2001 Media Godfather

Did you record all of Chapter 34?

The smoke inside the room obscured the old elm tree and the blazing sun outside the window.

The oppressive atmosphere was so intense that you could almost hear the flickering of fireworks.

What now!?

Faced with Tian Du's swift and decisive actions, everyone fell silent.

Director Lu smoked one cigarette after another, his features almost contorted in pain, when he suddenly blurted out, "I just want to make good films, films that I like, is that so hard?"

Lu Mingze had a premonition that this time, they would have a hard time getting over this hurdle.

Ji Yinglai and the other two producers exchanged glances. They had no affection for the crew, no passion for it; they were just doing their jobs for the money, and all they cared about now was whether or not filming could proceed.

Ji Yinglai, unusually, spoke the truth: "A big company can easily crush us small fry with a single turnaround." "Sigh!" he sighed deeply, "Damn it!"

He looked at Chu An and said, "Chu Shikuai, aren't you pretty capable? Tell me what to do?"

Chu An lay on Director Lu's bed with his eyes closed, his limbs stretched out in an exaggerated "X" shape.

She seems to have fallen asleep...

Just then, a crisp knocking sound rang out. Everyone was startled and stopped paying attention to Chu An, but no one went to open the door.

As a result, Chu An blurted out, "Go open the door!" He was clearly not asleep.

Ji Yinglai then received the instruction and opened the door.

"Hey! Everyone's here!" It was Li Chunhua, with a smile on her face, who strolled in with her hands behind her back.

Li Chunhua acted as if she belonged there, even overstepping her bounds. She seemed completely unconcerned by the unfriendly stares from the crowd, saying, "This is...a meeting."

Lu Mingze couldn't stand his attitude and coldly asked, "What are you doing here?!"

Li Chunhua immediately curled her lip, "Look at that! The big director's temper is really something else."

To be honest, Li Chunhua was in a really good mood, not only because the company's counterattack was as sharp as ever, leaving him, who was on the scene, with no room to maneuver.

Meanwhile, Xu Shu, who had been away for less than a day, also returned on her own.

So, how could I not be happy?
"Well, the company has new arrangements, so I have to go back to Shengjing. I came here specifically to say goodbye to Director Lu."

"Hmph!" Lu Mingze sneered, his disgust undisguised. "I'm afraid he's up to no good, like a weasel offering New Year's greetings to a chicken!"

"Look at this!" Li Chunhua exclaimed dramatically, looking at the person with a disdainful expression. "You're being petty, aren't you?"

He spoke earnestly and gently, "Director Lu, I'm not trying to criticize you, but don't be so emotional when you do things!"

"So what if the film can't be made? We'll just get back up where we fell and start over."

"However," he changed the subject, "Director Lu is indeed in a difficult situation this time, and it seems unlikely he can turn things around."

"Tell me, you invest your own money in making a show, and then the male and female leads both run away. You've already signed the premiere contract, but they don't want it anymore. What are you going to do?!"

Director Lu was panting heavily, unable to utter a single word.

He never expected that Li Chunhua would be so rude as to come here specifically to put on a show of petty triumph.

However, that's not all!
Li Chunhua still felt it wasn't enough, "The main reason I went back this time was to meet with leaders of several major local TV stations."

"The board of directors has already said that they can offer some discounts to these partners for the first and second runs of several major dramas next year! As long as they don't participate in Director Lu's dramas, everything is negotiable."

"You!!" Lu Mingze finally couldn't hold back anymore. "You're despicable!"

Li Chunhua chuckled sinisterly, "It's not so much despicable as it is, but rather a lesson for Director Lu: there are some people you can't afford to offend!"

"Oh, right!" As if remembering something, "Tomorrow! Tomorrow, Director Li from 'Sword Dance of China' will come to Ningyuan to personally meet with our Xiaoshu and discuss joining the crew."

"Director Lu, I'm so sorry! Our Xu Shu can't wait for you! If you're not satisfied, you can file a countersuit!"

"Haha!" Li Chunhua finally stopped pretending and laughed out loud.

That perverse desire was satisfied to the extreme at that moment.

He loved this moment so much.

He loved Lu Mingze and the room full of people's almost desperate anger, and the despair within that anger.

"Sister Meng, did you record everything?" Just as Li Chunhua was feeling ecstatic and his hormones were surging, Chu An, who he had almost ignored and who seemed to be asleep on the bed, asked casually.

Li Chunhua fell to the ground with a thud, her body ice-cold.

What to record?
Oh crap, what did they record?!
Startled, she looked at Tong Meng and exclaimed, "You're recording?!"

As a result, Tong Meng was even more confused than him.

(Mengjie's inner monologue: What did I record? You didn't ask me to record anything! Besides, where am I supposed to find recording equipment out of the blue?)

Chu An slowly got up and sat cross-legged on the bed.

The look in his eyes when he looked at Li Chunhua was full of disdain. "Look how scared you are! Li Chunhua, you're not good enough either?"

Li Chunhua hadn't recovered yet and could barely speak, "You...you need to explain yourself clearly, what are you recording?"

Chu An looked disappointed. "Keep pretending, okay? I love your rebellious side."

Li Chunhua: "..."

From Li Chunhua's perspective, she had no time to argue with Chu An; her mind was completely occupied with: They recorded us!
Despicable!
Thinking back on what I just said, it was quite information-dense; if it got out...

Dead.

He squinted his small eyes: "You're trying to trick me! How could I possibly record this? There's no time to record anything!?"

"You're bluffing me, aren't you!?"

Chu An was amused by him and complained, "Don't pretend next time, it's really dirty."

"Don't worry, don't worry." He waved his hand at Li Chunhua and told the truth, "I didn't record it, I was just kidding you."

Li Chunhua: "..."

A huge weight was lifted off my shoulders, and I told him he couldn't possibly record it.

Then it occurred to me, "Wait a minute!" My heart skipped a beat again. "Even if they recorded it, could they tell me?"

Oh no! I'm not going to be able to sleep now. Did they record it or not?
Seeing Li Chunhua standing there neither here nor there, Chu An sneered inwardly, "You're twenty years behind when it comes to playing games with me."

Besides, capital can crush me, but what are the dogs of capital anyway?!

I have no interest in it either. "Get out of here! Stop making a fool of yourself."

Li Chunhua's old face was practically turned into a shoe insole by Chu An's sharp retorts, but he only managed to utter a harsh remark, "Let's see how long you can keep up your stubbornness!"

Hmph! He turned and stormed off in a huff.

The people in the room did not feel any better because they had gained the upper hand verbally. As soon as Li Chunhua left, the room fell silent again.

A gloomy mood seemed to weigh on everyone's hearts, and no one could laugh.

"What do we do now?" Ji Yinglai broke the silence, not asking the others, but staring directly at Chu An.

Years of experience made Ji Yinglai feel a sense of absurdity; of all the people in the room, it was Chu An who ultimately solved the problem. This had nothing to do with age.

As soon as Ji Yinglai asked this question, everyone else subconsciously looked at Chu An, waiting for little Chu An to turn the tide once again.

As a result, with a thud, Chu An fell back onto the bed. This time, instead of spreading out in a wide arc, he curled up in a ball, as if he wasn't so relaxed either.

He said, "Now? Go to sleep!"

Everyone, "???"

Director Lu immediately became anxious upon hearing this, "Why are you sleeping so early in the morning?!"

Chu An: "I was up all night last night, can't I even get some sleep?!"

Upon hearing this, Ji Yinglai exclaimed, "You spent the whole night with the big star Xu? How did you spend the night? Where did you spend the night?"

"Huh!?" Everyone in the room was stunned again. With Xu Shu? What's going on?

Ji Tong seems to know something extraordinary.

Chu An was speechless. You guys, you already look like gossips, and you gossip all the time? Aren't you tired?

After briefly explaining what he and Xu Shu had done in one night, and facing the disbelieving gazes of the crowd, Chu An gave up and simply said, "Female lead, I'll handle this!"

"Male lead, you guys handle this! Whether it's bringing Qu Lang back or replacing him immediately, don't bother me."

"As for CCTV..." He shifted his position to make himself more comfortable, "I'll talk about it after I wake up, my head is about to explode!"

Everyone, "..."

Seeing that they didn't move, Chu An simply gave them the order to leave, "Now, turn around and get out!"

"Okay." Everyone finally obeyed.

As soon as he left the room, Lu Mingze turned back and glared at the tightly closed door. "This looks like my room! I haven't slept all night either!"

……

Chu An slept until the afternoon, then took a shower and felt refreshed.

Years of experience have taught him that no matter how difficult things get, you must remain calm. Otherwise, before external problems even kill you, internal chaos will ensue, and you might not even face external threats before you're already dead.

Therefore, he tried his best to remain calm in front of everyone. It wasn't that Chu An could really stand up to capital, but as the leader of a team, he had to swallow his pride and bear the consequences.

After tidying up, Chu An opened the door, ready to find something to eat.

But it was the same group of people from the morning: Director Lu, Tong Meng, Ji Yinglai, and the others. They were all standing outside the door.

Chu An smiled, "What a coincidence."

As Director Lu pushed Chu An aside and walked through the door, he complained, "What a load of crap! I've been waiting for you since noon!"

He paced back and forth in the small space, the cigarette butt in his hand filling the room with a thin mist once again.

"We've slept together, we've showered, now tell me, what should we do next?!"

Tong Meng was also anxious, "Little Brother Chu, let me tell you, I've never cared about a film crew this much before. If it falls apart, I'll regret it for the rest of my life!"

Ji Yinglai rubbed his hands, also unwilling to give up, "Such a good script, we should still make it if we can. Besides..."

He glanced at the other two producers he had called over, "Besides, we've already fallen out with Tiandu, there's no turning back!"

At this moment, all eyes were once again focused on Chu An. He sat on the edge of the bed for a while, pondering, before getting up and snatching the cigarette that Director Lu had just lit, stubbing it out.

"If you smoke again, you'll set yourself on fire."

After regaining his composure, he said, "The current issues are the male lead, the female lead, and CCTV!"

"Let's take it one step at a time, no need to rush."

Looking at Director Lu, she said, "I already told you, the male lead, you have to handle this yourself. If you can't even handle this little thing, then you shouldn't be making this film."

Lu Mingze gritted his teeth and said, "Fine!! You don't need to worry about this."

At this point, what everyone really needs is someone to make the decisions.

In times of crisis, people tend to shirk responsibility; only a minority step forward.

Chu An: "It's a problem with the female lead."

Tong Meng snapped, "If I can't play the female lead, I'll do it! So what if I have to play a young girl? I've been wanting to play a little girl!"

This statement shocked everyone. "Sister, don't be silly!"

However, it did ease the tense atmosphere a bit.

Chu An didn't dare let Tong Meng continue to speculate, and without keeping her in suspense, he quickly asked Ji Ying, "Is Xu Shu's rival actress that Lin Wanxing?"

I heard this from Li Chunming yesterday.

Ji Yinglai replied, "Of course it's Lin Wanxing."

"Nan Xu Shu and Bei Wan Xing are the most outstanding among the new generation of actresses, and they are also competitors."

Director Lu then spoke up, "There's nothing we can do. Even though they have a lot of acting offers, there are only so many good TV scripts available each year, and even fewer that are suitable for their age."

"If one person gets a good role, the other person will have one less good role to play."

"With media hype added, the rivalry between the two has become uncontrollable in the past two years."

Chu An nodded. Yesterday by the river, when Li Chunming mentioned Lin Wanxing, Xu Shu became a little nervous, which showed how fierce the competition between the two was.

He immediately told Ji Yinglai, "Go to the post office right now and send a copy of the script to Lin Wanxing's agent. Tell them..."

Ji Yinglai, "What did you say?"

Chu An said, "Just tell them that Director Lu wants to fire Xu Shu and give the role of Geng Geng to Lin Wanxing!"

"Huh?" Ji Yinglai thought to herself, "Don't try anything funny. Lin Wanxing isn't so easy to invite."

"Bullshit!" Since Ma Lan wasn't there, Chu An used him as an assistant director. "When you get back, immediately gather the media and hold a press conference. Say that Director Lu is very dissatisfied with Xu Shu, that she doesn't deserve to be a top star, that the crew is going to replace her, and that you're extending a sincere invitation to Lin Wanxing."

Ji Yinglai was dumbfounded.

You've just been "messing around" with someone all night!

Are you turning your back on me like this?
As a result, Chu An's next sentence left Ji Ying even more confused.

"When we're preparing, we must let the people of Tiandu know that we're going to fire Xu Shu first!"

Ji Yinglai: "???"

Everyone was like, "???"

I don't quite understand, what kind of unorthodox method is this?

……

.

(End of this chapter)