Becoming a Movie Star, System Only Finished Loading After Ten Years
Chapter 106 - 105: Must Invite the Ex-Girlfriend to the Wedding (Requesting Monthly Votes)

Chapter 106: Chapter 105: Must Invite the Ex-Girlfriend to the Wedding (Requesting Monthly Votes)

"You guys... what kind of movies are these? I doubt your film will have a higher box office than ’Li Mi’s Conjecture.’

Zhou Xun increasingly felt that Qi Hao was messing around. If it were just a straightforward road movie, that would be fine, but this has too many elements and is too chaotic.

"This is a commercial film, how could it not surpass your artistic film in earnings?"

Qi Hao was unconvinced.

You jinx, if a commercial comedy can’t make money, then it’s truly a case of "dying before the battle is even fought."

"How about we make a bet?" Zhou Xun threw out two cards.

"Bet on what?"

Never give up without a fight. If you’re afraid to bet, doesn’t that mean Qi Hao has no confidence in the film at all?

"If I win, you keep me company for a night. If you win, I’ll keep you company for a night."

Zhou Xun was playing cards with her legs crossed. If she had a cigarette in her mouth, she’d look no different from a hooligan.

"..."

Qi Hao was speechless. You’re basically just trying to get me into bed without paying for it.

The others joined in the fun.

The newcomers Wan Qian, Li Jin, and Yang Zimo were dumbfounded, but they weren’t foolish. They could tell it was all a joke.

If it were serious, this gathering would turn into a sleazy party.

However, they also noticed that people here really enjoyed making fun of Qi Hao.

Wu Jing accused Qi Hao of not finishing elementary school.

Qin Hao mocked Qi Hao, saying, "You have so many idle girls around you that you could rent them out, and yet you still go around fighting for women."

Gao Yuanyuan slapped Qi Hao on the thigh and then said with concern, "It’s autumn, remember to wear your thermal pants. Don’t freeze your money tree!"

Li Xiaoran sighed, saying that if one day Qi Hao gets married, he mustn’t forget to invite his former rumored girlfriends.

If all his former rumored girlfriends were willing to attend, they could fill six or seven tables.

The others immediately started imagining scenarios.

They thought it would be best if these tables of people all wore green hats to the event.

That scene would indeed be quite spectacular.

As for Qi Hao, he wasn’t angry at their jokes and remained as meek as a quail.

However, Wan Qian, Li Jin, and the others also noticed that everyone had great respect for Qi Hao.

Especially Wu Jing.

The newer generation like Li Jin and Yang Zimo probably didn’t even know why Wu Jing and Qi Hao had a connection.

These two seemed worlds apart.

One was an idol type, the other... Wu Jing once was an idol type too, but now he dyed his hair yellow to play a rogue.

Wu Jing respecting Qi Hao makes sense.

He’s in a tight spot financially after owing Qi Hao money.

He borrowed money to contribute to disaster relief earlier and said he’d repay it this year.

It’s almost November now.

"Do you want me to work for you for free?" Wu Jing was genuinely broke now.

He wondered if bartering his labor was an option.

He would certainly pay it back, even if it meant borrowing money to do so.

He’s not the type to say "why should I repay money I borrowed using my own skills" like a deadbeat, otherwise Qi Hao would’ve cut ties with him long ago.

"No roles right now, maybe just a cameo. My total budget is only seven million anyway, but if I have a chance in the future, I’ll definitely ask for your help."

When Qi Hao eventually does his own projects, it’s more reliable to ask for help from friends.

Everyone knows each other well.

"That’s fine. It’s not that I’m not supporting you. I let you float by without charge, but you weren’t willing to hop on. If my ’Wolf Fang’ doesn’t lose money, you have to help me source funds for the next movie."

Wu Jing might not be able to help much, but he still wants to collect the deserved reward.

"You’re quite brave, directing on your own."

What else could Qi Hao say; he finds shooting even a music video troublesome, let alone that Wu Jing dares to direct on his own.

Even if other co-directors assist, it shows he’s putting himself out there.

Actually, Wu Jing currently has no choice but to try his hand at directing.

Because the path of acting is becoming quite challenging for him.

There’s no room for him in the mainland, each spot is taken. Plus, he doesn’t have any connections or backing.

In Xiangjiang, his roles are either as an action star supporting actor or in low-budget starring roles.

It’s also a path with little prospect.

Furthermore, Wu Jing is already thirty-five, which in the job market, is facing layoff risks.

He’s getting older and not as handsome, and his acting skills aren’t outstanding.

Trying his hand at directing might lead to a breakthrough.

Wu Jing’s situation made Qi Hao a bit wary.

Being handsome can be an asset, but it won’t last a lifetime. Without real skills, the market will eventually eliminate you.

He must evolve into an acting star, a competent mature middle-aged actor, a veteran...

Or he could, like Wu Jing, gradually learn to direct himself.

"Qi Hao, what’s your schedule like after ’Wind Sound’?" Zhou Xun is also participating in ’Wind Sound’ as the lead actress.

"Not sure yet."

Invitations keep coming, but none are particularly interesting to him.

At his level, accepting roles is quite a hassle. You can’t not take them because your status could drop, yet you can’t take them indiscriminately because improper choices could equally cause your status to drop.

Once you’ve climbed to a high position, you don’t want to fall back down.

"I have a Republican-era drama ’It’s Not Too Late to Say I Love You,’ adapted from Feiwo Sican’s ’The Deep Green Pool.’ We haven’t started casting yet, but if you join, the lead male role is probably yours. However, this production might start a bit late."

Hearing that Qi Hao had availability, Li Xiaoran immediately began recruiting him.

For an average celebrity, whether or not they get a role certainly isn’t decided by actors like Li Xiaoran; it involves various capital influences.

But if the invitation goes to someone like Qi Hao, it’s a different story.

It’s like with ’Chinese Paladin 3,’ Sugarman was willing to pay three times what they paid Hu Ge to invite Qi Hao. It’s definitely not because they were being foolish.

The last TV series Qi Hao worked on was broadcast in 2006, collaborating with An Feng in "The Return of the Condor Heroes."

It was extremely popular at the time.

Countless people waited for his and An Feng’s new show to come out,

"Chinese Paladin 3" was fiercely competed for by various TV stations before it even wrapped filming.

Originally, it was planned to premiere on mainland and Taiwan terrestrial channels.

After establishing a good reputation, directly cashing in on the second round of benefits, as long as the first round’s results were decent, the second round would comfortably recover costs and start making money.

But now, Zhejiang Satellite TV directly bought the satellite premiere.

A wealthy province makes a bold move.

If Li Xiaoran and her team could get Qi Hao to participate in the drama, at least they wouldn’t worry about selling the show.

"Get them to send over the script for me to take a look later, Mr. Zhou, do you have any remarks?" Qi Hao didn’t outright refuse Xiaoran; he’s offering resources, whether Qi Hao agrees or not, it wouldn’t hurt to take a peek.

"Xu Ke wants to work with you, didn’t you reject him for ’Painted Skin’?"

Zhou Xun waved to Qi Hao during a break in the shuffle, and Qi Hao handed her a bottle of beer.

"Detective Dee?" Qi Hao was aware of this project.

"Yes, the second male lead, starting next April, roughly after ’Wind Sound’ is finished,"

Zhou Xun gave a definitive answer.

Zhou Xun participated in Xu Ke’s "Painted Skin," but didn’t act in Xu Ke’s "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame."

Instead, Li Xue’xue played the role.

This was somewhat Mrs. Hua’s way of balancing things.

Since Zhou Xun was in "Li Mi’s Conjecture," Li Xue’xue had to be given Xu Ke’s new film.

"I’ll think about it, it depends on whether the role is intriguing or not."

Qi Hao wasn’t overly excited just because it was Xu Ke; he’d acted in Xu Ke’s films before, like "Seven Swords,"

but that movie flopped hard.

Currently, Qi Hao is less interested in collaborating with Xu Ke; Xu Ke invited him, but Qi Hao casually brushed it off.

So the request ended up with Zhou Xun.

"There’s also Zhang Yang’s ’Driverless,’ both Xiaoran and I are in it. If you’re interested, I could mention it to the director."

Gao Yuanyuan didn’t stay idle.

Qin Hao and Wu Jing exchanged a glance, both sighing with a shake of their heads.

This comparing oneself to others can really be deadly.

It’s just because he’s somewhat handsome, they introduce him to resources?

But they were helpless.

In this small circle, resources are shared on the premise that it’s beneficial to oneself.

For example, Xiaoran introducing Qi Hao to act in "It’s Not Too Late to Say I Love You" certainly thinks collaborating with Qi Hao can help raise the drama’s popularity and elevate her status.

Hence, she wouldn’t introduce this resource to Wu Jing.

And even if she did, the production side wouldn’t agree.

"Driverless? High-tech, huh? I’ll take a look at the script before deciding." Qi Hao still didn’t immediately commit.

These resources are all available to everyone, none are exclusively theirs.

When they introduce them, Qi Hao needs to undergo the production’s evaluation, and he will decide after reading the script.

It’s a process of mutual selection.

"Speaking of high-tech, I actually took on a high-tech movie, working with Sun Li and Hu Jun in ’Machine Hero,’ invested by LeTV, directed by Liu Zhenwei."

Wu Jing shared his schedule situation.

"Liu Zhenwei, huh, he’s now... It’s hard to describe."

Qi Hao didn’t know how to evaluate Liu Zhenwei.

Since entering the film industry, Liu Zhenwei has been known for his "quirky and eccentric" style, from "Gambling Saint," "East Meets West," to "Journey to the West," he always showcased a wild imagination, indulging humor, leaving people speechless with nonsensical elements.

However, after "Journey to the West," his works seemed suspiciously aimed at making money.

In 1998, he announced his retirement from the film industry, settling in Canada.

He returned in 2001, directing a fantasy love movie "Infinite Resurrection," then announced another retirement in 2002.

By 2004, he came back again.

Clearly, he needed money and wanted to cash in.

What’s happening to the film industry, that you need to keep entering and exiting?

"There’s no choice, I’m just a supporting role, my current resources are this sparse."

Wu Jing gave a self-mocking smile.

"If it doesn’t work out, you should really focus on directing, get serious with it, and I’ll help you secure investment for your next film."

What else could Qi Hao say?

Even though he doesn’t really rate Wu Jing’s amateur director skills,

Wu Jing is his brother.

Can’t exactly let him go scrounging for food, right?

The gathering finally ended close to dawn, Li Jin and Yang Zimo also expressed their intent to cameo for Qi Hao.

Qi Hao thought they could play female college students on the train.

Though they aren’t well-known, at least they’re good-looking.

When the movie releases, maybe many will be curious about who played these two female college students.

Song Jia also indicated she’d be there whenever needed.

Qi Hao started considering if she could play the young housewife role.

Song Jia’s acting is quite decent, her figure isn’t bad either, in the "Curiosity Kills the Cat" she did with Hu Jun, she played a shampoo girl mistress, leaving a strong impression on many viewers.

Ye Weimin and Qi Hao reached a consensus, with the male roles being executed by his casting director.

For the female roles...

Qi Hao can casually adjust things to elevate the movie several notches.

As long as Qi Hao’s rumored girlfriend appears enough, it’s hard to lose money.