Chapter 1999: Watching a Film

The Olympics had begun, and the competitions naturally drew the world's attention.

Zhao Fusheng was no exception; occasionally, when bored at home, he would also look for some events to watch.

As for attending in person, Zhao's father and mother did go to see some.

After all, it was a home Olympics. Whether ordinary people or the athletes themselves, everyone was extremely enthusiastic. Throughout the entire Olympics, China's performance was quite surprising.

"You didn't see it today, but our country's athletes performed exceptionally well!"

"Yeah, their shooting was really accurate!"

Zhao's father and mother said to Zhao Fusheng upon returning.

Clearly, they had gone to watch the shooting competitions.

"Was it interesting?"

Zhao Fusheng asked, sitting on the sofa.

"Of course. I say, if you have time, you should go see it too."

Zhao's father said to his son.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head helplessly: "Forget it, I don't have time. Besides, I can watch it on TV just the same."

He meant it.

In fact, to him, the Olympics and such were just a large sports event.

It wasn't that Zhao Fusheng lacked a sense of national honor, but rather that he wasn't very fond of sports.

Once sports became tied to interests, they were no longer pure.

Take this Olympics, for example: we ranked first in medal count. Four years later, at the London Olympics, we encountered numerous biased refereeing and so-called misjudgments.

Anyone with discerning eyes could see what was going on.

But there was no helping it. It was like the Korean performance at the World Cup—everyone knew there were problems, everyone mocked it, but did anything change?

No.

Modern competitive sports had long ceased to be pure athletic pursuits.

The sports industry, now mixed with political and economic interests, had become increasingly commercialized. Some things had lost their original flavor.

"You, really."

Glaring at Zhao Fusheng, Zhao's father said irritably: "Don't just focus on business all the time. You need to balance work and rest. How old are you? Why are you acting like you're my age?"

Watching his son busy every day, he felt sorry for him too. But fathers are different from mothers; when expressing concern for their children, they are always blunt.

"I know, I know. Don't worry."

Zhao Fusheng smiled and nodded to his father.

He naturally understood what his father meant, but some things weren't as simple as just doing what you wanted.

He himself wanted to rest, but the problem was, with such a large group, if he rested, who would manage it?

He used to hear that tycoons like Li Ka-shing worked almost year-round without breaks. Back then, Zhao Fusheng thought the media might be exaggerating—after all, a billionaire worth hundreds of billions should be enjoying life on yachts and private jets, right?

But when it was his turn, Zhao Fusheng realized that being a tycoon wasn't that easy.

Every day, there were piles of documents to review and reports to listen to. Every business involved many people.

Even a small decision of his could affect the development of a company.

That was his life.

To be honest, he really envied those oil tycoons. Those guys were truly carefree, working only one or two hours a day and then enjoying life.

He wondered when he could live that kind of life.

After all, there was still a long way to go before his self-imposed retirement time.

...

...

Three days passed in the blink of an eye. The Olympics were in full swing, but Zhao Fusheng was so busy he hardly had a moment to spare.

"Chairman, we'll watch the rough cut this morning, and in the afternoon we need to meet with the representatives from Samsung."

Sitting in the car, Liu Yiming said to Zhao Fusheng.

"Got it."

Zhao Fusheng nodded.

Samsung, wanting to set up factories in China, hoped to cooperate with Future Group and had sent representatives for negotiations.

Because they were to meet Zhao Fusheng, the negotiation representative chosen was Lee Boo-jin.

There was no helping it; compared to others, she got along better with Zhao Fusheng.

When they arrived at Future Film, Ye Jing was already waiting with Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang.

"Chairman."

"Chairman."

"Bro."

The last one was naturally Wang Baoqiang.

"Why have you gained weight again?"

Zhao Fusheng greeted Xu Zheng and Ye Jing with a smile, then casually slapped Wang Baoqiang on the neck: "Go back and lose weight. Drink less from now on, control your weight, hear me?"

"Ah, got it."

Wang Baoqiang grinned, rubbed his head, and nodded in agreement.

The people around watched him being scolded by Zhao Fusheng but looked envious.

Everyone in the industry knew that this guy was the sworn brother of Fan Baobao and Jiang Wen's wife Zhou Yun. Zhao Fusheng was essentially his brother-in-law, and it was only natural for a brother-in-law to scold his brother-in-law.

Besides, without Zhao Fusheng's connection, it wouldn't have been easy for someone with Wang Baoqiang's image to collaborate with Jiang Wen and others and get so many opportunities.

Having connections makes things easier—that had been the case since ancient times.

"Let's go, let's head inside."

After scolding Wang Baoqiang, Zhao Fusheng said to Ye Jing and the others.

Naturally, no one objected, and they all walked inside.

The company had its own screening room. Someone brought over the filmed material and started the screening.

There were nearly four hours of footage. Zhao Fusheng and the main creative team sat there and began watching.

It's said that those who have never eaten bread with tears cannot understand the true meaning of life.

At the start of the film, Xu Zheng's character, Li Chenggong, a middle-aged businessman, began complaining about his subordinates.

In his view, his subordinates were all blockheads, and he had to worry about every big and small matter himself.

Because the Spring Festival was approaching, Li Chenggong, wanting to fulfill his duties as a son, father, and husband, said goodbye to his mistress and chose to go home for the New Year.

But unfortunately, all first-class and business-class tickets were sold out, so Li Chenggong had to fly economy.

During security check, he met Niu Geng, a migrant worker played by Wang Baoqiang.

Niu Geng was going to collect a debt. Because of the economic crisis, his boss couldn't pay the workers' wages. The honest Niu Geng, holding an IOU given to the boss by someone else, traveled thousands of miles to Hunan Province to collect the debt.

Niu Geng's large bags at security and his impressive chugging of milk left a deep impression.

"Did you really drink that?"

Seeing this, Zhao Fusheng glanced at Wang Baoqiang beside him and asked casually.

"Yeah, I drank two buckets."

Wang Baoqiang answered bluntly.

"Huh?"

Zhao Fusheng was stunned.

Smiling a bit sheepishly, Wang Baoqiang said: "The first take didn't pass..."

Zhao Fusheng was speechless. Such a crucial scene, and this guy had to shoot it twice. His talent was truly beyond words.

In the film, the two sat together.

In Zhao Fusheng's view, the subsequent story was a portrayal of the bittersweet experiences of Chinese people during the Spring Festival travel rush.

From plane to train to long-distance bus to ferry to self-driving to tractor to walking—this wasn't going home for the New Year; it was a Long March!

Recounting the adventures along the way: flight cancellation, train track collapse ahead, minibus hitting someone, encountering a female swindler, bus breakdown, sleeping in the wrong room and getting beaten up, wallet lost and found, chasing the female swindler after docking, winning a car as first prize, car rollover, cooking noodles and drinking wine by a campfire at night, covered in chicken feathers while shopping, arranging money for Niu Geng, parting with the mistress and returning to the family...

It must be said that this series of tight plot points made one feel as if they had fully experienced a Spring Festival travel rush.

And anyone who had ever gone home for the Spring Festival could find something to resonate with.

"Not bad."

Zhao Fusheng said as he watched, then asked Ye Jing: "What do you think?"

"It's okay."

Ye Jing was much calmer than Zhao Fusheng.

After all, compared to Zhao Fusheng, he understood film better.

"Just okay?"

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "Your standards are pretty high. I think it's fine. From the first second to the last, there's almost a laugh or a sentimental moment every minute. Xu and the others put thought into it."

"Too much sentimentality will turn the audience off."

Ye Jing had a different opinion. Unimpressed by Zhao Fusheng's words, he said flatly: "We need to pay attention to that during editing."

After all, he was a man who had directed films and written scripts. He could see the problem in Xu Zheng's work at a glance.

"Mr. Ye is right. I've been thinking about that too."

Xu Zheng smiled apologetically at Zhao Fusheng but chose to tell the truth.

Although he was happy that the chairman praised him, the problem was that facts were facts. If he deceived Zhao Fusheng, he would be in trouble when Zhao found out the truth later.

It was better to be honest now and earn a reputation for being straightforward and candid.

Sure enough, hearing Xu Zheng's words, Zhao Fusheng grinned and wisely shut up.

"Bro, you're not a director, so better not say anything."

Wang Baoqiang chimed in: "My sister said that if you directed a film, the only people who would watch it would be our company's employees."

"Shut up!"

Zhao Fusheng was instantly embarrassed. He glared at Wang Baoqiang: "No one thinks you're mute if you don't speak!"

Wang Baoqiang looked innocent but had no choice but to shut up obediently.

There was no helping it; Zhao Fusheng was older than him.

After scolding Wang Baoqiang, Zhao Fusheng looked up at Xu Zheng and Ye Jing: "So, how should this film be edited?"

"How to edit" naturally referred to the editing approach.

"Less sentimentality, try to edit it more as a comedy."

Xu Zheng didn't speak, but Ye Jing said bluntly: "It's the Spring Festival season, so it should focus on laughter. Don't be too sentimental; let the audience experience those things on their own."

"I agree."

Xu Zheng quickly said.

"Then let's go with your suggestion."

Zhao Fusheng nodded helplessly. Since both professionals said so, what else could he say?