040 Editing a Short Film

Cooperation between parties is based on interests, but it is also based on the disruption of balance. If it weren't for the online smear campaign against Qian Lang, Jiang Wenxuan might not have dared to hope he could persuade him to enter the competition. But things are different now.

If Qian Lang could spare some time to produce a short film, Goose Entertainment would naturally reciprocate by helping him build momentum. As everyone knows, the collective memory of the internet is about as long as a goldfish's. To diminish the influence of those haters, one must flood the internet with an equal or even greater number of topics. As long as positive praise for Qian Lang is plastered all over the web, the so-called "dirty water" would soon have no ground to stand on. Then, by using technical means to delete the posts from the haters, the internet would quickly return to a state of clarity.

The more Jiang Wenxuan thought about it, the more he felt it was a viable plan. Therefore, upon learning that Principal Chen was attending the screening of Qian Lang’s new film, he expressed his desire to tag along. As for Principal Chen, he was naturally happy to see these two get acquainted—after all, he would help his own students whenever he could. It was just a small favor!

Meanwhile, on the other side, Hong Kong Entertainment had also taken timely action after learning about the online attacks on Qian Lang. Since the haters claimed Qian Lang was currying favor with them, they decided to lay the facts out in the open. After all, they usually didn't dare to openly cozy up to Qian Lang, so by taking this opportunity to clarify the facts, Director Qian surely wouldn't keep them at arm's length anymore.

Yang Jianghao chuckled and was the first to post a message on Weibo: "Yang Jianghao of Hong Kong Entertainment wishes our ringleader, Qian Lang, great success with his new film across the Great Xia!" He didn't usually use Weibo, but this post instantly gave him the aura of an internet celebrity, effectively igniting the public discourse. Very quickly, keywords like #QianLang# and #Ringleader# climbed into the top ten trending topics. Each tag was even followed by a "Burst" icon—the true hallmark of viral heat.

The enthusiasm of the netizens was instantly sparked.
"What's going on? Is Boss Yang showing favor to Qian Lang?"
"Awesome, Director Qian has become the ringleader!"
"I told you, how could Director Qian embarrass the mainland entertainment industry!"
"Well done! This is the style of a Beijing director!"
"Hmph! Let’s see which fool dares to say Director Qian betrayed the mainland to please Hong Kong!"

Many netizens were sincere in their emotions. When the haters were splashing mud earlier, their voices had been drowned out. Now that they had a breakthrough, they were not going to miss the chance to rally their fire. One good man needs three helpers, and the internet has hundreds of millions of users. This wave of support was massive!

The other bosses in Hong Kong were stunned, never expecting Yang Jianghao to be so bold. He had come out of the gate with maximum intensity. By saying such shameless things, how were they, the latecomers, supposed to get ahead?

"He spent everyone's money, but let Boss Yang take all the glory!" Sun Jian stroked his bald head, furious enough to want to smash his phone. But he just thought about it; if he smashed it, how would he post on Weibo? "No, I have to come up with something explosive!" While Sun Jian was racking his brain, he didn't expect Old Xiao and Old He to beat him to the punch. They were quite clever—they simply took the Weibo post Boss Yang had written and replaced it with their own names and company names.

"Heh, these two old guys sure know how to cut corners!" Sun Jian was so angry he laughed.

Look at this. This society only knows how to copy homework. Can’t you give a guy some time to be original? But are good ideas really that easy to come by? Forget it, I'll copy the homework too. Perhaps this uniformity would actually make it look more impressive! Thus, Sun Jian followed suit and posted his own version.

Seeing that everyone was so protective of Qian Lang, Jiang Zhen was also pleased. He immediately had his assistant help him register for Weibo, just to "like" the posts of all the bosses. This act blew everything wide open. Netizens had no idea Qian Lang had such immense influence in Hong Kong, and they rushed to spread the news. Within a few short hours, it triggered a full-scale wave of public opinion across the entire web. Soon, the haters were washed away and forced to hide in the corners.

By then, the screening had concluded. The theater representatives were full of praise for *Little Soldier, Big General*, the new film directed by Qian Lang. They were ready to sign contracts on the spot, but lacking their official company seals, they could only scratch their heads in frustration.

"Hahaha!" Boss Chen, who owned several theater chains, walked out laughing. He had sent a private message to Qian Lang before, promising that any film by Qian Lang would receive the best screening arrangement in his theaters. He had come in person for the release of *Little Soldier, Big General*. Thus, amidst envious gazes, he became the first to sign a distribution contract. It was just a pity that the film couldn't be released until the Spring Festival slot.

"How much money are we losing by waiting?" Boss Chen shook his head with a sigh. But Chen Yuanyuan couldn't help it either. After all, the higher the box office, the more beneficial it was for Galaxy Pictures. Whether Pei Duoduo thought the same was another matter entirely.

"Xiao Lang, this is your senior fellow student, Jiang Wenxuan!" Qian Lang didn't need to handle the theater contracts himself. Upon returning to his office, he saw Principal Chen leading a young man inside. "Principal, what wind blew you here?" Qian Lang was pleasantly surprised. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they sat down, and Jiang Wenxuan explained his purpose.

"A short film?" Qian Lang stroked his chin. After *Little Soldier, Big General* finished filming, the crew had disbanded and returned to being Galaxy Pictures employees. It wasn't impossible to reassemble and start shooting again, but he didn't want to exert himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to give his senior fellow student face; it was just that everyone had worked very hard on the previous film. They hadn't rested for long, and he didn't want to rush into another project before the new year. He didn't want to engage in such exhausting tactics. Thanks to the influence of President Pei, he now believed in spending money where it was needed and resting when it was time to play. He absolutely refused to adopt any "blessing" work culture.

"Does my junior fellow student have any concerns?" Jiang Wenxuan was getting anxious. He originally had some bargaining chips, but in the last two hours, the internet had been turned upside down. Qian Lang no longer needed his help to build momentum; those in Hong Kong who were cozying up to him had already smoothed everything over. Alas, he had been one step behind!

"No concerns, I just don't want to move again before the new year. Everyone worked very hard on *Little Soldier, Big General*," Qian Lang said apologetically. But it wouldn't matter if he didn't participate in this short film, so he suggested finding someone else.

"Sigh..." Jiang Wenxuan couldn't stop sighing. If he couldn't handle Qian Lang, he would likely be kicked out of Goose Entertainment after the New Year.

"Xiao Lang, find a way to help your senior fellow student," Principal Chen couldn't bear to see his student in trouble. Seeing Jiang Wenxuan sighing, he felt very anxious.

"Well..." Principal Chen had helped him a lot, and Qian Lang didn't want to refuse him. "How about this: *Little Soldier, Big General* won't be released until the Spring Festival. I'll re-edit this film, and you can take it to enter the competition." Recalling that this film had won a short film award in his previous life, Qian Lang came up with this solution. However, since this might risk leaking the plot, he had to ask President Pei for approval. After all, it concerned the box office.

"That's absolutely no problem." Qian Lang called Pei Duoduo to ask for permission. He didn't expect her to say exactly that.

"President Pei, I must clarify that this will affect the box office to some extent." Hearing Qian Lang's concern over the phone, Pei Duoduo almost couldn't help but laugh. If it affected the box office, that was exactly the point! Wasn't the goal for this movie to lose money? But she couldn't say that out loud.

"Director Qian, a so-called plot leak is nothing. After all, when those haters were jumping around on the internet earlier, didn't they already upload plenty of stills?" Speaking of that, Pei Duoduo felt a bit annoyed. What was wrong with those haters? They lost their steam after barely jumping for a moment! Completely incompetent! They had made her look forward to it for nothing. Fortunately, "Master Wolong" had brought her new hope. "Director Qian, in the entertainment industry, one must build good relationships. Let's do it this way; what's a little box office revenue?"

Hearing Pei Duoduo acting out her persona again, Qian Lang didn't mentally criticize her this time. A boss is a boss! Her perspective was always so farsighted. That's right, if it weren't for building good relationships, the smear campaign by the haters wouldn't have been so easily quelled. He hadn't been interested in cooperating with those Hong Kong film bosses, but having shared a trial, he naturally wouldn't keep them at arm's length anymore. After all, it's easier to get things done with more people. The next film would definitely require massive resources to succeed. It was just an exchange of interests! There was no need to worry about the gains or losses of a single city or territory. He would do as the boss said.

"Alright, thank you, President Pei." After Qian Lang hung up, Jiang Wenxuan learned the result. Everyone was happy. Now, Qian Lang just needed to spend some time editing a short film.

"Director Qian, I can help with the editing," Jiang Wenxuan volunteered, taking the opportunity to build a good relationship with Qian Lang.