How did I become famous?

Inside the meeting room, Fang Bie still rested his hands, fingers interlaced, under his chin.

The first seat to his left was occupied by Su Mulin.

The first seat to his right was occupied by Liu Mang.

Su Mulin's eyes were filled with a smile.

Liu Mang was so excited he went crazy.

If his physical condition hadn't prevented it, he would have even wanted to do a Thomas-style turn on the long conference table.

Apart from him, the other "amateur players" in the eyes of others were not much better than him.

These guys were excitedly discussing Weibo.

"Have you guys seen it on Weibo? Our movie is trending at number one and number two!"

"Of course I saw it! I don't know who hired these idiot trolls! This is completely reverse propaganda! Anyone who didn't know better would think they were hired by us to promote ourselves! The person who hired these trolls must be our mole!"

"Hahaha! Absolutely! That guy is hopelessly stupid!"

The more they talked, the darker Fang Bie's face became.

Who the hell are you calling names?!

Liu Mang, quick-witted as ever, noticed Fang Bie's odd expression and promptly coughed twice to interrupt the others' excited discussion: "Ahem! What nonsense are you all talking about! This is definitely a publicity stunt orchestrated by Director Fang! From the moment he mentioned using scarcity marketing, I knew he had a backup plan!"

Liu Mang gave Fang Bie a grateful look: "Old Fang, you knew all along, didn't you? Otherwise, there's no reason why all those online trolls and influencers would be posting content related to our movie. Shouldn't we release the trailer these next couple of days while the hype is high? We've already prepared it!"

Fang Bie's face grew increasingly dark.

Of course he knew a long time ago!

Because he wrote this manuscript!

But he did it to make the movie flop, not to promote it!

"Don't get too cocky," Fang said, trying to dampen everyone's spirits. "These are all superficial things; ultimately, it's the movies that matter. I don't want anyone to get ahead through these crooked means."

The atmosphere was somewhat cold; apart from Su Mulin nodding in agreement, no one else spoke.

In the end, it was Liu Mang who stepped forward.

"Old Fang, everyone's just having fun, there's no need to make such a big deal out of it, right?"

Fang Bie gave him a cold look: "I don't want you to be like this after you go to Speed ​​Shadow. If you're not ashamed, Xiao Lin will be too."

The crowd gradually realized that something was wrong.

Liu Mang frowned and asked, "Old Fang, what...do you mean by that?"

"It's nothing," Fang Bie said casually. "We've already spoken with President Su. After this movie finishes its run, you'll all be working at Speed ​​Film."

Speedy Cinema is not only the largest chain cinema in the country, but also one of the top film and television companies in China.

Moreover, it has the backing of the behemoth, the Su Group.

Being able to go there is basically a sign that you've reached the top of the domestic film and television industry pyramid.

This is also the compensation that Fang Bie gave them.

He could tell that these laymen actually had a passion for making movies.

He was actually doing it for himself; this movie was destined to disappoint them after its release.

Some people may be discouraged and never recover, or they may stay away from the film and television industry altogether.

Although Fang Bie wanted those houses, he wouldn't cut off these outsiders' hopes of entering the industry.

So he had already figured out a way out for Liu Mang and the others.

If the movie flops, then Old Man Su will instruct Speed ​​Film to take over Liu Mang and his team, and will also find industry experts to guide them on their official journey.

Their future will be bright.

Fang Bie, on the other hand, could go home and become a hardworking landlord.

All are happy.

After a long silence, Liu Mang suddenly spoke up: "No, I'm not leaving."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Yes, Director Fang, we're not going anywhere else, we'll just follow you!"

They were naturally very touched that Fang Bie was so considerate of them.

At this point, they could no longer abandon Fang Bie and leave on their own.

Fang Bie went to such great lengths to create conditions for them, and unconditionally supported and trusted them.

If they leave at this time, are they still human?

People should learn to be grateful.

There may be some troublemakers among these people, but there will never be any ungrateful wretches!

Fang was very moved.

He felt he did almost nothing during filming and editing, but these guys "supported" him without complaint as he sped toward the hard life of a landlord.

He was of course grateful to everyone.

But the more they acted this way, the more guilty Fang felt.

Although these people were all laymen, Liu Mang had brought them in in order to make use of them.

But they trusted themselves so much...

I can't let them down!

"No, you must go. Speed ​​Shadow is a great stage, and you are all unpolished gems. I believe that you can truly be polished from unpolished gems into treasures that will amaze the world at Speed ​​Shadow."

Liu Mang panicked: "Without you, we are nothing! Anyway, I, Old Liu, am not going anywhere!"

Fang Bie is everyone's benefactor!

Without a plan, none of us know if we'll ever be able to return to the film and television industry!

Moreover, Fang Bie trusted them greatly and was willing to delegate authority to them!

Don't bear all the external pressure on them without telling them!

Liu Mang is not that kind of ungrateful scum!

Fang Bie sighed and began to make up an excuse: "Actually, I'm doing this for your own good. How should I put it... I'm a bit of a pretentious artsy type at heart. I've always believed that as a director, ultimately, the work itself should speak for itself. That's why I have an extreme aversion to publicity and such, and I'm sure you've all felt that."

He paused, then glanced around: "But these days, even the best wine needs advertising. Some movies spend half or more of their budget on promotion alone. My movie is destined not to be a success, but that's my obsession. You don't need to waste your time with me."

Please! Just get to Speed ​​Shadow already!

I really don't want to feel guilty for the rest of my life!

No one spoke.

For a long, long time...

Liu Mang took off his glasses, wiped his reddened eyes, and choked out, "You treated me like a national hero, and I will repay you with the same devotion! It's your side that gave us this opportunity! There's no way I'm leaving!"

He gritted his teeth, stood up, slammed his hand on the table, and looked at the others, saying through gritted teeth, "Even if this movie never becomes a big hit, I'm willing to follow Lao Fang and make movies for the rest of my life! I won't stop any of you from leaving; after all, this is an opportunity we've all been waiting for. But!"

He clenched his fist and spat out the words through gritted teeth: "From now on, don't even mention knowing me, Liu Mang! I, Liu Mang, am not worthy of your name!"

"Bullshit!" Luo Wei slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "So you, Liu Mang, are the only one with any sense of loyalty, huh?! You, Liu Mang, are the only good guy, huh?! I'm telling you! Even if you run away, I'm not leaving!"

"Exactly! It's the same no matter who they're talking about!"

"Liu Mang just loves to play the hero!"

"Quiet!" Fang Bie shouted, interrupting their "chicken blood".

He sighed deeply. "Are these guys crazy?"

But he admitted that he was indeed a little touched.

He has already decided that when he goes back home and becomes a landlord, whenever Liu Mang and the others need a script, he can use the classic movies from his past life that he still remembers to make them!

And it's free!

After all, Liu Mang and his team contributed to his acquisition of a street of storefronts and an entire building.

But not now!

If this movie doesn't flop, then everything else is pointless!

He can certainly produce some classic films for everyone to make later.

But his brain isn't a computer, so he can't remember that many movies.

With each new project, there's one less to be made; who knows when he'll run out of ideas and be finished.

Therefore, he couldn't let them down and himself down as well.

Liu Mang sat back down: "Anyway, I'm not leaving."

You'll regret it after the movie is released... Fang Bie remained noncommittal: "Everyone sit back down. We'll talk about these things later. Let's talk about the movie first."

Fang Bie began his cryptic analysis (or rather, his deception): "First of all, we can't release the trailer. Public opinion is currently on our side. If we release the trailer in the next few days, wouldn't that imply that those online trolls were hired by us?"

After thinking about it for a moment, everyone felt that what he said seemed to make a lot of sense.

Liu Mang frowned and said, "But we can't let this hot topic slip by, can we?"

Fang didn't understand the principle of giving a stick and then a sweet date, so he planned to give them some harmless "benefits".

"The theaters will set the release date today, and people will naturally know that our movie is for the Lunar New Year season. There's no need for any further promotion."

Liu Mang suddenly realized, then sat back down with a sly grin, as if he knew everything.

He felt that Fang Bie's previous statement that he disdained using underhanded tactics was just an act.

Otherwise, how could the timing be so perfect?

He had already concluded that those online trolls were hired by Fang Bie.

Fang Bie let out a long sigh of relief.

He felt he had these guys under control.

The movie was released at midnight on the first day of the Lunar New Year. At that time, everyone was at home watching the Spring Festival Gala. Who would have time to go to the cinema to watch a lousy movie that they hadn't even seen the trailer for?

Anyway, Fang doesn't judge others by his own standards; if it were him, he definitely wouldn't have gone to see it on New Year's Eve.

By the second day, those who went to visit relatives were already there, and the remaining few were naturally disappointed after watching the whole thing.

Once word gets out and people start saying the same thing, it'll be hard for this movie not to flop!

It seems that the crisis has passed.

Fang Bie planned to go back that night and create a new account to post a scathing critique, hoping to instill in people the preconceived notion that "Captain China" was a terrible movie.

Thinking of this, Fang Bie couldn't help but curl up the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a confident smile.

Seeing his expression, the others were relieved.

If Director Fang is this confident, then this movie is bound to be a hit!