Entering the Chinese entertainment industry is like entering a deep sea

Chapter 776 Crying with joy
On this day, Rongchen Pictures' annual urban drama "Ode to Joy" held its opening ceremony at the Bund Source in Shanghai.

According to a fan club, not only will Liu Yifei, Yang Mi, Meng Ziyi, Yang Zi, and Zhang Hanyun be together, but Li Chen will also be accompanying them.

So around eight o'clock in the morning
The area in front of the European-style buildings at the Bund Source was already swallowed up by crowds.

Tens of thousands of fans held up light boards and banners, crowding the entire Yuanmingyuan Road.

Police had to set up additional cordons, and even the air felt tense.

The "celestial pinks" were the majority, all dressed in white, and occupied the best vantage point on the second-floor terrace of Starbucks.

Whenever a car drives in, you can hear: "Sisi, look here!"

The sound of the waves even drowned out the whistles of the ships on the river.

The bees were quite fierce, waving "Big Honey" glow sticks, and even Yang Mi's signature closed-mouth smile could erupt into high-decibel screams.

Some male fans were so excited that their voices became hoarse, but they still kept talking.

Zhang Hanyun's fans held up retro banners that read "Sour and sweet is you," and as soon as the invincible Yun Guai appeared, some fans burst into tears and shouted, "Baby, you've finally made it through!"

Compared to these three, Yang Zi has slightly fewer fans.

What surprised Meng Ziyi the most was that someone in the crowd was holding up a funny sign that read, "Sister Meng, fly bravely, take responsibility if something happens."

Sister Meng let out a wail: "The boss just says 'Sister Meng,' and the whole country knows!"

The four beauties couldn't help but smile. Yang Mi patted Meng Ziyi on the shoulder and said, "Sister Meng, don't be ungrateful. Your senior calling you 'Sister Meng' saves you at least ten years of hard work."

"That's right, everyone in and out of the industry knows your name, Sister Meng!" Yang Zi chimed in enthusiastically.

Zhang Hanyun suddenly exclaimed, "My God, it looks like they've started fighting!"

Liu Yifei turned her head and glanced out of the car. Sure enough, she saw several photographers seemingly getting into a physical altercation over who would be vying for a better shooting position.

Among the reporters, a South Korean reporter, despite being hit in the head by a light stick, continued his live broadcast: "Viewers, this place is even crazier than Myeongdong in Seoul!"

At 8:55 a.m., when Liu Yifei, Yang Mi, Zhang Hanyun, Yang Zi, and Meng Zi appeared side by side on the red carpet, a sound wave loud enough to pierce eardrums suddenly rang out from the banks of the Huangpu River.

"Aaaaaah, sister, kill me!"

Security guards formed a human wall with their bodies, but some crazy fans still almost broke through the entrance.

Fortunately, Li Chen had foreseen this. Just then, a male fan holding a sign that read "Fairy" suddenly broke through the security cordon and ran towards Liu Yifei.

However, just 5 meters from the red carpet, he was tackled to the ground by two black-clad bodyguards who seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Meng Ziyi seemed to be seeing such crazy fans for the first time, and was somewhat stunned.

Zhang Hanyun seemed unfazed, pulling Meng Ziyi along as she waved to the fans and spoke calmly.

"Are you dumbfounded? Look how calm Sister Fei is. Those two bodyguards of Sister Fei are no joke. It is said that the boss specially found them for Sister Fei ten years ago."

"I've shielded Sister Fei from these kinds of minor incidents at least three times!"

Around 10 a.m., nearly 50,000 people had gathered at the Bund Source.

Traffic police had to implement temporary traffic control on Zhongshan East Road.

Five of the top ten trending topics on Weibo at this time are related to the start of filming.

During the group photo with the media, Liu Yifei, dressed in a white suit, stood confidently in the center with a dashing and heroic air.

Yang Mi, dressed in a glamorous red dress, stood to Liu Yifei's left, her expression slightly unnatural.

She actually resists being in the same frame as Liu Yifei. To put it bluntly, her face doesn't hold up well, and she has to know when to stop smiling. This is a side effect of having her teeth pulled.

"Where's my senior?" After finally finishing the photo, Yang Mi realized that she hadn't seen Li Chen all day.

"He returned to Beijing last night."

"Oh, wasn't it said that we were going to attend the opening ceremony today?"

"You'll find out the specific reason later. I'm going to touch up my makeup first."

"You'll find out later? That sounds just like what a senior would say. Married woman Liu really does have her husband's style," Yang Mi muttered as she watched Liu Yifei walk away.

Meng Ziyi leaned in and asked, "Sister Mi, where did the boss go? Did Sister Fei tell you?"

"She's starting to sound more and more like my senior now, even her tone of voice is similar. What can she possibly say to me?" Yang Mi said with a sullen laugh.

The four beauties looked at each other, all curious about Li Chen's sudden return to the capital.

I was supposed to attend the opening ceremony of "Ode to Joy" today.

-

The temperature in Beijing at the end of March was cool.

At 10:00 a.m. sharp, three black Maybachs slowly drove into the Rongchen Film Industry headquarters building.

Several reporters who regularly waited at the Rongchen Film Industry headquarters building rubbed their eyes wide, curious about who was making such a big fuss.

When the car door opened, someone immediately exclaimed, "It's Wang, the richest man in China!"

Wang Jianlin, dressed in a sharp suit, strode out with a serious expression.

Behind him were Zeng Maojun and Liu Chaohui, along with other core members of Wanda's team.

The receptionist at Rongchen Film Studio had obviously received the notification. She calmly picked up the internal phone and relayed it to Li Chen.

Li Chen, along with Yang Siwei and Rong Chen's team, greeted Boss Wang and others at the elevator entrance.

A moment later, the doors of both elevators opened simultaneously, and Wang Jianlin stepped out first, followed by his subordinates standing behind the two big bosses. The two receptionists wished they could capture this classic 'meeting of kings' scene on the spot.

"The richest man himself has come to visit, my humble abode is truly honored," Li Chen said familiarly to the tycoon Wang, and the two shook hands.

Wang Ye, the bigwig, said, "It's far inferior to our Wanda headquarters."

Li Chen laughed heartily: "Please."

"please."

Meanwhile, the trending topics had just been sparked by the five beauties appearing together, and now they have been ignited by the "King Meets King" phenomenon.

Weibo entertainment influencer @圈内老鬼 posted a blurry leaked photo.

"Wang Jianlin of Wanda Group appears at Rongchen Film Industry! The two tycoons have a secret meeting and are planning something big together!"

Ten minutes later, #WangJianlinLiChenMeeting# became the number one trending topic, followed by exaggerated hashtags such as #WandaRongChenCooperation# and #EntertainmentEmpireChanges#.

Yang Mi, Meng Ziyi, and the others all stared wide-eyed.

"Sister, did the boss go back to Beijing yesterday to meet the richest man?" Meng Ziyi stammered.

Looking at Meng Ziyi's bright, dark eyes, Liu Yifei found it quite amusing, wondering who was really the richest person.
"So, the senior didn't come today because he had an appointment with a very important person. Could it be that Wanda is going to invest in Yixin Media?" Yang Mi suddenly thought of this possibility.

But then again, it seemed a bit exaggerated. Given the status of the senior and the richest man, it seemed that the matter of investing in Yixin Media could be completely handled by their subordinates.

Yixin Media went public independently, with its valuation easily exceeding 200 billion.

Wanda Cinema Line only listed on the A-share market at the beginning of the year, and its current market value fluctuates around 500 billion yuan, which is less than a quarter of that of Wanda Commercial, which is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

These Yang Mi fans had already found out beforehand.

The gossip-loving hearts of netizens are like a raging fire.

Netizens are discussing:

"Kings meeting! Are they going to join forces to dominate the world?"

"Leonardo DiCaprio has top-tier productions under his belt, with production companies and teams in both North America and mainland China. Wanda's acquisition of AMC extends its reach all over the world. This combination is unbeatable!"

"If I were Leonardo DiCaprio, Wanda would be my first choice. BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) might be the ceiling for others, but for Leonardo DiCaprio, they are just an auxiliary force!" The financial media outlet Prism quickly published an article analyzing the background of Wanda's visit to Rongchen Pictures.

Wanda's asset-heavy model has been under pressure in recent years, and Rongchen's asset-light IP operation is precisely its weakness.

Although Li Chen possesses hit content, he lacks offline channels.

If the two parties swap shares, it will directly reshape the landscape of China's film and television industry.

Various rumors and gossip are flying around on Weibo.

Reliable sources indicate that Wanda not only wants to invest in Yixin Media, but also hopes to exchange its cinema resources for equity in Rongchen Pictures, and a future merger is not out of the question!
No fewer than 300 media outlets had gathered downstairs at Rongchen Film Studio, blocking the main entrance completely.

Rongchen Pictures has been making one big move after another lately, enjoying unparalleled success.

In contrast, Huayi Brothers, once the leading film and television company and still nominally the leading film and television company today, presents a lifeless appearance.

The faces of the two kings of Huayi were extremely grim, especially the king's.

He could no longer maintain his usual calm and composed demeanor.

As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly. While your arch-rival Rongchen Film Studio is enjoying boundless success, you also have a traitor within your own ranks who is ready to take advantage of your misfortune.

The atmosphere in Wang Zhongjun's office was heavy. Dark clouds gathered outside the window, as if a storm was about to break.

"Xiaogang, why are we being so formal today? You even brought a lawyer? Is there something you can't discuss privately like we three brothers used to?"

Feng Xiaogang looked apologetic, his acting skills were superb: "Zhongjun, Zhonglei, we've been working together for twenty years. Some things can't be left unresolved."

A mocking glint flashed in Wang Zhonglei's eyes. He frowned, pulled a contract from the pile of documents, and sneered, "Dongyang Meila? Registered capital of 500 million, and you own 99%? Xiaogang, are we really going to part ways like this?"

"Zhonglei, all good things must come to an end. Let's part ways amicably."

Wang Zhongjun laughed in exasperation: "Xiaogang, 'A World Without Thieves,' 'Assembly,' 'If You Are the One,' which of these films wasn't paved with Huayi Brothers' utmost effort to pave the way for you?"

"You let your wife play the lead role, and she does whatever you say. Huayi has treated you well, hasn't it? Isn't it a bit unfair of you to leave now?"

Feng Xiaogang took a deep breath and looked Wang Zhongjun straight in the eye: "Zhongjun, I, Feng Xiaogang, am not an ungrateful person."

“But you know better than I what Huayi’s situation is now. Movies are getting harder and harder to sell, and all your minds are on capital operations. I, Feng Xiaogang, have been making movies all my life, and I don’t want to end up as just a number on a financial statement.”

Wang Zhonglei slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly: "Bullshit! In which of your films haven't we two brothers given it our all!"

"You wanted to make '1942,' and even though I knew it might lose money, I still let you make it however you wanted, for as long as you wanted, without saying a word. Now you're telling me that we brothers have put all our energy into capital operations?"

"What, when did you, Feng Xiaogang, change your name to 'Capital Operation'?"

Wang Zhongjun glanced at his younger brother. These words were tantamount to tearing off the mask of civility. He sighed inwardly; this was not what he had intended.

His original intention was to persuade Feng Xiaogang with reason and emotion; otherwise, once Feng Xiaogang registered Dongyang Meila, Huayi's stock price might have plummeted again.

Sure enough, Feng Xiaogang slowly stood up, pretended to straighten his suit, and said in a cold tone: "Zhonglei, don't be so absolute. Dongyang Meila is my fallback plan, and also my way to survive."

Wang Zhonglei was so angry he had no choice but to turn to look at his older brother, Wang Zhongjun.

Wang Zhongjun really wanted to curse this ingrate, Feng Kuzi, just like his younger brother did.

But in the end, he held back. Wang Zhongjun gestured for Wang Zhonglei to sit down: "Never mind, Zhonglei, everyone has their own ambitions. We've worked with Xiaogang for twenty years. Even if we're not colleagues, we're still friends."

Wang Zhonglei turned his head away, not wanting to see Feng Xiaogang's ugly face.

Only after Feng Xiaogang left did Wang Zhonglei angrily say, "Brother, that bastard is a real piece of work. He probably forgot how humble Feng Xiaogang looked back then with his yellow buck teeth."

"Now look at him, all dressed up in suits, putting on airs with his red teeth and white smile. If it weren't for our brothers supporting him behind the scenes, that movie 'Cellphone' would have made him disappear forever!"

Wang Zhongjun let his younger brother vent his anger, and finally said, "Forget it, all he wants is money. 500 million for Dongyang Meila, this is a bid to sell the first one, let's wait for us brothers to speak first!"

"Go back and calm him down first, tell him that we can talk things over!"

Wang Zhonglei remained silent. He knew that his elder brother had no other choice but to do this, as Huayi was still unable to shake off its dependence on Feng Xiaogang.

Li Chen was unaware that Feng Xiaogang had actually confronted both the big and small Wangs when he met with the big boss.

If they knew, they would probably find the two kings ridiculous.

There are plenty of people who can replace Feng Xiaogang nowadays. As long as you are willing to spend a lot of money, there is no one you can't find.

This very Da Peng, who was about to make a name for himself, would later achieve no less than Feng Xiaogang.

-

Inside Meeting Room No. 1 of Rongchen Film Studio.

The main characters are none other than Boss Wang and Li Chen.

The atmosphere of the conversation between the two parties was quite harmonious.

“Youku has been losing money for so many years, and I have never complained. You can’t find another partner like me in the whole world.”

If the nation's husband's words are merely infuriating, then the boss Wang's words are downright hurtful.

Li Chen wasn't buying it.

"Why don't you mention how much your net worth increased after Youku's IPO? What's the little money you lost?"

“Wanda Cinema Line is now worth nearly 500 billion, while Rongchen is valued at at least 700 billion. Is it fair for you to exchange 15% for 20% of mine?”

Big Boss Wang wasn't someone to be trifled with. Without even mentioning whether it was suitable or not, he changed the subject and said, "You want to add a priority subscription clause? What, are you afraid that I, Old Wang, will go bankrupt one day?"

Laughter erupted from both sides' executives in the meeting room, while Li Chen remained noncommittal.

His actions today are actually beneficial to Boss Wang, with no drawbacks.

When the day comes that tycoon Wang needs to sell Wanda's assets to pay off his debts, he will know that Li Chen is indeed a man of honor and loyalty.

More and more media outlets gathered downstairs at Rongchen Film Studio.

Li Chen and Boss Wang didn't keep the media waiting long.

The screening room at Rongchen Film Studio's headquarters was packed with media.

Flashbulbs went off as reporters aimed their cameras and microphones at the podium.

Wang Jianlin and Li Chen stood side by side, and the large screen behind them suddenly lit up.

Wanda Cinemas & Rongchen Pictures Strategic Merger

The entire audience erupted in an uproar.
Yang Siwei's voice was slightly excited: "Dear journalists present, just ten minutes ago, Wanda Group and Rongchen Pictures reached a historic agreement. The two parties will achieve in-depth cooperation through a share swap!"

The reporters in the audience erupted in a frenzy, their camera shutters clicking like a torrential downpour.

Wang Yi, the tycoon, raised his hand, signaling for silence: "Today, my friends and I have decided to do something that no one in the Chinese film industry has ever done before. Wanda Cinemas will exchange 30% of its shares for 20% of Rongchen Pictures' shares. From today onwards, Wanda's cinemas are Rongchen's cinemas!"

Li Chen took the microphone from Wang Jianlin and said in a calm tone, "Some people say this is a surprise attack. Isn't it a lot like the sudden merger of Youku and Tudou? But the difference is that Wanda is still Wanda, and Rongchen will always be Rongchen."

"Starting today, Wanda Pictures will be the exclusive investor in all of Rong Chen's future projects!"

The crowd erupted in excitement, with one reporter shouting, "Mr. Wang! There are rumors that Wanda is acquiring Legendary Pictures in exchange for shares in Rongchen. Does this mean Wanda has abandoned its acquisition of Legendary Pictures?"

The powerful Wang retorted arrogantly, "You actually believe these rumors?"

The news of Li Chen and tycoon Wang announcing the share swap spread like wildfire, reaching every corner of the globe in an instant.

Wanda Cinema Line's stock price surged 10%, triggering a temporary trading halt that day.

As a result, Wanda Commercial's stock price also rose.

The onlookers, both inside and outside the entertainment industry, were stunned.

Zhang Ziyi almost cried tears of joy. She had always dreamed of marrying into a wealthy family, but it turns out that times have changed and her mother is the real wealthy one!

(End of this chapter)