Chapter 255: Now This Is a Talent

Screech!

Chen Mo instinctively tapped the brakes.

A loss.

A loss of 30 million.

High-budget film production, a couple of flops, dismal box office returns.

Now *that* was a solid way to burn money.

Through the rearview mirror, Chen Mo glanced at Luo Xiao, who was still visibly agitated. A sudden fondness for talent welled up in his heart.

This guy was definitely a talent.

He’d sunk his entire fortune into filmmaking and lost it all. That took guts.

Letting him direct films while Chen Mo backed him with ample System Funds? That would be a match made in heaven.

But Luo Xiao was still drunk. Not the right time to talk business.

He’d wait until tomorrow when the guy sobered up. A talent like this needed to be kept close.

At the hotel,

Chen Mo booked a room, tossed the two of them onto the bed, and left without another word.

As for helping them change clothes or tidy up—yeah, that service wasn’t included.

After leaving the hotel, he dropped off the two female classmates at their homes. They both lived in the same apartment complex in the county, so it didn’t take long.

“Thanks, Scholar Chen.”

The two girls waved with a smile.

Chen Mo waved back and drove off.

“Chen Mo’s pretty low-key, huh? That Mercedes, our company has one too—costs over 600,000 yuan.”

“Is that expensive? I thought the Clothing Factory wasn’t doing well?”

“That’s why I said he’s low-key. A top student is a top student—not just good at school, but also killing it in business. And the best part? He doesn’t show off.”

“Exactly. At dinner, a few of the guys kept ‘casually’ putting their car keys on the table. Compared to Chen Mo, they were just trying too hard.”

“…”

The two girls chatted as they walked into the complex.

…

Morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

Luo Xiao slowly opened his eyes and tried to sit up, only to feel something wrapped around his waist and thighs.

He looked down in confusion—and saw a man clinging to his waist, sleeping soundly, one leg draped over his own.

What the hell?!

Luo Xiao was stunned. He looked around the unfamiliar room.

Where was he?

How did he end up here? Wasn’t he at the class reunion?

As he tried to piece things together, fragments of memory began to surface.

Right… he got drunk and was brought to a hotel.

Luo Xiao gradually remembered what had happened—and realized the guy hugging him in his sleep was none other than his classmate, Wang Bin.

Thinking back to his drunken antics, Luo Xiao smacked his forehead in frustration.

Great.

Now the secret about him losing money on films was out.

He glanced at the still-sleeping Wang Bin and tried to wriggle free.

Two grown men in this position—no matter how you looked at it, it was just wrong.

As he moved,

Wang Bin slowly woke up, rubbed his eyes, and looked up.

“Brother Xiao, you’re awake.”

“Yeah. But could you maybe get off me first?”

Luo Xiao gave him an awkward look.

“Oh! Right!”

Wang Bin scrambled off him, clutching the blanket and scooting to the head of the bed.

Watching him clutch the blanket like that, Luo Xiao was speechless. That move made it look like *he* had done something to *Wang Bin*.

Knock knock knock!

A sudden knock at the door.

Luo Xiao checked his clothes—still fully intact—then got up and opened the door.

“Chen Mo!”

He blurted out the name instinctively upon seeing who it was.

From the fragments of memory he recalled, it had been Chen Mo who brought them to the hotel last night.

“Thanks a lot for last night.”

“No problem. We’re classmates, right? Helping each other out is what we do.”

Chen Mo smiled and lifted the breakfast bag in his hand.

“Haven’t eaten yet, have you? I brought some breakfast—just in time while it’s still hot.”

Luo Xiao was someone Chen Mo had his eye on. He had to seize this opportunity to bring him onboard.

“Thanks!”

Luo Xiao didn’t say much else and took the breakfast from Chen Mo.

He also called Wang Bin to get up.

They set the food on the small table in the room and started eating.

It was a simple breakfast—some steamed buns, millet porridge, and a glass of milk.

Neither of them was picky, and they devoured it like wolves.

After all the alcohol from the night before, the porridge and milk were perfect for soothing their stomachs.

“Brother Mo, seriously, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I might’ve ended up sleeping on the street.”

Wang Bin said gratefully between bites.

He, too, was starting to remember what had happened last night.

“No worries.”

Chen Mo smiled and waved it off, then turned to Luo Xiao.

“Mind if I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

Luo Xiao nodded.

“About you losing money making movies—can I ask about that? Don’t get me wrong, I’m thinking of investing in film myself and wanted to learn from your experience.”

Chen Mo asked directly.

Even though Luo Xiao had mentioned it while drunk, Chen Mo wanted to confirm the details just to be sure.

Luo Xiao paused mid-bite, then gave a resigned smile.

Since the secret was already out, there was no point hiding it anymore.

“I did lose money. Not just on one film—two. I made two movies, and both bombed.”

“The first one, I invested over 8 million. It only made about 2 million at the box office.”

“I thought I’d learned from that failure, so I went ahead and made a second one. This time, I poured in almost all of my family’s savings—35 million. In the end, it only brought in 5 million.”

Luo Xiao gave a bitter laugh.

He had been too arrogant. After graduating from the directing program at the Academy of Drama, he thought the world was his oyster, that he could make a blockbuster no problem.

But reality had slapped him—twice.

Confidence alone wasn’t enough. You needed real experience.

Those two failures taught him that making a good film wasn’t just about passion. From scriptwriting to filming to editing—every step, every detail, was crucial.

Unfortunately,

He realized all this too late. His family’s wealth had already been nearly drained.

If it weren’t for the mine his family owned, he wouldn’t have been able to sustain this kind of spending at all.

Listening to Luo Xiao’s story, Chen Mo was surprised to learn it wasn’t just one failed film—it was two.

Two movies, both losses. That clearly meant Luo Xiao wasn’t cut out to be a director.

Which only made Chen Mo more certain—

This was exactly the kind of talent he needed.

Watching Luo Xiao eat, he smiled and asked,

“Have you ever thought about making another movie?”

“Can’t do it anymore. My family doesn’t have any extra money left for me to burn.”

Luo Xiao shook his head with a wry smile.