Chapter 1948: A Small Worry

Although he planned to meet that Boss Wang, today Zhao Fusheng's main purpose was not him, but to celebrate the success of the creators of Wulin.

He was well aware that matters had their priorities, primary and secondary distinctions.

Even Liu Yiming did not urge Ye Jing to contact Guangxian Media.

His plan was also to first leak the news to his sister, so she could be prepared, and at the same time explain things to the senior management at Guangxian who valued her, to avoid any misunderstandings.

In the entertainment industry, if you can avoid offending people, it's best not to.

There's no helping it—this circle is too small. You never know when the person you offend might become someone who affects your future.

It's actually the same as in officialdom.

Only, the entertainment industry isn't as cruel as officialdom.

Even if your future is ruined, at worst you can just quit the circle like Huang Haibo did.

It won't land you in prison at the drop of a hat like in officialdom.

The celebration banquet was divided into two parts. First, Zhao Fusheng, as chairman, encouraged the crew members, handing out red envelopes, promotions, and raises. Then, he announced that the company would hold a reception at the Guomao Building, where everyone could bring their families.

Basically, that was the procedure.

What everyone cared about wasn't the reception itself, but how much bonus the company would give because of it.

Words of encouragement are empty; anyone can say them.

What truly moves people is money.

Wealth stirs the heart—that's the truth of it.

Soon, the crowd dispersed. The celebration reception was to be held in the evening, so there was still time.

Zhao Fusheng and Ye Jing went to his office.

"So, how about the actors this time? Pretty good, aren't they?"

Zhao Fusheng smiled and asked Ye Jing.

"Not bad."

Ye Jing nodded: "I plan to promote them, make sure the news buzz keeps up."

He had previously mentioned to Zhao Fusheng about hyping up traffic artists, and it seemed he intended to use this opportunity to turn these lead actors into traffic stars.

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and nodded: "Alright, but we must be careful. Although their popularity is hyped, their work must keep pace. Also, when they take outside roles, don't ask for exorbitant fees. Let them hone their acting skills first, understand?"

The reason later generations of traffic stars were so criticized was that their sky-high fees seriously affected the budget for script polishing and film production. As a result, watching those films meant only appreciating the traffic stars' 'good looks.'

For audiences who weren't fans, the plot full of holes and the five-cent special effects were simply outrageous.

In Zhao Fusheng's memory, in the years to come, films flooded with traffic stars lowered the viewing quality that films should have, consuming the audience's enthusiasm and desire to watch.

Although Chinese film audiences, even ten years later, were still not fully mature in their movie choices, they were gradually returning to rationality.

After all, having seen so many bad films, people had some basic常识. Before watching, they paid more attention to a film's reputation and quality, rather than just going for the traffic stars and promotional gimmicks. Fewer and fewer people would pay for bad films.

Zhao Fusheng certainly didn't want the actors from his own company to be labeled as having poor acting skills.

If that happened, it would be truly terrible.

No one knew better than him the importance of reputation for an actor.

Take the film The Sewing Machine Band, for example. It was released at the same time as Mahua FunAge's Never Say Die. The film itself was actually decent, with good content and solid acting from the cast.

But because the director and lead actor Da Peng's previous film, Jianbing Man, had consumed a lot of his goodwill, audiences were very unenthusiastic about him.

As a result, the film bombed at the box office.

This is no joke. A large number of audiences avoided a film simply because it featured a traffic star.

Admittedly, this is a prejudice.

Zhao Fusheng had once seen a film called Animal World, starring Li Yifeng.

When asked why they hadn't watched Animal World, many audiences gave the same answer: besides clashing with the divine film Dying to Survive and having a bad title, another reason was that it starred Li Yifeng. Passersby's expectations before watching Animal World: 'Watching a movie with this kind of traffic star is a waste of money.'

But in fact, Animal World was a good film. In it, Li Yifeng delivered the best and most outstanding acting explosion of his career since entering the entertainment industry.

Yet precisely because of his traffic star label, a good film was buried.

This is a sad story.

Without the traffic star label, he might not have been able to make a name for himself in the entertainment industry.

But precisely because of that traffic star identity, when he wanted to go further, he was hindered by it.

Zhao Fusheng didn't want the actors from his own company to face such problems after becoming traffic stars.

He hoped the company would make money, and he also hoped the actors would grow within the company.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Ye Jing nodded, indicating that he had taken note of Zhao Fusheng's words.

Although he had proposed a star-making plan to stir up buzz, he also understood that for a company to establish itself in the film and television industry, it ultimately had to rely on its works.

No matter how much hype was generated, it was all external; what truly determined a film and television company's position in the industry was successful film and television works.

Take Hairun, for example. Although they kept a low profile, no company could afford to ignore their existence.

Because they truly had the ability to make actors famous.

"By the way, our small theater will open next month. Do you want to attend?" Ye Jing asked, remembering something.

This was originally Zhao Fusheng's idea.

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment. "We'll see. If I have time, I'll go."

"Okay."

Ye Jing nodded.

It wasn't a big deal; he was just reminding Zhao Fusheng.

They chatted about a few other things, and then Zhao Fusheng got up and left the company.

……

……

Even as the boss, Zhao Fusheng couldn't stay at the group headquarters all day. Not to mention whether there was that much work for him to handle, just the monotony of sitting in an office was an unbearable torment for him.

Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses.

Zhao Fusheng was good at advertising planning, but definitely not good at being a boss.

This point had actually been acknowledged within the company.

Of course, Dong Chenxi and the others would never say this to his face.

Those guys only quietly complained during gatherings behind his back.

Zhao Fusheng had no way to deal with it, because the people saying this were all his most trusted ones.

On the way back, sitting in the car, Zhao Fusheng looked at Liu Yiming and said, "Have you called your sister?"

Liu Yiming nodded, somewhat surprised. "How did you know?"

Zhao Fusheng chuckled. "Weren't you on the phone just now in Director Ye's office?"

His eyesight was pretty good, and besides, if it were him, he would also notify his family of such a thing immediately.

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's words, Liu Yiming grinned and nodded. "I thought I'd inform her in advance to get things straight with Guangdian. After all, without them, she wouldn't be where she is today."

Zhao Fusheng nodded with satisfaction. He was also pleased with Liu Yiming's attitude. Although in truth, Zhao Fusheng didn't care about Guangdian's reaction, he didn't want to leave a reputation of bullying others by power—it was a matter of honor.

Liu Yiming said seriously to Zhao Fusheng, "Chairman, thank you. I know that if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have to bother with this. Thank you so much."

Zhao Fusheng smiled and waved his hand. "It's nothing. You're a company employee, so of course I can't ignore it."

This was his true feeling. In his view, it really wasn't a big deal. Perhaps it was the gap brought by status—what might be a life-changing event for others was just a phone call for those in power.

But anyway, using this small matter to earn Liu Yiming's loyalty, Zhao Fusheng felt it was a good deal.

Besides, since Liu Yiming's sister was a host, it added a talent to Future Film, which currently had no hosts.

Moreover, according to Liu Yiming, she had managed to get into Guangdian and was doing well.

Just based on her professional skills, Zhao Fusheng felt he should get to know that young lady.

The car moved slowly forward. Zhao Fusheng didn't speak again, but Liu Yiming's heart couldn't calm down.

After all, for so many years, he had been studying, and even after graduating from university, he had bounced between several companies before finally joining Future Group. Unexpectedly, he had suddenly risen to become Zhao Fusheng's secretary.

What did this mean?

At first, Li Yiming didn't understand, but when he learned the positions of Zhao Fusheng's previous two secretaries in Future Group, he realized that his life might be taking a new path from then on. That's why in Xichuan, he resolutely offered to go into the disaster area in Zhao Fusheng's place, because he knew very well what Zhao Fusheng meant to him.

Sure enough, his gamble paid off.

Through the events in Xichuan, Zhao Fusheng fully trusted his loyalty, which led to the decision to accept his sister into Future Film.

Fate, sometimes, is truly inexplicable.

If Zhao Fusheng knew what Liu Yiming was thinking, he would certainly agree, because this was exactly what he had experienced himself.

Without this rebirth, perhaps he, like Liu Yiming, would have needed to rely on others to change his fate, or else he would have had to accept his destiny and live out his remaining years in obscurity.

But fortunately, fate can be changed.