Chapter 128: Water Comes, Earth Submerges

“Basically, that’s it!” Wu Siyuan quickly finished speaking, wiped his sweat, and forced a smile. “Today, the bosses of the five major companies are all here. If you have anything to discuss, just do it here. I won’t disturb you anymore!”
As soon as Wu Siyuan left the meeting room and closed the door, silence fell over the room. Wei Dongling was about to say something when Xiao Ran gently pressed his hand under the table. Wei Dongling immediately understood Xiao Ran’s intention and sat still, competing to see who could endure the longest. Meanwhile, the representatives from the other four major companies also remained motionless.
Half an hour later, the room was still exactly as it was, as if no one had moved a muscle. Xiao Ran closed his eyes slightly, calculating the time and guessing the plans and moves of the leaders of the other four companies.
One had to admire these people—under such a tense atmosphere, they all sat motionless like wooden statues. After another ten minutes, the first to lose patience was Fang Ruohai’s assistant. Soon after, Yang Qi’s assistant also began to fidget.
Fang Ruohai and Yang Qi both glared at their assistants. In such a situation, being the first to act meant admitting defeat. He Guanchang’s assistant, a middle-aged man with great patience, waited until Pan Disheng’s assistant could no longer sit still. Only after Wei Dongling, at Xiao Ran’s signal, started to show signs of impatience did the middle-aged man show signs of fatigue, proving his exceptional endurance.
Wei Dongling gradually understood Xiao Ran’s intention: to test everyone’s true strength in this silent competition, which could have a significant impact on any future life-or-death battles.
While Wei Dongling focused on the assistants of the four major companies, Xiao Ran was concerned with the performance of Pan Disheng and the others. However, he had no intention of winning this competition. It was wise to conserve his strength and make the other four think his patience was limited.
After an hour, Yang Qi finally couldn’t resist and took out a cigarette to light it, marking him as the first to give up. The second to give up was Xiao Ran, who now had a rough idea of each party’s strength. Pan Disheng would surely be the next to move, followed by Fang Ruohai, and lastly He Guanchang, the old hand.
As Xiao Ran had predicted, the order in which the other three acted was exactly correct. He gradually smiled, thinking he could probably figure out what the four major companies were up to. Jiahe was the most cunning, having recently become wary of Shadow. This time, they likely wanted to take advantage of the situation to stir up a war between the Fang family and Xiao Ran, then reap the benefits.
Jiahe had never considered expanding beyond Asia; they probably didn’t even dare to think too much about Southeast Asia, only aiming to monopolize the Hong Kong market. Xiao Ran wouldn’t say he dismissed Jiahe, but he certainly didn’t regard them as a long-term rival. A company without such ambition was far too weak to withstand Shadow’s might.

Pandi Sheng did draw Xiao Ran’s attention, but this company had always lacked a strong presence; although it could survive for a long time, it found it hard to pose a threat. In Xiao Ran’s judgment, if Pandi Sheng were willing to change its strategy, Debao still had great potential.

Fang Ruohai, on the other hand, was definitely a formidable rival—a man full of adventure spirit yet also cautious and calm, an enemy Xiao Ran never dared to ignore. His only weakness was that he wasn’t very good at managing businesses, though he was skilled in areas like investment.

As for Yang Qi, he was the only person Xiao Ran couldn’t figure out. Judging from Yang Qi’s performance today, he should have been the worst among them, which suited Yang Qi’s temperament. Yet Xiao Ran always felt that Yang Qi shouldn’t be like this. The first time they met, Yang Qi was being chased and attacked, but instead of seeking out the mastermind behind it, he quietly gathered evidence. A few months later, using his business success, he sent his business rivals to prison.

Based on this, Xiao Ran almost concluded that Yang Qi was pretending. He just didn’t understand why Yang Qi had returned or why he wanted to make movies. Xiao Ran didn’t believe Yang Qi had come back for revenge over Yang Wei. Come on—if enemies could be formed that easily, then Xiao Ran would have enemies everywhere.

Seeing everyone take action confirmed his suspicions. Xiao Ran nodded at Wei Dongling and left. This unusual behavior surprised everyone present. He Guanchang and Pandi Sheng thought Xiao Ran was going to hold them accountable. After all, just a month earlier, they had formed an alliance, yet now they felt betrayed. The fact that Xiao Ran showed no resentment or anger was what was truly strange.

After leaving the meeting room and entering the elevator, Xiao Ran’s expression darkened immediately. His first words to Wei Dongling were, “Immediately acquire all independent cinemas and art-house theaters in Hong Kong at any cost!”

“And also…” Xiao Ran spat out each word through gritted teeth, “Get the distribution department to secure distribution rights in Japan and South Korea as soon as possible. Have the marketing department identify the most powerful production companies in Hong Kong in the shortest time and have the investment department acquire them. Finally, the company’s liquid assets must be kept at least 200 million!”

An Yuxuan frantically wrote down everything. Xiao Ran’s expression clearly scared this tall girl. Even Yang Guang and Monkey were surprised, not understanding why Xiao Ran, who was usually cheerful and calm, had suddenly become so cold.

But things weren’t that simple. Fang Ruohai and Yang Qi seemed to have guessed what Xiao Ran was planning. Most of the scattered cinemas in Hong Kong had been acquired. Shadow Company spent 40 million to get four cinemas, barely increasing the number of cinemas under its chain to 41.

Meanwhile, Golden Princess had already grown to 49 cinemas, while Yang Qi controlled six scattered cinemas, combining them into a small art-house theater chain. It seemed both Fang Ruohai and Yang Qi were imitating Xiao Ran’s tactics—Yang Qi had his small art-house chain, while Fang Ruohai allocated eight cinemas for showing art films.

In terms of distribution agencies, Xiao Ran still failed to secure the two major markets of Japan and South Korea. Worst of all, there are hardly any capable production companies left in Hong Kong, while Mai Dangxiong’s studio was acquired by Fang Ruohai for 50 million. The only good news is that profits from stocks and real estate have brought the company’s liquid assets to around 600 million, plus the 200 million in Xiao Ran’s hands, which should be enough to handle any situation.

As soon as he returned to the company, Wei Dongling’s secretary told them that Lei Kaitai and Xu Keji could come by. Xiao Ran was overjoyed—he knew he was about to find out what had happened. After meeting Lei Kaitai, Xiao Ran got straight to the point and asked, “Old Lei, what exactly is going on?”

“It has to start a few days back!” Lei Kaitai looked extremely tired. Taking the drink handed to him by Wei Dongling, he slowly explained how everything had unfolded.

Lei Kaitai was the chairman of a listed company, with Xinyi City and a film studio being his personal investments. Just a month earlier, not long after Xiao Ran went to Macau to film, Lei Kaitai discovered that his company’s stocks were being acquired by unknown funds. By then, it was too late to launch a counter-offer.

After waiting for a long time, the person who had acquired at least 25% of Lei Kaitai’s company’s shares never showed up until a few days ago. That person was Fang Ruohai. His demands were very simple: he wanted Lei Kaitai to sell him Xinyi City and the studios.

That was ridiculous—after all, those were Lei Kaitai’s sources of income, having earned him millions over the years. Yet Fang Ruohai’s terms were unacceptable. Lei Kaitai’s assets had already shrunk significantly due to the stock market crash, and Fang Ruohai’s offer was even more unacceptably high—along with Xinyi Bao Records and Golden Princess Cinema, the total amount was 800 million.

After the crash, Lei Kaitai’s entire fortune consisted only of those stocks worth over a billion. How could he refuse? Most importantly, Fang Ruohai made it clear that the other major shareholders had already turned against him.

After confirming this, Lei Kaitai knew he had no choice. So, he decided to sell Xinyi City, Golden Princess, and Xinyi Bao. After listening to Lei Kaitai’s quiet account, everyone present realized the details must have been extremely tense and heart-stopping.

Xiao Ran didn’t blame Lei Kaitai. If he were in that position, he would likely have no choice but to submit. Taking a deep breath, he realized Fang Ruohai was truly determined to succeed this time. “Old Lei, what are your plans now?”

“What else can I do? With this money, I’ll first get rid of the traitors inside!” Lei Kaitai snapped angrily. Anyone facing betrayal by traitors would likely react the same way.

“I’ve always wanted to work with you. You’re a talent!” Lei Kaitai seemed to realize his words were inappropriate and quickly corrected himself, “No, you’re a genius. It’s a shame there’s no chance for cooperation now, but I feel I owe you an explanation from a moral standpoint!”

Xiao Ran smiled faintly; finally, he had calmed down. He wasn’t afraid of direct attacks or schemes—only of not knowing what the enemy was up to. With Lei Kaitai’s explanation, he felt he didn’t need to worry at all. “Thank you. Now I know what to do. We’ll definitely have a chance to work together in the future!”

Lei Kaitai glanced at Xu Ke, his expression hinting at scheming. “A Ran, I know you’ve always admired Xu Ke and the others. Right now, they’re tied by contracts and can’t transfer over. As long as you can hold on for half a year, they should be able to join you!”

Xu Ke nodded at Xiao Ran and said, “Just endure for now. As for that movie, I can’t direct it anymore. How about we pause it until I get there? But I think the best solution is for you to direct it—you might even do it better than I could!”

*New Dragon Inn*! Xiao Ran almost cried. He had finally found a suitable role for Lin Qingxia, but now things had gone awry. But Fang Ruohai would never let Xu Ke come over. It seemed the only option was for him to direct it himself.

After discussing the details, Xiao Ran sent them all away and stayed alone in his office, lost in thought. This situation was truly despicable. It was one thing for Fang Ruohai to oppose him, but why did Yang Qi also hate him so much? He was confused.

Undoubtedly, this was a desperate situation with enemies on all sides. Xiao Ran cursed angrily. It was because the phrase “surrounded on all sides” reminded him of that damned movie. A single movie had ruined an idiom that had existed for ages—truly devastating.

When Xiao Ran returned to the villa, Lin Qingxia was already waiting for him. Seeing his gloomy expression, she worriedly asked, “Fang Ruohai is in charge of New Art City now. What should we do?”

This was also something Xiao Ran was thinking about, but he didn’t want to bring it home. He smiled and reassured her, “Don’t worry. I can handle it. By the way, aren’t you going back today?”

Lin Qingxia shrugged like Xiao Ran. “I heard the news today and was worried about you, so I came to check on you!”

“Then you don’t miss me?” Xiao Ran laughed oddly, rushed forward, hugged her, and gave her a deep, sweet kiss. Only then did Lin Qingxia look happy as she leaned against him and asked, “But with Fang Ruohai here, won’t your ideals and plans be impossible to carry out step by step?”

“Who said that?” Xiao Ran laughed heartily—it was indeed a genuine smile. “Their arrival has both advantages and disadvantages. The downside is that they’ll team up to suppress Mirage, but the upside is that with their financial and technical strength, they can quickly eliminate unqualified local film companies, indirectly expanding the market for Hong Kong movies. Isn’t that exactly what I’ve always wanted to do?”

“But aren’t you worried at all? Fa Ge and Hong Gu both told me that this time, the four major companies will team up against you!” Fa Ge and his friends in the industry had indeed called because they were too busy to come in person. Lin Qingxia looked very worried; she didn’t want to see Xiao Ran fall into the same desperate state he had been in before.

Xiao Ran smiled confidently; he wasn’t worried about this at all. After all, his goal wasn’t money or career advancement, but Hong Kong cinema. A competitive framework had already taken shape, and as long as he continued to guide it for a few more years, once Hong Kong cinema reached its limits, even without his intervention, other companies would challenge Hollywood. This was the change Xiao Ran had always strived to bring about. Even if he turned Shadow into the world’s largest film empire, it might not be able to save Hong Kong cinema for long. The key was that Hong Kong film companies needed a sound operational structure and system, and right now, Xiao Ran was quietly guiding the growth of these companies. Don’t you see that Cathay and Deppa are increasingly focusing on screenwriters and scripts, starting to train them, with Deppa even establishing an artist training department similar to Shadow’s. In fact, artist training departments are essentially a loss-making venture, as once artists become famous, their development cannot be restricted—they will eventually leave on their own. The key source of supplementary income lies in agents, and there’s another source as well. Take Zhou Xingchi, for example: before “The God of Gamblers,” he had little value, but now his earnings have risen to nearly 200,000. Since Shadow Company signed a contract with Zhou Xingchi, according to the contract, they could have paid only the rate before “The God of Gamblers,” not the rate afterward.
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