How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 351 Investment
"Ding!"

Zhang Wen was overjoyed when he saw the bank's text message confirming the deposit had been credited to his account.

He stared at the long string of numbers, repeatedly confirming them, his fingertips tracing the screen, carefully counting each digit until he reached 9 for the third time. Only then did he put his phone away, a look of joy spreading across his face.

He finally understood why luxury brands always like to release limited editions.

It's so easy to make money off the rich.

There's no need to put in any effort to promote it; just by spreading the word, plenty of people will readily reach into their pockets and pay, and they'll do so quickly, as if they're afraid of missing out.

Having already mastered the art of making money, Zhang Wen couldn't help but start thinking: since the Life Essence itself is a limited edition, should he create a co-branded version?
Who will you collaborate with?
Is it the God of Literature? Or the Queen Mother of the West?
Compared to the peach orchard of the God of Literature, the peach orchard of the Queen Mother of the West seems to be more famous.

Just as Zhang Wen was pondering how to make a lot of money, he suddenly heard a voice in his ear.

"Teacher Zhang, Teacher Zhang?"

Zhang Wen turned around and saw Liu Haiyang standing behind him, looking a little constipated, as if he had something difficult to say.

"Mr. Liu, is there something you need?" Zhang Wen asked curiously.

Although the other party is the producer of the TV series "Perfect Days", he is also the deputy general manager of Tianxi Media, so he rarely comes to the set and spends most of his time at the company.

What's that wind blowing today?
Why didn't I see it this morning?

"Teacher Zhang, there's something I'd like to talk to you about. Shall we go somewhere else?" Liu Haiyang said in a low voice, pointing to Director Han Xiaohua, who was filming nearby, meaning: Don't disturb Director Han's work.

Zhang Wen looked at Vice President Liu with a puzzled expression. Although he didn't know what they had to talk about, he nodded nonetheless.

The two walked about twenty or thirty meters before finally stopping under a large tree.

Zhang Wen looked at Liu Haiyang, waiting for him to speak first.

Liu Haiyang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Teacher Zhang, it's like this, I looked at the finances yesterday and found a problem."

"?"

Zhang Wen was taken aback upon hearing this.

Is there a financial problem?
Could someone be falsifying bills to pocket kickbacks?

He is not only the screenwriter of this TV series, but also the representative of the investors. If there are financial problems, how will he explain it to Mr. Wu?

Those who knew him simply hadn't noticed; those who didn't might have thought he was colluding with the company to swindle investors' money.

Upon seeing Zhang Wen's expression, Liu Haiyang knew that the other party had misunderstood, so he quickly explained, "Teacher Zhang, the TV series is already halfway through filming. As things stand, the existing funds are only enough to complete the production of the TV series. As for the later promotion... you know what I mean."

Zhang Wen touched his nose and immediately understood what the other person meant.

After saying all that, the message I want to convey is very simple: there's not enough money.

"Such a large expense?" Zhang Wen was somewhat surprised.

An investment of 110 million is not a lot, but it is not a small amount either. Now you tell him that this money is only enough to produce a TV series and there is no money for promotion. What were you doing all this time?
“Teacher Zhang, originally this amount of money was enough to finish filming and promote the film, but then you brought in Director Han. With a top director, you naturally need to find a top actor to act alongside Bai Lu. As the production team continued to improve, the actor’s salary also increased much more than planned.” Liu Haiyang explained patiently.

Zhang Wen was speechless after hearing this.

So, it's his fault that there wasn't enough money?
He just wanted to make the TV series "Perfect Days" a hit, thereby raising the price of the remaining scripts.

What's wrong with him?

Seeing that Teacher Zhang remained silent, Liu Haiyang could only continue, "Teacher Zhang, could you talk to the investors and ask them to invest some more money for promotion? It doesn't have to be much, 20 million will be enough this time."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wen suddenly thought of a question and looked at the other party, saying, "Mr. Liu, look, the TV series 'Perfect Days' has such a high production value, the ratings are sure to be high. Could you represent the company to add some investment? It doesn't have to be much, just 20 million will do."

"what?"

Liu Haiyang was stunned.

He asks the other party for additional investment, and the other party asks him for additional investment. Is he playing a game of strategy with him?
Treat someone as they treat you?
Sure enough, these days you can't talk about money, it's difficult for everyone.

Even as the deputy general manager of Tianxi Media Company, he had to be humble and subservient to the representatives of investors in order to attract investment.

“Teacher Zhang, 20 million is indeed not much for the company, but the company has too many projects, resulting in insufficient cash flow. If we take out 20 million, what will happen if other projects run out of funds? And don’t forget the bet between the company and Bai Lu. We agreed that the company would only invest 30 million,” Liu Haiyang reminded him.

"Mr. Liu, do you think the TV series 'Perfect Days' can make money?" Zhang Wen asked rhetorically.

"Definitely!" Liu Haiyang said firmly.

For him, it would be better if he could make money, but it wouldn't matter if he couldn't. It would just dispel Bai Lu's idea of ​​changing careers, and he could focus on filming period dramas for the company in the future.

But he certainly couldn't say that when asked by others.

Firstly, he is the producer of this drama, so he cannot show a pessimistic attitude; secondly, the teacher Zhang in front of him is the screenwriter of this TV series. If he says that the TV series cannot make money before it has even aired, wouldn't that mean that the script is bad?

Furthermore, if this gets back to the actors and directors, the actors will think he's saying they're not good enough, and the directors will think he's saying they're not good enough.

He would never say something that would offend half the entire crew.

Zhang Wen burst out laughing upon hearing Liu Haiyang's words.

"Mr. Liu, you have been working in this industry for many years and you must have a very good understanding of the market. If you say this TV series can make money, then it definitely can. Since this is a profitable project, don't you want to invest more money to bring more revenue to the company?"

"..."

Liu Haiyang's lips twitched; he was utterly annoyed. How dare they try to trick him?

Is this the attitude an employee should have towards the deputy general manager?
If it were anyone else, he would definitely put on a stern face and let them know what it means for the vice president to be very angry, and the consequences to be severe.

But the young man in front of me was different. He was now the most sought-after songwriter in the music industry. Although he had only written two songs, they were incredibly popular.

If someone speaks too harshly and resigns in a fit of anger, it would be a huge loss for the company.

He had also heard from General Manager Li that this Teacher Zhang was incredibly assertive at drinking parties, and that he could be useful when dealing with difficult clients while seeking investment.

“Teacher Zhang, Mr. Li knows about the bet, and he was the one who ultimately made the decision. Why don’t you go talk to Mr. Li?” Liu Haiyang asked.

He didn't want to invest any more money in the TV series, so he had to bring up the boss.

"..."

When Zhang Wen heard that he was going to see General Manager Li, he pursed his lips but ultimately said nothing.

A while ago, he tried to poach employees from Jia Hua Art Examination Training Center, and even caused a scene at the police station. Although his relationship with Jia Hua improved later, they are still competitors. Now, asking him to ask President Li for investment would be like asking for trouble.
Let's not try to fawn over Mr. Li.

As for Mr. Wu
He knew that given their current relationship, if he asked for the life essence, the other party would definitely pay him.

But in doing so, he would owe the other party a favor.

After thinking it over and over, Zhang Wen finally fixed his gaze on Liu Haiyang's face.

He strongly suspected that the other party had seen the bank's SMS notification of the deposit, otherwise why would they have contacted him to discuss the issue of insufficient funds?

"Is 20 million enough?" Zhang Wen asked after a moment of silence.

"That's enough," Liu Haiyang said.

After a TV series is filmed, it will be sold to TV stations and video websites, and the two will take on part of the promotion. Therefore, the promotion of a TV series is not as expensive as that of a movie; 20 million is enough.

“I’ll pay for this,” Zhang Wen said.

"what?"

Liu Haiyang looked at Teacher Zhang in surprise. Although he knew that the other party had made some money by selling scripts and even drove a Maybach, this was 20 million, not 2 million. Could the other party come up with that amount?
"Teacher Zhang, are you sure?" Liu Haiyang asked suspiciously.

He thought to himself: Could it be that he's going to Bai Lu to borrow money?
Has Teacher Zhang gotten too big for his britches and thought that just because Bai Lu is his girlfriend, he can lend her money?
Is this person treating Bai Lu like a lovesick fool, or like an ATM?
"OK." Zhang Wen nodded.

Whether he makes a profit or a loss, he has to invest this money, and he has his reasons for doing so.

First, he is the screenwriter of the drama "Perfect Days" and needs to use this drama to make a name for himself in the film and television industry; second, Bai Lu is his girlfriend, and he can't just stand by and watch the TV series that his girlfriend worked so hard to make suffer from low ratings because of a lack of money for promotion, can he?
Besides, it's only twenty million; he doesn't need that much money.

"Teacher Zhang, you're not joking?" Liu Haiyang asked again to confirm.

He did know that the other party had an art exam training center, but he heard it was very small and probably couldn't come up with 20 million.

“No, we can sign the contract right now,” Zhang Wen said.

"Shouldn't you discuss this with your family?"

"I live alone in my family."

"Shouldn't we discuss this with Bai Lu?"

"No need. By the way, Ms. Liu, you have to keep this a secret for me. I don't want to put any pressure on her."

"..."

Liu Haiyang stared blankly at Teacher Zhang, whose expression was resolute, and unconsciously swallowed.

Keeping it from Bai Lu?

So, does that mean the other party won't borrow money from Bai Lu?

Is this person really that capable?

"Teacher Zhang, it's settled then. I'll go back and draft the contract now and send it to you tomorrow," Liu Haiyang said.

Since the other party insisted on investing, he couldn't say anything more.

Zhang Wen was worried that if Liu Haiyang took the contract to the film crew, others would see it and eventually the whole crew would know about it, so he said, "Mr. Liu, I'll go to the company tomorrow, you don't need to come."

"Okay." Liu Haiyang nodded, understanding what the other party meant.

However, investing heavily in a TV series starring his girlfriend without her knowledge is really hard to understand.

I was just guessing that Bai Lu was a lovesick girl, but now it seems that Teacher Zhang is the real lovesick girl.

"Teacher Zhang, I'll head back to the company now. See you tomorrow." After saying that, Liu Haiyang turned and left the film set.

Zhang Wen checked his bank card balance and returned to behind Director Han Xiaohua.

Twenty million? That's nothing.

……

(End of this chapter)