Super Zoo-Chapter 713 - 703 Learn from Experience

Anything is up for discussion, but bringing up money is really a strain on the relationship.

Suming listened to Long Wu mentioning the stock market, and from what was implied, it seemed that he hoped for Suming's help to buy into Huaxia Star's stocks, boosting the share price to help him tide over this difficulty temporarily.

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His instincts immediately made him wary, and his mind started to spin rapidly.

This was not an easy task.

Firstly, the money he had in hand, a bit over a billion, sounded like a lot, but to stir up storms in the stock market, it was like a drop in the bucket, completely insufficient. Even if he invested it all, it wouldn't necessarily make much of an impact.

Secondly, the stock market is a place for heroes, equally a stage for dramatic changes, and the waters there are just too deep.

The rise and fall of stocks sometimes weren't as simple as the visible reasons on the surface. The market is an invisible hand, but this hand is nonetheless made of visible white light and can even be predicted. Even if one loses, they are willing to accept their loss as part of the gamble;

However, Suming absolutely believed that behind the vast financial capital of the stock market, there must be one, or even many, unseen dark hands influencing and manipulating the financial market, profiting massively from it.

In the face of these 'big hands,' Taoyuan Group, whether in terms of background strength or funds, fell far short. Rashly entering the fray could mean becoming mere prey in the mouths of giant crocodiles and great white sharks. The bit over a billion wouldn't even stir up a wave before being swallowed whole.

Last but not least, Suming felt that in business dealings, personal relationships were one thing, and business was another. Engagements should result in a win-win situation, and one must not trade favors for money. He held others to this standard, and he held himself to it as well.

If Long Wu personally needed money, lending him tens of millions could be considered, but the stock price of Huaxia Star Group seemed like something he shouldn't interfere with.

After thinking, he measured his words, "Big Brother Shi, do you need a hand? You probably have a rough idea of my financial situation. I've spread out my investments widely and need money in many places. If too much capital is needed, it's not something I can mobilize. However..." He paused for half a second, took a breath, and said decisively, "The money on my books is all available for full support."

In a mere dozen or so seconds, Suming had made a decision: if Long Wu really asked for help, he wouldn't refuse him face and would help him!

And he would help thoroughly! Better not to take half-measures and grudgingly give one or two million, only to be blamed after taking the money. It was better to be generous and give full support.

Suming was prepared to put his entire net worth of a billion on the line to take a gamble with Long Wu.

He was still young, and even if he lost, he could make a comeback. But if he won, it would not only result in significant financial gains, but Long Wu would also owe him a favor for life.

However, their personal relationship would gradually wane afterward, becoming only close business partners.

Unexpectedly, on the other end of the phone, Long Wu was clearly taken aback, and it took several seconds before he burst into laughter.

"Did you think I called you because I couldn't stay in my chairman's seat and came to you to buy stocks for help?" Long Wu laughed, "Don't worry, it's not that bad yet. After all, I've been the chairman of Huaxia Star for decades. If I were to be ousted because of one investment failure, then all these years would have been for nothing. Instead of running a listed company, I might as well sell fish balls on the streets."

Long Wu's voice was hearty and jovial in his speech, not angry or overbearing, as though joking with a friend. However, Suming could sense the strong confidence this former big shot in the underworld had in his control over the company.

And, there was a hint of displeasure at being underestimated by a younger junior.

"Big Brother Shi, let's just say I misspoke then. I'm young, you know," Suming chuckled. Since Long Wu didn't bring up the stock market, Suming immediately felt quite relieved. Putting a billion on the line for a bet made his heart race a bit too much.

"I should still thank you for your willingness," said Long Wu, who was relatively straightforward. Once the subject was closed, he continued, "But I did call you today because I indeed need your help with something. First, take a guess, who asked me to call you today?"

Suming was taken aback. Rich people really were different; they were still in the mood for jokes even after such a financial loss, playing guessing games. Why not play truth or dare?

Unexpectedly, Long Wu's call had been instigated by his wife, Mrs. Xiang, behind the scenes.

It's a long story.

Before the mainland market fully opened, Xiangjiang film companies, in addition to focusing on the box office on the island, derived a major portion of their revenue from the overseas distribution rights in Southeast Asian countries.

Typically, the income from overseas distribution rights was roughly on par with local box office receipts, or even slightly higher.

Moreover, this revenue was pure profit; apart from taxes, the film's producers did not have to share the earnings with anyone.

It wasn't just films; the entertainment industry, including the record business, operated similarly. Xiangjiang's entertainment companies had always valued overseas distribution and had established good international relations. Even after the mainland market fully opened to Xiangjiang, Xiangjiang film companies did not relax their distribution efforts in Southeast Asia.

No matter how small a mosquito is, it's still meat; moreover, the "mosquito" only seems small in comparison to the mainland elephant. For most Xiangjiang entertainment companies, income from Southeast Asia was definitely not to be overlooked.

After the domestic flop of "Investiture of the Gods", Huaxia Star immediately shifted its focus to distribution in Southeast Asia.

The common method of overseas distribution generally involved buyers purchasing the rights at a price corresponding to local box office performance; after that, the performance had no impact on the producers.

Films with high box office grosses in Mainland or Xiangjiang fetched high buyout prices, and the opposite was true for low-grossing films.

Given the domestic box office precedent, the distribution price in Southeast Asia was not going to be high, but if they could restore some reputation and elicit a good response from audiences, it would at least stabilize the stock market slide and lay the groundwork for Huaxia Star's next film's overseas distribution.

This time, Mrs. Xiang didn't stick to her guns. She made a 180-degree turn in her attitude, advocating for following Taoyuan Film and Television's suggestions to revamp the overseas marketing, change the movie title and cast list, and downplay the "Investiture of the Gods" branding. Of course, Huaxia Star didn't need to handle the overseas marketing themselves; all they needed was some redubbing and updating the film's related materials.

Mrs. Xiang was strong-willed and stubborn, but not foolish. On the contrary, having spent many years in the film industry, she had an in-depth understanding of it.

Faced with the domestic box office failure and various professional and non-professional comments online, Mrs. Xiang had to admit she was wrong this time. If they had followed Taoyuan Film and Television's marketing advice from the start, perhaps they wouldn't have lost so badly.

At the very least, they wouldn't have ended up like this: earning no money and spoiling their reputation.

But this time, she learned her lesson. Before taking action, she wanted to solicit opinions from Taoyuan Film and Television first.

Since Mrs. Xiang had directly rejected Suming the last time, it would be awkward for her to make the call herself, so the task fell to Long Wu, who was half friend, half business partner, to reach out to Suming for advice.

"Change it now?" Suming thought for a moment. That definitely seemed a bit off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what specifically was inappropriate.

After all, he was just an outsider, the boss who invested the money.

Professional problems required professional solutions.

Xin Linli once again kindly stepped up to the plate.

"Change the marketing? Why would we need to do that?" the little confused one asked, eyes wide.