Before Ying Chengqi could finish his words, Xiao Yanzhi frowned impatiently and coldly interrupted him, "Do you think I came to you to ask you to find a way to reduce my investment losses?"
His face was as cold as water, and there was displeasure in his words. "Don't change the actress. Come up with something more reliable."
His tone turned cold, and Ying Chengqi shivered. The intimidating aura made him dare not make a sound, and he was also complaining bitterly in his heart.
Not only did Xiao Yanzhi disagree to change the leading actress, but Ying Chengqi himself didn't want to either.
Undoubtedly, Jiang Li was the most perfect leading actress for this movie. Replacing her with anyone at this late stage would result in a less visually appealing effect, not to mention AI face - swapping.
"I only need to confirm one thing, that is, whether the movie can be successfully released without changing the actress." Xiao Yanzhi was silent for a while, considering the feasibility, and then slowly said, "I don't want to go through all this trouble only to find that it still can't be released."
"There's another way, but it's very risky." Ying Chengqi swallowed hard. "We can consider bypassing the domestic censorship for now and premiering the movie overseas first; then re - introduce it as a foreign film with a large amount of money."
"However, even if we can make money this way, most of it will probably be spent on publicity and approval."
This was indeed an acceptable solution, but they would probably be severely criticized and might even be labeled as "seeking foreign glory," which would also damage the movie's reputation.
"But in this way, we probably won't need to change the actress." Ying Chengqi added the last sentence reluctantly, which was exactly what Xiao Yanzhi wanted to hear.
In the end, Ying Chengqi still didn't recommend this method, but it was the only chance for this movie to be legally released.
He was fully confident in his work. The jury for awards was relatively fair, and he was sure that as long as this movie was released, it would surely win the Best Movie Award.
He couldn't immediately tell whether it was good or bad and couldn't make a decision. He could only follow the capital's lead and do as it pleased.
Xiao Yanzhi nodded slightly, lost in thought.
After thinking for a moment, he tapped the edge of the table with his fingers and calmly said, "Prepare a detailed list of the required funds. Then go to Xue An for the appropriation. I only need a result."
This meant he had agreed.
Having received the approval, Ying Chengqi left the table earlier, saying that he was going back to discuss the specific plan, figure out which country to release the movie in for an earlier premiere, and prepare for other matters.
Xiao Yanzhi looked at his watch. It was just a little past nine.
When he first learned that Embroidery Maid couldn't be released, Xiao Yanzhi first thought about Jiang Li's reaction.
Jiang Li regarded acting as her life, and each of her works was the result of her hard work. Now that the movie was aborted before it even came out, she must be very upset.
For no reason, the image of her hazy tear - filled eyes appeared in Xiao Yanzhi's mind.
He liked to make her cry.
But he didn't want her to cry on other occasions.
Xiao Yanzhi desperately wanted to smoke at this moment. He fumbled in his pocket irritably, but the cigarette case was long gone.
Only then did he remember that he had already finished all his cigarettes.
He gritted his back teeth unhappily. At this time, a waiter in a white shirt and black waistcoat came in and said considerately, "Sir, do you need a cigar?"
Xiao Yanzhi opened his mouth, "Get me..." But halfway through, he suddenly changed his mind, "No, thanks."
"Okay, enjoy your time." The waiter stepped back.
Xiao Yanzhi leaned back in his chair, gently pressed his eyebrows with his fingers, and made a phone call.
If he couldn't smoke, then he'd talk to her.
The phone rang for a while before it was finally answered.
As soon as the call was connected, a slightly nasal voice came from the other end of the phone, as if the person had just cried, hoarse, "Who is this?"
"You don't even save my phone number?" Xiao Yanzhi didn't ask her why she was crying immediately. Instead, he changed the topic.
Jiang Li suddenly held her breath. She looked at the screen again and found that it was Xiao Yanzhi.
Because of the movie being withdrawn from release due to failing the censorship, she had just cried so sadly that she didn't even have time to check the caller ID when answering the phone. "What do you want?"
She tried hard to make her tone calm and not show any cracks, but Xiao Yanzhi saw through her completely.
"Why are you crying? Because of the movie?"
Xiao Yanzhi hit the point that Jiang Li cared about the most. The emotions that she had barely calmed down because of the phone call welled up again, but she still insisted stubbornly, "I didn't cry."
"Okay, if you say you didn't cry, then you didn't."
Xiao Yanzhi smiled and didn't expose her stubbornness. He just went along with her, "Do you have any upcoming stage play performances? A friend of mine wants to watch. Can you help me get two tickets?"
Jiang Li was originally in a low mood. Hearing Xiao Yanzhi asking for tickets for a performance and that he was going to take someone else to watch, she immediately vented her anger on him. Her voice was cold, "If you want to watch a performance, you can buy the tickets yourself. I'm not a scalper."
"Then you should at least tell me when your performance is." Xiao Yanzhi was unhurried and didn't argue with her.
Being asked this, Jiang Li suddenly remembered that she had offended Sheng Shuocheng. She didn't know if she could still stay in the stage play troupe in the future, and her future path would be even more difficult.
She was extremely depressed. She originally wanted to scold him back, but when she opened her mouth, all she could say was full of grievances, "I don't know if I can still perform in stage plays."
Xiao Yanzhi's eyes suddenly narrowed, but he still coaxed her gently, "Why? Are you injured?"
"No. I offended Sheng Shuocheng." Jiang Li hugged the phone. Her emotions were out of control. Once she started, she just poured it all out, "I contradicted him and said some very offensive things. I'm probably going to be fired soon."
The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. "I can't do anything well. The movie is a failure, and I can't perform in stage plays either. I'm really useless."
Jiang Li held the phone tightly. Sitting on the bed, she hugged her knees with both hands and unconsciously tugged at the quilt. She said with a bitter smile, "Am I a complete failure at this stage of my life?"
Listening to the soft complaints from the other end of the phone, Xiao Yanzhi's craving for a cigarette and his annoyance just now had disappeared, "That's not true."
While holding the phone, he got up and started to put on his clothes, "Tell me in detail what happened between you and Sheng Shuocheng. I'll go talk to him for you."
Jiang Li was silent for a while and didn't say a word for a long time.
"Li Li?" Hearing no sound from the receiver, Xiao Yanzhi thought the call had been disconnected. He picked up the phone and looked at it, then called her again, "Why aren't you talking? Are you asleep?"
"No." Jiang Li replied and then asked him, "Why do you want to help me?"
This gentle and calm tone made her feel surprised and at the same time, a chill ran down her back.
What bad idea was this man up to?
Xiao Yanzhi hooked the corner of his lips, smiled lightly, and patiently explained to her, "If I want to court you, I have to solve some practical problems for you. Otherwise, how can I win your favor?"