"Mr. Wang, this way, please."

Fan Bingqing inwardly despised Little Wang, even though Little Wang was wealthier and more powerful than her.

Without his parents, without the connections of his parents leading him to know Lu Liang, what would he be?

Little Wang was not like Lu Liang, nor like Liang Wenhu, and especially not like her; they all climbed up on their own efforts.

"Miss Fan, I heard you signed with DC and are planning a second debut in Hollywood?" Little Wang asked with a smile.

He only liked young, slim girls, and had never been interested in ’older women’, especially those in the entertainment industry.

But he noticed the disdain in Fan Bingqing’s eyes, which successfully triggered his rebellious side, so he couldn’t just let the matter slide, even if he had to force himself into it.

Lu Liang chuckled and didn’t pay them any more attention.

As they walked, Emma asked quietly, "Dear, do those two have a grudge?"

Fan Bingqing had been here several times, and the audition invitation for the female lead in "Joker" was just a formality, basically just for her to show face and be confirmed directly.

At the time, she had heard that Fan Bingqing was recommended by Lu Liang, so she always intentionally or unintentionally tried to get close to her, but now it seemed that wasn’t the case.

"A bit of a grudge, but it’s nothing major."

Guided by Emma, Lu Liang entered Gunn’s office. Gunn quickly stood up, smiling broadly, "Sir, you’re here."

He wanted to talk about DC’s achievements during this period, after all, Lu Liang had invested $250 million, and he couldn’t not let him hear a thing. But Lu Liang waved his hand to interrupt him: "Let’s talk about DC’s upcoming listing plans instead."

The head of Warner had contacted Lu Liang a few days ago to inform him that DC had been separated from Warner’s system and was only one catalyst away from being able to list independently.

He was here this time to understand what that catalyst might be and to see if he could offer any help.

Gunn smiled awkwardly, but he wasn’t angry.

He hurriedly said, "Sir, all the preliminary preparations for ’Joker’ have been completed. It’s scheduled to officially start filming on the 22nd of this month, with a shooting period tentatively set at three months and a production period also set at three months, aiming to hit theaters in January next year."

DC was only one catalyst away from being able to list independently, and he planned to bet this opportunity on "Joker."

As long as the reputation was ensured without incurring losses, Warner would immediately push forward with DC’s listing plans.

"Gunn, what is the production cost of this movie?"

Lu Liang’s lips curled into a mysterious smile.

["Joker" made history as the highest-grossing R-rated film, breaking multiple records, with a global box office total of $1.078 billion, Venice Golden Lion Award... Oscar for Best Actor...]

It seemed Fan Bingqing was in a fortunate position, starring in a movie that made history as the highest-grossing R-rated film. Even if she was just eye candy, even if her actual screen time was that of a supporting role, in any case, she was the female lead in a movie that left its mark in film history, and the impact of her being blacklisted should be negligible.

She might even make a comeback in the mainland; after all, she wasn’t an artist with a notorious reputation. Although she committed tax evasion, she paid it back with fines and interest, and the official document didn’t explicitly state she was completely blacklisted; it was just that the impact at the time was quite negative, and entertainment companies dared not gamble on the authorities’ stance.

Gunn saw the expression on Lu Liang’s face and felt puzzled but said, "The production cost for ’Joker’ is tentatively set at $55 million."

"Do you need more investment?" Lu Liang asked again.

Currently, there were only two production companies for the movie, the first was Warner Brothers, and the second was DC itself.

Warner holds shares in DC but is still invested.

Lu Liang could as well.

After all, with a production cost of $55 million, as long as the global box office exceeded $250 million, it could break even, and from the remaining $800 million global box office, at least $200 million could be shared in profit.

"Indeed, we do need more." Gunn was delighted and nodded quickly.

He had long heard that Lu Liang wasn’t only shrewd in the financial market but also had a Midas touch in East Country’s entertainment circle.

Take Tianxing Investment’s film project department as an example; it was said that Lu Liang provided only $3 million in initial funds, but after three years of rolling investment returns, its current scale had grown to over $3 billion, also holding a large number of rights to share in the profits.

With Lu Liang’s investment, and perhaps creating a special edit, even if it was an R-rated film, it might be released in Domestic Entertainment.

The box office miracle of "War Wolf 2" was still fresh in people’s memories, making a staggering $880 million just from a single market.

Ask anyone in Hollywood—who wouldn’t be envious?

"How much is needed?" Lu Liang asked.

Gunn thought carefully and answered, "16.5 million."

DC received a $250 million capital infusion from Lu Liang and had Warner’s support. If they genuinely needed to bring in foreign investment, the funding gap would be at most $11 million.

But he felt that a 20% investment share might not particularly appeal to Lu Liang, so he deducted a bit from Warner’s side and a bit from his own, offering a 30% investment share.

"I will have my people wire the funds, you can handle the contract details yourselves."

Tang Caide had already gone to Xiangjiang for work, so Lu Liang called Li Yizhou to inform him of the current situation.

$16.5 million, equivalent to over 100 million RMB, was a considerable amount and involved overseas investment, but since the investment company was fully owned by Lu Liang, it was up to him to decide.

After more than an hour of conversation, Lu Liang left Gunn’s office with Emma. As they walked out the door, they saw Little Wang sitting alone in the lounge area, playing on his phone.

Lu Liang asked in confusion, "Where is Miss Fan?"

"I’ve got to go." Little Wang’s face was quite unpleasant.

"Got the cold shoulder?"

"Me, getting the cold shoulder?"

Little Wang’s eyes widened in anger, his neck stiff, clearly trying to save face.

Lu Liang was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, and asked with concern, "Do you want me to contact her and ask her to come back?"

"Why call her back? Does she think she’s all that?"

Little Wang put on a nonchalant attitude: "Let’s find a place to eat, then just hang out, wait for tomorrow morning’s game."

If Lu Liang asked Fan Bingqing to come back, it would be as she wished. She came because of Lu Liang, not him.

He was already looked down upon by that woman,

And by then, he probably wouldn’t be worth a penny.

Lu Liang was speechless, clearly realizing the situation too. He looked at Emma and said, "Call a few friends, let’s go to the villa in East Hampton, throw a party, and wait for tomorrow morning’s World Cup final. How about that?"

The World Cup was held in E Country, with an eight-hour time difference from New York, eight hours ahead.

The final in E Country starts at 6 PM, which is 10 AM New York time.

Waking up to watch the final in the morning isn’t realistic; the best is to party from tonight all the way to the morning.

Last year, Lu Liang bought a seaside villa in East Hampton, previously owned by Gunn, which led to his investment in DC.

"No problem, leave it to me, I promise all the guests will be American sweethearts," Emma said with a cheeky grin, thumping her chest.

Little Wang raised his hand, coughing lightly: "Uh, do you have any Ethiopian friends? Just curious about their language, that’s all."

"There might be..."

Emma glanced secretly at Lu Liang, who nodded with a smile: "If there are, invite them too."

Ethiopia, the most dazzling black pearl of Africa. Although it’s a black nation, Ethiopians aren’t traditionally flat-nosed with thick lips.

Their features resemble dark-skinned Asian people, with particularly good figures too, also known as the cradle of Victoria’s Secret, producing many supermodels.

Night falls at the seaside villa in East Hampton.

Emma was fully in charge of the party’s preparations, while Lu Liang brought Little Wang to the villa’s basement.

The basement was like a shooting range,

And indeed it was a shooting range.

Lu Liang entered a password and inserted a physical key to open a heavy, embedded iron door in the wall.

The smell of oil hit him in the face, he grinned, "How is it? Cool or what?"

Dozens of pitch-black guns of various lengths were lined up, with thousands of different bullets piled in the corner.

When in Rome, as they say, the day after buying the villa, Lu Liang went to the city’s gun store and made a large purchase.

He bought guns he remembered, like the Desert Eagle, the M4A1, the AK47, and the classic AWM.

"You’re the real deal,"

Little Wang put his earlier displeasure behind him, immediately drawn to the one camouflaged AWM.

"Wow, this is heavy."

He eagerly picked it up, looking for the right bullets, and asked with urgency, "How do you play with this?"

Lu Liang smiled mischievously: "Come, let me teach you."

Little Wang glared but had no mind to retort.

Guns are among a man’s top three loves, the other two being cars and women, and guns aren’t always in third place.

Lu Liang helped Little Wang put on goggles, guiding him on gun handling, and Little Wang asked in confusion, "Why do you look so slyly pleased?"

"Aim and let me see how many points you hit." Lu Liang pointed to the target ahead, intentionally changing the subject.

With a deafening shot and a scream from Little Wang, the heavy rifle nearly slipped from his grasp.

Lu Liang grinned, rushing to support it, "Oh dear, why so careless?"

Little Wang rubbed his arm in pain, gritting his teeth, "The recoil is that strong?"

In that split second, he felt like his shoulder wasn’t his own, no wonder Lu Liang was so sneakily amused.

"I thought you knew."

Lu Liang chuckled, picking up an MP5 with barely any recoil, firing away with a rat-tat-tat.