Chapter 1554: Kevin Feige

“Are you trying to recruit me?”

Tan Kaixuan looked at Zhao Fusheng in surprise.

Zhao Fusheng laughed: “Not just you, but also your Brother Capital behind you.”

He said it very frankly, as if there were no hidden secrets.

Hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words, Tan Kaixuan looked helpless and finally sighed: “I knew it. You’re always scheming.”

Now he finally understood Zhao Fusheng’s plan.

From the very beginning, Zhao Fusheng had never intended to acquire Marvel independently!

This guy was shrewd.

Whether it was the determination he showed in front of Zhou Jianmin and the others, or the calm he displayed after arriving in the United States, it was all an act.

To be precise, Zhao Fusheng’s plan from the start was to acquire part of Marvel’s equity and drag him into the game.

Of course, the reason he didn’t tell him was largely to mislead the people behind him—after all, the Wall Street elites were clever.

“Tell me, what’s your plan?”

Sighing, Tan Kaixuan asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged: “Simple. You and I join forces to acquire 50 to 60 percent of Marvel’s equity. You know how dispersed American equity is—we can do it.”

That was true. Listed companies in the US were very different from those in China. In China, major shareholders typically held at least 30 percent of the company’s shares to maintain effective control.

In Europe and America, holding more than 10 percent of shares was already a lot, and many major shareholders only held around 10 to 20 percent.

According to Zhao Fusheng’s plan, if they could acquire that many shares, they would undoubtedly become Marvel’s new owners.

“Even if we get that many shares, what do we do next?”

Tan Kaixuan frowned and asked Zhao Fusheng.

He knew Zhao Fusheng wouldn’t act without a plan, but as the head of Brother Capital, he had to be responsible for his investment—otherwise, the investors behind him wouldn’t approve of a deal involving hundreds of millions of dollars.

Zhao Fusheng smiled: “Next, we cooperate with Kevin Feige to develop the rights to Marvel’s superheroes. Instead of letting others make the movies, we invest in production ourselves.”

“Ah?”

Tan Kaixuan was stunned, looking at Zhao Fusheng in surprise. He hadn’t expected Zhao Fusheng to have such a scheme.

Even Wu Sijie, sitting in the passenger seat, was astonished, never anticipating that Zhao Fusheng had planned this from the start.

Zhao Fusheng laughed.

Sometimes things were like that—he wanted his subordinates to follow his direction, but he couldn’t treat everyone like puppets; they needed to exercise initiative.

Most importantly, Zhao Fusheng knew that no one else understood the immense value of the superhero rights Marvel still held.

Without Disney’s involvement, Marvel’s first Iron Man film had grossed nearly $600 million worldwide. Zhao Fusheng felt he was sitting pretty.

“Wait, are you kidding?”

Tan Kaixuan stared at Zhao Fusheng, dumbfounded.

He clearly hadn’t expected Zhao Fusheng to have such a move.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged calmly: “Believe it or not, Kevin Feige will be very happy to accept my idea.”

Tan Kaixuan fell silent, thought it over, and had to admit Zhao Fusheng was right.

Marvel’s current situation was like a traveler in the desert suddenly finding an oasis—even if the chance was slim, they wouldn’t let it go.

Especially now, with Kevin Feige’s lobbying in Hollywood and on Wall Street having failed, Marvel was truly in trouble both internally and externally.

Zhao Fusheng’s idea was simple: seize this opportunity to take control.

…

…

The meeting with Kevin Feige exceeded Zhao Fusheng’s expectations.

Yes, exceeded expectations!

Because Kevin Feige’s enthusiasm when he met Zhao Fusheng was completely unexpected.

“Dear Zhao, I’ve been told you’re a magical investor.” Kevin Feige’s opening remark made Zhao Fusheng pause, then he laughed: “Mr. Feige, I think you might be mistaken. I’m not magical; I’m just a businessman.”

Though flattery was pleasant, Zhao Fusheng knew that no matter what Feige said, he shouldn’t take it to heart—this guy was ultimately someone who prioritized Marvel’s interests.

“Oh, is that so?”

Kevin Feige smiled awkwardly, but he understood Zhao Fusheng’s meaning.

“Mr. Feige, I believe Miss Dong has already made our sincerity clear. I’m curious—why did you want to see me?”

Zhao Fusheng looked at Kevin Feige, somewhat puzzled.

This was interesting. Although he was the final decision-maker, as his representative and a senior executive of Future Group, Dong Chenxi shouldn’t be insignificant in Kevin Feige’s eyes.

“Sorry, Miss Dong.” Kevin Feige first apologized to Dong Chenxi, then looked at Zhao Fusheng with a smile and explained: “Actually, I wanted to talk with you, Mr. Zhao, because I think our cooperation needs more detailed communication.”

Cooperation?

Zhao Fusheng keenly caught the word and gave Kevin Feige a deep look, cursing inwardly: old fox!

Damn it, this guy had been acting all along!

The so-called lobbying in Hollywood and on Wall Street was all just a performance!

Given Marvel’s current state, no Hollywood or Wall Street investor would be interested. Kevin Feige’s actions were simply a show put on for him!

Seeming unfazed that Zhao Fusheng had seen through him, Kevin Feige chuckled: “Dear Zhao, what direction do you think Marvel’s future development should take?”

Zhao Fusheng smiled: “Well, I’m not a Marvel shareholder yet, so maybe I shouldn’t consider such a sharp question?”

Old fox, trying to fish for information—not so easy!

Hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words, Kevin Feige felt a bit embarrassed.

He knew his methods were somewhat naive, but he had no choice. Marvel was at the end of its rope; to survive, it needed change.

And change required financial support.

For Kevin Feige, as Marvel’s new head, he urgently needed to find a new way to sustain Marvel’s development, rather than continuing to sell superhero rights as before.

“Zhao, I’m not going to beat around the bush anymore. I hope you can tell me—what can you offer Marvel?”

Taking a deep breath, Kevin Feige looked at Zhao Fusheng and asked word by word.

Clearly, his patience was running thin.

Zhao Fusheng smiled: “What do you think?”

“I can persuade the shareholders to sell you shares, but I hope you’ll support my new plan.” Kevin Feige looked at Zhao Fusheng and said slowly.

“Why?”

Zhao Fusheng raised an eyebrow, curious.

Kevin Feige spread his hands and sighed helplessly: “I have a new plan, but the board disagrees. Those old guys only think about selling the company’s superhero rights. If this continues, Marvel will have no choice but to close its doors.”

Zhao Fusheng watched Kevin Feige’s impassioned speech and nodded inwardly.

This man was probably the only one at Marvel still trying to revive the company.

“Tell me about your new plan.”

Zhao Fusheng smiled and asked Kevin Feige.

“You…”

Kevin Feige looked at Zhao Fusheng but didn’t speak immediately, a hint of doubt in his eyes.

He clearly didn’t understand Zhao Fusheng’s intention.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged: “Let me be clear: I have $2.5 billion in funds prepared, but I need to know what hope you can give me. If it’s meaningless, I won’t entrust my money to you.”

At that moment, when he heard the figure $2.5 billion, Kevin Feige’s eyes practically lit up!

Are you kidding me!

For Marvel, which was at the end of its rope and even selling rights to survive, $2.5 billion was a staggering sum that could drive him crazy.

“Zhao, my plan is simple.”

Looking at Zhao Fusheng, Kevin Feige said slowly: “We can’t keep relying on selling rights to sustain the company. Even if the current comic book market isn’t receptive to new comics, we have to find ways to develop new products!”

“Oh?”

Zhao Fusheng smiled and looked at Kevin Feige: “Mr. Feige, could you elaborate?”

“Certainly.”

Perhaps because of the $2.5 billion, or because Zhao Fusheng’s interested demeanor made him seem more trustworthy than the shareholders who only cared about selling rights, Kevin Feige began to lay out his plan in detail.

After a while, even Zhao Fusheng, a time traveler, looked at Kevin Feige in astonishment. He had to admit, this guy had really given him a huge surprise.