A grand feast for the Chinese entertainment industry

Chapter 221 Brave
I rested for two days in the capital.

But in reality, he hardly saw any outsiders. In fact, during his short two-day visit, very few people even knew he had returned—Chen Hong, Xu Qing, Jiang Qinqin, and Zuo Xiaoqian, coincidentally, were all filming in other cities. Chen Hong was filming "Yanzi Li San," Xu Qing was filming "Never Close My Eyes," Jiang Qinqin was filming a police-themed TV series (she was being sought after), and Zuo Xiaoqian was filming Guo Baochang's "The Years of Sorrow and Joy."

Even Yu Feihong has taken leave from school and gone to Hong Kong to film a movie called "The Storm Riders". It is a joint investment by Media Asia Films, Golden Harvest Films, Best Partner Films, and a rare Hong Kong company that specializes in film and television special effects called Centro Digital Effects Limited.

Directed by Andrew Lau, adapted from a comic book, and starring popular young actors Aaron Kwok and Ekin Cheng, Yu Feihong was invited to play the female lead.

Moreover, it wasn't just Yu Feihong; during a previous phone call, Jiang Qinqin also mentioned that she had a role in the film, but she would only need to join the cast when the production team came to the mainland some time later. In addition, when Lin Jianlu was rehearsing in New York before the Lunar New Year, she received a thank-you call from Zhang Min. Lin Jianlu had previously signed with Media Asia Films' artist department, and as a top actress in Hong Kong, Shi Nansheng easily managed to get her into the film as well.

The year's plans begin in spring, and everyone is busy.

In the capital, only one of the concubines, Gao Yuanyuan, is idle.

While leisurely attending school, she was also waiting for the start of filming for Richie Jen's version of "The Return of the Condor Heroes"—they had already taken their costume fitting photos and even showed them to Lin Jianlu. Oh my, this little Guo Xiang, I can't say anything else, but our little aunt has a good-looking foundation. She's been pampered and raised by Lin Jianlu for a year or two, and that arrogant and willful spirit of hers has come through. Just looking at the costume fitting photos, she looks pretty good.

She was truly the kind of girl Lin Jianlu doted on and spoiled. In terms of pampering and indulgence, none of Lin Jianlu's many girlfriends could compare. Because of this, even the two big shots in the capital, Chen Hong and Xu Qing, usually indulged and coaxed her, at most ignoring her, but they were unwilling to argue with this young girl. Not to mention others, almost everyone in the capital's literary and artistic circles fawned over her. Perhaps in a few years, Liu Yifei could rival her.

Of course, no matter how favored the concubine was, she only stayed with him for one day.

After the Lantern Festival, Ada Choi obediently returned to the capital to rest and prepare for childbirth—she is a very smart girl, and this smartness refers not to anything else but to her ability to read people's expressions.

She was extremely dependent on Lin Jianlu and enjoyed his protection and care. She quickly realized that Lin Jianlu intended for her to stay in the mainland for her future development. Without any hesitation, she came to live in the capital. While taking care of her pregnancy, she began to carefully try to restore her few remaining connections in the mainland. Although she missed home and wanted to go back to Taipei, she would return after spending the Lunar New Year without being urged.

Lin Jianlu arranged a house for her, and even took her along when Liu Xiaoli went to choose villas for her other women. After the New Year, construction and decoration of several villas would begin, and she would have one. She also enjoyed 24-hour nanny service and was provided with a Mercedes-Benz. If she didn't want to drive herself or was unfamiliar with the roads, she could just make a phone call and a driver would come to pick her up immediately.

In short, although she never had many friends in the capital, she frequented the city and became increasingly familiar with people, enjoying a life of absolute wealth that she could never have imagined in Taiwan.

She has almost no other thoughts now, and her only thought is to rely on the child in her belly and spend her whole life with Lin Jianlu. Before, when they couldn't meet, there was nothing to say. This time, after returning home for a couple of days, she still spent time with this beautiful girl and listened to her make a wish in her arms.

Yes, it's similar to making a wish.

Her younger brother was a terrible student and was almost certain to drop out of school in Taiwan, unable to pass the entrance exams. She wanted to ask her brother-in-law, Lin Jianlu, for help to see if he could be sent to study in America or England.

Well, I imagine her mother and brother have been nagging about this a lot during the Chinese New Year period.

But going abroad is impossible.

It's not about money. We don't need your few dollars for studying abroad.

He was never a very studious person to begin with, and then he was sent abroad where no one would keep him in check. His sister had plenty of money and would ask for money all the time. Do you know what kind of random skills he could learn abroad over the years?
There's only one condition: if you want to study, I'll arrange it for you to come to the mainland!

She didn't dare to refute Lin Jianlu's words and immediately called home to discuss it. Judging from her mother's words, she was still somewhat hesitant. But that night, when Lin Jianlu was sleeping at her place, she received another call from there. It seemed that the mother and son had discussed it and decided that it was better than staying in Taiwan and achieving nothing. So she decided to come and rely on her brother-in-law and at least go to university in the mainland.

That's simple. Taiwanese compatriots already receive preferential treatment.

The problem is that the kid supposedly has no special skills. After thinking it over, I called Zhang Heping and asked him to help me with the paperwork for Taiwanese students to come and study at a university, so I could get him into computer science.

He might learn something useful, or more likely he won't learn anything at all and will just coast along for a few years to get a degree. But in any case, in a few years his whole family will realize that the decision to have him study computer science was truly for his own good—if you don't study hard and learn nothing, you can't blame your brother-in-law.

…………

"Xishan, welcome!"

"Hey, Qiaoqiao, hello!"

"Hahaha, Tae-hee!"

While Lin Jianlu was resting in the capital for two days, everything was actually progressing rapidly according to schedule. On the morning of the day he was to leave, a van picked up three Korean girls from the airport.

Their scenes are few, probably only a few shots in total. Filming will likely wrap up in a few days, but the three girls still flew over very happily. At this point, Kim Hee-sun boldly took the initiative to hug Lin Jianlu, and the other two immediately followed suit.

Lin Jianlu laughed heartily, greeting them and hugging them as she did so.

Wang Zuxian, standing to the side, simply watched calmly, while the other three maids, Fan Bingbing, Zhao Yanzi, and Zhang Ziyi, all showed displeasure on their faces.

Departure, Hebei Province.

Because it was nearby, we arrived at the filming location chosen by the crew a few hours later and joined the main group.

A group of old friends finally reunited after the filming was interrupted for more than a month. To be honest, if "The Myth" is considered a Hong Kong film, the pace of this movie from its inception to preparation and filming can be described as outrageously slow!

Leaving aside the exceptional cases where a movie is shot in ten or twenty days, normally a meticulously crafted Hong Kong film takes about three or four months from project initiation and preparation to filming and post-production.

Only art film directors like Wong Kar-wai and Hou Hsiao-hsien would take their time making films. In terms of return on investment, if the entire market operated like that, not only would film companies go bankrupt, but all the behind-the-scenes staff in the film industry would starve. It is precisely because of Hong Kong filmmakers like Wong Jing who have supported this market and so many behind-the-scenes staff that the foundation for Wong Kar-wai and his ilk to be so extravagant has been laid.

Zhang Yimou, the co-director, is about to leave the project.

This scene on the Great Plains was his last time directing.

Next, the crew will go to Yunnan Province and other places to shoot some modern-day scenes with Lin Jianlu, Liang Jiahui, and Wu Zhenyu. All of those scenes will be under the control of Sammo Hung. However, it's hard to say. Before returning to China, Lin Jianlu went to Hollywood for a visit, and Tang Jili stayed in America to work on special effects, which was nearing completion. It's possible that after the scenes on the plains are finished, Tang Jili will return to his position, and Sammo Hung will still have to take a backseat.

They met up and filming began.

The armor, weighing dozens of kilograms, was donned once again.

It was here that Meng Yi, the Qin Dynasty's general, received a princess and her entourage presented to the First Emperor by a foreign state.

There aren't many large-scale scenes left.

In just five days, Wang Zuxian and her six maids announced the completion of filming.

Wang Zuxian only stayed one more night in the area, relentlessly exploiting the people there, but the very next morning he got up early and took a car to the capital to catch his flight.

In America, Louis Vuitton (LV) was very interested in her. The more they talked, the more in-depth the conversation became. The other party's vision of Wang Zuxian matched the positioning of Zhang Aijia and Wang Zuxian. So, they hit it off immediately, and LV wanted to make her one of its global main brand ambassadors.

They need to sign a six-year contract with a tiered increase in endorsement fees.

Over the past six years, a total of 4800 million US dollars has been negotiated—of course, there are restrictions, and they are quite stringent. Some are easy to arrange, and Wang Zuxian has no problem with them, but others are essentially just a way of affiliating with Lin Jianlu.

For example, the contract would require Wang Zuxian to obtain a certain number of "natural" public exposures each year through public activities in media including but not limited to television, newspapers, and magazines. This is not surprising. After all, if you are not a big star, why would anyone hire you as a spokesperson?

However, for Wang Zuxian, she was previously just an Asian star, and her influence was basically limited to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Japan and South Korea. The exposure requirements proposed by LV were really too high, so high that even a normal top American female star would find it very difficult!
But they have a solution—it's simple. If Lin Jianlu goes to a Grammy today and takes you as his date, your "natural" exposure requirement for the year will basically be met. Or, Lin Jianlu can take you to a few NBA games, and you can show off your affection, guaranteed headlines. If that's not enough, you can do a few street style photoshoots, or have a new movie release, attend a film festival, and that will also meet your requirements.

It's that simple, you can just tag along.

What might be difficult for others was practically free money for Wang Zuxian.

Lin Jianlu would obviously allow her to freeload almost without limit.

Even if she is indifferent to fame and fortune and has no ambition, it is still a huge sum of 48 million US dollars over six years. In her own words, it is more than five or six times the money she earned in Hong Kong during her ten years of fame. 48 million US dollars is close to 400 million Hong Kong dollars!

Not to mention, besides LV, there is a high-end beauty and skincare brand called Lancôme that is also very interested in Wang Zuxian's stunning charm, her Hong Kong identity, and her positioning as Lin Jianlu's female companion. They are currently in talks. Although the position they are looking for is not at the level of a global main spokesperson, if it is finalized, it will be around four to five million US dollars a year, and they also want to sign a three to five-year contract.

Besides these, there are Tissot watches, Sony DVDs, Audi cars, and several casual sportswear brands, and many more.

It's no exaggeration to say that in just a few days, Zhang Aijia has been securing more and more endorsements for Wang Zuxian in America. It's possible that once all the deals are finalized, Wang Zuxian could earn 40 to 50 million US dollars a year just from endorsement fees. Of course, the matter hasn't been settled yet, and the news hasn't even reached Hong Kong. But once it does, it'll probably cause an uproar there!
Ten years ago, actresses like Xia Yufang and Hong Kong actresses were top stars. In recent years, actresses like Rosamund Kwan, Li Jiaxin, Wang Zuxian, and Zhang Min have been top stars. But when it comes to making money, even if they work as hard as they do and include a series of endorsements, earning 10 to 20 million a year is already considered very high. Wang Zuxian herself said that in her most popular years, she earned a maximum of 16 million Hong Kong dollars. Li Jiaxin's ability to seduce Joseph Lau is another matter.

Let alone female celebrities, among male celebrities, only Andy Lau and Jackie Chan have surpassed all others in Hong Kong in terms of the number of endorsements alone. This is how they maintain their strong income, and it is almost inevitable that they will break 100 million HKD. But apart from these two, other celebrities, one by one, can only reach 30 to 40 million HKD a year at most, based on their professional skills and endorsement monetization. It is almost impossible to exceed that number and climb to 50 million HKD in annual income!
And now, if Wang Zuxian accompanies someone to three shows, he can earn three or four hundred million Hong Kong dollars a year...

Not only will the Hong Kong media be buzzing about this, but the Hong Kong entertainment industry will be in an uproar. Even celebrities like Rosamund Kwan and Vivian Chow will be green with envy!
However, in fact, this outcome was something Lin Jianlu himself had never expected. He ultimately chose to bring Wang Zuxian to these three shows for several reasons. First, he increasingly disliked Zhao Mingxin's clingy attitude, always trying to get him to promote Li Wen, which he found a bit greedy. Second, he didn't want to give Charlize Theron too much of a benefit right away. Third, he didn't want to date Mariah Carey. Fourth, Wang Zuxian had always been too obedient, never competing or fighting for anything, but she always listened to him no matter what he asked. She was gentle and considerate, and among his other girlfriends, she was the most indifferent. She even went out of her way to help Lin Qingxia take care of her children.

So, let's take her there!

And wow... if the endorsement fee alone is tens of millions of US dollars a year, frankly speaking, not to mention crushing those people in Hong Kong, even in the United States, it would be a solid first-tier treatment!
With the global support and promotion from the brand, and with some additional popularity, she might actually have a chance to make it in Hollywood—she doesn't need to worry about salary or making money anymore. The key is to get a few significant roles, such as a key decorative role in a blockbuster or a role in an art film where her acting skills and reputation can be showcased. Once she makes it big, it's no exaggeration to say that she will become the most popular Chinese actress in the world!

If one could spend ten years in Hollywood, earn enough fame and money, and ideally win a few awards, then by the time they turn forty, it would be a perfect time to return to China. By 2008, the mainland entertainment market should be taking off...

Hmm... I wonder what Yu Feihong will think after she finds out about this?
Is it true that a simple and ordinary life is the best way to live?

It should be noted that the last opportunity actually belonged to her, and in the second half of last year, she became so popular in Europe and America that she was in no way inferior to Wang Zuxian at that time!

Hehe, I really want to call my aunt right now and tell her about this. I want to see how she reacts... Whether she's conflicted or pretending to be calm, she'll look adorable!
I refuse to believe that you could resist the temptation of tens of millions of dollars a year.

If you can truly remain unmoved, then I'll truly admire you!
Then you really are amazing!

However, as it turned out, Lin Jianlu was overthinking things.

No sooner had Wang Zuxian left than Lin Jianlu stayed behind to continue filming some minor shots. That evening, Yu Feihong called.

"Sina Zhang called me and said she helped Wang Zuxian negotiate an endorsement contract worth tens of millions of US dollars?"

Lin Jianlu laughed heartily, "What? Tempted? Regretting it?"

On the other end of the phone, she laughed, "That's tens of millions of US dollars, brother, who wouldn't be tempted!"

I was somewhat surprised by the first wife's frankness, although I had known for a long time that she had always been frank. "Then why didn't you take on more work in America last year?"

"I need to get back to class! I'll take advantage of the National Day holiday to fly there; I've already taken a week and a half off!"

Honestly, I've known her for over a year, including our time together, and I've always felt that she has a somewhat artsy personality, but overall she's very straightforward and not pretentious. She's also quite decisive in her actions and dealings. She's not the kind of person who doesn't care about fame and fortune. When she went to Hong Kong to film "The Lucky Guy," she was clearly excited. When Sylvia Chang called to urge her to go to New York, she was happy too. But she has a characteristic: she's unwilling to do things she doesn't love or that are too tedious. She's also a bit willful; if she says she won't do something, she really won't.

"What can you do now? It seems like it's not too late to regret it. The 'Believer' music video is still being played all over the world. You're the goddess of countless foreigners! If you're willing, you can go there after you finish filming this movie, go to New York! The reason Sylvia Chang called you is essentially because even she thinks you still have a chance, right? Otherwise, why would she use Wang Zuxian's achievements to motivate you?"

"Makes sense!"

Ha...she's happy now, she's hung up.

"Anninghasaiyo... Hello, brother!"

"Huh... Qiao Qiao? What happened... Didn't you go back to China?"

How could this be wrong? Early in the morning, a minibus took all six of them, including the maids, back to the capital. Lin Jianlu was right there, waving goodbye to the girls!

Fan Bingbing had originally said that since Lin Jianlu didn't even have an assistant, she wanted to stay and take care of him. However, Chen Hong admired her and thought the girl was clever and talented. This year, she planned to arrange for her to take the entrance exams for either the Central Academy of Drama or the Beijing Film Academy, hoping to give her a formal academic background. So, she arranged for a tutor to give her lessons in the capital. Fan Bingbing didn't dare to neglect this. She wanted to flatter Lin Jianlu, but she couldn't disregard Chen Hong's words. Moreover, in casual conversations, she also quite liked the path that Chen Hong had arranged for her.

She's still young, and studying at a professional institution for a few years is the best arrangement, no matter who you say it is.

So, after much hesitation and struggle, she obediently followed the car back to the capital.

I just didn't expect Song Hye-kyo to be back again?

"I suddenly remembered that I had left something here at the hotel, so I came back to get it!"

Since joining the cast of "The Myth" last winter, these young Korean girls have been working hard to learn Chinese. They probably don't recognize the characters anymore, but they can already hold back and forth in daily conversations.

"Ah...oh, you forgot something? Did you find it?...Hey, come on in!"

"Thank you, brother! It's been found. Actually... the item isn't that important, but the thought that if I come back, besides getting the item, I can also see you again makes me unable to control myself."

"Hey, hahaha!"

Who knows if she really left something at the hotel!
The minibus departed in the morning, and judging by the time, it should have arrived in the capital or even the airport around 2 PM. Anyway, by a little after 2 PM, the three girls in the capital had already reported that they were safe and sound. And up until just now, no one had noticed that Song Hye-kyo had run back—meaning that her two companions were completely unaware that she had gotten lost. So, it's highly likely that she played a trick on her friends just before boarding, making them think that she was about to board, but then she turned around and ran away.

Wow... This girl is both shrewd and bold; I hadn't realized it before.

Putting aside other things, she is a Korean who has studied Chinese for a few months and can only speak a few dozen sentences of daily conversation relatively fluently. Yet she dared to leave all her companions behind, suddenly give up boarding the plane, and take a taxi hundreds of miles away by herself. Just that courage alone is already quite remarkable.

That shows that he's definitely going to make it big!
Well... the excuse doesn't matter, or even if there is an excuse at all, the important thing is that she's back!

"What a surprise! Actually, when I saw you off this morning, I couldn't help but think that I'm so busy, and it might be a long time before I see you again, Qiaoqiao. I'm sure I'll miss you terribly..."

…………

The next morning, the return of the young Korean actress Song Hye-kyo startled the film crew.

But then, seeing the little girl affectionately hugging Lin Jianlu's arm, the two were clearly very close. A careful person could even see that the little girl's posture was slightly different when she walked and moved, and could guess what had happened last night—so it was not surprising.

Everyone else pretended not to know or care, but only Gu Changwei, or Old Gu, seemed to be letting loose, whether because they were too familiar with each other for more than two years or because he had recently divorced. In any case, he came over and teased Lin Jianlu, "I remember seeing her profile, the girl is only seventeen, right?"

Then he winked and chuckled.

Lin Jianlu frowned, glanced at him, and didn't think it was worth turning on him on the spot. She just forced a smile, ignored him, and walked away—Damn it, when did you get so accommodating? Even if we had some past acquaintance, is our relationship so close that you can joke about me sleeping with girls?
However, Lao Gu was a smart man. He immediately sensed the change in expression and instantly became much more obedient on set, even lowering his voice several notches.

After another day of filming, the crew finished shooting all the scenes here—after all, it's a crew mainly composed of Hong Kong people, so when they really start filming, it's still Hong Kong speed.

Therefore, the entire crew moved, some items were shipped out, others were taken by plane, and headed straight for Yunnan Province.

Upon arriving in the capital of Yunnan Province, they met up with several supporting actors from the modern-day scenes—Liang Jiahui, who plays the male lead's uncle and is considered a supporting actor, as well as Wu Zhenyu, who plays the main villain, an ambitious antique dealer, and several important henchmen who follow the villain.

Many of their scenes were already filmed in studios in Hong Kong, including against a green screen. The scenes being filmed here are all on location.

The car picked up Lin Jianlu and her group from the airport and arrived at the hotel they had booked. Everyone was waiting in the hotel lobby. Lin Jianlu went straight over to shake hands, hug, and exchange pleasantries with her old friends as soon as she entered. However, a surprise awaited her when she turned her head.

"Fuck..."

Maggie Cheung laughed so hard she couldn't stop, and spontaneously opened her arms.

Lin Jianlu laughed heartily, went over and hugged her. When she let go, she said with a smile, "Look, I've come to visit you on set. Don't say I refuse to visit you on set again!"

This time, Lin Jianlu had nothing to say.

The next day, they rushed to the filming location, a small village in an autonomous prefecture under Yunnan Province. The scenery was absolutely stunning. Maggie Cheung went along too. Sammo Hung even arranged for a makeup artist to give her a female henchman/sidek look, basically covering up her colors. She only appeared in two or three shots, chasing the male lead. She was kicked over and that was the end of filming. When the movie was released, it was discovered, which could be considered a small surprise or Easter egg.

While they were drinking at a hotel in the provincial capital, Maggie Cheung noticed the girl who was hanging around Lin Jianlu and asked, "Chasing girls again?" Lin Jianlu turned to look at Song Hye-kyo and replied, "Actually, I'm always the one being chased! She's so brave, I've been won over."

Maggie Cheung rolled her eyes at him and drank, "It's like you're mocking me for not being brave!"

However, Lin Jianlu waved her hand, "It's okay! Actually, it's quite nice to just be friends with you like this. I feel quite ashamed when I think about how I've slept with almost all the pretty girls I know. I even feel a little lost. Doesn't that mean I don't have any female friends at all?"

As Lin Jianlu and her group spoke, she laughed and playfully punched Lin Jianlu with her fist.

To be honest, we've known each other for over a year. Initially, our relationship was quite simple. We met in the capital, where Maggie Cheung was invited by relevant departments for an interview and visit. Since she was in the capital, some of her friends there organized a gathering to entertain her. However, her friends in the capital at the time weren't very influential. Later, Han Shanping, who was considered a rising star in the mainland film industry, also joined the gathering to entertain her. Han then casually invited Lin Jianlu, who in turn invited Jiang Wen, Ge You, and Gong Li, making the event much more lively.

That was the time, that very scene, when paparazzi from a Hong Kong newspaper took photos from afar. The photos of Lam Kin-lu with one arm around Gong Li and the other around Maggie Cheung shocked Hong Kong in the spring and summer of last year.

Well, later on, they started exchanging glances.

But Lin Jianlu has had too many upsetting news stories, and Maggie Cheung is finding it hard to handle.

Moreover, at that time, she was still trying to categorize Lin Jianlu as a good person. Lin Qingxia was already heavily pregnant with Lin Jianlu's child, so their relationship only went as far as flirting.

Later, when she realized with astonishment that for a philandering man like Lin Jianlu, how could a woman be expected to behave herself just because she was pregnant with his child? She did take action, specifically buying Lin Jianlu lighters and such, saying it was to tell him not to take her lighters anymore, but it was actually quite a subtle way of saying it.

However, once again, by chance, Wang Zuxian and Lin Jianlu had already begun flirting to a certain extent—once again, she helplessly watched as Lin Jianlu hooked up with one of her good friends.

At this point, my heart was basically completely extinguished.

As her close friend, she knew perfectly well that Lin Jianlu was supporting five women—Brigitte Lin, Leung Wing-ki, Rosamund Kwan, Vivian Chow, and Wong Cho-yin—all in Hong Kong alone—and she couldn't accept being one of them herself.

However, at the end of last year, she suddenly learned that Gong Li was pregnant and had settled in Hong Kong.

"I visited Gong Li's home before coming here. She was in great shape. I'm so envious of you, you're about to have your second child! I heard it's a girl. One boy and one girl, you're so lucky!"

“Once when we were playing cards, Aunt Thirteen told me that she had made more than a million yuan from you, and that you were now supporting her. When I asked her how she made it, she wouldn’t tell me!”

"Oh, and I heard from Liu Jialing that Qingxia bought a three-story building in Tsim Sha Tsui. I heard it's over 60,000 square feet in total and cost over 70 million. So I called her to ask, and she said that she, Ah Xian, Aunt Thirteen, Gigi, and Vivian pooled their money to buy it. She also said that you told them to pool their money to buy one to rent out, saying that Hong Kong property prices will definitely continue to rise in the future... Is that true? Will property prices continue to rise?"

Blah blah blah, it really had been a long time since we'd seen each other, a long time since we'd chatted, so she certainly had a lot to say, and once she started talking, she couldn't stop. But in the end, it all came down to one sentence—

"Hey, can we still be friends after we've slept together? I don't have many friends, and I don't want to lose you as a friend! But I really do have feelings for you, and I really like you!"

***
It's been a while since I asked for votes. I'm asking for a few monthly votes because my ranking has dropped quite fast lately!

(End of this chapter)