The World's Richest Man: Start with the Daily Intelligence System

107: Chapter 107 Another TurbulenceSeeing that the matter was settled, Lan Lan said urgently, ”I’m sorry, the company is watching me closely right now, I can’t stay away for too long. We’ll keep in touch on WeChat later.”

With that, she hurriedly left the hotel. She was risking being fired to come here. Besides caring about that small salary, the main reason was that she had been Zhou Shen Shen’s assistant for the past few years, and Zhou Shen Shen had always treated her very well. She felt uncomfortable watching Zhou Shen Shen being suppressed by the company. Of course, she hoped he could escape this predicament.

At this moment, Zhang Wei’s phone rang. When he looked at it, it was Section Chief Zheng from the National Space Administration. Zhang Wei instantly thought of a possibility: had there been a result regarding the joint endorsement?

He nervously answered the call, ”Hello, Section Chief Zheng. I am Zhang Wei. Are you personally calling to give me some good news? I knew that once you took action, success would be almost certain.”

A hearty laugh came from the other end of the line. ”I didn’t realize you were quite slick, kid. Are you trying to pin me down with your words? Also, using titles makes us sound distant. Call me Uncle Zheng from now on.”

Zhang Wei forced a smile. ”Uncle Zheng, you might as well be my actual uncle! Hurry up and tell me what’s the word on the advertisement and the joint endorsement?”

”Alright, I reported this matter to the bureau’s leadership yesterday. There are no issues with the general direction. The specific details still need to be discussed when you come over. How about that? That ’Uncle Zheng’ title wasn’t called in vain, was it?”

”It really takes Uncle Zheng’s touch!” Zhang Wei was overjoyed. If the general direction was fine, the matter was essentially settled. One had to remember this was the National Space Administration. They were absolutely the face of Hua Guo’s technological strength.

Who in the world, besides NASB, dared to claim they could surpass the National Space Administration? Even the truth of NASB’s so-called moon landing plan back then was questionable.

Moreover, his own jewelry company wouldn’t even get its business license until tomorrow; it was completely a shell company. Besides the moon meteorite being impressive, Uncle Zheng must have exerted considerable effort too.

He hadn’t even treated the man to a single meal. It was clear that Uncle Zheng was completely dedicated to the development of the aerospace industry. A person like that deserved respect.

”Alright, stop with the thanks, kid. Hurry up and come over to discuss things. Call me before you arrive, and I’ll wait for you at the Hainan headquarters. Our Space Administration’s cafeteria is much better than Yu Hongtao’s place. I guarantee you’ll eat so much you won’t want to leave.”

Zhang Wei quickly said a few polite words and hung up, pacing excitedly around the room.

”Brother Zhang, did the joint endorsement you mentioned yesterday work out?” Seeing Zhang Wei nodding continuously in excitement, Tang Yi was momentarily stunned.

He had experienced the entire process yesterday, and he had even personally dug out that meteorite. He was genuinely happy for Zhang Wei.

Tang Yi’s eyes darted around as he started complaining, ”You’re being too unfair. I worked hard on this meteorite, and if I didn’t get credit, I at least deserve some compensation for my effort.”

”And what do you want, kid? Aren’t I helping you too? I even paid for your train ticket to Beijing today,” Zhang Wei retorted sharply.

Tang Yi wasn’t angry. He leaned closer to Zhang Wei and said, ”How about this: don’t just take me for granted. Let me inject capital directly and give me some shares?”

He wasn’t foolish. Any enterprise that could secure a joint endorsement with the National Space Administration was clearly a future giant with limitless prospects. Getting some initial shares now meant he would soar in the future.

Zhang Wei looked at him with contempt. ”Do you have any money, kid? The shares here aren’t cheap.”

”Who said I need to pay money? Once Zhou Shen Shen signs with our Tang Sheng Culture, directly arrange for him to be the image endorser for Star Jewelry. He’s a top-tier singer; wouldn’t his endorsement fee be tens of millions? It wouldn’t be too much to ask for just two or three tenths of the shares, right?”

”You’re trying to pull a fast one here, aren’t you?” Zhang Wei almost burst out laughing. Whether the other party would sign was still up in the air, yet he was already drawing up a pie to scam for shares. However, upon careful thought, if Zhou Shen Shen really endorsed his company, Zhang Wei would certainly be the one benefiting.

He considered that his company still had 10% of its shares unallocated, so giving Tang Yi some shares wasn’t entirely out of the question. ”Let’s not rush this. We’ll talk after you sign Zhou Shen Shen.”

Tang Yi slapped his chest: ”Just watch! When it comes to managing artists, I’m a professional.”

After chatting for a few more sentences, Zhang Wei impatiently called Chen Jiayan to share the good news about the joint endorsement. An Xiaoxi and Liu Haorui, along with others, seemed to be with her, and they were all very excited upon hearing the news. This kind of news would guarantee at least a week of consecutive daily trading limits for a listed company.

”I will work hard today to finalize the joint endorsement proposal, aiming to have the draft ready by tomorrow. Oh, and An Xiaoxi asked me to pass on a message: she has already sold that set of Ultraman Six Brothers. The selling price was two thousand yuan. I’ve transferred the money to your WeChat.”

Zhang Wei was also very pleased. Although two thousand yuan wasn’t a large sum, An Xiaoxi being able to separate personal and public matters was commendable. He suddenly remembered he still had a whole case of 1979 Maotai in the trunk that hadn’t been dealt with, so he asked Chen Jiayan to tell An Xiaoxi to help him find a buyer who could purchase it at a high price.

The two then discussed many detailed issues regarding the joint endorsement with the Space Administration. They talked for over two hours, and by the time they hung up, the phone battery was almost dead.

Tang Yi urged from the side, ”Brother Zhang, hurry up! Once you’re done, we’ll leave. We can’t keep Zhou Shen Shen waiting for us.”

The two left the hotel lobby and hailed a taxi, heading to the restaurant Lan Lan had mentioned. The destination was a courtyard house located within the Second Ring Road of Beijing. From the outside, it didn’t look like a restaurant at all.

Tang Yi, being more experienced, commented, ”This is probably a place specifically for celebrities and public figures to dine. They prioritize privacy.”, Upon entering, a young lady greeted them. Zhang Wei wasn’t sure if Zhou Shen Shen had reserved a table, so he simply asked for a private room.

The young lady led them through the back part of the courtyard house, and surprisingly, the yard had a hidden world—it was connected to an adjacent courtyard house. One had to admit the restaurant owner had invested heavily. The rent for this place must be astronomical.

Tang Yi sent the room number to Lan Lan. The two ordered a pot of tea and began waiting for Zhou Shen Shen to arrive.

Time ticked by, and by the time it was past the agreed-upon seven o’clock, there was still no sign of anyone. Zhang Wei frowned. ”Could he have changed his mind and decided not to come?”

Tang Yi, however, wasn’t worried at all. ”It’s different from inviting friends out for a casual meal. Artists are often not in control of their own schedules; being late is very normal. Back when I was involved in filming a variety show for the company, it was scheduled to end at ten in the evening, but we didn’t finish until daybreak. But who would dare to criticize the production team or the TV station? Offending them could get you blacklisted in minutes. So, overruns are a common occurrence for artists.”

Zhang Wei hadn’t realized that behind the glamorous facade of celebrity artists, there were heartbreaking moments where they were bossed around but dared not speak up. It felt like being a high-level corporate slave.

The two chatted idly about entertainment industry gossip. It was already past nine in the evening.

At this point, Tang Yi couldn’t help but frown as well.