Chapter 24: All the Students of North Electric Are Now Within My Grasp

Although Fang Hong admitted he wanted it, his words were well-phrased, and Wang Ran felt their rightful rights had been respected.

Wang Ran said: "My girlfriend and I have discussed it—since you want to film it, we'll give you the novel."

"This…"

Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi exchanged a glance and said: "That wouldn't be right!"

Chen Zhixi was far smarter than Liu Tianxian; she chimed in: "We don't have much power right now—think carefully before you decide."

The subtext was: we have no money—don't mention money!

"We've thought it through clearly—we've decided to give it to the Principal to film, and it's not about money, it's just…"

Wang Ran couldn't articulate the feeling—it was like-mindedness, a sense of recognition.

As for money, he didn't care much; both he and his girlfriend came from decent families.

"I understand what you mean. You say that, and I feel my pressure has increased a lot," Fang Hong said, his expression troubled on the way.

Seeing him like this, Chen Zhixi covered her mouth, barely holding back her expression—she thought Fang Hong was too good at acting.

He'd completely fooled that young couple into total devotion!

Earlier, Fang Hong had told her he wanted to film "Those Years," and had asked her to save money and write down the contact details of equipment rental companies.

He also told her to write down the names of the crew behind "Those Years," so next time they could invite them directly—this would save tons of prep time and let them start right away.

In other words, Fang Hong had already anticipated filming "Breakup 33 Days"—yet now he was pretending.

"Principal, are you being put in a difficult position?" Wang Ran asked.

"First, thank you for your trust!"

Fang Hong clasped his hands together, then said: "It's not difficult—I'm just afraid I'll film it poorly and betray your trust."

"It's fine—whether it's good or bad, we accept it," Wang Ran said, holding his girlfriend's hand.

Bao Jinjin picked up the signal and nodded vigorously, supporting her man's decision!

"Alright then, since you all say so, I'll take it—but I'll need to wait a while, until this movie is released, before I can spare the energy." Fang Hong said.

"We don't care when it's filmed," Wang Ran said.

"Good!" Fang Hong gestured: "I'm shallow in knowledge—please, Senior Sister Bao, handle the screenplay adaptation."

"Me?!" Bao Jinjin pointed at herself.

"Yes, you're a literary genius and the original author—no one's more suited to adapt the screenplay." Fang Hong said.

"Listen to the Principal—he wants you to adapt the screenplay," Wang Ran told his girlfriend.

Bao Jinjin nodded in agreement: "Alright!"

"Then go back for now—once the agreement is drafted, Producer Chen will bring it to you for signatures."

Fang Hong added: "Signing the agreement isn't because I don't trust you—it's just that rules must be followed. If you don't follow them and I don't follow them, everyone will plagiarize, and this game won't work."

"Cough! Cough!"

Chen Zhixi could no longer hold back— all three turned to look at her, thinking she had something to say.

"Sorry, I just have a dry throat—want to drink some water. Keep talking," she rubbed her throat.

She had truly seen how powerful this man was—his words carried praise, and he delivered it so naturally that it satisfied their vanity.

And he had the audacity to say plagiarism was shameful—where did he get that courage?

Getting something for free is also a skill!

"I understand—signing the agreement is necessary," Wang Ran had no objection.

The agreement must be signed—what if, when the movie makes money, there's a dispute over the split?

Fang Hong didn't distrust the young couple—he was just preventing problems before they arose.

Of course, he wasn't going to withhold payment—if the movie made money, he'd share profits with them; this was about his reputation in this small circle, necessary to attract talent.

But if it flopped? Then there was nothing he could do!

If you don't even have food for yourself, how can you care if others eat?

The young couple left, and Fang Hong and Chen Zhixi saw them off.

When they returned, Chen Zhixi asked curiously: "How did you manage not to laugh?"

"Why should I laugh?" Fang Hong countered.

"You tricked them so thoroughly—and you're completely at ease?" Chen Zhixi said again.

"What trick? I just temporarily used their value—if we make money, I'll pay them. What's wrong with that?" Fang Hong spoke as if it were self-evident.

"Is it really not wrong?" Chen Zhixi asked.

"How do real estate developers operate? They take buyers' money before the building is even finished. If they can do it, why can't I?" Fang Hong spoke with righteous indignation.

Holy shit! Chen Zhixi's scalp went numb—even with her brilliant mind, after this torrent of logic, she had no reply.

"Fine, I can't argue with you!"

Chen Zhixi conceded, then asked: "But I'm curious—you love plagiarism, so why are you going through all this trouble to get the copyright now?"

When he first showed her "Those Years," he just copied it outright, never caring about copyright—but now, this time, he went to great lengths to secure the rights.

"First, I declare—I don't like plagiarism, and I haven't plagiarized."

Fang Hong now firmly denied it, determined to clear his name: "Second, sometimes reputation matters more than money."

The adaptation rights for "Those Years" were unobtainable!

And due to our limited strength and team capacity, we needed a guaranteed hit to build on before resorting to copying.

Now that we can get the rights, why would we still do such a thing?

Chen Zhixi was very smart and understood his meaning.

Indeed, they were just starting in film production—without scripts or funds, extreme measures were necessary; now, winning people's trust and building a team was equally necessary.

She asked: "If 'Those Years' fails, can we still film 'Breakup 33 Days'?"

In my dictionary, there is no such thing as failure.

Fang Hong stopped walking and pointed at her: "Confidence is the most basic element of success. Don't undermine my confidence."

Damn, just like Liu Tianxian, always saying things that knock him down—he sometimes fears failure too!

Rebirth isn't invincible!

Chen Zhixi felt ashamed; he was always giving others confidence, while she occasionally sapped it.

Fang Hong hadn't taken two steps before turning back to add: "When drafting the agreement, give that young couple 5% of the box office profits."

At 5%, if the box office stays the same as in his past life, they'd get roughly four million yuan.

That's far better than the 150,000 yuan he got in his past life!

Four million yuan—no screenwriter in China currently earns that much; even the top ones get at most a few hundred thousand!

Especially box office splits—only those with the right status can enjoy them.

The domestic film and television industry has never valued screenwriters!

Fang Hong gave that young couple such a split to further buy bones with gold.

Previously, he relied on goodwill and personal charm; now he must rely on money and profit—only then can he draw all the students of Beijing Film Academy into his fold!

After chatting with Chen Zhixi, Fang Hong returned to the editing room to oversee post-production.

He leaned back in his chair and said to Yu Xian: "Old Yu, have you finished your graduation short film yet?"

The Photography Department also needs to make graduation short films and can collaborate with the Director Department.

"Not yet. You keep asking me to do this and that—when do I have time to shoot?!" Yu Xian said.

He'd never been this busy in his entire life!

"I've got a script here—go shoot it. Consider it a joint project between us." Fang Hong pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it over.

(End of Chapter)