Chapter 1195: Scheming

Anger is an emotion that arises when something or someone goes against one's wishes. Simply put, if something or someone makes you uncomfortable, this emotion arises.

Just like Zhao Fusheng at the moment, he was in a pretty bad mood.

Although Ye Jing said the matter had been resolved, in Zhao Fusheng's view, it was just a microcosm.

"It seems I should do something."

Zhao Fusheng made a secret decision, feeling that he needed to take some action.

Of course, the time wasn't ripe yet; he had to wait a bit longer.

Making money in film and television wasn't hard, but making money without being criticized was truly difficult. Especially in the current environment, Zhao Fusheng had to admit that unless you go public to raise funds, running a film company wasn't easy.

"Finished with the call?"

Seeing Zhao Fusheng come out, Fan Baobao asked him.

Zhao Fusheng nodded and explained, "Ye Jing is handling it. It's not a big problem."

Fan Baobao didn't ask further. Ye Jing was now the head of Future Film, naturally responsible for such matters. Even though she was the de facto boss's wife, it wasn't convenient for her to meddle.

Moreover, Zhao Fusheng had long said that when you employ someone, you trust them; if you doubt them, you don't employ them. Since he brought Ye Jing in, the purpose was to leverage his connections and network in this area.

After all, whether it was Future Film or Zhao Fusheng himself, this was a weak point. Ye Jing's presence was meant to solve this situation.

"Come, Beibei, let big brother watch cartoons with you, okay?" Zhao Fusheng picked up Fan Beibei and said with a smile.

Whatever the issues, they would be dealt with later. What he needed to do now was to quickly deal with Ono Masao.

...

...

Actually, Ono Masao was also a bit baffled, unsure of the current situation.

The reason was simple: since Zhao Fusheng met with him, Future Investment had been secretly accumulating NetEase's stock, and it didn't seem to be trying to keep it a secret.

"What the hell does this guy want?"

Sitting in his office, Ono Masao tapped his fingers on the desk, muttering to himself.

Across from him were two senior executives from SoftBank Asia, both Chinese, who had worked with Ono Masao for many years. Hearing his words, they exchanged glances, and one cautiously said, "Mr. Ono, could it be that they want a piece of the pie?"

A piece of the pie?

Ono Masao frowned and looked at the other man who was silent and thoughtful: "Wang, what do you think?"

The man named Wang adjusted his glasses and hesitated before saying, "Mr. Ono, I think it's very possible that Zhao has seen through our plans."

"Impossible!"

The other man was astonished: "Our confidentiality measures are excellent. How could he see through our actions?"

Clearly, his colleague's statement was unbelievable to him.

Ono Masao also looked surprised, staring at the man named Wang Shiying: "Do you have any evidence?"

Wang Shiying shook his head and shrugged: "It's just my guess. Mr. Ono, Manager Shi, don't you find it strange? If they wanted a piece of the pie and were just stirring things up behind us, would they let us know so easily what they're doing?"

Both fell silent.

Having been in the financial circle for so many years and reaching their current positions, none of them were fools. They knew very well that if Zhao Fusheng wanted, he could have done things without being so high-profile. After all, in an acquisition, as long as a company's shares didn't exceed five percent, there was no need to issue a public announcement.

In other words, Future Investment could have registered several shell companies to do this secretly, keeping the shares around four point something percent, without worrying about being discovered.

But surprisingly, they were so openly increasing their stake in NetEase.

"This kid is really greedy."

Ono Masao muttered to himself, then revealed a strange expression.

He wasn't stupid. Zhao Fusheng was clearly waiting for him to come to the negotiating table, essentially holding out for the best price.

Unless SoftBank planned to give up on the U.S. tech stock market, Ono Masao could only watch Zhao Fusheng's series of actions and endure it.

"What should we do, Mr. Ono?"

"Negotiate."

Ono Masao laughed heartily, not showing any panic. In his view, since Zhao Fusheng had taken such a stance, it meant they could talk.

Or more precisely, the chips in his hand were definitely something Zhao Fusheng was interested in.

It was normal. In business, it's all about seeking common ground while reserving differences. Ono Masao understood this better than anyone.

...

...

Zhao Fusheng received a call from Dong Chenxi while he was practicing lines with Fan Baobao.

Fan Baobao had finished filming "A World Without Thieves" and had nothing much to do lately. She volunteered for a play at the People's Art Theatre, landed a role, and had been dragging Zhao Fusheng to practice lines with her these past few days.

"Tell me, why aren't those skilled seniors and sisters in our theatre famous?"

During a break, Fan Baobao grumbled discontentedly to Zhao Fusheng.

She said this because she had recently watched an idol drama where the actors' acting was so bad that even Zhao Fusheng, who didn't know much about it, could tell it was terrible.

This made Fan Baobao very unhappy, as she thought of her hardworking colleagues at the People's Art Theatre.

Zhao Fusheng smiled and patted her head: "Maybe the time isn't right."

He could only say that, though in his heart he knew he was just comforting Fan Baobao.

Some say effort is just a person's baseline, and that's really true.

As adults, no one has it easy. Even if you work hard, you may not achieve fame and success. You might painstakingly act well, but still earn less than someone who just stands there looking cool casually.

Motivational, job-seeking, methodological, and time-management bloggers would analyze this problem in ten thousand ways and then pour out a bunch of chicken soup for the soul. But in reality, life is sometimes just that hard, with no optimal solution.

In the adult world, there's always nowhere to appeal. The only thing we can do is try to be true to our conscience and become ordinary people who live with dignity.

At least, by compromising, we can ensure that we and our families have enough to eat and wear, and have some ability to withstand risks.

"Why don't you sign them?"

Miss Fan blinked and said to Zhao Fusheng.

His mouth twitched, and Zhao Fusheng looked at her blankly: "Me, sign the actors from the People's Art Theatre?"

"Yes, yes, their acting is really good." Fan Baobao said seriously to Zhao Fusheng: "And they have good personalities, no airs."

At that moment, Zhao Fusheng thought the girl might not be awake, talking in her sleep.

Opening his mouth to refute Fan Baobao, he suddenly froze.

From a certain perspective, this idea was indeed absurd. Not to mention the number of people at the People's Art Theatre, the current environment alone wasn't one where acting skills could make someone a huge star.

Market evolution takes time. Only after audiences have been bombarded by young idols and starlets with their unrestrained performances on screen will they realize that acting skills deserve more attention than those who just rely on their looks.

For now, people still prefer actors who are good-looking and can act cute and flirt.

But come to think of it, not only would these people eventually be recognized by the market, but the People's Art Theatre brand itself suddenly seemed very useful for his previous plan.

Glancing at the time and seeing it was already past four in the afternoon, Zhao Fusheng abandoned the idea of visiting the People's Art Theatre. After all, in November in the north, the days were short; after four, it was already getting dark.

"What's wrong with you?" Seeing Zhao Fusheng lost in thought, Fan Baobao asked curiously.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled: "Nothing, I just think what you said makes a lot of sense."

"Huh?"

Miss Fan was completely confused, unable to grasp Zhao Fusheng's point.

It couldn't be helped; it was a limitation of talent.

Zhao Fusheng didn't explain to Fan Baobao. He just smiled lightly and began to figure out how to execute this matter.

Speaking of the film company, it was initially set up on a whim, but now it had become such a big operation. In Zhao Fusheng's view, the purpose of making money was to live happily, not to live miserably. Since someone was causing him trouble, he might as well give them some headaches.

Before his rebirth, Zhao Fusheng had dreamed of one day rising to prominence and competing with the big shots on TV. But when he woke up, he knew it was just a pipe dream.

But when fate played a joke on him in a way he never expected, Zhao Fusheng found that he no longer had the initial joy and excitement.

It was like a man in a state of post-coital clarity, so calm that it surprised even himself.

When a person has experienced nothing, what they want is completely different from what they want after experiencing things.

Just like when he met the two Ma's a couple of days ago, Zhao Fusheng wasn't as excited as he had imagined. Even though he knew how brilliant these two would become in the future, he felt no admiration or envy in his heart.

Because Zhao Fusheng knew very well that the path they were taking, he was also walking.

Perhaps one day, he would stand above the clouds and look down on them.