The Rise of Chinese Entertainment in 2008

At the time, Mr. Wang offered generous terms to recruit him into Huayi.

After Gu Ning refused, he increased his offer and asked Gu Ning to reconsider.

Although Gu Ning didn't have a good impression of Hua Yi, there was no conflict between them, so she couldn't refuse too decisively and could only say that she would consider it.

Later, he spread the news about Liu Yifei, and even Xiao Wang called him.

He said that Huayi has many artists, and if someone is just playing a supporting role, he can arrange for Li Bingbing to come.

Gu Ning declined directly, saying that the role was small and the news had already spread, so it wouldn't be good to replace her.

Because his role was small and Huayi wanted to sign him, and didn't want to ruin things with him over this, Mr. Wang didn't say anything.

After hearing the story, Liu Yifei asked, "Will you sign with Huayi Brothers?"

"Won't."

Gu Ning shook her head and said, "I run my own company perfectly well. Only someone with a screw loose would work for someone else."

"Wouldn't that offend Huayi?" Liu Yifei asked worriedly.

Huayi is currently the industry leader, so it wouldn't be a big deal if Gu Ning signed with Huayi.

He refused to sign with Huayi, and even though Huayi had explicitly mentioned it, he still used her. How could Huayi not retaliate?

Are you worried about me?

Gu Ning smiled slightly and placed her hand on Liu Yifei's leg.

He had previously thought Liu Yifei had poor fashion sense, but he was really wrong about her.

Liu Yifei's poor fashion sense is due to her casual dressing; the instinct of women to dress up for themselves still exists.

Today, she wore a printed sweatshirt on top and a black pleated skirt on the bottom.

Although it's almost May, the weather is still a bit chilly at night, so I'm wearing flesh-colored tights.

This thing is actually just thicker stockings. It's been around for a while, but it hasn't been marketed as a "bare leg artifact" yet.

Youthful and beautiful, yet stylish.

"Snapped!"

Liu Yifei slapped Gu Ning's hand away, blushing, and said, "Drive carefully!"

"I just wanted to see if you were dressed too lightly, so you wouldn't get cold."

Gu Ning smiled and withdrew her hand, saying, "You overestimate Huayi. In the film and television industry, ultimately, it's the work that matters."

Huayi's so-called industry leader is only significant in terms of size.

It does not have a monopolistic influence over the industry itself.

In other industries, leading companies have almost formed a monopoly. It is only because the country does not allow this situation to exist that some small companies of the same kind are allowed to exist.

However, they already hold a dominant position in the industry.

Huayi has absolutely no dominant position.

Moreover, such companies are unlikely to emerge in the film and television industry.

Because the power to approve scripts and finished films rests with the state.

In the film industry, the only area where individuals can have significant influence is the cinema chain.

However, Huayi does not own its own cinema chains; it only holds shares in some cinema chains through equity investments.

Moreover, they don't have many shares and therefore don't have much say in the matter.

They can secure good screenings for their own company's films, but they can't block other people's films.

Theaters also need to make money. Regardless of how well a movie ultimately performs at the box office, if other theaters have it when it's first released but one theater doesn't, it will definitely cause a loss of audience.

Audiences may choose to pay to enter a theater because of a particular film, but they will not only go to one theater to watch a movie.

Seeing how casually Gu Ning spoke, Liu Yifei felt it was more like he was comforting her. Just as she was about to speak, Gu Ning said, "We've arrived. Put on your mask and hat."

Upon hearing this, she didn't have time to say anything more and put on her mask and hat.

Gu Ning parked the car and took Liu Yifei by elevator to the Western restaurant on the eighteenth floor.

…………

The private room was dimly lit, with red candles lit on the candlesticks on the dining table.

Gu Ning poured the decanted red wine for the two of them, raised her glass to clink with Liu Yifei's, took a sip, and smiled as she put down her glass.

"Are you satisfied with this?"

Liu Yifei put down her wine glass, looked at Gu Ning and said, "We can try dating, but I have one condition."

"Tell me about it," Gu Ning said.

"We will not announce it to the public for the time being, nor will we tell anyone," Liu Yifei said.

"good!"

Gu Ning did not hesitate and nodded with a smile.

In the entertainment industry, very few couples publicly announce their relationships unless they are photographed by paparazzi.

That's why Gu Ning isn't afraid to confirm their relationship.

"Let's eat."

As Gu Ning spoke, she picked up her knife and fork.

The two chatted as they ate. Half an hour later, their candlelight dinner came to an end.

After drinking half a bottle of red wine, Liu Yifei's face was rosy, and she looked quite lovely in the candlelight.

Seeing that Gu Ning was staring at her, Liu Yifei said somewhat embarrassedly, "It's getting late, I should go back."

"But I've been drinking, and it's easy to cause an accident if I drive."

Gu Ning placed her hand on Liu Yifei's and said, "Besides, I have to rush back to the film set first thing tomorrow morning. Can you bear to leave me alone tonight?"

"Then...then I'll find you a hotel nearby, take you there, and then I'll go back," Liu Yifei said, bowing her head.

"it is good."

Gu Ning chuckled inwardly. They'd already gone to a hotel; she wasn't going to let him escape.

He had just learned from Liu Yifei during dinner that her mother had gone back to Jiangcheng today.

The two checked out and left; there was a five-star hotel nearby.

Upon entering the hotel, Gu Ning asked Liu Yifei to wait in the rest area while she booked a room.

He refused the hotel's offer to lead the way, and instead took Liu Yifei to the floor where the room was located, found the room corresponding to the room card, and opened the door.

He booked a suite, and inside the room was a living room of several tens of square meters.

After entering the room, Liu Yifei looked around at the living room layout, then went to the French windows and looked at the view outside.

Gu Ning took off his coat and hung it up, then came up behind Liu Yifei and hugged her waist from behind.

"The scenery outside is so-so, what's so interesting about it?"

"It's nice to see the night view too."

Liu Yifei said, "Beijing has changed a lot in the past few years. It's been a long time since I've stood on a high place to see the night view of Beijing."

Feeling a sudden warmth on her neck, Liu Yifei said in a fluster, "I should go back now. You have to leave early tomorrow morning, so get some rest."

"Don't leave tonight."

Gu Ning turned Liu Yifei's head over and kissed her.

…………

An hour later, Gu Ning carried her out of the bathroom, and the two went to bed.

A few minutes later, Liu Yifei regained some strength and angrily bit his shoulder.

"Hiss... Are you a dog?"

"I bumped my knee in the bathtub, and it still hurts."

Feeling the pain in her knee, Liu Yifei angrily pinched Gu Ning's waist again.

"That's not my fault, I told you to hold on tight."

"You still dare to talk back!"

Liu Yifei pinched him again, feeling embarrassed and annoyed.

"Okay, okay, I was wrong."

Gu Ning grabbed her hand. "Do women all know how to pinch people without being taught?"

"What are your plans for the future?" Gu Ning asked.

What plans could I possibly have?

Liu Yifei calmly said, "When I'm not filming, I rest, read books, and study to calm myself down."

Before, when I was in school, I was always busy filming or attending events, and I fell behind in many classes. It's a good thing that I can finally have time to study now.

Although Liu Yifei spoke calmly, Gu Ning could still detect some resentment in her tone.