Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 715 Ya Mei Throws Herself into My Arms? Whether or not I've managed to get "Reign of Assassins" is unknown, but I've already won over the female lead!

"A comeback! An absolutely epic comeback!"

"An unprecedented box office performance! 'Bad Genius' has actually achieved a comeback!"

"The 'Metallic Attraction' movie is really not doing well; the box office has stopped rising!"

"The movie 'Bad Genius' is on the surface about how to cheat, but in reality, the movie has a deeper meaning!"

"I feel the Hong Kong version is better, more realistic!"

"There's no other way. In order to pass censorship in mainland China, the female lead definitely can't turn evil in the end."

"Honestly, if I were the female lead, I would definitely join Aben's team. So what if we get caught? If we don't, we'll make a fortune!"

"This movie is actually about life..."

A comeback! An absolute comeback!

The box office in the third week was absolutely explosive, exceeding 2000 million!
In this way, "Bad Genius" directly overtook "Robot Man"!
It's worth noting that "Metallic Attraction: Kung Fu Cyborg" is quite strange. Although many people are criticizing the film as a fraud, its box office performance wasn't too bad. This is probably related to the continued support from Stellar Media, or perhaps the initial hype still had an impact, especially since Liu Cixin was also involved.

However, even so, this film could hardly keep up the hype, and ticket sales growth was very weak. Meanwhile, "Bad Genius" seemed poised for an unstoppable comeback.

Originally, it only had a good reputation, but now it's getting more screenings.

Moreover, as the film's run continues, more people will see it, leading to a greater range of interpretations.

A good movie, if it has a profound meaning, will stand the test of time. Or, to put it another way, a good movie is like fine wine; the longer it ages, the better it becomes.

This is exactly the case with "Bad Genius". In particular, although the movie is about cheating, the story is definitely not as simple as cheating on an exam.

In today's society, our economic development is booming, and many people are constantly busy, never having a moment to spare, with a very fast pace.

But has anyone stopped to think about this?

Is my direction, my path, right or wrong?
Or rather, is it the most efficient one?
"Bad Genius" may not change anyone's life, but it may give viewers some food for thought about life.

That's quite significant.

As for whether or not someone should take a shortcut, that's entirely a personal choice. Smart people will weigh the pros and cons and make a choice that suits their own circumstances.

Another key point of this film is how the wealthy acquire their wealth.

This isn't just a problem in Hong Kong; it happens in many countries. In fact, after the Forbes list is released in mainland China, it's common for some of the business owners on it to disappear the following year, either being arrested or fleeing abroad.

The key issue is that some publications, such as Zhi Du Yi, are constantly instilling the idea that many wealthy people succeed through their own hard work and dedication. Moreover, in these magazines, wealthy people around the world are practically equated with saints.

Bill Gates is a saint among saints. The praise for this guy is simply extreme, and many people have seen the details.

And then there's Li Huanggua, who's also been praised quite a bit.

This has been the trend of public opinion in recent years: people are praising the rich. So what is the opposite?
That's right! They are actually oppressing the poor!
In these magazines, the reason you're poor is because you're not smart enough, and the reason you don't drive a Mercedes and live in a mansion is because you're not hardworking enough!
But is that really the case?
These past few years have been truly miserable for us poor people. Not only do we have to work diligently and be dutiful beasts of burden, but we also have to endure this kind of psychological manipulation.

Moreover, this is clearly harmful, because these things naturally give rise to an industry... success studies!

This thing is a scam, a fraud. So many people have fallen for it, while the guys who fooled everyone are happily counting their money and then running away abroad.

The internet hasn't yet reached the era of short videos, so many netizens don't even know who someone like "Understanding Applause" is.

If "Bad Genius" can awaken some people, then it will be even more significant.

Putting aside these significant matters, the cheating scenes in this movie alone are enough to make moviegoers cheer with excitement.

Then this movie is worth the box office.

Of course, the box office isn't stopping yet; there's still room for it to rise!
Some netizens are already envisioning the future.

Will "Bad Genius" break 100 million?

"A film with such a niche appeal can break 100 million? That's impossible, isn't it?"

"Actually, the number of screenings is finally picking up now, and it's highly likely to break 100 million!"

"The box office in Hong Kong is also very good; it's said to have already exceeded 20 million!"

That's right, is it possible that it will break 100 million?
Just as netizens were enjoying themselves, a blockbuster movie arrived!
Reign of Assassins!
……

"Brother Ma, this 'Reign of Assassins' seems really amazing!"

"What? It hasn't even been released yet, and you're already losing confidence?"

"Of course not. This movie was given to me by Brother Ma, so of course I have absolute confidence in Brother Ma."

"Hehe...it can talk."

"Brother Ma~ I'm not good at talking, I'm just telling the truth. This film is really unexpected. I just... followed Brother Ma's instructions to shoot it, and it turned out to be a success."

Can't you speak yet?

Xiaoran's humility is truly very pleasant to behold.

Ma Xun was in Shanghai, but it wasn't convenient for him to meet with Xiao Ran and her team, since they were currently in a highly publicized and popular state.

As a boss, he avoids contact with them whenever possible.

However, it's still important to understand the employees' inner thoughts. For example, Xiaoran is actually a little worried right now.

Well...

"I'm all ready."

"Huh?...Oh, I understand."

When Ma Xun said he was ready, Xiao Ran felt a huge weight lifted off her shoulders.

In Xiaoran's heart, Brother Ma was everything to her. She believed and listened to whatever Brother Ma said.

Since Brother Ma has said so, then there's absolutely no problem. Moreover, Xiao Ran didn't ask for details, even though she was very curious herself.

So……

"Brother Ma, have you been here a lot lately?"

"Oh, what do you mean?"

"It's, it's..."

"What are you trying to do?"

"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask."

It was obvious that Xiaoran was trying to surprise Ma Xun, and Ma Xun could tell, but he didn't want to expose her.

But given the current situation...

"You guys are currently trending on social media, so please be careful."

This is tantamount to tacit approval.

Is there anything Xiaoran doesn't understand?

"Brother Ma, don't worry!"

After they finished speaking, the phone call ended, and Ma Xun's expression was quite interesting.

What surprise did Li Dabai prepare?

Okay, let's not think about this too much. Ma Xun has important things to do right now.

The movie "Reign of Assassins" is coming soon. According to many film and television content creators, this movie was missed by movie fans who didn't know any better back then.

The reason is that the film was well-made, but its box office was very low.

To be fair, the production of "Reign of Assassins" is indeed excellent, as Ma Xun also acknowledges. The film's camerawork, costumes, props, and action scenes are all top-notch.

The magician, in particular, is a very distinctive character. Moreover, his action scenes are combined with magic tricks, which is quite impressive.

However, the truth about this movie is not what those film and television content creators say.

Ma Xun had read a lot of similar opinions before, so he looked up some information and found that the box office performance of "Reign of Assassins" was not entirely bad.

In the original timeline, this movie grossed over 6000 million yuan at the box office.

In 2010, a martial arts film that grossed 6000 million yuan was not a bad result.

Of course, from a commercial perspective, the 6000 million box office revenue definitely did not break even.

The original cast was already very strong, and they even brought in Korean actors.

Including costumes, props, and sets, the film's budget was approximately $1000 million.

Let's say it's worth 100 million, but Wu Yusen later revealed that the film also earned 6 million US dollars in overseas copyright revenue. So, it's not really a loss.

In other words, the box office of "Reign of Assassins" is at most 6000 million, which is far from what was expected.

So, is a box office of 6000 million really that little?

Obviously not!
Based on current ticket sales, at least several million moviegoers have seen this film, and the reviews from those millions of moviegoers... are actually not very high.

Ma Xun recalls a highly-rated short review that said: "You can sleep during this movie because the ending features a duet by Sa Dingding and Wu Qingfeng that will wake you up."

This review is already quite sharp, but it still received three stars, which shows that moviegoers are really forgiving.

To put it bluntly, there are still problems with the plot!
Ma Xun now has many weapons at his disposal, such as the final 'ending' provided by Lin Xilei.

This ending is truly disheartening.

The whole movie went through all that, but in the end it all came down to just a few small things.

Honestly, it's hard not to be disappointed.

Forget it, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's see how this movie turns out after it's released.

Ma Xun was now prepared to improvise, and make his move based on the specific development of the movie "Reign of Assassins".

result. . .

……

"Yami! Yami!"

"Hello everyone."

"Wow! You can speak Chinese!"

Yamei has been following the "Reign of Assassins" team on promotional tours these past few days, and she's feeling really uneasy.

Isn't that too obvious?

They just won't let me go to the "Bad Genius" movie.

In this way, won't a bad problem arise? That is... will Mr. Ma blame me?
Xunjiang, you'll definitely be angry with me!
This girl is quite bold to call Ma Xun "Xun-chan".

Of course, this was her inner thought. Obviously, Yami wasn't stupid; she knew she couldn't actually shout it out.

However, if I could finally say that title to Ma Xun in person... hehehe, that would be really interesting.

To be honest, Yamei really does like Ma Xun, and she's not lying about that.

It's strange, she just seems to have a stronger liking for older men.

And Ma Xun... he's practically perfect!

He's a capitalist who understands film, won an Oscar, and owns several publicly traded companies, all listed in the United States.

My God! Isn't this perfect?

Yami is Japanese, so she knows all too well what the Japanese mentality is like.

To put it simply, the Japanese have an unparalleled admiration for the United States, so much so that they can tolerate whatever the United States does.

However, this doesn't work in other countries.

That's really true. These Japanese are just so weird... This is exactly what Yami was thinking.

But look at Ma Xun... the big boss of a US-listed company!

Just based on that one identity, she's the perfect husband candidate.

Ya Mei knew, of course, that there would be many difficulties and obstacles if she wanted to be with Ma Xun, but that was okay, she could overcome them.

This girl is a bit strange, to be honest.

But right now, regarding the promotion of "Reign of Assassins"...

Suddenly, someone asked at the event: "Ms. Masami Nagasawa, what are your thoughts on your other film, 'Bad Genius'?"

That's a tricky question! This is the home turf of "Reign of Assassins"!

How to do?
I must say, Yamei is a smart girl.

"That's great, since I starred in all of them, so of course I recommend everyone to watch them."

Good guy!
Is this what you call treating everyone fairly?

No!

Because in this "Reign of Assassins" series, Ya Mei is considered one of the female leads, but in that series she wasn't!

Actually, Yang Ziqiong was more of the female lead in "Reign of Assassins".

But now that she has said this, the creators of "Reign of Assassins" are not happy, but they still have to keep smiling.

Wait a minute, isn't this promoting "Reign of Assassins" but actually promoting "Bad Genius"?
Because it's obvious that this 'accident' will definitely make the news!
This is not good!
……

"Don't do that again!"

"I see!"

Having been scolded, Yamei had no choice but to behave as a good girl.

But... humph!

Yami is not someone to be trifled with. After this Japanese girl was reprimanded, she... hehehehe...

What?

She learned from the "Bad Genius" team early on that Ma Xun had already arrived in Shanghai.

She's here now, great! Let's go find him!
……

"Oh, brother, then it's settled."

"I'll go to... um, the Peace Hotel tomorrow."

Okay! Let's meet there.

Ma Xun is still discussing the "Twelve Zodiac Animals" project. His older brother, Long, is coming to Shanghai and will be staying at the Peace Hotel.

We'll talk about it then.

Having fulfilled this promise, Ma Xun felt he should go out for a walk.

After all, one can't always stay cooped up in the mansion on Wukang Road.

I used to get along very well with Naza.

However, Naza was still too young and inexperienced, so she went to film for Tangren Media first.

Now, Ma Xun is all alone, which is quite carefree.

It's raining today, but the cafes on Wukang Road are still open.

Ma Xun simply ordered a coffee, then, with an umbrella in hand, strolled around admiring the rain-soaked city of Shanghai.

The rain wasn't heavy, but a girl was getting soaked.

"How did you..."

"Mr. Ma!"

Ya Mei immediately threw herself into the water like a swallow returning to its nest, so Ma Xun had no choice but to hug her first.

After all, it's not a good thing for this girl to be alone in the rain.

But then... hehehe...

Ya Mei peeked out from Ma Xun's arms with a smile. What did she mean by that?
Ma Xun realized something was wrong and immediately scanned the surroundings, only to find someone taking pictures.

Paparazzi?
"What is this...?" Ma Xun remained very calm and was not angry, because he was more curious.

Yamei laughed in his arms, "Now that I, the leading lady, am yours, doesn't that 'Reign of Assassins' pose no threat to you?"

So that's what this girl was thinking.

Ma Xun's face showed a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

(End of this chapter)