Let the true energy circulate for a while

……

Just as Chen Ye was about to explain something, Tang Long suddenly raised his voice by the window and started arguing with the person on the phone.

Tang Long roared into the phone, "Wu Tianming! I just don't understand! We're both trying to organize an event well, so why is it that the person who does more work gets the most grievances?!"

"I don't know if Huang Hongxiong is truly insane or faking it! This really wasn't something I arranged!"

"Good! Good! Good!"

"What right do you have to lecture me?! What kind of bullshit regional manager are you? I'll do it myself!"

Tang Long was furious. He hung up the phone, took a deep breath, looked out the window, and tried to calm himself down.

Then he came back, plopped down, picked up his teacup, and took a big gulp.

Chen Jianbin asked, "What's wrong?"

Tang Long said, "I've had a bit of a falling out with the organizers. After the auditions in Xincheng are over, I won't participate in 'China's Best Kung Fu' anymore. So, Aye is your nephew. I'll pre-select him for the top three after he participates in the Xincheng auditions. Don't participate in the rest of the competitions. You'll just be cannon fodder if you go."

Chen Ye said, "I want to win first place in the finals; I'm aiming for the 200 million yuan prize."

Tang Long hesitated for a moment, then, as if making a great decision, said in a deep voice, "Chen Lao Er, we're all on the same side, so I'll be frank. Don't think I'm being underhanded. Originally, Wu Tianming and I were representatives of the organizers. Our plan was to have Huang Hongxiong perform traditional kung fu at the audition..."

Tang Long explained their initial plan, picking and choosing what he could say, and roughly conveyed it. The idea was to hype up Huang Hongxiong online and establish him as a kung fu master. As for the later competitions, they would most likely restrict his participation by using rules and other means.

To put it bluntly, the plan is to first make Huang Hongxiong a kung fu influencer, and then have him participate in some of their own organized activities.

The father and son had more or less understood.

Tang Long continued:

"Now that Huang Hongxiong is pretending to be crazy, all of Wu Tianming's previous work has gone down the drain. We originally wanted to find someone else to replace Huang Hongxiong, but Chen Ye's behavior has made Wu Tianming suspicious. He thinks that I arranged Chen Ye and misunderstands that I want to get rid of him and do it on my own! He just got angry and said that he wants to find a professional boxing opponent to beat Chen Ye in the boxing ring."

Chen Jianbin asked, "Didn't he consider replacing Huang Hongxiong with Chen Ye?"

Tang Long asked, "He has a lot of grudges against Chen Ye now! He's convinced that I wanted to dump him. Chen Ye was originally one of my boxing gym members, so it's reasonable for him to think that way! Plus, Chen Ye's performance in these last few matches has been outstanding, mainly because his moves are so visually appealing. He's now convinced that all the fighters who have faced Chen Ye are actors I hired."

"Heh—" Chen Jianbin couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at? I'm in charge of the preliminary rounds in Xincheng right now, so there won't be any problems. But once we go up to the higher-level competitions, it's not like these makeshift teams anymore. If they arrange for a professional player to fight your nephew and he gets seriously injured within the rules, what can you do about it?"

Chen Jianbin asked, puzzled, "Why do you have to hurt him? My nephew wouldn't hurt him."

"Chen Lao Er, are we talking about the same thing? I'm not kidding you!"

Chen Jianbin raised his hand: "I'll punish myself with a drink."

Tang Long sighed, a worried look in his eyes. "You see, Chen Ye will become more and more popular online. Wu Tianming will even spend money to promote him and hype him up. Then his people will step in and take down Chen Ye. That's called leveraging someone else's popularity!"

Chen Jianbin suddenly realized, "It's no wonder we're poor."

Tang Long said, "He was just putting on a show for me. I just don't understand why Huang Hongxiong would pretend to be crazy and shirk responsibility! Wu Tianming is now pinning all the blame on me, saying I was the one who orchestrated everything behind the scenes! I've wasted his resources!"

Chen Ye calmly poured a cup of tea for the two elders. "Uncle Tang, thank you for your reminder. Don't worry."

Chen Jianbin wanted to say something, but ultimately held back and changed his words, saying, "The professional players he found may not be as good as my nephew."

Tang Long chuckled and shook his head. "You know absolutely nothing about being a professional fighter. This qualifying round is basically just for fun. Do you know UFC? They've killed people before!"

Chen Ye and his son exchanged a glance, everything understood without a word.

Tang Long said, "At first, he took a liking to my niece, Gong Rongrong, and wanted to promote her. I know Rongrong; she wouldn't do something like faking a fight or putting on an act. Sure enough, she refused. But now, even if Rongrong agreed, he wouldn't cooperate with me."

Chen Ye asked curiously, "What did Miss Rongrong say back then?"

Tang Long sighed: "My niece grew up with her maternal grandfather, who is my second uncle. Her family practices Baguazhang, and they have a long tradition of it. Recently, Rongrong has been telling me to pay more attention to traditional culture. She firmly believes that there are unparalleled masters in this world, and she even said that the future belongs to Chinese Kung Fu! She's been watching too many movies."

Chen Ye remained silent. Gong Rongrong had indeed kept her promise and had not revealed her secret.

Tang Long looked the young man up and down, his handsome appearance almost enviable, and said with a hint of helplessness:

"Ah Ye, are you getting close to Rongrong? She keeps mentioning you lately."

Chen Ye said, "We're just friends."

Tang Long lit a cigarette, puffing out smoke, looking quite melancholy.

"Chen Lao Er, I never intended for your nephew to take over Huang Hongxiong's job; that wouldn't last! I called you here today to introduce Chen Ye to a short drama investor. There are too many trashy short dramas these days. If we make a kung fu short drama, combined with something like 'The Return of the Dragon King', it'll be a hit!"

Chen Jianbin was stunned by his old friend's idea; his head was full of crazy ideas!

Tang Long said, "I saw the potential in the future trend of high-quality short dramas. Chen Ye is handsome, has a good temperament, and can perform beautiful kung fu moves. He would be very popular if he were to film short dramas."

Chen Ye smiled and said, "I've seen the short film, but I'm not interested in it. Uncle Tang, let's talk about it after I win the boxing championship."

Tang Long frowned: "Do you really think it's that easy to win? Putting aside some inside stories, making it to the top four requires real skill. Although your moves look good, your opponents are all amateurs from clubs. Young man, have you ever played professionally? Do you know the strength of professional players?"

"Professional athletes undergo systematic training, focusing on strength, speed, and resilience! They possess extensive combat experience, and their combined physical limits, technical precision, and mental fortitude are unimaginable to those in clubs. The limits of many amateurs are merely their starting point."

Tang Long spoke in a serious and methodical manner, his eyes revealing concern.

He paused, then continued, "Ah Ye, you do have good talent. Don't go down the path of professional combat sports. When I was young, I also dreamed of making a name for myself in combat sports. Until that day, at the train station, I met some guys who were carrying big wrenches. Sigh, let's not talk about that... No matter how hard a fist is, can it be harder than a wrench?"

Chen Ye scratched his head and looked around: "Do you have a wrench?"

"What wrench?"

"I'll show you a wrench, then you'll understand."

Chen Jianbin added, "Just show a little bit of our strength, don't scare the elders."