless messages tagged Jiang Wen flooded his Weibo private messages, and even the comment section of the official Weibo account of "Let the Bullets Fly" was inundated with messages urging viewers to share their thoughts after watching the film.

At that time, Jiang Wen was drinking tea in Yu Dong's office at Bona Film Group. Bona was not only a co-producer of "Let the Bullets Fly" but also a co-distributor.

When Zhou Yun ran in with his phone, Jiang Wen and Yu Dong were exchanging compliments. Zhou Yun said, "Director, you're trending! The whole internet is waiting for you to talk about 'Inception'."

Jiang Wen didn't even look up, tapping his fingers on the coffee table: "What's the rush? Let the bullets fly for a while longer."

Three hours passed, and just as netizens were about to lose patience and begin to speculate whether Jiang Wen didn't understand it and dared not comment, Jiang Wen suddenly updated his Weibo with a short but impactful message: "Inception is indeed interesting, but it's still a bit lacking compared to Let the Bullets Fly."

That's so Jiang Wen's words!
Sure enough, those words were like igniting a powder keg.

The media, with their keen sense of smell, immediately followed up, with headlines that were more sensational than the last—"Jiang Wen Declares: Let the Bullets Fly Rather Than Stealing Dreams" and "New Year's Film Season Starts Early? Jiang Wen Challenges Stealing Dreams from Afar."

The entertainment section editors are working overtime to meet deadlines, well aware that this level of mutual criticism among directors (even if it's just one-sided commentary) is the key to generating traffic.

At a news conference, the entertainment editor of a Beijing newspaper made the final decision: "Front page headline, large picture, bold and enlarge Jiang Wen's quote!"

In the conference room of Xingchen Entertainment, Zhong Lifang was smiling smugly at her computer screen.

She had just hung up the phone with the theater manager, who informed her of the attendance rate for "Inception".

He immediately made a phone call to Zhang Chen: "Mr. Zhang, your move was brilliant!"

Zhong Lifang's voice was filled with excitement: "As soon as Jiang Wen said that, our official Weibo account gained 50,000 followers in half an hour, and the attendance rate increased by 10%!"

Zhang Chen held his coffee cup, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Don't rush, this is just the beginning."

"Jiang Wen has made his move. When should we respond?"

"You go first, and do it according to what we agreed on before."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Chen opened Weibo and saw that Zhong Lifang had already responded: "Director Jiang Wen thinks that 'Inception' is not as good as 'Let the Bullets Fly'? Forgive me for speaking frankly, but he may not have understood the nested logic of dreams within dreams and the philosophical speculation on reality and illusion."

This reply quickly went viral and netizens were instantly divided into two camps: one camp supported Jiang Wen, saying that "the metaphors in 'Let the Bullets Fly' are truly sophisticated," while the other camp strongly supported Zhong Lifang, saying that "'Inception' is far more mind-bending than 'Let the Bullets Fly'."

Jiang Wen's reply came quickly, still in his concise yet sharp style: "Isn't it just a dream within a dream? Anyone can do a nested doll. In 'Inception,' the three layers of dreams go around and around, and in the end, the spinning top still doesn't say whether it has stopped or not. It's not as straightforward as 'making money while standing' in 'Let the Bullets Fly.'"

He also posted a still from the movie "Let the Bullets Fly" with Jiang Wen holding a gun, his eyes sharp.

This statement instantly sparked a new wave of discussion. Some felt Jiang Wen was too arrogant: "The charm of mind-bending films lies in leaving room for interpretation." Others felt he was being realistic: "Compared to guessing a spinning top, the thrill of a bullet is more direct."

Just as public opinion reached a fever pitch, Zhang Chen personally stepped in.

He reposted Jiang Wen's Weibo post, adding a GIF of a spinning top from the movie *Inception*, along with a cryptic comment: "I've read the original novel of *Let the Bullets Fly*, *The Story of the Thief of Officials*. To be honest, it's nothing special. In the original novel, Zhang Muzhi is just an ordinary bandit. Where's the revolutionary metaphor hidden behind the 'buying official positions for wealth' in the movie? It's nothing special~"

Even passersby could see something was wrong—wasn't Zhang Chen supposed to have a cameo in "Let the Bullets Fly"? Why is he undermining him now?

Jiang Wen seemed to have been "annoyed" and immediately retorted, "I regret letting you make a cameo appearance."

Zhang Chen retorted, "Coincidentally, I also regretted making a cameo appearance."

The back-and-forth conversation between the two looked just like a real argument, which got netizens excited, and they all sat down in the comments section to "eat the melon".

Some people sided with Jiang Wen, saying, "Zhang Chen is ungrateful; he made a cameo appearance and then complained that the original work was bad."

Some people also supported Zhang Chen: "He dares to speak the truth, which is better than those who only flatter each other."

Many others are shouting, "Stop arguing, I'll watch both movies, okay?"

Jiang Wen seemed completely enraged and dropped a bombshell: "Zhang Chen's character will be cut from the later versions!"

As soon as this Weibo post was published, the hashtag #JiangWenWantsToCutZhangChen'sScenes# immediately jumped to the top of the trending searches.

Zhang Chen's fans were outraged and protested on the official Weibo account of "Let the Bullets Fly," while Jiang Wen's fans said, "Well done, this is how ingratitude should be."

Just as the fans of both sides were arguing fiercely, Zhang Chen's reply escalated the situation again: "I couldn't be happier. To be honest, I'm very glad that Star Entertainment gave up the distribution of 'Let the Bullets Fly' at the last moment."

This statement directly shifted the focus of the conflict from film quality to distribution.

Jiang Wen immediately followed up, his words sharp: "That was because we changed the distributor on our own initiative, okay! During the Lunar New Year season, your Starry Sky Entertainment already has 'Inception' being released, how dare you also distribute another film in the same period? Can you guarantee that you will treat 'Let the Bullets Fly' fairly?"

These words, seemingly criticizing Star Entertainment, actually subtly conveyed two messages to the audience: "Let the Bullets Fly" had the confidence to change its distributor, and it was competing with "Inception" in the same release window.

Meanwhile, at the headquarters of Huayi Brothers, the Wang brothers and Feng Xiaogang were sitting in their office "watching the show."

Wang Zhongjun, holding a teacup, wore a gloating smile: "Are Jiang Wen and Zhang Chen really at odds? Perfect, we, 'If You Are the One 2,' can reap the benefits."

Feng Xiaogang leaned back on the sofa, a smile also on his face: "Haha, this is what they call 'the righteous gain many supporters, the unrighteous lose few.'"

Normally, he would definitely side with Jiang Wen, but now that "Let the Bullets Fly" is also a competitor of "If You Are the One 2", then he can only sit back and watch the two fight.

He paused, recalling what had happened before, and couldn't help but sigh, "Jiang Wen is really lucky. If the Film Bureau hadn't just warned Golden Harvest, given his flamboyant attitude, Golden Harvest would definitely have taken action to ban 'Let the Bullets Fly' again."

However, this schadenfreude did not last long.

That afternoon, the head of Huayi's publicity department rushed into the office, pale-faced, holding a box office report.

"President Wang, Director Feng, something's happened!"

He slammed the report on the table: "The box office of 'If You Are the One 2' dropped by 30% today compared to yesterday, and its screening share has also been reduced by two percentage points."

Wang Zhonglei picked up the report and his brows furrowed instantly: "What happened? Everything was fine yesterday!"

The person in charge explained with a bitter face: "It's all because of the Jiang Wen and Zhang Chen incident. The audience's minds are full of 'Inception' and 'Let the Bullets Fly,' and our publicity has been completely overshadowed."

Feng Xiaogang's face also darkened. He picked up his phone and scrolled through Weibo, only to find that eight out of the top ten trending topics were about those two movies.

"No, we can't just watch them steal the spotlight."

Feng Xiaogang suddenly stood up: "I'll stir up trouble and steer the conversation to our side."

He immediately had his assistant post a Weibo message for him, which was quite disdainful: "Inception is just pretentious, a bunch of special effects just for show, with no real content."

However, after the Weibo post was published, it seemed to sink without a trace, with very few comments and it didn't even make it to the top of the trending topics list.

Undeterred, Feng Xiaogang posted another message regarding "Let the Bullets Fly": "The so-called metaphors are nothing but over-interpretations. Jiang Wen still has his old habits and likes to pretend to be profound."

The result was still no interest, and some netizens even left comments saying, "Director Feng, don't come here and make things worse. Watching Bullets and Inception argue is much more interesting than watching 'If You Are the One 2'."

These words pierced Feng Xiaogang's heart like a needle. He slammed his phone onto the sofa, his face turning ashen.

Are these viewers blind?!

He growled, and Wang Zhongjun quickly stepped forward to calm him down: "Xiao Gang, don't get agitated, let's think of another way."

But Feng Xiaogang knew in his heart that the box office for the Lunar New Year season had already been firmly grasped by those two films, and no matter how much they tried, it would be useless.

That evening, he went to the cinema alone to watch "If You Are the One 2". There were fewer than ten people in the huge theater, and some even got up and left halfway through the movie. He sat in the dark, feeling a mix of emotions, and for the first time, he began to doubt his own film.

At Huayi headquarters, Wang Zhonglei and Xiao Gangpao gathered again: "This can't go on like this; we have to get involved in the flame war!"

Little Cannon knows this all too well; he's a master at attracting attention.

"I'll give Jiang Wen a call."

Wang Zhonglei picked up the phone and dialed Jiang Wen, speaking in a boastful tone: "Wen, busy? That thing online is causing quite a stir. Don't worry, we're both from the Beijing circle, I'll definitely stand by you. I'll have Xiaogang post on Weibo to support you later, you two can interact and give Zhang Chen a piece of your mind..."

Jiang Wen on the other end of the phone just chuckled: "Zhong Lei, please don't. This is between me and that bastard Zhang Chen, it's a fight to the death. Don't get involved. He can blacklist me, right? I'll see if he dares to blacklist me. Brother, I appreciate your help, but please don't get involved..."

Jiang Wen, who was also acting like he was thinking of his good friend, immediately spat after hanging up the phone: "Trying to ride on my coattails? Dream on!"

Online, the "war of words" between *Inception* and *Let the Bullets Fly* continues, but observant netizens have noticed that this argument is increasingly resembling a "mutual praise contest." Jiang Wen posted a long Weibo post, accompanied by a screenshot of Cobb and his wife building a city in Limbo (chaos) in *Inception*: "Do you think you're so sophisticated? The skyscrapers on the ruins in *Inception* grow backwards, which is both like Cobb's obsession and an indication of the collapse of the boundary between reality and illusion."

Cobb's spinning top was made of brass and made a deep sound when it spun, while his wife's spinning top was made of wood and made a crisp sound, suggesting that the two men's obsession with dreams was fundamentally different.

"Isn't this just a hat trick? The implication is too obvious!"

Zhang Chen immediately forwarded and responded, and even tagged Jiang Wen: "Director Wen has a sharp eye! But if you say I did it on purpose, I think 'Let the Bullets Fly' is the real show of skill."

In "Let the Bullets Fly," Huang Silang throws his hat into the air, and the camera follows the hat around three times before it lands in Zhang Muzhi's hand. Who wouldn't see that the hat contains a secret code for the transfer of power?

As for the hat trick you mentioned, every time Master Tang took out his pocket watch, the hands were stopped at 12 o'clock. That's deliberate, isn't it? He deliberately used the pocket watch as a symbol of Master Tang 'living in the past'!

The two interpretations acted like keys, unlocking new perspectives for the audience.

Viewers who hadn't seen the movie were intrigued: "So many details? Even the spinning top has different materials? There are so many intricacies hidden in the hat and pocket watch? I have to go to the cinema and see it frame by frame!"

Viewers who had seen it were stunned and discussed it heatedly in the comments section: "I watched 'Inception' twice specifically to listen to the sound of the spinning top, and it really is different!" "At the time, I just thought Master Tang's pocket watch was a prop, but now that I think about it, he was looking at the pocket watch every time he said 'I can't go back,' it's such a detail!"

Some movie fans even created a "comparison chart of hidden details between the two movies," analyzing everything from camera language to symbolic props in great detail.

The effect was immediate. The next day, Inception's box office increased by 25% year-on-year, and many viewers left messages on the ticketing platform saying "I'll watch it three times to find the details"; the pre-sale box office of Let the Bullets Fly even doubled.

Theater managers were overjoyed and rushed to increase the number of prime-time screenings for both films.

Just as this "win-win" game was about to reach its climax, an unexpected person suddenly entered the fray—the poet Chen.

He sat in his study, looking at the Douban rating of "The Orphan of Zhao" which had fallen below 6 points, and angrily slammed the mouse on the table.

His assistant had just sent him the compiled "evidence of online trolls," and without even verifying it, he gripped his phone and started posting on Weibo, his fingers turning white from the force.

Three consecutive Weibo posts, the words of which were so agitated that they were almost incoherent: "Jiang Wen, you've gone too far! You actually hired online trolls to smear 'Sacrifice' in order to boost box office sales!"

He also attached several screenshots from Douban, showing the same account giving "Let the Bullets Fly" a five-star review but "Sacrifice" a one-star review.

"This is clearly an organized attempt to manipulate public opinion! Jiang Wen, you have to give me an explanation!"

After posting, he stared intently at his phone screen, hoping for support from netizens. However, after refreshing the page for a long time, most of the comments were sarcastic remarks such as "Director Chen, stop trying to piggyback on others' success" and "blaming others for your own bad movies." Some people even took screenshots of his Weibo post and shared them as a joke in the fan groups of "Inception" and "Let the Bullets Fly."

The moment this Weibo post was published, the comment section exploded.

Netizens reacted in various ways, with some joking, "Is Director Chen getting anxious? Is he blaming others for his own film's poor reception?"

There were also rational analyses: "What can one account prove? Everyone I know who has seen 'The Orphan of Zhao' says the plot is dragging, so it has nothing to do with paid commenters."

There were also those who loved a good spectacle: "Wow, the Lunar New Year film season has turned into a Three Kingdoms card game? This is even more interesting!"

Fans of "Inception" and "Let the Bullets Fly" even came in groups to leave comments: "Don't try to ride on our popularity, go argue yourselves."

Jiang Wen, who was secretly laughing at home, almost dropped his coffee cup when he saw this Weibo post.

He immediately dialed Zhang Chen's number, his tone full of doubt: "Old Zhang, you reached an agreement with Poet Chen? Why did he suddenly jump out?"

Zhang Chen was also completely confused: "I didn't, this has nothing to do with me."

The two were silent for a few seconds on the phone, then suddenly said in unison, "Never mind, since we're here, let's have some fun together."

The next second, the official Weibo account of "Inception" directly reposted Chen Shiren's Weibo post: "Director Chen's words are meaningless. The Douban rating is spontaneously generated by netizens, so how can you blame it on Director Jiang Wen? Besides, shouldn't we look for the reasons within ourselves for the decline in the reputation of "Sacrifice"?"

The official Weibo account of "Let the Bullets Fly" followed up: "I agree with the comment above. Instead of criticizing others here, we should think about how to make a good movie."

The two official Weibo accounts, working in concert, put poet Chen in a very difficult position.

After seeing the reply, Chen Shiren was so angry that he trembled all over. He wanted to post another Weibo to refute it, but his fingers couldn't type a single word on the screen for a long time. He found that his Weibo was flooded with comments accusing him of "riding the coattails" and "being a sore loser".

The assistant cautiously walked in: "Director Chen, the theaters say they want to cut our screenings by another 5%."

Poet Chen's vision blurred, and he nearly fell off his chair, muttering, "How could this happen? How could this happen?"

Netizens were amused and started making fun of the content:

Is this a case of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend"?

"Poet Chen: Who am I? Where am I? Why am I getting involved in this mess?"

Some people even created a "New Year's Film Season Power Chart," labeling "Inception" and "Let the Bullets Fly" as "Tier A Power," while "Sacrifice" and "If You Are the One 2" became "Bronze Players."

Some observant netizens noticed that the Douban account avatar Chen used was from a newly registered account, and couldn't help but mock: "Director Chen, can you at least put some effort into hiring online trolls? Use an old account!"

Netizens were stunned and joked, "The plot twist was too fast! One second they were fighting, and the next they were joining forces?"

Some have even summarized the "survival rule" of the Lunar New Year film season: "When the top two fight, the third one disappears. This is the cruel truth of the attention economy!"

Indeed, the public's attention is limited. When "Inception" and "Let the Bullets Fly" occupied all media resources and trending topics, "Sacrifice" and "If You Are the One 2" could only be squeezed into a corner.

Just like how Wanglaoji and Jiaduobao fought fiercely back then, but ultimately Heqizheng faded out of the market.

In today's Lunar New Year film season, "Inception" and "Let the Bullets Fly" are the two giants fighting each other, while "Sacrifice" and "If You Are the One 2" have become the forgotten "He Qizheng".

The entertainment headlines on major portal websites were all about the "flame war" between the two films, and print media were not to be outdone. The Beijing Times even devoted an entire page to analyzing this "New Year's film traffic war," with the headline "When Bullets Meet Dream Inception: A Win-Win Marketing Miracle."

The cinemas acted even faster. Originally, "Inception" had a 35% screening rate due to its good reputation during the National Day holiday, while "Let the Bullets Fly" only had a 28% screening rate.

However, after this wave of popularity, major cinema chains have adjusted their film scheduling plans.

Stellar Cinema, the largest cinema in Beijing, increased the screening rate of "Inception" to 37%, and the screening rate of "Let the Bullets Fly" soared to 33%.

So here's the problem: the number of movie screens is limited. Increasing the screenings of these two movies means that screenings of other movies must be cut.

首当其冲的就是《赵氏孤儿》和《非诚勿扰2》。《赵氏孤儿》的排片率从20%骤降到10%，《非2》则从30%掉到了20%。

When Chen received the notification from the cinema, he was attending a film salon. He immediately changed his expression and left early, citing feeling unwell.

Sitting in the car, he looked at the street scenes rushing past the window, his eyes red-rimmed—he had spent three years preparing for and poured all his heart and soul into filming "The Orphan of Zhao," but now he had ended up in this situation.

Feng Xiaogang locked himself in his office and refused to see anyone.

Wang Zhonglei knocked on the door and came in, handing him a box office forecast report that showed that the final box office of "If You Are the One 2" might not even reach half of its predecessor's.

Feng Xiaogang picked up the report, threw it aside without even looking at it, and said in a hoarse voice, "Let's withdraw. Don't waste any more publicity money."

Chen Xi of Golden Harvest Pictures sat in his office, looking at the latest film schedule, grinning from ear to ear.

He had previously worried that the Film Bureau would interfere with the scheduling of screenings because of the old grudges between Golden Harvest and Huayi Brothers, but now it's not just Golden Harvest cutting screenings, but all cinema chains are adjusting their schedules.

"That's what you call going with the flow."

Chen Xi raised his glass and toasted the night view outside the window: "It seems that the champion of the New Year's film season will be either 'Inception' or 'Let the Bullets Fly'."

Meanwhile, Jiang Wen and Zhang Chen had already secretly met at a private restaurant with excellent privacy.

There were no outsiders in the private room, only a table full of exquisite Cantonese dishes.

Jiang Wen poured Zhang Chen a cup of Pu'er tea, then smiled and waved his phone: "You're ruthless, kid. You even dug up the details of Master Tang's pocket watch. I almost forgot that it was designed that way on purpose."

Zhang Chen picked up a piece of roast goose and put it in his mouth, chewing it with relish: "Likewise, you even recognized the texture and sound of the spinning top in Inception, but my editor didn't notice that detail."

The two exchanged a smile, raised their glasses and clinked them together, the wine swirling and creating ripples on the glass.

“To be honest,” Jiang Wen put down his wine glass, his eyes becoming more serious, “the audience these days isn’t stupid. Just hype won’t work. We have to let them see something from the movie.”

Zhang Chen nodded: "That's right. Our 'arguing' is actually just building a ladder for the audience so they can climb to a higher place to watch the movie."

As night deepened outside the window, the smoke of the Lunar New Year film season still lingered, but the storm they stirred up had already changed the entire battleground.

In this era where traffic is king, sometimes the most skillful competition is knowing how to achieve a "win-win" situation with your rivals, and even more importantly, knowing how to use professional interpretation to make good movies seen by more people.

(End of this chapter)