“Well, actually, while I was preparing for my thesis defense, I also sold a piece of software,” Xiao He said. “Adding it to some of my previous savings, it came to exactly five million. I figured since the money was just sitting there, I might as well invest it in myself so that it could generate more money in the future.”
Liu Rulan remained silent for a moment on the other end, then asked with some suspicion, "Are you that capable?"
In this technology-driven era, it's not surprising that software can sell for an astronomical price. However, she hadn't realized Xiao He had such great abilities before. Apart from staying at school to prepare for his thesis defense, Liu Rulan had never seen Xiao He typing away on his computer to develop software.
Xiao He coughed lightly: "What? I usually keep a low profile."
This software was indeed something Xiao He had been working on at school recently. It's a cybersecurity software with AI defense capabilities, and it represents the best effort Xiao He could put in at his current level of basic hacking.
It just so happened that Xiao He's mentor was the vice dean of their department, who was highly experienced and had connections, so Xiao He simply asked the vice dean to help him make the connection.
Xiao He knew that based on his past experience, it would be impossible for him to independently develop such software. Therefore, he told the vice president that he would participate in the basic code and be mainly responsible for the later sales, while most of the other team members were employees of large companies and were engaged in private research and development, which was not convenient for them to show their faces.
Programmers taking on freelance work is an open yet secretive topic in the industry, and Xiao He's words did not arouse any suspicion.
Although the vice dean was usually quite strict, he was a decent person. Since he would definitely get a share of the profits as the recommender, after confirming the quality of Xiao He's software, he decisively helped Xiao He introduce a major company to promote it, and the software was quickly and successfully sold.
As a result, Xiao He made a fortune.
"Have all the taxes and procedures been completed?"
Liu Rulan still asked cautiously.
Xiao He said helplessly, "Sister Liu, don't worry, you don't need to clean up my mess."
"Phew, that's good—" Liu Rulan's voice instantly brightened. "I'll bring my lawyer with me when I come to the studio tomorrow."
"OK."
...
The next day, Xiao He arrived at their newly established studio—
The studio was located in an office building in a commercial district in downtown Shanghai. The location was extremely luxurious, so much so that it was no exaggeration to say that every inch of land was worth its weight in gold. As soon as Xiao He entered, he saw the name of their studio: "Linghui Studio".
"Ling Hui".
Xiao He stood at the door and silently repeated the name.
"Rising above all the stars, its radiance surrounds all others."
When Xiao He signed with Sister Liu before, he saw her name. At that time, he felt that Sister Liu was actually full of undisguised ambition and arrogance. Even if she left Jiaxing Entertainment, it was only for better career development and to make a name for herself in a wider world.
Xiao He felt a sense of relief at being able to cooperate with such an ambitious person.
"How about it?"
Liu Rulan walked up behind Xiao He in high heels. "These are all my designs. Feel free to browse around."
"Very impressive."
Xiao He praised him sincerely.
On the right wall of the studio entrance, there is a large acrylic photo frame, which is used to showcase the studio's artists. However, at present, the studio only has Xiao He, and there are not many magazine photos that are presentable, so this area is still empty. Only the warm light from above shines on the photo frame, leaving a few scattered starlight.
Passing through the corridor, you enter the open-plan work area. It's not large, but the layout and furnishings are very well done, and it doesn't feel cluttered or disorderly at all. Liu Rulan greets a few employees, and Xiao He sees them continuing to work with their heads down.
To the left is a completely separate lounge, fully equipped with everything from food and drinks to entertainment and relaxation. There's even a small reading area in the corner, with bookshelves displaying movie scripts, marketing, and other books related to entertainment.
Overall, the studio has both professional modern management and humane humanistic care. After walking around, Xiao He felt that it would be pretty good to be a programmer in such an environment.
Of course, that wish is now far from being his.
After signing the documents, Xiao He officially became one of the shareholders of Linghui Studio, while the biggest boss was still Liu Rulan.
As he put away his pen, Xiao He joked, "If I ever hire new people, I'll finally get to experience what it's like to be a boss."
Liu Rulan rolled her eyes: "Don't even think about being a newbie for the next few years. It's already exhausting enough to mentor you. If you're interested in being a boss, then congratulations, you're the boss now."
Xiao He: "Hiss—so casual?"
Liu Rulan spread her hands: "There are only the two of us as investors. If I agree and you agree, then it's approved."
Xiao He's lips twitched: "Then let's forget it. I just feel like being a boss isn't very interesting..."
"No way." Liu Rulan patted Xiao He solemnly and said earnestly, "So next month's audition depends on you. It's Director Feng! If we can get the role, we can break even in half a year. I'm also hoping you'll give us a bigger bonus."
Xiao He: "..."
Wait, something's not right. Why does he feel like he's jumped into a pit?
Of course, these were all just jokes. Since the topic of next month's audition had come up, Xiao He changed the subject and asked the question that had been bothering him: "What's the situation with that audition? Sister Liu, didn't you find out any clues? Even if I were to prepare now, I'd still be completely clueless."
Without mentioning the subject matter, the characters, or the script, all that's known is that director Feng Zhengyang is about to return to the screen and prepare to shoot a new film. As a result, the entire Chinese entertainment industry is buzzing with excitement, eagerly awaiting further news from Director Feng.
Speaking of Feng Zhengyang, he is undoubtedly a super director in the industry. His works have won numerous Hong Kong film awards, and his last work before retiring from the industry even went abroad, winning the Best Director Award at the Cannes International Film Festival.
At the same time, due to Feng Zhengyang's distinctive personal creative style, some people have bluntly called his style "Feng Zhengyang style". Even today, many directing students study and emulate it, taking him as their idol and goal.
This director, who was significant to his time, had retired from the entertainment industry seven years ago, and he was rarely seen in the public eye.
Therefore, the news that Director Feng was about to return to the screen naturally attracted the attention of countless people.
Strangely, Director Feng was unusually secretive this time, not announcing the subject matter of the film he was preparing, or even its name. Only those who had heard rumors were secretly anxious.
Even Liu Rulan, who is always well-informed, could not find any reliable intelligence.
"It's said that even the investors haven't seen the script for this movie," Liu Rulan shrugged. "Let alone us."
"The investors didn't even know what to film, yet they poured in so much money?" Xiao He was shocked. "Aren't they afraid of losing money?!"
"That's Director Feng."
Liu Rulan spread her hands, "Do you know what the name Director Feng means? Even seven years later, his film 'Moonlight' is still among the top five highest-rated films on the China Film Chart!"
"If that film hadn't been released in the wrong era, it would probably be among the top ten highest-grossing films today!"
"As long as it's directed by Feng Xiaogang, his works are bound to be masterpieces!"
“I know he’s really talented...” Xiao He frowned slightly, but quickly relaxed, “But I heard that he retired from the entertainment industry because...”
"Shh, don't talk nonsense."
Liu Rulan subconsciously glanced around.
Even in the office, there are some things you can't say carelessly.
"Even the police haven't reached a conclusion about what happened back then, so you should just pretend you don't know. Otherwise, do you think no one else knows about this? Everyone has to pretend they don't know so that this industry can continue to thrive."
Xiao He seemed to be deep in thought, but didn't say anything more. He just nodded to reassure Liu Rulan, "I understand, Sister Liu. Don't worry, I won't say anything inappropriate later."
