Back to 1997, I became the originator of online literature

Chapter 309 Your income exceeded 100 million this year?
Upon hearing this, Cao Sheng finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Great! It's a pleasure to cooperate with you!"

Lin Xiang: "It was a pleasure working with you. Goodbye!"

"goodbye!"

Before Cao Sheng could even put down his phone after the call ended, Huang Qingya, who was sitting right next to him, couldn't help but ask, "1000 million US dollars? You just negotiated a 1000 million US dollar deal?"

She stared blankly at Cao Sheng, unable to believe the contents of the phone call she had just overheard.

Cao Sheng turned to look at her, a smile playing on his lips, and nodded slightly. "Yes, I sold a few scripts."

Huang Qingya: "..."

She opened her mouth, seemingly unsure of what to say.

He opened his mouth several times before asking with a complicated expression, "How many scripts?"

Cao Sheng: "Four."

The Twilight series is a four-part saga! It seems like one story, but it actually has four separate scripts.

Huang Qingya frowned slightly. "Four scripts for $10 million, that averages out to $2.5 million per script, right?"

Cao Sheng chuckled, "Don't calculate it like that! I don't like the number 250."

Huang Qingya didn't find it funny at all. She thought to herself: If someone offered 250 million US dollars for my script, I wouldn't mind the amount at all, even if it were 250 million RMB.

"If you don't like this number, then why calculate it at $250 million per script?"

She was a little curious.

Cao Sheng smiled and said, "That's not how I calculated it. Each script is worth 200 million US dollars, and the extra 200 million US dollars is for buying the novel adaptation rights to these four scripts."

Huang Qingya was a little confused. "What adaptation rights? What are you talking about? Aren't you selling the script? How come you're selling the novel adaptation rights too?"

Cao Sheng: "Why can't we sell this? If we can make money, why not sell it?"

Huang Qingya frowned deeply. "No way? You really sold the novel adaptation rights? At this rate, will you be able to sell the film adaptation rights for your novels in the future?"

Cao Sheng chuckled lightly, "Didn't I already sell it? Have you forgotten that my book 'Living with an Air Hostess' sold once? And it was adapted into a TV series?"

Huang Qingya was stunned.

She stared blankly at Cao Sheng for a while, then suddenly gave a self-deprecating smile and exclaimed, "What a freak! My novel 'Three Lives Three Worlds, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms' was published in traditional Chinese, and now it's going to be published in simplified Chinese. I thought I was so successful, that I'd sold all the copyrights I could. But now that I think about it, compared to you, what am I? You can sell the film and television adaptation rights to your novels, and the film scripts can sell the novel adaptation rights to your screenplays. By the way, who did you sell to this time? What kind of script did you sell?"

Cao Sheng: "Have you heard of 20th Century Fox? The script they're selling is 'Twilight,' you know 'Twilight,' right?"

Huang Qingya frowned and thought for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "Are you talking about the Twilight movie world that appears in the book 'The Exquisite Pagoda of Heaven and Earth'?"

She has read this book.

Cao Sheng hummed in agreement.

Huang Qingya: "..."

Her expression gradually calmed down, her gaze vacant as she stared at the ceiling. She said softly, "You've really sold the novel's copyrights like crazy. How many screenplays have you sold for 'The Tower of the Apes'? Most people sell only one film and television rights for a novel at most, but you've sold so many screenplays for one novel. Now that I think about it, it seems like the only movie world in 'The Tower of the Apes' that you haven't sold a screenplay for is 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes'?"

Cao Sheng didn't want to provoke her any further.

But he didn't want to lie to her.

So he said with a smile, "I forgot to tell you, the script for 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' has also been sold recently."

Huang Qingya: "..."

Upon hearing this, she slowly turned her face to look at him, her gaze as if she were looking at an animal. "Really? You're joking, right?"

Cao Sheng smiled and shook his head.

Huang Qingya stared straight at him, then suddenly flipped over and straddled his chest, grabbing his neck with both hands. She pretended to strangle him while making a face of gritted teeth, and angrily said, "You beast! Tell me! Aren't you a beast? How can you do this? You sold the scripts for all the movie worlds that appeared in the Linglong Tower? Not a single one left? Couldn't you have kept one? Huh? Would it kill you to keep one? Are you deliberately trying to provoke me? Huh? Are you?"

Cao Sheng was all smiles despite her "scolding," the kind of smile he couldn't help but suppress.

When he was writing "The Exquisite Pagoda of Heaven and Earth", he envisioned selling the movie world in the book as screenplays in the future.

But at that time, he wasn't entirely confident.

Firstly, he's quite far removed from the film and television industry. Let alone the Hong Kong and Taiwan film and television industry, even the mainland film and television industry is far from him. Even if he had a script, there aren't many places to submit it. Sending it directly to the email addresses of film and television companies? Who knows if those companies will even bother to read the scripts in their inboxes?
Secondly, his scripts are not the same as the original scripts. Just like the novels he wrote after his rebirth, even if he wanted to imitate the popular works of the original timeline, he could not copy the plot exactly because he did not have such a good memory.

Therefore, he was unsure whether the scripts he wrote would be accepted by film and television companies.
So now, thinking back, he felt a mix of joy and pride that all the movie worlds featured in "The Mysterious Pagoda of Heaven and Earth" were able to sell their scripts.

The key point is that almost all of his scripts sold for high prices.

At this moment, he let Huang Qingya choke him without resisting.

Huang Qingya didn't actually pinch him hard.

As she pinched him, she suddenly lowered her head and kissed his lips.

Cao Sheng was in a good mood and responded in a relaxed manner.

After a moment, their lips parted.

She frowned and asked, "Hey! You just said you sold four scripts, so besides 'Twilight,' what are the other three scripts? You haven't told me yet!"

Cao Sheng smiled and said, "Who told you that Twilight only had one script?"

Huang Qingya exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? You mean there are four movies? And all four scripts are from 'Twilight'?"

Cao Sheng nodded.

Huang Qingya: "..."

She had read "The Tower of Heaven and Earth," but the world of "Twilight" only appeared once in that book, and there was no sequel.

Therefore, she was unaware that this movie world actually had three sequels.

"No! The book 'Linglong Tower' also has a movie world, but the script hasn't been sold."

Cao Sheng suddenly said.

Huang Qingya was slightly surprised, frowned and thought for a moment, then suddenly realized, "You mean 'War of the Lich King'?"

Cao Sheng hummed in agreement.

"War of the Lich Kings" is a movie world he created on a whim when he was about to finish "The Tower of Heaven and Earth".

Therefore, for a long time, the name "War of the Lich Kings" and its plot were not included in his work's outline or detailed synopsis.

That's why he often overlooks "War of the Lich Kings" whenever he recalls the cinematic world of "The Tower of Heaven and Earth".

Huang Qingya thought for a moment and smiled, "I'm afraid you'll have a hard time selling the script for this movie world."

Cao Sheng felt the same way. But hearing her say that, he still wanted to hear her reasons.

"How to say?"

he asks.

Huang Qingya lay on top of him, her face pressed against his, and whispered in his ear, "What do you think? This movie world is so grand! The battles between the Lich and Demon races are so massive, with mountains collapsing and the earth splitting apart all the time, even knocking down Mount Buzhou, the pillar of heaven. So many big scenes, which director could film them all? And even if they could, how much money would it cost? Don't you think so?"

Cao Sheng gave a wry smile.

That is indeed one reason.

As a novelist, before his rebirth, he had thought about a question: the popular works of online novels on the male channel always turned out so poorly when they were adapted into film and television. In the end, it was because Chinese film and television were just too bad!

If Chinese-language films and television shows were any better, with special effects technology comparable to Hollywood, and if they were willing to invest hundreds of millions of US dollars in some blockbusters, then many works on the male-oriented online novel channel could be produced with decent results.

But what is the reality?
Five-cent special effects!

Of the investments of one or two hundred million RMB, the bulk is often used to pay the actors' salaries.

How can you possibly produce a decent adaptation of a popular male-oriented online novel by doing it this way?

It's worth noting that popular male-oriented online novels are mostly either fantasy or xianxia (Chinese fantasy), with action scenes that are increasingly grand in scale.

Destroying the heavens and earth, plucking stars from the sky and the moon—these are all routine operations.

Such a scene, filmed with cheap special effects, would naturally look incredibly fake.

Therefore, even if the script for "War of the Lich Kings" is sold, it will be difficult to produce a good film, and it will most likely be a terrible movie.

Some might say: Sell this script to Hollywood! Aren't Hollywood's special effects great? Aren't Hollywood blockbusters made with huge budgets?
The problem is that "War of the Lich Kings" is a Chinese mythological story. Even if a Hollywood company is willing to invest in it, due to cultural differences, it will not be able to capture the essence of mythology and fantasy. It will most likely end up being made in the style of "The Lord of the Rings".

Suddenly, Huang Qingya, who had been lying on top of Cao Sheng with her face pressed against his, sat up abruptly and looked at him in surprise. "Wow! You sold 10 million US dollars for these four scripts, plus the 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' you just mentioned, and the other scripts you sold this year, plus the novel you published this year, your income this year has broken... broken 100 million?"

She had just thought of this problem.

Cao Sheng nodded with a smile.

She looked at him in surprise.

……

"Brother! How much money are you expected to make this year?"

This evening.

When Huang Qingfeng came home from get off work and sat down on the sofa in the living room, Huang Qingya, who was watching TV on the sofa, suddenly asked him this question.

Huang Qingfeng was quite surprised.

He blinked, a reserved smile on his face, and said in a humble tone, "Not much! Just a few million! It's not much, but it's not bad either, haha."

After saying that, he waited for Huang Qingya to praise him.

It's already quite an achievement to praise him; his income is already astonishing.

result?

Huang Qingya sighed softly, nodded slightly, and said with emotion, "Yes, not much! It's certainly not as good as some, but not as bad as others."

Huang Qingfeng's smile froze on his face as he stared blankly at his sister.

I couldn't help but say, "No way! Xiaoya! Have you really broadened your horizons like this? Are you kidding me? Do you really think my income isn't much? Are you sure?"

Huang Qingya was somewhat surprised by her brother's reaction. "Brother! Why are you so agitated? Do you think your income is a lot?"

"Isn't that a lot? I've earned at least several million this year! Do you know how much that is if you pile it all up? Do you even have a concept of it?"

Huang Qingfeng was also surprised by Huang Qingya's reaction.

Because his income is already the highest among his friends.

Earning a few million a year doesn't sound like much.

But think about it carefully—what kind of company can earn millions a year?

Would a company worth ten million be suitable?

A company worth 50 million is guaranteed to make several million in profit a year? Is it possible for it to incur losses?
This year is a breakout year for his career; he couldn't have earned this much in previous years. As a result, his sense of accomplishment and confidence are off the charts this year.

That's why he was so confident when his sister asked him how much he could earn this year.

Unexpectedly, his sister thought his income wasn't much.

How could he not be excited?
Faced with his questioning, Huang Qingya laughed.

She genuinely didn't know how much a few million would amount to, and she really had no concept of earning a few million a year, but comparisons are always a problem.

She just learned from Cao Sheng today that his income this year is expected to exceed 100 million yuan. Now her older brother says he can earn several million yuan this year. How can these several million yuan surprise her?

wrong!

Actually, she was surprised when her older brother said that he could probably earn several million this year.

Surprisingly, even though his business is so big, he only earns so little money in a year, less than Cao Sheng earns from just one script!
However, she felt that Cao Sheng's income was a matter of personal privacy, and as his girlfriend, she couldn't expose his privacy casually.

Therefore, when faced with her brother's questioning, she smiled and said against her will, "Brother, you're right! I really don't have much of a concept of money. You know, I've never seen so much money in my life, nor have I ever earned so much. I'm sorry, brother, what I said just now wasn't very pleasant to hear. Please don't hold it against me, okay?"

Huang Qingfeng frowned and stared at her intently.

He watched his younger sister grow up and knew her very well.

He knew perfectly well what she was like when she told the truth and what she was like when she lied.

Therefore, he could tell that Huang Qingya's words just now were false and insincere!
Are you trying to fool me like a three-year-old?
How much will you earn this year?

He asked with a stern face.

Huang Qingya smiled and said, "Not many, probably won't break 100,000."

Huang Qingfeng snorted coldly, "Your annual income is less than 100,000, yet you look down on me who earns millions? Xiaoya! Where do you get the confidence to say I didn't earn much this year?"

Huang Qingya waved her hand with a smile, "Big brother! I've already apologized to you, why are you still so persistent? You're so amazing! You're so amazing, aren't you?"

If she had spoken more sincerely, Huang Qingfeng would probably have calmed down, but her words were too flippant.

It's so infuriating!

Huang Qingfeng pressed on coldly, "You call this an apology? You clearly look down on my income! Don't think I can't see it! Tell me! Do you know how much Cao Sheng earned this year? Did he earn a lot this year? Ten million? Or twenty million? He's just a novelist, how can he compare to me? Even if he can earn ten or twenty million this year, what about next year? The year after? And the year after that? Can he earn that much every year? You're comparing him to me? I have businesses! I can earn several million this year, and I can earn that much every year from now on! Do you believe me?"

(End of this chapter)