Chapter 743 The New Market (5400 words)

Uber Clarke ultimately decided to take the script back and read it carefully.

"Can I take this back with me?"

“Of course.” Lu Yanhe nodded.

He knew that in Hollywood, many people would require actors to read the script on set before they were confirmed to star in order to keep the script confidential, and then take it with them.

When Kate Winslet was starring in Woody Allen's "Wonder Wheel," the film company arranged for someone to bring the script to England, find Kate, wait for her to finish reading the script on set, and then take it away.

Lu Yanhe felt that while there were advantages to doing this, there were also many inconveniences.

In particular, he's not Woody Allen, and his scripts aren't at the point where they're being "stolen" in various ways.

“However, the script will remain in your hands, including your agent’s. I hope they won’t see it until you decide to act in it yourself,” Lu Yanhe said. “I don’t want to receive calls recommending actors to me.”

Uber Clark laughed and said okay.

He then asked, "Lu, when did you decide to cast me in this role?"

Lu Yanhe hesitated for a moment about whether to tell the truth, and then decided to tell a beautiful lie.

“After meeting you a few times at some events last December, I had this idea,” Lu Yanhe said.

-

In the original "Red Eye," Cillian Murphy, the actor who played both the male lead and the villain, was a regular in Nolan's films. His performance in "Red Eye" can be said to have left a deep first impression on Hollywood.

It is said that Nolan also learned about him from this movie.

Lu Yanhe really liked what John Papacididra, Nolan's casting director, said about Murphy: "He has a special quality that exudes wisdom at all times, but also carries a mischievousness and mystery, and there is an unsettling darkness behind his eyes."

This is a very rare and valuable quality in an actor.

Uber Clark has this quality.

And this was a quality that Lu Yanhe sensed every time their eyes met.

Perhaps only Lu Yanhe could sense it.

That quiet, uneasy gaze emanating from someone who looks at their biggest competitor, yet isn't a malicious person themselves.

Before boarding his plane back to China, Lu Yanhe sat in the waiting room and sent an email to Uber Clark, which contained only one sentence:

Uber, you asked me when I thought of casting you in this movie. I thought about it carefully, and it was in those moments when we saw each other through the crowd. You are a kind and righteous person, but we all have to face the weaknesses of human nature. Combining those qualities with Jackson, amplifying them infinitely, made you the one and only person I could think of when I thought of Jackson.

After he took a nap during the long flight, woke up, and read half of the new book from Liujia Town, the plane landed.

Lu Yanhe stretched, got up to get his suitcase and backpack, met up with Zou Dong and Wang Biao, and headed towards the exit.

Suddenly, my phone rang.

Lu Yanhe picked it up and found it was an email from Uber Clark: Obviously, I can't refuse you.

Lu Yanhe laughed.

-

Longyan.

Mrs. Huang walked into General Manager Huang's office and said, "Lu Yanhe has returned to China today."

Mr. Huang asked, "Have you made an appointment with him?"

Mrs. Huang shook her head: "Not yet. This time when we talk to him, we must be absolutely sure. If he still refuses to accept, we will have to activate the backup plan. The sequel to 'Burning Fire' must start filming this year."

Mr. Huang: "A salary of 20 million, 5% of overseas revenue sharing, and 28% of the revenue sharing from character derivatives—this is the highest we can offer. Even Shang Yongzhou doesn't have a higher salary. If he's still not satisfied, this is the only option we can have."

Mrs. Wong nodded: "Sigh, he just won an Oscar and is riding high, so it's probably hard to talk to him."

Huang Zhongjing said, "This time, you should schedule a time first, and I will meet with him to talk."

"Don't I need to go?" Huang Tai was taken aback, somewhat surprised.

Huang Zhongjing said, "You had a little unpleasantness with him before. This time I'll go alone and see what he's really thinking. If it really doesn't work, then we'll activate the backup plan."

Huang Tai took a deep breath. "Alright."

Huang Zhongjing added, "Furthermore, let's have Zhang Yang withdraw from the promotional work for the 'Burning Fire' series this time."

Huang Tai looked at Huang Zhongjing in shock.

Zhang Yang is the publicity director of Longyan who previously made sarcastic remarks about Lu Yanhe on WeChat Moments.

He is also a veteran who has known Mrs. Huang and Mr. Huang for a long time, from their humble beginnings to their current success.

Huang Zhongjing: "Hopefully, this will make Lu Yanhe relent."

Mrs. Wong: "No, are you serious about asking Zhang Yang to withdraw from the promotion of the 'Burning Fire' series? Back then, he—"

“I did not ask him to step down from the position of publicity director.” Huang Zhongjing interrupted Huang Tai, his expression becoming more stern. “Besides ‘Burning Fire,’ Lu Yanhe’s projects with us also include ‘Dragon Inn.’ Unless Longyan, like Beijing and Taiwan, cuts off all contact with Lu Yanhe and no longer needs his cooperation, it’s better to cut our losses now than to be like a gecko cutting off its tail later.”

Mrs. Huang remained silent.

-

After returning to Ziyuan Bridge, the first thing Lu Yanhe did was pack his luggage and then clean the house. Actually, the housekeeper regularly came to clean, but Lu Yanhe wanted to do it himself. Through this daily routine, he wanted to break free from the completely different state he had been in for the past few months.

Back to real life.

After cleaning, Lu Yanhe bought some groceries on his phone, cooked himself a meal, turned on the projector, and ate while watching the third season of "My Own Swordsman," which premiered during the Spring Festival.

The meal took about an hour.

After eating and drinking his fill, he picked up a book and sat on the sofa to read.

As I read, a wave of drowsiness washed over me.

He tilted his head, and the book fell from his hands.

I'm going to sleep.

Stealing half a day of leisure from a busy life.

Lu Yanhe knew that this was not his true state of mind.

But before he drifted into a deeper, more hazy sleep, a thought flashed through his mind:

This kind of life, where you can sleep whenever you want, is so great.

-

When I woke up, it was already evening.

Dusk was settling in outside the window.

The sunset is probably the world's biggest filter; under its touch, everything becomes soft and beautiful.

Lu Yanhe yawned deeply, sitting listlessly with his eyes glazed over, waiting for his sleepy eyes to regain their focus.

At this moment, Li Pengfei sent him a message: "Do you want to go to the noodle shop near No. 13 Middle School that they used to frequent?"

The owner of that restaurant makes an amazing dry-mixed noodle dish with shredded pork.

Lu Yanhe snapped out of his daze instantly.

wide awake.

He replied: Let's go!

Li Pengfei: Then I'll drive to pick you up?

Lu Yanhe said: Okay.

He looked at his messy hair, grabbed a hat and put it on, then pulled out a pair of sunglasses and put them on. He wore a T-shirt that was wrinkled from sleeping on the sofa, and a jacket over it. As soon as Li Pengfei arrived, he slipped on a pair of slippers and went out.

Li Pengfei watched him get into the car and laughed, "Oh, you... just woke up?"

"Pretty much." Lu Yanhe took off his sunglasses and asked, "Why did you decide to ask me out for noodles today?"

"Given your habits, having just returned to China, you probably don't want to have any contact with work-related people or things anymore. You'll most likely just want to be alone, so I thought I'd ask you."

Lu Yanhe has more and more friends now, but only a few people really understand him.

Li Pengfei has seen him very little over the years, but it seems that nothing has changed between them, and there is no awkwardness at all.

Some friends are just different.

They went back to No. 13 Middle School together.

Their alma mater.

It was also the place where they met.

In the blink of an eye, they've known each other for almost eight years—Lu Yanhe was referring to himself since arriving in this time and space.

For Li Pengfei, it was nine years.

Of course, that's not important.

But often, when people are still comforting themselves that they are still young, life will remind them without them even realizing it: no, there is already something called time in your life.

Once time enters your life, it becomes very difficult to truly and carefree remain young.

Fortunately, as long as friends are still around, and as long as time doesn't take away those who are truly important.

"I've already assembled the team for that documentary you mentioned before," Li Pengfei said in the car. "We'll set off in April for our first destination."

"where?"

“Hengsha.” When Li Pengfei uttered the name of the place, Lu Yanhe couldn’t help but twitch his brow. “This…is a desert? You’re going into the desert?”

Li Pengfei nodded and said, "I've always wanted to go there."

Lu Yanhe: "I heard that people go missing there from time to time."

"As long as we don't take any risks and follow the fixed routes, it's fine," Li Pengfei said. "We've already contacted local guides, and we've hired three of them. Besides, my dad is keeping an eye on me too."

"uncle?"

“Ever since I started going to the wilderness more often, he hired two people to follow me around and keep an eye on me.” Li Pengfei also looked helpless. “At first I wanted to stop them, but this world isn’t mine. Wherever I go, they can go too.”

Lu Yanhe nodded: "It's fine if you go to a safer place, but you always go to dangerous places. Besides, putting all that aside, don't you think about your family's situation? What if you get kidnapped..."

Li Pengfei: "You're being outrageous, even bringing up kidnapping."

Lu Yanhe: "Who knows? Who knows what might happen?"

Li Pengfei: "If you and my dad sit together, you could definitely chat all night."

Lu Yanhe: "It really has been a long time since I've seen my uncle."

"You're really funny," Li Pengfei said. "What's the point of you seeing him?"

“You’re really funny. There’s nothing to see. We’ve met so many times before.” Lu Yanhe said speechlessly, “We have to shoot two commercials for your new products every year. What’s there to see? He’s your biological father, and he’s my sugar daddy.”

"Heh." Li Pengfei rolled his eyes.

Lu Yanhe laughed.

“Leave this documentary to me,” Lu Yanhe said. “I’ll find someone to handle the broadcasting and distribution.”

Li Pengfei nodded.

"Only you can do it. I don't know anyone else who can do it."

The two of them went to the noodle shop near the No. 13 Middle School.

Thankfully, the noodle shop is still there.

Not only is the noodle shop still there, but the owner is still the same owner.

Because at this time of day, it's already time for evening self-study at No. 13 Middle School, and the noodle shop is practically deserted.

That's fine too.

Lu Yanhe and Li Pengfei entered the store and sat down. As soon as Lu Yanhe took off his sunglasses, the owner recognized him.

"Aren't you Lu Yanhe?"

"Yes." Lu Yanhe nodded with a smile. "Does the boss still remember me?"

"I remember, I remember. You used to come here often when you were in school, and you came a few more times after that, but not often," the owner said. "What would you like to eat? Shredded pork noodles with a fried egg, and a cup of mung bean soup?"

"You remember all the things we like to eat?" Lu Yanhe asked in surprise.

The boss smiled, revealing a set of white teeth, and pointed.

The menu hanging on the wall inside the store has "Lu Yanhe Set Meal" written on the first line.

"Many people come here because of its reputation and want the same dishes you usually order, so we simply created a Lu Yanhe Set Meal."

Lu Yanhe: "..."

Li Pengfei was overjoyed and took out his phone to take pictures.

The boss said, "This shouldn't infringe on any copyrights, right?"

Looking at the "15 yuan" label following Lu Yanhe's meal deal, Lu Yanhe smiled and said, "It's not an infringement, I'm authorizing it."

The shop owner immediately said, "Then can I take a picture with you later and hang it in the shop?"

“Okay.” Lu Yanhe nodded.

He revisited the place with Li Pengfei, ate noodles, took a photo with the owner, and then walked around the entrance of No. 13 Middle School after leaving the noodle shop.

The security guard looked suspiciously at the two men who were wearing sunglasses late at night, and stared at them with hostility.

Neither Lu Yanhe nor Li Pengfei went to the school.

I took one look through the school gate and was satisfied.

Unexpectedly, someone hurriedly ran towards the school gate; it was a woman, a familiar figure.

Liu Qin was their homeroom teacher at the time.

Li Pengfei exclaimed in surprise, "Teacher Liu!"

Liu Qin was taken aback, stopped, glanced at them, and immediately recognized them.

"Li Pengfei, Lu Yanhe!" She looked at them with surprise. "What are you doing here? Are you visiting your alma mater?"

Li Pengfei pointed at Lu Yanhe and said, "He just returned to China, so I grabbed him and brought him out for a stroll."

Liu Qin exclaimed, "Oh dear! We haven't congratulated you on winning the Oscar yet!"

She opened her arms affectionately and hugged him, then hugged Li Pengfei.

"Although I'd love to talk to you some more, I have to go inside right away," Liu Qin said. "Two students in my class are fighting, and I need to go deal with it. Would you like to come into the school and take a look?"

Lu Yanhe and Li Pengfei exchanged a glance, shook their heads, and said, "Teacher Liu, we won't go in. You go and take care of your business. We'll come to see you again later."

"Okay." Liu Qin nodded. "I won't chat with you anymore, bye-bye."

She hurriedly started jogging again.

"Teacher Liu is truly a good teacher."

"Um."

The two strolled around the road outside the school, and Li Pengfei suddenly invited, "Want to come to my house and play a game?"

Going to Li Pengfei's house to play games was one of the few times Lu Yanhe could relax and have fun during his entire senior year of high school.

Lu Yanhe nodded with a smile.

That night, they played video games until 2 a.m.

At 11 p.m., Li Pengfei’s father returned home. He was surprised to see Lu Yanhe suddenly arrive, but he didn’t disturb them. He greeted him and went back to his room.

At 2 a.m., the two of them finally beat the game.

"No, I'm tired." Li Pengfei put down the controller and lay down on the floor.

Lu Yanhe then lay down.

"It's been a long time since I've had such a satisfying gaming experience," said Li Pengfei.

Lu Yanhe nodded, "Me too."

"Can you take a break now?"

"That's about it. Next month I only need to shoot some commercials for the brands I endorse," Lu Yanhe said. "Apart from that, there's no other work."

"Take a good rest," Li Pengfei said with a smile. "You look so tired today. I thought you would be full of energy and beaming with joy."

Lu Yanhe: "Who told me to be someone who can't simply enjoy happiness and is always internally conflicted?"

"Serves you right."

"Yeah, serves him right."

-

It had been a long time since I'd had dinner, chatted, and played games with Li Pengfei. We talked about people and things that had nothing to do with the film and television industry. Instead, we talked about our high school days, Li Pengfei's hiking stories in the wild, and his arguments and reconciliations with Xu Zijun.

It is a completely ordinary, mundane, yet somewhat unique life.

Lu Yanhe slept at Li Pengfei's house and woke up at eight o'clock.

He probably slept too long the night before, so he wasn't actually that sleep-deprived.

He came out of the guest room, but Li Pengfei was still asleep, and the door was tightly closed.

Lu Yanhe had visited this house many times and was very familiar with its structure.

He went downstairs with practiced ease, poured himself a glass of water, gulped it down, and sat quietly for two minutes before he came to his senses and picked up his phone.

Sure enough, some messages went unanswered.

After replying to each of them, Lu Yanhe prepared to make himself a cup of coffee.

At this moment, Li Luzhi returned wearing sportswear.

"Good morning, Uncle." Lu Yanhe greeted him with some surprise.

Li Luzhi smiled at him and said, "Good morning."

He asked, "Do you have any plans later? If you're not in a hurry to leave, there's something I'd like to talk to you about."

Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "I don't have anything to do today, I'll rest."

Li Luzhi nodded.

He went to wash up.

Lu Yanhe also went to the guest room to wash up and made a phone call to Chen Siqi.

She woke up too and asked him why he woke up so early.

She knew he had played video games with Li Pengfei until very late the night before.

After making the call, when I went downstairs, Li Luzhi was already making breakfast.

Although Lu Yanhe knew very well that this was definitely not the normal life of a company CEO like Li Luzhi, this scene still made Lu Yanhe feel a long-lost and familiar envy—envy for Li Pengfei.

He had always envied Li Pengfei for having such a father.

Despite his busy schedule, Li Pengfei has never lacked happiness and a sense of security from his family.

This is what Lu Yanhe envies the most.

This must be because Li Pengfei's family did a lot of good work in many areas to achieve this.

Li Luzhi cooked seafood porridge, fried a plate of dumplings, and also made a side of avocado salad.

It's light, but tastes great.

Lu Yanhe and Li Luzhi were not strangers.

Since the Xueyou APP, Lu Yanhe has been the spokesperson for many of Li Luzhi's company's new products.

As long as the product is still in production and hasn't been discontinued due to market changes, Lu Yanhe's endorsement will never end.

Just like Jacky Cheung, his first endorsement contract has been renewed three times, lasting for eight years, almost nine years now.

What Li Luzhi wanted to talk to Lu Yanhe about today was the adjustment of the company's business segments—that's right, they were also considering the possibility of expanding into the cultural and entertainment field.

As any company grows bigger and stronger, it will expand its business segments.

Entertainment is not just about film and television; it's a broader concept.

Li Luzhi and his team were considering focusing on cultural and creative products, which aligned with their company's core values ​​of manufacturing and technology.

Li Luzhi wanted to learn about the market for film and television merchandise from Lu Yanhe.

Linghe is in a league of its own among domestic film and television companies in this regard.

Lu Yanhe shared his views on this area with him, concluding that it was a market with great potential.

"It just hasn't been truly developed yet."

-

I need to take a break recently, so I'll be writing slower. I'll resume long chapters later, so please be patient and take your time. There's plenty of time.

I recommend "The Demon-Slaying Sword." It's already at 150,000 words, and the word count is rising rapidly. It seems to be well-written. (I'm praising myself again, haha.)

(End of this chapter)