Ian Song waved his hand. "No worries, I can afford to lose a bit of money. Besides, I have high hopes for Cynthia Murong. She’s already at the top tier, and once she becomes a superstar, her value will skyrocket. We’ll make plenty of money then!"
"Alright then! Since you insist, Mr. Song, let’s settle it this way." Tonia Tong nodded, a bit helplessly.
With Tonia Tong settled, Ian Song moved on to meet the other two candidates.
The second was Victor Yu, a 35-year-old returnee who had served as vice president at a mid-sized American film and TV company, earning an annual salary of about five million US dollars.
His decision to return home wasn’t because he couldn’t make it abroad, but because his elderly mother refused to emigrate, so he came back to take care of her.
Filial piety is the greatest virtue—just for that, Victor Yu’s character deserves recognition.
According to the records, Victor Yu has a keen eye for investment in film and TV. While managing the American company, he invested in eight projects; only two lost money, while the rest brought in impressive profits, earning the company at least eighty million US dollars.
Logically, someone with his background should be quite proud.
But after meeting Ian Song, he was humble, easy to talk to, and showed outstanding professionalism.
So, Ian Song happily signed him on as vice president of the entertainment company, with a six-million-dollar annual salary, plus a car and a house.
His first assignment after signing on was to build the entertainment company from scratch—a task that left Victor Yu both amused and a little overwhelmed.
The third candidate was Daniel Huang, forty-two years old, a grassroots entrepreneur with only a high school diploma.
He started out flipping various electronics, then founded an advertising company and grew it to a five-hundred-million-yuan valuation. Eight years ago, he actively pivoted into the film and television industry.
His first TV drama investment lost him twenty million yuan.
The second project lost twenty-seven million.
But on the third try, he made forty million.
That third success gave him a huge confidence boost, so he shifted his whole advertising company into film and TV, right as the Yanhuang movie market was booming.
Last year, his company went public, hitting a market value of over twelve billion yuan.
But because he lacked powerful connections, he was targeted by certain people and ended up in prison. He was released just a month ago, now broke and with nothing left.
So when Ian Song met Daniel Huang, he looked utterly down-and-out: wearing a faded, threadbare suit, messy hair, and sweat beading on his forehead.
He probably even walked to the meeting, given his circumstances.
"Hello, Mr. Song!"
Daniel Huang seemed humble, even a bit nervous. There was a flicker of pain in his eyes—clearly, he’d suffered plenty in prison.
"No need to be so formal, Mr. Huang. Please, have a seat!" Ian Song said.
This time, Ian Song didn’t dive straight into business. Instead, he chatted casually with Daniel Huang about the film and television industry.
Daniel Huang said, "Movies and TV look popular on the surface right now, but the whole industry’s gotten weird. All the big investments are propped up by traffic idols, while story and craft get ignored. That’s why there’s so much brainless junk flooding the market…"
Ian Song completely agreed. Nowadays, it’s always the same handful of leads—investors only care if the actors are stars, not if they actually fit the role.
That’s why movies these days have turned into forgettable popcorn flicks—you watch them, and they’re gone from your mind.
Filming is even more careless now: tons of stand-ins, actors just show up for face time, and most scenes are shot with green screens and Photoshop instead of real locations.
Some stars finish a whole movie without even knowing what it’s about, or understanding the plot. How can you expect them to play good characters?
Seeing Ian Song agree with him, Daniel Huang grew more confident, and his thoughts and words became sharper and clearer.
The two of them talked for more than two hours.
Most of the time, it was Daniel Huang talking and Ian Song listening.
In the end, Ian Song smiled and asked, "Mr. Huang, would you be interested in joining my company?"
"I’d love to!" Daniel Huang replied eagerly.
Daniel Huang was almost desperate. Since getting out of prison, his life had been rough—he’d tried applying to lots of companies, but none would hire him. Some even mocked him, and he’d ended up working odd jobs on construction sites.
He’d taken half a day off from temp work just to rush over for this meeting with Ian Song.
"Great, it’s settled then!" Ian Song nodded.
"Thank you, Mr. Song! Thank you so much!" Daniel Huang said, overcome with emotion. Suddenly, he hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself.
Ian Song just smiled, handed him a bank card, and said, "This is your advance salary, Mr. Huang. I hope you can start work at the company tomorrow!"
"Thank you, Mr. Song, thank you!" Daniel Huang repeated, nearly in tears.
Daniel Huang stood up, deeply bowed twice to Ian Song. He thought back to when he was a big boss—people would flock to him everywhere he went. But after prison, he had nothing left. None of his so-called friends helped him when he was at his lowest. Now, with Ian Song’s recognition, he swore to himself he’d never let Mr. Song down.
With Tonia Tong, Victor Yu, and Daniel Huang all signed, the entertainment company’s basic framework was set up. The office was on the seventh floor of Ian Song’s building.
The building had more than thirty floors, and Ian Song had bought the whole thing outright for over eighteen billion yuan.
The next day.
Tonia Tong successfully signed Cynthia Murong, but Cynthia tried to refuse the 100-million-yuan signing bonus, wanting to join without taking advantage of the company that rescued her. Still, as a top-tier star, there was no way she’d get nothing.
After some back-and-forth, the signing bonus was set at eighty million yuan.
The signing ceremony was scheduled for three days later.
Even though the ceremony would be held three days later, Cynthia Murong was already legally signed to Song Entertainment—the event was just for show.
Prompted by Tonia Tong, Cynthia Murong posted on Weibo, confirming she’d found a new home.
Fans flooded her with congratulations, but even more were curious: which company had she signed with?
Some guessed MegaStrong Entertainment, others thought it was Tianxing Entertainment, Friendship Entertainment, or maybe even BCC Studios.
The first three are the top domestic entertainment companies. BCC is a US-based company that only entered Yanhuang a few years ago, but has already produced several blockbusters and signed a roster full of A-listers, including two superstar ‘Heavenly Kings.’
Fans guessed these four because they’re the strongest, and all had previously tried to recruit Cynthia Murong.
Three days passed in a flash.
Cynthia Murong’s signing ceremony was held in a 39th-floor conference room at the Flame Capital International Hotel, with more than two hundred reporters from major domestic media outlets in attendance.
But when they arrived, the reporters were stunned. Cynthia hadn’t signed with a big company at all, but with a brand-new startup.
So, once the signing ceremony ended, news of Cynthia Murong’s comeback dominated the headlines, and Song Entertainment instantly blew up online.