The director starts by learning from the abilities of renowned directors.

Chapter 139 made the audience laugh so hard.

On the 25th.

Shen Qing invited Liu Yifei out for dinner, and afterwards took her home. Upon entering, they immediately embraced and quickly made love. Afterwards, they chatted while watching TV, and when they got sleepy, they went to their room and made love again before bed. Only then did Shen Qing propose transferring her management contract to him, offering her 8% of the company's shares, vesting over four years. Liu Yifei was initially hesitant, but then, for some reason, she hugged Shen Qing and agreed. However, she added that while she agreed, she needed to discuss it with her mother first to ensure it would work out. Shen Qing agreed, of course.

"Did you know that the female lead, Mo Ying, in 'The Great Wall' was based on your image?"

"Really?" Liu Yifei rested her chin on Shen Qing's chest, staring at him with her big, watery eyes. "Are you officially inviting me to play Mo Ying?"

"From the day the first word of the script is written, the role is yours."

"Really? Didn't I agree to transfer my agency contract to your new company so that the role would be mine?" Liu Yifei suddenly sat up and said.

Whether your agency contract is transferred to my company or not, the role of Mo Ying is yours.

Shen Qing simply disliked her continued association with that Red Star Film Studio. He never intended to use a role as leverage to force her to sign with his company. Given her current status, she wouldn't be threatened by a single role.

"My mom really valued the opportunity to play the female lead in 'The Great Wall.' I told her that I only got the role because I signed with her company, and that's why my mom supported my decision to leave Red Starwood."

"So you're going to say that to your mother? The role and the contract are tied together?"

"That's right, that's how it should be said!" Liu Yifei leaned back against Shen Qing, resting her chin on his chest, her face beaming with smiles.

The two did it again before getting out of bed in the morning, and then Liu Yifei told Shen Qing that sleeping at Shen Qing's place could help her lose weight.

"Are you saying I don't have enough snacks at home? Tell me what you want to eat, and I'll prepare more next time."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei leaned close to Shen Qing's ear and said slyly, "I came once and did it three times. Each time, I felt like I lost two ounces from my bones. Coming to you once is like losing six ounces."

That one sentence completely baffled Shen Qing. What kind of strange thought process was this?!

The next day, Liu Yifei called Shen Qing, saying that her mother, Liu Xiaoli, wanted to see him. Shen Qing thought this was normal; it involved his daughter's management contract, such a big matter, of course she would want to see Shen Qing in person.

This was Shen Qing's first time visiting Liu's home, and what impressed him most was the large garden that could accommodate a seven-a-side football field. Living in such a house in Beijing, where land is incredibly valuable, was truly luxurious.

"Was Director Shen born in 80?"

Liu Yifei sat opposite her mother, holding her arm. While her mother asked about Shen Qing's age, she secretly made a face at Shen Qing across from her.

"Yes, from 80."

"He's 7 years older than Yifei, which isn't a lot. To have achieved what he has at 30 is quite remarkable."

"Auntie, you flatter me."

"I'm at ease entrusting Yifei to you. You have good resources there, which will also benefit Yifei's career."

"Mom!" Liu Yifei interrupted her mother in time.

"Look at me, I've gotten so far off-topic while I was talking," Liu Xiaoli said with an apologetic smile. "Then let's transfer Yifei's contract. Auntie trusts you."

"Don't worry, Auntie, I will definitely take good care of Yifei."

Shen Qing said solemnly, then couldn't help but exclaim "Huh?" in his heart. Why did this scene and this conversation sound so familiar? Isn't this the kind of dialogue that only happens between a mother-in-law and son-in-law in a melodramatic soap opera? He came to discuss the transfer of his agency contract, but why did it sound like he came to propose marriage? Shen Qing couldn't help but look at Liu Yifei, who suppressed a laugh and looked away when she met Shen Qing's gaze, pretending to look at the ceiling.

In fact, as soon as Shen Qing suggested that Liu Yifei transfer her contract to his company, Liu Yifei realized that she needed her mother's support. Normally, her mother would not support this unless the person who attracted her to transfer the contract was someone her daughter truly liked.

That's why we had that conversation that sounded like that between a mother-in-law and son-in-law.

The fact that her daughter's contract was being transferred to the company of someone she liked was very similar to the situation of marrying off a daughter. Liu Yifei was unsure if she would ever have the chance to actually marry Shen Qing in this lifetime. If not, this low-budget version of marrying Shen Qing would be just as good.

When Shen Qing first mentioned wanting Liu Yifei to switch contracts, Liu Yifei immediately thought of today's situation, which was somewhat similar to the scenario she had longed for—introducing Shen Qing to her parents. That's why she readily agreed at the time.

The contract transfer won't be finalized quickly, but since both Liu Xiaoli and Liu Yifei have agreed, there's now real hope.

When Shen Qing left the Liu family home, Liu Yifei came out to see her off. Shen Qing couldn't help but tease her, "When Auntie told me she was relieved to leave you with me, I almost called her 'Mom'."

"When did my mom become our mom?"

"My aunt gave birth to such a beautiful daughter like you, of course I want to call her Mom."

On January 28th, the cast and crew of "Lost in Thailand" held a premiere at Wanda International Cinema in Beijing. Since filming wrapped, Gao Yuanyuan hadn't seen Shen Qing for quite some time. The last few times they met, she had to call Shen Qing first, which annoyed her. But she still had to call, because meeting him would be much more enjoyable.

It had been a long time since they last met. Before seeing Shen Qing again, I was quite resentful. We had only been together for a short time, and he was already done playing around? But after meeting him, all my previous resentment vanished.

Are you still busy after the premiere?

"It's over, time to sleep. What are you busy with?"

"Really? I thought you were so busy every night that you didn't even have time to sleep."

"It sounds a bit sour to me."

"Is there?"

"have."

"I'm not sour."

"If it doesn't hurt, then it must be itchy? Shall I scratch it for you?"

"roll!"

Fan Bingbing also came to show her support. She saw Shen Qing and Gao Yuanyuan chatting in the corner from afar, and couldn't help but tease Shen Qing.

"You're pretty good, you've managed to snag another stunning beauty."

Shen Qing chuckled but didn't respond.

Fan Bingbing was genuinely angry this time. Initially, she didn't really care that Shen Qing had other women around him; that's how it is in the industry, and there are countless women who are even more promiscuous than Shen Qing. But as time went on, while she became more and more sincere towards Shen Qing, Shen Qing's number of women also increased. The combination of these two changes made Fan Bingbing very upset.

Baoqiang may seem honest and simple, but he actually has high emotional intelligence. Huang Bo is also known for his high emotional intelligence. With these two at the premiere, the atmosphere was quite good.

However, Shen Qing remained the focus of reporters' most eager interviews.

"Director Shen, when do you plan to make your next science fiction film? We know that your 'Gravity' was an unparalleled success, grossing $15.83 billion and ranking among the top three films in global film history. Almost all movie fans are eagerly anticipating your new science fiction work, but you subsequently made 'Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons' and 'Lost in Thailand,' which many viewers find puzzling. Why did you choose to make a sequel to 'Lost on Journey'? The original only grossed a little over $1 million. Some netizens even said that choosing 'Ip Man 2' would have been better than choosing 'Lost on Journey 2.' Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans about this?"

Shen Qing took the microphone from the host and said, "Science fiction is important, and we will still make films in the near future, but comedy is equally important. I chose to make 'Lost in Thailand' because I judged that this subject matter has great potential. Well, it doesn't have much potential internationally, and it won't make much money, but in the domestic market, I think anything is possible."

"But to break the box office record set by 'Gravity' in China, the only way is through a new sci-fi blockbuster or a kung fu blockbuster, isn't it?"

"No, comedies actually have the greatest chance. 'Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons' grossed 12.2 billion yuan, which is the closest domestic film to 'Gravity's' 14.6 billion yuan, isn't it? And 'Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons' is a comedy."

"But Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons is a comedy blockbuster."

"In China, the film genre that is best at achieving big results with small budgets is comedy."

Huang Bo and Wang Baoqiang were also interviewed separately. Then the lights went out and the movie screening officially began.

The man in seat 17 of the fifth row was a man in his 30s named Zhang Yang. He was a die-hard fan of Shen Qing, a fandom that reached its peak after the broadcast of "Gravity".

His experience is actually quite common. Many of Shen Qing's die-hard fans started with "Gravity." Previously, science fiction films were never a strength of the Chinese, and Chinese films couldn't even crack the top 300 of the world's all-time box office. But with Shen Qing, it went from not even making the top 300 to breaking into the top three. If this had been said before "Gravity" was released, who in their right mind would have believed it?

It was precisely because of the phenomenal success of "Gravity" that a large number of viewers became fans of Shen Qing after watching and learning about it.

However, Zhang Yang's purpose in coming to the premiere today was not simply to support Shen Qing, but to collect information because he wanted to write an article that denigrated "Lost in Thailand".

Yes, he is a fan of Shen Qing, but now he is going to write an article criticizing "Lost in Thailand".

If you can make a movie like "Gravity", why bother making low-budget comedies? Just keep making sci-fi blockbusters and keep dominating the film markets in China, North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Isn't that great?

However, as a fan of Shen Qing, he couldn't directly criticize her. Zhang Yang had already decided that after watching "Lost in Thailand," he would write an article criticizing Chen Zhixi.

It must be that Chen Zhixi only values ​​short-term economic benefits, and that's why she pushed Shen Qing to film a project like "Lost in Thailand" that is easy, requires little investment, and has low risk.

Is Chen Zhixi planning to turn China's only director capable of making sci-fi blockbusters into someone like other mediocre directors who can only make low-budget slapstick comedies?

The movie started, and Zhang Yang was fully focused.

The movie opens with the concept of an "oil tycoon," where Xu Lang, played by Shen Qing, drops a drop of oil into gasoline, and the gasoline begins to grow and multiply out of thin air.

Xu Lang is focused on developing the oil empire, while Gao Bo (played by Huang Bo) advocates selling it to the French in one go. Since Xu Lang and Gao Bo have equal shares, whoever can obtain authorization from the third shareholder, Lao Zhou, will win. Xu Lang's dedication to the oil empire research has caused a serious rift in his relationship with his wife, An An (played by Gao Yuanyuan), who files for divorce.

"Does this oil tycoon comply with the law of conservation of energy? But if that equally ridiculous disagreement terminal in 'If You Are the One' can sell for £200 million, then the oil tycoon is alright. It's just a comedic device, so don't take it too seriously. Also, it's another plot about a midlife crisis and the wife filing for divorce. That's really classic."

The beginning was fine, but who is Shen Qing?

You're a world-class director who made "Gravity," and you make something like this? Shouldn't you go and reflect on your actions?

A director's talent shouldn't be wasted, but making this kind of movie is a waste of that talent!

In the movie, Xu Lang, played by Shen Qing, takes a plane to Thailand, and then Wang Baoqiang appears, holding a potted cactus.

From the moment Baoqiang appears, the film's jokes become increasingly frequent:

One of my wishes for coming to Thailand was to visit the Taj Mahal, but the Taj Mahal is in India, okay?!

Xu Lang was given a bunch of photos, supposedly to see Thai ladyboys, but one of them was actually a photo of Fan Bingbing.

"Is this a ladyboy?"

"No, this is my girlfriend."

"Is this your girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"This is Fan Bingbing!"

"Yes, Fan Bingbing is my girlfriend!"

"Is Fan Bingbing your girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"You cut this out of a magazine."

"No, I cut this out of a newspaper."

Zhang Yang couldn't help but laugh along with the other audience members in the theater, especially since Fan Bingbing was sitting in the first row, making the scene even funnier.

Next, Xu Lang said that Wang Bao was sick, and Wang Bao immediately retorted, "How did you know?!" This caused another round of laughter in the theater.

Wang Baoqiang is a walking comedy, even taking a pill is hilarious – it's his talent, something others can't imitate. The more Xu Lang tries to shake him off, the more he can't. He casually mentions contacting him after returning to China, to which Wang Baoqiang replies, "How can you contact me without my number?" After giving the number, he forces Xu Lang to memorize it. Xu Lang says he's memorized it, but Wang Baoqiang insists on reciting it from memory. The audience laughs at Xu Lang's frantic attempts to escape.

Xu Lang finally managed to get rid of Wang Baoqiang, who played Wang Bao, and said as they parted, "I wish you and Fan Bingbing a happy and fulfilling life together!" which immediately caused a burst of laughter in the theater.

As soon as Xu Lang turned around, Wang Bao returned and stood behind him. Then Wang Bao solemnly apologized to Xu Lang, saying that he had lied, "I'm sorry, brother, I just lied to you. Actually, Fan Bingbing is not my girlfriend yet." The audience burst into laughter again, especially when they saw Fan Bingbing in the first row covering her mouth and laughing so hard that her body was shaking. The audience found it even funnier.

Zhang Yang laughed even more exaggeratedly than the audience around him: "Not your girlfriend yet? Does that mean she will be in the future? Hahaha!"

Xu Lang calculated Wang Bao's scallion pancake business as a franchise business worth hundreds of millions of yuan, and Wang Bao kept agreeing with him. Then, when Xu Lang said he wanted to buy Wang Bao's recipe, Wang Bao's recipe was that he had to make it himself, he couldn't hire anyone, he couldn't freeze it, and it had to be freshly made.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Yang and the other audience members in the theater burst into laughter again.

"This movie—if you take the plot out of its own context, it seems like everything else is just average, but when you put them together, there seem to be very few movies in China that make you laugh from beginning to end like this!"

Next, Xu Lang and Wang Bao arrived at the hotel and even encountered a beautiful woman in the elevator.