1994: I Became a Literary Master in America

Chapter 44 What if the King didn't have $10,000...

"Hey, I heard you got into a fight with some people from your hometown?"

"Well, there was a minor friction, but it wasn't really a conflict."

Master Wu had a kind face and a gentle smile.

"A minor altercation, and you forced someone to drink a bottle of Chivas Regal?"

"Master, that's not how it is. He made the first move to frame me."

"But I heard that you were the one who provoked him on the field, calling him an old slave... Isn't that just creating conflict?"

"He still has the nerve to complain?"

"Well, it's not exactly a complaint, he just asked Zhang Beihai to intervene."

As you know, my master received guidance from Mr. Jialing in his early years. Zhang Beihai is Mr. Jialing's student and has been in New York for over twenty years, so he's practically an acquaintance. When he called to offer reconciliation, I couldn't very well refuse.

Xu Shengjie sneered, "These old lackeys are quite united."

"Ah Jie, don't say things that are detrimental to unity anymore."

Chen Ke also chimed in, "I don't think Ah Jie did anything wrong. I asked Roger about it, and he said that old codger backed down on the field. Damn it, you can lose to foreigners, but you can't be spineless."

"Old Chen, shut up. I'm disciplining my apprentice."

Besides, Lao Zhang called and said he'd reconcile. What am I supposed to do? Should I just refuse? Then when Mr. Jialing comes to visit from Canada, I won't even have the face to go see him. I'm getting on in years, why am I getting so angry?

Back then, you were known as the "Merciful Boxer" who never harmed a single person!

"Back then, I was just too compassionate."

Chen Ke also sneered and said, "Anyway, I won't offend others unless they offend me."

Ah Jie didn't do anything wrong. If Ah Jie had really been drinking, he would be fine, but Lao Liu would be in big trouble.

Master Wu scratched his head, a troubled smile on his face.

Xu Shengjie laughed and said, "This old servant has quite a wide network of connections. I previously asked Boss Zhou to mediate, and now I've asked Zhang Beihai."

Master, I will do whatever you say.

"Alright, I'm not asking you to swallow your anger, I just want to say, this is the end of it."

If he's ungrateful and causes you trouble again, retaliate however you see fit. Anyway, I've already reconciled our past friendship.

"I know what to do."

"Alright, go ahead and do your thing. I know you're all busy."

Next time you come, bring your little girlfriend. Let me give you my opinion. I heard from Erwin that she's really hot.

"Yes, yes, bring it over to see."

You should know that we are all getting old, but we should still appreciate beautiful things more.

Gong Xue, who lives upstairs, is very pretty, and the new girl Zhou is also a pleasure to behold.

Grandpa, you're really old in years but young at heart!

Xu Shengjie laughed heartily and agreed to Chen Keye's request.

……

I hadn't thought about what to do before.

But this old servant Wang…

If he hadn't sought help, this matter might have simply passed for Xu Shengjie.

But he went to find someone, even his master, clearly trying to use his age and connections to pressure him. He wouldn't give in easily.

In my past life, you held absolute power, and I had to swallow my anger.

You've fallen into my hands for life, and I have to swallow my anger?

Then all my time travel was for nothing!

Hmph, Master only told me not to cause trouble, but if Old Man Wang jumps in himself, then I can't be blamed.

He claimed to have saved $100,000 delivering food in the US and returned to China to start his own business... But what if he hadn't had that $100,000? Would Brothers Pictures still be able to be established? Would he still be able to wreak havoc on the film industry and dominate everything in the future?

Xu Shengjie was very curious.

He first followed Master Wu's advice and got several doses of medicine from Manqing Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic.

Then he went to Xuanzhuo Martial Arts School to find his senior brother, Wu Dehua, and obtained a standing meditation technique from him.

The stance training, known as Chuanxi Stance, is a set of health-preserving stance training exercises from Cai Li Fo Quan.

This thing is a closely guarded secret, meaning that Xu Shengjie was Master Wu's last disciple; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to obtain it.

"Read the book and think about it first. If you have any questions, ask me."

If there's something you don't understand, don't practice it blindly, especially when it comes to written things...

"I know, the true teaching is just a single sentence."

Woodward laughed and punched him lightly. "You know what's going on."

Go home and study the secret manual first. Once you've figured it out, then come back and ask for guidance. This way, you can achieve twice the result with half the effort.

Xu Shengjie bid farewell to his senior brother and rode his motorcycle to the HopKee restaurant on Mote Street, where he found Zhang Ping'an and the others.

"I want to make that guy surnamed Wang lose everything. Is there any way to do that?"

He got straight to the point and explained his purpose.

"This old servant sent someone to find my master to suppress me, but I am not convinced."

But I can't disobey my master. I can choose not to cause him trouble, but he's been gambling on football lately. If he loses everything, it won't count as me causing him trouble. Guys, help me think of a way to get him to place his bets on the Argentina vs. Bulgaria match in advance, betting on Argentina to win.

"Uh, betting on Argentina to win is just giving them free money."

"Argentina might not win... I've heard that FIFA has been unhappy with Maradona and doesn't want Argentina to win. Argentina has been too dominant in this World Cup, and I reckon FIFA will definitely take action."

"Make a move? How do we make a move?"

"For example, suspending Maradona? Actually, there was already this trend in the last tournament. You can see a clue by looking at Argentina's opponents all the way from the group stage in 90. So I estimate that the organizing committee will definitely take action against Maradona in the group stage."

"How can that be?"

Zhang Ping'an frowned and said, "We have to help Grandpa Ma."

"You're kidding me. You think we little Karami can compete with FIFA? What are you thinking?"

Don't overthink it. There's nothing we can do about this. If we can make a profit, we should do so; that's the right thing to do.

Zhang Ping'an and the others remained silent for a moment, then nodded in unison.

"Find Zihua Yang and have him find a way to lure the guy surnamed Wang into the game... The guy surnamed Wang has made a lot of money with Lao Yang."

If Lao Yang speaks up, he'll definitely believe him.

"I don't care, you guys figure it out."

In short, I will make this old servant bankrupt!

Xu Shengjie said through gritted teeth.

……

After lunch, he returned home.

After spending two hours drawing the storyboard, I checked the time, grabbed my backpack, and headed out.

He also has a recording session today.

I had already arranged with Quad Recording Studios to meet with Alan Menken later.

He didn't really care whether or not the recording was made.

The song has already been written, and I even asked Jessica to help me register the copyright. It would be a real shame to waste it.

Anyway, the script isn't something that can be completed overnight.

Going to sing karaoke or trying out new things can be a great way to relax your mind.

The only downside is that it's expensive.

If it's just recording, the basic budget is 6000+, not including preparation work such as arrangement and track separation.

Today, I went to the recording studio just to talk to the engineer about the concept of the song and the requirements for the preliminary work such as arrangement and track separation.

If Alan Menken were to be the producer, the production would involve recording, mastering, and 100-500 tapes/CDs...

Twenty thousand dollars is not enough.

If it weren't for the large sum of money that was coming in, Xu Shengjie might not have been willing to take the money.

He didn't have a record label, so he needed to find radio stations to promote his music.

A budget of $30,000 is barely enough!

After Xu Shengjie derived the entire budget and process, he already had some regrets.

It's not the internet age anymore; to become famous overnight, you have to invest, and not just a small amount.

In this era, $50,000 would be equivalent to at least $100,000 by 2026.

Frankly speaking, it's very risky for this money to be paid by an individual.

Therefore, Xu Shengjie went to the recording studio this time to hear Manken's advice. If investing too much was too much, he would rather register the copyrights of the songs in his head and sell them to singers... However, this also depends on luck.

The recording studio is in Midtown, so it's not hard to find.

Xu Shengjie arrived at the recording studio at 4 p.m., half an hour before the agreed time.

"Mr. Manken is currently receiving a client. Mr. Xu, please wait a moment in the meeting room."

The receptionist's voice sounded familiar; it seemed to be the same woman who had called Xu Shengjie before.

However, she is quite old. Although she tried to hide it, it was still obvious that she was at least over thirty years old.

But she has a really good figure, with a curvy figure.

Xu Shengjie made a malicious guess about her relationship with Alan Menken.

The reception room was large, but Xu Shengjie wasn't the only one there.

In the corner, there was a little girl, a very pretty little girl, probably seventeen or eighteen years old. However, American girls mature early, so Xu Shengjie guessed she was probably around fourteen or fifteen.

He looks familiar, but I can't remember who he is.

Child star?

He muttered to himself.

The little girl was wearing a huge pink pair of headphones and listening to music.

When Xu Shengjie was led in, the little girl looked up at him, but then lowered her head and ignored him.

……