Huayu: I'm reborn, but you still force me to be a scumbag?

Chapter 142: Tentative Title: Thief among Thieves

In a blink of an eye, it has been a month since Fan Binbing returned from Cannes.

In this month, she gained 3 kilograms, mainly because she had nothing to do and was idle.

The contract termination negotiations with Huayi have reached a critical moment, and the attitude of the other party is not as tough as it was at the beginning. Naturally, she will not show up in public to provoke the other party.

Walking into the door of Chen Nuo's studio, Fan Binbing didn't look like someone who hadn't earned a penny in a month. He greeted the pretty girl He Yuan at the front desk with a high spirit, "Xiaoyuan, is Qi Da here?"

He Yuan stood up and said with a smile: "I'm here, I'm talking to someone. Sister Binbing, I'll tell Qi Da for you."

Fan Binbing had become familiar with the people in Chen Nuo's studio during this period of time. He waved his hand and said, "Don't bother you. I'll go there myself."

"That's fine. Sister Binbing, you look so beautiful today."

Fan Binbing smiled and said, "You have such a sweet mouth. I'll give you a bag tomorrow. Okay, I'll go over first."

Walking to the door of the manager's office of the artist management department, Fan Binbing saw through the glass that Qi Yuntian was indeed talking to someone.

Qi Yuntian also saw her, waved and asked her to come in.

After Fan Binbing walked in, she saw a man in his 30s sitting on the sofa. He wasn't ugly, but his head was the size of a potato, which made him look quite funny.

"Binbing, come here, let me introduce you, this is Director Ning Hao."

Ning Hao was really surprised when Fan Binbing walked in.

Fan Binbing is arguably the most popular female star in China these days, and her popularity has remained high.

The reason was a photo.

It was the photo of her standing in the middle wearing a navy blue floor-length dress, with Chen Nuo on the left and Leonel Dicaprio on the right.

Since it was reported back to China, it has been a hot topic in the domestic entertainment circle for many days in a row, and it has become even more popular on the Internet.

In today's China, you may not know Yang Guo, and you may not know Jack in the Titanic.

But if you say you don't know either of them, then you must have never been online, don't have a TV at home, and don't even have any friends around you who can watch TV online.

In that photo, Fan Binbing was standing so proudly between the two men. With the Cannes Film Festival Palace as the backdrop, she looked extremely high-end.

Originally, this photo was only circulated among those who were concerned about the entertainment industry, until one day, it was photoshopped by a moderator of a Baidu PS bar.

The moderator is a girl who looks pretty good. She replaced Fan Binbing in the middle with herself and uploaded the photo to Baidu Tieba with the title: "My photo with the most handsome man in the East and the West."

It became popular in an instant!

Even the forum owner who just wanted to play a prank didn't expect that her post would have over a thousand pages of replies and stay at the top of the forum for several weeks.

Since that day, this photo of three people has changed. It has become a meme and has been spread everywhere.

It first became popular on Tieba, then on Sina blog, and then on Renren, alumni network and other social platforms. Countless people are using this photo to make memes.

Under such circumstances, Fan Binbing's popularity was suddenly raised to several levels.

For Ning Hao, the three words "Fan Binbing" have become well-known in his ears during this month. He doesn't know how many colleagues want to contact her to see if they can discuss cooperation or something.

But the other party is in the process of terminating his contract with Huayi and cannot take any roles from anyone.

As a young director, Ning Hao can only be considered a newcomer in the film and television industry, although he has made two pretty good movies before.

I was caught off guard by the fact that I met one of the most popular actresses in the entertainment industry today, and for a moment I felt like I was lucky enough to have met her.

He quickly stood up and said, "Hello, Miss Binbing. My name is Ning Hao."

Fan Binbing might put on airs in other places, but not here.

She smiled just the right way, extended her hand, and said, "Hello, Director Ning Hao, I'm Fan Binbing."

Ning Hao was really flattered. He only dared to shake half of her hand, "Hello, hello."

Qi Yuntian said: "Binbing, sit here and listen."

Fan Binbing nodded and said, "Okay."

Qi Yuntian turned to Ning Hao and said, "Director Ning, please continue."

After Ning Hao sat down, he calmed down.

He actually did not expect this meeting today at all.

He encountered obstacles everywhere, but he learned from relevant friends that Chen Nuo Studio seemed willing to support domestic films, so he sent an email some time ago with his shooting plan and script attached.

Unexpectedly, there was a response.

Even so far, there is still a chance.

Otherwise, why would someone introduce Fan Binbing to him?

Ning Hao cheered up and continued to introduce: "We had already negotiated with Hong Kong's Liu Dehua for the Asian Star Project at the end of last year. Unexpectedly, at the end of February, they changed their minds and decided not to invest. I asked around and found out that it was Director Liu Wenjing, the former assistant director of If Love, who submitted a project to them. They liked it and took my place."

Ning Hao sighed and said, "After that, I also met with many investors, but nothing came of it. This time, I came to your company because of a friend of mine who is an acquaintance of Director Li Yang. He heard Director Li Yang talk about your business and persuaded me to give it a try, so I came."

After listening to this, Qi Yuntian thought for a while and said, "Director Ning, you know that our studio has never invested in any foreign films. The purpose of our establishment is actually just to make it easier for our boss to get films. And you also know that Chen Nuo is currently filming in the United States, so it is not very convenient to contact him."

Ning Hao's heart sank. He had no idea how many times he had heard similar words in the past six months. The next sentence should be, "Let's work together again next time if there is a chance."

But unexpectedly, the extremely handsome Manager Qi, who looked more like an artist than many artists, suddenly changed the subject and said, "But a few days ago, when I was in touch with our boss, he suddenly mentioned your movie. He was quite interested and asked me to talk to you again. If we can reach a consensus, it is not impossible to cooperate."

When Fan Binbing walked in before, Ning Hao was just startled, but now when he heard Qi Yuntian say this, all the hairs on his body stood up and his head was buzzing.

He sat up straight all of a sudden, an idea popped into his mind, and he said in disbelief: "Manager Qi, you mean... Chen Nuo wants to act in my movie?"

Qi Yuntian shook his head and said, "That's not the case. Due to his schedule, he definitely won't be able to participate. But he can invest."

Ning Hao was a little disappointed when he heard the first half of the sentence, but when he heard the last part, his eyes suddenly widened, "Really?"

Qi Yuntian laughed and said, "You mentioned 600 million in your plan, right?"

Ning Hao's heart was pounding, his dream of many years was within reach.

Only those who have experienced it will understand how intense the feeling of anxiety and loss is.

Hearing Qi Yuntian say this, he was afraid of being disappointed, so he immediately said: "Actually, I have calculated the money before. If you think it is too much, you can reduce it a little bit. However, if it is too little, I am afraid that it will affect the final quality of the film."

Qi Yuntian said: "600 million is indeed a bit too much. If around 400 million is okay, we can continue the discussion."

Ning Hao had been running around for so long and had already been devastated by repeated setbacks. Let alone 400 million, he felt that even if the other party said 300 million, he would agree to it without hesitation.

Ning Hao and Qi Yuntian hit it off immediately, and Fan Binbing's eyes flickered as he listened.

At first, she looked down on new directors like Ning Hao and listened listlessly. However, when she heard Qi Yuntian say that Chen Nuo was very interested in this movie, she suddenly became energetic.

After listening to Ning Hao and Qi Yuntian discussing for a while, she found a gap and asked, "Director Ning, are you still short of someone for the role in this movie? Do you think I can do it?"

Ning Hao was really eager to hear that Fan Binbing wanted to play a role in his movie. With her current popularity and popularity, it would definitely be beneficial to the future promotion of the movie.

Besides, the film he is working on is originally a group portrait film. Even if there is no role suitable for Fan Binbing in the script, it will be very easy to add or change a role at that time.

Not to mention Fan Binbing alone, even if Fan Binbing and Chen Nuo came together, Ning Hao would have absolutely no problem at all.

Ning Hao wiped the saliva that was about to flow out of the corner of his mouth and said, "If Miss Fan can participate, I will definitely be more than happy to do so. I just wonder if it is convenient for you?"

Fan Binbing knew that she was in a particularly convenient situation now as she did not have any film contracts, so she just had to terminate the contract.

But she couldn't say this, so she turned her gaze to Qi Yuntian.

Qi Yuntian turned the pen in his hand thoughtfully and did not speak for a while.

In fact, he didn't communicate much with Chen Nuo on the phone. At first, he just said that after Li Yang returned to China, he spoke well of their studio to many people, which led to many directors coming to them recently and wanting to work with them.

He mentioned several names at that time.

Unexpectedly, when hearing the name Ning Hao, Chen Nuo suddenly seemed quite interested for some reason.

After listening to him talk a little about the script, he said that this movie was worth investing in.

Since the boss had spoken, Qi Yuntian naturally asked Ning Hao to come and talk. Because the studio did have some money in its account, and the 400 million yuan pay for Blueberry Night had not been touched, which was just enough to do this.

In addition to investment, Qi Yuntian also considered other things.

Letting Fan Binbing come in to listen was to prepare for her to participate in the performance.

Because if the deal is really done, this will be the first movie invested by their studio, and he will do everything he can to ensure that it is a hit.

Fan Binbing is so popular right now, it would be unreasonable not to take advantage of it.

Also, he had read the script and knew that Ning Hao's film was about the stories of a group of small people.

Qi Yuntian felt that it was definitely a good thing to let Fan Binbing star in such a low-budget movie.

Fan Binbing's current image is too out of touch with reality. This is also the main reason why she has so many anti-fan scandals.

If she could change her image of being too aloof and out of touch with reality by starring in such a comedy film featuring small characters, it should help improve the general public's impression of her.

This way, everyone gets what they need and kills two birds with one stone.

The only concern is Huayi, but there is no need to talk about it here.

After thinking it over, Qi Yuntian nodded and said, "Binbing does have time now. We are now at the final stage of terminating our contract with Huayi, and it will probably be completely resolved next month. By then, there should be no problem catching up with your start time."
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After coming out of Chen Nuo's studio, Ning Hao felt as if every step he took was on top of the clouds. His mind was a little hazy, as if he was in a dream. In just one morning, he not only got investment, but also got the most popular female star in the country to star in his movie.

The key point is that from this moment on, he can tell everyone with confidence that Chen Nuo is backing his movie.

After the Cannes Film Festival, although Chen Nuo did not win the Best Actor award, his status in the mainland film and television circles has actually risen instead of fallen, especially because of the stunning kiss with Emma Stone, the popularity of the actor has remained high.

The key point is that this popularity is different from Fan Binbing's popularity. Fan Binbing is just trying to ride on the popularity, while Chen Nuo is already gaining popularity himself.

Among the new generation of male actors, he really feels like he is unparalleled.

Moreover, although Chen Nuo has not filmed many movies and TV series since his debut, he has never failed.

What does it mean that Chen Nuo is willing to invest money in his movie?
As soon as Ning Hao went out, he picked up his phone and called the friend who passed the message to him: "Brother Gao, I've finished my talk and just came out."

The voice on the other end of the phone was somewhat expectant: "How was the talk? Is there anything going on?"

Ning Hao said: "Brother Gao, the discussion went very well and the investment has basically been settled."

Brother Gao's voice suddenly became louder: "Really?"

Ning Hao said sincerely: "Brother Gao, this time I am all thanks to you. I won't say anything else. If you need any help in the future, just give me an order, rain or shine. If I, Ning Hao, refuse, I will not be a human being."

"Haha." Brother Gao also sounded very happy. "Tell me in detail, what did you agree on?"

Apart from the fact that the final profit sharing ratio was a commercial secret, Ning Hao also told them that Fan Binbing was also planning to join the crew.

Brother Gao listened for a long time without saying anything. After listening, his voice became very calm, and there was no trace of happiness in his voice: "400 million. I thought it was the same as in Hong Kong, at most 300 million."

Ning Hao was also a little happy and said, "Yeah, I didn't expect that, so I didn't bargain. 400 million is 400 million, it's better than 300 million."

Brother Gao seemed a little worried and said, "Why is there still Fan Binbing... Haozi, can you afford her with this little money? Fan Binbing is very popular recently. She is terminating her contract with Huayi and has turned down all commercial performances. Now some companies are asking for 80 yuan to invite her to appear. If you want to invite her to make a movie, don't even think about it without a few million yuan salary."

Ning Hao said honestly: "Fan Binbing is also an artist of Chen Nuo's studio. She just said that she is helping out this time. Just give her 10,000 yuan as travel expenses."

There was silence on the other side of the phone.

After a long while, Brother Gao said in a somewhat dry tone: "Haha, congratulations to you, Haozi. It seems that you are really going to drive a Land Rover this time."

The news that Chen Nuo invested several million in a low-budget movie spread to the ears of some interested people within a few days.

Among them are the big king and the little king of Huayi.

Wang Zonglei was chatting in Wang Zongjun's office at the time.

Suddenly, Wang Zongjun answered a phone call. After saying "hmm" and "ah", he showed an expression that seemed like a smile.

Wang Zonglei rarely saw Wang Zongjun show this expression, and asked curiously: "Brother, what's wrong?"

Wang Zongjun chuckled and said, "Haven't you been asking how to deal with Chen Nuo? Now we have the chance. He actually started investing in movies."

Wang Zonglei shouted, "Fuck, is this true?"

Wang Zongjun chuckled, "Really? I just got the news. I remember a director named Ning Hao came to us and asked us to invest in his new film. Do you remember?"

Wang Zonglei was surprised and asked, "Remember, Chen Nuo voted for him?"

Wang Zongjun said, "That's right. I remember the name of the movie, Thief Among Thieves. Someone from the investment department came to ask me about it, saying it was an imitation of Guy Ritchie's "The Six Smoking Barrels". The minimum investment requirement was 300 million, but I rejected it."

Wang Zonglei agreed, "Brother, you did the right thing. After Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, who in China doesn't make period costume movies? From Hero to The Promise, including the one we just finished filming, The Banquet, this is the way to make money. This kind of movie, with a total investment of only 300 million, can't even hire a superstar, which audience will pay for it? This is what Chen Nuo and his team invested in?"

Wang Zongjun nodded and smiled, saying, "That's right, and I heard they're planning to ask Fan Binbing, that idiot, to play a role in it."

Wang Zonglei's face suddenly changed, and he angrily said, "Fan Binbing? They dared to let her take the role? Her contract is still in our hands. Isn't he afraid that we will go to her to ask for her salary?"

Wang Zongjun laughed and said, "That's a shitty pay. I heard Fan Binbing only wants 1 yuan. Are you going to ask for it?"

Wang Zonglei gritted his teeth and said, "Fuck this bitch, she is obviously playing tricks on us on purpose."

Wang Zongjun played with the jade Buddha beads in his hand, pondered for a while, and said, "I think there is no need to delay the termination of the contract. Let's just let it go."

Wang Zonglei said, "Brother, why? Didn't we agree to drag that bitch to death? Now their lawyer said that they can only give us 700 million in liquidated damages at most, because Fan Binbing's total income last year was 1500 million, and we only get 700 million. According to this ratio, they only need to compensate us with the profits for the rest of the contract. How can we agree to this?"

Wang Zongjun said coldly: "What if you don't agree? If we delay until next year, we won't get a penny."

"But she..."

Wang Zongjun interrupted expressionlessly, "What do you mean by 'her'? Look at how popular Fan Binbing is now. How many businesses are crying out for her. If she really keeps doing this and waits until next year after the contract is terminated before returning to the stage, do you believe that her commercial performance fee could be in the seven figures? By then, she could make back all the money she made over the past six months in just one month."

"If we let go now, we can collect 700 million in liquidated damages. By then, we will have lost both the wife and the army!"

Wang Zonglei was so angry that his face turned red. He gnashed his teeth and said with resentment: "Chen Nuo, Fan Binbing, these two bastards, don't let me get a chance, otherwise I will kill them."

Wang Zongjun chuckled and said, "Isn't this the opportunity?"

Wang Zonglei was stunned for a moment and said, "Brother, what do you mean?"

"What I mean is that we should start with this movie and let Chen Nuo, that immature boy, wake up and know that China is not France or the United States, and it is not his turn to change the situation." Wang Zongjun lit a cigar, took a puff, and exhaled a light smoke ring.

Wang Zonglei clenched his fists and said, "Brother, what do you think we should do?"

Wang Zongjun sneered, "In fact, the total investment of this "Thief Among Thieves" is only a few million, which can't hurt his bones. However, this is a finger he stretched out. If we don't cut it off and make him feel the pain of his ten fingers, it will really be unfair to him for paying us the 700 million liquidated damages. Zong Lei, I plan to adjust the release time of "The Banquet". I want to release it at the same time as their movie!"

Wang Zonglei was surprised. "Night Banquet" is a blockbuster production co-invested by Huayi and Media Asia this year. Wang Zongjun personally found the script and let Feng Xiaogang be the director. The film is full of stars and the total investment has reached 1.3 million.

Compared with "The Banquet", that "Thief among Thieves" is nothing.

Wang Zonglei hesitated and said, "Brother, isn't that too exaggerated? If we really want to compete with them, wouldn't it be enough to use "Ink Attack"?"

Wang Zongjun shook his head and said, "Zong Lei, you still don't understand what I'm saying. I want to make him feel so painful. Not only will I make their movie lose a lot of money...but what's more important? I want to destroy Chen Nuo's halo!"

Wang Zongjun stood up from his chair and paced around the office while smoking a cigar. "During this period, I have been studying Chen Nuo. I was wondering why Huayi, as a company as big as ours, felt so helpless about just one actor."

Wang Zongjun walked to the French window, looked at the tall buildings outside the window, and said with cold eyes: "My thinking result is that the most difficult thing about this person is the halo around him. Since his debut, he has not encountered any setbacks. It gives the outside world a feeling that he is always successful. Therefore, there are many people who don't like him, but no one is willing to be the first to stand up. If we want to deal with him, we must first remove the halo on his head!"

Wang Zonglei was so absorbed in listening that he nodded involuntarily, "Yes, if everyone knew that he was nothing, then it would be more than just our Huayi family who would want to bite him to death."

Wang Zongjun turned around and said with a smile: "You are right. So we often say that the higher a person stands, the harder he will fall when he falls, even to pieces. Chen Nuo has been in the industry for more than a year, and he has really taken all the limelight in our circle. There are countless people who don't like him. What we have to do is to fire the first shot. This time, I am aiming at "Thief Among Thieves."

"The reason why I used "The Banquet" to compete with him is to ensure that there will be no mistakes."

"As long as he has lost his halo, there will be a lot of dirt on him. Didn't I hear that he was expelled from high school because he had affairs with many women? Also, wasn't there a rumor some time ago that he had a girlfriend in Hong Kong? And there's that Emma Stone, haha, there are just too many similar things to mention."

"When the time comes, we will hype up these scandals and Fan Binbing, and let everyone know that this man is not as simple as everyone thinks. This will completely destroy his image. After that, the paparazzi in China will naturally bite him to death."

Wang Zonglei carefully thought about his elder brother's moves.

That’s right, with the lineup of Night Banquet, including the power of superstars such as Zhang Ziyi, Ge You, Wu Yanzu, and Zhou Xun, they can kill that “Thief Among Thieves” with one slap.

Then, one thing led to another, from childhood to adulthood, Chen Nuo was pulled down from the altar and became a stray dog ​​that everyone wanted to beat.

Every step was taken according to people's hearts.

The more he thought about it, the more ingenious it seemed. He couldn't help but admire, "Brother, you're really amazing. When the time comes, everyone will push down on Chen Nuo. If that bitch Fan Binbing wants to continue to make a living in China, she will have to come back to beg us."

Wang Zongjun was also a little proud and smiled, "That's right. So, we let Fan Binbing go, let her act, let her go on this ship. Didn't she take photos with Chen Nuo and Leonardo Dicaprio? Maybe this is God's will, let them sink to the bottom of the sea like the Titanic."

The two brothers looked at each other and couldn't help laughing.

……

……

Since signing the contract with Chen Nuo Studio, Ning Hao's life has undergone earth-shaking changes.

Chen Nuo's studio transferred the money to the escrow account the next day and sent an accountant over. They seemed to trust him and did not conduct any further financial checks.

At the same time, I really did what I said at the beginning. Apart from investing money, I didn't care about anything else.

Apart from letting Fan Binbing in to add luster to the film, all other matters, including casting, location selection, and how to shoot, were left to Ning Hao himself.

Ning Hao really felt that a gentleman would die for his friend.

With the blessing of the two words "Chen Nuo", China Film Group came to him to prepare for the mainland distribution of the film before it even started shooting. Even Meiya in Hong Kong heard the news and started contacting him.

His subsequent casting work also went extremely smoothly.

After more than half a month of casting, if Chen Nuo saw the final list, he would probably sigh that the butterfly effect had indeed occurred.

Sun Honglei, who suddenly had no time to participate in the performance, turned down other film offers this time.

Together with Fan Binbing, he played the leading roles of Bao Shihong and his wife in the film, replacing Guo Tao and Luo Lan. Moreover, Sun Honglei knew that the cost was tight here, so he took Fan Binbing's example and received a salary of 1 yuan.

Among the other candidates, the Dao Ge trio is still the same three, and the future movie emperor Huang Bo also caught this express train to success.

But the international thief originally played by Lian Jin was replaced by Chen Nuo’s film academy teacher, Huang Lei.

Like Xu Zheng, Huang Lei took the initiative to apply for the role and was offered no pay. Ning Hao couldn't help but feel happy about this big shot who said he was here to support his student.

Because Huang Lei's image and temperament are not only extremely consistent with the international thief in his script, but his fame is also many times greater than Lian Jin, who was originally chosen.

Plus Wang Xun who is still playing a minor role in the drama...

Of the six men in the future "Go Fighting" men's gang, four of them are here.

I don’t know how this combination, which will set ratings records in the future, together with Xu Zheng and Fan Binbing, will perform on the big screen, nor what their box office records will be.

Anyway, the crew of this drama, temporarily named "Thief among Thieves", officially started filming in the mountain city in July!
(End of this chapter)