Chapter 176: The General Brought in by Shueisha

The next day, Jiuding Securities Company's stockholding in Cheung Kong Holdings was publicly announced, which naturally sparked a heated discussion in the Hong Kong media. Xia Yu also had an explanation published in *Jiuding Daily*, expressing his positive outlook on Cheung Kong Holdings and endorsing Li Chao Ren.

As expected by Xia Yu, Cheung Kong Holdings' stock price rose in response!

With this boost in stock price, Xia Yu attended the board meeting of Cheung Kong Holdings in the afternoon. During the meeting, all shareholders, including Li Chao Ren, warmly welcomed Xia Yu, and the specifics of the meeting were left unmentioned for now.

Xia Yu, on the other hand, was looking forward to the interview the next day.

This was because the afternoon before, Guanghui International had notified Xia Yu again, indicating that they had found a candidate for the general manager of an animation company. This time, there was only one person, and Robert Joyce had continuously explained to Xia Yu, hoping he would understand. He would try to find other candidates as well.

Xia Yu understood this, as finding talent in the comic industry was indeed challenging.

However, Robert Joyce provided the resume, which made Xia Yu quite hopeful. The candidate met all his requirements.

Ma Tengdong, 35 years old, a passionate comic enthusiast, had been in the comic industry for fifteen years. Currently, he was a department head at Shueisha in Japan. According to Guanghui International's investigation, he was known as the highest-ranked Chinese in the Japanese comic industry.

The investigation report from Guanghui International and Ma Tengdong's resume indicated that he had experience in comic creation, distribution, operation, and peripheral sales, achieving notable results in each area. He was fully capable of being the general manager of a comic company.

If this information was accurate, Ma Tengdong would be a very suitable candidate for the general manager position at Jiuding Animation Limited!

However, Xia Yu was curious why Ma Tengdong wanted to leave his job. Was it really as Guanghui International's analysis suggested, that he was being marginalized at Shueisha and faced no prospects for promotion?

Or were there other reasons?

The resume didn't provide an answer, so Xia Yu planned to ask during the interview.

Xia Yu had already scheduled the interview with Ma Tengdong for the next morning at the same memory café where he had interviewed Gavin Peter.

...

The next morning, Xia Yu arrived at the café, reserved a private room, and awaited Ma Tengdong's arrival.

Ma Tengdong arrived punctually, not making Xia Yu wait.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the interview began.

Xia Yu first asked Ma Tengdong to introduce himself, showcasing his strengths and proving that he indeed possessed the skills described in his resume.

Ma Tengdong was very confident. After nodding to Xia Yu, he smiled and began his self-introduction.

"My name is Ma Tengdong..."

Listening to Ma Tengdong's introduction, Xia Yu nodded occasionally and asked questions to test his knowledge.

A person's ability can be initially assessed by their understanding of the field.

In front of Xia Yu, Ma Tengdong elaborated on his insights into the comic industry and his understanding of the various functional departments of a comic company.

After the interview, Xia Yu displayed a satisfied smile. Ma Tengdong indeed had genuine talent and comprehensive capabilities, proving he was suitable for the general manager role at Jiuding Animation Limited.

After understanding Ma Tengdong's capabilities, Xia Yu's curiosity grew. He couldn't believe that Shueisha's executives were so short-sighted they couldn't recognize Ma Tengdong's abilities. Why would Ma Tengdong consider changing jobs?

"Mr. Ma, one last question. Could you explain why you are unwilling to continue at Shueisha and prefer to join our new company?"

Xia Yu asked, closely observing Ma Tengdong's expression.

Ma Tengdong's eyes flashed with a hint of resentment. He said somewhat unwillingly, "Because I offended a high-ranking Shueisha executive whose father had participated in the invasion of China and was a military officer. He harbors strong anti-Chinese sentiments. Once, I had a conflict with him and offended him. It was only because my abilities were recognized by a few other high-ranking officials that I wasn't expelled earlier. Even so, I was reassigned from the core creation department."

"I had considered resigning before, but there was no suitable opportunity. For the sake of my family, I had to stay until Guanghui International found me. After learning about your company, I decided to come!"

Xia Yu maintained his composure but was inwardly enlightened. So that was the reason.

Thinking of the right-wing Shueisha executive Ma Tengdong mentioned, Xia Yu's eyes flashed with a hint of cold light. With this reason, he felt even less guilty about copying Shueisha's comics.

"Our company's initial positioning is to impact the Japanese comic market. You may not understand our company's situation now, but I look forward to the day when you lead the company to revitalize Hong Kong's comic industry and then break into the Japanese market. If you are willing, I will show you some materials later. I believe you won't be disappointed!"

Xia Yu said sincerely, standing up and extending his hand to Ma Tengdong.

Xia Yu's meaning was clear—he was hired, and now it depended on Ma Tengdong's response.

Hearing Xia Yu's words, Ma Tengdong recalled Xia Yu's strength. He nodded heavily, thinking it was worth the gamble. After all, Xia Yu had the capital to enter the comic industry.

He shook hands with Xia Yu and respectfully said, "Thank you, boss."

"Let's go, I'll take you to the company!"

Xia Yu then led Ma Tengdong to Jiuding Animation Limited's office.

They first signed the employment contract, and then Xia Yu took Ma Tengdong to the office, where he presented the planning documents for *Zhiyin Manke* magazine and the outlines and character drafts for four other comics.

Xia Yu wanted Ma Tengdong to understand the company's potential. Although it was a new company, it had a promising future. This was to help him quickly align with the company and boost his confidence and enthusiasm for the job.

As for concerns about Ma Tengdong leaking information?

Xia Yu wasn't worried at all. Not to mention Ma Tengdong had already signed the employment contract, making him part of the team.

More importantly, Xia Yu had already registered the intellectual property for the four comics and *Zhiyin Manke* magazine. Even if Ma Tengdong wanted to steal the ideas, it would be too late. Xia Yu wasn't afraid of theft.

Ma Tengdong flipped through the documents. Upon seeing the detailed planning document for *Zhiyin Manke*, his eyes lit up.

He was knowledgeable and recognized the value of this magazine planning document. Many aspects impressed him, and after reading it, he had a general assessment of it.

This was a very mature planning proposal, not inferior to Shueisha's *Weekly Shonen Jump*.

Next, he looked at the stack of drafts. He immediately recognized them as comic characters.

The mature and sharp art style made him nod in approval.

Then, he reviewed the plot outlines, quickly browsing through them. The more he read, the more astonished he became, until he was completely shocked.

These were complete beginnings for the four comics, not only including plot outlines but also character designs. The outlines could be expanded, and the plots fleshed out for direct serialization.

Although these outlines were not finished comics, his ability allowed him to see that these four comics were as good as Shueisha's works. Once illustrated, they would definitely become popular. How popular they would become would depend on market feedback.

At this moment, Ma Tengdong's confidence in Jiuding Animation Limited, which seemed like a shell company, surged.

No, it wasn't a shell company, as it already had the most crucial element.

The core of a comic company was always the works!

"Boss, whose masterpieces are these?"

Ma Tengdong asked Xia Yu with some excitement.

Xia Yu smiled and said, "They're mine. How do you find them?"

Ma Tengdong was initially stunned but, seeing that Xia Yu was serious, was filled with shock. He knew Xia Yu could write novels—*The Legend of Qin* was written by Xia Yu—but he didn't expect the boss also drew comics and planned comic magazines. Xia Yu's understanding of comics was no less than his own, which was astonishing.

After the shock, Ma Tengdong was overjoyed. With such an impressive boss, Jiuding Animation Limited's future seemed very promising.

"Work hard to get Jiuding Animation Limited into the Japanese comic industry. If one day we surpass Shueisha, it will definitely be very interesting!"

Xia Yu patted Ma Tengdong's shoulder and said, with a somewhat persuasive tone.

Ma Tengdong was indeed swayed by Xia Yu's words. He looked at Xia Yu with a glint of longing in his eyes, nodded firmly, and said, "Boss, rest assured. I will not let you down!"

"I've already posted the recruitment information on *Jiuding Daily*. You'll be in charge of the recruitment. The requirements aren't too high; just need to have some drawing skills."

"By the way, the company currently lacks manpower. To produce the comic magazine and draw the four comics, we need sufficient staff. Use your network to recruit people from the Japanese comic industry."

"Preferably Chinese, but if it's Japanese, they must have no prejudice against China and Chinese people."

"Also, see if you can find any comic trainers. They should come over and provide professional training for everyone in the company. The rise of Hong Kong's comic industry requires a lot of relevant talent. The more people we train now, the better it is for

 us. Please take this seriously!"

Xia Yu instructed Ma Tengdong.

"Boss, rest assured. I will remember this and make sure you won't be disappointed!"

Ma Tengdong nodded heavily in assurance.

From the boss's words, he understood Xia Yu's grand ambitions. He felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders. Not only was he the general manager of Jiuding Animation Limited, but he was also involved in the rise of Hong Kong's comic industry.

At this moment, he felt a surge of excitement and looked forward to a day when Hong Kong's comics could compete with Japanese comics, or even invade the Japanese comic market.

Although he knew it was difficult, he saw hope here!