The Birth of the Best Director

Chapter 190, "The Accountant Assassin," blends elements of "John Wick," revealing Miss T as the eternal mastermind behind the scenes.
……

“Reba, you, me, Hani and Kun Ge… from now on, we will be the four bodyguards of President Lu. I arrived the latest, so I will be the fourth one.”

"Please continue to guide me in the days to come."

Although Yang Mi has become popular, she is nothing compared to Dilraba.

If Dilraba could interact with her on Weibo and call each other sisters, Yang Mi feels that her Weibo followers would easily surpass 1000 million!
At this stage, Dilraba is just that awesome.

The VR glasses featuring the fighting game Real Steel have just been released and cost a whopping $300. They are slightly cheaper in China, but still cost around 1500 RMB.

Even so, people kept coming to buy them.

In this game, players can choose the basic model from five mechs and upgrade or modify them.

However, the only thing you can't choose is the game guide.

Dilraba's face automatically pops up as soon as you enter the game, smiling playfully and adorably, breathtakingly beautiful.

Yang Mi has reason to suspect that those otaku buy games just to watch Dilraba in VR.

Then, entice the other person by saying things like, "You were so cool just now," "That was a great play," or "I love you so much," which are full of romantic vibes.

"So that's what you meant by 'Little Four'..."

Reba let out a soft sigh of relief. She thought that before she could even make a move, Yang Mi had already stolen her home.

After realizing it was a misunderstanding, Dilraba immediately became warm towards Yang Mi: "Sister Mi, we're all family now, no need to be so polite. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now."

……

After talking to Yang Mi on the phone, I learned that Yang Mi goes to Lu Zhiyuan's company every day and that Lu Zhiyuan treats her very well and helps her hone her acting skills.

Reba felt increasingly uneasy.

She couldn't explain why either.

I'm just very irritable all day long.

These past few days, she's had this constant urge to punch Yang Mi to death from afar.

Dilraba is having some troubles.

Just then, they heard a familiar voice coming from outside.

"I'm not lustful, but the flowers are in full bloom, and if I don't appreciate them, it would seem like I'm lacking in romantic understanding."

"Honey, wait for me to come back, I have a surprise for you."

That guy spoke in a cocky, nonchalant manner, and he sounded incredibly irritating.

Dilraba was very familiar with that voice.

She came out and, as expected, it was indeed Xin Yukun.

For a moment, Dilraba was filled with curiosity: "Brother Kun, why are you here?"

Xin Yukun wiped his glasses, revealing a helpless expression: "What else could it be? Your robot brother was worried that you weren't eating or sleeping well, and that you'd accidentally gotten a tan. Since he couldn't leave himself, he specially sent me to check on you."

real or fake?

Haha!

It must be true.

Otherwise, why would Brother Kun be so kind?
"You've gotten darker and thinner, it really breaks my heart. I just want to hold you in my arms and kiss your little face... This is what I, on behalf of your robot brother, say."

Hearing Xin Yukun's teasing words, Dilraba clenched her small fists slightly, her feet turned inward, and she began to gather strength in her feet, ready to unleash a straight punch from a lunge stance.

They made Xin Yukun kneel on the ground and weep bitterly.

However, after hearing the second half of Xin Yukun's sentence, Reba's breathing became erratic, her face turned slightly red, and her pigeon-toed feet, which had been gathering strength, suddenly went limp, turning her into an adorable quail-like standing posture.

"Brother Kun, what are they doing gathered over there?"

At this moment, in order to hide her shyness, Dilraba deliberately changed the subject.

Xin Yukun found a stool, sat down, and said casually with an ice pop in his mouth, "I saw a place selling cold drinks on the street, so I called the whole truck over and told the crew to treat everyone to cold drinks."

"This place is far too hot. I feel like I'm on fire after just one walk outside. No wonder it's called the Flaming Mountain. Even Tang Sanzang would have had to borrow a banana leaf fan when he passed through here on his journey to the West."

Although Kun is unreliable as a person, he is very reliable when it comes to getting things done.

For a wealthy woman like Reba, the small amount of money spent on cold drinks is nothing more than a hair's breadth.

Of course she wouldn't care.

"Reba, you're so silly."

After eating a popsicle, feeling a little cooler, Xin Yukun looked at Reba and shook his head with a sigh: "Miss Jing Tian isn't home, this is your best opportunity. But you silly girl, you came to such a shabby place to film? I don't even know how to comment on this."

Upon hearing this, Reba rolled her eyes, thinking that Xin Yukun was about to say something.

"Brother Kun, stop beating around the bush and just say what you mean. I've been very busy lately. I've already told the director that I need to work overtime to finish filming my scenes first, as I have a lot of other commitments to make later."

Under normal circumstances, this TV series will be filmed until the end of August.

However, Dilraba simply didn't have the time, so she could only report the situation to the director and ask him to coordinate something.

Of course, others don't receive this treatment.

But Dilraba is different.

She came to film this TV series as a guest appearance, didn't get much pay, and suffered a lot, so the director naturally had to consider it.

"clever."

Xin Yukun gave Dilraba a thumbs up and casually remarked, "For a TV series that won't make money, just consider it a task and finish filming it quickly. Doing a favor is one thing, but why bother with all this trouble?"

These revolutionary TV dramas have another nickname online: "digging up the soil drama."

Young people simply don't like watching it.

If young people don't like watching it, it means there's no traffic.

Are celebrities without popularity still celebrities?
In Lu Zhiyuan's films, Dilraba has always been synonymous with fashion and avant-garde. This time, she went to act in a digging drama, which is really contrary to Dilraba's image.

"But it doesn't matter."

"Anyway, your robot brother has a new love interest. He's been training Yang Mi at the company lately. She's much smarter than you. She's focused on making herself a top influencer, only wanting to make a lot of money and be a rich woman. She doesn't care about art at all."

"You're different. You've been infected by your robot brother. Instead of making good money, you come to act in these digging dramas, claiming it's for the sake of art and influence."

"In this day and age, everything else is meaningless. Only money is real."

At this point, Xin Yukun suddenly lowered his voice and said mysteriously to Reba, "Besides that, there's something else. For you, this is the worst news."

"Recently, Yang Mi has been going to the company every day, clinging to your robot brother like glue, she's practically ready to go home and sleep with him."

"I went back to the company a couple of days ago, and guess what I saw?"

What did you see?
Dilraba's eyelids twitched uncontrollably, and she had a bad feeling.

"A lone man and a lone woman in a room, you know what I mean. Hehehe! Anyway, this isn't good news for you."

Xin Yukun said nothing, chuckled mysteriously a few times, then patted his bottom and said, "Since you're eating and sleeping well, I've completed the task your robot brother assigned me. I'm leaving now."

"I'm planning to go abroad and visit Russia for a few days."

After saying that, Xin Yukun turned and left.

He knew that Reba would definitely get restless.

Who in the entire company doesn't know what that brat is thinking about Lu Zhiyuan?
Miss Jing Tian had already tacitly agreed, deliberately going out to film, giving Dilraba an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

As a result, instead of pressing her advantage, that brat actually ran away too?
What kind of idea is this?
Xin Yukun couldn't understand it.

He was so anxious! He was shipping the couple so closely, and then it just fizzled out halfway through. Who could stand that?

We need to create some competition for them.

……

Feeling disoriented by Xin Yukun, Reba wished she could turn around and go back to Yanjing immediately.

Unfortunately, even if she wanted to wrap up filming as soon as possible, she couldn't just leave whenever she wanted.

She is the female lead of the entire series and also the main draw for viewers. If she were to leave and abandon the entire crew, the whole series would collapse.

As a good girl and an honest person, she certainly wouldn't do something so unreliable.

So she could only endure the days on set, feeling like each day was an eternity.

……

Finally, it's the end of August.

Dilraba has finished filming.

After finishing the wrap party, she didn't want to linger that night and took the fastest flight back to Yanjing to catch her husband cheating.

Lu Zhiyuan finished his work and didn't need to go to the company every day, since he was the only one there anyway.

He moved most of his work back home.

In any case, home is definitely more comfortable than a hotel.

At this very moment, Lu Zhiyuan is working on some concept designs for the movie "The Accountant Assassin".

"If we film 'The Accountant' exactly like the original, it just doesn't feel right. Perhaps we could try combining 'The Accountant' with 'John Wick'?"

Both of these movies are action films.

In this era, with the rise of Marvel, the continuous development of Lu Zhiyuan's robot movies, and Disney's various IP fairy tales, action movies have gradually faded away.

After all, superhero movies, any IP, can generate huge profits once it's developed.

Action movies don't generate much revenue from merchandise.

They can only rely on box office revenue.

From a capital perspective, it's naturally more appealing to make movies with super IPs and create synergies across various copyrighted derivative products.

One movie made the money of 10 previous movies!
However, under these circumstances, the market is likely to get worse and worse.

The highest-grossing films in this year's movie market are almost all sequels!

In the film market that follows, it's the same old faces every year, and audiences will get tired of it sooner or later.

Aside from his identity as a director, Lu Zhiyuan, as an ordinary viewer, actually enjoys watching action movies, especially those action movies with violent aesthetics and high-IQ crimes.

Unfortunately, such movies are practically nonexistent in the market anymore.

While "The Accountant" is good, the protagonist is basically just a mindless killer who doesn't show any high intelligence except when checking accounts.

He relied on the violent methods he had learned from his military officer father since childhood.

Needless to say, "John Wick" is a super-exciting movie where characters are given a cheat code and then unleash their full power to mow down enemies.

If given a choice, Lu Zhiyuan would prefer movies like "Taken," where the protagonist possesses high intelligence, a keen sense of smell, a calm mind, and cool action sequences.

Unfortunately, Taken is almost a collector's item.

In addition, Lu Zhiyuan also likes spy films such as "Days of the Jackal" and "The Bourne Identity," which involve political conspiracies and assassination targets, even heads of state.

However, such films are easily subject to political restrictions.

Therefore, for the sake of box office success, it is best to keep the film's background obscured.

The way "John Wick" handles these aspects is worth learning from. It creates a fictional setting and introduces an international assassin organization called the High Table.

If this "High Table" is placed in the context of the movie "Pacific Rim," it could easily be portrayed as a small organization that Ms. T casually set up in order to control the chaotic world.

For Miss T, this kind of assassin organization could be wiped out with a flick of her wrist. But for ordinary people, it was an insurmountable behemoth.

This comparison further elevates Ms. T's status.

"Tian Tian, ​​look how good I am to you. Although I can't make a female-centric movie for you, almost all the super organizations in the movies I make are under your control."

Lu Zhiyuan had some movie-related settings in his mind, and he couldn't help but pull out the character Miss T from the movie "Jing Tian" as the mastermind behind the scenes.

Unfortunately, Miss Jing Tian herself couldn't portray the character of Miss T well.

Ms. T can only exist as background.

Because gods cannot face ordinary people directly, as it would cause people to lose their sense of awe; they must be high above and full of mystery.

Therefore, in order to make the character of Miss T more memorable, Lu Zhiyuan could only use constant indirect portrayal to make Miss Jing Tian, ​​like a high and mighty deity, overlook the world.

In the Marvel universe, isn't the leader of the Avengers sporting a bald head?
Compared to her, Ms. T from the robot world... with that bald head, what charm does she still have?

Is that how someone like him can be considered the leader of superheroes?

More like a nanny.

Look at Miss T, now that's what a boss should be like!
"After setting the background, the plot becomes obvious."

"A genius accountant who has been autistic since childhood runs an accounting firm by day and audits accounts for a transnational gang by night."

"In an unexpected turn of events, while auditing accounts for a transnational mafia, she discovered a discrepancy in the bills. Consequently, the transnational mafia froze a certain business, hoping to uncover the mole. Little did they know, this action would result in significant losses for the international assassin organization, the High Table."

"Therefore, the person who was the subject of the bill was identified and placed on a global wanted list."

"To protect himself, this brilliant accountant must uncover the secrets behind this bill and eliminate all the international assassins who are hunting him down."

"Hmm, this protagonist should have an accomplice, an unlucky assassin, who is also being hunted down by the High Table."

"The two became friends after a fight, teamed up to fight back, and uncovered the truth."

"After investigating the bills, all the funds flowed to a mysterious company, which involved a power struggle between two members of the High Table, implicating all the assassins in the High Table."

"Let Tom Hiddleston play that unfortunate killer role."

“He looks a bit cheeky, so we could design a talkative character for him, which would perfectly fit Quentin Tarantino’s violent and ritualistic style, and he would also be suitable to be paired with an autistic female lead.”

"In the end, the main characters discovered the truth. The battle between the two councilors resulted in countless deaths and injuries throughout the High Table, causing a significant loss of strength."

"Here's a final surprise. Of the countless dead and wounded members of the High Table, only a few remaining councilors and elders are kneeling prostrate before a mysterious figure, their backs drenched in cold sweat."

"That mysterious person, with her back to all living beings, looked down at the earth from the 30th floor. She had no name, only a respectable code name: ...Miss T!"

As he wrote this, Lu Zhiyuan paused slightly, a smile playing on his lips.

He could easily imagine Miss Jing Tian appearing in a movie again in this kind of image...

Regardless of whether the audience is happy or not, she herself is definitely very happy.

She likes cool and handsome characters.

It doesn't require much acting skill or filming many arduous scenes, yet it seems as if it controls the entire world.

Throughout the entire movie, all the characters' life-and-death struggles are decided by a single word from her.

"This movie can be considered a prequel to Upgrade."

"Therefore, it makes perfect sense for Tom Hiddleston's character to appear in the movie 'Upgrade' and work for Miss T."

"In this way, the characters and plot of the movie The Accountant are completely embedded in the background of the Pacific Rim film series."

"Tom Hiddleston probably won't refuse to play this role, after all, it's a movie with two main characters... no, considering Yang Mi is the female lead, Tom Hiddleston is the male lead in this movie!"

Lu Zhiyuan quickly wrote down his ideas. The story concept, character settings, general plot, and entry point were all there.

He also provided an answer regarding the ending.

They even forcibly pulled the characters into the world of Pacific Rim.

After doing all that, all that's left is to fill in the plot details, as well as the dialogues and conflicts between the characters.

He was too lazy to do this kind of hard labor.

Just in time, Su Lun had finished filming "How Long Will I Love U" and completed post-production, and it was scheduled to be released at the end of September.

She probably doesn't have much work lately, so let her do this menial task of filling in the plot.

"Besides that, there is another important thing."

"I need to give the female lead an interesting name."

Lu Zhiyuan thought for a while and then called Yang Mi directly: "The female lead in the movie has the English name Hypatia. If she's in China, we'll re-dub her name and call her Xia."

"what do you think?"

Yang Mi received a call from Lu Zhiyuan. She checked the time and it was already 11 p.m.

She wondered to herself, "The big director is calling me so late, could it be that he wants to ask me out?"

She was hesitating whether or not to go out.

As it turned out, Lu Zhiyuan called her to discuss the name of the female lead in the movie.

This touched Yang Mi deeply.

Which director would consult with a small-time actress like themselves when deciding on the female lead's name?
Isn't it just a matter of what the screenwriter writes, and that's what you call yourself?

However, GOAT, the great director, is different. He takes it so seriously and solemnly, even for the name of a female lead.

Putting everything else aside, just this responsible creative attitude alone will definitely make this movie a success.

"Mr. Lu, is there any special meaning behind this name?"

Lu Zhiyuan asked himself how he felt, but Yang Mi felt nothing at all. She hesitated for a while and could only try to find out what kind of feeling Lu Zhiyuan wanted.
She is a professional actress, and can be provided selectively.

It will definitely satisfy the great director.

"Hypatia was the world's first female mathematician."

"You may have heard a story about a child who used the shadow of a pyramid to measure its height using simple geometry."

"That's what Hypatia did when she was 10 years old."

Hypatia is an obscure name, and Yang Mi probably hasn't heard of it before. Lu Zhiyuan gave her a brief explanation.

"This mathematician named Hypatia, is she autistic, and also a genius?"

Yang Mi remembers that her character was an autistic genius.

Therefore, she couldn't help but ask a question.

Lu Zhiyuan pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "I'm not sure if she has autism. She lived in a time too early, during the reign of Constantine in ancient Rome. The concept of autism probably didn't exist then."

"However, she was a very unique woman, and at the time, she was definitely considered unconventional. Because she was a non-marriage advocate."

"She has a famous saying that is absolutely thought-provoking."

"She said she would only marry one person, and that person's name was Truth."

I rely on!

So handsome!

After hearing this, Yang Mi immediately became very interested in this female mathematician named Hypatia.

"Little Yang, after hearing the story of Hypatia, have you gotten a sense of it now?"

Feels like you're something else!
Upon hearing Lu Zhiyuan's words, Yang Mi really wanted to tear her hair out.

This madman!

Calling me in the middle of the night, not to ask me out shopping, not to want to sleep with me, just to ask if I feel anything?

You shameless bastard!

I was starting to feel something for myself, and I was even prepared to go on a date and not go home tonight, but after what you said, all those feelings are gone.

"Yes, I really feel it."

However, considering that the other party is a famous director who can change her role with just a word, Yang Mi said that she was weak, helpless and pitiful, and could only compromise under the power of the strong.

"It's enough if you have the feeling."

"Dilraba should be back in the next couple of days. Get ready and clear your schedule for the next month. I'll take you to Los Angeles and let you experience what it's like to be a professional assassin."

Whether it's "The Accountant" or "John Wick," there are many scenes of gunfights.

Want to shoot in the country?

Basically impossible.

But in America, you can get any kind of gun you want!

Furthermore, they could film Yang Mi practicing shooting and post it on Weibo, which would likely attract a lot of fans who support her career.

"Mr. Lu, we await your summons."

This is right.

I can feel it!
Lu Zhiyuan truly treats his own people exceptionally well!
Thinking back to when she went to Lu Zhiyuan's victory celebration banquet, he didn't say a single word to her.

But ever since I announced that I would join Dilraba's studio, my treatment has changed immediately.

"By the way, Mr. Lu, could I post this good news on Weibo... um, it's about you being willing to make a movie just for me?"

"As you know, I haven't been able to run any business recently, and I've suffered heavy losses. I personally don't care, but I still have a team to support, and I need to reassure people."

Yang Mi tentatively asked a question.

At this point, she was very afraid that someone else would snatch the role away.

If that's the case, she'll definitely go crazy.

Although the probability is very small.

But just in case.

However, if they make an official announcement on Weibo and have Lu Zhiyuan verify it, the probability of them being poached will become infinitely small.

"I can release it, but I will neither admit nor deny it. Because the film has not been officially approved yet; I am just doing some preliminary preparation work."

"Nobody knows what will happen next."

The role of Yang Mi has been confirmed.

However, some ideas, concepts, and plot outlines from the early preparation stage will be revised dozens of times before the actual filming.

It will definitely become unrecognizable.

Lu Zhiyuan cannot guarantee how the character Yang Mi will ultimately become.

Even after filming was completed, he couldn't give Yang Mi a definite answer.

Because there's still editing involved.

"Thank you, Mr. Lu. I heard you've been sleeping alone at home for almost two months now. Would you like me to come and sleep with you?"

Yang Mi was so excited she couldn't express it, so she could only ramble on and try to get closer to Lu Zhiyuan.

"I don't want to. Your feet smell."

After Lu Zhiyuan finished speaking, he hung up the phone immediately.

Yang Mi was stunned for a moment, and after realizing what was happening, she was furious.

You're the one with smelly feet!
No, it's normal for people to have smelly feet.

Unless you're not human!
"Are my feet really that smelly?"

Yang Mi took off her shoes and smelled them. Although there was a slight odor, it was alright; it was all within the normal range.

"It must be because it was too hot when I went to his company those few days. I was wearing high heels, my feet were sweaty, and I wasn't wearing socks. The shoes weren't good quality either. That's why this happened."

"Shameful."

"This is so embarrassing!"

Yang Mi was devastated when a famous director told her to her face that her feet smelled bad.

She's an idol.

How did I end up like this?

……

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Just as Lu Zhiyuan was making the call, Reba returned.

She originally came back to catch Lu Zhiyuan cheating on her and Miss Jing Tian, ​​to see if he had brought other women home to mess around behind her back.
I never expected to hear such a joke.

Although I don't know what Yang Mi was saying on the other end of the phone, I can imagine that Yang Mi definitely couldn't resist trying to flirt with Lu Zhiyuan.

Despite his many flaws, this robot brother of hers is incredibly attractive to women when he starts talking about work and art.

Reba swears to God that this is how Lu Zhiyuan tricked her into losing her heart.

Lu Zhiyuan is truly charismatic once he starts making movies.

Of course, Yang Mi is also very charming, with a sex appeal that's off the charts. For most straight men, she's a total stunner.

Dilraba has always regarded Yang Mi as her number one enemy.

Who knew that Lu Zhiyuan would complain that Yang Mi had smelly feet.

For a moment, Dilraba almost burst out laughing like a pig.

"Tian Tian, ​​is that you?"

Lu Zhiyuan heard a noise outside and went out to take a look.

He thought it was Miss Jing Tian who had returned.

Upon seeing that it was Dilraba, he was momentarily stunned, a hint of doubt appearing in his eyes.

Why is Dilraba coming to my place so late at night instead of going home?

“I heard from Kun that you were sick. So I rushed over as soon as I got off the plane. I was so worried about you.”

Dilraba had already prepared her excuse, and she gave it without batting an eye, even touching Lu Zhiyuan's forehead.

"I'm not sick. I'm perfectly healthy. That Kun guy, he talks nonsense all the time. You know that, don't you?"

Dilraba's lie was so perfect that Lu Zhiyuan couldn't find any flaws.

He glanced at the time; it was already past 11 p.m. He thought about how Reba had taken a long flight and rushed over without stopping, and felt a warmth in his heart.

"Have you eaten? Never mind, even if you have, you must be hungry by now. Besides, what's so good about airplane food?"

As Lu Zhiyuan spoke, he went downstairs.

Reba was incredibly excited, eagerly anticipating Lu Zhiyuan preparing a delicious late-night snack for her.

However, Dilraba soon realized she was overthinking things.

Lu Zhiyuan took out his phone and called a restaurant that served late-night snacks, asking them to send some food over.

"I knew it!"

"He's only charming when he's making movies or doing art; otherwise, he's just a total jerk!"

"Sister-in-law Tian Tian has been a little princess since she was a child, pampered and loved by everyone. How could she stand this kind of person?"

They will definitely break up.

I'll take over when the time comes!

Hey!
"However, is 'The Accountant Assassin' a movie he's planning to use to promote Yang Mi? I wonder how much money Yang Mi paid to get him to voluntarily participate in making a movie?"

Reba was very curious.

Lu Zhiyuan has a rule when making movies: he never pays for them himself.

Although the film had the potential to be a huge success, he was unwilling to invest his own money and insisted on finding others to invest.

He only earns the portion he is entitled to.

……

The next morning.

Reba got up early in the morning. Since Lu Zhiyuan wasn't going to sleep with her anyway, there was no point in her staying at Lu Zhiyuan's house.

After she got home, she changed her clothes and went to find Yang Mi.

I also asked Yang Mi how much she was planning to contribute to this movie.
"what?"

"Is there such a good thing?"

When Yang Mi heard this request, she didn't find it outrageous at all; instead, her eyes lit up with surprise.

Will Lu Zhiyuan's movies flop?

impossible!
It is absolutely impossible.

The probability is so low that it will not exceed 1%.

Although Yang Mi doesn't have much money herself, if this movie were Lu Zhiyuan's project, she could easily raise funds within the industry.

It also depends on who you have a good relationship with.

Otherwise, you won't get a single share.

"Dilraba, our company actually has this kind of hidden benefit? Why didn't you tell me sooner? I thought that once I joined the company, I couldn't just take on business activities, and I hesitated for a long time because of this."

If I could invest in Lu Zhiyuan's movies, why would I need to take on any business activities?
Lu Zhiyuan's films all yield at least a 5 to 10-fold return!

Investing in two of his movies would yield returns of several dozen times!
He made a fortune right there in the world.

If you can turn 1000 million into hundreds of millions, why would you still need to take on business activities?
"Yes, there are, but you won't get much of a share. Sister-in-law Tian Tian's family has more money than they can spend, and they also have connections with Wanda, so they'll definitely get all the investment shares."

Dilraba originally wanted to scare Yang Mi and make her feel a little inferior.

Little did she know, Yang Mi was much more shrewd than she had imagined, and quite the little money-grubber. Her eyes lit up when she heard about the investment opportunity.

"Pity."

Yang Mi was filled with regret upon hearing that she couldn't invest much money.

(End of this chapter)