Reborn, my online friend is the real me.

By the time I got back to the company, the rain had completely stopped.

The window at the end of the corridor was open, and a damp wind blew in from outside, making the banner on the wall that read "Warmly congratulate 'Our Times' on surpassing 70 million at the box office" flutter like a flag that had lost a battle.

Wang Boxue was leaning against the wall in the corridor, smoking. The smoke he exhaled was blown away by the wind before it could dissipate.

He saw Su Yu come out of the elevator, take the cigarette out of his mouth, and stub it out in the trash can, leaving a gray dot.

He looked up at Su Yu, his voice slightly hoarse from smoking, "What did President Han say? Did he vote?"

Su Yu walked up to him, leaned against the railing, and said, "Youth films are fine, I've given them a 25% share. Action films will only cost five million."

"Five million? Your budget is thirty million, what can five million do? Just rent a photography studio and it's gone."

Su Yu didn't answer. He turned around, walked to the water dispenser, and took a paper cup from the shelf next to it. He filled a cup with water, picked it up, and took a sip. The water was warm.

"China Film Group lost a lot on 'The Promise,' and President Han said that investing in Wu Yusen's blockbuster would put China Film Group in a tight spot." Su Yu spoke slowly, "We'll cover the remaining 25 million ourselves."

Wang Boxue's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth, his voice barely suppressed, "Pay for it yourself? Didn't you use that money from ringtones to buy a house and stocks? Where did you get so much cash? Did you rob a bank behind our backs?"

Su Yu raised his hand to interrupt him, patted Wang Boxue on the shoulder, and said, "You don't need to worry about the money. Just focus on getting all the people together for me."

Wang Boxue opened his mouth, wanting to say something, "Is China Film Group short of money? Does that mean they don't have high hopes for it?" Su Yu had already turned and walked towards his office.

........

The office windows were closed, and the air felt a bit stuffy.

Su Yu walked over and opened the window. The cool breeze after the rain rushed in, making the script on the table rustle as it turned the pages. He sat down in a chair, adjusted it back half an inch, and leaned against the backrest, staring at the ceiling.

The computer was turned on and the screen lit up; soon a QQ message popped up on the screen, sent by Anxi; ever since he exposed her to her face that time, she hadn't changed her name, she didn't know if she forgot or did it on purpose.

"Su Yu, you've taken care of the thing you asked me to do last time."

Su Yu was stunned for a moment. He stared at the line of text for two seconds, his brain working at lightning speed.

He did mention it to Liu Yifei after the Spring Festival. Su Yu said he wanted to find the copyright to an American novel and asked if she had any connections. He spoke casually at the time, as if it were just a casual remark, but he didn't expect her to take it seriously and to get news so quickly.

He sat up straight, his fingers flying across the keyboard, much faster than usual.

"So fast? Which company owns the copyright? How much did it cost?"

Soon, a new message popped up: "My uncle is a lawyer in the US. He checked, and the copyright is held by Paramount. The entire series of novel adaptation rights, film rights, television rights, and merchandise rights are being sold as a package. The price is $600,000. If you're interested, get your money ready quickly; Paramount developed several versions before but abandoned them. They wanted to replicate Warner Bros.' 'Harry Potter,' but their internal evaluation didn't pass."

Su Yu stared at the words "six hundred thousand US dollars" and felt his heart skip a beat.

He took out his phone and did the math: 600,000 US dollars, which is about 4.8 million RMB at the exchange rate. 4.8 million RMB for the rights to adapt an entire film series.

Now, the copyright to this IP, worth six hundred thousand US dollars, is in front of him.

Su Yu took a deep breath, bought the copyright, and whether or not it could be filmed was a matter for the future; first, he needed to hold the copyright in his hands.

"Okay, have your uncle send me the account number; I'll have my sister transfer the money tomorrow. Thank you, Yifei. And thank you to your uncle too, I'll treat him to dinner later."

After sending it, he felt that saying "Invite your uncle to dinner" was a bit silly, but he was too lazy to change it.

The other end replied after a while, not instantly, but after about ten seconds, probably while they were thinking about how to phrase it.

"You're welcome, we're good friends."

Su Yu looked at the words "good friend" and the corners of his mouth slowly curled up.

Two summers ago, Liu Yifei said, "I'm going to take a shower, I'm exhausted today, I'm covered in mud; good luck on your college entrance exam, you lackey." He replied, "Yeah, little rich girl, goodnight."

Back then, he thought she was a rich, bored fan; now he knows who she is.

Liu Yifei posted a new message: "My mom said if you're short on funds, she can lend you some money first."

Su Yu quickly typed: "No need, I have enough money. Please thank your aunt for me. Have you thought of a name for the album?"

Liu Yifei sent a smiley face, "I've decided, 'Liu Yifei.' I'll just use my own name, simple and straightforward."

......

Su Yu picked up the landline on the table and dialed the internal line to Su Ting's office.

After ringing three times, Su Ting answered, her voice as efficient as ever: "Feeding?"

"Sis, come to my office. I need you to do something for me."

When Su Ting walked in, she was carrying a cup with steam rising from its rim. She sat down opposite Su Yu, crossed her legs, leaned back in her chair, and looked at him.

"What's wrong? Are you short of money again?"

Su Yu turned the computer screen around so she could see the chat history.

Su Ting put down her crossed legs, leaned forward, and looked at the screen for a few seconds.

Her gaze lingered on the words "Twilight" for a moment, then she looked up at Su Yu with a bewildered expression.

"Twilight? What's that?"

"It's a bestseller in the US, not a huge hit yet, but it'll be soon." Su Yu turned his laptop back, leaned back in his chair, put his hands behind his head, and stared at the ceiling. "The copyright is currently with Paramount, and the entire series is worth six hundred thousand US dollars. Liu Yifei's uncle is a lawyer there, and he helped negotiate the deal."

Su Ting picked up her coffee, took a sip, put it down, and wiped her mouth with a tissue.

She stared at Su Yu for two seconds, her smile subtle but meaningful. "Six hundred thousand US dollars, four million eight hundred thousand RMB. How much money do you have on hand right now?"

"Less than 100 million, that's enough to pay." Su Yu put down his chair and crossed his hands on the table. "Sis, tomorrow you arrange for the finance department to transfer the funds. Go through the company's accounts and list it as 'Copyright Purchase'."

Su Ting nodded. She stood up and walked to the door, then stopped, turned around and looked at Su Yu. She held the doorknob but didn't open the door.

"Xiaoyu, Liu Yifei helped us a lot this time. You should treat her to a meal sometime, instead of always making her pay for you."

Su Yu opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Su Ting had already opened the door and walked out.

Su Yu sat in his office, staring at the closed door.

Rain began to fall again outside the window, fine and dense, hitting the glass and blurring the sky outside.

He recalled the message Liu Yifei had sent: "We're good friends, aren't we?"

He looked down and read the message again. "My mom said if you're short on funds, she can lend you some money first." He looked at it for a while, closed his eyes, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up.