Chapter 784 - 774: The Trending Storm

Chapter 784: Chapter 774: The Trending Storm

That evening, Wang Fan hosted a gathering at a quite nice restaurant, inviting a number of directors over.

Originally, Yang Jia wanted to arrange this, but Wang Fan didn’t let her. First, the crew’s budget wasn’t sufficient, and second, these people were all invited by Wang Fan himself, so naturally there was no reason for someone else to play host.

Although Su Qing is an investor and technically the buyer, after all, they didn’t initially intend to work with him, so everyone sat together as equals.

Despite that, he still remained one of the most important figures among those present.

Of course, Wang Fan had already informed these people that since he was young, there was no need for the usual drinking customs; he didn’t drink, he just wanted to meet people, and having more friends means more opportunities.

With Su Qing’s current financial capabilities, and under his name, a film investment company, he still holds considerable attraction for these directors.

In the evening, at the dining table, while others were toasting, Su Qing used water as a substitute for wine. Everyone had a satisfying meal, and there were no female artists at the table, just a group of men.

They all exchanged contact information, and some even mentioned having projects on hand.

To this, Su Qing directly responded, saying that by about June, the company would again invest heavily in projects, inviting anyone present who had ideas to bring their scripts and try their luck then.

Although nothing was finalized on the spot, everyone was still very happy because it opened up new possibilities for them.

Of course, Wang Fan was also straightforward, saying that not every script would receive investment, though it wasn’t explicitly stated, everyone knew not just any script would be accepted.

Which is understandable, as nobody wants to invest in a bad film and end up losing everything.

The meal ended with both hosts and guests in good spirits, with an atmosphere far better than in the capital. Plus, the attendees were all professional directors with a range of experiences, exchanging insights as they chatted.

Su Qing’s presence was a signal for these directors, and they were also aware that in the next two months, three films he invested in would be released, with a total investment of nearly 150 million yuan. Of course, 50 million of that came from Wen Jingqi, but the directors didn’t mind, as they only cared about the investment itself, not where it came from.

For a company that could put out 150 million yuan at once, it indeed seemed financially robust, and Wang Fan also disclosed that Su Qing had already invested 100 million in his project "Wandering Earth 2."

This was another major impact for those present, realizing the substantial funding of over 200 million yuan, something not all companies can accomplish.

No matter how some companies might claim assets of several billion or more, the amount of readily available funds is certainly not that much.

Because of this, everyone came to regard this President Su’s strength with more respect.

At 10 PM, some people needed to rest for work the next day, while others went to the karaoke bar for round two, dispersing into different groups.

Inside the hotel, Su Qing returned a call to old Wang. During dinner, he’d received a call from Wang but didn’t answer due to the crowd, only sending a message back, thankfully not having drunk any alcohol.

"Old Wang, not asleep yet? What’s up with calling me?" Su Qing asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, the voice of old Wang came through the phone: "President Su, I..."

But before finishing, Su Qing interrupted: "Come on, it’s not like it’s the first time we know each other, just say what you need to say."

Although he is now a company boss and has close collaborations with Bai Hua, he still finds it somewhat awkward when acquaintances address him so formally.

For example, Sun Mumu and Lin Miaomiao, the "Crouching Dragon and Coiled Phoenix" of the company, never call him President Su, always using his name, treating each other as friends.

Old Wang was one of the first friends he made in the company, and naturally he didn’t want any distance between them; after all, his account was entrusted to Wang to manage, forming a collaborative and mutually beneficial relationship.

"Alright, brother, something did come up that needs your attention, and you have to make a decision," Old Wang candidly stated without dwelling on titles.

Upon hearing this, Su Qing couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled. After all, Old Wang was in the publicity department of the Jiang City branch, what could it have to do with him? Needing his decision? Could it be account-related?

Immediately, Su Qing vaguely guessed the source of the issue.

"What is it? Just say it," he urged.

"It’s like this, brother, do you know Fang Junhai? A male, one year younger than you!"

"Fang Junhai? I don’t know him, who is he?" Su Qing was a bit confused, recalling the people he knew and confirming that none were named Fang Junhai.

"What about Chen Jing?" continued old Wang.

Su Qing frowned: "Chen Jing? Also don’t know, what’s going on?"

He had no recollection of these two names, finding it quite inexplicable.

"Here’s the thing, brother, recently while managing your account, we suddenly encountered someone, a terminal cancer patient named Fang Junhai. He said both he and his girlfriend are fans of yours and Da Huang’s and, with not much time left, wishes to meet you and Da Huang.

Moreover, he mentioned his girlfriend was your elementary school classmate, even providing the elementary school address, and added that she recently passed away due to an accident.

Yesterday, Xiao Zhao and I received this news, and indeed, the man’s homepage contains many videos from the hospital. We’ve confirmed it’s actually terminal cancer, but there’s uncertainty about his identity.

The most critical part is that the issue has been fermenting in your comment section and has started to go viral. Many people are @-ing you, and you’re considering what to do. Ignoring it might have some negative impact."

As soon as Old Wang finished speaking, a narration prompt echoed in Su Qing’s mind.

[Chen Jing, a student from Daoist Manor Elementary School, was your classmate for three years in elementary school. During middle school, you went to the city. When you graduated elementary school, she gave you a small pig plush toy. She dropped out during middle school.]

With the narration reminder, Su Qing finally remembered. It seemed there was indeed such a person.

He recalled Chen Jing as a particularly quiet girl who transferred to their class in the fourth grade because her original elementary school building was too old and had become hazardous, forcing her to transfer.

That means they were classmates only in the fourth grade and shared a desk for a while.

It’s not that strange that he couldn’t remember her, considering it’s been so many years since they graduated, and he hadn’t seen her since. Without the narration reminder, he might not remember her name even if she stood before him.

But in the next second, his eyes widened. Chen Jing... had unexpectedly passed away?

At that moment, he could not care about the internet repercussions and urgently asked, "Old Wang, did they mention her elementary school address?" ℯ

Indeed, Old Wang’s reply confirmed that it was the same address as his elementary school, and the other party even knew his elementary school class teacher, leaving no doubt they were classmates.

In response, Su Qing couldn’t help but take a deep breath. To be honest, he wasn’t particularly sad, just a bit emotional. After all, they hadn’t seen each other for so many years, and it would be too hypocritical to claim grief.

"Buddy, what are you going to do? Will you go and have a look? It’s just in the city adjacent to Jiang City," Old Wang asked.

Upon hearing this, Su Qing found himself conflicted. Go? There wasn’t any genuine emotion, and the person was gone; the situation didn’t directly involve him. But if he didn’t go... now that he knew, rejecting the invitation seemed a bit indifferent.

Moreover, as Old Wang implied, this matter had begun to ferment online, affecting him somewhat.

Clearly understanding Su Qing’s dilemma and thoughts, Old Wang suggested, "Buddy, I think it would be good for you to go. Of course, it’s up to you to decide. I’ll send you an account in a moment; you can check it out online and make your decision then."

To this, Su Qing nodded, "Alright, I’ll think about it and let you know tomorrow!"

After hanging up the phone, Su Qing quickly received the account from Old Wang on his phone. He checked and found it easily; it was a male’s account with the ID ’Fang Xiaohai Counting His Days in the Mortal World.’

Opening the homepage, he saw the account had nearly a hundred thousand followers and over a hundred and fifty entries.

However, only the last ten or so had an unusually high number of likes. Instead of opening those, he scrolled down and finally found a video featuring a girl who, despite having changed quite a bit, he instantly recognized as his former elementary school classmate, Chen Jing.

The video was taken in a ward, with Chen Jing encouraging him. Then, Su Qing scrolled up and soon found a video from last month. The caption was ’She finally belongs to me,’ but the photo was just a small urn.

The last two videos featured the boy himself on screen, where he expressed that he and his girlfriend were fans of Dahuang, mentioned wanting to leave something for Su Qing, and shared some basic information about Chen Jing.

As it turned out, Chen Jing’s father passed away when she was in middle school, her mother remarried, and her family was unwilling to fund her schooling, leading to her dropping out and going out to work on her own. Because of her stepfather’s family situation, she later lost contact with her mother’s side.

Since her death was accidental, there was no compensation, and no relatives came to the funeral home to claim the body. He was the one who brought it back.

Afterward, Su Qing logged into his own account and checked his comment section, noticing that the incident first gained attention due to a comment under one of his videos.

The video featured Dahuang eating a hearty meal with dog food and ribs.

’Fang Xiaohai Counting His Days in the Mortal World’ commented: ’Blogger, blogger, Dahuang worked hard again today. So envious, eating so well. Earlier, I only had a meat bun for one yuan and fifty cents, and a steamed bun for one yuan, now I’m full.’

The time was twelve midnight.

A netizen replied to him: After eating, go to sleep.

A very cute reply.

Twenty minutes later, Fang Junhai replied again: Can’t sleep.

That person asked: Insomnia?

"I’m terminally ill, afraid to sleep because I might not wake up. According to the doctor, I’ll be one year old by next May. You should sleep early; you have plenty of time left, unlike me. Be happy, keep it up."

These few short exchanges quickly caught the attention of his comment section’s netizens, who madly liked them, bringing them to the forefront.

In the following days, for some reason, this boy commented obsessively on his comment section, saying he wanted to meet Su Qing and Dahuang, explaining his reasons.

After learning about the situation, netizens began @-ing him in the comments, hoping he’d respond, which led to this incident.

Having understood the general context, Su Qing had a plan in mind.

...