Debuted right after graduating from high school

When talking about Amsterdam, the Netherlands, besides windmills and tulips, the most famous thing is the shop windows with red lights on the streets.

One percent of the country's GDP is supported by this ancient and unique industry, which in turn drives the development of tourism and consumption, contributing a large amount of fiscal revenue to the local area.

The evening of visiting the Van Gogh Museum.

Fan Wumian and Zuo Ziyan, each wearing a mask, strolled through the streets accompanied by plainclothes bodyguards. During their stroll, they unexpectedly crossed a street where the streetlights were blindingly red.

Zuo Ziyan looked disgusted, pulled him along quickly, and said:
"To attract tourists, they'll open up any business they can. Southeast Asia has Thailand, and Europe has Amsterdam. Neither of them are good places, but those stinky men love to come here for tourism."

“I’ve heard from others that there’s a Dutch student at school who drives a Lamborghini. His family runs a shop window business, renting out hundreds of windows and earning two to three million euros a year.”

"You're still looking? I'll gouge your eyes out!"

Fan Wumian couldn't help but laugh. He certainly didn't find the various girls behind the glass attractive; he only felt a sense of novelty. He said to her:
"Men always take that one look. It's not that I want to look, it's just like a knee-jerk reaction, an instinctive reaction."

"I can only say I'm very disappointed. Can some heavily made-up middle-aged women really earn back the rent?"

"You forgot to mention island nations. Compared to them, Thailand's situation is child's play. Their action film market is worth six or seven hundred billion US dollars a year—it's so big it makes me disheartened. The entire mainland Chinese film market is only three or four hundred million US dollars. Making movies is less worthwhile than making films."

Zuo Ziyan wanted to say a few words of comfort to him, but she couldn't help herself and said:
"If you went to make an erotic film, it would probably be a box office hit. The air on this street is suffocating me. Run, get out of here. If you can't control your pants and dare to mess with these women, I'll slap you across the face."

Fan Wumian calmly said:

"Don't worry, I won't give them a chance to take advantage of me. It looks like the main road is right outside. I can see the road."

She quickened her pace and left. Once she reached the main road, Zuo Ziyan breathed a sigh of relief and continued:
“I’ve read news reports in the British media before that this place is a major area for human trafficking, and now I believe it. The local authorities are a bit short-sighted. If a family of three is traveling with their child, they definitely wouldn’t choose to come to Amsterdam, which would lose countless tourists.”

Fan Wumian looked at her and said:
“Indeed, it’s not hard to imagine what the local young men are thinking about all day. There aren’t many attractions to visit in Amsterdam. How about we leave tomorrow morning? I’ll send you back to London, and then I’ll go to New York. I’ve been at sea for so long, and there are a lot of things waiting for me to take care of. I might also have to stay in Hollywood for a few more days.”

Zuo Ziyan asked:

"Someone threatened you before, thinking you were affecting their interests. Is it safe for you to go to the United States now?"

"Well, it's alright. There are some minor frictions in other businesses, but nothing serious enough to warrant taking me down. WM Rogers hedge fund has finished its external financing, and the international version of Tencent Weibo has also completed its Series A financing, offering 20% ​​of its shares to external parties. I have a pretty good relationship with oligarchs like Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, and Morgan Stanley."

The reason Fan Wumian was warned and threatened before was because he brought trouble upon himself.

Currently, speculative funds have already cashed out at high prices and left the A-share market with their funds. Their businesses on Wall Street, in Silicon Valley, and in Hollywood are also quite sound.

For example, WM Rogers hedge fund has been shorting companies like Citigroup, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, and Merrill Lynch for a long time. It's just helping clients with investment and wealth management, so there's no question of it being taboo. Even if Fan Wumian stopped doing it, these clients would still choose to continue shorting through other channels, not to mention that there's partner Zovin Rogers standing in front of them.

Even the major shareholders of these financial oligarchs are busy jumping off the sinking ship, and they don't care how big the empty shares of their own listed companies have become.

Perhaps among the countless short positions, there are also some belonging to the major shareholders of these companies, thus hedging against the risk of a possible sharp drop in stock prices.

Business in Silicon Valley is also relatively safe.

Facebook's influence is currently limited, and its funding is only so-so. The most important thing right now is how to expand its scale to survive and seize as much market share as possible. Although the Facebook board believes that the international version of Tencent Weibo will be a troublesome threat, it cannot spare the time to deal with it.

A few months ago, Tencent acquired a 4.78% stake in Facebook from a Russian venture capital firm. Recently, Fan Wumian helped China Petroleum acquire shares from original shareholders Eduardo Saverin and Dustin Moskovitz for a combined valuation of $140 billion, representing approximately 4.9% of Facebook's total share capital.

Including the small number of shares held by Fan Wumian himself, the total number of Facebook shares he controls exceeds 10.6% of the company's total share capital. Even without obtaining the corresponding voting rights, he can still gain favor with the board of directors headed by Mark Zuckerberg.

The temperature was low at night, and Fan Wumian put his hands in his pockets, adding:

"The business on Wall Street is fine, and I don't need to worry too much about the business in Silicon Valley. The most crucial thing is the layout in Hollywood."

"I haven't been to Marvel since it was acquired. Its headquarters are in New York, while Marvel Studios' headquarters are in Hollywood. I'll go there this time to meet the executives so that it will be easier to get things going."

"More importantly, given the bleak outlook for global economic development, we need to find a way to create an international version of a video website and acquire the film libraries accumulated over half a century by companies like Disney, Paramount, Fox, and Sony Pictures. I estimate we'll have to offer $10 billion as bait to attract some Hollywood giants to cooperate with us."

Zuo Ziyan gasped and asked him, "Should we invest all at once, or in installments?"

"Of course we should divide the investment into smaller portions and make the pie look bigger so it will look more appealing."

Fan Wumian didn't need to hide anything from her, and spoke as they strolled:

“I’ll put in $10 billion, plus the international version of Tudou.com. By then, we’ll have both money and technology. They just need to license a portion of their video library to me, and I can use those resources as equity to acquire shares in this video website.”

"These companies may not be willing to easily hand over the resources of some popular movies and TV series, as they can make a steady stream of money by selling DVDs. It's okay if they don't authorize me; we can have a valuation agency calculate a price. If the film library resources they offer are valuable, we'll take more shares; if they're not, we'll take fewer shares."

"They don't need to spend their own money, nor do they need to take much risk. If they still don't cooperate with me after all this, then there's nothing I can do. As long as I get one or two Hollywood giants to back me up, this video website can continue to operate without fear of them ganging up on me."

Zuo Ziyan understood what he meant and said with a smile:
"It's like joining a gang. It's hard for outsiders to gain a foothold, but once you've made your acquaintances and found someone to protect you, everyone will give you a break?"

"Ah."

Fan Wumian wasn't quite sure how Netflix had developed under the noses of Hollywood giants in his previous life, but it was probably related to strong support from Wall Street.

Netflix is ​​focused on producing original series, while Fan Wumian is not only an outsider but also has companies like Myth Film Studio and Marvel Studios. He needs to maintain good relationships with Hollywood giants, as they control almost all resources, including theaters, copyright merchandise, special effects production, and media. It would be difficult for them to completely part ways.

Since a complete breakdown in relations is not an option, the only remaining path is in-depth cooperation.

He plans to have potential partners invest in the film library, which will save them the trouble of paying copyright fees in the future. The money will come from the investors, so it won't be a loss for them.

Moreover, in the early stages, video websites lacked content, and relying solely on producing original dramas was definitely not enough. Acquiring content early to seize the international market would save them the trouble of taking detours and might even strangle Netflix in advance.

Based on a potential market size of $200 billion, even if they only end up with a 30% stake, the profits will still be substantial. It's much better than watching others reap the rewards. Making money while also having something to do to pass the time—Fan Wumian certainly understood this calculation. Because Fan Wumian had been threatened before, Zuo Ziyan was still a little worried and asked, "Why don't we not go back to school yet? I'll go to America with you?"

He often texted Daddario while at sea, arranging to meet him in Hollywood in advance.

Fan Wumian, worried that his schedule would be disrupted, quickly reassured him:
"Winter break is almost here again, and we'll have plenty of opportunities to meet. I'll be busy with business all day, and you'll get bored if you're with me."

----------

There are still many things to finish at school.

the next day.

Zuo Ziyan returned to London on a private plane, and Fan Wumian drove her all the way to his villa near Cambridge University, where she stayed an extra day before leaving.

As for the Flying Penguin yacht, it will undergo maintenance and upgrades at the Italian shipyard for a few days before the captain continues to steer it back to the port city.

Having spent nearly two months on the ship, Fan Wumian now doesn't want to stay on board for even a moment longer. He had originally considered waiting until he had more money to buy a more luxurious 100-meter superyacht, but after personally experiencing the monotony of the sea, that idea faded away.

During the transatlantic journey, I watched two Pirates of the Caribbean movies in a row. I have to admit that Captain Jack Sparrow's performance was very captivating. Even after watching it again, Fan Wumian was still completely engrossed.

Hollywood special effects movies are expensive, and the visual effects are really good. He doesn't think that there are no people in mainland China who can build a first-class computer special effects studio. It's just that Chinese films are limited by the difficulty of going overseas and the small size of a single market, so there is a lack of market demand in this area.

Considering that both Marvel Studios and the yet-to-be-named international video website would require a lot of special effects, Fan Wumian began to consider the feasibility of using the new video website to acquire Lucasfilm a few years later.

Hollywood director George Lucas not only owns the rights to Star Wars, but also a renowned visual effects studio, Industrial Light & Magic.

Leaving aside the Star Wars movies, if the rights were acquired and more live-action spin-offs were produced, such as the popular Mandalorian from the previous life, it would be a huge help to the international version of the video website.

The Star Wars film series has a limited number of fans in mainland China and is often ridiculed for its use of cold weapons in fights. However, it has hundreds of millions of loyal fans in the international market, with many people having grown up watching it, making its IP value enormous.

Compared to Star Wars, the recently announced 11th Star Trek movie left a deep impression on Fan Wumian. He felt a sense of wonder after watching it in his previous life.

In July, Paramount executives approached him to share costs, asking if he wanted to invest in Star Trek, taking a 25% stake. He agreed without hesitation, reserving a small role for himself and also casting Liu Yifei as the liaison officer on the Enterprise spaceship.

While I was resting and contemplating with my eyes closed, the plane landed smoothly in New York.

As Fan Wumian's Falcon 7X glided past the Airbus A380, he inexplicably felt like a kindergarten child seeing Yao Ming; the difference in size was too great.

No one can ever be truly satisfied. He deeply regretted boarding the Dubai royal family's Boeing 747 private jet. After the obvious comparison, many things could never be the same again. However, large wide-body passenger aircraft are worth three or four hundred million US dollars, a figure that was enough to keep him rational.

After getting off the plane and completing customs procedures, I got into the rented Range Rover and headed straight for the Waldorf Astoria New York, which I had booked in advance.

After settling in quickly, we headed to the headquarters of WM Rogers hedge fund.

After securing funding and expanding its business, the hedge fund upgraded its operations, renting an entire floor of office space on Wall Street.

Upon meeting his partner, Zovin Rogers, Fan Wumian politely said:
"The office is nice, with a direct view of the Empire State Building. Moving to a higher floor will give you a much wider view."

With the company's performance continuing to soar, Zovin Rogers has recently become quite wealthy. The white partner first poured Fan Wumian a cup of coffee, then replied:
"Actually, this is not the place I am most satisfied with. During rush hour, it takes a long time to wait for the elevator. I have only signed a one-year lease for now. When the subprime crisis worsens and the financial crisis occurs, there should be many beautiful and comfortable office buildings vacant, and the rent will be cheaper than it is now."

Fan Wumian suggested:

“Once prices return to a reasonable level, you can try renting a small building on your own. Even after you've finished the subprime and financial crisis projects, this company will continue to manage assets for clients and expand into other areas. With your reputation, I think many investors will be willing to trust you.”

Currently, over 85% of WM Rogers hedge fund's business comes from shorting subprime mortgages, with relatively few clients investing in financial products related to the internet, semiconductors, and consumer goods.

Zovin Rogers laughed:
"Great idea. Do you know how much money our company has already made based on the current data?"

Having long since passed the stage of being amazed by money, Fan Wumian asked curiously:

"You mean the commission you can get from customers? Approximately how much?"

Zovin Rogers said with a bright smile:

"Our company manages nearly $90 billion in assets, and has earned about $16 billion this year, including management fees, returns on equity, and performance-based bonuses."

As Fan Wumian estimated, 67.5% of the $16 billion in book profits belonged to him.

On the other hand, Paulson & Co. manages over $230 billion in assets, and both of its funds have seen gains of over 400% this year.

Zovin Rogers, after all, jumped ship from John Paulson's company, and his connections, fame, and influence were not as good as John Paulson's, so he got a bit late to the game.

Because Fan Wumian had previously decided to invest all the financing funds from companies such as BlackRock and Goldman Sachs, a portion of the profits were able to be deposited into the company's account, rather than being used to collect management fees or extract commissions from clients' returns.

Paulson & Co.’s internal financial report for the third quarter showed that the estimated profit was around $30 billion. Fan Wumian owns 25% of the company and invested only $2800 million last year. Now, without considering taxes, the value of this investment has increased twenty or thirty times.

This only represents the direct benefits.

Paulson & Rogers hedge funds rose to fame, but the market valuation portion was not included in the calculation.

With the reputation we've built up this year, we can reap the benefits for many years to come, continuing to manage clients' assets and earn management fees and performance-based commissions, thus contributing a steady stream of profits.

It was precisely because of these two companies that when the Hurun Rich List announced Fan Wumian's estimated net worth of US$45 billion some time ago, countless people said that his actual wealth was underestimated and deeply doubted the accuracy of the Hurun Rich List.

Afterwards, the founder of Hurun publicly clarified that it is reasonable for a statistical error of less than 50% to occur with wealthy individuals like Fan Wumian, who are very difficult to count, and that the valuation data of many companies were not included in the statistics. (End of this chapter)