A song from Chengdu revived a closed-down pub.

These past few days, Sun Zheng has been busy with the online release of "Under One Person".

Several video platforms that had almost reached an agreement suddenly became vague and ambiguous.

Some say that the recent broadcast schedule needs to be adjusted, and a suitable slot cannot be arranged for the time being.

Some say the project needs to be resubmitted for internal evaluation, and we'll discuss it again once the review results are available.

There's another company that we started discussing quotes with just two days ago, but now they're saying their procurement budget for this year hasn't been finalized yet and we need to wait.

At first, Sun Zheng didn't think much of it.

It's not uncommon for procurement projects to involve many departments, and while negotiations may go smoothly initially, delays of several days can occur when it comes to signing the contract.

But after making several calls, the other party's responses made him increasingly suspicious.

The purchasing manager of a platform had previously asked him about the plans for the second quarter, but now when he receives a call, he is unwilling to even talk about the first quarter.

Sun Zheng patiently asked, "Mr. Liu, we can cooperate on the scheduling issue. If you feel the price is unsuitable, we can discuss it further. But you need to give me a specific direction, right?"

After a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, the other party said, "Mr. Sun, it's not a matter of price; the main issue is that the company has recently made some adjustments to its animation business."

"When will the adjustments be completed?"

"I can't give you a definite answer right now."

"Then I'll send the complete film over again, and you can watch it first?"

"No need, we already have enough materials."

Sun Zheng held his phone, his brows gradually furrowing.

They wouldn't discuss the price, wouldn't show the finished product, and wouldn't give us time.

This no longer resembles the progress of a project.

Sun Zheng softened his tone and asked again, "President Liu, we've known each other for quite some time now. What exactly went wrong? Tell me the truth so I can go back and figure out a solution."

The other party sighed: "Mr. Sun, please don't rush, give me a little more time."

After the call ended, Sun Zheng stood there, motionless for a long time.

This is the third person to say this to him today.

He looked down and opened his contacts, then found a familiar friend in the industry and dialed the number.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Sun Zheng went straight to explaining the situation.

After listening, the other person didn't answer immediately, but instead asked, "Have you offended anyone recently?"

Sun Zheng's heart sank: "What did you hear?"

"I can't go into the specifics, but for your project, don't just focus on the content and price yet."

"Did someone send a message?"

"Old Sun, this might be your first time entering the anime industry, but it's still within the broader entertainment circle. Think about it, several platforms changing their tune at the same time—could it all be a problem with their procurement processes?"

Sun Zheng did not respond.

The other party added a reminder: "Some collaborations involve more than one work. You may only have this one, while they may have a whole batch. If the platform really has to make a choice, they may not dare to gamble with you."

Upon hearing this, Sun Zheng's expression turned completely somber.

He had a vague idea of ​​what was going on.

However, we cannot conclude who is causing trouble behind the scenes based on just a few reminders.

Sun Zheng was silent for a moment before saying in a low voice, "Okay, I understand, thank you."

He put down his phone and looked again at the cooperation documents on the table.

One of the contracts even had the revised terms from both parties prepared, and they were just waiting to finalize the price and launch date.

Just a few days ago, he was thinking that he would soon bring good news back to the company.

Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, several exits were blocked.

Just then, Cheng Yu knocked on the door and walked in, holding the newly revised promotional plan in his hand.

"Mr. Sun, the trailer has been edited. Once the platform confirms the release date, we can proceed with the release."

Sun Zheng looked up at him, composed himself, and said, "Don't rush to announce the date. We still need to communicate with the platform."

Cheng Yu noticed his tone and asked, "Is something wrong?"

Sun Zheng didn't give a perfunctory answer and nodded: "Several companies are dragging their feet. I'm still asking for the specific reasons."

The expectation on Cheng Yu's face gradually faded.

He glanced down at the proposal in his hand and asked, "Are you not satisfied with the final product? If you have any suggestions, we can revise it."

"It has nothing to do with how well you do it."

Sun Zheng took the plan, placed it on the table, and said, "You guys finish your preparations first. I'll handle the distribution."

After Cheng Yu left, Sun Zheng picked up his phone and found Su Fan's number.

He hadn't originally intended to make this call so soon.

After all, the remaining distribution work should have been handled by him.

But this matter has clearly gone beyond normal business negotiations.

After the call connected, Su Fan asked with a smile, "Mr. Sun, what's up?"

"There were some problems with the film's release..."

Sun Zheng recounted everything that had happened in the past few days from beginning to end.

Upon hearing the rest, Su Fan realized something was amiss.

If a platform changes its mind at the last minute, it can be attributed to a problem with its internal arrangements.

The fact that several platforms changed their tune at the same time cannot be just a coincidence.

Su Fan pondered for a moment and said, "Okay, I understand. I'll see which deity is behind this."

After hanging up the phone, Su Fan dialed Ye Sicheng's number.

The call connected, and Ye Sicheng asked with a smile, "Xiao Fan, what's wrong?"

Su Fan didn't beat around the bush and briefly explained the situation Shan Hai Pictures was facing. Then he asked, "Second Uncle, could you help me find out if someone has put pressure on those video platforms?"

Ye Sicheng said, "Okay, I'll go ask."

He first contacted two senior executives of the platform who had a long-term partnership with Tengfei, and then, following the information they provided, found someone familiar with the animation copyright business.

After a few phone calls, things gradually became clear.

Several platforms have indeed received the same request.

The requirement comes from the everyday life.

The conditions are also very clear: if "Under One Person" is introduced, the licensing of subsequent new series and the renewal of contracts for a number of popular animations will have to be reconsidered.

One of the platforms had already received the film slate for the next quarter and was in discussions about purchasing the films, but was now told that they had to first express their opinion on the Shan Hai Pictures project.

Upon hearing this, Ye Sicheng's face darkened.

No wonder none of the platforms were willing to give Sun Zheng a straight answer.

They were reluctant to give up the popularity Su Fan brought, but also unwilling to risk losing a batch of popular works, so they could only drag it out and wait for things to turn around.

After finding out the details, Ye Sicheng quickly called back.

When the call connected, Ye Sicheng said, "It's Xiao Rizi and his gang who are up to something."

Upon hearing this, Su Fan immediately understood.

"So it was them."

"Those platforms know that your work has a following. One of them even explicitly said that the reviews from their internal screenings were good, but they have a lot of content in their hands, so they don't dare to take the risk easily."

"In other words, it's not that they don't want to broadcast it, it's that they dare not broadcast it."

"right."

Ye Sicheng paused for a moment, then guessed, "Perhaps this matter is related to our actions against the Northern Bees. Since they couldn't retaliate over there, they set their sights on your animation."

"Okay, I understand the situation now. I'll think of a solution later. If all else fails, I can just create my own platform."

Upon hearing this, Ye Sicheng suddenly remembered something: "If you really have this idea, you don't have to start from scratch."

Su Fan was slightly taken aback: "Second Uncle, do you have connections?"

"It's not that I have connections, it's that I have a personal connection. Tengfei previously ran a video platform, and all the relevant permits were in order, but it never really took off. If you're interested, I can hand it over to you, so you don't have to go through the registration and application process again, which would waste your time."

Su Fan was somewhat surprised: "Tengfei also has a video platform?"

"It was done a few years ago. At the time, we thought that since the group had cultural tourism and entertainment businesses, we could create some of our own content and buy some programs. But the idea was good. When we actually started doing it, we found that we spent a lot of money but did not retain users. Later, several projects were stopped one after another, and the platform stopped investing money. Now it is just maintaining itself."

After listening, Su Fan became somewhat interested: "Is the tech team still around?"

"There are still a few people responsible for maintenance. The website and client are working properly, but the traffic is not high. Let me explain the situation to you first. This platform can save you a lot of time in the early preparation stage, but don't expect to be able to do the same as those big platforms after taking over. The server, technical team, and subsequent operation will all need to be rearranged."

Su Fan laughed: "I understand, I'm not after how many users it has."

What he lacks now is precisely a place where he can showcase his work.

"Under One Person" has been completed, and Han Tang's publicity resources can be mobilized.

If those video platforms refuse to accept his work, does that mean he can only keep it to himself and wait for them to agree?

The platform that Ye Sicheng has acquired has come at just the right time.

After a moment's thought, Su Fan said, "Second Uncle, could you have someone organize the platform's information and send it to me along with details about the technology and operations? I'll have someone take a look, and if it's suitable, we can finalize the deal."

Ye Sicheng readily agreed: "Okay, I'll make the arrangements in a bit. If you decide to do it, I'll take care of the handover."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony with you."

"Why be so polite when it's family business?"