After all of them were reborn, who would still be an actor?

Chapter 738 The War of the Century Begins, Brutal! (Second Update)
Even if FBTV were to be handed over to the government, it would be at best on par with iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent Video, or even inferior to them...

Those in power have no idea how expensive long-form videos are... they just know it's an inevitable trend!
iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent Video have burned through hundreds of billions of yuan – real money indeed. Despite two consecutive film and television industry downturns that brought down actor salaries, the losses still couldn't be stopped.

In terms of profitability, long-form video platforms are nowhere near as profitable as Douyin, Kuaishou, Douyu, and Huya.

If it doesn't turn a profit for several years, it will probably be taken over by iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent Video.

LeEco, Wanda, Shanda, and Sohu are all top players in the long-form video industry, each one richer and more powerful than the last.

In the end, they still lost.

Even if iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent Video were to compete for supremacy, and the three companies were essentially one entity, the end result would still be a mess, with losses amounting to hundreds of billions.

Of course, the fundamental reason why Li Mingyang didn't want to hand it over was...

The higher-ups won't entrust him with this responsibility.

There are too many suitable candidates; it's not his turn yet.

A 24-year-old Palme d'Or winner is wasting his talent managing a company... His primary focus should be on creating science fiction for major powers...

Li Mingyang saw through the cause and effect perfectly...

Li Mingyang is confident that he can make FBTV the Netflix of Asia.

But he has full authority over the operation.

Li Mingyang knows the Chinese entertainment industry too well. There are many talented people and big shots in the industry, but these people are not suitable for FBTV or going overseas.

Low cost and working in isolation is the optimal solution!

Moreover, the entertainment structures of China and South Korea are different; copying Korean entertainment is simply courting disaster.

Li Mingyang misses his old partners who started the business together. Since his rebirth, he has put what he learned in his previous life into practice.

A master of both capital-driven and entertainment-oriented thinking.

He knows who should be used and who shouldn't.

These people are entertained with bouquets; they may lack ability, but they can be used.

The second generation of elites and academics are basically unusable; the power of inheritance is essentially unstoppable.

It will actually pollute children.

They worked tirelessly for two days straight to recruit.

Li Mingyang became more and more energetic. He saw hope. He saw the future of Bouquet Entertainment in these young people.

I also spotted some old friends among them; they all look so young now!

At the time, Li Mingyang was a well-known boss, and he was actually considered one of the older employees in the company.

Before going to Macau, Li Mingyang made a decision. He first went to FBTV's Shanghai branch, found Chen Wenbo, and signed the new two billion US dollar guarantee agreement.

"Director Li, I have a question I'd like to ask. You don't have to say it if you feel uncomfortable." Chen Wenbo said solemnly, looking at Li Mingyang's signature on the agreement.

"Just ask."

"What made you sign this agreement?"

Before answering your question, could you also answer one of my questions?

Chen Wenbo nodded and poured Li Mingyang a glass of champagne.

"Can I pay back the interest on four billion US dollars?"

"Well... you can return it or not."

"So that means you don't want me to pay it back?"

Chen Wenbo didn't hide anything, nodded, and said in a deep voice, "Director Li, we're all on the same side now, so I'll just say it directly... For the past two weeks, I haven't had a single good night's sleep. I always wake up in the middle of the night. I'm under a lot of pressure... Director Li, you're really too young. I even went to check your background certificate for that reason... You have experience and talent that are far beyond your years. I can't compete with you... I'm starting to understand Lao Han a bit. Your thinking is too unpredictable."

"I had considered several timeframes for this agreement, but I never expected you to sign it today."

"It's too early... Seeing how determined you were to sign, I'm starting to wonder if you have some other ideas."

"If you can't give me a good reason, I will write my thoughts into the report."

Li Mingyang chuckled softly and shook his head, saying, "You're too bad..."

"..."

“You investigated me, and I investigated you too. You are far inferior to Lao Han, whether in terms of power, political maneuvering, or strategic vision... You all say I am Sun Wukong, so what is my golden cudgel?”

"The Golden Palm," Chen Wenbo said.

Li Mingyang shook his head, a smug smile on his face, and silently drank the champagne in his glass.

It doesn't say what the Golden Cudgel is.

Instead, it answered Chen Wenbo's initial question.

What was the reason that made him sign the Wuzhishan Agreement?

Li Mingyang's answer was that he saw hope and the future of Dongda Film School.

Since the higher-ups believe he is Sun Wukong.

He once fought his way to the Heavenly Court, only to be banished to Hollywood. He refused to accept this fate.

Now he's returning home with the Palme d'Or.

If those above are not at ease, then he will shoulder the burden of debt and be bound by moral constraints.

He only asked for one thing: that the flower arrangement entertainment be his and that no one above him should interfere.

Li Mingyang left to participate in the Battle of the Century in Macau.

Chen Wenbo spent a sleepless night, going through all the information about Li Mingyang.

To be fair, he felt that the higher-ups were being unfair to Li Mingyang.

Exiled from the country? That's a terrible move!
The biggest mystery surrounding Li Mingyang is that he didn't go to Hollywood as planned, but instead ran off to South Korea.

Although he won the Palme d'Or, he was too deeply involved with South Korea, having penetrated deep into its inner workings.

Chaebols, politics, entertainment... they've all become the new Korean chaebols.

Even though Li Mingyang signed the agreement, he was still bound by moral constraints.

Chen Wenbo didn't believe he could really suppress Li Mingyang.

What they did only worked on the 24-year-old Palme d'Or winner.

What exactly made Li Mingyang a newly emerging tycoon, and what core assets did he control? These are the questions that the higher-ups are most concerned about.

The Seoul Spring, in particular, made the higher-ups even more wary!
The morning sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows and fell on the desk.

Chen Wenbo drew a circle on the flower bouquet entertainment page.

After staring for a long time, Li Mingyang's question from not long ago suddenly flashed through his mind—what is my golden cudgel?
If the Palme d'Or isn't the magic staff, then what is?

"Impossible, right? This is just a scam company that cheats people out of their money..." Chen Wenbo muttered.

From a developmental perspective, Li Mingyang cleared out the bouquets, re-absorbing fresh blood from the academic school, and began a grand breeding program that would make him famous, all while cooperating with the resource support of his alma mater, Beijing Film Academy.

It is indeed possible to create an even stronger Mingyang in a short period of time.

The level of recent graduates varies greatly, with a wide range of abilities.

The prestigious academies like Beijing Film Academy, Central Academy of Drama, Communication University of China, Fudan University, and Central Academy of Fine Arts are all elite students selected from thousands through the rigorous college entrance examination!
Chen Wenbo shook his head. Following Li Mingyang's line of thinking, Bouquet Entertainment wouldn't be able to take off in a short time.

So he set his sights on the Koreans.

"It's time to go to South Korea."

……

July 10th, 7 PM.

Grand Lisboa Hotel, the first battle of the century has officially begun.

The first match was between Lee Myung-yang and Ma Dong-seok.

Mixed martial arts, also known as MMA, is a sport that takes place in an octagonal cage, hence the name "octagonal cage" competition.

Although the match was conducted according to mixed martial arts rules, neither Lee Myung-yang nor Ma Dong-seok had much ground fighting skill; their battles were all about punches.

FBTV is the exclusive live streaming platform for the Battle of the Century, and it's free to watch.

The first episode saw a surge in viewership in both China and South Korea, peaking at over 1600 million simultaneous viewers.

It has the highest number of viewers in the world for combat sports competitions.

Combat sports are, after all, a niche sport.

Ma Dong-seok has some popularity in South Korea, but Dongdaemun is relatively weak. This peak popularity mainly relies on Lee Myung-yang's personal popularity.

Meanwhile, the amount of bets placed outside the official channels exceeded 30 million US dollars.

Lee Myung-yang chose the fifth round, when he could maximize his advantage, and knocked out Ma Dong-seok.

Spinach revenue exceeds eight million US dollars!

Koreans accounted for more than 80% of them.

Koreans really love gambling.

A small trial yielded remarkable results.

Fame and fortune.

Especially in terms of traffic, it far exceeded the expected tens of millions of visits.

The next match will be available on FBTV and will also be broadcast live on TV Tokyo.

As for FBTV being able to launch on Xiao Rizi ahead of schedule, Li Mingyang didn't even have to put in any effort; they simply opened the door themselves.

Not only TV Tokyo, but also other TV stations, studios, and foundations want to collaborate with FBTV. E-Lian even relaxed restrictions on Korean animated films.

In other words, your name can be successfully registered in the doujinshi and receive support from E-Lian.

This is a golden opportunity, but your name hasn't been decided yet, so we'll just have to keep putting it off...

The sudden opening of the notebook market – was it an accident, or a conspiracy?

Unknowable.

However, the fact that FBTV can be accessed by Xiao Ri Zi brings huge traffic and gambling opportunities!
After the first match ended, FBTV released a preview for the second match.

The second match is scheduled for eight days later, on July 18th, when Li Mingyang will face Thai kung fu superstar Tony Jaa.

Li Mingyang is prepared to really fight this time.

Ma Dong-seok was once the personal trainer of UFC legend Mark Coleman and is an insider in the mixed martial arts world, but his strength is his only advantage, while his agility is somewhat lacking.

Given his age and slow movements, Li Mingyang basically let him have his way. Although he was letting him win, the guy's strength was no joke; his fists slammed into the iron mesh, making a loud swishing sound.

In an arm-wrestling match, Li Mingyang couldn't beat him...

Li Mingyang had rehearsed this match with Ma Dongxi beforehand, mainly focusing on understanding the opponent and himself, and then he would control the situation.

After the match, Li Mingyang also took the opportunity to promote the upcoming film, Outlaw City.

The Outlaws will be released tomorrow, July 11th, and is rated 15+.

To maximize traffic, Li Mingyang had been planning this movie promotion for a long time.

I hope Ma Dong-seok will rise to the top soon and become South Korea's most bankable action star.

Only then can he have more cards to play.

Ma Dong-seok's movies are truly unique; only he could direct them and capture their essence.

The appearance of a strong, middle-aged man, the heart of a cute girl, and the humor of a tough guy with a tender heart.

One of a kind! No substitutes!
Li Mingyang's idea was excellent, but even the best plans can have flaws, and his bald look generated a bigger response.

The next day, Korean netizens were all concerned about his bald look and rarely mentioned the Outlaws movie.

The number of moviegoers on the first day was less than 150,000.

The number of visitors to the "Miss" club exceeded one million on the first day and three million over the first four days, which is incomparable...

The young lady was so fierce that Li Mingyang was quite shocked.

He didn't even bother to promote it, thinking one Palme d'Or was enough.

In fact, it was enough, and even overflowing. The lady received a very good response in Korea.

Demanding Korean netizens analyzed the prostitute from various angles, offering insightful and detailed analyses that elevated the film's aesthetics to unprecedented heights.

It has also been included in the textbooks of film aesthetics by major art colleges in South Korea.

This left the director of the show, Li Mingyang, both shocked and bewildered.

He himself had no idea that his casual modifications would result in a masterpiece, a paradigm of cinematic aesthetics!

When Li Mingyang was filming the young lady, he was in a hurry.

So the three-act structure was changed to a linear narrative, with the perspective constantly shifting between the young lady and the maid.

Li Mingyang secluded himself for three days, reading everything from NAVER netizens' analyses of the prostitute, Weibo netizens' comments, and various deconstructions on Douban, both good and bad.

Then he suddenly realized that he had accidentally made a unique aesthetic film with two female leads and camera work.

The changes in camera movement captured the tension between the Eastern women.

In terms of the lesbian entanglements, *The Life of Adele* is also amazing. It uses actions and dialogue to capture the delicate nuances of that entanglement, evoking strong empathy.

So, from the perspective of lesbian themes alone, Miss is no match for Life of Adele.

But the actress reached the pinnacle of camera movement.

Camera movement is a profound art; it is a silent power.

It has a lot to do with the editing rhythm.

Because of the rush to finish the project, Li Mingyang didn't have time to delve into the details. He edited everything subconsciously and instinctively, abandoning all distractions and desires for expression. Instead, the young lady returned to her true self.

If he were given the chance to do it all over again, with plenty of time, he honestly doesn't know if he could still edit out this version of the lady.

"It's all fate! It's all the best arrangement!"

Li Mingyang turned off his computer, stood up, changed into sportswear, ended his seclusion, left home, and drove to the company.

All the merchants in the circular building have been vacated, and the interior is being renovated layer by layer to maintain the original layout as much as possible and avoid major changes.

Li Mingyang walked around the atrium on the sixth floor, sometimes looking at the other floors and sometimes at the garden on the first floor.

Experience the unique charm of this three-dimensional circular building.

The combination of sci-fi circular architecture and classically elegant oriental gardens creates a Chinese cyberpunk aesthetic!
They reclaimed their circular building.

Li Mingyang was filled with immense joy and excitement. He wanted to share this happiness with others, but suddenly realized that there was no one around him.

Only a dozen or so staff members followed him from a distance.

Li Mingyang gripped the cold metal railing with both hands, looked up at the sky, and fell into deep thought.

There is one thing he has never admitted, but many people around him have already noticed.

That is, he finds it difficult to trust others.

He tried and worked hard, but eventually found that he not only found it difficult to trust strangers, but even the people around him began to become suspicious.

Li Mingyang often thought that the emperors of ancient times must have been very lonely.

Otherwise, why would the emperor refer to himself as "I, the lonely one"?

Falsehood...emptiness...

Having secured top-tier film resources for Train to Busan, Lao Wu has become more cautious and no longer speaks freely as before.

Sometimes he even wondered what he was persisting for.

What on earth is he doing...

He could have graduated already. With the Palme d'Or in hand, whether he wins an Oscar or not, it wouldn't prevent him from becoming Asia's number one director.

With a major structural overhaul and under immense pressure, his talent for rhythm was fully unleashed, enabling him to create textbook-quality films.

It has nothing to do with the plot.

Simply by borrowing ideas, one can remake something new, innovate, and create a truly innovative film.

Originality.

The most important thing in content creation, something that others can only dream of but can never attain, is something he is born with.

He possesses top-tier film talent!

"Take back what belongs to you?"

Disheartened, Li Mingyang went to the multimedia classroom and asked the staff to arrange a second round of interviews.

Over the next few days, Li Mingyang began the second round of interviews.

Compared to the first round of interviews.

In the second round, Li Mingyang was somewhat disheartened. He would pass any applicant who had something commendable about them.

When Li Mingyang was in charge of the first round, the pass rate was only 10%, but when Guo Fan was in charge, the pass rate reached 40%.

The pass rate for the second round of interviews was as high as 80%!

July 18th, the highly anticipated second match of the century.

The match between Li Mingyang and Thai action star Tony Jaa was portrayed by the media as a clash between Chinese Kung Fu and Muay Thai.

It attracted a huge number of kung fu enthusiasts from all over the world, with the pre-match interviews alone attracting tens of millions of viewers.

When the two entered the octagon, the number of viewers for the Battle of the Century reached a new high, exceeding 16 million and reaching an astonishing 20 million!
Meanwhile, the revenue from spinach also reached 80 million US dollars!

When the referee put his arm around the two players' shoulders and said some directive refereeing rules.

The viewership for the epic battle skyrocketed, attracting millions of viewers in just one minute.

The competition officially started at 7 PM!
On stage, Tony Jaa probed with his positioning, while Li Mingyang, skilled and bold, approached him for a closer test.

"Director Li, it's such a waste that someone with such skills isn't an action actor," Jack Ma, who was watching the fight for the first time, said to Cai Zhongxin, who was attending for the second time.

"His skills are exceptional and his stamina is outstanding. A professional boxer usually needs to rest for at least a month before a match, but Coach Li only rested for a week."

"That big guy last time wasn't agile at all; he was just a punching bag."

"Forces are reciprocal. That big guy is Ma Dong-seok. He used to be a fighting coach in the US and was known as a champion coach. He has great strength and defense. No normal person could withstand Coach Li's hundreds of punches."

"Now that you mention it, isn't Director Li in a very dangerous situation this time?"

“It’s not dangerous. I have faith in Director Li. Muay Thai training is brutal. It relies on constantly breaking and healing bones to increase bone hardness. Tony learned ancient Muay Thai, which is even more damaging to the body. Plus, he got injured while filming. As long as Director Li can hold his own for the first few rounds, the rest will basically be like walking a dog.” Li Lianjie laughed.

"I'll listen to the boss and bet on Director Li to win!" Yanzi said with a grin.

"After what you all said, I'm thinking of buying one too," Jack Ma said with a big smile.

"Let me check the odds. It seems like not many people are betting on Director Li to win. The odds are quite high, 1 to 2.5," Huang Xiaoming said, holding his tablet.

"Oh! Really? You don't think much of Director Li?" Xu Zheng said.

"Mr. Wang, is Director Li actually capable of fighting?"

"Is there some kind of scam involved in this betting?"

Wang Changtian smiled and said, "Although Macau is in charge of the gambling, this betting is not open to the public, but only to foreigners. Everyone knows that Director Li is a Palme d'Or winner, but foreigners are basically unaware that he is very good at fighting."

“Sigh!” said the swallow.

"Ugh, why can't I buy bets until the end of the round? It's so inhumane!" Huang Xiaoming said, annoyed that there was no response when he tried to place his bet.

"Mr. Wang, what's the maximum you can offer?"

Wang Changtian looked at the eldest daughter of the second branch of the He family.

"The highest is ten thousand US dollars."

"That low?"

"It starts like this, in the hot market, and it will get bigger and bigger later."

"This is so boring."

"How big of a gamble is Chairman Ma willing to take?"

"It would have to be at least several million US dollars, otherwise it wouldn't be interesting at all."

He Chaoliang smiled but didn't respond to that. Instead, he complimented Jack Ma's connections in the entertainment industry, saying that even Director Li was a guest of honor at Alibaba.

Jack Ma was very pleased with this flattery.

Then he turned around and saw Tony Jaa lying motionless on the ground; the game was over.

Jack was dumbfounded! Holy crap, how did he win?!

Wait, how could it be so fast!
"Is that all?" Jack Ma asked Joseph Tsai.

"It's over... What a brutal win," Tsai Chung-hsin said, clapping his hands.

……

(End of this chapter)