Martial Arts Livestreaming
Chapter 379 - 347 Hit Them with Money!

Chapter 379: Chapter 347 Hit Them with Money!

Thailand, Bangkok.

A black sedan drove into a private villa, and soon, four people from Hua Country got out of the car.

Led by a maid, the three Hua Country visitors were ushered into the villa’s main building, where a robust and fearsome man with a scar on his face received them on the second floor.

The man was not given to much talk, and beside him was a man in his forties, who appeared genial and warmly welcomed the three to sit down.

"Welcome, everyone. I have already relayed your thoughts to Dragon, and today I’ve invited you all to hear more about them in detail," the middle-aged man said with a smile.

The fierce man with the scar on his face was Ruan Long, a well-known Muay Thai boxer, currently the Asia ONE lightweight champion, and the middle-aged man was his manager.

Among the four Hua Country folks in the room was Gong Juren, with the others being a translator, a lawyer, and the vice president of Yanhuang Competition Co., Ltd.

Yanhuang Competition Co., Ltd. was established by Wu Ligang and is a subsidiary of Bo Yuan Company.

The purpose of Gong Juren and the others’ visit to Thailand was to persuade Ruan Long to sign a contract with Yanhuang Competition.

"Mr. Ruan Long, are you familiar with Yanhuang Competition?" the vice president of Yanhuang Competition Co., Ltd., Zhang Youcai, asked with a smile.

The translator conveyed his question.

Ruan Long looked at Zhang Youcai with a stern expression: "A newly established competition."

Zhang Youcai’s smile remained unchanged: "Indeed, it is newly established. However, the level of attention Yanhuang Competition has received in Hua Country is unprecedented, more than any previous martial arts competition! As for the reason, I’m sure Mr. Ruan Long is aware, due to our president, Wu Ligang."

Hearing the name Wu Ligang, Ruan Long’s eyes shifted.

He had also fought in the UFC and was once defeated by Habu. After being poached by ONE, he had been competing in ONE ever since. Although he was now the lightweight champion, in comparison to the UFC, the attention and calibers of the fighters in Asia ONE were not on the same level. And Ruan Long was well aware that if he were to go to the UFC, at best, he could make it into the top five, as becoming a champion was nearly impossible since he was no match for Habu.

Therefore, Ruan Long had great respect for Wu Ligang, who managed to defeat Habu despite being injured.

"Mr. Ruan Long must understand the influence Wu Ligang has in our country. Allow me to share some numbers: He has already amassed over three hundred million followers on our country’s hottest video-sharing app! And on the largest social media platform in our country, he has exceeded two hundred million followers!" Zhang Youcai said.

"And for this event, we’ve invested heavily in promotion, and it’s no exaggeration to say that the entire Hua Country is watching Yanhuang Competition!"

Ruan Long nodded: "You are indeed very popular right now, but who can guarantee that it will last? Asking me to leave ONE for your company seems like a big risk."

It sounded like Ruan Long was leaning toward refusal, but Zhang Youcai’s expression remained unchanged as he spoke: "The greater the risk, the greater the reward! If I may speak frankly, Mr. Ruan Long, although you have won the championship in ONE, your popularity and commercial value are unlikely to increase any further."

Ruan Long narrowed his eyes but said nothing.

Zhang Youcai spread his hands: "This is because of Asia ONE’s limitations. The largest market in Asia is Hua Country, yet ONE’s level of attention in Hua Country has always been very low. And beyond Asia, ONE simply can’t compete with the UFC. So, Mr. Ruan Long, although you have won the ONE championship, if you choose to stay in ONE, I believe you may have already reached the peak of your career."

"Can you guarantee that joining Yanhuang Competition will allow Dragon to reach even greater heights in his career? If we indeed have to leave ONE, the UFC might be more suitable for us," Ruan Long’s manager suddenly interjected.

Zhang Youcai smiled and said: "There’s a saying in our country, ’better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.’ The UFC certainly has a wider market, but if Mr. Ruan Long goes there, he will face great competition. If he doesn’t perform well, it might be better not to go at all."

Ruan Long and his manager frowned upon hearing this; what Zhang Youcai said was indeed the dilemma they were facing: Stay in ONE where there’s little room for advancement, or go to the UFC, which is crowded with talented fighters where poor performance would make it not worth the effort.

Zhang Youcai looked at them: "That’s why Yanhuang Competition is the best choice for you! The competition is just getting started, so it won’t be too fierce. With Mr. Ruan Long’s skills, it should be easy for him to stand out. The market in Hua Country is much bigger than ONE’s market. Once you achieve results and gain attention, Mr. Ruan Long, your commercial value will naturally increase."

Ruan Long’s manager shook his head: "First, we aren’t sure how long Yanhuang Competition will last. What if the popularity only sustains for one or two events? Second, Dragon is not a native of Hua Country, and even if he’s strong, the Hua Country audience may not necessarily like him."

"Take a gamble," said Zhang Youcai.

"Hm?" Ruan Long’s manager was puzzled.

Zhang Youcai spread his hands: "If Yanhuang Competition were already like the UFC, a mature professional league, if it already had many foreign fighters gaining wide popularity, then it wouldn’t be us coming to sign a contract with you; it would be you approaching us."

Ruan Long’s manager furrowed his brow and was about to speak when Zhang Youcai continued: "Think about the market in Hua Country. If Yanhuang Competition succeeds, it could potentially become the next UFC, and Mr. Ruan Long would have the opportunity to become one of the legendary fighters in the early stages of Yanhuang Competition."

"Moreover, we’ve come with sincere intentions."

Zhang Youcai paused before saying, "We will take care of the penalty for breaching the ONE contract. Moreover, as long as Mr. Ruan Long is willing to sign with us, we will immediately offer him a sign-on fee of 30 million RMB! After the round of sixteen, in addition to the original prize money for each match, we will also provide Mr. Ruan Long with an appearance fee of 1 million RMB per fight!"

Ruan Long and his agent exchanged surprised looks; should he win the championship, the prize money would be 10 million, and with the appearance fees, that totals 14 million. Add the sign-on fee, and Ruan Long would take home 44 million! It had taken Ruan Long five years of fighting in ONE to earn nearly 60 million.

Seeing the expressions on Ruan Long and his agent’s faces, Zhang Youcai knew they were tempted. With what had been said before, plus the actual benefits at hand, Zhang Youcai was very confident they would agree.

...

Two hours later, Zhang Youcai and his people left Ruan Long’s villa, contract in hand.

In the car, Zhang Youcai let out a sigh of relief, "Finally got it done."

Eventually, they secured Ruan Long with a sign-on fee of 35 million plus an appearance fee of 1.5 million, bringing a reigning champion on board for the Yanhuang Competition.

Zhang Youcai looked at Gong Juren and asked with a smile, "Juren, we’ve spent 35 million on the sign-on fee for the first person, not to mention the appearance fees later on. We still have more than a dozen people to sign. What did Mr. Wu say? Could you give me a hint?"

After giving it some thought, Gong Juren said, "Well, just before leaving, Mr. Wu did say one thing to me."

"Oh? What did Mr. Wu instruct?"

Zhang Youcai asked curiously, and the others in the car also turned their attention to Gong Juren.

Gong Juren recalled Mr. Wu’s demeanor when he spoke and tried to match his tone as closely as possible, straightening his back and sweeping his right hand through the air, "Knock them out with cash!"

...

It took a while before Zhang Youcai spoke, "Mr. Wu is the man!"

Then he asked, "There are two other ONE fighters to sign in Thailand, which one should we go to first?"

From a company position standpoint, Zhang Youcai was the deputy general manager of a branch office, and Gong Juren was just an agent. The two were fifteen years apart in age. Yet Zhang Youcai spoke to Gong Juren very politely, and there was even an implied attitude of deferring to Gong Juren.

There was no choice; for this talent acquisition, Gong Juren represented Mr. Wu, making him akin to an imperial envoy to Zhang Youcai, who certainly would not dare to neglect him. Moreover, Gong Juren could relay Zhang Youcai’s performance to Mr. Wu in real-time, so naturally, Zhang Youcai wanted to make every effort to get on good terms with Gong Juren.

Seeing Zhang Youcai’s demeanor, Gong Juren also got to experience what it was like to ’bask in reflected glory,’ but he wasn’t the type to get carried away. He politely said to Zhang Youcai, "Mr. Zhang, you are the expert. You decide."

So, the group headed next to Chiang Mai, where the current ONE Heavyweight Champion was waiting for them.

Over a whole month, Gong Juren and his team successfully poached ten fighters from ONE in Asia, including two current champions.

In addition, they managed to recruit eight fighters from UFC, three of whom were ranked in the top ten, the highest placing being number three in the Heavyweight division.

To secure these eighteen individuals, the compensation for contract breaches and sign-on fees sum up to 520 million!

And the Yanhuang Competition spent another 100 million on marketing, plus the prize money for the fights, Mr. Wu had already invested nearly 800 million!

Upon this, Liu Yuanbo sighed and took on two billion of the burden.

...

On June 10th, Penguin Sports announced that Mr. Wu had become the image ambassador for Penguin Sports.

Originally, Penguin Sports had proactively negotiated with Dana White to ensure Mr. Wu could quickly get a title shot, all with the intention of partnering with Mr. Wu. Now, Mr. Wu had reciprocated, choosing to sign with Penguin Sports as their image ambassador.

With Mr. Wu’s popularity, various commercial endorsements were eagerly approaching him domestically, but Mr. Wu declined them all. As his fame increased, many endorsements offered to let Mr. Wu name his price, which they would not bargain down, a testament to his commercial value.

Now that Mr. Wu had signed with Penguin Sports, they offered a sign-on fee of 100 million per year for a two-year commitment, an unprecedented high price within the entertainment and sports industry of Hua Country.

Not only that, Penguin Sports also acquired the exclusive broadcasting rights for the 2021 Yanhuang Competition for 100 million. Moreover, Mr. Wu requested that this year’s competition be broadcasted free of charge, with no fees from Penguin Sports, which they agreed to.

PS: Some may not enjoy this part, but it’s a necessary transition that must be written. Additionally, this section of the storyline is to set up a major plot that will follow.