After Transmigrated as a Black-Hearted Entertainment Boss [Transmigration] - Chapter 37

It was clearly impossible to visit all the scenic spots in Qing City in a single day. Furthermore, Qing City was coastal, meaning many attractions required taking a boat. If they insisted on visiting those, they would spend at least half the day just traveling. After some deliberation, Tao Zui and the group decided that tomorrow would be centered on eating—they would go wherever the most delicious food was.

With their itinerary set, the three younger boys returned to their rooms, satisfied. Gu Nan also bid farewell, but before leaving, he asked Tao Zui: “What did you mean by that question you asked Director Zhou earlier?”

Tao Zui paused for a fraction of a second, then smiled. “Nothing much, just something that popped into my head. It’s rare for a movie with such a massive investment to have its capital chain snap. I was just curious how Director Zhou would respond.”

Gu Nan nodded, but his expression didn’t show a hint of relaxation. “Why do you say it’s rare?”

Tao Zui: “Because generally speaking, if the investors don’t believe in a production of this scale, the crew would never even be able to get off the ground; if the investors do believe in it, the full funding is usually in place from the start. Only independent filmmakers scramble to scrape together funds. But how many independent filmmakers have the resolve to dump their entire life savings—as much as three hundred million—into their first movie? With that much money, if the capital chain snapped, wouldn’t it all go down the drain? That’s why I asked Director Zhou what he would do if something like that happened.”

“Then why are you asking this?” Gu Nan pressed. “Are you implying that such a possibility exists right now…”

The more Tao Zui listened, the more off it felt. He raised a hand to cut Gu Nan off. “What possibility? There is absolutely zero possibility; I was just curious. You aren’t worried that I’ve run out of money and the movie is going to be aborted, are you?”

Gu Nan choked, and it took him a good while to murmur: “An aborted movie is still better than bankruptcy…”

Tao Zui was stunned: “Who said that?”

Gu Nan: “The news on TV says so.”

Tao Zui: “……So, after all that, you’re worried that I’m going to go bankrupt and jump off a building to commit suicide?”

Gu Nan: “……”

Tao Zui was caught between laughter and tears. He leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed, watching Gu Nan. “Can you think of something positive for me? Setting aside the fact that I’ve already invested fifty million, even if you added another hundred million, I wouldn’t go bankrupt, alright? I swear, you kids spend your days thinking about…”

Hearing the word “kid,” a wave of inexplicable irritation surged in Gu Nan’s heart. He glared at Tao Zui and turned to leave, tossing back a single sentence: “As long as you know it, don’t just act tough for no damn reason!”

“Hey, this kid!” Tao Zui’s eyes widened as he watched Gu Nan enter the elevator, his face filled with sheer disbelief.

“This brat is getting less and less respectful…”

Muttering to himself as he closed the door, Tao Zui walked into the bathroom. After stripping down to nothing, he stood beneath the showerhead. As the warm water rinsed over his body, the brain that had been simmering with anger at Gu Nan’s “insubordination” gradually cooled, and his thoughts shifted to another matter.

The reason he had asked Zhou Fanghong that question was because he had suddenly realized that the investment in The Afterlife might have been a manifestation of the original plot’s power.

The mastermind snatched away the role of Bone, causing Gu Nan to lose the opportunity to enter the film industry and make a splash. If The Afterlife flopped, it could be considered a devastating blow to his career. Furthermore, as Zhou Fanghong had just said, without his investment, while he would have tried his best to complete The Afterlife, it likely would have ended in bankruptcy.

This wasn’t speculation.

On the surface, Zhou Fanghong throwing three hundred million into a movie seemed easy, but it was a high-stakes gamble that wagered his entire net worth and future. Failure meant inevitable bankruptcy. Even if Zhou Fanghong’s father lent a helping hand and granted him creative freedom, that older brother who viewed Ocean Film Industry as his own private property would certainly not take it lying down. Once external forces intervened, it was hard to say what the final product of The Afterlife would have become.

A movie destined to flop without his intervention had not only received the investment it needed but also found the most suitable male lead. Even if he couldn’t conclude based on these conditions that The Afterlife was destined for explosive success, based on what he had witnessed while following the filming, he personally believed The Afterlife would become a representative masterpiece of Chinese fantasy cinema.

Even if it face-planted in the end, it would still become a classic, just like Blade Runner once did.

“The power of the plot is truly terrifying…” Tao Zui whispered with a bittersweet smile.

He had sensed this back when Long Feifei appeared unexpectedly, but this time, he realized it even more profoundly.

After a bunch of aimless thoughts, Tao Zui washed up quickly and prepared for bed. As he lay in bed with his eyes closed, the last thought on his mind was:

If the plot always forces itself back on track, then the three younger boys’ song release is destined to go down the drain… Twenty-something thousand in production and promotional costs, just like that… Waaaaaah~

Despite the painful loss of over twenty thousand, Tao Zui remained in high spirits the next day, leading Gu Nan and the four others out to stroll and snack. With fifty million remaining from the sale of his luxury flat, negotiations already underway for a suburban villa, and six more commercial properties in North City’s 4th Ring, he felt plenty of confidence. He footed the bill for the entire outing, making it impossible to tell that his company was currently living beyond its means, eating through its reserves.

The three younger boys were carefree, only shouting “Papa Tao, I want to eat that!” or “Papa Tao, I want to eat this!” the entire way.

Gu Nan had a bit of a crisis awareness, but he was more worried about Tao Zui’s personal state. Seeing that Tao Zui was having a blast all day, he didn’t hold back and joined in the eating and drinking.

However, as an actor currently filming, even if Gu Nan wanted to stuff himself, Tao Zui would prevent him from consuming too many calories.

So, after eating a bowl of wontons and a few skewers of fried snacks, Gu Nan had just picked up a skewer of electric-grilled meat and had only taken a single bite before Tao Zui snatched it away like a tiger snatching food.

“That’s enough. Don’t eat the rest; be careful about not fitting into your costume later.”

Gu Nan, his mouth full of succulent, juicy grilled meat, instinctively reached to grab it back.

Tao Zui immediately raised his arm high into the air.

Gu Nan swallowed the meat in his mouth in two gulps and stood up to grab the skewer: “How much weight can I gain in just one day!”

“Who says? There are plenty of people who gain several pounds in a single day, okay?” Tao Zui turned his back to Gu Nan, using his free elbow to ward him off while swaying the grilled meat in his other hand. “Don’t grab it! I’m not giving you anymore… sit down, fast!”

“At least let me finish this skewer!”

Each of the three younger boys had a skewer of electric-grilled meat, eating and watching the show. Chen Xing looked at the two fighting over the meat, then looked at the plate in front of him, his eyes filled with obvious confusion: Papa Tao ordered twenty skewers of electric-grilled meat; the plate is full! Why does Brother Nan insist on grabbing the one in Papa Tao’s hand?

Unable to best Gu Nan, Tao Zui finally relented: “You said it—just this one!”

Gu Nan was resolute: “Just this one!”

Tao Zui: “Good.” Finishing his sentence, he shrank his hand, stretched his neck, and with speed faster than a wink, took a quick, ruthless bite out of two pieces of meat, handing the skewer with only a single piece of meat remaining to Gu Nan.

“There, eat up.”

Gu Nan: “……”

Tao Zui puffed out his cheeks, watching smugly as Gu Nan sat down, holding the skewer in a daze, then pulled out a napkin to wipe his mouth.

Little brat, and you thought you could best me.

Seeing the meat-snatching war come to an end, Diwu Zou hurriedly thrust his phone in front of Tao Zui: “Papa Tao, let’s go here next. The review says their bagged beer is insanely delicious!”

Tao Zui didn’t even lift his eyelids. He picked up another skewer of electric-grilled meat, waiting until he swallowed before speaking: “Not going. You three are all underage; what kind of beer are you drinking.”

“But if you come to Qing City and don’t drink bagged beer, you’ve wasted the trip…” Diwu Zou was still trying to argue his case when a melody suddenly began to play. The tune was very familiar—it was the climax of their new song, “WE.”

Before the three younger boys could show their surprise, Tao Zui pulled his phone from his chest pocket. He pressed the answer button while once again rejecting his request.

“There will be plenty of chances later; no negotiations this time… Hello, Zhang Ling? What is it… what did you say?”

Tao Zui straightened up instantly, staring at the three younger boys opposite him in shock. Zhang Ling’s voice on the phone was somewhat incoherent, yet she expressed the meaning clearly enough—

“WE” had gone viral!

“……It seems like a comedy game streamer played “WE” during a live broadcast. He had been losing non-stop until he played “WE” and then won… it seems like the win was both funny and intense… anyway, someone recorded that segment and edited it into a video. In just one day, the likes surpassed three hundred thousand, and now it’s already over 1.2 million… The metrics for “WE” on all major music platforms are soaring in a straight line, and the number of videos using “WE” as background music on short-video platforms has already exceeded three hundred thousand…”

Zhang Ling took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly: “Young CEO Tao, I just received an invitation for the Blueberry Music Festival… should I accept?”

Tao Zui stood up with a whoosh while holding his grilled meat skewer: “Accept! Why wouldn’t I accept! I’ll leave this matter to you; starting today, you are their execution agent! Commissions will follow the standard agent level; go to the HR department and draft a new contract, and we’ll sign it as soon as I’m back in North City.”

After hanging up, Tao Zui looked at the three younger boys, who were gazing up at him with curiosity, and then at the plate filled with grilled meat. The next second, he sat down, dragged the plate toward himself, and signaled to the owner.

“Boss, please pack this up.”

“Pack it up? Why pack it up? Just finish eating before leaving.” Fifth Zou reached out his hand, intending to grab the next skewer, but his hand was swatted away by Tao Zui.

“No more eating. Inuo, Chen Xing, same for you two—no more eating once you finish what you have in your hands.”

Diwu Zou’s eyes widened: “Why?!”

Tao Zui: “You don’t want to see yourselves look like a ball on stage, do you?”

Diwu Zou: “It’s just one meal, how could it… Stage?! “

Zeng Yinuo: “What do you mean? Is it what I think it means? Papa Tao?!”

Chen Xing: “Stage? Us? Are we going on stage?”

Watching the three younger boys stand up in excitement, Tao Zui smiled with profound satisfaction: “Anyway, let’s head back to the hotel first… Gu Nan? Why aren’t you eating? Are you really that reluctant to part with it? Hurry up and eat; we’re leaving!”

Upon hearing this, Gu Nan first glared at Tao Zui before stuffing that piece of grilled meat into his mouth.

Even though the grilled meat had long since gone cold, he felt an inexplicable wave of feverish heat racing through his body, baking his heart until it began to accelerate, leaving one echo after another ringing against his eardrums.