1978: Female educated youth, don’t want an illiterate husband

Huang Jianzhong was jolted awake. He wanted to spit into his palm and rub it hard to calm his shock.

However, considering that this is very uncivilized, we had already told them to be careful about these uncivilized behaviors before we came to Bolin.

After all, there was an overseas Chinese friend next to him, Cheng Xuemin's aunt.

But still awkwardly, he saliva-filled his thumb, trembling as he flipped through his notebook and began to report on today's foreign exchange earnings.

Really!

With each number Huang Jianzhong read out, his Adam's apple bobbed violently: "France... France 800,000, West... West Germany 500,000, South... South Korea 1.5 million..."

He paused, as if confirming the authenticity of the numbers. Even though he had made the registration himself, he was still incredibly shocked by these figures.

After confirming, he continued, trembling, to report: "Eight hundred thousand from Britain, four hundred thousand from Italy, three hundred thousand from Belgium, two hundred thousand from the Netherlands..."

Jet Li leaned over to look, counting the checkmarks in the notebook, and said, "There's still 200,000 for Denmark, 180,000 for Sweden, 250,000 for Singapore, and 200,000 for Malaysia..."

He counted on his fingers, then suddenly jumped up and shouted, "It adds up to...it's five million nine hundred and thirty thousand!"

“Five million nine hundred and thirty thousand US dollars?” Huang Jianzhong looked up abruptly, his eyes wide like saucers, and exclaimed in shock, “Xuemin, this…this…this is more than our factory’s budget for ten years!”

The most expensive movie he's ever made in his life only cost a few hundred thousand RMB; he's never seen so many US dollars before.

The numbers on the paper seemed to carry a weight, making it hard for Huang Jianzhong to breathe.

Cheng Xuemin took the notebook, his fingertips tracing the messy handwriting. This was the result of their night's work, and also the first time that Chinese films had achieved such a "powerful" result in overseas markets.

He looked at Gu Qiuna and asked, "Auntie, what level does this number represent in the international market?"

“Above average.” Gu Qiuna picked up the British contract. “If it can sell for 800,000 in the UK, it shows that kung fu films have potential in the English-speaking market. But if the deal with the US falls through, it will be very difficult to break 10 million.”

She paused, then said in a serious tone, "I know that Brian. He specializes in stalling tactics. Last year, there was a Japanese movie that he dragged out until after the film festival, after all the distributors had left, and in the end, he got the distribution rights for free."

"Then we won't play along with him!" Dealing with this kind of person is easy, isn't it? There's more than one distributor in the US; there are plenty of others who want the North American distribution rights for this movie!
Then Cheng Xuemin said, "Contact Warner and Columbia tomorrow morning and tell them that Brian wants to lower the price, and ask if they are interested in taking over the North American rights."

"Will this trick work?" Huang Jianzhong leaned closer, like a student listening to a lecture.

“Americans are most afraid of competitors stealing their business!” Cheng Xuemin smiled and said, “If Brian really wants ‘Tai Chi,’ he will definitely come with a contract and a check tomorrow.”

Jet Li, standing to the side, rubbed his fists together and said, "If he doesn't come, I'll go and stop him! I'll use the 'Cloud Hands' move from Tai Chi, and I guarantee he'll obediently sign it!"

"Don't be silly!" Cheng Xuemin patted him on the shoulder and instructed, "Your task is to continue the live martial arts performance tomorrow and let more people know about 'Tai Chi'."

Then, remembering something else, he asked, "Why isn't the Japanese publisher of Little Red Dot here tonight?"

Tonight, we've almost finished signing all the contracts, and we've already achieved nearly six million US dollars in foreign exchange earnings. We're only about four million short of the ten million US dollar foreign exchange target we set out to achieve.

However, there are still two major players who haven't reached an agreement yet!
One is the North American market. Cheng Xuemin estimates that this one company alone is worth at least six or seven million US dollars; otherwise, he wouldn't sell it.

In any case, the North American film market is huge, and it is known as the world's largest film market. Filmmakers from all over the world are scrambling to get into the Hollywood market.

Therefore, with such a large market, there are countless film distributors, like carp crossing a river.

If this company doesn't buy it, there's plenty of another one that will!
In any case, according to the North American film market, if Tai Chi were to be released in North America, it would gross at least tens of millions of dollars. Even if Cheng Xuemin offered ten million dollars, there might still be someone willing to buy it.

However, that requires time to negotiate and work things out. But what Cheng Xuemin is most afraid of right now is to negotiate slowly with those publishers. He needs to be quick and decisive, and close the deal as soon as possible.

After all, he can only stay in Bolin for about a week at most.

Actually, other filmmakers and distributors also go to Bolin around this time. Once the film festival ends, they basically all go home and find their own mothers.

This is also why Brian, that unscrupulous businessman, deliberately asked for eight million to trap Cheng Xuemin and drag him along.

Therefore, if the deal can be closed quickly, Cheng Xuemin will sell for six or seven million US dollars.

After all, this is his first work to generate foreign exchange. If he can achieve a foreign exchange earnings of ten million US dollars and fulfill his mission, that will be enough!

If you want to make big money and create a blockbuster product, you can wait for the next step!
By then, Cheng Xuemin can take his time to process things, unlike now where he can just buy it out at a fixed price.

Instead, they will take their works to Hollywood and earn a share of the box office revenue in the American market.

In that case, a film with tens of millions in box office revenue would easily bring in tens of millions of US dollars in revenue sharing. That's what makes a real market film, not an art film that nobody wants even if it's given away for free.

Therefore, Cheng Xuemin is not too worried about the North American market, as the minimum guarantee is six or seven million.

What surprised Cheng Xuemin the most today was that the other big boss, the Japanese devils with the little red dot, didn't send anyone over.
It's important to understand that while the Japanese film market is slightly smaller than the North American market, it is still several times larger than the South Korean market.

So, if the South Koreans can make 1.5 million US dollars, the Japanese must have made at least 2 million US dollars, right?

Moreover, the situation in Japan is similar to that in South Korea; both countries have a military presence in their home countries.

Using their own father to blackmail them is absolutely effective!
After all, their biological father was no pushover; in their territory, he was known for his ruthless and ruthless methods.

Therefore, if Cheng Xuemin wanted to, two million US dollars would be more or less.

In that case, the total would easily add up to several million US dollars, directly exceeding the foreign exchange earnings target, and it would definitely be a triumphant return.

But the Japanese distributor didn't show up today!

What kind of mischief are they up to now?!
"Little devil?"

"Yeah! I don't think I saw any of the Japanese distributors today. Why didn't they come?"

Reminded by Cheng Xuemin, Huang Jianzhong realized what was happening and asked suspiciously.

Their Tai Chi is so popular, it's become a huge hit. Almost all the well-known publishers from all over the world have come. Logically speaking, there's no reason why the Japanese shouldn't come!
After all, the Japanese love importing movies from our country!

"They probably went directly to Director Hu, trying to bypass us and continue to take our copyrights for free, just like they did!"

Cheng Xuemin had a sudden flash of inspiration and perhaps guessed what the Japanese publisher was up to!

Like the South Koreans, they've always been used to getting things for free.

So this time, I wanted to do the same as before and go directly to the China Film Group to ask for the copy rights of "Tai Chi," bypassing Cheng Xuemin's Tai Chi creative team and going straight to the real decision-makers.

In the past, the Japanese devils' schemes were indeed very clever, but this time they've run into Cheng Xuemin, so let's just wait and see.

"Xuemin, how about we meet with the underground distributors of the Russian bear? They can introduce Tai Chi to the Eastern European market!"

In fact, besides North America and Japan, the Eastern European market that Aunt Gu Qiuna mentioned is also very large.

All things considered, although it's not as big as the Western European market, it should still be able to sell for at least a few hundred thousand US dollars!

As for the Russian domestic film market, although it is also large, it is no smaller than that of the Japanese or South Koreans.

But relations with Russia have long since deteriorated, and it is absolutely impossible for our films to appear in their domestic market.

So even if underground distributors buy them, they don't dare to screen them in their home countries, and they'll just end up losing money.

Eastern Europe?

After a moment of contemplation, Cheng Xuemin said without hesitation, "Let's not make that money for now, otherwise the impact will be too great, and it won't be worth it!"

A quick calculation shows that Cheng Xuemin has already fulfilled his military pledge, and will likely exceed it, so there's no need to take the risk.

After all, Russia and Eastern Europe have now become off-limits for us, and it's not wise to intervene rashly.

If the Eastern European market really needs his book "Tai Chi," it can do so through diplomatic channels, rather than through Cheng Xuemin's personal channels.

“Alright! Anyway, we already have this much, which should be enough to complete the task. Xuemin, you don’t need to take this risk!” Aunt Gu Qiuna nodded in agreement. Her nephew-in-law was right to be cautious, and she turned around and directly refused the offer.

……

When Brian returned to his hotel, his assistant was repeatedly watching video clips of "Tai Chi".

Seeing the boss come in, he quickly stood up: "Boss, the fight scenes in that Chinese kung fu movie are amazing. I bet it will gross over 30 million at the North American box office."

“That’s why we have to wait!” Brian took off his suit jacket and tossed it onto the sofa, a cold smile playing on his lips. “That young Chinese man, Cheng, seems shrewd, but he’s actually in a hurry to sell the copyright.”

Eight million US dollars is already a high price that other publishers can't offer, but he'll wait.

Upon hearing this, the assistant frowned and said, "But what if Warner Bros. or Columbia Pictures intervenes? They weren't paying enough attention to the situation in the secondary screenings today because they were focused on the main theater, but they'll definitely figure it out tomorrow!"

“Them?” Brian scoffed, poured himself a glass of whiskey, and laughed. “Warner Bros. is talking to Cheng Long about a new film, and Columbia is busy cleaning up the mess of ‘The Deer Hunter.’ Nobody’s going to spend eight million to buy the North American rights to a Chinese film.”

He swirled the amber liquid in his glass, which gleamed under the light, and continued, "Once the film festival ends and the other distributors leave, he'll have no choice but to sign with us. We can get him for three million, or even less."

The assistant was still worried and said anxiously, "But what if he..."

"He doesn't understand the rules of the game in Hollywood!" Brian interrupted impatiently, his tone certain. "Chinese filmmakers have always been like this: either they give away copyrights as political bargaining chips, or they're eager to cash out."

"This young Chinese man, though he dares to ask for a high price, is essentially the same; he probably just needs the money to appease his family back home." Brian, shrewd and calculating, stood by the window, looking at the distant film festival lights, and explained:
"Send someone to sound him out tomorrow. Tell him the contract is still under review by the legal department and to wait a little longer. Remember, be polite, but don't give in."

Meanwhile, at his hotel, Hu Jian was troubled by the performance of "Romance on Lushan Mountain" at the Bolin Film Festival.

In the words of those Hong Kongers, it's too extravagant!
When Xie Jin knocked on the door and came in, he saw that Xie Jin had crumpled the newspaper into a ball, and the review of "Romance on Lushan Mountain" was circled in red pen.

"Old Hu, don't get worked up." Xie Jin handed him a cup of tea. "It's normal that Westerners don't understand our culture."

What the hell is this?

"Romance on Lushan Mountain" flopped at the Bolin Film Festival. Director Xie Jin didn't even have time to worry, and now Director Hu from China Film Group had to comfort him instead.

It's all Cheng Xuemin's fault. Fortunately, I heard that the premiere of Tai Chi there was very well received.

At this point in time, they must be in a rush to sell the global distribution rights for "Tai Chi". I really don't know if that kid can create a miracle this time.
To know!
That kid made a pledge to Hai Zi to generate ten million US dollars in foreign exchange, and now this is the final battle.

I really hope that kid succeeds!
Otherwise, Xie Jin's trip to Bolin would have been incredibly frustrating, since it wasn't supposed to be his Lushan Romance, and he was just there to embarrass himself.

Everything is to cover for that kid Cheng Xuemin, so we can only succeed, we can't afford to fail!
All the film studios across the country are waiting for their good news to be sent back!

"Damn it, they really don't understand Chinese films!" Hu Jian cursed viciously, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh right, just now, Yamato Films from Japan sent people over, saying they wanted to help us distribute 'Romance on Lushan Mountain,' and also said they were willing to package 'Tai Chi' together for promotion."

Xie Jin was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "Do they charge copyright fees?"

"No way!" Hu Jian's eyes lit up with delight. "They say it's for Sino-Japanese friendship, purely for cultural exchange. Don't you think this is a windfall?"

Xie Jin frowned.

He understands the Japanese way of doing things; they never do anything that doesn't benefit them. Why would they suddenly help with the distribution for free?
Moreover, they also wanted to take the "Tai Chi" manual with them, which immediately made Xie Jin wary. He asked, "Old Hu, you didn't agree to that, did you?"

Giving away "Romance on Lushan Mountain" is fine, after all, Xie Jin saw the situation at the main screening today!
The movie "Romance on Mount Lu" is not popular abroad at all; foreigners simply don't like watching it.

So the Japanese took it for free, and that was considered a diplomatic achievement for the so-called "long live Sino-Japanese friendship".

But if Hu Jian does this without even a word, handing over Cheng Xuemin's Tai Chi publishing rights to the Japanese as well, then that's a big problem!

It should be noted that their real purpose for this trip to Bolin was to promote the distribution of Tai Chi and earn US dollars for the country.

It's not about letting Fujian be so generous as to give it away to the Japanese for free.

"Of course I agreed! Why wouldn't I agree to something so good?" Hu Jian said matter-of-factly, his face beaming with joy. "Dahe Film Distribution Company isn't charging us any publicity fees; they're willing to help us distribute 'Romance on Lushan Mountain' and 'Tai Chi,' and promote us. Why wouldn't I agree?"

"Huh? Director Hu, you really agreed?! You...you...why didn't you discuss it with Xuemin beforehand?!"

"Don't you know how popular Xuemin's Tai Chi was at its premiere today?" Xie Jin blurted out in his haste, revealing all the truth.

"Very popular?" Hu Jian frowned upon hearing this and asked, "Didn't Lao Zhao say that it's not much better than our 'Lushan Romance' and that not many foreigners go to see it?"

It's just that hardly anyone watched it, and it all flopped. If we want to continue promoting it overseas, we'll have to pay for it ourselves, which is no small amount.

Now that Japanese netizens are willing to help with the distribution, why not give it to them?
Say it again!

This is China Film Group's own business. Does Hu Jian have any need to talk to a mere screenwriter?

Just kidding!
"But..." Xie Jin was really anxious. He didn't expect Hu Jian to dare to act so presumptuously and just give away the country's foreign exchange earning project for free.

"What's there to 'but' about! Aren't Cheng Xuemin and Huang Jianzhong re-editing the copy?"

"Old Xie, if you run into him, please tell him to send me the re-edited copy of Tai Chi tomorrow!"

"The Japanese will come to pick it up tomorrow!"

Hu Jian waved his hand, telling Xie Jin to stop hesitating. Such a good thing couldn't be delayed; it had to be dealt with quickly.

Otherwise, what if the Japanese wake up after one night's sleep and suddenly don't want it anymore? Wouldn't that be a complete waste?!
"Old Hu! Director Hu! Why don't you send a telegram back to the country and ask for instructions?" Xie Jin, seeing that he couldn't persuade him, could only resort to bringing up the lake!

How dare he, Hu Jian, be so autocratic and refuse to listen to any advice?
The Japanese are so obviously trying to take advantage of Tai Chi, and he's an old comrade, yet he still can't see through it?
"There's no need for that!" Hu Jian waved his hand impatiently again and said, "I still have that much power, and before I left, President Ding told me everything to be done according to China Film's usual practices. There's nothing to say!"

If everything is done according to China Film Group's past practices, there will be no fundamental mistakes. This is why Hu Jian dared to give away both of his films, "Lushan Love Tai Chi," which were submitted for competition and exhibition, to the Japanese without even having to submit a report.

In the past, these were all given away for free, and sometimes we even had to spend some of our advertising budget on them.

Now the Japanese don't need us to spend a single penny on advertising, and they're even giving us a freebie, helping us promote two movies at the same time. Where else can you find such a good deal?
"Director Hu..."

Xie Jin was about to say something when Hu Jian impatiently told him to leave, saying it was too late and he needed to rest.

Xie Jin was so angry that he almost slammed the door and left. He rushed back to his room and asked Deputy Factory Director Zhao, "Old Zhao, did Xuemin say when they're coming back?"

"No!" Deputy Factory Director Zhao shook his head, looking puzzled. "Did Lao Hu ask you? Didn't I just report to him that Xuemin and Jianzhong wanted to make some adjustments and edits to the Tai Chi copy?"

"What? Did he figure something out?"

Deputy Factory Director Zhao and Zhu Lin returned before Hu Jian and the others. When Hu Jian returned, he only saw him and inquired about Cheng Xuemin's whereabouts.

That's what Deputy Factory Director Zhao told him back then!

"Old Zhao, did you tell Old Hu that Tai Chi also flopped? Is it true or not?" Xie Jin asked again, even though Old Zhao had told him before that the Tai Chi premiere on the outskirts this afternoon was a huge hit!
Let Xie Jin wait and see how well Xuemin and his team earn foreign exchange!

But after hearing what Hu Jian said, Xie Jin really had no idea how good Cheng Xuemin's Tai Chi really was.
Everyone's playing tai chi, each saying their own thing?
“If I didn’t say that to Lao Hu, would he let Xuemin stay out all night and mess around?” Deputy Factory Director Zhao rolled his eyes, took a swig of the foreigner’s red wine, then spat it out, clearly not used to it. He continued, “But Xuemin’s Tai Chi skills are truly explosive!”

"I'm not quite sure how he'll negotiate with those foreign publishers. He only left Jianzhong and Xiao Li with him, so even if I wanted to know, there's no way I could find out!"

"Anyway, Lao Xie, you're being too evasive. Maybe they've already reached an agreement and are back already?"

Xie Jin rolled his eyes and plopped down on the bed, saying, "Stop messing around! Old Hu bundled up the global copyrights of Tai Chi with the Lushan Romance and gave them to the Japanese!"

"And they're even thanking the Japanese, saying the Japanese helped us a lot this time!"

"What? Old Hu gave away the Tai Chi copyright to the Japanese for free? When did this happen?" Upon hearing this, Deputy Factory Director Zhao's eyes popped out of their sockets in shock, utterly unable to believe it.

"About what happened this afternoon!"

"They told me to pass on a message to Xuemin: bring back a copy of 'Tai Chi' by tomorrow morning, because the Japanese are taking it away tomorrow!"

Xie Jin was furious, and then asked urgently, "Old Zhao, didn't Xuemin say when they're coming back?"

"They didn't say!" Deputy Factory Director Zhao's face fell, and he was so anxious that he almost vomited blood. He couldn't afford to lose at the last step.

"Go ask Xiao Zhu and Xiao Gong!"

Old Xie didn't dare to delay; he was determined to find Cheng Xuemin tonight and tell him the news.

Otherwise, if the Japanese come looking for us tomorrow and take away the distribution rights to "Tai Chi," we'll be completely ruined.

"Yes, yes, go ask Xiao Zhu and Xiao Gong, they might know!"

Upon hearing this, Deputy Factory Director Zhao nodded repeatedly, then got up and went with Xie Jin to Zhu Lin and Gong Xue's room.

"Yes, yes, Director Xie, Factory Director Zhao, Xuemin just called to inquire about the premiere of our Lushan Love and also asked about Director Hu's mood!"

Gong Xue nodded repeatedly upon hearing this and spoke to Xie Jinzhao, the deputy factory director.

"Did they call back? Did they say when they'd be back?" Xie Jin asked urgently.

"They didn't say that!" Zhu Lin shook her head, then asked, "Director Xie, did something happen? Was it something Xuemin did that Director Hu found out about?"

Zhu Lin knew exactly what Xue Min was doing!
He bypassed China Film Group and secretly contacted foreign film distributors to sell the overseas distribution rights for "Tai Chi".

This is what they're trying to do by secretly taking over China Film Group!

If Director Hu of China Film Group finds out, who knows what the consequences will be?

Now that Director Xie and Deputy Factory Director Zhao are knocking on the door late at night, it's clear they really have something urgent to discuss with Xuemin.

But Xuemin didn't tell her or Gong Xue on the phone when he would be back!
"Almost there!" Director Xie was so anxious he was jumping up and down.

"Call him! Xuemin said it's urgent, you can call him. He just left his number on the phone!"

Developed countries are great; every hotel room has a landline phone that can make outgoing calls.

Did you leave your phone number?

"Alright, alright, Xiao Gong, quickly call Xuemin and tell him I have something extremely urgent to discuss with him!"

……

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