Chapter 393: Igniting the Entertainment Industry, Targeting a Super Giant

Huayi, headquarters

Wang Zhonglei sipped his coffee; the bitterness on his tongue matched his mood.

"Bro, I checked this morning—Yi'an rose again."

Wang Zhongjun remained calm, mainly because he'd already anticipated it, even felt a bit relieved.

"Not bad—at least it didn't spike three digits."

Seeing Yan Li's halo is too large, Yi'an's advantages are too great, the stories spun around it are too many; if he really wanted to push hard, turning Yi'an into a speculative stock beyond market comprehension wouldn't be hard at all.

But for reasons unknown, Yi'an later deliberately became more low-key and conservative, keeping its rise within public acceptance.

Wang Zhongjun was still relieved about this; Huayi's market cap still hovered around ten billion.

Though far behind Yi'an, it could still barely hold second place—but if Yi'an surged to hundreds of billions, Huayi would truly be pushed to the sidelines.

"Bro, I talked with Boss Ma yesterday—he said Yi'an's rise was deliberately suppressed by Seeing Yan Li."

Wang Zhongjun nodded: "I felt the same, but I'm not sure what Seeing Yan Li's intentions are."

"I asked Boss Ma—he shared some of his judgments with me, and I think they're solid."

Wang Zhonglei relayed Jack Ma's words: Jack Ma believed Seeing Yan Li had always been cautious, acting only after careful planning.

This was evident in his investments and maneuvers—he always considered failure before victory, never chased huge profits, knew when to quit, preferred smaller gains over unnecessary risk.

If Yi'an became a speculative stock with a market cap of several hundred billion, it would be lifted up and unable to come down.

Remember, the entire cultural entertainment industry is only two to three hundred billion in size; this market simply cannot accommodate a behemoth like Yi'an.

A market cap of several hundred billion means Yi'an is overextending market optimism for the future of entertainment and film, creating a false prosperity disconnected from actual value—the so-called bubble.

Once a bubble forms, Yi'an must grow rapidly, racing against the bubble itself.

It must not only grow itself but also spare no cost to elevate the entire industry, turning the bubble from illusion into reality.

It sounds promising—if Seeing Yan Li pushes hard, outpaces the bubble, makes Yi'an a speculative stock, and the company thrives, the benefits outweigh the risks.

But setting aside whether failing to outpace it might cause collapse, the key issue is that bubbles are very likely to keep inflating.

At two hundred billion, it's inflated to several hundred; when it truly reaches several hundred, it's already blown to over a thousand, even several thousand.

By then, even if Seeing Yan Li stomps the brakes until sparks fly, it won't matter—once the stock market goes wild, even the state can't stop it.

The entertainment and film sector excels in influence but has limited scale, with clear peaks, stagnation, and downturns.

Once the market cools, Yi'an, dragged along at breakneck speed, will face a predictable fate.

And as Yi'an's actual controller, even if it wasn't Seeing Yan Li's intention, how could he fully wash his hands clean?

Seeing Yan Li doesn't just have Yi'an—he also has the more promising Weibo, and Yan Ye Capital, which invests in multiple hot companies; he has no reason to go all-in on a high-stakes gamble.

Yi'an is currently popular, but not excessively so—it remains under Seeing Yan Li's control.

By gradually building his entertainment empire with Weibo, Tudou, and others, rising steadily with market growth, the foundation becomes firmer, risks lower, hidden dangers fewer—why not do it this way?

You can criticize Seeing Yan Li's approach as lacking boldness, too conservative.

But when Yi'an stabilizes, stands firm through storms, and watches other rushed companies crash, then you'll praise him for foresight and long-term vision.

Jack Ma ended by admitting he even envied Seeing Yan Li—having backup plans, a formed industrial chain, a deep and wide moat, so he could layout calmly.

Most companies and entrepreneurs lack these conditions.

In fact, many people and companies don't want to gamble, but are pressured by external forces and circumstances, forced into all-or-nothing bets.

Market competition is too brutal—flooring the accelerator might cause a crash or a collision, but hitting the brakes risks being rear-ended.

Giving up because of fear is not an option; one must survive first, then consider the future.

Jack Ma spoke with emotion; the two Wangs of Huayi sighed in sympathy.

Some can gamble but choose not to. Some don't want to gamble but are forced to. Others, like us, don't even have the right to gamble.

Huayi's previous trajectory had a hint of speculative stock behavior, but with Yi'an's listing, the true industry ceiling was set; with Yi'an standing ahead, Huayi can bask in the industry's momentum, but outright gambling and soaring? Forget it.

Not just Huayi—even all listed companies in the industry are affected, unless their scale and strength surpass Yi'an.

So in a way, Seeing Yan Li's caution isn't good for Huayi; the two Wangs hoped Yi'an would surge, so Huayi could ride the wave too.

Even if the bubble burst and Huayi collapsed with it, having Yi'an and Seeing Yan Li in front would dilute the impact.

Even if Huayi fell, the two brothers could still skim plenty of profit along the way.

Too bad Seeing Yan Li is too steady; Huayi can only abandon fantasy and focus on steady development.

"Zhonglei, find out if Yi'an's celebration allows outsiders to attend—I'll go in person. If not, prepare a generous gift, then schedule a visit to call on him."

Wang Zhongjun instructed his brother; Wang Zhonglei nodded silently.

After Yi'an's listing, its status as industry leader is unquestionable, and it leads competitors by a wide margin; such a dominant company wields great influence within the industry and can propose or even set industry rules.

Though Huayi remains Yi'an's rival, circumstances favor the stronger side, and the gap in strength is real—lowering one's stance brings no harm.

Most crucially, if relations sour, Huayi genuinely fears Yi'an will suppress or even crush them once it gains power.

You don't hit someone who smiles at you; no matter what they think privately, outwardly they must show proper respect.

Wang Zhonglei went out to handle the matter; Wang Zhongjun sighed and quietly began working.

In Seeing Yan Li's intelligence on Huayi's future, Wang Zhongjun after Huayi's listing was remarkably relaxed.

At his most relaxed, Wang Zhongjun's daily routine consisted of sleeping until naturally awake, then heading to Sanlitun to play poker with friends, riding horses on weekends, tending trees, and—his personal favorite—collecting art.

Even Jack Ma half-joked, half-marveled that Wang Zhongjun was the laziest CEO he'd ever met.

But now, with Yi'an looming like a mountain above and countless film companies watching hungrily below, Huayi's industry advantage is unclear, and competitive pressure is immense.

Now Wang Zhongjun can't be relaxed anymore—not only can he not abandon the company to play cards, he's working late every day, his hair turning gray in patches from stress.

Still, misfortune brought unexpected fortune: the two Wangs still had ability, kept their heads down, worked hard; though Huayi couldn't compare to Yi'an, it developed well enough that no other company had yet threatened its second-place position.

…

The two Wangs of Huayi felt the pressure, worked diligently, striving to solidify Huayi's position and ideally narrow the gap with Yi'an.

For other film companies, there's no need yet to consider competing with Yi'an; their main reaction to Yi'an's listing was excitement.

Hua Yi had already opened everyone's eyes, opening the door to the capitalization of the entertainment industry.

Yi'an's listing completely ignited everyone's passion.

Compared to Hua Yi, Yi'an produced more and more brilliant billionaires.

Seeing Yan Li personally made a fortune of ten billion; Yi'an's investment institutions reaped enormous profits, while several other stars became billionaires, and a whole crowd became millionaires.

Film company bosses grew envious, stars felt jealousy and longing, and capital from all corners rushed in at the news.

For a time, the entire entertainment industry surged with upheaval, gathering heroes and demons alike, roaring with chaos and never ceasing.

Yet during this period, Seeing Yan Li—the central figure behind this industry storm—quietly returned to Beijing after handling the post-listing aftermath.

Fuli City, bedroom

"Yan Jingxin, call Dad."

Seeing Yan Li poked his eldest son's chubby cheek, coaxing him to say "Dad"; the boy glanced at his father with half-closed eyes, then turned away and shut his eyes.

"..."

Seeing Yan Li was speechless; Qin Lan burst into laughter beside him, and Zhang Hong also chuckled, adding a scolding remark about her own son.

"He hasn't even reached his first month—why should he call Dad?"

"Even if he doesn't say 'Dad,' just babble a little bit!"

Seeing Yan Li started poking his son again, but the boy still ignored him—whether from shyness or not, no one could tell.

"Just spend more time with him, and he'll get used to it."

Zhang Hong offered comfort, then praised the child: "My eldest grandson is wonderful—he doesn't cry, doesn't throw tantrums, isn't clingy, quiet and gentle, utterly adorable."

Qin Lan nodded; though this was her first time being a mother, she had friends who were mothers—Ma Yili's child wasn't like this.

By comparison, Young Master Yan was indeed easier to manage.

Or perhaps he's still too young; many newborns are easy to handle at first, and only start causing trouble as they grow older.

After playing with him for a while, the baby grew tired and fell asleep; Zhang Hong stayed by her grandson's side and ushered Seeing Yan Li and Qin Lan out of the room.

"Is my mom okay at home?"

Seeing Yan Li asked; there was a postnatal nurse, a maid, and Qin Mu at home.

But Zhang Hong worried about her grandson and kept rushing home, personally handling many tasks—Seeing Yan Li asked Qin Lan because he feared she might suffer in silence, afraid to defy Zhang Hong.

"It's fine—Mom listens carefully to the doctor and the postnatal nurse, she's just overly careful and attentive to the baby."

Such an attitude easily leads to indulgence; Qin Lan couldn't say it outright, so she could only use Seeing Yan Li to plant a warning.

"It's her first time being a grandmother—she's just caught up in the excitement; it'll pass."

Seeing Yan Li told Qin Lan not to stress so much—Dong Xuan would give birth in two or three months; then Zhang Hong would be running between two households, and over time, she'd surely lose this level of enthusiasm.

Qin Lan nodded and voluntarily asked about Dong Xuan—they hadn't seen each other since the New Year.

She'd been busy giving birth and hadn't paid much attention to Dong Xuan's situation; now she wanted to share some advice.

"Well, she probably doesn't need you to worry about her."

Seeing Yan Li shook his head—not only had he hired professionals for Dong Xuan, but there was also Guan Yue.