China Entertainment: Sister, I don’t want to work hard anymore

Chapter 165 Commander Ma, if you don’t want this incredible wealth!

Knowing that Chu Hui was unavailable for the time being, Ma Yili took notice and joked with a smile: "We, Mr. Hui, are very busy, so I won't bother you today. We'll chat another day when we have time."

As today's protagonist, Chu Hui really didn't have time to talk on the phone with her, so he smiled and replied: "Okay, then I'll call you back later."

Ma Yili said with a smile: "Don't worry, who doesn't know that Mr. Hui is very busy with everything, and it won't be too late to find me when you are done."

Chu Hui nodded: "Okay, let's do this for now. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

After talking to Ma Yili on the phone, Chu Hui couldn't help but think about the wonderful memories he had with her.

Obviously, it was difficult for Chu Hui to feel satisfied and excited about love between ordinary lovers.

For Chu Hui now, it has to be a difficult and challenging woman with a dangerous relationship to make him risk his life and have endless aftertaste.

However, Chu Hui still had a lot to do when he returned to Yanjing this time. Some of the company's projects and affairs required him to make decisions and handle them personally, so he couldn't meet with Commander Ma immediately.

Even if he doesn't have to go to the end personally, Chu Hui must still supervise and understand so as not to be deceived.

March 12, 15 am.

Donghuan International Building, a 9-story office building.

Another thing is the post-production of the "Snow Leopard" drama, as well as the cooperation with the TV station, etc. Chu Hui has no way to ignore it.

Moreover, in his previous life, Chu Hui was also deeply impressed by the drama "Defense of Marriage".

Yang Tianzhen explained: "I heard that it seemed that he signed the contract after he was drunk and drunk at the time."

Zhao Baogang, on the other hand, is still staying in his comfort zone and doesn't even dare to touch movies. It's not that he doesn't want to invest in making movies, but he's afraid that if he messes up, it will be difficult for him to recover.

Although Zhao Baogang said so, only he knew that he asked Chu Hui to co-invest in the drama "Defense of Marriage" mainly to reduce risks.

But Yang Tianzhen told Chu Hui: "Brother Hui, the copyright of "Ghost Blowing the Lamp" was sold to Tianxiaba Sing as early as a year ago. I heard it was sold for 10 yuan!"

The play tells the story of a modern urban man and woman who relentlessly explore and pursue the ideal relationship between husband and wife, pure human emotions, and a healthy and happy life.

Seeing a trace of hesitation flashing in Chu Hui's eyes, Zhao Baogang said bluntly: "Huizi, don't worry about the cast!"

In the current film and television industry, almost every TV drama actor wants to cooperate with Zhao Baogang.

Especially after the drama "Struggle" became a hit, the ratings of the drama "Who Calls the Shots of My Youth" were also quite good.

The investment in the drama "Defense of Marriage" is also one of the TV dramas he has invested the most in since his director career.

Zhao Baogang thought about it and said, "Below 500 million, you can say whatever you want."

Chu Hui said angrily: "Sold it for 10 yuan? This guy is really stupid. He sold a big IP worth hundreds of millions for 10 yuan, and there is no one left!"

In the past three months, Yang Tianzhen has led the department's screenwriting team to select 25 novels suitable for adaptation into TV series from hundreds of physical novels and online novels.

Because everyone knows that playing Zhao Baogang can be a hit, and it may become a big hit.

The show has a total of 33 episodes, with a total investment of 2300 million, which means the average production cost per episode is 70.

Zhao Baogang enjoyed the benefits of cooperating with Chu Hui this time, and also extended a favor by inviting Chu Hui to participate in investing in his new drama - "The Defense of Marriage".

If the investment in the director's film fails, it may be in vain for two or three years. Zhao Baogang is now in his 50s and really cannot afford to gamble or lose.

It’s unclear what the show’s specific ratings are, but with Zhao Baogang’s golden signature, it’s easy to sell it at a high price.

Although Zhao Baogang's tone was a bit loud, Chu Hui still believed what he said.

After not coming back for so long, Chu Hui also planned to arrange some time to meet with Li Xiaoran, Ma Sichun, Jiang Wenli, Tong Liya and other confidante.

Zhao Baogang couldn't help laughing and said: "Huizi, you really eat meat without spitting out bones. You are really greedy."

You know, the original production cost of "Struggle" was only 1500 million.

Moreover, Commander Ma is not his woman after all. Even if he covets her body, Chu Hui has no obligation to be responsible for her.

"Oh, how come Ba Chang can't catch this incredible wealth?"

If Chu Hui is willing to invest, Zhao Baogang will feel less stressed and won't be too worried that he will mess up the project.

After hearing what Zhao Baogang said, Chu Hui was not polite to Zhao Baogang and said directly to Zhao Baogang: "Uncle, then I will invest 500 million. Do you agree?"

Among them, the two novels "Ghost Blowing the Lamp" and "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" attracted Chu Hui's great attention.

"Even if the production cost for one episode is only 70, with the appeal I have accumulated in the industry over the years, I can definitely create an all-star cast."

Thinking of this, Chu Hui smiled and asked: "Uncle, how much can you let me vote for?"

The first thing Chu Hui did when he came to the company was to ask Yang Tianzhen to come to the office to report to him on the recent selection of scripts.

Excluding the cost of filming, food, clothing, housing and transportation, the show can only hire one or two big names at most. After all, other supporting actors also need a lot of salary.

Zhao Baogang has always been a very cautious director with low ambitions. He debuted and became famous together with Feng Xiaogang. Feng Xiaogang has now become a major director in the film industry.

Moreover, Zhao Baogang is quite optimistic about Chu Hui. This time he asked Chu Hui to invest in his play. Next time Chu Hui prepares a new play, he can also invest more if he thinks it is good.

"I don't know the specific situation. I heard it from others, but what is certain is that he did sell the copyright of this novel."

Among these 25 novels, there are several that Chu Hui has heard of, and there are also several that he has never heard of.

A movie can easily cost 1 to million yuan, and it can only be considered a small- to medium-sized production. But to make money back, the film needs a box office of million yuan.

For a modern urban-themed TV series, the production fee of 70 per episode is considered a high investment.

After Chu Hui thought for a moment, he asked: "Who did he sell the copyright to?"

Yang Tianzhen replied: "I heard it was sold to a novel website."

Chu Hui blurted out without thinking: "Contact that novel website as soon as possible to see if they are willing to sell it."

"If they are willing to sell it, let me know as soon as possible. We must find a way to get the film and television adaptation rights of this novel."

Even though Chu Hui looked serious, Yang Tianzhen did not dare to neglect and nodded quickly: "Okay, Brother Hui, I will definitely contact you as soon as possible."

Immediately afterwards, Chu Hui asked about the copyright situation of the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem".

What makes Chu Hui happy is that the film and television adaptation copyright of the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" is still in the hands of the author Liu Lianzi.

Although in his previous life, Chu Hui had already watched the drama "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" and knew that the drama had extremely high ratings and great influence. It could be called a phenomenal classic palace battle drama.

But Chu Hui still pretended, and asked Yang Tianzhen: "Tianzhen, what is this drama about? Is it a palace fight drama?"

Yang Tianzhen replied truthfully: "That's right, Brother Hui, this is a palace battle drama, a bit like Xiangjiang's "The Golden Branch"..."

Under Yang Tianzhen's introduction, Chu Hui roughly understood that "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" mainly tells the story of the protagonist Zhen Huan's experience and growth in the harem in the fictional dynasty "Da Zhou".

After listening to Yang Tianzhen's explanation, Chu Hui couldn't help but frowned and thought to himself, isn't "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" a Qing palace drama? How did he become the fictional Dazhou?
Could it be that in another time and space, the era in the original work of "The Legend of Zhen Huan" was the Great Zhou Dynasty?

In Chu Hui's view, if it is a fictional dynasty, it will definitely not work. If the drama "The Legend of Zhen Huan" is to be as popular as in the previous life, it must be set in the Qing Dynasty, which is more popular.

Because most of the audience is relatively familiar with the Qing Dynasty, they can feel more involved when watching the play.

Even if they were not familiar with historical figures such as Yongzheng and Nian Gengyao, they had not heard of them.

If it were a fictional Dazhou, the audience would have to get to know these characters again while watching the play, which would definitely dissuade some of the audience.

However, Chu Hui has some concerns about adapting costume dramas. The TV series "Yanjing Love Story" he previously directed, and the investments "The Age of Naked Wedding" and "Snow Leopard" are all modern dramas.

This is a brand new challenge for Chu Hui, who has never invested in a costume drama.

In addition, there are currently too many costume dramas in China, and the quality is worse than the last. The appearance of so many shoddy costume dramas has led to the deterioration of the domestic and overseas costume drama markets.

In order to rectify the chaos in the costume drama market, China has introduced new regulations to limit the number of stars in costume dramas.

After the new regulations were introduced, investors took a wait-and-see attitude towards costume dramas, and overnight, the costume drama market also cooled down.

Considering the current market conditions, Chu Hui speculated that even if the drama "The Legend of Zhen Huan" is successfully completed, it is still unknown whether it can be successfully broadcast on TV stations.

But Chu Hui knew very well that as long as this drama could be filmed well, it would definitely become popular. The current situation is not good, so he would wait until next year or the year after that to film it again.

Thinking of this, Chu Hui immediately asked Yang Tianzhen to contact the original author Liu Lianzi. Due to the downturn in the costume drama market due to the introduction of new regulations, the novel market has also been affected. No one has been willing to buy Liu Lianzi's "The Legend of Zhen Huan" in the Harem. She was the first person to offer to buy the copyright of the novel.

Seeing that such a famous actor and director was willing to buy the novel and adapt it into a TV series, Liu Lianzi sold the novel copyright of "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" to Chu Hui for 60.

Only Chu Hui knew that Zhao Baogang only spent 60 yuan to buy the copyright of the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem", which was a huge bargain.

Before Chu Hui bought the novel, he already had the basic ideas for adapting the script of the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem".

Although the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan" is a romance novel, Chu Hui believes that the TV series cannot only focus on the "romantic" part, but must be endowed with certain values, and the costume drama "The Legend of Zhen Huan" must also be distinguished from other costume dramas on the market.

therefore. The script must be changed according to real life logic.

The original "Dazhou" in the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan" was a fictional dynasty. Chu Hui decided to change the background to the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty. The novel's suave Xuan Ling was changed to Yongzheng in his 40s.

Not long after, there were media reports that director Chu Hui was going to film "The Legend of Zhen Huan". Fans of the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan" heard that it was adapted by director Chu Hui, and were excited and looking forward to it. After all, the quality of the TV series starring Chu Hui is... Guaranteed.

But at the same time, many book fans are worried that "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" may be changed beyond recognition by Chu Hui, and may even have incorrect views.

For example, "Yanjing Love Story", which Chu Hui wrote, directed and starred in, was very popular, but it also received a lot of criticism.

Sure enough, when book fans saw Chu Hui's adapted story synopsis, a large number of book fans complained on the Internet.

"Chu Hui is out of his mind, why do he have to make so many blind changes? Can't he just stick to the original work?"

"Why should we change the Zhou Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty?"

"I knew that Chu Hui would definitely change his mind!"

"Director Chu, please stop making trouble. Please give me the leading actor Xuan Ling. I don't want Yongzheng!"

"..."

Netizens believe that the novel was originally a romantic drama, why was it changed to a Qing palace drama, and why was the male protagonist changed to the middle-aged Yongzheng.

The overwhelming complaints from online writers did not make Chu Hui feel pressured.

On the contrary, Chu Hui didn't care at all about the comments of these book friends. What he cared about was whether the TV audience would like the drama "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem".

Therefore, Chu Hui still insisted on letting the company's screenwriting team adapt the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan in the Harem" according to his own ideas.

June 1, afternoon.

Chu Hui came to the post-production room of "Snow Leopard" with an attitude of learning and supervision.

Seeing Chu Hui coming to inspect his work, director Chen Haowei stood up with a smile and exchanged some pleasantries with Chu Hui.

Chu Hui patted Chen Haowei on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Director Chen, you have worked hard during this period. How did you do in the later stage? Can you finish it before the year?"

Chen Haowei said confidently: "No problem, it's almost done. I think it can be done in the next two weeks."

Hearing Chen Haowei's affirmative answer, Chu Hui breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile: "That's good!"

"The TV station hopes that our drama can be their big drama next year and be broadcast before the year."

"Since we can make it in time, should I inform them to pick up the goods at that time?"

Chen Haowei smiled and nodded: "Yes, it will definitely be no problem. Just tell them directly."

After chatting with Chu Hui for a while, Chen Haowei turned his energy back to the post-production of the drama "Snow Leopard".
Since the play incorporates elements from many well-known anti-war films such as "Landmine War", director Chen Haowei needs to rearrange it to make it more reasonable and interesting.

In order to make the picture more dramatic, "Snow Leopard" combined with post-production special effects, making some plots present a comic-like expression.

For example, in order to rescue Chen Yi who was held hostage by Ito, Zhou Weiguo resorted to the strategy of "making a sound in the east and attacking in the west", and finally gained a precious opportunity to shoot Ito with his own hands.

Director Chen Haowei handled the special effects and demonstrated the entire process of the bullet fired at Ito moving in the air.

When I saw the special effects created by Chen Haowei, I thought they were a little fake. They might not be worth 1 yuan, but for 5 cents, the effect should still be there.

Because he knew that funds were limited and his technology was even more limited, Chu Hui did not dare to ask for too much. He even smiled and joked: "Okay, Director Chen, your special effects are pretty good. It feels like watching a Hollywood blockbuster!"

Chen Haowei knew that Chu Hui was joking with him, and also knew that his skills were not very good, so he immediately replied with a wry smile: "Mr. Hui, you get what you pay for with special effects. If you give me 10 yuan, don't expect me to give you anything." Let’s have a banquet of Manchu and Han Dynasties.”

Chu Hui smiled and said: "Don't worry, Director Chen. I have been a director myself. I have experienced your hardships. Just do your best."

"No matter what happens, I won't do anything to you, just do it and it'll be over."

After hearing Chu Hui's words, Chen Haowei instantly relieved the pressure he had accumulated in his heart, and told Chu Hui in person that he would do his best to complete the post-production of "Snow Leopard".

After inspecting the post-production progress of the play, Chu Hui finally found some time to prepare to have a good meeting with Commander Ma tonight.

Due to the trivial matters, Chu Hui has not touched a woman for two days.

After two days and two nights of self-cultivation, Chu Hui was at the peak of his personal state.

Whether it is strength, speed, etc., there is absolute quality assurance. Now it depends on whether Commander Ma will accept the order.

Chu Hui at this time, not to mention one Commander Ma, even two Commander Ma, is not a problem.

Without a moment's hesitation, after coming out of the post-production room, Chu Hui picked up his cell phone and dialed Ma Yili's number.

However, what puzzled Chu Hui was that he called Ma Yili twice, but no one answered.

In Chu Hui's impression, Ma Yili almost never leaves her cell phone. If she makes two calls in a row but doesn't answer the phone, it means that she may not have it with her or look at her cell phone...

In fact, at this moment, Ma Yili not only held the mobile phone, but also saw the call Chu Hui called her.

Ma Yili deliberately didn't answer the phone. For no other reason than she wanted Chu Hui to know that she, Commander Ma, was not someone to be trifled with. She was not a little woman who would come and go as soon as he called.

Ma Yili originally thought that Chu Hui would take the initiative to meet her within two or three days after returning to Yanjing.

As a result, Chu Hui made her wait for a full ten days before dialing her number. It was hard not to make Commander Ma feel angry...

You know, Commander Ma has been waiting for Chu Hui, and called Chu Hui as soon as he finished filming.

From this point, we can also see Commander Ma's attitude towards Chu Hui.

When Chu Hui made six consecutive calls within two hours, no one answered.

When the sixth call was answered by Commander Ma before it ended, Chu Hui finally realized that he might have offended Commander Ma unintentionally.

As the saying goes, when things go wrong, there must be a monster.

Chu Hui knew that Commander Ma was angry and needed to give her a buffer and a step up, so he immediately picked up the phone and dialed.

Anyway, Commander Ma didn't answer the call and didn't charge for the call. Chu Hui didn't panic at all and called casually.

While calling Commander Ma, Chu Hui was not idle. He not only smoked two cigarettes, but also drank several cups of tea.

Just when Chu Hui was about to take a shower, Commander Ma finally answered his phone.

Before Chu Hui could speak, Commander Ma smiled and said, "Hey, Mr. Hui is a very busy man. Why are you so free today and making so many calls to Ala?"

Listening to Ma Yili on the other end of the phone who was talking about Beijing movies mixed with Shanghainese dialect, she seemed to be gloating about her misfortune, and Chu Hui was also a little bit dumbfounded.

Chu Hui imitated Commander Ma's tone, smiled and said: "Commander Ma, let's speak the Shanghai dialect. If you speak the Shanghai dialect, it sounds really nice."

"But Yili, I advise you not to speak Yanjing dialect. You have been with Xiaowen for a long time, and I feel that your tone of voice is somewhat similar to Xiaowen."

"Especially the sentence 'Ouch!' at the beginning. I have never heard anyone say this Beijing movie, only Xiaowen said it."

Not to be outdone, Ma Yili replied with a smile: "No? Xiaowen is my husband, my child's father, and I talk like him. Are you unhappy? Are you jealous?"

Seeing Commander Ma being so arrogant, Chu Hui secretly vowed to make her pay the price tonight.

It was because of her pregnancy before that Chu Hui knew how to cherish her for the sake of her child. Now that she has given birth to a child, Chu Hui will no longer be soft-hearted towards her.

However, Chu Hui said: "Yili, to tell you the truth, I'm a little jealous."

Although Ma Yili didn't quite believe that Chu Hui would be jealous of her, she was really happy to hear what Chu Hui said.

Ps. Thank you to book friend Bunny Bus for your reward and encouragement. Thank you to everyone who subscribed and voted. Thank you all. I hope everyone has a happy life.

(End of this chapter)