Huayu: From charlatan to great entertainer

Chapter 388 Director Liu Takes Office and Handles a Major Case (Two chapters combined for the bonus chapter "An Feng Knows My Intentions")

Behind closed doors, an internal meeting was held to discuss the Lunar New Year film season.

"Let's get down to business first, Gao Jun, tell me the situation."

Chen Zhixi distributed the prepared materials to everyone; each page contained details of the investments and promotions of this year's Lunar New Year film competitors.

"This year's Lunar New Year film season is still a battle between a few of us, but because Director Lu and Director Zhang are busy with the Olympics, and the filming of Director Chen Kaige's 'Mei Lanfang' has been postponed, the two with the most appeal in terms of box office and star power are Feng Xiaogang and Stephen Chow."

"Chen Kexin's 'The Warlords' has a budget of 300 million yuan and will premiere on December 12th. It will be distributed by China Film Group."

"Huayi Brothers' Feng Xiaogang's 'Assembly' has a 100 million yuan investment and will premiere on December 20th. It will be jointly distributed by Huayi Brothers and China Film Group."

"Huayi and Chengtian invested 550 million yuan in 'Red Cliff', which will premiere on January 1st. Huayi and China Film will jointly distribute it."

Gao Jun paused here, and Dong Shuangqiang also glanced over quietly. They both naturally felt that Boss Lu should give some instructions.

Since Zhou Jun was sidelined and Huayi quietly cooperated to eliminate Taro and his son, it has been developing in a low-profile manner.

The mainland film market is still small, and Boss Lu has not dealt them any severe blows. He still mainly engages in piecemeal operations, like raising pigs.

For example, last year's suppression of the screening of "The Banquet" forced Huayi Brothers to expand its cinema chain, which also involved some of the funds and energy of Ali and Wendy Deng.

However, judging from the trend of this year's Lunar New Year film season, Huayi Brothers has made great progress in terms of film momentum, star lineup, investment amount and distribution capabilities.

Gao Jun, Dong Shuangqiang, and even Chen Zhixi, who was becoming increasingly familiar with her boss's style of doing things, were all puzzled.

Why haven’t you taken action yet?

"Hmm? Continue." Lu Kuan said calmly, holding a purple clay teapot in his hand, a top-quality item that had been returned to its rightful owner from Xiao Liu.

Gao Jun nodded: "CJ7 is currently scheduled for release on January 30th next year. We have invested in this movie. Kung Fu Dunk is scheduled for release on February 6th."

Sing Jai is an instructor at the Pan-Asia Film Academy, and several students also interned during the filming of this movie.

Meanwhile, given the unique nature of this film academy, which combines "academic power and financial power," it has attracted investment from film giants in China, Japan, and South Korea, such as Wenjie, Toho, and CJ, who are also responsible for subsequent distribution.

In other words, just like the concept that Mr. Lu promoted at the beginning, this is an academy that trains directors of commercial films and Hollywood-style industrialized films for East Asian countries.

It is also a film investment platform used by investors to assemble high-quality film projects and make money together.

Only when there are benefits can things last; this is an eternal truth.

As for "Kung Fu Dunk," Gao Jun reluctantly considered it a competitor based on Jay Chou's star power and the investment background of Eagle Entertainment and China Film Group.

The film, which had an investment of around 8000 million yuan and a box office of nearly 1 million yuan, was a huge flop in terms of both box office and critical reception.

Gao Jun continued his report: "There are also some other low-budget films with unknown investors, which I won't mention. Oh, right—"

"Xu Zheng has a film called 'Fate Calls Transfer' that he co-starred in with Liu Yiwei and others. It will be released at the end of this month. It is also produced by Huayi Brothers. He even sent me, Ning Hao, Lao Dong and I to the premiere."

Whether intentional or not, this film distribution guru, hailed as one of the "Three Heroes of Distribution" in mainland China, once again hinted at his boss.

Huayi Brothers, three films in one Lunar New Year release!
With Xiao Gangpao and Xu Zheng on the inside, Wu Yusen, who has returned from Hollywood and is collaborating with Chengtian on the outside, and Ali and Wendy Deng assisting from the side, they are not to be underestimated!

Why don't you take action to suppress this wave?

Lu Kuan laughed and said, "Why didn't this bald-headed Xu send me an invitation?"

Ning Hao and Xu Zheng were on good terms, and he laughed as he smoothed things over, saying, "He might want to, but he wouldn't dare!"

"What's there to be afraid of? I was the one who suggested he go to Huayi."

After he said that, no one in the office dared to respond.

Oh no, there is still one.

Liu Yifei joked, "That's right, Boss Lu is the most magnanimous person. Can he be like the abbot of Shaolin Temple, who won't let you leave if you offend him?"

"that is!"

"agree!"

Boss Lu glanced speechlessly at his girlfriend, then smiled at Gao Jun, Dong Shuangqiang, and the others: "Huayi has a good momentum of development this year. It's great that we can all work together to expand the mainland film market."

He shook the documents in his hand: "Don't underestimate 'Fate Calls for Transfer'. Although it only has an investment of 800 million, Xu Zheng is obviously following Ning Hao's path. A small budget doesn't necessarily mean a lack of great reputation."

Chen Zhixi provided industry insider information: "We have studied this film. It is a series of films co-directed by four directors, but Huayi Brothers highly approves of Xu Zheng and has him as the overall director."

"With the help of the investor, China Mobile, we found their spokespeople, such as Ge You, Jay Chou, and Fan Bingbing, to make cameo appearances."

"The product placement was very rich and appropriate. The on-the-ground promotion was done by Focus Media, and we basically recouped our investment before the film was even released."

Everyone turned to look at Boss Lu, who said calmly, "Chen Zhixi has done her homework very well, and I understand Gao Jun's intentions."

"Huayi's performance in film production, director training, and theatrical distribution is outstanding. Coupled with their upcoming IPO and the endorsement of a group of allies, they are a formidable challenger."

“I understand everyone’s concern about competitors, but this year’s situation is different from last year when we suppressed their ‘The Banquet’.”

Gao Jun, Dong Shuangqiang, and others were all stunned, and Ning Hao and Xue Xiaolu, the two full-time directors, were also very curious.

Perhaps only Liu Yifei could vaguely guess something.

"When doing things, we should follow the trend. We once targeted 'The Promise', which allowed 'Tangshan,' which had a limited subject matter, to come out on top and take over the traffic from the former."

“Last year, we also used Twilight 1 and Arkham City 2 to target The Banquet, and we also suppressed them heavily in terms of screenings, forcing them to start building their own theater chains.”

"But this year is different."

"Of the three films in which Huayi participated, apart from 'Red Cliff' where they were not the main investor and had no control, the other two clearly involved meticulous cost control and marketing arrangements."

"Among the grassroots stars in 'Assembly', I've heard of Zhang Hanyu; he used to be a voice actor."

"In terms of subject matter, it is similar to our previous work, 'Tangshan,' both of which combine the main theme with humanistic narratives. They have a strong ability to learn."

"Not to mention 'Call Transfer,' which recouped its costs before even being released, and Feng Xiaogang's next film, 'If You Are the One,' which I've heard will also follow this path."

Lu Kuan gave everyone a few seconds to think before continuing to instill his major policies: "Since the wave of commercialization of film in 2002, Wenjie took the lead and got the first piece of the pie. Ning Hao's 'Crazy Trilogy' and Teacher Xue's romantic youth film series are typical examples studied in the industry."

"Including the attitude of China Film Group, which represents the official position, you can see that almost all of the competitors in the Lunar New Year film season have Lao Han's presence."

"The 2007 Lunar New Year film season was a crucial juncture after the industrialization reform of the Chinese film industry. Domestic films aimed to achieve a win-win situation in terms of both critical acclaim and box office success through diversified genres such as war, comedy, and science fiction, as well as precise release date planning."

"The Film Bureau also promotes industry expansion through policy support and market regulation, while cinemas help with market segmentation through screen growth and screening strategies."

"Under these circumstances, we cannot go against the tide."

Dong Shuangqiang was the first to understand the leader's intention: "To use a line from 'The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber,' we should let him be strong and domineering as he may, and focus on our own development."

"Over the past two years, Huayi has abandoned directors like Lu Chuan and He Ping who are flashy but impractical, and continued to insist on commercial film directors like Feng Xiaogang and Xu Zheng. They have learned from us about the marketing and operational strategies of the film market, and have already made some progress."

"What Mr. Lu means is that it's fine to trip up the market when it's in the right direction, but to stubbornly ignore market rules and impose sanctions for the sake of sanctions is a bad approach and will make things look bad with the authorities."

Gao Jun nodded: "Our cinema chain also needs to make money; we can't just keep creating conflict."

Everyone understood and agreed, but Xiao Liu was full of doubts.

She possessed information that no one else present had, derived from her observations of Zhou Xun, Yang Mi, and herself.

She dismissed all the complicated excuses on the road, focusing only on the essential details and extracting a single, clear line from the surface—

Fan Bingbing.

He invested so much in Fan Bingbing, was it just to see her contribute to Huayi's growth, listing, or even threaten Wenjie?

The crackdown on "The Banquet" objectively enabled Huayi Brothers to obtain a huge amount of funds to enter the theater and distribution fields through targeted share issuance to Ali and Wendy Deng.

This is one of the reasons why Huayi Brothers Media Group was so strong during this year's Lunar New Year film season.

If this continues, given that Wenjie has not sought financing or gone public due to the strong cash flow of its parent company, Huayi, which is the first to go public, will inevitably become a hot commodity.

Having secured multiple rounds of financing and IPO funding, Huayi Brothers seems poised to command the domestic entertainment industry, with everyone following suit. It's not impossible that they could overthrow and carve up the territory of the industry leader.

Can't he see that?
impossible.

Liu Yifei had actually guessed this answer long ago, but witnessing firsthand his laissez-faire approach to pig farming at Huayi today only strengthened her suspicions.

There must be an invisible net that has already tightly wrapped around the necks of the two kings.

The current leniency is merely a means to lure Ali and Wendy Deng into this web, dragging them completely into this quagmire, and achieving a blow to their competitors in the entertainment and internet industries.

If we can really get hold of Ali's manpower and massive funds—cinemas, distribution, and film investment are all capital-intensive sectors.

Can Wenjie Mall, which has been cultivating its own logistics network for more than two years, achieve a leapfrog development?
Xiao Liu suddenly realized that Lu Kuan and Fan Bingbing might have already had this kind of plan back in 2001 when they first met.

Because at some point, I was just a tool in his hands.
Fan Bingbing is even more so!
He has been raising pigs, and he has been raising pigs all along.

It wasn't until Ahri and Wendy Deng, two bulls, discovered the business opportunities in the Chinese entertainment industry and jumped in headfirst.

So he changed his mind and made the net even wider.

Upon realizing this, Liu Yifei felt a chill run down her spine; it was yet another grand drama orchestrated by him.

She recalled the scene of watching Ryutaro and his son fight each other in the car that day;

He recalled the threatening words Fan Bingbing had used when they confronted each other in New York.

I'm thinking about the Bazaar Charity Gala in a few days, and the leading actresses I'll be meeting soon...

Xiao Liu seemed to be deep in thought.

Lu Kuan's voice startled Xiao Liu from his reverie: "The situation is very clear now."

"Aside from re-airing 'Tangshan' in our flagship 4K cinema at Wenjie Jiahe, all other resources are prioritized for 'Detective Chinatown' and 'The Secret'."

"Jay Chou didn't come to do the voiceover today. The release date remains unchanged on Valentine's Day, which can avoid the box office boom of 'CJ1' on January 30th and differentiate it from family-friendly films during the Spring Festival."

“依靠我们自有的院线份额，集中排片于黄金时段18:00-22:00，尽量把首日排片占比提升至35%-40%，依托杰伦粉丝基础拉动预售。”

"As for 'Detective Chinatown'... you guys should pick a date before January 15th. 'Red Cliff' and 'The Promise' have similar disadvantages, so don't worry about clashing with them. Just avoid 'CJ1,' as those two films have similar themes."

Boss Lu assigned some more tasks, and the group accepted the orders and left.

With two or three months to go before the release of the two films from "The Boundary," we officially entered the preparation period for promotion and roadshows starting today.

"How is it, how does it feel?"

Only Lu Kuan and Liu Yifei remained in the office. Unlike at home, his girlfriend was not clingy and sat rather reservedly opposite him.

"It's so mentally taxing; women who use their brains a lot age faster!"

Boss Lu laughed and said, "You don't need to use your brain. You just hold a knife and are responsible for deciding whether or not to kill."

"They are not afraid of you, but of your identity, because you are an existence they cannot corrupt."

"Of course, the effect would be even better if you could make them all fear you."

"A professional team will be assembled for you. Anti-corruption personnel from public security, procuratorate and judicial departments, auditing experts, legal experts and business consultants will be in place soon."

"Is there anything you can ask Chen Zhixi to do for you for the time being?"

Liu Yifei smiled and said, "Then I'll have to coordinate the performance with the Beijing People's Art Theatre."

“It’s easy to coordinate. Your job doesn’t require you to be in the office regularly; it’s project-based.”

"If someone reports a case or an audit discovers a clue, we'll investigate one project at a time. You just need to supervise the process and make the final decision."

"Besides, actors at the Beijing People's Art Theatre have it very easy. You can just go to rehearse and perform in plays as usual. Time is not a problem."

As for how to get into the Beijing People's Art Theatre, it will definitely be through the formal social recruitment process.

However, this "formal" arrangement is just an exception within the rules, a special spot reserved for her.

With Liu Yifei's current acting skills, reputation as an actress both domestically and internationally, there won't be any problems.

Xiao Liu nodded and said, "Okay, then I'll go see Lao Feng tomorrow and ask about the situation, such as whether to recruit through normal channels."

"Next month, you've been filming too hard this year and you'll have to adapt to the work style of the entertainment industry. Let's go before the new year."

"No need, I'm not tired at all."

Boss Lu laughed and said, "The Beijing People's Art Theatre is having a leadership change in November. They don't have time to make time for you to take exams. Let's talk about it after November."

The Beijing People's Art Theatre will be holding a leadership reshuffle in November, and the person about to become the director is an old acquaintance whom we know very well.

Zhang Heping of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games.

The Beijing People's Art Theatre was a bureau-level unit receiving partial government funding, and in 2007, its superior unit was the Beiping Municipal Bureau of Culture. The organizational reason for considering Zhang Heping was quite simple—

This former CEO of Forbidden City Film Studio is one of the pioneers of Chinese New Year films and has a deep understanding of the marketization of film and television works.

With the increasing marketization of the domestic entertainment industry and the rise of commercial films, traditional stable jobs in theater and government-affiliated institutions have also been impacted.

Too many actors are leaving to participate in television dramas and movies.

Zhang Heping served as the director of the Beijing People's Art Theatre for seven years, from 2007 to 2014. During his tenure, he led the theatre in its transformation from a traditional theater to a market-oriented one, hired writers such as Liu Heng and Mo Yan as honorary playwrights, and proposed the concept of a "scholar-type theatre".

Just two years after taking office, the Beijing People's Art Theatre's box office reached 2000 million yuan in 2009, nearly doubling from the previous year.

In this era, everything in the arts and culture world is undergoing commercial reforms, and this is an irreversible trend.

Therefore, Lu Kuan chose not to confront Huayi head-on, but to let them grow the pie together with the tide of the times, and then look for an opportunity to reap the rewards.

This can be considered another form of going with the flow.

The office quickly quieted down, with only the rustling sound of the two people turning over documents.

Boss Lu needs to handle his weekly official business before going to Daxing for a closed-door drone training exercise;

Xiao Liu, on the other hand, needs to familiarize himself with Wenjie’s organizational structure, personnel relations, financial situation and other core aspects in the shortest possible time.

Fortunately, I had the experience of studying at Booth School of Business for the past two years, otherwise I wouldn't even be able to understand financial statements and would be helpless to help my boyfriend.

Time always flies when you're working, and soon it was lunchtime.

"Would you like to come down to eat, or have it brought up?"

"Let's go to the cafeteria and experience it."

Boss Lu laughed and said, "Alright, you should show yourself too, so that some parasites know that the tigress is here. Don't say we didn't warn you."

"Get lost, you're the tigress!"

Lu Kuan had just gotten up when Xiao Liu stopped him.

"what happened?"

"Don't go, I'll go by myself."

Liu Yifei smiled and said, "I'll go and get to know everyone, chat with them and stuff. Who here would dare to tell the truth?"

"Would they dare to tell the truth if you were there?"

"It's still different. Your grumpy face is scary, but I'm so beautiful that I can give them the warmth of spring."

Boss Lu was speechless: "Whatever. I don't want to run around anyway. I'll just have Chen Zhixi order some and send it over later."

"No need, I'll bring you some after I finish eating. It'll be a good mix of protein, fat, and carbohydrates."

Lu Kuan was happy to have some free time and continued to browse through the documents.

The cafeteria on the basement floor of the Wenjie Building is hidden beneath the spiral staircase, with ivy hanging from the green wall at the entrance.

As Xiao Liu approached the door, the smart sensor door slid open silently, and the aroma of oatmeal latte mixed with the caramelized scent of freshly baked whole wheat bread wafted out.

The moment the Martin boots stepped onto the non-slip wood-grain tiles, the programmer diagonally opposite almost dropped the plate he was carrying.

What did I see?
A fairy maiden descended to earth?

Previously, Liu Yifei attended a senior management meeting at Wenjie, and the news of her appointment was not yet officially announced by the group.

Today, this top female celebrity in the Chinese entertainment industry just brazenly showed up at the cafeteria entrance.

Although Wenjie Holdings has quite a few male and female celebrities under its own agency, you can occasionally run into them in the cafeteria.

But this is Consort Liu!

She dared to confess her feelings to her boss at her first birthday party, and after years of love, hate, and countless entanglements, she finally became the boss's wife!

Everyone looked up and saw Liu Yifei standing in front of the cafeteria's food counter, her slender shoulders wrapped in a black leather jacket, the matte fabric gleaming with a cool sheen under the overhead lights.

Her high ponytail was neatly tied behind her head, with stray hairs being lifted by the air conditioner's breeze, and her exposed earlobes adorned with only two simple diamond stud earrings.

The dark blue straight-leg jeans with the cuffs rolled up in two pleats made her legs look even longer and more shapely.

His clothes and attire were extremely down-to-earth, but compared to ordinary people, there was a real gap between them.

She stood there quietly, occasionally smiling and nodding to the employees who made eye contact with her, who would immediately turn into humans petrified by Medusa, their facial expressions blank.

Even this world-renowned director, the boss, is nothing special!

How come the actress who portrayed Liu Yifei looks so different from the real person?
The real person said it was Nuwa showing off her skills, and they were absolutely right!

From the moment the first fan mustered the courage to ask for a photo and autograph, a small commotion began inside the cafeteria.

As a result, more and more people gave up their meals to come and see the female elf who had wandered into human territory.

Chen Zhixi rushed over after receiving Lu Kuan's notification, mainly to deliver Xiao Liu's meal card, also to prevent chaos.

The washing machine belongs to a crazy fan who has just seen the airport.

After taking photos with the last few fans, Xiao Liu then sat down with Chen Zhixi and several middle-level managers, carrying his tray.

Several middle-level leaders in suits looked quite excited. Liu Yifei, as she had said, displayed her approachability: "Hello everyone, Zhixi, could you introduce yourself to me?"

"No need to trouble Director Chen, we'll do it ourselves."

A man in his forties with a side-parted hairstyle politely stood up: "Ms. Liu, I am Zhao Xu from Focus Media's Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Nice to meet you."

"Oh, Mr. Zhao, hello. I wouldn't dare to offer any guidance. Let's exchange ideas more often."

Xiao Liu, being quick-witted, noticed that he only introduced himself as Zhao from the district, without even mentioning his position, and then walked over with Chen Zhixi.

Most of them are at the general manager level.

This subtle air of pretentiousness is similar to "I am Ali Ma Yun" or "I am Wenjie Lukuan".

"Hello, Ms. Liu, from the Editorial Department of Wenjie Film and Television!"

"Zhu Gang from the Logistics Department of Butian Pictures, it's an honor to meet you!"

. . .

As the group ate and chatted, Chen Zhixi quietly observed the proprietress. She had intended to mediate and introduce the situation, but unexpectedly, she had no room to speak at all.

Seeing that she memorized the names of four or five people in just one reading and then conversed with them familiarly, I was secretly amazed.

If it weren't for the fact that Liu Yifei seemed rather unfamiliar with the business processes of each department, Chen Zhixi would have almost suspected that she had been preparing for a long time.

She knew that this person had only recently started working in the business, and that the information from that morning had been provided by Chen Zhixi.

Snowflakes tapped softly against the floor-to-ceiling windows of the cafeteria. Liu Yifei stirred the winter melon and pork rib soup in her porcelain bowl, her eyes catching a glimpse of a Patek Philippe watch with a platinum case—

It slipped out from the cashmere cuff of Zhao Xu, General Manager of the North China Region, as he picked up food.

Liu Yifei raised an eyebrow, scooped up half a spoonful of soup and blew on it to cool it down, then casually said, "Manager Zhao seems to know a lot about watches. This one is in very good condition."

“I also wanted to give Lu Kuan a watch, but he doesn’t really like wearing them.”

Zhao Xu showed no sign of panic and confidently showed it to everyone: "My wife was visiting relatives abroad on my birthday, so she bought it for me as a gift. It's a Patek Philippe Ref. 5711/1A Nautilus."

He smiled wryly and said, "I don't really understand, but she said it's perfect for someone as flashy as me."

A few scattered laughs broke out at the dining table. Zhu Gang from the logistics department leaned closer to examine the watch face: "This must be worth over 100,000, right? President Zhao is so lucky!"

"Less than 160,000." Zhao Xu poked the runny poached egg with the tip of his chopsticks, and his eyelashes didn't even tremble as the yolk soaked into the rice.

Everyone started chatting idly, but Zhao Xu, whose expression remained unchanged, dared not let his guard down.

Even if he didn't believe that the boss's girlfriend, who had internally announced at the last meeting that she would be in charge of the "Jinyiwei," was now starting to monitor him.

But it's always better to be cautious.

Therefore, his actions and expressions were all natural and without any mistakes.

"Buying luxury goods from abroad is quite troublesome now; you have to declare customs duties upon entry." Xiao Liu suddenly turned to Zhao Xu: "Mr. Zhao, how much did you pay for this watch?"

Zhao Xu smiled calmly and said, "I don't quite remember, but I think it's a 10% tax. My wife is quite extravagant, but there's nothing I can do about it, haha."

The atmosphere at the table became somewhat solemn. Everyone present was a seasoned professional, and they could all see through the rhetoric.

Is the boss's girlfriend already investigating?

Everyone kept their eyes down, waiting for Liu Yifei's seemingly casual "interrogation".

Unexpectedly, she put her chopsticks on the plate and stood up.

“That’s not right. It just means you two have a good relationship.” Xiao Liu said with a friendly smile, “Enjoy your meal, I’ll be going now.”

Everyone stood up to see them off, their expressions respectful.

Zhao Xu remained calm. This top student from the Communication University of China, who had become the general manager of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region at the age of forty, also stood up, thinking to himself that he should not have made any mistakes.

Chen Zhixi took the plate from Xiao Liu's hand and was surprised to see her suddenly stop and turn around to look at Zhao Xu with a bright smile.

Of course, in the eyes of Chen Zhixi and those around her, even the slightest expression of this female celebrity could be described as "a radiant smile".

“Mr. Zhao, I just remembered something. Before I returned to China, my assistant helped me with the tax filing. Our country’s customs changed the tax rate for luxury goods over 5000 yuan after August 1st.”

"I also bought a watch, and if I remember correctly, the tax was 30%."

Zhao Xu's face paled almost imperceptibly for a moment: "Right... Hehe, I'm not sure either. I was just guessing. I'll go back and ask my wife."

"I never knew taxes were so high. It's such a waste of money, such a waste of money."

A gentle breeze wafted by, and Director Liu's first incognito visit came to an end.

Chen Zhixi felt a little uneasy. She naturally saw through Xiao Liu's intention just now, or rather, who couldn't see it?

Staring at a regional manager with an annual salary of around 400,000 yuan and asking him for details about his luxury watches, if this were any other supervisory department staff member in the company, this regional leader of Focus Media would have already slammed his fist on the table and stood up!
What do you mean?
What gives you the right to make unfounded suspicions?
But the situation just now was far from this tense point; Liu Yifei was just chatting casually under the guise of buying a watch for the big boss.

Even without all of these, her status speaks for itself.

Even if Zhao Xu had a thousand lives, he wouldn't dare to turn against them.

This is the advantage that Lu Kuan placed Liu Yifei in this position; everyone can see the will she represents, which makes the censorship department's blade invincible.

No one dared to deceive, no one dared to shirk responsibility, and no one dared to plead for leniency.

As for whether it will alert people to take precautions in advance?
If one can be vigilant and stop in time, it can be a good outcome. There is no absolute black and white in this world.

Chen Zhixi followed closely behind Liu Yifei toward the president's office, carrying a fast food meal in her hand.

"Zhixi, do you know Manager Zhao Xu?"

Chen Zhixi was startled: "He is a graduate student from Communication University of China. He followed Jiang Beichun before Focus Media was acquired by the boss. He is a veteran."

"How high is the salary and benefits typically for someone in his position?"

“After Focus Media went public, he received a portion of stock options. Zhao Xu’s annual salary is around 400,000 to 500,000 yuan. With bonuses and stock options, his total salary last year was estimated to be less than 800,000 yuan.”

As the general manager of Focus Media in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, one can imagine the power and resources he wields; this 80 yuan is likely just his apparent income.

Besides, his wife is able to visit relatives abroad, so their family must be well-off. A watch worth over 100,000 yuan isn't too suspicious.

Unable to contain her curiosity, she tentatively asked, "Director Liu...did you discover that he...?"

Liu Yifei suddenly stopped and silently sized up the president's office director.

She assumed that Lu Kuan must be absolutely loyal to place Chen Zhixi in such an important position.

"No, everything he did just now was perfect, without a single flaw."

The junior secretary, who had been working in the industry for almost two years, was somewhat puzzled: "So, you pointed out his mistake at the end, regarding the declaration and taxation of luxury goods..."

Liu Yifei smiled and said, "He also said that it was a birthday gift bought by his wife. When he said it, he also said that it was probably or likely, and that there was no problem."

The two went directly to Chen Zhixi's office, where the personnel files, which had been notified in advance, were already placed on her desk.

Xiao Liu glanced at it and laughed, "Look, Zhao Xu's birthday is in August."

“I remember it very clearly. In August, my mother mailed back the luxury goods she had given to relatives. The customs declaration tax was increased.”

"If, as he just said, it was a birthday gift his wife bought for him, he would probably mention it."

In August, Liu Xiaoli witnessed the young couple's engagement in Sicily. She later stayed in Italy for sightseeing and shopping before mailing the items back to China.

According to the General Administration of Customs Announcement No. 25 of 2007, the revised "Imported Tariff Classification Table" resulted in a general increase in the tax rate for luxury goods imported after August 1st.

Cosmetics increased from 20% to 50%, and high-end watches increased from 10% to 30%.

This move is intended to protect the nascent domestic luxury goods market.

The old mother had mentioned it to her daughter once; otherwise, Liu Yifei wouldn't have cared about such trivial matters.

The newly appointed Director Liu smiled and said, "Actually, there aren't any major mistakes. It's normal for men not to remember these details."

Chen Zhixi breathed a sigh of relief. She had been quite frightened just now, thinking that this person was about to use the guillotine as soon as they stepped onto the stage.

The head of Focus Media's Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is a core leader at the M3 level.

The dragon-head guillotine was too high, the dog-head guillotine was too low, and the tiger-head guillotine was just right.

If they start with something like this, it won't just be company news, it'll practically become industry news!

On her first day in office, the boss's girlfriend was promoted to a high-ranking position at the M3 level. Although she may not seem particularly prominent in the massive Wenjie Holdings, she is still a big shot who controls a billion-dollar advertising business in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region!
Even when placed outdoors, it shakes violently if stepped on.

In Chen Zhixi's mind, the president's office director must have thought that this was a show of power and authority by Director Liu.

Thankfully, thankfully...

"but--"

Unfortunately, before she could even swallow her anger, Liu Yifei's "however" immediately brought it all back to her mind.

After reviewing Zhao Xu's file, Xiao Liu looked up at the wealthy second-generation secretary of the washing machine and smiled, "However, I think we can still investigate him. If there's anything wrong with him, we can correct it; if not, we can take it as encouragement."

Chen Zhixi felt a chill run down her spine, but duty called for her to ask tentatively, "Director Liu, this person is, after all, one of the top leaders in Focus Media. It wouldn't be good to make a big fuss about it. Do you think we should..."

Liu Yifei put the personnel file back on her desk, looked at Chen Zhixi with sparkling eyes for two seconds, and was not surprised by Chen Zhixi's reaction.

She wasn't talking back to me; she was afraid I would act recklessly and make a mess of things.

Lu Kuan's task for her was to cooperate with him, make a mess of things and remain unscathed, while Chen Zhixi would be the one to suffer the consequences.

That's only human nature, I suppose.

Liu Yifei didn't argue with her, and waved the insulated lunchbox in her hand: "Send the food first, we'll talk later."

Chen Zhixi followed closely behind Xiao Liu, feeling slightly awkward as she looked at her tall and beautiful figure.

In her view, delivering food now was just a way to get the imperial edict.

She couldn't say for sure whether Zhao Xu had a problem or not, but the fact that he so brazenly brandished his knife without any reason definitely indicated something was wrong.

It's illogical and unreasonable.

What do the M3 and M4 level executives of each subsidiary think?
You have a boss's girlfriend, a female celebrity, whom you met once, exchanged a few words with, and she made a big fuss over something, I don't know if she offended you.

If they find something, that's fine. But what if they don't find anything?
This year's annual meeting, which cost 5000 million yuan in prizes alone, was intended to unite people and help us move forward during this crucial period in the post-financial crisis era.

Isn't this childish investigation a departure from the original intention?

The company has its own rules. Although the boss may be more casual in his personal life, he never ambiguously follows the company's rules and regulations.

Watching Liu Yifei's charming figure turn into the president's office, she looked like a beautiful young woman who seemed to stand out from the crowd, making even herself quite envious.

only. . .

Chen Zhixi sighed inwardly—

Hopefully, we won't end up with a ridiculous situation like "lighting the beacon fires to amuse the feudal lords."

In his office, Lu Kuan had just hung up the phone with Zhang Yimou. Several LED suppliers had just arrived at the Olympic Building, and he needed to rush over to discuss prices.

"You're back? Was it good?"

The girlfriend opened the lunchbox and smiled, "I had winter melon and pork rib soup. It was quite light and looked hygienic."

"Do you want to go out?"

Boss Lu glanced at his phone and put his coat back on: "Yes, Lao Zhang is extremely anxious. He can't reach an agreement with several suppliers. I'll go and help out."

"Give them a hand" means that the two of them should cooperate, playing both the good cop and the bad cop, for excellent results.

These two renowned directors have fooled countless equipment suppliers.

There was no other way; the total budget was just over 810 million. If he could pay out of his own pocket, Mr. Lu could add another 1 billion or so and get the job done.

But things weren't done that way, and that's not the logical way to do it either.

The girlfriend said remorsefully, "Then you should eat a few bites before you leave. It's all my fault; something came up and I was delayed."

Chen Zhixi had just entered the room when she heard her words and became somewhat suspicious. They really had come to find the imperial sword.

Hey. . .

"what's up?"

"Where am I supposed to sit in the office? What about the people from our Anti-Corruption and Efficiency Supervision Center?"

Chen Zhixi pursed her lips and didn't say anything. She looked up at Director Liu, seemingly surprised that the "something" she mentioned referred to this.

Lu Kuan had just realized he was a little hungry, so he buried his head and shoveled down a few mouthfuls of rice, swallowing them down with the winter melon soup.

"Xiao Chen, can you make arrangements for Director Liu? How many people from the Supervision Center have reported for duty yet?"

“Three, including Director Lu.” Chen Zhixi was clearly very familiar with all the work and could answer her superiors’ questions at any time: “Zhou Meng, the retired economic crime investigation team leader from Dongcheng District, and two graduate students from Renmin University.”

The young CEO swallowed the last bite of his meal and wiped his mouth clean with satisfaction: "So, with the veteran economic crime investigation team leader as the backbone, and two top students from the law and accounting departments, should that be enough for now?"

Xiao Liu smiled gently and smoothed out the wrinkles in his shirt: "I'll be waiting for you to pick me up from get off work tonight."

"Okay, probably..."

Before Lu Kuan could finish speaking, Lao Zhangzi called again, urging him to hurry.

He made a seven gesture with his hand, and before he could say anything more to his girlfriend, he answered the phone and went out.

The heavy walnut door slammed shut, and the atmosphere in the office became slightly awkward.

The subtle disagreement that had just occurred was something that Liu Yifei and Chen Zhixi were both well aware of.

Chen Zhixi realized she had been being petty, so she lowered her tone and smiled, "Director Liu, your office has been prepared for a long time. It's on the floor below. Shall I take you there?"

"No rush, shouldn't you rest a bit after eating?" Xiao Liu gestured for her to sit down at the coffee table and expertly boiled water to make tea.

Chen Zhixi caught up in two steps: "Let me do it!"

"No need, please sit down, let's talk."

Xiao Liu sat with her eyes downcast on the leather armchair. The morning and midday sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, slanting across her slender shoulders.

With his well-defined knuckles, he picked up the celadon tea spoon, scooping tea with a gesture reminiscent of plucking a flower.

The teaspoon made no scraping sound as it brushed against the edge of the white porcelain jar, and the arc of the wrist bone as it paused while grinding the tea resembled the finishing stroke of a calligraphic brush.

Chen Zhixi herself is also from a second-generation family, and she secretly admires her graceful demeanor, which is something that ordinary female celebrities do not possess.

Seeing her surprise, Liu Yifei smiled and said, "I have studied it."

"I filmed a few promotional videos for tea culture two years ago and practiced them specifically, so it seems I haven't forgotten them yet."

Chen Zhixi said from the bottom of her heart, "You are so beautiful, you look like you stepped out of a painting."

Liu Yifei smiled and said nothing more. The broken tea leaves gradually unfurled as boiling water was poured in, and the actress's eyelashes remained perfectly still even after the misty steam rose.

The black jacket was now casually draped over the back of the chair, revealing the off-white cashmere sweater underneath, making it look even more imposing than before.

Chen Zhixi felt a faint sense of pressure.

She suddenly had a sense of familiarity.

Before she could fully process this unease, Xiao Liu handed her a cup of tea, the celadon saucer making a soft, resonant sound as it touched the glass coffee table: "Let's continue our previous conversation."

I have absolutely no idea whether Zhao Xu is alright.

"I know nothing about Focus Media's advertising business, except for a few financial documents I saw this morning."

Liu Yifei, holding a pot of boiling water and scalding Mr. Lu's Shangxinqiao purple clay teapot, said leisurely to Chen Zhixi, "However, I also have my own way of discerning the truth." "Zhixi, I heard you also graduated from the Central Academy of Drama with a formal acting degree. Do you still remember what your teachers taught you?"

Chen Zhixi took a sip of tea, slightly embarrassed: "To be honest, I've forgotten everything. I've almost completely forgotten it in the past two years and have been focusing on my work."

"Both the Beijing Film Academy and the Central Academy of Drama teach the Stanislavski system, which includes an analysis called the 'Chain of Actions,' also known as the action analysis method."

"When actors are studying a character and observing a person, they need to analyze and try to understand its core motivation, the actions that run through it, and its adaptive reactions."

"Just like Lu Kuan always told me, the essence of acting is studying human nature."

Chen Zhixi was completely confused, wondering why she was acting like a teacher and lecturing her about acting.

Liu Yifei cut to the chase: "Zhao Xu's words and background are all fine. I was just asking casually today, just chatting over dinner."

"But if we look at his movements, reactions, and eyes from the perspective of acting and micro-expressions, there are actually some abnormalities."

Chen Zhixi was stunned. She suddenly realized why she had felt something was familiar.

Isn't this style of writing and speaking just like a female version of Lu Kuan?
Outstanding appearance, composed demeanor, sitting upright while brewing tea;

Then they started reasoning: because of A, therefore B.

Finally, here's the sentence: "So I want C."

?

For example, Mr. Lu's actions against Huayi last year:
Because I'm carrying the banner of commercial films, and because the expansion of the mainland market aligns with our overall interests.

So go work at Huayi! Work on Feng Xiaogang's "The Banquet".

?

She naturally didn't understand that this was like playing chess, casting a net, or besieging a point to attack reinforcements; it just seemed absurd, ridiculous, and completely illogical.

Similarly—

Because Zhao Xu had no problems, and you observed the micro-expressions of this M3-level executive, you decided to execute him?
Does it fit?

Looking at her expression, Liu Yifei said calmly, "Let me share a few points I've observed. Zhixi, see if they make sense."

"When Zhao Xu mentioned the tax rate of 'approximately 20%', his eyes suddenly blinked rapidly a few times."

“I don’t know if you’ve seen Robert De Niro’s ‘Taxi Driver’. De Niro’s character Travis has a classic scene where he taps his temples rapidly with his index finger to express anxiety.”

"This tapping is an externalization of the character's inner turmoil, while Zhao Xu's rapid blinking, with its cynical speculation, is a sign that his psychological defense mechanism has been activated."

Chen Zhixi was stunned. She never imagined that a micro-expression and micro-movement could have so many meanings in her eyes.

As for the claim that Liu Yifei was framed, she herself admitted that it was merely a "bold assumption."

But after carefully considering her analysis, Chen Zhixi couldn't say that it made no sense at all.

In fact, performance studies and psychology are increasingly being studied in an integrated manner in modern humanities because they are both profound deconstructions of human behavioral motivations.

The two have multiple overlaps in their theoretical systems, methodologies, and application scenarios, which can form a unique interdisciplinary synergistic effect.

Xiao Liu, clutching her boyfriend's purple clay teapot, squinted as she recalled the scene, continuing to brainwash Chen Zhixi:

"The most obvious thing was when I said that watches were subject to a 30% tax rate, Zhao Xu's expression and breathing rhythm changed significantly, and he even swallowed very unnaturally."

Chen Zhixi: ? How come I didn't see that?

In terms of acting theory and practice, Liu Yifei could be Chen Zhixi's father now.

Especially when she was just starting out, she focused on improving her breathing and delivery of lines.

“There’s an old Hitchcock movie called Psycho, where Bates swallows his saliva during a police interrogation.”

"The character swallows twice in a row without any pause, a detail that suggests the character's psychological defenses are about to break down."

"Zhao Xu is similar, only his acting isn't as exaggerated as in movies."

One is an involuntary action, the other is a deliberately amplified performance; naturally, there is a difference.

Xiao Liu didn't mention any more clues she found; these two significant ones were already convincing enough for her.

Out of respect, she chose to patiently talk to Chen Zhixi and try to persuade her.

Having just arrived, she didn't want to bring up her boyfriend to overshadow everything.

Just as she never expected to solve Fan Bingbing's problem with the washing machine, this girl was inherently very proud.

Chen Zhixi was stunned by this seemingly true yet false conclusion, which the parties involved clearly stated was malicious speculation, and she was speechless for a long time.

I don't believe it, yet I seem forced to believe it.

Liu Yifei had no patience to argue with her anymore. The fact that she had put aside her pride and explained so much was already a sign of respect for her colleague.

After all, Chen Zhixi was a trusted confidante promoted by Lu Kuan, and she was only trying to maintain stability, not out of hostility or personal motives.

Director Liu, his face ashen, placed the purple clay teapot on the tea table with a measured touch: "Alright, please have Zhixi take me to my office and call over three of my colleagues from our department."

"In addition, the investigation into Zhao Xu will not be publicized for the time being. You only need to provide some financial data and contract archives."

She had thought it through; if there really was a problem, it was with this watch.

Patek Philippe entered the Chinese market in 2005, opening stores in Shanghai and Beijing, but the Nautilus series was never sold in mainland China.

Liu Yifei glanced at it while eating and noticed that even the watch face was an imported style.

If the watch wasn't bought by him, then it must have been a kickback or bribe.

Find out which clients in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, especially those in Beijing, have foreign or international business dealings in the past two years, and identify them as prime suspects.

If the guess is wrong, we can look for other breakthroughs. Isn't there still the retired captain of the Economic Crime Investigation Division?
"Zhixi?"

Liu Yifei's cool voice interrupted the hesitation of the president's office director.

Chen Zhixi looked up in a daze. The sunlight cut across her slender shoulders, coating the surface of her off-white cashmere sweater with a layer of cold silver.

Amidst the swirling steam of tea, the shadow cast by her brow bone could barely conceal the sharpness in her eyes, and her lightly pursed lips were as clean as if cut by a knife.

Having honed her skills in the industry for two years, Chen Zhixi was far from stupid; she knew what her expression meant.

Seeing the stern expression on the other person's face, which was exactly the same as her own boss's, Chen Zhixi could fully feel the dissatisfaction contained in that shout.

The current situation is clearly beyond my ability to persuade them otherwise.

Chen Zhixi stood up with a serious expression, behaving as respectfully as if she were addressing a big boss: "Yes! I'll get on it right away."

At this moment, like a nightmare for Da Tian Tian, ​​the character of the celestial beauty suddenly materialized in her mind.

This is not a young female celebrity who looks like a pretty face at all.

Liu Yifei has indeed transcended the dimensions of ordinary female celebrities. Under the guidance of a mature soul, the blank slate of 15 years old has undergone the tempering of fate and has ultimately been forged into a unique personality alloy.

This growth path confirms the core proposition of existentialism—

Humans are not given, but shaped.

Xiao Liu's inherent kindness, resilience, pride, and independence, along with his acquired personal spirit, are essentially the crystallization of his experiences.

Lu Kuan's continued companionship and guidance acted as a catalyst, refining her fragmented experiences into stable personality traits.

The current style and approach of making bold assumptions first and then boldly collecting evidence is no different from that of a washing machine, so it is not surprising.

When Director Liu stepped into his office for the first time, apart from lacking the extravagance and extravagance of a washing machine that occupied an entire floor, the inner room was considered the best-equipped among the senior executives.

"lead."

"lead!"

Two graduate students from Renmin University were the first to stand up, followed by Captain Zhou, the former head of the Economic Investigation Department of Dongcheng District, who was in his fifties and had retired due to illness but was rehired by the relevant authorities.

Previously, at a birthday banquet in 2005, Zhou Jun used his connections to detain Zhuang Xu in an attempt to break through his defenses. At that time, Boss Lu asked Dong Shuangqiang to inquire about the situation, and the person he contacted was Zhou Meng.

Unlike two greenhorn recruits who excitedly greeted the female celebrity who held the title of director of the monitoring center, he simply smiled and said in a deep voice, "Hello, both directors."

Chen Zhixi introduced the group to everyone and then went out to help Liu Yifei retrieve her files.

Xiao Liu chatted with the two graduate students from the university for a few minutes with great interest, then glanced at Zhou Meng, who had a rather arrogant attitude, before opening up.

"The Anti-Corruption and Efficiency Supervision Center, as its name suggests, has two main functions: one is to manage corporate efficiency, and the other is to combat internal corruption."

"Not everyone in our department has arrived yet, so let's not talk about rules and regulations or the importance of setting a good example for subordinates today."

Liu Yifei paused, then turned to Zhou Meng, who had a square face and thick eyebrows: "Captain Zhou, we have a job for you."

"Ok?"

Zhou Meng was taken aback for a moment, then quickly realized what he meant: "Director Liu, just call me Zhou Meng. Please tell me more."

This captain had only been retired for a year, but he was itching to get back to work.

When Dong Shuangqiang personally approached him and extended an olive branch on behalf of Wenjie, he did not hesitate for a moment.

In fact, both Wenjie Holdings and Blogcn are very concerned about maintaining good relations with the public security, procuratorial and judicial departments in their respective jurisdictions.

Units jointly built by the military and civilians, and units jointly built by the police and civilians, are both essential components of the project.

The "Nanshan Invincible" penguin should have a deep understanding of this.

Therefore, many internet companies' internal oversight departments prefer to rehire retired criminal investigators and economic crime investigators.

They have experience, and they are also familiar with the legal procedures for transferring the case to the relevant departments. They are like a good knife that can be used immediately.

However, after Zhou Meng joined the company, he still felt a little awkward about being a subordinate to a girl who was about the same age as his daughter.

However, upon hearing that there was work to be done, the former captain became quite eager to get started.

Liu Yifei is very smart. She doesn't use her power to oppress anyone, whether it's Chen Zhixi or her nominal subordinates.

Because I am ultimately responsible for the surface-level work, and it is impossible for me to stay in Beiping indefinitely to manage these trivial business affairs.

The ability to win over a capable subordinate like Zhou Meng and establish a stable reporting and communication mechanism is what she learned about management at the University of Chicago.

Those who work hard govern others, and those who work hard govern others.

Chen Zhixi returned quickly, bringing several thick stacks of case files: "Director Liu, Captain Zhou, these are materials from before 2004 that were not online."

“Wenjie started promoting paperless office in 2004. Subsequent project materials, from contracts to financial data and client files, can all be accessed with Director Liu’s account permissions.”

Zhou Meng was stunned. This little girl had only been here for half a day, right?

This is a real job; it doesn't seem like a charade.

"Then I'll go first. Contact me anytime if you need anything."

Liu Yifei smiled at her, making no move to get up and see her off: "Okay, thank you."

The heavy wooden door was closed, and Wang Xinyu and Zhang Wenbo, two top students from Renmin University, came to move the materials and prepare to classify them.

For those working in law and finance, categorizing and organizing case files and materials, and then summarizing and analyzing them, is a fundamental skill.

Xiao Liu let them categorize the items by year first, and then told Zhou Meng in detail about what he had seen and heard that day.

Unlike her more fragmented conversation with Chen Zhixi, she laid out the objective situation, her own doubts, and Zhao Xu's micro-expressions and actions in detail.

Knowing that I am not a professional, I trust the professional in front of me.

Zhou Meng reacted in the same way as Chen Zhixi. The girl's innocent appearance and the complex inner world she revealed were too different, which made him somewhat suspicious.

Based on his stereotypical view of female celebrities, the analysis of the micro-expressions he heard from her left the head of the economic crime investigation team speechless.

The intersection of humanities and social sciences has emerged once again. What she calls Stanislavski's "chain of action of characters" is actually the "physiological reaction mapping psychological state" in criminal psychology.

In other words, as Mr. Lu said: the essence of performance is the study of human nature.

Zhou Meng perked up, also in order to demonstrate his abilities to the new leader.

He now had a preliminary appreciation for his young female leader's abilities, whether in terms of interpersonal skills, speech and behavior, or logical thinking.

Beyond her celebrity status, she is also a remarkably independent woman.

"Many of the points Director Liu mentioned are things I've learned from over the years of handling cases."

"In fact, many of the highly intelligent economic criminals we encounter are people for whom we can't find any faults. We can only raise questions based on implicit behavioral evidence."

"Then we followed the clues, just like traditional economic crime investigation relies on physical evidence to find leads."

Zhou Meng casually flipped through the files of the two graduate students: "We handled a case with Focus Media just two years ago, which was also a criminal suspect transferred by the company."

"The internal corruption mechanisms of advertising companies like Focus Media are mostly based on collusion with partners to profit from each other and take kickbacks."

"Because of the rapid economic development in Beijing, advertising resources for professional media companies like Focus Media, which are located in high-end office buildings, are in short supply."

The former head of the Economic Crime Investigation Division cleared his throat; his exceptional professionalism allowed him to quickly clarify the investigation plan:

"Director Liu, how about this?"

"Investigate based on the clues about the high-end watches you provided, and look for suspicious partners."

"In addition, advertisers like Focus Media have many corrupt practices, such as selling the same screen twice, fabricating the number of advertising spaces, signing dual contracts with clients, and issuing false VAT invoices to offset taxes..."

Zhou Meng arranged the work from a professional perspective: "Let's split up and review the files, starting from the last two years. If there are any suspicious parts, we can take them out and look at them together, okay?"

"Even if we find nothing, this is still a routine inspection for us, and Zhao Xu and Focus Media can't say anything about it."

Xiao Liu may not understand the practical aspects, but she knows that professional matters should be left to professionals.

Smiling, he sat down at the computer and logged into his account: "Okay, I'll do as Captain Zhou says, let's get started."

The head of the economic crime investigation team, along with three rookies, began the first case handled by the surveillance center.

Compared to graduate students in two different disciplines, Xiao Liu is a complete novice, but she also has her own strengths.

Women have an innate sensitivity to detail.

This is the result of years of wits and courage in fighting against washing machines.

Starting at 1 p.m., the only sounds in the office with the signboard of the Supervision Center were the rustling of pages turning, and occasionally Xiao Liu would ask the three professionals some legal and accounting questions.

Chen Zhixi came by once during this time, but left again after seeing that the group did not need any additional help.

It lasted until 6 p.m.

The four of them, whose backs ached, got up to stretch. Zhou Meng was feeling a bit suffocated by his nicotine craving, but the work in his hands was making him feel even more suffocated.

There are no loopholes, not a single loophole.

Wang Xinyu from the Department of Law at Renmin University reported: "Within the verifiable timeframe of 2003 to July 2007, all 152 contracts sampled by Zhao Xu's team in the Beiping area were processed through a paper-based approval process."

"The contract number and revenue confirmation number are completely matched, and no dual contracts or split transactions were found."

“Zhao Xu’s travel expense reimbursement and approval records are highly consistent, there are no major related transactions at the regional level, the supplier concentration is within a reasonable range in the industry, and the procurement decisions are reviewed by the risk control committee.”

He adjusted his glasses: "Overall, in terms of legal compliance in the Beiping area, it can be described as excellent."

Zhou Meng and Liu Yifei both looked at Zhang Wenbo at the same time. The latter said helplessly, "My situation is similar, but there are some details that I need to verify further."

"But overall, whether it's the income quality analysis of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region or the effectiveness of cost control, it has been verified by cross-validation of various data."

"The data matches the business logic, and no material misstatements or signs of fraud have been found."

Undeterred, Xiao Liu smiled and looked at Zhou Meng: "Captain Zhou, how have you handled similar situations in the past?"

"Hehe, you can't just copy my experience."

Zhou Meng raised his fist and coughed twice: "In practice, even without evidence, we can find ways to check his bank statements and entry and exit records."

“Even his wife’s immigration records, to see if they match the time the watch was purchased.”

"But now that I'm in a company, and in such a leadership position, I have to be careful and at least have a respectable reason to be."

Liu Yifei nodded: "I understand. After all, we're just assuming he has a problem. Maybe he really is innocent?"

Although she said that, she herself didn't believe it at all.

The more she looked at the meticulously crafted business contracts and work records handled by Zhao Xu, the stronger her premonition became.

This is unlike Lu Kuan's previous tricks of deceiving and setting traps, making it impossible for others to distinguish the truth from the lies.

Everything about Zhao Xu was too clean.

If we don't try to understand human nature from the worst possible perspective, anyone with some social experience knows that it's impossible for sales and advertising personnel to comply with regulations in everything they do.
The company won't hold a grudge against minor mistakes or oversights.

The phone screen showed 6:30, and it was already more than an hour past the end of the workday, so Xiao Liu couldn't force people to stay and work overtime.

"Captain Zhou, and two other colleagues, let's all go back first. This isn't something that can be done overnight. We'll continue the investigation tomorrow. Just leave the documents here for now."

"okay!"

"Thank you, Director Liu. Goodbye, leader!"

Zhou Meng lagged behind, and before leaving, seeing her still intently reviewing the contract, he couldn't help but offer some words of encouragement:

"Director Liu, from our investigative perspective, the suspicious points you discovered today regarding Zhao Xu's case are enough to warrant our attention, and I think that's correct."

"That's just how cases are. Don't be discouraged. If you make a mistake, it will eventually come to light."

"Especially in economic crimes, some data can be misleading, but some data cannot be misleading."

Liu Yifei accepted his kindness, smiled and waved to him, "Thank you, Captain Zhou. I'm not discouraged. See you tomorrow."

"Okay, see you later."

Old Zhou left the office and went into the underground parking garage. He shook his head helplessly and lit a cigarette to satisfy his craving.

My first day at Wenjie ended just like that.

However, Liu Yifei's performance made him less resistant to her, or rather, it changed his opinion of her quite a bit.

From changing the original stereotypes about female celebrities.

I was worried that a little girl about the same age as my daughter would act arrogantly and boss me around.

But after spending the afternoon with this young girl, I was impressed by her manners, poise, composure, and meticulous thinking.

The sharp-eyed veteran economic crime investigation captain could only sigh silently – daughters should be raised in comfort!
Director Liu, who was raised in a wealthy family, is now very anxious.

She always felt a suffocating sensation, as if her head was covered by a thin veil. She clearly sensed that something was wrong with Zhao Xu, but she couldn't find any concrete evidence to support her suspicions.

Just because someone bought an expensive watch?
This can't even be called a point of doubt.

"Dong dong!"

Liu Yifei looked up abruptly, but before she could say "please come in," the door was opened.

A surge of anger rose in Director Liu's heart. Who was so rude?

"Hey beautiful, all alone?" A grinning man walked in through the door, making a flippant attempt to strike up a conversation.

"Are you alone? Is something wrong?"

"Can't I come see you if there's nothing wrong? Have a meal with your brother, take a bath together, and then go to bed?"

Xiao Liu rolled her eyes at the unserious washing machine: "You've got some nerve. My boyfriend is the owner of this company."

"If he hears you talking like that, he'll skin you alive."

Lu Kuan plopped down next to her, wrapped his arms around her soft, slender waist, and felt the heat of his palms on her skin: "What's there to be afraid of? I'd be willing to die right now if I could have a night of pleasure with you."

"Ugh! Disgusting! I can't keep up this act." Xiao Liu giggled and pushed away her lecherous boyfriend: "What kind of Zhen Zhibing is this? Tone it down, it's too overpowering!"

"What are you saying? Isn't 'Dragon Knight' just a nickname you haters gave me?" Boss Lu glanced at the contract in her hand. "What's this? You've started investigating people already?"

Liu Yifei nodded, then hesitated and said, "Well... not really. I'm just curious about a leader at Focus Media, so I'll take a look at his information."

Boss Lu checked his phone: "It's almost 7:30. I called you but you didn't answer, so I came straight here. Let's go home?"

"Hmm..." Xiao Liu frowned slightly. "I'd like to work overtime and take another look at the documents."

"what?"

Lu Kuan laughed and said, "No wonder Wenjie Holdings can grow so big and strong. Today is my first day at the company and I'm already voluntarily working overtime. Does this building have a curse on its employees?"

Xiao Liu felt a sense of frustration again, and pouted arrogantly: "I'm not kidding you, but I always feel that there is someone who is quite suspicious, but I have been investigating with Zhou Meng and the others all afternoon and have not found anything wrong."

“It’s normal. You’ve only been here a short time. These seasoned veterans are hiding their sneaky ways in the nooks and crannies that you have to peel back the layers to find.” Boss Lu comforted his girlfriend, “Once you’ve become more familiar with the business, you’ll see results.”

His statement that the establishment of this department was not unfounded.

After five or six years of rapid expansion, a company may have left behind many non-compliant and illegal consequences due to its past pursuit of performance, profits, and expansion.

It's time to conduct internal rectification and reform, to get rid of the deep-seated problems in this body, so as to cope with the more volatile challenges after the financial crisis.

But this is not something that can be accomplished overnight.

"Okay, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Why don't you have someone bring you something to eat?"

Xiao Liu shook her head: "I won't eat tonight. I'll just make some chicken breast salad when I get home. It's Bazaar Charity Night in a few days, so I can't be too swollen."

Boss Lu raised an eyebrow and sighed, "Female celebrities are all ruthless: Fine, then I'll risk my life to accompany my girlfriend today."

He wasn't one to dawdle, so he immediately plopped down in front of Xiao Liu's computer and logged into his account to start working.

As night fell, the floor-to-ceiling windows on the sixteenth floor of the Wenjie Building were filled with condensation.

Outside the window, the traffic on the East Third Ring Road was soaked in the fine snow, and the neon lights of the CCTV building could be vaguely seen, blurred into a hazy pinkish-purple glow by the snow curtain.

A top mainland tycoon and a top female celebrity in the Chinese entertainment industry are like an ordinary young couple working overtime in this city, each engrossed in their own tasks.

Liu Yifei was practically using the same meticulous approach she had taken when investigating washing machines over the past few years, scrutinizing every detail of the various indicator documents for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

Besides the afternoon records marked as problem-free, she also scrutinized even the more trivial records of attendance and KPIs, which were still relatively minor in this day and age.

But just like what Zhou Meng, the former captain of the Economic Crime Investigation Team, said.

Some data are like a little girl who can be dressed up however she wants; when she lies, you can't see her true colors.

Some data may seem like trivial scraps that no one cares about, but wiping away the fine dust from her face...

That's how you discover the key points.

Liu Yifei held a KPI score sheet for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region's Beiping branch in March 2007, something the four of them hadn't paid attention to that afternoon.

But there was no other information available, so she turned to these PKI summaries.

Two senior sales representatives, Wang Yao and Wang Hao, are highlighted in red because one of their KPIs, "submission of supporting documents," has been ranked last for three consecutive months.

For a regular salesperson, a slightly lower score on a particular KPI might not seem like a big deal, but Liu Yifei remembered what Zhou Meng had said that afternoon—

"Advertisers like Focus Media have many ways of engaging in corruption, such as selling the same screen twice, fabricating the number of ad slots, signing dual contracts with clients, and issuing false VAT invoices to offset taxes..."

Liu Yifei felt that the thin veil covering her face seemed to let out a sliver of light.

"Wide road?"

"Ok?"

"This afternoon, I heard Lao Zhou talk about some common corruption methods in advertising companies, such as selling screens twice. He asked how this works and how they circumvent regulations."

Boss Lu came out from behind his desk: "How would I know? It's too detailed."

"You didn't know?" Xiao Liu was surprised. She rarely discovered things that the washing machine didn't know, especially since this was his company.

Lu Kuan smiled and took the summary sheet from her hand: "Let me put it this way, apart from film, special effects, and internet-related businesses, I don't understand the details of 90% of the other businesses in this company."

"However, not understanding doesn't affect managing the company, because no matter how knowledgeable you are, you can't possibly be more knowledgeable than a professional."

Liu Yifei asked in bewilderment, "Then how do you guide their work and supervise them?"

"Just like you are now."

"Set clear performance targets and standard operating procedures for the company, and address any problems that arise by making targeted improvements."

Mr. Lu had just finished his work and had time to check on his girlfriend's job: "Director Liu, what's going on?"

Xiao Liu gave a concise account.

"What a fine fabricated charge!" Lu Kuan laughed. "Indeed, it already possesses thirty percent of my power."

"If I were you, I might have already asked Zhou Meng to use his personal connections to check the bank statements. It would be much more convenient than you looking at these damn contracts and documents."

Is it really appropriate to punish someone without warning?

Boss Lu nodded: "It depends on the situation. For grassroots employees, we must be reasonable and transparent, because they are the foundation."

"But you also need to recognize the importance of Zhao Xu's position. The longer he is delayed, the greater the losses he will cause to the company."

"For example, the Lunar New Year film season is coming soon, and advertising prices are highest around the end of the year. If he really has a problem, it will be troublesome."

"Sometimes it is necessary to weigh the pros and cons and take swift and decisive measures to stop the loss. Don't be rigid; rules are made by people."

Liu Yifei nodded: "I understand, but I think I have made some discoveries. Wait a moment."

She had no expectations of her boyfriend, who was a hands-off manager, and chose to ask the head housekeeper, Chen Zhixi, directly.

"Hello? Director Liu."

"Has Zhixi gone home? If not, please come over."

"Okay, I'll be there soon."

Chen Zhixi knocked on the door and came in. She saw that the big boss was also there and greeted him with a smile.

Liu Yifei kept it brief: "Zhixi, I have two questions to ask."

"First, what methods does the company currently use to monitor advertising screens in specific areas? How do you provide clients with supporting documentation?"

"Secondly, there's a section in the KPI summary table called 'Submission of Supporting Documents.' What does that specifically refer to?"

Chen Zhixi is very familiar with the process: "The company now has two systems for monitoring advertising screens, one online and one offline. Some buildings and communities connected to the network can monitor the advertising screens online."

"But some older residential areas and office buildings can only be monitored manually."

She walked over to the computer and operated it for a few moments, then asked the two of them to come and take a look: "For example, this Good World Shopping Mall at No. 38, North Third Ring Road East."

“We rented it to Mengniu in March, but the mall is quite old and not connected to the internet, so we could only send our sales staff or outsourced personnel to take photos.”

Boss Lu glanced at it and immediately understood: "So you just take a picture of the elevator advertisement with the day's lottery ticket or newspaper in front of it, right?"

"Upload the photos you took to our company's system for Mengniu, the client, to review."

"And what Sisi just mentioned about submitting supporting documents, does that mean they are required to submit the specific lottery tickets and newspapers for filing to prevent fraud?"

Chen Zhixi nodded, not at all surprised by her boss's quick understanding; he could find loopholes in many procedures after only listening to them once.

Liu Yifei's heart raced; she had found the end of the thread.

"Assuming Zhao Xu sells the screen twice, since the screens monitored online cannot be faked, the only option is to look for these old residential areas and office buildings that are not connected to the internet."

“His two subordinates, Wang Yao and Wang Hao, would pre-film images at the beginning of the month by forging lottery tickets or other means, and then replace them all with another company.”

"Then we'll sign a private contract with this company and collect the money."

“During this process, the sales staff dared not submit the forged lottery registration documents, so they had to spend more time preparing them separately, which is why they were never on time.”

Mr. Lu chuckled as he listened, thinking that such a large company probably had more loopholes than a sieve.

Very normal.

Chen Zhixi's heart was filled with turmoil as she listened. When she opened her eyes again and looked at the couple in front of her, the halo of "boss's girlfriend" above Liu Yifei's head gradually dimmed.

Based solely on today's chance encounter in the cafeteria, the discovery of clues, the bold hypothesis, and the careful verification, she felt that Liu Yifei was fully capable of handling things independently.

Moreover, she did not seek help from the big boss to mobilize more resources to achieve her goals.

Come to think of it, could the official girlfriend acknowledged by someone like Boss Lu be just a decorative piece, a delicate flower in a greenhouse?

Looking back on her experiences over the past few years, she is a typical example of someone who has withstood all kinds of hardships.

Xiao Liu only became somewhat agitated at this point: "Zhixi, please find someone to give me the addresses of all the elevator advertisements in Beiping that are not connected to the internet, and I will have someone check them."

But who can I turn to...?

She thought of Zhou Meng and decided to tell him about it.

After listening to her concise description, the former captain of the Dongcheng District Economic Investigation Brigade felt the same emotion as Chen Zhixi and said in a deep voice:

“This is simple. I will contact the local police officers patrolling in various parts of Dongcheng District. Once Director Chen provides the address, I will ask them to take a look at the current live footage.”

"Tomorrow I will personally lead my team to investigate and see if this situation of selling the same product on multiple screens exists. After collecting the evidence, I will report back and take action."

This is the benefit of rehiring veteran police officers within the existing system.

Whether it's on-the-spot investigation or subsequent reporting to the police and handing over to relevant departments, he can provide you with a one-stop service.

Dealing with criminals is a professional skill.

Boss Lu had no choice but to say a few words: "Zhixi, inform the two vice presidents about the matter and cooperate in minimizing the impact and conducting a compliance investigation."

"Mr. Lu, what about Jiang Beichun?"

"If I don't talk to him, he won't be able to lead his troops well!" Lu Kuan was slightly dissatisfied and decided to give this old subordinate a good talking-to this time.

Of course, everything depends on the investigation results.

Chen Zhixi accepted the order and left. The young couple finally finished their busy day and returned to Wenyuhe Prefecture.

After a simple dinner, Liu Yifei took a walk with her boyfriend in the private estate, which seemed to have become a habit.

At the company, they talk about their work; on set, they discuss acting and directing; at the dinner table, they chat about family matters; and in bed...

The only sounds on the bed were Xiao Liu's babbling and moaning, and Xixi's laughter.

And in this safe, tranquil, warm, and spacious riverside estate that belongs only to the two of you, you can share your feelings and experiences of the day.

As dusk settled, the snow that had accumulated over a day and a night bent the newly transplanted old camphor trees, and the icicles on the eaves reflected the warm yellow glow of the streetlights.

Snowdrifts swept off the path curled into continuous clouds on the lawn, and the un-cleared cobblestone path was covered with a thin layer of frost. Liu Yifei's short boots made a soft crunching sound as she stepped over them.

The two walked aimlessly, their fingers intertwined, seemingly oblivious to the harsh winter chill of Beiping.

"How did the meeting with the LED supplier go this afternoon?"

“That was definitely a piece of cake. When Zhang Yimou threatened to cancel the collaboration, I stopped him and said, ‘Hey! Director Zhang, let’s forget it. They’re not having an easy time either.’”

Liu Yifei found the scene amusing and giggled, "How could you be so naughty? Why didn't you play the good cop?"

"I can't sing," Boss Lu said helplessly. "Whenever I have a serious talk with someone, they just say—"

"Mr. Lu, you're the richest man in the world with a huge business empire. We're different!"

Lu Kuan shrugged: "How am I supposed to continue this discussion?"

"Hahaha!" Xiao Liu suddenly let go of Lu Kuan's hand and backed away, stepping into the ankle-deep snow beside the road.

Snowflakes brushed off the fur collar of her down jacket and clung to her hair, then tumbled into the folds of her scarf as she tilted her head back: "Take a picture, I need to post it on Weibo!"

Boss Lu did as instructed, and as Liu Yifei walked along, she felt a pang of emotion: "It's not easy to manage such a large company, and everything is so difficult."

She turned to look at her boyfriend: "This time we might be taking down a big tiger, why aren't you excited or angry at all?"

Boss Lu said leisurely, "When you find one cockroach, a whole nest has already bred in the shadows."

"These are problems that companies inevitably encounter when they reach a certain stage of development, and getting angry won't help."

"But you're really right! You've stumbled upon a dead cockroach by sheer luck. I bet Zhao Xu's backside is a bit dirty."

Liu Yifei's pretty face was red from the cold: "Zhao Xu's acting is too bad. I could tell something was wrong at a glance."

"Unlike some Berlin Film Festival Best Actor winners, who could lie to me for five or six years without me realizing it? They might still be lying to me now!"

The girlfriend spoke sweetly, reaching out to brush away the ice crystals that had formed on her boyfriend's head.

The moonlight filtering through the shadows of the trees kissed the tips of her rounded ears.

Immediately afterwards, the washing machine, aroused by lust, pulled her into its arms and cuddled her tenderly.

"Hmph, you always pull this stunt when it comes to the crucial points!" Liu Yifei looked up, panting, a glistening blush on her lips.

A mischievous thought struck her: "Washing machine, Bazaar Charity Night, everyone's waiting to see me fight Fan Bingbing, what do you think?"

(End of this chapter)