Actor: Thank you.

The next day, Zhang Yuan and Gu Yongqiang had a meal together.

"How come your hair has changed so much in just a few days..." Boss Gu was startled when he saw him.

What happened...? Your hairline got promoted, it went up?

"I plucked some hair while filming a movie, playing Mr. Qian Xuesen."

Zhang Yuan touched the upper part of his forehead.

Actually, he was worried at first, after all, he was quite ruthless to himself.

But after only a few days of rest, some prickly tips of hair had already grown out, which reassured him a lot.

"Your hair seems to have changed too."

"It feels like I have more black hair now," Zhang Yuan joked.

Mr. Gu had premature gray hair; he had quite a few gray hairs in his twenties, and now in his forties or fifties, they are completely white.

"No way, last time I got a haircut, the stylist even asked me if I wanted an oil treatment."

"I think it's bad for your health. Hair dye contains lead, which can affect your brain."

Zhang Yuan thought for a moment. In the entertainment industry, especially female artists, they often perm and dye their hair. Could it be that this is why they are not very smart?

The other person looked very happy, so Zhang Yuan ordered a bottle of good wine and poured it for both of them.

"Mr. Gu, are you so happy because some of your competitors are weak and powerless, making you gloat?"

"No way, hahaha..."

They were so happy they could almost see their little tongues.

With its current paltry $7 million market capitalization, Tudou's financing capabilities are destined to be far inferior to Youku's.

It will only snowball from here on out, with the gap widening further and further.

This is what people often mean by "if you're slow at one step, you'll be slow at every step."

The craze for Chinese concept stocks in the US stock market has passed, and Tudou missed a historic window of opportunity.

"Mr. Gu, what are your plans for the future?"

"Are you asking as a partner or as a shareholder?" Boss Gu returned the question with a half-smile.

Zhang Yuan was in a good mood and very relaxed.

In addition, the recent role he played as Mr. Qian has left him with an extreme sense of self-confidence, bordering on arrogance.

Then he quoted Qian Lao's words.

"As Mr. Qian Xuesen said in his later years, China should not only have science and technology."

"It also needs art, music, sports, and culture."

Great people have a vision far beyond that of ordinary people.

There is no such thing as a debate between arts and sciences here, and people don't feel that they can't understand arts programs just because they are science students.

After all, his wife is a top artist.

Art, music, sports, and culture are soft power; they are the subtle, insidious weapons used to subtly influence the enemy after various weapons have been used to intimidate them.

One day, when the people of the beacon nation across the ocean also begin to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival and the Mid-Autumn Festival, then truly all under heaven will belong to the king.

This is why Americans are so determined to create TikTok.

"I believe that Youku should make strategic plans in music, culture, and sports."

Mr. Gu smiled again, but instead of answering my question, he directly stated his opinion, as experienced as ever.

“First and foremost, it’s music.” Zhang Yuan raised a finger.

“I think Youku can invite musicians to join and collaborate with TV stations to broadcast some music programs simultaneously.”

"There are also things like online concert live streaming."

"Just like when you broadcast Deyuanshe's crosstalk performances live."

Boss Gu nodded.

He knew that Zhang Yuan's strength lay in the fact that he didn't just talk in generalities, but always provided a solution.

However, the solutions he offers are mostly in his own best interest.

"Coincidentally, I started a performance company that collaborates with a large number of artists to organize concerts."

"Also, I'm in contact with major TV stations to organize a large-scale music variety show."

"I think we can cooperate on these two issues."

What did I say...? Boss Gu smiled and nodded in agreement.

"These are all things we can discuss. Let's find a time to have a meeting and talk about it."

"Regarding sports," Zhang Yuan continued, "I think Youku, as a platform, should acquire the online rights to broadcast some large-scale projects."

"However, basketball and football are very expensive, so we have to act within our means."

“I’ve considered it, but as you said, the cost is too high.” Boss Gu frowned slightly.

Especially the NBA broadcasting rights in North America.

The NBA today is full of stars, and the enthusiasm of domestic audiences was fueled by Yao Ming's joining a few years ago, making it a very popular market.

However, the annual copyright price is staggering.

Commercial sports are purely a market economy; foreigners come here to rip you off, take it or leave it.

They even look down on you Chinese people, saying you're unsophisticated and can't understand things.

“I can’t handle things in the NBA either,” Zhang Yuan thought for a moment.

"I can make contact with the racing team, but the domestic audience is actually quite limited. You should consider it yourself."

"I can get in touch with water sports, such as swimming and diving. If there are large-scale competitions, we can find a way."

When Boss Gu heard him say that, he remembered that he and Guo Jingjing were quite familiar with each other, and he understood what was going on.

Being a shareholder still works.

"There are also cultural projects. I think Youku has more original and exclusive works."

"The comedy genre of 'iPartment' is very good."

"Yes, the playback quality is excellent." Boss Gu beamed as he mentioned this.

"But 'iPartment' is a multi-platform production, broadcast both online and on television."

"What I mean is, we need to create some content that will only be broadcast online."

"The relationship between internet platforms and television stations is already undergoing subtle changes."

"Previously, TV stations had an absolute advantage, but now the copyright prices of internet platforms have skyrocketed. Our Youku has started this trend, and it is now unstoppable."

"I predict that this competition between new and old platforms will completely transform into a battle of offense and defense within three to five years!"

Zhang Yuan spoke with absolute certainty, his eyes burning with a fierce determination.

His domineering aura was palpable... Even Boss Gu was somewhat excited by his words.

Because it aligns with his thinking!
But executives and other shareholders within Youku felt he was too radical.

Now he's met someone even more radical than him, which gives him a feeling of meeting a kindred spirit.

"What you're saying is a bit of an exaggeration," Boss Gu replied maturely, suppressing his emotions.

"I don't think television stations will disappear, but their entertainment functions will shift to more convenient internet platforms."

"And in the future, internet platforms will shift towards mobile devices."

"Just like the iPad now, you can just hold it and watch, which is much more convenient than sitting in front of the TV, and there are more usage scenarios."

"Therefore, I think Uku should also speed up the development of its mobile client and increase its focus on it."

Boss Gu showed approval, but remained quite reserved and didn't say anything.

"Hey."

"I heard that you have a collaboration with Lei Jun and invested in his mobile phone company."

"Is it because of your view on mobile devices?"

"I guess so," Zhang Yuan said, not entirely truthfully.

Xiaomi itself is a piece of gold, but this one bite is enough to last a lifetime.

"Speaking back to culture, how interested are you in works exclusively streamed online?"

"We can talk," the other party replied, maintaining their previous stance.

"Okay, I'll take a look and give you a solution."

"Hehehe, speaking of which, I've recently been in contact with people from your former employer, Sohu."

"I've spotted a promising artist and want to bring him to Youku."

He was referring to greenhouses.

The wife of the farmer has already visited his company twice.

I had a few private conversations with Dunqi, who was already employed, and Huang Xiaomao, who was in charge of the performance company.

After learning more, this person also gained a completely new understanding of Zhang Yuan's abilities.

I don’t know, I’m scared.

With connections spanning a significant portion of the entertainment industry, his career is developing very rapidly.

The conversation went well, and Zhang Yuan was willing to offer quite good compensation.

He's definitely better than Zhang Chaoyang, that notoriously stingy guy, by a small margin.

And because the performance company is not yet very proficient in its business, he will be a "veteran" when he arrives.

These factors combined should theoretically make it very attractive.

But this is from Zhang Yuan's perspective.

People are different, and when he contacted the greenhouse again, he found that the other party was still very hesitant.

Zhang Yuan instinctively wanted to complain, but he suppressed his emotions. After hanging up the phone, he reflected on his actions.

What kind of women do I usually interact with?
Yang Siwei, Zeng Jia, Yang Mi, Du Hua... these women are all extremely career-driven.

She's so capable, she could practically split herself into three and do more than most men.

And everyone is like that.

Some are full of drive, while others are hesitant and timid.

For example, when Deyuan Society was recruiting new members, Teacher Guo and Wang Hui, with the ambition of becoming industry leaders, often visited the traditional performing arts community in Tianjin.

I've done this before. I met a young man in his early twenties who was exceptionally talented, and I took a liking to him.

If you want to bring them into the troupe, you can pay them the same performance fees as regular actors.

After the Deyuan Society experienced a shutdown, there was a salary increase, and those who worked for a full month could earn more than 10,000 yuan.

That's pretty good. The average salary in Tianjin is only a few dollars.

But people in the Tianjin folk art industry immediately found out about it.

Colleagues are enemies, especially in the performing arts, where there are the most bad people.

They found the child and threatened him.

You can go work for Guo Degang.

But there will be no place for you in Tianjin from now on. We will gang up on you and make sure you can't go home.

Forget about making a living at the theater now, someone will replace you right away!

The so-called "rice bowl" refers to performing at a small theater in Tianjin, with two shows a week and a monthly income of around a thousand yuan.

The difference between a month's salary of one thousand and a month's salary of ten thousand is tenfold.

Anyone from an outsider's perspective would surely say they'd choose the one costing over ten thousand.

But after some hesitation, they still chose the safer option.

There's nothing we can do about it; everyone has their own ambitions.

Just like when Ma Yun started her business, there was someone who had agreed to the deal, but after repeated hesitations, withdrew at the last minute and got their money back.

Some people are like Xiangzi the Camel, only seeing the rickshaw and the readily available food.

I felt uneasy when I had too much, so I wiped my nose and pushed it out.

The greenhouse is a bit like that; his wife and he are compatible in temperament.

As a married woman with children, she naturally seeks stability even more.

Zhang Yuan felt he had great potential, but others thought that was "unstable".

Sohu is much more stable; it's a listed company and an internet giant.

Just like during the reform and opening-up period, many people were quite proud of their secure jobs before being laid off, even though the factories were clearly not doing well and had gone through several rounds of layoffs.

But as long as they aren't laid off themselves, most people will not only feel fortunate, but some will even ridicule their former colleagues who have been laid off behind their backs.

Zhang Yuan sensed something was wrong from the other party's tone.

According to Dapeng, his wife wanted to take another look and learn more.

I've watched it several times already, and I know enough about it.

It's like buying a car; if you look at them all the time, you'll never actually place an order.

Knowing things are going badly, one must think of ways to change one's situation when faced with adversity.

He felt that things couldn't continue like this.

This is different from what happened with Teacher Guo. It doesn't matter that he lost a promising child; there are plenty of children in the troupe.

I'm eyeing the greenhouses!
We need to increase the intensity.

"Mr. Gu, I'd like to know more about this."

"You and Zhang Chaoyang are old acquaintances. What kind of person is he?"

After listening to his words, Gu Yongqiang lowered his head, rolled his eyelids a few times, and uttered a few words.

"Intelligent, hardworking, arrogant, and stubborn."

The reviews are mixed, with both positive and negative opinions.

This comes after the other party openly accused him of "stealing copyright" and launched a joint boycott.

If they don't swear and half of it is praise, that's already pretty good.

Zhang Yuan ignored the first part; the important thing was his shortcomings, namely arrogance and stubbornness.

"Okay." Zhang Yuan said after thinking for a moment.

"In that case, there's something I need your help with."

He gave a brief explanation.

The matter is actually not complicated.

Mr. Gu had worked at Sohu for many years and had many old friends there.

Previously, he had been in secret contact with the greenhouse and his wife, meeting them privately without ever affecting his work or revealing it.

Recruiting and poaching are kept secret in any industry; this is standard practice.

Now, Zhang Yuan intends to break this convention!

It's no longer a secret!

Let's take a break!
He asked Boss Gu to leak the information to the people at Sohu.

"What do you mean by doing this?"

"I'm not pretending anymore, I'm coming clean." Zhang Yuan spread his hands.

Can you help me?

“It’s not a big deal…” Gu Yongqiang pondered.

He seemed to have heard of this greenhouse.

But he's just a newcomer, not that important.

There's a saying: you never know which cloud will bring rain.

Could Guo and Yu have imagined that among all the kids in the troupe, the most popular one would be Yue Yunpeng?

It's all about timing, luck, and fate.

The greenhouse hasn't shown its full potential yet, so of course he can't see it.

Not to mention now, even after filming "Jianbing Man", many industry insiders believe that his success will be short-lived.

Therefore, Gu Yongqiang speculated that Zhang Yuan might be planning to use this person as a pawn to make me leak information and cause chaos at Sohu Video.
In any case, it is not detrimental to me, and may even be advantageous.

Boss Gu stroked his chin and pondered for a while. It wasn't too difficult; he could manage it.

He agreed.

"But remember, only mention that I want to recruit the other party's wife, don't mention Dapeng himself," Zhang Yuan specifically instructed.

"Why is this again?"

"Let's take it one step at a time."

Zhang Yuan picked up his glass of red wine and swirled it.

"These are minor matters; what I want to ask about next is the important one."

What are our future plans for Youku?

"Especially regarding the market share of video websites, what are the plans?"

Seeing his calm and collected demeanor, Boss Gu smiled again.

What are your thoughts?

Yes, and you?

"Also."

"How about we order something together and see if we're on the same page?"

"Okay."

They called over a waiter, exchanged glances, mouthed "one, two, three," and then spoke.

"Add some shredded potatoes." (2 of them!)

"Hahahaha!"

The two spoke in unison, then stood up and toasted.

The waiters were completely baffled.

what?
What are you two doing?

They were drinking wine that cost tens of thousands of yuan, and when they added shredded potatoes, they both shouted for it, and then laughed like idiots.

What's wrong with the brains of rich people?
"Gentlemen, you are both distinguished guests."

"I'll have the kitchen make you a plate of shredded potatoes and bring it to you directly." The waiter thought to himself, "I'll be generous this once and make the customer happy."

"No!" Zhang Yuan raised his hand.

"Don't send it."

"We want to buy it."

“Yes, we should buy it!” Gu Yongqiang agreed with a serious expression.

The waiter was even more bewildered, opening his mouth but not knowing what to say.

Why did delivering vegetables end up costing so much money...?

She didn't understand; potatoes were something she absolutely had to buy. (End of Chapter)