Becoming a Movie Star, System Only Finished Loading After Ten Years
Chapter 121 - 120: Good Scripts Are Hard to Find (Request for Monthly Tickets)

Chapter 121: Chapter 120: Good Scripts Are Hard to Find (Request for Monthly Tickets)

How did Qi Hao know that Wang Chonglei was staying at the Mandarin Oriental?

He figured it out from the pattern on the lighter.

When he was pulling and tugging with Wang Chonglei just now, he happened to swipe a lighter.

Turns out he’s quite talented at thievery.

With just a +10 in thievery, he felt like his fingers were much more nimble.

Quite a sense of accomplishment.

Of course, stealing is a bad behavior.

Even stealing from bad people is wrong!

Qi Hao knew he was wrong and promised to correct it next time.

The lighter wouldn’t be missed.

Anyone who’s ever smoked knows that loaning out a lighter often means it ends up in someone else’s pocket.

"Is there a reality show in my schedule?"

Qi Hao stopped fretting about the shares.

"Yes, the exact date is the 22nd of this month, for recording in Hangzhou. Is there something you need to do?"

Zhang Nan was very clear about Qi Hao’s schedule.

"No, just asking. We’re participating in that show."

The reality show task was so easy to complete, Qi Hao couldn’t wait to get that lounge chair.

He consulted the system in his spare time.

This time the system ignored him.

It seems only after acquiring it will he know the mysterious effects.

Hopefully, there’ll be a manual when the time comes.

Qi Hao somewhat understood Tongzi, as it took ten years to load successfully, and the clumsiness of its nature made it remarkable it could assign tasks with rewards at all.

In a great mood, Qi Hao returned to the mainland the next day.

He checked and found he already had more than 650,000 shares of Penguin stock.

What delighted him even more was that while Penguin’s stock was still low, Maotai’s performed quite well.

Maotai closed at 119 yuan yesterday, 2 million shares make 238 million.

Well, Maotai’s shares aren’t his yet.

"Doesn’t seem to be much of a trap... However, the Wang Brothers aren’t honest people, the agreement terms need to be looked over carefully."

Qi Hao arrived at the company and mentioned Mrs. Hua wanting to repurchase the stocks. The senior legal affairs inquired in detail and reached this conclusion.

"Selling like this is pretty good, Mrs. Hua will find her road harder and harder."

Old Tian was very supportive of this stock repurchase plan.

Don’t be fooled by how impressive Mrs. Hua looks; they’ve been unable to lead the industry in box office for a long time.

Moreover, coal bosses, internet capital, and even real estate capital are eyeing this industry, and this capital influx can’t be appeased just by going public and raising funds.

More importantly, the Wang Brothers are just despicable.

Holding onto Mrs. Hua’s stock long-term would easily align him with them politically, seen as birds of a feather.

"Key point is, I need money to participate in capital games, not just act as Brother Yang’s agent."

Qi Hao didn’t shy from mentioning this in front of Gao Fei.

To survive well in the entertainment world, becoming capital is fundamental—not even small capital is safe, big fish still eat small fish.

Counting on Qi Hao’s endorsement fees and acting pay wouldn’t cover losses even twice.

This is why few celebrities delve into investments.

Even if Mrs. Hua’s shares are just over 30 yuan each post-listing, Qi Hao could have billions, enough to play several rounds at the card table.

Stocks, once they’re in your hand, they’re yours.

Then they chatted about some recent situations at the studio. In the end, Old Tian and Zhang Nan stayed behind.

"Albums can be released during Spring Festival, provided you find time to record."

Zhang Nan reported to Qi Hao and also communicated with Old Tian, the studio’s leader.

"This is a crucial task." Qi Hao placed great importance on the mainline tasks.

System tasks have a kind of non-bug—bug. For example, if the interview reality show on December 22nd doesn’t meet system requirements, Qi Hao could just appear on another show before the task expires.

Do it until it works, it will eventually be possible to complete.

Same goes for the newcomer awards.

Qi Hao wants to ensure he has more than one chance to complete the task over two years.

The newcomer award has a longer cycle, so he needs to prepare early.

"I’ll keep an eye on it!"

Zhang Nan said earnestly, as the boss is now a capital agent, invested in Mrs. Hua’s stock, Penguin stock, maybe even others, appearing mysterious yet impressive, making him not dare to slack off.

"Script acquisition isn’t going well; this relies on luck. With good luck, there could be good scripts for sale. With bad luck, there’s nowhere to start."

Old Tian explained the script situation.

He was responsible for this.

Not due to lack of effort, but because in the current inner entertainment movie industry, it’s still the directors leading.

Usually, a director gets a notion or spots an original work and then looks for the right scriptwriter collaborators in the industry.

Some directors even write scripts themselves.

Once the script is ready, they seek investors, and the movie is almost ready for preparation.

There are still wild scriptwriters silently writing scripts.

But after they’re written, most scripts by wild scriptwriters are submitted to film companies, letting the companies find suitable directors.

Qi Hao’s script requires to be award-worthy, further increasing the difficulty.

"Which scripts have been collected? Let me see." Qi Hao wasn’t pleased.

"Alright, I’ll get them for you."

It wasn’t long before Old Tian brought in a stack of printed scripts and gave simple script introductions for Qi Hao’s convenience.

"A girl and three men are stranded on an island, contemplating life?"

Contemplate my foot, Qi Hao didn’t even bother to open it to see the detailed content inside.

Directly tossed it aside.

"A college student invented a robot, begins to reflect if humans are also a type of robot?"

Toss!

"A man finds that playing games turns him into a dog named Lucky?"

Damn!

"A husband discovers a tattoo on his mistress’s butt that matches the one on his wife’s?"

I know the words, but put together, I don’t quite understand.

Also damn!

"Forbidden love in a mountain village, with the sister-in-law..."

This kind of thing might indeed win awards, but it would ruin my reputation.

"In the old family items there’s a treasure map, requiring keys from different historical epochs..."

Qi Hao rummaged for a while, finally slumping into his chair.

What kind of a mess is all this!

He didn’t even know how to ridicule it; it’s far worse than those scripts handed to him for acting.

After all, anything handed to him at least already has a director and investment.

"How about we provide the idea and invite a renowned scriptwriter from the industry to draft it?"

Zhang Nan offered his suggestion.

"The screenwriting industry is very chaotic; some well-known scriptwriters for more money form their own teams, only writing the beginning or creating a framework, leaving newcomers to fill it in."

Old Tian wasn’t too positive about this method.

Plus, writing requires inspiration; commissioned pieces are harder to make great than those with inspired collisions.

"That’s a problem; some scriptwriters, unable to write themselves, specialize in lending their names for a fee."

Qi Hao agreed with Old Tian’s concern.

The main issue is, they don’t have too many connections in the screenwriting industry.

They never considered going down this path before.

"Even if you want to be a director yourself, you can be a little patient. Good scripts will come sooner or later."

Old Tian coaxed Qi Hao like a child.

He’s worked with Qi Hao for many years, knowing how to handle him.

Qi Hao responds better to soft words, not hard ones; as his agent, Old Tian’s attempts to control Qi Hao would only backfire.

"Let’s do this then, we’ll offer a high price!"

This time Qi Hao didn’t plan on listening to Old Tian.

Instead of compromising himself, he’d rather make things difficult for others.

He thinks given the current size of the screenwriting and directing industry, some must be holding good scripts while seeking funds.

Expecting them to hand over a script is simply unrealistic.

It’s like their own child’s blood and flesh, hard to part with.

But if you’re willing to offer more money...

Compared to two billion dollars worth of Maotai stocks, this kind of investment seems stingy.

"How high?" Old Tian looked helplessly at Qi Hao.

When coaxing fails, what else can he do? Of course, he has to go along with it, just like petting a cat, you have to stroke it the right way.

"Five million!"

Qi Hao isn’t a fool with money either, but the market is there; if you bid too high, you might even attract hostility from the industry.

Of course, five million is already a sky-high price.

A famous scriptwriter like Comment, writing "Wait and See" for Li Dawei, only charged fifty thousand.

Even removing Li Dawei’s family connections, it wouldn’t exceed one hundred thousand.

The scripts Old Tian received were quoted between fifty thousand and three hundred thousand, and you could even haggle them down.

"Alright then, I’ll spread the word and contact some friends in the industry to see. Meanwhile, you focus on recording songs."

Old Tian silently cursed Qi Hao for being a prodigal.

But he would certainly do what needs doing, which is the basis of his long partnership with Qi Hao.

Who’s in charge needs to be clear.

He’s given all the advice, whether Qi Hao listens is up to him.

"Then should I bring Ao Bai home?"

Coming to the company, apart from meetings, Qi Hao mainly came to pick up his cat.

"You haven’t knocked off work yet, what do you mean by going home? Not everyone is the boss like you."

Old Tian didn’t indulge Qi Hao this time.

He leaves for several months, leaving the cat for him to take care of, and upon returning, he declares ownership.

Bah!

It’s simply shameless.

"By the way, get me another assistant, one... discreet."

Qi Hao remembered something.

"Discreet?" Old Tian was puzzled.

"Like this..." Qi Hao gestured at his chest, bringing Yang Liu along was really too conspicuous.

Recently, the media released many articles saying Qi Hao’s preference starts from D-cup.

It’s not that exaggerated; a C would actually do, and if she’s good-looking, B isn’t impossible either.

Of course, the most important thing is to have a compatible soul.

"Got it, I’ll arrange for initial interviews, and when we’ve shortlisted, you’ll do the final selection."

Old Tian also thought it was time for Qi Hao to look for an assistant.

"Bye-bye." Qi Hao got up, planning to find Ao Bai.

"By the way, last time I ran into Jiang Wen, he asked when you’d be back. He said he wants to have a drink with you."

Old Tian remembered this.

"He’s just trying to get money from me." Qi Hao muttered.

Jiang Wen’s project, if short on funds, could indeed use some investment.

Not that Qi Hao suddenly has confidence in Jiang Wen.

Gao Yang showed his admiration for Jiang Wen last time at dinner.

And as an agent, if you can’t sense the preferences of the boss behind the scenes, your path will only get narrower.

Feiyang Media should invest some in any case.

Annoying.

Before, when you couldn’t eat your fill, there was only one worry, just earning enough money. Now that you’re full, you have the key to capital’s entry, and suddenly there are many more troubles.