Xu Yuan's acquisition of so many cinema chains in the United States this time is expected to cost more than US$700 million. All of this money was paid by the Jade Fund, which is almost emptying the fund.

(Don't get me wrong, Chen Xia is not "Wang Xiaomu"; the money used to acquire the cinema chain was all his own capital, not a bank loan, so he refused to be investigated.)

However, Chen Xia doesn't have much money now. He bought a round crystal production line in Hong Kong and acquired the second largest cinema chain in the United States. These are both large investments.

If it weren't for the fact that several branches of the Four Seasons Group had excellent earning power, he would have really had to sell his gold reserves.

"Auntie, with our 550 theaters, how far are we from the number one AMC?"

Xu's mother flipped through a bunch of information and said, "AMC currently has a total of 620 theaters and about 3,800 screens. The gap between us is not that big."

The three largest cinema chains in the United States account for approximately 55% of the annual box office, and can be said to be in an absolutely dominant position.

But if we break it down separately, no one of the three major cinema chains can monopolize the entire cinema market. This is also stipulated by the anti-monopoly law of the United States. If anyone monopolizes the market, they will be plagued by lawsuits and endless troubles.

Chen Xia nodded after hearing this. Anyway, you can't monopolize the market, but it shouldn't be a problem for you to be number one, right?

"Aunt Xu, we've acquired the Regal Cinema Chain and the small cinema chain. Let's call it a day for now. The most important thing to do right now is to manage the theaters we have well, upgrade those that need upgrading, and expand those that need expanding.

In addition, Regal Cinemas' original focus on cinemas, high-end cafes, and bookstores will be eliminated. We will focus on the film exhibition business and not on all the fancy things."

The old shareholders of Regal Cinemas eventually went bankrupt, and one of the main reasons for selling the cinema chain was problems with its positioning.

Movie theaters are places for fast food consumption and popular entertainment venues.

However, the old shareholders of Regal Cinemas wanted the cinema to take a high-end route. Not only was it decorated very luxuriously, but it also provided luxurious cafes, bookstores, etc., and invested a lot of money.

As you can imagine, a movie ticket might only cost a few dollars, and the audience can just leave after watching the movie, relaxed and at ease.

Who would drink coffee that costs tens of dollars a cup? Wouldn't it be better to spend $2 on a popcorn and cola combo?

Likewise, who among those high-ranking business people would come to the cinema to drink coffee and talk about life while dressed elegantly? This is a low-class thing, isn't it?

Cinemas are not a very profitable industry to begin with, and coupled with the huge losses from the coffee house and bookstore project, the old owner could no longer bear it, so Chen Xia took advantage of it and bought it.

Therefore, Chen Xia must cancel these flashy "coffee house plans" and concentrate on cinema construction. If he has money, he will buy a few more cinema chains and strive to become the largest cinema chain in the United States as soon as possible.

Xu's mother did not reject this suggestion. She had visited the site in person and knew how deceptive this coffee plan was.

But she didn't expect her son-in-law to stop expanding. She was originally unwilling to accept that Chen Xia didn't become the largest in the United States.

"Xiao Xia, have you encountered financial difficulties recently?"

I have to say that the old lady is very smart. She saw the problem at a glance. This is exactly the type of woman Chen Xia fears the most, and she will make him nowhere to hide.

"Aunt Xu, I'm having some problems with my cash flow. I just invested in several wafer production lines in Hong Kong, and I have to invest in several new large projects, which has directly consumed all the working capital I have.

But don't worry, the operations of the branches of Four Seasons Group are very smooth and the profits are quite considerable. I don't want to affect their production, so I didn't withdraw funds.

In addition, this year I licensed the patents for five antibiotics to more than ten foreign companies. I estimate that the total value of all these drug patents will exceed $3.5 billion, and the Jade Fund will receive no less than $500 million. Don't worry."

This reassurance must be given to Xu's mother. If the old lady thinks that her son-in-law has no money, it will easily cause her to become uneasy.

Chen Xia was also careless. After all, he was not a businessman and did not know how to calculate financial accounts.

Four Four Seasons Center projects and two Four Seasons Hospital projects are underway in the mainland. The money spent on land purchases plus infrastructure costs has exceeded the original plan of HK$3 billion and is estimated to reach HK$5 billion.

Even though the construction cost is not paid in one lump sum, you have to pay the land transfer fee in one lump sum, right?

In this way, a large amount of funds of Four Seasons Group will be trapped in this infrastructure project.

In addition, he established a new "Medical Equipment Branch" in Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong, and plans to produce and export various high-tech laparoscopic surgical instruments, various auxiliary inspection instruments, etc. in Hong Kong in the future.

The cost of building a factory in Hong Kong is much higher than that in the mainland. In addition to the purchase of various fully automatic production lines and expensive land transfer fees, more than 1 billion Hong Kong dollars will be spent at once.

If it only comes to this, the Four Seasons Group's own funds and Chen Xia's "private money" are more than enough to support it.

As luck would have it, they launched another "wafer factory plan", which cost more than 2 billion US dollars and was really a serious blow to the company.

How broke was he? Chen Xia had never been fond of loans or going public to raise capital, but this time he had no choice but to consider mortgaging his lithography machine to borrow money from the bank.

Otherwise it would be really unbearable.

Who else is as crazy as him? He invests more than 3 billion US dollars a year, and all of it is his own capital.

Fortunately, these investments are one-time and the future returns are huge. The current difficulties are just minor, and Chen Xia is not worried. He earns more than 3 billion US dollars in patent fees a year.

Chen Xia was not worried, but Xu Yuan was shocked.

"How about we not develop the cinema chain and just focus on the farm? You don't have to work too hard and take care of your health. Don't worry, I can support you with the income from the farm and the cultural company, hehe."

Although the farm under Xu Yuan's name does not generate much income, it is stable.

In addition, the cultural company under her name is becoming more and more profitable.

As cultural exchanges between China and the United States become more frequent, the "Jade Culture Company", which acts as an "intermediary", has undertaken more and more performances and exhibitions.

Some prodigal sons in China spend money without blinking an eye in order to "expand their influence" by going to the United States.

Anyway, the price is up to you, Jade Culture. We have only one requirement: it must be a big deal! It must cause a sensation! It must impress the American people.

Chen Xia was delighted when she heard this. "Great! In just a few years, you've become a rich woman. You actually want to support your husband? Well, boss lady, you treat me to lunch today."

Xu Yuan raised her chin and said, "Come on, I'll take you to eat French food!"

"I want to eat Qishan臊子面 instead of French food. Snails are disgusting."

"Chen Xia, you're so unsophisticated. Who said French cuisine only has snails?"

"Ah, a husband who has shared his life with you should not be bullied. You actually despise me~~~"

Mother Xu looked at the two people who were "jokingly talking", smiled, shook her head, closed the door and went out...