Huayu: The Big Players Behind the Scenes

The next morning,

After picking up his aunt and others at the company, and bringing along the four powerful brothers, the group arrived at New Picture Company in three cars.

As soon as I entered, I saw Zhang Dapao with a "machine gun" hanging from his left hand, looking miserable.

Seeing this, Zhuang Huai'an asked in a low voice in Hakka, "Brother Long, weren't you supposed to break his leg? Why did you break his hand instead?"

"I don't know," Zhuang Dalong said, a little confused. "Didn't you tell me not to do it myself? So I found a few thugs and outsourced it."

"Oh, oh, oh," Zhuang Huai'an nodded. "That's not surprising. Don't expect quality from outsourced work. There's not much difference between a broken hand and a broken foot; both are suffering."

"Director Zhuang...Director Zhuang," Zhang Dapao hesitated for a long time before stepping forward to greet him.

"Mr. Zhang's style is quite unique."

"Uh... I slipped and fell while taking a shower."

Zhang Weiping wasn't stupid. He knew his injury was related to Zhuang Huai'an, but the enemy was powerful, and his trump card, Lao Zhangzi, had already defected. In this situation, let alone retaliating, he had to think twice before even uttering a few harsh words.

His sling said it all: he's afraid of spicy food.

As he ushered the group into the conference room, Zhang Weiping was overcome with sorrow. He knew he was at his wit's end, but he still wanted to try.

"Director Zhuang, considering my long-standing friendship with Zhang Yimou, I'll hand over the account books. Could you please let me live?"

"So, you're admitting you have ledgers?"

Zhuang Huai'an smiled immediately, lit a Huazi cigarette, and tapped his fingers on the table. "Mr. Zhang, to be honest, I really admire you. To go from a pharmacist to a renowned producer in the mainland film industry, your ability is beyond doubt, and your contributions to the development of the film industry are indispensable."

On this point, I can negotiate peacefully with you, but you only have one chance to speak. Think about it?

Upon hearing this, Zhang Weiping's expression was complicated, and he remained silent for a long time until Zhang Yimou walked in.

"I won't say much more, I'd like to hear your thoughts first."

Seeing Zhang Weiping, who had always been full of vigor, so dejected, Zhang Yimou finally softened.

"We've known each other for many years, and I won't bring up the past, but there's one thing I have to admit: you've indeed helped me a lot."

Zhang Yimou sighed, "Let's stop calling each other 'Zhang' here. I don't want things to get ugly. Settle the share you owe me over the years, and we can part ways amicably."

"it is good."

Zhang Weiping also realized that he could control Zhang Yimou, but he had no way to deal with the giant behind him. Getting to this point was already the most dignified ending.

If Zhang Yimou insists on investigating the accounts, Zhang Weiping will inevitably have to spend a few years in jail, facing these two directors who have won the three major film awards.

In the world of martial arts, circumstances are more powerful than individuals; as long as one doesn't completely break ties, one's position remains intact.

"I'll compensate you with 2000 million. Since you don't plan to film 'Curse of the Golden Flower,' I'll deduct 500 million as a penalty for breach of contract."

Zhang Weiping said carefully, "You know that some copyright revenue is settled in installments, and this amount is the maximum amount of cash I can come up with."

"This…"

Zhang Yimou subconsciously glanced at Zhuang Huai'an, and seeing him with his head down, looking lost in thought, he knew that Zhuang didn't want to get involved in this kind of thing.

"Okay, add one more condition: I want to reclaim the copyright to the hero."

"Impossible," Zhang Weiping flatly refused. "I haven't even recouped my investment yet. Giving you the copyright would be tantamount to killing me!"

Seeing his strong attitude, Lao Zhangzi did not press the matter.

"Then I want them all, including the rights to 'Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles,' how about these two art films?"

"That's fine."

Zhang Weiping nodded in agreement. The overseas distribution of these two films was a one-time purchase, with minimal subsequent revenue. For him, blockbusters like "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers" were the focus.

Now that the terms have been agreed upon, there's no need to have my aunt check the accounts.

The matter ended peacefully with Zhang Yimou receiving 1500 million yuan in compensation and withdrawing his investment from New Pictures Film Co., Ltd.

That's fine too.

Zhuang Huai'an started the discussion, but the rest didn't participate. To put it bluntly, this was a matter between the two Zhangs. He came over just to cover for them. Since one of them was willing to fight and the other was willing to be fought, there was no reason for them to make things ugly.

Stepping out of the new scene,

Zhang Yimou gazed into the distance and felt a sense of relief.

"Huai'an, why does the sky seem unusually blue today?"

Zhuang Huai'an subconsciously looked up at the sky, which was still the typical gray and hazy sky of the capital. He was speechless and too lazy to pay attention to him.

"Senior brother, you can take your time looking at it. I have to go now."

"Alright, I need to go to Kuangou too."

Back at the company,

He summoned the three heroes from the vocational college class, along with Zhuge Liang and Feng Chu.

"I've been busy lately and haven't had a chance to ask you guys about it."

Zhuang Huai'an waved a cigarette around, then looked at Zhang Songwen, "Hey buddy, I heard being an assistant director is pretty good?"

"It's alright," Zhang Songwen scratched his head. "Professor Xie is truly a big shot; I've learned a lot from him."

"Professor Xie also praised you to me, saying that although you are not very talented, you are willing to study hard, and as long as you study diligently, you will definitely become a qualified director."

"Really?" Zhang Songwen grinned from ear to ear. He felt it was all worth it to receive such praise from this person.

"Really, when we watched the finished product of 'The Undertaker,' Professor Xie specifically pointed out that those were your creative shots, and I also thought they were quite good."

Zhuang Huai'an didn't show favoritism, saying, "Yiwei's performance was also very good; he captured that spirit perfectly."

"What about me?" Lin Jiachuan chimed in, joining in the fun.

"Train to Busan is also an option; we've all made it big."

Zhuang Huai'an gave a thumbs up, feeling that Lin Jiachuan's performance was indeed better than Gong Yoo's acting in the original drama.

"Han Sanping has scheduled the films for the following dates: The Undertaker is scheduled for mid-next month, and Train to Busan is scheduled for mid-September. These two time periods will also avoid the release of imported blockbusters."

"Mid-next month?" Zhang Songwen thought for a moment. "Ning Hao's movie is also scheduled for release around this time, right? Won't there be a conflict?"

"Does not exist."

Zhuang Huai'an shook his head and explained, "June is the month for protecting domestic films. The Undertaker is a co-produced art film. Although the plot is solid, I'm not optimistic about its box office performance in mainland China. It's fine as long as it can break even. The real money comes from overseas copyrights and increasing its influence."

Since the boss had said so, the group had no other ideas; they always listened to Zhuang Huai'an in these matters.

After chatting for a while, the group left.

Zhuang Huai'an sat back down at his desk and called Zhong Lifang over.

"Let me give a report on the recent projects. I need to clear my head; I've been dealing with too many miscellaneous things lately. I need to get back to the main topic."

"Okay, boss."

Zhong Lifang took out her small notebook,

"Currently, the company's projects include self-produced TV series that have been completed, such as 'Soldiers Sortie' and 'My Own Swordsman'; 'Lurking' and 'Home with Kids 3' that are currently being filmed; and 'Ming Dynasty 1566' and 'Wolf Poison Flower' that we have invested in."

Six films: "Nightclub" (self-produced), "Departures" (a Sino-Japanese co-production), "Train to Busan" (a Sino-Korean co-production), and "The Blood of Guanyin" and "Zhou Chu Eliminates the Three Evils" (invested and produced by Wu Dun under the name of Sugar Heart Company).

Finally, there's *The Martian*, which is awaiting its release date.

Zhuang Huai'an frowned as he listened.

"The operation is getting bigger and bigger, and with all those previous videos... it's a bit of a waste to just leave them gathering dust in the warehouse..."