Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 204 Huayi in Action

On September 10th, the official character photos for "Qin King's Battle Song" were released simultaneously on Douyin and Weibo platforms.

One of the stills, showing Chen Xiu in armor riding a horse, holding a Tang sword, staring indifferently ahead, with Liang Guanhua and Qiao Zhenyu dressed similarly and standing on either side of him, has sparked widespread discussion among netizens.

"In the picture above, there is an emperor, a retired emperor, and a crown prince!"

Should I avoid his direct confrontation?

"Just from this one picture, I already know who the main character is!!"

"..."

Netizens overwhelmingly praised Chen Xiu's portrayal of Li Shimin.

Some comments also said that he looked too young and thin, unlike the traditional image of Li Shimin.

However, someone quickly jumped out to refute this, saying that the story of "Qin King's Battle Song" begins in the second year of the Wude era, when Li Shimin had just turned 20, and it was normal for him to be young...

Once this viewpoint was revealed, netizens began to realize that Li Tang's God of War was actually a young man.

The last young man this awesome was the one who shouted, "How can I have a home when the Xiongnu are not yet defeated?"

Riding on this wave of discussion, "Qin Wang Po Zhen Qu" and Chen Xiu once again topped the trending lists on Douyin and Weibo.

With its frequent appearances on trending topics and the high-quality promotional photos, many companies in the film and television industry that were initially skeptical of "Qin Wang Po Zhen Qu" have begun to take the drama seriously.

……

Huayi, General Manager's Office.

Wang Zhonglei, who was intently staring at the computer screen, frowned in displeasure, then turned to look at Feng Kuzi, who was sitting on the sofa smoking a cigar.

"Director Feng, what are your thoughts on 'The Song of the King of Qin Breaking the Battle Formation'?"

"What project?"

Feng Kuzi clicked his tongue in confusion, put the cigar he was holding back on the ashtray, and turned back to look at Wang Zhonglei.

"A newly prepared film?"

"The TV series was organized by Chen Xiu, co-produced by Tencent and iQiyi, a bunch of internet people, our circle has no part in it!"

"Chen Xiu?"

Feng Kuzi, with a strange expression, got up from the sofa and strode to Wang Zhonglei's desk: "Isn't he from Beijing Film Academy, the one who went to start an internet business in his freshman year and then succeeded by sheer luck?"

"Your words... are a very apt summary!"

Wang Zhonglei's face showed a look of joy at their shared vision, deeply feeling that Chen Xiu's success was due to good luck.

These words are almost entirely based on Wang Zhonglei's personal prejudice against Chen Xiu, and there is absolutely no fairness in them. He said them just to try to gain some recognition from Feng Kuzi, but he got an unexpected reaction.

Suddenly, Feng Kuzi slammed his fist on Wang Zhonglei's desk, making a stack of folders shake.

"That's just an arrogant brat who doesn't know his own limitations!"

Feng Kuzi set the tone for Chen Xiu, then turned to the stunned Wang Zhonglei and said, "A while ago, the Beijing Film Academy kindly invited him back to give a speech, which should have been a happy occasion for everyone. But this kid went around spouting nonsense in front of the whole school, making veiled insults and insulting all of us old guys!"

"What's going on?"

Wang Zhonglei was both surprised and delighted. He had been publicly humiliated by Chen Xiu at the "Detective Chinatown" box office celebration party, and now he felt like he had formed a defensive alliance with Feng Xiaogang.

Although he didn't understand why Wang Zhonglei was so excited, Feng Kuzi still added some things to what he had heard before telling the story.

Among them, Feng Kuzi did not change a single word of the metaphorical little story that Chen Xiu told.

"Dream less, do more..."

Wang Zhonglei murmured Chen Xiu's words, glancing at Feng Kuzi every now and then.

To be honest, he personally agrees with this view. Some directors' artistic pursuits are indeed a mess, and if they were to perform well during their term, the investors would probably be in deep trouble.

After years of cooperation, Wang Zhonglei has figured out the true nature of Feng Kuzi and his group.

To put it nicely, they have artistic aspirations and don't want to lower their standards to make commercial blockbusters that cater to the audience's tastes.

In reality, they couldn't make the film even if they wanted to. Many times, films that they were full of confidence would end up with dismal box office returns. Their so-called artistic pursuits were just a fig leaf.

Now that Chen Xiu has torn off this fig leaf and pointed his finger at them, calling their artistic pursuits a pipe dream, how can these people accept that?
Hoping to deal with a common enemy, Wang Zhonglei asked, "How do you plan to deal with Chen Xiu? Expel him from the Beijing Film Academy?"

"Forehead……"

The speed at which Feng Kuzi rose to his feet just now will only be faster at which he slumps down now.

"He's already graduated, so they can't expel him..."

"Can you find fault with the movies and TV series he submits for review?"

"Everyone's become so professional now, you can't find fault with them..."

"So what can you do?"

"Tsk, can't do anything."

Feng Kuzi shook his head, indicating that he was also helpless.

However, he quickly got his eyes lighting up and started urging Wang Zhonglei to join him.

“Although we old brothers can’t do much, you can! Chen Xiu is obviously pushed out by those internet guys to cause trouble. As the industry leader, shouldn’t Huayi do something about it?”

“This…” Wang Zhonglei hesitated, glancing at Feng Kuzi, and thought to himself: I don’t have any means to deal with Chen Xiu either.

However, Feng Kuzi saw his hesitation earlier and said, "All five movies released by Huayi this year have flopped. By the end of the year, only my film 'Pan Jinlian' will be left, but it is an art film, and I'm afraid the box office will not be able to support it."

"what do you mean?"

"That kid Chen Xiu has a 'Detective Chinatown' movie in his hands, right? I heard from Baoqiang a while ago that he's planning to shoot a sequel. If Huayi can get a piece of it, their performance will look better."

"Even Huayi Brothers can't get a share of this movie."

Wang Zhonglei both wanted and regretted the huge goldmine that was "Detective Chinatown".

In his view, if the first film could break 10 billion yuan at the box office, the second one would definitely be no worse. But he also knew that Chen Xiu would definitely not let Huayi invest in it.

Seeing the interest on Wang Zhonglei's face, Feng Kuzi chuckled and threatened, "If this kid's projects all succeed, and those internet people see that we can do it without them, then we're in for a rough time."

"Tsk, just say what you're thinking."

"Hehe, I've never met Chen Xiu, so I can't say whether I like or dislike him. It's just that he's too reckless in his actions and lacks respect for us seniors, so he deserves to be taught a lesson."

"There's nothing about him that can be targeted."

"If he doesn't have any, then what about the people around him? A young man, good-looking and rich, how could he not have a few female confidantes?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhonglei immediately sat up straight, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

He stared intently at the computer screen, which displayed Meng Ziyi's official makeup photo. She was a beautiful but somewhat foolish woman in a palace dress, looking radiant and elegant with stunning beauty.

The comments section is full of people saying that Chen Xiu and Meng Ziyi are collaborating for the second time, and they look like a good match...

Wang Zhonglei looked up Meng Ziyi's information on the computer and excitedly discovered that her agency was Yongle Film & Television!
Huayi had already become a major shareholder of Yongle Film & Television several years ago, but it has never interfered with Yongle's business, let alone paid attention to the minor artists under Yongle.

However, not interfering much does not mean that Wang Zhonglei is incapable of interfering.

While directly interfering in an artist's management contract might seem like making a mountain out of a molehill, if it can cause Chen Xiu some trouble and, incidentally, secure an investment share for "Detective Chinatown 2," then this overreaction is worthwhile...

Thinking of this, Wang Zhonglei didn't pay any attention to Feng Kuzi and directly took out his phone to call Cheng Lidong, the chairman of Yongle Film and Television.

"Hey, Mr. Cheng, I have something to ask you."

"Mr. Wang, please speak."

"What is the relationship between your company's artist, Meng Ziyi, and Chen Xiu?"

"Well, Mr. Chen did indeed speak to us, asking us to try our best to take care of Xiao Meng, and also to help Xiao Meng find resources..."

A knowing smile appeared on Wang Zhonglei's face, and a plan instantly came to mind.

"Can Meng Ziyi's agency contract be transferred to Huayi?"

"This one……"

"We're all family. A management contract for an artist shouldn't put Mr. Cheng in too much of a difficult position, right?"

"Ok, I see."

After hanging up the phone, Wang Zhonglei finally revealed a smug smile.

Since the feud began at the box office celebration banquet for "Detective Chinatown" at the beginning of the year, and then his failure to win the investment share for "Wolf Warrior 2", his grudge against Chen Xiu has only grown bigger and bigger.

However, since Chen Xiu himself had almost no weaknesses, even though Wang Zhonglei hated him to the core, he couldn't take any substantial revenge.

Fortunately, after Feng Kuzi's reminder today, Wang Zhonglei found a weakness that he believed could make Chen Xiu submit.

……

"Dingle bell! Dingle bell!"

The sudden ringing of a cell phone interrupted Chen Xiu and Meng Ziyi's cosplay.

The two stopped what they were doing, feeling a bit annoyed. Chen Xiu got up to get his phone, and when he saw that the caller ID showed Cheng Lidong, he glanced thoughtfully at Meng Ziyi before answering the call.

"Hello, Chairman Cheng, what's wrong?"

"Mr. Chen, Mr. Wang from Huayi just called me, saying he wants a contract with Ziyi as an agent. I think it would be better if I told you about this..."

Chen Xiu grabbed Meng Ziyi's mischievous hands, sat up straight, and turned on the speakerphone on her phone.

Meng Ziyi looked at his actions with suspicion, not understanding what he meant.

Chen Xiu said into the phone, "Chairman Cheng, are you saying that you transferred Ziyi's agency contract to Huayi?"

"It hasn't been transferred yet, but that's what Mr. Wang means. I'm sorry, Mr. Chen, Huayi is a major shareholder of Yongle..."

“I understand, I’m already very grateful that you made this call.”

Chen Xiu knew that Cheng Lidong's phone call was probably intended to keep both sides in check, and that Huayi was unaware of the situation.

"Chairman Cheng, I have some things to take care of. How about we talk another time?"

"Understood, understood. I won't bother you any longer."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Xiu was met with Meng Ziyi's flustered and helpless face.

"Brother Xiu, have I been sold by Yongle?"

(End of this chapter)