Chapter 99

This weekend is quite busy, I'll try to keep updating! This update was just freshly written!

The following is the main text:

When Ahn Byung-gi saw that the caller was Li Zhong, he temporarily put aside his concerns. "Li Zhong, what's up?"

"Hello, Director Ahn Byung-gi, I wanted to ask if setting up a company can reduce taxes?" Li Zhong asked straightforwardly.

Ahn Byung-gi was a bit puzzled. Didn't Li Zhong know about this? "Yes, the Korean tax law has preferential policies. As long as it can bring prestige to the Republic of Korea internationally, there is a possibility of tax exemption or reduction. By the way, your 'Chaser' should meet this condition."

Upon hearing Ahn Byung-gi's words, Li Zhong realized that it was indeed true. "Director Ahn Byung-gi, I was supposed to receive my first box office share today, but the CEO of Showbox told me that if I had a company, my tax could be reduced to 5%, whereas I've been paying 30% all along..."

Ahn Byung-gi laughed. "Then you've been losing a lot. If you register a company this time, you'll save a lot of money." As he spoke, his eyes fell on the movie budget documents on the table.

Ahn Byung-gi suddenly thought that Li Zhong seemed to have made quite a bit of money this time, and was now shooting a movie. What if he asked him to invest some money?

"Thank you, Director Ahn Byung-gi. I'll go register the company tomorrow, or I'll lose a lot of money." Li Zhong, seeing that the consultation was almost over, decided to hang up.

"Wait, Li Zhong, I have something to ask you. When are you going to register the company tomorrow? I'll help you out." Ahn Byung-gi, seeing that Li Zhong was about to hang up, quickly said.

Li Zhong was a bit puzzled. "That's too much trouble! I can do it myself. If you need me for something, just come to my company tomorrow."

"No problem, I'll help you with this first, and then we can talk about my matter." Ahn Byung-gi said.

Li Zhong thought it would be good to have a familiar person around, at least he wouldn't be like a headless fly. "Alright, let's meet at the registration office at 9 AM tomorrow."

The next day, Li Zhong got up early, got dressed, and went to the registration office. Ahn Byung-gi arrived at 9 AM sharp. During Li Zhong's registration, Ahn Byung-gi provided a lot of help. It turned out that Ahn Byung-gi had a wide network of contacts, and even for company registration, he had someone who could make things much easier. Many documents that others would have to run back and forth for, Ahn Byung-gi handled with ease. In the end, he told Li Zhong that he could come to pick up the company license in three working days.

Li Zhong named his company Stevenlee Film Production Company, abbreviated as SL Film Production Company, with a registered capital of 10 billion won. Steven was the English name Li Zhong gave himself when he was in the United States. He was just lazy, so he used his own name to register the company.

In the afternoon, with the sun shining, two cups of coffee on a dark wooden table by the floor-to-ceiling window, two people were sitting opposite each other. If they were a couple, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, they were Li Zhong and Ahn Byung-gi.

After finishing lunch, both of them felt a bit lazy. "Director Ahn Byung-gi, what do you need from me? I'll help as much as I can." Li Zhong, seeing how much Ahn Byung-gi had helped him with the company registration and the previous assistance, felt that he should help with anything.

Ahn Byung-gi looked at Li Zhong, organizing his words. "Li Zhong, you remember I told you that I found Cha Tae-hyun for a movie? Now Cha Tae-hyun finally has a schedule, but my investor can't provide the money due to some personal reasons. The original investment was 50 billion won, with my company contributing 10 billion won and the investor 40 billion won. Now, this 40 billion won is gone."

Li Zhong looked at Ahn Byung-gi, thinking about things related to the movie, but he didn't expect the investment to be the issue. "Uh... Director Ahn Byung-gi, are you asking me to provide the full 40 billion won?" Li Zhong asked.

Ahn Byung-gi shook his head. "No, I want you to invest 30 billion won. I've already compressed the budget to 40 billion won."

"Can I meet the screenwriter and director of this movie?" Li Zhong didn't say yes or no but asked directly.

"No problem, I'll call them right now." Ahn Byung-gi didn't hesitate.

Not long after, a man with black-rimmed glasses arrived. "Director Ahn Byung-gi, hello."

"This is Director Li Zhong, the director of the currently popular 'Chaser.'" Ahn Byung-gi introduced.

"Ah, Director Li Zhong, hello, hello! The six nominations for 'Chaser' are really impressive!" The man's eyes lit up upon hearing it was Li Zhong.

"Hehe, thank you, what's your name?" Li Zhong said.

The man with black-rimmed glasses sat down and took out a script from his briefcase, handing it to Li Zhong. "I'm Kang Hyung-phil, the screenwriter and director of this movie." Kang Hyung-phil said shyly.

Li Zhong picked up the script in front of him. The cover read the movie title "Very Anchorman." After flipping through it, the general idea was about a 36-year-old man who suddenly has a 22-year-old daughter and a 6-year-old grandson, and his life becomes a mess...

Li Zhong read the script in one go. It was very interesting, with comedy elements and family elements perfectly blended together, leaving a warm feeling after reading it. "It's a great script. Since Cha Tae-hyun is already on board, I'll invest. I'll put in 30 billion won. I'll give you 10 billion won first, and the remaining 20 billion won after I receive my box office share." Li Zhong was a straightforward person; if he decided to help Ahn Byung-gi, he would do it quickly. Besides, with Li Zhong's judgment, if Cha Tae-hyan played the lead, the movie would likely be a hit. If they could find a good young actress to play the daughter, it might even surpass the box office of "Chaser," as the earning power of comedies was not to be underestimated.

Ahn Byung-gi was taken aback. He had prepared a whole train of reasons to persuade Li Zhong to invest in the movie, but Li Zhong just read the script, talked to the director for a bit, and then decided to invest? "Li Zhong, don't you want to know more?"

Li Zhong waved his hand. "No need, I trust Director Ahn Byung-gi's judgment. Once my company's business license is ready, you can come and take the 10 billion won. I don't have that much money right now."

"No problem, I have 10 billion won that can support us for two months. By then, your money will definitely be in." Ahn Byung-gi, hearing that the investment was really coming, felt relieved. He had been worrying about the money issue, which had almost made his hair turn white.

"By the way, Director Ahn Byung-gi, I'm curious, what happened to the original investor?" Li Zhong asked.

Ahn Byung-gi sighed. "The original investor was a friend of mine, a financial expert specializing in American financial business. He deals with stocks, futures, and all that. Whenever I needed funds for my movies, I would go to him for investment. This time, we had already agreed on the funding and were just waiting for the actors to join, but Cha Tae-hyun didn't have time.

After the New Year, Cha Tae-hyun finally had a schedule, but the subprime crisis hit the United States. My friend's money was tied up, and because he had invested heavily in mortgage bonds, he not only lost all his money but was also facing forced liquidation. If it weren't for someone in the Korean banking industry stepping in to provide a large sum of money, he might have jumped off a building."

Li Zhong listened as if he were hearing a foreign language. When he was in New York, his roommate was studying finance, and at that time, he had given Li Zhong a hard time. Li Zhong had never understood what finance was all about. At this moment, Li Zhong didn't know what his former roommate was doing on the other side of the ocean...

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