Chapter 923 Their Tenth Year

Chen Ziyan hadn't expected that Lu Yanhe planned to cover the cost of organizing the concert all by himself.

"You should know you don't need to do this, right?"

"Know."

"Even if you don't charge admission fees for the live show and only charge broadcasting rights fees, you can still cover your costs, you know?"

"Know."

"So what were you thinking when you chose not only to not sell tickets to the public, but also to stream the content for free on video platforms?"

"I hope it will be a pure concert without any commercial aspects. I hope it will be a very pure day," Lu Yanhe said frankly.

Chen Ziyan: "I know you have a high income now, but I still think you're messing around."

Lu Yanhe: "I did this not because I have a high income. In fact, I am a firm supporter of being paid for my work. When have you ever seen me make a cameo appearance in a movie for free?"

Chen Ziyan's eyes darted around for a moment.

She realized what was happening.

"You want to propose at the concert?"

Lu Yanhe shook his head. "No."

Chen Ziyan's brows furrowed even more.

"Don't tell me you just want to repay your fans along with Li Zhibai and Yan Liang."

"It was after the concert."

"What?"

"Proposal."

Chen Ziyan: "..."

"It's not about giving back to the fans," Lu Yanhe said. "It's about commemorating this with Li Zhibai and Yan Liang."

In a place unknown to anyone, and in a place where Lu Yanhe hadn't told Li Zhibai or Yan Liang, there was another crucial reason why Lu Yanhe wanted to hold this concert this year: because this year was a very important juncture.

This year marks his tenth anniversary in this world.

This year marks the tenth anniversary of his acquaintance with Li Zhibai and Yan Liang as himself.

Chen Ziyan didn't understand that Lu Yanhe's commemoration referred to this particular point in time. She knew it was a commemoration of the past youthful years by several successful people.

"Alright then."

-

Hou Jun never expected that Lu Yanhe would ask him to be the director of this concert.

Lu Yanhe said with a smile, "Because the first song I wrote was sung on your show, which has special meaning for me."

Hou Jun nodded.

"Okay," he readily agreed. "So, what's the production budget for this concert? And which company is producing it?"

Lu Yanhe shook his head and said, "There is no production company. The entire production team will need your help to set up. As for the production budget... I will be in charge of the preparation of this concert. I hope that it will not compromise in any aspect. So, Director, how about you help me find the best venue in Yuming, use the best people and equipment, and do the best stage design?"

Hou Jun's expression changed: "...What did you say?"

Subsequently, Lu Yanhe introduced Xing Lecheng to Hou Jun.

"If you need to make a payment, go to him," Lu Yanhe said.

Xing Lecheng used to be Lu Yanhe's assistant, and later took on other responsibilities in his team.

After two years of work experience, I've gained a lot of experience.

Lu Yanhe certainly wouldn't be so generous as to sign a blank check for Hou Jun.

His approach is similar to how investors in every film crew place their own people in the producer and finance department to guard against the crew's double-dealing and falsification of accounts.

But for Hou Jun, this really stunned him.

Over the years, he has done countless shows, concerts, and galas...

This was the first time he had ever met such a "tycoon".

If he hadn't known Lu Yanhe for so long and didn't know what kind of person Lu Yanhe was, he would have really thought that the other party was a "foolish nouveau riche" and that he would be doing the other party a disservice if he didn't rip him off.

Lu Yanhe smiled slightly at him.

"Is everything alright?"

Hou Jun gave a wry smile.

"This is the first time I've had such a large budget, I don't even know what to do with it."

"Oh, right, there are a few more songs that I need you to help me find someone to record demos for," Lu Yanhe said. "I plan to include these new songs in this concert as well. I'll send you the setlist for the concert later."

Hou Jun nodded and said okay.

At this moment, the way he looked at Lu Yanhe had completely changed.

-

After arranging everything, Lu Yanhe breathed a sigh of relief.

We've finally put this matter on the agenda.

Just then, Yin Xincheng heard that he had returned and called him to ask if he had time to have a meal together.

Lu Yanhe was currently free of anything, and knowing that Yin Xincheng was in a bad mood recently, he agreed.

In fact, Yin Xincheng has not yet publicly announced his divorce from Huang Yunlan.

He plans to announce this only after he and Huang Yunlan have officially obtained their divorce certificate.

Lu Yanhe felt that, at least up to this point, no one knew that Huang Yunlan was pregnant.

If they had announced this at the same time as they went public with their marriage, things wouldn't have ended so easily now.

The newlywed wife became pregnant, but the two ended up divorcing.

This would be an even more serious blow to Yin Xincheng's image.

If that's the case, Yin Xincheng wouldn't need to pay hush money or swallow his anger for fear of damaging his image.

The title of "the one who takes over" sounds better than "the one who abandons his wife and children."

Even so, Lu Yanhe was still shocked by Yin Xincheng's condition when he saw him.

“What’s wrong with you…” Lu Yanhe looked at Yin Xincheng with concern.

Yin Xincheng was so thin he looked like a skeleton, and his eyes were bluish.

"What’s wrong with you?"

Yin Xincheng immediately said, "I don't do drugs, don't misunderstand."

Lu Yanhe: "..."

Yin Xincheng's appearance makes it easy for people to mistakenly believe he's using drugs.

Lu Yanhe: "Then what happened to you?"

"I can't eat or sleep," Yin Xincheng said in great pain. "As soon as I close my eyes, I can see everyone pointing their fingers at me and laughing at me. I feel like my life is ruined."

"Destroyed?" Lu Yanhe looked at Yin Xincheng in disbelief. "Isn't everything still under control? She signed a confidentiality agreement and agreed to divorce you. Everything is resolved."

Yin Xincheng shook his head.

"She's like a bomb, constantly reminding me that my life is about to explode."

Lu Yanhe: "...To be honest, Xincheng, aren't you exaggerating a bit? In my opinion, the most serious consequence of this matter is that the truth will be discovered. But you didn't do anything wrong. You were also deceived, even to the point of being scammed. What's there to worry about that keeps you up at night?"

Yin Xincheng: "I brought this on myself."

Lu Yanhe: "You can say you brought this on yourself, but you're still a long way from ruining your life, so there's no need to think that way."

"If one day Huang Yunlan disregards the confidentiality agreement and chooses to tell the truth about her marriage to me, what will people think of me? Will they think I'm an incredibly stupid fool?"

"What others think of you, will it matter at that point?" Lu Yanhe retorted. "Do you think of yourself as an utterly foolish idiot?"

Yin Xincheng nodded without hesitation and said yes.

Lu Yanhe was speechless.

Indeed, Yin Xincheng's decision to give Huang Yunlan a breakup fee and have her sign a confidentiality agreement already demonstrates how much he cares about what others think of him.

Lu Yanhe could only say, "If that really happens, you can only face it, you must face it."

Yin Xincheng: "Will my fans still like me then?"

“You are an actor. As long as you act seriously and consistently produce good works, you may not have fans, but you will definitely have an audience,” Lu Yanhe said. “Moreover, I think you’ve misunderstood something. You’ve overestimated the negative impact of this event on a man in this era, and you’ve underestimated people’s values ​​and ability to judge right and wrong in this era. Xincheng, I can assure you that when the things you’re worried about actually happen, you will see that there are definitely more people who support you than those who laugh at you.”

Only at this moment did Yin Xincheng's somewhat fragile and sensitive gaze soften slightly.

"Really?"

"real."

-

Lu Yanhe was also quite troubled.

To be honest, he didn't want to get involved in Yin Xincheng's messy affairs.

However, Yin Xincheng seemed to show them an unexpected level of trust.

It wasn't just him; it was the same for several people in Friends.

Yin Xincheng took the initiative to invite the six members of the "Friends" group to meet up and have a meal.

Generally speaking, they rarely organize large private gatherings during other times of each season's filming.

When people meet, it's usually for some reason, a small gathering of a few people.

It's almost impossible to get all six of them together at the same time except at the end of each year, so everyone tactfully avoided mentioning a big gathering.

When Yin Xincheng made the invitation, everyone surprisingly chimed in, and with the timings coinciding, they all managed to find a free evening together.

Yan Liangdu said: Did Yin Xincheng do his homework in advance? Did he know everyone had time before asking? No, wait, he didn't know I was about to finish filming and come back.

Yin Xincheng said: I've done some quick calculations, and I have a feeling you're all going to make plans.

Bai Jin: ...

Wen Minglan: It really was a coincidence. I just finished filming a movie in France and only returned to China this Friday. If we had arranged it earlier, I wouldn't have been able to come.

Lu Yanhe asked: Is it that French romantic comedy film?

Wen Minglan: No, that was "The Elegant Hedgehog," which was filmed last year. The one I just filmed is the director's new work, "Portrait of Melancholy."

Lu Yanhe: Has "The Elegant Hedgehog" already been released?

He wondered why he hadn't seen any news.

Wen Minglan: Not yet, it will be released in France this summer.

Lu Yanhe: He's quite prolific, he made one film last year and another this year.

Wen Minglan: He also makes movies very quickly. My two movies were shot in only 17 days and 24 days respectively. Most French films don't have big budgets and aren't the kind of films with big staging; they mainly focus on dialogue.

Bai Jin asked: Will they be released in China?

Wen Minglan said: "The Chinese distribution rights for 'The Hedgehog' have already been bought by a Chinese film company, but 'Portrait of Melancholy' has not. There is not much attention paid to French films in China, especially in theaters. It seems that not many French films have been released in theaters in the past, and even when they have, the box office performance has been mediocre."

Zhan Yun said: After "Elegant Hedgehog" is released, we'll book a whole theater to support you!

Wen Minglan: Haha, no need, it's fine. How much box office revenue it gets is up to its ability. I just need to do my own thing. Sister Ziyan helped me get a French film role because she wanted me to gain more experience in filming films from different countries and improve myself.

Zhan Yun: No, we should still support it.

Bai Jin: Exactly, how can we not support them at a time like this?

(End of this chapter)