“Xie Qian, how many shares do you think I should buy?”
Ordinary questions didn’t stump Wen Ying, but extraordinary ones did, and she could always turn to Xie Qian for advice.
Xie Qian’s view was to buy as much as possible, “Since they’ve asked, you can buy whatever amount you want. If you feel bad about taking advantage, you can sign two scripts with Tianjiao, offsetting the share transfer price in another way.”
Xie Qian never let Wen Ying lose out.
Signing two scripts with Tianjiao was no loss for Wen Ying. Before, Tianjiao and Wen Ying had an employment relationship, but now that she was becoming a shareholder, would she give her scripts to anyone else?
The more Tianjiao earned, the more Wen Ying, as a shareholder, would gain.
While Wen Ying was still mulling it over, Xie Qian nudged her again, “Money sitting in your hands isn’t much use. Better to convert it all into shares for long-term holding.”
A hamster with too much cash would get cocky, but with all the money turned into Tianjiao shares, the hamster would behave.
Xie Qian planned three steps ahead, while Wen Ying grumbled inwardly, If I don’t buy shares, I could buy property instead!
So, the question remained, how many Tianjiao shares could 10 million yuan buy?
Tianjiao’s registered capital was 5 million yuan. Since filming *The Princess’s New Clothes*, it had been punching above its weight. Both projects made money, but with external investors involved, not all profits stayed in the company’s accounts. While they earned plenty, shareholders didn’t see much.
However, the company still had contracts with Li Mengjiao, Yun Chen, and Zhang Yangning. If an outsider wanted to buy Tianjiao shares, the price would be high, but for Wen Ying, Wang Jun and the others tacitly offered a steep discount. In the end, Wen Ying bought 12% of Tianjiao’s shares for 10 million yuan. Apart from Wang Jun, Li Zhentao and Qin Xianming each transferred 4% to her.
Moreover, Li Zhentao transferred an additional 2% to Yuan Fenghui, making Yuan Fenghui’s stake equal to Wen Ying’s at 12%. Li Zhentao, the largest shareholder, saw his stake drop from 40% to 34%, Qin Xianming held 26%, and Wang Shuang 16%.
When Tianjiao was founded, Wang Jun hadn’t invested much. In less than two years, his 4% stake netted him over 6 million yuan, with 16% still held by his son, Wang Shuang. This return rate was far better than real estate speculation.
Wen Ying was envious but not jealous. When Li Zhentao started Tianjiao, pulling in Qin Xianming and Wang Jun was the best choice. Appreciating Wen Ying was one thing, but business required capital, resources, or effort. Back then, Wen Ying had none!
This was the gap between Wen Ying and bigshots like Qin Xianming, or second-generation rich kids like Wang Shuang. Wen Ying never shied away from this reality, knowing that only by clearly understanding herself could she surpass herself.
In Xie Qian’s words, Wen Ying had now taken control of the means of production, going from a worker to a shareholder!
A new problem arose, Wen Ying had spent 10 million yuan on shares without telling her parents!
“…!”
When Xie Qian mentioned it, Wen Ying’s smile froze, “Why didn’t you remind me earlier?”
Xie Qian couldn’t help but chuckle, glancing at her, “If they object, would you not buy the shares?”
Of course not, she’d buy them anyway.
She just needed a way to explain it at home, time to put Old Wen to work. With all the filial money he’d taken, he couldn’t just do nothing!
Wen Ying schemed about her dad, her eyes darting slyly. To anyone else, Xie Qian might find it cunning, but with Wen Ying, he only found it amusing. In the two years he’d known her, not only had her achievements grown, but her relationship with her parents had improved too.
Wen Ying made him a better person.
And Wen Ying was becoming a happier person.
…
Wang Shuang was still Tianjiao’s third-largest shareholder, but he had little say. He was fully focused on preparing for next month’s college entrance exam.
Wang Shuang had woken up early to his potential, and with a top student like Xie Qian guiding him, he felt confident for this year’s exam. Peng Xuezha, who woke up even later, was now struggling under Teacher Liang’s tutoring.
After some time, Peng Guoguo was dumbfounded.
Why was there so much he didn’t know?
Why did it get harder the more he studied?
Why…
“Why do you have so many questions?”
After tutoring Peng Guoguo for a while, Teacher Liang had two more wrinkles on his forehead, “Everyone learns this way. You can’t skip the basics to learn advanced stuff. You didn’t study before, so of course it’s hard now!”
Peng Guoguo had hoped to repeat a year and be in Xie Qian’s class, but Teacher Liang had already shot that down. Now, Liang told him to forget being in Xie Qian’s class, he should prepare to be Xie Qian’s junior, others took three years for high school, Peng Guoguo might need five.
This crushed Peng Guoguo.
Forced to focus on studying under Liang’s pressure, he hadn’t had time to spend money lately. Mrs. Peng noticed his bank card hadn’t moved much and was surprised, He’s not spending money in Rongcheng?
That was abnormal!
Mrs. Peng, after a trip to Mount Putuo, detoured to Rongcheng on her way back to the capital to check on her son.
She was shocked, suspecting Peng Guoguo had gone astray in Rongcheng. She snapped at the housekeeper, “He’s a half-grown kid who loves to play, don’t you know what to hide and what to report?”
A perfectly fine kid, only fond of dyeing his hair, no other issues, and now look at him, pale, unsteady, and much thinner, Mrs. Peng thought he’d gotten into something he shouldn’t have!
The housekeeper felt wronged.
Young Master Peng hadn’t touched drugs, he was studying too hard, staying up late doing problems!
Mrs. Peng didn’t believe a word.
Did she not know her own son?
Staying up to study, when had those words ever applied to her Guoguo?
Sure, he’d said he’d study hard in Rongcheng, but Mrs. Peng’s idea of “studying hard” clearly differed from Peng Guoguo’s efforts.
Skeptical, she saw Teacher Liang tutoring him.
Peng Guoguo, scolded into a daze by Liang, didn’t lose his temper as Mrs. Peng expected. Instead, he looked aggrieved and redid the problems Liang pointed out.
This was downright bizarre!
Mrs. Peng didn’t disturb her son and booked a lavish dinner at a high-end Rongcheng restaurant to thank Liang and the others.
Liang, facing a table of rich dishes, wasn’t moved, only hesitant to eat.
He recalled the luxury seafood gift Wen Ying received during tutoring!
Usually, the worse a student’s grades, the politer the parents were to the teacher… Liang’s heart was weary.
Mrs. Peng kept urging him to eat, and halfway through, emotions welled up. She told Liang about the Peng family, how the home environment left Peng Guoguo insecure, how she and her husband didn’t know how to raise him, causing trouble for the teachers. Liang softened.
Every family has its struggles!
Liang couldn’t help sharing, “Peng wants to be in Xie Qian’s class. Xie Qian’s his benchmark and motivation. As parents, you can guide him more.”
Mrs. Peng knew this, but Liang’s emphasis made her take it more seriously.
What did Xie Qian need?
Mrs. Peng had a rough idea.
But that was a long-term goal she couldn’t tackle. She shifted to a short-term one, Xie Qian had taken over a film company in Shanghai and was short on funds!
Back home, Mrs. Peng confronted her son, “How much pocket money have you saved?”
