Chapter 849: Setbacks in Filming an Advertisement

Secretary Liu's hair was already more than half gray, but it was combed meticulously; the wrinkles on his face looked like they had been carved by a knife, with every line hiding the hardships of life.

"Zhuzi, barring any accidents, I will likely retire next year. There are some things I won't be able to help you with anymore."

He Yuzhu didn't feel surprised upon hearing this, but he still put on a shocked expression, "Leader, if you step down, what am I supposed to do? Our family, I'm afraid, will be picked clean."

Secretary Liu waved his hand and smiled, "You used to be a little fox, but now you're an old fox. You don't need to put on such a pessimistic expression to make me happy. I have already made arrangements for your affairs; as long as I am not dead, no one will touch you."

He Yuzhu took a deep breath and said, "Leader, it's been decades. You have essentially given me a new lease on life; if it weren't for you, I certainly wouldn't have lived to see this day!"

Secretary Liu smiled, "Are you nearly...?"

He Yuzhu nodded and said, "Cheng Shao is like a fly, finding trouble for me at every opportunity. He is not even as good as that Zhou Hao."

Secretary Liu said nothing, waiting for him to continue.

"Zhou Hao is ruthless. But there are some things he will do, and some things he won't. But this Cheng Shao... he opposes me in everything, regardless of the size or whether there is any benefit; he just can't stand to see me doing well."

In truth, He Yuzhu was no longer afraid of the Cheng Family. What he truly feared was that with Secretary Liu retiring, the major things he had done would be intentionally exposed by those with ulterior motives.

Secretary Liu smiled and said, "Rest assured, the files on those things you did have already been sealed; they won't be declassified for decades."

Only then did He Yuzhu feel relieved, and he said, "Thank you, Leader."

"Why be so polite with me? I asked to see you today because I wanted to hear your thoughts on the future. Don't hold back—say whatever comes to mind!"

He Yuzhu's tone became serious: "If my predictions are correct, in three or four years, Asia will face a crisis, mainly economic in nature. Our country should also be affected. After '98, the internet should be hyped up, and around 2000, the bubble will burst..."

He Yuzhu started from 1992 and spoke all the way to 2022, a span of thirty years, covering everything from the economy to technology and even military affairs.

Secretary Liu listened quietly, smoking one cigarette after another. It wasn't until half a pack was gone that He Yuzhu finished speaking.

The room was silent for a few seconds.

Secretary Liu looked at He Yuzhu and asked, "Zhuzi, I haven't asked you this in decades, but today I want to break the rule. Tell me, how do you know all of this? Don't tell me you calculated it!"

He Yuzhu was very impressed by Secretary Liu's self-control. He had done many things that exceeded the scope of what a normal person could do, yet Secretary Liu had never asked him about them. He had held back for forty years.

He lit a cigarette and said slowly, "When I was nine, I once had a high fever. My head was dizzy, and it felt like I had entered another space and time, where I seemed to have lived for over thirty years from childhood to adulthood..."

He Yuzhu talked eloquently for over two hours.

After listening, Secretary Liu fell into deep thought. Ten minutes later, he suddenly revealed a rare, slightly childlike smile: "Then let me ask you, in that world you spoke of, am I in it?"

"Of course you are. Just like in this world, we are friends." He Yuzhu lied; he didn't want Secretary Liu to know that it was because of him that Secretary Liu's fate had changed, as that would make him seem a bit opportunistic.

In fact, He Yuzhu had rehearsed this conversation in his mind a hundred times; he knew Secretary Liu would eventually ask these questions. This time, his answer was almost reflexive, appearing very authentic.

Upon hearing this, Secretary Liu finally smiled.

Winter break had arrived. Liu Wei didn't return to her hometown, mainly because her mother needed a follow-up checkup after surgery, so she could only rent a place near the hospital.

Ma Rui went straight to the advertising company. Today, they were welcoming a big client—an enterprise that made jelly and children's calcium milk. The creative concept had been approved, and the advertisement had already been filmed, though the editing wasn't finished yet.

Unfortunately, this enterprise had suddenly changed leadership at this critical juncture, and the new leader came to Juxiantang Advertising Company to view the sample footage as soon as he took office.

After watching the sample, Manager Wang slammed the script onto the table, "The creative concept depicted a lush green lawn, but look at what you filmed—the grass is all yellow."

Ma Rui knew this person was looking for trouble, but he still explained patiently: "Manager Wang, when I took on this advertisement, it was the end of November. We spent a month going back and forth on the creative concepts. By the time we officially started filming, it was already December. In Beijing in December, where would you have me find a green lawn? We scoured every villa area and golf course in Beijing, and the grass was all yellow. We reported this to General Manager Sun long ago, and he gave us the green light."

A cold, imperceptible sneer appeared at the corner of Manager Wang's mouth as he said, "Your filming did not meet our requirements. It must be reshot. We paid you three hundred thousand, which is enough for you to reshoot."

Ma Rui's brow furrowed. He stared at Manager Wang's sharp-featured face and fell into thought. This enterprise had been introduced by Aunt Wang Xia, and the former General Manager Sun was a very good person. How could it become like this after changing the General Manager?

Just then, Chen Jiadong, who had been sitting in the corner, suddenly spoke up.

"Manager Wang, why do you look a bit familiar? Are you... from the 1985 Performance Department of the Film Academy? I think I've seen a group photo of you with Deputy Director Liu."

As soon as these words were out, Ma Rui instantly understood the implication of Chen Jiadong's words—this Manager Wang was a student of Deputy Director Liu.

In other words, this whole scene today was a setup to wreck the place from the very beginning.

Ma Rui sneered inwardly, thinking: This time, I might really be done for.

He looked up, a warm smile appearing on his face instead: "So you're a senior! I didn't recognize Mount Tai; Senior Wang, this is a case of the flood washing away the Dragon King Temple—"

Wang Yongnian interrupted him, saying bluntly, "Close friends settle accounts clearly. I'll give you two choices now. First, reshoot this advertisement strictly according to the first version of the creative concept, and find a place with a lawn. We will continue until we are satisfied. Second, even if you reshoot, it has delayed our time on China Television. You must compensate us for our two million in losses..."

Chen Jiadong's expression changed, and he subconsciously glanced at Ma Rui.

Ma Rui shoved his hands into his trouser pockets, narrowed his small eyes, and said, "Fine. Manager Wang, then let's go to court."

Wang Yongnian raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected this young punk in front of him to be so stubborn.

"You, is this your way of treating guests? You botched the advertisement yourself, and now you want to cause trouble for the client."

Ma Rui shook his head and said, "When the advertisement was being filmed, your company's sales representative, Xiao Liu, participated the entire time. Every one of our revision suggestions and every communication record was sent to your former General Manager Sun. It's all in black and white, stamped and signed—nothing is missing."

Wang Yongnian stared at Ma Rui for several seconds, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly. In the end, he said nothing, picked up the thermos on the table, stood up, and walked out.

Chen Jiadong let out a breath, turned to look at Ma Rui, and asked, "Are you really going to take him to court?"

"If he is determined to oppose me, then I will cut off the supply of raw materials to their factory," Ma Rui said.