Chapter 1464
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After circling around several times to make sure no one was following him, he finally returned to his residence.
Most of the reporters and paparazzi were keeping an eye on the area near the hotel, because they were still drinking there.
The bride and groom will probably be too drunk to even get into bed tonight, but the best man, maid of honor, and other drunk guests, especially the women, will likely have quite a night out.
Reporters are eager to capture some scandals so they can break a big story.
This actually made things easier for him.
What did you eat for dinner?
After searching around, I found Sisi writing a script by the pool.
"King crab, lobster," she replied after smacking her lips a few times.
"Did you go out during the day?"
"No, there were reporters everywhere, so I didn't go for a drive."
"Let's wait a day or two until the reporters are gone, to avoid trouble." She put down the thick stack of papers and turned to him, her face, which appeared even whiter and smoother in the moonlight.
"What about you?"
"You weren't at a wedding party, why are you back so early?"
"Here you are, so I rushed back to see you."
"You're still so good with words." She reached out and hugged him.
"But let's make it clear first, we'll sleep separately tonight."
"Can you please stop messing around? I'm in pain even when I walk today."
"Don't get excited and ruin both of their health."
"It won't break, I'm perfectly healthy." Zhang Yuan patted his kidneys.
She smiled, ignored him, and continued asking.
"Isn't Barbie Hsu your friend?"
"It's not really appropriate to come back so early."
"What kind of friends are they? Just average."
"I've dated all the people I need to date, and I'm too lazy to mess around with the rest."
The key is that he finds certain people and things annoying just by looking at them.
For example, Wu Zongxian is also involved. He's a two-faced guy, playing both sides, and some of the things he says in private are quite incorrect.
In addition, a group of people were watching and urging various middle-aged women to drink, clearly with ill intentions.
He was too lazy to get involved and preferred to go home and rest.
To him, 9% of the people at the wedding had no social value whatsoever.
The current situation is that most celebrities have to curry favor with him.
"What kind of books are these?" He was too lazy to go into details about the wedding, because it was too complicated, and given her personality, even if she understood it, she might not be willing to listen.
"Several copies, all from me." She raised her chin with a hint of pride.
"Of course, you're so amazing."
"Hehe." She laughed and handed him the notebook to look at.
"The Legend of the Feast at Hongmen", "The Assassins", and "The Four Great Shopkeepers", which is still in the project approval stage and only has a script outline.
Zhang Yuan glanced at it and gave it a nonchalant expression.
All three of these are considered S-level projects.
Especially "The Feast at Hongmen" and "The Bronze Sparrow Terrace", one starring Li Min and the other starring Zhou Runfa.
What these projects have in common is that they all involve Hong Kong teams.
Among them, "The Bronze Sparrow Terrace" and "The Four Great Constables" are both projects promoted by Fiber Optics, with high specifications and investment.
With fiber optic cables about to be launched, and money in hand, I want to do something big.
She can't get roles in top-tier productions, so these are the best projects she can get.
Another commonality among these three dramas is that they are all period dramas.
Actresses in period dramas are in her comfort zone, fitting the image she has cultivated in the minds of older viewers.
"That's good. Historical epics have been quite popular in recent years."
"Are you interested?" she suddenly asked, looking at him with anticipation.
“You can take a closer look. If you’re interested, we can act together.”
"I'll have my brokerage team communicate with the investors."
“If I want to act, I don’t need you to communicate with me, I can just tell Wang Changtian directly,” he replied confidently.
"You're so amazing." She wrinkled her nose slightly, a hint of dissatisfaction in her voice.
Zhang Yuan scratched his head, bringing home the attitude he had adopted when speaking to people at the wedding—that is, the attitude he had when speaking to outsiders.
If you don't act respectably in public, people won't take you seriously.
I know you mean well.
"What I mean is, if I could act, I would have done it already."
"No available slots; next year's schedule is fully booked."
In reality, he doesn't perform even if the schedule isn't full.
While these three films can't be called complete flops, they're not exactly great either.
Filming historical dramas demands a high level of vision and perspective from screenwriters and directors, qualities that are generally lacking among professionals in Hong Kong.
They're not good at grand narratives, but they're good at grudges, revenge, and love-hate relationships. So when they make period dramas, they eventually start to include similar themes, they just get used to it.
Besides, if I go, I can't replace Lai Man and Chow Yun-fat. If I'm not the male lead, what's the point of me acting?
As for "The Four Great Constables"... I'd rather not compete with Chao Ge for the role.
In addition, my acting in this play doesn't mean I'm the only one dragging the crew along; it's not like I'm the only one carrying the whole crew.
He figured Wang Changtian was also ambitious, so he didn't ask him to invest together.
However, these period dramas will likely require set construction, so collaboration in that area is possible.
"I have a good relationship with Mr. Wang from Fiber Optics. If you encounter any difficulties or problems on set, be sure to tell me."
"I'll help you communicate, don't keep things to yourself," Zhang Yuan said softly, holding her hands.
“I’m not a child anymore,” she replied, leaning closer and pressing her forehead against his.
“My mom said she really likes this place and is planning to buy a vacation home.”
“Great! I’ll recommend the agency to you, and you can bring your grandma here for a vacation.”
“Grandma is getting old and doesn’t like flying. She also finds train travel tiring, so she rarely travels far.” As she said this, she looked up and glanced at him with her eyes full of spring water.
"So I thought, life is short, and while I'm young and energetic, I want to travel and see more of the world."
"Okay, I'll play with you when I have time."
She chatted with him for a long time, and didn't go back to her own room until midnight.
He had just finished showering and lay down when he heard his phone beep with a text message.
Are you stupid?
She sent me a message from a room just a few rooms away.
"What do you mean?" he replied, his face full of question marks.
Half a minute later, another message came.
"I told you to get a separate room, and you actually did?"
Zhang Yuan: ...
As we've grown up, our emotional needs have become much stronger than before.
He quickly put on a pair of pants and went out.
I checked the room several times in the hallway before finally entering.
Make sure you don't go to the wrong place, like in some Japanese anime where you end up in your girlfriend's mom's room in the middle of the night...
He then admitted he was stupid, but when the time came, he cried out in pain, and in the end, he could only complain about everything.
The next day, after getting up, she dragged him to go hiking in the mountains.
Qiongzhou is mountainous, and there weren't many people along the way.
However, the other party declined his invitation to enjoy nature.
It's about imitating the very natural way animals continue their lives in the wild.
“We tried it on Mount Kilimanjaro,” he complained.
"Is that the same thing?" She blushed slightly. "There were tents back then."
"Stop thinking about these strange things."
"Isn't that shameful?"
"What's shameful about being in love... Hello." He was explaining when his phone suddenly rang.
A familiar male voice came through the phone.
"Zhang Yuan, how have you been lately?"
"Mr. Lu, it's been a long time. I'm doing well. Are you busy?"
The caller was Lu Zheng, Da Tian Tian's "boyfriend".
"Oh, I see." After listening for a while, his eyes flickered, and he nodded.
"Okay, see you in the capital."
"Are you going back?"
After hanging up the phone, I turned my head and saw Little Dragon Girl with her arms crossed, looking helpless and aggrieved.
"There's a movie that wants me to have a cameo role." Zhang Yuan clicked his tongue. "It's not easy to refuse."
"Go on, go on, work is important." She took a breath and put on an attitude of nonchalance, like a typical young woman.
"If we can go into the woods to talk, I'm open to going a couple of days later."
"Then you should leave now..." Although he had not yet achieved his goal of fighting in the wild, he stayed for two more days before leaving.
This also conveniently avoided the reporters who were stranded on the island.
They came quickly and left quickly; what was originally a gathering of distinguished guests for the wedding has now returned to normal.
The planes aren't as crowded now, and first-class tickets are easier to buy.
After returning to the capital, he rested briefly, sent a text message to Qianqian to let her know he was safe, and then changed his clothes before going out.
After taking off his suit and changing into relatively casual sportswear, he took a winding car ride to a courtyard house in the capital.
This place is being used as a filming location.
This film truly deserves the title of "Sino-US co-production".
However, this group photo was really poorly taken...
"You're here." As soon as he entered, a dark-skinned, thin old man smiled and waved to him.
He was Yuan Hepin, a famous action choreographer in China, perhaps even the top action choreographer.
Eighth Master and he were quite familiar with each other, having collaborated several times.
Especially recently, there's the film "The Grandmaster," for which he served as the chief action choreographer and visited the set several times.
Wong Kar-wai finally finished filming after more than a year, and only then did he have time to do other things.
The reason he hesitated after receiving the call, yet said he couldn't refuse, lies partly with this person.
But it's only a small part.
Because the movie they're currently filming is called "Man of Tai Chi".
"Hello."
Eighth Master led him indoors, where a tall, well-dressed, and meticulously walking white man immediately approached him.
"I know you; I've seen your performances."
"Welcome to the film crew."
This tall man is Keanu Reeves, a once-popular but now faded Hollywood A-list actor.
That is, the male protagonist of "The Matrix".
The reason why Eighth Master would hang out with him was also because of this drama.
Keanu is a unique person; he's tall and handsome, and in his youth, he had a bit of a heartthrob look.
However, he is the "big, clumsy" type, and even though he has practiced a lot of martial arts, his limbs are still relatively stiff.
In particular, he has a steel plate in his neck. He injured his neck while filming "The Matrix" in his early years and had to have surgery.
So when this person walks, their neck and shoulders move together, making them look rather simple-minded.
He is the director of this film.
This was also his first time directing.
"Hello." He then looked at a thin, short man standing next to him.
Although Keanu Reeves is a big star, he is not the male lead in the film, but rather the antagonist.
The real male lead is this man from Sichuan and Chongqing named Chen Hu.
To be honest, the origin of this film is actually "The Matrix".
After Li Lianjie declined the offer, Yuan Hepin took over the action choreography for "The Matrix".
Unlike Chenlong, Eighth Master is relatively introverted.
When Chen Long first arrived in Hollywood to film "Rush Hour," he was looked down upon. When others didn't listen to him, he worked like crazy to demonstrate, impressing the foreigners with his ingenious action choreography, high level of execution, and fearless professionalism.
Yuan Hepin is different; he's more "cunning."
When the Matrix was first being filmed, the foreigners also had their own action choreography team, and they looked down on you yellow-skinned people.
The two teams often disagreed when designing actions.
The Yuan family troupe was furious and wanted to fight the foreigners, but Eighth Master stopped them.
He always did as the other person asked.
Not only did they acknowledge the other party's excellent design, but they also encouraged them to film and suggested increasing the difficulty.
pretty good.
I think it's good.
Keep it up, everyone!
Then, you design the action scenes, your team films them, and I take my people to rest.
Every time, the foreigner would slink back the next day.
what happened?
I can't handle it!
Design is one thing, but if you can't film it, the actors can't perform it either.
Since you've come to me, you have to listen to me.
After three or four such incidents, the foreigner understood and was convinced.
After that, whatever Yuan Hepin said was law, and no one objected anymore.
This is what they call "it's a crime to disobey a master." If you're so good, then you do it. If you know you can't do it, then I'll try.
Yuen Woo-ping often "puts out fires" in China, so he understands this method of communication that uses gentleness to overcome strength.
He's been a stuntman for decades, and two generations of his family have been in the business. He can tell at a glance what moves are possible and what moves are not.
Intentionally harboring malicious intent to cause the other party to fail.
The male lead, Chen Hu, is not only a member of the Yuan Clan, but also Keanu Reeves' coach and one-on-one action director during the filming of "The Matrix".
He trained Keanu for several months and they filmed three movies together.
During filming, Keanu called him "Master," and the two are good friends off-screen.
When they were filming before, Keanu was grateful to this person who taught him wholeheartedly and helped him a lot, so he casually said that if there was an opportunity in the future, he would invest money to make movies for him.
Whether he is sincere or not is unclear, but it is highly likely that he is sincere.
One of his most famous deeds was giving away a whopping $5000 million of his earnings from "The Matrix" to the crew.
He felt that the behind-the-scenes staff worked very hard, but their income was not high.
So while Keanu Reeves may occasionally make inappropriate remarks about China, this is due to the information cocoon and the prevailing public opinion environment in North America.
Overall, he's a breath of fresh air in Hollywood; he's generous and has good character.
Furthermore, he was "out of fashion" and retired voluntarily because he encountered some unforeseen circumstances, which left him feeling stagnant.
This guy doesn't buy a house, lives in hotels year-round, commutes to get off work by motorcycle, and even takes the subway; he has absolutely no airs of a celebrity.
He kept his word and did exactly what he said he would do; he agreed to act in a movie for Chen Hu.
Chen Hu approached him wanting to change his career path, and this person stepped in to help him organize the event and even directed it himself.
How awesome is Keanu Reeves after he steps in?
This film was co-invested by four major companies: Universal Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures (Australia), China Film Group, and Wanda Group.
The condition for paying the money was that Keane Reeves had to appear in the film; they just wanted his face.
It's very valuable.
I'm not familiar with Vieshow Chow, but he has partnerships with the other companies, so it wouldn't be appropriate for him not to come when they called him.
Even if I know the show isn't very good, I still have to come.
It's purely a matter of personal relationships.
These companies felt that Keanu Reeves' involvement in both acting and directing was a sure-fire way to make money.
You're really overthinking it...
There's also a "little rascal".
China Film Group, which is the company behind Han Kuo-yu, agreed to fund and distribute the film, but there was one additional condition.
That means Keanu Reeves and Chen Hu will have to make another similar film.
Li Shaohong, who was fortunate enough to be recognized by this Hollywood star, approached Lao Han and expressed his desire to take advantage of foreign resources.
That led to another film invested in by Rongxingda, with artists from their company participating in the filming.
They are the two actors who played the young Jia Baoyu and the adult Lin Daiyu in Li Shaohong's version of "Dream of the Red Chamber".
The kung fu film, still starring Chen Hu but with Keanu Reeves listed as producer, is called "Kung Fu Hero".
Even the name is piggybacking on "Tai Chi Hero".
I also greeted Lao Han, as I was originally planning to take advantage of his schedule.
They plan to release "Kung Fu Hero" in the same slot as "Man of Tai Chi".
As a result, "Man of Tai Chi" was a huge flop, and Li Shaohong had to urgently withdraw it from theaters and postpone it for more than half a year. Otherwise, theaters would not have given it any screenings after seeing how bad it had been so far.
In the end, they all lost money, which was quite a disaster.
Rongxingda should just take a break; he's simply not capable of making movies.
Old Han also "spoils his kids." As long as they are his own people or old colleagues, he will help them to the death.
Unfortunately, there are always a bunch of hopeless cases.
The male lead in this drama is in a similar situation.
The same model is the two-part "Tai Chi" series, which is currently being filmed and invested in by Huayi Brothers.
The male lead was also cast as a martial arts performer.
At the same time, they were promoting Yang Tianbao.
The overall results were better than here, but we still didn't make any money.
These bloody lessons have taught the Chinese film market that the era of stuntmen transitioning into actors is over.
Chen Long and Li Lianjie are products of a special era, and both are geniuses.
Wu Jing can't even make it big, and he's still using a stranger's face? What's he thinking?
Zhang Yuan understood; he was also trying to ride on my popularity.
There's nothing I can do about it. At worst, people will say a few things after the movie is released, like why I had to make a cameo in a bad film.
It wasn't entirely without benefits. Besides building good relationships with the companies and teams involved, Keanu Reeves himself is a very valuable director… (End of Chapter)