Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

Zhao Xiaoding is unbelievable. He's almost forty years old, yet he calls "Brother Che" with such sincerity, almost to the point of flattery.

After all, Brother Che is Brother Che, and Director Zhang is Director Zhang; they are not the same person at all.

After "My Sassy Girl", many production studios and film companies extended olive branches to him, but Zhao Xiaoding was unmoved, thinking they were just random people.

He took a gamble when he made "My Sassy Girl," and now that he's won, why would he want to work with Karami again?

Yang Che knew this, so neither "Saw" nor "Waiting Alone" made any contact with Zhao Xiaoding.

That evening, Yang Che took the initiative to invite Zhang Yimou to dinner.

Zhang Yimou waved his hand repeatedly: "If anyone should be invited, it should be me."

Yang Che was very honest, so he said in a serious tone, "You really should treat me. I was just reminding you because I was afraid you would forget."

Zhang Yimou was stunned for a long time.

Meanwhile, Zhang Zhenyan, Zhang Yimou's chief assistant, and Chen Weiya, a director known for his large-scale productions, were already laughing heartily.

Seeing Zhang Yimou's bewildered expression, Yang Che realized it reminded him a lot of Li Lianying from "The Grand Mansion Gate," and then he started thinking about many things...

We ate together, of course, Shaanxi cuisine.

Once the dishes were all served, Yang Che, who had been chatting about video clips, suddenly changed the subject: "Director Zhang, I heard that Master Bao is having some financial difficulties while filming a TV series about the Le family?"

Zhang Yimou was stunned again; he really couldn't keep up with Yang Che's train of thought.

"It seems so, but I'm not entirely sure."

Yang Che said earnestly, "Director Zhang, could you ask him now? I'm very interested."

Zhang Yimou was still not used to Yang Che's straightforward style of doing things, but he couldn't refuse, so he called Guo Baochang with some displeasure.

Zhang Yimou is actually someone who isn't good at saying no. Calling him a people-pleaser would be an exaggeration. He's the kind of person who will endure unhappiness until he explodes.

..........

Upon hearing that it was Zhang Yimou who had recommended the producer of "My Sassy Girl," Guo Baochang said he wanted to come over for a face-to-face meeting.

Yang Che was taking a chance, even if it seemed risky, because this drama was an integral part of a film and television company's foundation.

And what if CCTV hasn't decided to invest yet? This script has been around for decades, and investment has never gone smoothly.

While waiting for Guo Baochang to arrive, Wang Fei called.

Her tone was very unfriendly. Yang Che hadn't contacted her since the day of the press conference. They had agreed to go over after the Lantern Festival, but he went abroad. He said he would go over again when he returned to China, but Fan Bingbing came back that day... and then it's been today.

Yang Che said on the phone yesterday that he would definitely come today, and it's already 8 pm...

That's how people are; they can do anything at first, but gradually they stop being able to.

Of course, Yang Che was indeed somewhat biased, or rather, he didn't just have a bias, but he felt a sense of compensation towards Gao Yuanyuan and Xiao Pang.

After all, the two of them and their families had been quite tense lately, and Yang Che couldn't show up.

Nonsense, what's there to say?

"Although I have several women, I love your daughter the most, and I will treat her well."

He'd probably be chopped into mincemeat before he could even finish speaking.

As for why his family knew, Wang Fei is a real headline magnet; whatever he does can make the news. For example, a few days ago, he was photographed by reporters while shopping for men's clothing.

"I'll be late... I'm having dinner with Director Zhang... you know, Director Zhang... really, I'm really having dinner, at the Sanyuan Hall... um, bye-bye."

As everyone listened to Yang Che's phone call, their faces were full of gossip and curiosity, while they cast subtle glances of disdain at him.

Yang Che understood the meaning in those eyes.

"What did you do to make the Queen of Pop so distrustful of you!"

Yang Che chuckled, as if you were all some kind of saint. Even Bao Ye, who hasn't arrived yet, is impeccable in his treatment of friends and juniors, but he has wronged some women.

There's nothing they can do about it; Yang Che's boyfriend is Wang Fei. If it were any other unknown woman, these old perverts would immediately start talking about how tough it is for men to be out in the world, and what's wrong with relaxing a bit, trying to find common ground.

This mentality is similar to people in Hong Kong's entertainment industry disliking Adam Cheng because they like Lydia Shum.

And these people, each one more outrageous and disgusting than the last. But that doesn't stop the audience from feeling righteous when they condemn Adam Cheng's womanizing and irresponsible behavior.

Yang Che immediately changed the subject: "Director Zhang, has the female lead for the new film been cast?"

Zhang Yimou and Zhang Zhenyan immediately became alert; this was entirely an instinctive reaction.

After all, the prestige of the title "Zhang Yimou's Girl" reached its peak after Zhang Ziyi's fame soared in Berlin.

Not only that, the "female lead" is their private territory, their exclusive domain, which they do not allow anyone else to touch.

Moreover, Zhang Yimou already has someone in mind, but he calmly said, "It's not decided yet."

"Sure, how about we team up?"

Zhang Yimou raised an eyebrow, his displeasure evident on his face: "Hmm? How do we cooperate?"

"I have a website called 360. Director Zhang, have you heard of it?"

"without."

Zhang Zhenyan was quite surprised: "The 360 ​​website is actually yours, Mr. Yang?"

Yang Che nodded and got to today's original topic: "Yes, Director Zhang, this is what I was thinking: we should partner with several newspapers and hold a nationwide audition for the female lead on 360. Applicants can register and fill out forms online, then be screened, followed by in-person interviews... A large-scale audition itself generates a lot of buzz, creating social attention before filming even begins, and significantly reducing subsequent publicity costs."

Zhang Yimou and Zhang Zhenyan exchanged a glance, both surprised. So that's how it is.

Then Zhang Yimou felt ashamed again, and he once again felt that Yang Che was a gentleman and he was a villain.

"This is good, I can take a look at it. What will you get out of it?"

"Traffic? We have the same goal. I want more people to know about 360.com. The more people use 360, the more Google fees I can collect. Right now, the server fees and labor costs are over 20,000 yuan a month, and I haven't earned a single penny yet. It's all done out of passion. Our cooperation is a win-win situation."

Zhang Yimou suddenly realized that he really didn't understand this.

"Oh, I see. I understand. That should be fine. But I never get involved in these kinds of things. I'll talk to Zhang Weiping about it later. Zhenyan, you should also remember what General Manager Yang said."

"Okay."

Zhao Xiaoding, who was eating quietly to the side, was filled with admiration. No wonder Brother Che was able to start from scratch.

Under the guise of promoting Zhang Yimou's work and finding a female lead, they can easily get the media to report on 360's website for free without spending a penny. They might even be able to secure sponsorships and make a profit, or even "select" a female lead.

After all, filming "My Sassy Girl" involved Fan Bingbing and Gao Yuanyuan doing *that*... It's infuriating just thinking about it!