After bidding farewell to Xiao Nin, Wen Ying had no more qualms and directly signed the publishing contract for “In Search of Yong” that Yuan Fenghui had negotiated.
The Magic City Literature Publishing House had brought Wen Ying into the fold, and the entire publishing house placed great importance on the matter. The editor-in-chief even flew personally to Rongcheng to meet Wen Ying and discussed “In Search of Yong” with her for several hours.
“This is a grand work.”
Editor-in-Chief Ding Chao did not stint on words of praise: “Our publishing house will spare no effort to cooperate with Teacher Little Fish in crafting the ‘Nine Tripods’ series well!”
Yuan Fenghui and Wen Ying merely smiled.
Editor-in-Chief Ding was truly a shrewd person. He did not belittle Wen Ying due to her youth and addressed her as “Teacher Little Fish”, which was both亲切 and respectful.
The ‘Nine Tripods’ series, as the name implied, consisted of nine books. How could someone as astute as Yuan Fenghui stake all nine on a single publishing house? What if the publishing house encountered operational difficulties midway and declined? Would that not utterly ruin Wen Ying?
Thus, although the series had nine books, Yuan Fenghui signed them one by one separately.
The Magic City Literature Publishing House had proposed signing three books at once, advancing 12 million in royalties to Wen Ying, but Yuan Fenghui had refused.
Trust people fully or not at all. Wen Ying had no disagreement whatsoever with Yuan Fenghui’s decision.
Refusing the three-book deal was correct. Taking 12 million in advance would have put quite a bit of pressure on Wen Ying. Who knew if, after two years when the physical book market shrank, the second and third books of the Nine Tripods series could still be bestsellers? Wen Ying certainly did not want the Magic City Literature Publishing House to secretly resent her then.
Sign one book at a time, and Wen Ying could create more freely without burdens!
Of course, besides not wanting to harm the Magic City Literature Publishing House, Wen Ying and Yuan Fenghui had other considerations: first, see if the Magic City Literature Publishing House had the capability to operate “In Search of Yong” well, then decide whether to sign the other books of the Nine Tripods series to them. Signing all at once and binding tightly would make it troublesome if cooperation soured midway. Better to sign one by one; the Magic City Literature Publishing House would not slack off because of it, and both sides retained the choice of whether to continue cooperating!
Regardless of what Editor-in-Chief Ding Chao truly thought, at least on the surface, he was very fond of “In Search of Yong” and respected Wen Ying’s creative vision. He did not force her to repeat the path of “Teenage Idol”. From this point, the two sides should cooperate quite pleasantly.
With the book’s content settled, Ding Chao brought up the publication timeline for “In Search of Yong”.
“I want to have ‘In Search of Yong’ go on sale in mid-February next year. Because Teacher Little Fish’s ‘The Galaxy and You’ is currently selling hot, and even ‘Teenage Idol’s sales remain strong, if ‘In Search of Yong’ launches too soon, it might not be good for the previous two books. A new book from the same author can boost the old ones but can also impact them. Readers tend to favour the new and tire of the old. What do the two of you think?”
Precisely because “The Galaxy and You” was selling hot, launching “In Search of Yong” at the fastest speed with the Magic City Literature Publishing House could ride this wave of popularity.
Unexpectedly, Ding Chao was willing to wait two more months, to avoid splitting the heat from “The Galaxy and You” and let both Wen Ying and Tianjiao earn more from it.
Such thinking was indeed considerate, but… a glint flashed in Yuan Fenghui’s eyes as she exposed Editor-in-Chief Ding’s little scheme:
“Of course, no problem. Mid-February next year is right before the Spring Festival. Most of Wen Ying’s readers are students; before the Spring Festival, they not only have free time but also pocket money, so buying ‘In Search of Yong’ is effortless.”
Ding Chao burst into laughter. “Director Yuan has eyes like a torch. Indeed, there is that consideration. It benefits both sides!”
That was the truth.
In cooperation, there was no fear of the partner profiting; only win-win could make cooperation last longer.
Wen Ying was very satisfied with today’s meeting.
Editor-in-Chief Ding was quite perceptive. Leaving aside his literary attainments and editing skills, at least he was not awkward to interact with.
What Wen Ying was even more satisfied with was signing the agency contract with Yuan Fenghui.
Yuan Fenghui had the ability to make things worry-free and effortless for Wen Ying. All external琐事 were handled by Yuan Fenghui; Wen Ying only needed to show up happily.
Wen Ying’s ease came at a cost. Of the 5 million advance from the Magic City Literature Publishing House, 500,000 belonged to Yuan Fenghui. After seeing off Editor-in-Chief Ding, when Wen Ying mentioned it, Yuan Fenghui rolled her eyes:
“Alright, you hold onto the advance payment for now. I keep my word: if ‘In Search of Yong’s sales do not reach 2 million copies, I will not take a single cent in remuneration and work for you for free!”
Wen Ying gave Yuan Fenghui a thumbs up. “I just like your confidence.”
Wen Ying had gained the advantage yet acted coy, so Yuan Fenghui’s eyes turned. “The Magic City side is advancing you 5 million, and the Rongcheng Literature Publishing House side has another 3 million. After taxes, there is still plenty left. What do you plan to do with this money in hand?”
Wen Ying placed her hand on her stomach.
“Ah? How to spend it? I have not thought about it yet. My stomach hurts… I will head out first!”
Wen Ying “stomach ache” her way out. Yuan Fenghui lightly spat: “Little slippery one. Could I possibly harm you?”
…
“Teacher Yuan definitely would not harm me, but if all my investments are tied to her, I fear I might become inseparable from her in the future. That would be too terrifying!”
To Xie Qian, Wen Ying half-jokingly poured out her heart.
When finances entwine, lives entwine.
Like some couples: clearly, their feelings have long been worn away in the trivialities of marriage, and they despise each other yet refuse to divorce to the death. Besides considering the children, part of the reluctance is economic.
Upon divorce, wealth halves instantly. Rich people are unwilling to divorce, poor people cannot afford to. A house split in two means neither can live in it.
Regarding Wen Ying’s termination with Rongcheng Literature Publishing House, Jiang Xuekun had even specially called Xie Qian.
For the group’s general manager to care about an author showed great importance to Wen Ying.
Jiang Xuekun only knew Bao Lixin had an excellent resume; he did not know the other was so stubborn. Despite early reminders, he still forced Wen Ying away. Utterly speechless!
The purpose of Jiang Xuekun’s call was to salvage the situation. Xie Qian expressed deep sympathy but clearly stated he would not interfere with Wen Ying’s decisions.
“Uncle Jiang, I reminded you about this long ago. Now it seems Rongcheng Literature Publishing House and Wen Ying simply lacked that bit of fate.”
Jiang Xuekun was at a loss for words.
Whether there was fate or not all depended on Xie Qian’s mouth.
Alas!
Jiang Xuekun did not press. As the saying goes, a grown daughter cannot be kept at home; Jiang Xuekun felt it was similar for a grown son. “Uncle Jiang” paled in importance to a little girlfriend.
In front of Wen Ying, however, Xie Qian did not mention the matter at all. He felt her “economic binding theory” made sense: when finances entwine, lives truly become inseparably close.
Xie Qian tried to keep his tone natural: “So, how do you plan to spend this sum? Continue buying property or make other investments?”
“Invest, I think. I want to buy some stocks.”
As for the stock market and such, Wen Ying could not remember specific rises and falls clearly, but which companies’ stocks were worth holding long-term, Wen Ying did know. Buying the right stocks could earn no less than buying property.
“Buy stocks… Are you considering investing in companies other than Tianjiao?”
Xie Qian’s suggestion puzzled Wen Ying. “You do not mean Ji Xin Film and Television, do you?”
“No, investing in similar companies holds little meaning. I am inviting you to invest in a logistics company.”
Rather than binding economically with Yuan Fenghui, better to bind with him. Xie Qian considered himself more reliable than Yuan Fenghui.
Wen Ying’s mouth fell slightly open.
Truly, she never expected it: having just escaped the tiger’s den only to fall into the wolf’s lair. Not only was Yuan Fenghui eyeing the royalties in her pocket.
Xie Qian, this quasi-demolition beneficiary, did not lack money at all. Now pulling her to invest… Hey, hey, hey, was it not agreed to maintain the status quo and continue being good friends?!
