Global Film Emperor

Chapter 326 Leaving
Lu Ze ultimately accepted the court's mediation, did not appeal a second time, and chose to pay the full amount of liquidated damages in one lump sum within three months. He also did not question whether there were any loopholes in the contract signed between Qian Shijia and its shareholders.

Before making a judgment, the court must first investigate the authenticity of the contract and the relevant substantive evidence such as the date of investment and withdrawal of the investor before it can make a judgment in accordance with the law. Since the court has already determined the authenticity of the contract, there is no need for you to question it. Qian Shijia has definitely filled this hole without any loopholes.

Of course, if the money laundering of "Yinhuang" were exposed, the problems with the investor contracts would also be exposed, but as long as he remained rational, Lu Ze would never choose to do so.

After all, a large conglomerate that started in the real estate industry and whose businesses cover all provinces in the country would be fooling foreigners if it didn't have some powerful partners.

Moreover, Lu Ze is still unclear whether the money they are trying to launder is Li Shanjun's own illicit wealth, which he has arbitrarily laundered through Qian Shijia, or whether it is the group's illegitimate income, which is being laundered through a subsidiary company to replenish the group's cash flow. If it is the former, it is easier to deal with, but the latter is more troublesome.

As for disputes, the final judgment in civil disputes is a second instance, and the chance of overturning the previous judgment is extremely slim, even with conclusive evidence.

Lu Ze could indeed stall for time and engage in a protracted tug-of-war with Qian Shijia, but it was of little use. Qian Shijia didn't need the time to argue with Lu Ze, while Lu Ze could only completely stop working and devote himself to the case for a long time, striving for even the slightest chance of winning. Making efforts for a chance of winning that could be described as a waste of time.

Therefore, accepting court mediation is the best option. Otherwise, it is not impossible for the second instance to order Lu Ze to pay more. If such a bitter result is made, Lu Ze will have to swallow it alone.

Examples like Lu Ze's are not uncommon in the industry, but most of them are not publicized. Almost all artists who are sued for breach of contract end up either bankrupt or suffering huge financial losses. There are very few cases of winning. Paying compensation has become the price that artists have to pay after turning against their companies. Even if they don't turn against their companies, those artists who are exposed for scandals all end up like this.

Let's not talk about anything else. Take Han Tian for example. It's said that he also had to pay more than 200 million yuan to his company and the merchants he endorsed because of a major scandal. After that, he went through divorce proceedings with his wife. The court's judgment was also quite severe, with the woman receiving more of the family property. With the compensation money, Han Tian basically left with nothing. It's estimated that he can't even come up with 200 yuan on him now.

There's no point in arguing; Lu Ze and Qian Shijia are simply wary of each other's power and can only negotiate within an acceptable range.

Now that the negotiation results are out and Lu Ze has agreed, this matter is basically over. There won't be any thugs causing trouble at Lu Ze's house in the future, and if Lu Ze chooses to start his own business in the future, there won't be any troubles or schemes to make things difficult for him.

As for revenge? If Lu Ze were to rise again in the future and have the ability to retaliate, he wouldn't be the kind of prime minister who can tolerate such things. He would definitely find an opportunity to settle accounts with Qian Shijia. But for now, let's think about how to live our lives in the future.

"Mr. Sun, hello, hello. Let's talk inside. Xiao Zhao, please come in too, don't stand on ceremony."

Lu Ze found slippers for the two of them, opened the door and let them in. Xiao Zhao was wearing a suit, not a high-end one, probably a ready-made one. His smile was standard, a typical service industry smile. He gestured for the slightly overweight man, who looked to be only in his twenties but was dressed in luxury brand clothes, to go in first, before following him into the room and closing the door behind him.

Compared to Xiao Zhao, Mr. Sun's smile was much more enthusiastic, completely like someone seeing an idol. He held Lu Ze's hand, waving it frequently and forcefully, his face slightly flushed with excitement.

"Please sit down, don't be shy, don't be polite. What would you like to drink? I have coffee, tea, and juice, but we don't have carbonated drinks."

"No need for that, I'll just have some plain water. I'm so excited to finally meet Mr. Lu in person. Can we take a picture together later?"

As the intermediary, Xiao Zhao naturally kept quiet, sitting in the corner of the sofa, trying to remain as transparent as possible and leaving space for Lu Ze and the buyer who looked like a devoted fan.

"Of course, but there's no point in taking a photo now. Let's have a drink and chat."

After brewing three cups of tea, Lu Ze sat down. Mr. Sun handed him a cigarette, which Lu Ze accepted without hesitation. He lit it and looked around at the ceiling. If the negotiations went smoothly today, the house would soon belong to someone else. Lu Ze would naturally feel attached to this house, as it was the first property he had ever bought and it certainly held sentimental value.

Mr. Sun seemed to sense Lu Ze's mood. As the buyer, and the kind who genuinely wanted to buy, he didn't say much. He smiled and quickly changed the subject.

"How could a group photo be meaningless? It's definitely very memorable. Someone like Mr. Lu, who has left a profound mark on the history of Chinese cinema, I can take a photo with you. When my son watches your movies in the future, I can brag about it, hahaha."

This kind of flattery no longer pleased Lu Ze. After laughing along with him for a while, Lu Ze got down to business and started discussing the price of the property.

"Mr. Sun, one of the advantages of a second-hand house is that it has been lived in before, and some defects of the house are very obvious. But this house is good, with no construction defects. I can take you around later. I have only lived here for a little over three years. You have seen the community and you drove here, so you know the transportation. It is a standard modern community. I don't need to go into details, right?"

"Of course. I'm very satisfied with this house, but the price... can we discuss it further? This house will be where my girlfriend and I will live in the future. To be honest, I don't really like the Chinese style of decoration. If I buy it, I'll definitely need to renovate it, which will be another expense."

It's true that Mr. Sun likes Lu Ze's acting, but liking acting is one thing, and doing business is another. He still needs to negotiate the price. This house is just an investment he made because he saw that the housing prices in Shanghai were recovering. He wouldn't abandon his big villa to live in a high-rise here. His girlfriend and renovations are just nonsense. Since it's an investment, of course he should talk about returns, right?

"I'm sorry, Mr. Sun, as you know, I'm currently facing some issues, and I really need to sell the house urgently. But 3,200 is already the lowest price I've been willing to pay. It's lower than other houses for sale, as you can see. I'm not lying, 3,200 is really the lowest I can go." The two haggled fiercely, with Xiao Zhao chiming in a few times. In the end, they managed to persuade Mr. Sun to give up his desire to continue haggling and finally decided that he would buy the house. Of course, before making the purchase, Lu Ze still had to show him around the house.

The two hit it off after making a deal, chatting about all sorts of things. As a son of a wealthy family, Mr. Sun was able to keep up with Lu Ze's pace.

Mr. Sun was very satisfied with everything about the house, and it also had the aura of being Lu Ze's former residence. Although this aura would gradually fade as Lu Ze disappeared from the circle, in the eyes of the rich young master, the price of 3,200 was still worthwhile. After all, money is not about buying objects, but about buying happiness.

As the two entered the study, Mr. Sun, who was not particularly interested in this area at first, slowed down when his gaze fell on the bookshelf. His eyes were drawn to the trophies that Lu Ze had placed there. After looking around for a moment, he gritted his teeth and asked Lu Ze, who was walking ahead, something.

"Mr. Lu, I know it's very impolite of me to say this, but I'm really excited to see something I like, so I'll be so bold as to ask, do you sell this trophy?"

Lu Ze stopped and met Mr. Sun's gaze. He could indeed see the undisguised longing in Mr. Sun's eyes, which puzzled Lu Ze.

"Mr. Sun, you probably won't find this very useful, will you?"

"To me, Mr. Lu, all your trophies are collectibles. Not only me, but any of your fans would choose to buy them, as long as it's within their budget. Besides, I also have a bit of a collecting hobby. If you're willing to part with some of your prized possessions, Mr. Lu, I'm willing to pay two million yuan for each Best Actor trophy and one million yuan for the Best Newcomer Award. What do you think?"

Looking into his eyes, Lu Ze gradually felt a sense of absurdity. If this Mr. Sun was buying it purely for its collectible value, that was nonsense. From their conversation, Lu Ze could sense that he had some business acumen. But what did it mean that he was willing to buy the trophy?

The person who most believed in Lu Ze's comeback was actually a businessman who wanted to buy his trophies from all these years. He was willing to gamble that Lu Ze would rise to prominence again and then sell the trophies to make a fortune. Isn't that ridiculous?
But with a total debt of over 60 million, he still has a shortfall of over 8 million that he doesn't know how to make up for. He really needs this money.
Do you really like it?

"of course."

Lu Ze looked into his eyes, a smile gradually spreading across his face. He patted the 27-year-old's shoulder and turned to leave the study.

"They are yours now."

December 19, 2022, 5:57 a.m., foggy, the sun had just risen.

"Whoosh. Click, click."

After fastening his suitcase, Lu Ze stood up and looked around to make sure he hadn't left anything behind. In the end, all he took was a large suitcase.

He opened a bottle of mineral water, drank half of it, sat on the edge of the bed to rest for two minutes, picked up his airline case and suitcase and walked out of the bedroom. He stared intently at the cripple lying on the sofa, and finally showed a relieved smile, squatted down and clapped his hands at the cripple.

"Come on, we're leaving. Don't be sad, out with the old, in with the new. Look at you, so full of sorrow. With a good meal from me, you won't go hungry. Let's go home."

This time, it obediently crawled into the cage. Lu Ze picked it up, walked out of the room, and only when he closed the door did he realize that the couplets that had been pasted up for the New Year in 2022 had not been taken down. He gently knocked on the door twice, pressed the elevator button, and took the elevator down to the first floor.

The morning glow dyed the mist, creating an unusual beauty that was almost purplish-red. He stood at the door for a while, gazing at this beautiful scenery that he had never seen before. Perhaps for the rest of his life, he would never set foot on the land of Shanghai again, just as he had never returned to Hengdian. He did not belong here, so he was destined to leave.

The wheels of his suitcase made a slight noise as they rubbed against the ground. He hadn't notified anyone of his departure, so naturally no one came to see him off. Thinking back to when he first left Hengdian, it seemed he only brought this large suitcase. He was destined to take as much as he brought with him when he left; it seemed like fate had ordained it.

"Driver, the airport."

He hailed a taxi, put his suitcase in the trunk, and sat in the back seat with the cat carrier in his arms. Looking out the window, he suddenly remembered a song that had been sung to death and was now being used by old men and women for square dancing.

Everything he once possessed has truly vanished like smoke.

"."

(End of this chapter)