Chapter 9

The headquarters of the Continental Shelf Film Development Company is located at the southern end of Han'an Avenue in the new district of Echeng, where there are dozens of newly developed office buildings, and many emerging film and television companies have gathered here.

Since the Global Empire Entertainment Group developed the concept of "real movies," all entertainment elements worldwide have been absorbed by these real movies. Singers, dancers, online gamers, shoppers, exercisers—anyone with even a hint of entertainment cells has thrown themselves into the production of real movies. The group's slogan truly came to life: "Everyone is an actor, and acting is life."

The Global Empire Entertainment Group was quite generous, not monopolizing the market but instead delegating the rights to script creation, filming, and participation to various large film and television companies. However, the large companies were slow to adapt, and the subconscious of the popular stars was not up to the task, leading to many embarrassing situations in the early years.

This resulted in the rapid emergence of small and medium-sized film and television companies around the world. They competed with the large companies for scripts, schedules, and actors. Without relying on backroom deals, if you lacked a strong subconscious, the heavily packaged stars you produced would be nothing compared to our grassroots actors. Even if you spent a fortune to give them a series of buffs and arrange a bunch of supporting roles, they would still die if they were supposed to die.

After the Continental Shelf Company was established, its first major investment film was "The Great Jianghu." Chen Anhe, who started as a minor extra, became an important supporting actor, with the cost of paving the way reaching several million credit points.

However, Chen Anhe was diligent, and at his peak, he had over a million followers, with each follower representing one credit point. He could basically earn back half of the investment in a year.

If it weren't for the fact that he was drugged by a girl sent by the Golden Hundred Flowers Studio's Ding Feng during the final showdown at Huashan, the Continental Shelf would not be in its current situation, having invested over 18 million and earned 19 million, barely making ends meet and in an awkward position.

The entire staff of the Continental Shelf Company now considers Lin Feng and the Golden Hundred Flowers Studio their top enemies. In the office of the beautiful CEO, Min Shili, there are two dartboards, each with a large photo of Lin Nianxiu and Lin Feng. The densely packed pinholes on them indicate that this time, for the international co-production "The Kingdom's Dominance," the Continental Shelf and the Golden Hundred Flowers are ready to go all out.

"Knock, knock, knock."

"Come in!"

Min Shili, who was compiling the "34th Subconscious Training Experiment Plan," adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses, closed the document, and sat in her chair, looking at the door. She is very serious about her work and sincere in her dealings with people. After resigning from the Civil Affairs Bureau and entering the business world, she founded the Continental Shelf Company with a spirit of daring and perseverance, earning a reputation as the "Rose Lady" in the business world. Regardless of who she deals with, she is cautious, neither easily trusting nor easily dismissing anyone, which is also why she has been single for years despite numerous failed matchmaking attempts.

"Hello, CEO, my name is Su Li, and I am a member of the third group in the Human Resources Department."

The young girl who entered was sweet-looking, well-dressed, and very polite. She introduced herself briefly and then stood by the door, holding a document, waiting for instructions. Just as Min Shili was about to ask what she needed, a middle-aged man, drenched in sweat, burst in, grabbed Su Li's hand, and dragged her out, nodding apologetically:

"CEO, it's my fault. I didn't manage my subordinate well. Please don't be angry."

"Wait!"

Min Shili stopped the Human Resources Department head, Su Songqun, from dragging Su Li away and called her to the desk. She took the document from Su Li's hand, which turned out to be the selection materials for the extras in "The Kingdom's Dominance." Su Songqun stood to the side, wiping his sweat. He wanted to snatch the document from Min Shili but didn't dare, unless he wanted to lose his job.

Min Shili leaned back in her chair and flipped through the pages. Most of the extras were unremarkable, ordinary, but at least they could do their jobs. However, those who entered the movie for no reason and just wasted their roles annoyed her. The hostility between the Continental Shelf and the Golden Hundred Flowers was an open secret in Echeng's entertainment industry, and who knew how many of these extras were spies for the Golden Hundred Flowers.

It wasn't until the third page that she found Su Li had used a red pen to strike out the names of those who were not needed, which improved her mood. She skipped over the strikethroughs and continued until she reached the page about the gladiator slaves, where she found a promising candidate.

(Test Gladiator 779—Performer: Sun Zhaojin; Male; 22 years old; Subconscious Evaluation: Bronze Star 3; Possesses strong organizational and resistance skills. In the test arena, he led 21 slaves in a rebellion, killing six gladiators and one elite gladiator, and refused to surrender until the end. Observer: Su Li.)

Min Shili nodded and tapped the paper with her slender finger, saying:

"Su Li did a good job, observing so carefully. Director Su, what do you think about giving Sun Zhaojin an important extra role to help Chen Anhe better develop the plot?"

Su Songqun took the document as if it were a royal decree, read it carefully, and then held it in his hand, saying:

"CEO, you have a keen eye. Sun Zhaojin is indeed suitable to support Chen Anhe. I will arrange it immediately. If there's nothing else, Su Li and I won't disturb you further."

With that, Su Songqun pulled Su Li out, which surprised Min Shili. Old Su, whom she had personally recruited from the power company, was usually calm and cautious, with the only flaw being his fear of his wife. He usually couldn't even look at her directly, blushing at the slightest glance. Today, he was so open, repeatedly grabbing the young girl's hand. Was Old Su finally blooming?

Su Li's face turned red, and she struggled against Su Songqun, almost being dragged out when a voice, "Dad, what are you doing?" made Min Shili's ears perk up. In a cold voice, she said:

"Director Su, you and Su Li come over here."

Su Songqun's face turned purple, and he glared at his daughter with a look of infinite resentment, pulling Su Li back to the CEO's desk. Seeing Min Shili's cold expression, Su Songqun began to apologize.

"CEO, I was wrong. This is my daughter, Su Li, but she is not our employee. Her university requires her to find a film and television internship. I thought I could just stamp her application, but this girl insisted on fulfilling the internship requirements, or she would report us for breach of contract. This... this is a family misfortune... all because I didn't educate her well."

Min Shili sighed in relief. It was just an intern, so there was no violation of company rules. Her expression softened, and she said:

"Old Su, what are you talking about? Su Li's insistence on fulfilling the internship requirements is a good thing. Young people should be practical and not engage in superficiality. I think it would be better if Su Li helps Li Ying with some errands."

Li Ying was Min Shili's secretary. Su Songqun understood that the CEO was helping him avoid suspicion and that being close to the CEO would give his daughter a good chance of being signed to the company after graduation. He was delighted and nodded in agreement. However, just as he was about to leave, Su Li snatched the document from his hand, flipped to the last page, and handed it to Min Shili, saying:

"CEO, look at this person. Not looking would be a loss for our company."

"You little brat, you're being disrespectful..."

Su Songqun was about to scold her when Min Shili stopped him with a "seductive" glance. She took the document and found that Su Li had used a green marker to underline a name, and the person's introduction and evaluation took up half a page.

(Test Gladiator 277—Performer: Zhang Huen; Male; 32 years old; Subconscious Evaluation: Bronze Medal (If I had the authority, I would give him a Gold Medal); Extremely cruel and bloodthirsty, brave and fierce, becoming even more frenzied when seeing blood. In the test arena, he led the killing of 8 gladiators and 3 elite gladiators, and killed 4 gladiators and the elite gladiator and future war god, Lakras, alone. He won the unanimous approval of the 10,000 spectators, who all stood up to plead for his life at the end. He must have a strong martial arts foundation and combat experience, as he was able to kill the future war god even after being pierced by two swords, showing his excellent physical condition. He never hesitates to kill, showing his cold and ruthless nature. During the battle with the future war god, he shouted, 'For the people of Lakras,' demonstrating his passion for dignity and honor.

Such a person is cruel, pure, unbound by morals, free from low-level interests, and beneficial for our Continental Shelf Company to take a big step into the international film industry.

I strongly recommend that the company cultivate him as a lead actor. People like Chen Anhe and Lin Feng are just clouds. With him, our Continental Shelf Company will have a future. Observer: Su Li.)

Min Shili was speechless, and Su Songqun was speechless. His daughter's "shocking masterpiece" almost gave him a heart attack. He didn't know if the CEO would fly into a rage and kick them out.

"Hmm, well written."

(What, well written?)

Su Songqun was confused. What kind of logic was this? This was complete nonsense, right?

"However, I need to see the records from your test arena."

"Sure, I brought them."

Su Li handed over a prepared disc, which Min Shili inserted into the actor/audience access device in the corner. She sat down, and after a flash of blue light, she entered the replay of the test arena.

"See, it's all your fault. You should have just done your internship quietly. Why did you have to make such a big fuss? This time, I might be implicated."

"Relax, Dad. Trust me, if you had seen it, you wouldn't be so nervous now."

"I'm not nervous; I'm afraid you'll lose this rare internship opportunity. I'm concerned for you, you brat!"

"Okay, okay, calm down. Getting angry is bad for your health."

Thirty minutes later, the machine stopped, and the beautiful Min Shili, blushing, walked out and sat back in her chair, calming herself before saying:

"Su Li did a good job. If I were you, I would have come to the CEO's office to speak frankly. Your dedication is in line with our company's interests, and I hope you continue to maintain it."

"Really, CEO? Can we call Zhang Huen in to sign a contract?"

Seeing Su Li's excitement, Min Shili smiled and shook her head:

"There are two issues you haven't considered: First, we have already invested nearly 40 million for 'The Kingdom's Dominance.' I took a huge risk by mortgaging the company and my assets to the bank, and I doubt the bank will lend us any more money. Second, I believe you have seen Zhang Huen's performance in 'The Great Jianghu.' To be honest, he was not even fit to be an extra."

"But... but everyone has a first time..."

Su Li knew her argument was weak. Subconsciousness isn't like virginity; there's no such thing as a first time. Min Shili gave a reasonable explanation:

"The difference in his performance is significant. In the history of real movies, there have been a few dozen such cases. These people often experience a subconscious peak due to a severe emotional blow in real life, but they usually return to mediocrity afterward. Am I right, Su Li?"

Su Li nodded, suddenly understanding:

"Yes, his wife died in a car accident six months ago. I think he must have been very sad."

"Indeed. Such emotional actors have unpredictable subconscious fluctuations. We don't know when they will burst or fail. The industry calls them 'bomb actors' because you never know if they will be the next big thing or a dud."

"But... can't we give him a chance?"

"I will give him a major extra role to support Chen Anhe. If he is a hidden gem, he will shine. If he proves himself, we can discuss a renewal contract. I will keep a close eye on him, but you just need to do your job, okay?"

With a look of frustration and dissatisfaction, Su Li was finally pulled away by Old Su. Min Shili leaned back in her chair, her mind filled with the scenes from the test arena, especially the male characters' physical attributes. She had been close to Zhang Huen, his tall and muscular body, the sweat from the fight glistening in the sunlight, his stern and determined face with a hint of stubble, all lingering in her mind.

(Annoying! Why is he so strong and not wearing clothes? Why is he so cruel yet harmless? Isn't this just pushing me into the fire?)

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