Yuan Fenghui finalised the copyright contract with Hunan Satellite TV.
After nearly a month, Yuan Fenghui, with her exceptional negotiation skills and mental fortitude, secured Tianjiao Media’s first drama copyright contract.
Is shooting TV dramas profitable?
Regardless of others, Tianjiao hit the jackpot.
As soon as Yuan Fenghui signed the copyright contract, she immediately informed the company’s other shareholders.
“Seven years of exclusive broadcast rights, 70 million yuan in copyright fees!”
Yuan Fenghui’s bottom line was actually “five years, 60 million yuan,” but Hunan Satellite TV wanted eight years. Yuan Fenghui tested the waters by raising the price, and both sides compromised, ultimately reaching a consensus on “seven years, 70 million yuan.”
This was truly an astronomical price.
The Princess’s New Clothes had only 28 episodes, with a per-episode copyright fee of 2.5 million yuan, already touching the industry ceiling.
As for extending the authorisation period to seven years, from September 2005 to September 2012, two years more or less made little difference to Tianjiao. Hunan Satellite TV didn’t care about the online streaming rights Yuan Fenghui retained.
The drama fetched a whopping 70 million yuan.
The production cost of The Princess’s New Clothes was only 18.2 million yuan!
Wang Jun, who casually invested a few million to support his friend Li Zhentao in the film company, was dumbfounded.
Was shooting TV dramas this profitable?
Compared to other businesses, Wang Jun hadn’t worried about Tianjiao’s operations at all, yet the return rate from Tianjiao’s drama was astonishing. To Wang Jun, this money felt like it came out of nowhere.
Qin Xianming was much calmer than Wang Jun: “It’s not that shooting TV dramas is profitable; it’s that a reliable team makes it profitable. This is a result of both luck and strength.”
There are, of course, those who make money by luck, but luck alone doesn’t guarantee consistent profits.
Wang Jun and Qin Xianming were both well-off. The huge copyright fee from The Princess’s New Clothes merely prompted some sighs, not enough to make them lose composure. But for Wen Ying, the 70 million yuan copyright fee meant her 500,000 yuan investment had paid off massively!
After deducting business taxes, surcharges, and personal income tax, including principal and profit, Wen Ying could take home around 1.55 million yuan. Her heart trembled with excitement: she could buy a house in Shanghai!
Wen Ying wasn’t done calculating her own dividends; she also worked out Xie Qian’s.
Xie Qian invested 3 million yuan. Just from The Princess’s New Clothes, he could take home 9.3 million yuan, principal and profit included. Wen Ying, who was just thrilled, instantly shed tears of poverty.
So this is why the rich keep getting richer—because their capital is substantial, they gain more from the same investment opportunities!
This money came just in time for Xie Qian. With 9.3 million yuan, the early operations of his Shanghai logistics company faced no major obstacles.
When Wen Ying shared this news with Xie Qian, he, who usually didn’t care much about money, rare asked, “When will this money come through? Did Teacher Yuan mention anything?”
Wen Ying immediately sensed something was off.
“Are you short on cash? Teacher Yuan signed the contract today. Hunan Satellite TV will pay the full copyright fee within a week. After Tianjiao processes it, the money should reach us by August 15. If you’re short, you can use my share too!”
Besides the 1.55 million yuan from her drama investment, Wen Ying had received a 30,000 yuan advance royalty for Youth Idol. Because The Princess’s New Clothes sold for a high copyright fee, Yuan Fenghui announced bonuses for the main creative team. Li Mengjiao secretly told Wen Ying the amount was 50,000 yuan.
The director, screenwriter, and lead actors all got 50,000 yuan.
Yuan Fenghui was generous. Since it was a bonus, she ensured no one felt slighted, so both Zhang Guangzhen and Wen Ying received 50,000 yuan!
Moreover, Yuan Fenghui kept her word and raised Wen Ying’s part-time salary at Tianjiao from 3,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan a month, determined to tie Wen Ying to Tianjiao Media.
So, Wen Ying could lend Xie Qian not 1.55 million, but 1.6 million yuan.
After adding August’s salary, she could lend Xie Qian 1.63 million yuan.
Xie Qian knew Wen Ying had long been planning to buy a house in Shanghai.
With a 1.6 million yuan budget, as long as Wen Ying didn’t aim for a villa or luxury home, she could comfortably pick a house she liked in Shanghai.
And now she was offering to lend it all to him?
Unlike investing in dramas, which had a cycle of a few months and a short payback period with copyright sales, a logistics company was different. The early stage was almost entirely investment, and even if it made money, it had to be reinvested. If Wen Ying lent him the money, he couldn’t guarantee when he’d repay her. How would she buy a house in Shanghai then?
“You’re not buying a house anymore?” Xie Qian asked, unsure what answer he wanted.
Wen Ying replied without hesitation, “Of course I’m buying, but waiting a bit doesn’t matter. Don’t you need the money urgently?”
Wen Ying hadn’t thought too much about it.
Buying at the low point of Shanghai’s housing market would be ideal, of course.
But if she missed it, she wouldn’t beat herself up over it.
There was no question of whether Xie Qian or a Shanghai house was more important—Wen Ying would definitely choose Xie Qian.
If she couldn’t buy a house in Shanghai this year, she could buy one next year or the year after. With her current wealth-accumulation speed, she could keep up with Shanghai’s rising housing prices.
As long as she had money, she could buy a house in Shanghai anytime. Houses were inanimate objects, not unique. With so many developments in Shanghai, missing a few wouldn’t stop her from finding one she liked.
But there was only one Xie Qian.
Not to mention the value of her friendship with Xie Qian, his efforts to buy land and start a logistics company in Shanghai were about building strength.
Every bit of strength accumulated now gave him more capital to change his tragic fate in the future.
Besides, even without the over 1 million yuan from Tianjiao, Wen Ying had the royalties from Youth Idol, settled every three months, which was income she looked forward to. She could still buy a house, maybe at a slightly higher price.
Xie Qian didn’t know Wen Ying’s thoughts, but he could feel her heartfelt sincerity.
A myriad of emotions surged in his heart, overwhelming this highly intelligent young man who could handle any situation with ease.
He initially wanted to refuse, but for some reason, his words came out as agreement. His mood was like fireworks bursting in the sky, yet his tone betrayed nothing, even calmer than usual:
“Alright, lend me the money.”
Xie Qian didn’t mention when he’d repay her.
Knowing how much Wen Ying, the little hamster, wanted to buy a house in Shanghai, and now that he was borrowing so much of her money, he felt responsible for ensuring she could buy one.
When to buy, what kind of house—these were things Xie Qian needed to think about.
“I’ll only borrow 1 million. Keep the rest. The Princess’s New Clothes sold for such a high price, and Tianjiao will soon start shooting a second drama. With the financial pressure eased by The Princess’s New Clothes, Tianjiao won’t accept individual investments for the second drama—except from you.”
Tianjiao would leave an investment slot for Wen Ying, and they had to. If Tianjiao truly recognised Wen Ying’s value, they’d find ways to bind her tightly. Nothing was more secure than a shared interest!
