Chapter 122
Old Matthew's condition looked much worse than Shen Antang's. After all, he was already 96 years old, and it was not easy for him to survive until today. Everyone present knew that this should be his last Thorn Award.
The person pushing the wheelchair behind him is known to everyone present, Arnold Hewitt, who has been designated as the successor chairman.
Arnold is tall and good-looking, and appears to be in his forties, with green eyes. He is a member of the royal family of the small country where the Thorn Prize is located. He is famous for his charity and is also very knowledgeable about the entertainment industry.
In terms of his resume, he graduated from a top university, worked as a director and an actor, is very qualified and clean, and everyone who has come into contact with him has praised him as a good person. Everyone thinks that this new chairman deserves the title.
When old Matthew was looking for the next successor to the chairmanship, in order to avoid unfairness and prevent the position from becoming an inheritance system influenced by blood ties, he deliberately did not include his own descendants in the candidate pool.
Arnold was carefully selected by him. In addition to his excellent resume, there were many other reasons. The royal family he belonged to was very wealthy, so there was no need to worry about changes due to bribery.
At the same time, he is generous, serious, humble, has a deep affection for the Thorn Award, has a good artistic vision, and like old Matthew, he always insists on fairness and justice, even at the cost of offending others.
Shen Mingzheng had met him at previous banquets more than once, and the two had had brief conversations. The other party knew the name of the Shen family and was very polite. He even exchanged contact information with Shen Mingzheng.
Judging from the actual interactions with him, he is really a good person. The fact that he is favored by the strict and shrewd old Matthew is something that cannot be acted out.
But Shen Mingzheng also talked to Su Ning privately about his opinion of this person. Arnold is indeed a good person, but he has only one shortcoming - he has a very good temper. For the position of the chairman of the Thorn Award, the bad thing is that he is really a pure good person.
Old Matthew was very clear about this, so he kept him by his side over the past few years, trying to train him.
It seems that he is indeed more decisive, but this kind of mentality has long been formed and cannot be changed easily.
There are many people who want to be the chairman of the Thorn Award. The competition among candidates for this position is more intense than that of the Shen family, and there are many ruthless and cruel people among them.
No one is perfect and everyone has shortcomings. After weighing the pros and cons, old Matthew chose Arnold based on the most important condition of upholding the fairness and justice of the Thorn Award.
This appearance has basically been confirmed to the outside world.
As soon as these two persons came out, many people rushed towards them, some expressing concern and some flattering them.
Su Ning took a look from afar and admired old Matthew very much, but there were so many people over there that it was not convenient for him to join in the fun. He decided to continue discussing the matters at hand with Wellington first.
However, old Matthew obviously did not come here for superficial socializing. He first met with several teams that won awards this year. Like in previous years, the chairman should congratulate the winners of these honors, and Ye Qiuxin was naturally among them.
Not long after, Ye Qiuxin came out and came over specifically, saying that he wanted to talk to Shen Mingzheng and Su Ning.
Su Ning was a little surprised. He looked at Shen Mingzheng and asked, "We?"
"Yes," Ye Qiu thought, "there must be something going on."
Wellington, who was standing aside, was also stunned when he heard this. He was very direct and asked, "Can I go with you? I just want to go see him. I promise not to say anything nonsense."
When he asked this, Su Ning did not refuse. Wellington was a well-known figure in the circle, and having one more person would not delay anything.
Besides, he was planning to establish a cooperative relationship with the other party, so he still had some trust. Moreover, when the three people went over, the assistant at the door did not stop them.
This small room at the back of the banquet hall was very quiet, and one might have thought there would be other people there, but Old Matthew was meeting them alone this time. They had never met before, but the other party knew both of them.
Even though he was ill, he still kept his ears and eyes sharp to some extent. He looked at the two young men who came here and asked directly: "No need to introduce yourself, I know you. This is your first time here. How do you feel?"
Now, you can’t tell that he has a bad temper. Because he is seriously ill, he speaks slowly and seems a little kind.
Shen Mingzheng and Su Ning answered such questions truthfully. Su Ning also introduced Wellington who came with them and briefly mentioned his experience here. Finally, he said: "I like the Thorn Award very much. I hope this place can always be like this."
He said this sincerely.
Old Matthew listened very carefully. Perhaps Su Ning's words reminded him of something. He smiled and looked at Wellington again, saying, "Tell me something too. Don't worry, I know you, little Wellington. When you were little, your parents brought you to see me. At that time, you didn't like to go out. Your father complained to me that you were fiddling with that computer and didn't want to come to the party. Now you are better than before."
Wellington rubbed his head. He didn't like to attend banquets anymore, but this year he had to come as a boss. He didn't expect that besides the socializing, he could also find projects that he was interested in. He specifically praised Su Ning's amazing ideas.
Old Matthew was a little surprised to know that they had reached a cooperation agreement, then nodded and said, "This is a good thing."
These young people are all practical people.
If you have too many plans in mind, you will not be able to reach a cooperation with a stranger you have never met before in a short period of time.
If you are too cautious, you will become greedy and will not be able to accomplish anything.
"You must be wondering why I asked you to come here. Look, I am leaving this world. From now on, this place will have to rely on new people like you to support it."
At this point, he coughed violently a few times, and then continued: "I know all your achievements and actions in the past few years. I have heard about them and have done research. Even if there is no movie "The Book of the Mountains and Fields" this year, I will find a way to get you here."
In this circle, there are not many people who are persistent in their hearts, especially those in high positions who can stick to their original ideas without wavering. They are even rarer.
It was normal for him to notice Shen Mingzheng and Su Ning at this time. The influence of these two people was extraordinary.
"Arnold, he is already very good, but he is still too naive about what he is going to face. Shen, you are the new head of the Shen family. Even if I had unpleasantness with that Shen Antang, I will never regret it until I die. But there is a saying in your country, new people, new atmosphere, you are different from your grandfather," he said, "I died earlier than him, I can't change this, but he may not benefit from it in this life. Am I right?"
He didn't have much time now, so he spoke bluntly. Shen Mingzheng and Su Ning were stunned for a moment, but there was no way to deny that they knew what the other party was doing at this time.
Old Matthew is entrusting his child to someone else.
What he wanted to entrust was not the future chairman Arnold, but the Thorn Award - the Thorn Award, which now seemed to be thriving and bright, was the thing he cared about most before he passed away.
He hopes that those who have experienced the benefits of the Thorn Award can keep it going and not let it be destroyed.
"I see."
Su Ning said that he and Shen Mingzheng had a tacit understanding. At this time, they turned their heads slightly and looked at each other: "Thank you for your trust, we will do it."
Standing behind them, Wellington nodded along.
The conversation didn't last long. Soon after a few people came out, old Matthew also asked other people to go in.
Not only tonight, he has been looking for someone during this period of time, and he should have been planning for a long time, but his physical condition did not last until the end of the dinner, and he was sent to the hospital not long after. Everyone present felt sorry for him.
After the dinner that day, according to the original plan, we would return home the next day.
The annual Thorn Award has come to an end, old Matthew is in the hospital, and there is no reason for Su Ning and Shen Mingzheng to stay here any longer.
After returning to China, Ye Qiuxin's popularity skyrocketed. She had quite a few fans to begin with, and the entire airport was packed with people coming to greet her. Everyone on the "Book of Mountains and Wilderness" team gained a lot and had a bright future.
Needless to say, Su Ning has made a lot of money, but he has never been obsessed with his achievements. After returning from the Thorn Award, in addition to finding people to implement the cooperation he had contacted before, his cooperation with Wellington has also been smooth sailing, and the project has been promoted quickly. The two sides want to cooperate in a fantasy series of movies, tentatively named "Mountains and Seas".
At the same time, Shen Mingzheng's investment plan became more intense. He wanted to take full control of these resources and key points in his own hands and no longer be influenced by Shen Antang.
At this point, he and Shen Mingzheng are both worried about the future of the Thorn Prize, but mere worry is useless. They must rely on enough projects to accumulate strength as quickly as possible to be able to truly resist all this and be able to help.
Because of this interaction, they had more exchanges with the Thorn Award. For example, Fu Jing, she had semi-retired before, but now she has come out again because of the Shen family.
She is indeed a bit arrogant, but she knows the big picture. For example, Fu Yongzhi, who made a mistake before, has never come out again.
Now, the cooperation between Su Ning and Hong Kong Island is becoming more and more stable, and it is even more important to work together at this time. So Fu Jing once again accepted the invitation from there and became one of the special judges.
Given her status, it was normal for her to be a judge. At that time, the Thorn Award wanted to hire her as a lifetime judge, but she was not interested in it at that time. Now she has accepted the invitation from old Matthew.
In addition to fulfilling her duties as a judge and discovering works, she also has to keep an eye on the developments of the Thorn Award. Fu Jing is proactive in doing this and has feelings for the Thorn Award. She has won the Best Actress award before and does not want this award to rot away no matter what. This would also be an insult to the Best Actress trophy that she is so proud of.
Su Ning and Shen Mingzheng went to see old Matthew again during these few months, but his mind was not very clear at that time.
Half a year later, at that point in Shen Mingzheng's memory, old Matthew, who had persisted for a long time, finally closed his eyes.
The Thorn Prize officially issued an obituary, and the website turned gray. Many people in the circle, such as celebrities, mourned for him, but behind such sadness, many people seemed to have finally waited for the dragon guarding the treasure to die, and they wanted to fight for something.
It can even be said that these people were just waiting to outlast him.
The first to be affected were the judges of the Thorn Award, a key position that was coveted by many interested parties.
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