Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 299 Young People on the Forbes Rich List

On November 15th, the "2017 Forbes China 400 Richest List" was published in Forbes magazine.

The list includes 400 people, with the top ten individuals all having a net worth exceeding 100 billion yuan. Among them, Pony Ma's personal wealth increased by 57% compared to last year, ranking second.

The reason for such a large increase is due to Tencent's strong performance in the stock market this year.

In September of last year, Tencent's market capitalization officially exceeded HK$2 trillion.

In August of this year, its market value climbed to a new level, surpassing the 3 trillion mark, representing a huge increase.

The increase in Pony Ma's personal wealth is roughly equivalent to the increase in Tencent's stock price.

Besides him, there was another person whose ranking on the Forbes list was greatly improved due to the rise in Penguin's stock.

Chen Xiu, ranked No. 30 on the Forbes list, has a personal fortune of 415 billion yuan and is the only person on the list who is under 30 years old!

When the Forbes list was released last year, Chen Xiu was ranked outside the top 200. Although she was heavily praised by the media, the impact was not significant.

The reason he improved his ranking so much this year is not only due to the increase in his 0.55% stake in Tencent stock, but also his 40% stake in Douyin, and his 5% stake in ByteDance after a round of dilution.

The combined value of his shares in the three companies equals his personal wealth.

This calculation is actually not very accurate.

Because the shares of companies such as Datang Pictures, Meituan, Pinduoduo, and NIO, as well as other promising internet companies, are held by investment companies under Chen Xiu's name.

His overseas investments were also not included.

However, Lei Jun's Shunwei Capital was not included. His personal wealth statistics also came from his personal shareholdings in companies such as Xiaomi and Kingsoft.

Even if the calculations aren't entirely accurate, Chen Xiu's position is already terrifying enough.

Many media outlets have also referred to him as the only young person in the top 30 of the Forbes list.

Chen Xiu herself didn't react much to this honor, and continued to go to work as usual, completely unaffected.

……

Wanda Cinemas, CBD location.

"Thank you for your support, everyone!"

Chen Xiu stood on the makeshift stage, joining the other main creators of "The Unknown" to thank the fans who came to support them after the film ended.

Today is the premiere of "The Unknown". Since the film's actors are not very famous or popular, Chen Xiu once again used his popularity to increase the film's attention.

After giving his thanks, he followed the main cast and crew out of the theater and went to the next room to rest.

As soon as he entered, before everyone had settled down, Rao Xiaozhi looked at Chen Xiu with shining eyes.

"Mr. Chen, thank you for your support!"

"They're all movies produced by Datang Pictures, there's nothing to thank me for."

"I believe that with your support, the premiere will be a great success, and the film's reputation will spread rapidly."

"Oh?"

Chen Xiu looked at Rao Xiaozhi noncommittally, feeling that his attitude was a bit too enthusiastic, even giving the impression of being obsequious.

However, Rao Xiaozhi himself didn't realize it at all. On the contrary, when he met Chen Xiu's eyes, he grinned even wider and his body language became more expressive.

"I've finished collecting information on the 'Journey Home' project you mentioned last time, and the script is expected to be completed next month!"

"Yes, please keep an eye on it. I'd like to release 'The Journey Home' during the summer or National Day holiday next year."

"Don't worry, Mr. Chen, I will definitely do my best to complete the task you assigned. If there is anything I do poorly, please give me your guidance. Also, in the casting for 'The Long Journey Home,' we have prepared a supporting role with a small but outstanding part. Mr. Chen, do you have the time..."

Rao Xiaozhi's body movements were so exaggerated that they were starting to resemble dancing wildly.

The actor standing behind him, looking at him and listening to his unusually solicitous voice, and then looking at Chen Xiu, felt that the director was indeed a director; his ability to flatter was something that the actor could not match.

Chen Xiu pursed her lips as she looked at Rao Xiaozhi, already feeling somewhat uncomfortable with his enthusiastic attitude.

Fortunately, Xiong Ben and Wei Feng noticed the situation and rushed over to help.

"Director Rao, let's discuss the roadshow arrangements again."

Xiong Ben said he is the producer of "The Unknown".

Wei said sarcastically, "President Chen, there are some things at the company that I need to report to you privately..."

"Let's go, we'll talk in the car."

Chen Xiu nodded politely to Rao Xiaozhi, then left the lounge without looking back...

In the back of the carriage, Chen Xiu and Wei Feng sat side by side.

Holding the documents, Wei Feng reported to Chen Xiu on the progress of the IP development of "Black Myth: Wukong" in cooperation with Game Science.

"...Our joint venture with Game Science was located in Hangzhou's West Lake District. The location was chosen by Feng Ji, and the shareholding is 49% and 51% respectively."

This division was mainly to ensure that Feng Ji and Yang Qi's work would not be interfered with, and Datang Pictures could also accept it.

Wei Feng looked down at the document: "The development of 'Black Myth: Wukong' will officially start next year. The company will invest a total of 2 million yuan, which will be paid in installments over 5 years. Feng Ji will need to report the progress to us every month and every quarter."

How's the script coming along?

"According to the outline, the plot of all 6 episodes has been written, but the style is a bit too dark, and I don't know if it will pass the review."

"..."

Chen Xiu nodded; he couldn't interfere with the review process.

However, the animated shorts related to "Black Myth" are streamed online and cannot be broadcast on television channels, so the censorship process is relatively more lenient.

If the review process goes smoothly, the animated short film of "Black Myth" can be released next year.

After reporting on the "Black Myth" IP collaboration, Wei Feng then produced another contract. "Boss, as you've suggested, the company's new talent signing program has been temporarily suspended this year. With Yang Mi joining, our company's female artist resources are already very saturated, while our male artist resources are somewhat lacking. Many film and television productions will have to look for suitable actors from outside."

"Aren't Peng Peng and Jiang Qiming there?"

“Peng Peng is alright. He has decent works and can take on variety shows. Apart from not being able to sing, he has decent commercial value. Jiang Qiming is still just an amateur right now and may need more time to develop.”

Chen Xiu did a quick mental count and found that the company had eight female artists: Yang Mi, Reba, Meng Ziyi, Bai Lu, Zhou Yutong, Papi, Zhou Ye, and Tian Xinwei.

There are only two male celebrities, making it only three including myself, a seriously unbalanced ratio...

Has Yang Ming found a suitable male artist?

"When we were filming 'The Song of Qin King Breaking the Formation,' Bai Yu, Wu Sanshi, and Zhang Ruoyun were all quite good. We tried to contact them. Bai Yu was more interested in signing with them, Wu Sanshi still needed to talk to his parents, and Zhang Ruoyun had the biggest concerns."

"What concerns?"

"His father is in the industry and has been using his connections to promote him in recent years; it's essentially a boss-artist relationship..."

Wei Feng didn't spell it out too clearly, but Chen Xiu already understood what he meant.

Other families' kids are a burden to their fathers, but in Old Zhang's family, it's the father who's a burden to his son.

The power struggle between Zhang Ruoyun and her father is a complex and tangled mess.

Chen Xiu shook his head and said to Wei Feng, "Let's sign Bai Yu first. He'll have a pretty important role when we film 'The Xuanwu Gate Incident' next year. And we can cast him as the male lead in 'The Silent Truth,' which we're collaborating with iQiyi."

"Understood. What about the other two?"

"We can try to persuade Wu Sanshi, as for Zhang Ruoyun, we'll see if he has any ideas of his own. We can't interfere in the relationship between father and son."

Wei Feng nodded in agreement, then stared at the document with a strange expression.

"Two other male artists contacted us. Yang Ming rated them as S-level, meaning they have the highest commercial value."

"Who?"

Yang Ming divided artists' commercial value into five levels from high to low, with S being the highest and D being the lowest.

Generally speaking, D-level refers to newcomers with no popularity and virtually no commercial value.

A-level artists are equivalent to second-tier artists. Dilraba Dilmurat used to be an A-level artist in terms of commercial value.

After the airing of "Keep Running" and the release of "Wolf Warrior 2", she was directly promoted to S-level, just like Yang Mi.

Therefore, Chen Xiu must know the S-level male celebrity that Wei Feng mentioned, and the other party is a well-known top star in the industry... It seems that all of those people have some problems.

When Chen Xiu heard that the other party had taken the initiative to contact her, the thought that flashed through her mind was: Who wants to cause trouble for Datang Film Industry?

Upon receiving Chen Xiu's glance, Wei Feng pondered for a moment and said, "Back in September, TF Boys announced their solo careers. TF Entertainment only retained Wang Junkai, while the other two were looking for new agencies and contacted Yang Ming."

"The names Wang Yuan and Yi Yang... certainly have S-level commercial value."

Chen Xiu nodded in acknowledgment of the commercial value of the two.

As one of the top three groups of the "Four Big and Three Little" idols, TF Boys' popularity goes without saying. The money that Times Fengjun Entertainment has made from them is definitely more than ten small goals.

However, popular celebrities naturally have certain expectations, and the fact that the other party took the initiative to contact them suggests that they have already quoted a price.

Chen Xiu looked at Wei Feng and said directly, "Tell me their conditions."

"Wang Yuan wants to develop in all aspects of singing, fashion, and acting. He heard about Yang Mi's conditions, so he also wants to endorse top luxury brands and demands one movie and one TV series broadcast on satellite TV every year. However, he is only willing to sign an actor contract."

"Excluding the singer portion?"

"Correct."

Although she really wanted to say no, Chen Xiu still wanted to hear Wei Feng and Yang Ming's opinions first.

"What are your thoughts after you and Yang Ming's assessment?"

"Wang Yuan demands too much but is stingy with his efforts. We suggest choosing Yi Yangqianxi."

"Doesn't he ask for much?"

"If Yi Yangqianxi wants to focus on developing his career as an actor, he needs at least one film, TV series, or web series every year, with a billing order of no less than second billing. He is also willing to cooperate if the company needs him to sing or hold concerts."

Chen Xiu looked at Wei Feng in surprise. Compared with Wang Yuan's conditions, Yi Yang's four-character request could be described as cheap.

Why did he ask for such a low price?

"Among the three members of TFBOYS, Yi Yangqianxi has the lowest popularity, and Times Fengjun Entertainment pays the least attention to him. In terms of appearance alone, he is not as good as the other two."

"If you think it's suitable, then sign it! Second-billed roles are still easy to find. The 'Long Time in Chang'an' series, which starts filming next year, can be arranged."

"Okay, with Yi Yangqianxi, Bai Yu, and Wu Sanshi (whose name is yet to be determined), we now have five male artists."

Wei Feng spread out his palm and gestured to Chen Xiu.

Chen Xiu touched his nose and said, "Have you forgotten that I'm also a male celebrity?"

"Um, boss, no one in the company would treat you like an artist, right?"

Wei Feng shrugged subtly, thinking to himself: Where can you find a male celebrity with a net worth of 400 billion?
Seeing this, Chen Xiu realized that she had made a joke that wasn't funny.

"Well, I'm going to the Internet Conference early next month. You and Da Xiong keep an eye on 'The Unknown' and come up with some marketing strategies while you're at it."

"clear."

Wei Feng nodded, then suddenly his expression changed, and he said with a strange look in his eyes, "Boss, you should have run into Cheng Wei when you attended the Internet Conference, right?"

"He's the president of Didi, we're bound to run into him."

"So, does this mean you two have met at the pinnacle?"

"...I'll ask him when we meet."

(End of this chapter)