Chapter 56: A Bad Check Is Still a Check

[Zhao's Troupe Disciple Spotted Meeting Jiang Wen on the Street, Zhao's Troupe to Star in Jiang's Film?]

[Xu Xiaoming Spotted with Young Lady, Sharing Laughs with Jiang Wen]

[Jiang Wen Secretly Meets with Mystery Lady, Suspected to Be Xu Xiaoming's Girlfriend]

Xu Ming flicked the newspaper with a speechless look. What kind of nonsense was all this?

Such absurd claims as the Zhao's Troupe starring in a film directed by Jiang Wen were being printed.

Even the reporters wouldn't dare to dream up such things on their own, yet they actually published them.

Furthermore, Jiang Wen secretly meeting a lady who turned out to be *his* girlfriend—good grief, for all they knew, people might think he was wearing a green hat.

The world had truly turned upside down.

Yet these newspapers clearly showed that as a newcomer to the industry, he still had a considerable gap to bridge compared to a veteran heavyweight like Jiang Wen.

The news articles focused almost entirely on the latter.

He was merely background decoration, and as for Tang Yan, there was no need to even mention her; she didn't even get her name in print.

Even Song Xiaobao came over looking half-skeptical to inquire about it.

"The fellow apprentices asked me to come and ask, is our Zhao's Troupe really going to star in Director Jiang's movie?"

"I'm just going for a cameo myself. Given Jiang Wen's film style, what on earth could the Zhao's Troupe possibly play in it?"

Xu Ming sighed helplessly. His fellow apprentices were getting rather full of themselves.

On second thought, with *It's Not a Problem* becoming a massive hit this year and *Country Love* currently dominating the ratings, their master was riding high on a wave of success.

Naturally, everyone in the media agency was walking on air.

"Brother Ming, there are quite a few reporters outside wanting to interview you. Look..." Xiaoyuan said as she walked in.

"Arrange a small meeting room and let's see them."

Xu Ming had no objections, merely lamenting that his peers in the industry weren't putting up much of a fight.

Even this trivial matter of his was enough to make gossip reporters travel all the way to Boshan Media for an interview.

Inside the meeting room.

The familiar forest of microphones and cameras awaited.

Xu Ming had already trained himself to remain completely unfazed and keep smiling when facing the lens.

"Xu Ming, may I ask if you have joined Director Jiang's new film?"

"Yes, and not just the new film; we are also discussing his subsequent movie."

"Rumor has it that Director Jiang's new film stars Chow Yun-fat. Don't you feel ashamed to face him?"

"A bit, actually. I wonder if he'd be willing to step down from the cast just to make way for me."

Xu Ming glanced sideways at the reporter who asked the question, recognizing from the accent that it was media from Hong Kong.

The room fell silent for a beat.

They had thought they were shameless enough, but it turned out someone could be even more shameless than them.

Whose subordinate was this... Oh, right, Master Zhao's. Never mind then.

Seeing the reporters freeze, Xu Ming instantly seized the initiative from a defensive stance: "Regarding Director Jiang's new movie, I can only reveal one thing: it's pure, unadulterated manliness."

"So, before you get to watch those pure alpha males, you might as well look forward to my role as Wang Xiaojian, the sissy character I play in *Love Is Not Blind*. The novel of the same name is currently serialized on my blog..."

He chatted effortlessly with the reporters, discussing his original intentions in writing the film's screenplay as well as behind-the-scenes anecdotes from the shooting process.

The reporters listened in a daze, their minds going blank for a split second.

Wait a minute, who asked you about that?

Dropping an ultimate attack straight from frame zero, were they?

By the time the interview concluded, the reporters felt their minds were completely flooded with *Love Is Not Blind*, implanted directly by Xu Ming.

"Thank you all for coming such a long way, it's been hard work. I'll have my assistant see you all out shortly."

Xu Ming's single sentence instantly quelled any lingering dissatisfaction in the reporters' hearts.

Those scoundrels exchanged glances and sat down in neat rows as obediently as elementary school students.

Everyone knew what phase came next.

Leaving the stage to Xiaoyuan, Xu Ming stepped out of the meeting room and called Tang Sheng.

"How are the negotiations with Jiang Wen's side going?"

"Still in discussion, but a preliminary agreement should be drawn up very soon," Tang Sheng replied.

"Good. Once the agreement is finalized, you can drop a hint in the company's main group chat so people don't think we're just a fly-by-night operation," Xu Ming instructed.

Even though they technically were one at the moment, it was necessary to steady the artists' minds.

Soon enough.

In the company's QQ group chat, Tang Sheng published the news about the preliminary project cooperation agreement reached with Jiang Wen.

In an instant, it flushed out everyone who had been lurking.

[Sun Yizhou: Awesome! *(voice cracking)*]

[Wang Chuanjun: +1]

[Li Jinming: +2]

If *iQiyi's iQiyi Apartment* hadn't been successfully sold to Liaoning Television, coupled with the carrot of *Top Funny Comedian* dangling right in front of them,

they genuinely would have suspected that Tang Sheng's pitch when he sweet-talked them into signing management contracts back then was pure bluffing.

Now that the company had reached a preliminary agreement with Jiang Wen—

that was like a little heifer riding a rocket; it had flown straight up to the heavens.

[Xu Ming: Don't worry about Director Jiang's new film for the next two years. Put your minds on the present. Work hard, and the company won't shortchange you on resources. Also, get yourselves prepared; next week you'll be stepping in as replacement guests on *Top Funny Comedian*.]

Followed by a flurry of acknowledgments.

Even through the screen, one could feel the artists' surging excitement.

Xu Ming rubbed his temples. He had racked his brains to hook Jiang Wen not just for *Hidden Man*, but more importantly, for the brand name of Jiang Wen himself.

It was enough to help his company leap from a nameless nobody in the industry into the ranks of reliable enterprises.

Who said a bounced check wasn't a check anyway?

Ring, ring!

Xu Ming picked up the phone. It was little Song Jia calling.

"Hehe, Teacher Xu, I heard you have a new flame? Well, figures—Tang Tang's legs, even I'd love them if I looked at them. How do they feel when you touch them?" Song Jia said with a sarcastic tone.

This woman was truly fierce; she dared to talk about anything.

"The media is spreading rumors, and you're joining in? Do you have any idea how much damage malicious rumors do to the people involved? I'm close to you so I'll let it slide, but what about Tang Yan?"

Xu Ming's tone was stern before he softened it slightly: "Rumors stop with the wise. Girls help girls, you understand?"

Song Jia was caught completely off guard by the rebuke, wondering privately if she had genuinely wronged this brute.

Deciding not to dwell on it anymore, she asked, "I heard you've entered Director Jiang's cast?"

"Yeah, a cameo," Xu Ming said.

"Are there any roles suitable for me in there? Can you recommend me?" Song Jia asked bluntly.

He knew she hadn't made this phone call purely to sling sarcasm at him.

However, he actually liked this kind of relationship mixed with mutual interests; dealing with people this way meant he didn't have to worry about sentiment being the only thing left.

"It's a male-dominated story. The only female role with substantial screen time has already gone to Carina Lau."

Xu Ming's single sentence extinguished any lingering thoughts Song Jia had.

Domestically, the number of actresses who could be mentioned in the same breath as Carina Lau could be counted on one hand.

"Let me drop another piece of news for you: I've settled the cooperation for Jiang's next film as well. A fly-by-night outfit won't stay a fly-by-night outfit forever. You should reconsider my previous proposal." With that, Xu Ming hung up the phone.

He leaned back in his chair, a cheerful grin curving the corners of his mouth.

Old Jiang's bounced check was simply too useful.

The former probably couldn't even guess that Xu Ming would leverage his name to win people over everywhere.

Much like Yang Kun and his thirty-two concerts—before the tour had even started, he had already fully booked all his guest performers...

On the other end of the line, little Song Jia gripped her Motorola handset tightly, grinding her teeth in vexation.

"He hung up on me? What do you have to put on airs about? It's just Jiang Wen's movie, I, I..."

She choked for a long while, unable to find any words to counter him.

An A-list director of Jiang Wen's caliber was someone even her current agency, Orange Sky Entertainment, had to actively seek out for cooperation.

If that brat had genuinely managed to secure it, she really did need to give his previous proposal serious consideration.