The third film, Chronicle 2 was another one of Chen Chen’s experiments on the energy of the USB drive.
Inside a box in a five-star hotel in Los Angeles, Chen Chen sat on one of the seats and gently knocked the laptop in front of him.
The strong scent of sandalwood surrounded the room. Chen Chen involuntarily frowned upon catching a whiff of this scent.
After a while, there was a knock on the door of the box.
“Come in.”
Chen Chen instructed plainly without raising his head.
Two beautiful waitresses appeared by the door and walked in.
One of the waitresses was holding a silver platter with a bottle of Romanee Conti placed on top. The other waitress held several crystal glass containers that had been wiped so thoroughly that they shone radiantly.
“Sir, your wine.”
The older waitress inquired politely, “Would you like to open it now?”
“Open it. Please take note not to pour wine for me after my guests have arrived. Just plain water for me will do,” Chen Chen ordered without raising his head.
“Yes.”
Chen Chen’s request may come off as being strange, but it was probably just one of those strange quirks of wealthy people. The waitress who had undergone rigorous training obeyed without so much as a pause.
As the bottle of wine that was sealed for twenty-one years was opened, the strong, rich fragrance quickly filled up the room. This was no cheap counterfeit found in common bars, it was an authentic 2002 Romanee Conti in all its glory.
In that year, Romanee Conti produced 6100 bottles of wine, this bottle was one of them.
After pulling out the cork, the older waitress expertly inspected the wine under a light source to make sure there was no floating in the solution. She then proceeded to pour the wine into a decanter.
In an instant, what appeared to be liquid-form ruby flowed out of the mouth of the bottle. Under the reflection of the light overhead, it flaunted its magnificent bright red tint…
The exquisite carpet, the magnificent crystal lamps which hung overhead, the splendid decorations in the room which sparkled and gleamed. All of this coupled with the rich fragrance of the wine painted such scenery that was the equivalent of an eloquent poem.
As the waitress carefully poured the wine, rounds of hectic footsteps came from the direction of the doorway. Chen Chen finally raised his head.
The very next second, a round of knocking came from the door of the box again.
“Come in.”
Without requiring Chen Chen’s instructions, the other waitress opened the door, revealing two European-American men standing by the doorway.
“Romanee Conti. Good gods, I can’t possibly have stumbled into a wrong box?”
The two men appeared to be very old but they were in their mid-thirties at most. When the two men walked in, one of them whistled and appraised, “There’s no mistaking this fragrance. Let me guess which year it is, ’10? ’08?”
“It’s ’02.”
Chen Chen got up from his seat. “There’s no mistaking it, you two gentlemen are in the correct box. I was the one who invited you.”
“Josh Trunk.” The man with an air of arrogance Chen Chen’s hands. “A 2002 Romanee Conti is no small deal, you’re too generous.”
“Don’t mention it, I only selected this wine because it was produced in the same year as my birth year.”
Chen Chen shrugged and turned to the other man with an oblong-shaped face. “And you must be Mr. Max Landis, your reputation precedes you.”
“Thank you.” Evidently, the man with the oblong face was preoccupied with other thoughts.
After the waitress had finished pouring the wine into the decanter, they took the platters and made to leave, leaving the room for the three men.
“I’m sure the two of you know why I’ve invited you here.”
Chen Chen took out a contract and handed it to the proud, bold man. This man was not just any regular man. He was the director of the movie Chronicle, Josh Trunk.
Trunk raised an eyebrow in astonishment upon finishing reading the contract. He then passed it to the man with the oblong-shaped face who was the screenwriter of Chronicle, Max Landis.
Chen Chen could tell that the two men did not exactly have an exemplary friendship. It could even be said that they had a grudge against each other and were merely keeping up a civil appearance.
Trunk finally smiled after handing the contract to Landis. “This is truly surprising. I find it shocking that you’re willing to spend tens of millions to buy the film rights from the bloodsucking leech, Fox Pictures. This is a significant sum to invest for just a common movie. Do you see this much potential in it?”
“It’s just that I’m a huge fan of this movie.”
Chen Chen replied solemnly, “I was blown away by the movie the first time I watched it. It practically encapsulated everything I dreamt about as a child. I’ve been looking forward to the sequel ever since.”
“So, when you realize that it wasn’t going to happen, you hatched the idea of investing and filming one of your own?” Trunk added to Chen Chen’s remark with a smile.
Chen Chen nodded and poured wine for the two men. “It hasn’t had too much time to breathe yet, but it should be good for tasting now…”
The two men accepted a goblet and muttered their thanks.
“I’m sure that for the two of you, this movie holds a dear place in your heart like it’s your very own child.” Chen Chen continued.
“I may have bought the rights to the movie, but if I had a say in it, I wouldn’t ask for anyone but the two of you to direct the sequel.”
Following up on his remark, Chen Chen took out two more sheets of contract and handed it to the two men respectively. “Mr. Trunk, I’ll be investing 100 million U.S. dollars into the early shooting of the film, just say the word if more is needed. As for your salary, you’ll be paid an extra 10 million on top without any pre-stated condition, regardless of the performance at the box office. All I need is for you to put your all into it.”
“As for Mr. Landis…”
Chen Chen turned to the man with the oblong-shaped face. “I’m extending you an offer of three million dollars to be the screenwriter of this movie. All you need to do is put together an excellent story following the structure I’ll be providing, can you do that?”
The two men exchanged a glance for a brief instant, both of them astounded by Chen Chen’s bold offer. The offer extended by Chen Chen was nearly the equivalent of the rates for a first-line director and screenwriter in Hollywood.
“I’m very pleased with the offer. As long as there are no other special requirements, there’ll be no problems on my end.”
Trunk responded swiftly.
“Hold on…”
Landis, who sat beside Trunk, grumbled faintly, “When you said that you’ll be providing a story structure, you mean to say that I can’t compose an original work of my own?”
“Yes.”
Chen Chen nodded and announced gravely, “I’ll be providing a general storyboard with details such as the opening and ending sequence of the sequel. You can fit in additional details to your liking, but you cannot rewrite the story.”
Landis fell silent almost immediately after that.
Looking at Landis who appeared to be having a heated internal debate with himself, Chen Chen picked up a glass of water to take a sip from it, making no further attempts of persuasion.
The only reason he wanted to hire these two men was to add as an extra layer of insurance.
The movie produced under the direction of these two men was able to be inserted into the USB drive without any issue. Since the director, screenwriter, and even the leading cast was left unchanged for the sequel, it should work in the USB drive… Right?
Chen Chen perfectly understood the reason for Landis’ struggle with the decision.
Around a decade ago, Landis was subjected to a similar predicament. When Chronicle made a fantastic international debut, he had already written the script for the sequel. However, due to concerns of the darker plot of the sequel turning off the audience and affecting the box office reception, he was made to amend it.
However, the young and strong-headed Landis was unwilling to change the script, which led to him being kicked out of the film crew by an enraged director.
“Time to grow up, Landis.”
Trunk, who was sitting aside, suddenly broke his silence. Even though this violated everything Landis stood for, Trunk still prompted a small reminder for this talented, old partner of his.
Upon hearing Trunk’s advice, the jumbled conflict in Landis’ eyes slowly faded away. He looked up with a sullen expression. “Understood, I’ll do it according to your request…”
“Excellent.”
Chen Chen clapped his hands together and raised a glass before the two men. “So, to our collaboration?”
The two men raised their glasses of wine and clinked it gently against Chen Chen’s glass. “To our collaboration.”
After the three men made their toast, the mood in the room improved considerably. Once again, Chen Chen opened a notebook beside him and turned to Landis. “Mr. Landis, please tell me about the original setting of the movie and I’ll construct the subsequent plotline based on the original setting.”
“You mean to draft a storyboard yourself?” The two men were slightly taken aback by the gesture.
“That’s right, that’s my wish.” Chen Chen smiled faintly.
“Alright, if you insist.”
Landis scratched his head. “Actually, it’s been quite some time and my memory is pretty hazy at this point, please give me a moment to regather the story…”
Landis finished the wine in the goblet with one swift gulp before refilling it again. He took a moment for himself before beginning. “To kick things off, let’s start with the foreign crystal…”