Chapter 1456: Everyone Has Their Own Path

Regarding the matter in Hengdian, Zhao Fusheng merely reminded Ye Jing not to miss this opportunity under any circumstances.

At the same time, Wang Anquan and Yu Nan were also agonizing over whether they might miss one of the few opportunities in their lives.

Sitting in the car, neither of them spoke.

Wang Anquan knew very well that he was no longer young.

Once upon a time, he had entered the film industry with high spirits, thinking that with his talent for writing scripts, major companies would scramble for them, and then some big director would come knocking, begging to collaborate with him. At that point, he would solemnly tell the other party that he intended to direct the script himself...

After that, the script would be made into a film, become a box office hit, and sweep both domestic and international awards.

At that time, he could truly be said to have ascended to the summit, overlooking all others, as if he were the top director in the country.

But in the end, this was merely a young man's dream.

Ideals are full and round, but reality is stark and bony.

When he submitted his carefully crafted scripts to those big companies, they simply dismissed them with contempt. Even if they smiled when receiving the script, they would toss it into the trash the moment they turned around.

Like a piece of damn wastepaper!

But that crumpled paper was the fruit of months or even years of his hard work.

Reality is never as beautiful as it is in books. Perhaps there are cases of overnight success, but that requires luck.

Clearly, Wang Anquan felt that his luck was not good.

Until he met Yu Nan.

The several films he had previously collaborated on with Yu Nan were all successful. Although they didn't become box office hits, at least in the literary film circle, Wang Anquan had made a name for himself.

Now, Wang Anquan believed that he could rely on the film *Tuya's Marriage* to win an award at an international film festival.

But at the same time, Zhao Fusheng's request made Wang Anquan realize that Yu Nan might be leaving him.

This was a kind of intuition, a man's intuition. It might not be one hundred percent accurate, but it was probably reliable nine times out of ten.

Yu Nan was also struggling.

She was not stupid. It was very clear that Zhao Fusheng had no interest in her as a person; what he was interested in was her acting skills.

Yu Nan was well aware of this.

Known for her acting skills, she was quite famous in the circle of literary films.

Every director who liked making literary films had his own go-to actress. Wang Anquan's was Yu Nan, while Old Jia's was his wife, Zhao Tao.

In the original timeline, Old Jiang especially liked to have his wife, Zhou Yun, star in his films.

Who knew whether these guys did it to save money or to promote their own wives.

But regardless, Yu Nan knew that what Zhao Fusheng valued in her was probably just this acting ability.

As for her body—

Heh, Yu Nan had self-awareness.

She could tell that the way Zhao Fusheng looked at her was completely different from the bald man beside him—there was no lust, only pure appreciation.

Although their first meeting had not been harmonious, and Yu Nan even thought Zhao Fusheng was a bit pretentious.

But thinking back now, he wasn't being pretentious; he was genuinely aloof.

Compared to a small-time artist like herself, Zhao Fusheng had the right to be.

Life is like that—sometimes it's not that others are too pretentious, but that poverty limits our imagination, so we think spending hundreds of thousands on a meal is an act of extravagance.

But in fact, for some people, it's just a routine part of their lives.

The truly ignorant are those who clamor about waste.

"What are your plans?"

After Wang Anquan and Yu Nan's car had driven a distance from Future Films, Wang Anquan suddenly asked Yu Nan.

Yu Nan was startled, then looked at her boyfriend: "I'll listen to you."

This was a phrase she liked to say often, even when they were alone together, and Wang Anquan would always pose her in a dozen different positions.

"Future Films is a very good company." Wang Anquan didn't answer Yu Nan's question directly, instead saying something off-topic: "Whether in terms of advertising resources or film and television resources, Future Films is a very strong company."

He paused, seeming hesitant, but then smiled bitterly: "I have to admit, if you join Future Films, your path ahead will be much smoother. At least when it comes to roles, you won't have to follow me around all day like now, and still not necessarily succeed."

He was speaking from the heart. After all, Future Films wasn't a lone operator like him. For example, for the same lead actress role, he could only keep begging the investors to give it to Yu Nan.

But if it were Future Films, they wouldn't go through all this trouble, because they would directly decide who would play the lead.

As for other people's opinions...

I spent the money and made the investment; other people's opinions simply don't matter, okay?

Upon hearing Wang Anquan's words, Yu Nan was stunned for a moment, then gave a bitter smile.

She had to admit that Wang Anquan's words were absolutely correct.

If she chose to join Future Films now, at the very least, she wouldn't have to worry about acting roles, and when it came to fashion resources, she might have opportunities to collaborate with them.

After all, Yu Nan was familiar with Wang Anquan's circle of friends in the capital, and she knew very well that Wang Anquan had never really thought about helping her at any time.

He only wanted her to stay by his side and be his cash cow.

"You... you agree?" Yu Nan looked at Wang Anquan and asked with some surprise.

Wang Anquan chuckled softly and nodded lightly: "Of course I agree. No matter what his idea is, as long as it's for your good, I will definitely support it."

Anyone can say pretty words, let alone someone like Wang Anquan, who had been rolling around in the entertainment industry for so many years; saying such things cost him no effort at all.

As for Wang Anquan himself, he felt there was no problem.

Although Zhao Fusheng had not shown any intention of signing him, that didn't matter. Several film companies were currently contacting him, and Wang Anquan felt he could wait and choose the best offer.

"Really?"

Yu Nan looked at Wang Anquan in surprise.

Seeing Yu Nan's expression, Wang Anquan suddenly felt that he had taken a bit of a risk.

Or rather, he should think carefully about whether to cooperate with Future Films.

There was no help for it; Yu Nan's reaction was too genuine, giving Wang Anquan a sense of defeat, as if something of his had been snatched away.

"Do you really want to join Future Films?"

Glancing at Yu Nan, Wang Anquan asked slowly.

Yu Nan was silent for a moment, then finally nodded.

She knew very well that she couldn't hide her thoughts from Wang Anquan; it was better to be frank now than to let him speculate wildly.

With a sigh, Wang Anquan remained silent for a long time.

From the very beginning when Yu Nan got together with him, he knew that he most likely couldn't keep this woman, because he found that Yu Nan's ambition was too strong.

An ambitious woman would naturally move toward higher places, not stay in one spot.

...

...

Future Films, General Manager's Office.

"Aren't you worried that Wang Anquan might refuse to cooperate with us?"

Ye Jing looked at Zhao Fusheng strangely, finding it hard to understand why Zhao Fusheng was so confident.

Zhao Fusheng laughed, looking completely unconcerned: "As long as he's not an idiot, he won't refuse to cooperate with us. You know, we're one of the few companies still willing to invest in art films, aren't we?"

Ye Jing was taken aback but had to admit that Zhao Fusheng was right.

In today's Chinese film industry, the soil for art films and art film directors to survive is becoming increasingly difficult.

Directors like Wang Anquan, who specialize in art films, are finding it harder and harder to secure investment.

Investors are not fools; pinning all hopes on selling distribution rights at foreign film festivals while almost giving up on the domestic market is no different from gambling. Their hard-earned money is not a tool to fulfill someone's dreams.

In contrast, Future Films, because of Zhao Fusheng's indifferent attitude and Ye Jing's own identity as a filmmaker with dreams, has never stopped investing in art films.

That's why Wang Anquan asked Jiang Wen to introduce him to Future Films.

But Wang Anquan didn't expect that Zhao Fusheng would take a liking to Yu Nan and want to poach her under their banner.

"Just wait and see; it won't be long before they make a choice."

Zhao Fusheng said to Ye Jing with a smile.

Ye Jing nodded and didn't say anything more.

Having known each other for so long, he had come to understand Zhao Fusheng's temperament; Zhao Fusheng wouldn't make such a judgment without reason.

"By the way, if the matter in Hengdian is true, do we really want to invest?" Ye Jing thought of another important matter and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng laughed, his face beaming with a brilliant smile. Under Ye Jing's astonished gaze, he slowly said: "Of course we invest, and we should take as many shares as possible. You know, this is a hen that lays golden eggs!"

Huh?

At that moment, Ye Jing felt that Zhao Fusheng's smile was particularly cunning, just like a little fox.

Little did he know, in Zhao Fusheng's view, this was an opportunity given by heaven; if he didn't seize it well, he would be letting down the heavens.