Chapter 57

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"Hong Sister asked me to come and ask you, how are babies born?"

"..." Wu Cheng was speechless, grinding his teeth in his heart, and vowed to find an opportunity to teach that auntie a lesson; she was really causing trouble.

"Brother Cheng, you don't know either?"

"Of course, Brother Cheng knows." Wu Cheng rubbed his temples, organized his words, and continued, "However, you don't need to think about this question now. When you're older, you'll naturally understand. If you still don't know, I'll teach you when you turn eighteen."

Wu Cheng wore a mischievous smile and added, "If your Hong Sister asks again, just tell her..." Then he whispered in her ear.

Lan Jieying, looking happy, skipped back, and Zhong Chuhong asked, "Yingying, what did that big bad guy say to you?"

Lan Jieying, with an innocent and romantic look, said, "Brother Cheng said, for such questions, each one should go home and ask their own mother!"

Pfft!

Zhao Yazhi couldn't help but laugh, while Zhong Chuhong blushed with embarrassment.

...

After resting for about half an hour, the filming resumed.

Zhong Chuhong and Lan Jieying watched quietly. "Sister Hong, filming is so much fun!"

Seeing Wu Cheng's confident and commanding demeanor, Zhong Chuhong nodded thoughtfully and secretly decided that after she graduated, she would also act in films to get closer to him. "Little rascal, see how you can escape from this heroine's palm!"

However, thinking of Zhao Yazhi by Wu Cheng's side, her confidence was shaken.

Moreover, it seemed that Zhao Yazhi wasn't the only one!

As for Lan Jieying, she didn't think much about it. She just thought her Brother Cheng looked so cool, and she admired him so much... Her eyes were full of stars.

In the evening, Wu Cheng and Zhao Yazhi drove Zhong Chuhong and Lan Jieying back home before returning themselves. Zhao Yazhi looked exhausted, which made Wu Cheng feel very sorry for her.

On a whim, he cooked a meal for Zhao Yazhi again.

After dinner, Wu Cheng massaged Zhao Yazhi's shoulders and said, "Since your scenes are few, why don't we finish them first so you don't have to stay at the set all the time!"

Zhao Yazhi shook her head and said, "The company is still small, and there's nothing else to do. Staying at the set helps me learn more, and a bit of tiredness is nothing." After a pause, she added, "Actually, you should be more tired than me! How can you always be so energetic?"

"I've told you to learn Tai Chi from me, but you refused!" Wu Cheng pouted and then said firmly, "Starting tomorrow, we'll go running in the morning, and I'll teach you Tai Chi for health."

"Running is out of the question. I'll practice at home!" Zhao Yazhi shook her head and said, "If the reporters see us, they'll write all sorts of things."

"What's the big deal? We live together, and they already know!"

"Whose advice are you going to follow?"

"Of course... yours!"

"Hmph! You're getting more and more mischievous!"

"..."

...

On the weekend, Wu Cheng gave the crew a day off. Hong Jinbao called to discuss the release of "The Jack of All Trades." "The Jack of All Trades" was in post-production and would be finished in about a week, but Wu Cheng hadn't mentioned the release date, which made Hong Jinbao anxious.

At Wu Cheng's office in East Dragon International, Hong Jinbao got straight to the point, "Ah Cheng, what are you thinking? Uncle Chang called me and asked when the film would be ready. I think he wants to release our film. What do you think?"

Wu Cheng smiled and said, "For ordinary films, they might worry about not getting a theater release, but our film is of high quality. Who wouldn't want it? Golden Harvest might want to take advantage of us, but if we agree too quickly, we'll get less benefit. Uncle Six is eager to work with us, so it's not a bad idea to delay a bit. We haven't stopped promoting it."

Hearing this, Hong Jinbao sighed in relief and laughed, "I thought you were so busy that you forgot about 'The Jack of All Trades'!" After a pause, he added, "You should be the one to talk to Uncle Chang this time. You have more experience."

Wu Cheng laughed and threw a cigar box at him, "This is what Manager Shi brought back from the U.S. Take it! We'll check 'The Jack of All Trades' when it's edited."

Shi Nansheng had returned two days ago and registered over a dozen scripts, including "Jurassic Park," which she arranged for publication. Although the royalties were decent, the publisher was a small one, and Wu Cheng wasn't too concerned about it.

Of course, even a small amount of dollars is still money!

After chatting for a while, Chen Jianxun, with his lion-like hairstyle, and Shi Nansheng, who had just returned from California, knocked and entered. Chen Jianxun held a document and nodded to Hong Jinbao before handing it to Wu Cheng.

"Sit down!" Wu Cheng gestured for them to sit and then flipped through the document, saying, "Brother Sanmao, are you familiar with the owner of Lisheng Cinema? Can you arrange a meeting?"

Hong Jinbao was surprised and asked, "Ah Cheng, what are you planning?"

Wu Cheng looked at Hong Jinbao and smiled, "Brother Sanmao, you don't think we'll just let Golden Harvest and Shaw Brothers oppress us, do you? A film company without its own theaters is like putting its neck in the hands of others. They might make concessions once or twice, but over time, do you think Mr. Zou and Mr. Shaw won't have other thoughts? They are not ordinary people."

Hong Jinbao, Shi Nansheng, and Chen Jianxun's eyes brightened, feeling that this was the way to do big things. Otherwise, how could they have the confidence to grow East Dragon International?

After some thought, Hong Jinbao said, "Lisheng Cinema is now allied with Golden Harvest. It will be difficult to approach them, and Golden Harvest won't let us off easily. We'll be at odds with Golden Harvest, and you must have considered this. Also, do we have the money?"

Wu Cheng pondered and said, "I looked at the materials Manager Chen just brought. Lisheng Cinema has only nine main theaters, and the other eight are franchise theaters. If we buy the main theaters and the land, we'll need about 40 million, which might be higher because Lisheng has Golden Harvest's support."

Hong Jinbao laughed bitterly, "We still need to see if they are willing to sell."

At this point, Chen Jianxun interjected, "I think the owner of Lisheng Cinema will be willing to sell. Three of the main theaters' land is owned by the Far East Group. Also, the film industry is in a downturn, and the owner of Lisheng Cinema has other businesses. If not for our film 'Five Lucky Stars,' which made them a lot of money, their overall income and expenses would be about the same, meaning they haven't made a profit."

Wu Cheng smiled, "Not making a profit means losing money. An investment of tens of millions without any profit is a loss."

Hong Jinbao said helplessly, "But where do we get 40 million?"

Wu Cheng joked, "That's easy, borrow from Golden Harvest!"

Hong Jinbao was speechless, "Do you think Uncle Huai and the others are fools?"

"Sell the distribution rights of 'The Jack of All Trades,' and we'll have the money," Wu Cheng smiled. "Even if 'The Jack of All Trades' doesn't sell as high as 'Five Lucky Stars,' it should at least get half, which is 5 million. We can also borrow from the bank. East Dragon International can probably get a loan of 5 million. That's 10 million. We still have about 3 million left, so we need 27 million more. I'll figure out the rest."

Hong Jinbao, Shi Nansheng, and Chen Jianxun listened, feeling like they were in a dream.

27 million is not 27 thousand. Such a large sum seemed astronomical to them, but this young man seemed confident he could handle it. They felt inferior to his confidence.

Of course, if they were time travelers, they would have the same confidence.

Wu Cheng looked at the three and said, "I don't want this to leak out, especially from your side, Brother Sanmao. Although we are brothers, and your people are trustworthy, they love to drink. If this leaks, Golden Harvest will wake up, and we'll have to pay a higher price."

Hong Jinbao nodded solemnly, "Don't worry. I won't drink until this is done. If Uncle Chang and Uncle Huai find out we're plotting against them..."

"We're not plotting against them; it's just normal business. You don't need to feel guilty." Wu Cheng comforted Hong Jinbao and looked at Chen Jianxun, "Manager Chen, go negotiate with Lisheng Cinema. If you can get it for 40 million, you'll be the manager of the cinema chain."

"When will you have the 27 million ready?"

"Give me three days!"

"Alright, I'll prepare some materials!" Chen Jianxun got up excitedly and left.

He didn't expect to be given such a big responsibility so soon at East Dragon International. Compared to the publicity manager, the cinema chain manager had much more power. In Hong Kong, independent production companies would have to look up to him.

"Manager Shi, the overseas distribution rights will be handled by your department. I hope you can gather information on overseas distributors and make a plan."

"No problem!"

Seeing Shi Nansheng and Chen Jianxun leave with enthusiasm, Hong Jinbao couldn't help but laugh, "Ah Cheng, you really know how to delegate!"

Wu Cheng laughed, "Trust those you use, and don't use those you don't trust. I'll give them a stage according to their abilities. If they don't perform well, I can replace them in a minute."

Hong Jinbao suddenly felt that although he was older, he couldn't match Wu Cheng's boldness. Thinking of this, he felt a bit ashamed.

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