Bai Lu got scammed, but I became a superstar through e-commerce.

On the day when daily sales exceeded 100,000, Qingxiao held a very short meeting.

The meeting room was the office on the second floor. Ten people sat around the long white IKEA table, on which were the operation reports from last week and the new product launch plan for next week.

Afei from the operations department projected last week's data onto the wall.

The store's daily sales have remained stable at around 110,000, with the burgundy batwing sleeve sweater alone exceeding 20,000 units sold. Of the 18 new spring arrivals, 7 have entered the best-selling list.

Promotional expenses as a percentage of sales have dropped to five percent. In the early 2014 Taobao women's clothing industry, a figure below ten percent meant that the store had begun to rely on free traffic.

Xiao Lin, a new employee in the customer service department, reported the inquiry conversion rate from last week. Qing Xiao only corrected one issue she had with the data, then leaned back in his chair, listened to the inventory turnover report from warehouse manager Lao Zhou, and nodded.

Qingxiao began to lay out the company's second phase of operational planning, which involved launching a large number of product lines.

Bai Lu stood at the door, holding a cup of hot water, tilting her head to look at him.

After the meeting, she came in, sat down opposite him, and held her cup in both hands.

"President Qing, your meetings are getting shorter and shorter these days."

"Everything that needed to be said has been said." Qingxiao tidied up the documents on the table and pushed them aside. "Everyone knows what they're supposed to do."

Bai Lu took a sip of water, then suddenly seemed to remember something: "By the way, someone from a cat-tree family added me on WeChat. Do you think they're a scammer? I'd like to hear your advice."

Qingxiao raised his head.

Cat's Tree, a micro-film studio that became a sensation on Weibo and Meipai in 2015, is known for its healing-themed youth short films. The highest number of views for a single video exceeded 30 million, and the average number of views was 8 million. It was a phenomenal creator in the micro-film field at that time.

Bai Lu handed over the phone.

A director named Chen sent several messages, saying that after seeing Bai Lu's photos and videos, he felt she was perfect for their next short film.

"Clean, spirited, and has a great sense of the camera."

Ask if they are available.

The following sentence added: "We are a legitimate studio and do not charge training fees."

Bai Lu laughed for a long time when he saw this sentence.

The director of Cat and Tree clearly did his homework and knew about her psychological trauma.

Qingxiao naturally knew about the cat's tree.

Hu Yitian, Song Weilong, Chen Duling, Zhang Yijie—these are all people who emerged from the works of Mao Shu.

In his past life, this was a crucial step for Bai Lu to enter the entertainment industry.

From the short film "Cat's Tree" to being discovered by Yu Zheng, then signing with Huanyu Entertainment, and finally starring in "Chaoge", she officially debuted.

This life is different now.

Why rely on others to promote Bai Lu?

What the cat can give to Bai Lu, he can also give.

No, he can give more.

The short film is just a channel, a window to showcase Bailu.

What truly determines how high Bai Lu can fly is not a short film, but a platform that can continuously provide her with resources.

A film and television company of her own.

"What are you thinking?" Bai Lu put down her cup and looked at him seriously. "Do you want to go to the cat's tree?"

Qingxiao didn't answer immediately. He leaned back in his chair and looked out the window. The skyline of Jiubao appeared hazy in the afternoon sun, and in the distance, one could see the rooftops of Sijiqing Building and a few chimneys.

Qingxiao flatly refused: "No way. I'll create your ticket to the entertainment industry, so you won't get scammed."

"You're going to make me a star? You even know the ins and outs of the entertainment industry?" Bai Lu was clearly surprised.

In the following days, Qingxiao did one thing: he registered a film and television company, Tianmen Film and Television Culture Media Co., Ltd.

In 2014, the domestic film and television industry was in a period of rapid growth, with total box office revenue approaching 30 billion yuan, an increase of more than 36 percent over the previous year. The micro-film industry also began to move from unregulated growth to high-quality and commercialized production.

Short videos haven't exploded yet; this is the golden age of micro-films.

However, the micro-film market is also highly competitive, with a large number of amateur production teams entering the market, resulting in a very high failure rate for investments.

Qingxiao checked the data and found that in 2014, the overall return on investment in the micro-film industry was less than 30%, and most projects were losing money while gaining publicity.

Therefore, he must find the right person.

He's not just any ordinary director; he's a director who can make short films feel like cinematic works, someone who feels underappreciated, and someone willing to give it his all.

Ideally, one should understand the principles of short film dissemination and know how to make a female actress resonate deeply with audiences.

After searching all night, he narrowed it down to three candidates.

The interview will be held in the sample room on the second floor of SUNSA.

Bai Lu pushed all the latest seasonal styles aside, making room for a small space with a table and four chairs.

There were still unfinished trench coats and knitwear hanging on the clothes rack against the wall, but Bai Lu insisted on conducting the interview here: "We started in e-commerce, and we also want the directors to see our entrepreneurial environment. It's a kind of interview too."

Qingxiao agreed.

The first one to arrive was Chen Yu.

Qingxiao pushed a news report in front of Chen Yu.

That was a news report from December 2013. The report stated that Yang Mingtian had been preparing for a short film called "The Life of Music" for six years. He had no sponsors and relied entirely on the help of friends. At his poorest, he couldn't even afford a boxed lunch. More than thirty girls were considered for the female lead role, but in the end, only one college student was chosen.

The film, which runs for 34 minutes, tells the story of a girl with mild autism but extraordinary musical talent. In order to film a shot of sunlight streaming into the forest in the early morning, he and his team went to Fuquan Mountain four times to wait and observe.

To achieve the desired artistic effect in the filming, he visited the priest seventeen times to discuss the church scene, which ultimately resulted in those perfect shots.

Qingxiao asked him, "Why do you want to make movies?"

Chen Yu said, "I used to study fine arts and painted oil paintings for several years. Later I realized that painting can only capture a moment, and I wanted to tell a complete story."

This answer is consistent with the information Qingxiao had seen.

Yang Mingtian said something similar. "The Life of Music" explores music, dreams, and faith. His pursuit for this film is to express the cinematic world in his heart in a simple and pure way.

Qingxiao asked again, "What are you doing right now?"

"Post-production. A little over 3,000 a month. I shoot weddings for friends on weekends. My classmate at a 4A company earns 200,000 to 300,000 a year, and my mom keeps nagging me to go back to my hometown and take the civil service exam."

Bai Lu stood at the door, his heart stirred slightly upon hearing these words.

She knows this feeling: having a dream you absolutely must realize, but the whole world is telling you: get a proper job.

Qingxiao leaned back in his chair and looked at Chen Yu.

The 25-year-old was wearing a white hoodie, and his eyes were bloodshot from staying up all night.

But he is an extreme pursuer.

Four stakeouts were made just for one shot, and seventeen visits were made just for a church scene in a thirty-four-minute short film.

This kind of extreme quality is exactly what short films need.

To make Bailu unforgettable for everyone, you don't need a big production, but every frame must be a work of art.

Qingxiao did not express his opinion on the spot.

After Chen Yu left, Qing Xiao looked at Bai Lu and asked, "What do you think?"

"I like the way he photographs girls. He says he knows how to make an actress shine."

Bai Lu leaned against the table, arms crossed over his chest, lost in thought.

"And don't you think he's a bit like you? You're both so dedicated to something, sticking to it to the very end. Remember how you used to spend dozens of nights adjusting the quality score for your paid search ads, staking out a single shot four times?"

Qingxiao did not refute.

The information on the second candidate sat on the table for two days, and Qingxiao flipped through it several times.

His name is Fang Zheng. He was born in 1989 in Sichuan Province and graduated from Hainan University. He is not from a professional background.

But his resume caught Qingxiao's eye.

In 2011, he received a special jury award nomination and a nomination for best student actor at the Sichuan Golden Panda International Television Festival for his suspenseful short film "Eternal Sleep with Guilt".

In 2013, he wrote and directed the short film "Shameless", which won the "Best Film" award at the 3rd Nine-Minute Film Championship and also received 1 million yuan in start-up funding for a feature film from the organizing committee.

This person is known in the industry as a film fanatic.

He pays for his own films and can independently handle directing, editing, screenwriting, cinematography, and even acting, combining the roles of director, screenwriter, and editor.

He can handle a wide range of genres, including suspense, art, crime, horror, and science fiction. He pays attention to the details of life and has a strong sense of self-expression and personal sentiment.

On the day of the interview, Fang Zheng arrived half an hour early.

He was wearing a black T-shirt, had short hair, and was thin. He didn't look like a director; he looked more like someone who had just come out of the editing room after working all night.

He stood at the entrance of the sample room for a while, looked around the office converted from a warehouse, and said, "It's pretty good. My first film was shot in a warehouse."

Qingxiao asked him, "What about your million?"

Fang Zheng said calmly, "100 million is simply not enough to make a theatrical film. We won't even be able to finish the post-production."

This is the truth.

In the film and television industry in 2013, a high-quality theatrical film would cost hundreds of thousands of yuan just for post-production, not to mention the initial filming.

The gap between short films and feature films cannot be bridged by a single prize.

Fang Zheng received 100 million yuan, but he's still a nobody director in this industry.

Qingxiao leaned back in his chair and asked a crucial question: "Have you seen the short film about cats and trees?"