Rebirth of the King of Waves

Chapter 62: Defeat Before Defeat
"'Nezha 2' has surpassed 58 billion yuan at the box office, topping the all-time Chinese box office charts. This achievement directly boosted the market value of producer XX Media by 50 billion yuan in a single day. XX data shows that the film's first-week box office accounted for over 50% of the total Spring Festival box office, with a single-day peak of 8.67 million yuan, breaking the single-day box office record for animated films. Its potential box office is expected to reach 87 billion yuan, potentially making it the first Chinese-language film to top the global animation box office chart..."

"The reason behind 'Nezha 2' breaking 50 billion yuan at the box office is the meticulously polished production of over 1900 special effects shots. Scenes like the lava flow and shattered barriers were achieved through multi-layered physics simulations, with a single-shot special effects cache of up to 10TB. The IMAX 3D version further ignited audiences with its immersive experience. One cinema in southern China scheduled 99 screenings in a single day, prompting audiences to exclaim, 'The cinema is like the Spring Festival travel rush!'"

"The Spring Festival box office saw a significant polarization, with 'Nezha 2' being the sole box office winner. Films like 'X-God Part Two' and 'Operation X-Dragon' fell far short of expectations, sending investor stock prices plummeting. XXX, Vice President of the China Film Association, noted that audiences are increasingly demanding content quality, and that audiences and the market will ultimately vote with their feet. XX Securities stated that while 'Nezha 2' brought high returns to investors, the volatility of the financial market may still pose risks, and urged investors to remain cautious and avoid blindly following trends..."

February 6, 2025, the ninth day of the lunar calendar.

9:35 AM…

Guo Chen opened his mouth wide and sat in front of the computer in a daze, as if he was petrified.

Five minutes ago, he glanced at XX Media's stock price and immediately closed the webpage. He felt as if if he looked at it any longer, a Ning Bishu would crawl out of the screen along the network cable and force a pile of rice into his mouth.

His scalp was tingling and his heart was beating wildly.

It's not about accepting Ning Bishu's victory.

But I really can't accept that Ning Bishu could win so outrageously.

The box office has exceeded 60 billion in 9 days...

Are you all fucking sick?
Spending so much money to watch a cartoon?!
Guo Chen could not accept the market's reaction, which was even greater than his hatred for Ning Bishu.

"It's over. China's market aesthetics are hopeless..."

He shivered and took out a cigarette and lit it.

My whole body was cold and my head was sweating.

He spent a long time browsing the news online, but all he found were compliments.

There were some opposing voices a few days ago.

For example, Guo Chen thought the blog post that said "Nezha 2" plagiarized Japanese animation was very reasonable and secretly forwarded it.

But when I opened it again just now, I found that the original blog post had been deleted.

The comment section below the post he forwarded was full of curses.

Some even brought Ning Bishu along, scolding Guo Chen so much that his eyelids were twitching.

"You're bound to lose, and at most you're just crazy. Lawyer Guo, you're truly evil. Don't you have any idea how far you've come?"

"I'm on Ning Bishu's side this time. Even though he's a scumbag, at least he's got no problem with the big issues."

"One thing that makes Guo Chen worse than Ning Bishu is that this lunatic Ning Bishu is truly patriotic and willing to risk his life for his country, but Guo Chen's betrayal is petty and unwise. He doesn't even know how to hedge his bets. I'm guessing Guo Chen definitely didn't buy XX Media."

"I guess Guo Chen will eventually be filled with jealousy as he watches Ning Bishu win everything. Including the stock market, including their bet. Maybe even people's hearts."

Guo Chen only read four or five of them when his heart suddenly began to beat fast.

Every word I said to Mu Shanming yesterday turned into a slap in the face.

On the other hand, looking at Ning Bishu...

Guo Chen clicked on Ning Bishu's blog with shaking hands.

I haven't seen Ning Bishu for a few days, but his number of fans has already exceeded 20...

The number of fans is even more than Guo Chen!

Moreover, looking around the comment section, Guo Chen was filled with compliments that made him feel extremely irritated.

"I'm convinced by Brother Fu's move. A patriot must be loved by others."

"Brother Fu, I want to apologize for the words I cursed you in my heart a few days ago. You are right, 'Nezha 2' is the best movie in the world! I invested 20 yesterday morning and have made over 8 today."

"God of Stocks, please accept my knees."

"Although today has just begun, I can't help but look forward to tomorrow. Master, will the price continue to rise tomorrow?" "I can't buy in, what should I do?"

"Guo Chen, please eat shit."

"Fuck!" Guo Chen was furious. He grabbed the phone high up, shivered twice, and then put it down gently.

Cell phones are innocent.

"These idiots, these idiots, don't they know they're being used? You idiots, if you don't buy, how will the stock price go up? If you don't watch, how will the box office be high? Alpaca! Alpaca! Alpaca!"

Guo Chen cursed angrily.

Suddenly, his cell phone rang. Guo Chen picked it up and yelled, "Alpaca!"

On the other end of the phone, Lu Xueqian was stunned. "Guo Chen, what are you crazy about?"

When Guo Chen heard this voice, he calmed down in an instant and said quickly: "Boss Lu, I'm not talking about you!"

"I know!" Lu Xueqian said unhappily, "Who are you talking to?"

"I..." Guo Chen paused, "I was just playing games..."

"Even playing games requires some refinement!" Lu Xueqian complained, then added gravely, "How's the box office for 'Nezha 2' these days?"

Guo Chen couldn't help but wonder, "Don't you know?"

Lu Xueqian replied unhappily, "Don't talk about it. I was robbed as soon as I left. I just got a new passport from the embassy today. I just bought a new phone and I was planning to come back today."

"No wonder you haven't even posted on your Moments these days..." Guo Chen muttered.

"What about the box office?" Lu Xueqian immediately pressed anxiously, "I heard from the embassy that the box office is very good. How good is it?"

Guo Chen hesitated, "It's probably not that great. Oh, by the way, I suspect Ning Bishu used the stocks from our bet as a second mortgage. Yesterday, he posted on Weibo and borrowed another 6000 million!"

"6000 million?!" Lu Xueqian screamed, "What does he want to do?"

Guo Chen immediately said, "He's obviously crazy! Mr. Lu! I don't think we need to talk to him about the rules. He broke the rules first. Even if he wins this time, we don't have to fulfill any promises!"

Lu Xueqian thought for a moment and said, "Let's not talk about this for now. What if he loses? 6000 million plus the previous 2000 million..."

When Guo Chen heard this, his eyes, which were full of hostility, suddenly lit up again.

Yes!

If Ning Bishu loses, according to the bet, should he lose the same amount as the amount in his account?
"Then I'll post the bet again and let netizens testify."

"It doesn't matter whether he testifies or not. We have it in black and white, and it's been notarized. If he changes his mind, we can just take legal action. If the box office really does exceed 120 billion, and his stock market returns are abnormal, we can also demand compensation for breach of contract according to the agreement. Even if it's only 10%, that's still millions. You don't have to worry about any penalties in the bet anymore."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Guo Chen nodded repeatedly, "Ning Bishu is losing no matter what!"

After ending the call excitedly, Guo Chen felt relieved.

Then after thinking about it, he called Mu Shanming again.

In the Hechen Law Firm's office, Mu Shanming stared at the long, large bullish candlestick on his computer screen, feeling frustrated that he still couldn't buy anything today. As he answered the phone, he heard Guo Chen excitedly say, "Lawyer Mu, President Lu said Ning Bishu breached the contract first. This bet doesn't count! We can even make him pay a penalty!"

"Liquidated damages?"

"Yeah! At least make him pay a few million! He'll vomit whatever he eats!"

Mu Shanming listened to Guo Chen's words and looked at the picture on the computer.

I couldn't help but think secretly: "If the picture Ning Bishu posted yesterday about adding 6000 million to his holdings is true, then the amount he has taken in this time must be tens of millions, and it's hard to stop..."

(End of this chapter)