Reborn in Russia as a Big Shot

Chapter 123 Fan Bingbing (3)

When Han Jiayin sent a message to Li Xiang, she attached some information about Fan Bingbing's studio, but it was all publicly available information on the internet, and Li Xiang was unaware of the actual situation.

What was the production budget for each episode of "The Golden Era"?

"Nine hundred thousand," Fan Bingbing added, "in RMB."

Upon hearing the quote, Li Xiang gave a wry smile and complained, "If we're making forty episodes, that'll be thirty-six million. If we go over budget a bit, it'll go close to forty million. Will we even break even?"

"Do you know how much the budget per episode I signed with China Star is? It's less than 250,000 RMB."

"Isn't that a Taiwanese drama? The market is so small. Even if you could import it to the mainland, our audience here wouldn't accept it anymore. Do you think every drama is like 'Princess Pearl'?" Fan Bingbing said coquettishly. "You should invest a little bit."

"How much funding do you have in total?" Li Xiang asked.

Fan Bingbing rolled her eyes slightly, afraid that saying too much would scare Li Xiang away, and lied, "It's not much, just four or five million."

Li Xiang considered it for a moment and said, "Let's talk in person."

Fan Bingbing's tone changed, and she said half-jokingly, "You insist on meeting in person to talk, so you have some ideas."

"No, in my heart you are as sacred as Rong Momo."

Fan Bingbing laughed, easing the tension, and immediately steered the conversation back on track, asking, "How much can you actually bet?"

Li Xiang said, "I'll cover all five million."

"That's quite a lot of money." Fan Bingbing hesitated for a moment before adding, "What if it were seven or eight million?"

"Will it go up to ten million later?" Li Xiang emphasized. "This is your last chance. Think it through before you speak."

Fan Bingbing lay on the bed without making a sound. After a few seconds of gathering her thoughts, she said, "Twelve million, and there are still more than four million who want to withdraw their investment."

"Is this for real this time? Don't let me sign the contract only to find out I'm the only one left and everyone else has run away," Li Xiang joked.

"No, I also contributed money." Fan Bingbing did contribute money, but that was calculated as an investment amount based on her salary, not as actual investment.

Li Xiang deliberately sighed, quite loudly, in a reluctant tone, "I'll invest 16 million in you. Let those who want to leave go. As for the actual share of the project, go to Japan Island and find Kenji Honma, the boss of LesPros Entertainment. New Century is just a shell company; they handle all the actual business."

"You're not kidding me, are you?" Fan Bingbing sat up, looking serious.

"Didn't you ask me to repay a favor? Here you go."

Fan Bingbing's face lit up with joy, and for a moment she didn't know what to say. "Such a big matter, decided with just a phone call? Why don't you come to Yanjing and we can talk in person?"

"I have no interest in Rong Momo."

"What are you talking about? I just wanted you to come and visit my company."

"I'm busy." Li Xiang began to bring up his real needs through the conversation. "I want to make some animated films and send them to domestic TV stations to be broadcast. I was originally thinking of talking to you about cooperation, but forget it. You're not someone worth getting to know."

"I know the TV station well, I'll help you with that," Fan Bingbing offered.

"No need. Is there anything else? If not, I'm hanging up." Li Xiang pretended to be indifferent.

"Let's talk some more," Fan Bingbing initiated a conversation, asking, "Why did you hand over the company to someone else to manage?"

Li Xiang said, half-jokingly, "Entertainment companies aren't my main business. I went to invest in Japan because I had my eye on a minor Japanese star. I managed to poach her, but the Japanese entertainment industry is too closed off, and I didn't have a suitable person to take over, so I left her with her original company."

"Who is it? I can find out even if you don't tell me. It's not a secret who the artists in your company are." Gossip is human nature, regardless of gender or nationality.

Li Xiang said, "Shingen Yui."

"Did you succeed?" Fan Bingbing asked, her little feet sticking out as she lay on the bed.

"They didn't like me."

"Go ahead and spend the money, it's not like you can't afford it."

"What's the point of throwing money around?" Li Xiang said shamelessly. "I rely on my personal charm. I want people to pay me whatever they want, not for any title, but to be my concubine and give me money to spend."

"You're dreaming." Once men and women start making lewd jokes and it feels natural, their relationship quickly becomes closer.

Fan Bingbing steered the conversation back on track, seemingly casually but actually cautiously asking, "What's your main job? Is it still in the clothing industry?"

"I'm a scalper. I smuggle iPhones from the US to Russia. All those iPhones from the Commonwealth countries are from me. I make a hundred dollars on each one. You do the math and see how much I earn."

"Who would believe that? If it were really possible to make that much money, everyone would become a scalper."

Fan Bingbing and Li Xiang chatted until late into the night, finally hanging up when they ran out of things to talk about. It wasn't a particularly pleasant conversation; it was purely to maintain client relationships.

The contract hasn't been signed yet, so verbal promises don't count.

Fan Bingbing glanced at the clock on the wall; it was 2:30 a.m., but her brain was still in a highly excited state, and she didn't feel sleepy at all.

He hesitated for a moment, knowing it was too late, but still dialed his agent Mu Enguang's number.

"What happened so late?" Mu Enguang is the mastermind behind Fan Bingbing's studio and is also involved in project investment, giving him significant decision-making power.

"I've found the project funding. I have a friend who has agreed to invest 1600 million yuan in us. However, his company is in Japan, New Century Entertainment. You should go there as soon as possible and sign the investment agreement to avoid any unforeseen problems."

"What's the background of your friend?" Mu Enguang asked.

"I'm not really sure either. He never tells the truth. I guess he's involved in some kind of shady business. It seems like he makes money very easily." Fan Bingbing also worried about receiving dirty money. "China Star and Guo Zijian have both taken money from him. When we signed the contract, we agreed that he would transfer the money from the Japanese island company's account to us, from company to company."

"As long as we can ensure that the source of funds is legitimate, what he does is none of our business."

Mu Enguang said, "Let's investigate this. I'll take care of it; you don't need to worry about it."

Fan Bingbing had a sudden inspiration and thought, "Can you help me find an agent who understands the Japanese entertainment industry?"

"You want to enter the Japanese entertainment industry?" Mu Enguang asked, following up on the topic.

"They haven't even established a foothold in the domestic entertainment industry yet, let alone the Japanese entertainment industry. I was going to recommend them to New Century," Fan Bingbing continued. "New Century's business in Japan isn't small, but nobody's managing it. It's affiliated with some company called L, I don't remember exactly."

"If we could recommend someone to help my friend manage this business, then we wouldn't have to go through the Japanese islanders if we needed to invest in any projects in the future. It's so much easier to communicate with people from our own community."

Mu Enguang said, "The idea is good, but there aren't many people who understand Japanese entertainment, and you have to be able to recruit them. That's not easy to find."

"With your wide network, this won't be difficult for you," Fan Bingbing advised. "Pay more attention. He even told me he wanted to collaborate with me on some animated film. If we can maintain this relationship, it would be quite valuable."

"Forget about the mainland, let's look at Hong Kong and Taiwan instead." Mu Enguang suddenly thought, "Sister Kim started her own business last year. If the conditions are right, we might be able to talk to her."

"Who is Sister Kim?"

"My fellow townsman, Zhou Yougen from Fashion International."