King of Capital

Early morning, cloudy.

Liang Jun's only perception of the weather is the changes in light when he drives into the company's underground parking lot after get off work in the morning and evening. Then he sits in the air-conditioned room with a constant temperature and spends the whole day busy, day after day.

Ordinary employees like to ride electric bikes for convenient commuting, and the company does not charge parking fees. Hundreds of electric donkeys are crowded in the specially designated charging area, which looks messy and unsightly.

But he was not in charge of administration, and worrying too much about it would inevitably be suspected of crossing the line and fighting for power. Although in fact everyone was eagerly watching any movement.

He nodded slightly to the employees along the way and arrived at the top floor, the 14th floor. As usual, he went to the chairman's office on the east side.

As expected, Mr. Xie was nowhere to be seen. Liang Jun chatted with a few kids from the director's office and asked for a cup of tea. Then he went home leisurely and contentedly.

The renovation of the chairman's office took less than half a year and was just completed last month. The area of ​​the large and small rooms is over 1,000 square meters. It concentrates all management and decision-making departments including the board office and the supervisory board, which greatly improves work efficiency.

People outside don’t see these things. They only know that there is a bedroom in Mr. Xie’s office. What does he want to do? To give it to actresses for auditions?

It is extremely luxurious and wasteful. The press conferences in the past two months were nothing but crocodile tears. It is all show and no substance and rotten inside. It is the most shameless!
"Is it almost time?"

Liang Jun returned to his office and briefly glanced over the pre-meeting summary. He put down the folder, walked to the window, and shook his neck to do health exercises.

Listening to his secretary's response, he squinted his eyes and looked into the distance, trying to make out the content on the rights protection banner downstairs.

It seems to be different from last time, it’s getting weirder and weirder.

Liang Jun couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. He sighed, turned around, picked up the cardboard box on the desk, and went out to the meeting room.

"Boss Cao, Boss Zhang, you're here early."

There were already about ten people sitting in the large conference room. Cao Yong and Zhang Zhao were whispering to each other at the right side of the long table. He sat in the upper seat on the left side and joined in the conversation.

Shang Na, the chief content operations editor who jumped from Sohu, and He Li, the vice president of government public relations who was hired after Guoguang retired, communicated with the new executives who joined the company from the legal and financial departments.

After a while, a woman with long wavy hair, dressed in dark blue trousers and a white shirt, walked into the meeting room side by side with the new secretary of the board of directors.

"Mr. Shen, please take a seat."

Liang Jun took the initiative to invite with a gentle smile, and Cao Yong and Zhang Zhao followed suit, restraining their postures and sitting upright.

The director assigned by Xiyou Capital to the company was replaced by Shen Xin from Tang Man, who was said to be focusing on solving the capital market operation problems of LeEco's equity restructuring. He was not involved in the company's business and was just attending the regular meetings as an observer according to the articles of association.

When she first arrived, no one knew what she was like. She looked very young and had a bright and dignified appearance, but no one knew what her inner behavior was like.

Furthermore, Mr. Xie has a long history of romantic affairs that is hard to describe in a few words, and he has always liked to cultivate outstanding young women.

"Hey, Mr. Shen, now that everyone is here, shall we start?"

Zhang Zhao specifically asked for advice to show his respect and welcome. He tapped the table with the lighter in his hand from time to time, patiently controlling his urge to smoke.

Director Shen looked around with a gentle smile and said, "Mr. Zhang, you guys chat, don't worry about me."

"You have just arrived at the company. If you are not familiar with the content of the meeting, feel free to speak up."

Zhang Zhao glanced at the laptop in front of her and said in a neutral tone, "Since you are humble, I will assume that you are truly humble."

Liang Jun and Cao Yong understood what he meant. When President Xie was not at home, the three of them would take turns to preside over the regular meetings. In addition to competing for the position of president, they needed tacit cooperation to advance the work. After half a year, this management structure had initially established a stable order.

"Mr. Cao, could you please tell me about your platform first?" Zhang Zhao followed the process step by step.

"It's mainly driven by the content we discussed in the last meeting. The self-produced drama studio reported the latest key project this year, which is a suspense crime drama "Day and Night Chase" adapted from a novel IP."

Cao Yong paused for a moment, smacked his lips and continued, "Another major self-made drama co-invested with Kujiji Studio, "Ghost Blows Out the Light: The Ancient City of Jingjue", has been approved for script adaptation, and the cast is being initially finalized."

"Is Jin Dong not okay?" Zhang Zhao asked without hesitation.

Cao Yong shook his head: "The price is too high, and he is unwilling to sign a long-term contract. Dongyang Noon also wants to add two supporting roles. In short, he has too many ideas."

Two years ago, when the novel IP was about to emerge, Kujiji Studio spent 2800 million to buy the online drama copyright and part of the film copyright of the eight books of "Ghost Blows Out the Light" from several holders.

At that time, Mr. Xie had just debuted and was known as a super rich second generation. Everyone thought he was stupid and had a lot of money, but now they are just amazed. This person even has a deep meaning when he poops while standing upside down. Learn it well. If you learn it well, you will make a fortune...

The entire series of eight books has been completed. It is an IP adaptation project that can be regarded as a pension insurance-level project for all stakeholders. The casting of actors pursues stability, and a set of casts must sign at least four film contracts.

Jin Dong is suitable for the leading role in all aspects, but the current market bubble is inflated, and people will dare to ask for a sky-high price for any actor with a little fame.

His agency, Dongyang Noon, has produced several good dramas and is now very popular. The founder's slogan of wanting to create the Hollywood of the East is simply too crazy, and he is even putting on airs on the platform. Cao Yong doesn't want to indulge him at all.

"If it really doesn't work, report to Mr. Xie after the meeting and ask for a budget increase."

Zhang Zhao, who is in charge of LeTV Pictures, is well aware of the market situation. He could not help but take out a cigarette and puffed on it.

Until the press conference in March, everyone knew that the company had financial problems, but they did not know that it was burdened with a heavy debt of tens of billions. Life was really difficult and they were forced to do things reluctantly.

Seeing this, Cao Yong stopped pretending. He picked up the cigarette box, shook out a cigarette, and lit it. Smoke came out of his nostrils like flowing water. "Please let Mr. Shang explain the details of outsourcing and investment."

"Okay, the two key dramas we plan to purchase this quarter are My Stupid Husband starring Yang Yang and Meeting Wang Lichuan starring Godfrey Gao. In terms of investment and production, we plan to produce a youth campus drama Hello, Old Times, in which Chen Duling will play the leading role."

Shangna reported in a very methodical manner, stating the facts without any analysis, and waited for the three bosses in charge to ask soul-searching questions.

Less than a year after joining the company, not to mention encountering ghosts in the market, even if she purchased at a very low price, she would still be asked if she could be bolder and give full play to her imagination, such as going out to pick up a few free movies.

We don't want exclusive broadcasting rights, but we can negotiate for secondary distribution. Is this human language?
But Zhang Zhao had the nerve to say that. Not only did he say it, he also stared at her with a cigarette in his mouth and his eyelids smacked!

The drama that Yang Yang starred in was filmed in 2011, and it’s an old product that has been in stock for five years and can’t be sold; the drama starring Gao Yixiang is a new one, and you have to buy it just to watch the trailer.

Only when you manage household expenses do you know how expensive firewood, rice, oil and salt are. This old woman spends money happily. The bastards who sell movies are so cunning that they have figured out the truth. Every time they come to promote their movies, there must be young and handsome male actors at the drinking parties.

Super TV is the core of the company, and the target audience of TV terminals is still mainly home users. What’s the point of collecting so many idol dramas!
Liang Jun also had droopy eyelids. He squinted his eyes and picked up the cigarette box, puffing away smoke. In a moment, the conference room became like a fairyland.

"Fruited!"

Shangna coughed because of the smoke, her temples were throbbing and she had the urge to smoke a cigarette. She drew three exclamation marks on the notebook viciously.

The company invested in the drama starring Chen Duling. When the people below submitted the budget for the first time, she noticed the high pay. She sent the proposal back and asked for a redo. As a result, the pressure was put down layer by layer. The crying studio said that our popular young actress is worth the price.

She wanted to simply replace the female lead but couldn't. The people below told her that Teacher Chen's image was very suitable for the female lead, and the people above reminded her to pay attention to the strategic cooperation relationship with Nan Ke Holdings.

Shangna was stuck in the middle and fumbled around for two months before she finally figured out why she couldn't change it.

In short, it's because of lack of money. The total amount of funds on the company's books is limited, and each business line is concerned about how much they get. In addition, with the continuous large-scale turnover of personnel, and the boss being away from home for a long time, no one is trying to trip her up, so she should be thankful. It's simply a pipe dream to cooperate with work to optimize efficiency and reduce costs.

"Mr. Liang, can you tell me more?"

The platform's business situation was finally dealt with, and Zhang Zhao put out his cigarette and pushed forward the process.

Liang Jun cleared his throat and said, "First of all, we got the TV license of China Radio International. To borrow the words of my colleagues, the days of streaking are over!"

"Thank you to all our colleagues at Lezhi for your hard work." Zhang Zhao cheered up after finally hearing something good.

"Before the meeting, I consulted Mr. He. The authorization period of our license may change in the future. The authorization scope will be limited to Internet TV and set-top boxes."

Bad things happened one after another, and Liang Jun slowly revealed his ambition: "So I wonder if we can bring the previous alternative plan to the board meeting for re-discussion."

"…This matter involves capital operation. Mr. Shen, could you give us some advice?" Cao Yong stepped forward and took over the conversation.

Shen Xin smiled and said sharply: "The business status of the acquisition target in the alternative plan is relatively complicated. It is difficult for LeTV to acquire it with its financial situation."

"It's mainly in terms of equity. The history of China News Group and its ownership is unclear." He Li, who was being targeted by a gun, lightly picked up the cigarette between her fingertips.

In the past, she encountered troubles during meetings at work because all her colleagues were heavy smokers. Although she didn't smoke, she would still smoke two cigarettes to block out the secondhand smoke. Now, dealing with an old hand like Liang Jun was easy.

Huawen Group used to be a state-owned enterprise engaged in gas supply in Hainan, and its operating conditions were deteriorating.

A certain leader used his own resources to introduce China Radio International Television to acquire a 50% stake, and with the authorization of various special operating licenses, the overall transformation of the media industry was carried out, including the exclusive authorization of online TV licenses. The financial reports took off and the company regained its glory.

Then the leader left smoothly with the achievements. Later, people didn't have relevant resources and couldn't do anything. They intended to sell the 50% shares except China Radio and Television International in a package. Selling them at a good price to stimulate the stock price in the short term is also an achievement.

Last year, when LeTV was banned and had no way to obtain a license, it contacted China News to seek an acquisition, but people there thought of buying shares, so naturally they had no shortage of other capital operation methods, such as acquiring various external assets to produce beautiful financial reports.

Liang Jun coveted the guaranteed income from exclusive license authorization, while Zhang Zhao and others cared about paying billions of dollars for the acquisition. He Li was in charge of government public relations and didn't care, and she had no interest in helping him offend people.

As for Shen Xin, he raised his hand to cover his nose in annoyance. The debt-equity restructuring entered deep water, and the unwilling small shareholders sued LeTV to repay the money.

Every now and then, someone claiming to be a victim would run to the company's building and hold up banners, cursing Jia Yueting and then Mr. Xie. This is the stage where patience is tested. How could the group possibly come up with a large amount of funds to inject into LeTV and give creditors hope?

Liang Jun was just trying to cause trouble for her. Of course, Cao Yong was not a good person either. It was clearly a ridiculous thing, but he had to push her out in a fake way.

Shen Xin couldn't help frowning as he smelled the smoke in the room. Those people in LeTV were all people who had fought their way to the top. Only President Xie could keep them in check. If they recruited a president from outside, they wouldn't be able to completely control the situation without two years.

"Anyway, now that we have obtained the TV license, we are confident and can act without any rush. The acquisition of China News Group is an offensive development strategy, and we can discuss the follow-up slowly. There is no rush."

Liang Jun felt that he had become a target of public criticism by asking for a large sum of money, so he immediately talked about making up for it himself, put the cardboard box at his feet on the table, opened it, and took out six speakers the size of thermos cups.

"This is a new product developed by our department. During the testing phase, please help us try it out and give us your suggestions." He laughed to ease the atmosphere.

Shen Xin took one of them and weighed it in his hand. The long barrel shape had a good texture, but the design was a bit lacking. The all-black color looked old-fashioned and should be replaced with a matte glossy black.

Zhang Zhao couldn't help but look at Cao Yong, and the latter looked at him appropriately, and everything was said without words.

Lezhi+, which Liang Jun is in charge of, is a hard technology manufacturing business that builds smart entertainment terminal equipment around super TVs. Any achievements it makes will be incomparable to those of the platform and film industry.

"The film industry is advancing its business in a steady and orderly manner this year. The two dramas, Jue Ji and The Great Wall, have basically confirmed their prime time slots in the second half of the year."

Zhang Zhao felt that his interest in work was waning. He briefly summarized his work and said, "Please ask all departments to submit the latest batch of personnel arrangements to me as soon as possible so that I can report to General Manager Xie for approval as soon as possible. This is a rare opportunity so please don't affect the progress of the work."

"I won't waste any more time. I'll stop here for today."

As he announced the end of the meeting, everyone immediately began to buzz around again, gathering in groups of two or three to exchange information.

Last year, Alibaba acquired Youku for $40 billion. At that time, it was called an acquisition that would influence the industry landscape. The recent completion of the acquisition has indeed affected the entire industry.

Alibaba's top executives have entered Youku with their KPI performance appraisal system and have stepped into the fray with no regard for their relatives. Don't tell me that entertainment content cannot be quantified with data, let alone such nonsense as aesthetics and culture.

Just tell me, how many Taobao users can be converted from the platform’s 1000 million users, and how many business orders can be sold by inserting advertisements in the middle of the video?
You don’t know, right? Then get out of here! We at Alibaba are here to change you - people who have not been evaluated by Alibaba’s values ​​are not worth using!
The original Youku team had no choice but to be disbanded and scattered. LeTV was in urgent need of talent for a major change and naturally would not miss this rare opportunity, and various departments rushed to recruit people.

Colleagues from the human resources department are currently lurking downstairs of Youku's headquarters. When they see Youku employees coming in and out, they go up to them and say they'll give them a 20% salary increase and options.

"Mr. Shen, please stay."

Liang Jun was the only one who didn't need to poach people from Youku. He stood up and walked out of the meeting room at the right time to catch up with Shen Xin, asking for help: "When are you going back to Shanghai? Can you help me bring the new speakers to Mr. Xie?"

"I have it this Friday. If you're in a hurry, you can use express delivery."

"It's not urgent. Counting the time, Mr. Xie hasn't been to the company for almost two months. He has some other things to report on."

"Why don't you go to Shanghai and take the high-speed rail and go back and forth on the same day." Shen Xin looked nonchalant.

Liang Jun shamelessly tried to get on with the topic: "I heard that your group just completed fundraising and Mr. Xie is very busy. I'm really embarrassed to bother you if there's nothing important. Otherwise, could you tell me when Mr. Xie will come to Beijing?"

"How can I explain this clearly? To be honest, I can't always see Mr. Xie when I return to the group headquarters."

Shen Xin smiled perfunctorily and suddenly realized what had happened. It turned out that this guy saw Xiyou's fundraising and thought that there was an opportunity because the funds were abundant. He secretly joked that if you knew that the group itself was promoting tens of billions of financing, wouldn't you jump up and advocate the acquisition of TCL TV?

The toad wants to eat the swan's flesh, but it is an ugly flower.

Hey, this little girl, Liang Jun watched Shen Xin walk away with her high heels clacking on her feet, and secretly criticized the young man for being arrogant and unkind.

I failed to find out when Mr. Xie would come to Beijing, and my plan to meet him in person in advance to report on my work failed. It would be a waste of time to go to Shanghai specially.

After much deliberation, Liang Jun decided to send the new speakers by express delivery, any gamble would be the better.

"This thing needs to be kept secret and cannot be opened. You must keep it well."

He watched with his own eyes as the courier collected and packed the parcels, and while giving instructions, he picked up his phone and scanned the QR code to pay.

The company's financial director, who was poached from Qunar.com, was extremely stingy. He and the administrative department issued a strict order that all non-urgent official business must not be delivered by SF Express. Liang Jun was too lazy to argue with the other party and decided to pay out of his own pocket.

"Don't worry, SF Express will accomplish its mission!"

The portable printer spit out paper, the courier neatly tore off the delivery note and slapped it on the box, grinning with a mouth full of white teeth.

On May 5, the sun quietly shines down, illuminating the date printed on the express delivery slip. (End of this chapter)