Chapter 46 I Want You to Be an Eagle, Not a Dog!

"Why would it be her? How could it possibly be Aunt Chiung Yao?"

"Who else could it be, according to you?"

The scramble for the Princess Pearl talent show had finally settled.

Ma Xun and Yeh Chuan-chen were once again taking a stroll along the riverside.

Naturally, they couldn't help discussing the identity of the "leaker."

To be honest, ordinary people would never have guessed it. The leaker turned out to be none other than Chiung Yao herself.

Of course, there was still no concrete evidence pointing directly at her.

Yet Ma Xun was utterly certain.

It was her!

"But, but does that even make any sense logically?"

Although Yeh Chuan-chen was asking the question, deep down, she had already accepted the truth.

Ma Xun smiled and replied, "Of course it makes sense logically. In fact, this is precisely Aunt Chiung Yao's own logic."

"Huh?"

Yeh Chuan-chen's look of curiosity was truly somewhat adorable.

Ma Xun continued, "Aside from you and Ho Hsiu-chiung, did anyone else know about this project?"

This question left Yeh Chuan-chen momentarily speechless.

Indeed, only the three women knew, or at most, Ho Hsiu-chiung's husband as well.

Yet neither Yeh Chuan-chen nor Ho Hsiu-chiung would ever breathe a word of it to that Young Master Ping.

Only Chiung Yao herself had the possibility of telling him.

"Then why would she do such a thing?"

That was an excellent question.

And Ma Xun's answer was even more intriguing. "Read a bit more of Aunt Chiung Yao's works, and you should be able to understand."

Hearing this, Yeh Chuan-chen couldn't help blushing.

She hadn't actually read much of them at all.

Seeing the change in her expression, Ma Xun offered a small hint.

"Once she did this, no matter how the Ping family and her daughter-in-law fought over it, it would have nothing to do with her."

Yeh Chuan-chen finally revealed a look of sudden realization.

"Besides, this was also a test for her daughter-in-law. If she couldn't even solve such a simple puzzle, how could she ever inherit her mantle?"

That much was enough said.

Yeh Chuan-chen nodded, sinking into her own thoughts.

Ma Xun understood that letting her ponder on it more would benefit her.

Ever since they were beaten to the punch upon arriving in Changsha, Ma Xun had been certain that Chiung Yao was the one who leaked the information.

For him, figuring this out was a piece of cake.

It was just like the article Chiung Yao would write in the future regarding the recasting of roles in Princess Pearl.

That entire article of hers highlighted two main words.

"I heard."

Everything came from what she had "heard."

The subtext was: everything that happened in the mainland was entirely Ho Hsiu-chiung's doing.

Chiung Yao refused to take the blame.

Applied to the present situation, the logic was identical.

First, she leaked the talent show project to Young Master Ping.

That way, if Young Master Ping failed to outmaneuver her daughter-in-law, Ho Hsiu-chiung—

That would be fantastic!

Afterwards, Chiung Yao handing all her works over to her own biological son would become completely natural and justified.

It was simply the Ping family failing to win the contest; nobody could possibly blame her.

Anyway, reading her works made it all very easy to understand.

In fact, the Ping family had previously profited handsomely from her creations.

And this time, there was yet another crucial figure.

Ma Xun waited until Yeh Chuan-chen had pondered for a while before speaking again.

"Have you thought about Ho Hsiu-chiung?"

"What about Ho Hsiu-chiung?"

"Ah-xue, sometimes you really are quite foolish. Don't you understand? The moment Ho Hsiu-chiung heard that the Ping family had come to vie for this project, she already knew for certain that the leaker was none other than her mother-in-law."

"Ah, this..."

Hearing this explanation, Yeh Chuan-chen instantly felt a wave of discomfort wash over her.

This had to be the truth.

If so, didn't that mean she herself had been acting like a clown at the time?

"You literary intellectuals have far too many schemes in your minds."

This wasn't even meant as a jab by Yeh Chuan-chen; it was simply her true sentiment.

Yet it managed to amuse Ma Xun, who chuckled, "That Ho Hsiu-chiung is no simple character; she is a very clever woman."

This was Ma Xun's honest thought, especially judging by the final outcome.

Ho Hsiu-chiung could be said to have monopolized everything, successfully acquiring all of Chiung Yao's assets.

Those fellows from the Ping family caused endless commotions afterward, generating plenty of juicy gossip along the way.

Unfortunately, none of it was of any use.

Naturally, Ma Xun had no intention of dwelling on those matters. Bringing up Ho Hsiu-chiung was meant to prompt Yeh Chuan-chen to remain somewhat guarded as well.

However, Ah-xue's mind wandered to a rather quirky question.

"My Lord, but the way you acted back then was also..."

"Too overly dramatic?"

At this, Yeh Chuan-chen nodded in agreement.

Ma Xun laughed heartily. "I did that on purpose."

It had to be dramatic!

"Why?"

"It's very simple. I needed to make that woman Ho Hsiu-chiung completely convinced that I was entirely on her side. Conversely, I had to completely burn bridges with the Ping family, leaving absolutely no room for retreat."

Yeh Chuan-chen nodded involuntarily upon hearing this.

Yet, something still seemed lacking.

Ma Xun continued, "This talent show is merely an appetizer; the truly crucial piece is this drama, Princess Pearl."

Yeh Chuan-chen finally understood, but another problem immediately arose.

"What about that? This show is being co-produced with the economic channel."

Ma Xun gave Yeh Chuan-chen an approving look. "You're quite right, but from the very beginning, I never intended to take a cut of the profits belonging to Hunan TV Channel 2—meaning Director Ouyang's interests.

Nor did I ever intend to take a cut of Ho Hsiu-chiung's profits."

This...

"Then what are you aiming for?"

"Very simple. This drama can always be broadcast on other television stations; that's the portion of the profits I want."

That's right—the "rerun" copyright.

Specifically, the spot advertisements during those reruns!

Hearing this, Yeh Chuan-chen finally grasped the whole picture, but couldn't help asking, "Won't the reruns of this show perform far worse than its initial broadcast?"

Ma Xun nodded... this was part of the act.

Yet there was no helping it.

While Chiung Yao's dramas were popular enough at the moment, nobody would ever believe that the peak viewership ratings for Princess Pearl would actually be achieved during its reruns on the Beijing Television Station!

That had been Ma Xun's target right from the start!

If he could secure the spot advertisements for those reruns, he would make an absolute fortune!

Naturally, he would also have to ensure the interests of the Beijing Television Station were met.

In fact, viewed entirely through the lens of hindsight,

the viewership ratings of the reruns of Princess Pearl on the Beijing Television Station reached astronomical heights.

If translated entirely into monetary terms...

At least several hundred million!

However, that was impossible.

No one could have foreseen such towering ratings, and therefore it was impossible to monetize them to that extent.

Yet tens of millions were certainly within reach.

And this was back in 1997 or 1998, when tens of millions carried immense weight!

Ma Xun dared say that anyone who knew the profits could be this massive

would have acted far more dramatically than he did!

Naturally, he couldn't reveal too much of this to Yeh Chuan-chen right now.

What Ma Xun needed to do was have Yeh Chuan-chen help him cement the persona of firmly backing Ho Hsiu-chiung.

That way, once filming wrapped up, he would likely have secured the rerun copyrights.

For now, they would take things one step at a time.

As for this talent show, they had to execute it flawlessly.

Which wasn't particularly difficult either.

In truth, the actual production of the program was still handled by Director Ouyang and his team.

Ma Xun and Sun Donghai were merely the financial backers, investing capital into the television station.

That six million was essentially funds provided to the station.

Their profit-generating point lay in the spot advertisements.

Those ads didn't belong to the television station; they belonged to them.

To put it bluntly, it was just the remaining six-million-yuan balance.

Of course, they still had to keep a close eye on how the production crew spent the money.

Sun Donghai was utterly unreliable; the fellow was far more likely to fixate on the "female contestants of the talent show."

Therefore, this task had to be entrusted to Yeh Chuan-chen.

Entrusted with such a heavy responsibility, Ah-xue was thoroughly thrilled.

"Please rest assured, My Lord."

The way the two of them addressed each other was rather bizarre, yet carried a strange, intoxicating atmosphere.

Especially when they occasionally engaged in intimate gestures.

Just like now, the moment Ma Xun raised his hand, Yeh Chuan-chen seized it.

Then, she lightly traced her little tongue across his palm.

Ma Xun silently mused that this woman was truly formidable.

A surge of warmth pooled in his lower abdomen.

Yet he put on a stern face and scolded, "As the saying goes, hunting dogs are kept for the hunt; I asked you to be my hawk, not my hound!"

"Understood! Ah-xue will certainly fulfill her mission!"

Remarkably, Yeh Chuan-chen was thoroughly immersed in the role.

After all, she had starred in Legend of the Fire Cloud.

Yeh Chuan-chen went off to accomplish the mission assigned to her by the Sixth Prince, pausing before her departure to flash a cute, mischievous grimace.

Only, Ma Xun understood that this aloof beauty was actually stalling.

The two of them seemed to be playing some bizarre game at the moment.

Waiting to see who would surrender first.

Yet for now, the game was quite entertaining.

Humoring her for a while wasn't a bad idea either.

...

"Brother! Awesome!"

"Indeed! To throw away a full million just for this project! Truly fucking awesome!"

The Princess Pearl talent show project had been successfully secured.

Their twelve-million-yuan venture was now officially on the right track.

Bai Daqing had effectively clinched the agency rights for the spot advertisements.

How much he would earn from it afterwards depended entirely on his own capability.

Yet right now, everyone could see it as plain as day.

To secure this project, Ma Xun had practically thrown away one million yuan without batting an eye!

Yes, in the eyes of Sun Donghai and Bai Daqing,

funding an arthouse film like Quitting or Mountains and Streams was nothing more than throwing money down the drain.

Naturally, Ma Xun did not see it that way.

He knew the film was exceptional; perhaps it hadn't turned a profit in its original timeline.

But now Ma Xun had arrived!

Moreover, snatching the talent show project back from the Ping family this time

was an achievement owed largely to that film.

Ma Xun had previously recalled a particular detail: one of the producers of Mountains and Streams was none other than Director Ouyang.

That was how Ma Xun had broken the deadlock.

Investing in Kang Jianmin was the critical move that won him this game.

"I will definitely promote this film properly; that one million wasn't thrown away in vain. However..."

Ma Xun intended to drop a hint to Bai Daqing.

To his surprise, the fellow was extremely tactful.

"Brother, don't you worry, the remaining six million will be here in no time! And regarding this Chiung Yao drama, shouldn't we also..."

As expected! His ambition wasn't small either!

Ma Xun smiled and said, "Whether we can grab this drama will depend entirely on Brother Bai's capabilities."

Naturally, Bai Daqing caught the implication and threw out a figure right away.

"Twenty million?"

Before Ma Xun could even respond, Sun Donghai, that reckless fellow, was immediately dissatisfied.

"Brother Bai! You're being far too small-minded! At the very least, we should double it!"

Good grief, you really dare to open your mouth!

Bai Daqing felt a surge of excitement, yet managed to remain calm. "Still, isn't it impossible to wrest it away from Director Ouyang?"

Clearly, this fellow wasn't so easily bluffed.

Sun Donghai looked over at Ma Xun: Brother, it's time for you to step in.

Ma Xun smiled and remarked, "Brother Bai, just do your utmost. When have we brothers ever failed to deliver?"

"Exactly!" Sun Donghai chimed in to support him.

Bai Daqing's blood was now surging as well, and he promptly raised his glass in a toast.

"Alright! This time, us brothers are going to pull off something massive!"

"That's right!"

"Cheers!"

With a single toast, a business venture with a guaranteed baseline of forty million yuan was sealed...