Chapter 51: Manman! Great news! An investor has taken a fancy to your "Misty Forest"!
After winning the award, "The Misty Forest" has remained popular and discussions on the Internet have been overwhelming.
Various analysis and interpretation posts emerged one after another, and the mysterious identity of the author "Huanhua Jinyue" also became a hot topic.
That afternoon, Gu Manman received a long-awaited call from Lao Wang, the editor she had worked with before.
On the other end of the phone, Lao Wang's voice was a little distorted with excitement: "Manman! Great news! An investor has taken a fancy to your "Misty Forest"! He specifically asked to adapt it into a movie!"
Movies? She had never thought about it.
If "The Misty Forest" could be seen by more people in another form... perhaps it really is an opportunity to start over.
She suppressed the turmoil in her heart: "Really? Brother Wang."
"It's absolutely true! The other party is Mr. Zhang, who is well-known in the circle and has a lot of money! He said he is very interested in your story and wants to meet you as soon as possible to discuss the adaptation!" The excitement in Lao Wang's tone was almost overflowing, "The time has been arranged, tomorrow afternoon at 3 o'clock, Jinxiu Club! Manman, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"
Gu Manman hesitated for a moment and agreed: "Okay, Brother Wang, I will be there on time tomorrow."
/
The next afternoon, at Jinxiu Club.
In the magnificent hall, the air is filled with the fragrance of low-key luxury.
Gu Manman, Su Yu and editor Lao Wang were led by the waiter through the quiet corridor to an elegant box.
I pushed the door open and saw a man waiting inside.
He is about forty years old, with a noticeable beer belly. He wears a well-tailored brand-name suit, but he always gives off the air of a nouveau riche.
The huge gold watch on his wrist was dazzling under the light.
He is Mr. Zhang.
Seeing them come in, Mr. Zhang just raised his eyelids lazily, without standing up. He held a cigar between his fat fingers and puffed out smoke.
Lao Wang immediately went to greet him with a big smile on his face: "Mr. Zhang! Sorry for the long wait! This is the author of The Misty Forest, Huanhua Jinyue, Miss Gu Manman."
He pointed at Su Yu next to him and said, "This is Director Su, Su Yu."
Mr. Zhang's eyes swept across Gu Manman and Su Yu's faces, with an undisguised look in his eyes. Finally, he landed on Gu Manman, and a vague smile appeared at the corner of his mouth: "Oh, I didn't expect the author to be so young and beautiful."
The tone was frivolous, with a condescending look.
Gu Manman frowned slightly, said nothing, and just nodded politely.
Su Yu stood beside her, her eyes already filled with vigilance.
Several people sat down and the waiter served tea.
Mr. Zhang flicked the ash off his cigar and got straight to the point: "Ms. Gu, right? I read your book, The Misty Forest. It's quite interesting."
He took a sip of tea and said slowly, "But your story is a bit too high-brow and out of touch with reality. The current market doesn't like to see these bitter and vengeful things."
Lao Wang smiled apologetically: "Mr. Zhang is right. We also hope to be closer to the market..."
Mr. Zhang ignored Lao Wang and continued to say to Gu Manman: "I really want to invest in your project. But, it has to be changed! Big changes!"
Gu Manman picked up the teacup, touched the warm cup wall, and listened quietly.
"Your theme of 'searching and redemption' is too abstract. It needs to be toned down." President Zhang waved his hand and said, "Change it to a love story! Write about the hero and heroine exploring the misty forest while falling in love, and finally defeat the villain, and everyone is happy! How exciting!"
He became more and more excited as he spoke, spitting all over the place: "As for the male lead, I already have a choice. I'll use the most popular young actor right now, what's his name... Yes, Li Haoran! Even though his acting skills aren't that great, he has a lot of fans! He brings his own traffic! The box office will definitely explode!"
Gu Manman's fingers holding the teacup tightened little by little.
Her other hand, which was placed on her knee, was gently held by Su Yu.
Lao Wang tried to interrupt: "Mr. Zhang, actually the suspenseful atmosphere and theme of the original work..."
"Hey," Mr. Zhang interrupted him impatiently with a wave of his hand, and looked at Gu Manman, with a tone of "I'll teach you how to do things," "Ms. Gu, you are still young and don't understand business operations. Art? Can art be used to make a living? Listen to me, change it into a romance film, and I guarantee it will be a big hit at the box office! By then, you can also make a lot of money and gain both fame and fortune!"
Gu Manman slowly put down the teacup in her hand, and the bottom of the cup collided with the table, making a crisp sound.
She raised her head and met Mr. Zhang's greasy gaze calmly: "Mr. Zhang, I'm sorry."
“The story of “Misty Forest” is not about love, but about the struggle of human nature and self-redemption in desperate situations. If you just want to make a romantic idol drama with a suspenseful shell, I’m afraid my story is not suitable for you.”
The atmosphere in the box suddenly became heavy.
The smile on Mr. Zhang's face disappeared, and his expression visibly darkened. He stared at Gu Manman, his eyes turning cold: "Little girl, you are quite courageous, aren't you? I gave you a favor, right? You don't know how to appreciate it!"
"Without my investment, your crappy novel will just lie on the bookshelf and rot! Just wait!"
Su Yu couldn't hold it in any longer, she stood up and glared at Mr. Zhang: "Mr. Zhang! How can you talk like that! Manman's work is her hard work, not a commodity that you can just take and ruin!"
Mr. Zhang sneered, and his fat body stood up from the sofa. He looked down at Gu Manman with a look of mockery in his eyes: "Okay, you have guts. I want to see, without Zhang, who in Jiangcheng would dare to invest in an unprofitable 'art film' like yours!"
After saying that, he snorted heavily, picked up his cigar, ignored the pale-faced Old Wang beside him, opened the door, and left.
The sound of the door closing with a bang made people tremble with fear.
There was deathly silence in the box.
Lao Wang slumped in his chair, sighing and looking worried: "Manman, why are you just... Oh! Be realistic! These days, only those with money are the boss!"
Gu Manman sat there silently, her back straight, her eyes unusually clear, without the slightest wavering.
After leaving the club and standing on the busy street, Su Yu was so angry that her face turned red. She stamped her feet and cursed: "What a crap! What a greasy, ordinary man! What a big deal about having a few stinky money! You look down on people with your dog eyes!"
Seeing Su Yu's angry look, Gu Manman smiled instead and held her arm: "Okay, don't be angry. We have different ideals and cannot make plans together."
Although she inevitably felt disappointed, she did not regret her choice at all.
That was her work, and she would not allow anyone to distort it beyond recognition.
Su Yu looked at her calm profile, grabbed her hand, and said excitedly: “Manman! I thought of it!”
“Since those crappy investors have no vision, let’s invest ourselves! Let’s shoot the film ourselves! I don’t believe why a good story should be held hostage by capital!”
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