Only the two of them remained in the office.
Leader Han was an experienced administrator who knew it was time to lay their cards on the table. This matter had to be resolved.
"You say you support Xiao Li acting in movies, but you want him to remain on the martial arts team. Is that the gist of it?" Chen Qi took a sip of tea and asked leisurely.
"That's right! That's not an unreasonable condition, is it?"
"It isn't unreasonable. But by keeping him, do you still intend to have him compete?"
"Of course! He's only eighteen. Based on the average retirement age for martial arts athletes, he has at least seven or eight years of his prime left. Xiao Li is extraordinarily gifted—do you know how many gold medals he brings the team each year?
"To be blunt, isn't an athlete's entire purpose to compete and win gold medals?
"You must know how much effort we put into cultivating athletes.
"Look at how poor the country is right now. Yet athletes get meat to eat, and milk and eggs every few days. Coaches provide one-on-one attention, room and board are covered, and every aspect of their daily life is taken care of, just like real parents would.
"Xiao Li joined the team at eleven, and his official seniority started counting from age eleven. We were paying him wages back then. Now he makes eighty-eight yuan a month, plus a five-hundred-yuan stipend every time he performs abroad. We really haven't mistreated him!
"True, he earned that with gold medals, but how can you put a price on the state's investment in his upbringing? What can he possibly pay that back with?"
Leader Han said all of this in one breath, then sighed. "We're not forbidding him from filming movies. If he wants to act, he can act. But once he's done filming, he has to come back and compete whenever he's in proper shape. Isn't that generous enough?
"For him to just up and leave—how is that any different from an ungrateful wretch?"
"I understand. I completely understand. But seeing as I've come in person today, could you show some leniency and make an accommodation?"
"Since you've come to plead his case, I'll give you face. Have Xiao Li write a self-criticism, and I'll still support him acting in movies."
"No, no. What I mean is: he remains on the martial arts team, but only acts in movies and doesn't compete."
"Doesn't compete?"
Leader Han's eyes widened, and he shook his head. "No, no way. If he doesn't, how are we supposed to win gold medals?"
"You can train more talent!"
"Do you think talented athletes just pop out of nowhere? Doesn't training take money and time?"
"If you force him to compete, what if he throws the matches?"
"He wouldn't dare! If he does, he can forget about ever getting ahead in life!"
"If that happens, Xiao Li is ruined, your reputation is tarnished, and you lose a national champion. Why bring about mutual destruction? You can't force a melon to be sweet. Since you support his acting deep down, why not support it all the way? Why create an outcome where neither side wins?"
Chen Qi urged him earnestly, "Our films earn foreign exchange. It's best if we resolve this between the two of us. If I want Xiao Li and you refuse, then I take it up with higher leadership, and you take it up with your leadership—what would that look like? How would leadership view us?"
"..."
Leader Han fell silent and sighed. The logic was sound.
"How about this? It really wasn't easy for you to train a champion.
"Here's my proposal: Xiao Li stays on the martial arts team, but you second him to me exclusively. He won't have to return to compete, only act in my films. In return, I'll pay your team five thousand yuan a year as a secondment fee. What do you think?"
"A secondment fee?"
Leader Han straightened his back.
Reason when it was time to reason, talk business when it was time for business—this kind of person was quite agreeable to deal with.
"Xiao Li is a national champion and now a popular movie star. Quite a few film studios have their eyes on him, not just yours."
"Ten thousand!"
"I heard Beijing Film Studio wanted Liu Xiaoqing and paid an eighty-thousand-yuan transfer fee."
"Liu Xiaoqing's was a lump-sum payment, whereas this is annual. You said Xiao Li has seven or eight years until retirement, so that adds up to seventy or eighty thousand as well."
"Seventy or eighty thousand, huh..."
Leader Han smacked his lips, weighing the thought carefully, before rejecting it firmly yet a bit sheepishly: "Still a bit low!"
Chen Qi rolled his eyes.
The two bargained back and forth, eventually settling on fifteen thousand yuan.
Calculated over eight years, Chen Qi would only need to pay one hundred and twenty thousand yuan to secure Li Lianjie's exclusive services for eight years. When Li Lianjie genuinely reached retirement age, Chen Qi could have him transferred to a sinecure within the sports system. The binding authority would remain, and the sports system would be more than happy with the arrangement.
Nostalgia was one thing, but reality was another.
People in later generations still weren't entirely clear on the questionable things Li Lianjie would do; it had always been considered sensitive and never openly discussed, with only fragmented bits discoverable in old news reports. (Some edits were made here; it really is sensitive, and nothing could be done about it.)
Coupled with other factors, Chen Qi harbored an innate sense of distrust toward him.
He intended to use Li Lianjie's kung fu films to break into foreign markets. With himself at the helm, Li Lianjie would not suffer through the nearly decade-long period of wasted time and career slump seen in history, but would head straight for international superstardom.
If someone suddenly poached him, or if he moved abroad, or caused some scandal in Hong Kong...
Then all of Chen Qi's efforts would go to waste.
Although the Eastern Depot had its own systems, they were not as strict as those of the martial arts team. Keeping Li Lianjie's personnel file and official status tied to the sports system provided a powerful leash.
Just as stated before, he had to be pinned inside the system!
***
Squatting outside, Li Lianjie felt as though a century had passed.
In reality, only about half an hour had gone by.
At last, laughter floated from inside, followed by a click as the door opened.
Chen Qi and Leader Han emerged with cheerful smiles, looking as though no bad blood existed between them at all. Leader Han said, "Xiao Li, you've truly met a great benefactor. I won't lecture you any further. You two go on and attend to your business."
"Sorry for taking up your time today. Let's get drinks another day!"
Chen Qi shook hands with Leader Han, then left with Li Lianjie.
"Brother Qi, how did it go?"
After walking only a few steps, Li Lianjie couldn't hold back any longer. Chen Qi sighed. "I really had to play the humble grandson today. You can film movies now, and you don't have to compete, but all your official affiliations must stay with the martial arts team. That was the absolute limit of what they would concede.
"That's the best I could do. If your heart is still set on leaving completely, then we can part ways on good terms."
"No! No! I won't leave, I won't leave!"
If you want to open a window, you must first advocate tearing down the roof, and then they will agree to the window—this theory never failed.
Faced with the prospect of mutual ruin with the martial arts team, hearing that such terms had been secured made Li Lianjie nod repeatedly. "As long as I can act in movies, that's enough! Not having to compete is even better. If I have to stay affiliated with the martial arts team, so be it; I'm used to it anyway.
"Still, Brother Qi, how did you persuade him?"
"You have been seconded to my company."
Chen Qi poked him in the chest and said, "To secure this agreement, I have to pay the martial arts team a large sum every year as a secondment fee! I'm bleeding serious money for your sake!"
"Th-this..."
Li Lianjie froze, completely caught off guard. For a moment, he didn't know what to say. "Brother Qi, you..."
"Forget it! Save the sweet talk. Go pack your things and report to Beijing Film Studio tomorrow. From now on, just act well in my films, and you'll have repaid me!"
With his back turned, Chen Qi waved a hand, hopped onto his 28-inch bicycle, and wobbled away.
"..."
Li Lianjie watched until he vanished from sight before turning back into the compound. As he walked toward the dormitory, he suddenly leapt three feet into the air. Pure excitement took over, and he hurried to pack his belongings.
Though he hadn't managed to leave the team entirely, at least he didn't have to compete anymore.
Right now, he genuinely loathed competing and only wanted to act in films.
*Once I'm at Brother Qi's company, I'll definitely be able to spread my wings and showcase my skills. Brother Qi truly is my great benefactor. He's treating me so well, he definitely won't mistreat me!*
Chapter 201