How can you become a star without money?

Chapter 263 You're just auditioning for President Wang, right?
On this day, tears flow freely across the land; with you by my side, the might of the navy is truly strengthened.

One hundred and sixteen years ago, Deng Shichang, though defeated, was still honorable, becoming a source of deep regret for the entire Chinese nation.

But no one expected that the same thing would happen again.

The moment the news broke, special reports were launched on MS and Sohu platforms, attracting over ten million views within half an hour, and then quickly spread across major forums and social media.

At a time when the internet was abuzz with excitement, Michelle suddenly posted a message on her official MS account.

[Snow King solemnly declares: A million-dollar recruitment notice is issued to recruit talented individuals from the international legal community to form a legal aid team. The budget is unlimited, and the mission will continue until the captain returns safely. The regret of 116 years ago will never be repeated.]

General Deng Shichang, accompanied by an image of a white elephant trampling a warship, with the text written in the style of a mountain valley.

[The expedition of 1894 was not for survival]

A stone stirred up a thousand waves.

As the first brand to stand up and offer support and assistance, Mixue's comment section exploded.

It gained a million followers in one hour, all of whom were positive reviews.

Many netizens spontaneously organized offline shopping trips to buy Mixue drinks to show their support, and the place where Mixue drinks are most popular is not in franchise stores, but in Tianhuo's offline cinemas.

When you arrive at the movie theater, you'll naturally see the promotional posters for "22.22".

So even without any promotion, the box office prediction for "22.22" on that day was already heading straight for over 2000 million.

When Tan Hui woke up, he was completely bewildered.

How could this be?
How could such a low-probability event happen?
Han Sanping called him immediately, telling him not to do any additional promotion for the film for a while, and even to suppress the hype.

Because this incident has had a huge impact.

"You arranged this?" Tan Hui was still confused when he turned to call Wang Yao after dealing with Han Sanping.

"I have that ability?" Wang Yao chuckled. "The movie isn't going to be taken off the screens, is it?"

"No, it's just to calm things down. But why am I a little scared?" Tan Hui swallowed hard. He had experienced a lot in his life.

But looking at the ever-increasing number of views and box office revenue, he even felt a little weak in the knees.

"Let nature take its course. I'll put the publicity on hold for now, but this is just natural fermentation. President Tan will have to settle accounts later." Wang Yao smiled.

Although the film was given to Xingmei, Tianhuo, as the cooperating publicity and distribution party, signed a performance-based cooperation agreement. If the box office exceeds 1 million, they can get 10% of the box office.

Tan Hui wasn't too concerned about this betting partnership, since it was unlikely that the film would break 100 million at the box office unless Wang Yao invested heavily in promotion. In the end, Xingmei would be the one to benefit.

But no one expected to encounter such a low-probability event.

Given this trend and how closely the film is made, let alone breaking 100 million, he's worried it might create a terrifying miracle.

After hanging up Tan Hui's call, Wang Yao looked at Honma Shu, who was kneeling obediently on the ground, and frowned: "President Honma, what's the matter?"

Honma Hideyuki performed a solemn kneeling bow: "President Wang, please forgive my previous rudeness. LP needs an international partner like you."

He had planned to return to Japan today, but this huge news almost made him faint.

This incident is beyond what a small entertainment company president like him can handle. Before this incident, "22" was just a controversial movie. He could have easily pushed all the responsibility onto Wang Yao, that swindler, and then publicly stated his position and drawn a line.

But now it's no longer a matter of stance. No matter how he explains, he can't appease the emotions of the Japanese market. Moreover, it's not just a matter of Yui Aragaki; the entire company has been pushed to the brink by Wang Yao. Unless he commits seppuku to prove his innocence, there's really no way to explain it away.

This is really a disaster, it's hard to explain!

So all he could do was reach an agreement with Wang Yao to allow LP and Tianhuo to coexist and make the fact that Aragaki Yui had acted in LP disappear forever. Accepting Tianhuo's investment was only the first step; he still needed to prepare several additional layers of insurance.

He now deeply regrets it, but he got involved with Wang Yao, this devil, because he was greedy for those tens of thousands of dollars.

"I still admire your arrogant demeanor from the day before yesterday," Wang Yao chuckled.

"President Wang can name any conditions you wish to," Honma Hide said in a deep voice.

"I have a high opinion of LP's production capabilities, but the price is debatable. How about 1000 million US dollars?" Wang Yao bargained a bit.

Honma Shu froze upon hearing this; the knife had struck his artery directly. The price of 40% of the shares for 1000 million US dollars was too painful.

“No problem.” Honma Hide said through gritted teeth. He had no other choice. If he didn’t agree, the company might not even be worth 1000 million in the future.

"Tsk." Wang Yao frowned, seemingly still kind-hearted: "Don't worry, as long as we support each other, we will definitely be able to make LP a large-scale film and television company in Japan."

Honma Hide's lips twitched, revealing an awkward smile: "I hope President Wang will give me more guidance."

"Let's work together." Wang Yao smiled, helped him up, comforted him for a few moments, and had someone take him home to rest. Once the contract was signed, this turmoil should be over soon.

The film "22" has basically captured all the public attention this time, but as long as it remains in theaters, it will definitely set a box office record that will shock everyone. At that time, Xingmei's stock may soar to new heights.

Wang Yao had previously only bought a small amount at low prices due to concerns about the butterfly effect. Now, after receiving news from Tan Hui, he had Liu Haifeng buy some more, preparing to make a big profit later.

Amidst the emotional turmoil across the entire internet, the film and television industry is even more anxious.

Because once public figures get involved in this kind of thing, problems can easily arise, especially for companies and artists who want to go international.

However, the artists under the Skyfire Group, led by Fan Bingbing, immediately released a unified statement on social media: "China, not an inch of it can be lost." Afterwards, if others tried to muddy the waters and didn't follow suit, they would easily leave themselves open to criticism.

This means that the Skyfire faction is once again forcing everyone to take a stand and express their opinions.

Many people secretly condemned Wang Yao for his lack of martial ethics, but dared not show it openly. For those who benefit from the status quo, emotions are used to influence others, and public statements are used to protect their position and interests.

Besides this upsetting factor, the unexpected surge in "22" box office revenue made them green with envy, while simultaneously plunging them into the same confusion as Tan Hui.

Is it really such a coincidence?

Previously, people didn't know how to determine what type of film "22" belonged to. Now, it seems that a separate genre of "predictive films" can be created.

Although the "22" production team had previously stated that the inspiration came from Mr. Chen Yuxiang, and that the last scene of the film was likely a tribute to Deng Shichang, it is still difficult to find any connection between them.

The most upset must be "Tang Zhen", which was already the pre-selected box office champion this year. Just two days ago, Feng Xiaopao was mocking "22" as a bad movie below par, but two days later it may see a shocking reversal.

From a certain perspective, both "Tang Zhen" and "22" are of the same genre, and "22" also has the added boost of current popularity, making it highly likely that its box office will surpass that of "Tang Zhen".

This is absolutely terrible news for Feng Xiaopao, as it will directly shake his position as the king of Chinese commercial films. Fortunately, the director is Stanley Kwan, not some inexperienced newcomer, otherwise he would have really been devastated.

What incredible luck! They even managed to snag one.

He can only hope the movie stops showing now.

Fortunately, such low-probability events are unlikely to occur frequently. However, after these two films, movies adapted from real-life events may experience a new boom.

However, there are many people who are even more troubled than Feng Xiaopao. Lu Chuan woke up today feeling somewhat fortunate that he hadn't escaped disaster by writing "22" before, but then he discovered that his "Jinling" had been dug up again.

On September 9.8th, Michelle began updating her news and progress in Japan on the pinned column about the captain on the MS platform.

[Snow King's Reminder: Fellow countrymen in Japan should prioritize their own safety. If you need anything, contact Snow King directly. He has money and manpower available. A wise person avoids dangerous situations.]

At the same time, it was announced that in conjunction with Ba Wang, they are preparing to donate new fishing boats to the captains.

This collaboration boosted the public's positive image of Bawang, which had previously been embroiled in controversy, and its stock price rose slightly.

"22" has grossed over 100 million dollars worldwide in just three days since its release.

Although there wasn't a single trending topic on social media, clips of the film had already spread across various forums, social media platforms, and video streaming services. Meanwhile, it also began its overseas release through Skyfire's theatrical distribution network.

Wang Yao's overseas promotion efforts were quite significant. Due to Lin Zhiling's appearance and the Diaoyu Islands theme, the film's release in Taiwan and Hong Kong contributed a large amount to its box office revenue.

There's also the Korean market. Originally, "22" was a female empowerment film overseas, with an all-female cast, career-focused storylines, and no romantic pairings, which directly attracted all Ewha women. In addition, it had already clashed with Japanese netizens twice this year, so the emotions were equally intense.

The number of fans of the main actors is growing at an alarming rate every day. Zhao Liying's total number of fans across the internet has already exceeded 100 million, which, according to the data, is probably second only to Fan Bingbing.

Zhang Tianai and Gulnazar have both amassed over ten million fans, directly boosting sales of their clothing brands.

From an unknown extra, he rose to become a well-known actor.

The dramatic change made Zhao Liying feel as if she were in a dream.

Not only did she not accept this change for the time being, but everyone else in the company was also in a state of panic. They expressed great envy for this overnight success and acknowledged the company's strength in film and television resources.

"Shadow will probably get a contract at or above Grade A this time." Tang Yan and Yang Mi huddled together again.

"I'm afraid it's more than that. Her popularity and online traffic are terrifying right now. Sister Lan said that Berna wanted to invite her to act in a movie, and President Wang directly quoted 1000 million yuan," Yang Mi exclaimed.

"Higher than Zhang Ziyi's salary?" Tang Yan was taken aback.

"Breaking 100 million in 3 days, although it wasn't her achievement, her public image has become very appealing. Tian Ai is the same; her approval rating seems to be even higher than Yingzi's now," Yang Mi said, clicking her tongue in amazement.

"I heard that this notebook was compiled by President Wang himself. President Wang is amazing!" Tang Yan exclaimed.

"He personally initiated the project, personally followed the filming, and even played the role of the male boss who engages in unspoken rules in the movie." Yang Mi's tone was subtle.

"Huh? That perverted and violent man?! The one who almost stripped the shadow naked?! Was he played by President Wang?" Tang Yan's eyes widened; this was absolutely shocking news.

That scene in the movie was the biggest highlight of the entire series besides the ship collision, and it was even compared to Feng Yuanzheng's acting in "Don't Talk to Strangers" online.

It's so real that many viewers on forums are offering a reward for his actions.

The thought of Wang Yao's handsome and harmless face sent a chill down Tang Yan's spine.

"It's a contrast, isn't it?" Yang Mi clicked her tongue.

"Then tell me, should we take a gamble and rewrite 'The Isolated Island'?" Tang Yan frowned and asked seriously.

"The Isolated Island" was also personally initiated by Wang Yao, and it might just replicate Zhao Liying's overnight fame.

"This is a low-probability event for '22,' who knew we'd just happen to run into it? But from an objective point of view, this resource is indeed very suitable for us. If you have any concerns, I can try it myself," Yang Mi said seriously.

She and her team studied the script and character design, as well as the possible future paths. They had some concerns, since the sexy character was quite a departure from the norm.

But seeing Zhao Liying's success, she will definitely get the best serious drama resources in the future, and any competition with her of the same type will not have an advantage. The filter effect that "22" will give to the audience will definitely be super strong.

Yang Mi is a very adaptable and planning person. If "The Island" is successful, it can avoid overlapping with Zhao Liying's character, so she is prepared to go all in and give it a try.

"If you want to try, I'll go with you." Tang Yan nodded upon seeing this.

"Okay, then can you help me see if this outfit suits the character?" Yang Mi was delighted to hear this and unbuttoned her coat.

Tang Yan's eyes nearly popped out when she saw Yang Mi's voluptuous bikini.

(End of this chapter)