Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 553: Take down "The Message"! Waiting for next year's financial tsunami!
After entering, we arrived at the living room.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhou Xun even elegantly lit a cigarette.

He even crossed his legs.

There's a saying, oh right.

If the mountain won't come to me, I'll go to see the mountain.

Mr. Ma, is that correct?

"That's right, absolutely right."

Zhou Xun is a big star, after all. She took the initiative to knock on Ma Xun's door. We can't just leave her hanging.

However, Zhou Xun didn't actually need to say these words; Ma Xun understood what she was really thinking.

It's that simple. You, Zhou Xun, were originally obtained from Rongxingda by the Wang brothers after a lot of effort.

Zhou Xun, you originally came to Huayi Brothers with the goal of becoming the top female star.

Unfortunately, things have changed at Huayi now.

The Wang brothers are already gone, so how could they possibly care about you, Zhou Xun?
Naturally, she can forget about becoming the top female host at Huayi Brothers.

But how could Zhou Xun possibly accept that?

Therefore, Zhou Xun was faced with nothing more than a choice.

Jia Yueting?
Or is it Ma Xun?

Now we've come to Ma Xun's place.

However, Ma Xun was unsure whether Zhou Xun had gone to see Jia Yueting, and in fact, he didn't really care about it.

"Miss Zhou, do you think I look like a mountain?"

These words carried a provocative tone, yet also a hint of flirtation.

In Zhou Xun's words, the mountain was a vivid metaphor, which can be understood as 'truth' or something else.

But for Ma Xun, it's very direct and realistic.

The mountain he mentioned was probably a powerful backer.

If interpreted in this way, it can't even be called a metaphor; it's simply an explicit statement.

Did you come to America and to me just to find a new patron?

Ma Xun's simple words carry so many meanings; some find them vulgar, while others see them as profound and insightful...

What about Zhou Xun?
She laughed. "So, Mr. Ma, are you planning to let me lean on this mountain for a while?"

Hey! She's really direct.

Zhou Xun even used her acting skills.

After Ma Xun ushered them in, Zhou Xun sat on the luxurious sofa in the living room and naturally crossed her legs.

This pose, combined with the halter-neck dress she's wearing today, exudes a subtly sexy charm.

Clearly, Zhou Xun had heard many rumors about Ma Xun and knew his principles: he wouldn't promote someone who wasn't one of his people.

But that's not wrong either.

Zhou Xun has been in this industry for so many years, and she has never been a chaste and virtuous woman.

Becoming Ma Xun's person is no big deal.

However, Zhou Xun misjudged Ma Xun.

Ma Xun does like to date female celebrities, but he doesn't date just any female celebrity.

"Miss Zhou, do you see this hand?"

Ma Xun strangely revealed his right hand.

"What... what's wrong?" Zhou Xun was genuinely puzzled.

But then Ma Xun said, "This hand has touched a thigh that's over a meter long and played with a fist the size of a soccer ball."

Wow! That's really something!

These words are incredibly vulgar, but using them here has truly caused Zhou Xun a great deal of harm.

Look, she couldn't help but clench her fists.

However, Ma Xun did it on purpose.

This week's news has always been known in the Chinese entertainment industry as a goddess of art films, and art films always have to maintain a certain level of sophistication.

Even her opening remarks this time were quite artistic.

But Ma Xun wanted to do the opposite. He wanted to play the vulgar, even the tacky, and smash Zhou Xun's lifelong "artistic genes" to pieces!
Alternatively, his behavior can be understood as follows:

What the hell are you trying to prove in front of me?!
Can't you tell the difference between the King and Queen?
I am the boss!

That's right, he was practically ready to curse her out loud. As for whether Zhou Xun would understand, Ma Xun believed she definitely would.

That little fist is proof, isn't it?

Moreover, it must be emphasized that Ma Xun had absolutely no interest in Zhou Xun's body.

You weren't exactly a chaste and virtuous woman to begin with, and you're not even among the most beautiful actresses I, Ma Xun, have ridden.

I'll just tell you what I've done with this hand.

Therefore, what appears to be crude and vulgar actually reveals strength and power!

Zhou Xun was indeed angry, but what could she do?
The hand that had clenched into a fist eventually loosened.

He laughed again, "Mr. Ma, let's talk about something more important then."

That's right, she's quite tolerant.

Or, to put it another way, this is called being pragmatic.

Actually, Ma Xun isn't a bad person, right?

"Okay, go ahead and tell me, but I have to say this first: if there's nothing that interests me, you should head back early, as I haven't prepared any food here."

They certainly have the aura to back it up.

Ma Xun is the boss, he is the capital. To outsiders, Zhou Xun is an artistic goddess, a talented actress, but to Ma Xun, that's really not the case.

However, Zhou Xun then actually brought out something very important.

"To inform Mr. Ma that not long ago, I visited the renowned novelist Mr. Mai Jia with Professor Feng and Professor Chen. We happened to arrive just as Mr. Mai Jia finished writing his new book. Although the book has not yet been officially published, we were fortunate enough to read it."

It's true... maybe my brain isn't quite up to par, but this novel is really exquisitely written.

The book is called "The Message." Teacher Feng and Teacher Chen went to great lengths to persuade Mr. Mai Jia and obtained the adaptation rights…

That's enough, because Zhou Xun clearly saw that Ma Xun's expression had changed.

So she smiled and said, "Indeed, Mr. Ma not only enjoys playing with beautiful women, but he's also a book lover."

That's quite a compliment, a form of flattery, and a rather skillful one at that.

This perfectly echoed what Ma Xun had said earlier, and it also smoothed out a lot of the previous crudeness.

Ma Xun was naturally tempted at this moment.

I believe that any time traveler who hears the movie "The Message" would be just like Ma Xun.

Because this movie is the pinnacle of Chinese spy films!

This is even a generally accepted fact.

It was indeed very well made, and the acting of the main actors was truly superb.

But this novel... Ma Xun felt a little sorry, as Feng Xiaogang and Chen Guofu beat him to it.

There's probably not much that can be done, because they have a good relationship with Mai Jia, and also, Mai Jia's books can still be sold in Taiwan, which is actually thanks to Chen Guofu.

From this perspective, Ma Xun is really no match for these two guys.

So now...

"So your backers are Feng Xiaogang and Chen Guofu, huh?" Ma Xun said this with great ease and satisfaction.

I've seen right through you.

Zhou Xun did not deny it; she simply continued, "Teacher Feng actually only has one condition."

"Tell me about it," Ma Xun readily agreed.

"He hopes to work with the Wang brothers as he did before."

"Oh, so he wants to maintain his independence?"

“That’s right, Mr. Ma is indeed…”

"No need for flattery, I can agree to this condition."

If that's the case, then everything is settled!

Indeed, that's enough about the movie "The Message".

Ma Xun doesn't need to overthink things; he just needs to make the investments that are necessary.

As for the independence that Feng Xiaogang wants, this guy is actually quite cunning.

What he wants is for his company to be his own, but if Huayi goes public, he will definitely still want shares.

That's how things were originally, except that Huayi Brothers hasn't gone public yet, and Ma Xun isn't sure if Feng Xiaogang will withdraw from Huayi Brothers.

Regardless, securing the rights to "The Message" is the key now.

Actually, Zhou Xun just said that she didn't understand the novel, which is normal.

Ma Xun had read the original novel of "The Message," which was actually not very long, at least not comparable to online novels.

However, there is a part of this work that is rather difficult to understand.

So, who exactly is the old ghost?

Those who have read the original work will surely say, "Isn't the answer already given in the book?"

Li Ningyu!

Yes, it is clearly written in the book that Li Ningyu is the old ghost, and she used several methods to transmit intelligence.

but……

After the novel "The Message" clearly revealed that Li Ningyu was an old ghost, the story was not yet finished.

do you understand?

In a later chapter, the author of the book goes to Taiwan many years later and meets Gu Xiaomeng, who is now very old.

First of all, you can probably guess why I wrote this.

Secondly, the author of this book asked Gu Xiaomeng about what happened back then, and Gu Xiaomeng gave the same answer as before.

but.

When the author of the book asked some specific questions, Gu Xiaomeng's answer was: I'm already this old.

You don't need to read the rest.

So, the real culprit is actually Gu Xiaomeng!
In other words, besides the plot, if this novel were a person, it would also be playing a guessing game with the readers.

Later, many people debated online, saying that Lao Gui should be Li Ningyu.

The movie was adapted incorrectly, or something like that.

In fact, this is because some readers only see the surface.

That's how the world is; some things are hidden.

After thinking about the movie, Ma Xun turned his attention to Zhou Xun.

"Is there anything else you want to say?"

Zhou Xun also responded to Ma Xun's gaze.

"They are not my support."

What does this mean?
Ma Xun frowned slightly. He understood what Zhou Xun meant: this artistic goddess still wanted a powerful backer.

"What other projects are there?"

That's a very skillful way of putting it.

Zhou Xun frowned slightly, "The drama called 'Li Mi's Conjecture' was originally invested in by the Wang brothers, but now the project is at a standstill."

There's something wrong with this show.

However, the director of this film is quite talented.

Cao Baoping, his later films became award-winning machines.

However, much of the content of "The Equation of Love and Death" was cut.

We also encountered many problems in getting the application approved.

"I've heard about this project. I hope Director Cao can provide a plan that's easier to get approved. Otherwise, I don't want to invest in a film like 'The Wrath of Glory'."

Ma Xun's words surprised Zhou Xun once again.

"The Wrath of Glory" is a movie about village officials and village bullies, but after it was made, policies changed and the film failed to pass censorship for several years.

Even after it was released, it didn't make much of a splash.

However, this movie is good, and the actors in it are also very good.

Wu Gang and Wang Yanhui are both excellent actors.

But for someone like Ma Xun, at least in Zhou Xun's eyes, this film is a different story.

Our boss, Mr. Ma, shouldn't know this.

did not expect……

"Mr. Ma, I didn't expect you to know so much about movies."

Is that still flattery?

Ma Xun didn't say anything, Zhou Xun smiled and left.

Regardless, the film "The Message" has been secured.

After Zhou Xun left, Wen Yongshan appeared...

Ok?
At that moment, the two of them gave Ma Xun a very strange feeling.

The story of "The Message" was later adapted into a TV series, in which Wen Yongshan played the role of Li Ningyu.

Gu Xiaomeng just left, and now Li Ningyu has arrived?
In fact, Xu Lu in the TV series version really couldn't carry the role of Gu Xiaomeng.

Wen Yongshan's portrayal of Li Ningyu is quite good.

So……

"Mr. Ma... ah~"

Wen Yongshan was immediately pressed down onto the sofa...

Actually, Wen Yongshan wanted to ask Ma Xun when she would be returning to China.

After all, in Wen Yongshan's eyes, it seems that many things have been done.

But in reality, Ma Xun still has a lot to do.

It's 07 now, what will next year be like?
That's right, he plans to use the money he earned in the United States to do a super-double!
Actually, the safest way to make money is to buy gold now.

In other words, you can just buy them gradually.

When the financial tsunami hits and the US stock market crashes, gold prices will skyrocket.

But Ma Xun couldn't tell Wen Yongshan these things.

Now we should focus on doing more and talking less...

(End of this chapter)