King of Hollywood-Chapter 935 - 340: Accidentally Overdid the Act

Chapter 935: Chapter 340: Accidentally Overdid the Act
Adrian had no intention of compromising. Every media mogul harbors the desire to expand their empire globally, to every corner where the sun shines—indeed, the Sun Never Sets Empire. So, after being confined in the Pearl River Delta for too long, Murdoch orchestrated the Qinghai TV incident. He couldn’t tolerate such a massive market being right in front of him, while he could only hold a small part of the pie.
Thus, he crossed the line; he wanted to make a bold move, and so he was out. The mainland government wouldn’t allow anyone to touch the red line in this regard. Adrian wasn’t like that. Being familiar with mainland regulations, he abandoned the approach of slowly infiltrating from abroad and collaborating with local capital from the outset. He chose to use capital to erode from within and understood—albeit superficially—what the new media of the future would be. Coupled with constantly abiding by the rules, he eventually developed to today’s scale.
As a result, when the mainland government became aware, his tentacles had already penetrated into every significant mainland media company.
"You must give me a reason, Mr. Ren, a reasonable explanation, as due to a law-abiding businessman," Adrian said then.
Non-compromise, but negotiation was possible. Even though dealing with the mainland government, he wasn’t without bargaining chips. After all, his status was there, and the mainland government couldn’t find a second person like him in Hollywood, who could speak fluent Chinese and had a fondness for China.
In this regard, they were definitely not foolish; they would surely not push him into someone else’s arms.
Mr. Ren sighed, sat on the sofa, took a sip from his teacup before tentatively asking, "So, how about acquiring at three times the current price?"
"Do you think I lack money?" Adrian laughed as he sat in front of him, "Besides, I believe you don’t just want to acquire Bona’s shares."
"Well..." Mr. Ren blushed, clearly guessing right again.
"Spit it all out then, since we’ve come to this point, let me hear your appetite," Adrian raised his eyebrow.
"...Alright." The old man gave a wry smile, then slowly listed a few names. Though not many, Adrian’s face turned somewhat unpleasant.
"The range you cover is quite extensive," he said lightly, but Mr. Ren acted nonchalantly as he had been through a lot. Though despicable, he had a bit of goodwill towards Adrian, yet this was an assignment handed down from above.
If it wasn’t that the mainland government’s appetite was too big, then it was these companies’ major shareholders wanting more. Are they... idiots? Adrian drummed his fingers on the armrest a few times.
"I won’t agree, Mr. Ren, this is too disrespectful." He shook his head, "Or, are you telling me you’ve already presumed guilty?"
Mr. Ren couldn’t help but cough again, a tinge of anger flickering on his face. Being caught in the middle was indeed not pleasant.
"However, setting aside other considerations, Bona’s shares can still be negotiated." Adrian suddenly changed his tone, "Additionally, if necessary, I can also divest shares from other entities—not entirely."
"Oh?" Mr. Ren’s eyes brightened.
"I need an understanding," Adrian continued, "You know, although I’m the chairman of AC Media, the group isn’t solely dictated by me; my stance can’t represent everyone’s."
"Hmm... We understand that." Mr. Ren seemed a bit puzzled, but without further questioning, Adrian had already stood up, "Alright, let’s call it a day, Mr. Ren. It’s been a pleasure meeting you."
"Well, the pleasure is mine." Mr. Ren had no choice but to stand, at least the other party had preliminarily agreed, which meant he could back. The rest he left to subordinates to handle.
"By the way," as he escorted him to the door, Adrian recalled something, "it’s the Olympics next year, I heard Director Zhang is overseeing the opening ceremony; I’m sure it will be a spectacular event."
As he said that, Mr. Ren’s face blossomed into a smile, and Adrian slightly raised his voice, "You’ll surely achieve the best results in Olympic history; I’m convinced... there are still those who appreciate it."
The last words were weighted heavily, which made Old Ren pause and then quickly link it to the earlier call for understanding, realizing his intention, "I believe so too."
This was what Adrian had in mind, regarding how the US media would react at next year’s Olympics, which was politically correct; even he couldn’t resist it. So when the Olympic Organizing Committee contacted him last year, hoping he would serve as honorary director for the opening ceremony, he immediately declined, even persuading Spielberg not to accept.
Of course, for a media mogul like Adrian, this wasn’t enough. He still had to extricate himself and separate personal actions from corporate actions; otherwise, the carefully laid plans that were about to bear fruit could be ruined. Therefore, using Bona’s shares to exchange for understanding was acceptable, and besides, Poly Group’s military background was a nuisance, which could be exploited against him someday. Divesting was a good option, as long as his scale remained, influencing Bona’s decisions wouldn’t be difficult.
As for the other shares, selling off a portion just to show good intent would suffice, and if done well, maybe he wouldn’t even have to sell them.
"Hope to see you at the Bird’s Nest then," Mr. Ren finally said.
"Certainly," Adrian nodded with a smile, "Actually, with more time next year, I’d like to visit more places on the mainland, like Tianshan or perhaps... Potala Palace."
He spoke sincerely, giving the old man’s arm a firm pat, which left Mr. Ren standing stupefied for quite a while before departing. Adrian then stood alone in the room for a few minutes, suddenly waved his hand, and spat a Chinese word: "Fuck!"
Subsequently, he took out his mobile phone and dialed a number, "Innie, I need you to come over right now."
When Ivanka came over from next door, Adrian promptly began questioning, "Are there any more topics that need my direct involvement? Can the remaining be handled by the office head without issue? Is the plane ready?"
Receiving affirmative responses, he immediately added, "Great, call the flight crew and have them ready. I’m leaving now."
"Now?" Ivanka found it odd, despite Adrian’s serious expression, she habitually teased, "Did you steal something from someone? We were supposed to leave in the afternoon."
"Innie!" Adrian rolled his eyes at her, and Ivanka instantly shut her mouth and turned to take care of things.
Afterward, he exhaled deeply, then rubbed the sides of his forehead while baring his teeth, "Damn, pretended too much."
Fortunately, this time brought a team over, conducted a detailed inspection before checking in, there should be no bugging devices, Old Ren also shouldn’t carry such things, so as long as he insists on not having said anything, no one can do anything to him. However, even so, leaving quickly is still the most urgent matter at present. It wouldn’t matter if Old Ren didn’t these words or realized a few hours late, but if he quickly understood his meaning, God knows if they would send someone to extract information, and then it wouldn’t be just facing these current issues.
So, for the next more than an hour, he remained on edge until his vehicle took off, and he relaxed only after seeing the land receding into the distance.
Don’t fucking say I’ve done nothing for you. The words he said the first time he came to the mainland surfaced again in Adrian’s mind. He admitted that at that moment he indeed felt a bit impulsive. No matter what, two-thirds of his soul came from here, although it was another time and space. But it ends here, still the same words, if the People don’t want to stand up themselves, no one can help them.
Although his capital is continuously expanding, at the same time he is also constantly supporting mid-sized movies on the mainland, and he established a fund specifically intended to invest around 20 million RMB in medium-scale commercial films. In addition to this, introducing Chinese actors into Hollywood has been ongoing, Gao Yuanyuan has two commercial blockbusters coming out this year, though this more satisfies personal desires.
Other things, such as market regulation or even the almost by-name criticism at Yanjing University, needless to say, if to this extent, filmmakers on the mainland still can’t stand up, then it’s not his fault. So, with these plus this adventure, after all, there is no love or hate without reason, Adrian can now pull back, let them strive on their own in the future.
Thus, the first visit to the mainland, a very popular Hollywood media mogul, and also a super director, plus being very popular among the young people in the mainland, Adrian Cowell, had to leave here a few hours earlier due to a change in schedule. But he did not return to the United States but flew straight west to London, as for the reason, that should be explained from the start.
The visit of the chairman of AC Media to the mainland, although not mainstream news in the United States, it was still ed, and the speech at Yanjing University was also published in newspapers. As a result, some conservatives inevitably sprang out to criticize, most of which were under News Corporation’s newspapers, FOX News also had a hand in it, and even guests in current affairs comments claimed Adrian was flattering the mainland because... he specifically learned Chinese.
A very laughable excuse, but some people just like to watch, and the reason FOX News can chase CNN in ratings is that they have completely abandoned their principles. However, in the end, this is not mainstream, at most causing some trouble for Adrian and AC Media, but AC Media and its allies will rebuke in return.
If it were only this, it would be nothing, but the problem was that the Marvel people saw this as a very good opportunity, since the uproar caused by the second trailer was gradually calming down due to Adrian’s lack of response, it was time to stir things up again, so the third trailer, which had been brewing for a long time and is dubbed the ultimate version, was released.
This trailer is about 2 minutes and 15 seconds long, only a little over half a minute longer than the second one, but the sensational effect was even greater. Very simply, they added one character’s role to it, yes, the female er portrayed by Ivanka.
Those sharp-nosed journalists, after the second trailer of "Iron Man," were already prepared, so just a few hours after the third trailer aired, these folks had dug up all the information about Ivanka’s identity and family situation and exposed it in the media.
Undoubtedly, the public erupted again, the super director not only acted with the former secretary in a movie, but also brought in the current secretary. And this current secretary is not ordinary, she is actually Donald Trump, the real estate mogul’s daughter! My God, how did he lure her over?!
Moreover, Ivanka Trump has been Adrian’s secretary for almost seven years, certainly holding a close relationship no less than Charlize, now that she also appears in the movie, what does this mean?
Americans burst with huge enthusiasm about this, those who like gossip speculate who is Adrian’s true love, looking at family background, undoubtedly Ivanka is more suitable for Adrian, but Charlize’s strong woman image is also very good, or is the super director enjoying both worlds? That’s quite possible, think about so many Miracle Girls.
Those who are keen on the plot are worried about what this "Iron Man," in which he stars, will turn out to be, whether he and his former and current female secretaries will ruin this Superhero, whether "Iron Man" will change from a well-to-do superhero movie into a third-rate love triangle movie.
In short, the movie version of "Iron Man," scheduled to be released in May, swiftly once again captured people’s attention, although some comic fans think it might turn into a cheesy romance movie and state they will refuse to watch it in the theater, but more people are filled with passion, eagerly wanting to see how it will turn out.
Since the crowd is so stirred up, Adrian certainly wouldn’t return to find himself in trouble, anyway Ivanka is by his side, you don’t have to worry about her being besieged by journalists. As for Charlize, after what happened last time, those guys know where the line is, unless they get her permission, ers wouldn’t easily step forward to ask this or that directly.
Of course, not everyone is untroubled by these guys, Donald Trump, who loves the spotlight, being the host for "The Apprentice" reality show, in the absence of more information from Adrian, Ivanka, and Charlize, journalists have turned their sights on him.
Even though Trump loves exposure, he finds this to be a nuisance, already frustrated by his daughter’s choice, he has maintained a state of either default or indifference for years, and now, this whole situation brings everything to the public, where can he put his face?
So after being annoyed by journalists, he finally flung out a line: "How should I know about these things, that guy took my daughter away without giving me an explanation till today!"
Undoubtedly, this was exactly what the journalists wanted, after days of waiting they finally hit gold, what this line would be interpreted as, can be imagined. Newspapers and TV were somewhat better, somewhat teasing or mocking, with some limits, while on the internet, unrestrained, there were all sorts of jokes like "Father-in-law unhappy with son-in-law," "Adrian suspected of abduction," "Donald having daughter-complex tendencies" and so on, to the point Trump had to hold a news conference to clear things up.
"I love my daughter, Ivanka is an outstanding girl, I originally hoped she could take over my company, and she has the capability. Unfortunately, she chose to be a secretary assistant at AC Media, though she’s done very well, Adrian also gave her high praise, I still hope she can come back, that’s what I meant by that line." This is what Trump said.
His explanation was quite reasonable, the mainstream media gradually calmed down after some stir, but online it remained bustling as ever, and given the prevailing first impressions, various topics continued incessantly, with small newspapers sporadically reprinting one or two, making Trump even more dismayed. As a bystander in London, Adrian laughed till his stomach hurt, until Ivanka warned him London wasn’t a safe place either. If those guys from caught a trace of them, they might face the same situation, and by then, don’t expect her cooperation, only then did Adrian tone down, tending to matters around him.
Coming to London naturally wasn’t solely to avoid the limelight, otherwise, he could have gone to Italy or France, there she indeed had things to handle, like Little Emma’s birthday. Due to directing "Departures" and visiting the mainland, Adrian couldn’t make it for her birthday, though he gained Little Emma’s forgiveness, clearing such a debt earlier is always best, because he knows too well the destructive power of little devils.
But, beyond placating Little Emma, there were other things to do...
"Have you done it? No? Oh, you really disappoint me, Rose," Little Emma said, rolling her eyes while playing with her phone in the break room, clearly speaking to Small Emma at the other end.
"So what if that’s the case? Ed has done even less tasteful things, do you still have to care about this?" As she said this, her smile turned mischievous, "The more reluctant you are each night, the more variables there are, understand?"
"Emma?" a staff member called out, inquiring after her as she sat on the restroom sofa, apparently that was Small Emma on the other end.
"Alright, Rose, I need to hang up now, trust me, nothing will go wrong." Little Emma hurriedly finished, then raised her head, "What?"
"Only the last part of dubbing is left, where are Rachel and Innie?" the other person repeated, looking around, "Are you the only one here?"
"Yes, they... just left without saying a word." Little Emma murmured this, and her face instantly changed.
To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com)