Investing in Movies

Zhou Yi and Jiang Ruolan returned to the company together.

At the entrance sat two strikingly handsome security guards, their uniforms fitting them so well it looked like they were filming a movie.

"President Zhou, Sister Ruolan."

Both young men stood up with smiles, greeting Zhou Yi and Jiang Ruolan.

The two were named Xu An and Ye Chen.

They had graduated from film school, and while they were undeniably good-looking by ordinary standards, in an institution teeming with stunning faces, they stood no chance without connections or resources.

After graduation, unable to land decent jobs and tired of grueling, low-paying gigs in minor productions, they ended up working as security guards for Zhou Yi.

Xu An and Ye Chen had no grand ambitions—film school had taught them the harsh gap between dreams and reality, so they chose to coast along.

This job was easy and comfortable; all they had to do was sit around and look presentable. Why not? As for the future, they’d cross that bridge later.

Zhou Yi gave them a faint smile and walked in.

Xu An and Ye Chen exchanged a few hushed words.

"President Zhou seems really approachable, not like other bosses at all."

"My dad says the bigger the boss, the more humble they are."

As Zhou Yi entered, the twin receptionists at the front desk flashed dazzling smiles and greeted him in the sweetest voices: "Good afternoon, President Zhou!"

Zhou Yi nodded in return.

His arrival made every head in the office turn.

"It's President Zhou! Oh my god, I’m so nervous—I couldn’t even look at him during the interview. He’s too handsome."

"Does this mean we’ll finally have work? I’m so excited!"

"Yingying, your crush is back. Bet you’re thrilled."

"Do you think if I ask President Zhou for an autograph, he’d kick me out?"

"Don’t be stupid. There’ll be documents needing his signature eventually—just wait for that."

The female employees buzzed with excitement, especially Wu Ying, Zhou Yi’s number one fangirl.

Jiang Ruolan placed the coffee she’d bought on the table, standing a step behind Zhou Yi to show respect and acknowledge the hierarchy between them.

"President Zhou, your presence has really lifted everyone’s spirits," Jiang Ruolan remarked with a smile.

The employees stayed quiet for now—Zhou Yi was still the boss, and the ingrained wariness of authority lingered.

Zhou Yi offered a warm smile. "You’ve all worked hard these past weeks. I was away and couldn’t check in, so now that I’m back, let’s treat everyone. When’s a good time for a team outing?"

Worked hard?

If lounging around, snacking, and playing games counted as hard work, then sure, their jaws had certainly gotten a workout.

But Zhou Yi’s words only fueled their enthusiasm. One bold employee spoke up:

"President Zhou, what about our tasks? The outing can wait—work comes first!"

"Yeah, fun can happen anytime. Let’s focus on the job."

Zhou Yi chuckled. "Don’t worry, the work is here. Ruolan will brief you shortly."

The office erupted in cheers.

Hidden among them, Fan Hong frowned in confusion. Why were these people celebrating work? Wasn’t slacking off the dream?

He was the mole planted by Wang Can, owner of rival company Longcan.

"But the team-building is non-negotiable. First, everyone needs to get familiar with their colleagues across departments for smoother collaboration."

"Ruolan, distribute the cakes and coffee, then go over the upcoming projects with everyone."

After Zhou Yi’s instructions, Jiang Ruolan began handing out treats while outlining the company’s new ventures.

Each department had different responsibilities, so she only covered the broad strokes, leaving details for later meetings with team leads.

Once Zhou Yi and Jiang Ruolan returned to their offices, Fan Hong nudged his neighbors—Wu Ying and another male colleague—and muttered:

"You think President Zhou let us slack off on purpose? Now that he’s back, we might be drowning in overtime. Sounds exhausting."

Wu Ying brushed him off. "President Zhou isn’t like that. Stop overthinking."

The guy beside her grinned. "Even if we do overtime, I’m fine with it. The pay’s great—I’ll take it!"

Fan Hong choked on his coffee. These two were impossible to sway.

Undermining Huanyu’s morale wouldn’t be easy.

Fan Hong was Wang Can’s nephew—hardly a professional spy. He had no idea why his uncle had entrusted him with this mission.

The answer was obvious: he radiated such harmless cluelessness that no one would suspect him. Even if he "accidentally" slipped up, it’d seem like an honest mistake.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ruolan answered a call before knocking on Zhou Yi’s door.

"Come in."

"President Zhou, a film team is asking if you’re available to meet now. They’ve brought their script and are already downstairs."

Zhou Yi paused. "That fast?"

Jiang Ruolan nodded. "Yes. I mentioned you’d be free tomorrow on WeChat, but they seem eager to move quickly..."

Zhou Yi set down his pen. "Send them up. I’m free now anyway."

Song Mu’s face lit up when he got the message.

"Wenjin! President Zhou agreed to see us!"

Xu Wenjin’s eyes widened in excitement. He took a deep breath, smoothing his slightly wrinkled shirt.

"Let’s go, let’s go!"

Song Mu practically dragged him forward, buzzing with energy.

Xu Wenjin sighed. "Let’s hope this works."

Rejection after rejection had worn him down. The once-ambitious graduate now carried the weight of disillusionment.

Song Mu patted his shoulder. "President Zhou isn’t like the others. Maybe he’ll invest. We’re here now—might as well give it our best shot."

Xu Wenjin nodded, though hope was thin.

Script in hand, they headed upstairs.

"This is the place, right?"

"Yeah, Assistant Jiang said so."

"Why are there two... are those security guards?"

Spotting them, Xu An blinked, then remembered Jiang Ruolan’s heads-up about visitors. He beamed.

"Director Song?"

Song Mu relaxed slightly at Xu An’s warm smile.

He hurried over. "Yes, I’m Song Mu. Assistant Jiang arranged this meeting."

Xu An and Ye Chen held the doors open as a sweet-voiced receptionist welcomed them inside.

They led Song Mu to the meeting room and brought him some water.

"Please wait a moment, gentlemen. President Zhou Yi will be here shortly."

Song Mu waited anxiously for Zhou Yi's arrival.

When Zhou Yi pushed the door open, Song Mu and Xu Wenjin quickly stood up to shake his hand.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhou Yi got straight to the point and asked to see the script.

Song Mu could tell Zhou Yi was a direct person, so he placed the script right in front of him.

He had full confidence in their film!

Yet many investors didn’t believe in them. The moment they saw they were just two young college students, they wouldn’t even glance at the script before showing them the door.

Zhou Yi didn’t take long to read it.

When he closed the script, Song Mu’s heart sank completely.

President Zhou hadn’t even finished reading it—did he dislike their story?

This was another blow for Song Mu. Forcing a smile, he asked,

"President Zhou, what do you think of our script?"

To his surprise, Zhou Yi broke into a grin. "Good! Very good! I’ll invest in this film!"

He was joking—this was the box office champion from his past life!

Why hadn’t Zhou Yi finished reading it? Because the story felt instantly familiar from the very beginning—he didn’t even need to read the rest.

Wasn’t this just Dying to Survive with a different protagonist and title?