Chapter 2: Shared past, each with their own future

Although Lin Feng is a rookie in the entertainment industry, he has excellent qualifications, otherwise Tangren would not have taken the initiative to sign him.

And Zhang Jing is indeed a very good agent. Just after Lin Feng terminated his contract with Tangren, she had already found several agencies for Lin Feng.

"We have talked to several agencies, and the agencies that are most interested in us and offer the best conditions are Yu Zheng Studio and Huace Film & TV.
Yu Zheng's studio is in a situation where their top male artist Chen Xiao is about to terminate his contract, so they need to train new talent. We can go there now to compete for the top spot."

If Lin Feng remembers correctly, Chen Xiao and Chen Yanxi will terminate their contract with Yu Zheng after they finish filming The Return of the Condor Heroes next year.

It is indeed an opportunity for me to go there now, but after the "Palace" series, it seems that there are no hit works.
It wasn’t until the huge hit of “Story of Yanxi Palace” in 2018 that Xu Kai became popular and can barely be considered a top star.

Moreover, Yu Zhi has a bad reputation and is always making trouble. His Weibo hot searches are more than those of his artists, and he is suspected of plagiarism.
The key point is that Yu Zheng gave him a rookie contract with a 10-year contract. This was a little unacceptable to Lin Feng. He didn't want to sell himself so cheaply.

He has this memory of the future, and now he just lacks an opportunity. Once he succeeds, the agency will become a constraint for him.

"Sister Jing, believe me, we will be independent sooner or later and open our own studio. We can get less profit share, but the contract period cannot be so long.

We also need to ensure our autonomy. I don’t want to have to take on rubbish roles within the company and be responsible for supporting newcomers once I become famous.”

Lin Feng is not a shareholder boss like Yang Mi. Every time he stars in a drama, he has to promote a few newcomers, commonly known as the "Jaywalk gift package."

"If that's what you mean, Huace Films is good. They just acquired Croton Media, which has production and distribution, and are preparing to set up their own agency. The length of the contract can be discussed."

Huace is good at TV series, but its artist management is not good. It is a typical case of "the series is popular but the artists are not", and it does not promote its own artists much.

Apart from Hu Yitian, who was a flash in the pan, and Yu Shuxin, who later became famous through a talent show, there were no other artists worth mentioning.

"Huace is okay, are there any other options?" Lin Feng didn't want to rely on the same old strategy, as Huace hasn't had any hit dramas in the past two years.

"There is also Huayi Brothers, but we are definitely not the first choice for such a large company; the rest are a few small companies, and since we have all left Tangren, there is no point in signing with such a company."

"Okay then, let's talk to Huace first, and then see if there are any other suitable ones. Thank you for your hard work, Sister Jing."

"What's so hard about this? We are now in a relationship of shared success and shared failure!"

***
In the following days, the two sides negotiated on the specific details of the contract. Huace was very optimistic about Lin Feng. After all, such a handsome guy can still attract people even if his acting skills are not so good!
Therefore, Huace did not set up too many obstacles in the contract, and just when both parties were preparing to sign the contract, Huanrui Century suddenly intervened, and the general manager Jiang Lei came in person.

The rise of Huanrui Century is also related to Yu Zheng. Previously, Huanrui was the investor behind all Yu Zheng's film and television dramas, including the "Palace" series and the "Beauty" series.
Otherwise, Yu Zheng would not have said, "I will conquer the world together with Hunan Satellite TV and Huanrui Century!"

However, Huanrui Century does not want to be just a behind-the-scenes investor. It also wants to engage in film and television production and to develop artist management business.

At the beginning of this year, Huanrui launched the "Big Production" plan. It first poached film and television production teams from Yu Zheng and Tangren.

Then he signed multiple projects with stars such as Yang Mi, Ming Dao, Tang Yan, Liu Kaiwei, He Shengming, Du Chun, Jia Nailiang and others in the form of a studio, and even adopted the form of equity binding in order to achieve a stable bundling effect.

It’s just that these stars are not Huanrui’s own artists, and Huanrui still wants to use them to make its own artists famous. After all, the strategy of “using dramas to promote people” is also a tried and tested routine for film and television companies.

The reason why Jiang Lei took the initiative to come this time was that he discovered an interesting phenomenon. Lin Feng had played a role in "Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky", and he was the fourth male lead.

But his Baidu Index is comparable to that of the male lead Jiang Kung Fu, and whenever Lin Feng appears in the TV series, his Baidu Index will surely soar.

This shows that Lin Feng is recognizable and popular with the audience. In the entertainment industry, "appearance is justice". He not only has a handsome face, but also a likable face.

"Lin Feng, I've seen your performance in "Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky". We at Huanrui are very optimistic about you. We at Huanrui can also agree to the contract terms that you and Huace have agreed on before.
In addition, Huanrui is preparing several major projects recently, including "Gu Jian Qi Tan", "Huo Se Sheng Xiang", "Grave Robbers' Chronicles", and the super IP "Zhu Xian" will be coming soon.
We will use new actors for the leading male roles. As long as you sign the contract, you will have a good chance of getting the leading male role."

Although Huanrui has become a low-end brand in the future, it is now in its rising period and can be regarded as a film and television giant. In addition, it has produced the most hit movies in the past two years.
Especially "Gu Jian Qi Tan" was a huge hit, the leading actor and supporting actor soared, and made Li Yifeng, a top star, famous. For Lin Feng, this was his best choice now, and there was nothing to hesitate about. After discussing with Zhang Jing, he officially signed with Huanrui.
The contract is for 5 years. In the first year of the contract, Huanrui Century will receive 30% of Lin Feng's performing arts agency contract income as commission; in the next four years, it will receive 20% as commission (this is Li Yifeng's contract in Huanrui's listing prospectus).

For newcomers, this is considered an "A+" level contract, not to mention that Lin Feng has retained "absolute autonomy". After all, Huanrui has many hits, but even more flops.

***
Just when Lin Feng signed the contract with Huanrui, he received a call from Hu Ge, "Lin Feng, why did you terminate the contract without telling me?"

"Brother, you know that Sister Cai's focus is not on me. I haven't filmed a movie for two years, and I'm about to graduate. I want to change my environment. The reason I didn't tell you was because I was afraid you would worry. I'm sorry."

"Have you found a suitable agency? Do you need me to introduce one to you?"

The reason why Hu Ge is interested in Lin Feng is because Hu Ge recommended Lin Feng to Tangren when they were filming "Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky". At the same time, there was also Guli Nazha, a junior who is one year younger than Lin Feng.

"Thank you, brother. No thanks. I have basically negotiated with Huanrui Century. You won't blame me, will you?" Huanrui and Yu Zheng can be regarded as enemies of Tangren. Lin Feng's move has a bit of the meaning of "betrayal and surrender to the enemy."

"No, public is public, private is private. Maybe when you become famous in the future, I will have to ask you for a role."

"Haha, before that day comes, brother, if you have any good roles, don't forget me!"

"Don't worry, I remember it!"

...

After all this was over, Lin Feng also wrote on his personal Weibo, "We share the past, and we each have our future!" This is a summary of "termination of the contract with Tangren and signing with Huanrui."

Although Lin Feng only has 50 followers on Weibo now, his fans are very loyal. As soon as Lin Feng posted this Weibo, there were already many comments below.

"Brother, are you terminating your contract with Tangren and your new agency?"

"Brother, don't you know that my Fengfeng was born in 92? What a tender young boy!"

"Is there any need to ask? Didn't you see that Huanrui has officially announced it? I've been unhappy with Tangren for a long time. My husband is so handsome, but he doesn't even have a little exposure. The contract should have been terminated long ago!"

...

In addition to entertainment gossip, there are more blessings from fans:

"A new chapter is about to begin, and a new role is on the way. A different style, a different Lin Feng, that's great. We will get better and better, and Bee will always be with my baby!"

"The road ahead is long! Bees will always be by your side, accompanying you through every spring, summer, autumn and winter. Let's go hand in hand and set off again!"

"A new beginning, we are here with you! Actor Lin Feng has a bright future ahead of him! We will all get better and better! We will be with you, holding the brilliant stars in our hands and stepping on the fragrant ground."

...

Since his "rebirth", Lin Feng first terminated his contract with Tangren, and then negotiated a contract with Huanrui. He was always nervous.

But now is not the time to relax, because Lin Feng himself has not changed substantially. At this time, the fairy tale drama "Gu Jian Qi Tan" invested by Huanrui is about to start filming.

Lin Feng faces great competition to get the leading role in "Gu Jian Qi Tan", as Huanrui has signed more than one artist.

……

PS: It's not easy to fail, please collect, read, recommend and vote for me, I sincerely ask for your support!
(End of this chapter)