Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

Chapter 188 I still have something on you, Editor-in-Chief Song.

At 10 a.m., there was a knock on the door of Jiang Fan's office.

Zhou Yutong poked half her head in.

"Brother Fan, two people have arrived. They say they're from Qidian.com and want to see you."

Jiang Fan stopped typing.

Qidian.com

Bluestar is the leader in the online literature industry, with a market share of over 60%.

Endpoint Literature is said to be its competitor, but compared to it, it's a mere junior.

"Tell them to go to the meeting room."

Jiang Fan turned off his computer screen, got up, and left the office.

Pushing open the conference room door, I found the two people already seated inside.

The man in front was in his early forties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, carrying a briefcase, and his suit was perfectly pressed without a single wrinkle.

The one in the back was a bit older, with his hair neatly combed; he looked like a seasoned veteran in the copyright business.

"Mr. Jiang, I am Zhang Hong, the copyright director of Qidian.com, and this is our vice president, Zhou Ming."

Zhou Ming stood up and offered his hand.

Jiang Fan shook hands with them.

"sit."

Zhou Ming sat down, opened his briefcase, and took out a document, placing it on the table.

"Mr. Jiang, our team has been watching your 'Journey to the West' these past few days." Zhou Ming got straight to the point. "Frankly speaking, it's the best work I've ever seen since I started in the industry. Without a doubt."

Jiang Fan picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and didn't reply.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Zhou Ming leaned forward slightly.

"We've come here to discuss a collaboration with Mr. Jiang. We're willing to pay Endpoint Literature the penalty for breach of contract to transfer the exclusive serialization rights of 'Journey to the West' to our platform."

"The profit-sharing ratio will be 90%, a figure never before seen in the industry. Mr. Jiang will take 90%."

Zhang Hong pushed the documents towards the center of the coffee table.

"In addition, we are willing to pay 50 million to acquire the film and television adaptation rights."

The meeting room fell silent.

Li Cheng just pushed the door open and came in carrying two glasses of water.

Upon hearing the number, his hand holding the tray froze in mid-air.

A 90/10 split. A 50 million buyout of the film and television rights.

Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair and glanced at the document.

"Mr. Zhou, I only signed the contract with the finish line half a month ago."

"I know." Zhou Ming smiled. "We'll cover the penalty for breach of contract. You won't incur any losses. We'll cover all the compensation the finish line should pay."

Zhang Hong added, "The initial resources are far greater than the final resources. Top-tier resources were provided for recommendations, distribution channels, and the IP development team. A work of 'Journey to the West' deserves a larger stage."

Jiang Fan put down the teacup.

"I appreciate your kindness. But I will not breach the contract."

Zhou Ming's smile faltered for a moment.

"Mr. Jiang, this isn't about breach of contract. Business cooperation is inherently a two-way selection process—"

"I signed the contract myself." Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair. "I wasn't forced to sign it, and no one pressured me. If I do something like this, who would dare to cooperate with me in the future?"

Zhou Ming opened his mouth, but swallowed his words.

"What about the film and television adaptation rights?" Zhou Ming changed the subject. "Fifty million, that's in the industry—"

"Not for sale."

Zhou Ming looked at Jiang Fan.

Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair, his posture unchanged.

Zhou Ming paused for two seconds, then pulled out another page from the bottom of his briefcase.

"Mr. Jiang, if 50 million isn't enough, we can discuss it further. 80 million, paid in one lump sum. We only need the film and television adaptation rights."

Eighty million.

Li Cheng sat in the corner, his thigh muscles taut.

Jiang Fan glanced at the expanded agreement.

The "Journey to the West" IP alone generated billions in box office revenue in its previous life.

Animation, games, theme parks, and related merchandise together constitute a market worth hundreds of billions.

Eighty million isn't even a fraction of that.

"Mr. Zhou, to be frank," Jiang Fan leaned forward slightly, "I won't sell the film and television adaptation rights to this book, no matter how much money it costs."

Zhou Ming stared into Jiang Fan's eyes.

There was no greed in those eyes, nor any feigned composure or evasiveness.

Zhou Ming smiled and put the document back into his briefcase.

"I understand. It's a good thing that the young man has guts."

He stood up and took a business card from the inside pocket of his suit jacket.

"This is my private number. Mr. Jiang, please contact me anytime if you change your mind."

He placed his business card on the table.

"Sorry to bother you. I look forward to hearing good news from Mr. Jiang."

Zhang Hong then got up, and the two of them left the conference room.

Li Cheng closed the door, turned around, and took two steps to stand in front of Jiang Fan.

"Brother Fan, it's a 90/10 split. That's 10% higher than the final offer. 80 million for the film rights—"

Jiang Fan didn't say anything, picked up the business card, looked at it for two seconds, and casually tossed it onto the table.

Two o'clock in the afternoon.

The Endpoint Literature Headquarters.

The phone rang in Chen Ping's office.

He answered the call, listened for about ten seconds, and then stopped twirling the pen in his hand.

"What did you say?"

"Zhou Ming and Zhang Hong went to see Jiang Fan this morning. The two of them stayed inside for half an hour," the marketing manager's voice came from across the room.

Chen Ping slammed his pen on the table.

Zhou Ming personally intervened; Qidian.com is openly trying to poach his employees.

Where is Song Siyi?

"They should be in the editorial department."

"Have her come over right now."

Three minutes later, Song Siyi pushed open the door.

"Mr. Chen, what can I do for you?"

Chen Ping stood by the window and turned around.

"Qidian.com went to see Jiang Fan this morning."

Song Siyi's expression changed.

"Who went?"

"Zhou Ming. He's with the copyright director."

Since Zhou Ming personally took charge at the beginning, the conditions were definitely not low.

Her mind raced for a moment.

"Mr. Chen, we need to go find Jiang Fan immediately."

Chen Ping had already pulled his coat off the back of the chair.

"Let's go. Let's go now."

3:10 PM.

The door to Jiang Fan's office rang again.

Li Cheng poked his head in, his expression somewhat complicated.

"Brother Fan, Mr. Chen and Editor-in-Chief Song from Endpoint Literature are here."

Jiang Fan looked up and glanced at the time.

They arrived quite quickly.

"Let them in."

Chen Ping and Song Siyi entered the office one after the other.

Chen Ping had a smile on his face, but it didn't look very natural.

Song Siyi followed beside her, her fingers tightly gripping the bag strap.

"Mr. Jiang, excuse me for disturbing you," Chen Ping spoke first. "I heard that Qi Shi came by this morning?"

Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair.

"You're quite well-informed."

"The industry is only so big." Chen Ping sat down on the sofa. "What conditions did Zhou Ming offer? Is it convenient to say?"

Jiang Fan poured a glass of water and pushed it in front of the two of them.

"A 90/10 split, with 80 million used to buy the film and television adaptation rights."

As soon as Chen Ping picked up the water glass, a ripple suddenly appeared on the surface of the water.

Song Siyi sat next to her, her lips moved twice, but she didn't say anything.

Eighty million.

The number sat in the office, and none of the three people spoke.

Chen Ping put the water glass on the table and took a deep breath.

"Mr. Jiang, I admit that I simply cannot afford this price."

Jiang Fan didn't reply.

"But I want to say that the end is different from the beginning." Chen Ping leaned forward. "The beginning is a big platform, and the author is just a string of numbers to them. The end is different. We treat 'Journey to the West' as our core IP and operate it accordingly."

Jiang Fan glanced at Song Siyi, picked up his water glass, and took a sip.

"Has Mr. Chen finished speaking?"

Chen Ping was taken aback.

"That's all."

"Then I'll say a few words too." Jiang Fan put down his water glass. "I rejected the initial conditions."

Chen Ping suddenly straightened his back.

"real?"

Jiang Fan put down the thermos and looked past Chen Ping, his gaze landing on Song Siyi.

"Mr. Chen, I dare not sign a contract with Qishi."

Chen Ping was stunned.

Why?

"After all, I still have something on you, Editor-in-Chief Song, that I have leverage over."