Chapter 311: DreamWorks and Transformers!

Today, we merely had a casual chat at the theater, and everyone showed sincere intent to cooperate.

Formal cooperation will be discussed in an official setting; Wei Ming and Weber agreed to meet at the company tomorrow.

Every successful musical requires massive funding, countless rehearsals, and involves numerous personnel—it must be handled with the utmost care.

On the way back to the hotel, Wei Lingling wanted to say something to Melinda but held back, while Melinda also found it hard to speak openly in front of Wei Lingling.

"Xiao Ming, come in with me," his aunt called him into her room after going upstairs, eager to have a heart-to-heart talk.

"What exactly are your plans with Melinda? Are you thinking of getting back together? Do you plan to marry? Are you really comfortable handing over such an important company to her?"

Wei Ming shook his head: "We have no intention of getting back together. After all, neither of us would give up the country we grew up in for the other, and she has no plans to marry either—she was raised in a single-parent household without knowing her father's identity, and influenced by her mother, she rejects marriage. As for me..."

Wei Ming paused: "I do yearn to build a family."

His hesitation was a reflection on his past life; since he was given a second chance, it only made sense to live differently.

"As for entrusting the company to her, I'm certainly not fully at ease—I hope the two of you can co-manage it together."

"Do you think I'm that idle?" Wei Lingling crossed her arms, seemingly unwilling to take on extra work.

Wei Ming immediately hugged her arm: "Dear aunt, you understand law, she understands stories—you two together would be a perfect match. And I'm not asking you to work for free—I'll pay you a salary, or you can take a cut from every copyright deal. We can negotiate all of it."

"Do you think I'm short on money?" Wei Lingling scoffed.

"Then tell me what it would take for you to help your own flesh-and-blood nephew," Wei Ming pleaded.

Wei Lingling suppressed a smile and thought for a moment: "If you can help me create a toy as popular as a Rubik's Cube, I'll consider it."

Because of her contract with Macmillan Publishers over "Rubik's Cube? Anyone Can Play," Wei Lingling had her first concrete understanding of the sales figures behind this globally popular puzzle game.

Now, wanting to expand her toy factory, she needed a flagship product—so she decided to squeeze her clever nephew's brain.

"Hmm, I'll think about it," Wei Ming said, looking troubled.

"Then think about it," Wei Lingling said. "When you come up with something, I'll provide you with free legal support for your company, and even serve as its North American representative—no problem. For now, go check on Melinda next door; she probably has something to say to you too."

"Alright, Aunt, rest up."

Wei Ming then went to the next room. The living room was empty; Melinda was soaking in the bathtub.

"Did you finish talking with your aunt? What did she say?"

"A high achiever, a bit too disdainful to play along with our little games," Wei Ming said casually, stripping off his clothes and stepping into the tub.

Melinda: "What if we went big instead?"

"Who?"

"You, me, and Wei Lingling!"

"How?"

Melinda said: "Actually, before today, I'd considered starting my own business in publishing and media."

Wei Ming was surprised: "Publishing isn't a high-profit industry—it requires heavy investment, yields low returns, and demands sharp judgment. Who gave you the courage to strike out on your own?"

"You did," Melinda wrapped her arms around Wei Ming's neck. "Your talent, your aunt's wealth, and my extensive industry experience and connections—my mother and grandmother were both veteran publishing editors."

"My talent is obvious, but how did you know about your aunt's wealth?"

"You didn't notice?" Melinda was taken aback. "When we first met, the earrings she wore were from Graff's classic line—worth no less than one hundred thousand pounds. That series isn't sold individually; besides the earrings, there must be a necklace and rings too—altogether, a fortune. A girl like that must come from a powerful or wealthy family—or both."

Wei Ming recalled: his aunt's earrings were indeed beautiful, shimmering—but he'd never imagined they were so valuable; he'd thought they were plastic.

Of course, Wei Lingling couldn't have afforded them herself—they were a gift from Wei Ming's great-aunt on her coming-of-age ceremony.

Melinda deduced: "If she can wear jewelry this expensive, your background must be extraordinary too. And in business, background matters—whether in China or abroad. Later, I saw her formidable professional skills, and that's when I formed this idea."

"First, let me disappoint you—my family and my aunt's are quite ordinary, just with a few wealthy relatives," Wei Ming changed tone. "But your proposal excites me."

He'd originally only planned to set up a company to handle overseas copyright development and earn some foreign exchange simply. Melinda, however, envisioned something bigger: a full media company.

With this, an IP could be developed from publishing to film and television, and then to merchandise—all in one chain, even tying in Wei Lingling's toy factory.

A hot toy? He knew plenty. But making just one type of toy explode in sales was extremely difficult.

To sell well, toys needed more than a genius invention like the Rubik's Cube—they required a story, and thus depended on animation, film, or even video games.

Hearing this, Melinda realized their relationship might change: they wouldn't just be ex-lovers anymore, but comrades in the same trench.

Wei Ming stood up after soaking a while: "I'm getting to work."

His strength wasn't management—he was a creator. He wasn't sure how reliable Melinda's abilities were, but his most trusted ally was still his aunt, Wei Lingling. After all, in his past life, she'd been a successful businesswoman—educated, capable, well-connected, with many brilliant case studies in corporate warfare.

So now, his first task was to pull his aunt onto their ship.

A creative global blockbuster toy? Wei Ming pulled out his ever-present paper and pen from his backpack and got to work.

Melinda watched Wei Ming scribbling furiously without interrupting—there was nothing more attractive than a man focused on his work.

Today, Wei Ming and Melinda called a truce. Wei Ming worked late, returned to bed, hugged the sleeping Melinda, and fell asleep—dreaming of aliens.

The next morning, Wei Ming ignored his erect flag and rushed to the next room with his manuscript.

"Morning, Xiao Ming," Wei Lingling yawned.

Wei Ming walked in and shut the door.

"Aunt, what's the most popular doll toy in America right now? I mean, the kind boys play with." "Boys?" Wei Lingling, having done research, thought and replied, "Probably G. . Joe—Hasbro's."

G. . Joe, also known as "Special Forces," was later adapted into a Hollywood film series, the first titled "G. . Joe: The Rise of Cobra." This toy line dominated the U. . market in the 1970s but began declining in the 1980s; Hasbro urgently needed a more exciting, novel toy to empty boys' wallets.

In 1983, Hasbro happened upon two toys at a toy fair—Takara's "Diaclone" and "Micronauts."

Their feature: they could transform between humanoid figures and vehicles.

Hasbro immediately recognized their market potential and partnered with Takara, introducing the toys to America after redesigning and repackaging them under the name "Transformers."

The toys were an instant hit, drawing orders from distributors nationwide, so Hasbro followed up with an animated series to boost popularity.

Later, this animated series "Transformers" was imported into China in the 1980s—becoming the beloved "Transformers" to a whole generation.

Wei Ming first showed Wei Lingling a picture of a red truck. She stared blankly: "Are you selling truck toys? Even battery-powered car toys aren't rare in America—Lanning Toy Factory even did similar OEM work."

Then she saw Wei Ming's second image: a towering, imposing red robot.

Robots were also a popular toy category in America, but too many companies made them—the competition was fierce.

Seeing Wei Lingling's confusion, Wei Ming smiled slightly: "Don't you see the problem with these two pictures?"

"Huh?" Wei Lingling compared them closely. Suddenly, her brow furrowed: "This robot is the truck transformed?"

"Clever!" Wei Ming praised. "It's called Optimus Prime—the leader robot from Cybertron. He has many subordinates and one archenemy, who also has many minions. I'm calling them all Transformers."

As Wei Ming described Optimus Prime and the Transformers, Wei Lingling's eyes began to gleam.

As a long-term immigrant in America, Wei Lingling knew how deeply rooted American car culture was—a place where without a car, you couldn't go anywhere; every teenager's dream adult gift was a car, even a used one.

So American car toys would always be a massive market.

And Americans, with little history, loved dinosaurs and aliens—this toy incorporated aliens too.

"Brilliant! Brilliant!" Wei Lingling exclaimed. "How did you think of this?"

Wei Ming: "When I got to Hong Kong and saw all the cars on the streets, I got some ideas. Yesterday, your pressure pushed me to develop this 'Autobot' concept—and I even made up a backstory for them."

Wei Lingling laughed: "Ha! That's why you've got to push yourself—you never know how much potential you have."

Wei Ming smiled: "Once I write out the story and draw a few more Transformers, we can license them to Lanning Factory for R&D and production."

"What about licensing fees?" Wei Lingling asked.

Wei Ming: "Aunt, you decide—I won't object even if you give me nothing. I've never met Great-Grandpa, but Grandpa told me of his unwavering patriotism, and Uncle Wei Lang died a loyal soldier under Japanese artillery. This is my tribute to Great-Grandpa."

Wei Lingling nodded approvingly: "Don't worry—I won't take it for free. We're not like some people."

Wei Ming had no reply.

He changed the subject: "This Transformer concept has some technical challenges—I'll draw the intermediate forms between truck and robot so you understand the transformation mechanism."

Maybe Takara in Japan is already developing something similar—so Lanning Factory must accelerate. If they can't produce it by next year, we'll just buy the patent from Japan.

Wei Lingling was again amazed: "You can even draw how it transforms?"

She'd thought Wei Ming just had a rough idea—she hadn't expected such detailed planning.

Wei Ming: "I lost a lot of hair last night. I racked my brain just to earn your mountain."

"Don't worry—I'll keep an eye on your copyright company."

Wei Ming shook his head: "It's not just a copyright company anymore—it's the embryo of a media company."

"What?!"

"We'll discuss details with Melinda later. We want you to co-found this venture—but at first, you don't need to do anything. Just provide legal support. You can focus on expanding Lanning Toy Factory."

Wei Lingling absorbed this and remarked: "You, coming from a socialist world, are starting a media company? Hmm."

Wei Ming smiled: "In our country now, entrepreneurship is encouraged—I'm just responding to the times. But this kind of company just won't work back home."

But they had little time left for entrepreneurial talk—they had a meeting with Weber that morning about "The Lion King" musical.

The budding media company could only be discussed in the gaps between negotiations.

Melinda still lacked sufficient experience in publishing, so she couldn't quit yet—she needed to complete the publication of Wei Ming's new works first.

Meanwhile, Wei Ming was gathering strength, preparing to present several heavyweight gifts for the new company's launch.

Melinda wanted the headquarters in Britain; Wei Lingling preferred the U. ., since its market was larger.

They compromised: the company would be based in the British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands in the Americas, serving both sides.

In 1978, the British government, in the Queen's name, issued a tax exemption decree for the Cayman Islands: any company registered there for less than twenty years paid only minimal stamp duty and no other taxes.

Additionally, companies didn't need to disclose shareholder information to authorities, only paying a $700 annual maintenance fee.

Thus, the prototype of a tax haven emerged.

In the following days in London, the three negotiated with Weber and his company over cooperation details while simultaneously preparing to establish the company in the Cayman Islands.

By the time Wei Ming signed the contract with Weber, the company had already been hastily formed—Wei Ming named it "DreamWorks."

A factory that creates dreams for children and fulfills dreams for adults...

(End of Chapter)