Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 699 Extorting $1 Million
The answer is yes, it's still possible!
It's true that Jia Yueting is a fraud, but in the eyes of many investors, he is still a shrewd and capable entrepreneur.

Because his ecological chemical reaction theory is really promising and very attractive.

There are still people who believe his theories.

Besides, he didn't run away, so he can continue to invest!
Of course, it can't compare to the LeEco empire of hundreds of billions. If Jia Yueting wants to start a new business, he needs to rebuild his business reputation.

The only way for him to rebuild his business reputation is to properly handle LeEco's debts.

This is also an important reason why he finally made up his mind to sell LeEco's valuable assets.

Therefore, this kind of person will not be honest; he will definitely try to gamble again.

At his car startup launch event, Mr. Jia boldly predicted that new energy vehicles will definitely be intelligent, and that in the future, there will not even be a concept of cars, but rather intelligent robots in the form of cars.

They have an incredibly sharp eye!
But the press conference was just that—a press conference. He had the money to hold press conferences, but he no longer had the money to build factories or create concept cars.

However, according to his personal Weibo post, after the press conference, more than 20 venture capital funds from home and abroad contacted him, showing great interest in his car startup project.

He even set his sights on Li Qiutang.

To get involved with LeEco, Li Qiutang needed to make contact with Jia Yueting. It must have been three or four years before, at a business banquet in the autumn, that Li Qiutang met Jia Yueting again.

His hair has turned much whiter, and he looks much more haggard, but he's still in good spirits.

What's truly remarkable is that Gan Wei actually stayed by his side.

We talked about movies, industry development, and even food and entertainment; we had a very enjoyable meal.

Li Qiutang discovered that there were some things she and Boss Jia could talk about together.

For example, neither of them believed in Bitcoin, which is currently very popular.

Both of them believed that Bitcoin had a price but no value, and their entrepreneurial mindset was still to create products and services.

Of course, Mr. Jia made a lot of money through financial means, but throughout his entrepreneurial history, he always had products to sell. He didn't engage in the kind of detachment from the real economy and pursuit of the virtual economy.

On the other hand, Teacher Ma actually believed in that stuff, but that's another story.

“You can’t make money from just any kind of investment,” Li Qiutang said. “I knew about Bitcoin back in 2012 and 2013. If I had invested 30 or 50 million back then, I probably could have made 3 or 5 times my initial investment, if not 10 times. But I didn’t invest that money because I don’t believe in its investment value at all.”

Just like Li Qiutang doesn't invest in real estate, which is a very important investment both in China and abroad, Li Qiutang stubbornly believes that he shouldn't make money from it.

It's not about erecting a memorial archway, but a matter of mindset.

“I personally won’t invest, and I won’t let the company invest either,” Li Qiutang continued. “You’re a film and television company, why would you invest in Bitcoin? What does Bitcoin have to do with your main business? What kind of collaborative innovation can it bring? If it’s purely a financial investment, you can buy government bonds, or if that doesn’t work, you can buy Moutai.”

Accountant Jia smiled, and Qiutian, the strategic investment manager at the table, also smiled sheepishly, because it was he who proposed that the company should invest in Bitcoin last year, only to be rejected by Li Qiutang.

Jia Yueting agreed with Li Qiutang's spirit, but Li Qiutang's words that one cannot earn money from just any source of income stung him somewhat.

Despite being heavily in debt, Mr. Jia's boasting at the dinner table is no less impressive than Li Qiutang's.

After listening to Li Qiutang's words, he immediately regarded Li Qiutang as a close friend and deeply agreed with his views.

He certainly didn't think of himself as a fraudster; he just thought he was unlucky and had run into some trouble, and his funds weren't flowing smoothly, that's all.

He remained steadfast in his ecological theory, and even shared his strategic plan for LeEco's future, positioning it as the Chinese version of Netflix. It's just a pity he never had the chance to realize his ambitions.

Li Qiutang was waiting for him to suggest a new leader for LeEco, but unexpectedly, Jia Yueting changed the subject and started talking about his car project.

Li Qiutang couldn't understand a word of it! He knew absolutely nothing about manufacturing!
However, it must be admitted that Jia Yueting is really good with words!
Li Qiutang, who knew nothing about cars, was completely taken aback by his talk about the future of new energy vehicles.

What about L4 autonomous driving, what about intelligent algorithm-driven systems, and the ecological synergy between mobile phones, smartwatches, smart glasses, and cars?

Finally, Jia Yueting extended his investment invitation, asking for a small amount of $1 million as seed money and giving Li Qiutang a 17% stake.

Li Qiutang gave up on Bitcoin, an investment opportunity that allows him to make easy money, because it couldn't be combined with his main film and television business. So why is he now investing in the bottomless automotive manufacturing industry?

Li Qiutang didn't listen to a word Jia said before!
Li Qiutang resolutely refused, stating, "I only understand film and television, and I only intend to work in film and television. We don't want to get involved in other industries."

After saying that, he stood up and said, "Mr. Jia, we had a very pleasant chat over dinner today. I hope we'll have another chance to chat in the future. It's getting late, so we won't disturb you any longer."

He then left with his men.

Despite failing to secure investment, Jia Yueting remained undeterred; he had seen plenty of similar situations on his entrepreneurial journey.

History has changed. Jia Yueting failed in his car manufacturing venture in the United States, but Li Qiutang is unsure whether he can succeed in manufacturing cars in China.

If Jia Yueting succeeds in building cars and makes a comeback, he will have missed a golden opportunity to get on board, but he still won't regret it. As I said before, he only understands film and television, and only wants to work in film and television.

Furthermore, automobile manufacturing is too complex; it's something only billionaires can do. Qiu Tian is very successful in the film and television industry, but in manufacturing, his money would be wasted.

On the afternoon of the third day after Li Qiutang and Mr. and Mrs. Jia had dinner, Lesquere and Frémaux held a press conference in Paris to announce the first batch of nominees for the Cannes International Film Festival to be held next month. As usual, the main competition section was announced first.

A total of 19 films were shortlisted for the main competition.

It was a gathering of masters, with Godard, Spike Lee, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Lee Chang-dong, and Asghar Farhadi competing on the same stage, making it much more lively than last year's 70th anniversary celebration.

Among the first batch of 19 films, two were Chinese-language films.

Jia Zhangke's "Ash Is Purest White".

Li Qiutang's "Marriage Story".

This marks a significant improvement after two consecutive years without any Chinese-language films being nominated for the main competition.

The news reached China almost simultaneously, around 10 p.m. at the time.

The first batch of main competition entries was praised by many film fans as soon as it was sent back to China.

Especially Li Qiutang, who was nominated for the main competition for her first art film, is truly commendable.

Liu Yifei's fans were equally happy; it was certainly a success that their sister's first art film was nominated for the Cannes main competition.

"Yifei has finally filled the last gap in her career as a top actress. Anyone who says Yifei isn't a top actress can be proven wrong with this." She hasn't even won an award yet, but this is like popping champagne in advance.

"Both of them are making their first art film, and they've both been nominated for Cannes. Is there anything more touching than this?" This is even touching?
"Li Qiutang truly loves Liu Yifei." What does that have to do with whether it's true love or not?
"It's already quite impressive to be shortlisted on the first try." No one thought Li Qiutang would win.

(End of this chapter)