Chapter 2
The conversation in the room continued, and without Gu Chen, the conversation between the two sides became more and more impolite.
Gu Mingrui was obviously suppressing his anger, but he still maintained his composure. No matter what Huang Hao said, Professor Gu's answer was three consecutive rejections.
He will continue to find ways to do it. It is impossible for him to sell his wife's hard work at a low price, let alone sell it to a photocopier!
The middle-aged man nodded and agreed with Professor Gu.
Huang Hao saw that the two of them were not willing to listen, and he lost his patience and sneered:
"Mr. Gu, Professor Gu, I'm asking for your opinion now to give you some face. Don't really think of yourself as the owner of the company."
Gu Mingrui didn't react for a moment, and Huang Hao sneered again: "It seems that Professor Gu really regards the company as his own."
"Let me remind you that the company belongs to you, Professor Gu. You can concentrate on research and delve into your favorite, unpopular major only because you are relying on your teacher's 'pampering' and support."
"If I remember correctly, your good stepfather gave up the inheritance. Originally, the teacher held 60% of Xinghuo's shares, the remaining 10% was held by Mr. Wang, and the remaining 30% was in the form of scattered shares."
"Professor Gu, you are just an agent for two junior students. Not to mention what Gu Chen has, as for the shares in Huan Xu's hands, do you think he will choose to turn them into liabilities or liquidate them in time?"
Amid the changing expressions of the two middle-aged men, Huang Hao finished his last words leisurely:
"This is my final advice. Photocopy is preparing to purchase scattered shares. If you two continue to be stubborn, Photocopy will contact Huan Xu instead of you. Uncle Gu, you should make plans for Xiaochen. And Uncle Wang, it doesn't matter who you follow."
"Huang Hao, stop stirring up trouble here. Xiao Xu is a good kid and won't go along with you."
"Haha." Huang Hao laughed sarcastically, and the meaning was self-evident. Whether Huan Xu was a good boy or not, those who understood would understand.
Huan Xu raised his hand and pressed the door handle, not caring about Gu Chen's scrutinizing gaze behind him. Under everyone's gaze, he slowly walked into the room with his still weak legs.
Gu Chen followed Huan Xu and went back into the room.
Gu Mingrui had no time to pay attention to his youngest son. Instead, he looked at Huan Xu and forced a smile: "Xiao Xu."
The middle-aged man on the hospital bed had an elegant face and a gentle temperament. Huan Xu lowered his eyes and called out politely, "Uncle Gu."
Huan Xu then called out to the middle-aged man next to him, "Uncle Wang."
When Huan Xu said this, the two uncles were a little flattered.
Huan Xu finally looked at Huang Hao who was sitting on the sofa. Huang Hao was looking at Huan Xu with suspicion at this time, and was obviously disrupted by Huan Xu's attitude.
As far as I can remember, Huan Xu was not a polite person, especially towards his stepfather Gu Mingrui.
Huang Hao didn't understand what Huan Xu was up to, and after a moment of hesitation, he decided to strike first.
Huang Hao is a good person. Even if he looks down on Huan Xu in his heart, he usually does not show it. On the contrary, the relationship between the two is pretty good because Huang Hao deliberately maintains it.
Huang Hao smiled and asked Huan Xu to sit down next to him, then asked tentatively, "Xiao Xu, did you hear what I said to Uncle Gu just now?"
If Huan Xu didn't hear it, Huang Hao didn't mind telling it again.
As Huang Hao finished speaking, Gu Mingrui hesitated to speak, while Uncle Wang and Gu Chen held their breath, feeling a little alert and nervous.
Huan Xu took in everyone's expressions, but he didn't answer immediately. His face was expressionless. He casually glanced at Huang Hao, then looked away and waved to Gu Chen, "Xiao Chen, help me up."
Gu Chen:?
It was Gu's father who reacted first and urged Gu Chen: "Xiao Xu just woke up and is still weak. Gu Chen, why don't you help your brother."
Gu Chen hesitated for a moment and took a tentative step forward.
Huan Xu's legs were indeed a little weak, so he directly took his stepbrother's arm and instructed the child to help him sit down on the single sofa beside him.
Gu Chen did as he was told in silence, but was it just his illusion? He felt that there was undisguised disdain in Huan Xu's glance towards Huang Hao just now.
The atmosphere in the room was a bit strange at this moment. Except for Huan Xu and Gu Chen who was supporting him, the other three people fell into a strange state of stillness.
Although he was the last one to come in, Huan Xu seemed to be the leader of the entire room, driving the development of things.
Even Huang Hao, who had been chattering away, subconsciously shut up.
Huan Xu leaned back on the sofa and raised his hand to rub his slightly aching forehead. The loose sleeves of his hospital gown slid down as he moved, revealing a part of his wrist. On a large silver iron chain co-branded with a famous brand, an abstract skull was smiling at Huan Xu.
Huan Xu's eyes twitched. What the hell?
No wonder my wrist hurts, it turns out the patient is carrying weights.
Without saying a word, Huan Xu took off the chain and threw it onto the coffee table. The chain collided with the coffee table, making a harsh sound that sounded very heavy.
Huan Xu's action made Gu Chen and Gu's father's eyes twitch. It was not that they did not want to take off Huan Xu's bracelet, but they were afraid that Huan Xu would lose his temper after waking up, so they did not dare to touch the decorations on him.
Huan Xu turned his wrist and looked back at Huang Hao. He raised his chin slightly and asked bluntly, "Say what you just said again."
Not to mention, Huan Xu's appearance and tone at this moment are quite similar to the original owner, but it's just a higher-end version.
After all, the two of them might be from parallel worlds, so it's not surprising that they have some similarities, right? Huan Xu is not a playboy; in fact, he was an orphan from an orphanage.
Being able to raise himself well, enter the entertainment industry alone and become an international best director at a young age, Huan Xu's personality cannot be that of a softie.
As we all know, Director Huan's crews are all typical director-core systems. As the name suggests, everything in the crew must be decided by the director.
The look in his eyes at this moment is even more intimidating than the arrogance of the original owner, a playboy.
Huan Xu has always been clear about gratitude and resentment and is protective of his shortcomings. He is able to get the opportunity to live again because of the original owner's kindness. Although the original owner is rebellious, she is not a beast and has affection for her mother. Therefore, Huan Xu will also help the original owner to protect the company that has condensed his mother's hard work.
The stepfather had no selfish motives towards the original owner, and his younger brother Gu Chen was also connected to this body by blood, so Huan Xu naturally had to protect him as well.
And he definitely has the qualifications and ability.
Huang Hao, facing the pressure from Director Huan’s aura, said: “…”
I always felt that what Huan Xu threw out just now was not a bracelet, but a sandbag. He carried the sandbag as a weight and walked forward, then took off the weight and prepared to beat someone.
Huang Hao threw away the messy thoughts in his mind and repeated what he had said before according to Huan Xu's request.
"Xiao Xu, you are very smart. If you were like that, you would understand Senior Brother's painstaking efforts. Packaging and reselling the Spark is definitely the best option for everyone."
Huan Xu nodded slightly, and the triumphant smile on Huang Hao's face froze before it could bloom. Huan Xu then asked, "Senior Brother Huang, if I remember correctly, your name is Huang Hao, right?"
Huang Hao was confused: "Yes?"
"Oh, your name reminds me of a species."
"Ah, what?"
"Rat. It has another name on its home planet, commonly known as rat."
"The mouse has a distant relative called the weasel, who loves to eat chicken."
"I don't know if you've heard of this, but there's a saying on our home planet: The weasel pays New Year's greetings to the chicken."
Under everyone's curious gaze, Huan Xu slowly finished the second half of his sentence: "You have bad intentions."
With the development of science and technology and the faster-paced interstellar age, the culture of the mother planet has gradually faded from the public's perspective. Huang Hao did not react at first to the fact that Huan Xu was scolding him, but he also felt the sarcasm in Huan Xu's tone at the first moment.
Professor Gu, a professor of the unpopular Blue Star History, was the first to understand Huan Xu's "pointing fingers at the mulberry tree and cursing the locust tree". While he couldn't help laughing, he also looked at Huan Xu in surprise, obviously shocked by Huan Xu's high-end, retro and stylish way of cursing.
As a director and an artist, Huang Hao's reaction was not slow. After sorting out the logical chain, his face turned ugly.
Uncle Wang and Gu Chen were slower to react. A moment later, Uncle Wang clapped his hands in sudden realization, then burst into laughter: "Yellow rat, yellow weasel, hahahaha, Xiao Xu's scolding is really damn good."
The corners of Gu Chen's lips also raised.
Hearing Uncle Wang's laughter, Huang Hao gritted his teeth and said, "You... Huan Xu!"
Huan Xu: "Stop making noise and pay attention to your manners in the hospital." Huang Hao had just been teaching Gu Chen a lesson, but now he was choked by Huan Xu's words.
Taking a deep breath, Huang Hao suppressed the tightness in his chest and whispered, "Xiao Xu, which side are you from?"
Huan Xu certainly knew that Huang Hao had made preparations beforehand and had contacted the original owner in advance. He had used sweet words to soften the original owner's attitude, and it seemed that with a little more effort, he would be persuaded to sell his shares.
But now Huan Xu came through, he didn't care about that. He looked at Huang Hao as if he was a fool, and pointed at himself, Gu Chen, and Gu's father one by one with his hands:
"We're all on the same household registration, so which side am I on? If I don't side with my family, how could I side with an ungrateful outsider like you?"
Under Huang Hao's shocked gaze of "What the hell is wrong with you?", Huan Xu ordered him to leave:
"Mr. Huang, please go back. By the way, tell Photocopy that I will not sell my shares. Xinghuo will soon release new works. If you don't want to be stepped on by Xinghuo, you'd better release new films as soon as possible."
Huang Hao's gaze flickered between Gu's father and Huan Xu. After a moment, he suddenly stood up and said with a grim expression, "Are you trying to trick me? Fine, fine, fine! When Xinghuo goes bankrupt, you'll be crying!"
Huang Hao left at a brisk pace. Just as he was about to step out of the door, Huan Xu's voice suddenly rang out again: "Wait."
Huang Hao paused, turned around, and said sarcastically, "What? Are you regretting it so soon?"
Huan Xu continued to press his index finger against his forehead, speaking in a calm tone, "Since Mr. Huang is a lobbyist for Photocopy, he and Photocopy must have a mutual admiration for each other. Now that the acquisition has failed, the next step for Mr. Huang is to terminate his contract with Spark, right?"
Huang Hao finally felt relieved. Since they had a falling out, there was nothing to hide. "That's right."
Huan Xu reminded him, "Mr. Huang's contract still has three years to go before it expires."
Huang Hao became increasingly proud: "Three years, after which my lawyer will discuss contract termination and compensation with Xinghuo."
It's naive to think of using the contract term to constrain him. Photocopying has already promised to help him pay the compensation. Without him, the silver-level director, Xinghuo will have to rely on the remaining two bronze-level directors and a group of assistants who are not up to standard. They will not be able to make new films, their capital chain will be cut off, and they will die faster.
Please ask him.
Of course, even if Huan Xu and the others begged him with tears, he would not stay.
Huang Hao was obviously overthinking it. Under Huang Hao's expectant gaze, Huan Xu casually waved his hand to indicate that Huang Hao could go ahead and just remember to pay the termination fee.
"Director Huang is a distinguished director. If you terminate the contract, I believe you will definitely pay the company a hefty penalty. This is the only way to be more worthy of your noble status. Thank you, Director Huang. The company is in urgent need of this liquidity. To meet the expectations of both you and me, I suggest that Director Huang contact Photocopying immediately."
You must be crazy about money and still looking forward to it.
"Okay, wait." Huang Hao slammed the door shut. Terminate the contract, right? You think you can't die quickly enough? You want to be high and mighty, right? Then just wait and see. He is waiting to see the day when these stubborn guys are penniless!
Huang Hao left and the room fell silent again.
Uncle Wang touched his bald head and broke the silence with a cold joke: "The door panel is almost taken down, and it's still in the hospital. This yellow rat is quite uncultured."
Uncle Wang and Gu Chen exchanged a glance, and Father Gu spoke cautiously, "Um, Xiao Xu, you've been rubbing your forehead. Does your head still hurt?"
It was obviously nonsense. Gu Chen pursed his lips and remained silent, but he was complaining in his heart, how could he not have a headache after being hungover to the point of alcohol poisoning.
Gu Chen secretly glanced at Huan Xu out of the corner of his eye. This brother just now... Gu Chen thought his action was covert, but the next second, Huan Xu raised his eyes and looked back at him. Gu Chen was caught. He quickly turned his eyes away, but heard a chuckle in his ear.
Gu Chen's body stiffened.
Huan Xu stopped teasing the child and chuckled at Father Gu, who seemed to be showing concern. "I'm sorry to have worried Uncle Gu, but I'm fine."
"Oh, oh, I'm glad you're okay." Father Gu responded quickly. After a pause, Gu Mingrui glanced at Huan Xu, wanting to say something but hesitant. Huan Xu said directly, "Just say whatever you want to say, Uncle Gu."
"Uh." Huan Xu was so easygoing today that Professor Gu was at a loss. "That's right, Xiao Xu, you just said you wouldn't sell your shares... And, you said we're family..."
Huan Xu half-lowered his eyes to hide the expression in them. As a director, he was no stranger to acting as he had to instruct actors. Moreover, he was not lying.
"Uncle Gu, I'm sorry. I was young and ignorant before, and I made you and mom worry. During the time mom was away, I was in a daze all day long."
"On the way to the hospital yesterday, I thought I was going to die. To be honest, when I fainted, my mind was clearer than ever before, like a revolving lantern."
"Looking back, I suddenly realized that I had lived a muddled and absurd life. I had failed my family's expectations of me. I was surrounded by bad friends, but no close friends. I was not a good son, nor a good brother."
"At that time, I thought, if I could wake up, I would definitely turn over a new leaf."
After a brief pause, Huan Xu whispered, "I'm awake now, but Mom has left forever. I woke up too late..."
Father Gu was filled with surprise and relief. He stood up from the hospital bed, not even bothering to put on his shoes. He walked a few steps to Huan Xu, knelt down, and looked him in the eye. He said seriously, "Son, it's never too late for a prodigal son to turn back. Your mother will definitely be happy for you."
Huan Xu's voice became even softer, with a hint of uncertainty: "Really?"
Gu Mingrui tentatively raised his hand, and when he saw that Huan Xu didn't move away, he carefully placed it on the top of his head and gently rubbed it: "Really, Uncle Gu never lies."
After comforting Huan Xu with a gentle voice, Gu Mingrui quickly added, "Xiao Xu, you really scared us yesterday. Next time, don't drink so much."
Huan Xu immediately promised: "I'm sorry for worrying Uncle Gu. I will take good care of myself in the future."
Gu Mingrui's expression relaxed, and Huan Xu seemed to remember something. "Oh, right? I just drove Huang Hao away and asked him to terminate his contract. Is that okay?"
"His heart wasn't with Xinghuo to begin with, so termination of the contract was inevitable. Xiaoxu, you don't have to worry."
After a moment of silence, Professor Gu still couldn't say anything too harsh. He just said, "It's better to terminate the contract. With his character, he can't create truly good works."
Then, as if he was afraid that the two children would worry, Gu Mingrui quickly said to Huan Xu and Gu Chen:
"Xinghuo, like you two, is Manman's child. I will do my best to protect it and wait until you are able to stand on your own, so that I can hand Xinghuo over to you intact."
Face and dignity are not important, as long as Xinghuo can get through the difficulties, Gu Mingrui quickly sorted out the friends he knew or didn't know in his mind, and then called them one by one to borrow some funds for the cash flow.
The most important thing is to find a new director who is at least a silver-level director, which is a must for a film and television company.
We also need to continue to contact Manman’s friends before her death and strive for opportunities for the company’s artists to participate in the performance.
"Uncle Gu, I'll also work with you to find a solution. Let's get through this together and protect the Spark." Huan Xu immediately expressed his support. Although he didn't think Huan Xu could be of much help, Professor Gu was still relieved and said, "Okay, okay, Xiao Xu has grown up. Let's work together."
Seeing this, Gu Chen also quickly expressed his opinion: "I can do it too!"
Gu Chen is only in his third year of high school. In his father's eyes, he is the child who can't help him. However, he did not deny the child's intention: "Okay, then Xiaochen, you should work hard too."
Uncle Wang, who had been silent all this time, suddenly raised his hand and rubbed his eyes. He was not only a shareholder of Xinghuo, but also a good friend of the original owner's mother, Feng Manman. Although Xinghuo was on the verge of collapse, seeing his friend's eldest son become sensible at this moment was the greatest good news in the past few months.
After expressing his opinion, Huan Xu did not say much. At this moment, no matter how much he said, it would be worse than taking action. Huan Xu had already thought about what he would do next - to return to his old job.
It was not only to prevent Xinghuo from going bankrupt and his stepfather and brother from being forced to live on the streets, but also because he loved his job very much.
The interstellar stage is bigger, and for Huan Xu, it is both a challenge and an opportunity.
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