"I apologize for my abruptness and any disturbance I've caused. You can call me Meng Lang."
Zhao Hongxi, true to his artistic nature, was exceptionally polite.
Despite traveling a great distance to seek sponsorship from Wang Yu, and facing deep disappointment with the outcome, he still offered a courteous nod and a bow to Wang Yu before preparing to rise.
In this regard, he was far more refined than those fellows from the automobile and machinery companies he had encountered earlier, even though he himself was in a state of decline.
Especially that Du Mosheng, what kind of person was he, constantly flaunting his title as Vice President of Guanghui Automobile Factory, as if afraid no one would know?
Did being a Vice President grant him extra eyes or hands?
Wang Yu curled his lip and spoke to Zhao Hongxi,
"Wait a moment. I'll invest in this project."
Zhao Hongxi, who had been preparing to leave in despair, froze. Wang Yu's voice was like a divine sound in his ears, a melody of unparalleled beauty.
"You... what did you say?"
As if unable to believe his own ears, Zhao Hongxi repeated the question in disbelief.
"I said, I'll invest in your studio."
Wang Yu replied with a smile, almost uttering a popular phrase from his previous life.
"We... we have a lot of foreign debt, and our profits are also very poor!"
Zhao Hongxi stammered, looking at Wang Yu as if he were an alien.
Knowing the dire situation, why would he still invest in their film studio? Was he crazy? Or did he have ulterior motives? But they seemed to have nothing worth coveting.
Zhao Hongxi fell into a daze of wild thoughts. Beside him, Wu Lingling deliberately and heavily stomped on Wang Yu's foot, glaring at him.
"Are you crazy! Investing in a factory that's clearly losing money!"
Though unspoken, her eyes conveyed this message, and Wang Yu clearly understood the sentiment conveyed by her gaze.
He returned a look that said, "I know what I'm doing." Wang Yu paid no mind to the increasing pressure and twisting of the foot on his instep, maintaining a composed expression as he looked at Zhao Hongxi.
"I'm not crazy, and I have no ulterior motives."
"Huh? How did you know what I was thinking?"
Wang Yu's calm tone startled Zhao Hongxi.
"Don't misunderstand. I guessed it from your eyes. After all, you weren't hiding it."
Wang Yu could only chuckle. It seemed this Mr. Zhao was truly terrible at emotional control; his thoughts were practically written all over his face, practically begging to be revealed to everyone.
"How should I put it? I know that Guofeng Art Film Studio is currently a money-losing venture, even a bottomless pit that devours money."
Wang Yu said with a gentle smile, while feeling the increasing pressure on his foot and the faint sound of grinding teeth, which he found amusing.
Maintaining his composure, Wang Yu continued,
"However, I've decided to invest in you. Of course, don't get too excited just yet, as I'm not a philanthropist. I have requirements and conditions."
"Requirements and conditions? That's even better! Just tell me what you need," Zhao Hongxi replied quickly. He was actually relieved that Wang Yu would have conditions; it was the best possible scenario!
"It's very simple. All your expenses and debts, from external liabilities to employee salaries, I can help you resolve them."
Wang Yu held up one finger. "I can provide ten million yuan to round things off, to clear external debts and pay outstanding wages. By the way, that should be enough, right?"
Zhao Hongxi nodded vigorously to Wang Yu's question, his face beaming with unconcealable joy.
"Enough? It's more than enough!"
"And then, I can additionally provide you with five million yuan."
Wang Yu held up another five fingers.
"Ah? So much!"
Zhao Hongxi rubbed his hands together, appearing incredibly excited.
"Of course, for this, I have only one request: you create an animated work tailor-made according to my specifications."
As soon as Wang Yu finished speaking, Zhao Hongxi's smile vanished, and his tone turned sharp and stiff.
"So, you want us to produce a work for you? I'm very sorry, but we can't do that. We'll have to pass on your offer!"
Huh? What's going on?
Sensing that Zhao Hongxi was clearly upset, as if Wang Yu had hit a nerve, Wang Yu quickly looked to Li Mo beside him.
"Mr. Zhao, what's wrong with him?"
Wang Yu inquired.
"My dear friend, Mr. Zhao probably thinks you're like those people who demand commercialization!"
Li Mo pondered for a moment, then explained to Wang Yu,
"Although their Guofeng Art Film Studio is in decline, there are still people willing to invest. However... those people are after the name of Guofeng Art Film Studio, demanding all sorts of low-quality and vulgar content, and even some lowlifes demanding they produce something unsightly. So, Mr. Zhao has rejected all of them!"
Li Mo gestured to Zhao Hongxi, whose face had turned cold, and continued,
"But don't worry, Mr. Zhao. Wang Yu, as my lifelong friend, with his noble character and righteous demeanor, would never make such peculiar demands of you, would he? My dear friend!"
Upon hearing Li Mo's words, Zhao Hongxi turned his gaze to Wang Yu and said indignantly,
"In short, we would rather starve than produce those vulgar works! A person should have some backbone!"
"Ugh, can you stop speaking for me and making rash promises?"
Wang Yu looked at Li Mo speechlessly. This guy's chuunibyou was getting worse, but one thing was true: he genuinely had no vulgar intentions.
As for those low-intelligence animations from later generations... Wang Yu's aesthetic taste didn't align with them either.
"Mr. Zhao, please rest assured. I will not make vulgar demands of you like others. In fact... I need to ask all the master craftsmen to fully utilize our unique national artistic style to create a work tailor-made for me."
Wang Yu explained, his words piquing everyone's curiosity.
"Oh? After all this talk, what exactly are Director Wang Yu's requirements?"
"It's very simple. I want to make an animated Transformers series in the traditional Chinese ink painting style."
Wang Yu said with a chuckle.