"Is that all it takes?"
Yun Deyue was shocked to hear Wang Shu say they could directly draft the contract. He had only thought Wang Shu was speaking casually. He hadn't expected them to be signing contracts in such a short time.
"I don't like to drag things out. If it can be done today, let's get it done today!" Wang Shu said with a slight smile.
The few of them then found a nearby law firm and drafted an equity authorization and investment contract. After that, the two of them signed the contract on the spot, and Wang Shu immediately withdrew money from the bank and transferred it to Deyu She's company account.
...
"Alright, the future of Deyu She is in your hands. I'll help you with the development plan after I'm done with my current business," Wang Shu said, patting Yun Deyue's shoulder.
Yun Deyue hadn't even fully processed everything. Everything today had happened too quickly, so fast that he felt it was unbelievable. But now, the Deyu She brand was saved. And his disciples would have enough to eat.
"Don't worry, boss, I definitely won't let you down!" Yun Deyue said, looking intently at Wang Shu. For him, Wang Shu's help was a life-saving grace. Without Wang Shu's investment, without Wang Shu's involvement, Deyu She probably wouldn't have been able to make it through this month. But with Wang Shu's investment, they wouldn't have to worry about funding issues for years to come.
"During this period, I'm not asking you to make a lot of money. Just teach these children well!" Wang Shu said to Yun Deyue, looking at the disciples in the room. After all, this place was called Deyu She, and as a troupe, it shouldn't just be Yun Deyue and Sun Yutong. These children were the future of Deyu She.
Wang Shu's plan was to first promote the combination of Yun Deyue and Sun Yutong. Let the public know about Deyu She's existence. Then, gradually, he would introduce their disciples. This way, just like in Wang Shu's previous life on Earth, they could continuously introduce new talent, attracting not only older audiences but also young fans. This would allow crosstalk, as an art form, to break out and become increasingly popular.
"Don't worry, I will definitely train these children. After all, they are my disciples. If I can't teach them, I'll lose face myself," Yun Deyue said with a smile.
"Alright, we'll be going then. I'll visit again when I have time," Wang Shu said with a smile, and then left Deyu She's compound with Shen Teng.
"Boss, you're really generous. I almost cried seeing the look in Yun Deyue's eyes just now," Shen Teng said with admiration on the plane. Today, he had witnessed Wang Shu's charisma. He hadn't expected Wang Shu to invest in Deyu She. Although Deyu She's crosstalk performances were quite good, the art form itself was too niche. Nowadays, not only in the south but even in the north, the audience for crosstalk was mostly elderly people. Young people simply didn't listen to crosstalk anymore. Therefore, over the years, the audience had been shrinking, and the number of crosstalk performers had also decreased. New crosstalk routines had become increasingly scarce. As a result of this chain reaction, the once numerous crosstalk venues had closed down one after another.
Deyu She's ability to survive until now was truly thanks to sheer determination. Even in such an environment, Wang Shu had invested a million dollars. Although he had acquired 51% of Deyu She's shares and held absolute control, he hadn't interfered with Deyu She's normal operations. Instead, he was still supporting the young disciples who couldn't yet earn money on stage. For someone like this, why wouldn't one follow him? Shen Teng couldn't help but sigh. After all, there weren't many kind bosses like Wang Shu nowadays.
"You can praise me for anything else, but if you praise me for being generous, then you've misunderstood me. I'm still feeling the pinch now!" Wang Shu said with a pained expression. That was a million dollars! A full seven figures! It was just spent, and it wouldn't be recovered in the short term.
"That only highlights your magnanimity even more. Even though you're so stingy, you're willing to extend a helping hand to Deyu She, which shows you are a person of noble character," Shen Teng said with a straight face. Wang Shu smiled at Shen Teng and then closed his eyes. Seeing that his flattery had no effect, Shen Teng also shut up and leaned back in his seat.
...
Upon returning to Hangcheng, Wang Shu had dinner with Zhang Liangying to discuss future arrangements. After writing two more songs for Zhang Liangying, he flew back to Long Island Film City. Jiang Jianjia had called him, saying she was feeling unwell. He had to rush back to see what was wrong with Jiang Jianjia. After all, he had been paid to treat her, and he had promised to cure her, so he had to fulfill his promise. Moreover, Jiang Jianjia was a cash cow, and Wang Shu was even planning to persuade Jiang Jianjia to invest in "Legend of Sword and Fairy." Although it was a TV series, it was of the Xianxia genre, and it would inevitably require a lot of special effects. Special effects were incredibly expensive. And these were calculated per frame. The so-called "five-mao special effects" were already very costly. If each frame cost fifty cents, and a movie scene had more than twenty-four frames per second, then to complete the entire "Legend of Sword and Fairy" with decent special effects, the cost would be undeniably high. That's why Wang Shu was so concerned about Jiang Jianjia's condition.
After the plane landed, Wang Shu rushed to a five-star hotel in Long Island Film City. This five-star hotel was usually where big stars stayed when filming in Long Island. Ordinary people couldn't afford it, but Jiang Jianjia had a platinum membership card there. It was said that one card cost over a million yuan. Wang Shu followed the location Jiang Jianjia had sent him and found the room. He then knocked on the door. After a while, Jiang Jianjia slowly opened the door.
"Are you alright?" Wang Shu asked, looking at Jiang Jianjia, who was sweating profusely, with concern.
"My whole body hurts, and I feel a bone-chilling cold," Jiang Jianjia said, her face pale, without a trace of color on her lips.
"When did this start?" Seeing Jiang Jianjia's condition, Wang Shu was stunned. He had only been away for a few days, how could Jiang Jianjia's condition have suddenly worsened so much?
"You go lie down first, I'll help you drive out the cold!" Wang Shu then pulled Jiang Jianjia to the bed and began to work. He gently massaged Jiang Jianjia's acupuncture points. Thirty minutes later, Wang Shu's forehead was dripping with sweat. Jiang Jianjia's face had regained some color.
"Are you feeling better now?" Wang Shu asked Jiang Jianjia again. Jiang Jianjia just nodded, a tired expression on her face.
"Then get some good rest, and you should recover your energy tomorrow!" Seeing that Jiang Jianjia was better, Wang Shu's heart, which had been hanging in the air, finally settled. Wang Shu then went to get a basin of hot water and carefully wiped Jiang Jianjia's face and hands. Jiang Jianjia looked at Wang Shu diligently wiping her, and her heart rate unconsciously quickened.
"Alright, I'll go buy you something to eat to help you recover your strength!" After wiping her, Wang Shu said to Jiang Jianjia again.
"I want to eat what you made!" Jiang Jianjia said in a weak voice to Wang Shu.
"What I made?" Wang Shu was slightly taken aback.
"Fine, then I'll go buy the ingredients," Wang Shu said next. He then went to a supermarket and bought some vegetables and millet. Given Jiang Jianjia's current condition, she could only eat light food. So Wang Shu decided to simply cook some porridge for Jiang Jianjia. After buying the ingredients, Wang Shu returned to the hotel. Since the suite in this hotel did not have a kitchen, Wang Shu borrowed the hotel's kitchen. Under the watchful eye of the hotel's head chef, he fluidly made a pot of porridge.
"This porridge smells so good! Sir, are you also a chef?" The head chef, looking at the porridge in Wang Shu's hands, couldn't help but swallow and ask curiously.
"No, I'm just an extra," Wang Shu said with a smile, and then took the porridge and left. In the kitchen, the head chef watched Wang Shu's retreating figure, his doubts growing. This pot of plain porridge, though simple in appearance, smelled incredibly fragrant. To make simple porridge smell like this required great skill in controlling the heat. So he felt that the young man had just lied to him. This guy must be a direct disciple of a culinary master. After all, an ordinary person's understanding of heat control and water absorption by rice simply couldn't reach this level. Even he, a chef with over twenty years of experience, couldn't cook such fragrant porridge.
...
"It smells so good!" As soon as Wang Shu brought the porridge into the hotel room, Jiang Jianjia, lying on the bed, exclaimed in surprise.
"Of course. Would my cooking be bad?" Wang Shu said smugly to Jiang Jianjia. After all, his cooking skills were master-level; making a pot of porridge was a piece of cake. Then, Wang Shu scooped a bowl of porridge and handed it to Jiang Jianjia. Jiang Jianjia took the porridge and looked at the plain congee in front of her, a look of doubt on her face. She couldn't believe that the rich aroma just now was coming from this bowl of white porridge. However, Jiang Jianjia still took a large spoonful of porridge and put it in her mouth.