Hank Antonia!
Hearing the somewhat familiar foreign name, a thin, stern, and serious-looking elderly foreigner appeared in Gao Fei's mind.
The Jia Da Film Festival had invited nine world-class judges.
And Hank Antonia was one of the nine judges.
Gao Fei clearly remembered that after the awards ceremony, Hank had even called out publicly, inviting him to collaborate on a film.
Initially, he thought Hank was merely showing appreciation for a junior, thus making a public call for collaboration during the live broadcast.
The purpose was to draw more attention from global netizens to the nominated films from Dragon Country.
But now, Hank had directly called Jin Qiqi's phone and mentioned a collaborative film to shock the Oka Night in Burleywood.
This made Gao Fei realize that this old gentleman wasn't just supporting him but was genuinely intending to make a significant move.
"Mr. Hank called you personally?"
"The message was relayed by a translator, but Mr. Hank was beside him the whole time, elaborating on his collaboration ideas."
"It seems he doesn't know that Sister Jin, our talented lady, is fluent in four languages!"
Gao Fei said with a playful compliment. Jin Qiqi rolled her eyes, but her smile accepted her boss's praise.
"Sister Jin, Old Wang, you've both attended the Jia Da Film Festival. You must have heard some rumors about the nine judges.
In your impression, what kind of person is Hank? Have you heard any gossip about him?"
Jin Qiqi pondered, recalling rumors about Hank, and said, "Based on what I've heard, people's opinions of Hank are mixed.
Some say he's too rigid in his ways and an old stubborn. Others say he's fair and just, a pure stream in the entertainment industry.
In short, Hank has a hundred different evaluations from a hundred people."
"However, after the Jia Da Film Festival, I also heard a secret about Hank and the other eight judges!
It's said that Hank had a dispute with the other eight at the film festival's Golden Tree Award. He believed our film was the true winner of the Golden Tree Award.
But you know the background of the jury members, Boss. The other judges were basically all supporting Robin Treik. No one stood on Hank's side.
I heard from the person who revealed this that if Hank hadn't strongly advocated for our film, there wouldn't have been a dual Golden Tree Award, and a film from the United States would have won."
Jin Qiqi finished recounting the rumors and secrets she had heard and let out a sigh of relief, "Boss, the inside story of the jury is just a widely circulated secret from the film festival. Its authenticity cannot be verified!"
Everyone knew that "Black and White Edge," which won the Best Screenplay award, was the true recipient of the Golden Tree Award.
But Robin, for the sake of the United States' reputation, insisted on awarding the Golden Tree Award to a film from Burleywood, creating a dual Golden Tree Award.
Now that the Jia Da Film Festival was over, this year's dual Golden Tree Award had directly become an industry joke.
As long as the United States and Dragon Country were in contention, there would never be true fairness.
Especially for a Dragon Country film that was nominated and won for the first time.
It would definitely be subject to sanctions from Robin Treik, the president of the Burleywood Film Association of the United States.
Now that Wang He had thrown the trophy into the sea, Gao Fei didn't want to investigate the inside story anymore.
He would only feel more disgusted the more he looked at that so-called Golden Tree Award.
Whether the jury's inside story was true or not, Gao Fei didn't care.
However, based on the evaluations of Hank by people in the industry, he did believe that this old gentleman with a stern aura must have fiercely advocated for the award for "Black and White Edge" during the jury period.
Gao Fei thought for a moment and asked, "Did Hank mention the specific genre of film for collaboration on the phone?"
"He mentioned it roughly. The film he wants to shoot now seems to be focused on sci-fi, heroism, and similar themes."
Hank only briefly mentioned his intentions for film collaboration, and Jin Qiqi relayed his words verbatim.
But as soon as Gao Fei heard the genres of sci-fi and heroism, several films from his previous life flashed in his mind.
However, upon closer calculation, the production costs for filming this type of movie would be quite high!
Seeing her boss pondering over the film genres Hank had mentioned, Jin Qiqi spoke again, "Oh right, Boss. Hank might be coming to Dragon Country soon, but the specific time hasn't been decided yet.
He said that if he comes to Dragon Country, he will contact you immediately."
"Alright, as soon as he calls, you inform me immediately!"
After finishing the news about Hank, Jin Qiqi mentioned another matter.
"Boss, the verdicts for Hu Qing and the other two have been announced!"
"Sentenced? I didn't receive any news?"
Gao Fei looked incredulous.
No one had notified him of the court date.
"I apologize, Boss. It was Guo Yue who told me not to inform you.
He said you are currently in the midst of a struggle with Feng Kunlin, and the media has been paying close attention. He didn't want you to attend the court to avoid suspicion. After all, if you were to attend as an observer, you would inevitably be caught in public opinion.
Furthermore, Hu Qing and the other two had also mentioned before the trial that everyone should keep it from you and not let you enter the courtroom."
Jin Qiqi said apologetically.
She had originally intended to inform Gao Fei, but Guo Yue and the others had stopped her.
Gao Fei sighed. He could only try to compensate the families of the three brothers with money for the guilt he felt towards them.
Hu Qing and the other two brothers had killed six people. Although it had a great impact on him, it was a significant help to the "Honeycomb Post Station" project.
If it weren't for the three of them, Honeycomb Post Station would never have reached cooperation with Tongda and Suyue courier companies in such a short period.
If it weren't for the three brothers, Honeycomb Post Station would not have been able to develop rapidly, occupy the entire capital, and expand to neighboring cities.
"What were the sentences for the three of them?"
"Zheng Pingye and Jin Xiaohu, life imprisonment!"
"And Hu Qing?"
"Death penalty! Executed the day after tomorrow!"
"No possibility of a two-year reprieve?"
"The lawyer you hired for him did his best, but he took all the blame himself. Not only was it planned murder, but the impact on society was also very severe, so a two-year reprieve was not possible."
Gao Fei stood up with a complex expression.
He looked at the myriad lights outside the window. The office was filled only with heavy sighs.
....
Two days later, at the Capital First Prison.
Hu Qing, the second of the six brothers, with a buzz cut and wearing a blue prison uniform, sat in the meeting room waiting to see his family.
His eyes were devoid of their usual spirit, and tear stains could still be seen on his face.
But now, sitting alone in the meeting room, he was very calm...
Until he saw his father, mother, sister, and brother, followed by Guo Yue.
Hu Qing's earlier calmness vanished. His eyes instantly turned red, and tears flowed uncontrollably again.
He listened to his parents' reproaches, scolding, and finally, their helplessness and reluctance to let their child depart.
He trembled, even lowered his head, and cried buckets.
When he saw Guo Yue, Hu Qing slowly calmed down, but tears still flowed uncontrollably.
"Second Brother, I'm here at home. I'll take good care of Uncle and Aunt, and my younger siblings!"
Looking at the constantly weeping Guo Yue, Hu Qing forced a smile and chided, then continued, "Besides me, don't forget to take care of the families of the other brothers too."
"Don't worry! I'll take care of them! Moreover, we have a very good boss, so we don't need to worry about money!"
Mentioning the boss, Hu Qing paused, then looked up and exhaled, "He's here?"
"He is! But he's not family, and he's trying to find a way to see you one last time!"
"Tell our Young Master Gao not to bother. I've told the people inside that I won't see him!"
"Why?"
Hu Qing smiled and shook his head, not elaborating further.
As they spoke, a prison guard pushed the door open and informed them that their time was up.
"I'm leaving, Dad, Mom! Younger Brother, Younger Sister, take care of Mom and Dad!
Old Guo, your future path is up to you. Follow him closely and make a name for us five brothers.
Also, tell him that I regret not listening to him back then."
After giving his final instructions, Hu Qing was led away, awaiting death.
In the meeting room, only the sound of crying echoed.
...
An hour later, outside the prison.
Gao Fei watched the funeral car, heading towards the crematorium, with a complex expression.
There was regret, helplessness, and also a sense of release...
Observing his expression, Jin Qiqi, who was in the driver's seat, suddenly said, "Actually, you could have stopped them back then, couldn't you?"