Chinese Entertainment Intelligence King

Chapter 373 A Handshake of the Century, An Embrace of the Century, Two Golden Horse Award Winners

Since mid-November, films related to the Lunar New Year season have begun to generate buzz and publicity.

This year's Lunar New Year film season is as lively as ever, with a plethora of blockbuster productions.

Yi An's "Bodyguards and Assassins" features a star-studded cast, while New Pictures and Zhang Yimou have released "A Simple Noodle Story".

Zhou Jielun, Chen Daoming, and Sister Zhiling join forces in "The Treasure Hunter," Xiao Yanzi and rising star Chen Kun co-star in "Mulan," and Ekin Cheng and Aaron Kwok star in "Storm Riders 2."

The above is still for December. There are also many popular movies in January, such as Jackie Chan's "Little Big Soldier" co-starring with popular superstar Wang Lihong, and Chow Yun-fat and Donnie Yen's new works "Confucius" and "14 Blades".

There are also some small, low-budget films that squeeze in during the gaps in the release schedules of various blockbuster and popular movies, hoping to make a quick buck.

For example, as mentioned before, Yi An took advantage of the popularity of "Chinese Paladin 3" and the rumors between Hu Ge and Yang Mi to make a low-budget romantic comedy film called "Fated to Love You".

The film cost less than 800 million yuan and features Hu Ge, Yang Zi, Tang Yan, Liu Shishi, and other main cast members from "Chinese Paladin 3" who either acted or made cameo appearances. It can be considered a sister film or spin-off of the TV series.

The film was originally planned for release during the Spring Festival. However, Valentine's Day falls on the first day of the Lunar New Year this year, making a premiere on that day impractical. Therefore, it was released directly during the Spring Festival.

It mainly targets the two's fans, young men and women, and young couples.

Given the fixed costs, as long as the box office reaches 2000 million, combined with other revenue, the project will be considered profitable.

This year, Yi An invested in two films during the Lunar New Year season: "Bodyguards and Assassins" and "Fated to Love You".

However, a few more films were released, including Donnie Yen's "14 Blades", Zhou Jielun's "The Treasure Hunter", and a low-budget film "My Tang Dynasty Brothers".

The film "The Treasure Hunter" was actually rejected by the distribution department, who thought it was just too bad.

However, Yi An and its production company, Changhong Film & Television, had a good collaboration on "Kung Fu Dunk," and they took the initiative to approach her, showing great sincerity, so it was not easy to refuse.

More importantly, Yi-An and her boss have many collaborations in Taiwan, and they have been very helpful.

You can't just use someone and then kick them out, so Yan Li personally took on the project.

The outside world attaches great importance to "The Treasure Hunter", but Yi An, who knows the inside story, thinks that the project is unlikely to succeed.

Of the five projects, the most promising is undoubtedly "Bodyguards and Assassins", followed by "14 Blades".

Among them, "Bodyguards and Assassins" will compete with "A Simple Noodle Story".

The two films were released just over a week apart, and many media outlets hyped it up, saying that this was Yi An's second time challenging a veteran film company after defeating Huayi Brothers during the National Day holiday.

Will the new king continue his dominance, or will the veteran remain as steadfast as ever?

Yi An completely ignored the media hype, and Yan Li scoffed at it.

No matter what, Huayi Brothers is a large company with a market value of tens of billions, and it has both manpower and influence.

Before this, it was already considered the industry leader, and even if it is not as good as Yi'an now, it is still the rightful number two in the industry.

The two leading actors are going head-to-head, even though they're in the same release window and have the same subject matter. The reasons and logic behind it all make sense.

But what gives New Pictures the right to go to war with Yi An?
That's a large version of Zhang Yimou's studio. Now, companies like Hairun, Ciwen, Huace, and Rongxinda are preparing for IPOs, while New Pictures remains silent.

Even if there's some activity, it's useless. Who would invest in a film company that only relies on one director?

The most impressive thing is that Zhang Yimou doesn't own any shares in the company. Strictly speaking, the two parties only have a cooperative relationship, which is entirely based on their friendship and long-term cooperation.

This is terrifying! If Zhang Yimou were to quit one day, the new visuals would be completely ruined.

Many people still use Newview's past achievements to justify their view that Newview is an amazing big company.

In fact, when the wave of capital begins, those who still cling to old ways of thinking and offer no obvious advantages are destined to be abandoned and eliminated.

Therefore, Yan Li didn't take the new picture seriously at all, and Yi An certainly wouldn't consider it a rival.

But Mr. Zhang, the boss of New Pictures, is quite flamboyant.

Not only did he express his opinion that "A Simple Noodle Story" would achieve an overwhelming victory, but he also made a few sarcastic remarks about Huayi Brothers and Yi An.

"...Film companies are preoccupied with going public every day, so how much energy do they have left to put into making movies?"

Yi An's senior executives disapproved of his arrogance and criticized New Pictures for being complacent and lacking ambition.

As a result, Boss Zhang mocked him, asking how much salary Yan Li paid him and how good he was at flattering him.

Yan Li was too lazy to bother with this old bastard at first, but he didn't expect the other party to keep going on and on, thinking that he was easy to bully.

Too lazy to engage in pointless verbal sparring, Yan Li went straight for the heart.

By forwarding the news about Yi An distributing pre-IPO shares, Yan Li publicly spoke out on Weibo, defending Zhang Yimou.

He listed the treatment of various directors.

Feng Xiaogang acquired Huayi Brothers' original shares, now worth nearly 2 million yuan. Huayi Brothers is extremely supportive of his creative freedom, and he is a director.

Director Chen runs his own business, and he also collaborates with various companies, so he gets a larger share of the profits and enjoys unparalleled freedom.

Even Ning Hao, a junior, received Yi An's original shares, which were quite valuable. He also received support from Yi An for other benefits and creative freedom.

Only Zhang Yimou, the chief director of the Olympic opening ceremony, not only failed to obtain shares in New Pictures, but was also subject to constraints at every turn, which is truly pitiful and lamentable.

He has always admired Zhang Yimou. If Zhang Yimou joins Yi'an, he will offer him full stock options and all kinds of benefits, making him a trusted confidant and taking great care of him.

This move is truly devastating, it's like killing someone by breaking their spirit!

What Mr. Zhang fears most, and what he finds most unacceptable, is the departure of Zhang Yimou.

Even though he knew that Yan Li's public statement was clearly meant to disgust him, he was still greatly alarmed.

He angrily denounced Yan Li to reporters as a sowing discord and wishful thinking, stating that he and Zhang Yimou had been good brothers for over twenty years with a deep bond, and that Zhang Yimou would never leave New Pictures.

Upon seeing this, Yan Li started rambling on Weibo again.

If you're a true brother, you should support your brother when he has a brighter future, not hinder him.

[Talking about brotherhood while not actually sharing benefits, profiting at the expense of brothers—this is blatant moral blackmail and bullying.]

[Taking more money is one thing, but causing trouble and creating problems while keeping the money to himself and pushing his brother to take the blame is another. That's too much of a show of loyalty.]

Honestly, Director Zhang's patience for so long is truly admirable; I sincerely admire his magnanimity.

【…】

This caused Boss Zhang to explode on the spot. He started by proving how good he was to Zhang Yimou, and he also started cursing and denouncing Yan Li for his wolfish ambitions.

Yan Li only replied on Weibo with one sentence: 【Why are you so anxious if I'm wrong?】

Boss Zhang: "#%&~£{%}"

Seeing Mr. Zhang's near-explosive anger and the speculation from the outside world, Zhang Yimou couldn't sit still any longer and made a statement in an interview.

"First of all, thank you for your appreciation, Mr. Yan. However, I have had a very pleasant working relationship with Wei Ping and am quite satisfied with the current situation. I have no plans to leave New Pictures."

Yan Li was still polite to Zhang Yimou, giving a friendly reply on Weibo, and didn't forget to put a snide remark on Mr. Zhang.

[…I hope Director Zhang has all the best at New Pictures, and that Yi An's door is always open to him.]

It's unclear whether there was some kind of agreement between Zhang Yimou and Zhang Ziyi, but the latter stopped provoking Yi An and only emphasized that Zhang Yimou wouldn't leave or avoided answering reporters' questions.

Before the Lunar New Year film season even started, a major spectacle unfolded, leaving netizens thoroughly entertained.

Many people speculate whether Yan Li's actions were motivated by revenge against Boss Zhang, a genuine desire to poach Zhang Yimou, or both.

Some people joked that Mr. Yan is indeed a pioneer in the world of romance, flirting openly and causing chaos in a couple who had been together for over twenty years. It's a real pity he didn't play Ximen Qing.

However, to be fair, Ximen Qing has Pan, Lu, Deng, Xiao, and Xian, while Yan Li may be slightly inferior in Xiao and Xian, but with other advantages, he can be considered an enhanced version of Ximen Qing.

Fortunately, Yan Li doesn't touch women who are already taken, so he doesn't have to worry about encountering any human tragedies.

...

Compared to the Lunar New Year film season which has not yet started, Yen Li's main focus is actually on the Golden Horse Awards.

In late November, the Golden Horse Awards were held in Taipei, Taiwan. Both actresses were nominated for Best Actress, while actor Huang Bo was nominated for Best Actor for his role in "Cow".

Yi An's works, including "The Message," "Li Mi's Conjecture," "Crazy Racer," "Painted Skin," and "Ip Man," have all been shortlisted for different awards.

Yen Li personally led the team, and relevant personnel chartered a plane to Taiwan to attend this year's Golden Horse Awards.

When Li Bingbing and Li Xue arrived at the airport's VIP waiting room, they saw an acquaintance flipping through a magazine.

"Why are you here?"

Zhou Gongzi looked up at her and said, "I'm also nominated for Best Actress, you know."

The overall environment in Taiwan has changed this year, with mainland Chinese films showing exceptional strength at the Golden Horse Awards.

Of the four Best Actress nominees, only one, Zhang Rongrong, is from Taiwan. Of the four Best Actor nominees, one is from mainland China, two from Hong Kong, and the other, although working in Hong Kong and Taiwan, is actually from Guangdong Province.

Even with the addition of eight supporting actors, only half of them are from Taiwan.

This also prompted some extreme media outlets on the island to attack the Golden Horse Awards for being obsequious, turning it from a Taiwanese Golden Horse Awards into a mainland Chinese Golden Horse Awards.

Zhou Xun was not only nominated for Best Actress, but also for her role in "The Equation of Love and Death".

This film was produced by Yi An Investment. Zhou Gongzi also took advantage of the chartered flight service while traveling with Yi An's team.

Li Bingbing was speechless. It was funny, really. Both of Huayi Brothers' top actresses were nominated for Best Actress because of Yi An's films, and they even flew to the awards ceremony with Yi An.

It's no wonder that one or two of them want to run away; Huayi's performance is truly heartbreaking and despairing.

The two didn't get along. Li Bingbing asked a question and then went to sit somewhere far away. Young Master Zhou didn't seem inclined to respond.

In "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame," the role I was about to get was snatched away by Li Bingbing.

With both old and new grudges, if Young Master Zhou hadn't been considering going solo soon and wanting to ease tensions with Yi An, he would never have shared a flight with her.

After a while, Yan Li arrived, nodded to everyone, and then focused on making a phone call.

Fan Xiaopang came with him, glanced at Li Bingbing and her sister, and then sat down leisurely next to Zhou Gongzi.

The four women and two soldiers are all at odds; they all have grudges against each other.

However, compared to that, the conflict between Zhou Gongzi and Fan Xiaopang is slightly less intense.

Aside from the daily chaotic battles between the Four Dan and Two Soldiers, the only time Yan Li directly confronted Wang Le, one of the Four Young Masters of the Capital, was when he dealt with him. However, at that time, the conflict mainly revolved around the two men, and they didn't fight much.

So they not only maintain a friendly relationship on the surface, but they can also chat for a while when they bump into each other in private.

Especially with Li Bingbing around, chatting about their mutual cricket nemesis made the conversation even more enjoyable.

Of the four actresses and two male leads, Zhang Ziyi is generally considered the most difficult to get along with. Xu Cainu is a member of a small circle, while the two male leads and Xiao Yanzi are all well-liked, but each has their own controversies. The one with the best interpersonal relationships and the best reputation is Zhou Gongzi.

Fan Xiaopang has a past grudge against Xiao Yanzi, and looks down on Zhang Kuang and Xu Zhuang. Li Bingbing and Zhou Gongzi also have various flaws, but they are relatively better.

Zhou Gongzi felt the same way about Fan Xiaopang, mainly because there wasn't much direct conflict of interest between them, and she couldn't afford to offend Fan Xiaopang right now.

Although neither of the four Dan and two Bing acknowledged it, and conflicts continued to arise, in reality, with Yi An's rise, Fan Xiaopang had become the most powerful among them.

At present, Zhang is taking the international route, backed by a so-called foreign tycoon, and is "best friends" with some socialites at home and abroad, so she is not too afraid of Fan Xiaopang.

The remaining few all seemed to be trying to avoid a direct confrontation with Fan Xiaopang.

For example, Xiao Yanzi had previously shown goodwill towards Fan Xiaopang, publicly praising her performance in "The Message" in a media interview, blah blah blah.

The rivalry and curse between the two sisters from "My Fair Princess" are also a bond. Sometimes, a simple "old friend" or a reminiscing about the past can make it difficult to break off relations even if one wanted to.

Zhou Xun is about to leave Huayi Brothers, losing a major backer and not wanting to provoke the rising star Fan Bingbing.

She might even be able to collaborate with Yi An later on, since she's now a free agent.

Fan Xiaopang didn't have that many thoughts; he just wanted to annoy and isolate Li Bingbing.

When Yan Li returned after making the call and saw the situation, he understood what was going on, but he was too lazy to care. He was used to the two sides fighting and making peace at the same time.

Without getting involved in the underhanded battle between the three women, Yan Li chatted with Ning Hao, Huang Bo, and Guan Hu.

Guan Hu's "Fighting Bull" has nothing to do with Yi An, but Huang Bo was added in the middle, and since the chartered plane didn't need to make up for the number of people, they were allowed to go together.

During the chat, it was quite obvious that Huang Bo wanted to put in a good word for Guan Hu with Yan Li.

Huang Bo's debut work, "Get on the Bus, Let's Go," was directed by Guan Hu, who can be considered his mentor.

Afterwards, Huang Bo participated in Guan's works many times, and the two had a very good personal relationship. In Huang Bo's heart, the two most important directors were Ning Hao and Guan Hu.

Ning Hao is now Yi An's director, and his relationship with Yan Li is even better than his own, so Huang Bo doesn't need to worry about him.

Aside from their old friendship from when they worked together on "The Migrant Workers' Survival," Guan Hu and Yan Li haven't had much contact in recent years.

Yi An's status in the industry is now beyond question. Huang Bo thought this was a rare opportunity and wanted to say a few good words for Guan Hu. If he could get in touch with Yi An, it would be beneficial for Guan Hu's development.

If you're careful, given the relationship between the two, he'll definitely benefit from it in the future.

Huang Bo was proactive, and Guan Hu was also showing his abilities.

When Yan Li first met Guan Hu, Guan Hu still had a bit of the aloofness of someone from the industry. However, times have changed, and now Yan Li is no longer a small business owner who has just started out, but a well-known capital tycoon.

At this point, Guan Hu could no longer maintain his haughty demeanor in front of Yan Li.

Many people involved in culture are like this.

If you don't have much money, he won't even bother with you; you're from different worlds.

You have a bit more money than him. He's nice to you on the surface, but he looks down on you and thinks you're not on the same wavelength.

But if you're really rich, he might start fawning over you. However, no matter how Huang and Guan behaved, Yan Li wasn't particularly fond of Guan Hu.

My personal impression is one thing, but another is that the TV dramas and movies Guan Hu has made in recent years are either mainstream or realistic, and their appeal is too poor.

Back then, Yi An and her novel "The Migrant Workers' Survival" received good reviews, but she didn't make much money.

This is only because the drama is of high quality, has a certain influence, and Yi An has excellent distribution capabilities; otherwise, it might have become a "stain" on Yan Li's reputation, just like "The Sun Also Rises".

From that time on, Guan Hu was on Yi An's "blacklist".

Unlike many film and television companies, Yi An places great importance on profitability.

Even now that the company is listed and its attitude has changed, the profitability of projects remains an important criterion for producers and executives at Yi'an.

A project that doesn't make money is a negative factor, and a project that might lose money is a major negative factor.

Guan Hu, the director of the play "Cow Fighting", initially approached Yi An.

After all, Guan Hu wanted Huang Bo to act in the film, and Huang Bo was backed by Yi An, who provided money, effort, and personnel, making it a win-win situation for all three parties.

However, his previous work, "The Migrant Workers' Survival," and his performance in the past two years have led to Yi An Film Department having reservations about him. After reviewing the script, they found that it was not profitable and rejected it outright.

In fact, if Huang Bo hadn't participated and was expected to win an award, Yan Li wouldn't have known that Yi An almost voted for "Cow".

After all, the total investment in this movie was only a little over 1000 million yuan, and it wasn't a single investor. The investment allocated to Yi An was only a few million yuan.

Unless there are special circumstances, Yan Li will not get involved in projects of this size.

He only signs off on the money; whether the project makes a profit or a loss, the senior executive who approved the project will naturally take the credit or be held responsible.

As it turned out, Yi An's judgment was correct. The movie "Cow" ultimately had an investment of over 1000 million yuan and a box office of over 1000 million yuan.

However, given its good reputation and the potential to win awards, it should be able to pursue various copyrights. It may not necessarily lose money, but it's estimated that it won't make much either.

Such projects were naturally not appreciated by Yi'an and Yan Li.

Although Yi'an has always claimed to pursue art and cultural dissemination and to demonstrate the sense of mission of an industry leader, their actions speak louder than words.

Under the leadership of Yan Li, a vulgar boss, Yi An only liked projects that could make money and had no interest in art or literature.

Yi An has invested in very few art films, and even fewer than the number of film, art, and culture-related forums and events she has sponsored.

These forums and events can promote Yi'an and involve some official policies and cooperation, which Yi'an believes is much more worthwhile than throwing money into those money-losing projects.

Yan Li himself did not give up, but Yi An, as an industry leader, could not just focus on commercial films.

He plans to wait until Yi'an goes public and he has money in hand, then set aside some funds specifically for investing in art films and supporting new directors, and even for organizing or sponsoring some film exhibitions or film festivals.

This wasn't because Yan Li had money to burn; rather, it was used to build brand and company image, occupy a high position and a righteous position in the industry, and in exchange for some official support.

To put it nicely, this is an act of giving back to society, contributing to the industry, and investing in the future.

To put it bluntly, making money all the time makes people hate you, so you have to bleed a little to buy your reputation and let others find some balance. At the same time, it also helps to consolidate your industry dominance from the side.

...

After chatting for a while, Yan Li closed his eyes to rest and then boarded a plane to Taiwan.

When we arrived at the destination, someone was already there to pick us up. Both Weibo and Yi An have offices in Hong Kong and Taiwan. They even sent senior executives from Yi An to oversee the public relations efforts for the Golden Horse Awards.

Besides the staff who came to pick them up, there were also many fans and media.

With so many film crews traveling together, and several popular stars like Fan Bingbing, it's difficult to keep their schedules secret.

So a lot of people came to pick them up at the airport. Yan Li even saw Shuangbing and Zhou Gongzi's fans competing to see who could shout the loudest.

Fan Xiaopang and the others had to deal with the media to some extent, but Yan Li didn't care and planned to leave quickly. However, many media outlets were very interested in him and chased after him for interviews.

"Mr. Yan, how is your first time in Taiwan?"

I've only been off the plane for a short time, I haven't even left the airport yet, how could I possibly feel anything?

Yan Li politely replied, "The fans are very enthusiastic."

"Weibo is very popular in Taiwan now, what do you think?"

Yan Li smiled and said, "Of course I support it. I hope everyone has fun and experiences the charm of Weibo."

Weibo launched an international version earlier, primarily targeting users in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

In particular, Taiwan, with its thriving entertainment culture, saw Weibo attract a number of celebrities and hype up so-called trends, quickly drawing in a large number of users and starting to compete with Facebook for market share.

Because Weibo is a Chinese platform, it is more convenient for communication and the culture is closer, so its advantages are obvious.

The existence of the international version of Weibo has attracted many users from Taiwan to use the official version, and has also drawn some users from mainland China to the international version.

To some extent, this strengthens cross-strait communication, and it was previously praised by the authorities for this.

For Yan Li, the most direct benefit of becoming popular on Weibo in Taiwan is that it allows Yi An's film and television works and artists to launch a counterattack on the Hong Kong and Taiwan markets.

This year, the number of dramas produced and distributed by Yi An sold to Taiwan Province is 50% higher than in previous years, and Fan Xiaopang's airport fans are significantly more numerous than Zhou and Li's, all thanks to Weibo International Edition.

Including Yen Li, although he had some fame in Taiwan before, it was only related to scandals, and he was not considered a big name in the industry.

After Weibo became popular in Taiwan, the attention he received from Taiwan increased significantly. His previous statement that he aimed to become the richest man in China before the age of 40 even made headlines.

The most interesting thing is that after digging deep, Taiwanese media discovered that Yen Li didn't seem to have any scandals with Taiwanese actresses.

Most of the actresses associated with Yan Li are from mainland China. There's also the so-called "yacht scandal" in Hong Kong. As for actresses from Taiwan, there's hardly any connection, let alone any rumors about them.

As a result, some Taiwanese media outlets, always eager for drama, ridiculed the charm of Taiwanese female celebrities, saying they constantly rambled on on variety shows, while the truly talented ones were completely ignored.

Some people also spoke out in defense of the Taiwanese actress, even accusing Yen Li of discriminating against her compatriots.

Yan Li was almost speechless when he found out about this; not chasing girls had become a major crime of disrupting unity.

During an interview at the airport today, Taiwanese media pressed him on whether he had ever thought about finding a Taiwanese girl as a girlfriend. Yen Li smiled without saying a word, inwardly cursing them as lunatics.

The paparazzi in Hong Kong are crazy, but these reporters in Taiwan aren't ordinary people either!
After arriving at the hotel and resting briefly, Yan Li began to meet with some business partners.

I didn't get back until evening, and then I found that Fan Xiaopang was hanging out with Li Bingbing again, while Zhou Gongzi was nowhere to be found, saying he was out playing with friends.

"She's using you as a substitute, and you can tolerate that?"

Yan Li looked at Li Bingbing and asked, but the latter didn't care: "I'm used to it. I have a dog's face, it changes every now and then."

Fan Xiaopang snorted: "Just like you won't change."

The eldest sister doesn't talk about the second sister. Fan Xiaopang ostracizes and isolates Li Bingbing, who had done the same to her before.

The two fought and made peace at the same time. Sometimes they would be cursing at each other and wishing they could kill each other, and then they would be playing PUBG together and fighting side by side. These fluctuations were really nothing.

"You two can bicker all you want, but don't do this during the awards ceremony."

Yan Li reminded him, and Fan Xiaopang rolled his eyes at him: "We're not stupid."

Li Bingbing added, "I'm definitely not stupid, but you can't be so sure."

"You... never mind, I'm about to win Best Actress, I'm in a good mood, I won't argue with you."

"Tch, as if nobody doesn't have one."

With both teams present at the Golden Horse Awards, and Yen Li personally leading the team, it's clear they weren't unprepared.

Taking advantage of the political upheaval in Taiwan, Yi-an intensified her public relations efforts and made considerable progress. She has already taken care of everything that needed to be done. Tomorrow is the night of glory for both sides, and also Yi-an's moment of triumph.

"Alright, let me see if there are fewer paparazzi outside. It's still early, let's take the people out for a stroll."

Fan Xiaopang and the others had been to Taiwan before, but this was Yan Li's first time, and she wanted to experience the local customs and culture.

However, after going out for a walk, I felt a little disappointed; Taiwan was not quite what I had imagined.

It's not exactly backward, but it's not developed either. There's nothing particularly novel or interesting about it. The only thing to note is that Taiwanese girls speak in a really sweet and charming way.

People who have visited Taiwan say that Taiwanese girls are warm and generous, and especially friendly to men in the summer.

It's a pity Yan Li came in winter!
What's even more a pity is that Fan Xiaopang was sticking to him, and a bunch of paparazzi were watching him closely, otherwise he could have gone with the tour guide to experience the local customs of Taiwan.

The following day, the Golden Horse Awards ceremony
Yan Li stood in the center, holding hands with Li Bingbing and Fan Xiaopang on either side as they walked the red carpet, captivating countless photographers.

Yan Li had done this before, at the premiere of "Painted Skin," which caused quite a stir in the media at the time.

At the time, it was said that the battle between the two soldiers had come to an end, with both soldiers showing courtesy, and Yan Li becoming the biggest winner.

At the premiere of "The Message," someone suggested a remake, but Yan Li declined. One reason was that he didn't act in it, and the other was that "The Message" is a patriotic film and it's not suitable to use such scandals for publicity.

Today is the Golden Horse Awards, and it's also a milestone moment in Shuangbing's professional career.

Yan Li didn't want to steal the spotlight, but Shuang Bing thanked him for his help and support and took the initiative to suggest recreating the famous scene, which could also be seen as a declaration of his importance to the two of them.

The host was also very happy. This segment of the three-person red carpet event alone is sure to generate high viewership and generate a lot of buzz.

"Mr. Yan, who do you think will win the Best Actress award at tonight's ceremony?"

Yan Li pondered for a moment, then uttered two words: "Bingbing".

The host pressed further: "Which soldier?"

"The best outcome would be to get both soldiers."

The host then added, "This has never happened before at the Golden Horse Awards."

Yan Li smiled and said, "Then I hope I can make history."

There have never been two winners at the Golden Horse Awards before, but that doesn't mean it can't be.

Yi An's public relations efforts extend beyond the venue itself, encompassing both internal and external aspects.

Even before the nomination list was announced, Yi An had already begun to build momentum for the two Best Actress winners.

Because Shuang Bing's performance in "The Message" was indeed good and he was very popular, there was already some demand for a double yolk egg, and Yi An's encouragement made the demand even louder.

Don't underestimate these preparations. Without these promotions, directly awarding two prizes would definitely be controversial and easily influenced by others.

Even the fans of the two soldiers might start fighting, denouncing the behind-the-scenes manipulation and unfairness, turning a good thing into a bad thing.

Now Yi'an is promoting the double yolk egg, and although Shuangbing's fans are not very happy that it's not just one of them getting it, it's better than not getting it at all.

So fans of the two actresses temporarily put aside their animosity and helped promote the idea that the two were a "match made in heaven," calling them the best female lead pairing in Chinese film history, and hoping that the Golden Horse Awards would be more considerate and not let the regret of "Infernal Affairs" repeat itself, blah blah blah.

At the same time, as these voices became mainstream, the public gradually accepted this view, and the public opinion following the award naturally followed.

Public relations within the venue are easy to handle, since there's high public demand and little risk; they simply go with the flow.

After walking the red carpet, he entered the inner venue. The inner venue for the Golden Horse Awards ceremony was not very large. Yan Li originally wanted to sit quietly, but people kept coming over to greet him. It wasn't until the ceremony was about to begin that he was able to sit down properly.

Fan Xiaopang muttered, "Is this the Golden Horse Awards or the Golden Rooster Awards? I feel like you're even more popular than Hou Hsiao-hsien."

Hou Hsiao-hsien is the chairman of the Golden Horse Awards Academic Committee and the chairman of this year's judging panel. He was one of the main figures at today's Golden Horse Awards, but his popularity couldn't compare to that of Yen Li.

"If I were in Jinji, I wouldn't be so impressive."

Yan Li shook his head. Many of the judges and seniors of the Golden Rooster Awards, although not particularly famous or influential, had extensive experience, wide connections, and many even held official positions. It was really not appropriate for Yan Li to put on airs.

But Taiwan is different from Hong Kong. Yan Li is an outsider, so he doesn't play the seniority game with you; he relies purely on his abilities.

The trend of moving north is now widespread, and people in Taiwan and Hong Kong need to fawn over Yan Li, this bigwig from the mainland. It would be strange if he wasn't popular.

While they chatted casually, the awards ceremony officially began.

Yan Li had no interest in film awards that were irrelevant to Yi An; he would simply applaud politely and that would be it.

The first award that really caught my attention was Best Action Choreography, which was won by Sammo Hung and Leung Siu-hung for Ip Man.

Later, "Crazy Racer" and "The Equation of Love and Death" also won awards, taking home the Best Original Screenplay and Best Original Film Score, respectively.

After that, there was nothing more to do with Yi An, and Yan Li was somewhat distracted until the award ceremony for Best Actress was held.

Shu Qi and Zhang Hanyu, the previous Golden Horse Best Actor winner, were the award presenters.

Zhang Hanyu was efficient; she immediately expressed surprise that there were two winners, giving everyone time to prepare and avoid the situation where only one person would win, and then everyone started going through the process, making it difficult to announce the second winner.

"I'll announce one, then you announce one."

Zhang Hanyu and Shu Qi divided the tasks and then took the lead in announcing: "The winner of the Best Actress award at the 46th Golden Horse Awards is—Li Bingbing."

If she weren't a film queen!

Last night, Li Bingbing was discussing with Yan Li how to take a good photo with the trophy. Now, upon hearing that she had won an award, her eyes widened slightly, filled with surprise and joy. Then she covered her mouth, looking like she was about to cry tears of joy.

Knowing beforehand that there was one more person, after everyone applauded and congratulated, they looked at the stage again, and Shu Qi immediately announced it without delay.

"...The winner is Fan Bingbing, congratulations."

Compared to Li Bingbing, who was overjoyed and cried, Fan Xiaopang's performance was slightly better. It would have been better for her to cry after Li Bingbing had already cried.

She stood up, slightly excited, hugged Yan Li, then pulled Li Bingbing over, and the three of them hugged together.
However, because Yan Li was tall and strong, although Fan Xiaopang was holding the two of them, it actually looked like Yan Li was embracing Shuang Bing.

People at the scene started whistling, and viewers in front of their TVs went wild.

Good grief, so all three of you are giving up on acting?!
　(2000/237000)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)