Chapter 84

Shen Zhenghui spread his hands out to Seino Tomoaki and said, "Troublesome things happen everywhere."

Seino Tomoaki nodded. "Let's sit down." The two of them returned to their seats. Security guards were patrolling around, afraid that the same thing would happen again. After a while, Morifumi Kazuya and Futo Kaoru walked in and sat down again. Futo Kaoru looked quite angry, while Morifumi Kazuya seemed excited.

"It was a paparazzo from *Appledate*," Morifumi Kazuya said. "They were originally chasing Lin Xi, but when they saw us, they tried to get a clear photo."

Shen Zhenghui raised an eyebrow.

"Mr. Shen, you're a big star, so you need to be cautious," Morifumi Kazuya continued. "Miss Seino was also recognized by them." He seemed a bit puzzled. "Does Miss Seino not know how famous she is? *The Cruel History of North High School* is very popular in Taiwan and Hong Kong. During the film's screening, many... uh, news articles about you were published in the newspapers." He managed to change his words in time to avoid mentioning some embarrassing things.

"*Big Sister's Boyfriend* is also very popular. I saw pirated DVDs of it on the streets in Hong Kong," Morifumi Kazuya quickly changed the topic. "Everyone is waiting for the second season!"

"How did you deal with that guy?" Shen Zhenghui asked.

"I told him we were friends of Mr. Xiang and were in Hong Kong to discuss business with him. If anything bad was published, Mr. Xiang might invite their editor for a cup of tea," Morifumi Kazuya shrugged. "Scaring him a bit was enough. These guys only bully stars without backing."

"Mr. Morifumi also gave him a few thousand dollars," Futo Kaoru said angrily. "There are actually such shameless people in this world, claiming we assaulted him and threatened to call the police. Only when Mr. Morifumi mentioned Mr. Xiang did he become a bit more respectful."

"This place is a den of devils. When the British were in charge, these people were a bit more restrained. Now that Hong Kong has returned, and is governed by Hong Kong people, all sorts of demons and devils have come out. It's not surprising," Shen Zhenghui said, thinking about the future chaos in Hong Kong. He lost his interest in drinking. "I'm going back to my room to rest. Mr. Morifumi, please contact Starlight and Stephen Chow for me tomorrow."

"By the way, Wang Jiasheng from Jiahe hopes to meet you tomorrow," Morifumi Kazuya said. "Do you want to see him?"

Shen Zhenghui pursed his lips. "We've worked together before, so not seeing him would be impolite. Let's meet at your office tomorrow."

"Our office is a bit shabby," Morifumi Kazuya said, a bit embarrassed.

"That's fine. We'll make do," Shen Zhenghui stood up, and Morifumi Kazuya called the waiter to settle the bill. Shen Zhenghu said, "I'll pay. Put it on my room bill."

"Sorry, sir, we are independent from the hotel," the waiter replied with a disdainful smile, his tone and expression somewhat unpleasant.

"I'll pay," Seino Tomoaki took out his wallet and paid.

The waiter quickly turned around and muttered, "Pretty boy."

"Damn it," Morifumi Kazuya grabbed the guy and said, "What did you say? Say it again. Call your manager over."

Shen Zhenghui held his forehead and said to Seino Tomoaki, "Troublesome things happen everywhere."

"I'm really sorry," Seino Tomoaki looked genuinely embarrassed.

"I have a feeling this trip will be full of obstacles," Shen Zhenghui sighed.

The manager quickly came over. After being scolded by the Japanese, he immediately apologized and had the waiter apologize as well. He then offered to waive the bill.

Shen Zhenghui waved his hand. "An apology is enough. We're not short of money."

"Mr. Shen, you can't do that," Morifumi Kazuya said. "If you forgive them so easily, they won't remember the lesson. The only way to make them remember is to let them feel a tangible loss." He took back the money Seino Tomoaki had paid and said to the manager and waiter, "This is to teach you a lesson."

Shen Zhenghui was speechless, wondering if he would be able to sleep tonight.

After saying goodbye to Morifumi Kazuya and returning to the room, he asked Seino Tomoaki seriously, "Do I look like a pretty boy?"

This made Seino Tomoaki laugh heartily.

The next day, *Appledate* did not publish photos of Shen Zhenghui and Seino Tomoaki at the bar, but it still reported on the so-called meeting between Xiang, Lin, and Shen. It specifically introduced Shen Zhenghui's background, but misspelled his name as Shen Yu, saying he was a mainland student in Japan who had been spotted by a female boss of Natsuki Films and became their top star. The article suggested that this visit to Hong Kong to meet with entertainment moguls Xiang and Lin was a test for the Japanese to enter the Hong Kong film industry.

Morifumi Kazuya was taken aback. "*Appledate* is really bold, not even giving the Xiang family face."

Shen Zhenghui was more concerned about another point—when did I become a kept pretty boy by Fukuda Miharu?

However, the Xiang family's influence was indeed limited. The owner of *Appledate* was backed by Americans and was eager to bite into the entertainment industry in Hong Kong and Taiwan to boost its influence, while also spreading political influence. The newspaper later "suggested" in its reports that the Xiang family was involved in organized crime, receiving a lawyer's letter from the Xiang family.

"Should we sue them?" Morifumi Kazuya asked. "Send them a lawyer's letter."

Shen Zhenghui flipped through the newspaper. The report mentioned that Seino Tomoaki, Lin Xi, and Zhang Zhizhi also attended the meeting, speculating that they were planning to make a movie to promote their women. This was contradictory—Shen Zhenghui was a kept pretty boy by Fukuda Miharu, yet Fukuda Miharu allowed Shen Zhenghui to spend money promoting other women?

Shen Zhenghui was defeated by *Appledate*'s logic. Seeing only a blurry photo and baseless speculations in the newspaper, he felt depressed and had no interest in continuing to tangle with these scoundrels. "Forget it. Let's quickly finalize the deal with Jiahe and Stephen Chow and leave this place as soon as possible."

Wang Jiasheng arrived on time and discussed business with Shen Zhenghui in the cramped office of Natsuki Films' Hong Kong branch. There wasn't much to discuss. Jiahe was preparing to produce *Tokyo Strategy* and was looking for external investment. Wang Jiasheng wanted to ask if Natsuki Films was interested in investing in this film, as it was also planned to be shot in Tokyo, and the cast was already set. Shen Zhenghui saw the name of Zheng Yi and, of course, his favorite, Chen Huiling.

The film was planned to invest 40 million Hong Kong dollars, and without relying on the overseas market, it would not break even. This was a desperate move by Jiahe. Initially, they had pinned their hopes on the mainland box office, but now that they had more options, they naturally wanted to seize them.

With the top actors and actresses, this lineup was strong. Although shooting in Japan was expensive, if Natsuki Films collaborated, it could save a lot of money, and Natsuki Films could also insert a female artist. Shen Zhenghui rubbed his chin and weighed the options.

"I agree to invest in principle. The amount of investment and the profit-sharing ratio can be discussed." He looked at the excited Morifumi Kazuya and said, "Mr. Morifumi, you can discuss the specific terms with them." He then said to Morifumi Kazuya, "Report the terms to President Fukuda and get her approval first."

"Understood!" Morifumi Kazuya nodded quickly.

Wang Jiasheng felt more confident, as his mission was half accomplished. He steadied himself. "Jiahe wants to deepen our cooperation."

"Deeper cooperation?"

Morifumi Kazuya quickly interjected, "We have already signed a contract with Jiahe for the release of *Puxi Fortress* in Hong Kong."

"Ah..." Shen Zhenghui was a bit surprised. "When is the release date?"

"The same as on the mainland," Morifumi Kazuya said. "If the box office is good, *Tokyo Fortress* and *Earth Air War* will also be released in Hong Kong."

"Oh, you didn't tell me about this yesterday!" Shen Zhenghui widened his eyes. "Your work is very effective!"

"Thanks to President Fukuda's leadership and your excellent work," Morifumi Kazuya quickly said.

Shen Zhenghui looked at Wang Jiasheng. "What does deeper cooperation mean?"

Wang Jiasheng licked his lips. "Mr. Shen, you mentioned cooperation in film production and distribution last time. I reported it to the chairman, and he is very interested."

"Recently interested?"

Wang Jiasheng was a bit embarrassed. "This... last time we refused because we hadn't considered it thoroughly. Now we have reconsidered and think it's a good path."

"Mr. Wang," Shen Zhenghui licked his lips. "Japan is indeed a big market, but Japanese films are struggling, except for anime. The biggest market now is North America, and the future biggest market is China. This is an undeniable fact. Entering Hollywood is very difficult, and entering China is also difficult, but it's easier than entering Hollywood. If Mr. Zou is still focused on a single big market, I would feel disappointed."

Wang Jiasheng wiped his forehead. "I understand. Our chairman also wants to expand into big markets, and the mainland is the first choice."

Shen Zhenghui pursed his lips. "If there's profit in distributing films, I won't refuse doing business with Jiahe. However, we can't exclude other partners and only deal with Jiahe. Please understand this, Mr. Wang."

Wang Jiasheng sighed inwardly but said, "Of course, I understand."

"The situation has changed, so we can't solely choose Hong Kong as our partner, but we won't miss any profitable opportunities."

Wang Jiasheng nodded. "So?"

"We are very sincere about cooperating with Jiahe on *Tokyo Strategy*. We will provide all the convenience to Jiahe, and we can help with Japanese actors to control costs," Shen Zhenghui said, looking at Morifumi Kazuya. "I believe we will negotiate with great sincerity."

Morifumi Kazuya smiled in response to Shen Zhenghui's statement.

"Then in the future..." Wang Jiasheng continued.

"Let's do a good job with *Tokyo Strategy* first and set a standard for the future," Shen Zhenghui interrupted. "On a good foundation, we can discuss anything in the future."

"Alright," Wang Jiasheng's tone clearly showed some reluctance, but he quickly adjusted. "Also, Mr. Shen, the chairman feels that we were too negligent in receiving you last time. This time, he wants to invite you to dinner to apologize and discuss cooperation."

Shen Zhenghui was already tired of such things. His previous naivety led him to have grand illusions about cooperating with Jiahe. Now that he recognized the reality, he wouldn't do such things again. However, Jiahe's renewed interest made him feel a bit helpless. Out of politeness, he couldn't easily refuse.

"Mr. Wang," he said, "I have another purpose for coming to Hong Kong. I heard that Stephen Chow's new film is raising funds. Jiahe has a lot of influence in Hong Kong. If Mr. Zou invites me to dinner, can you arrange a meeting with Stephen Chow?"

Wang Jiasheng was surprised but agreed.

Morifumi Kazuya blinked, a bit surprised, but said nothing.

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