A grand feast for the Chinese entertainment industry

Chapter 173 Tough
"Before we can truly experience the beauty of snowflakes blooming, if we tremble together, we will understand even more what gentleness truly means..."

In the recording studio, Wang Fei sang with her arms half-open and her eyes completely closed, completely absorbed in the song.

"stop!"

The accompaniment stopped quickly. Wang Fei, who was in the studio, opened her eyes and looked over through the glass. Lin Jianlu pressed the call button. "You're having some issues today, sis. What did I just say? Forgot? I told you, that strained tone in your voice, no! Use less breath support!"

Having produced two and a half albums for himself and also produced "Chasing the Light" for Chen Shuhua, all of which have been released and sold extremely well, reaching the top of their respective markets, Lin Jianlu has accumulated over a year of practical experience. Clearly, he is no longer the naive newcomer he once was.

My experience has grown, my skills have improved, and my understanding of the market and my grasp of music have also increased.

Of course, my temper has also grown a bit.

But Wang Fei is a very individualistic person, especially when it comes to singing; she has her own ideas.

So stubborn!
In fact, she has been much more submissive lately, and she has almost stopped saying things like "get lost" or "go to hell" to Lin Jianlu. It's hard to say whether it's a mixture of respect and fear or just pure respect, but she is now more "polite" and "well-behaved" towards Lin Jianlu.

Ha, if you really think that Faye Wong is the kind of person who is arrogant and doesn't care about anyone, you'd be very wrong. In the Hong Kong entertainment industry, which is quite exclusive, you can't make a name for yourself just by having a good voice.

That day, she stood up for Nayoung and said something a bit too much. Leslie Cheung scolded her on the spot, as if he had suddenly woken her up. He said that friends can continue to joke and fool around with each other, but you shouldn't stand up for others casually. Even if you do stand up, you shouldn't do it as an equal.

That person became famous, a global sensation. Fame is fame!
Friendships formed in poverty and hardship are hard to come by, and should not be wasted on trivial matters, especially not on rash words.

Of course, she is still herself, "but I feel..."

"Which do you think is more important, or do I think?"

It was just a song, and there was clearly no problem with it a long time ago. She knew exactly what effect Lin Jianlu wanted, but she just wouldn't sing it that way. Even though Lin Jianlu was good at controlling her temper and had a good personality in public, she started to get annoyed.

He spoke very rudely.

Wang Fei bit her lip, gesturing with her hands, trying hard to suppress her temper and avoid escalating the conflict. "I mean, I don't want to make this song too weak, even though it's a love song..."

Lin Jianlu took off his monitoring headphones, stood up, tossed them onto the device, and turned to leave.

Everyone in the room was completely stunned.

Ge Fuhong stood up immediately, looked at Wang Fei in the shed in surprise, then at Lin Jianlu who strode over, opened the door and left. She turned around, pressed her palm down behind her, and then chased after him immediately.

Not to mention that Lin Xilei was previously abandoned by Zhang Aijia in America and was responsible for relaying information while she was away from North America, even if Lin Xilei comes back, as long as Lin Jianlu is in Hong Kong, she is willing to put aside all her business and come over to work with him—even if it's just sitting there.

In the recording studio, Wang Fei angrily slammed her hand on the microphone hanging in front of her, but quickly lowered her head in dejection.

This was her first album after switching to EMI Records, and she naturally attached great importance to it. Out of friendship, Lin Jianlu wrote two songs for her and also agreed to come and help with the production. Everyone at EMI Records, including herself, cherished this opportunity to collaborate. However, she had been living too comfortably in her last few years at Cinepoly Records. Whether it was song selection or production, almost no one could control her. In the end, she basically followed her own ideas about making music completely. In fact, the sales were average. Compared to the brilliant situation she had achieved before, her sales were declining in the last year or two at Cinepoly.

She's very individualistic and has a lot of fun, but she's becoming less and less commercial.

She was well aware of the significance of the two songs Lin Jianlu wrote for her, and she genuinely liked both of them very much. She also knew the amount of production Lin Jianlu had overseen, and even more so that the success of her first album with her new label after receiving a huge signing bonus would directly impact her career.

The version of "Wings of Light" that Lin Jianlu helped her with before made her feel like she wanted to kneel down on the spot—it was several levels better than the version that she and Zhang Yadong discussed and made!
But... she just wouldn't accept it!
She couldn't help but try to convince Lin Jianlu with her own ideas.

But now, it's clear they've gone too far.

The atmosphere in the recording studio became tense for a moment. When Wang Fei opened the door and came out, Zhang Yadong said a few words of comfort but didn't dare to say anything else. Soon, the general manager of EMI Records came running over after hearing the news. After finding out what happened, he was also a bit overwhelmed. Of course, they had high hopes for Wang Fei, otherwise they wouldn't have spent such a large sum of money on signing fees. But no matter how big Wang Fei was, he wasn't as big as Lin Jianlu. Lin Jianlu was the king of Billboard!
The next step is to reach the level of a global pop icon!
But there was nothing they could do; even making a phone call required waiting a while, so everyone just sat down, drank some water, and waited. After a while, Wang Fei's phone rang. It was Ge Fuhong calling, "Fei, you shouldn't have been so disobedient. It wasn't easy for him to agree to make something for someone else; it was out of consideration for your friendship!"

Although no one, from Zhang Yadong to the CEO of EMI, said anything to Wang Fei, she immediately and decisively bowed her head, saying, "It's my fault. I didn't mean to make him angry!"

Ge Fuhong hummed in agreement. "He's in a bad mood right now, so I didn't dare to advise him. Let's wait a few days! You two can do other things first. You're good friends with him, so just call him and apologize in a couple of days!"

Wang Fei immediately nodded, "Okay!"

Proud as she is, she also knows that she has absolutely no confidence to challenge them.

Besides, the song was already requested, and it was such a stunning piece. We asked them to produce it, and now that they're being disobedient and have driven us away, what right do we have to challenge them?
"Hong Gu...should I call him now?"

"No way! You know him, he loves chasing girls more than work and making money! He only made time for you today, and now you've made him so angry, he definitely won't want to talk to you for the next few days. Let's do it in a few days!"

"Going out to pick up girls?"

"I don't know, that's not my place to ask. Anyway... I made plans to have dinner with someone!"

…………

Ge Fuhong is using a smokescreen.

Even her best friends wouldn't easily reveal to them what Lin Jianlu was doing.

In fact, there was a lunch party scheduled for today.

Lin Jianlu unusually dined with brand representatives—he treated seven brands, including Coca-Cola, BMW, and McDonald's, all at once. This was because these companies had begun filing lawsuits in the past few days.

Newspapers and radio stations are essentially profit-making organizations, and news is also for making money. Mass-market consumer brands like Coca-Cola spend a huge amount of money on advertising every year, no matter where they are sold, which is basically feeding the money to spokespeople and media organizations.

Lin Jianlu's image as the brand ambassador was attacked. Ge Fuhong strongly demanded that all major brands take action. Considering that Lin Jianlu's value has recently increased rather than decreased, and that he is gradually becoming a global pop star, all major brands chose to bow to Ge Fuhong's demands and began to put pressure on various media outlets.

Major newspapers, radio stations, and television stations are all easy to deal with. They have huge cooperation volumes every year. It's just a matter of changing their tune. It's not like they're not allowed to report on Lin Jianlu. There are plenty of positive news stories about him that can be reported!

So it was easy to suppress those things.

Small newspapers and radio stations are actually easy to deal with. They didn't have much advertising cooperation to begin with, so we can just sign a small contract. How much is your annual turnover, you small newspaper? How much can you earn? Now I'll just sign you up for a year of advertising space, a few hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars at most—quickly shut up!
Many small newspapers and radio stations immediately gave in.

But publications like Entertainment Express, with their two major exposés—one about two beauties in New York, and the other about Lin Qingxia's private life in the capital and her pregnancy—have made a fortune. They wouldn't even consider a few hundred thousand dollars in advertising fees—the more you have to go against the grain, the greater the reward! Other publications dare not report on it, but we keep going, selling an extra 30,000 copies a day!
Alright then, let's make an example of them!

It's too unbecoming for celebrities to sue for things like privacy violations and defamation. Let the companies handle it. Each company has a law firm they've worked with for many years, and they're mostly high-end local firms. These days, everyone's got a stack of "Entertainment Express" in their hands, sifting through the pages for loopholes.

There are many!
The smaller the tabloid, the more it needs to pursue novelty and quirkiness to attract readers to buy the paper. It is impossible for it to strictly control the content. Some reports are random, unfounded, or slanderous. They will take the initiative to contact the victims and say, "We can help you with your lawsuit, no charge!"

Especially... sigh, it was just an ordinary traffic accident, it had nothing to do with the mechanical quality of my BMW, and there was nothing wrong with the car. What do you mean by frequently mentioning my BMW being involved in the accident in your report?
Slander! Damaging my brand image!

I'm telling you!

Furthermore, you say Coca-Cola has a high sugar content, that's fine—it's listed on my ingredient list. You say eating too much sugar is bad for your health, that's also true; modern scientific research supports that. But what the hell do you mean by saying a certain patient died suddenly because they drank too much Coca-Cola? You didn't say it directly, but you kept mentioning that the deceased loved drinking Coca-Cola. What does that mean? They ate and drank water every day, why don't you mention that? Why are you specifically mentioning Coca-Cola?

Slander! Damaging my brand image!

I'm telling you!

And so on. There are countless vulnerabilities!
So, it started a few days ago and will continue. Each brand has been assigned a task, and the law firms that have been cooperating with us for many years, which receive so much money every year, are now putting in their efforts. We must strive to ensure that Entertainment Express, as a pioneer, can maintain a record of responding to more than 30 lawsuits at the same time all year round!

If we win a case, we'll take tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of their money!

Until they go bankrupt!

Of course! We'll set up a table for drinks and invite all the brand representatives.

Many senior lawyers from the law firm also came. They were all very polite to the big star and took the initiative to be friendly.

Easterners and Chinese people are not particularly fond of litigation by nature and custom, but Americans love to litigate. They will sue for anything. Although we are a Hong Kong law firm, I studied in the UK and he studied in the US. We have international practice licenses, so we can also litigate in America!
Compared to Americans, aren't our own people more trustworthy?

Oh my...

Let's drink! If I need anything in the future, I'll definitely consider you all first!

After drinking until past 2 a.m., everyone was completely drunk by Lin Jianlu. I remember watching short videos in my past life, and many bloggers said that Hong Kong people are extremely efficient and that no one cares about relationships, and there are no annoying drinking parties or social gatherings. I can't believe it!
Even in your great America, there are drinking parties everywhere!

In Hong Kong, a group of wealthy women have been eyeing Lin Jianlu ever since he became famous. According to Ge Fuhong, the black market price has reached five million. If someone can invite Lin Jianlu to have a meal and a drink, the wealthy women are willing to give five million for his appearance fee. If they are willing to sleep with him, then they can name their own price!
Currently, his market value is the highest, surpassing Leon Lai's four million, who has almost dominated the charts for the past few years!

On his way home after finishing his drinks, he received another call from Shi Nansheng, inviting him to play cards. He was reluctant to go, but Shi Nansheng seemed to have something in mind. They were old friends, and she was especially close to Zhang Aijia and Lin Qingxia. After thinking about it, he had the car turn around and drove to the teahouse where they often gathered to play cards.

When they arrived, they discovered it was yet another "Third Mother Teaches Her Son" session.

They had met before at a card game and were acquainted, but this time, Shi Nansheng still introduced them again seriously, "Ye Quanzhen and Cong Shan, you've met them before, they're my friends. I know you already have a lot of movies filming in mainland China, and now you're starting to film in Hong Kong too. I specially invited you here today in the hope that you can take care of them when there's a suitable opportunity in the future!"

Although she had drunk quite a bit, Lin Jianlu didn't easily take the bait. "Hey! You're really good at making fun of people! Xu Ke is such a big director, and you're such a famous producer, why would you ask me to help you out?"

Shi Nansheng laughed, but also said very seriously, "No! Their situations are special. Xu Ke and I want to take care of them, but we can't really do it! But I also feel it's a real pity for them. It's a waste that they don't have any acting opportunities!"

It was only after talking that I learned that Cong Shan had become famous after filming "The Herdsman" when she was in college. After graduating from college, she joined a drama troupe, but she had no plays to rehearse or film for many years, and was very frustrated. Later, she went abroad and lived in France for five years as a student, but she had no income and almost went hungry. She then married a Frenchman, but later found that the Frenchman was extremely unreliable. After only one month of marriage, they divorced in a flash.

Then, life continued in hardship.

Later, by chance, she met Shi Nansheng, who was traveling in France at the time. They hit it off. In the latter half of 93, Taiwan's CTV was going to film "The Legend of Empress Dowager Cixi". Shi Nansheng happened to be in Taiwan and was invited to a dinner party. The producer of the show, Zhou Linggang, was also a guest. When talking about actors, Shi Nansheng recommended Cong Shan.

Ultimately, two actresses from mainland China played the lead and second lead roles in that Taiwanese drama.

Cong Shan plays Empress Dowager Cixi, and He Qing plays Empress Dowager Ci'an.

In 94, thanks to Shi Nansheng's connections, she was recommended to join Hong Kong's Star Chinese Channel, where she worked as a host for about two years. During this time, again through Shi Nansheng's recommendation, she also starred in an ATV drama called "Fist of Fury," alongside Donnie Yen and Joey Meng.

Last year, she lost her job, supposedly because she was constantly harassed in the workplace. She couldn't stand the harassment and couldn't stand it anymore, so she resigned. But then she had no acting opportunities—the entire Hong Kong film industry was cutting back on production. Even old acquaintances and friends were busy, and eight people were vying for one role. The real big shots were all trying to find ways to get out and make money in America. With only a few films being made, how could she possibly get a role?

And so, she was trapped here again.

Ye Quanzhen fared slightly better. Born in 87, she became famous at the age of eighteen. Moreover, being from Taiwan, she had better resources. She went on to film "Island of Fire" starring Cheng Long, Sammo Hung, Leung Ka-fai, and Andy Lau, "Shaolin Popeye 2: Messy Temple" with Ng Man-tat, and "Legend of the Fire Cloud" with Brigitte Lin. She could get roles in both Hong Kong and Taiwan productions, acting in both movies and TV series. She played supporting roles in big productions and even tried her hand at leading roles in smaller productions.

She was once quite popular and had a good rapport with the audience.

However, she has a rather strong personality and is "difficult to work with." She is not very popular, and once she works with someone, most people are unwilling to work with her again. Even when she plays the lead role in a drama, it doesn't sell well. So, in 1995, she suddenly stopped being popular, and suddenly no one was looking for her anymore.

Two unemployed!

Well, when talking about actors, especially actresses, it's impossible not to ask about their age. Cong Shan was born in 1962 and is 35 years old this year. Although she is still beautiful and even has a mature charm that many young actresses cannot have, 35 years old is an extremely awkward age for an actress!

Ye Quanzhen was born in 1969, seven years younger than Cong Shan. She's also very beautiful, and clearly has a cool, aloof look, which gives her a certain air. But she's already 28. Without anyone to support her, and unable to smoothly transition to art films to broaden her acting range, at this age, isn't she destined to be discarded? There are so many beautiful, obedient young women with low pay, appearing one after another every year. So, when I'm making commercial films, I'll definitely choose young, beautiful new faces! To keep things fresh for the audience each time!

You're not Xia Yufang Hong!

Don't even mention them. Chen Hong was very popular when she filmed "Plum Blossom Trilogy: Between Water and Clouds"! And that was several years ago. At that time, Chen Hong was obviously at her most youthful. And what happened? Qiong Yao changed the female lead for every drama, so when she wasn't used in the next drama, she immediately faded into obscurity. No matter how smart she was, if she couldn't open up the network of connections in Hong Kong and Taiwan in one step, she would immediately disappear. After a brief period of popularity, she obediently returned to the mainland.

These are clearly two major challenges.

So Lin Jianlu crossed her legs, gave Shi Nansheng a helpless smile, and said, "Sister..."

Whether in the capital, Taiwan, or Hong Kong, once people got to know him, he was known in his circle of friends for his toughness, generosity, masculinity, and integrity. This made his friends generally trust him a lot. However, at the same time, the negative effect was that everyone treated him as a friend and was very informal with him.

Those who need his help are generally very willing to ask.

Once the relationship is established, and given his popularity and influence, many people will feel a sense of dependence on him.

But... I'm scratching my head!

First, ask Cong Shan, "You've worked with Zhou Linggang before? Old Zhou is a really nice guy, and we have a great relationship. Why didn't you continue working together?"

Cong Shan took a deep breath. The last time they met, she seemed like a very straightforward person, always quick and decisive in her answers. This time, however, she was quite hesitant. So Shi Nansheng answered for her, "Not everyone can be like you, with so many friends wherever you go! You call Zhou Linggang 'brother,' so you must know his go-to director, Fan Xiuming, right? He wanted to date Shan, but Shan turned him down! So..."

Ok!

Turning to look at Ye Quanzhen again, he opened his mouth, but seeing the girl's somewhat reserved yet undeniably arrogant expression, he decided against asking—but he still had to ask. After a moment's thought, he asked her, "Would you play a minor supporting role? Would you be willing to go to the mainland?"

The girl replied, "I can play a supporting role! But I want to film in Hong Kong."

Got it!
With a smile, she said, "If I have the chance, I'll definitely recommend you to the directors I know."

The girl paused for a moment, but she was clearly very clever and realized that her previous answer had cost her her chance. "Uh... I... I don't know anyone in mainland China..."

Lin Jianlu smiled and nodded, "I understand! I understand!"

Then, without looking at her, he turned to Cong Shan and asked, "What about you? If I could recommend you, you could try hosting a program on Beijing TV first, to solve your food problem. Would you be willing to accept that?"

Cong Shan paused for a moment, then her voice rang out again, "Yes!"

This attitude is acceptable. "Okay! Then wait for my news!"

Cong Shan promptly expressed her gratitude, "Thank you!"

"You're too kind! You're the older sister!"

Ye Quanzhen opened her mouth repeatedly, but couldn't utter a single word.

Just then, someone knocked on the door and then came in.

It was Wang Zuxian. "Ah, the number of participants has exceeded the limit? That's perfect, then I won't have to lose money!"

Shi Nansheng was about to say something, but seeing her come in, he stopped talking and laughed, "Dream on! You win today! A-Lu has someone keeping her, but you don't. Here's your money, perfect for drinking tonight!"

It turns out those two weren't at the card table.

But it's still the same old story of the Third Mother teaching her son.

Shi Nansheng, Wang Zuxian, and Zhang Manyu—when Lin Jianlu saw her come in, she was taken aback for a moment. "Oh, you're back? When did you get back?" Zhang Manyu smiled but didn't answer, turning to Shi Nansheng, "Oh dear, you shouldn't have called me! I heard that A-Lu is really good at cards, she's going to lose badly today!"

Shi Nansheng laughed heartily, "Don't worry, today the three of us will eat at his house, and he has Aunt Thirteen to pay for him, so he's not afraid of losing! ...Hey, Lu, when playing cards with women, you have to learn to let them win, you know that!"

Lin Jianlu shrugged.

He had a dirty joke on the tip of his tongue, but he was too embarrassed to say it. Maggie Cheung walked over, opened her bag, and pulled out a lighter. "Here, don't even think about stealing my lighter. I bought one for you; it's a gift!"

Lin Jianlu took it, not recognizing the brand, and simply turned it on with a ding, then another ding, and the flame lit.

The sound was exceptionally clear and crisp.

Thanks! But I'll ask you for a light again next time!

Shi Nansheng complained, "Oh dear, you only know how to give gifts to handsome guys, sigh, we don't get any!"

Maggie Cheung smiled and sat down. "You lost money to me!"

Wang Zuxian glanced at the lighter that Lin Jianlu had casually placed on the corner of the card table, smiled, and said nothing.

Let's start playing cards.

Tsui Hark directed a film called "Green Snake," in which Wang Zuxian and Maggie Cheung played Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing, respectively. Shi Nansheng was Tsui Hark's girlfriend. Although she didn't produce the film, she assisted her boyfriend throughout the entire process. This "three-mother teaching son" situation was practically destined to be a one-way trip...

"I only heard about it when I got back. Aunt Thirteen is keeping you as a mistress? How much does she pay you each month?"

"A cheap deal is fine. Just help me pay off my gambling debts and settle my drinking bill! You can afford it!"

“But they say you spend money very extravagantly. Jiang Wen said that he takes tens of thousands of dollars worth of cigars from your house every month, and you never ask him for money.”

"Hey! Because I'm the one supporting him with those cigars!"

"Hahaha! Is that director Jiang Wen from 'In the Heat of the Sun'? Xu Ke told me when he came back that you guys were drinking together in Taipei, and he really admired director Jiang Wen, saying that he was 'extremely robust' and had a very strong masculine presence, almost comparable to Ah Lu's rugged charm!"

"I won't compare myself to him. If I'm going to compare myself to someone, I'll compare myself to Li Ming. He's not famous at all!"

"It's about your masculinity!"

"I won! I'm waiting for the single tile!"

"Oh dear, he said he didn't know how to play and was afraid of losing money! He gambled so big!"

"Give me the money!"

"I'll keep it! Someone will settle the bill for you later!"

"No, I can't remember. Cash! Here!"

…………

It is said that Wang Zuxian rarely plays cards. In the previous few card games I met her, she mostly watched the game. However, this time she made a stunning move. After winning two hands in a row, she also won two more. In the blink of an eye, she made more than three thousand Hong Kong dollars. Lin Jianlu lost the most.

The two people drinking tea and playing cards in the room, Cong Shan seemed to have calmed down all of a sudden, and even took the initiative to refill the tea for the people at the card table and serve them the game, but Ye Quanzhen was obviously depressed and looked uneasy.

Suddenly, a cigarette was offered to Lin Jianlu, who instinctively lowered his head and took it.

Immediately afterwards, with a whoosh, a flame was thrust in front of him.

He lit a cigarette and, while the two families were talking, turned to look at Wang Zuxian.

Wang Zuxian was also looking at him.

Their eyes met, and they remained locked in eye contact for several seconds.

…………

That one glance must have instantly ruined Wang Zuxian's fortune.

Or you could say it sucked away her fortune.

Suddenly, Lin Jianlu started winning, playing all the way until almost 6 p.m. When he settled the accounts, hey, he made a net profit of HK$14,000—the other three companies, more or less, all lost.

Lin Jianlu smiled and stood up, waving the stack of banknotes in his hand with satisfaction.

Wang Zuxian lost the most, showing clear signs of being a novice, but he didn't seem upset about losing money. He looked up at Lin Jianlu with a smile, took out a cigarette, and offered it to her. Lin Jianlu bent down and took it.

With a whoosh, the flame slowly appeared in front of him.

Lin Jianlu lit it, took a deep breath, and exhaled the smoke, which sprayed directly into Wang Zuxian's face.

The movement was fluid, and he quickly straightened up.

Maggie Cheung said, "You're not allowed to leave. It's the rule of the underworld that if you win money, you have to treat everyone."

Lin Jianlu retorted arrogantly, "Are you kidding me! My going rate for having dinner with a rich woman is five million Hong Kong dollars! You think I'd have dinner with you for this little bit of money?" Shi Nansheng laughed loudly, "Grab him, don't let him run away!"

Of course, I'd be too embarrassed to run away; I'd be too embarrassed to break the rules of the martial arts world.

But Lin Jianlu had a way. She simply pulled out a Standard Chartered Bank credit card and handed it over, saying, "Sister, be careful with your money. This is the money I earned from selling myself!"—Everyone burst into laughter again.

Shi Nansheng didn't stand on ceremony and took it without hesitation. "I'll definitely flood the internet with gifts tonight! I'll make Aunt Thirteen cry from heartbreak!"

Wang Zuxian smiled, lit a cigarette, and watched Lin Jianlu leave gracefully.

But then he saw Shi Nansheng's friend, Cong Shan, chasing after him out the door.

His smile faded slightly.

…………

We have guests to entertain tonight.

The flight was at 6 PM. Zhang Aijia had already flown to Taiwan yesterday because of urgent family matters, so Ge ​​Fuhong and Zhao Mingxin went to pick her up at the airport together. Lin Xilei accompanied her, along with Zieg Schuberman, the global vice president of Columbia Records, and David Shelby, the global marketing director.

The former is not familiar, having only joined the production team for the album "21" at the end of April. David Shelby, on the other hand, has met her twice and they have a friendly relationship. Shelby has now been demoted to Zig Schuberman's assistant.

Ge Fuhong's assistant, with the car, had been waiting downstairs at the teahouse, constantly making and receiving phone calls and handling various matters for their company. However, upon seeing Lin Jianlu come downstairs, he immediately ended the call with a few words, opened the car door, and got out with a beaming smile. "Mr. Lin, President Ge and President Zhao have already gone to the airport and should be picking her up soon. We can go to the hotel to wait now." As he spoke, he made a gesture of shielding Lin Jianlu from the door frame as he got into the car.

Lin Jianlu glanced at him, got into the car, and said, "Wait a moment."

"Ok!"

The car door closed, and the vice president got into the passenger seat. He didn't ask why he was waiting or what he was waiting for. He didn't even answer business calls, hanging up the phone frequently without saying a word.

A short while later, the five women in the teahouse came downstairs together.

Lin Jianlu rolled down the car window and leaned out, "Hey, save your money!"

The four women all looked at him with smiles, each one of them unable to suppress their laughter.

When Ye Quanzhen was the last one left, he couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter.

The entertainment industry is full of all sorts of talented people: some are good at fighting, some are good at acting, some are good at flattering, some are good at drinking, and some love to brag. Most men are lustful and love to show off, while women are basically money-loving and fickle. But a man like Lin Jianlu is truly a first for me.

I'd mostly heard about his talent and global fame from the media and other people, but after meeting him twice, his strong and decisive nature, his charming demeanor, and his humor truly broadened my horizons.

With that ability alone, even if he weren't that handsome, he'd probably still have a constant stream of romantic interests.

He actually managed to use another woman's credit card to treat these women to dinner, yet it seemed so ordinary to him, and there was an inexplicable sense of humor in it—who would think he was stingy and miserly, keeping the money he won from playing cards for himself and spending Rosamund Kwan's credit card?

A few days ago, the newspaper reported that Leung Wing-ki suddenly started wearing a jade bracelet on her wrist. It was the kind of style and grade that many wealthy wives in Hong Kong wear. Experts said that it was obviously made of good material and would cost hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong dollars on the market. If it was made of special material, it would be worth two or three million dollars. It must have been a gift from Lam Kin-lu, so it is almost certain that it was made of special material.

Moreover, she now travels in Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

Despite her young age, which could even be considered that of a little girl, she has already begun to exude the air of a wealthy woman.

The luxury mansion she now lives in on the hillside still sold for over HK$100 million, even with Hong Kong property prices declining repeatedly – ​​and several newspapers reported on it the day after the property transfer!
He's so generous with money when he supports just one of his many women, would he care about the cost of a meal?

But even after he went downstairs, he didn't leave; he wanted to stay and give him one more word of advice.

How amazing and wonderful!

Such a wondrous thing, even now, is unforgettable, and even years from now, it will be impossible for anyone to forget it. For other men, this would probably lead to a huge lawsuit, and if it were discovered later, it might cause a very ugly situation. But for him, it can only be called being romantic and unrestrained.

This is a man who, while getting Brigitte Lin pregnant, also made Hong Kong's number one beauty openly declare, "I'll support him." This is a man who has mainland actress Gong Li on his left arm and Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung on his right, while secretly flirting with Wong Cho-yin.

It did slightly change people's views on men.

…………

They met, hugged, and exchanged pleasantries.

The global vice president and global marketing director of one of the world's three major record companies are both very important figures in the global record industry. Now, they have gone to great lengths to come to Hong Kong and visit you, a singer, together. In terms of prestige alone, this is already a very high honor.

But it's no more important than his little assistant.

More than two months have passed since they last met, and Lin Xilei has lost weight.

After the New Year, while recording in New York, in the villa that Zhao Mingxin rented on the Upper East Side, the hostess kept changing, but the quality of the food was always maintained at a fairly high level, making the little assistant quite plump.

In just two months, she's lost this much weight.

After exchanging pleasantries with the two foreigners, Lin Jianlu turned to her and opened her arms.

Lin Xilei's face immediately lit up with joy, and she rushed over to hug Lin Jianlu's waist.

She buried her head in his chest, sobbing slightly, "Brother, I missed you so much!"

Lin Jianlu didn't say a word, but patted her back. After she left his embrace, he wiped away her tears and then said, "You've lost weight. Stay for a few days, come to my house, and I'll fatten you up a bit before you go out!"

"it is good!"

She agreed crisply.

So we ate, had a few drinks, and listened to two important figures boast about how brilliant they were.

Listen to them talk about the unstoppable momentum of "21", listen to them talk about the upcoming publicity and distribution plans, listen to them talk about their request that Lin Jianlu be able to go to America as soon as possible - well, a request.

Who would be foolish enough to order a musical genius who occupies 15 of the top 18 spots on the Billboard charts?

Negotiation, request.

They hoped it would be June.

But Lin Jianlu directly denied it, saying that June was impossible.

From May to June, in addition to his own second Mandarin album, he also had to produce Leung Wing-ki's first Mandarin album. He couldn't leave even into July. At the end of June, there were two performances in the capital that he had to attend, record, and celebrate the return of Hong Kong. As the most popular and top-tier artist in the entire Chinese music scene and entertainment industry across the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong, and as the "face of the mainland music scene," how could he possibly not attend?
In July, there was a series of cultural performances in Hong Kong to celebrate the handover, and he accepted two of them.

I'm ready to put in a lot of effort.

Around July 10th, he should be able to pack his bags and consider leaving.

However, there is still one thing that has not been agreed upon. Zhao Mingxin helped to convey a message that as a supernova who has suddenly become popular in the past month or so, and a global pop king who is almost foreseeable in the future, the father of Columbia Records, Sony hopes that Lin Jianlu can hold his first global English song in Japan.

It seems there's some kind of event, a concert in Tokyo Bay, three songs, asking for three million US dollars.

Just kidding.

The first English performance is absolutely not going to Japan. It can be in America, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, but it's definitely not going to Japan—it's already scheduled for Hong Kong. At a celebration of the handover in Happy Valley in early July, the organizers even took the initiative to ask if I could sing an English song.

Because Hong Kong fans have now fallen in love with Lin Jianlu's English songs.

The kind of love that is highly praised and cherished, more than a precious jewel.

They agreed even though they weren't going to pay.

But the second performance can be held in Japan—as long as the money is enough, it's not shameful to curry favor with the employer's father or former employer!

So, we'll see if we can reach an agreement, but in any case, the trip to America will definitely be postponed to mid-July—which is around the time Columbia Records is planning to release "Believer" and its music video, so it's a convenient coincidence. It's time for a public appearance!
After the social event ended, on her way home with her assistant Lin Xilei, she suddenly received a call from Shi Nansheng. When she answered, she heard her say, "Ah Lu, I'm a little embarrassed. I've troubled you so much, and Ah Zhen is so inconsiderate! I've made things difficult for you!"

"Hey! It's not that bad! It's fine that she has her own ideas, I'll do my best to help."

"Then I want to thank you on her behalf! Sigh, she's actually suffered a lot already, but she just can't change her nature. I hope she can learn to behave herself in the future. I've already asked you for help, so I guess I've done right by her! By the way... Ah Lu, I don't mean to stop you from chasing girls, but I have to remind you, Lin Jianyue has never given up on Ah Xian. He's very rich and powerful, and being resented by him is no small matter. You need to think carefully!"

Wow, is it that obvious?

"Do you think I'm stupid? The last few times we've met, she only stares at you and doesn't even look at anyone else! She's so arrogant; I've never seen her serve a man a cigarette like that, except for you!"

"Ha!...It's quite interesting that Lin Jianyue holds a grudge against me..."

"I'm not kidding, Ah Lu. His father, Lin Baixin, has assets approaching 200 billion. Although it's said he's been detained in Taiwan, Lin Jianyue is now in charge! In April, Lai Sun Group just spent 69 billion to buy the Furama Hotel in Central. It was Lin Jianyue who made the decision to buy it. That's how powerful he is! You wouldn't know if you don't invest in stocks, but Lai Sun Group has a market value of over 600 billion! Lin Jianyue is truly in charge now!"

"200 billion in assets...that's a lot! I'll try to catch up within five years..."

"..."

(End of this chapter)