Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 205 Meeting with Ma Yun
"Pshaw! The situation isn't that serious."

Chen Xiu smiled and shook her head, tossing her phone onto the bed with an air of nonchalance.

Meng Ziyi only heard a rough outline of the story and didn't get the whole thing.

Seeing that Chen Xiu wasn't flustered at all, she quickly regained her composure as well: "Chairman Cheng, didn't you just say you were going to transfer my agency contract to Huayi? Didn't you say that those two brothers at Huayi... tsk..."

"Haha, how are they?"

"They... Ugh! Anyway, I don't want to go to Huayi."

"If you don't want to go, then don't go! Transferring an artist's management contract still requires the artist's consent. As long as you don't agree, Huayi can only have Yongle freeze your career at most, and there's nothing else they can do."

Chen Xiu spread his hands and said that he already knew about the relationship between Yongle and Huayi when he learned that the silly beauty had signed with Yongle.

However, the companies that hold strategic shares have a management structure that does not interfere with each other, and the agency contracts signed between the artists and their own companies have nothing to do with Huayi, an unrelated third party.

At most, Huayi can only pressure Meng Ziyi by remotely controlling Yongle to get her to agree. If she is unwilling, the agency contract cannot be transferred.

After understanding the contractual relationship, Meng Ziyi breathed a sigh of relief and then inquired about the brief phone call he had just had.

"Then why did you ask me if my agency contract had been transferred to Huayi? And why did Chairman Cheng say those things?"

"I asked that because if they transferred the contract without your consent, then you would be the plaintiff, and all I need to do is help you contact a lawyer."

"They can't be that stupid, can they?"

"Hmph, they're not much smarter. Huayi owns 51% of Yongle's shares, and Chairman Cheng can't refuse Wang Zhonglei's demands. The reason they said that is because Huayi is certain that if you don't agree, the news will naturally reach me."

"Of course I disagree! Who would agree?"

"Most people would agree because these are two completely unequal choices. If an ordinary artist refuses to switch contracts, they will face being sidelined; if they agree, they can get a much better package of resources."

These intricate details were something Meng Ziyi had never encountered before, and hearing them now, she deeply felt the powerlessness of ordinary artists.

Fortunately, she's no ordinary person!
"With you by my side, I definitely won't go to that backwater, Huayi!"

Meng Ziyi clung to Chen Xiu's arm and acted coquettishly, her earlier panic and helplessness gone.

Chen Xiu nodded and glanced at her, feeling that he needed to make his point clear so that the silly beauty would learn a lesson.

“Wang Zhonglei must have taken me into consideration, which is why he wanted to transfer your contract. Everything he did was aimed at me.”

"Huh?! How would he know about our relationship? We haven't had any rumors or made any official announcements."

Meng Ziyi frowned and stared at Chen Xiu, feeling a bit confused.

Seeing her puzzled look, Chen Xiu chuckled and reached out to smooth her furrowed brow.

"Then what need is there for rumors or official announcements? Adults see things in action. Your career path is inextricably linked to me. You'll understand if you think about it for a moment. Wang Zhonglei could even verify this with Cheng Lidong, so how could he not guess?"

Hearing this, Meng Ziyi felt her mind clear up a bit.

"Why are they playing so many tricks, yet they can't actually transfer my agency contract to Huayi? What exactly are they trying to do?"

"What he wants is for me to take the initiative to make peace and, incidentally, share some of the investment in the sequel to 'Detective Chinatown' with Huayi. It's not a big deal, and he knows he doesn't have the leverage to ask for an exorbitant amount. At most, he just wants to save face for himself. Tsk, petty."

What would happen if you didn't go?

"Then let Yongle freeze you out of the contract! Even if we try to terminate the contract, they can ignore us and eventually take it to court. After going through all the procedures, you won't be able to work for at least a year."

In just a short while, Chen Xiu had sorted out the matter.

In his view, Wang Zhonglei was not the kind of person who was bored out of his mind; he must have something in mind for going to such lengths.

There are many good things related to Chen Xiu, but the meaning of the character Meng is really not that important.

Wang Zhonglei isn't so foolish as to think that having a brokerage contract gives him the right to demand exorbitant prices.

Chen Xiu felt that his most likely request was for a share of the investment in "Detective Chinatown 2," as revenge for losing his share of the investment in "Wolf Warrior 2" earlier this year. He also probably wanted to regain face after losing out at the "Detective Chinatown" box office celebration banquet.

They dare not completely break ties, resorting only to petty tricks that only increase resentment; it's really hard for them to achieve anything great!

After understanding the whole story, Meng Ziyi frowned and thought for a long time. Finally, she thought of what Chen Xiu wanted her to think of.

"Oh dear! If we had terminated the contract a few months ago, we wouldn't be in this mess now."

Meng Ziyi rested her chin on her hand and said with a wronged expression.

A few months ago, when she was still filming "The Legend of the Condor Heroes", Chen Xiu stepped in to quell the negative publicity campaign launched by Yongle, claiming that "the maid outshines Lin Yoona", and then Jian talked to the company about terminating her contract.

At the time, Meng Ziyi thought that Yongle had treated her well, and she shouldn't talk about terminating the contract because of a small mistake.

Looking back now, it's truly regrettable...

"It's not too late to talk about terminating the contract now."

Chen Xiu sat cross-legged, looking at Meng Ziyi with a smile in her eyes, not thinking that this was a big deal at all.

Hearing him say that, Meng Ziyi hurriedly sat up from his prone position: "I don't want you to make peace with Wang Zhonglei, nor do I want you to give up any movie shares because of me."

The silly beauty pursed her lips, reached out and hugged Chen Xiu, looking at him earnestly.

"I can take a year off without any problems. Please don't bow down to anyone because of me." "Heh, I'll handle this. He's not worth me bowing down to."

"What about the film's share?"

Chen Xiu cupped Meng Ziyi's face in her hands and whispered, "I won't give him a single penny!"

"Uh-huh."

Meng Ziyi nodded repeatedly, having no doubt that it could be done. She felt that since Chen Xiu had said it, it must be possible!
After a while, Meng Ziyi stopped immediately, a hint of embarrassment on his face.

"Brother Xiu, I was wrong about terminating the contract. Next time something like this happens, I'll definitely listen to you..."

"I don't think you did anything wrong!"

Chen Xiu shook her head, her expression sincere and earnest, which gradually dispelled Meng Ziyi's unease.

"But if I had terminated the contract back then, Huayi wouldn't have been able to do these things..."

“Huayi’s actions are their problem, what does it have to do with you? Your refusal to terminate the contract is based on sentiment, which is fine. We’ll learn from this experience and be more careful next time.”

Chen Xiu's confidence stemmed from the fact that no matter how bad the situation got, he could always cover for Meng Ziyi. Besides, the current situation wasn't bad at all.

Huayi is nothing but a small fry. Although I can't destroy them right now, they can't threaten me either!

Looking at the confident and gentle Chen Xiu, Meng Ziyi's eyes slowly seemed to ripple like a lake.

She stared blankly, her cheeks flushed, then couldn't help but wrap her arms around Chen Xiu's neck and bump into him. Receiving this enthusiastic gesture from the silly beauty, Chen Xiu continued their cosplay...

The next day, Chen Xiu stayed in his study, silently pondering how to handle the matter.

Huayi is Ma Yun's loyal dog. If Chen Xiu uses internet methods to deal with them, Ma Yun will definitely step in to help, and Tencent will not sit idly by and watch its invested company be suppressed.

With the protection of Penguin and Ali, Chen Xiu definitely can't use those underhanded tricks in the internet world anymore.

It's not feasible at least for now, but it might be useful if Huayi is abandoned in the future...

Huayi's current market value is still high, and Wang Zhonglei's net worth is similar to Chen Xiu's. Using his power to intimidate others, as he did with Jiaxing, will definitely not work.

After much deliberation, Chen Xiu called Lu Chuanwei, the CEO of Kuaidi, and obtained Ma Yun's phone number from him, requesting that he make an introduction.

"Hello, Mr. Ma, this is Chen Xiu."

"It's you! Haha, I was just wondering how we would meet. I didn't expect you to contact me through Lü Chuanwei. What advice do you have for me?"

"Ali has a strategic investment need in Didi, and I want to cash out my remaining shares. I wonder if Mr. Ma would be interested?"

"You want to clear out your inventory?"

"Correct."

"Why... you don't need to answer, let me think."

Chen Xiu opened her mouth, glanced at her phone strangely, and felt that Ma Yun seemed a bit eccentric.

After a while, Ma Yun's voice came from the other end of the phone again.

"Did you cash out your shares because you saw a better investment opportunity? Like Douyin or Mobike?"

"I just want to find a buyer. If you don't want it, I'll sell it to the penguins."

"I definitely want the shares. I also want to have a good chat with you. There's no rush, is there?"

"I prefer chatting with people face-to-face, Mr. Ma, what do you think?"

There was silence on the other end of the phone. It was probably the first time Ma Yun had encountered such an unusual invitation from Chen Xiu.

After twice the previous pause, Ma Yun's voice resumed: "I'm going to the capital in a few days. Do you have time to meet for tea?"

"Sure! Besides the share transaction, I actually have a small favor to ask of you, Mr. Ma. Can we meet and discuss it?"

"Generally speaking, I won't go on a date if I don't know the situation, but you're quite interesting. Let's meet in three days."

"OK, I'll add you on WeChat later."

After finishing the phone call, Chen Xiu also added Ma Yun on WeChat using her phone number.

He can sell his Didi shares to anyone, and there are quite a few people who can afford the price.

However, the shares can only be sold once, and the number of shares is not large.

Selling it to penguins would at most deepen the already friendly relationship between the two parties, which wouldn't be very meaningful. It would be better to use this transaction as a bridge to expand one's network.

Ma Yun is someone who can afford the price, and Didi shares happen to be what he wants. What's even better is that he is also a major shareholder of Huayi, and the two Wangs are his loyal henchmen.

Instead of beating the dog and attracting the owner's attention, it's better to let the owner teach the dog a lesson.

However, having someone else do this kind of thing makes it less satisfying.

Chen Xiu clenched her fist, her eyes cold and indifferent, then used her computer to check Huayi's film slate for the coming year...

(End of this chapter)