Chapter 174 Mainland Talent Exchange
Since the establishment of the City Group, Liu Zhicheng has hired a number of comic talents from RB at high salaries and also sent some employees to RB to study.

The main purpose is to make the comics of City Group have an international style, and to make the comic writers of City Group understand the needs of international comic fans.

Some Hong Kong's local comics talents have made great progress, achieved good results, and begun to understand the characteristics of international animation.

City Group's first comic and animation for the international market: Transformers, became an instant hit in the international market and gained market recognition.

After the trial was successful, it was naturally necessary to keep up the good work. However, Liu Zhicheng was preparing to produce anime while letting his companies produce animations.

These also require a large number of cartoonists to draw. Every second of the animation program on TV is composed of 24 cartoons, and there are simply not enough local employees in Hong Kong.

In order to recruit enough painting staff, the mainland with a population of 10 billion is naturally the first choice (thanks to the suggestion of book friend Bull Riders).

The history of animation in the mainland is long, and the creation of anti-invasion content has emerged since the old comics era (around the Xinhai GM).

After the establishment of the Xin Dynasty, the development of comic strips reached its peak and began to transform into entertainment.

It can be said that from the 50s to the mid-70s, not only were there a wide variety of comics, but mainland comics also entered a period of healthy development.

Moreover, in terms of content and artistry, it is no less inferior to RB and American comics of the same period. Even RB's early comics were influenced by the mainland.

But after the reform and opening up, the country focused its main efforts on economic development, and everything else, including cultural development, was affected.

Even if the animation foundation is good, how can the level of comics improve if there is no money to purchase advanced equipment, train new people and pay wages?
If history has no influence, then in the 80s, mainland animation officially entered the R-style comics era.

Since the introduction of "Astro Boy" and its adaptation into a comic strip in 80, many comic agencies in the mainland have become OEM factories for RB Animation Company.

Specially handling a large amount of basic drawing for them has dealt a serious blow to the improvement of the domestic comics level and will also affect several generations of people in the mainland.

It can be said that before Liu Zhicheng was reborn, there were a lot of R-style animations in mainland China.

At present, the institution with the highest level of comics in the mainland is the Shanghai Fine Arts Film Studio, which is also one of the oldest animation production studios in the mainland.

It has produced works including Black Cat Sheriff, Havoc in Heaven, The Story of Avanti, and Sanmao's Wanderings.

At its peak, its animated film production accounted for 8% of the country's animated films, and it basically monopolized the mainland's art industry.

This film studio was one of Liu Zhicheng's key focuses, and he arranged for Wu Peng to come here to find out the true situation and level of its internal employees.

Wu Peng smiled and said, "Although the economy of Shanghai has developed well in recent years, the lives of ordinary people are not that good.
The same is true for the employees of Shanghai Art Film Studio. Many of them even have problems with housing. As long as we are willing to pay, it should not be a problem to poach them.

"Poaching people directly? That's too low-level!" Liu Zhicheng said with a smile.

When recruiting people, you have to find out their level. It is not suitable to recruit people directly at this stage. The best way is to communicate and learn.

"Mr. Liu, how do you plan to deal with this problem?" Wu Peng asked.

Liu Zhicheng said: "For example, the more than 100 people in your document, you are still planning to contact them one by one. It will probably be difficult to convince them all.
Our city group will need hundreds or even thousands of talents in this field in the future, and the most effective way to do this is to cooperate with them."

Wu Peng asked: "Then why don't we go directly to the head of Shanghai Film Studio?"

Liu Zhicheng smiled and rejected Wu Peng's proposal, saying, "There's no need to waste time negotiating with the people in the factory. Which department is in charge of this film studio?"

Wu Peng replied, "It's the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Culture. Mr. Liu means that you plan to go directly to their director?"

"Yes, things will be much simpler if we negotiate with the government!" Liu Zhicheng said, tapping the table with his fingers.

"Okay, Mr. Liu, I'll contact them right away." Wu Peng said.

Liu Zhicheng continued to ask: "In addition to finding comic talents, have you gained anything else? Or do you think there are any projects in the Shanghai Stock Exchange that are worth our company's investment?"

In addition to finding talents in comics, another purpose of sending Wu Peng to Shanghai is to find out the current economic situation in Shanghai.

Which areas are worth investing in, and also consider the current legal restrictions.

Wu Peng smiled and said, "The core area of ​​Shanghai's economy is Nanjing East Road. It is packed with people on weekends.
Especially the First Department Store, I heard that every Sunday there are 20 people coming in and out, and last year's turnover was as high as 1.4 million US dollars at the current exchange rate."

"$1.4 billion?"

Liu Zhicheng was a little bit unbelievable. In Hong Kong, this was also a remarkable achievement.

"Yes, that's right." Wu Peng smiled and said, "It's always crowded during holidays, even more so than the subway in Hong Kong."

Liu Zhicheng knew that if he wanted to invest in the mainland, this aspect would be a good choice, but mainland law only allowed joint ventures, and buying it out was even more impossible.

"Now only joint ventures are allowed here, right?" Liu Zhicheng asked after thinking for a while.

Wu Peng shook his head and said, "A joint venture is unlikely. This is the golden land of Shanghu. It is impossible to transfer equity without considerable benefits.

During this time, I stayed in Shanghai and got to know many high-ranking officials through Shanfeng Investment Company.

It is learned that the biggest problem of the Shanghai Stock Exchange is that a large amount of finances are handed over to the ZY government, resulting in the inability to develop some livelihood infrastructure projects.
I know Mr. Liu is keen on infrastructure investment, and I know that an infrastructure project can definitely make money and will definitely win the favor of the Shanghai Stock Exchange."

Liu Zhicheng asked with a smile: "Tell me what the project is?"

Wu Peng said: "Mr. Liu, the leaders of Shanghai City hope that we can invest in a Huangpu River Bridge and a thermal power station here."

"The thermal power station and Huangpu Bridge?" Liu Zhicheng thought for a moment and said, "The thermal power station is fine, but does the Huangpu Bridge rely on tolls to recoup its costs?"

Wu Peng nodded and said, "Yes, Mr. Liu, there is only one Songpu Bridge across the Yangtze River in the entire Shanghu City, but it is far away from Puxi and cannot meet the needs of both sides of the Yangtze River."

Puxi is now the center of the entire Shanghai market, and a large number of enterprises and institutions have their offices here.

Pudong, across the Huangpu River, is the largest populated area. Currently, residents on both sides of Pudong and Puxi can only rely on ferries on both sides of the Pujiang River to cross the river.

But ferries are extremely inefficient. During rush hour, there are not traffic jams, but people jams.

Especially in Lujiazui area, can you imagine the scene of tens of thousands of people waiting in line for the ferry? If there is bad weather, such as strong winds and heavy rain, it is even more indescribable.

So, the flow of people here is simply terrifying. If you build this bridge, not only can you make a fortune, but you can also get closer to the top leaders of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, killing two birds with one stone!"

In the past, there were many bridges over the Huangpu River, but in the early 80s, there was only one Songpu Bridge standing over the Huangpu River.

The bridge was built in 1974 and opened to traffic in 76, changing the history of "no bridge over the Huangpu River".

However, the original purpose of the bridge was to transport goods to the Shanghai Petrochemical General Plant, not for civilian use. Therefore, in terms of geographical location, it could not meet the needs of the people on both sides of the Huangpu River. Throughout the 80s, people on both sides relied on ferries to travel.

Although a tunnel was opened later, it is still not convenient enough for most people. The inconvenience of transportation also led to a huge difference in the status of Pudong and Puxi.

It was not until 1988 that the construction of the second bridge over the Huangpu River, Nanpu Bridge, was put on the agenda due to the increase in fiscal revenue.

If this bridge is built now, it will not only improve the relationship with the upper echelons of Shanghai, but also serve the citizens.

Even if the bridge charges a toll, it will certainly be cheaper than the ferry and more convenient for travel.

Liu Zhicheng fell into deep thought. Investing in domestic infrastructure has always been his goal.

But I mainly want to invest in highways, ports, and power stations. Even if I want to build a bridge, it has to be something like the Humen Bridge, or a Yangtze River Bridge.

Liu Zhicheng had never thought about investing in a small Huangpu Bridge.

But thinking that since it would be a good opportunity to make friends with the people of Shanghai, it would not matter even if it was a full donation, he thought about it and said, "Please help me make an appointment with the relevant leaders so that we can meet and talk."

"Okay." Wu Peng went out to coordinate immediately.

The hotel where Liu Zhicheng is staying now is the Peace Hotel.

Compared with other cities, Shanghai, as a large city with a century of development, had a large number of Western-style hotels as early as the Republic of China period.

Although there are still some shortcomings compared with hotels decades later, there are basically not many differences in usage.

At present, foreign businessmen who come to Shanghai Stock Exchange basically settle here.

The Peace Hotel has the most typical Republic of China style. Many later film and television works about the Republic of China period needed to be filmed here.

Liu Zhicheng stayed on the top floor of the Peace Hotel. Standing at the window, he could see the Huangpu River and Pudong.

Liu Zhicheng couldn't help but sigh. The development of Shanghai can be said to be changing with each passing day. In a few decades, there will be tall buildings everywhere and every inch of land will become valuable.

.........

The next day, Xie Liping, the head of Shanghai's cultural department, who received the news, came to the Peace Hotel to visit Liu Zhicheng.

From the beginning, both sides exchanged pleasantries and praised each other.

Liu Zhicheng smiled and suddenly asked, "Director Xie, the Shanghai Fine Arts Film Studio is under the jurisdiction of your department, right?"

"Yes, it is under the jurisdiction of our cultural department." Xie Liping was a little confused and just nodded in response.

Liu Zhicheng said: "I have a comics company under Xiangjiang, and I am planning to expand the business on a large scale, so I need a large number of comics talents.

In this regard, Hong Kong can only offer a few, but the mainland currently has a large number of talents in this area.

Especially Shanghai Fine Arts Film Studio is the leader among them, so I think there should be more cooperation between us.”

Xie Liping smiled and said: "Cooperation is naturally not a problem. In fact, we have already cooperated with some comic companies in RB.
They proposed the comic plot and basic character sketches, and we drew them. We each took what we needed. I wonder if this is also the kind of cooperation Mr. Liu wants?"

"No!" Liu Zhicheng shook his head and said, "I hope some painters from the Fine Arts Film Studio can go to Hong Kong to exchange and learn with our company."

Liu Zhicheng said that he was here for exchange and learning, but in fact he was working for the City Group. If he directly said that he was working to earn foreign exchange, the mainland might not be able to save face at this stage.

"Go to Hong Kong?" Xie Liping frowned and asked, "I wonder how many people Mr. Liu needs?"

Liu Zhicheng smiled and said, "As long as the level is high, of course the more the better."

"Mr. Liu, I'm afraid it won't work if you talk too much!" Xie Liping said tactfully.

If there are only a few people, it is not a big problem, but if there are too many people, it will destroy the internal structure of the art film studio.

This is the largest company in the country. If anything goes wrong, he can't take responsibility.

Liu Zhicheng asked: "Why? I pay foreign exchange to the American film studio, and the American film studio only needs to pay them wages."

"Mr. Liu, it's good to be able to earn foreign exchange, but the Fine Arts Film Studio is a state-owned unit. If we want to get a small number of people to resign and go to Hong Kong, it's possible, but if there are too many, it will be difficult," Xie Liping explained.

The treatment of employees in mainland enterprises in this era is extremely good, and the current mentality is still to despise businessmen, many of whom only seek stability.

After all, working in a state-owned enterprise, not to mention the salary, the various benefits are still good, medical care is free, and children's education is basically free as well.

More importantly, if the next generation is capable, they can take your place when you are old.

Although working overseas can earn you more money, it is not secure. Who knows what will happen in the future? What if they don't want you after working for you for a few months? It would be a waste of time.

"Director Xie, you may have misunderstood me." Liu Zhicheng smiled and said, "I didn't mean to ask them to resign. I just wanted them to go to Hong Kong for exchange and study.
Instead, we will pay the foreign exchange and invite them to Hong Kong, but I hope they can keep their positions in the mainland. As for the salary paid by the state, I can make up for it with money. "

"This method is not bad." Xie Liping thought about it and nodded in agreement.

Liu Zhicheng smiled and said, "Those who go to work in Hong Kong can get their previous salary in Shanghai, and we will also pay them living expenses in Hong Kong.
We also provide accommodation and three meals a day, solving everyone's worries. As long as you concentrate on working for us, you will definitely be able to earn a lot of foreign exchange."

"If that's the case, I guess people from the studio will rush to sign up." Xie Liping smiled and said, "Being able to travel abroad, learn about foreign art production, and earn foreign exchange at the same time, this is a once-in-a-century opportunity!"

Liu Zhicheng smiled and said, "If Director Xie is interested, we can go to Hong Kong for an inspection together. My company will cover the expenses."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Liu." Xie Liping smiled and said, "I will go back and discuss this matter with the director of Shanghai Fine Arts Film Studio. I will inform Mr. Liu immediately when I have the result."

"Thank you very much." Liu Zhicheng said with a smile.

After a few polite words, Xie Liping said goodbye and left.

Although we have initial intentions, we still need to work hard to recruit outstanding talents to Hong Kong.

Because at the moment, we cannot underestimate their loyalty to the mainland, but we must find their weaknesses.

Appeal to their emotions and explain things to them logically to move them.

This way, we can achieve twice the result with half the effort and successfully invite them to Hong Kong for exchanges. As long as they go to Hong Kong, Liu Zhicheng has plenty of ways to keep them here.

(End of this chapter)