Chapter 135: There Must Be a Big Catch in Their Hands! I’ll Pay Double for This Ticket! (1/4)

[Sumu's Bidding Group]

Zheng Quan: Sumu, don't just 'hmm' me, what's next?
Yu Hong: Sumu, Tencent is willing to support you; we have a comprehensive production team.
Zhao Zhouming: Lol, as if anyone else doesn't have one. Youku has the largest theater chain distribution network!
Zhang Huaimou: Huayi is a major theater chain operator itself. Sumu, tell us about the script first. If it's good, I don't mind stepping in personally to help you organize it.

Ten minutes later...
Zheng Quan: ...Say something, brother!
Yu Hong: Did you go to film?
Zhao Zhouming: Don't leave us hanging, Sumu!
[Zheng Quan sent a 200 yuan red packet]
(Sumu has claimed it...)
Zheng Quan: -_-||
Yu Hong: ...
Zhao Zhouming: Damn it.
Zhang Huaimou: 666
Li Rong: Send some more.
Liu Qiangxi: Didn't get it.
Chen Anzhi: ???
Yuan Zheng: ???

...

Sumu only sent an "hmm."
There was no follow-up.
Regardless of how they flooded the chat or tried to lure him with red packets, Sumu just kept claiming the money and then played dead.
This left Qian Jida, who was watching from the sidelines, completely bewildered.
"Wait, that's it?"
Sumu: "Of course not."
Qian Jida: "Then why aren't you replying faster?"
Sumu shook his head: "No rush. Let the bullets fly for a while."
Qian Jida was confused: "Huh? What does that mean?"
Sumu smiled and patted Qian Jida on the shoulder: "Director Qian, some things can't be rushed. You have to give them time to prepare their sincerity. The investment for this script isn't actually that high; if you want them to increase the funding, you have to play a little hard to get."
Qian Jida felt a headache coming on: "...As expected of you."

...

Beijing, Huayi Pictures Building.
Zhang Huaimou looked at his phone, his expression intriguing.
On the screen was a private message from Sumu, along with a PDF file.
[Sumu: Director Zhang, want to team up?]
It was brief, but those in the know understood.
Zhang Huaimou looked left and right to make sure no one was in his office, then coughed twice and replied:
[Zhang Huaimou: (乛乛)?]
[Sumu: Read the material first.]
[Zhang Huaimou: Got it.]
After this minimalist exchange, Zhang Huaimou quickly opened the file, knowing it had to be the script. He read it with high expectations, but his expression changed the next second.

Script Title: Goodbye Mr. Loser
"?"
Genre: Time-travel comedy
"This..."
Zhang Huaimou paused.
A comedy? How could it be a comedy?
This was completely outside his expectations. Given Sumu's past filmography, he had assumed Sumu would write a historical romance or an action film. After all, that was what he had been involved in for the past two years. If one wanted to challenge the box office, those were the safer bets, and Sumu had a large fan base in those genres. He never would have guessed that Sumu would write a comedy.

As a director, Zhang Huaimou knew the depth and difficulty of the comedy genre. There might be thousands of funny things in the world, but expressing them well in a comedy is not simple. If one were to categorize actors, Zhang Huaimou believed there were only two types: actors and comedians. This alone proved the difficulty and status of comedy in his mind. Making an audience laugh was exhausting. Beyond the comedic timing of the actors, the script required a coherent and sophisticated structure. Both were indispensable. He didn't know if Sumu could pull off such a high-standard comedy.

With this thought, he continued reading.
Xia Luo, Ma Dongmei...
Half an hour later.
He was laughing so hard he could barely breathe.
Zhang Huaimou grinned, bolted out of his office, and jumped into the elevator, heading straight for the top-floor executive suite.
Passing employees stared blankly.
"???"
"Was that Director Zhang?"
"Why was he laughing so creepily?"
"..."

...

Qiyi Building.
Zheng Quan tossed and turned in his office. The more Sumu ignored him, the more anxious he became. His intuition told him that Sumu had a big catch this time. Even if he couldn't be the producer, just getting a chance to co-invest would be enough. But what was that kid planning? Lin Haoming had already secured 500 million; if he didn't start preparing soon, would he really be left with nothing by the end of the year?

After much thought, Zheng Quan called Zhao Zhouming at Youku.
Zhao Zhouming, who had been pondering the same issue in his office, picked up the phone.
Zhao Zhouming: "What is it?"
Zheng Quan: "Don't play dumb."
Zhao Zhouming: "I don't know."
Zheng Quan: "Come on, you don't want to invest in Sumu's Lunar New Year movie?"
Zhao Zhouming: "I do, but the question is, will he let you on board?"
Zheng Quan: "So what? Worst case, I'll pay double. I just need a ticket."
Zhao Zhouming sneered: "Are you sure that double investment will break even? I'm being rational. If you want to spend it, go ahead—good luck to you."
Zheng Quan: "Fine, I see you're not planning to go for it."
Zhao Zhouming: "Does money grow on trees? You treat it like selling cabbage, just a few bucks? A movie costs tens or hundreds of millions; don't you think before you act?"
"Hmm... true. Let me think about it."
"Whatever, I'm out."
They hung up.

Zhao Zhouming narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and then opened WeChat to message Sumu:
[Zhao Zhouming: Sumu, are you looking for investment for the script in your hands? Name your price, and Youku will consider paying double to participate!]

...

On the other side, Sumu looked at his phone in his hotel room. It wasn't Zhao Zhouming's message, but one from Zheng Quan a minute earlier.
[Zheng Quan: Sumu, even though theatrical films aren't Qiyi's primary focus, I want to participate. I know the other two are competing, but I'll give you a reason you can't refuse: I'll pay triple!]
Sumu smiled and took a screenshot.

...

Tencent Building.
Yu Hong was waiting for a reply. He had sent a private message intending to participate in Sumu's Lunar New Year release. After waiting for a long time, the WeChat alert finally sounded. Yu Hong opened it eagerly, and his expression stiffened.
Are these two crazy? Double? Triple?
Do you guys have money to burn?
Seeing the screenshot Sumu sent, Yu Hong's suppressed anger grew.
So, nobody wants to play by the rules and just wants to buy their way in with high prices?
Fine, let's play.
Triple is nothing. I'll pay quadruple!
Let's see who breaks first!
Thinking this, Yu Hong replied:
[Yu Hong: Sumu, just tell me the minimum cost for this film. I'll give you four times the amount! Let Tencent on board!]

...

Sumu looked at his phone and smiled with satisfaction. The price had been bid up. Now, it was up to Zhang Huaimou to execute.
In reality, if one had the capability to build a crew and direct, one could easily be the producer oneself. This was Sumu's long-term goal, but it wasn't feasible yet. He could raise the investment, and his studio had enough cash on hand to cover the tens of millions needed for *Goodbye Mr. Loser*.
However, making a movie wasn't just about money. Building a crew, finding actors, renting equipment, and logistics were all complex tasks. Sumu hadn't done this before and lacked the experience. Furthermore, after the film was shot, he would need to find distributors, secure theater chains, and negotiate release schedules.
He needed to spend money, but there was a lot of work to be done—work that wasn't his current strength. That was why he felt collaborating with Zhang Huaimou was the perfect fit. First, Zhang's status added value; second, his backing by Huayi guaranteed a theater chain. He would handle the rest.
Of course, Sumu knew he should get the lion's share of the box office profits. In essence, Zhang Huaimou would represent Huayi as the producer and director. Sumu would get paid for the script, his performance fee, and a pre-negotiated share of the box office. It might not be huge, but it was guaranteed. As for whether to include the three-way investment from Qiyi, Tencent, and Youku—that would depend on the final decision. It wasn't a big-budget production, so adding more investors meant splitting the pie further. However, the benefit was clear: with the video platforms involved, marketing and distribution channels would be significantly boosted. And after the film left theaters, those same platforms would buy the streaming rights for their VIP members.