The King of Soft Rice in Chinese Entertainment

Chapter 392 There's something I want to tell you.

"In other words, since you played a supporting role to Hao Lei in 'The Dark Side,' you're having Hao Lei play a supporting role to you this time, right?" Xu Jiuyang asked, looking at the studio that had been set up like a stage, with a slight toothache.

“Yes, what’s the problem?” Fan Bingbing asked in return.

"It's nothing, it's fine..." Xu Jiuyang said insincerely.

He had read the script. The male lead, Wang Bo, thoroughly tormented Xiao Ye here, much more so than in the original movie. Considering the actor, it felt... somewhat like hell.

"Did the filming go smoothly?" Xu Jiuyang asked casually.

“Not bad,” Fan Bingbing shrugged. “After all, I’m quite famous now, and I’m also a producer. Director Feng… Director Feng is quite polite to me.”

Xu Jiuyang couldn't help but twitch his lips. Wasn't that obvious? Feng Kuzi was the best at judging people. Not to mention that if she were to release the financial report of Zhulong Technology now, her net worth would definitely exceed that of the two kings. Just the production of "Dark Side" and "The Female Doctor" alone was enough to show how extensive her network of connections had become.

"Speaking of which, I haven't congratulated you yet, but 'The Imperial Doctress' is very popular," he said.

"It's alright, at least it's as popular as 'My Fair Princess' back in the day." Although Fan Bingbing's tone was calm, the smugness between her brows was still very obvious.

After all, the mainland has developed rapidly in recent years. Although the nationwide craze for "My Fair Princess" has reappeared, the ratings have continued to decline as the number of episodes of TV series increases and viewers have more choices.

So even though at least half of the popularity of "The Imperial Doctress" was due to "Dae Jang Geum" and the Sino-Korean co-production, it's still quite impressive that it has achieved the popularity of "My Fair Princess".

"I must say, I have to thank you for your idea, especially the idea of ​​inserting the plots of the two TV series into each other's stories," Fan Bingbing said, her face beaming.

Well, according to the biography of the historical figure who was the prototype of Seo Jang-geum in Korean history, after being granted the title of Dae Jang-geum, she was exiled to China because she was involved in palace intrigue, but later regained her status.

Coincidentally, when she was exiled to China, Tan Yunxian was still alive, which led to the scene of the two female doctors meeting.

Frankly speaking, Xu Jiuyang didn't consult historical records when he made this suggestion; it was purely out of a desire to add hype to the TV series. Who would have thought that history would be so accurate?

Of course, some modifications are still necessary. For example, when Dae Jang Geum came to China, she had already been granted a title and was quite old. Tan Yunxian was also quite old at that time. However, how could the audience want to see two old women cherishing each other?

In addition, Dae Jang Geum's receiving of a title and subsequent exile clearly does not fit the theme of a strong female lead, so it naturally needs to be brought forward.

However, these modifications are actually not too bad. What really makes screenwriters lose their hair is how to present the same story in different ways in different TV series without contradicting or attacking each other.

In other words, we must consider both South Korean and Chinese national sentiments, while also adhering to historical facts.

For example, when Xu Changjin came to the Ming Dynasty and met Tan Yunxian, he would inevitably praise the country as superior. If he did this once or twice, it would be fine, but if he did it every time, the narrow-minded Koreans would definitely consider it an insult.

On the Chinese side, it's fine for Xu Changjin to communicate with Tan Yunxian on an equal footing, but to create a plot like Emperor Taizong of Tang being shot in the eye... even if you reduce that kind of plot by ten times, it's still unacceptable to mainland audiences.

So the screenwriters from both countries were in a lot of pain. They discussed it dozens of times but couldn't reach an agreement. To make matters worse, the Korean screenwriter was being pressured by Lee Yoon-hyung, who clearly told them that this was a key project and that no mistakes were allowed. In the end, they could only slowly work it out.

The only one who didn't struggle with this was Sister Yuanyuan. On the one hand, there are differences between the requirements of a novel and a screenplay, and on the other hand, she could leave the headache to the translator.

Fortunately, the final result was acceptable; after the two dramas aired, audiences in both China and South Korea were quite satisfied.

Fan Bingbing had already become a sensation in South Korea thanks to "My Fair Princess." Although Kim Dae-jung had established a strategy of building the nation on entertainment, the way things were done in South Korea at that time was different from ten years later. So even though some tricks were done during the broadcast, such as not allocating prime time slots for "The Imperial Doctress," they didn't put it in the late-night slot either. As a result, she became a sensation again, and her popularity naturally soared to number one in both countries.

"So, dear Fan, how do you plan to repay me?" Xu Jiuyang teased immediately. To his surprise, Fan Bingbing became embarrassed: "Um... there's something... I need to tell you..."

"What is it?" Xu Jiuyang asked.

"Um... um... promise me you won't blame me for this..." Fan Bingbing pouted.

“No, I need to hear the details first,” Xu Jiuyang refused decisively.

"Ugh, can't you just give in a little bit?" Fan Bingbing said, feeling wronged. "Even if you just coax me or lie to me, and then cause me trouble later, that's fine!"

As she spoke, she stomped her feet like a little girl, which made Xu Jiuyang shudder, but he also found it extremely amusing.

"Alright, alright, I promise, and I won't cause you any trouble later," he said. "Besides, don't think I don't know what you're thinking. If I really agree and then go back on my word, you'll definitely use that to say I'm untrustworthy, Fan."

Fan Bingbing chuckled awkwardly: "How could that be..."

"Get to the point, okay? If you keep dragging this out, it'll be your turn to go on set." Xu Jiuyang gestured with his chin toward the film set where they were shooting.

“That’s right,” Fan Bingbing coughed lightly, making her expression serious, “Didn’t we previously join forces to set up an investment company specifically to absorb the original shares held by employees of several well-known IT companies?”

"So, you bypassed us and recruited them privately?" Xu Jiuyang asked immediately.

Fan Bingbing was momentarily speechless, caught in a dilemma.

“I think I know you pretty well, Fan.” Xu Jiuyang raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, that’s true. I secretly bought some shares of IT companies in my personal capacity.” Fan Bingbing sighed.

"Which ones? How many?" Xu Jiuyang continued to ask.

“Only Baidu, a little over 1%,” Fan Bingbing replied.

"Then, what about our joint capital?" Xu Jiuyang thought for a moment and then asked.

“Approximately…around 0.5%,” Fan Bingbing answered cautiously.

To her surprise, Xu Jiuyang was not angry, nor did he show any dissatisfaction. Instead, he fell into deep thought.

After a long pause, he asked again, "Is it because of Angela?"

“Yes,” Fan Bingbing readily agreed. “As you predicted, the IT industry is recovering. As an American capitalist, Angela has a natural advantage in the IT industry there. If we let her extend her reach into the domestic IT industry, then neither I nor Sister Yuanyuan will be able to continue playing.”

After a pause, she added, "Besides, domestic IT companies may not necessarily want capital like her to become a shareholder."

Upon hearing this last sentence, Xu Jiuyang couldn't help but laugh: "Do you really think that these domestic IT companies don't want foreign companies like her to become shareholders? Note that it's shareholders, not board members."

"Then I'll be frank. Based on my judgment, they are likely to accept an individual buying shares from long-term employees, but they would find it difficult to accept an investment company buying shares from long-term employees," Fan Bingbing said somewhat embarrassed.

(End of this chapter)