Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 243 Too Soft-Hearted

On the bus, Wu Yuchen looked at the bustling construction in Beijing and couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. The successful bid for the Olympics had a significant impact, ushering in a new era of massive infrastructure development for the city. The city's construction progress had been accelerated by several years because of the Olympic bid, with infrastructure and related services undergoing upgrades. For example, Metro Line 8 was built specifically for the Olympics.

"What are you looking at? Why are you so engrossed?" Zeng Li, who was next to him, asked.

“I’m looking at these buildings,” Wu Yuchen said, pointing to the residential area by the roadside.

Zeng Li also looked at the old, dilapidated buildings in the neighborhood along the roadside and asked curiously, "What's so interesting about these buildings?"

Wu Yuchen couldn't help but sigh: "With the bid for the 08 Olympics, the city's appearance will be updated, and these neighborhoods will be demolished. I wonder how many billionaires will be created!"

"A billionaire? It's just losing a few houses. A million at most, how can that be considered a billionaire?" Zeng Li shook her head and said.

At this moment, Zeng Li's younger sister, Zeng Yu, spoke up: "Sister, brother-in-law means that house prices will rise in the future!"

Wu Yuchen couldn't help but give a thumbs up and praised, "Hmm, Xiaoyu is really smart!"

"How could it have increased that much?" Zeng Li still didn't believe it.

Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Take out 100 million yuan now and buy 3 apartments in this community. When the demolition is completed, make a fuss and you'll get at least a dozen demolition apartments. Hold onto them for ten years, and if you don't become a billionaire by then, I'll make up the difference for you!"

New apartments in Beijing are only around 5,000 to 6,000 yuan per square meter now, and you can buy an apartment in an older neighborhood for 3000 yuan per square meter. People have no concept of getting rich quick through demolition compensation, and many who want to buy are willing to sell.

Zeng Li did the math in her head, but still didn't believe it, shaking her head repeatedly: "It's impossible for it to rise to 100,000 per square meter! That's too outrageous!"

Wu Yuchen chuckled and didn't say anything more, but Zeng Li's younger sister, Zeng Yu, took Wu Yuchen's words to heart.

Actually, it wasn't anything major today. Wu Yuchen took his sister-in-law, Zeng Yu, to the Olympic Bid Committee for her internship registration. Zeng Li, being very concerned about her sister, insisted on coming along. Wu Yuchen readily agreed, and the trip went smoothly.

"No problem, Director Wu! Our Olympic Bid Committee has a lot to do right now and is short-staffed. You're really giving us a boost!"

"Then I'll have to trouble Director Li to take care of my sister for the next two months," Wu Yuchen said politely.

There were three people when they came, but only Wu Yuchen and Zeng Li returned. He said to Zeng Li, "Don't worry, Xiaoyu is a grown-up, she'll be fine."

Zeng Li nodded and then said, "That's not what I'm worried about. Our family hasn't decided yet which school to apply to for Xiaoyu."

Before, I thought going abroad was incredibly difficult, and I'd be lucky to even have the chance to apply to a school. But now, with Wu Yuchen's words, it's become a happy dilemma. Not to mention the whole world, there are so many good schools in the US that I'm overwhelmed and have no idea which one to apply to.

Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "No rush, take your time choosing. Just give me an answer within six months."

Now that you've decided to study abroad, you have plenty of time. Just apply before next year's spring recruitment season.

Then Wu Yuchen said to Zeng Li, "By the way, Li Zi, when you have time, watch 'Bright Sword' again."

Zeng Li suddenly turned to look at Wu Yuchen: "Are you going to film 'Bright Sword'?"

"Well, I will film, but it won't be me." It's basically impossible for Wu Yuchen to turn his back on filming any TV series now, even though "Bright Sword" is a classic.

Speaking of filming TV dramas, Wu Yuchen thought of Chen Kaizi, because Chen Kaizi recently filmed a TV drama and sent it to Big Cuts, but Big Cuts got stuck and rejected it because of too many bloody and violent scenes, and asked him to re-edit it.

This TV series is none other than "Lu Bu and Diao Chan". Kai Zi's wife, Chen Hong, personally played the beautiful Diao Chan, while Lu Bu was played by Huang Lei, with a very outrageous look by today's standards: disheveled hair and a nose ring.

To be honest, Wu Yuchen is a bit confused by Chen Kaizi's actions. He actually went and filmed a TV series. And he even had his wife act in it herself. What's the point? I don't know if he's in debt or if someone has given him a good talking to.

Wu Yuchen thought about it and figured that Kai Zi was probably in debt. Otherwise, someone as proud and arrogant as him wouldn't have pulled such a stunt. Moreover, Chen Hong was even playing the female lead herself. Was this a couple working together to overcome difficulties?
However, since Kai Zi is unwilling to reveal it, he certainly can't inquire about it and can only watch the show from the sidelines.

Putting aside the matter of Kai Zi, Wu Yuchen asked Zeng Li, "Li Zi, do you want to act?"

Zeng Li answered without hesitation, "Of course I want to! I want to play Tian Yu!"

When Zeng Li thinks of "Bright Sword," she recalls the days when she first met Wu Yuchen. The role of Tian Yu holds a special meaning for her. Even if Wu Yuchen hadn't said anything, she would have insisted on getting the role herself.

She then asked, "So, who do you plan to cast as Li Yunlong?"

Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Teacher Li Youbin."

What more can be said about the character Li Yunlong? There's no need to think about anyone else except Li Youbin. He and the character of Li Yunlong complement each other perfectly. It is precisely because of Li Youbin's Li Yunlong that such a classic "Bright Sword" was created, making it the most classic anti-Japanese war drama!

In my past life, even 20 years later, many people were still watching "Bright Sword." The copyright alone, having aired for so many years, was worth hundreds of millions back then, yet no one wanted to sell it. Truly, a single TV series can sustain you for decades!

Upon hearing Wu Yuchen's answer, Zeng Li nodded and said, "Teacher Li Youbin is indeed quite suitable."

Li Youbin is now much more famous than he was before he starred in "Bright Sword" in his previous life. After all, he had already gained popularity a couple of years ago with Miracle Films' "The Passionate Years," and in the past two years, he has been offered similar military roles. Moreover, because he played military roles so well, he was specially recruited into the army last year and is now a full-fledged soldier.

Although Li Youbin's fame has increased, given the current state of the industry and the relatively low actor salaries these days, the cost won't increase significantly. As for the other roles, let's try to stay true to the original!

He Zhengjun as Zhao Gang and Zhang Guangbei as Chu Yunlong are still the same actors; there's no need to replace them. Although Wu Yuchen doesn't plan to act in this version of *Bright Sword*, he still needs to show his concern. He doesn't want a classic to fall apart due to other reasons. He will definitely be in charge of casting, ensuring the lineup is no less impressive than the original. I'm not talking about star power, but rather the fit of the actors to the roles.

Take, for example, the character Wei Heshang, whom everyone loves. I wonder if the original actor, Zhang Tong, has returned to China yet. If he has, that's great; if he can't be found, then they'll definitely have to replace him. As for who will replace him…

For some reason, Wang Baoqiang popped into Wu Yuchen's mind. Then he smiled and shook his head. Although Wang Baoqiang had also practiced martial arts at Shaolin and played the martial arts fanatic Feng Yuxiu, he wasn't suitable for the role of Monk Wei. He was too short. They still needed to find someone tall and imposing.

Wu Yuchen calculated the time and estimated that Wang Baobao was still working as an extra, but he should soon encounter the role in "Blind Shaft" that would change his life. He wasn't particularly inclined to help others; if a role came along, he could call him over, but if not, he'd let Baobao hone his skills in "Blind Shaft."

After sending Zeng Li back, Wu Yuchen returned to Miracle Films for a look around, mainly to understand the current status of some of the company's important projects. "Bright Sword" is likely to be a key project for next year, as Miracle Films has started many projects this year.

The first thing that came to his mind was the villain trilogy that the company was going to film this year: "The Black Hole," "Conquest," and "No Escape."

The drama "Black Hole" is basically full of veteran actors, with director Chen Ming in the lead role and Li Xiaoran playing his sister. The main theme of the whole drama is realism, vividly showing the three aspects of power, money and corruption to the audience, which is very bold.

The filming of this drama was completed in the first half of the year, and the editing has also been finished. The male lead, Chen Daoming, is about to join the cast of "Heroes". Director Guan Hu has also received investment to film his "Xi Shi's Eyes". The female lead of this movie is his current girlfriend, Ma Yili.

Wu Yuchen even went so far as to find and watch some clips from "The Black Hole." He wasn't watching director Chen Ming's film, as he trusted Uncle Ming, but rather the film featuring one of Uncle Ming's subordinates, a character named Zhang Feng.

In his past life, Wu Yuchen thought this guy was the most outstanding character in "The Black Hole," in no way inferior to Director Chen. To put it simply, you couldn't tell he was acting at all; he was completely like a real-life general manager with extremely high emotional intelligence and a knack for getting along with people, especially his interpersonal skills and his social skills at the dinner table. He perfectly demonstrated how to win over and corrupt a good cadre.

Wu Yuchen also picked out a few relevant scenes to watch this time, and they did not disappoint him. They were no less impressive than the previous version.

As for the other two, "Conquest" and "No Escape," both are still in production, as many scenes are set in the summer, which is currently the filming season.

Besides the villain trilogy, Miracle Films has also produced many period dramas, since period dramas are the favorite of Cai Yinong and Jiang Xuerou, two leading actresses.

In the first half of the year, Cai Yinong was in charge of producing "The Emperor of Han Dynasty" and also invested in "Wind and Cloud". Huang Xiaoming starred in "The Emperor of Han Dynasty", and when given the choice, he ultimately chose it from several options. So, the role of Bu Jingyun in "Wind and Cloud" was given to someone else!
"Storm Riders" was a collaboration between Miracle Films and Taiwan. Given the substantial investment, the collaboration allowed both sides to share the risks and leverage their respective domestic markets. The initial requirement was that the characters Bu Jingyun and Nie Feng be played by one Taiwanese and one mainland Chinese actor, respectively.

Since Huang Xiaoming didn't act in "Wind and Cloud," the opportunity went directly to Wu Ke-qun. After all, the role of Bu Jingyun is all about being cool and roaring, which suits the still-passionate Wu Ke-qun perfectly.

Several dramas are scheduled to begin filming in the second half of the year, one of which is "Love Through Time," starring Fan Bingbing and Xu Zheng. After "The Legend of the Condor Heroes," Fan Bingbing has proven herself. Now, playing the female lead in "Love Through Time" is a challenge for her.

Xu Zheng had already become famous through "My Sassy Girl". Actually, he wanted to act in movies more, but nowadays there are too few domestic film projects with suitable roles for him, so he can only come back to act in TV series.

He starred in "Spring Bright Pigsy" last year, which became a huge hit. Therefore, he's continuing his collaboration with Miracle Films this year on "Love Through Time." In any case, Miracle Films' dramas are generally of high quality and feature innovative elements, plus they offer high salaries, making them the best partner for collaboration.

Wu Yuchen thought of "My Sassy Girl," and then he thought of the female lead, Wang Zuxian. He and Wang Zuxian had actually worked together several times and were quite close. In the past two years, because of rumors that her wedding to Qi Qin was approaching, she turned down many projects and focused on preparing for the wedding.

However, I recently heard that something has changed. Qi Qin's illegitimate child has been exposed. The child's mother brought her teenage son to Qi Qin and Wang Zuxian, and even took the matter to court, suing Qi Qin and demanding that he pay child support.

This really put Wang Zuxian in a difficult position, caught between a rock and a hard place...

But there's nothing Wu Yuchen can do about this. He can lend a hand in someone's career, but how can he help with their love life?
To be honest, knowing Wang Zuxian as he did, he definitely didn't want to hear words of comfort from others at a time like this; it would only make her seem like a laughingstock. Sigh, it's still up to Wang Zuxian to decide. Let's wait and see how things develop…

Wu Yuchen shook his head and then saw another drama, "Xiao Shiyi Lang," but the male lead hadn't been decided yet. Wu Yuchen asked what was going on and found out that Jiang Xuerou was pursuing Huang Xiaoming, trying to persuade him to play Xiao Shiyi Lang, but Huang Xiaoming kept hesitating and didn't agree.

Since playing Dao Ming Si in "Meteor Garden," Huang Xiaoming has taken on many similar roles of domineering CEOs and cool characters, thoroughly enjoying himself. However, he's now realizing that while playing the same type of role has brought him immense fame and he's become quite adept at it—his fans and audiences love it—he doesn't seem to be making any progress. This has left him somewhat confused.

"When people are well-fed and clothed, they think of lustful desires..." Wait, no, once basic needs are met, people have higher aspirations. For Huang Xiaoming, joining Little White Bear and F4 was all about becoming famous. Undoubtedly, he achieved his initial goal.

Right now, in their class, if we're talking about popularity, it's him and Zhao Wei. Even Chen Kun pales in comparison. If we broaden the scope to the whole of Asia, Zhao Wei can't even compare. After all, F4 has countless fans across Asia; they've created a boy band craze that's swept across the continent!
Huang Xiaoming can now stand confidently in front of his former goddess, Zhao Wei. Although he was somewhat disappointed to learn from Zhao Wei that she already had a boyfriend, and also heard from her during a conversation that she had no intention of finding someone in the entertainment industry and would only marry a big boss in the future, it was impossible for her to have an actor as a boyfriend.

This left Huang Xiaoming feeling both a bit of a blow and a sense of relief. He used to look up to Zhao Wei because he thought she was perfect and amazing in every way. But now that he had caught up with and even surpassed Zhao Wei so quickly, his former goddess didn't seem so dazzling anymore.

From this perspective, he is very grateful to Wu Yuchen. After all, looking back, he knows how rare it is to have the opportunity to join F4. Many of his peers envy him and lament why Xiaobaixiong chose Huang Xiaoming instead of him.

Huang Xiaoming doesn't think there's anything wrong with being an actor. Since joining the Beijing Film Academy, he has been taught to be a good actor, and he still holds this belief. That's why he gave up the more famous "Wind and Cloud" and chose "The Emperor of Han Dynasty" to broaden his acting range.

However, the role of Xiao Shiyi Lang seems to be the same old cool and pretentious type, which makes him feel like he's going back to his old ways, so he has been hesitant to take the role.

But just as he was hesitating, he received a call from Wu Yuchen: "Teacher Wu."

"Xiaoming, I heard you don't want to act in 'Xiao Shiyi Lang'?"

Upon hearing that Wu Yuchen had called to inquire about the matter, Huang Xiaoming poured out all his concerns: "Teacher Wu, I don't know if my mindset is right."

Wu Yuchen thought for a moment and said:

"Although 'Xiao Shiyi Lang' is considered a period idol drama, it demands a lot from actors and requires careful analysis and expression of the characters' emotions. And don't look down on idol dramas; a good actor needs to be able to adapt to all kinds of roles. You've only just begun your journey!"

Upon hearing Wu Yuchen's words, Huang Xiaoming felt as if the fog in his mind had been cleared, and immediately replied:

“Teacher Wu, I understand. I was thinking the wrong way before. I hadn’t fully grasped this type of role yet, but I wanted to keep changing my acting style. Doing so is like trying to run before you can walk! Don’t worry, I will definitely play Xiao Shiyi Lang well. When you feel it’s good enough, I will change my acting style!”

Hearing Huang Xiaoming's answer, Wu Yuchen smiled and nodded in satisfaction. He was making money by training Huang Xiaoming and getting him into F4, wasn't he?
Besides, "Xiao Shiyi Lang" is such a popular drama, what's wrong with letting him act in it? Isn't that good for him?
Wu Yuchen sighed. He was too soft-hearted and too good to his artists, giving Huang Xiaoming so much freedom and choice, which caused him this pain and confusion.

After checking on the progress of the various projects at Miracle Films, Wu Yuchen felt relieved. Next, he would devote all his energy to "Brotherhood of Blades"!
(End of this chapter)