Chapter 51: Investing in Red Star Dock

"Little Lu, you've been making quite a name for yourself recently!"

People lift each other up in fancy sedans. Cheng Jingfei spoke with the elegant temperament of a Confucian merchant, though his slicked-back hair was a bit more rustic.

Zhang Jizhong had long since become familiar with Seeing Lu Kuan, coming to him every few days to calculate his fortune. What convinced him most was the advice Seeing Lu Kuan gave him before he was officially confirmed as the producer of *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*.

At the time, the main investor, the Suzhou platform, wouldn't commit. Seeing Lu Kuan suggested Zhang Jizhong go straight to the source and visit them with local specialties from his hometown in Zhejiang.

Later, with this person mediating, he was able to make the position completely his own.

Having been tipped off by Seeing Lu Kuan in advance, he smiled and played along: "President Cheng doesn't know, but now there are countless people in the industry looking for Little Lu's Inquiry Realm company to write commercial consulting reports. One order is 300,000!"

This was an exaggeration. With the smooth progress of his first film's preparation and the continuous expansion of his connections in the circle, he also intended to downplay his "little immortal" image.

In the future, such flashes of insight should be reserved for critical moments; he couldn't give people the stereotypical impression that he was "too wise to be human" on a large scale, as it easily invited precaution and covetousness from political figures.

If a high-ranking leader asks you to calculate, and you calculate correctly, you become a personal "diviner"; if you calculate incorrectly, you're branded as feudal superstition and dealt with by the law. Isn't that disgusting?

Boss Lu understood this too well. The entertainment industry is chaotic, but at least there's some logic to be spoken. Once you get involved...

There's no mercy at all!

Liu Xiaoli had a favor to ask of him today, so she also smiled and flattered him: "You two don't know, but Little Lu is not only smart and understands music, his acting skills are even better!"

"Chen Kun's acting is pretty good, right? Liu Guoquan is an old director, right? Sometimes when they aren't sure about a role, they have to find him to help them come up with ideas!"

Seeing Lu Kuan laughed inwardly. It didn't matter how much they praised him; today, Boss Lu only wanted to do three things with them.

Red Star Dock! Red Star Dock! And it's fucking Red Star Dock!

Liu Yifei was about to enter the fast lane of development starting next year, and both her endorsements and film fees would skyrocket.

She was not yet an adult, and everything was managed by Liu Xiaoli. In the absence of any possibility of poaching, the only option was to seek partial equity first and then make plans.

With *The Story of a Noble Family* still filming, this was undoubtedly the best time for Seeing Lu Kuan to use his resources to command Red Star Dock.

The waiter poured Wuliangye into the decanter, and the three men soon began to exchange toasts.

After three rounds of drinks, Zhang Jizhong quietly gave Seeing Lu Kuan a wink, and the latter went straight to the point.

"The three of you, we've known each other for a few months now, and my relationship with Old Zhang is quite good. With the crew starting filming during this time, I feel that Little Liu's personality is really good—she can endure hardship, cares about the big picture, and her image is uniquely gifted. She's a good seedling."

Cheng Jingfei found it funny to see him acting so old-fashioned; it was a bit jarring coming from a 20-year-old young man.

But he had to admit that his rise over the past half-year had been too fast. Just through the "scamming and swindling" of his Inquiry Realm company, he could earn a considerable income.

Cheng Jingfei was an old fox; he knew his routine of "suppressing before praising" and smiled as he put down his wine glass: "President Lu, speak your mind. We haven't known each other for just one day."

"Liu Yifei is a good seedling, but she still needs cultivation and growth. President Cheng and Ms. Liu are the people closest to her, but they might not be able to plan her development path very reasonably. I'm willing to help out. What does President Cheng think?"

Liu Xiaoli was a bit stunned, but the real estate businessman's expression changed slightly: "How to cooperate?"

"Let me buy shares in Red Star Dock!"

"Impossible!" Cheng Jingfei refused flatly. No businessman would easily give up equity, even if Liu Yifei's prospects were still unclear at the moment.

But he believed that with his connections and social relations, her future would certainly not be bad.

"Hehe, President Cheng, don't be in such a hurry to refuse. Why not listen to my conditions?"

Cheng Jingfei's face was livid, and he didn't speak. Liu Xiaoli had a different stance from him; as long as it was good for her daughter, she was willing to try.

"Little Lu, tell us. Jingfei, don't be angry. Everyone is just sitting down to chat today; don't hurt the harmony whether it works out or not."

Seeing Lu Kuan spoke eloquently: "Nowadays, everyone emphasizes being a triple-threat in film, television, and music. Little Liu's future development will be no exception."

"On the film and television side, with Director Zhang's help, I believe film contracts for the next few years won't be a problem."

"But what about music? What about works for the big screen?"

The contempt chain from the film circle to the television circle has always existed. The development path for film and television artists in the early 21st century was generally:

Domestic TV dramas — Co-produced TV dramas — Domestic films — Hong Kong/Taiwan films or co-productions — Hollywood films.

Currently, only Jackie Chan, Chow Yun-fat from Hong Kong, and Jet Li and Zhang Ziyi from the mainland had successfully entered Hollywood, yet they were often marginalized and co-opted, becoming an important force for Hollywood to enter the Asian market.

Cheng Jingfei sneered. In his eyes, these were all useful nonsense.

One circle has one circle's rules. Even with the most powerful capital, entering the entertainment industry requires following development laws and doing things according to the rules. He naturally knew this development path, but how to arrange it?

For a novice girl who had just returned from abroad and hadn't entered the acting school system for formal study, even a wealthy man like him couldn't make her improve in a short time.

Cheng Jingfei's voice was tinged with sarcasm: "Does President Lu have a way? I haven't seen it."

Zhang Jizhong was now the person who understood Seeing Lu Kuan's background best. He sighed slightly in his heart: *Old Cheng, you know nothing about Master Lu's energy! *

"Little Liu can enter the music scene at the right time. I'll ask the Hong Kong big sister, Anita Mui, to support her."

"Sister Mui has her own music company, and she herself has extensive friendships in the music scene and numerous disciples. You should be able to trust her, right?"

Liu Xiaoli's eyes lit up when she heard this. This candidate was too suitable. Anita Mui was a woman, and she had a well-known reputation in the "rivers and lakes" for being righteous and upright; she didn't have to worry about her daughter being bullied.

"Why should she support Xixi? Because of your face?"

Cheng Jingfei was, after all, a real estate businessman and hadn't heard the rumors spreading in a small circle in the Hong Kong entertainment industry:

"The little immortal breaks the terminal illness on a snowy night; Sister Mui is blessed by heaven to remove the evil disease."

He naturally didn't know about the relationship between Seeing Lu Kuan and Anita Mui.

Boss Lu smiled slightly and took out his phone. It was time for Anita Mui to be a "tool person" for once.

"Hello, big sister, it's Seeing Lu Kuan."

"Little brother, speak, I'm listening."

"There's a very intelligent girl in the mainland, her vocal conditions are also okay. I'd like to ask big sister to help support her. Is that okay?"

The phone was on speaker. Liu Xiaoli was so excited to confirm it was Anita Mui's voice, and Cheng Jingfei was also somewhat suspicious.

He had such connections?

Anita Mui sneered: "It's all easy to talk about; we're family."

The two exchanged pleasantries and hung up. Boss Lu smiled at the few people, signaling that what he said was true.

Listening to the "beep-beep-beep" busy signal from the phone, Cheng Jingfei swallowed a mouthful of bitter wine and asked unwillingly: "Then how will you help Xixi break into the big screen?"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 52 =====