The Birth of Shanghai's First Conglomerate

Chapter 721 Flying to the Demon City

Chen Pingsheng and Song Yanxi returned to Shanghai after only a few days in Guangzhou.

Erpiya and even Xiaosan Chen Lu went back with them.

After the transfer of Douyin shares to Tencent Media was completed, Zhang Wanyi called Chen An'an to Tencent's headquarters to discuss taking over the largest business group in the entertainment industry.

Tencent Entertainment.

An An played the role of a junior CEO at Tengying Entertainment when she was very young, and she knows many of the top-tier celebrities there.

Especially the current queen of TV dramas, who even took care of her when she was young.

There wasn't any senior figure from the Tencent Entertainment Group standing up to oppose her.

Because the elderly people here are all top-tier celebrities, or famous directors and producers.

The way these people make money does not conflict with the group's practices.

Celebrities need to take on commercial performances and brand endorsements to earn high incomes.

As for commercial endorsements, Erpiya's Wanda endorsement deals are the most numerous.

The biggest problem for Tencent Entertainment is still how to improve the group's profitability.

Tencent Entertainment's peak period was actually between 13 and 17 years when her father managed it.

During those years, Tencent Pictures made money no matter what project it invested in.

Then came the well-known pandemic, and most projects were brought to a standstill, resulting in heavy losses for several years.

The stock price also dropped from that time.

The film market has now recovered, but the total box office revenue in China is only about 50 to 60 billion yuan per year.

And even this... we still have to share the profits with overseas blockbusters and domestic theaters.

As a result, actual profits continued to decline.

Even with the investment in the once wildly popular Nezha 2, it only experienced a short-term rebound.

After a while, things went back to pretty much the same as before.

"An'an, does this mean you'll be able to see any celebrity from now on?"

The turtle girl said enviously.

"Celebrities are only a term used to describe celebrities to their fans. To us ordinary people, celebrities are not as good as internet celebrities."

Internet celebrities now earn much more than regular celebrities, and most established actors have switched to making short dramas.

It's fair to say that taking over Tencent Entertainment was significantly more difficult than taking over Snack Run.

Once Snack Run gets rid of internal management issues, making money is quite simple.

Tencent Entertainment is different; you have to be able to consistently produce blockbuster movies and TV series.

Fortunately, Tencent Entertainment has a large enough base and a large number of top stars supporting it.

An An sat in the CEO's chair and turned around. The former headquarters of Tengying Entertainment was in Beijing.

Later they moved to Shanghai, and then to Guangzhou.

The headquarters building has a total of thirty-nine floors, and the floor she was sitting on was the thirty-eighth floor.

The top floor is an outdoor swimming pool and a place to hold parties; it's very luxurious.

"An'an, if we want to become stars in the future, wouldn't it be as simple as just saying the word?"

"Why be a star? Being a star isn't fun at all. You guys sit here for a while, I'll call Aunt Liying over for a chat."

Zhao Liying is still very friendly with her. She herself has long been financially independent and is one of the most powerful women in the industry.

The reason I'm still acting is entirely due to personal interest.

Zhao Liying wasn't in Guangzhou; she came from Zhejiang and arrived at the group's headquarters in the evening.

An'an had prepared a private banquet for her on the top floor. When Zhao Liying was young, she usually dressed like a girl next door.

Now she's got that queen-like aura.

"An'an, why did your father entrust Tengying Entertainment to you so early?"

"Yes, my dad also got me a lot of shares back."

"Your dad really trusts you."

The two are very close and there's no need for formalities. Although Zhao Liying has tens of millions of fans, they all enjoy watching her TV dramas.

Her achievements in film are not much better than Liu Yifei's back then.

They're evenly matched.

"I invited you back this time specifically to ask for your opinion, as I'm still not very familiar with things in the entertainment industry."

"Is that so?"

Zhao Liying introduced her to some industry information, basically saying that nowadays, whether it's TV series, movies, or even short dramas, they all need to be of high quality.

The decade of celebrity worship in the entertainment industry has proven one thing.

So-called "traffic" is nothing more than self-indulgence among fans.

If you actually invest in their idols to make movies, you'll lose everything.

Any movie or project that your idol is involved in should be avoided by casual viewers.

Furthermore, given the current influence of the short drama market, unless a drama is truly of high quality, it will be easily outclassed by short dramas.

In the past few years, Tencent Entertainment, like most film and television groups, has fallen into many traps related to popular celebrities.

Those years happened to be when her father wasn't in charge of the group.

Tencent Entertainment's decline also began around that time.

However, no one blamed her father, because a few years ago, Chen Pingsheng used his Tengyou Media to acquire the declining Tengying Entertainment.

That's also to help everyone cash out in a timely manner.

Zhao Liying herself obtained more than 2 billion yuan in cash during that cash-out.

The top-tier celebrities who joined at the same time as her have all been able to cash out billions of dollars.

Therefore, even though Tencent Entertainment is currently in such a bad state, no one blames her father.

Her father... did his best and did not let any of them down.

Therefore, Zhao Liying welcomed An An to take over the group with open arms.

The other top celebrities are pretty much the same; as long as Tencent Entertainment continues An An's father's decisions, everyone will give her their full support.

It's just that making money in the entertainment industry these days isn't easy.

Especially considering it's such a large entertainment group.

If we're talking about the most profitable projects in the entertainment industry in recent years, who else could it be besides Nezha 2?

With a box office of 160 billion, it will not be surpassed in the next ten years.

Let alone ten years, it will be the same even in twenty years.

Unless we can get Stephen Chow to come out of retirement and star in another masterpiece like "Kung Fu Hustle".

Stephen Chow has completely retired from acting, and Jackie Chan and the others are no longer able to perform action scenes.

Even patriotic movies that were very popular a few years ago are no longer popular these days.

There are only a handful of people who can guarantee box office success.

Tencent Entertainment has three.

An'an's foundation is still there; if it wants to restore Tencent Entertainment's glorious history...

To truly dominate the entertainment industry, one must focus on quality.

We should produce high-quality dramas and promote talented actors, while completely rejecting second-generation actors who are just there to coast along.

Tencent Entertainment does have the capability.

This is like a mountain that has lost its luster after her father switched to the field of technology.

Tencent Entertainment has been steadily declining for at least ten years.

The stock price also dropped from a high of 180 billion to below 80 billion.

Many people, especially the top figures in the group, still hope that it can regain its former glory.

The main challenge for Tencent Entertainment lies in how to increase profitability.

Its management style is very loose and free. The celebrities are from all over the country and don't usually get together. To get them together, you need a good reason.

In short, An'an faces enormous challenges.

She also reviewed Tencent Film Entertainment's financial reports over the years in detail, and found that the largest portion of its operating revenue still came from investments in film projects.

In addition, there are short dramas and business investments.

It's been many years since a TV series has produced a truly massive hit.

Nezha 2 was just one of ten production companies.

I managed to get a taste of the good stuff.

The future development of the entertainment industry will undoubtedly shift from prioritizing traffic to prioritizing content.

In addition, the entertainment industry can be further extended into sectors such as culture, tourism, and education.

The most crucial thing is that Tencent Entertainment needs to cultivate a new generation of potential stars born in the 00s.

It is intended to replace the post-90s generation, and even the post-95s generation.

Zhao Liying even went a step further and proposed to comprehensively deepen the training of basic entertainment skills.

Just as martial arts superstars have aged, the entire genre, including kung fu movies of this type, has been phased out.

It's not that this type of content has no audience; it's just that today's celebrities no longer possess the basic skills they once had.

These fundamental skills are the most crucial.

Zhao Liying suggested that An'an could set up various training classes to comprehensively improve the existing youth talent pool of Tengying Entertainment.

An'an obeyed, after all, she still trusted her Aunt Liying after all these years.

They have always been a top brand in the TV drama industry, without a doubt.

For the film industry to reach new heights, the most important thing is to produce good content.

Like Nezha 2, it took five years to hone a sword, and when it was released, the world was astonished.

The entire industry was stunned; no one had ever imagined that a film could break the 10 billion yuan box office mark.

It even made it into the top ten of the world's film history.

Such an honor is a source of pride for every film industry professional.

If Tencent Pictures can independently produce a film like that, its stock price may return to its peak within a year.

It's just too difficult, too difficult.

An An not only wants to make a sequel to Nezha, but she also wants to cultivate several kung fu superstars like Jackie Chan and Jet Li in the past.

Besides resources, the most important thing for such stars is the basic skills they have had since childhood.

Like Jet Li, who won the martial arts championship five times in a row.

As for Jackie Chan, it goes without saying; he's practically risking his life.

What the entertainment industry lacks in this day and age is precisely this kind of spirit.

Those celebrities who make a fuss over minor injuries should have been eliminated long ago.

Expecting them to make movies that save cities and the planet.

Did you see the fans read the letter themselves?

An An decided to listen to the opinions of these industry experts first, and then summarize her own experience. Anyway, there's no rush.

Even if Tencent Entertainment is doing poorly, it still has a net profit of over one billion yuan a year.

With that foundation, plus the fact that she herself has no shortage of money, what big project can't she start?

Even if movies are tied to entertainment, she still has the capital to invest.

Just when she was already serving as the co-president of Tencent Entertainment and Snack Run.

Chen Pingsheng was already getting a headache looking at his only son, Chen Lu, who was also his mistress.

If a family needs a second-generation heir who can simply relax and do nothing, then Chen Lu is definitely the best successor.

The key is that their family doesn't need him, not to mention he's the only male heir in the family.

After the family returned to Shanghai, Chen Pingsheng asked him very seriously, "Xiao Lu, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"I don't want to do anything, I just want to live however I want to be happy and do whatever makes me comfortable!"

"Don't you have any thoughts about your sisters inheriting so much of the family business?"

"Do we need to have some ideas?"

Chen Lu said earnestly, "Dad, my family has never lacked money since the day I was born, and I have never known what it feels like to be poor. Dad, can you tell me what it feels like to be poor?"

How should he answer this question?

Just as ordinary people wonder what the daily lives of billionaires are like, Chen Lu wonders about how ordinary people actually live.

His concept of an ordinary person is probably a small apartment in Shanghai that costs 40 to 50 million yuan.

There were only two bathrooms in the house, and the family only had one car worth three or four hundred thousand yuan. This was probably his impression of a poor person.

“Xiao Lu, you’ll be nine years old soon. I’ve neglected you before, and you’ve gone so far as to ask such an outrageous question.”

Chen Pingsheng thought about it seriously. He only had one son. If he ruined his son, it would be completely unrealistic to have another one.

"You'll be nine years old soon. Dad is taking you away for a year to experience the life of ordinary people. If you can't stand it and want to come home, then you're not allowed to play games anymore and you have to study hard. What do you think?"

"Is it necessary? I don't really care."

Chen Lu really is the kind of person who's born with a "laissez-faire" attitude; he doesn't care whether he spends money or not.

He wasn't as fond of spending money as Erpiya, nor as sensible and kind as An'an.

In him, Chen Pingsheng saw nothing but a "laissez-faire" personality.

This kind of personality means that even if someone asked him to inherit his family's vast fortune, he could still maintain an indifferent attitude.

In his view, his family would never lack money.

He himself is unlikely to be short of money, so what is there to inherit?

This is terrifying... Chen Pingsheng actually raised such a lazy, good-for-nothing second-generation heir.

This situation is probably no better than what happened to Wang Yanfeng before.

The only difference is that he won't be burdened with hundreds of billions of yuan in debt like Lao Wang.

Wang Yanfeng has run away and isn't coming back.

If Chen Lu is destined to lie down in the future, he can indeed lie down comfortably for the rest of his life.

But as the only son in the family, he can't just lie around doing nothing.

Chen Pingsheng consulted with Song Yanxi, and Song Yanxi was overjoyed.

In her opinion, her husband should have personally taken care of Chen Lu, the mistress, long ago.

Chen Pingsheng asked her, "Didn't he used to love playing with Su Xiaoxi the most? Where is Su Xiaoxi now?"

"Don't even mention it. She tried every means to get her daughter to contact my son in Shanghai, but I sent her to Guangdong."

"Hmm... could you compile information about these two people and let me take a look?"

Chen Pingsheng felt that his mistress, Chen Lu, was already in a serious condition, and serious illnesses require serious treatment.

Even if they took him to those small rented rooms, he knew that his family was wealthy, so he just couldn't adapt to such a simple environment.

They won't make many changes from the bottom of their hearts.

Unless, you have to use a strong psychological approach, you have to give him a real shock and make him realize the consequences of not having money.

Song Yanxi quickly compiled Su Xiaoxi's information; for her family, investigating someone couldn't be easier.

In other words, Chen Pingsheng simply didn't pay any attention to the mother and daughter.

To be honest, Su Xiaoxi is having a pretty tough time right now. Her mother has gone back to her old ways and is now someone's mistress.

It's just that her current man is unlikely to marry her again, and he's not that rich either.

Chen Pingsheng tapped on the table and quickly came up with an idea.

Chen Lu is nine years old this year. If we don't discipline him more strictly, it will be very difficult to change his behavior.

Unless the family goes completely bankrupt.

(End of this chapter)