Chapter 1181: The Comic Studio

Zhao Fusheng, of course, could not foresee the future; he was merely well aware of the principle that blessings never come in pairs and misfortunes never come singly.

Although this was a bit idealistic, often enough, the development of events really did follow this pattern. Good deeds have no wings, but bad news travels fast. When one bad thing happened, another would follow close behind.

Looking at Dong Chenxi, Zhao Fusheng said with a bitter smile, "Don't tell me something really happened!"

Dong Chenxi nodded: "It's not really a big deal. It's like this: you set up a comic studio before, and now there's a bit of trouble."

"What trouble?" Zhao Fusheng was taken aback. He had considered the matter of the comic studio before, but later, with too many things going on, he had forgotten about it. He didn't expect that the trouble Dong Chenxi mentioned this time would actually be related to the comic studio.

"The studio has three people, which isn't a problem. The main issue is their work; domestically, hardly anyone reads it." Dong Chenxi said with a wry smile. "My subordinates mentioned to me that they want to dissolve the studio. What do you think?"

"Dissolve?"

Zhao Fusheng frowned and shook his head: "The comic industry will definitely have good development in the future. Although it's difficult now, we can't just let it go."

This was related to his future plans, so Zhao Fusheng certainly couldn't just let it go.

"But the problem is, their work isn't recognized by the market right now." Dong Chenxi gave a bitter laugh. Although Zhao Fusheng didn't care about these things, continuing to work meaninglessly was simply a waste of manpower.

"How about we send them to Japan?" Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and suddenly said to Dong Chenxi.

In Zhao Fusheng's view, although many were unwilling to admit it, Japan's comic industry was truly very developed. In terms of anime and manga, aside from the great United States, only Japan had been the most successful.

Of course, the two sides focused on different directions.

In the US, comics were more often adapted into movies, while in Japan, they were mainly made into animated series.

It was hard to say which was better, but each had its own strengths.

The reason Zhao Fusheng chose Japan was actually very simple: whether it was Marvel or DC, they were very protective of their copyrights and had already started adapting their works into films early on. Even if he wanted a piece of the pie, it wouldn't be easy.

On the other hand, Japan had fewer troubles. Not to mention that Zhao Fusheng had done market research before and found that although the comic market there was very developed, the three major long-running series he knew from his previous life had not appeared.

That was why Zhao Fusheng was tempted.

Only a fool would refuse money, especially Japanese money. In Zhao Fusheng's view, he had no psychological burden at all in earning it.

Even though he was facing some difficulties now, deep down, Zhao Fusheng had no intention of giving up.

But in Dong Chenxi's eyes, all this was just Zhao Fusheng being stubborn.

Sighing, hesitating for a long time, Dong Chenxi finally said to Zhao Fusheng, "I know you think it's not appropriate, but I really can't see any future for this comic studio."

She was now the head of Future Investment and the actual investor in the comic studio. From an angel investment perspective, she really couldn't see any meaning in this investment.

Although she knew Zhao Fusheng was the boss, she had to say this.

Zhao Fusheng smiled. He understood what Dong Chenxi meant, but he couldn't tell her that the domestic comic industry was completely different from Japan's.

The concept of two-dimensional media was proposed by them.

The peripheral market derived from this was a space so vast it was hard to imagine.

"Don't overthink it. We don't need to do too much." Zhao Fusheng smiled. "Recruit a few more people, have them learn Japanese, then send them to Tokyo. The rest will be up to them."

"Huh?"

Dong Chenxi stared at Zhao Fusheng in astonishment, completely not expecting him to come up with such an idea. In her view, it was utterly unreliable.

This was simply herding sheep!

Seeing Dong Chenxi's reaction, Zhao Fusheng laughed: "What, do you think I should set up a company just for them?"

Upon hearing his words, Dong Chenxi shook her head like a rattle-drum. What a joke—starting a company required even more investment and was completely pointless.

"This was just a casual move from the start; whether it yields results doesn't matter." Zhao Fusheng picked up the water cup on his desk, took a sip, and then said to Dong Chenxi, "I've given them all the conditions I could, provided the outline and story. Whether they can produce something depends on them. If even this can't succeed, it means we really don't have luck in this area. Consider it an attempt—after all, it didn't cost much, did it?"

Dong Chenxi was taken aback but had to admit that Zhao Fusheng's words made a lot of sense.

"Let's leave it at that." Zhao Fusheng decisively put an end to the conversation.

Seeing him say this, Dong Chenxi had nothing more to add and naturally stopped discussing the matter.

"Has Tong Zhenbang contacted you?" Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and asked Dong Chenxi.

Dong Chenxi shook her head: "No. Since that day, he seems to have gone quiet; he just had someone send me the check."

Zhao Fusheng frowned. He hadn't expected this—could it be that something had happened to Tong Zhenbang?

"Should we contact Director Cao?" Dong Chenxi asked, seeing Zhao Fusheng silent.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head: "No need. If something's up, he'll contact us."

In his view, no matter what happened to Tong Zhenbang, he couldn't act rashly now. After all, he didn't understand the intricacies involved. If he acted impulsively and alerted the enemy, the loss would outweigh the gain.

Though it might sound cruel, sometimes doing nothing is actually the best choice.

Since Zhao Fusheng disagreed, Dong Chenxi naturally said no more. After a few more words, she took her leave.

Watching Dong Chenxi's retreating figure, Zhao Fusheng silently shook his head. He knew very well that Dong Chenxi hadn't mentioned the most appropriate solution. Because the best course of action was actually to contact Chen Shijie.

Although doing so carried great risk, once they reached him, all doubts would be resolved. After all, Chen Shijie was one of the people closest to Tong Zhenbang.

But at the same time, doing so would put Chen Shijie in danger.

Since he was an undercover agent, secrecy had to be absolute. Ensuring his identity wasn't exposed was the biggest challenge. If this matter led to his exposure, all of Chen Shijie's previous efforts would be wasted.

More importantly, if he were exposed rashly, neither Zhao Fusheng nor Dong Chenxi could guarantee that Chen Shijie wouldn't face a threat to his life.

To be honest, if ending this case required Chen Shijie's life, Zhao Fusheng would rather wait a little longer.

Chen Shijie had been pitiful enough in his previous life. In this life, Zhao Fusheng truly hoped his old classmate wouldn't repeat the same mistakes.

There was no need for a 'winning half a move against heaven' to happen again.

Of course, Zhao Fusheng couldn't tell Dong Chenxi this. And the reason Dong Chenxi chose not to bring it up was simple: she could see that Zhao Fusheng cared deeply about his old classmate Chen Shijie.

……

……

There were plenty of troubles at the company, making Zhao Fusheng quite unhappy.

But fortunately, there was a little ray of sunshine waiting for him at home.

When he got home, Fan Beibei ran over and threw herself into Zhao Fusheng's arms.

"Brother, brother, sis scolded me today." The little girl started tattling, complaining to Zhao Fusheng, "She slept in herself and wouldn't let me wake her up."

Zhao Fusheng smiled. He hadn't expected Fan Baobao to act like this. Still, he chuckled and said to Fan Beibei, "Beibei, your sister has been exhausted these past couple of days. You need to understand her. Once she's rested, she'll definitely take you out to play."

"Really?" The little girl blinked, looking skeptical.

Zhao Fusheng nodded repeatedly: "Brother promises."

Anyway, he had no time recently, so Fan Baobao would have to take on the burden of babysitting. Well, consider it a chance to strengthen their sisterly bond.

As for whether Fan Baobao would object, that never crossed Zhao Fusheng's mind.