Huayu Tianxian: This director is such a hypocrite!

Chapter 121 If movies can't beat them, then online trolls will.

It was sunny on March 9.

Nine o'clock in the morning, the chairman's office on the top floor of Feiye Group.

As the sun gradually rises outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, a few rays of sunlight reflect through the glass, revealing fine dust particles floating in the air.

If Ye Chong were here, he would definitely shout: "Tyndall effect!"

He was indeed there, but the three people inside were somewhat somber.

Chen Zhixi walked back and forth in the room in her high heels, the heels tapping softly on the floor.

Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer. She walked up to Ye Chong's desk, raised her hand, and slammed the report onto it: "You tell me to calm down? How can I calm down? Look for yourself. In three days, our box office is less than two million, while Huayi's 'Rob-B-Hood' made fifteen million. That's more than seven times less."

Ye Chong was sitting with his legs crossed, looking at the script on his computer. When he heard this, he twitched his lips into a nonchalant smile.

"Sister hope, don't worry, this is an art film."

"I know it's an art film!" Chen Zhixi crossed her arms, pouted, and turned away. "But I'm still a little resentful. Those two guys from Huayi are probably making fun of us right now!"

Ye Chong clicked his tongue, picked up the report, and glanced at it: "The gap is indeed huge; it's a Waterloo. Heh—I bet the two CEOs are celebrating right now!"

He spoke casually, but his two sharp eyebrows furrowed slightly.

No one knew better than him that this wasn't just a matter of box office success or failure; it was a head-on battle between Feiye Films and Huayi Brothers.

Although it is indeed an art film, fans don't care whether it's art film or not, and neither do the rivals.

The thought had barely formed when Yang Tianzhen, sitting on the sofa some distance away, pushed up her glasses: "Chairman Ye, it's not just the box office that's bad. There are already online trolls stirring up trouble, saying that 'The Legend of the Stone Seeker' is just being deliberately mysterious, and that you're just trying to make money off the box office. Those old rumors about you sexually harassing actresses have also resurfaced, all aimed at us."

Chen Zhixi's brows furrowed deeply as he turned and sat down opposite Tianzhen on the sofa. "Bringing up old grievances? Are you sure it's Huayi? We've offended quite a few people, including Chen Jinfei and Tangren."

Yang Tianzhen nodded firmly: "Sister Xi, I've checked. The source of the online trolls is Huayi. Without a doubt, it's the work of the two Wangs. Our first foray into art films was a huge success, and they want to take this opportunity to suppress our reputation to its lowest point."

"He can't suppress it!"

In the distance, Ye Chong stood up and slowly walked towards the sofa: "How can a Silver Lion director suppress the hype? What we need to do now is figure out how to turn public opinion around!"

Meanwhile, at the headquarters of Huayi Brothers, in the private office of General Manager Wang.

"Ha ha ha ha----"

The eldest son sat with his legs crossed, holding a glass of red wine, gently swirling the wine in his hand, his gaze following his excited younger brother.

Mr. Wang, with a cigar dangling from his lips, had a smirk that seemed to reach for the sky.

He paced around the room for a few steps before finally settling on the sofa and plopping down. "Brother, we've really won big this time! That kid Ye Chong thought he could salvage his reputation with an art film, but we just unleashed a blockbuster and crushed them to pieces!"

"Hahaha—that feels so good!"

The CEO took a sip of red wine, his Adam's apple bobbing, his face remaining expressionless: "Ye Chong isn't so easy to deal with. He's young and already in the chairman's position; he must have some ability. We can't get too cocky. Besides—"

"~~~" Young Master Wang leaned forward, stubbed out his cigar in the ashtray on the coffee table, and picked up a glass of red wine from the table: "Brother, don't worry. I understand what you're saying, art films and commercial films, you know."

"I've already made arrangements. Isn't Yang Tianzhen good at using online trolls? Let's give him a taste of his own medicine. We'll hire online trolls to relentlessly attack 'The Legend of the Stone Seeker,' stir up some dirt on Ye Chong, and make him lose both box office and critical acclaim. No matter how he tries to deny it, dirt and box office numbers can't be faked. You know what netizens are like; they're just pawns to be used as pawns."

The king nodded secretly; what his brother said was indeed very true.

No matter how Ye Chong tries to deny it, the internet has left its mark. He's a piece of trash, even if he's not shit!

He raised his hand and downed the glass of red wine in one gulp: "Well done. Money is no problem. As long as we can dampen Ye Chong's momentum, it's worth it no matter how much. I want to see if this Chairman Fei Ye can withstand this shock."

The two exchanged a glance, everything understood without a word.

the other side.

In Fei Ye's office, after listening to Yang Tianzhen's report, Ye Chong's smile faded a little, but he was not flustered.

He leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms behind his head, and after a few seconds of silence, suddenly sat up straight: "How about this, Tianzhen, let's fight back. The plot of 'Rob-B-Hood' is cliché, and they even cast mainlanders as supporting characters. We can start from both sides of the strait—"

"No, no, Chairman Ye, no, we can't touch on cross-strait issues, that's the premise!" Yang Tianzhen hurriedly waved her hand, her brows furrowed.

"Secondly, 'Rob-B-Hood' is a commercial blockbuster with a wide audience and its box office has already taken off. If we keep criticizing it, we'll only get bitten back and accused of being a sore loser. In that case, we won't be able to save the film, and we'll also damage Fei Ye's reputation. Besides, our film itself is not bad. It has a Douban rating of 8.9, while 'Rob-B-Hood' only has 7.2. That's our confidence."

Chen Zhixi nodded in agreement: "Tianzhen is right. We can't go head-to-head with them. Art films and commercial films are not in the same category. The audiences are different, so it's normal for there to be a difference in box office revenue. Actively slandering them would lower our image, not fit Feiye's style, and would make us a laughing stock in the industry."

Ye Chong raised an eyebrow, leaned forward slightly, and looked at Yang Tianzhen with interest: "Oh? So what's your idea?"

Yang Tianzhen's eyelids twitched, and she cleared her throat: "My suggestion is, don't actively slander, but instead guide word-of-mouth. Let the online trolls focus on saying that commercial films and art films are not comparable, and that box office numbers don't define a film's quality. They should promote our film, *The Legend of the Stone*."

The film's plot depth and artistic value should be highlighted. Then, the ratings of the two films should be released, clearly indicating their relative merits. Netizens will immediately understand, which will both reverse public opinion and expose the tricks of Huayi Brothers' paid online trolls—a win-win situation.

Ye Chong's eyes lit up, and he patted Yang Tianzhen on the shoulder: "Not bad, as expected of my golden right hand!"

In fact, Ye Chong's impulsive actions just now were deliberate, with the aim of studying Tianzhen.

After praising Yang Tianzhen, Ye Chong turned to Chen Zhixi and said, "Sister Xi, let's do it this way. Could you contact President Cao again and see if we can delete some of the negative comments online?"

Chen Zhixi looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to keep bothering General Manager Cao?"

Ye Chong frowned; what Chen Zhixi said was indeed a hidden danger.

I only met Cao Guowei briefly last time, and we only made a verbal agreement to partner up. I still need to get him more deeply involved.

The programmers and executives who went to Melika Laozha for training have just returned. We'll develop the prototype of Weibo, give him shares, and let him seize power at Sina!

"I'll talk to him about this later when I have time. You should contact him first."

""

"Understood.

""