2001 Media Godfather

Chapter 14 is even more annoying than my manager!

There are no melodramatic scenes of characters tearing each other apart.
There are no messy relationships between the characters.
It's just the troubles of teenagers and the chaotic stories of youth.

The journey seemed uneventful, yet it was like a lone string stirring up memories, touching upon Lu Mingze's long-forgotten youthful recollections.

It was so unforgettable.
"It's so well written!" Director Lu exclaimed sincerely.

"How did you manage to write such a story?" He completely forgot that Tian Du's sword was already at his throat, and he was still discussing the story!

Chu An was speechless, and his opinion of Director Lu improved even more.

He shrugged and said, "The biggest problem with 'My High School Days' is that it interprets youth from an adult perspective and adds too many things that don't belong to that age."

“Of course!” Chu An explained, “I’m not saying that fighting is bad. On the contrary, those plots provide great dramatic conflict and are exciting enough.”

"but."

"Youth is pure!"

"For people our age, being adept at navigating this complex society doesn't necessarily bring a sense of accomplishment."

"Maturity exists only in the imagination of teenagers, not in real life."

Chu An, from the perspective of a seventeen-year-old, tells Lu Mingze what a campus drama is all about.

"On the contrary, our greatest achievement is having our good brothers say 'You're awesome'."

"Struggling for redemption amidst suffering doesn't lengthen a character's arc." Looking at Lu Mingze speechlessly, she continued, "We don't need any growth arc. Do young people need a growth logic or a reason for their actions?"

"We'll take a tumble, curse, and then get up and keep running like crazy—that's who we are!"

"Therefore, 'My High School Days' is not realistic; it's just adults indulging in self-indulgence."

Lu Mingze: "..."

A feeling of enlightenment washed over me and spread throughout my body!

What I couldn't understand before, those strange shots, those awkward scenes no matter how they were filmed, all became clear at this moment.

He jumped up in anger, "Why didn't you say so sooner!"

Director Lu finally figured it out; he now knows how to make a good youth campus drama.

Looking at the script in my hand.
Without hesitation, "I'll buy this script!"

Director Lu's eyes were full of stars. It was as if with this script, plus Chu An's wake-up call from a young person's perspective, he had the confidence to start over and the capital to turn things around.

"and many more!"

Chu An interrupted Director Lu's spellcasting, looking at him with disdain.

"You don't... expect this script to deal with Tiandu, do you?"

As a result, Director Lu responded with a "of course" emoji, which left Chu An feeling utterly hopeless.

At this moment, Chu An felt that Director Lu was the real young man. That silly, goofy look of his was just so damn cute!!

"If you take this script out, you're dead. This script has nothing to do with you anymore."

Lu Mingze, “??” didn’t understand, looking completely bewildered.

"Sigh!" Chu An felt exhausted.

He's like a nanny now, taking care of a giant baby he's only known for less than two weeks.

but
This is exactly what an agent should do!
What do you mean by teaching acting skills?
Rewrite the script
They even write (or copy) scripts.
This is all plagiarism, borrowing from past achievements, and is not worthy of praise.

What we're about to do is exactly what we've always done before!

It was precisely because of Director Lu's naivety and innocence that seventeen-year-old Chu An was able to do the things that followed without being reported by Director Lu and then dissected.

"Director Lu, put the script away and hide it well."

"Your next step is to go find Tiandu, then admit defeat! Slide to your knees! Beg for mercy!"

Lu Mingze blurted out, "Why?"

Chu An, "So that they can screw you over even more."

Director Lu was even more confused. They've already tricked him even more, and I still have to beg them to let him go?

How shameless is that!?

Besides, why would I slide on my knees?

man!!
Be tough!!
Chu An cursed inwardly, "Damn it!"
"Because only in this way can they cheat you while still maintaining a moral high ground. They gain both substance and face. Only then will you have a chance to evade the audit."

"..." Lu Mingze shuddered and went limp.

That's terrifying, but it's absolutely true.

Suddenly, he felt something was wrong. Had he been tricked by this brat?

Isn't he young? Isn't he innocent?

How could the things he said be even more sinister than he actually was?
And it hits the nail on the head—auditing!
This involves an industry secret: no one knows exactly how much a director earns from a film except himself!

Even they themselves didn't know!

Ridiculous, right?
But that's the truth!
Take Lu Mingze for example. He received a salary for directing "My High School Days," as well as contractual revenue sharing, profit sharing from investments, and subsequent copyright revenue sharing.

The revenue sharing in the contract is the percentage of the revenue generated from the first, second, third, and fourth runs of the show, which is then distributed to him as compensation.

Investment dividends, on the other hand, involve deducting costs from the profit.

Copyright is even more interesting, including adaptation rights, merchandise development, overseas distribution, and so on. Listing them all could fill several pages!
In addition, there are commercial activities, program announcements, and a bunch of other small expenses.

The above is only a small part of legitimate income!
Yes! Just a small part; if you list them all out, it should be enough to fill a 10,000-word chapter.

What about the gray market? Those are the kinds of incomes that can't be brought to light.

The bulk of it is kickbacks.
You can't just refuse to accept this; no one can escape the temptation!

From actors to crew members, from sponsors to product placements, everything involves interpersonal relationships and social niceties.

For example, if I use your camera crew, your script, and you to play the female lead, the director won't feel at ease without giving him some compensation.

Larger film crews can have hundreds, thousands, or even thousands of extras for a single scene! Not to mention the extras, how many "extra heads" would they need?
Shouldn't the group leader be more sensible?
With so many extras, a single boxed meal can cost tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of yuan.
How do people who sell boxed lunches get business?

There are countless examples of these miscellaneous social obligations, whether you want them or not.

In addition to these, there are also drinking parties and dinner parties.
Not only actors have dinner parties, but directors do too. As long as someone is a celebrity, they have value and therefore a price!
Having a meal or attending a cocktail party is usually paid for.

There are also the perks that this association or fellowship gives out from time to time.

Using your name to boost my own popularity also requires payment.

There are just too many to count!

Lu Mingze was no exception; often, he was caught off guard. Every investigation revealed the truth!

Moreover, this involves tax issues; even if one doesn't want to evade taxes, very few people can accurately declare their taxes.
Anyway, Chu An has never seen it.

If Tian Du investigates, it won't just be a problem with this show; it might bring up previous flaws. That's leverage, and Lu Mingze will be completely controlled by them.

Fortunately, Lu Mingze is relatively upright and doesn't accept much money. Even if someone tries to force it on him, like directly depositing it into his account, he'll return it if possible. So there weren't any major problems.

But even if there's no major problem, it's still a legal one. The entertainment industry is a profession that thrives under the spotlight, and if the scandal gets out, it'll be enough to get him into serious trouble.

"So the first thing to do now is to stop Tian Du from continuing the investigation, otherwise if they get hold of the evidence, you will be completely controlled."

Lu Mingze blushed, "I... I don't have anything I can't investigate."

Chu An rolled his eyes, thinking, "You'll figure it out yourself."

He retorted, "Do you want the auditors to skin you alive? Or would you rather have a few media outlets look at what Director Lu has been up to all these years?"

"Okay." Before Chu An could finish speaking, Director Lu compromised smoothly.

Alright, just admit defeat!
Chu An: "That's right!"

"It's impossible to fight against the heavens with just one script."

"We must take it one step at a time."

"The script is merely a tool for the final battle."

Lu Mingze: "You're kidding me!" A southerner is even speaking with a northeastern accent, and you call this a decisive battle?

He seriously suspected that this kid was schizophrenic; one moment he was unfathomable and incredibly intelligent, almost demonic, and even more annoying than his manager!
Then he started acting like an idiot again.

Director Lu needs to find some balance for himself, otherwise he'll either be drained dry by Tian Du or squeezed to death by Chu An.

In another timeline, they're just a high school student with a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) mentality!

Ah!
Just a smart high school student!

He's just a little bit worse than me.

------

the next day.

The same sunset, the same old elm tree, but the person in front of me has changed from Chu An to Li Chunhua, the producer of "My High School Days" in Tiandu.

At this moment, Li Chunhua looked at Lu Mingze, who was so weak that he was practically half-dead, and was very satisfied.

Just now, the usually arrogant Director Lu has bowed his head and admitted his mistake.

They admitted that this transformation was a mistake and offered a deal that even the heavens couldn't refuse—

A performance-based agreement requiring two Qing Dynasty dramas to be produced within five years, with a guaranteed direct profit of no less than 1 million yuan. Otherwise, the difference will be compensated privately.

Claim
Do not!
It's very simple to ask for something.

Preserve his dignity as a renowned director and avoid damaging his public image; if possible, let him finish filming the movie.

To put it bluntly, I'll agree to anything if you don't investigate!

Don't let my house collapse.
Li Chunhua wore a victor's smile.

With seven parts sarcasm and three parts advice, he said, "If only you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?"

He thought to himself: These so-called big directors and big stars never seem to know their place.

Those individualistic personalities and ideals always bring various kinds of trouble to the company!

As a producer, Li Chunhua has never had a project he was in charge of released or broadcast. That's because his job is specifically to deal with these troublemakers for the company!

His job is to make these arrogant "celebrities" lower their heads.

Li Chunhua enjoyed watching their expressions of defeat, whether it was Lu Mingze's embarrassment when he bowed his head and admitted his mistake, or the coquettish manner of a female star when she fawned over him.
This would cause his high cheekbones to turn slightly red, satisfying his morbid sense of accomplishment and physiological pleasure.

He spoke in a feignedly earnest tone: "Old Lu, you've put me in a difficult position."

Li Chunhua feigned concern, saying, "But then again, when it's time to step up and take responsibility, I still have to. I'm capable of that!"

Lu Mingze felt like vomiting! Given his past behavior, he wouldn't tolerate someone like Li Chunhua for even a second!

But then he remembered what Chu An had said to him.

We must endure it!
Suppressing his nausea, he said, "Producer Li, I've come to my senses too."

"Now I just want to save face."

Li Chunhua said without further ado, "That's easy!" "I'll withdraw Jia Chenglin."

After a moment's hesitation, he said with utmost magnanimity, "Forget it!"

"If you're going to help someone, go all the way! I'm removing everyone from the production department! This project is yours!!"

Lu Mingze's eyebrows twitched. This was the best outcome Chu An had mentioned, an outcome that Lu Mingze hadn't even dared to imagine!

Feigning surprise, she said, "Isn't this a bit inappropriate? I still need company supervision and support."

Li Chunhua waved her hand, "Forget it, things have already escalated to this point, the company needs to make a gesture."

"Tiandu is withdrawing from this project. Consider the previous investment a gift to you as a thank you for our cooperation over the years."

Director Lu: "."

Why does it seem like the heavens aren't so heartless after all, and Li Chunhua isn't so disgusting after all?
Okay, Director Lu's intuition was wrong. He simply lacked the emotional intelligence to distinguish between truth and falsehood, good and bad!

Li Chunhua continued, "Also, your suggestion is excellent. Take the project out of Tiandu under the name of a private studio."

"Even if the filming fails, you can explain to the public that it is due to your lack of management skills, rather than your creative ability."

"This is a very good public relations direction."

"As for funding..."

Li Chunhua pondered for a moment, then said, "I've made the decision. Once the company settles the accounts, we'll return your remaining investment to you as filming funds."

"In addition, the equipment and location rental contracts, actor contracts, and salaries of other production staff will all be transferred to you personally. This will significantly reduce subsequent filming costs."

"Old Lu," Li Chunhua said, her tone even more insincere, "this is all I can do to help you. I believe you can prove yourself!"

Lu Mingze stood there with his head down, his lips trembling with anger!

Was Tian Du truly wronged? He's so righteous!

If Chu An were here, he would strangle him to death; this man is beyond saving.

Negative emotional intelligence and low IQ!
.

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Sorry for the late post.

But could the late release be because they wanted to release both chapters together?
I just don't want my readers to feel bad about the incomplete chapters. It's definitely not a delay in updating! And it's definitely not writer's block.

Cangshan seems to be getting better and better!
The next chapter will be posted soon.

(End of this chapter)