Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 125 Finishing

While Zhang Yan and Feng Xiaogang were talking.

Several women gathered together and chattered away. Regardless of what others thought, Wu Yujuan felt somewhat as if she had been transported to another world.

The popularity brought to her by "The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain" far exceeded her expectations. Since the TV series was broadcast in mainland China, she seemed to become the focus of media reports overnight.

No matter where she goes, she runs into fans of the show, and occasionally gets chased and scolded—her version of Yuan Ziyi is probably the most scheming and hypocritical character in history, and some of her actions are even more hateful than those of the villains.

Wu Yujuan thought she was no longer the same person she used to be.

But when we met today, I found that my 'younger brother' status had actually declined.

Chen Hong goes without saying; she has already broken out of mainland China and swept across Asia, and doesn't even care about TVB's invitation.

Although Xu Fan's "Da Sa Ba" is not as popular as "The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain", movies have always been more prestigious than TV series. Moreover, the TV series is the leading lady, while Xu Fan's Yuan Ziyi is only the second female lead.

After all the calculations, Wu Yujuan could only rank second to last, slightly better than Wang Luyao who was at the bottom.

When she first joined the group, Xu Fan was far less famous than her.

Just then, Chen Hong laughed and said, "Speaking of which, your production team is quite lucky with its actresses. If Lu Yao becomes popular again, it will be a well-known story in the industry."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yujuan couldn't help but glance at Wang Luyao.

She didn't really believe that Wang Luyao could achieve anything remarkable as a singer. After all, Wang Luyao's acting skills were only average, and the excessive use of rock music was not something that TV stations could accept.

Without that rocking toy, what advantages does she have left?

Therefore, Wu Yujuan always felt that Wang Luyao's joining Yuanmeng Records must be the result of her having an affair with Zhang Yan.

But now Chen Hong is also saying she can become famous...

Could it be that Zhang Yan has really come up with some ingenious plan to make Wang Luyao famous?

Although I recommended Wang Luyao to Zhang Yan, if Wang Luyao also becomes popular, or even more popular than me, wouldn't I be at the bottom?!

When this incident becomes a legend in the industry, she, the "big sister," will be relegated to the bottom of the list...

How is that possible!
Chen Hong was probably joking, or she was being sarcastic—right, she must have discovered the shady dealings between Zhang Yan and Wang Luyao, so she was deliberately being sarcastic in front of Wang Luyao.

Wu Yujuan refused to accept this possibility, so she comforted herself with her own imagination.

Just then, Zhang Yan and Feng Xiaogang also arranged a time and place to meet that evening.

So the group left the waiting hall and went their separate ways.

Chen Hong was definitely going to sit in the front passenger seat, while Xu Fan and Wu Yujuan sandwiched Wang Luyao in the back. They were so close together that they could feel a noticeable sense of pressure whenever there was a bump in the road.

Pshaw! You're selling steamed buns!

Hehe~ It's just excess fat!
Faced with this situation regarding AD calcium milk, the two of them simultaneously complained to themselves.

Then Xu Fan took the initiative to start a conversation about TVB's offer.

Zhang Yan has been asked this a lot lately, and he's too lazy to explain, so he just said, "Hong Kong Island doesn't lack screenwriters, nor does it lack people like me. The mainland is more suitable for me."

Chen Hong added from the side, "The record company is just starting out, and we really can't do without him."

To be honest, Chen Hong was very excited when she was first invited by TVB, after all, it is currently the biggest star-making machine in all of Asia.

But after Zhang Yan refused without hesitation, Chen Hong quickly calmed down as well.

While Hong Kong Island is certainly a bigger stage, the assistance that TVB can provide to Zhang Yan is simply incomparable to that of Tianjin TV.

Not to mention that Dream Records is about to take off.

This is actually the same reason why Zhang Yan rejected the advances from Beijing and Taiwan last year—except that TVB has a bigger reputation and is more attractive.

Seeing that the couple both looked so nonchalant, Xu Fan cursed them inwardly for being pretentious, but he couldn't help but put himself in their shoes.

If I were the one receiving the offer from TVB...

"Xu Fan".

At this moment, Chen Hong suddenly asked, "How did you two come with Brother Feng? Did you meet him on the way, or...?"

She asked about Xu Fan, but Wu Yujuan answered first: "It must have been Xu Fan who made the appointment with him. Anyway, when I arrived at the train station to meet Xu Fan, screenwriter Feng was already there."

Xu Fan didn't really want to talk about this topic. Seeing that Wu Yujuan was distancing herself from it, she explained casually, "It was just a coincidence. Screenwriter Feng went to the Beijing People's Art Theatre a couple of days ago and heard that I was coming to Tianjin for the wrap party, so he said he wanted to travel with us."

I figured having a man on the street would be a little safer, so I didn't refuse him.

Xu Fan's current state of mind is quite conflicted.

She can now see that with Feng Xiaogang's talent, he should be able to make it big and will most likely become the next Zhao Baogang.

The problem is that with Zhang Yanzhu as a precedent, Feng Xiaogang is far less attractive, much older, and has a wife and children. Therefore, Xu Fan isn't truly ready to accept Feng Xiaogang yet.

"That's right."

Chen Hong glanced at Zhang Yan and thought to herself that birds of a feather flock together in this industry. Feng Xiaogang used to seem quite family-oriented, but as soon as he gained some fame, he started messing around outside.

Chatting along the way.

Upon arriving at the crew's final resting place, Guan Hu exchanged a few pleasantries with Xu Fan and Wu Yujuan, then invited everyone to take a group photo.

Chen Hong was the only 'outsider,' so after the photographer adjusted the angle, she took on the responsibility of pressing the shutter.

Producer Zhang Yan stood right in the center, flanked by a group of men including Guan Hu and Huang Lei on his left, and Xu Fan, Wu Yujuan, Wang Luyao, and the makeup artist on his right.

"Eggplant~"

With a crisp 'snap', the crew of "My Hair is a Mess" were forever frozen in time.

At the wrap party, Guan Hu seemed quite excited and insisted on having Zhang Yan taste the wine, but Zhang Yan shut him up with a single sentence.

"You've dragged this out for so long, do you even have money left for post-production?"

"Huh? Huh?! Holy crap!!"

Guan Hu, holding his wine glass, was dumbfounded. After a long while, he said with a mournful face, "Brother Zhang, why didn't you remind me before?!"

He was really getting carried away before, after all, he not only self-financed, wrote, and directed his first film, but also accidentally selected two star actors.

Guan Hu almost thought he was the chosen one.

The result, naturally, was that joy turned to sorrow.

"Isn't this the most basic thing? I thought you knew it."

After dealing with Guan Hu, Zhang Yan casually offered a sweet treat: "Help me shoot a promotional ad for 'I'm Crazy for Singing.' The TV station will definitely not pay as much as the manufacturers, but if you pull some strings at the Beijing Film Studio, it should be enough."

"You're like my own brother!"

…………

Zhang Yan didn't go anywhere in the afternoon. He just stayed home and flipped through "A Beijing Native in New York". The writing style of the book was average, especially in the parts where the plot was getting too long, it was obvious that the author was an amateur.

As for the plot...

Overall, it's the story of an immigrant from the 80s who went through many hardships, achieved success through his own efforts, and then chose to return to his home country to invest.

Such a storyline should still be quite appealing at the moment, at least helping Chinese people understand the situation in the United States.

However, if it were made into a TV series, it would be somewhat bland and lack the explosive moments that would stir the audience's emotions.

and……

Gunfight?!

Free America, gunfights every day. Would it still be America without gunfights?!
also……

The male and female protagonists divorced simply because of differences in their values, and neither of them intended to remarry.

Can this be done without some seasoning?

Zhang Yan spent some time organizing his thoughts into a few suggestions, and then took the original work to the agreed-upon restaurant.

When he arrived, he discovered that Xu Fan and Wu Yujuan were also there, in addition to Feng Xiaogang.

"What?"

Feng Xiaogang said awkwardly, "Xu Fan and Yu Juan are both quite curious about scriptwriting, so..."

Actually, he wanted to show off in front of others, to let Xu Fan know that he was someone who could sit down and discuss philosophy with Zhang Yan, so as to further break down Xu Fan's defenses. That's why he invited Xu Fan to watch.

Unexpectedly, Xu Fan invited Wu Yujuan again, and Wu Yujuan, without any sense of being a third wheel, readily agreed.

As a result, the people who ended up sitting at the table were two men and two women.

While it's true that teamwork makes things easier, involving so many outsiders in developing script ideas is bound to cause trouble for the production team if they find out.

But it's too late to regret it now; Feng Xiaogang can only grit his teeth and bear it to the end.

Wu Yujuan asked excitedly, "Producer Zhang, will our presence here bother you?"

She is genuinely interested in screenwriting and dreams of having her writing adapted into film and television.

"will not."

Anyway, this whole scheme was orchestrated by Feng Xiaogang, and he himself isn't afraid of leaks, so what does Zhang Yan have to worry about?
(End of this chapter)