Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 492 Damn Li Liang!

23-year-old Dilraba is certainly beautiful, but Li Qiutang still thinks Gulnazar is more beautiful.

Li Qiutang shook hands with Zeng Jia. Dilraba is not even a second-tier actress now. Zeng Jia introduced her to Li Qiutang, saying that she is now acting and that "Diamond Lover," which she co-starred in with Tang Yan, just aired a few days ago and had very good ratings.

"Hello, Director." Dilraba greeted Li Qiutang very proactively.

Li Qiutang nodded in response. He really didn't have much to say to Dilraba. At most, he would just exchange a few polite words. Today, Dilraba was just an accessory next to Zeng Jia.

"What show is Yang Mi filming now?" The only connection between Li Qiutang and Zeng Jia is Yang Mi.

“She just finished filming ‘Fall in Love Like a Star’ a few days ago and is now filming ‘The Interpreter’ in Shanghai.” Zeng Jia knows Yang Mi’s whereabouts very well.

This year marks the first year of the performance-based agreement between the two companies, so the performance pressure isn't actually that great. However, Yang Mi has already finished filming two movies and released two movies this year, and there's another one, "Cities in Love," set to be released next month.

What else could this be but a model worker?
Li Qiutang was slightly dissatisfied with Zeng Jia "leeching" Yang Mi, and with Yang Mi managing all the new employees in the company by herself.

So he said, "Your company has so many people, you need to promote one or two of them quickly, otherwise Yang Mi will be under a lot of pressure."

To say that Zeng Jia is exploiting Yang Mi is actually unfair. Zeng Jia wanted to promote newcomers more than anyone else to fulfill the betting agreement and get herself a seat at the table.

But those people at Jaywalk Studio are really hard to please!

It's one thing that it's hard to promote, but another is that Jaywalk Studio doesn't have enough resources for its newcomers. If these newcomers could hold their own, Zeng Jia wouldn't have asked the production company to offer Jaywalk Studio a package deal.

Therefore, Zeng Jiacai is more enthusiastic about taking newcomers to the game.

Zeng Jiashun seized the opportunity to climb the social ladder: "That's why we asked the company for help. We're a small business with limited resources. If the company has suitable films, they should think of us. After all, we're practically family."

Li Qiutang chuckled twice and said, "I never concern myself with these things. If there's anything suitable, you can try to negotiate with the company."

“Alright,” Zeng Jia said. “Dilraba, toast to the director.”

Reba raised her glass, Li Qiutang clinked glasses with her, took a sip, and left.

Zeng Jia knew Li Qiutang's style, and she had no intention of sending someone to him.

At the celebration banquet for "Monkey King: Hero Is Back", Li Qiutang said passionately, "At the premiere, I said that our movie could reach 12 billion yuan at the box office. At that time, many people laughed at us. But look what happened. Now it has reached 10 billion yuan. I think 12 billion yuan is not a problem at all."

At the celebration banquet, he also complained about his competitors: "Their image design is terrible, it's too ugly. My colleague said that his is a radish that has come to life."

It's obvious who they're talking about.

"Monkey King: Hero Is Back" was originally bought out by Autumn Pictures. If the contract is strictly followed, now that the movie has grossed over 10 billion yuan, Tian Xiaopeng and his company cannot get a single extra penny.

But that's not how it works.

Autumn Pictures promised to provide Tian Xiaopeng with a director's award; whether he accepts it in his personal capacity or on behalf of the company is up to him.

Li Qiutang suggested that he receive the reward in the company's name, which would save a lot of taxes.

July has passed, and for autumn, the toughest battle is over.

In August, the company will also release a film called "Go Away Mr. Tumor," a work by Han Yan. The company has seen it in advance and found it to be very well-made, with both laughter and tears. It shouldn't be difficult to make money, so Li Qiutang doesn't need to personally oversee it.

On the first weekend of August, Li Qiutang and the screenwriting team of "The Wandering Earth" held a creative meeting.

On Monday, I packed my things and left with my wife by plane. Few people know where they went.

After entering August, the TV series "Diamond Lover" reached its middle stage, and its viewership share gradually increased, as did its popularity.

Once the hype builds, all sorts of problems start to arise.

Jaywalk Studio used the second female lead, Dilraba, to overshadow the first female lead, Tang Yan. "Dilraba, who plays Gao Wen, even has better acting skills than the female lead."

"Gao Wen has overshadowed Tang Yan."

"Dilraba Dilmurat's performance captured the essence of a Chinese version of Cheon Song-yi, while Tang Yan can only play naive and innocent characters no matter what she does."

"The second female lead outshines the first female lead."

Of course, Tang Yan's fans are not to be underestimated.

"They don't even mention her fair skin, beautiful face, sweet voice, and long legs, but they insist on saying her acting is terrible. It's blatant jealousy!"

"Putting everything else aside, just look at this 46KG beauty who ruins her image to play a 270+ pound fat woman. If this isn't a breakthrough, then the people who are questioning it have too much of a wild imagination!"

"There are plenty of people who dislike Tangtang, who do you think you are!"

Even if Tang Yan was naive, she would understand that this was a press release deliberately bought by Jiaxing Media.

But Tang Yan didn't directly retort. She said, "I read and listen to the different opinions from netizens for every drama and every role. As an actor, it's important to know how to distinguish between the noisy voices from the outside world. For me, it's enough to take each step steadily and work hard." It's obvious that Liu Yifei taught her this.

When criticized for being naive and lacking acting skills, she responded: "A breakthrough in acting skills is not just about physical appearance, but about successfully portraying each character and gaining the audience's approval."

However, he also sincerely stated that he would try more challenging roles in the future.

It's also worth noting that during the airing of "Diamond Lover," rumors circulated that the male lead, Luo Jin, and Tang Yan were already engaged. These rumors seemed quite true, as the two had already met each other's parents, and Tang Yan's father was very satisfied with Luo Jin as his prospective son-in-law.

Tang Yan was quite frank about this, stating that she was not opposed to a whirlwind marriage.

However, there has been no response regarding his relationship with Luo Jin.

At this time, Li Qiutang and Liu Yifei had already arrived in Rome.

The couple is about to embark on their European honeymoon.

Arranging it now is a last resort. For the rest of the year, Liu Yifei will be preparing to start filming "Planet 2" or to prepare for the wedding, so this period is the only time the two of them have a little free time.

August in Italy is actually quite hot, but for a honeymoon, the focus is on experiencing different cultures, so the heat doesn't really matter.

The first Roman experience the two had was that their new camera, which they had bought specifically for the trip, was stolen!
In the short time it took to grab a bite to eat and a drink by the roadside, the camera disappeared!

"Damn Li Liang!" Li Qiutang cursed. "I'd heard that thieves were rampant in Rome, but I never thought I'd get robbed in broad daylight! What are you laughing at?" It was clearly an unlucky thing, but Liu Yifei laughed heartlessly on the side.

"I laughed at our bad luck, having our cameras stolen upon landing. It's a unique memory and experience, haha."

With no other option, the two bought a new camera and then began their journey.

Liu Yifei rented a car and volunteered to take her husband on a road trip across the Apennine Peninsula.

"Only you can drive. I don't have an international driver's license," Li Qiutang said with complete composure.

"Then what were you doing driving me around in the US before?" Liu Yifei asked.

“I was driving an unlicensed taxi. If I got caught, I would be finished. Luckily, I didn’t get caught,” Li Qiutang said.

Liu Yifei rolled her eyes, stepped on the gas, and set off.

Our first stop: the Trevi Fountain in Rome.

(End of this chapter)