Capital only cares about the value you can create.
Regardless of the quality of this book or the next, Xie Wenyuan's attention to the project is its value.
Moreover, Chu Ge seems to have some connections. He wonders if he's related to Xie Wenyuan… otherwise, the CEO finds it hard to imagine Xie Wenyuan personally meeting with an unknown online writer, brewing tea, and chatting for over an hour. Even if he values the work, it wouldn't be that much.
Actually, Chu Ge himself doesn't know how much of this was due to Old Zhu's influence, the 100 million yuan, or Xie Wenyuan's own level of attention.
But regardless, from now on, he won't be treated as a mere figurehead, and at least he won't turn against him at this time. Cultivating his relationship is the norm.
"For this project, we will have a deeper collaboration with President Xie. Our investment and team will participate as co-producers," the CEO said. "Old Xie has a keen eye. We actually missed a treasure before. We had to wait for someone else to discover our good IPs…" Chu Ge thought to himself, "You guys have missed out on so many good IPs. How many books has your copyright department actually read?" "...Forget it, I'm too lazy to argue with you about this."
He just smiled: "President Xie and I...the animation will be a collaboration between us, and it will be released on our own animation website..."
Perhaps "our own" sounds better, because the boss smiled broadly and nodded: "That's right. So now this is also a matter for our group. With our own participation, we can strive for even greater excellence. Communicate with the editorial team more often; we're family."
Chu Ge smiled: "The editors have always been very good to me."
Chu Ge believed the group would take this seriously, because this was the group's strategic direction, but one thing was certain: he trusted Xie Wenyuan more. Of course, there was no need for that; Xie Wenyuan had already bought the copyright, so the direction was definitely under his control. The group's role was at most a joint venture, nothing more.
The boss smiled and said, "Chu Da has been a long-time author on our site. Do you have any good ideas or suggestions for our development?" Chu Ge remained silent for a long time, holding back his thoughts, before finally swallowing back his thousand words, simply saying, "I hope you pay more attention to the plight of grassroots authors...it's not easy for them." The obituary he saw before coming here.
Hisself before Qiuqiu.
Zhang Qiren, who left in sorrow.
And those resilient big shots in the "Future Platinum Group God-Slaying and Dao-Proving Group."
Everyone in the group has countless thoughts, but you can't hear them.
All you can hear is Xie Wenyuan and how many billions.
Or you hear it but pretend not to know...because on many levels, the demands of both sides conflict.
What's the point?
... The meeting with the boss lasted only a few minutes. Chu Ge followed the editors to sit downstairs by the bookshelves, and only then did it feel like casual conversation among "one of us."
The editor let out a long sigh: "You scared me to death! I thought you were really going to tell the boss about 'one, two, three, four, five'." Chu Ge smiled nonchalantly: "Actually, there's nothing to be scared about if you really did. It's just pointless unpleasantness, and nothing changes. It's a waste of time."
The editor-in-chief asked curiously: "You've become more mature, Chu Ge."
Chu Ge was even more surprised: "Did I ever do anything particularly immature before?"
"No, not really. It's just that you weren't like that during the interview, were you? You used to work for a state-owned enterprise, and you quit after arguing with your boss."
"Oh, that happened." Chu Ge stroked his chin, thinking for a moment: "So I really have changed a lot... Hmm, that's strange, when did I start changing..."
The editor-in-chief laughed: "You're getting older, you found a girlfriend and are starting a family, it's normal."
Chu Ge looked up at the various masterpieces he once admired on the bookshelf and muttered to himself: "Isn't that also a kind of regression?" "...Not as good as he was back then." The editor blinked. "Oh, why think like that? Why not think it's because you've cultivated a better character and demeanor?" Chu Ge laughed. "You're so eloquent, Miss."
"Because I've watched you grow and change all along." The editor smiled. "Including the changes in your writing style, the refinement of your words. It's like watching a man become more mature and sophisticated." Chu Ge quickly said, "Hey, hey, hey, what you said is easy to misunderstand. Look, the editor-in-chief's gaze towards me is starting to turn unfriendly..."
"Pah!" The editor-in-chief made a hitting gesture and laughed. "Who looks at you unfriendly? They don't even want to look at you. Your 'Early Autumn Love,' I saw the other day, already had hundreds of thousands of followers. Someone like you can't turn back even if you want to. You'd better just swallow your domestic violence and not expect any other flowers or grass." Chu Ge sniffed, feeling a pang of sympathy.
He was even deliberately squeezed dry before coming here; he's practically turned into pickled vegetables.
Old Zhu once said, "To be hanged at such a young age... in the eyes of other men, that's probably the safest same-sex relationship, with no competitive significance whatsoever."
"Get up, young lady, you've been kind to me..."
"You know that too!" the editor slammed her hand on the table. "Do you know how much face you made me by refusing to sign?"
Chu Ge smiled apologetically, "But I did sign it, although the terms are a little different. Honestly, if it weren't for your sake, I wouldn't have signed it!"
The editor spat, "Don't you really want to write another book? Are you going to make enough money from this one to collect rent?"
Chu Ge clapped his hands, "That's a dream!"
"Come on," the editor-in-chief sighed, "We've seen plenty of people like you. You don't write, you don't write, but then you get itchy and start writing even without anyone pushing you. Do you really think you can just sit around collecting rent?... Without a passion for this industry, who wants to sit there all day burning the midnight oil?"
Chu Ge laughed.
That's why you can talk to editors so easily—because they truly understand the industry and the people in it.
The editor-in-chief pointed to the books on the shelf: "We submitted your book to several publishers. It was quite difficult before… You know, mainly because physical publishing isn't very profitable these days, and ISBNs are strictly controlled. Publishers are more cautious, allocating their limited ISBNs to works that can make money, especially those that can be published in schools, like children's books and Douluo Continent…" Chu Ge listened attentively; there were some things he didn't really understand.
"Many well-known online novel IPs, like the ones on our shelf, seem to be getting a lot of publication attention, but actually, not many actually sell. Especially since our online novels are so long, often dozens of volumes, the costs are high, the selling price is high, and many people can't even afford to store them all…" The editor-in-chief sighed: "People with such big rooms won't buy this, and people who will buy this don't have such big rooms."
Actually, Chu Ge knew that even if it was successfully published, it might not make much money. With the right editing, unless it was popular on campuses, which was obviously not the case for him. But regardless of profit or loss, even if it was published at a loss or self-funded, there were plenty of people willing to pay for it.
Publishing a book has always been one of the most cherished dreams of all authors.
These days it's getting harder and harder, gradually eroding the dreams in many people's hearts, but this dream has never truly faded.
"It was alright in earlier years, but with the tightening of ISBN requirements, it's become increasingly difficult," the editor-in-chief said. "Several publishers rejected our previous submissions for publication review, but now, taking advantage of the momentum surrounding your various adaptations, we've restarted the process. We haven't received a reply yet, but we estimate that once your comic is released, it can give us a boost." Chu Ge sincerely said, "Thank you so much, editors! If it's successfully published, I'll definitely treat everyone to dinner."
"I heard you're having dinner with the CEOs tonight," the editor said with a hint of envy. "Dinner at Datang Company might even have some celebrities attending." "Oh..."
Chu Ge said, "It's just a casual meal, it shouldn't be that formal, right?"
"No, this is a project launch meeting, so it's supposed to be relatively formal." The editor rested her chin on her hand. "I wonder if we'll see Lao Hu..."
Chu Ge said, "If we do, could you get an autograph for me?"
The editor glanced at him, then suddenly chuckled, "It'd be better if... you signed for us, I suspect it'll become quite valuable later." Chu Ge was secretly pleased, feigning modesty as he declined, but still "couldn't refuse their hospitality" and left bookmarks and autographs for all the editors.
The editor-in-chief leisurely put away the autographs, seemingly casually adding, "We do this whenever we see an author, who knows, maybe we'll strike it rich."
Chu Ge: "Damn."