Chapter 1963: Take a Longer View

For parents, the most important thing is their children.

Once their children have children of their own, the focus shifts to the next generation.

The so-called 'grandparent favoritism' probably refers to this principle.

Actually, the reason is simple: for parents, their own children have grown up and no longer need their discipline or doting, while grandchildren are still young and naturally require more elder care.

Father Zhao was like that. After Zhao Fusheng mentioned the child, his attention was quickly drawn to the baby.

"By the way, I'm planning to buy a house in the capital."

Father Zhao said to Zhao Fusheng.

Buy a house?

Zhao Fusheng was slightly surprised: "We already have so many houses, and besides, didn't Mom buy one?"

Mother Zhao had been keen on buying real estate in recent years; it was practically a hobby.

"I don't want to live in an apartment building."

Father Zhao shook his head: "I'm planning to buy a siheyuan."

A siheyuan...

Zhao Fusheng was taken aback.

He really hadn't expected his father to have such an idea.

"Is there a place you like?"

Zhao Fusheng nodded and asked his father, "I'll pay for it, as a gift to you and Mom."

"Pfft, cut it out."

Father Zhao said irritably, "I have my own money; why would I need yours?"

Zhao Fusheng smiled wryly, suddenly remembering that his father was apparently quite wealthy now, and all in cash.

After all, he had sold off all his shares earlier.

"Alright, alright, whatever you like."

Zhao Fusheng nodded and said no more.

But a few days later, his father gave him a surprise.

...

...

Houhai Ya'er Hutong is located at the center of the capital's water dragon vein. What looks like an unremarkable doorway is actually home to countless celebrity residences and prince mansions, all sky-high luxury properties.

Of course, the reason Father Zhao chose this siheyuan and was willing to spend a fortune to buy it was that the entire house was constructed from precious golden nanmu, including all the furniture, which was also made entirely of golden nanmu.

One can imagine how valuable such a golden nanmu siheyuan with a full set of golden nanmu furniture would be.

"How much did you spend?"

When Zhao Fusheng learned of this, he directly called his father.

"Seventy million."

Father Zhao said proudly, "The seller demanded full payment. I estimate it will appreciate soon."

Seventy million?

Zhao Fusheng was stunned, his face full of surprise.

That was incredibly cheap.

You see, a siheyuan like this, not to mention anything else, would at least double in value in three to five years.

That wasn't Zhao Fusheng exaggerating; it was the truth.

"So, isn't it a great deal?"

Father Zhao asked Zhao Fusheng with a smile.

"More than that."

Zhao Fusheng laughed: "I think you could recoup the cost of the house just from this."

"Nonsense."

Father Zhao didn't care about that. In fact, he really didn't know how valuable the siheyuan he had bought was.

Or rather, he had no clear understanding of the future development of the Chinese real estate market.

He didn't know, but Zhao Fusheng knew very well, which was why Zhao Fusheng said his father had made a good deal.

"Alright, I'll hang up now."

Father Zhao didn't waste any more words with Zhao Fusheng and hung up directly.

Holding the receiver, Zhao Fusheng felt helpless. His father probably didn't even realize what the siheyuan he had bought meant.

Maybe that was just luck with money.

"What's wrong?"

Fan Baobao hadn't been listening when Zhao Fusheng was on the phone with Father Zhao. Seeing him put down the phone with a strange expression, she asked casually.

"Nothing, Dad bought another siheyuan."

Zhao Fusheng explained.

"A siheyuan?"

Fan Baobao was slightly surprised.

After Zhao Fusheng explained the details, Fan Baobao's expression turned strange.

She hadn't expected something like this.

"You mean it will appreciate?" Fan Baobao raised an eyebrow and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng nodded: "Not just appreciate, but multiply several times."

Fan Baobao was speechless. She really hadn't expected such an outcome.

Thinking about it, her eyes suddenly lit up: "Why don't we buy a few too?"

"..."

Zhao Fusheng glanced at Fan Baobao and pretended he hadn't heard anything.

This woman was simply crazy.

"Look at you, what kind of expression is that?"

Seeing Zhao Fusheng's reaction, Fan Baobao knew he was mocking her. She shrugged and wisely backed down.

"Dad bought it to live in himself; he doesn't want to live in an apartment."

Zhao Fusheng explained to Fan Baobao: "We're not going to live there, and the annual maintenance costs are quite high; it's completely unnecessary."

That was the truth. He had bought a siheyuan before, but now he hadn't even stayed there a few times, and every year he had to spend money on maintenance.

After all, these houses were many years old, dilapidated, and could easily develop problems if not careful.

"Alright, I understand."

Fan Baobao nodded.

She didn't really care. As long as she was with Zhao Fusheng, where they lived didn't matter to Fan Baobao.

"By the way, Zhou Yun said Old Jiang's filming might go over budget..."

Fan Baobao remembered something and smiled at Zhao Fusheng.

"Oh!"

Zhao Fusheng blinked: "Old Jiang is using the wife route, huh."

Obviously, this matter came to him through Fan Baobao, which meant Jiang Wen was clearly using the wife route to give him a heads-up.

Going over budget in a film is actually quite normal. Directors and producers aren't gods who can foresee everything that happens during filming.

A budget is just an estimated expense; if you strictly followed the budget, that would be too unreliable.

But the problem is, even if you go over budget, there has to be a limit.

For example, if a film has a budget of ten million, going over by a few hundred thousand is usually not a problem.

Unless, like Director Straw Hat, it's clearly a scam, then everyone will despise it.

Besides, look at Director Sunglasses; he also goes over budget, but he's doing quite well.

Going over budget isn't a big deal, as long as you can make money or win awards and have a good reputation; investors will still be willing to fund your film.

What's scary is a director who can neither produce good work nor save money.

That would be a real disaster!

Jiang Wen is naturally not that kind of person.

When it comes to filmmaking, Old Jiang's skill is beyond doubt.

However, the guy always likes to sneak his personal views into his films, which is what Zhao Fusheng has always worried about.

After all, films need market recognition. If you're making a film for yourself, why release it in theaters? It would be better to just enjoy it privately.

Zhao Fusheng didn't want Old Jiang to become that kind of director.

"Look at you, you've scared him so much." Fan Baobao said casually when she saw Zhao Fusheng silent.

Zhao Fusheng looked innocent: "What does this have to do with me?"

He really was innocent, okay? It was clearly Old Jiang's own fault; how could it be blamed on him? That was just finding fault where there was none.

"So what do we do?"

Fan Baobao said to Zhao Fusheng: "Zhou Yun rarely asks me for anything."

"I'll instruct Ye Jing."

Zhao Fusheng smiled.

Actually, Jiang Wen was overthinking this.

From start to finish, although Zhao Fusheng had said he wouldn't allow budget overruns, he had already instructed Ye Jing to try to meet Jiang Wen's reasonable requests during this film shoot.

After all, this was the biggest investment Future Film had made in recent years.

More importantly, the film embodied Zhao Fusheng's ambitions for the Chinese film market.

Zhao Fusheng, though he didn't plan to make Future Film the largest private film company in China, that didn't mean he had no ambition.

Who wouldn't want their company to develop better?

Zhao Fusheng wasn't stupid.

If he didn't enter the future trillion-yuan market to make money, he would have to be crazy.

And 'Let the Bullets Fly' was the first step in Zhao Fusheng's plan.

As for the earlier 'Crazy Racer' and 'Crazy Stone,' including Xu Shanzheng's films, Zhao Fusheng considered them experiments. Strictly speaking, those films weren't blockbusters.

Whether in terms of cast or investment, they were all low-budget films.

What does low budget mean?

It means betting small to win big.

In other words, if you make money, you're happy; if you lose money, it doesn't hurt.

For example, 'Crazy Stone' cost Ning Hao a total of three million in investment, and Zhao Fusheng didn't care at all.

But 'Bullets' was different. With a total investment of over a hundred million, if it failed, it would be a devastating blow to Future Film.

Even if Zhao Fusheng could make up the loss from elsewhere, the significance would be different.

So, in fact, Zhao Fusheng and Ye Jing had already discussed it.

Of course, this information would certainly not be disclosed to Jiang Wen; otherwise, given his nature, he would easily get carried away.

Zhao Fusheng didn't want to see that happen.

"Alright."

Fan Baobao naturally didn't know. Seeing Zhao Fusheng nod, she said no more.

For him, as long as he could explain it to Zhou Yun, that was enough.