Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 510 The Uncrowned King of the Entertainment Industry, Chen Xiu
At noon, inside the same tea restaurant.

Because of "The Wandering Earth," Guo Fan, whose shrewdness is ingrained in his DNA, took advantage of the money he had spent on filming to rent a tea restaurant and also had the crew's lunch there.

Most of the crew, including Guo Fan and Brother Hu, sat around one side of the restaurant eating.

On the other side sat Chen Xiu and Wang Changtian, the CEO of Enlight Media, who had come from afar.

Judging from their "intimate" conversation, those who didn't know the situation assumed that a major project was about to be launched there.

Some speculate that the outstanding performance of "Ne Zha" prompted the two executives to discuss a sequel ahead of schedule.

However, the reality was not entirely unrelated to their expectations; in fact, it was vastly different...

"Mr. Wang, if your blood sugar is okay, you can try this sweet and sour pork. It's quite delicious."

"And this poached chicken, served with sand ginger, is one of the best-tasting dishes in Shenzhen's tea restaurants."

"Oh, I heard you like plain noodles. Would you like to try the wonton noodles here?"

Wang Changtian stared blankly at Chen Xiu, who was trying to sell him Cantonese cuisine, and thought to himself: Where did this come from? I traveled all the way from the capital, just for a bite to eat?
But listening to him speak so vividly, Wang Changtian's mind, which was originally full of worries and had little appetite, gradually began to think that the things in front of him did look quite good.

Swallowing hard, Wang Changtian quickly shifted his gaze from the dining table upwards, then raised his hand to interrupt Chen Xiu's introduction.

"Mr. Chen, please don't be shy, I already ate before I came."

"Oh, you're welcome then."

Chen Xiu's tone suddenly turned indifferent. Ignoring Wang Changtian's presence, she picked up the bowl of rice in front of her and began to eat it with relish.

Wang Changtian was stunned.

Why are you eating this?

"No, Mr. Chen..."

"Mr. Wang, if you're not going to eat anything, would you like a bowl of stewed soup? It tastes pretty good."

"I really have no appetite."

"It would be a shame to come all the way to Shenzhen and go back hungry."

Wang Changtian was speechless.

Seeing that Chen Xiu had no intention of talking about serious matters, he began to wonder if Chen Xiu was intentionally not giving him a chance to speak, trying to avoid the topic.

Let me test the waters!
Wang Changtian thought to himself, put his hand on the table, leaned forward and said, "President Chen, how about I wait until you finish eating before we talk about the copyright issue of 'Ne Zha'?"

Chen Xiu picked up a piece of bok choy and glanced at Wang Changtian with a puzzled look.

"After I finish eating, I'm heading to the Tencent Building to film a movie. Would you like to come along, Mr. Wang?"

"Uh……"

"What do you mean by the copyright of 'Ne Zha'? Have we discussed similar topics before?"

Wang Changtian, who had been speechless, felt a sudden turn of events when Chen Xiu took the initiative to change the subject.

"Regarding the copyright issue, it's not that I wanted to breach the contract. The main problem is that Jiaozi, the director of 'Ne Zha,' said that if he wanted to make a sequel, his studio would also need to take a stake. I had no choice but to try my best to keep him. Mr. Chen, you don't want this project to fall apart, do you?"

Chen Xiu put the bok choy in her mouth, chewing it seven times on the left and seven times on the right.

After swallowing all the food, he finally asked, "What does copyright have to do with me?"

"This……"

Wang Changtian's eyes showed an unexpected look of astonishment.

The claim that Jiaozi wanted to invest in "Ne Zha" or else he would strike was just an excuse he used to try to reclaim the copyright.

According to the original plan, Wang Changtian felt that even if Chen Xiu did not agree, it would still allow the topic between the two sides to smoothly enter the negotiation stage, and the rest would be a matter of pushing and pulling and fighting for the share of the "Nezha" sequel.

As it turned out, Chen Xiu didn't play by the rules at all...

Wang Changtian smacked his lips, his tone earnest yet pleading: "President Chen, doesn't your Datang Pictures own 30% of the copyright to 'Ne Zha'?"

"I know about this, but isn't Wei Feng in charge of the specific operations? Mr. Wang, you've got the wrong person to talk to?"

Chen Xiu readily admitted it, and then ate her lunch without delay.

Wang Changtian's mood improved slightly: "President Chen, President Wei is just a manager, and his perspective on things is inevitably limited. I think we'll have more to talk about."

"It's no use coming to me. Wei Feng studied law in college. The copyright transfer contract he signed with you is absolutely flawless. If you don't believe me, you can have a lawyer take a look."

I've looked around.

When the first week's results for "Ne Zha" were released, I had the company's legal department analyze the contract repeatedly!
Wang Changtian was screaming in his heart, but his expression was one of helplessness.

If there were loopholes in the contract Wei Feng prepared, why would he bother coming to Chen Xiu...?

"Mr. Chen, what I mean is, since the copyright of 'Ne Zha' is shared with Datang, and I accept that, when we make a sequel in the future, can we share the investment from Jiaozi with them according to our respective copyright ratios?"

From Chen Xiu's attitude, Wang Changtian, who already knew that negotiations were hopeless, had no choice but to play his cards prematurely.

He knew perfectly well that the sequel to "Ne Zha" had to be made by Jiaozi, and he could only try his best to meet the investment requirements.

However, Wang Changtian felt that this share should not be given up by Guangxian alone; Datang should also give up a portion.

With this in mind, he first contacted Wei Feng, but Wei Feng was as slippery as an eel in the field. Meanwhile, the dumpling shop was waiting for news, so he had no choice but to come and talk to Chen Xiu.

Chen Xiu found his request reasonable. Money should be earned together; it would be a loss to make a fool of themselves over dividing the pie.

"Mr. Wang, I think Wei Feng would agree with what you've said. Why don't you go and talk to him again?"

"Oh, okay, I see. I'll go back and find him then?"

Wang Changtian looked at Chen Xiu knowingly and asked if this time was appropriate.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Xiu said, "Ne Zha is about to finish its second week of screenings, so let's finalize it as soon as possible."

"OK."

Facing Chen Xiu, Wang Changtian lowered his gaze and nodded repeatedly, like a student listening to a teacher's lecture.

This scene left Hu Ge, Guo Fan, and others sitting on the other side completely astonished.

In a daze, they also realized a fact: there are differences between big shots, and Chen Xiu is undoubtedly the biggest one in the entertainment industry.

Wang Changtian also agreed with this idea.

"President Chen, Datang Pictures currently holds the IPs of Detective Chinatown and The Wandering Earth, plus Nekopara, and is also producing The Myth of Black and The New Gods Universe."

"The future development of the entertainment industry still depends on Datang Pictures. I hope we can continue to cooperate in the future."

After expressing his attitude, Wang Changtian was about to raise his glass to offer a toast when he realized that it contained tea.

"Waiter, please get me another drink..."

"Mr. Wang, there's no need to trouble yourself."

Chen Xiu picked up her teacup and touched Wang Changtian's teacup with it.

"The future development of the entertainment industry is too big a topic! Of what you just mentioned, apart from the Detective Chinatown IP which truly belongs to Datang Pictures, the Wandering Earth IP belongs to China Film Group. We only collaborated with them on development through Director Guo's connections."

"Director Guo."

Wang Changtian glanced at Guo Fan with envy, thinking to himself: Not only does Datang have many good projects, but it also has so many talented people. Guo Fan, Chen Sicheng, Rao Xiaozhi, Lu Yang... this generation of directors has been discovered ahead of time.

Chen Xiu continued, "We collaborated with Enlight Media on the 'Ne Zha' IP, and the same principle applies to other projects. We should all work together to develop, instead of trying to be the only one who matters. That won't last long."

"Yeah!"

Wang Changtian nodded repeatedly and naturally positioned the light on the spot where the young man from the Tang Dynasty was.

He even thought that with so many projects under Datang's control and its connections with the three major internet companies, Enlight Media could also remain undefeated in this film and television winter by following suit and acquiring some projects.

"Mr. Chen, I see that Datang Pictures has prepared many projects this year. Will you be under financial pressure?"

"Does Mr. Wang have any ideas?"

"Light is currently short of projects."

“We do have quite a few projects in preparation this year, but Enlight Media has already invested in the most important ones, ‘Detective Chinatown 1900’ and ‘Black Myth.’ As for the remaining projects, I haven’t really paid much attention to them. You can talk to Wei Feng about it.”

Chen Xiu wasn't faking it.

Now, after finishing filming each day and returning to his hotel, he still has to deal with matters for other companies, leaving him no time to pay attention to all of Datang Pictures' projects.

However, this Versailles-style speech made Wang Changtian secretly grimace, marveling at Datang Pictures' counter-trend development, which was truly enviable.

Considering Douyin (TikTok) as a powerful promotional tool, Wang Changtian felt that Datang had no rivals in the film and television industry.

This summer, "The Eight Hundred" was originally a contender, but a reverse promotional campaign on Douyin (TikTok) caused its box office to plummet, its screenings to be halved, and its target box office to be reduced from 30 billion to 10 billion...

Wang Changtian was astonished by the operation of this film and television industry chain, and began to genuinely feel the profound impact of the internet on the entertainment industry.

After hesitating for a moment, he suddenly looked up at Chen Xiu and said, "President Chen, I heard that you're going to retire from the entertainment industry after you finish filming this movie?"

"That's what I planned."

Chen Xiu put down her chopsticks, feeling that she was about 70% full.

Looking at the table where he had devoured his meal, Wang Changtian silently moved his Adam's apple; he was indeed a little hungry.

"Now that you've retired from the entertainment industry, what will be the future development direction of Datang Pictures?"

"I have never been involved in the day-to-day management of Datang Pictures, so what impact would retiring from the industry have?"

Chen Xiu wiped her mouth, a slight smile appearing on her eyebrows.

Wang Changtian corrected, "What I mean is, will Datang Pictures continue to focus on movies and TV series in the future? Or will it develop cultural towns like Huayi?"

"Hehe, we won't be participating in the cultural town project. We might go there to film short dramas with lower barriers to entry, to discover some new talent and open up new production lines."

After speaking, Chen Xiu stood up, supporting herself on the table, and extended her hand to Wang Changtian.

"Mr. Wang, I'll treat you to dinner next time you have time."

"It's nothing, it's just a short drama..."

"It's a vertical screen drama, launched in conjunction with Douyin. If Enlight Media is interested, you can talk to Wei Feng once Datang's short drama department is on track."

"understand."

Wang Changtian held Chen Xiu's hand, thinking to himself: This time, I have no choice but to become Chen Xiu's subordinate.

(End of this chapter)