Chapter 00173: She Must Be Investigated!
# She Must Be Investigated!
Chapter 173
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 173: She Must Be Investigated!
"Our time in West Berlin was short, and we haven't discussed some countries yet, such as Africa and Eastern Europe. If we can finalize deals with them, even if it's just bits and pieces here and there, we can easily surpass 5 million. The reason we bundled North America, Western Europe, and Australia together was due to the tight schedule... In any case, this trip was very rushed, and under limited conditions, we did our absolute best."
"..."
The meeting room fell into silence.
The document was passed around, each person reading it with a mix of shock and disbelief.
Eventually, it returned to the hands of the leader, and their gazes turned to the young man who had just delivered such a confident and bold speech.
No one had expected things to unfold this way.
Because China Film was in the right, as long as they held onto this point, Beijing Film Studio wouldn't be able to stand against them.
But just as they were about to push the other side into a corner, the opponent suddenly revealed a trump card—a "yellow robe" and even a "royal sword" that could turn the tables on China Film!
Song Linming and Fang Yurong understood this all too well, which was why they were filled with even more fear.
With their last bit of strength, they shouted, "Fake! It must be fake! If you said 500,000, it might have been believable, but 5 million? Why not just say 50 million?"
"Fu Qi has already met with Liao Gong!" Wang Yang, clearly fed up with them, replied bluntly, addressing everyone in the room.
"Liao... Gong..."
The two from China Film turned pale, their last bit of energy drained away.
They slumped in their chairs, sliding down slightly.
The leaders from the Ministry of Culture and the Film Bureau, who were also present, collectively gasped.
If someone dared to report to Liao Gong, it must be true! My dear Prince Sihanouk, did we really earn nearly 5 million dollars in foreign exchange?
What?
Chen Qi isn't part of our system?
From this moment on, Comrade Chen Qi is an eternal part of China's great cultural and artistic system! More permanent than a star, no one can take him away, not even the big bowl tea sellers at Qianmen!
The gazes directed at him were filled with intense admiration, as if they wanted to hoist him up on a flagpole to declare sovereignty.
Earning foreign exchange was one thing—it just needed to be deposited in the bank.
But the leaders had much more to consider.
Once Liao Gong was involved, the matter escalated.
Liao Gong was a true heavyweight, someone who could come and go from the highest circles as he pleased.
If something went wrong...
It wasn't that the leaders were overthinking, but the amount was simply too staggering, and the source of this foreign exchange was too miraculous.
In the early 1980s, the scale of foreign exchange was limited, as mentioned many times before.
It would take another couple of years for the number of foreign trade companies and exported goods to increase before the data could rise significantly.
The leader's mind quickly turned, and his stance was set.
With a face full of enthusiasm, he smiled and said, "Ah, Xiao Chen has really done a great service this time. As the saying goes, heroes emerge from the young, and indeed, that's the case. I propose that we all first congratulate Xiao Chen and Beijing Film Studio for their achievements!"
"Clap clap clap!"
The leader led the applause, and everyone followed suit.
The atmosphere instantly became lively.
If no one had said anything, you wouldn't have known that just a minute ago, they had been criticizing him.
The leader clearly wanted to appease Chen Qi and continued with a smile, "Comrade Fang Yurong misunderstood you, causing you some distress. Of course, you are completely innocent, pure and blameless..."
He then turned to Fang Yurong and said, "Comrade Yurong, shouldn't you apologize to Xiao Chen?"
"Me? Apologize?!"
Fang Yurong clenched her fists.
This woman was somewhat clever, self-righteous, and prone to hysterics, but she wasn't a fool.
She knew when the situation was against her.
Reluctantly, she stood up and spat out word by word, "Comrade Chen Qi, I was wrong to doubt you. I was blind!"
"..."
Chen Qi's face showed no coldness or anger.
He continued to smile at her but remained silent.
Fang Yurong gritted her teeth, her face burning with shame.
She felt this was the greatest humiliation of her life.
She bowed deeply and said, "I sincerely apologize to you!"
"..."
Still, there was no response.
Seeing this, the leader smiled and said, "Xiao Chen, Comrade Yurong has apologized. You..."
"Report!"
Chen Qi suddenly raised his hand, leaning forward slightly, completely ignoring the apology.
He continued on his own, "The cost of 'Tai Chi' was 1.08 million yuan, plus promotional expenses and airfare to Hong Kong and Berlin, totaling no more than 1.8 million. Foreign exchange can't be directly compared to RMB, but for ease of understanding, I'll convert it. 'Tai Chi' sold for approximately 8.16 million RMB, netting a profit of 6.36 million. Earlier, I mentioned a set of data. China Film averages about 700,000 dollars in foreign exchange annually, with each film selling for just over 4,000 dollars on average, resulting in losses every year... I can't help but wonder, how is it that people who have been in the film industry for decades can't match the achievements of a big bowl tea seller like me? What's the reason for this? Is it an attitude problem, a capability problem, or something else? I don't know about their attitude toward foreign markets, and I don't want to boast about my own abilities. But I just want to ask, even if they sold a film for a few hundred thousand dollars, I would think it normal. But the gap is just too big. When something is this abnormal, there must be something fishy going on. Are they really not making money? Or are they making money, but the money is disappearing somewhere? Or are they underselling state assets?"
Sss!
The entire room was shocked.
This was a fight to the death!
But upon reflection, Fang Yurong had accused him of having a stance problem, so this was already a fight to the death.
With this in mind, everyone looked at this young man and realized just how ruthless he was—someone who would definitely seek revenge.
Sure enough, Chen Qi turned his gaze to Fang Yurong, staring at her trembling body, and smiled.
"And then there's Sister Fang. Since she's in charge of imports and exports at China Film, how can she also be a selector for the Berlin Film Festival? Isn't that a violation of regulations? Are the accounts for the films she handles accurate? Has she created unfair conditions for other films eager to participate in the festival? In Berlin, she's familiar with many foreigners, interacting with them frequently, attending events every day, and engaging in behavior that compromises national dignity in public. Has she done anything else? Has she had private contact with anyone? Has she done anything detrimental to the collective? I don't have evidence, but based on common sense, these questions aren't unreasonable. I urge the organization to take this seriously. She must be investigated!"
Just a few days ago, Fang Yurong had said these very words to him.
Now, Chen Qi was returning them in full.
He didn't wait long to seek revenge—this time, it had only been a few nights...
"You! You!"
Fang Yurong felt a chill run through her body.
She pointed at him, wanting to curse, but her spirit was already broken.
She looked at her superior, Song Linming, but Song Linming was likely in trouble himself.
How could he help her now?
"..."
The leader also sighed inwardly.
He had asked Fang Yurong to apologize to gauge Chen Qi's attitude.
If Chen Qi had accepted, that would have been the end of it.
After all, it's better to avoid trouble when possible.
But Chen Qi hadn't accepted.
Instead, he had kicked the ball back to the leader.
The leader's mind raced, but he ultimately decided to bet on the foreign exchange.
He coughed twice and said, "Since everyone who needs to be here is present, and Xiao Chen has raised some concerns, let's briefly discuss this."
"I'll start with my opinion. Comrade Fang Yurong's behavior is indeed inappropriate. Holding two positions, behaving improperly abroad, and even having it reported in the newspapers—these two points are solid evidence. Other issues will require investigation by the relevant departments. Therefore, I propose that Comrade Fang Yurong be suspended from all duties, temporarily relieved of her position as head of China Film's import-export division in Germany, and placed under investigation! As for Comrade Song Linming and China Film, whether there are any issues is more complicated and will require further study!"
Thud!
Fang Yurong collapsed into her chair, her mind blank.
It's over! Everything is over!
Song Linming's face was ashen, and he remained silent, only occasionally glancing at Chen Qi with hatred in his eyes.
Chen Qi didn't care.
He had been working hard for so long, and his goal was to strip China Film of its power!
At this time, China Film wasn't the China Film Group of later years.
It was just a distribution company, seemingly large but actually quite weak, relying solely on policy monopolies.
Not to mention, domestic production studios had always been at odds with it, fighting for distribution rights.
Song Linming didn't know what would happen next.
If he was smart, or if his successor was smart, they wouldn't hate Chen Qi.
Instead, they would be rushing to curry favor with him!
(End of Chapter)