Chapter 219 The main point is a willful
It snowed a lot in the north this winter, and there was always a big or small snowfall every few days.
Today is no exception. It was a little cloudy in the morning, and then slowly, snowflakes fell from the sky. Fortunately, the wind was not strong, and the snow was sparse, just a light snow.
This little bit of snow is nothing to the people working and living in Beijing; they are used to it.
The thin layer of snow on the ground seems to have covered the city in this winter with a layer of gauze, beautiful and elegant.
Auspicious snow indicates a good harvest. It seems that 2015 will be a year of bumper harvest.
High-end private cuisine in a Beijing hutong.
In a small private room, there is a square mahogany dining table in the middle, surrounded by four long wooden benches. In the middle of the table is a cloisonné copper hot pot like the one in Donglaishun, and the soup base in the hot pot is about to boil.
The hot pot is surrounded by dishes to be cooked, including freshly cut beef and mutton slices, vegetables such as winter bamboo shoots, lettuce, potatoes, yam, kelp, lotus root, as well as seafood such as fish balls, scallops, oysters, shrimps, and cod fillets.
The dishes were very rich, but not too much of each item, and the whole table was filled with small plates.
The box is surrounded by wooden decorations, which are exquisite but look a bit old-fashioned.
There was a small window diagonally opposite Gu Wei, through which he could see snowflakes still slowly falling in the yard outside, but the sky in the distance was gradually clearing up, and it seemed that the snow would stop soon.
The door of the box was opened from the outside, and a somewhat bloated figure walked in.
She was wearing a dark purple long down jacket, a black woolen hat, and a white mask. This set of equipment was very cold-proof and warm, but it looked no different from the outfit of a middle-aged aunt on the street.
"I tried my best to arrive early, but I didn't expect to be later than you~"
A clear and pleasant voice came from inside the mask.
The person took off his hat and mask, revealing a beautiful face. No one could have imagined that there would be such a beautiful lady under such rustic clothes.
He swept the snow off his down coat with his hands, then took off his coat and hung the down coat and hat on the hanger in the corner.
He turned around and sat opposite Gu Wei.
"I'm inviting you to dinner, so how can I not come before you?
Besides, it’s important for men to arrive early so as not to keep the beauties waiting.”
Gu Wei said as he looked at Liu Yifei's moist, fair, flawless face opposite him.
Liu Yifei, who took off her down coat, was wearing a gray sweater. It was a solid-colored garment without any patterns or decorations. Only the collar was turned outward a little, revealing her fair and slender neck.
To be honest, Gu Wei wanted to complain about Liu Yifei's fashion sense every time they met.
As a domestic first-line star, the "Fairy Sister" in the hearts of a generation, she usually dresses casually. She may just pick up a few pieces of clothing that fit her from the closet at home and go out. She has no dressing consciousness of a top beauty at all.
Other female celebrities have to carefully match their clothes before going out. Even their private clothes cannot be casual, for fear of making themselves look ugly or being laughed at for dressing in a rustic way.
Only this sister never cares about these things. Fortunately, her appearance is so good that no matter how tacky the clothes are, she looks like she is going to fashion week. She is simply Taobao's "chosen buyer show".
"It doesn't matter. I don't care about these things. It doesn't matter if it's early or late. It doesn't matter even if you make me wait."
Liu Yifei sat down, tidied her hair and said.
Gu Wei looked at her face as she reached out to tie up her loose hair. The skin where her face and neck met was so white that it seemed to be glowing.
Although I have known Liu Yifei for more than two years, I am still amazed every time I see her.
This face is really a gift from God.
"What are you looking at?"
After finishing her hair, Liu Yifei looked at Gu Wei and said.
"Sister Yifei, you seem beautiful again~"
Listening to Gu Wei's praise, Liu Yifei's lips curled up slightly.
"Nonsense, just say something to make girls happy.
It’s not unfair to say you’re a scumbag online.”
"Really? Haven't you noticed that your skin has become lighter recently? I really think you're a little paler than the last time we met."
Gu Wei said with some injustice.
Seeing that he was serious, Liu Yifei couldn't help but feel a little suspicious.
She reached out and rubbed her face, then asked uncertainly.
"Really? I've been at home lately, not working, and haven't been out much."
"It may be because you haven't been outside for a long time, and the sunlight is relatively weak in winter, so your skin has some changes."
“Maybe.”
Today, Gu Wei invited Liu Yifei out for dinner. The day before yesterday, when Gu Wei was promoting his new song and movie, Liu Yifei was the first one to repost his Weibo online to help promote him. Gu Wei deserves this favor.
If she hadn't taken the lead, other friends probably wouldn't have helped forward it.
Of course, the second person who helped, Yang Mi, was also very important. The publicity from the two most popular female stars immediately boosted the traffic.
Gu Wei had already called Yang Mi, thanked her verbally, and promised her many conditions. When the two met, Gu Wei would naturally try his best to fulfill them.
As for Liu Yifei, Gu Wei asked her to come out and meet him to thank him in person. The two of them hadn't seen each other for a long time, so this was a good opportunity for them to get together.
The base soup of the copper hot pot was already boiling, and Gu Wei picked up some meat slices and vegetables and put them into the pot.
"I ordered some meat, vegetables, and seafood. If you want anything, we can add more."
Liu Yifei also started putting some of her favorite food into the pot.
"That's enough. If there's more, we won't be able to finish it. It's such a waste. I don't have any dietary restrictions, so any of this will do."
In winter, it is a very happy thing to invite one or two friends to eat a hot pot around the table in snowy weather.
Especially when this friend is a beautiful woman, the experience will be even better.
Liu Yifei didn't care too much about her image when eating hot pot. She and Gu Wei had known each other for a long time. When they were filming together, they often ate lunch boxes face to face, and they no longer had any airs.
She picked up a piece of mutton slice and put it in her bowl, dipped it in the prepared sauce, and put it in her mouth.
"Hmm~ Their mutton is very fresh and chewy, highly recommended!"
Gu Wei was also eating and looked up at her.
“Actually, what the owner makes is not hot pot, but a private dish. I just thought today’s weather is more suitable for hot pot, so I chose this.
I used to always go to Donglaishun when I had hotpot with my friends. Their hotpot was very authentic. I always went there with my classmates when I was in school.
It’s a pity that I can’t go out to dinner with you, Sister Yifei. It’s too easy for us to be photographed if we show up together, and it will definitely be the number one trending search.
You can only come to this kind of hidden private restaurant."
Liu Yifei picked up another piece of lettuce and put it in the bowl.
"Haha~ It's not my fault. It's just that someone is too popular, and there are so many scandals flying around, so naturally he doesn't dare to show up in public."
"I don't really care about being reported in the media, but I'm mainly worried about ruining your reputation, Sister Yifei."
"I wouldn't believe you~"
The two of them ate and chatted, and Gu Wei raised the glass of juice in his hand.
"Sister Yifei, I want to toast you and thank you for promoting me on Weibo!"
Gu Wei said sincerely.
"It's nothing, I just listened to the song you posted, it was really nice to sing, and the animated movie looked good too.
It's just a small favor, I just forwarded it to you, you're welcome."
"Your little effort has really helped me a lot!"
Liu Yifei smiled and was no longer modest. She really liked the songs sung by Gu Wei, and of course she was happy to be able to help Gu Wei.
"By the way, how did you come up with the idea of becoming a producer of an animated film?
I remember you haven’t been involved in the field of animated films before.”
Liu Yifei asked with some confusion. It was normal for Gu Wei to release a new song, but she was a little surprised that he suddenly became the producer of an animated film when his movie was going well.
"Speaking of which, this is also a coincidence."
Gu Wei took a sip of the drink in the cup, looked at Liu Yifei's curious face, and explained.
"The Monkey King: Hero is Back" was an animated film recommended to me by Mr. Wang from Enlight Media at the celebration of Detective Chinatown in early 2014.
At that time, this animated film was in a state of suspension due to lack of funds, but the money of the early investors had been spent, and only a small part of the film was produced.
At this point, the original investors were unwilling to continue investing money, fearing that this was a bottomless pit and they would lose everything. They all cut their losses in time and refused to invest any more money.
Even Wang Changtian himself, although very optimistic about the film, but considering the current situation of domestic animation box office and the company's management, he stopped investing money and instead brought director Tian Xiaopeng to me to beg for money.
"Since you're a producer now, you must have agreed to invest money back then, right?"
Gu Wei smiled.
"That's right, at that time, Detective Chinatown sold 1 billion yuan, and Mr. Wang knew I had money, so he brought people to try their luck with me.
I contacted Director Tian, took a look at some of the finished films he had made, and readily agreed to invest."
"This is a project no one is optimistic about. Even the CEO of Enlight Media is unwilling to continue investing. How dare you continue to invest in it?"
"Because I have seen some of the finished films, they are really well made, and the quality far exceeds other domestic animated films. It can be compared with some Hollywood Disney animated films.
Others don’t dare to invest because current domestic animated films are generally not good and audiences don’t accept them.
But I think it would be a shame if such a good film was aborted due to lack of funds.
Fortunately, I don't lack that little bit of money. Even if I lose money in the end, I have made a contribution to the Chinese animation film industry. We can't let Disney's films occupy our own animation film market forever.
Of course, I have confidence in the quality of this film and I think the chances of it being a big hit at the box office are still very high."
Gu Wei certainly knew that with the quality of "The Return of the Great Sage", it would definitely be a big seller.
But he couldn't say that he had seen the answer, and could only explain it as supporting the development of domestic animated films and having enough money.
After hearing what Gu Wei said, Liu Yifei looked at him with a little admiration.
People who have ambitious goals and are willing to make sacrifices are often respected. Because no one can do it, people will naturally respect those who can.
No one wants to waste their money. Gu Wei is willing to take this risk just to make better domestic animated films without caring about personal gains and losses. This naturally won Liu Yifei's favor.
"Then how much money did you invest later?"
"When Director Tian approached me, 40 million yuan had already been spent on the production of 'The Monkey King: Hero is Back'. I injected capital twice in the later stages to make the film perfectly. Adding the publicity and promotion funds before the film was released, I took a total of 60 million yuan.
Now the total cost of "The Monkey King: Hero is Back" is exactly 100 million yuan."
"Puff~"
Liu Yifei almost spit out the juice she had just drunk.
"So many~"
She subconsciously began to think that Gu Wei might have invested 18 million, after all, it was just an animation. She didn't expect that he invested 60 million. The total investment in an animation was 100 million.
What Gu Wei told her was certainly true. The 100 million yuan must be actual money spent, unlike some movies that claimed to have an investment of 200 million yuan, but it was not certain whether the actual money spent was 100 million yuan. The huge investment was exaggerated for the sake of box office.
You should know that in the 2014 Forbes [Chinese Celebrity List] released in May 2014, 100 Chinese celebrities were counted based on their income and exposure. Lin Zhiling, the number 7 beauty in Taiwan, had an annual income of exactly 60 million.
Although Liu Yifei is very famous, her income for the whole year last year was less than 60 million.
Her income mainly comes from film pay and advertising endorsements, and she rarely does commercial performances. Last year, she filmed two movies, and her total pay was only more than 10 million.
Many advertising endorsements are signed for two years, and most of the manufacturer endorsements last year had not expired, so her income in 2014 was not high.
Of course, this list only includes celebrities' income from entertainment industry activities such as film and television works, advertising endorsements, sports, competitions, book publishing, etc. Personal investment and operating income is not included.
"It's good, the money was actually used in the production of the movie, I think it's worth it!"
Gu Wei said indifferently.
"Haha~ It seems my evaluation of you when we first met was absolutely correct.
When Mr. Gu entered the circle to film, he didn't take money seriously at all. His main feature was his willfulness!
From your first film investment in "The Swordsman," to your own money spent on "Detective Chinatown," to now investing in this animated film, your style hasn't changed at all!"
"Haha~ Sister Yifei, you're joking. I'm just doing what I think is right."
After eating two bites of food, Liu Yifei said again.
"I'll go home later and help you promote it online so you don't lose too much money."
Liu Yifei was still a little worried about Gu Wei. After all, this amount of money was not a small number for a first-line star.
Moreover, the current box office record for domestic animated films is around 200 million, which means that as long as the film does not break the record, it will definitely lose money.
Seeing Liu Yifei worried about him, Gu Wei looked very happy.
“No need, Sister Yifei, we’ve done everything we can to promote it, we’ll just have to wait and see the results after the movie is released in a few days.
Don't worry, I've never done anything that would make me lose money. You have to have faith in me."
"Well, I hope your choice is still correct this time~"
Liu Yifei didn't know what to say when she saw Gu Wei's confident look.
In the evening
(End of this chapter)
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