Chapter 1817 Old Jiang's Idea

Fan Baobao's pregnancy was a major event for the entire Future Group.

As Zhao Fusheng's wife, everyone knew that Zhao Fusheng's heir could only, and must be, Fan Baobao's child; otherwise, there would surely be trouble later.

With so much industry, it was impossible that no one coveted it.

Especially the wars between heirs—needless to say.

Don't forget, the example of the Lee Kun-hee family was right before their eyes.

But for now, Zhao Fusheng didn't have to worry about that problem. After all, he was still young, and most importantly, Zhao Fusheng felt that he could set rules early on for how his children would walk their paths.

For instance, the eldest son inheriting the family business while the other children were forbidden from business or politics—Zhao Fusheng thought that was a pretty good idea.

With an heir, the entire family could be well provided for, while the other children could live normal lives.

Very harmonious.

As for younger generations who wanted to start businesses?

That was fine too. The family could provide a sum of money for them to start a business, but on the condition that they did not use the family's name.

He himself had built his fortune from scratch. If the younger generation didn't have that ability, they'd better just coast along and wait for death.

Although it seemed somewhat cold-hearted, Zhao Fusheng believed it was not a bad way to solve problems, at least better than sibling fights over inheritance.

"But are you really not planning to go out?"

Sitting on the sofa in Zhao Fusheng's home, Jiang Wen looked at him strangely and said, "You, guy, are busy all year round. Now you say you're not going anywhere—it's too strange."

Zhao Fusheng rolled his eyes: "I can understand your wife coming to visit my wife, but what are you here for?"

"You, is this how you welcome a guest?"

Jiang Wen glared at Zhao Fusheng and said smugly, "Of course I'm here to accompany her."

"Heh..."

Zhao Fusheng couldn't even be bothered to mock this guy; he really didn't know where he got the confidence.

It was clearly this guy who insisted on tagging along with Zhou Yun, yet he shamelessly claimed that Zhou Yun wanted him to come. Shamelessness truly had no limits.

"Look at you, why can't you trust others?"

Jiang Wen reacted strongly to Zhao Fusheng's expression, said defiantly.

Zhao Fusheng didn't even bother to refute him and just picked up the fruit in front of him and started eating.

"Hey hey, let's talk about something serious."

Seeing that Zhao Fusheng ignored him, Jiang Wen had no choice but to honestly state his purpose.

"Go ahead."

Zhao Fusheng nodded when he saw the guy had calmed down.

"It's like this: I plan to not shoot 'Bullet' for now." Jiang Wen said to Zhao Fusheng, "Although it's already been greenlit, I still want to scout locations, see the domestic scenery, and then decide when to start filming."

"..."

Zhao Fusheng was speechless, and he understood what the guy meant. It seemed he intended to scout first and then decide how to shoot.

This was very normal in the filmmaking process.

After all, location scouting was as important to a film as casting.

At that time, domestic filmmaking hadn't yet reached the exaggerated use of special effects and lighting effects as in later years; green screen compositing hadn't appeared yet.

This meant that actors had to act with sincerity.

When directing, the director couldn't just look at the cast; he also had to scout locations and choose a suitable filming site.

Old Jiang's approach showed a serious and responsible attitude toward the film. Even Zhao Fusheng had to admit that in this regard, Old Jiang was very dedicated.

"No problem."

Zhao Fusheng nodded directly, not refusing Jiang Wen's request.

"Aren't you going to ask where I plan to scout and how long it will take?" Jiang Wen looked at Zhao Fusheng in surprise, not expecting him to agree outright without asking a single extra question.

Zhao Fusheng laughed heartily, waved his hand and said, "I only care about the result, not the process. Anyway, your budget is only that much; spend it as you see fit."

"Damn!"

"(艹皿艹)(艹皿艹)"

Jiang Wen was completely dumbfounded.

He stared at Zhao Fusheng, unable to speak for a long time.

There was no help for it; Zhao Fusheng's words were simply infuriating to the extreme!

Old Jiang felt like a hired hand on a landlord's estate, working desperately to earn money for the landlord, who still looked disdainful.

"What's wrong?"

Zhao Fusheng looked at Jiang Wen with an innocent expression.

Jiang Wen chuckled, glancing at Zhao Fusheng. "Has anyone ever told you that when you play dumb, you look particularly shameless..."

"No."

Zhao Fusheng shook his head decisively. "No one dares say that in front of me."

"Fine, you win!"

Jiang Wen fell silent. Damn capitalist...

Envy, jealousy, hatred!

But he had to admit that Zhao Fusheng indeed had the confidence to say that.

After all, the guy was just that rich.

In an era where money determined one's social status, Zhao Fusheng's wealth was his capital.

Although the work of scientists was more worthy of admiration, most people turned a blind eye to their contributions. What people could see were only the wealthy who had amassed fortunes.

It was like Wang Xizhi writing the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion, sitting atop the throne of the world's best running script. Generations of admirers were brimming with literary inspiration, using all sorts of metaphors and analogies, drawing parallels and writing copiously. But when faced with someone who didn't care about rules of composition or the dryness and wetness of ink, they could only resort to the ultimate weapon: 'His twenty-one instances of the character 'zhi' are all different!' Then even common folk would nod in agreement.

Repetition indeed has the property of murder; it can turn the sublime into the mediocre, deep affection into annoyance. Even for something as happy as the sun rising as usual, some lament 'the world is a furnace, creation is the smith,' only remembering the loss they have endured in time, completely forgetting the beauty bestowed by heaven and earth.

However, when an expression always leaves endless regrets, the desire to repeat it becomes even stronger. At a lower level, Wong Kar-wai constantly chased light, shadow, and lost love, even Du Qifeng mocked him for only making one film.

At a higher level, Ang Lee was merely seeking appropriate expression between restrained life and intense conflict, with repetition well concealed, so some directors would sing his praises.

Everyone knows repetition is inevitable, which is why Wang Xizhi's achievement is so remarkable.

But was there truly no repetition?

Some were deliberate, some were spontaneous. There always had to be some appropriately casual actions and some well-judged self-selection to write a piece of calligraphy in this world full of repetition.

Zhao Fusheng had no intention of discarding; he just wanted to do what he hoped to do.

"Let's make it clear, I'm not giving you much time."

After thinking, Zhao Fusheng looked at Jiang Wen. "The film must start shooting before the end of next year!"

"..."

Old Jiang thought it over for a long time, then finally nodded. "Okay, I promise you."

Regardless, he understood Zhao Fusheng's meaning. The investment cycle for film and television companies was inherently long. If he dragged it out like Wong Kar-wai, taking three to five years to make a film, not to mention the box office, the mere delay would be a heavy burden on Future Film.

Old Jiang was devoted to art but not a fool; otherwise, he wouldn't have compromised on commercial films before.

Moreover, having known Zhao Fusheng for so long, he had a deep understanding of his character.

Zhao Fusheng might seem carefree and indifferent on the surface, but in fact, he took many things very seriously.

Especially promises.

Since he decided to start shooting by the end of the year, he had to complete all preparations before then; otherwise, even if they were friends, Zhao Fusheng would not hesitate to halt the project.

Old Jiang knew this well.

Because Future Film was not Wong Kar-wai's film company; playing that game would bankrupt any film company, no matter how strong its capital.

That's why most of Wong Kar-wai's films were co-invested by a dozen companies, as they thought it would spread the risk and avoid being dragged down like the film companies in Hong Kong.

Making a film every three to five years was common for Wong Kar-wai, but for any film company, it was a nightmare.

Although Future Film wasn't short of money, if it took three to five years to produce a film that they led, it would be better to invest that money in other films.

After all, the domestic film industry was developing rapidly; as long as you had money, you wouldn't worry about finding investment opportunities.

Those directors and screenwriters were always holding scripts, waiting for opportunities.

"Where are you planning to go for location scouting?" Zhao Fusheng casually asked Old Jiang.

He didn't mind; he was just curious.

"Sichuan."

Jiang Wen chuckled. "Maybe we'll build a film studio or something there. I think I can go with you. Didn't you say you're going to Sichuan with Xue Yuanda's uncle after the New Year to investigate investments?"

"Ah?"

Zhao Fusheng was stunned, looking at Jiang Wen in surprise, but found the guy looking calm, as if he hadn't just said that.

666!

At that moment, Zhao Fusheng wanted to give Jiang Wen a thumbs up to express his praise.

Anyone who still said Jiang Wen was a brute would be a real idiot!

How could this guy be a brute? He was clearly a man of subtlety!

Not to mention anything else, just this choice was like placing a bet.

Whether he won or not didn't really matter.

If he lost, he could consider it as building a film studio that the company could use later; if he won, it would be a surefire profitable deal.

Looking at the seemingly honest Old Jiang, Zhao Fusheng suddenly laughed. This guy was really something!