Huayu: This director is pretty strong.

Chapter 105 The Censored Copy

The blood-stained plastic card lay in Chen Yan's palm.

The dried bloodstains were dark brown and stuck to Liang Qinian's stiff smiling face.

Wu Gang reached out his hand, his fingertips trembling slightly before touching the card.

He took the documents, looked down at them, and his shoulder muscles tensed like a rock.

"Old Chen, I'm going to Tianjin."

His voice was low and suppressed, "Bring people with you."

Chen Yan raised his hand and pressed down on his shoulder with great force.

"What they want is for you to go there. If we fall into chaos, the copies really won't be able to be sent out."

Wu Gang's eyes reddened as he stared at the bloodstains on the card.

"Old Liang got into trouble because of that ledger. He's in the dark about the situation now, so this matter can't be settled."

"It's even."

Chen Yan withdrew his hand, folded the bloodstained document, put it back in the envelope, and stuffed it into the inner pocket of his trench coat, pressing it tightly against his chest. "The battlefield isn't in Tianjin, it's in Beijing."

He turned to Wu Gang, his voice lowered.

"Half an hour later, call all your old stunt brothers from Yanjing over. Change into your old work clothes, and don't bring anything with you."

"How many people do you need?"

"Call as many as you can. At least two hundred."

After Chen Yan finished speaking, he opened the car door and got in.

"Go to the Film Program Management Center."

Su Wan sat in the passenger seat, her expression tense as she hung up the phone.

"The printing plant reported that the digital master copies for reprinting were withheld by the management center due to a power outage in the computer room. The clerk, surnamed Liu, turned off the computer half an hour ago and can't be found."

The black Santana lurched as it drove over the speed bump.

Chen Yan closed his eyes.

"Liang Huai's arms are longer than I thought."

The Film Program Management Center is a quiet white building in Chaoyang District.

Several green buses quietly stopped across the street.

The car door opened.

A stiff, silent atmosphere made the air on the whole street feel heavy.

The security guard smoking at the entrance threw away his cigarette butt and his hand instinctively reached for the baton at his waist, but he didn't dare to go forward.

Chen Yan pushed open the door and got out of the car, walked through the silent wall of people, and stood in front of the security room window.

"Chen Yan, director of 'Thunder.' I've come to retrieve the digital master of the film."

The security guard looked at the dense crowd outside the door, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Section Chief Liu said the computer room is under maintenance, what... what are you trying to do?"

"Get the film."

Chen Yan glanced at his watch. "They are the crew's logistics staff, responsible for ensuring the safe transport of the master tapes."

He ignored the security guards and walked straight into the office building.

Su Wan followed closely behind, carrying a stack of documents.

Second floor, Technical Department office.

Section Chief Liu was trimming his little fingernail with nail clippers, ignoring the incessant ringing of the internal telephone on his desk.

The door was pushed open.

Chen Yan walked in and pulled up the chair opposite him to sit down.

Section Chief Liu's hand trembled, and the nail clippers fell to the ground.

"Who are you? How did you get in?"

Chen Yan pointed out the window.

"Two hundred people are waiting downstairs. Section Chief Liu, is the circuit still not fixed?"

Section Chief Liu bent down to pick up the item, and when he straightened up again, a cold smile appeared on his face.

"It's a technical issue, you never know. It could take a week, or it could take a month. Director Chen is an artist; he should know how to produce fine work."

Su Wan placed a document on the table, making a crisp sound.

"The Copyright Bureau issued the reprint permit at 2 PM. Section Chief Liu's unjustified withholding of the master copy constitutes an administrative breach of contract."

Section Chief Liu glanced at the document and leaned back in his chair.

"The copyright bureau handles approvals, we handle the technology. If there are technical problems, all the printed copies will be unusable. Will you be responsible?"

He glanced at Chen Yan sideways and said slowly, "Director Chen, walking too fast can easily lead to a fall. Professor Liang is doing this for your own good. Nowadays, young people's works are too aggressive and don't fit the current environment."

Chen Yan took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it with a match.

The flame flickered between him and Section Chief Liu.

"What did Liang Huai give you?"

"Watch your mouth! That's slander!"

Section Chief Liu raised his voice.

"It's just business."

Chen Yan exhaled a puff of smoke. "Lu Haiming's in jail. Who's going to fill in the hole for Liang Huai's land in Tongzhou? What are you getting out of helping him now? Just a pile of bricks from an unfinished building?"

He got up and walked to the window. Two hundred men stood straight downstairs, the setting sun casting a hard edge on their silhouettes.

"Most of the people downstairs are veterans, waiting for the publicity fee for this copy to be paid out."

Chen Yan turned his head and looked at Section Chief Liu, whose forehead was starting to sweat.

"If they don't get the money, they might camp out at the center's entrance, eating and sleeping there. When the reporters come, I've already thought of the headlines for them."

"You...you're threatening me!"

"I'm just stating a possible fact."

Chen Yan pressed the cigarette butt into Section Chief Liu's teacup, and the water made a soft "sizzle" sound.

The phone on the table rang again.

Section Chief Liu pressed the speakerphone button with trembling hands.

"Liu Jianguo! What's going on at your entrance? The deputy director's car is stuck in the traffic and can't get in!"

The phone call was filled with the roar of a superior.

Section Chief Liu opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

Chen Yan picked up his phone and placed it in front of him.

"Call the server room now; the circuit should be fixed."

Ten minutes later.

A technician walked into the office carrying a metal briefcase.

The digital master of "Thunder".

Section Chief Liu followed behind, clutching a piece of paper stamped with a red seal, his face ashen.

"You can take the film."

His voice was weak, "But according to the expert panel's review, the three-minute long shot of the ruins in the film must be cut. The reason is... it causes physical discomfort to some viewers."

Chen Yan took the box, but instead of looking at him, she took the opinion letter.

Liang Huai's autograph is written in a rigid, formulaic style.

"Delete these three minutes?"

Chen Yan asked.

"right."

Section Chief Liu regained some confidence. "If we delete it, all the film printing plants in the country can start production. If we don't delete it, it's useless even if you have the master copy; no theater will dare to show it."

Su Wan's face turned pale.

That's the crux of the entire movie.

Chen Yan looked at the paper but didn't tear it.

He simply folded the opinion letter carefully, then folded it again, and put it into his shirt pocket.

"Chen Yan! You..." Section Chief Liu hadn't expected him to react this way.

Chen Yan carried the suitcase toward the door, then stopped and turned back.

Tell Liang Huai.

"If I'm even a second short, I'll take the original footage to Cannes and announce my withdrawal from the competition in front of the world's media at the opening ceremony."

"I would tell them that a film that was nominated for the main competition was censored in its homeland because of these three minutes."

"In that case, I won't be the only one who'll be embarrassed."

He walked out of the office, his leather shoes making a crisp sound on the floor tiles.

As they went downstairs, Su Wan hurried to catch up, her palms sweaty.

"Director Chen, are you really going to withdraw from the competition?"

"He's too afraid to gamble."

Chen Yan pushed open the door, and the two hundred people outside remained standing silently.

Wu Gang saw the box in his hand and waved his right hand in the air.

"withdraw!"

The crowd quickly dispersed and boarded the bus quietly and orderly. In less than five minutes, the street returned to normal.

It's 1 a.m., at the Inkstone Culture Office.

Su Wan pushed open the door and came in, her expression tense.

"Director Chen, it's Principal Yan on the phone."

Chen Yan took the receiver.

"Principal Yan."

"You're too impulsive!"

Yan Huaizhong's voice was full of exhaustion. "Liang Huai contacted seven veteran directors, including He Ping and Zhang Yifei, overnight. They wrote a joint letter and sent it directly to the higher-ups."

Chen Yan gripped the receiver tightly, the veins on the back of his hand bulging slightly.

"content?"

"They say you've used your connections with foreigners to bolster your own position, abused your artistic skills for personal gain, and violated industry censorship regulations."

Yan Huaizhong paused, lowering his voice even further, "The higher-ups wrote four words: 'Handle it seriously in accordance with regulations.'"

"Should we handle this seriously?"

Chen Yan's voice turned cold.

"Yes. Liang Huai is threatening to revoke the public screening license for 'Thunder.' Your only chance of survival is to immediately delete the scenes and go to apologize to Mr. He and the others in person."

Chen Yan looked out the window; the night was so dark it seemed impossible to see through.

"impossible."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

"So what are you going to do? This time, I can't cover it up anymore."

Chen Yan put down the phone and saw Lin Qingqiu in the corner of the office, still barefoot, practicing the crawling motion in the ruins in front of the mirror. Her knees were already scraped and bleeding.

She seemed oblivious to the pain, repeating the same thing over and over again, her eyes stubborn.

"Su Wan".

"exist."

"Notify the publicity department to send the uncut three-minute segment of the ruins scene from 'Thunder' to all mainstream media outlets and major university BBS forums in China."

Su Wan's body trembled: "This will completely enrage them."

"What I want is to provoke them."

Chen Yan walked to the map on the wall, pointing his finger at the location of Tianjin. "Also, investigate something else. Who is the current contractor for Lu Haiming's clock tower project in Tianjin?"

Outside the window, a bolt of lightning tore through the night sky, followed by rumbling thunder.

Wu Gang came in from outside and placed a heavy black cloth bag on the table.

"The brothers haven't left; they're in their car downstairs."

He looked at Chen Yan, "Ready to use anytime."

Chen Yan glanced at the cloth bag, then at the clock on the wall.

1:21.

Countless copies are being produced on the printing plant's assembly line.

Each one was a bomb he threw at the old era.

The door was suddenly pushed open, and Zhang Yuan rushed in. He had run so fast that he was panting heavily, leaning against the door frame, his face pale.

"Brother Chen! Something terrible has happened!"

"Police have arrived at the printing plant! They said they received a report that our printed content is illegal and they're going to shut down the production line!"

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow, took out the gold-embossed Cannes invitation from the drawer, and held it between his fingers.

"Wu Gang".

"exist."

"Take the men and head to the printing plant."

He straightened his trench coat collar and strode outside.

"I'd like to see."

"Tonight, who dares to shut down my movie?"