kvmb Chapter 108 As long as Li Xi is willing to marry, she must be given plenty of glory.
Chapter 108 As long as Li Xi is willing to marry, she must be given plenty of glory.
While Gu Zhen was away on a business trip, Li Xi was also preparing for the filming of "Seven Days of Nightmare".
Xie Zheng has been under strict surveillance by Zhou Yaoguang these past few days, and she needs to report her whereabouts when she goes out. So, he introduced her most capable agent, Miss Lin Qiu, to Li Xi.
Lin Qiu is Xie Zheng's confidante and also her best friend from university.
Unlike Xie Jiaoyue's kind of best friend, these two are true best friends who have risked their lives for each other.
Lin Qiu knew that Xie Zheng was about to terminate her contract with Zhaixing Entertainment, and also knew that Xie Zheng intended to start a business with Li Xi.
Therefore, helping Li Xi to successfully adapt "Seven Days of Nightmare" into a film and television series is equivalent to helping Xie Zheng to successfully run her entrepreneurial endeavors.
Therefore, Lin Qiu was very responsible in setting up the crew for "Seven Days of Nightmare".
Lin Qiu is in his thirties, has never been in a relationship, and his greatest joy in life is making money.
That day, Lin Qiu drove to pick up Li Xi, intending to take her to meet a new male director named Zhou Zui.
In the car, Lin Qiu asked Li Xi, "This Zhou Zui is very young, only 29 years old. I have done some research on him, and he has only directed two online movies."
"Neither of these films made much of a splash. They were only available on a few online platforms, but were removed from the platforms in less than a week."
"This person is actually quite unlucky."
"Miss Li Xi, why do you think highly of this person?"
Li Xi asked Lin Qiu, "Have you read his works?"
"I've only found some edited clips on Douyin (TikTok), the whole film has been censored and can't be found anymore. And because he's not a well-known director, you can't even find pirated content online..."
Therefore, Lin Qiu didn't understand why Li Xi wanted to hire Zhou Zui to film "Seven Days of Nightmare". "Excuse me for being frank, once the news of 'Seven Days of Nightmare' being adapted into a film and television series gets out, a lot of well-known directors will come to us to work together."
"We have no trouble finding famous and talented directors to work with."
After all, the Seven Days Nightmare's reputation speaks for itself.
Whoever takes this picture will make a fortune!
"Seven Days Nightmare can certainly find big directors to work with, but big directors also have big appetites. The more famous the director, the more they interfere."
"Besides..."
Li Xi said, "I want to have absolute say in my work, and no one can interfere with my decisions."
"Sister Zheng is a fan of Seven Days Nightmare. She approves of the work and trusts my abilities, so she will naturally cooperate with me."
"But those famous directors are all a bit arrogant. We're bound to have conflicts. The atmosphere on a film set is very important. If the director and I, as the head screenwriter, have a small argument every two days and a big argument every three days, how can it work?"
"You ask me why I chose Zhou Zui?" Li Xi countered Lin Qiu's question: "Tell me, a small-time director's online movie was censored as soon as it was released, and you can't even find a pirated copy online."
"Isn't this strange?"
Lin Qiu thought about it carefully and also felt it was a bit strange.
Lin Qiu accompanied Xie Zheng from an unknown to a superstar, and she was certainly a shrewd person herself.
Lin Qiu asked with surprise and doubt, "Is someone behind this Zhou Zui?"
"Let me tell you a secret."
Lin Qiu pricked up his ears.
Li Xi said, "The last film directed by the late renowned director Qiao Zhiheng, 'The Roommate,' was actually filmed by Zhou Zui."
Lin Qiu let out a scream like a screeching chicken: "What!"
"The Roommate" is a suspense film set on the border between two countries. The film is highly praised for its constant plot twists and exciting storyline.
Five years ago, when this movie was released, it grossed 2 billion yuan at the domestic box office, becoming the most popular suspense film in the past decade.
That winter, the film won the Gold Award at the Asian Film Festival and received numerous awards in China.
In the decade prior, Qiao Zhiheng's films had become increasingly mediocre.
Everyone thought that Qiao Zhiheng had run out of creative ideas.
Unexpectedly, "The Roommate" came out of nowhere and saved Qiao Zhiheng's reputation, once again winning unanimous praise from the industry.
After his death, he was also named one of Asia's top ten directors.
His swan song, "The Roommate," was selected as one of the top five classic Asian suspense works.
That's why Lin Qiu was so shocked when he suddenly heard the information revealed by Li Xi.
Lin Qiu said incredulously, "This must be a rumor, right? Miss Li Xi, how did you know?"
Lin Qiu knew that this circle was very chaotic, with a lot of injustice and oppression.
The kind of thing Li Xi described has indeed happened.
can.
This time, the protagonist is the famous director Qiao Zhiheng!
Would he do something so despicable?
What's more, the person he was bullying was just an unknown director in his early twenties!
Keep in mind that "The Roommate" was released five years ago, and it still needed to be filmed and produced before its release. Based on that timeline, how old was Zhou Zui back then?
23?
24?
How could a recent college graduate create such a brilliant film as "The Roommate"?
“Absolutely true.” Li Xi never lies.
As for how she knew?
Because in her previous life, when she went to the film crew with Xie Zheng, she happened to work with Zhou Zui in the same film crew.
Back then, Zhou Zui was the director's assistant. The director would often lie in his chair and take a nap. Many classic scenes were actually directed by Zhou Zui.
On the night the filming wrapped up, Xie Zheng got drunk and went to the toilet. Li Xi waited outside with her clothes and bag.
Then he stumbled upon Zhou Zui being cornered and verbally abused in the restaurant's back garden by director Qiao Zhiheng's son.
Qiao Zhiheng's son is named Qiao Yuhong.
How did Qiao Yuhong scold Zhou Zui back then?
He said, "Your parents died young. If it weren't for my father's financial support, you would have starved to death in your dilapidated house long ago."
"My father sponsored your upbringing, but he only used your debut novel as a cover, and you hate him that much?"
"People should learn to be grateful, don't you understand?"
Zhou Zui punched Qiao Yuhong in the face and said, "He removed my name from the director's list and stole all my credit."
"This isn't sponsorship, this is theft!"
"Only robbers would steal other people's things and then put their own name on them!"
"Qiao Yuhong, if people find out that I was the real filmmaker of 'The Roommate' and not your father at all..."
"Do you think your dad will be subjected to online abuse? Will you be expelled from the entertainment industry?"
Qiao Yuhong was both angry and scared. He pointed at Zhou Zui's nose and made a series of threats before leaving.
That night, Zhou Zui drank too much. Before leaving, he asked his sober assistant to drive him home.
When Li Xi drove Xie Zheng back to the hotel, they unexpectedly ran into Zhou Zui's car.
His car rolled off the cliff and was badly damaged.
Xie Zheng stood by the roadside calling for an ambulance, while Li Xi ran down the cliff to check on Zhou Zui's condition.
They found Zhou Zui, who was drunk, sitting in the driver's seat, while the designated driver's assistant had vanished!
This is clearly a premeditated murder!
Zhou Zui was seriously injured at the time, with a tree branch stuck in his chest, and blood gushing out.
He saw Li Xi and kept calling out Qiao Yuhong's name intermittently.
Zhou Zui ultimately could not escape the scythe of death.
This truly talented director died because of Qiao Yuhong's conspiracy.
That was the first time Li Xi had faced murder directly.
Afterwards, Xie Zheng told Xie Jiaoyue about it.
But what did Xie Jiaoyue say?
She advised Li Xi to learn to turn a blind eye and not to offend Qiao Yuhong because of a stranger.
Li Xi then told Xie Zheng about this.
After learning about this, Xie Zheng used Zhou Yaoguang's influence to expose the despicable acts of Qiao Yuhong and his son.
In the end, Qiao Yuhong was arrested and imprisoned, while the deceased director Qiao Zhiheng was subjected to widespread online abuse...
Of course, this happened in the previous life, and Li Xi couldn't tell Lin Qiu directly.
So when Lin Qiu asked her how she knew, Li Xi said, "I once accidentally witnessed Qiao Yuhong threatening Zhou Zui."
Upon hearing this, Lin Qiu knew what had happened.
“Even if what you say is true,” Lin Qiu said worriedly, “we are powerless now, Xie Zheng is about to terminate her contract with Zhaixing Entertainment, and she and the Zhou family…”
Lin Qiu felt it was unlucky to mention Zhou Yaoguang's name, so he spat and said, "If we cooperate with Zhou Zui, and then Qiao Yuhong's people target us, we might not even have a chance to pass the censorship and be released."
"Don't worry," Li Xi said. "I have powerful backers too."
"Huh?" Lin Qiu felt that this was not credible.
“Miss Li Xi.” Lin Qiu was a straightforward person, and she couldn’t help but pour cold water on Li Xi’s enthusiasm. “As far as I know, you and the Xie family have already fallen out. It will be very difficult for our movie to get released smoothly without getting past Xie Yuhong and his group.”
"Who said the Xie family is my backer?"
"My backer is Old Master Gu."
"Which old man Gu?" Lin Qiu knew many important people with the surname Gu, so he wasn't sure who the old man Gu Li Xi was referring to was.
Li Xi: "The Gu Group, Mr. Gu Wentao."
Lin Qiu: "..."
"Hahaha!" Lin Qiu burst into laughter. "Miss Li Xi, you're quite humorous too."
Li Xi simply smiled.
Stopping her laughter, Lin Qiu asked Li Xi, "Xie Zheng is interested in starting an entertainment company with you. Do you have any concrete ideas?"
"Have."
Lin Qiu: "Mind if you tell me the truth first?"
“Since you’re someone I can trust, I’ll give you a heads-up.” Li Xi told Lin Qiu, “Zhaixing Entertainment is about to change hands, and I plan to become its new CEO.”
Lin Qiu suddenly fell silent.
She now thinks Xie Zheng might have been driven crazy by Zhou Yaoguang's infidelity, which is why she thinks starting a company with Li Xi is a very promising thing.
Seeing Lin Qiu's reaction, Li Xi said very seriously, "I'm serious, President Xie of Zhaixing Entertainment is really going to be finished."
Lin Qiu: "...Then I'll wait and see?"
Li Xi smiled faintly and remained silent.
See? I told you the truth and you didn't believe me. Whose fault is that?
The car traveled on the Dongzhou urban expressway for two hours before entering Xiangyang District and heading towards the Taoist temple on Xiangyang Mountain.
Lin Qiu told Li Xi, "Zhou Zui is a homebody. He rarely goes out except when filming or on set. He is a devout Taoist believer and goes to the Taoist temple on Xiangyang Mountain to burn incense every month on the 15th."
"Let's go straight to Xiangyang Mountain and ambush them today."
"it is good."
Arriving at the foot of Xiangyang Mountain, they passed a fork in the road. Lin Qiu joked with Li Xi, "If you go in through that road, you can supposedly enter the Gu family manor."
"Your backer is inside, why don't you go and pay him a visit?"
Li Xi hadn't originally intended to do so.
Hearing Lin Qiu say this, Li Xi was indeed tempted. "Since I'm already here, I'll go to the Taoist temple to pay my respects and then visit the Gu family to see the old man."
The comic she gave to the old man should be almost finished reading.
Li Xi should also go to the Gu family manor to ask Old Master Gu for investment opportunities.
*
at the same time.
Seeing that the weather was bright, Gu Wentao asked Du Yusheng to bring him his fishing gear and sat down to fish under the pavilion by the lake.
Just as I caught a small crucian carp about an inch long, Du Yusheng came over with a cup of tea.
After placing the teacup on the stone table, Du Yusheng suddenly said, "The surveillance cameras down the mountain captured Miss Li Xi."
Upon hearing this, Gu Wentao put his fishing rod under the stool and said with undisguised delight, "That girl is here? How much longer until she arrives?"
Gu Wentao was about to get up when he said, "I need to go back and change my clothes."
"By the way, have Butler Zhou wait for her at the door and bring her directly to my small building to see me."
Du Yusheng suppressed a laugh and said, "Miss Li Xi didn't come to the manor; she went to the Taoist temple on the mountain."
Gu Wentao paused for a moment, then plopped back down in his chair and asked Du Yusheng, "What is she doing at the Taoist temple?"
"I don't know."
"Old Master," Du Yusheng said, "should I inform the Taoist priest to tell Miss Li Xi to come to the manor and have a chat with you?"
Gu Wentao snorted arrogantly, "Young people are busy. If she has the will, she will come."
Twisted melons are not sweet.
The young girl wasn't there to visit him; what was the point of him forcibly bringing her to his home?
Besides...
"I heard Huai Zhou went back to Wuyai Island these past few days? Has his illness relapsed again?"
"Chu Xu said the situation this time is rather strange, and he's not sure what exactly is going on. However, Chu Xu mentioned that Huai Zhou has a hickey on his neck."
Gu Wentao then smiled again.
"Good, good, good! What did I tell you? That girl Li Xi is indeed capable!"
Gu Wentao picked up his teacup, took a few sips, and suddenly said to Du Yusheng, "Take some time to go to Old Man Zhou's place and tell them to hurry up and prepare the wedding dress."
"As long as that girl Li Xi agrees to marry into our Gu family, our Gu family will give her all the glory!"
Du Yusheng then smiled and said, "I also feel that our family is about to have a happy event."
*
Longyang Taoist Temple is a renowned Taoist temple in Dongzhou City, and even in the eighteen cities of Dongzhou.
During the War of Resistance against Japan, Xiangyang Town was burned to the ground.
All the Taoist priests of Longyang Taoist Temple took their swords and went down the mountain, leaving only 5 young boys to guard the temple.
Five days later, the fire was extinguished, but the ancient city of Xiangyang was destroyed, and none of the 21 Taoist priests of Longyang Taoist Temple survived.
On the mountain inside the Xiangyang Mountain Martyrs' Cemetery, there are statues of 21 Taoist martyrs from Longyang Taoist Temple.
Therefore, although Longyang Taoist Temple is not large, its incense is exceptionally strong.
All five of the young Taoist disciples who stayed behind have passed away, leaving only one old Taoist priest named Li Xiaobao still alive.
The old Taoist priest, who is over ninety years old, still occasionally comes to sit in the main hall.
Zhou Zui was lucky today and ran into Master Li.
Master Li was surrounded by believers who wanted to draw lots, and it took Zhou Zui some effort to squeeze to the front.
He held the lottery bucket with both hands and shook out a bamboo stick.
He picked up the bamboo skewer and handed it to Master Li.
Master Li adjusted his reading glasses, took a closer look, then casually put the worst fortune stick back into the container and said, "Draw again!"
Zhou Zui: "..."
It can still be like this.
He pulled out another one.
Master Li picked it up, looked at it, put it back, and said, "Keep smoking."
Zhou Zui hesitated and said, "Are they all the worst possible fortunes? Master Li, have I been having bad luck lately?"
Master Li waved his hand and said, "They're all the worst possible lot, so let's draw the best one. You'll surely be the one to draw it."
Zhou Zui was immediately filled with respect.
Can you do this?
“Young man,” Master Li looked up and stared intently at Zhou Zui. “Life is like this lottery bucket, with countless lots in it, and countless choices in life.”
"If you're not satisfied with this choice, then let's try again."
"Since we can't draw a satisfactory fortune stick, let's draw a few more."
"It's no big deal."
Zhou Zui seemed to understand, but his mood had calmed down considerably.
He picked up the lottery bucket again and shook it, this time drawing out a dark, unreadable slip. The words on the slip had been written over and over again, so much so that Zhou Zui couldn't make them out.
But when Master Li saw the fortune stick, he smiled and said, "This fortune stick is good."
"What kind of fortune is this?"
Master Li said, "I call it a fortune-changing divination slip."
"Young man, you will meet a benefactor today who will help you turn your fate around."
"Make the most of this opportunity!"
After saying that, Master Li stuck the divination stick into the bucket and said, "Good divination, I'll take two hundred merits from you."
Zhou Zui: "..."