Chapter 55: Make Sure to Text Me Mimei's Number

Buzz!

The vibration of his mobile phone woke Xu Ming up.

"Hello."

"Where are you?" Jiang Wen's rough voice came through the receiver.

"At a friend's place."

"Send me your location, I'm coming over."

Hearing the busy tone in his ear, Xu Ming paused for a moment before breaking into a smile.

Even a straight hook catches fish.

He planted a kiss on Tang Yan, who was still fast asleep beside him.

After tidying up, he headed to a café near the residential complex.

Thirty minutes later.

Jiang Wen, wearing a peaked cap, sat down opposite Xu Ming.

The guy's eyes were bloodshot.

It was obvious he had stayed up all night.

"Did you do this on purpose, kid?" Jiang Wen asked the moment he sat down.

"What do you mean?"

Xu Ming put on a puzzled expression and pushed the coffee on the table forward: "A freshly warmed latte, give it a try."

"I really like this book, *The Hidden Swordsman*."

Jiang Wen glared at the cheeky brat and lowered his voice, "You saw this coming, didn't you?"

"Oh my, you make it sound like I'm the tapeworm in your stomach. How could I have such ability? Do you not like lattes?"

Xu Ming smiled, waved his hand, and said, "Waiter, bring this gentleman a cup of cappuccino."

His eyes were so red they looked like a zombie's, yet he was still putting on airs in front of him?

In his presence, there was no way he was going to let the man just stand there and bully his way into directing the script.

Could you really one-shot me with seventeen cards?

It had been a long time since Jiang Wen had experienced such emotional fluctuations.

For a split second, he genuinely felt like the kid across from him was the tapeworm in his belly.

The look in that kid's eyes was far too penetrating.

Since intimidation hadn't worked, he decided to play the emotional card.

"Ming'er, we were clinking glasses and sharing drinks last night. If not brothers, we at least count as friends, right?" Jiang Wen said.

"Don't. There's a generational gap between us," Xu Ming replied.

Jiang Wen choked, almost failing to catch his breath. "Fine! Let's say I'm your uncle. I love this script so much—handing it over for me to direct wouldn't be a complete waste, would it?"

"I really like it too. I said yesterday that I'm going to direct it myself. You wouldn't want to forcefully take away something someone else loves, would you?"

Xu Ming widened his innocent eyes and looked straight at him. "No way, no way. Director Jiang couldn't possibly be that kind of person, right?"

Damn it, this kid was insufferably annoying.

"You're young. A work with this kind of depth requires sufficient life experience..." Jiang Wen attempted to argue with words.

"Being old doesn't mean having deep life experience. Who knows, I might direct it better than you. Besides, I plan to start filming next year. Let me share my vision with you."

"When the time comes, I'll play Li Tianran. There's a senior martial brother, Zhu Qianlong, who colluded with Japanese secret agents to assassinate Li Tianran's master. Li Tianran witnesses it, narrowly escapes under gunfire, gets rescued by an American doctor, and returns to China years later under orders after studying medicine in America."

"As for Zhu Qianlong, let Liao Fan play him. Don't you think he looks just like that circulating portrait of Zhu Yuanzhang? But that fake portrait was cooked up by the Manchu Qing dynasty, symbolizing that his imperial dream was fake as well."

"Then there's Lan Qingfeng, a martial artist from the previous dynasty, drifting between the Chinese and Japanese sides. A veteran of the Xinhai Revolution, both of his sons died, one in eastern Guangdong and the other in Shanghai. His absolute favorite thing to do was to cook a whole dumpling dinner just for the sake of a little drop of vinegar."

Xu Ming stared at Jiang Wen, whose expression was shifting constantly, and spoke at a leisurely pace.

Jiang Wen was left speechless, momentarily at a loss for words.

Everything this kid just said... those were all my lines...

The crucial part was that, listening to Xu Ming's meticulous vision, it sounded like he was entirely serious.

He instantly lost his composure. "Just tell me what it'll take for you to let me direct this script. Name your conditions."

"Direct it exactly the way the script is written," Xu Ming said earnestly.

This guy's favorite hobby was letting his imagination run wild. In truth, as long as that tendency was kept in check, given his talent, it was hard for his box office results to be bad.

However... the investors he usually encountered always gave him total freedom to film however he pleased.

*Devils on the Doorstep* had almost scammed Huayi Brothers into the ground.

*Let the Bullets Fly* had once pushed producer Ma Ke to the brink of bankruptcy.

All Xu Ming wanted to do was keep this guy's creative urges slightly under control—and even then, he only dared to attempt a slight control.

"No way. Creation must be free," Jiang Wen slammed the table and said immediately.

"Then forget it."

Xu Ming stood up as if to leave.

Jiang Wen said helplessly from behind, "You... but you can offer suggestions."

"Will it be useful?"

"I, Jiang Mou, have always kept my word..."

"Heh~"

A soft chuckle from Xu Ming made the veins on Jiang Wen's neck bulge.

What was that supposed to mean?

"Put it in the contract: final cut rights belong exclusively to me," Xu Ming stated.

"Impossible. That's non-negotiable."

Jiang Wen shook his head; that crossed his bottom line.

"For this film, I guarantee you'll have over a hundred million yuan in funding to shoot it," Xu Ming said in a deep voice.

He dared to make this guarantee because he knew of the success of *Let the Bullets Fly*.

For Jiang Wen's next film, even if it turned out to be a piece of crap, plenty of people would still line up to invest.

"I swear on my personal integrity that I will definitely take your suggestions." Jiang Wen raised three fingers, looking dead serious.

A real man knows when to yield and when to stand tall—this was the embodiment of that principle.

"Uncle, happy cooperation."

Xu Ming extended his hand. His victory was built on his understanding of Jiang Wen and his ownership of the copyright to *The Hidden Swordsman*.

Most importantly, he had his master backing him up, making it impossible for anyone to rob him through clever or forceful means.

At that thought, the grievance of having to pay "protection money" dissipated a bit.

Just wait. Wait a little longer; he wasn't fully grown yet, but once he was, things would change.

"I can't afford that title. You're practically about to become my elder," Jiang Wen said as he reached out and gave his hand a firm shake.

The next second, his expression changed. This kid really didn't know his own strength—that grip hurt like hell.

"Where's your wife? Didn't she come with you?" Xu Ming let go of his hand and asked.

"At the preparation studio."

After saying that, Jiang Wen gave Xu Ming a suspicious look. "That's your aunt, what do you mean wife? Watch your boundaries."

Why was he asking so anxiously about his wife?

"Cough cough, right. I'll walk you out, we can discuss the specific contract details later."

Xu Ming stood up, his phone vibrated, and he sent a quick reply.

He walked Jiang Wen out to a Jeep Cherokee parked outside the café.

The crisp sound of high heels echoed from nearby.

"Why did you mess around and reply to messages on my phone? Now Mi Mi is texting me, and I don't even dare reply," Tang Yan complained.

So that Mi Mi from last night was Yang Mi.

"How about this? Give me your friend's phone number, and I'll explain it to her," Xu Ming said with a straight face.

Tang Yan instinctively grew alert and clutched her phone tightly. "Don't even think about it."

Then she spotted Jiang Wen watching the spectacle from the side and jumped in fright.

"Director Jiang?"

"Heh, must be my nephew's wife, huh? This kid's pretty good. You two treat each other well, and if he ever bullies you, just tell me—I promise I'll beat him up for you."

Jiang Wen dismissed his guardedness against potential home-wreckers and laughed heartily. "I'm off, see you around."

In a flash, the Jeep Cherokee vanished down the street.

Tang Yan's brain hadn't even caught up; she stared blankly and asked, "Was that Director Jiang just now?"

"Yeah, I asked him to come over to talk business," Xu Ming nodded.

"You..."

Tang Yan wore a complicated expression. She wanted to ask how on earth he managed to mingle with such heavyweight figures, but considering his background, it seemed plausible enough.

Wait a minute, did Director Jiang just call her his "nephew's wife"?

"There are paparazzi at the three o'clock direction," Xu Ming muttered quietly.

Having spent months playing wits with paparazzi, he had managed to develop some decent counter-surveillance skills.

"Ah, really?" Tang Yan panicked a little.

"Don't be nervous. They probably followed Jiang Wen's car here. Head home as usual, and I'll take a cab. If anyone asks, just say we were discussing a project."

Xu Ming maintained a smile as he rapidly instructed her, "Oh right, remember to text me your friend's number."