Abstract Art Award Winner

Chapter 229 Xiaotian: Today it's finally my turn to be in the back!

Zhou Le returned home alone, lay on the bed with his legs crossed, and thought about his future business empire.

It's a certainty that "Ne Zha" will make money. Although the initial hype has passed, and some newly released movies have taken away the spotlight, as well as more and more negative reviews appearing online, the box office has begun to slow down.

Zhou Le estimates that he will barely be able to get around 10 billion in the end.

But in this way, the final box office revenue could reach 3 billion, and I could get about ten of them in total.

As for the revenue from movie merchandise and subsequent copyright fees, Zhou Le plans to use that portion to continue investing in Jiaozi's company.

So let's just pretend this part of the money doesn't exist.

Zhou Le and Jiaozi also talked about it later.

If Zhou Le hadn't gotten involved, he might have gone to Enlight Media for more money, but even if Enlight Media did invest, it obviously wouldn't have invested too much.

Therefore, just in case, October Culture is also under consideration for dumplings.

Now, Guangming hasn't invested much money, nor has it approached October Culture again; Zhou Le has taken all the profits from this part of the pie.

As a result, October Media failed to secure subsequent project funding thanks to "Ne Zha".

Just like dominoes, if the first domino doesn't fall, there's no chain reaction.

October Culture doesn't have much money in its accounts right now, so they can only consider taking a gamble with Zhou Le.

"Looks like I do have a good business sense."

Zhou Le thought that if they were to make a sequel, it might not surpass the first one, but it wouldn't be too far off either, so it was impossible to lose money.

"No, we'll have to talk to Dumpling about it later. Although we can't completely eliminate the light, at least we can eat more cake."

"In addition, MCN agencies and short drama companies should also be able to make money, even if it's just a small profit. At worst, they won't make too much in the end, and they can just sell the company to a big company."

For large companies, if they can buy talent, they don't need to train their own.

Just as Zhou Le was thinking, he suddenly received a WeChat message on his phone.

"Brother Le, open the door."

When Zhou Le saw the message Tian Xiwei sent, he immediately replied with a question mark.

What's going on at this hour? Why are you opening the door?

"Brother Le, open the door quickly. I'm right at the door. There are so many mosquitoes outside. You can't bear to watch Xiaotian get sucked dry by mosquitoes outside, can you?"

Zhou Le got up with some doubt, opened the door and found Tian Xiwei standing at the door.

Upon seeing Zhou Le, Tian Xiwei immediately stood at attention and saluted him.

"Corporal Tian reporting for duty!"

Zhou Le: "?"

"Wait, when did you get here? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I just arrived. I came right after I got off the plane. And don't worry, Brother Le, I have a strong sense of counter-surveillance. I wasn't targeted by the paparazzi."

Zhou Le reluctantly pulled Tian Xiwei in.

"Weren't you on a variety show? Have you finished your work over there?"

"Yes, I came here after I finished my work, but I can only rest for two days before I have to go back to the event. Sister Su helped me find a lot of endorsements and variety shows, and I made a lot of money. I know that you are usually frugal and don't usually care about clothes, so I specially asked them for your size and made you a custom-made suit. You can wear it when you go to the film festival next time!"

As she spoke, Tian Xiwei lifted up the bag of clothes.

Seeing the other person's arrogant look, Zhou Le couldn't help but reach out and rub Tian Xiwei's head.

"You're very considerate."

"Of course, I'm Xiaotian."

“It’s really sweet.”

Tian Xiwei entered the room, put down her things, looked around, and after a while, began to make tea.

"Why brew tea so late at night? You might not be able to sleep later."

"Why are you sleeping? Are you going to go to bed early just because Xiaotian is here?"

Tian Xiwei brewed the tea herself and then drank it with Zhou Le for a while.

"I feel like I'm turning into a tea canister. I just spent the whole afternoon drinking with them, and now I have to drink again."

"Tea is so good. I used to drink coffee, but then I heard people say that drinking coffee all the time is not good, and it's better to drink more tea. So now I always bring a tea set and some tea leaves when I go out to work."

"Drinking tea is indeed a good thing."

"Brother Le, do you think I have a chance to play a villain? I'm getting a little tired of playing good guys all the time."

"I doubt you could pull off a villainous role; your acting skills are perfect for idol dramas."

Tian Xiwei pouted instantly.

"What? Brother Le, don't look down on me. I'm not trying to steal the role from Zhou Ye. It's just that there are roles she can't handle, so I can take a role instead."

"Give up. You're really not cut out for this. Wait until you've made a name for yourself in your current field before considering anything else."

"Okay, I do feel like I have a lot of room for improvement, but with this long night ahead, don't you want to do something, Brother Le?"

Looking at Tian Xi, who seemed full of energy and had inexhaustible vitality, she let out a long sigh.

"Come on, let's take a shower. Help me scrub my back."

"Just rub it, as long as you don't cry out in pain later."

The bathroom was filled with steam.

Tian Xiwei was diligently rubbing Zhou Le's back.

"Brother Le, where's the mud? This is so frustrating."

"Do you think that's reasonable? I'm a celebrity, after all. What would I look like if I had a clump of mud all over my back?"

"Hehe, I think I didn't use enough force. Now I'll let you experience my true level."

Although Tian Xiwei works out regularly, her strength is still not enough for Zhou Le.

"Brother Le, lift your leg."

"Stick your butt out a little, I can't rub it like that."

"Great opportunity! Today it's finally my turn to be in the back. I'll let you taste my power!"

Zhou Le: "."

Indeed, a young girl's energy should not be underestimated!
"How was it? Was it big? Was it good?"

Zhou Le: "."

"Are you going to rub my back or bend over like this?"

"Hmph, I'll grab both hands, and I'll make sure both are strong."

Just a moment later, accompanied by a gasp, Tian Xiwei was picked up.

"Wait a minute, I'm not finished washing yet, I haven't applied the shower gel."

"Let's wait a bit, the shower gel makes you slippery."

Tian Xi gasped slightly, wondering how Zhou Le could be so strong, carrying her so effortlessly. But soon, her mind was too busy to think about that.

The next morning, after Zhou Le woke up, he left a key for Tian Xiwei.

"Remember to lock the door when you go out. I have to go back to Hangzhou. We'll talk about it after I finish things there. I'll consider the role of the villainous woman, but there haven't been any suitable ones lately."

"Bye-bye, Brother Le, be careful on the road."

"Don't worry, just call me if anything happens, or you can contact Xiao Su."

"Okay, bye-bye, go on your way."

After Zhou Le left, Tian Xiwei lay down for a while before getting up, folding the quilt, and washing the tea set she had used yesterday. Then she contacted her assistant to get ready for the event.

Zhou Le went directly to the hotel, while Zhao Jinmai, carrying a small backpack and a suitcase, also came to the lobby.

"Brother Le, Sister Zhou Ye is going to stay at the hotel for a few more days. She said she wants to rest well here and take a look at her script."

"Okay, don't worry about her, let her rest here for now."

They then went to the airport, ate something, and boarded a plane to Hangzhou.

There's only one episode left in "The Peak of Actors," and Zhou Le has to go back for the final rehearsals.

For the final performance, he planned to play Mr. Tree, and he even specially invited Wang Baoqiang to join him.

At that time, Zhou Le will play the role that Wang Baoqiang played, while Wang Baoqiang will play a supporting role for Zhou Le.

When Zhou Le called, he was worried that Wang Baoqiang might not be available or might not be willing to come because of the role. But to his surprise, as soon as Zhou Le explained the situation, Wang Baoqiang immediately said that he would definitely come to help.

Money doesn't matter, the most important thing is that we're friends.

"Sigh, if I had a friend like that, I'd be happy to always have him with me."

Zhou Le sighed, "No wonder he's an actor whose wife and agent can't find a single scandal even after racking their brains."

There's absolutely nothing wrong with how they do things.

After returning to Hangzhou, Zhou Le received the car keys from the crew at the airport and told them to go back first, as he had to wait for Wang Baoqiang there.

While waiting, Zhou Le was surrounded by a large group of people again.

"Brother Le, is this little girl Xiao Zhao? She's so cute! Are you two going to work together on a movie again?"

Zhou Le waved his hand: "No, she's on summer vacation and came to visit me, so I showed her around. She's currently filming a variety show and we're heading to the recording studio soon."

"Brother Le, what are you doing here? Are you waiting for someone?"

"Yeah, waiting for a friend."

"Who is it? Would you mind telling me?"

"It's my brother Baoqiang."

"Wang Baoqiang? So you two are going to work together on a movie?"

"It's not convenient to talk about this. After all, if I tell you, the director will say I violated the confidentiality agreement and deduct my pay. So don't ask, because it's pointless."

Fans surrounded Zhou Le, chattering away with questions, and some even told him to focus on acting and make more movies for them to watch.

Even surrounded by fans, Zhou Le huddled in a corner, not wanting them to block the way for other travelers.

Everyone stood together chatting like friends.

Zhou Le would also ask about other people's work and study from time to time.

"Brother Le, I'm running a small business now, but I always feel like I'm not earning enough, and it's so tiring."

Zhou Le looked at the other person and said, "Be content. You have to understand that a person has many identities: a client's toy, a boss's donkey, a colleague's rival, and a landlord's gold coin. Right now, you only meet the last one, but ask them, which one doesn't meet all four? It may be tiring, but at least you're working for yourself. Work hard, and when you build a big company in the future, come find me, and I'll endorse you. Of course, the premise is that you can't cheat people."

"Brother Le, is it really true? Now that you say that, I'm motivated."

"Of course, but the endorsement fee should be based on market prices."

"Definitely! Not just the market price, I'll give you double!"

"Okay, you said it yourself. Come on, everyone record this as evidence, so he doesn't go back on his word later."

After chatting and laughing with his fans for a while, a boy suddenly said, "Brother Le, Brother Baoqiang is here."

"Alright, everyone, you can get back to your work now. I'll be going now. See you later, but you can't ask about my flight information, that's illegal."

After saying that, he took Zhao Jinmai to pick up Wang Baoqiang.

"Brother Baoqiang, let me help you carry it."

As Zhou Le spoke, he reached out to help Wang Baoqiang carry his luggage.

"It's alright, I can handle it myself, no need to go to all that trouble." She then looked at Zhao Jinmai and said, "Oh, you even brought a bodyguard? Are you worried about being surrounded by fans?"

Zhou Le laughed: "The fans are all over there. I chatted with them for a long time."

"Your fans are quite orderly, that's good."

They talked as they left the airport, and then Zhou Le drove towards the recording location.

"Brother Baoqiang, thank you for coming to help me with the performance this time. If there's anything you need me to do in the future, just let me know."

"Haha, I'm helping you because we're friends. Friends should help each other, right? But I do have plans to film a movie soon, so I might have to invite you over then."

"no problem."

Zhou Le agreed without even asking any questions. Although Wang Baoqiang hadn't done very well as a director before, Zhou Le felt that it wouldn't be a big deal for him to make a cameo appearance.

As I said before, all four Heavenly Kings have acted in bad movies in the past because of personal connections.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Wang Baoqiang continued, "I'm still very confident about the next movie. I've specifically chosen a good subject matter, and I'm currently researching and preparing for it. I don't know when it will start filming; it might be a few years from now. Anyway, I definitely won't let you down when it does."

“I believe everything Brother Baoqiang says.”

Then they talked about the script for "Mr. Tree".

Since it's going to be performed on stage, the script naturally needs to be slightly modified, but the main elements remain the same.

"The character of Shu is actually very complex. After I finished playing the role, it took me several months to get out of it. It was a very depressing experience."

When talking about his roles, Wang Baoqiang spoke eloquently.

This is because it was the most successful film he created after those TV series.

Although the film only grossed two million at the box office, the character was portrayed extremely successfully.

The mere act of smoking earned him the admiration of many award-winning actors.

"Brother Baoqiang, is your next movie going to be another comedy?"

Wang Baoqiang said, "No, I've already thought about it. I'll make other people's comedy films in the future. When I become a director, I want to make films with more profound themes."

"Indeed, Brother Baoqiang, although your comedy movies are also very popular, my favorite characters you've played so far are Mr. Tree and Feng Yuxiu."

It determines both superiority and inferiority, and also life and death.

He's so handsome! If I had been born a few years earlier, I would definitely have acted opposite him in a few more movies.

"Haha, that's easy, there will be plenty of opportunities later."

(End of this chapter)