Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore

Chapter 676: A Ghost Film? Horror and Terror! 《Dragon》!

A lively and bustling celebration banquet smoothly drew to a close.

After seeing off a few higher-profile bosses who left early, and finally sending off the last batch of investors, only the production team's core members remained.

It was at this moment that Zhuang Hongyi called over the few remaining main actors, then, slightly drunk, began chatting about the plans ahead.

"Season Three of *Corner Also* is still in the script stage. We're tentatively planning to assemble the crew by the end of this year or early next year."

Although his speech was a bit slurred, Zhuang Hongyi's train of thought remained razor-sharp. As he laid out these arrangements, he also turned his gaze toward Yan Shaohan: "Don't get too caught up with your new manga for now. Focus on getting the script for *Corner Also* Season Three out as soon as possible. We need to start preparations early."

Once the script was done, there would be plenty more to handle—getting it through review, going through the procedures to assemble the crew. Even managing to fit it all in this year would already be considered efficient.

No one had any objections, except for director Yan Shaohan, whose face fell as if the sky were collapsing: "What new manga? Who's making a new manga? There's nothing like that! Where did you hear that from? I'm definitely not working on anything!"

Damn it, he had been secretly working on it the whole time! Where did the news leak from?

His gaze instantly snapped toward Xiao He.

Meanwhile, Yuan Sitong's eyes lit up, and she was already rubbing her hands together, ready to launch a campaign to pester him for updates.

Seeing Yan Shaohan not only playing dumb but also suspiciously glancing around, Zhuang Hongyi let out a cold smirk and ruthlessly exposed his lie: "You posted all your settings and mutterings in your QQ space. It's hard not to see them."

Yan Shaohan froze for a second, then let out a sharp, piercing shriek: "Aah! I'm doomed! I forgot you had my QQ!"

No, wait, how the hell did you, Zhuang Hongyi, even use QQ!

And besides, shouldn't QQ space have been abandoned for eight hundred years by now?

How did it just so happen to be seen by Zhuang Hongyi!

Xiao He's mouth twitched as well. He never expected the story to take this turn.

Still, it was fine—at least it cleared his name from being wrongfully accused of leaking secrets.

Xiao He let out a long sigh of relief.

As for Yan Shaohan, he wasn't so lucky. Upon learning that he had already started a new project, everyone else wore expressions of shock and anticipation. Even Guo Xinya looked puzzled: "Huh? Xiao Yan, last time I asked, didn't you say you'd be drawing a few side stories?"

After all, the grand finale of *Corner Also* was far too tragic—so tragic that it was enough to make fans want to string Yan Shaohan up and throw knives at him. As a result, many fans were clamoring for side stories to help fill the void in their hearts.

Even the reason Guo Xinya had pulled Yan Shaohan out of her blacklist was because he had promised to show her the finished side stories first.

But then—who would have guessed—this kid had abandoned even the goddess for his new work!

Good for you, kid. Congrats on leveling up to Sigma Man!

On the other side, Yuan Sitong started stirring the pot: "Ooh, new love makes you forget the old flame, huh? You tortured us all in *Corner Also* and now you think you can just wash your hands of it? I'm telling you, without a hundred or so side stories, don't even think about starting a new work. Just see if your fanbase doesn't tear you apart."

Yan Shaohan frantically wiped his sweat: "No, no, I don't... uh... it's just some casual doodles. You all know I'm busy writing the script for Season Three. How could I possibly have time for new artwork? Right? Haha."

The others just smiled knowingly without saying a word.

After that matter was settled, everyone started to head out one after another.

The celebration banquet today had been a lot of fun, and everyone present had drunk quite a bit. Their steps were a little unsteady as they left, but their basic etiquette and expression management remained flawless as they were gradually picked up by their respective agents.

Only Xiao He stayed behind again.

By now, there were few people left in the private room. Only Zhuang Hongyi's subordinates remained. His demeanor had loosened up considerably, and he casually leaned back in his seat.

"You should have heard enough about the project just now," Zhuang Hongyi cut straight to the chase. "I'm planning to have you play the male lead for this one."

Although he had already suspected something, Xiao He was still a bit surprised.

After clearing his throat, Xiao He looked puzzled: "What genre is this project exactly?"

Zhuang Hongyi was a little taken aback: "You listened for so long and still couldn't figure out the genre?"

That shouldn't be the case. It should have been pretty obvious...

Xiao He: ...Damn it, so it really was what he had guessed?

Studying Zhuang Hongyi's expression, Xiao He carefully ventured: "Haha, it's not... a ghost film, is it?"

Yeah, although Xiao He had a vague idea of what the genre might be, he still wasn't entirely sure.

Unfortunately, Zhuang Hongyi shot him an approving look: "So you did guess it."

What? It really was a ghost film?

Darkness flashed before Xiao He's eyes.

— And that was literal.

No wonder those big shots had put down their cigarettes and gone silent earlier. There was no way something like this would ever get released on the mainland!

And he was thinking about getting it through review?

Bro, why don't you just screen it on a loop across the country yourself and forget about trying to send it domestically.

After all, in China, this was a strictly prohibited category.

It would be no problem for Zhuang Hongyi to film it, but it would most likely never see a release.

"So... can we even film it?"

Xiao He let out an awkward laugh, trying to gently steer Zhuang Hongyi away from the idea.

The biggest issue was that they couldn't earn domestic box office revenue—they would have to rely on international markets.

But making money overseas wasn't easy either.

Logically speaking, a commercial director like Zhuang Hongyi shouldn't be this reckless as to make something like this.

Zhuang Hongyi, however, disagreed: "We call it a horror thriller. Its main purpose is to promote traditional culture. You should be more precise with your wording."

Xiao He: ...Hehehehehe.

Director Zhuang, look at that statement. Do you even believe it yourself?

Even Xiao He didn't believe it. How could Zhuang Hongyi swallow his pride and ask others to pull some strings for him?

This was absolutely ridiculous!

But then again, anyone who could do business had to have a thick skin.

Zhuang Hongyi took another drag of his cigarette, his expression toward Xiao He more serious than ever before. He said, "This script is called *Dragon*. It's a script I wrote myself a few years ago. Back then, this genre was officially blacklisted. Even many classic Hong Kong films were pulled along with it, vanishing into obscurity ever since. Yet abroad, people have been taking these cultural elements and winning awards left and right. So honestly, I feel pretty bitter about it."

Zhuang Hongyi was a deeply contradictory person.

From his love for reading the *Corner Also* manga and his passion for collecting otaku figurines, it was clear that he was, at heart, quite idealistic. He pursued romance, carried a touch of artistic melancholy, and occasionally had moments of passion and impulsiveness.

But there was no doubt that he was also a very successful director and businessman. Many of his investments were brutally realistic and profit-driven. He could resort to competitive tactics for traffic and box office numbers, and he could set aside his pride to schmooze with people from all levels, networking by any means necessary.

The fact that he had suddenly created a work like *Dragon* was both surprising and not surprising at all.

Even at this moment, Xiao He couldn't help but sigh in admiration—

Truly worthy of you, Director Zhuang!