Chapter 312: Water Margin City, Having a Child, Yang Mi Being PUA'd

In mid-April, Seeing Yan Li appeared in his hometown of Zao City to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Water Margin Film City.

As previously mentioned, several regions had been highly eager to secure this project, especially those claiming ties to the original Water Margin sites.

Then there was Zao City, because the Water Margin Film City required cooperation from A New Water Margin, which Seeing Yan Li oversaw—he was a native of Zao City, so the connection ran deeper.

To win this project, Zao City's officials spared no effort; not to mention the efforts of his parents back home, the two main figures had visited Seeing Yan Li in Jingcheng multiple times.

Moved by their sincerity, coupled with hometown ties, and most crucially, the favorable terms Zao City offered.

Seeing Yan Li intervened personally and ultimately helped Zao City secure the project's location.

More accurately, it was a joint construction between Zao City and Ji City, mostly in Zao City, with a smaller portion located in Weishan County of Ji City.

This was done for harmony's sake—multiple original Water Margin sites were in Ji City; you couldn't deny them some benefit. Zao City had gained an advantage through Seeing Yan Li, so they had to appease Ji City somewhat.

The entire Water Margin Film City covers an area of 400,000 square meters, with a total planned investment of 1.2 to 1.5 billion.

Its style features ancient-style architecture based on the Water Margin classic and Tang-Song cultural motifs, including filming and tourist attractions such as Dongping Prefecture, Duan Prince's Mansion, Zishi Street, and the Water Margin Stronghold.

Yi'an invested little money but contributed a series of licenses including A New Water Margin, aided marketing and promotion, and through subsequent collaborations and minor funding, holds a 10% equity stake in the film city.

This percentage is already quite good, considering Yi'an contributed little cash yet still enjoys many perks from the production team.

Achieving this equity stake owes much to Yi'an's actual resources, Seeing Yan Li's current control of Weibo channels, and the benefit of helping secure the project's location in Zao City.

If Seeing Yan Li pushed harder, he could have secured more—but after thinking it over, he decided to stop here.

One reason was to support his hometown; there was no need to be so mercenary. Another was that little actual capital was involved, and many intangible resources couldn't be directly quantified—taking more equity might later invite trouble.

Ten percent was more like "hard-earned money"—not too much, not too little, more readily accepted by outsiders; for this small stake, few would envy him or harbor resentment.

After touring the site and dining with officials, Seeing Yan Li took the opportunity to return home.

His parents no longer lived in the village—at least not regularly—too many eyes and too much hassle, so they bought a house in town.

Yan's grandmother still lived in the village, but compared to before, her old house had been completely torn down and rebuilt; the new house was bright and clean, fully equipped, and had two people caring for her.

One was a nanny Seeing Yan Li specifically hired—a professional skilled in elder care—the other was his grandmother's niece from her natal family, whom Seeing Yan Li called Auntie Biao.

Auntie Biao's background was tragic: she had been a widow early in life, and the son she raised alone died before he could father a child.

Yan's grandmother brought her over to care for her niece; she cooked, cleaned, and was provided room and board, plus a salary.

Others, including Seeing Yan Li, had no objections—the nanny could handle daily care, but emotional comfort was another matter.

Having a blood relative around to chat with, to gossip with, a few thousand yuan a month was a drop in the bucket for the Yan family.

His parents had only recently returned from Jingcheng, so Seeing Yan Li's main purpose this visit was to see his grandmother.

"Yan… Li, have some tea."

Auntie Biao was nervous; despite Seeing Yan Li's young age, he was a real big boss—not to mention the old comrades who followed him to Jingcheng, he'd also invested locally, bringing many relatives and friends along for meals.

She was effectively earning money from Seeing Yan Li, so she had to be careful.

Not to mention, Seeing Yan Li held his position and carried his aura—even sitting simply there, he exerted some pressure. Yan's grandmother didn't care, but she, having met Seeing Yan Li only a few times, dared not act like an auntie.

"Auntie, you go on with your work. I'll chat with Grandma."

Seeing Yan Li wasn't close to Auntie Biao; after a few polite exchanges, he turned to chatting with the old woman.

The old lady's health had improved considerably since last year, especially her spirit—her grandson was successful and filial, she ate well and drank well every day, so of course her mood was good.

The only pity was her husband had passed away early, never enjoying this fortune.

She reminded Seeing Yan Li to burn paper money for his grandfather later—Qingming had passed only a few days ago; he'd still receive it.

Then she nagged him to hurry up and give her a great-grandchild.

Zhang Hong also pressed him, but not as urgently; Seeing Yan Li brushed her off, and she couldn't do much—now that her son was so powerful, she couldn't really scold him like when he was a child.

The old lady was more urgent—she had more confidence than Zhang Hong, and one sentence shut Seeing Yan Li down.

"If you have children early, I might still see them. Wait a few more years, and I might not be around to see them."

"Don't talk like that—it's unlucky."

Seeing Yan Li cut in, but the old lady took it lightly: "It's fine. Your grandfather passed at fifty, I'm trying hard to live to seventy, and I've seen our family thrive—far luckier than your grandfather."

"I'm not pushing you, but you're approaching thirty—this family legacy must be passed on."

"Whether it's Bingbing, or your mother's favorite Xiaodong or Qin Dongfan, or anyone else—have one child, any gender, and your father, mother, and I will all feel at ease."

She didn't say anything harsher, but Seeing Yan Li was an only child—if anything happened to him, everything would go to other Yan family branches or Zhang Hong's relatives, not his own.

So Seeing Yan Li must have descendants; with descendants, no matter what, nothing would go to outsiders.

Whether Seeing Yan Li was the most filial grandson was debatable, but he was certainly the best to his grandmother.

Yan's grandmother had suffered most of her life, and in her final years, she enjoyed comfort through her grandson's success—she was a sharp woman; regardless of the past, she now genuinely supported Seeing Yan Li and planned for his benefit.

Moreover, from the entire Yan family's perspective, her words were Calm and Prudent.

If Seeing Yan Li had no children, some people might start thinking too much; if he had children, everyone would settle down—this benefited the Yan family far more than it harmed.

"I'll consider it."

Seeing Yan Li's words weren't a brush-off—he'd actually been considering this since last year.

His age was indeed not young; Qin Dongfan was also approaching thirty—this matter wasn't urgent, but it truly needed to be scheduled.

Thirty years old!

Seeing Yan Li set himself a goal: to become established at thirty—have a child around this age and enter the next stage of life.

He hadn't told anyone this—not his grandmother, not his parents, not even Qin Dongfan privately; if word got out, it would be a hassle, and he wanted to keep a way out.

…

Seeing Yan Li didn't stay long in his hometown; he had dinner with his grandmother, parents, uncle, and cousin that night, visited the graves the next day, then returned to Jingcheng.

Upon returning to Jingcheng, Seeing Yan Li received news that Yang Mi's contract termination with Rong Xinda was going poorly.

"Why?"

Seeing Yan Li genuinely didn't understand—Yang Mi was determined to join Yi'an, and Yi'an had offered adequate breach compensation; Rong Xinda had no reason to hold her back.

Jia Qian, head of Yi'an's artist agency, said: "Their claim is that they have high confidence in Yang Mi's future."

Seeing Yan Li understood: Rong Xinda believed Yi'an valued Yang Mi and thought the compensation was too low.

When Yang Mi first signed with Rong Xinda, she was an unknown nobody; the breach penalty was negligible, and even now, Yang Mi is merely a minor star—Yi'an's compensation is based solely on her current fame and status.

Yi'an claims it did nothing wrong: Yang Mi had a proper contract, everyone followed the contract, and since Yang Mi is this popular now, Yi'an pays this much in compensation.

In fact, Yi'an is being reasonable—many companies poach talent without offering any compensation at all, and even the breach penalty gets negotiated or delayed.

But Rong Xinda doesn't see it that way: Yang Mi is a minor star now, but the roles she's already secured and her future prospects are highly promising.

If she leaves Rong Xinda early, Rong Xinda suffers greater losses—this account must be settled clearly.

"What does Yang Mi say?"

"She says she'll follow the company's arrangements—whatever the company decides, she'll do."

Seeing Yan Li shook his head: it sounded loyal, but was actually evasive—though that was normal; in a clash between two companies, a minor artist like her had no voice.

"Tell Rong Xinda: that's final. If they won't accept it, sue to terminate the contract—no compensation at all."

Seeing Yan Li offered compensation only to avoid the reputation of bullying the weak, but that doesn't mean he's easygoing.

Rong Xinda has done its accounting well—so how does Yi'an do its accounting?

For the next few years, won't Rong Xinda get a share of the profits from all the investments Yi'an made to promote Yang Mi?

Whether reasonable or not, in the end, strength speaks. Yi'an doesn't want things to turn ugly, but if Rong Xinda refuses to show respect, then let them settle it with real force.

To say it bluntly, sometimes it's not surprising that some people eat badly—if you eat too neatly, others think you're soft and easy to bully.

Jia Qian didn't move, hesitating: "Rong Xinda has gathered some dirt on Yang Mi."

"What kind of dirt?"

Seeing Yan Li asked. Jia Qian gave a rough outline—it wasn't fatal, or Yang Mi wouldn't dare leave, but it would still affect her to some degree.

Forcing out a promising talent only to leave her half-wilted would be a net loss for Yi'an—this is the source of Rong Xinda's negotiating leverage.

"That's ruthless."

Seeing Yan Li sighed: Rong Xinda was truly defeated now, resorting to such tactics.

When Young Master Zhou left Rong Xinda, Li Xiaowan had been angry, even lost her composure and said some bitter things, but overall, she hadn't torn the bridge—she preserved the dignity of a mutual parting.

Now, with Rong Xinda struggling, aside from one drama, "New Dream of the Red Chamber," it's almost purely an artist management company.

Its former stature is gone—it's willing to risk mutual destruction to pressure artists and Yi'an.