Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 244 It's all about profit.
Seeing that his fiancée was distracted, mechanically stirring her rice with her chopsticks, Song Ci softly comforted her:
"Shishi, eat your meal in peace. It's nothing, don't worry. After you finish eating, come with me for a walk to help with digestion."

Thinking to myself that my daughter Liu is still young and inexperienced, and is a little flustered because this is the first time she has encountered such a thing, I will understand that such Weibo denunciations are completely useless when she grows up in a few years and becomes a top-tier actress born in 85.

Liu Shishi nodded, calming herself down. She also felt that the online commotion shouldn't affect her and Song Ci's lives. After all, eating is the most important thing.

But in an instant, she looked at Mr. Song pitifully, her tone tinged with a hint of resentment: "Yiyi, I'm on a diet, but I gained 5 pounds from visiting relatives and friends and attending all sorts of banquets during the Spring Festival."

Song Ci smiled slightly and placed a piece of tender veal in Miss Liu's bowl:

"I'll start dieting after this meal. Even female celebrities need to maintain their figure and ensure a healthy diet. Besides, being a little muscular is fine too; fans will still like it."

"Strong and robust?" Liu Shishi muttered, her face full of doubt. Who would use this word to describe a female celebrity? But Song Ci didn't seem to be talking about herself. She felt that her fiancé's words were somewhat strange.

The young couple were enjoying their dinner in peace and harmony when Huang Shengyi's lengthy accusation on Weibo caused a huge uproar.

Although the article did not name names, Huang Shengyi's descriptions were so detailed that netizens quickly discovered she was referring to Liu Shishi.

Seeing how confidently she spoke, netizens immediately believed her, as if they were witnessing a beautiful woman weeping and looking pitiful.

Many male fans who were obsessed with her looks were indignant and claimed they would help her get an explanation.

Huang Shengyi rose to fame with her role as the mute girl in the movie "Kung Fu Hustle," and in 07 she starred in the hit drama "The Fairy Couple." Her popularity has remained high in the past two years, and she still has quite a few fans.

Fans and onlookers flocked to Liu Shishi's Weibo, and the comment section was instantly flooded with messages demanding an explanation from her.

Some radical male fans even cursed and shouted that Liu Shishi must apologize to Huang Shengyi.

At this moment, the Donghai Tangren Film and Television Company was brightly lit, and the public relations team, which was not usually busy, was working overtime.

Cai Yinong was sitting in his office, browsing Weibo posts about the "Number One Sister," his brow furrowed, sensing the fierce momentum of this wave.

"Mr. Cai, something terrible has happened!" The office door was ajar, and the secretary rushed in, breathless, and said:

"President Cai, Lin Yichen, An Yixuan, and several leading actresses from the drama 'Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre' have just posted on Weibo to support Huang Shengyi."

"They're targeting Senior Sister both openly and covertly. Now that the casting controversy has become a trending topic, netizens who are unaware of the facts are outraged, and public opinion is very unfavorable to us."

Upon hearing this, Cai Yinong felt a headache coming on. Sure enough, things were developing in the worst possible direction, just as she had predicted.

As the saying goes, "three men can make a tiger" and "many mouths can melt metal." When multiple people attack at the same time, it is very detrimental to the image and reputation of the leading lady.

Knock knock knock! At this moment, Hu Ge knocked on the office door and entered, getting straight to the point:
"Sister K, I've heard about what happened. Should I call Yichen and Yixuan and try to persuade them? This has nothing to do with them. Let's all try to keep things peaceful."

Cai Yinong shook his head, his expression grave: "Things aren't that simple. Huang Shengyi may be resentful and using this as an excuse, but Lin Yichen and An Yixuan are after me and Tangren Media. They won't give up until they achieve their goal."

Hu Ge sat down at her desk, her face serious upon hearing the question: "Sister K, what exactly is going on?"

Cai Yinong sighed, leaned back in his chair, and looked out the window at the brightly lit yet turbulent city nightscape.

"In its early days, Tangren relied on the support of Hong Kong and Taiwan capital. The company's production team consisted of Hong Kong teams brought over by directors like Li and Liang. Therefore, the company used Hong Kong and Taiwan artists for its films in the first few years."

Whether considering the influence of capital or the habits, resources, and connections of the production team, this is an inevitable choice.

“But things have changed in the last two years.” Cai Yinong sat up slightly, a hint of determination flashing in his eyes. “Because of Shishi’s appearance and her own outstanding performance, I saw the possibility for Tangren Media to break free from the constraints of Hong Kong and Taiwan capital, and I also saw a new direction for development.”

Therefore, I intend to align myself with Tengda Culture. This is a completely new endeavor, and it's also for the long-term development of Tangren Media. That's why the company hasn't used any Hong Kong or Taiwan artists in its last two dramas.

This change undoubtedly affected some groups who originally relied on Tangren Media to use Hong Kong and Taiwan artists for profit. They couldn't sit still and took this opportunity of Huang Shengyi's attack to show their defiance against me.

If they can use this incident to impact the career of the company's top female star and force me to continue using Hong Kong and Taiwanese actresses, then that would be ideal for them.

“There’s one more thing,” Cai Yinong paused, “Shishi’s rapid rise has undoubtedly squeezed the advancement space for other new generation actresses.”

Lin Yichen and An Yixuan felt a bit resentful seeing how well Shishi had developed and surpassed them.

Ultimately, the entertainment industry is a battle for interests. Driven by profit, they chose to help Huang Shengyi launch an attack, attempting to suppress Shishi and secure more opportunities and resources for themselves.

"So that's the deeper reason."

Hu Ge seemed to be deep in thought. Unlike male artists, actresses don't become more popular as they get older. A female star's prime lasts only about ten years. If she can't make it when she's young and beautiful, it's very difficult for her to become popular again later.

"This can be considered a tribulation for Tangren Media and Shishi's advancement. Once they get through this, Tangren will completely sever ties with Hong Kong and Taiwan capital, and Shishi will be able to step over the likes of Huang Shengyi and Lin Yichen to reach the top tier."

After speaking, Cai Yi-nong fell into deep thought, considering how to deal with the unseen alliance between several companies.

Before Tangren Media and Liu Shishi could respond, the fan group of the top star had already exploded, with fans as anxious as ants on a hot pan.

"Why hasn't my sister come forward to clarify yet? Senior Sister is beautiful and kind-hearted, and always gentle. I don't believe she would steal someone else's role."

"Where's the group owner? Where are the administrators? Go ask Shishi what's going on!"

"I can't help but laugh when I see Huang Shengyi's blog post." A veteran fan analyzed, "Shishi has been in the industry since 04, and she knows exactly how she got every role in every drama."

It goes without saying that Tangren Media produces dramas; Shishi is the company's top star, so it's only natural that she acts in her own company's productions. Other notable productions include "Hello, Old Times" and "A Little Thing Called First Love," both produced by Tengda Culture. Wang Luodan and Lü Yi from Tengda have already filmed the first two installments of the Zhenhua series, and they can't repeat roles, so there's no question of them "stealing" roles from Tengda artists. As for "A Little Thing Called First Love," it involved open auditions and fair competition.

As for the matter of outshining someone else, I just want to say that you can't tell the truth in this world. Anyone with eyes can see that Shishi is the most outstanding among all the actresses in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber."

"What's the deal with 'The Founding of a Republic'? Huang Shengyi doesn't seem to be lying."

"Are you stupid? You believe what she says? Huang Shengyi has a criminal record. Back then, she had a falling out with Stephen Chow and pretended to be weak and pitiful in order to terminate her contract."

Ultimately, netizens uncovered that she had secretly accepted a contract with Men's Health magazine, violating the long-term development plan set by her agency. She had to pay 600 million yuan to terminate the contract.

Just as everyone was discussing it, a fan suddenly sent a message: "Sisters, breaking news, the director of 'The Founding of a Republic' has come forward to clarify that it was not Shishi who stole the role."

After saying this, the fan also posted a screenshot in the group, which was the director's clarification post.

Huang Jianxin v: As the director of "The Founding of a Republic", I feel it is necessary to clarify the widely publicized controversy surrounding the casting dispute.

The production team did initially intend to cast Huang Shengyi as the announcer, but Huang Shengyi initially indicated that her schedule might conflict, as she needed to go to Hollywood in February to participate in "Adventures of Wushan".

There aren't many opportunities for domestic actors to develop their careers in Hollywood. As a senior in the industry, I've always supported young people venturing into Hollywood. In order not to hinder Huang Shengyi's career development, I later decided to invite Liu Shishi to play the role of the announcer.

It's unclear how the staff communicated, but this caused a misunderstanding. As a result, the production team compensated Huang Shengyi with a new role.

So I think Huang Shengyi misunderstood; there was no question of her trying to steal the role. Besides, who would try to steal a minor supporting role that only has a few seconds of screen time?

The fans were immediately relieved when they saw the director's explanation.

"I knew it! How could Shishi possibly steal a role? Huang Shengyi didn't have the time, yet she blamed Shishi. She's trying to have her cake and eat it too. There's no such thing as a free lunch."

"Who is Huang Jianxin? Wasn't Han Sanping the director of 'The Founding of a Republic'?"

"You don't even know Huang Jianxin? He's a national first-class director and the president of the Directors Association. How could it be fake when such a big shot in the industry comes forward to clarify things for Shishi!"

"New scoop! I just saw Director Huang mention 'Adventures of Wushan,' so I specifically went online to check it out. It's hilarious; apparently, Huang Shengyi only has a few seconds of screen time in this big Hollywood production, without even a single line."

"The case is solved. It must be that Huang initially wanted to go to Hollywood to make a movie, so he said he was unavailable. Who knew it would be a minor supporting role that could probably be filmed in a day? So he came back to continue filming 'The Founding of a Republic,' but the crew had already given the role to Shishi, so he was resentful."

"Sisters, stop chatting, let's fight on Weibo!" a fan shouted, raising her arms. "Look at the fighting power of 'Little Lion'! They're bullying my Shishi, do they even want us to?"

At first, before Tangren Media and Liu Shishi had made their appearance, fans were hesitant to act. But now that Huang Jianxin, a heavyweight figure, had clarified things, the fans' fighting spirit exploded. They rallied their friends and stormed Weibo, ready to seek justice for their idol.

As night deepened, Huang Jianxin, a renowned director in the film and television industry, was engrossed in drawing storyboards for the script at the hotel where the "Founding of a Republic" crew was staying.

His son, Huang Lei, sat to one side, fiddling with his laptop, typing away rapidly: "Dad, I've published the blog post as you requested."

Huang Jianxin said, stopping what he was doing, placing the pencil on the drawing, glancing at his son, who looked hesitant and puzzled.

"Ask whatever you want."

Huang Lei poured out all his questions at once: "Dad, as far as I know, this matter has nothing to do with you at all. Why did you post this clarification blog post that is obviously biased?"

Huang Jianxin closed the sketch, looked at his son calmly, and patiently explained: "The decision to change the actor was made by your Uncle Han, but his status is obviously not suitable for him to get involved in this turmoil, so I stepped in to resolve it."

"But I think that even if you don't get involved, Dad, this matter won't affect the production team, and no one would dare to involve the production team. In the end, it's just a conflict between two actresses. Why get involved in this mess?"

Huang Jianxin shook his head slightly, his eyes revealing a hint of elder wisdom and depth: "You're still a bit green. Why do you think your Uncle Han would give up this role? There must have been his reasons."

Now that things have taken a turn for the worse, the matter is no longer considered settled and needs to be resolved. In the entertainment industry, a single move can have far-reaching consequences; a small decision by someone in a position of power can involve the interests and relationships of many parties.

So you can't just look at things on the surface, otherwise why would Uncle Han have given the role to Liu Shishi? However, Huang Shengyi's dissatisfaction and trouble-making were unexpected.

Huang Lei scratched his head, still only vaguely understanding what his father was saying, his face full of confusion.

The renowned director glanced at Huang Lei. His son certainly had talent for directing, but he needed to hone his interpersonal skills. But that didn't matter; he could still work for a few more years, and he'd give him another push.

“You stay by my side and learn well during this time. After the filming of ‘The Founding of a Republic’ is completed, you will report to Tengda Culture. I have already spoken with Teng Huatao. You will work as his assistant director for two years.”

"Dad, why go to the trouble of going to such lengths? Can't I just study by your side?" Huang Lei asked, looking displeased.

"Silly child, this is the economic age. Movies are all about box office revenue. The methods your father used back then don't work anymore."

Huang Jianxin earnestly said, "It's beneficial to connect with giants like Tengda Culture and Huayi. First, good relationships make it easier to attract investment. Second, you can learn new concepts and operating models. All of these will benefit your future development."

And why do you think I'm lowering myself to stand up for Liu Shishi? Her identity is far from simple. This isn't just helping your Uncle Han with a small favor; it's also my pledge to get you into Tengda Culture. You'll understand everything I'm doing today in two years.”

Feeling his father's good intentions, Huang Lei nodded solemnly: "I understand, Dad. After I go to Tengda Culture, I will definitely follow Director Teng and learn diligently."

Seeing that Huang Lei understood his good intentions, Huang Jianxin was comforted. His son was indeed good in this respect; he was not rebellious and listened to advice.

The purpose of my actions today must be clear to that Boss Song. He will probably ask his subordinates to take care of my son so that Huang Lei's future development will be smoother.

(End of this chapter)