Huayu: From charlatan to great entertainer

Chapter 126 Uncle Chen: This boy is definitely not an ordinary person!
"Betting on the fate of the nation!"

Boss Lu's voice was full of energy, and it seemed that he was so powerful that it could shake the world. Everyone at the table looked at him with sidelong glances.

Especially the Twins sisters, who are used to seeing feminine young men, and have never seen such heroic spirit.

Talented, handsome, young and rich...

Boss Lu said seriously, "We have the largest population, the best audience, the most beautiful culture, and the most dynamic market. Hollywood is wreaking havoc around the world, and neither the mainland nor Hong Kong is immune. But it was also Hollywood that opened up this gap, allowing everyone to see how big the pie is."

"Mr. Jiang, Mr. Li, the fate of the nation and the individual are inextricably linked. If you truly identify with this land and bend down and bury yourself deeply in it, you will surely reap rewards!"

Of course, Boss Lu did not expect these compradors and businessmen under the foreign colonial rule to have a high level of awareness.

However, using benefits to lure them into pouring money and manpower into the mainland market is very beneficial for making the pie bigger.

This is just like stock trading. Only in blue-chip stocks and large-cap stocks will institutions and individuals not have liquidity panic.

A hundred flowers bloom, one after another takes the stage, and everyone benefits.

This is in the common interests of all practitioners.

It was like a carnival of coal bosses pouring in en masse.

The banquet fell into silence, and those who understood and those who did not all pondered his wise words in silence.

Li Shoucheng sighed and stood up, taking out a gold-stamped business card from the inside pocket of his suit jacket.

"Lu Sheng, you are the most insightful young man I have met in the past few decades. Please give me your guidance in the future."

The fancy sedan was carried by many people. Whether Li Shoucheng was expressing his true feelings or deliberately trying to show his goodwill, everyone had to pretend.

"Thank you, Mr. Li. I'm sorry for your advice. Let's exchange ideas."

The moon was high in the sky and the dinner was already at nine o'clock.

Both the host and the guests had a great time and everyone left.

Li Shoucheng concentrated on thinking for a while, then walked alone to the study in the back hall.

A pot of hot tea, two people sitting opposite each other.

"Uncle Chen, are you still reading the paper?"

There was an old man sitting in the room, with white hair and chicken skin, obviously in his eighties.

This is Li Shoucheng and Li Jiacheng’s guest of honor, Uncle Chen.

It is said that he was a disciple of Pu Xinyu, the grandson of Prince Gong Yi and cousin of Puyi.

Pu Xinyu was a man well-versed in both Chinese and Western culture. In the early years of the Republic of China, he studied at the University of Berlin and obtained a double degree in astronomy and biology. He later lived in seclusion in the Western Hills of Beijing.

Uncle Chen was born in 1925. After becoming a disciple of Pu Xinyu, he became famous in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia for his metaphysics and geomancy.

It is difficult to tell the real from the fake, but compared to the fake boss Li Guilu, this one should be the real Li Kui.

"Uncle Chen, I know a kid. If you have time, could you help me look at his fortune?"

"can."

Li Shoucheng got the master's approval and found the information Huo Wenxi had given him, which included Lu Kuan's date of birth.

Uncle Chen put on his reading glasses, took the paper tremblingly, and calculated in his mind.

"To lose one's father in youth, to be destitute and childless in middle and old age, to be in hardship for the rest of one's life, is not a good sign."

Li Shoucheng was stunned. No way?

It may be true that he lost his father when he was young, but the fact that he was born in a broad way in middle age does not seem to indicate that he will be poor and destitute.

According to the information he has, "Whiplash" alone is enough for him to become famous, right?
Thinking back to how Lu Kuan was speaking so confidently and giving orders at the dinner table tonight, it was hard to imagine that he would encounter what Uncle Chen predicted.

"how?"

Li Jiacheng smiled bitterly and said, "Master, there seems to be something fishy going on here."

He briefly explained the specific details of the road width, and the latter laughed.

"Mr. Li, a brilliant child may not necessarily be a great adult. He's only in his twenties, and failure is common in life."

Li Jiacheng became very curious and asked someone to send him a photo of Lu Kuan.

"Master, please give me more consideration."

"It seems this kid is no ordinary person. Mr. Li cares so much about him."

"Not really, it's just that I haven't seen a young man like this in years."

Uncle Chen smiled, shook his head, and put on his glasses again.

Li Shoucheng was holding a cup of strong tea, which was his best medicine after drinking.

The hot steam was steaming his eyelids, and it took him a while to realize that Uncle Chen was a little dazed.

"Uncle Chen, what are you doing..."

Uncle Chen still said nothing, but he counted with his fingers faster and faster, and kept muttering to himself.

"That's so weird, so weird!"

Chen Boqi asked, "Can you find a portrait of him as a child?"

"Master, what do you mean?"

"This person's horoscope and facial features are identical, except for the four rivers, which are really strange. They seem to belong to someone else."

Li Shoucheng and Uncle Chen have known each other for many years, and through the influence of each other, he has also learned some of the tricks.

There is a saying that a person’s face represents the Five Mountains and the Four Rivers.

There are different opinions about the Five Mountains and Four Rivers. For example, the Central Mountain must be tall and straight, and the Eastern Mountain should rise to the right to echo the Central Mountain. If they do not have this appearance, they will not be able to become rich and noble in their lifetime, nor will they live long.

And so on and so forth.

The four wide rivers that Uncle Chen mentioned refer to four rivers.

The ears are the Yangtze River, the eyes are the Yellow River, the mouth is the Huai River, and the nose is the Ji River.

Li Shoucheng asked doubtfully, "Master, could it be that he had plastic surgery?"

Uncle Chen laughed: "Every part of my body can be fixed, but not my eyes. As the saying goes, appearance is determined by the heart, and the eyes occupy the vast majority of the body. This is called the eyes are the essence of the heart."

"In physiognomy, eyes are the highest standard for measuring a person's appearance."

"This road is wide, and the other five mountains and four rivers are all the same as fate, except for these eyes..."

"Long eyeliner indicates longevity and wealth, while bright eyes indicate rich spirit and nobility."

Li Shouben originally just asked casually, but he didn't expect that there were so many strange things about Lu Kuan.

"Master, have you ever encountered such a situation?"

"Very few."

"This kind of face reading must have been done using some mysterious technique beyond my comprehension, or perhaps it was due to a major life change, and the appearance is influenced by the heart, making it completely unrecognizable."

He picked up his teacup and took a sip. "To be frank, something happened to him. He's like a completely different person."

Li Shoucheng didn't expect that his casual question would involve so many tricks, and he was speechless for a moment.

He suddenly thought of the rumor that Lu Kuan pointed out Mei Yanfang's illness!

Yes!

In addition to being a director, he has another identity!

Businessmen like him, who are almost at the top of the industry pyramid, have always had a "dialectical belief" in this kind of weird and superstitious things.

Uncle Chen is a man who has been proven to be very good at predicting things by past experience. Even the road is so wide that he can't see through it. Could it be that there are more magical things hidden in it?
This boy is definitely not an ordinary person.

He decided to arrange for a thorough investigation of this young director who was rising to fame.

Boss Lu was still unaware that the great mystic was debating with him. He stayed in Hong Kong for a few days and continued to take the crew on roadshows.

This is the last stop between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and the three places, Taiwan Province.

The plane soared at an altitude of 8000 meters, and the box office of "Whiplash" also took off.

And the corner of the fat man's mouth.

The road is wide! Brother, you smell so good!
Half a month after its release in mainland China, "The Drummer" has grossed 3348 million!
Yu Dong, who is well versed in the art of distribution, knows that this is already the highest point of the box office parabola.

Generally speaking, absent significant external factors, the box office performance of ordinary films tends to follow an irregular parabolic trajectory. The film's intensive pre-release publicity, coupled with a strategy that deviated from the current strategy of ignoring second- and third-tier cities, led to rapid word-of-mouth in its early stages of release.

But this was 2002 after all, and it was October before "Hero" was released. No matter how many buffs there were, the peak of this Golden Lion Award-winning movie could only stay here.

In less than a week's time, the box office growth rate of "The Drummer" will turn negative and enter its final stage.

But just this number made Fatty Yu ecstatic!

Compared with the same period, it is invincible: "Together with You" with 540 million, "Heartstrings" with 1200 million, and "The Lion Roars" with 1300 million.

This number can even compete with the Hollywood blockbusters previously released in China.

排在前面的只有《指环王1》5620万、《哈利波特与魔法石》5600万、《星战前传2：克隆人的进攻》4500万以及《蜘蛛侠》4100万。

But "The Drummer" is still half a month away!

There is still a lot to do in half a month.

Bernardo's vice president knocked on the door and entered the office, unable to hide the ecstasy on his face.

"Boss Yu, we need to make more copies. This won't be enough!"

Yu Dong is experienced and has already considered this.

In 2002, they were all film copies.

Taking into account the schedules of different theaters, one copy can supply three theaters on average. Printing more than that would be a waste. Therefore, distributors will take into account box office expectations, showtimes, and other information and print copies on demand.

The cost of production, printing and distribution of each copy is about 150. Previously, 150 copies of "The Drummer" were produced, which means the distribution cost is million.

"Wash 80 more! Send them immediately by plane to cities in China in urgent need!

"Yes! President Yu!"

Some movie copies were under-processed, while others were over-processed.

Xiaoxitian, Beijing, Deputy General Office of China Film Group Corporation.

"'The Drummer' grossed over 3000 million, and yours only made 500 million! They're both music-themed films, and both were directed by international award-winning directors, so why is there such a huge gap?!"

"What are you doing? You're the only ones who are so precious, right? Look at Bernardo, he's already going to a third-tier city to distribute his products. What about you?!"

There was just a series of promises coming from the other end of the phone, so I didn't dare to talk back.

Gao Chengsheng was a little speechless as he watched the big boss talking to the distributor on the phone.

He understands the situation, so the issuing department can't be blamed.

Director Chen requested that the promotion only be done in first-tier cities, and he was confident in the quality and reputation of "Together with You".

What's more, in the mind of this great director, one still needs a certain level of appreciation for high-brow works. Why go to second- and third-tier cities to distribute them?

If you don’t have enough free time, you will lose your status.

Han Shanping hung up the phone heavily and glanced at his secretary with a hint of blame.

"Little Gao!"

"Here! Leader!"

The crew cutter said with a straight face: "You are also responsible for this!"

A thousand horses were galloping through Gao Chengsheng's mind.

Can I persuade you?

What can I do if Zhao Wei and Wang Xiaolei take turns to brainwash you and say bad things about Lu Kuan?
Fortunately, he has followed Han Shanping since he entered the Beijing Film Studio, and he can be considered a caring old friend.

Otherwise, he would not be able to escape the fate of being Cao's grain officer.

"Yes! Leader! I've deeply reflected on my mistakes these past few days. I must think twice before making any decision. I can't just listen to one side and act blindly. I will definitely correct it next time!"

Han Shanping was so angry that he laughed: "You are reflecting on yourself. I think you are reflecting on my behalf!"

Gao Chengsheng shamelessly refilled his leader's tea.

"Boss Han, Lu Kuan is indeed a talented person. Fatty Yu and I have inquired and found out that this issuance plan was formulated by Lu Kuan alone."

"From the route, to the promotional strategy, to the on-site speech and all the big and small activities, almost all of them were suggestions made by Lu Kuan."

Han Shanping frowned and took a sip of tea: "Oh? This kid is capable of this?"

Then, as if remembering something, he asked, "Does he have a conflict with Hua Yi and Zhao Wei? Are their stories about Lu Kuan being a fraud true or false?"

Gao Chengsheng smiled and said, "Leader, this matter is not something that can be disclosed to outsiders, and we have no way to verify it."

"But I think that using Lu Kuan is like Liu Bang using Chen Ping. I won't comment on other aspects. I will just say that in the field of film, his ability is beyond doubt."

He also praised Boss Lu's deeds of holding high the banner of commercial films and singing praises of genre films at the opening ceremony of the school in Peking that day, which caused Han Shanping to nod frequently.

How can it be so easy to be a secretary?

Missing out on Lu Kuan and "The Drummer" was a decision-making mistake made by Han Shanping himself, but now the leader knows his mistake and wants to step down.

How do I give this step?
Han Shanping was the first person to propose the concept of Lunar New Year films. He has always been encouraging and supportive of commercial films, which is consistent with the concept proposed by Lu Kuan.

As soon as these words were spoken, the man with the flat head of course strolled down the stairs.

"Very good! Very insightful. China Film Group should support young directors like him."

"Well, Xiao Gao, talk to him and see if he has any other movie plans."

"Yes! Leader!"

October 2002, 10, Taiwan Province, Taoyuan Airport.

Lu Kuan felt that he should hire an assistant. A Fei could only take on the duties of a bodyguard and he could not handle the trivial matters related to company affairs.

Now, just replying to messages and phone calls every day, and dealing with self-recommended actors and actresses and submitted scripts, takes a lot of effort.

As soon as I landed, the phone rang.

Gao Chengsheng?
Boss Lu answered the call with a sneer, "Director Gao, it's been a while! Do you have any advice?"

"Oh! Why is Director Lu speaking so politely? You and Fatty Yu can both call me Old Yu, so just call me Old Gao!"

Well, just at the beginning of the conversation, Lu Kuan already understood what he meant.

It is never too late to mend the fence after the sheep have been lost. This is an opportunity to make friends.

"Director Gao, you're too kind. I'm younger, so I'll just call you Brother Gao. It'll seem more approachable."

"Yeah!"

Gao Chengsheng was overjoyed: "Director Lu, our leader has criticized me!"

"I must learn from young talents like you. A teacher should be someone who has achieved great things."

Boss Lu ignored his flattery and said, "Brother Gao, I just arrived in Taipei. If you have anything to say, please tell me."

Gao Chengsheng pondered for a few seconds and realized that Lu Kuan was going on a roadshow.

I'm not afraid of others being smart, I'm just afraid that others are both smarter and work harder than you!

I believe that after this movie "Whiplash", the "deep distribution" roadshow program model proposed by Lu Kuan will be studied carefully by major producers and distributors.

"Director Lu, when you return to Peking, let's have dinner together and see if there's any opportunity for cooperation between our two companies."

"Last time..."

Lu Kuan handed the luggage in his hand to A Fei, interrupting Gao Chengsheng.

"Brother Gao, even if what happened last time is in the past, there will be many opportunities for us to interact in the future."

The people should not fight with the officials, and they should save face.

He thought about it and decided to extend an olive branch to China Film Group.

"Wenjie has another work in the works, the quality is very good, next time we go back we can talk about the distribution in person."

Gao Chengsheng decided to quit while he was ahead: "Well, when you get back to Peking, we can have a drink together."

Boss Lu shook his head and hung up the phone, wondering in his heart why China Film Group was so arrogant at first but respectful later.

Of course, he didn't expect that the targets who wanted to rob the rich and help the poor - Xiaoyanzi and Huayi were behind the scenes making trouble. It can only be said that there are traps everywhere in the world of fame and fortune.

(End of this chapter)