Happy New Year!
“Dear guests, the work I’m about to introduce is rather special,” said the auctioneer, whose forehead and clothes were already drenched in sweat after standing under the spotlight for so long. Yet his enthusiasm showed no signs of waning.
When introducing this item, the auctioneer intentionally built up suspense, easily piquing the guests’ curiosity with his excited tone. Many guests who had become listless and weary due to the lengthy auction regained their spirits after he said this, renewing their attention on the stage.
Clearly pleased by the reaction below, the auctioneer revealed a mysterious smile and announced in a booming voice, “This item is called ‘Battle City 2.'”
As soon as the words left his mouth, a commotion erupted below. Some even stood up in outright disbelief.
Although the auctioneer’s introduction to this work was concise, its impact was like a bomb exploding in the venue, igniting the entire room.
Not just the guests present – even viewers watching the livestream outside were stunned by this explosive news.
The reason was simple – this work was just too famous.
‘Battle City’ was the most successful novel adaptation of 2025. The movie catapulted its previously unknown production team into the spotlight, even placing them on a pedestal.
With very limited resources, the crew didn’t even have proper promotions when the film was released. It coincided with the National Day holiday when competition was fierce between big productions, and no one paid attention to this low-budget film.
In the first few days, ‘Battle City’ had pitiful showtimes and abysmal box office numbers, so bad that some small theaters were ready to pull it early.
But no one expected this film to rely solely on word of mouth and trample numerous big-budget blockbusters in China and abroad after just one week.
Many movie fans spontaneously turned into tap water1自来水 (zìláishuǐ) literally translated as “tap water,” is used metaphorically to describe the fans who spontaneously promote the movie without being paid, much like tap water flowing freely. It refers to grassroot promotion by fans who voluntarily and passionately share and recommend the movie through word-of-mouth, analogous to how tap water is commonly accessible and widely used. It captures the organic and natural spread of support and recognition among fans. to help promote this small-budget movie that was so poor that it did not even have budget for promotion.
As its popularity and reputation continued to rise, the box office soared like a rocket, reaching the top of the National Day box office and the highest total box office in 2025.
When director Liang Qian shot this film, he was an unknown, mediocre director. Riding on its success, he earned 3.2 billion at the box office, won the Best Director at the Golden Feather Awards that year, and became a famous director sought after by investors.
And the impact of this movie went far beyond that.
The main actor, Ying Chengze, fresh out of school then, not only won Best Newcomer for his brilliant performance but also Best Actor at the Golden Wing Film Festival at just nineteen years old.
Though slightly overshadowed, the lead actress also rose to fame, transforming from a clueless newbie to a popular flower in just three years.
As the sequel to this critically and commercially successful film, “Battle City 2” has already sparked numerous heated discussions even before it was written.
The popularity of its merchandise and videos did not diminish even after three years, even trending once or twice every once in a while.
For such a phenomenal work to quietly appear at auction without prior notice was shocking!
After confirming its authenticity, over half the guests went mad. Representatives from film companies immediately called their bosses, not just to report but also for one other purpose – frantically raising funds.
Undoubtedly, to obtain the rights before others, massive capital was required. Whoever raised the most money fastest would have an edge.
Soon, all kinds of conversations echoed throughout the venue. The chaos forced the organizer to suspend the auction for twenty minutes.
Even Jiang Yu, who had been holding back his anger for half of the auction because he didn’t have enough available funds, couldn’t sit still and went out to make fundraising calls.
But Ye Zhou, who had been excited, didn’t feel thrilled hearing about the auction of ‘Battle City 2.’
Seeing his composure, Jiang Tingyuan raised a brow, “Don’t you like Battle City?”
Ye Zhou shook his head. “No, it’s a great film.”
Though he hadn’t seen it himself, the original owner was a diehard fan, idolizing its director Liang Qian.
He had watched Battle City over a hundred times, pulled the film a few dozen times, and could recite the dialogues verbatim. His worship of Director Liang was also intense, dreaming of becoming a director like him one day.
Thanks to the original owner, though unfamiliar with Battle City, Ye Zhou knew the plot intricately.
There was no denying Battle City was an outstanding commercial film – from the director’s techniques to the writers’ control of the script and the actors’ performances, it was a masterpiece.
With its high quality, great luck, and perfect timing, it was destined to succeed.
If he hadn’t read “The Overbearing President’s Contract Lover”, Ye Zhou believed he too would have great enthusiasm for its sequel.
But!
He clearly remembered that although the sequel to this film was still produced by the original team, it ended up being very dismal at the box office.
When the filming started with great fanfare, nearly one billion was invested. When the film was finally released, its reviews plummeted, and it was directly classified as a bad film by various film critics. It was criticized non-stop and ridiculed by the entire Internet.
It can be said that all the reputation accumulated before has been completely ruined.
In the end, Battle City 2 barely crossed 100 million at the box office – a devastating result for such a high investment.
If this achievement were applied to a low-budget movie, it would be considered relatively good, but if it were applied to “Battle City 2”, it would really cost the film a fortune.
Just thinking about it made Ye Zhou shudder, shaking his head like a rattle drum.
Mistakenly thinking the boss was interested in the movie, Ye Zhou tactfully advised, “Jiang-ge, though Battle City did well, it’s not uncommon for sequels of critic and box office smashes to crash and burn domestically, right?”
“With the first film’s reputation, the sequel has huge potential to explode, but the risks and costs are also exponentially higher, even a hundredfold.”
Ye Zhou sincerely tried to dissuade him from the idea.
Although he wanted to spend all his money before Boss Jiang went bankrupt, he definitely didn’t want it to end like this!
He clearly remembered Battle City 2’s rights sold for a shocking 95 million to an established domestic entertainment company.
However, after the final box office came out, although the losses were not small, what really caused a headache for the entertainment company was that their stock price was also implicated, falling by several percentage points, and the company’s market value was directly wiped out by hundreds of millions.
He remembered so clearly because the protagonist couple were among the bidders.
Although he didn’t know where Jiang Yu came up with so much money at the time, one thing that’s for sure is that Jiang Yu had a trump card.
It’s a pity that in the end, Jiang Yu and Cheng Ran were still one step behind and were no match for the strong financial resources of that entertainment company, so they had to give up bidding.
Later, whenever Jiang Yu and Cheng Ran mentioned this matter, they felt extremely fortunate and took it as a lesson, constantly reminding each other to be cautious in every investment.
Frankly speaking, Ye Zhou actually hoped that Jiang Yu could raise more money, rewrite the plot of the book, and acquire the copyright of “Battle City 2” in one fell swoop.
It’s just a pity that 95 million was not a small amount after all. Ye Zhou sighed and suppressed the little hope in his heart.
He focused on persuading the boss, “Although the first part of “Battle City” was a big hit, I am actually not very optimistic about its sequel.”
Hearing this, a flash of surprise crossed Jiang Tingyuan’s eyes, though his expression remained unchanged. “Oh?”
Seeing he was listening, Ye Zhou thought for a moment, “The starting point of this movie is too high. The audience’s expectations for it are much higher than for ordinary movies.”
“To give you a simple example, if you usually score 60 points in every exam and others don’t have high expectations for you, and suddenly one day you perform exceptionally and score 100 points, everyone will definitely praise you.”
“But if you get 100 points every time, everyone will get used to it and won’t be too surprised. If you can keep it up, it’s fine. But if you suddenly get 80 points one day, everyone will think you’re a bad student.”
Blinking, Ye Zhou earnestly analyzed, “This is the situation for ‘Battle City 2’. Even if it’s good, there may not be much praise, but if it’s bad, it’ll inevitably face overwhelming criticism.”
Ye Zhou’s simple and straightforward example almost accurately analyzed the current situation of “Battle City 2.”
Was “Battle City 2” really as terrible as the original work described? Not necessarily.
It was just an average commercial movie, with a slightly mediocre plot, somewhat templated acting, slightly exaggerated special effects, and a routine where you can tell the ending just by looking at the title. This is almost a common problem in commercial films.
But when applied to “Battle City 2,” they all become fatal flaws, making film critics want to scrutinize every frame with a magnifying glass to find its faults.
Ultimately, it just couldn’t meet expectations following the first brilliant installment.
Looking at the young man in front of him who spoke sharply but remained calm and analyzed for him, Jiang Tingyuan felt as if his heart had been lightly tickled with a feather.
“Also, the sequel’s budget…” Ye Zhou started to say.
“Never scored below 60,” Jiang Tingyuan suddenly interrupted, catching him off guard.
“Huh?” Ye Zhou looked at him blankly.
“Always full marks,” Jiang Tingyuan said.
Oh.
The confused Ye Zhou moved his mouth one step faster than his brain, and subconsciously said in admiration: “Yuan-ge, you are so awesome!”
When Ye Zhou realized what he had said, he immediately berated himself inwardly for the flattery.
However, after seeing that the boss seemed to have listened to his words and had no intention of participating in the bidding, Ye Zhou finally felt relieved.
After the brief intermission, the auction soon resumed under the auctioneer.
But unlike the previous leisure, the venue was now inexplicably filled with a gunpowder scent. Guests rarely chatted unless from the same company.
Before Battle City 2’s bidding ended, everyone present was a potential competitor.
The auctioneer remained composed, though his concealed hands trembled slightly from excitement.
After the transaction, he would earn a commission from the amount. No wonder this seasoned veteran was so excited.
“The starting bid for Battle City 2 is… 25 million!”
“Each bid must increase by at least 1 million. Let the bidding start!”
The price was evidently anticipated by some companies. Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, bids started coming in.
“26 million.” A slightly fat middle-aged man in the back row raised his paddle first.
But before he even lowered it, another yelled, “27 million!”
“28 million!”
“30 million!”
“31 million!”
The bids climbed rapidly amidst the simmering atmosphere.
……
The price rocketed from the initial 26 million to 47 million before the frenzied bids finally slowed.
Though still ongoing, the auction was no longer as intense as it was in the beginning.
In fact, it was easy to guess what those people were thinking. Apart from some people who simply came to join in the fun, the rest are small companies and individuals hoping to snatch a deal.
Of course, some genuinely loved the work but lacked sufficient funds, forced to reluctantly withdraw.
Now that the price exceeded their limits, they naturally had to quit.
Ye Zhou roughly counted and found that there were more than thirty people participating in the initial bidding, which did not include several major entertainment companies that had not yet taken action.
Even after more than twenty minutes of bidding, there were still six or seven still competing.
What surprised Ye Zhou was the protagonist couple’s unexpected patience. Except for raising the cards twice at the beginning, he stopped doing anything once the price reached 30 million.
Sensing his puzzlement, Boss Jiang chuckled and suddenly leaned in to whisper, “Jiang Yu is fundraising.”
The warm breath on Ye Zhou’s ear oddly made it feel hot. He reflexively touched his ear, forcing himself not to overthink as he stiffly responded, “How do you know?”
Jiang Tingyuan’s brow quirked slightly. Without explaining further, he showed Ye Zhou his phone screen.
It displayed a text message from his subordinate simply stating Jiang Yu had transferred all the funds originally intended for his company from the bank loan.
Additionally, he borrowed 65 million from a venture capital company. Although the interest was not as exaggerated as a loan shark, it was still not a small sum.
Even though Ye Zhou was well prepared, he still took a breath, and for a moment, he didn’t know how to evaluate the protagonist gong.
There is no doubt that Jiang Yu and Cheng Ran were preparing for a huge gamble by going all out.
If they won, Jiang Yu’s small entertainment company would soon make waves, and its reputation, competitiveness, and even resources in the industry would undergo a qualitative leap.
But if they lost, Jiang Yu would not only lose the company he finally founded but would also be saddled with a debt that could crush him.
This was…this was a great opportunity to eliminate the protagonist gong!
Hehehe, youngsters had to pay a price for their rashness. Since the book’s protagonist gong failed, how could Ye Zhou bear to disappoint him now?
As he thought about it, Ye Zhou’s eyes suddenly lit up.
If he remembered correctly, the protagonist gong’s final bid including loans was 80 million, while the winning bid was 95 million. In other words…
If he helped raise another 20 million, Battle City 2 was practically guaranteed.
20 million to bankrupt the protagonist gong – totally fucking worth it!
Ye Zhou poked the boss beside him and whispered excitedly, “Jiang-ge, let’s discuss something!”
Jiang Tingyuan saw through his idea at once. “You want me to lend Jiang Yu money?”
Ye Zhou nodded rapidly.
“Fine, but on one condition,” the boss agreed swiftly.
Hearing ‘condition’, Ye Zhou still couldn’t help shuddering, recalling the hellish start of his transmigration.
One had to be kind. Jiang Yu and Cheng Ran were quite cute anyway. Being cannon fodder wasn’t so bad…
Just as Ye Zhou prepared to refuse, Boss Jiang coolly said, “You don’t want to?”
“No way, not just one. Even if you ask for a hundred conditions, I’m willing!”
CNM2“cào nǐ mā” (草泥马), which translates directly to “f*** your mom.” ! Did he just say that?! What was wrong with him?! Wake up, Ye Zhou! Sober up!!
Ye Zhou had a smile on his face, but he couldn’t help but slapped himself twice in his heart and berated his bootlicking.
It wasn’t his fault, really. His previous life conditioned him to fawn before investors, blowing rainbow farts3“彩虹屁” (cǎihóng pì) is a Chinese internet slang term that refers to the act of excessively flattering or complimenting someone to the point of insincerity or exaggeration. The term literally translates to “rainbow fart,” suggesting that the compliments are so exaggerated that they are as unreal as a rainbow-colored fart. until it became a habit to speak before thinking.
Ye Zhou wanted to cry without tears. What could he do, he was just a filmmaker, he was also very desperate!
Regardless of Ye Zhou’s regret, the boss was quite pleased at being flattered.
With a wave of his hand, he called his secretary to transfer 20 million into Jiang Changsong’s account while Ye Zhou watched.
Although Jiang Changsong didn’t dare to act like a father in front of him, he was a completely good father in front of Jiang Yu. Once asked, Jiang Yu would soon receive the sum.
Once again, Ye Zhou deeply admired the boss’s financial dominance. Thinking of the piles of funds potentially available, he suddenly felt…
Isn’t it just a condition? Don’t be a coward!
But while Ye Zhou guessed what the boss would demand, even blushing at his own R-rated imagination, Jiang Tingyuan had already calmly resumed watching the auction.
Ye Zhou: ?? Wasn’t he going to make demands? His pants were off4“他裤子都脱了” (tā kùzi dōu tuōle) (tā kùzi dōu tuō le), literally translating to “he already took his pants off,” is a metaphor to convey the sentiment of anticipating something eagerly, only to end up disappointed or let down. !
“Um…” Ye Zhou carefully started then faltered, unsure how to proceed.
What should he say now? Ask outright, Boss, aren’t you making demands? Bring them on! I’m (bend) rea(over)dy (and) for (spread) any(my)thing (cheeks)5他现在该问什么，难道问，大佬你不是要提条件吗？快来吧！我（ku）准（zi）备（dou）好（tuo）了（hao）啦！ Some of the characters have been substituted with homophones or similar-sounding characters to give the sentence a humorous twist, mainly used in internet chat or informal writing. This sort of wordplay involves using characters that sound the same (homophones) but have completely different meanings. It’s akin to punning in English and is often not translatable directly since the puns rely on the sounds of words in Chinese, which do not have the same connotations in English. I translated that part in a humorous, exaggerated way to reflect Ye Zhou’s internal thoughts and flustered state of mind in that moment. But tbh, it does not literally mean that, I just spent one hour trying to translate this specific line, my mind is already fried.!
Luckily, the perceptive boss spared him from too much embarrassment.
“Let’s settle it later, Xing Rui is making a move.” Jiang Tingyuan took in Ye Zhou’s expression completely and stretched out his hand to gently rub his head.
Almost on cue, a slightly hoarse female voice called out, “60 million.”
Looking over, the bidder was a very refined woman who looked around 30. Her waist-length chestnut hair draped over her shoulders, adding charm.
Ye Zhou recognized her – the woman who competed with Jiang Yu until victory in the book.
With her bid, the price that had finally stabilized instantly leapt over 10 million again, clearly determined to win.
The representatives of two companies exchanged glances and then sighed, forced to withdraw.
Now only three poor souls remained in contention.
Behind these three people were different companies. One was the person in charge of Star Sails Entertainment, which had been booming in recent years, and the other was Summit Entertainment, an old company that had been in the industry for many years and is famous for its stability.
The last was Xing Rui Entertainment, which just raised the price by over 10 million.
The auction had clearly entered a death match. As the price rapidly climbed, Ye Zhou noticed Jiang Yu and Cheng Ran in the back row could no longer sit still.
“69 million!” Cheng Ran’s hands and forehead were drenched in sweat. It trickled into his eyes, painfully irritated, but he didn’t dare blink.
Jiang Yu was also highly focused. 85.5 million was all he’d raised so far. If it went higher…
Usually disdainful of deities, the unruly Jiang Yu now silently prayed to win Battle City 2.
If he obtained it, he was confident of riding it to fame and glory.
God didn’t seem to hear his prayer.
The woman representing Xing Rui Entertainment once again raised her paddle again. “70 million.”
Hearing the number, Cheng Ran instinctively looked to Jiang Yu, who surprisingly gestured at him.
Understanding Jiang Yu’s intent, Cheng Ran’s heart shook, though his body mechanically obeyed the order. “E-eighty million!”
The whole audience was in an uproar. This was the second time someone directly increased the price by 10 million.
In this auction, money had become just a number trailing endless zeros.
Fortunately, after Cheng Ran quoted a price of 80 million, the person in charge of Star Sails Entertainment seemed to have given up, put his bidding paddle back in place, and withdrew from the bidding.
Summit Entertainment also faltered, tentatively raising the price. “81 million!”
Jiang Yu pursed his lips, realizing this was no time for weakness.
So, he revealed his final cards, upping it by another 4 million. “85 million!”
Perhaps affected by Jiang Yu’s resolve, Summit’s representative hesitated for a long time before declining to bid further.
Jiang Yu stared fixedly at the Xing Rui representative, trying to convey his determination.
Unfortunately…
The other side seemed equally set on obtaining Battle City 2, and had more funds than him.
Jiang Yu clearly heard her voice echo through the venue.
“95 million.”
I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Please consider supporting the author directly.
You can also follow me on Ko-fi to get the latest updates on my translation progress and new projects. I appreciate your love and feedback.
