Chapter 1857: The Path of a Heavenly King

Andy Lau had actually been very busy lately.

He wasn't just making movies; he had also invested in a film company.

Of course, Andy Lau the actor was a money-making machine, but as a company owner, he was a money-dispenser.

Basically, no matter what movie he made, he ended up losing a fortune. Around the turn of the millennium, he was even borrowing money to plug the holes.

Recently, he was especially depressed. He had invested nearly ten million in a film called Gallants, but the box office was less than four million—heartbreakingly disappointing.

So when he met Zhao Fusheng that evening, Andy couldn't hide the fatigue on his face.

"What's wrong with you?"

Zhao Fusheng introduced Andy to Dong Chenxi, then asked Andy.

"Don't even mention it."

Andy smiled bitterly and recounted the whole story, sighing.

Zhao Fusheng and Dong Chenxi exchanged a glance, shook their heads, and said to Andy, "Brother Hua, business isn't done this way."

"Huh?"

Andy was taken aback and looked at Zhao Fusheng in confusion.

Zhao Fusheng waved his hand and said to Andy, "As the boss of a film company, you're an investor, not a money-dispenser. You can't just invest whenever someone brings you a script. Favor is favor, business is business."

In fact, there was something else he didn't say: Andy's management of the company was really unprofessional.

Take Zhao Fusheng, for example. Even though the heads of Future Group's subsidiaries were his trusted confidants, he still carefully audited their accounts.

He would only sign documents after thoroughly understanding them.

Especially in the film division, Zhao Fusheng paid extra attention, hiring accountants specifically to handle those accounts.

There was no helping it. Every step of film production, promotion, and distribution had opportunities for embezzlement. If the boss didn't keep an eye on things, he could only hope his employees were as incorruptible as Liu Xiahui.

For a film with an investment of a few million, without proper oversight, at least a tenth of the budget could be pocketed by the production staff.

Of course, it was impossible to have no loopholes at all. If you didn't leave any room for others to profit, no one would cooperate with you.

But jokes like a straw hat costing three thousand yuan—Zhao Fusheng would never allow that in any company under his management.

Moreover, the films Andy invested in, frankly, felt a bit out of touch with the times.

At any time, investors should pursue profit. Whether choosing veteran actors or traffic stars, the goal is to make money.

If films starring young idols fail to meet profit expectations, then consider other options. If they can guarantee box office returns, then stick with them.

Clearly, Andy wasn't well-versed in this, which was why every film he made lost money.

Of course, that was just Zhao Fusheng's opinion.

The existence of bad movies wasn't really about the actors. Some films, even with all veteran actors, were still so bad they left you speechless.

What truly determined a film's box office was the audience's taste and viewing standards.

For example, when audiences found everything novel, even a passable film could be elevated to a pedestal.

But as audience standards rose, if you tried to fool them with something barely passable or even subpar, you'd inevitably be punished by the audience.

That's why Mahua FunAge's Auntie suffered a box office Waterloo—audiences no longer bought into works lacking sincerity.

People who make bad movies are as foolish as those who think Chinese people can't afford tea eggs or pickled vegetables.

Treating others as fools will eventually turn you into a real fool.

In the entertainment industry, you can be shameless, but you can't be shameless while trying to make money off those who have shame.

Zhao Fusheng firmly believed that.

Dong Chenxi, having been the general manager of Future Films, spoke up after Zhao Fusheng finished. She shared some management and investment models she knew with Andy, and finally said, "Andy, we've just met, and I might be speaking too frankly, but I'm really your fan. I don't want you to suffer losses in this matter."

Andy shook his head repeatedly: "Miss Dong, you're too kind. I should be the one thanking you."

He wasn't the type to not appreciate kindness. Zhao Fusheng had just introduced her as the general manager of Future Investment and former general manager of Future Films.

To put it bluntly, her time was calculated by the minute.

As one of Zhao Fusheng's acquaintances, Andy knew something about Zhao's businesses and naturally understood the weight of Future Investment.

When Alibaba went public in Hong Kong, Future Investment was one of its official shareholders. In other words, most of Zhao Fusheng's wealth was managed by Miss Dong.

To Andy, someone like her was someone to look up to. Yet she had taken the trouble to offer him advice. This was a favor he had to acknowledge.

"Brother Hua, to be honest, I think you could focus on low-budget comedies and art films."

Zhao Fusheng recalled a report he had read in his previous life and said sincerely to the Heavenly King Liu.

He didn't know how Liu had ultimately made money, but he remembered reading a report that Liu's investments in low-budget films had yielded decent returns.

"Ah, I'll give it a try."

The Heavenly King Liu nodded and said to Zhao Fusheng.

He had become a film company boss quite early; in the 1990s, at thirty, Liu founded Tianmu Film Company. At the time, few stars dared to start their own companies, and he was one of them.

Why start his own company to make films?

In those days, Liu was at his peak, with a constant stream of film offers, the most popular star in Hong Kong. This also attracted the attention of Hong Kong gangs. Hong Kong director Wen Jun once said, "Someone set a price: for any film starring Andy, they would pay eight million Hong Kong dollars to buy it. Back then, Andy's fee was only one or two million, and a film cost three or four million. In other words, as long as you got Andy, you'd already make two or three million before filming started. What could be easier than that? Those big shots thought, even crime has its costs; making films is risk-free..."

Thus, Andy was forced to make many films, and his agent even had a gun pointed at his head.

Later, he simply learned to be smarter, becoming his own boss and attracting investors, at least ensuring a profit.

But unfortunately, Liu's luck was bad. His first film, with a script by Mo Jingwang, starred himself and gathered a group of friends, grossing twenty million at the box office, raking in a fortune.

But then came the problems.

After founding Tianmu, everyone treated him as a big star, and he couldn't refuse any request, resulting in spending a lot of unnecessary money, and the company became somewhat out of control.

By 1995, Tianmu had accumulated losses of up to forty million Hong Kong dollars. After the media exposed it, the bank came calling, and Liu even had to borrow from all sides.

This trouble lasted for ten years; he was still repaying those debts of gratitude.

Many wondered why Liu would take on a bad film like "Future Police." He directly said it was a debt of gratitude he had to repay.

Zhao Fusheng naturally knew his character, so he didn't tell him to stop investing in films but suggested he try investing in low-budget comedies or art films.

After all, Zhao Fusheng knew well that in the coming years, these two types of films would produce many hits and even boost many actors' careers.

As for whether Liu had that luck, that depended on his fate.

Zhao Fusheng wasn't a god, nor did he plan to teach Liu step by step. Not to mention whether Liu would be willing, Zhao himself had no such intention.

Their friendship wasn't that deep.

So-called shallow friendship with deep words; saying this much was enough. Saying more would be meaningless.

"Come, come, let's eat, let's eat."

After chatting about work for a bit, Zhao Fusheng changed the subject.

After all, this wasn't the place for serious talk. Meeting the Heavenly King Liu today was just to satisfy someone's wish to see their idol.

Dong Chenxi was naturally overjoyed. Eating with her idol and getting an autograph made her smile like a flower.

Even after Liu left, she still stood there watching.

"Alright, he's married already. What are you still looking at?"

Seeing her like that, Zhao Fusheng couldn't help but tease.

"Married?"

Dong Chenxi was startled and looked at Zhao Fusheng in surprise: "What nonsense are you talking? How could he be married?"

Clearly, as a fan, she didn't believe it.

Zhao Fusheng looked helpless: "Come on, use your brain. Over the years, if Liu hadn't been married, could he have had so few scandals?"

That was true. Compared to other Heavenly Kings, Liu's number of scandals was indeed not high.

"Really?"

Dong Chenxi frowned slightly, her expression turning a bit grim.

She knew that Zhao Fusheng wouldn't spread rumors without reason, and his status didn't allow him to speak carelessly, especially to her.

"Of course it's true."

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "A Heavenly King is also human; he needs to marry and have children. That's perfectly normal. It's just that he has too many wife fans, forcing him to keep it a secret, isn't that so?"

Dong Chenxi was silent.

She had to admit that Zhao Fusheng was absolutely right.

As the most popular among the Four Heavenly Kings, Liu had always been loved by female fans for his diligent and clean image. Many were wife fans who hated the idea of other women having a relationship with their idol. If they knew Liu was married, they would definitely stop being fans.

"How do you know?"

Dong Chenxi then thought of something and asked Zhao Fusheng in confusion. Logically, Liu wouldn't have told him something like that.

Did this guy have some information channel?