How can I justify myself as a Magnate if I don't indulge myself?-Chapter 536 - 246: When Has Gu Heng Ever Followed the Routine?

As time passed, the banquet began.

The charity dinner on stage was officially underway...

The cameramen, already prepared, adjusted their positions to their working spots...

After all, Tencent's marketing tactics were always very clever; although they flaunted their wealth, they almost never wasted a penny unjustly...

For instance, this time, they booked an entire five-star hotel; Gu Heng didn't know the exact cost, but it certainly wasn't less than seven figures...

Not to mention they had invited most of the celebrities from the film and television industry, which constituted a considerable expenditure on social connections, though such an expense was hardly significant for a large firm like Tencent Film...

After spending so much time and arranging such a big event...

If they couldn't profit from it, Sun Zhonghuai and the executives of Tencent Film would have to be out of their minds to play around like this.

The first course was braised fish lips...

A renowned dish from state banquets, Gu Heng had already seen the menu and order of dishes placed in the center of the table, all of which were dishes of state banquet level, totaling 16 courses, each table costing no less than 50,000...

Of course, not every table received such treatment...

There were 600 people invited to the charity auction this time, filling the vast banquet hall to the brim with 60 tables.

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If meals were prepared at this standard for everyone, just the food costs would amount to several million; Tencent would not be that generous, and besides, the entertainment industry was strict about hierarchy, simple things like on-screen positioning had to differentiate between primary and secondary roles, let alone a big event where distinctions of rank had to be drawn. If not arranged properly, who knew if someone might get ticked off...

And just for the banquet, three tiers were distinguished.

The first tier was for the capital side and top stars like Yang Hanshu and Yang Zi.

The second tier was for some veteran stars, who, despite waning influence, still had seniority and needed to be given face.

The third tier was simple, some run-of-the-mill minor celebrities and fringe industry practitioners.

Gu Heng felt that the twists and turns within the entertainment industry were quite absurd but was too lazy to give it much thought, directly picking up his chopsticks to grab a bite of fish lips...

State banquet cuisine was exactly that, plus the cooking of a five-star hotel chef, there was certainly no need to say more about the taste.

Just as Gu Heng was savoring the delicacy in his mouth, everyone at the table couldn't help but turn their eyes towards him...

Were they not tempted?

Surely they were...

After all, the scent of food filled the entire banquet hall...

But at such an event, with cameras capturing every moment, for these stars who were careful with their public image, being caught feasting at the table like gluttons would cause their carefully cultivated noble personas to collapse, wouldn't it?

So even if they were tempted, they rarely moved their chopsticks...

What was an implicit understanding became disrupted due to Gu Heng's presence, and that's why they were looking at him with surprise...

But it took less than a second for them to come to their senses.

They feared the collapse of their image, but Gu Heng did not, and even if netizens discovered Gu Heng's unsightly eating, it wasn't a big deal. He was a bona fide super-rich man, not some public figure; why should he care about his image?

Thinking this, the stars at the table couldn't help but envy Gu Heng's carefree attitude...

Gu Heng was initially puzzled as to why everyone suddenly stared at him, but seeing that practically no one at the surrounding tables was moving their chopsticks, he understood their thinking. He let a sneer show unreservedly on his lips, then placed a piece of fish lips into Ouyang Nana's bowl, casually commenting, "Try this fish lip, it has a pretty good taste. The chef's skills are quite high."

Ouyang Nana originally intended to refuse, but she had just seen the sneer at the corner of Gu Heng's mouth.

For her, clutching onto Gu Heng's coattails was now of paramount importance. If she acted high and mighty now, wouldn't she be deliberately making Gu Heng dislike her?

In an instant, with these thoughts in mind, it could only be said that there wasn't a single person in the entertainment circle without some scheming.

Afterward, she took a bite of the fish lips Gu Heng offered and began to display acting skills she'd never shown in her works, her eyes lighting up, her face excitedly saying, "Yeah, it's really delicious!"

Although she knew it was all an act and that Ouyang Nana was trying to please him, Gu Heng didn't expose her and smiled, "If it's tasty then eat more, why hold back? Eating and sleeping are natural rights, so what if it's captured on camera? Does one have to create such an otherworldly image for others to see? Isn't that fake? Such a flaw."

Ouyang Nana just nodded her head, reached out with her chopsticks, and continued to pick up more food.

But the others felt a bit embarrassed...

They knew Gu Heng was indirectly scolding them. Although it was uncomfortable and frustrating, thinking of Gu Heng's status, not a soul dared to show displeasure and instead, they all followed Ouyang Nana's lead and started picking up food with beaming smiles...

Gu Heng looked at the group and couldn't help but show a slight mysterious smile.

It wasn't that he found their pitiful state amusing; rather, it reminded him of a phrase he had read before...

"What is the purpose of striving to make money?

Isn't it so that at group meals no one dares to challenge your food choices?"

Wasn't this scene just an enactment of that phrase?

The only difference was that the group of people was more influential, and it wasn't that no one dared challenge when he took up food, but rather, if he let them eat, they wouldn't dare stop, and if he wanted them to stop, they wouldn't dare continue.