NOVPUBTo be honest, when the meeting first began, the minds of the executives seated around the table were racing nonstop.
Though they had agreed to collaborate, there were still far too many things to consider.
—How much of the holographic technology would Starlight share?
—Which aspect should their own companies focus on?
—If this falls through, they still had three backup plans.
—Maybe they should make it four. 𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝒐𝒎
From this alone, it was easy to understand why the hair atop their heads was thinning. If there were a visual effect for burning brain cells, the room would probably be filled with the sound of explosions—pop! pop! pop!
But as a series of statistics were presented, the executives' overworked minds gradually slowed.
And when they heard the figure of 680 million, everyone's expressions froze in shock.
Sheng Quan, seated at the head of the table, took a sip of water from her glass and thought to herself, What a shame my phone’s outside—I should’ve recorded the priceless looks on these big shots’ faces.
Just as the thought crossed her mind, Gu Zhao, seated to her left, slid his phone over to her.
Sheng Quan: ?
Was she really that obvious?
Chairwoman Sheng silently pushed the phone back and leaned slightly toward Gu Zhao. "Never mind. Some moments are better kept in memory."
Today was a formal occasion, and Gu Zhao was dressed in a black suit. While roughly 70% of the attendees were also in black suits, his striking features made him stand out like a crane among chickens amidst the balding middle-aged executives.
Of course, another reason for his prominence might have been his icy demeanor.
Before the meeting officially began, the executives had been whispering among themselves, exchanging hushed discussions—yet not a single one dared to approach Gu Zhao. Sheng Quan figured at least half the credit went to his "strictly business, no small talk" aura.
Then again, it could also be because Gu Zhao was on her side, so naturally, no one would try to conspire with him about squeezing more benefits out of Starlight.
Though her mind was buzzing with wild thoughts, Sheng Quan fully understood why everyone short-circuited upon hearing the number of Polaris holographic players.
Consider this: Last year, the total annual movie attendance across all of Europe was 630 million.
Note—that’s the entire year’s attendance, meaning it was the combined sum of moviegoers from every European country.
Yet Polaris alone had nearly 700 million users with holographic devices.
Put it this way: Forget how much these affluent players might spend in Polaris. Just take the Starbadge—a virtual item priced at a measly ten cents—if each of those 600 million users bought just one, the revenue would still be staggering.
Did this data only mean Sheng Quan’s StellarTech was raking in profits?
...Well, yes, she was making an absolute fortune.
But the real takeaway was this: In the holographic entertainment market, even an outsider could see that owning a holographic device = being a paying customer.
New markets are usually barren, full of opportunities but equally fraught with risks. Take the current "let’s all join forces for holographics" hype—holographics are expensive.
There’s always the risk of pouring resources into development, only to end up with a product no one cares about.
But now, everything had changed.
Holographic users = guaranteed revenue.
A massive user base = a head start in dominating the new market.
680 million users = if Sheng Quan declared the sun rose in the west, these executives would eagerly nod along, praising the "glorious western sunrise."
Sheng Quan wasn’t in a hurry. Earlier, during negotiations, these executives had acted impulsive and shameless, but she knew better—every word they spoke had been meticulously calculated.
Right now, their faces might be blank, but their minds were undoubtedly racing, scheming how to carve out the biggest slice from the feast Starlight had laid before them.
Of course, any sensible person knew:
If you want a share of someone else’s cake, you’d better help bake it.
The rest of the meeting went smoother than silk. It was as if everyone had suddenly become Sheng Quan’s devoted followers, cooperating without a hint of resistance.
Once the meeting ended, Little Yue, assistant to He Xi (who now had three assistants of her own), couldn’t hide his excitement.
"Finally over."
This was his first major corporate meeting. He’d seen the attendee list beforehand and knew it included the top brass of the entertainment industry, but when the meeting actually began, he couldn’t suppress his awe.
That’s Director He from Company A—she’s a powerhouse in the film world!
And Director Liu from Company B—last time I saw him was in a financial magazine!
Holy—Director Ke from Company C is here too?! He’s a titan among titans!
Little Yue had known Chairwoman Sheng was impressive when he joined Starlight, but he hadn’t expected this level of influence. Nor had he realized that the industry’s elite all gathered like this for meetings!
And—his boss was the one presiding at the head of the table.
Throughout the meeting, Little Yue maintained the facade of an "emotionless document-passing machine," but internally, he was screaming:
My boss is even more legendary than I thought!
Of course, believing his presence at such a high-profile meeting was a reward for good performance, the more his mind shrieked holy crap, the harder he worked to keep his expression neutral.
He couldn’t embarrass Starlight in front of these moguls—especially not in front of Chairwoman Sheng! He had to be on his A-game!
After holding it together the entire time, Little Yue finally relaxed as the executives filed out of the room—only for He Xi to murmur beside him:
"It’s not over yet. The real show’s just starting."
Little Yue: ?
How?
The big shots are already leaving.
Chairwoman Sheng even went back to her office.
But soon, he watched as Director He returned, followed by Directors Liu and Ke, and understood what He Xi meant.
—Sheng Quan and Gu Zhao had retreated to her office.
Normally, when not entertaining guests, Sheng Quan preferred lounging on the beanbag by the floor-to-ceiling window.
But today, she was seated in her luxurious executive chair.
"Think they’ll leave the building and come back, or skip the pretense and return straight away?"
Gu Zhao leaned against another desk, loosening his tie slightly. "97.5% chance they’ll come find you the moment they step out."
As if on cue, a knock sounded at the door.
The two exchanged a glance, and Gu Zhao subtly tightened his tie again.
Sheng Quan called out, "Come in."
Director He strode in first, while Directors Liu and Ke "graciously" yielded with polite smiles:
"After you, after you."
Inwardly gritting his teeth: Running so fast, are you rushing to be reborn? It's not like whoever enters Chairman Sheng's office first will get more privileges.
—Indeed, they stayed behind precisely to curry favor with Sheng Quan, hoping to secure greater access to the holographic technology provided by Xingmang.
While Xingmang had indeed agreed to share some of its holographic technology with major domestic companies, the exact distribution—which company gets more and which gets less—had yet to be finalized, hadn't it?
"Chairman Sheng, your integrity is truly admirable. I, Old He, am in awe. Since you're bringing us all along to profit, I can't let you suffer losses. How about this..."
Unlike his usual roundabout way of speaking, Director He knew that Sheng Quan, Chairman of Xingmang, preferred directness and efficiency.
"I have a major project in the works—an all-star cast. Even the critics say this film is guaranteed to be a hit. If you have any needs, feel free to add new scenes anytime, as long as it doesn’t disrupt the viewing experience. Whatever you want to include, I guarantee it’ll be added."
Director He spoke with impassioned enthusiasm:
"Additionally, I own several other companies, and we’ve recently acquired new resources. I’ve had my team compile a list—everything’s here. Let’s make sure we collaborate closely."
"Of course, if Xingmang has any other needs not on this list, just come to me, Old He. While Juhua may not be the absolute top in the industry, rest assured, whatever others have, Juhua won’t be lacking either."
Well-prepared, Director He pulled out a neatly compiled list and placed it on the desk with a smile, wearing an expression that screamed, "I just can’t bear to see good people shortchanged" and "I’m a righteous businessperson."
Had he not subtly disparaged Directors Liu and Ke, who were waiting outside, while praising his own company, he might have appeared even more righteous.
Sheng Quan responded with a polite smile.
"Thank you, Director He. Let me review your offer first—we shouldn’t keep Directors Liu and Ke waiting too long."
Director He felt a twinge of disappointment. It seemed Sheng Quan wouldn’t let him monopolize a larger slice of the pie.
But he wasn’t entirely surprised. If Sheng Quan could be swayed so easily by the benefits he offered, she wouldn’t have stayed behind after the meeting to entertain them in the first place.
Compared to the brisk one-and-a-half-hour meeting, the rest of the afternoon was spent with these top industry executives lingering at Xingmang.
Joining them were several other high-ranking executives from rival companies who had left earlier but now returned.
Meanwhile, Xingmang’s departments sprang into action.
Employees who received the lists were visibly stunned.
"This many resources?"
"Even ads for this brand...?"
"Wait, this is xxx—they just signed it off like that?!"
In the entertainment industry, running a company boils down to connections and resources.
Xingmang had risen rapidly in just a few years, leaving competitors in the dust, thanks to Sheng Quan’s formidable financial backing, a streak of hit productions, and the discovery of unknown talents who skyrocketed to fame.
Resources, however, had always been Xingmang’s weak point. Outsiders might not notice, but the company’s own employees were well aware.
Yet today, an overwhelming influx of resources poured in—each one alone enough to rescue a struggling small company.
And now, the heads of these renowned firms were lining up to hand their resources over to Xingmang.
The employees processing the deals: !! Can such miracles really happen?!
Thus, following the successive triumphs of Sheng Quan’s ventures, Xingmang experienced an unprecedented windfall.
None of this, however, was known to the contestants in [Guoxinghai].
