Chapter 2294 Jiang Wen's Choice

"Did you lose your temper at Future Films today?"

In the evening, Zheng Yao and Dong Chenxi came together to Zhao Fusheng's home.

Clearly, they had already gotten word of what happened during the day.

"I think maybe you should consider it."

Zheng Yao said to Zhao Fusheng, "Don't decide everything on your own; you should take their feelings into account a little."

She wasn't taking Ye Jing's side, but felt that Zhao Fusheng's thinking was a bit prejudiced.

After all, Chen Kexin was a renowned director; surely he wouldn't keep losing money?

Was Yu Dong a fool? Didn't he see there was a problem?

"Consider their feelings?"

Zhao Fusheng sneered.

He didn't agree with Zheng Yao.

"I don't believe Ye Jing doesn't know what kind of person Chen Kexin is. In my opinion, he just thinks that kind of Republican-era film has a market. Or rather, deep down, he still has that spoiled attitude of the大院子弟."

Zhao Fusheng said flatly to Zheng Yao.

Then he tossed out a report and said to Zheng Yao, "Take a look. These are several projects Future Films has invested in over the past six months. The amounts aren't large—only about ten million per film—but every single one is about a lofty, fallen aristocratic protagonist."

Huh?

Zheng Yao and Dong Chenxi were taken aback.

They had no idea about this.

They had thought Zhao Fusheng's outburst was groundless, but now it seemed he had already thought it through.

"You mean Ye Jing did it on purpose?"

Dong Chenxi frowned slightly and said in a low voice.

If it was intentional, then Ye Jing could no longer remain in the leadership position at Future Films.

Clearly, a person who always puts his own sentiments first is not fit to be the head of a listed company like Future Films.

This was something Zhao Fusheng, Dong Chenxi, and Zheng Yao all understood.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head: "I don't know if he did it on purpose, but Future Films is clearly no longer suitable for him to manage."

Then he continued, "Contact Wang Changtian and ask if he's interested in a share swap with us. Also, get in touch with Ma Huateng and ask if he's interested in holding shares in a film company."

"This..."

They were all stunned, staring at Zhao Fusheng in surprise.

Was Zhao Fusheng planning to flip the table?

Call it quits?

"Don't look at me like that."

Zhao Fusheng smiled. "I've said it before: I got into filmmaking not to make a lot of money. Since Ye Jing isn't fit for the position, I'll reduce my shareholding and bring in other investors. Hah, let them play on their own."

In fact, there was something he didn't say: the reason Ye Jing dared to do this was probably because he had accumulated considerable wealth himself and had established his status in the film circle through Future Films' development over the years.

He had become the most influential figure among the大院子弟 in the film industry.

Under these circumstances, how could he not have other ideas?

After all, what those大院子弟 most like to flaunt is themselves, isn't it?

To be honest, Zhao Fusheng didn't dislike these people; sentiments had nothing to do with him—he only cared about results.

But the problem was that Ye Jing was taking risks with his money, which made Zhao Fusheng very unhappy.

He wasn't like the Wang Zhongjun brothers; why was he playing the sentiment card with him?

"And Old Jiang..."

Zheng Yao hesitated and asked.

After all, there was Jiang Wen's relationship to consider.

"It's up to him."

Zhao Fusheng said calmly.

He considered Jiang Wen a friend, but Jiang Wen's inherent idealism was unavoidable.

Or rather, those who came from大院 always had some idealistic thoughts in their hearts.

They always liked to be aloof and portray themselves as different.

This was especially evident in their film and television works.

In Zhao Fusheng's previous life, the leader of this大院 trend was Wang Shuo in the literary world. In his early work "The Air Hostess," he depicted a demobilized navy man loafing around, and the protagonist's job requirement was: work little, get paid a lot; work not at all, still get paid.

Later, in "Half Flame, Half Brine," he elevated the protagonist from a hooligan to the head of a fraud ring, but the same roguish charm of the大院 remained—a unique appeal.

Wang Shuo himself entered the literary world because he didn't want to curry favor with leaders or go to work, and he didn't know what else to do.

In the rock, film, and art worlds, there were plenty of non-mainstream red second-generation who enjoyed privileged resources. Various tangible and intangible capitals fueled their creative talents, which was understandable, but their works should not be taken entirely seriously.

Later, many films and TV dramas, from "In the Heat of the Sun" to "Romantic Life" and "Days Related to Youth" to "Mr. Six," essentially promoted a kind of off-key privileged culture, yet they were widely embraced by the public.

This culture often carried a sense of fallen aristocracy, though it had nothing to do with real aristocracy. It was the culture of temporary vested interests after a reshuffle, or a new power culture with strict small-circle order, and even a hidden privileged culture disguised as camaraderie, mingling among common consumers to vent their frustrations.

One could even say that the rebellious stance of the "true villain" in the earlier大院 culture was merely an upgraded version of the new "hypocrite," more refined and deceptive.

Zhao Fusheng had heard from many of the older generation that neither "In the Heat of the Sun" nor "Youth" truly reflected their era. Back then, male and female students didn't talk to each other, and many couldn't get enough to eat—they were starving. They were forced to stop schooling and go to the countryside to farm, wasting their lives. How could it be "sunny"?

Why did Feng Xiaogang's films gradually lose popularity? The main reason was that his films didn't directly portray real大院 aristocrats, but the attitude and emotions were the same. The old-school hooligan morality and the梁山好汉-style justice they promoted were undoubtedly a bad value system for today.

In short, what Director Feng really wanted to show was a unique life experience of ups and downs under the imperial city—once arrogant and romantic, now ignored.

If done well, it could indeed produce good film art.

But in reality, it wasn't that great.

Zhao Fusheng had no intention of giving those people a chance to use his company as a platform.

So he was going to make a change!

"That's it."

He looked at Dong Chenxi and Zheng Yao: "Keep it low-key; don't let the news leak."

"Alright."

They exchanged glances and finally nodded.

Since Zhao Fusheng had said so much, they knew what to do.

But it was only natural.

In fact, with the entire Future Group undergoing integration, Future Films, even as a listed company, didn't matter much to Zhao Fusheng.

The reason was simple: the profits were too small.

And the effort required was too great.

For example, Zhao Fusheng could invest that money in a few startups and possibly get a market value greater than the profits Future Films could generate.

Soon, Zheng Yao and Dong Chenxi began secretly contacting Guanghua Media and Tencent Technology.

And then?

There was no hesitation.

Maybe Zhao Fusheng didn't care, but Wang Changtian wouldn't miss the opportunity. He quickly reached an agreement with Dong Chenxi to buy a portion of Future Films' shares.

Moreover, although Ma Huateng didn't know why Zhao Fusheng was reluctant to hold Future Films' shares, he still expressed interest in the company.

Brother Ma was a man with ideas; he had always been ambitious about the entertainment industry.

Zhao Fusheng said it had nothing to do with him.

He simply didn't want to continue this boring game anymore.

Soon, news began to circulate in the industry.

Ye Jing naturally got wind of it quickly.

"This... is this a joke?"

Sitting in his office, Ye Jing looked at Jiang Wen in shock.

Clearly, he hadn't expected this.

Jiang Wen smiled bitterly. Zhao Fusheng had already warned him through Zhou Yun.

Either continue fooling around with Ye Jing, or do his own thing properly.

In Zhao Fusheng's view, friends were friends, and business was business.

He couldn't tolerate these Beijing circle big shots using Future Films to realize their so-called film ideals just because of his relationship with Jiang Wen.

After all, it was his money.

"Old Ye, we were both wrong."

Looking at Ye Jing, Jiang Wen said slowly, "Do you think Fusheng didn't know about the movies and TV shows we invested in before?"

Ye Jing fell silent.

To be honest, those messy Republican-era dramas and various art films, though the investments were small and he had cleverly covered up the losses on the books, were impossible to hide if Zhao Fusheng seriously investigated.

More importantly, Ye Jing felt guilty!

He knew that recently, due to some issues after Future Films' listing, he had made many decisions that didn't meet Zhao Fusheng's requirements.

But because Zhao Fusheng usually didn't interfere much with subsidiaries and trusted him as general manager, it had never been exposed.

Now, as soon as Zhao Fusheng personally checked, the problems came to light.

It was like a kite—no matter how far or high it flew, the string was always in the owner's hand.

As long as Zhao Fusheng, the largest shareholder, pulled the string, Ye Jing would lose his power and position.

He knew very well that his influence in the capital's and even the country's film circle wasn't due to his own ability or background, but because he was the helmsman of Future Films.

Everyone knew that Future Films was the least afraid of losing money among all Chinese film companies.

Moreover, Future Films had businesses spanning the entire film industry chain, like an aircraft carrier, and was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with a market value of over 50 billion Hong Kong dollars.

With a company of that level, how could Ye Jing not have status in the entertainment industry?

But don't forget.

All of this stemmed from Zhao Fusheng's trust.

As the major shareholder, Zhao Fusheng could replace Ye Jing and use his voting rights to solve any problem if he wished.

But everyone had always thought that Ye Jing and Zhao Fusheng had a good personal relationship, so that wouldn't happen.

Now, Ye Jing suddenly realized that all his power came from Zhao Fusheng, and once Zhao Fusheng no longer trusted him, he would be nothing.

"I've decided to resign as vice president of the company."

Jiang Wen looked at Ye Jing and said slowly, "I'm still not cut out for this."

He smiled, a little self-deprecating, but with firm resolve: "I'm better suited to making movies."

Was Jiang Wen stupid?

Of course not.

A movie king and director like Old Jiang couldn't be stupid.

As one of the big shots in the Beijing circle, Jiang Wen was thriving and held shares in Future Films himself.

He knew very well who gave him all this.

As they say, when you drink water, don't forget who dug the well.

Jiang Wen also knew that without Zhao Fusheng, he wouldn't have his current reputation in the circle.

In the past, he was a famous and talented director.

But in front of capital, he was nothing.

Now, every capital player weighed Jiang Wen's importance.

The reason was simple: he had Zhao Fusheng behind him.

Zhao Fusheng's presence made anyone who wanted to underestimate Jiang Wen think twice.

Though unwilling to admit it, a super-rich man worth tens of billions of dollars was not someone people wanted to offend.

Especially when everyone knew he was very protective of his own.

So, after Zhou Yun called Jiang Wen, he had already made his decision.

He would support Zhao Fusheng's choice.

Whether from a personal relationship or his future development, this was the most appropriate.

But Ye Jing was dumbfounded.

He never expected Jiang Wen to make this decision without hesitation.

Did he know what he was doing?

"You... you're not joking, are you?"

Looking at Jiang Wen, Ye Jing said slowly.

"Of course not."

Jiang Wen shrugged: "Actually, I've always thought that maybe I'm not suited to manage a company. I'm just someone who likes making movies. Since that's the case, I'll stick to what I'm best at."

Old Jiang said with a smile.