Entertainment: I just want to be the boss behind the scenes

Chapter 389 Are you worthy?
"Boss Meng, try this rhubarb flower. I specially asked you to bring it here today."

"According to the latest box office statistics, Detective Chinatown 2 has already exceeded 30 billion. Congratulations, Mr. Meng."

"I heard that Arc Light is filming another spy drama this year. It must be written by President Meng himself. If you need any help with distribution, just let us know. We at Straw Bear can still help."

"Xiao Zhang, you and Mr. Meng are close, so you should toast to him..."

At the table, Liu Xiaofeng winked at Zhang Chunye who was sitting next to Meng Bai. Zhang Chunye immediately understood and picked up his wine glass. He looked at Meng Bai with bright eyes and said in a shy tone, "Mr. Meng, I have always liked Arclight's dramas and I admire you very much. I... thank you for meeting you today."

"..."

Meng Bai glanced at her, smiled lightly and said to Liu Xiaofeng who was looking at him intently, "It is said that Mr. Liu has great influence in Lizhitai. After seeing him today, I feel that the outside world still underestimates him."

Liu Xiaofeng's smile froze when he heard this, and he said awkwardly, "Well, there's no power. It's just that we've been working together for a long time and I know a few friends. Xiao Zhang just happened to talk about it that day, and when he knew that Mr. Meng was coming, he specifically said he wanted to meet you."

"Yeah."

Meng Bai snorted and laughed without commenting. He turned his head to look at Zhang Chunye who was still holding the wine glass and maintaining a smile, and stretched out his hand to suppress her: "Girl, stop making trouble. You two, why did you invite me here today and why did I come here? We both know it. There is no need to do these unnecessary things. Just say it directly."

"Haha, Mr. Meng is indeed a quick-witted person."

Liu Xiaofeng laughed dryly, then exchanged glances with Wu Qilong and said, "Okay, since Mr. Meng has made it clear, I'll get straight to the point. Regarding Arclight's lawsuit against Straw Bear Entertainment, we hope to reach a settlement."

"That's not right, Mr. Liu. We at Arc Light only sued an employee of your company. How can we say that it is targeting you?" Meng Bai said in a leisurely tone.

Liu Xiaofeng smiled and said, "Mr. Meng, you just said you should be more direct. Why are you making excuses now? You and I both know who this lawyer's letter is targeting."

"Okay, since that's what you said, I won't hide it. That's right, our Arc Light is targeting you, Straw Bear. Or to be more precise, it's targeting the person behind the previous 'scandal rumor'." Meng Bai frowned and looked over, "I think Mr. Liu should also have a share of the credit here."

"That's right, we did what happened before." Liu Xiaofeng admitted it readily: "But Mr. Meng, you have to believe that we are not targeting you specifically."

"Mr. Liu, if we dare to do something, we must also dare to admit it. The two articles you asked people to write directly mentioned my name, and then you said that they were not specifically targeting me. Doesn't this sound a bit ridiculous?"

Liu Xiaofeng was speechless. From his subjective point of view, this matter was really not intended to target Meng Bai, but to muddy the waters, and the arc light just happened to be the most conspicuous. But from an objective point of view, there was nothing wrong with saying this, their target was indeed Meng Bai.

Of course, it didn't make any difference at this point. He simply said, "No matter what, we are really sorry to you, Mr. Meng. So we invited you here this time, firstly to apologize, and secondly to make amends for what happened before."

"It doesn't matter whether you apologize or not. I don't plan to forgive you anyway." Meng Bai tapped the table with his fingers and said, "You can talk about the part about apology in detail. I'm quite interested in it."

Liu Xiaofeng and Wu Qilong's faces froze at first, then they became happy.

Sure, as long as you're willing to talk.

"I wonder if Mr. Meng has any knowledge of us, Straw Bear?"

"I know a little bit."

Liu Xiaofeng smiled and said, "Then let me introduce you in a few more words. We, Straw Bear Entertainment, have produced many annual ratings champions. We own a large number of high-quality IPs and copyrights to be developed, and have broad TV distribution channels and production capabilities. The second and third largest shareholders are Alibaba and Qiyi TV, respectively, with strong capital. We are currently accepting guidance for listing applications and are expected to be listed on the Hong Kong stock market within two years..."

"So, Mr. Liu wants to tell me that you are very powerful, so we Arc Light should retreat when we see difficulties?"

"No, no, no, Mr. Meng, that's not what we mean." Liu Xiaofeng waved his hand quickly. "Everyone in the circle knows that Arclight is a big company with lofty ambitions and has always wanted to expand its territory. But as the saying goes, many hands make light work. Although we, Straw Bear, are not as good as Arclight, we have some foundation. If Mr. Meng is interested, we can definitely cooperate more."

Meng Bai leaned back in his chair and said calmly, "I wonder what kind of cooperation Mr. Liu is talking about?"

"Straw Bear Entertainment is willing to sell 30% of its shares to Arclight Pictures at a low price."

"Low price? How low?"

"The current valuation of Straw Bear Entertainment is between 30 billion and billion. % is about million." Liu Xiaofeng said, "If Mr. Meng is interested, this amount is all he needs."

As he spoke, he raised his hand and shook a finger.

"One hundred million?"

"Yes, only one-fourth of the price." Liu Xiaofeng said: "Of course, we can say to the outside world that we are transferring shares in a comprehensive model of capital plus strategic cooperation, which will not affect the company's valuation and subsequent listing plans."

Selling at a quarter discount, considering the current situation of the film and television market, is almost equivalent to bringing the PE to the level of a real enterprise.

The 30% stake means that ArcLight has become the second largest shareholder of Straw Bear Entertainment. Not only can it join the board of directors and intervene in the management, but it can also directly enjoy the distribution channels and IP inventory accumulated by the other party over the years.

More importantly, Straw Bear Entertainment has indeed begun preparations for listing, and if it maintains its current operating conditions, there is still great hope. Once it can successfully list on the Hong Kong stock market, the deal will be a big profit.

I have to say that Liu Xiaofeng's "apology" sounds quite sincere.

Meng Bai pondered for a moment and did not rush to reply. Instead, he asked another question under the other party's gaze: "Mr. Liu just said that Straw Bear Entertainment is backed by Alibaba, right?"

Liu Xiaofeng's heart skipped a beat, but he still said, "Yes, Alibaba's entertainment investment fund owns 15% of Straw Bear's shares..."

"Mr. Liu, in terms of experience in the capital market, we at Arc Light are definitely not as rich as you, but we still have some connections."

Meng Bai said calmly, "As far as I know, because the big entertainment plan has not been effective in the past two years, Alibaba has decided to reduce its funding in the film and television market. Unfortunately, Straw Bear Entertainment is also on the list of companies to be reduced due to the recent controversy in public opinion."

When Liu Xiaofeng heard this, his brows tightened suddenly, and the worries in his heart were completely put to rest.

Just as Meng Bai said, the representative from Alibaba had contacted him some time ago. He said that due to the change in the group's overall strategy, it was very likely that the shares of Straw Bear Entertainment would be sold, so he should make preparations early or buy them directly.

You know, even shareholders like Wu Qilong don’t know this news. Only he and the people at Alibaba know it, so he dares to continue to hold the banner of Alibaba.

But I didn't expect that even such a secret matter could be known by the other party.

Liu Xiaofeng's heart tightened. There were only two possibilities. Either Meng Bai had conducted a thorough investigation on him, or Hu Guang's information channels in the capital circle were a hundred times wider than expected, and he might even know someone directly from Alibaba.

Anyway, no matter what the situation is, it is not good news for them now.

But Meng Bai hadn't finished speaking yet: "By the way, Mr. Liu, I heard a piece of gossip these days. It is said that for some reason, you are raising a large amount of funds to contact your connections so that you can avoid official accountability through your connections. I don't know if it is true."

"..."

Quiet, the room is as quiet as death!
Liu Xiaofeng's pupils shrank as she stared at Meng Bai, as if she was shocked at how he knew these secrets. Wu Qilong frowned and glanced at Liu Xiaofeng unconsciously, wanting to convey some message.

As for Zhang Chunye, this girl had kept her mouth shut and remained silent ever since the two sides started the formal negotiations. Now she even wished she could plug her ears, for fear that she would hear too many things that she shouldn't hear.

After a long while, Liu Xiaofeng finally said in a dry voice: "You, how do you know..." "Mr. Liu, you are only middle-aged, how come your memory is not good." Meng Bai said leisurely: "Didn't I say that we at Arc Light still have some connections in the circle."

Liu Xiaofeng remained silent.

Yes, Meng Bai's "rumors" were very accurate. He was indeed raising funds recently. The reason was simple. The official investigation had already involved his network of connections and was currently collecting evidence. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before he was really nailed to the ground.

Fortunately, he is not the only one on his side. There are several big shots above him. They have been using all channels during this period, hoping to establish connections.

I don't ask to be unscathed, I just want to survive.

If you want to persuade others to help, benefits are naturally indispensable, which is why he needs to raise funds.

According to Liu Xiaofeng's plan, transferring the shares to Arc Light was originally a "killing three birds with one stone" move.

First of all, even if it is sold at a low price, they can still get some cash, which is exactly what they need most now.

Secondly, after introducing ArcLight, he can use it to lobby Alibaba, and maybe convince them to keep investing. Even if he fails, it doesn't matter, because with ArcLight's name, there will be no shortage of people in the capital market who want to take over, and this will be another round of funding.

Another thing is that if we can reach a cooperation with Arclight, we can use this to show the public that the previous online debates were all "rumors", which can reverse some public opinion. Then we can push out a "scapegoat" to take the blame, cooperate with the actions of the upper level, and maybe we can escape the disaster.

For Arclight, this plan had no impact. After all, the other party had obtained a large number of shares at a very low price.

If successful, it would be a win-win situation.

But this plan has a prerequisite, that is, Arc Light, or Meng Bai must agree to cooperate.

But now it seems that he seemed to have thought a little too well.

Taking a deep breath, Liu Xiaofeng and Wu Qilong exchanged a few glances, then looked at Meng Bai, forced a smile and said, "Everyone in the circle says that Mr. Meng is a young talent, and today I see that the reaction is indeed different. Well, now that we have come to this, feel free to ask for anything you want."

"Hey, Mr. Liu, don't worry." Meng Bai said: "Well, let me analyze the current situation for you first."

"First of all, for reasons that are well known to everyone, Mr. Liu, you guys need a huge amount of funds now. At the same time, Alibaba, the largest investor behind Straw Bear Entertainment, has decided to withdraw its investment. As the largest cooperative platform, Qiyi TV will not care about the situation of one supplier."

"So if you want to raise funds, Mr. Liu, the only way is to sell your shares. But due to the recent pressure from public opinion, it seems that it is not easy to find a takeover party..."

With every word Meng Bai said, Liu Xiaofeng's face darkened, but she had no way to refute it because these were the facts before her eyes.

More importantly, he vaguely understood the other party's subtext.

Thinking of this, he didn't want to continue listening, so he interrupted and said, "Boss Meng, why don't you just tell me what you think?"

"It's simple. I can take over the shares, but 30% is not enough." Meng Bai said: "I want 65%."

"impossible!"

Without waiting for Liu Xiaofeng to speak, Wu Qilong on the side refused outright.

Meng Bai suddenly laughed and looked over: "I thought Boss Wu had decided not to speak tonight, and that Boss Liu had the final say."

That's right, just as the rumors said, the real boss behind Straw Bear Entertainment is actually Wu Qilong. It's just that because of his identity, Liu Xiaofeng has always been his agent in mainland China.

This also proves that even if he did not participate in manipulating ratings and establishing a black production chain, he must have known about it.

Wu Qilong didn't care about being forced to reveal his identity. After all, the other party knew him so well that a little bit of it wouldn't matter to him.

But he couldn't possibly accept the conditions offered by Meng Bai.

The reason is very simple. Excluding Alibaba's 15%, Qiyi TV's 14%, plus about 6% of company executives and some small investors, the remaining 65% happens to be all the shares of these celebrity shareholders and Liu Xiaofeng.

In other words, Meng Bai's request was to kick them out.

What a joke!
"Mr. Meng, we can't possibly agree to your request." Wu Qilong frowned and said in a stern but cowardly manner.

"Oh, forget it then." Meng Bai responded without any emotion.

Wu Qilong and Liu Xiaofeng were stunned for a moment, but then they reacted and their faces suddenly showed a constipated look.

Indeed, in essence, they were begging others for help, but Arclight didn't care at all. If it worked, that would be the best, but if it didn't, it didn't matter, as they didn't lack partners.

But they are really short of it now.

The situations that Meng Bai analyzed earlier were indeed suppressing their confidence, but they were all true.

In order to get through safely, a large amount of funds is needed. In order to have funds, the only way is to sell shares in a short period of time. However, given the current situation faced by Straw Bear Entertainment, it is difficult to sell at a high price.

After all, Arclight Films' lawyer's letter is still there, and everyone in the industry knows about the conflict between the two parties. Whoever takes over at this time is equivalent to confronting Arclight.

If Straw Bear Entertainment also had a person like Meng Bai, then there might be some capital willing to give it a try because of its potential.

But the problem is that although Straw Bear Entertainment has developed quite well, it is ultimately just an ordinary film and television company. There is no need to compete with Arc Light, which is currently in the limelight, for such a goal.

Alternatively, Wu Qilong and his team could lower the price and increase their profit margins. However, those giants in the capital market are all bloodthirsty sharks. Faced with the current situation of Straw Bear Entertainment, God knows how low they will lower the price.

Thinking of this, Wu Qilong hesitated for a long time, and finally said with difficulty: "Boss Meng, we are all in the same circle, it is always good to leave a way out for others."

"Haha, who is in the same circle with you guys?"

Meng Bai laughed, and then said frivolously: "Or how about this, Boss Wu, why don't you call Miss Liu over to talk to me, maybe there will be a turnaround? After all, didn't you write in your article that I am a 'lecherous scumbag'?"

"Boss Meng!" Wu Qilong glared at Meng Bai: "Please be a little respectful, I..."

"I respect Nima!"

Meng Bai didn't care at all and cursed back: "When you wrote those rumor articles, you didn't think about respect. When you hired people to write those jokes, you didn't think about respect. Now you are talking to me about respect?"

As he spoke, his face darkened. "You said we are in the same circle, so you should know what the public opinion of artists is like. These two innocent girls have to carry the gossip of "scandals" all the time because of the marketing articles you two wrote. You didn't mention respect at that time, but now you mention respect to me after I say one thing, do you deserve it?"

(End of this chapter)