radicalducati Chapter 14 Dinner Party, Zhou Miaotong's Dispute
Chapter 14 Dinner Party, Zhou Miaotong's Dispute
September 2014, 11, Beijing.
The first cold wave since the beginning of autumn arrived earlier than usual, and most of the ginkgo trees along the roadside had already been blown down by the wind before they could even turn yellow.
Gao Huan sat in the back seat of the van, flipping through the script of "Brotherhood of Blades" that he had already read three times.
Yangyang Jin sat in the passenger seat and glanced at him in the rearview mirror.
"Brother Huan, you've flipped through this book at least five times along the way."
"Five times isn't much," Gao Huan said without even looking up. "A good script is worth reading ten times."
Yangyang Jin pursed her lips and didn't reply.
She had long since abandoned her standards for defining a "good script" like Gao Huan's.
He read the script of "The Coffin in the Mountain" more than ten times, and finally the 1.7 million yuan cost was exchanged for 600 million yuan at the box office.
She has to admire this person's eye for scripts and their current influence.
The car turned into a Huaiyang cuisine restaurant on the East Third Ring Road.
This restaurant has a small storefront, hidden in the podium of an office building in the CBD. It doesn't have a sign and isn't open to the public; only people in the industry know about it.
With its good privacy and exquisite dishes, it is one of Li Xue's favorite places to discuss business.
When Gao Huan got out of the car, Li Xue had already arrived and was standing at the door making a phone call.
She wore a casual suit today, her hair was tied up, looking capable and neat. Standing there, she resembled a drawn sword.
Upon seeing Gao Huan, she nodded to him, said "That's all for now" into the phone, and hung up.
"Aunt Xue." Gao Huan walked over.
"Hmm." Li Xue looked him up and down. "Aren't you cold wearing so little?"
"The heater is on inside."
Li Xue didn't say anything more and turned to walk inside.
Yangyang Jin followed behind and whispered to Gao Huan, "President Xue seems to be in a good mood today."
Gao Huan didn't say anything, but he understood.
The box office of "The Coffin in the Mountain" has exceeded 350 million yuan, and the Douban score is stable at 8.7. As the sole investor, Gao Huan has won this battle brilliantly.
It would be strange if Li Xue was in a bad mood.
The three people entered the private room.
The private room wasn't big; it had a round table that could seat eight people just right.
The lighting was warm yellow, and several ink paintings hung on the wall, creating a quiet and private atmosphere.
Lu Yang has arrived.
He was younger than Gao Huan had imagined, in his early thirties, wearing black-rimmed glasses and a dark blue jacket. He looked more like a university lecturer than a director.
Seeing Gao Huan enter, he stood up and extended his hand.
"Professor Gao, I've heard so much about you."
Gao Huan grasped his hand, a slight smile playing on her lips: "Director Lu, just call me Xiao Gao."
Lu Yang smiled: "Okay, Xiao Gao."
When the two shook hands, there was something different in Lu Yang's eyes when he looked at Gao Huan.
That kind of thing is called "examination".
He was checking if Gao Huan had something like the character in the movie.
Lu Yang watched Gao Huan's performance in "The Coffin in the Mountain" twice.
The first time I watched it, I was drawn in by the story; the second time, I watched it specifically to see Gao Huan's performance.
After reading it, he said to himself: This is someone I must cooperate with.
The person standing in front of me is even more handsome than on the screen, but his aura is completely different from Xiao Zongyao's.
Xiao Zongyao was cowardly, struggling, and being pushed along by fate.
Gao Huan was calm, composed, and seemed to know all along what was going to happen.
Lu Yang felt more confident.
……
People gradually arrived.
Liu Shishi and Cai Yinong came together.
Liu Shishi wore a beige sweater, her hair was loose, and she looked gentle and soft, like a freshly brewed cup of jasmine tea.
Her features aren't the kind of beauty that's aggressive, but rather the kind that's pleasing to the eye, stands up to the camera, and grows more attractive the more you look at them.
Cai Yinong walked in front, exuding a completely different aura.
She wore a black trench coat, walked with a confident stride, and had sharp eyes; she was clearly a ruthless and decisive person in the business world.
"President Li," Cai Yinong said with a smile, shaking hands with Li Xue. "Long time no see."
"President Cai," Li Xue smiled, "you're getting younger and younger."
"Come on, don't give me that." Cai Yinong waved her hand, then turned to Gao Huan. "This must be Gao Huan, right?"
Gao Huan nodded slightly: "Hello, President Cai."
Cai Yinong sized him up for a few seconds, a glint of shrewdness flashing in her eyes.
She wasn't looking at her face; she was calculating.
She quickly went through Gao Huan's current popularity, reputation, fan loyalty, and commercial value in her mind.
Then she smiled, a very genuine smile: "Hello, handsome young man, I've seen your performance in 'The Coffin in the Mountain,' you acted very well."
"Thank you, Mr. Cai."
Liu Shishi stood to the side, quietly nodded to Gao Huan, and said nothing.
That's just her personality; she's slow to warm up, but once you get to know her, she becomes very outgoing and carefree.
She never talks much in front of strangers.
Gao Huan glanced at her, and a thought flashed through his mind.
This idea had nothing to do with the script, the character, or his 1123 theory.
He simply felt that Liu Shishi shouldn't be dragged into that mess after getting married.
Gao Huan was not a saint; he didn't concern himself with other people's business.
But Liu Shishi is different; she is one of the few actresses that Gao Huan felt was "regrettable" in his previous life.
Her acting skills aren't top-notch, but she has a unique charisma. Although her range of roles isn't wide and her acting isn't particularly good, she's dedicated and doesn't cause trouble.
Unfortunately, after getting married, she produced fewer and fewer good works, and eventually ended up competing for a living with a group of younger people.
Gao Huan didn't want to see her take that path.
Of course, he wouldn't tell anyone about this idea.
If he said it out loud, people would think he was crazy.
A 22-year-old worrying about the marriage of a 30-year-old is just plain crazy.
So he just marked it in his mind and then suppressed the thought.
……
Zhao Liying arrived last.
She came alone.
She was wearing a black down jacket, zipped all the way up, her hair was tied in a ponytail, she was bare-faced and had no makeup on, and there was a faint bluish-gray tint under her eyes, making her look like she hadn't slept well.
As she entered, she glanced at the people in the private room, then walked up to Li Xue and smiled, "Mr. Li, I'm sorry, there was a traffic jam on the way."
"It's alright, have a seat." Li Xue pointed to the empty seat.
After Zhao Liying sat down, she glanced at Gao Huan.
Gao Huan nodded slightly to her.
Zhao Liying paused for a moment, then nodded.
She wondered to herself: She and Gao Huan had no connection, and this was their first meeting. Why was Gao Huan looking at her as if they had known each other for a long time?
But she didn't think much of it.
She's not feeling well today.
To be precise, she hasn't been doing very well lately.
He Ru's incident caused a huge uproar, with the entire internet criticizing her. The hashtag "#ZhaoLiyingGetOutOfTheEntertainmentIndustry" stayed on Weibo for several days, and the post about "Six Deadly Sins" was forwarded tens of thousands of times.
Her agent, He Ru, is still her agent on the surface, but behind her back, she has stabbed her in the back several times on Weibo.
"Low emotional intelligence", "ungrateful", "arrogant after becoming famous"...
Every word felt like a knife, stabbing into her.
She considered clarifying things on Weibo, confronting He Ru, or even quitting the entertainment industry altogether.
But she did nothing.
Because she didn't know what to say.
He said, "I didn't do those things?" Netizens didn't believe him.
To say that "Herzu is lying"? There is no evidence.
Saying "I'm wronged"? No one will sympathize with someone who "gets arrogant after becoming famous".
So she chose to remain silent.
They filmed in silence, rushed to announcements in silence, and silently endured all the insults.
I was invited to this dinner by Li Xue herself, who made the call.
"Liying, let's go out for a meal and chat. We haven't seen each other in a long time. Let me introduce you to Gao Huan. He really likes you. He said that you and Wang Baoqiang are the male and female artists he most wants to work with."
Li Xue's tone was very kind; even though she hadn't been feeling well lately, Zhao Liying, you immediately agreed.
It wasn't just because of Li Xue's status, but because of the way she spoke and her sincerity that made it impossible for her to refuse.
The three words "chat" may seem innocuous, but behind them could lie an opportunity or a way out.
What Zhao Liying lacks most right now is opportunity and a way out.
Moreover, he was also very interested in the movie script that Gao Huan had previously handed over through his agent.
So she came.
No makeup, alone.