Wenhao: This child has been smart since he was young

Chapter 577 The Despicable Italy
"Gulu, when you come to my house, do you often bring fruit, milk, or something like that?" Li Guyuan said on the phone.

Gu Lu responded with "uh-huhs," holding his phone and waiting for what would happen next.

“Brother, my family runs a general store. We have everything you want,” Li Guyuan said. “So next time you come, bring two rings, the One Ring, the movie merchandise.”

The truth is revealed when the map is unrolled; so that's how it is.

Because the Little Prince merchandise flagship store has been established in China for four or five years and has a very pleasant cooperation with the OEM factory, the store launched related merchandise on the second day after The Fellowship of the Ring was released in China.

However, the price is quite expensive, with one of the peripheral rings costing 183 yuan.

"With our relationship, why beat around the bush? I'll definitely bring it for you next time I come back," Gu Lu said.

"Oh? Not going back to Chongqing for Chinese New Year this year?" Li Guyuan asked.

“I probably won’t be going back anytime soon,” Gu Lu said. “I’m planning to travel all over the country and have a good time. Although I’ve written about Norway, Japan, Finland and other countries, I’ve realized that I haven’t even had a chance to properly see the landscapes of our own motherland.”

“That’s right. The world isn’t in books or on maps; it’s outside,” Li Guyuan agreed.

He seemed to suddenly remember something, "If you miss home, come back and visit. That's what my parents say."

The two talked for a while longer before hanging up the phone.

After hanging up the phone, I estimated that four or five minutes later, I heard a familiar ringing in my head, followed by the usual synthesized sound.

A revolutionary work in the realm of fantasy literature, a pinnacle of traditional fantasy literature, and one of the 20th century's most popular fantasy novels, transformed into *The Hobbit*.

Details: One day, Bilbo decided to join an expedition to reclaim the treasure that had been seized by the dragon Smaug! Thus, Bilbo and thirteen dwarfs embarked on an adventurous journey.

At the time, Gu Lu wondered, what kind of work could be so bold as to talk about both change and tradition? Well, now there's no problem. The plot of The Hobbit is traditional fantasy literature, but its core is about change.

I was inspired to read this novel when I visited a film set in France the month before last.

Another masterpiece by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Gu Lu thought for a moment. The system hadn't caught one person exploiting it; it had caught two. Zweig and Tolkien.

It makes sense when you think about it. Since they're filming Lord of the Rings, it's a given that they'll come into contact with Hobbit-related props. After all, they belong to the same universe.

Row!
With the release of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit trilogy, The Little Prince Culture Company firmly established itself in Hollywood.

Since we've come up with The Lord of the Rings again, let's take this opportunity to discuss the conflicts arising from The Fellowship of the Ring.

Italy's tourism authorities may have made the wrong choice, but they can't really back down. With that historical foundation, they won't be in trouble one or two times.

Since you, France, and I share the same experience (Mont Blanc), and the filming location is Mont Blanc, then why can't it be Mont Blanc in my Italy?

Aosta Valle d'Austa is a popular tourist destination in Italy, with excellent facilities for skiing, hiking, and mountaineering.

The Saint Vincent Casino, one of the three legal casinos, is located there.

Of course, this region used to be known primarily for skiing, with ski resorts like Kumayer, Cervinia, and Pira all located here.

But now, looking at the region's official tourism website, there's a special addition: "Mont Blanc, the filming location for The Lord of the Rings trilogy, is located within the region."

Not only that, they also issued a commemorative stamp series, "Middle-earth." All of them are genuine; the Italian department acquired the copyright.

With The Lord of the Rings currently showing in Europe, according to incomplete statistics (French media), tens of thousands of European tourists have been attracted to Europe by the filming locations.

"Oh, James, didn't you always want to go to Iceland? Why did you come to Italy?"

"Don't you know? The Lord of the Rings, the movie we watched last week, the scenery was amazing, it was filmed on Mont Blanc."

"So that's it!"

……

"I heard that The Lord of the Rings wasn't filmed in France?"

"Mont Blanc straddles both countries, so it was filmed in both. Italy is closer to us."

……

It's important to understand that many tourists don't explore deeply, and this is compounded by the Italian media's deliberate obfuscation on the internet.

Renault, head of the Italian tourism department, personally devised the "Brotherhood Plan." The plan's name comes from the Italian proverb: "Money and money are brothers," similar to the Chinese concept of "money begets money." Do you think the French Tourism Development Agency can win by doing this? Absolutely not!

Vincent, the director of the Tourism Development Agency, strongly criticized the behavior, saying, "Their actions are shameless, giving wrong information, misleading tourists, and deceiving them!"

Renault and others remained silent, playing dead. But the misleading propaganda continued unabated.

They stopped acting altogether and became completely shameless. With no other option, Vincent amplified the noise by partnering with The Little Prince Culture to open the first Lord of the Rings merchandise flagship store in Upper Savoy.

Yao Xiaoju himself was reluctant because these kinds of millet shops are expensive and require a lot of foot traffic. Yao's idea was to open one in Paris.

Vincent from the French Tourism Development Agency also wanted to invite Gu Lu. After failing the first time, he approached Irina, the president of ICFA (Italy-China Friendship Association).

In terms of position, Vincent, as the head of a department, is certainly much more capable than Irina.

"You only started activities with the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries this year, right?" Vincent asked.

“Last year, we had more in-depth cooperation with some institutions in Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Hunan and other regions, related to the furniture industry.” Irina’s superior was probably from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Although she didn’t know why the Tourism Development Agency had come to inquire, she still answered honestly.

Irina frequently travels to China, promoted the Chengdu-Milan freight train service, and is a strong advocate of the Belt and Road Initiative. While she wouldn't call herself a China expert, she is very familiar with Chinese place names.

"Are you familiar with Gu Lu?" Vincent asked bluntly.

"A great Chinese writer?" Irina replied, "Of course I know him. I really like 'The Letter to Dibo,' and the currently showing 'The Lord of the Rings' is also his work. Gu Lu is probably the most famous Chinese writer in Europe."

“I’ve met Gu Lu many times. He has a wisdom that is beyond his years.” Irina’s words implied that I had a good personal relationship with him.

What's the actual situation? Irina saw him twice when she was working with Dibo. Not once, it must have been "multiple times," no doubt about it. And the other party isn't going to verify it!

Gu Lu probably doesn't even remember that such a person exists.

“Excellent, President Irina, there is an important task that only you can handle.” Vincent was overjoyed. “This matter is very important to our French tourism industry. Since you and Mr. Gu Lu are good friends, please invite Mr. Gu Lu to France.”

“The cunning and weak Italians stole the fruits of victory,” Vincent said. He wanted the original author to acknowledge this.

Oh no! Irina thought to herself.

It's clear that Gu Lu's current prestige is so high that even former Speaker Irina has to use him to boast about his abilities...

If Gu Lu were to make an official visit to any European country, he would at least be received by a minister.

Its success is truly due to a confluence of favorable circumstances. Forget everything else, without Dubois, no one could have become a national book of France if they hadn't threatened my interests. Without the quid pro quo surrounding "Yes, Minister," Da Ying (the French president) wouldn't have been able to continue praising it so enthusiastically.

It can be said that there is no one like him before, and as for whether there will be anyone like him in the future... if there is no second person who transmigrates with a cheat code, then there will be no one like him in the future.

Let's move on to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

The events in France and Italy also contributed to the box office success.

It is making great strides overseas.

Domestic pigs are growing rapidly!

The latter saw a more significant increase in box office revenue, as Western fantasy originally had a certain barrier to entry. For example, many readers couldn't remember the characters' names.

However, there's a reputation in China that "anything produced by Gu Lu is a masterpiece." With Love Letter and The Wandering Earth preceding it, many viewers blindly rush in regardless of the subject matter.

It grossed $9.1 million in its first month of release.

The above figures are for overseas releases and do not include the box office revenue in China. With only the domestic release extended for a month, the current box office is 13.5 billion yuan, and it's estimated that it will reach 200 million US dollars.

With most of his work settled, Gu Lu was no longer worried and began living together with Zhou Lin. Of course, the latter would sometimes have urgent company matters that couldn't be handled remotely, and would still be busy for a while.

While many are now keen on traveling abroad, King Gulu believes that tourism is about experiencing culture and food.

Actually, you could first experience everything you need in China...

At the end of 2023, Gu Lu still hadn't published "Blindness Chronicles" because after copying the text once, he realized that this work was truly amazing and needed to learn from the sports students and let it settle down further!

　The second to last chapter, and there will probably be another chapter tonight—the grand finale!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)