Huayu Chunqiu, starting from being adopted by a fairy mother

Chapter 441 Zhang Min's Night Meeting with Liu Shishi

Shanghai at night, Shanghai at night

you are a city that never sleeps
The city lights come on, cars hum, and music and dancing fill the air.
She greeted us with a smile, but who knew she was filled with sorrow inside?
……

The old villa, which was bustling yesterday, is now rather deserted, with the song "Night Shanghai" playing on repeat in the room.

The audience had all left, and the staff were quietly cleaning up the mess; they were going to film the first scene that afternoon.

Stepping onto the terrace, the faint sound of singing drifts by, a gentle breeze caresses the face, creating a sense of tranquility.

A long table was set up on the terrace, covered with a dark brown tablecloth, and some tea, fruit and snacks were laid out on it.

There are a dozen or so chairs around the table, some of which already have owners.

Zhang Guoli appeared at the entrance to the terrace, nodding in satisfaction, "Hehe, this is a good location."

"Oh! Teacher Zhang is here." Hu Ge quickly got up to greet him. Luo Jin was a couple of steps behind, but pulled out a chair for the senior to sit down.

"thanks, thanks."

"Teacher, I'm Luo Jin, and I play the second male lead, Li Yaoting, in the play." Luo Jin took the opportunity to introduce himself.

"Good, good, a handsome man indeed." Zhang Guoli exclaimed repeatedly.

"Teacher Zhang, I am Yan Kuan, and I play the villain Li Yaozu, Li Yaoting's older brother."

Luo Jin's introduction seemed to unlock some mechanism, and everyone took turns introducing themselves and their roles to their seniors.

"The audience will definitely love such a handsome villain," Zhang Guoli said with a smile, but inwardly he was sighing.

He originally wanted to fight for the role of Li Yaozu for his son. After reading the script, he felt that the character was very interesting and memorable.

Little did I know that my son disliked villainous roles and didn't want to play such characters.

Then he was chosen by Jiang Wen, but there was a scheduling conflict. Filming for "Let the Bullets Fly" was scheduled to start in August, and preparations needed to be made in advance, so Zhang Guoli had to give up.

"Teacher Zhang, I'm Liu Shishi, playing the second female lead, Lin Weiwei. Please give me your guidance." Even the little lion understands social etiquette.

"I'm Wei Chen, a complete newcomer, playing Bingbing's younger brother, Su Yuncai." There was a young man on the far side who looked a bit shy.

"Okay, all good." Zhang Guoli smiled. A complete newcomer shouldn't be sitting here; there must be some connection.

Yesterday was the opening ceremony, and this morning's script reading also marks the start of filming.

The process of script reading is also a process of getting everyone familiar with each other.

Zhang Guoli didn't put on any airs of seniority, chatted happily with everyone, and even asked some questions of the younger generation.

A short while later, director Gao Xixi arrived. He had dealt with everyone present before, so there was no need for introductions.

Especially the little lion, Gao Xixi just finished filming "Three Kingdoms", this is the second time the little lion has worked with him.

“Director, I heard from the props team the other day that they couldn’t find an old map from 1950. I borrowed this real one from an old friend in Panjiayuan. It’s different from the maps we have now. I’ll give Hu Ge a little lesson later, so that he, an archaeology professor, won’t be unable to read a map.” Zhang Guoli arrived carrying a blue cloth bag. Inside the bag was a wooden box. The wooden box was then covered with another layer of cloth.

Unfolding layer by layer, inside lies a yellowed copy of "A Record of Cultural Relics of Shanghai," its cover covered with dense annotations in pencil. Flipping through a few pages reveals an old map from 1950.

"Thank you so much, Teacher Zhang. I thank you on behalf of the production team," Gao Xixi quickly said.

"It really is different. If Teacher Zhang hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have recognized it as a map of Shanghai." Hu Ge leaned closer to examine it carefully.

"Sixty years have passed. Small changes every year, big changes every five years. The changes in these sixty years are greater than those in the previous six hundred years," Zhang Guoli remarked.

Gao Xixi wrapped up the book, called over the props team, gave them detailed instructions, and asked them to copy the map.

"Sister Bingbing isn't here, but here's the cue card. It's sparkly enough to be used as a reflector." Hu Ge returned to his seat and casually picked up the cue card.

"Of course, it's even studded with diamonds. Bingbing probably picked something eye-catching because she was afraid she wouldn't remember her lines," Zhang Guoli joked.

"Um, Teacher Zhang, Lao Hu, I put this here," Liu Shishi explained, then paused, "Sister Bingbing has something to do, she'll be here later."

The little lion pursed his lips, thinking that some scoundrel might be doing ice gymnastics right now.

FBB?

No! It could be BBF, or it could be BFB. With Bai Bing and Gao Yuanyuan, these two right-hand women, it definitely won't be a simple FB.

Last night, Bai Bing drove Liu Jing and Fan Xiaopang home, and everyone saw it.

Some speculate that Bai Bing first dropped off Pang Bing, then Liu Jing, and finally returned to her hotel.

Some people speculated that Bai Bing first sent Pang Bing to bed, and then had a shameless sex affair with Liu Jing.

Everyone talks about others behind their backs, and some bored people even made a bet on it.

The little lion chuckled silently, none of them were right; these three people must all have the same destination.

The little lion didn't follow, and she didn't drink either; she still had to memorize the script when she got back to the hotel.

The saying goes, "The early bird catches the worm." Her acting skills have always been weak, not just in terms of her voice, but also in her speed of memorizing lines. Now, her senior has filled that gap, and her acting ability is gradually improving, but memorizing lines remains a problem.

Shu Chang is the fastest at memorizing lines; he can basically remember them after watching them once, and he can also optimize the lines according to the characters and scenes.

The little lion can only envy this; if he lacks the ability, he will try his best to make up for it.

At banquets, Little Lion rarely drinks unless absolutely necessary. Many people assume that a girl as delicate as a delicate flower can't drink, but actually, she has a very high alcohol tolerance; she could hold her own against an immortal from the Tang Dynasty.

If we compare the alcohol tolerance of the four people, then Tang Yan can drink two liang (100ml), Yang Mi can drink half a jin (250ml), Qianqian can drink seven liang (350ml), and Xiao Shizi can drink one jin (500ml).

Ms. Min had a few drinks last night. She has a full-time driver, but she insisted on calling Little Lion as her designated driver.

At Pang Bing's house, Bai Bing and Pang Bing are about to sign a gentleman's agreement.

At Min Zong's home, Shi Shi and Zhang Min also have an agreement to sign.

The little lion knew Xiaoxue, but this was their first time meeting. She took out a thousand yuan from her bag and gave it to the little girl as a gift.

It's not that I don't want to give more; there's only a little over a thousand yuan in cash in the bag, and I usually pay by card. Even though the bag costs tens of thousands of yuan, the money inside isn't even worth as much as the bag itself.

She played with Xiaoxue for a while, then the nanny came over and took the little girl away to sleep.

Just as the little lion was about to say goodbye, Zhang Min suddenly asked her, "Shishi, how much money do you have left in your bag?"

Although she didn't understand what he meant, she still opened her bag, feeling embarrassed. "Sister, I don't have much money, only sixty-nine yuan."

"Oh, it's not much, but the number is quite auspicious. You just gave Xiaoxue a thousand yuan as a greeting gift from your aunt. Now give me three yuan, and you'll have an even more auspicious number left."

What's so auspicious about sixty-nine? Sixty-six is ​​indeed auspicious. I didn't know Mr. Min was so superstitious.

The little lion was completely confused. He took out three coins and handed them to Zhang Min.

"This is from Mu Tou. He wanted to give you 30% of the shares in Tangren, but I didn't agree. It's not that I didn't want to give it to you, but I didn't want to give it to you all at once. You've been performing well lately. I can see your progress with Mu Nianci in 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes,' Zhou Zhiruo in 'The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber,' and Long Kui in 'Chinese Paladin.' You have three good roles with me. You are qualified to buy three points of Tangren's shares for three yuan. What happens next depends on your performance."

Zhang Min took out the share transfer agreement and handed it to Liu Shishi.

Liu Shishi didn't know the exact value of 3% of Sugarman's shares, but it was definitely not worth three yuan.

When Hu Ge was in a car accident, the production of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" was shelved, and Tangren faced a financial crisis, almost breaking its capital chain.

Liu Jing invested 15 million yuan, acquiring a 30% stake in Tangren. Although it smacks of profiteering, it did indeed solve Tangren's immediate crisis. If Tangren was valued at 50 million yuan at that time, it would be worth several hundred million yuan now.

Today, three points of shares are worth more than ten million, but money can't buy shares in Sugar Man, and Lao Cai is very protective of his equity.

Sugarman proposed an employee stock ownership plan last year, and a year later, they are still planning it.

Just as the little lion was about to speak, Zhang Min raised the corner of her mouth and said, "You don't need to refuse. I've already drafted the contract, so I didn't expect to be refused. An unequal relationship is destined to not go far. If you want to go further with Mu Tou, then keep this agreement. The future belongs to you, and I look forward to your future."

"Sister, I didn't mean to refuse. Shishi is stupid, not as smart as Yang Mi, and not as capable as Bai Bing. She's only obedient. I belong to my senior brother, so I won't refuse anything he gives me."

Years ago, she had a big fight with her mother and ran away from home to find her senior apprentice. Liu Jing gave her a house, which is now the Lion Grove Garden.

If it didn't lead to anything good, she definitely wouldn't accept it. But since the good deed was done, she accepted it after a couple of polite refusals. From then on, she never refused anything Liu Jing gave her, but she never asked for anything in return, except for the role of Zhou Zhiruo.

The little lion thought, "You've already taken my path, so whatever path you give me, I'll take it too."

"What if Wood sold you? You wouldn't help him count the money, would you?" Zhang Min joked.

"Unless absolutely necessary, my senior brother won't sell me out. If he really has to, it's my fate," the little lion replied earnestly.

"Wood has such good taste. Every girl he chooses has her own unique charm," Zhang Min sighed. The little guy has always had a good eye since he was a child. Every beautiful woman he takes photos with has her own distinctive features.

After her sigh, something strange happened. If the little guy had the ability back then, would he have taken all those beauties like Vivian Chow, Michelle Reis, Joey Wong, Chingmy Yau, and Gigi Lai into his room? Definitely.

"You can tell what a child will be like at three, and what they will be like in life at seven." It seems that our ancestors were right.

"Sister Honey said that every protagonist favored by fate will gather some outstanding talents around them," Little Lion replied seriously.

"Haha..." Zhang Min almost laughed herself silly, rubbing her stomach. "That little devil Yang Mi is just fooling you. She's just read too many martial arts novels. Now I believe it. You might actually get sold out and then help count the money."

The little lion didn't laugh. Yang Mi does often fool me, but not this. I know my own body; not everyone can experience my senior's miraculous abilities.

"I overheard from the film crew that someone at Tangren has a problem with you?" Zhang Min hadn't wanted to ask, but she was quite satisfied with Liu Shishi's behavior. If Liu Shishi was being harassed at Tangren, she wouldn't mind lending a hand.

"When you want to do something, there will always be people who don't like it, no matter where you are. It's not really an opinion, but they probably feel unbalanced, or... or they have a problem with Sister Cai."

As Sugarman gradually grew in size and leading film and television companies underwent shareholding reforms, some senior executives began to have their own ideas. Some wanted to embrace capital, while others wanted some equity, but Lao Cai wouldn't budge.

Old Cai didn't want to bring in capital, fearing that she would lose control and the sugar figurine business would no longer be the one she had raised from scratch.

Now, Tangren has three shareholders: Lao Li focuses on production, Chunqiu doesn't interfere in management, and Lao Cai makes all the decisions. She can do whatever she wants and push forward with whatever projects she wants without much resistance.

Capital comes in seeking returns. Those at the top want shares because they want more power.

"Oh, did Lao Cai ask you to get the second female lead role in 'The Weaver Girl'?" Zhang Min remained noncommittal. Liu Jing didn't care about the internal affairs of Sugar Man, but she couldn't possibly be unaware of them.

"No, I like that character," Liu Shishi denied outright.

“If you encounter anything you can’t handle, you can contact me. We don’t bully others, but we shouldn’t let others bully us either. You represent not only yourself, but also Mu Tou’s reputation.” Zhang Min gave the little lion a deep look.

This matter is somewhat related to Bai Bing. Bai Bing has been using the excuse that Tangren has too few signed artists to try to get Tangren to shut down its artist management department and focus on production.

Old Cai was spurred on. "You think I don't have enough artists? Then I'll sign more." During graduation season, Old Cai frequently went to the Shanghai Theatre Academy to scout for suitable candidates.

According to Zhang Min's information, Lao Cai intended to sign other artists with the lead role, so Liu Shishi took the initiative to ask for the second lead role.

However, Lao Cai's support for Liu Shishi has never changed.

She won't change the focus of her resources until Little Lion becomes a true face of the Sugar Man brand. She's selective in signing new artists, choosing either recent graduates or established artists from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The newcomer doesn't affect Shishi's status. Hong Kong and Taiwan artists won't hand over their full contracts to Sugarman, and Sugarman doesn't need to give them special resources.

"Yes, I will." Liu Shishi nodded emphatically. She understood what Zhang Min meant; this meant she was being included in the small group centered around her senior brother. This "others" didn't just refer to outsiders, but also included the sugar figurine maker.

She then sighed, "What I've encountered is nothing compared to what Liu Yifei and Yang Mi have gone through."

“Different people have different fates. You are Liu Shishi, not Yang Mi or Liu Yifei. Don’t compare yourself to them. What you should compare yourself to is yourself yesterday. I’ve said this to Yuanyuan before, and I’m giving it to you today.” Zhang Min sighed inwardly. No wonder Sister Li wanted Liu Shishi to be her daughter-in-law back then; she was indeed more suitable than Yang Mi and the others.

"Okay, thank you, sis."

The little lion called her "sister" with genuine sincerity; she felt that Zhang Min truly had the demeanor of an older sister compared to Liu Yifei. That woman wasn't some celestial being, she was clearly a devil.

“Once you become a shareholder of Sugarman, many problems will be easily solved.” Zhang Min had just finished saying this when she became puzzled again, because Liu Shishi had not signed the contract and had put it in the bag.

"Sister, I'd like my mom to sign this document, is that okay?" the little lion asked.

“Of course you can. It belongs to you, and you can have whoever you want sign it. This is good too; having it registered under your mother's name avoids risks and also keeps a low profile.” Zhang Min nodded.

The little lion smiled. She hadn't considered any of that; she just wanted to use the agreement to shut her mother up and improve her senior's standing in her mother's eyes. She believed that as she brought home more and more agreements, her mother's attitude would gradually change.

"Shishi, Shishi, what are you laughing at? Do you also think that the character Shen Mo was written by Lao Liu based on himself?"

Old Hu's shout interrupted the little lion's reverie.

"Old Liu?" She was taken aback, having no idea what everyone had been talking about, only remembering that they had been laughing and chatting.

"Liu Jing," Old Hu reminded him.

"Senior brother is still very young." The little lion shook his head.

"Liu Shishi, you keep calling me 'Old Hu' all the time, does that mean I'm old?" Old Hu's expression was unfriendly.

"You're already twenty-seven, aren't you old yet?" Little Lion retorted. She was gentle in front of Liu Jing, but that didn't mean she was gentle with everyone else.

"Cough cough..." Zhang Guoli coughed twice. There was someone here who was twenty-seven years older than Hu Ge.

"Teacher Zhang, I didn't mean you," the little lion quickly explained.

"So you mean me?" Yan Kuan asked with a somber expression.

Everyone was stunned for a moment. They all thought this handsome guy was very aloof, but they didn't expect him to say something like that, so they burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing at? You seem so happy." Fat Bing walked in with two screenwriters, all smiles.

"I'm laughing at you for being late," Hu Ge replied.

Fat Bing glanced at his watch; there were still ten minutes until the script reading was scheduled to begin. "Haha, my bad, I'll treat everyone to pan-fried buns."

"The food doesn't taste as good without Lao Liu treating us," Hu Ge shook his head.

"Liying, bring two boxes of pan-fried buns." Fatty Bing shouted downstairs, then turned to look at Lao Hu, "Lao Liu has something to do and will be a little late. To apologize, he asked me to bring some pan-fried buns for everyone."

"When will he arrive?" Gao Xixi frowned. If Liu Jing were just a screenwriter, he wouldn't have to wait so long, but Liu Jing was also a producer.

"Director, let's start right after we finish the pan-fried dumplings. We won't wait for him." Fat Bing smiled smugly. "I'm the producer. When the executive producer isn't around, I'm the boss, and even the executive producer has to listen to me. If the executive producer is here, then that's a different story."

"Okay!" The little lion was the first to respond.

What are you waiting for? That guy is definitely shaved ice.

They dug early, so they weren't late.

She didn't want to sit there idly waiting for them to finish digging, who knows how long they'd be digging.

(End of this chapter)