Chapter 91: Your “just a little” is really just a little indeed (All support requested! 5/10)

Sumu looked over the opening pages of the screenplay.

Screenplay: Xin Qiji 1162

Synopsis: In 1161, the Great Song realm was fractured beyond recognition. The Jin held the Central Plains and sought to launch a massive invasion southward. Unable to bear the brutal oppression, the common people of the Central Plains rose in resistance. At twenty-one, Xin Qiji gathered the villagers of his home district and joined a mighty rebel army led by Geng Jing, earning brilliant military feats.

Memories from his past life flickered through his mind.

Although this film was not as explosive a hit as the breakout dramas that had once swept the nation, he still remembered clearly that it had also been released on a streaming platform as an online feature film.

Many works of that kind mostly praised warlords for their strategy and martial prowess.

But a national hero who excelled in both letters and arms was, in truth, even more worthy of being brought to the screen.

Yue Fei had written "Man Jiang Hong," pledging unwavering loyalty to his country.

Wen Tianxiang had sung of life and death in his famous verse.

And Xin Qiji's "Po Zhen Zi"—lifting a lamp to gaze at his sword, dreaming himself back to the battlefield, pitiful white hair already on his head—was just as moving.

The bearing of the sons of the Great Song was, in fact, conveyed to perfection in this film by the actor who played him at the time.

Only, for reasons that belonged to the past, it had never made it to the cinema.

In the end, it had been released on the platform instead.

Yet its reputation remained quite strong.

After receiving the script, Sumu felt something stir within him.

Zhang Huaimou had specifically told him before that Qiyi Fruit had a very good script coming next year. Looking at it now, that had clearly been true.

And at this moment, Sumu truly did need a film like this, one that could pull him out of the public's entrenched image of him as nothing more than a master of costume idol dramas.

Romance dramas were indeed hot.

But for his future march into the battlefield of box-office cinema, that might not necessarily be a good thing.

Sumu knew the path his career would take from here, and the direction he intended to follow.

True mainstream cinema, after all, still needed an actor with enough hardness and grit to embody it.

This was precisely the time for him to shape a new identity and a new path.

And compared with the Youku project about Zhao Yun, or Tencent's Xi Chu Xiang Yu, Sumu felt that Xin Qiji was even closer to the role he truly wanted.

Perhaps, as Zheng Quan had said before, there was nothing else for it. They had to film some of their history, some of their spirit, so that the younger generation could know what truly belonged to them.

At length, Sumu closed the script.

Zheng Quan asked, "Well?"

Sumu smiled. "Very good. But I want to know the exact situation for this film."

Zheng Quan said, "Let me be clear from the start: this won't be a theatrical release, but the production budget is far from small. We take it very seriously, and the director is Chen Anzhi, a man of equal standing to Zhang Huaimou. So rest assured, there is no chance this is being handled carelessly.

"As for your fee, you can name your price. I know your asking rate this year is sixty million, and that is a figure I can approve."

Hearing this, Sumu glanced back at Qian Jida.

To be honest, sixty million was already among the very top tier in the industry.

And Sumu was not a greedy man. After all, this was not a project competing at the box office, so any return would come only from the platform's internal resources.

If he demanded too much, it might squeeze the film's production budget.

Besides, for his previous two scripts, Zheng Quan had already paid a premium of twenty-one million.

At that moment, Qian Jida gave Sumu a confirming look.

He seemed to understand exactly what Sumu was thinking.

Indeed, sixty million was enough. One ought to have a conscience; greed was unbecoming.

Sumu understood and then looked back at Zheng Quan.

"Mr. Zheng, you're a straightforward man. In that case, I won't drag my feet either. Let's add a little. A flat price: sixty-five million."

Qian Jida: ???

Everyone else: ???

So that was what "a little" meant.

Zheng Quan pondered for a moment, then slapped his thigh. "Fine. Sixty-five it is!"

Sumu stood up. "Deal. You can discuss the contract details with my agent at any time."

Zheng Quan was beaming.

"Sumu, the crew has really put a lot of care into preparing this production. I've seen your previous shows, but this one may be different. Filming will be grueling, and there will be fight scenes and large-scale battlefield horseback sequences. You'll need to prepare in advance."

Indeed, money was not so easy to earn.

But Sumu had always taken money and done the job. As long as the price was right, let alone riding a horse—if the horse rode him, it wasn't as though he couldn't learn.

"Don't worry, Mr. Zheng. I understand. Later I'll speak with the crew and Director Chen and try to get everything ready before shooting begins next year."

"Good. Then I'll look forward to your performance."

"Pleasure doing business."

After finishing the business talk with Zheng Quan, everyone had another meal at the hotel restaurant, and the gathering ended on a satisfying note.

Back in the hotel room, Qian Jida took out his phone and ran the numbers, then grew somewhat excited.

"Five million for Liu Qiangxi, twenty-one million for the script, and six and a half million for this new drama! Sumu, next year we may be looking at at least one hundred million to start."

"Won't I have to pay taxes?"

"Of course you will. The contract has to be signed under your studio's name, and everything has to go through proper channels. Nothing can be sloppy."

"Oh right. How's the company matter going?"

"I called yesterday. The finance side has been handled, and all that's left is the final seal. Once we go back, the termination can be official."

"Good. Once that's done, get ready for next year's new show."

Qian Jida looked at the script in Sumu's hands and asked with some curiosity, "Are you sure you don't want to think about it again?"

"Think about what?"

"This drama can barely count as a war story. There'll be plenty of fight scenes and difficult stunt work. Even if it's not a pure martial-arts piece, it's completely different from your previous dramas.

"Besides acting well, you'll need other skills too. At the very least, you need to know how to handle swords, spears, and staffs a little, and you also have to ride horses, fight in armor, and so on. Those things can't be solved just by charging in and acting."

Sumu nodded without confirming or denying it. "I know."

"You know? Then what are you going to do?"

"Train, of course. Do you think I don't want the money?"

"I do..."

In November, the weather turned slightly cool.

At last, the street-dance variety show finished recording successfully.

The whole process had in fact followed the rhythm laid out by the production team. To a greater or lesser extent, there had been some degree of orchestration in it.

So the final victory had been, for Sumu, almost effortless.

Of course, his strength had also convinced everyone.

Thus, when the championship finally went to him, no one had any real objection.

Only in the final special interview episode did many of the team members, along with some well-known street-dance figures from the industry, speak of Sumu with extremely high praise.

Huang Jingxing, captain of the Beijing Five-Plus-Five team, said, "Sumu is the strongest celebrity street dancer I have ever seen, bar none. If he had come into contact with the street-dance scene earlier, I might not have been able to win the KOD championship back-to-back a few years ago. At the very least, one of those titles would have been his."

The captain of Galaxy Caster said, "Sumu is truly strong. If you're a professional, you can see immediately that his level is top-tier nationwide, one of the very best. I strongly recommend that Sumu enter the street-dance scene."

Kite from overseas said, "Sumu is strong. I think he can compete internationally and show his charm and ability. I'm very much looking forward to battling him! His Wind God Legs are not weaker than mine."

"Teacher Sumu! We really can't bear to see you go!"

"Teacher Sumu is truly such a good person. When we were practicing, he often brought us milk tea and snacks! I'm crying!"

In front of the camera, director Xu Yang wore a dark expression.

Who else didn't know? Hell, he knew.

Zhao Zhouming had specifically instructed them to treat him as a VIP and leave a good impression.

So how could they let Sumu spend his own money to treat the team to food?

That money had all been the production budget, damn it!

P.S. Wow, thank you all so much for the support, the votes, and the tips! I'll post a separate thank-you chapter later, and I'll also mention the extra update. I promised I would make it up to everyone, and I will! The husky is going all out! More updates this afternoon and evening! Thank you! Not saying more—I’m off to write!

End of chapter.