Chapter 143: The Male Lead Who Walks Through the Door: Jingwei Fills the Sea

"……Yan Zong, 'Water Moon Grotto' will air sequentially this month on the Guangxi TV drama channel, Hefei City TV in Anhui, and Fuzhou City TV in Fujian."

"We'll send you the viewership data and related materials via email."

"The two Sichuan and Guizhou satellite channels are coordinating a June satellite premiere; we're trying to secure a summer slot."

"We've arranged a screening of Tang Ren's 'Dandelion' for Hunan TV; we'll update you on any progress."

"Following your instructions, we contacted six terrestrial channels for 'Detective Di Renjie,' but only two have shown interest—the rest are still watching."

"…"

Yan Li held his phone, listening to Xiao Guan, head of Yi'an's marketing department, report, nodding occasionally and giving instructions.

"Keep pushing 'Water Moon Grotto' on terrestrial channels—Zhou Yi's name still works. If ratings are good, more TV stations will want to buy it."

"I'll personally coordinate with those two satellite channels on the premiere date—June is fine too. Once we build awareness, we can replay it heavily; kids are home during summer vacation, and daytime markets matter just as much."

"You're fully in charge of 'Dandelion'—try to break even; if you can't, I'll step in."

"Don't rush 'Detective Di Renjie'—it has no name recognition yet, so it's hard to break through. Wait until CCTV airs it first—that's when your work begins."

"…"

"I'll return to Beijing in a few days—we'll discuss details then."

Yan Li ended the call and once again marveled that he hadn't made a mistake hiring this marketing head.

He was highly efficient, meticulous in execution, and skilled in sales—having him as an assistant saved Yan Li considerable effort.

But as Yi'an's distribution projects multiplied, Xiao Guan alone couldn't handle it all; Yan Li considered hiring or promoting two deputy directors.

It would ease Xiao Guan's workload and provide some balance.

Suppressing such a capable professional was foolish—but failing to guard against him was even dumber.

Rebellion or betrayal was too far-fetched; Yan Li feared Xiao Guan quitting or being poached.

Many in marketing were Xiao Guan's people—if he took a few key staff, half the department could collapse.

Yan Li didn't want to suppress Xiao Guan, but with the company's rapid growth, he could recruit and expand the team—marketing would still be under Xiao Guan's command, but no longer reliant on him alone.

"Being a boss isn't easy."

It sounds simple: know people well, use them wisely, reward and punish fairly, then control the whole picture.

But once you have a hundred people, they're all different—coordinating between department heads and teams gets messy.

Knowing people well—how do you uncover talent? How do you deploy them? How do you avoid misjudging?

What's the precise standard for reward and punishment? How do you make everyone truly convinced?

All of this Yan Li had to figure out bit by bit.

Fortunately, he'd been playful since childhood, involved in various groups, and had some experience—plus his quick mind and the system's help—so despite some bumps, overall things had gone smoothly, with no major blunders.

Any recent college graduate without similar experience would inevitably make mistakes or be fooled.

Next door to Yi'an's office building was another startup, also run by young people; reportedly, the boss was a graduate of a top university and worked in internet tech.

A tiny company of fewer than thirty people, open less than three months, nearly a dozen employees had quit—it looked like their boss was about to drive it into the ground.

When Yan Li felt slightly lost, he'd sometimes stroll by that company's entrance—his confidence would instantly rise.

He managed a company of dozens, crews of hundreds—all running smoothly.

He was damn brilliant!

If he'd lived in ancient times, Yan Li might have emulated Liu, Cao, and Zhu—the pioneers of real entrepreneurship—all from Huaihai, who'd fear whom?

…

On April 12, with the final shot filmed, 'Seven Fairies' officially wrapped.

Yan Li didn't skimp—he booked a high-class wrap party to thank and reward every crew member.

At the wrap party, as producer, Yan Li inevitably faced a barrage of toasts.

Male and female actors, along with department heads, all came to toast him, hoping for future collaborations.

After the wrap party, the cast and most crew disbanded, returning home; only a few remained for post-production tasks.

Such as handling used props, costumes, and sets; returning rented hotels, equipment, and machinery; and organizing footage for post-production.

Yan Li stayed in Wu for two days, sorted everything out, and handed responsibility to Wang Decai.

Then he left the film city with Dong Xuan—but along the way, they parted ways.

Dong Xuan returned to Beijing; Yan Li went to Shanghai to negotiate the 'Immortal Sword Legend' contract with Tang Ren.

As previously mentioned, Cai Yinong's goal was risk-sharing, not strong collaboration; her funding wasn't tight.

So Yan Li didn't push the price down too hard, but secured other advantages.

'Immortal Sword Legend' had a budget of 18 million; Yan Li took a 35% stake for 6. million.

But payment terms were extended: 'Immortal Sword Legend' must be distributed by Yi'an, and Yi'an must share in the drama's copyright as a co-producer.

Tang Ren had no major objections to the stake, payment schedule, or distribution—but refused to share copyright.

The reason was simple: 'Immortal Sword Legend' had more than one game—its second and third installments had already been released last year.

Neither Tang Ren nor Yan Li were fools—they anticipated that if the drama succeeded, sequels would follow.

If copyright disputes arose, combined with the existing games, things could get messy.

They'd spent a day and a half arguing over copyright.

In the end, because Cai Yinong lacked Yan Li's confidence in the project, she agreed to Yi'an co-holding the TV rights; in return, Yan Li conceded on payment terms and distribution splits.

"Cai Zong, happy cooperation."

Yan Li smiled and extended his hand; Cai Yinong shook it, her expression faintly troubled.

"Yan Zong, now I understand how you got Zhou Yi to agree to such a good contract."

In this negotiation, Tang Ren gained little advantage—the copyright was split, distribution shares reduced, and Yan Li, as investor, still profited.

This Yan Li was young, but excelled at reading people during negotiations.

No matter who controlled the pace, he'd slowly probe the other side's limits, then close the deal just below their bottom price.

Although Tang Ren wasn't truly at a disadvantage, the feeling of being outmaneuvered left Cai Yinong frustrated.

Are 80s kids this aggressive now!

Yan Li didn't care—he'd won the negotiation; let them be jealous. He was used to it—few people left negotiations still in good spirits.

After signing the contract, Yan Li didn't leave Shanghai—he immediately met with Shanghai Satellite TV about 'Seven Fairies.'

They were interested in the drama and willing to co-broadcast with other stations.

Hunan TV's exclusive price was steep; after tasting the benefits of co-broadcasting with 'Water Moon Grotto,' Yan Li wanted to do the same for 'Seven Fairies.'

Multiple satellite channels sharing costs and risks meant looser pricing and easier negotiations.

But getting TV stations to cooperate wasn't easy.

They were competitors—how to make them collaborate? How to prevent them from colluding to pressure the producer? The difficulty was high, far more complex than negotiating with one station alone; Yan Li was feeling his way forward.

But if successful, profits would be higher, and simultaneous broadcasts across multiple satellite channels would rapidly expand the drama's reach.

After several days in Shanghai, with some progress made, Yan Li flew back to Beijing—where he received an unexpected message.

"You want me to act?"

Yan Li stared at his secretary Hu Ya, then quickly recovered.

"Any roles like rapists or gangsters—reject them outright."

'Heroes of Sui and Tang' was airing strongly, performing well, even cracking the top three ratings in several regions.

When a drama succeeds, its characters and actors gain visibility—including Yan Li.

Yan Li had received his first acting offer before.

He'd been slightly excited—since his debut, every role had been fought for himself; this was the first time someone saw him as raw talent.

But when he saw the details, his excitement dropped by half.

A Republican-era drama—he was cast as a villain who raped the protagonist's sister, then joined bandits and was killed by them.

Probably the director—or someone—saw his performance as Yuwen Chengdu in 'Heroes of Sui and Tang,' liked it, didn't know his background, and sent the offer blindly.

This hurt Yan Li.

He had a decent appearance and decent acting—Yuwen Chengdu, aside from that queue scene, had many suitable roles—he was being reduced to the lowest common denominator.

So as an actor, Yan Li was now in a awkward position.

Those who knew him well didn't dare offer him ordinary roles—perhaps they assumed he wouldn't accept them, so they didn't approach him.

Those who didn't know him had incomplete information—they offered minor, bizarre roles.

Fortunately, Yan Li didn't rely on acting paychecks—if he did, he couldn't even afford his mortgage.

"Not those roles—lead male role."

Secretary Hu Ya explained, leaving Yan Li stunned: "Lead male? Me?"

But Yan Li was genuinely intrigued—whether he'd accept or not, this was his first-ever lead actor offer.

"What's the drama?"

"'Jingwei Fills the Sea'—Hou Yi, directed by the same director as 'Water Moon Grotto,' and the female lead is reportedly Shu Chang."

Yan Li didn't understand how Jingwei filling the sea had Hou Yi as the male lead—but he was even more confused why they'd pick him.

He had self-awareness: his appearance and acting were decent, but he had no fame.

Of course, some dramas cast unknowns as leads—but they always had prior contact or multiple auditions; no one just sent an offer out of the blue.

Yan Li suspected this 'Jingwei Fills the Sea' crew might be using the search for a male lead as a cover to attract investment.

He'd heard about this from Liu Xiaoqing during the 'Seven Fairies' shoot.

Liu Xiaoqing had money; a crew once offered her the female lead.

Everything went smoothly—until after filming began, the crew claimed they were broke and asked Liu Xiaoqing to invest more.

Liu Xiaoqing thought the film crew seemed pretty good, so she paid up and successfully switched from lead actress to investor.

Yan Li asked himself: between being valued by the crew and being tricked out of his money, he chose the latter without hesitation.

"It's all just Taolu."

Yan Li shook his head and told Hu Ya to turn down the role.

————

PS: Really sorry, my eyes are terribly dry; taking a day off. I'll make up with ten thousand words over the next three days.

(PS: Don't worry that updates are getting later and fewer—this book's momentum is still good; I'm still aiming for ten thousand subscriptions. As long as I'm physically fine, I won't slack off.)

(End of chapter)