Bingbing's Conquest Plan

Private room.

Fan Bingbing and her assistant arrived first, chatting in low voices.

"Third Master inspected this morning. The planned half hour extended for a long time before ending. The rumors weren't wrong; Third Master is no longer just optimistic about Shen Shanden."

Fan Bingbing had been in the industry for so long and was doing so well. As a top-tier star, she had to pull many strings to get this piece of information.

It was all worth it.

In this industry, you could lack talent or ability, but you couldn't lack connections, backing, or a network.

You had to be loyal!

This was Fan Bingbing's hard-earned experience in the industry.

Film itself was the upper echelon of the entertainment industry, and China Film was the ceiling of the film industry. Han Sanping represented the highest level of connections. Information involving him was top-tier intelligence within the industry.

And Shen Shanden, who had Han Sanping's support, was also a rising star representing the industry's power players.

Fan Bingbing desperately needed the support of someone capable like Shen Shanden right now.

Ideally, she could shelter under his influence. If Han Sanping could put in a good word for her, her predicament would be resolved.

At the end of last month, Fan Bingbing's contract with Huayi expired, and she chose not to renew.

Fan Bingbing signed with Huayi in 2000. She was signed by Wang Jinghua, Huayi's top agent at the time, and she also became her goddaughter.

Later, when Wang Jinghua led a large group of artists to transfer to Orange Sky Entertainment, Fan Bingbing chose to stay with Huayi.

At the time, she was conflicted; she couldn't be loyal to both "filial piety" and "loyalty."

But she was optimistic about Huayi's development and wanted to become Huayi's "number one sister."

Later, when Zhou Xun joined Huayi, Fan Bingbing's dream of being the "number one sister" was shattered.

It further made her realize that in this industry, if you came from a humble background, people would always look down on you.

From the beginning of her collaboration with Huayi, she was the weaker party.

During the "Double Bing" era, Fan Bingbing already felt caught in vicious competition. Zhou Xun's arrival intensified it.

The key was that such competition might not yield results.

Huayi's agency department was very weak compared to its film and television department. Outside the company, they also lacked sufficient influence in co-productions with Hong Kong and Taiwan.

If not for policy regulations requiring a mainland Chinese lead in co-productions, and the fact that Hong Kong and Taiwan didn't want to promote mainland male artists, she might not have even had a role.

Under these circumstances, Fan Bingbing had the idea of leaving Huayi. She was inherently strong-willed. If she gained no benefits and was looked down upon, having to fight for everything herself, there was really no point in staying.

So she chose to leave Huayi.

But for a star of Fan Bingbing's caliber, while her choices seemed numerous, they were actually very few.

Entertainment companies and agencies clamored to sign her, but very few could match her status and resources.

Orange Sky was an option, especially since her "godmother" Wang Jinghua was at Orange Sky.

However, joining Orange Sky came at a tremendous cost.

If she transferred to Orange Sky Entertainment, she would enrage Huayi, and they would definitely blacklist her.

A few days ago, Huayi staff had already leaked information to the media.

Huayi had decided to completely blacklist her during the promotion of their new film, The Shaft.

Later, they retracted it, claiming it was a private joke, and that her last job at Huayi would be promoting the film, for which she would come to Shanghai in a few days.

How could Fan Bingbing not see this as a serious warning from Huayi?

Huayi's bottom line was that she could not join Orange Sky Entertainment.

Big and Small Wang deeply resented Wang Jinghua's "betrayal."

The cost of joining Orange Sky, besides falling out with Huayi, was another moral dilemma awaiting her.

It put her in a very awkward position.

Chen Hao was in the process of terminating her contract with Orange Sky.

Chen Hao had been very active in the industry recently, contacting executives from various agencies. News had already spread that Chen Hao was having secret talks with the owner of a film and television company at the Four Seasons Hotel in the East Third Ring.

Chen Hao had signed a one-year contract with Orange Sky initially, with an option for the next three years. Now, she was trying to leave while still under contract, mainly due to Wu Ke Bo's philandering.

This had little to do with Fan Bingbing; it was Wu Ke Bo's own problem, including his ambiguous relationship with the "Seven Princesses of Orange Sky."

But the outside world didn't see it that way; they were already saying that she had forced Chen Hao to leave.

If she joined Orange Sky and Chen Hao left immediately after, it would undoubtedly further damage her already controversial image.

Unlike ordinary controversies, this negative impact would be immense.

Furthermore, if Chen Hao was determined to leave, and Hu Jun also planned to leave Orange Sky, then Orange Sky's strength would decline.

Orange Sky would also be unable to guarantee her a definite role in the Red Cliff project they were investing in.

If she didn't go to Orange Sky, her remaining options would be few.

Become her own boss?

They needed capital, but more importantly, they needed connections.

Leaving Huayi, she had gained a certain freedom, but had also lost the shelter of that big tree.

On one hand, she was adored; on the other, she was coveted by all sides.

These difficulties, in Fan Bingbing's view, were mainly due to insufficient backing.

The assistant said, "From the current information, The Grand Director is definitely a key project for China Film. I can't find any specific background on Shen Shanden, but he must be extraordinary."

Fan Bingbing nodded, "Third Master's level of attention is unheard of. He must be extraordinary."

The assistant also had doubts, "We've compiled some of his online posts and previous interviews, and he seems to come from an ordinary family."

Fan Bingbing shook her head and chuckled. Those who had struggled in the industry understood a truth: the more background someone had, the more low-key they were. "What they show us is the limit of what we can know. You can't find out anything else, because we're not on that level."

"Look at him back then. He casually released his hit songs for free. So many record companies were heartbroken, wanting to sign him or buy the rights. The covetousness he faced was no less than what I'm facing now, and yet I haven't heard of anyone succeeding."

"Once was a coincidence. After graduating, he gave up his already famous music career to start from scratch and pursue a master's degree at the Beijing Film Academy. This shows he had his own plans, or someone had planned it all for him. His personality is also very steady, indicating he grew up in material abundance and lacked a strong desire for fame and fortune."

Fan Bingbing considered herself a good judge of character. "In my first year of graduate studies, I gradually paused my music creation to focus on my studies, shot a few short films, and worked on set. Now in my second year, he's been handed a key project by China Film."

"Looking back, the fame he accumulated as an online singer has been successfully transformed. He achieved a perfect comeback and pivot. Even though there was a lot of criticism within the industry, on a public level, he's built a golden image."

At this point.

Fan Bingbing's tone was filled with envy, and she sighed inwardly.

Her personal image, ever since starring in The Shaft, had inevitably become controversial.

Deep down, she envied Shen Shanden's calm strategic planning, but mixed with an unspeakable jealousy.

"Someone guided him. That's the effect of family background! They could tear through the fog and tell him which paths were difficult and which ones would lead to success."

And this was something Fan Bingbing lacked. Her family was considered well-off, but in the industry, they were just an ordinary family.

"He released online songs first, then clearly focused on commercial films, and then was criticized by many for his movies. This indicates his family comes from outside the artistic world."

"If it's business, perhaps a brother inherited the family business and connections. If it's politics, he'd likely be an only child. He himself likes creative work, so he entered the industry. His family has no resources within the circle, but they have connections with China Film, which faces the market."

"Only then could he confidently make commercial films and boldly declare, 'Art alone cannot save Chinese cinema,' with such unreserved confidence. This confidence cannot be faked. He's not afraid to face the rules of the small circles."

Hearing Fan Bingbing's analysis, the assistant gasped and praised, "Sister Bingbing, you're truly amazing."

Fan Bingbing chuckled, "You'll understand if you've met similar people. These kinds of people don't show off, they might not even be very famous in the industry, but their confidence is undeniable."

The two then discussed their strategy for the upcoming meeting.

"We'll start by warming up with the topic of fellow provincials, talk about ending our cooperation with Huayi, and express our difficulties to evoke sympathy, but without making any demands."

"Then we'll gradually transition to the The Grand Director project. Sister Bingbing, you can show a moderate amount of admiration. It's amazing that a newcomer is in charge of such a project! This will boost his satisfaction."

"Then we'll discuss his other hobbies. We can praise his hobbies extravagantly; this might satisfy his vanity more than his career."

"Next, we'll show our respect and express our willingness to contribute to strengthening the film industry. We'll subtly praise his friendship with Wu Jing and smoothly join this project."

"After getting more familiar and exchanging a few conversations, Sister Bingbing can then express the difficulties she's facing, invoking his protective instincts. Without us asking, he'll proactively help us."

Fan Bingbing and her assistant further discussed the details, determined to conquer Shen Shanden in one go.

The private room door opened.

Led by a server, Shen Shanden pushed the door open and walked in. His eyes lit up when he saw Fan Bingbing, "Sister Bingbing."

At this time, Fan Bingbing was truly stunning, at her peak beauty, an absolute visual queen.

She possessed both the fullness of youth and the nascent charm of maturity, her fair skin seemed to glow, her facial bone structure was three-dimensional yet her soft tissues were full, with uniquely recognizable foxy eyes.

This face immediately sparked a strong creative impulse in Shen Shanden, making him want to point his camera squarely at her and snap away, click, click, click.