How to raise a random guy's wife

Grandpa Kobayashi turned his head. "Hmm?"

"I've heard that the so-called 'grandparental bond' is because the older generation sees their own children reflected in the younger ones." Kobayashi Sora sat in a spot that didn't block her grandfather's view. "Was I like that when I was a child?"

Grandpa Kobayashi snorted, "You weren't that cute when you were little."

"Is it because I'm a boy?"

"When you were Lanlan's age, you were already taking out loans with me," Grandpa Lin said bluntly. "Don't you think that's cute?"

Kobayashi Sora: "...That's true."

"Let's get down to business," Grandpa Kobayashi said, taking a sip of his coffee and nodding with satisfaction. "RER is doing quite well now, but we can't be blindly optimistic."

"Yes."

"RER hasn't changed much from its initial state. Although the manga website has popular works and a first-mover advantage, accumulating a stable audience, it can't compare to established platforms like JUMP. The competition for online serialization on their platform is much fiercer, and their audience is much larger. Many veteran manga artists have also switched to online serialization because their subject matter makes it inconvenient to serialize in weekly magazines. If this continues, RER will be squeezed into a niche website—this is something to be especially careful about."

"Yes."

"While virtual idol revenue is good, it's not stable enough. We need to avoid controversies and offline harassment as much as possible. A boutique approach like Ghost Castle is best, as it's easier to manage and protect. The large-scale development of RER requires far more personnel and funding than Ghost Castle. If necessary, we can sacrifice some people as a warning. The police department also needs to... I'll handle that."

"Yes."

"RGW had a good start, but after the initial enthusiasm faded, many works were hastily ended, which had a significant impact on the website. The resource library needs further updates, and it would be best to buy more old games to remaster, so that at least the basic user base can be maintained."

"Yes."

"Now that we've absorbed Maltz, we shouldn't waste the resources we've acquired. We also need to further upgrade the game. While ensuring the normal output of previous games, we should concentrate our efforts on launching a phenomenal game to break the deadlock."

"Yes."

"In terms of animation production, the production committee model is gradually becoming unsuitable for the current industry development. To achieve further improvement, a new model is needed. With the support of RER's other businesses, we can adopt a more profitable approach instead of doing the hard work that other animation production companies do."

Kobayashi Sora nodded. "Solely owned?"

"This way, we can preserve as much profit as possible and avoid a situation like 'Your Name'." Grandpa Kobayashi knew Kobayashi Sora's temperament well. "Seeing others make money is more painful than losing money for you, right?"

"That should have been mine to begin with."

“…I’m warning you,” Grandpa Lin suddenly remembered something, “You’re not allowed to give Lanlan a loan.”

Kobayashi Sora: "...Of course not."

Chapter 884 Sole Produced

In terms of Ran Kobayashi's education, the Kobayashi family basically had one person make the decisions in front of the child, while the two of them discussed things behind her back.

Even if Kobayashi Sora wanted to do lending, Kobayashi Megumi would never agree.

Besides, Kobayashi Sora had no reason to do that.

Unlike when he was a child, Ran Kobayashi did not use his pocket money to challenge his elders for their daily wage.

Kobayashi Sora brought the topic back, "This time, 'One-Punch Man' seems to be a good opportunity. Kashiwagi Eri and I jointly hold the copyright, which can save a lot of money. In addition, the production team is top-notch. Once the animation is completed, it won't be us who need the TV stations to broadcast it, but the TV stations who need the broadcasting rights. It will be easier to negotiate with the TV stations."

"You always seek stability in your work, which is a good habit," Grandpa Lin sighed. "But when you have complete confidence, you tend to act recklessly and arrogantly, which is something you need to be careful about."

"I understand." Kobayashi Sora was aware of her problem, but it was difficult to completely avoid such a habitual issue.

Both his personality and his way of doing things are somewhat extreme.

He doesn't care what others think or do as long as he can achieve his goals.

There are two main reasons why it hasn't crashed.

On the one hand, he was capable enough in the early stages, and the situations he encountered were not complicated. Most things were under his control, and even if he pushed others to the edge, he could handle them properly.

On the other hand, although the situations he encountered later were more complicated than before, his style of doing things had been greatly adjusted with the help of Kobayashi Megumi. Coupled with the improvement of his personal abilities and the growth of his companions, he was able to handle problems well even if they arose.

That's why he handed over the position of president to Kobayashi Megumi.

He has a way of dealing with any situation, and these methods, after being adjusted by Kobayashi Megumi, become more acceptable and effective.

If Kobayashi Sora were still the president today, RER would inevitably be under immense pressure.

As a secretary, Megumi Kobayashi could only adjust, not control, the atmosphere at RER.

Now, as president, Megumi Kobayashi is learning from Sora Kobayashi's previous style, expressing her thoughts and attitudes as much as possible, and guiding RER towards a more friendly atmosphere.

Kobayashi Sora, on the other hand, learned from Kobayashi Megumi in the past, minimizing her own presence as much as possible, becoming a trump card and a fuse to ensure that RER could develop steadily and positively under Kobayashi Megumi's guidance.

Now that Kobayashi Megumi and Kobayashi's grandmother are chatting, Kobayashi Sora's somewhat extreme behavior, no longer restrained by Kobayashi Megumi, naturally reveals a little of it.

Kobayashi Sora pondered seriously, "Will the resistance increase?"

"From the initial advertising revenue sharing model to the current production committee model, it has undergone a considerable period of transformation. During this process, many people have tried new models, and quite a few have used the production committee model. But it wasn't until the huge success of *Neon Genesis Evangelion* that the production committee model became widespread." Grandpa Kobayashi pointed out the key point: "Do you want to be *Neon Genesis Evangelion*, or cannon fodder before that?"

"From the advertising revenue sharing model to the production committee model, it's about moving from a few people making money to everyone making money, sharing risks while increasing revenue and reducing costs, yet there's still such great resistance." Kobayashi Sora realized the seriousness of the problem. "From the production committee model to sole proprietorship, it's about moving from everyone making money to only making money yourself. If you lose money, you lose it all; if you make money, everyone hates you. It's even more difficult."

"The One-Punch Man manga has impressive sales figures and a sizable guaranteed audience. Moreover, the subject matter and content of the work mean that there are relatively few sharp controversies that limit its audience. Coupled with the stellar production team, it is indeed a good pilot project for sole-financed production." Grandpa Kobayashi paused for a moment. "But it is precisely because the production team is so stellar that too much attention is focused on this work. If we try to sole-finance this work, many people may mistakenly think that we are trying to subvert the current model of everyone making money and that we are trying to monopolize the profits."

"That is indeed my thought."

"Then we absolutely can't let anyone see it." Grandpa Kobayashi tapped the table lightly. "Choose an original work with a simple premise, one with minimal fight effects, a short production cycle, and low costs to maximize cash flow. Ideally, we should be able to recoup our investment and even make a profit just from the broadcasting rights. Let other animation companies with limited capital and financing options see the feasibility of this sole proprietorship model and start experimenting on a small scale, secretly supporting a few reputable companies. Once large companies with substantial financial resources start producing their own sole proprietorships, then we can follow suit and produce our own animations independently."

In this way, although the results cannot be seen in a short period of time, the conflict and confrontation with the existing industry model are avoided to the greatest extent.

“I understand.” Kobayashi Sora said knowingly, “We were just trying to produce something independently, and we didn’t expect it to become so popular. Everyone in the company was surprised and didn’t expect the response to be so good.”

“If you didn’t say it like that, maybe some people would believe you,” Grandpa Lin said sternly. “Stop thinking about being innocent after getting a good deal.”

"Yes." Kobayashi Sora replied casually, after all, it was only the beginning, and whether the plan could proceed smoothly depended on the preparations to come.

Creating content always involves a degree of risk; before the anime officially airs, no one can be certain of the final reception.

Who would have thought that one dragon equals two widths?

By leveraging the risk-sharing model of the production committee, investors can pre-invest in a dozen or so works, some of which may become hits. If one of these hits becomes extremely popular, the revenue from that successful work can cover the costs of the other investments.

Even if an investment fails, you won't lose much; if you're lucky, you can make a fortune.

If it's produced solely by the company... the risk would be too great.

However, for RER, the combination of Eriri and Kasumigaoka Utaha has already minimized the risk, not to mention the trump card of Akane Kousaka and rising stars like Izumi Hashima. Coupled with the revenue from games, manga, and virtual idols, even if they lose money, there won't be a major financial crisis.

Or rather, continuing to produce under these conditions using the committee model would be a huge waste of RER's existing resources.

After all, animation is a labor-intensive industry, and animation companies don't really make money just by making animation.

"There's something even more important," Grandpa Lin said, ending the previous topic, "has everything been arranged for Lanlan Elementary School?"

"Yes, it was all arranged a long time ago." Kobayashi Sora looked in her daughter's direction. "That was fast."

Chapter 885 The Amusing Story of a Baby's First Birthday Ceremony

Generally speaking, children should start first grade in the first April after turning six.

Applications for admission are typically accepted around September of the previous year, and admission notices are usually sent out in January of the year of enrollment.

Ran Kobayashi's birthday is in January. If she starts school at six years old, she will be younger than most of the children in her class.

I postponed starting school for a year due to various considerations.

No matter how much it's postponed, Ran Kobayashi is old enough to start elementary school.

This April, Xiaolin Lan will go from being a kindergarten student to a first-grade elementary school student.

Kobayashi Sora looked at Kobayashi Ran, who was sharing orange pudding with her mother, and murmured softly, "How did it go by so fast..."

He still remembers when Lin Lan was a little over one year old, she would cry loudly if he just broke a cookie in half and handed it to her. In the blink of an eye, she has learned to share her favorite pudding with her mother and grandmother.

Grandpa Lin glanced at him and said, "You'll have to repeat this sentence many times in the future."

Kobayashi Sora smiled helplessly, "There are quite a few now."

"Don't use the time you should cherish now to reminisce about the past." Grandpa Kobayashi patted Kobayashi Sora's shoulder. "Remember what she looks like now, and tell her about it slowly later."

"When I was little..." Kobayashi Sora's gaze drifted into the distance, "I must have been quite annoying, right?"

"Hmm?" Grandpa Kobayashi asked in confusion.

"Lanlan is so cute, but she can sometimes make me feel annoyed." Kobayashi Sora guessed, "I must have caused you a lot of trouble when I was little, since I'm such an awkward child."

"You..." Grandpa Lin said somewhat absentmindedly, "You were always very sensible when you were little."

"Really?"

“You would listen to whatever we said, but you never said anything.” Grandpa Lin recalled the past. “It always felt like you had your own things to think about, and most of the time your responses to us were just perfunctory.”

"I don't remember anything about it."

“We were very distressed at that time. On the one hand, you were an obedient and good child, but on the other hand, we felt that we didn’t have much communication with you.” Grandpa Lin leaned back in his chair. “I even checked and found that you were not switched at birth.”

Xiao Lin Kong Qing: "..."

"Then there was one time, just that one time, you didn't listen to us." Grandpa Lin tilted his head. "Do you still remember your first birthday celebration?"

Kobayashi Sora tapped her forehead. "No, but I remember Lanlan picked up a game controller during her first birthday celebration."

When Xiaolin Lan was born, her grandmother helped with the ceremony.

Before the first birthday celebration, children undergo a ritual to cleanse their mind and body, symbolizing the seriousness of the ceremony. Then, they draw lots, symbolizing their hopes for the child's future. After that, they touch the "scallion door," a paper sliding door with scallions hanging on it, hoping that the child will be intelligent and clever in the future.

In addition, I also need to carry a liter of cakes.

A "one-liter cake" is a large cake made from one liter of glutinous rice. It is wrapped in cloth to make a bundle for children to carry on their backs, symbolizing that they will have an endless supply of cakes throughout their lives, and that the children will grow up healthy and have no worries about food and clothing.

The cake is round and flat on both sides, symbolizing a peaceful and fulfilling life.

Moreover, a liter of cakes is quite heavy for a child, and they can't climb more than a few steps while carrying it, which implies that the parents hope that their child will not travel far away when they grow up.

After carrying it on their backs, they must step on it, praying that the child will be grounded and move forward with determination.

Finally, there's the "first birthday celebration," where various items are placed in front of the child, who is allowed to choose one, in order to predict the child's future development.

Nowadays, people don't completely believe in the "first birthday celebration" tradition; it's more of a unique way to celebrate the first birthday.

“You were only one year old then. I even took out a cash bill from my wallet and exchanged it for coins. If you had grabbed the money, you would have grabbed a lot of money.” Grandpa Lin paused. “When we let you grab anything at random, you disobeyed for the first time. You are usually very obedient.”

Kobayashi Sora shook her head. "How obedient can a one-year-old child be...?"

Grandpa Lin put it simply, “He hardly ever cries. He only calls when he’s hungry, then sleeps after eating, and just stares blankly when he wakes up. His daily routine is also very regular.”

"..." Xiaolin Kongqing understood why Xiaolin's grandfather was uneasy. If a one-year-old child could do these things, while the parents would feel relieved, they would inevitably feel that something was wrong with the child.