Huayu: This director is pretty strong.

Chapter 90: Watching the "Wrap-up" Scene Instead of the Finished Film

Chen Yansong loosened the handle of his briefcase.

The pale fingertips regained their color.

He opened the car door and stepped into the ankle-deep water.

"Old Wu, go to the studio."

Chen Yan sat in the back seat, water droplets rolling down the hem of his trench coat.

Wu Gang started the car, shifted gears, and released the handbrake.

"Shall we go now?"

"Go now."

Chen Yan took the roll of film out of his pocket and placed it on his lap.

The black Hongqi sedan changed lanes in the rain, while the Santana behind it maintained a distance of fifty meters.

The windshield wipers swung mechanically on the windshield.

"Should I shake him off?"

Wu Gang looked in the rearview mirror and asked.

"No need, let him come along."

Chen Yan closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

The car drove into the dilapidated factory area behind Beidian University and stopped in front of a rusty subway door.

Chen Yan got out of the car and opened the door, but the motion-activated light did not turn on.

He fumbled for the switch on the wall and pressed it.

In the cramped editing room, three monitors lit up, and the corner was piled high with opened cassette tapes.

Su Wan followed her in, carrying a thick folder in her hands.

"Chen Yan, Lu Haiming's men are guarding outside."

Su Wan walked to the window and lifted a corner of the curtain.

"Ignore them."

Chen Yan walked to the worktable and ran his fingertip over the rows of videotape labels.

"Old Wu, find those behind-the-scenes shots I asked you to keep."

Wu Gang pulled a plastic box from the bottom shelf.

"Is it this box?"

Chen Yan opened the box, and inside were videotapes labeled "Side B".

These tapes do not contain the actual film "Thunder".

In which section of the game does Lin Qingqiu dive into the Huairou Reservoir?

"The seventeenth game."

Wu Gang pulled out a black cassette tape and inserted it into the projector.

An image appeared on the screen.

In temperatures of minus ten degrees Celsius, Lin Qingqiu, dressed in a thin white cheongsam, stood on a makeshift diving platform.

Her body was trembling, and her lips had turned a sickly purple.

"Clapper board, strike the clapperboard."

Chen Yan's voice came from the screen.

Lin Qingqiu jumped into the water.

Water splashed up.

Chen Yan sat behind the monitor, holding a stopwatch in his hand.

"one two three……"

Chen Yan is counting down the seconds.

Lin Qingqiu surfaced, her long hair plastered to her face. Before she could speak, Chen Yan interrupted her.

"The movement is not correct, start over."

Lin Qingqiu in the video did not refute. She climbed ashore, wrapped herself in a military overcoat, and squatted by the brazier, her body heaving violently.

"Cut this part out."

Chen Yan pointed at the screen.

"Not cutting the main feature?"

Su Wan leaned closer and asked.

"I won't cut it."

Chen Yan looked at Lin Qingqiu in the picture.

"The public doesn't care about art now; they care about money and suffering."

He pushed aside the ashtray on the table, making room for it.

"Old Wu, besides this scene, we also need to add the side shot of that explosion scene."

"The one where the crossbeam was blown off and almost hit the stuntmen?"

"Yes. And there's the scene where I yelled at Lin Qingqiu and told her to get out of the crew."

Chen Yan's voice echoed in the room.

"Lu Haiming sees these things as a stain on my reputation, but to me, they are the best advertisements."

Wu Gang started working on the editing table, and the sound of the tape rewinding was like a sharp whistle.

Su Wan made a phone call from the side.

"Hello, is this Director Wang from Shandong TV's GG department? This is Su Wan."

She lowered her voice and turned her back to the window.

"Yes, it's not about the movie 'GG'. We have a short documentary about the 'hard-working spirit of Chinese filmmakers,' which is five minutes long. It doesn't need to be on the movie channel; it can be shown in your motivational segment."

A few words were spoken on the other end of the phone.

"The price is negotiable; we have a guaranteed foreign exchange contract. We don't need to target prime time; we just need to operate during the gap after the evening news."

Su Wan hung up the phone and looked at Chen Yan.

"We've reached agreements with Shandong, Sichuan, and two local TV stations in the south. They're bypassing the censorship process and submitting their documentaries directly."

Chen Yan nodded.

That's enough.

He took a piece of chocolate out of his pocket, tore open the wrapper, and put it in his mouth.

The sweet taste spread in my mouth.

"Lu Haiming wanted to attack me in the newspapers, so I went to appear on TV to show my face."

It's 2 a.m.

Chen Yan appeared at a private teahouse in Dongcheng District, Beijing.

Lin Shufen sat on a carved mahogany chair, holding a half-smoked cigarette in her hand.

Several film scheduling agreements were laid out in front of her.

"Chen Yan, you're very brave."

Lin Shufen pushed the agreement in front of Chen Yan.

"Lu Haiming called me this afternoon. He said that whoever dares to schedule screenings for 'Thunder' should forget about investing in his other Lunar New Year blockbusters."

Chen Yan pulled out a chair and unbuttoned his suit jacket.

"Sister Lin, those are his bargaining chips. My chips are under the agreement."

Lin Shufen turned to the first page.

Below is a check and a personal guarantee agreement.

"A betting scheme regarding film scheduling?"

Lin Shufen exhaled a puff of smoke.

"5% of the screenings will be on the first day. If the occupancy rate is below 90%, I will personally compensate you for double the venue rental and distribution fees."

Chen Yan stared into Lin Shufen's eyes.

Lin Shufen did not speak.

Her hand holding the cigarette froze in mid-air.

"How many cinemas in Beijing would dare risk offending Lu Haiming by giving you that 5%?"

"As long as the cinemas under your name agree, I'll take care of the rest."

Chen Yan answered.

"I have a five million dollar guarantee. If this movie flops, I'll transfer that money to you directly. It's all in writing, the notary office is still open, we can go now."

Lin Shufen stubbed out the cigarette butt in the porcelain jar.

"You're crazy."

"I'm not crazy."

Chen Yan stood up and took out a pre-cut master tape from her bag.

"Sister Lin, take a look at this first."

He put the cassette tape into the television set that was in the tea room.

The screen flickered as Lin Qingqiu held his breath in the icy water, his face flushed and veins throbbing on his forehead.

Then came Chen Yan's cold roar on set, along with rubble and broken wires scattered everywhere.

The last line of text slowly appeared:

"Some films are made with lives at stake. December 24th will witness this injustice."

Lin Shufen looked at the screen.

The image disappeared, and the room fell silent.

"This clip will be broadcast simultaneously on four provincial satellite TV channels tomorrow."

Chen Yan retrieved the mother tape.

"Lu Haiming thought he could shut the media up, but he couldn't stop the tens of millions of television sets across the country. People would be curious about what kind of movie could make a female star risk her life by jumping into the water."

Lin Shufen rubbed her temples.

"5% of the screenings. That's all I can give you."

"make a deal."

Chen Yan took out a pen from his pocket and signed his name on the agreement.

Step out of the tea room.

The rain has stopped.

The ground was damp and cold, and the streetlights in the distance emitted an orange glow.

Wu Gang leaned against the car door, smoking.

"Have you reached an agreement?"

"It's settled."

Chen Yan got into the car and glanced at the Santana still following behind.

"Go to the printing factory in Daxing."

"Do we need to print more things?"

"A black and white poster of Yin Linqingqiu's profile. Not in color, just black and white."

Chen Yan closed his eyes.

Meanwhile, at Lu Haiming's villa.

Lu Haiming sat in his study, with two female models kneeling at his feet, giving him a massage.

Wang, the comprador, stood in front of the table.

"President Lu, Chen Yan just came out of Lin Shufen's place. It looks like the deal was done."

Lu Haiming flipped through a copy of "Film Review Reference" in his hand.

"That woman Lin Shufen only cares about money. Chen Yan must have fooled her with foreign exchange."

Lu Haiming sneered.

"Is Zhou Man ready?"

"It's all ready. As soon as the documentary airs tomorrow, Zhou Man will immediately have people publish articles online and in newspapers, saying that Chen Yan abused actors and would do anything to win awards. The articles are all written, and the title is 'The Bloodstained Golden Lion Award'."

Lu Haiming picked up his glass of red wine and took a sip.

"He tried to play the victim, so I sent him to court."

He looked out the window.

"A kid who hasn't even grown his first beard dares to negotiate with me in the capital?"

Wang, the comprador, bent down and stepped back.

"Go and say hello to an acquaintance at the TV station, see if you can get his segment cut."

"Yes."

Wang, the comprador, left the room.

Five o'clock in the morning.

The fax machine in Chen Yan's studio started running like crazy.

Contracts were sent back from all over the country.

Su Wan fell asleep on the table, her long hair scattered among the pile of documents.

Chen Yan sat by the window, holding a magnifying glass in his hand.

He was watching the last few frames of the master tape.

"Chen Yan, aren't you asleep yet?"

Wu Gang walked over and handed him a bottle of iced cola.

"Old Wu, look here."

Chen Yan pointed to a corner of the screen.

That's the background for the explosion scene.

Amidst the billowing smoke and rubble, there was an inconspicuous plaque.

Those were the internal signs of a project Lu Haiming had undertaken in his early years.

"Only someone like Lu Haiming can understand this visual Easter egg."

Chen Yan froze the screen.

The nameplate is printed with the four characters "Minghai Industry" and below it is a blurry date of 2000.

"He would think I was threatening him, and he would use all his resources to block this part."

Chen Yan took a sip of cola.

"But he doesn't realize that the more he tries to suppress it, the more widely this footage will circulate. I will make this tape his death warrant."

Wu Gang stared at the nameplate.

"You want him to ruin his own reputation?"

"No."

Chen Yan put the magnifying glass down.

"I want him to see clearly how the ruins beneath his feet came about when he is at his most triumphant."

Eight o'clock in the morning.

In front of the gates of various family compounds in Beijing.

A newspaper delivery motorcycle roared past.

The headline of Cinema Art Weekly arrived as expected.

The Hypocrisy of Genius: Unveiling Chen Yan's Rent-Seeking in Venice.

The newspaper article portrayed Chen Yan as an arrogant and ruthless tyrant.

Meanwhile, Shandong TV's morning news program ended.

A rapid drumbeat began.

On the television screen, white water suddenly exploded.

Lin Qingqiu's pale face appeared on the screens of millions of families.

She clung tightly to the tree roots in the water, her eyes red, looking at Chen Yan outside the camera's view.

Chen Yan's cold voice rang out:

"If he's not dead yet, continue."

In the audience, a middle-aged woman who was eating breakfast put down her fried dough sticks.

"Is this girl risking her life filming a movie?"

This moment.

The tide of public opinion began to shift.

Chen Yan stood on the balcony, watching the growing flow of people on the street.

He took the tie clip out of his pocket.

The edge of the tie clip reflected a sharp glint in the sunlight, striking the glass curtain wall of the office building opposite.

That was Lu Haiming's company headquarters.

Chen Yan pushed open the window.

A cold northern wind blew in, ruffling his collar.

He picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Old Liu, get ready to hand out flyers."

"Where should I send it?"

"Distribute these posters at the entrances of all of Lu Haiming's real estate sales offices. Place Lin Qingqiu's tearful face in the center of each poster."

Chen Yan hung up the phone.

His fingernails dug into his palm again, leaving four crescent-shaped marks.

He walked toward the door, his boots striking the wooden floor.

"Su Wan, wake up. The war has started."

Su Wan rubbed her eyes and sat up, seeing that it was already bright outside the window.

She watched Chen Yan's retreating figure.

He was facing the mirror, precisely fastening the dark gold tie clip under the top button of his shirt.

Chen Yan in the mirror.

His eyes held no emotion, only an almost obsessive calm.

outside the window.

A black sedan stopped in front of the printing factory.

The workers carried out the first bundle of black and white posters.

On the poster.

Lin Qingqiu's face was magnified to the extreme.

A black figure was reflected in her pupils.

That's Chen Yan.

The image freezes at this moment.

Light shone through the paper, revealing the almost transparent skin of Lin Qingqiu.

In the distance, the bells of the clock tower rang out once again.

The air throughout the city trembled.