ECG -Chapter 60 Gone Crazy for Money

After hearing this, Wei Yuan was startled. He hadn’t expected this rough-looking young man to be so meticulous. With just a few words, he had accurately guessed the other side’s conditions.

Just as Wu Xiaozhou was about to speak again, his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen—it was Lin Hao.

Nodding to Wei Yuan, he answered the call.

“Xiao Wu, you’re at the law firm?” Lin Hao asked.

“Yeah.”

“Any news from the defendants?”

“Yes.”

Lin Hao asked again, “Does it match what I predicted?”

“It does.”

Hearing the usually talkative Wu Xiaozhou reply with only one-word answers, Lin Hao knew he was still in the lawyer’s office. He said:

“Raise the price to 500,000 yuan. Everything else stays the same. Also, tell the defendants to watch tonight’s rebroadcast of the Young Singers Grand Prix on CCTV.”

With that, he hung up.

Wu Xiaozhou slipped the phone back into his pocket and smiled at Wei Yuan.

“Please pass along my message.”

Wei Yuan nodded.

Wu Xiaozhou said:

“If they want us to withdraw the lawsuit, that’s possible. But the compensation must be 500,000 yuan, and they must publicly apologize to Mr. Lin Hao through the media. Also, I suggest they watch tonight’s rebroadcast of the Young Singers Grand Prix.”

Wei Yuan shook his head.

How could that be possible?

Even if the lawsuit went all the way to court and they won, this would probably be the best outcome they could hope for.

This was hardly what anyone would call an out-of-court settlement.

After voicing his opinion, he saw Wu Xiaozhou chuckle.

“You can just relay it exactly as I said. The most important part is the last sentence.”

Wei Yuan froze.

He couldn’t understand why that final sentence was so important.

Still, since that was what the plaintiff’s representative wanted, all he could do was repeat it faithfully. He immediately picked up the phone and called back.

“Old Fang, it’s Wei Yuan.”

“Here’s the situation. The plaintiff’s representative is in my office right now. I’ve already conveyed your proposal, but they’ve rejected it and presented their own conditions.”

“They’re willing to withdraw the lawsuit, but they want 500,000 yuan in compensation and a public media apology to the plaintiff, Lin Hao.”

The person on the other end said something. Wei Yuan paused before continuing:

“We’re just responsible for passing messages. If you’re going to vent your anger at me, don’t expect any mercy the next time we drink together.”

“Oh, right. They also asked me to pass along one more message to the defendants.”

“Tell them they absolutely must watch tonight’s rebroadcast of the Young Singers Grand Prix on CCTV.”

“That’s all. I’m hanging up.”

Wu Xiaozhou and Fatty Meng stood up.

With perfect politeness, Wu Xiaozhou said:

“Lawyer Wei, sorry for causing you trouble. We’ll head back now and wait for your call.”

Wei Yuan quickly got up and escorted them out.

Dong Third Ring Road

Fenghua Fashion Audio & Video Media Co., Ltd.

19th Floor Conference Room

After hearing Lawyer Fang’s report, Jiang Datong laughed.

“You’re kidding me. Even if he wins the case, there’s no way I’d pay him 500,000 yuan! Has he gone crazy thinking about money?”

Lawyer Fang was puzzled as well.

“The other side specifically told us to watch tonight’s rebroadcast of the Young Singers Grand Prix on CCTV.”

“The Young Singers Grand Prix?”

Jiang Datong was stunned.

“It ended last night, didn’t it? I had a dinner engagement and didn’t watch it. Wasn’t last night the finals?”

A long-haired woman in her early thirties replied:

“President Jiang, there’s a rebroadcast tonight.”

Jiang Datong frowned and muttered to himself:

“The Young Singers Grand Prix… the Young Singers Grand Prix…”

Then he looked around the conference room.

“Who watched it last night?”

No one answered.

The room fell silent.

Lawyer Fang secretly shook his head.

The capability of Old Fu’s son-in-law was really mediocre. Among everyone here, only Zhang Yansong seemed halfway competent.

Jiang Datong slammed his hand on the table angrily.

“What kind of company are we? What kind of company?! What do all of you do for a living? How could nobody watch the Young Singers Grand Prix?”

Everyone lowered their heads.

He couldn’t be bothered to say anything more. These people had enjoyed a little success a couple of years ago and now wanted to live off their past glory. It seemed it was time to start making some reforms.

He waved his hand as if shooing away flies.

“That’s enough. Meeting adjourned.”

As they walked toward the elevator, Jiang Datong asked Attorney Fang, “What do you think they’re trying to do?”

Attorney Fang pondered for a moment.

“Just bargaining.”

Jiang Datong nodded in agreement.

East Third Ring Road.

Jingdu Fashion Villa District.

Jiang Datong canceled his evening engagements and returned home unusually early.

His wife, Fu Hongjing, came downstairs wearing a pink silk nightgown, her two pale and imposing legs swaying with each step.

“Well, well? Has the sun risen in the west today? How come President Jiang is home so early?”

Fu Hongjing’s voice dripped with sarcasm. As she exaggerated her facial expression, a slice of cucumber from the beauty mask on her face fell to the floor.

“Mhm.”

Jiang Datong said nothing. He was already used to her tone.

Back when he debuted at twenty-four, a single song had made him famous throughout the country. At the time, Fu Hongjing had been one of his fans. No matter which city he performed in, he could always spot her broad figure in the audience.

Many of the gifts and love letters he received came from her.

But how could he possibly have been interested in a woman five or six years older than himself?

Unfortunately, fame didn’t last.

Less than three years later, lacking any strong follow-up hits, Jiang Datong gradually faded into mediocrity within the entertainment industry.

Yet Fu Hongjing never gave up pursuing him.

He neither accepted nor rejected her, stringing her along all those years.

By the time he turned thirty, even the organizers of small commercial performances no longer wanted him. Just then, Fu Hongjing extended her olive branch of love once again.

Though he wasn’t completely destitute, after much deliberation, Jiang Datong decided he had no choice but to hold on tightly.

Fu Hongjing’s father was the famous “Fruit and Vegetable King” of North China.

Luxury villas and expensive cars were waiting for him.

Not long afterward, the two held a lavish wedding.

Later, he established Fenghua Fashion Audio & Video Media Co., Ltd. Fortunately, his former manager Zhang Yansong had continued helping him run the company; otherwise, it would have gone bankrupt long ago.

Fenghua Fashion was essentially a talent agency, handling singer management. In recent years, Jiang Datong had wanted to expand into music distribution rights, but nothing had materialized so far.

Not knowing when the program would air, Jiang Datong finished dinner and parked himself in front of the television.

Fu Hongjing had already fallen asleep on another sofa, snoring loudly while cucumber slices lay scattered across the sofa and floor.

After the 10 p.m. evening news, the rebroadcast of the National Youth Singing Competition finally began.

When contestant Han Ying appeared on screen and the subtitles displayed:

“Persistence”
Lyrics & Composition: Lin Hao

Jiang Datong’s face instantly turned pale.

At that moment, he understood why the plaintiff’s side had insisted they watch the competition finals.

Han Ying’s voice was unlike anything currently heard in the music industry.

The song itself was also an exceptional work.

When Han Ying ultimately lifted the Gold Award trophy, Jiang Datong immediately called Attorney Fang.

“Sorry for calling so late. Attorney Fang, did you watch it?”

“I did.”

Jiang Datong lowered his voice.

“I’ll have to trouble you to speak with them again. Five hundred thousand yuan. They withdraw the lawsuit, and both sides issue statements saying it was all a misunderstanding.”

“At the same time, Lin Hao must sell us two additional songs. Together with Father, we’ll sign a paid copyright transfer agreement.”

Attorney Fang thought for a moment.

“If Han Ying hadn’t won the award, that price would probably be acceptable, but…”

Jiang Datong laughed.

“Didn’t you say it yourself? It’s just bargaining.”

“Alright.”

After hanging up, Jiang Datong couldn’t help sighing.

This young man was truly formidable.

There was a gap of more than twenty years between them, yet somehow he had been led around by the nose.

Five hundred thousand yuan!

The thought made his teeth itch with hatred.

How long would it take him to earn that money back?

And Sun Xiaowei—that idiot! Why had he ever signed him in the first place?

Now he could only pray that the other side wouldn’t demand an outrageous amount.

As long as he could spend some money to erase the stigma of plagiarism, all his previous investments could still be recovered.

And if he could buy two more songs in the process, Sun Xiaowei would then have three original works under his name.

That alone could continue generating profits for the company for several more years.

Looking back, signing Sun Xiaowei to an eight-year management contract had been a wise decision.

For the first three years, profits were split 90-10 in favor of the company. Since agencies invested heavily in developing new artists, contracted singers were entitled to only ten percent of the profits during that period.

But every time he thought about that 500,000 yuan, his heart bled.

Then he comforted himself.

For a well-known songwriter in the industry, five hundred thousand yuan was merely the price of a single song.

Lin Hao had just won a Gold Award at the singing competition. Buying three songs at that price should still be considered reasonable.

The only question was whether that little fox would agree.

Now everything depended on Lin Hao’s response.

If the kid didn’t know what was good for him…

Heh heh…

Then Jiang Datong wouldn’t hesitate to play dirty.