Traffic Star Development Program

Chapter 54 "What Kind of Behavior" and Chu Ran

The light outside was starting to slant in, streaming through the gaps in the curtains.

Xu Wen sat opposite Zeng Hao and showed him the reply to the supplementary email. "They received it yesterday afternoon, but haven't replied yet."

"That's normal," Zeng Hao said. "It's Friday today. They're having an internal meeting. They're evaluating things this morning and will come to a conclusion this afternoon. The phone call will be after 3 p.m.

Xu Wen put his phone away. "How can you be so sure it's today?"

"Because I gave them a window of opportunity before the end of the workday on Friday," Zeng Hao said. "Platforms that haven't responded by the deadline fall into two categories: one is that they genuinely don't want to talk anymore, and the other is a negotiation tactic. Platforms that genuinely don't want to talk wouldn't wait until the last day of the window to express their position; that would be too inefficient. So the one who called today is the second type."

Xu Wen processed this information for a moment, and was about to say something when the landline on the table rang.

Shanghai area code.

Zeng Hao answered the phone, "Feed."

"Hello Mr. Zeng, this is Manager Wang from YiNet's copyright procurement department. We spoke on the phone last time," the other party's voice was steady and professional, and his opening remarks were fluent, as if he had prepared a draft before speaking. "We have conducted an internal evaluation of your proposal this week, and we approve of the basic framework, but there is one point that we need to confirm with you again."

"explain."

"Well, regarding that 12-month priority negotiation clause," the other party paused, "our legal team feels that the timeframe is too long. 12 months is equivalent to locking up our negotiation initiative for a year. Our internal opinion is that we hope to delete this clause or shorten the timeframe to three months."

Xu Wen frowned slightly after hearing this, and subconsciously looked at Zeng Hao.

Zeng Hao didn't look at him, his elbows resting on the table, his hands empty. "Deleted, no," he said. "Three months is not enough either, twelve months is our bottom line."

"Mr. Zeng, you understand, twelve months is too much pressure for the platform—"

"Manager Wang," Zeng Hao interrupted him, his tone still the same, neither fast nor slow, "the right of first refusal is not an exclusive right. Your legal department should understand the difference between these two things. The right of first refusal means that you are eligible to be the first to negotiate within these twelve months. If the price is not suitable after the negotiation, you can still leave. You have no mandatory procurement obligation. This clause locks in the order of negotiation, not the outcome of the negotiation, and it will not cause you any substantial loss."

The other party was silent for a few seconds. "I understand your logic, but internally—"

"You guys internally think there's a problem with this clause," Zeng Hao said. "Or you feel that if you agree to this clause, it will be difficult to explain to Tencent Music."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for an even longer time than before.

Xu Wen put down his pen on the table, his eyes fixed on Zeng Hao.

"Mr. Zeng," the other party's tone softened slightly, as if a door had been pushed open a crack, "Could we do this: shorten the deadline to six months, while keeping all other terms the same? Do you think this approach is acceptable?"

Zeng Hao did not answer immediately.

He went through it in his mind.

The release window for "Ugly Duckling" was at the end of April and the beginning of May. At that time, the third season of "I Am a Singer" was still at the end of its popularity. The time window covered by the six-month priority right coincided with Xu Jiaying's most critical period of popularity. In terms of actual value, the difference between six months and twelve months was not that big. The other party made a concession, and this concession was sufficient.

"Six months is fine," he said, "but there's an additional condition: add a line to the scope to include the music copyrights derived from variety shows featuring Xu Jiaying and Xue Zhijian."

"Variety show spin-offs..." the other party repeated, "Mr. Zeng, do you have any specific variety show projects on your end?"

"We have a direction," Zeng Hao said. "We can discuss the details separately after the contract is signed."

After a few more seconds of silence, this time noticeably shorter than before, "Okay, we can accept this direction. I'll draft the contract and send it to you as soon as possible."

"Send it to our agent, Xu Wen. He'll send you his email address," Zeng Hao said. "Can it be sent out this week?"

"No problem, it will be shipped on Monday."

"Okay, that's settled."

hang up.

Xu Wen waited for two seconds on the other end of the line. "President Zeng, about variety show spin-offs, do we actually have any variety show projects right now?"

"no."

"Then what you just said—"

"I said I have a direction," Zeng Hao put the landline receiver back, "having a direction is not the same as having a project; these two things are not the same."

Xu Wen pondered this for a moment, then said, "What if YiNet asks about it later..."

"We'll talk about it later," Zeng Hao said. "There's one more thing. Go reply to that email from Penguin Music now and tell them that we have no plans to collaborate in the near future. Thank you for your attention."

Xu Wen picked up his pen and wrote it down on the paper. "Okay, I'll go—" He paused for a moment, "Wait, when did Penguin Music send us an email? I didn't see it."

Three days ago.

"Three days ago," Xu Wen mentally reviewed his inbox, "which email address? Our main email address was still—"

"Xu Wen," Zeng Hao said.

"ah."

Go reply to the email.

Xu Wen capped his pen, folded the paper, stood up, walked to the door, paused on the threshold, turned around, and said, "President Zeng, that email..."

"Xu Wen, do you know anyone at the art school?"

Xu Wen thought for a moment, "There's an admissions officer who helped us contact the venue before, so we should still have their contact information."

"Not an admissions officer," Zeng Hao said, "but a course instructor in the performing arts department, the kind who has access to the list of current students."

Xu Wen considered this for a moment, "I'll go ask what the conditions are."

"Normal agency fee," Zeng Hao said. "Have him screen all the juniors and seniors this year, and make a list for those who meet the requirements, noting each person's specialization, whether they are more interested in film and television or stage."

Xu Wen wrote down on his phone, "How many people?"

"The more the better!" Zeng Hao said. "I'll filter the rest."

Xu Wen nodded, put his phone away, and said, "I'll check on the contract with YiNet again before I leave work today to make sure it can be sent out on Monday."

"Um."

Xu Wen went out.

Zeng Hao leaned back in his chair. The parking lot lights outside were all on, casting several hard shadows on the ground.

Other companies are aware of the art school channel.

They felt it wasn't worth sending someone specifically to follow up.

Students graduating from art schools either lack resources or have poor judgment; even if they're signed, their skills just sit there collecting dust.

This judgment itself is not wrong.

But there's a prerequisite: you need to know which students are worth signing.

He is a reborn person.

He knows all too well!

The company now has ample funds, and it's time to build up substantial reserves.

Even just keeping it as a pet is fine.

Of course, this situation of keeping them in place won't last long.

He will produce the scripts for the hugely popular drama from his previous life in the shortest possible time.

...

The list was delivered on the afternoon of the third day.

A sheet of A4 paper, handwritten.

The first batch consisted of eleven names.

Each name is followed by the grade, major, and a short note.

Xu Wen put the paper on the table and sat down opposite him.

"The teacher said that these eleven were the ones he thought had the best potential, but he also said that the quality of students in art schools varies, and he couldn't guarantee anything."

Zeng Hao took the paper and scanned it from top to bottom.

Seventh: Wang Churan, film and television major, note: "Good on-screen presence, average dialogue delivery, highly versatile".

Ninth: Zhang Jingyi, Film and Television, Notes: "Clean appearance, suitable for period dramas, self-disciplined".

He briefly considered the two names in his mind.

Chu Ran was born in 1999 and entered university early.

Signing her at this age and then having her undergo a three-year training period would coincide with the period of her fastest growth.

By the time she came out, the contract framework was already set, and he had the final say on how the resources would be distributed.

The web series adaptation of "What Kind of Conduct" can be scheduled in advance.

Before his rebirth, this drama was very popular, and he left a deep impression on me.

Jingyi is a senior in college and will be graduating soon. She can be hired immediately.

There's still a three-year window for the period drama route, so her image won't be wasted in this field.

"Invite these two over," he pushed the paper back, pointing to the seventh and ninth lines with his index finger. "You can invite them separately or together, this week."

Xu Wen glanced at the names. "Just these two?"

"That's all for now. Keep asking for more names, the more the better."

Xu Wen folded the paper. "Okay, I'll go contact them."