Seeing this, Guo Wenyuan sighed and began to appeal to people's emotions: "I know this is a bit unreasonable, but I owe all my success to Lao Yi, and I don't want my old friend's hard-earned foundation to be destroyed. In short, if you're willing to help, I'll do whatever you ask. If I refuse even a little bit, may I be struck by lightning!"
Guo Wenyuan had never made such a solemn request to Shen Huai, not even about his own affairs.
Shen Huai sighed inwardly. Yi Mian was his friend, so he certainly wouldn't stand idly by. He then said, "Actually, I was planning to see Elder Yi today."
Guo Wenyuan's eyes lit up instantly: "Really?! Then I..."
He quickly realized that he was not Du Yuping. If he went there with Guo Wenyuan's face, given Yi Mian's violent temper, he would probably beat him out of the ward.
Seeing Guo Wenyuan's expression darken, Shen Huai felt a pang of pity: "If you put on makeup and wear a mask, Old Master Yi might not recognize you."
Guo Wenyuan immediately perked up again: "Good, good, good!"
So Shen Huai made an appointment with him, and then met the "completely transformed" Guo Wenyuan at the entrance of the sanatorium.
Shen Huai's expression was rather complicated: "Does it have to be this exaggerated?"
Guo Wenyuan sported purple hair, smoky makeup, and wore a leather jacket and pants, looking extremely tacky.
Guo Wenyuan, however, was quite pleased with himself: "How about that? Old Yi definitely won't recognize me in this form!"
Shen Huai: "..."
Let alone Yi Mian not recognizing him, even Guo Wenyuan's own mother probably wouldn't recognize him.
☆, Chapter 105
Shen Huai and Guo Wenyuan entered the sanatorium and met Yi Mian, who was sunbathing in the courtyard.
Compared to their last meeting, Yi Mian seemed to have aged a bit, and Guo Wenyuan's gaze dimmed upon seeing his old friend's appearance.
Yi Mian turned his head and happened to see the two of them. He looked a little more energetic and smiled at Shen Huai, saying, "I heard magpies calling outside my ward this morning. I knew a distinguished guest was coming. It really was you!"
Guo Wenyuan muttered under his breath, "Liar! He can't even tell the difference between a sparrow, how do you know which one is a magpie..."
Shen Huai: "..."
Yi Mian didn't hear Guo Wenyuan's words, but Guo Wenyuan's outfit was so eye-catching that it was hard for anyone not to notice him.
Yi Mian turned his questioning gaze to Guo Wenyuan: "And who is this?"
Guo Wenyuan calmly replied, "I'm a singer Mr. Shen just signed, a rock singer!" He even made a rock gesture as he spoke, "rock!!"
Yi Mian: "..."
Shen Huai: "..."
Shen Huai finally understood why Guo Wenyuan was pretending like this; he must have heard about what happened when he and Ye Cang came to see Yi Mian last time.
But it has to be said that this is truly the worst time a rock singer has ever been criticized.
Yi Mian genuinely regarded Guo Wenyuan as an artist signed by Shen Huai, so he didn't take it to heart and let Shen Huai push him into the ward. The two chatted about some interesting things.
Guo Wenyuan was a step too slow. He suddenly remembered that when he was sick and hospitalized before, Yi Mian came to visit him and mentioned a little friend he had met in the United States. Now it seemed that this must be Shen Huai. It was quite a coincidence.
Upon entering the ward, Yi Mian insisted on making tea for the two of them.
Shen Huai took the initiative to pour water and boil it. Yi Mian carefully scalded the cups and then handed the tea to the two of them. Shen Huai took a sip and was about to say something when he noticed that Yi Mian was staring blankly at Guo Wenyuan.
In the past, Du Yuping often went to Yi Mian's office to ask for tea. He had a habit of turning the cup around when he took it. So when he took the tea from Yi Mian, he subconsciously turned the cup around.
Guo Wenyuan reacted quickly and casually let go of her hand, saying, "This tea is a bit hot."
Yi Mian didn't think too much about it, but simply remarked, "The way you were just now really reminded me of an old friend of mine..."
Guo Wenyuan couldn't help but ask, "Are you a very important friend?"
Yi Mian scoffed: "An old guy I've known for over twenty years."
Guo Wenyuan: "..."
Yi Mian didn't notice Guo Wenyuan's clenched teeth. Seemingly thinking of something, he revealed a nostalgic expression: "That old guy had a fiery temper, a sharp tongue, and was never forgiving. Every time we met, we would have a fight. But now that he's gone, I can't find anyone to argue with. I kind of miss him..."
Guo Wenyuan felt a pang of sadness, but the words he had wanted to say could no longer be uttered.
Seeing this, Shen Huai quickly changed the subject: "When I came in, the nurse told me that you haven't been taking your medicine properly these past few days?"
Yi Mian immediately said, "I didn't!"
Guo Wenyuan: "Lying!"
Yi Mian angrily retorted, "What makes you think I'm lying?"
Guo Wenyuan sneered: "Holding your fingers on the hem of your clothes and looking to the upper right, you're obviously lying!"
Yi Mian froze, withdrew his hand, awkwardly touched his nose, and then looked at Guo Wenyuan suspiciously: "How did you know?" Only his close friends and family knew about his little habit of lying.
Guo Wenyuan replied calmly, "It's micro-expression psychology! It's very simple."
Yi Mian: "..."
Although Guo Wenyuan's reasoning was sound, Yi Mian felt something was off, so he squinted at Guo Wenyuan's face and looked at it more and more, and the more he looked, the more familiar the face seemed.
Guo Wenyuan then shut his mouth, somewhat regretting his arrogance.
Fortunately, Shen Huai came to his rescue in time: "You... go outside and wait for me. I have something to say to Elder Yi."
Guo Wenyuan breathed a sigh of relief, quickly stood up and walked out of the ward, thoughtfully closing the door behind him for the two of them.
Yi Mian kept following his retreating figure, and asked suspiciously, "This man is acting strangely. Is he really one of your signed artists?"
Shen Huai coughed and mumbled, "Almost...more or less."
Yi Mian then remembered something: "Oh right, I heard that one of your artists played the lead role in 'Red Performer'?"
Shen Huai nodded: "Her name is Chu Meibo, and she is a very excellent actress."
"For you to say that, then it must be truly excellent," Yi Mian said with a smile. "With Lao Xie's stubborn nature, he once said that the most outstanding and most difficult role to play in 'The Red Opera' is Cheng Yanxin. If he couldn't find a suitable actress, he would rather not start filming at all. Now, he has finally gotten his wish, and he should be very grateful to you!"
Shen Huai laughed as well: "If Director Xie knew you were talking about him like that behind his back, he would be furious."
"I'm afraid he'll get angry!" Yi Mian exclaimed, his eyes wide with fury. "That old bastard still owes me two movies! I reckon I'm not going to get them back. From now on, I'll leave it to you. We absolutely can't let him get away with this!"
Upon hearing Yi Mian's words, Shen Huai's smile faded, and his expression became somewhat grave: "I've heard that Guan Rui has been suppressing Yi Xing, is that right?"
Yi Mian's expression also darkened, and he sighed softly: "Guanrui has its eye on Yixing's copyright library and has been trying to acquire Yixing. Whether it was poaching Fu Cheng or causing trouble in the cinema chain, they were all trying to force me to sell the company..."
Shen Huai frowned: "I... is there anything I can do to help you?"
“No need.” Yi Mian smiled and shook his head, his eyes full of understanding. “I know you’ve already helped me a lot behind the scenes, but now Yi Xing has reached a point where he has no choice but to make a decision…”
Shen Huai remained silent.
In fact, they all understood that Yi Xing had serious problems and had long since given up. He had only managed to survive until now because Yi Mian couldn't bear to give up.
Yi Mian looked at Shen Huai with a very gentle expression: "Don't be too sad for me. Actually, I should have made this decision a long time ago. Yi Xing is like me, getting old and unable to keep up with the times. Rather than letting it become a bad movie production machine, it's better to preserve this dignity and at least leave a good impression on those who have seen his movies."
He patted Shen Huai on the shoulder, "You've been secretly managing Yi Xing for me all these years, and I'm really grateful to you."
"Old Master Yi..."
Yi Mian stopped him from speaking: "I have nothing to repay you with, but I'll leave Yi Xing's copyright library to you. You should cherish it!"
Shen Huai stared at him in shock.
YiXing, a veteran film company that rose to fame in the last century, has produced many popular films both domestically and internationally. Although these films are somewhat old, they are still classics and have a large following. YiXing earns a substantial income each year from copyright fees collected from various film and television websites, not to mention that any remakes or borrowing of elements would require paying copyright fees to YiXing.
It can be said that the entire copyright library of Yixing is worth at least several billion yuan, which is also the most valuable thing of Yixing Film today.
Guanrui put in so much effort for this copyright library of Yixing.
But now, Yi Mian is actually going to give this copyright library to Shen Huai!
Shen Huai quickly said, "Elder Yi, this is inappropriate..."
"Don't talk about whether it's appropriate or not!" Yi Mian said firmly, "If I don't give it to you, do you want to let those scoundrels like Guan Rui benefit from it?"
Yi Mian looked at Shen Huai and said seriously, "Don't think I acted on impulse. Actually, I've been thinking about this for a long time. Over the years, we've seen many excellent foreign films with big productions and high box office returns, which have almost dazzled people. In recent years, these film companies, regardless of their own capabilities, have all rushed to produce big productions, and in doing so, they have lost sight of what is truly important."
"I am unwilling to hand over these films, which I cherish, to them. Only in your hands will they find their best home."
Shen Huai was surprised that Yi Mian thought of him in this way, and he felt a mix of emotions.
Seeing his expression, Yi Mian smiled and said, "Alright! It's settled then. Have your lawyer come over in a few days to sign the contract."
Shen Huai stopped making excuses. He knew that Yi Mian was wealthy and didn't care about the money. What he really cared about were the movies he had made with such care.
Shen Huai looked at Yi Mian and said solemnly, "Elder Yi, rest assured, I will definitely live up to your expectations."
"Don't be so serious!" Yi Mian said in a relaxed tone. "My daughter was overjoyed when she heard that I had finally decided to close the company. She even said she would come back to China to pick me up. I'm getting old, and it's time for me to enjoy my retirement."
Shen Huai pursed his lips, knowing that he said these things on purpose to put his mind at ease.
Fearing that he might overthink things, Yi Mian simply instructed him to take him outside for a walk. He then spotted Guo Wenyuan chatting with some elderly people in the pavilion: "Isn't that one of your artists?"
Guo Wenyuan, dressed in a non-mainstream, flamboyant style, blended in with a group of elderly people wearing hospital gowns. He looked strange, yet surprisingly, there was a sense of harmony between them.
Yi Mian stroked his chin: "I still don't believe it, is this really an artist you signed?"
Shen Huai thought he had figured out Guo Wenyuan's identity, and his heart tightened. He quickly explained, "Actually..."
Yi Mian's expression was serious: "I absolutely cannot believe that your judgment is this bad!"
He glanced at Guo Wenyuan again, his expression somewhat disdainful. "Do you really think I've never heard of rock and roll? This is more like old-fashioned disco!"
Shen Huai: "..."
Chapter 106
On the way back, Guo Wenyuan finally asked, "How did your talks go? What are Lao Yi's plans?"
Shen Huai didn't hide anything and told Guo Wenyuan about Yi Mian's decision.
Guo Wenyuan was slightly taken aback, but then he came to his senses and sighed, "It's good. He has sacrificed too much for the company over the years and worn out his health. It's a good thing that he can finally take off his burden."