Chapter 377 - 376: I Have a Friend

Not to mention, the entertainment industry was a very lucrative business to begin with.

"I’m listening."

Yun Zijin sat up straighter. If the project Chen Chuan described could move her, she wouldn’t mind putting up some money for an investment.

"It’s like this..."

Chen Chuan quickly began to brief Yun Zijin on the project’s details.

The gist of it was that he had a director friend who’d gotten his hands on a script he was thrilled with. But because his friend was just an unknown, small-time director, he couldn’t secure any funding.

So now, they had the director and the script, but the cast and filming locations hadn’t been decided.

This was mainly because there was no investment. Otherwise, they would have already started casting.

"I’ll have to see the full script before I can decide whether to invest."

Yun Zijin might have a lot of money, but she was no fool who’d throw it away.

From Chen Chuan’s description, his friend was a talented but unrecognized soul who now needed Yun Zijin to give him a hand.

But the world was full of talented, unrecognized people. Yun Zijin didn’t lose her head just because Chen Chuan was deliberately playing the pity card.

"Of course! I’ll call him right now and have him send me the script."

Of all the investors Chen Chuan had approached, Yun Zijin was the first person who hadn’t rejected him outright.

He had read parts of his friend’s script, and from his professional perspective as an industry insider, he believed it could win awards if filmed well.

"Sir, your Wangyou Milk Tea.

Boss Yun, Boss Qin asked me to bring this to you."

The employee first served a cup of Wangyou Milk Tea to Chen Chuan, then placed the other cup from the tray in front of Yun Zijin.

"Alright, please thank Boss Qin for me!"

Yun Zijin knew that Qin Sitong had seen Chen Chuan’s Wangyou Milk Tea being served and had someone bring her a cup as well.

Otherwise, she would have had to just sit there and watch Chen Chuan drink his milk tea the whole time. Just thinking about how awkward that would be was cringeworthy.

"You’re welcome."

After delivering the drinks, the employee turned with the tray and headed back to the counter to continue serving other customers.

"My friend... he often doesn’t check his phone, so it might be a little while."

Chen Chuan stared at his WeChat screen, which remained stubbornly void of any new replies. Feeling a bit awkward, he quickly offered an explanation to Yun Zijin.

Yun Zijin nodded in understanding.

Because Chen Chuan’s friend was taking so long to send the script, the atmosphere between the two of them suddenly became strained.

"This might be a bit forward, but if the script does catch your eye, Miss Yun, do you have a budget in mind for the investment?"

Chen Chuan was really putting his heart and soul into pitching for his friend.

"That depends on the script."

Scripts of different genres require different budgets.

A fantasy series, for example, would definitely need a lot of money for good special effects.

Whereas a historical or serious drama would require much less than a fantasy series.

In any case, Yun Zijin had a rough idea of how much to invest in different genres.

Chen Chuan gave a dry laugh. Of course he knew the investment amount depended on the script; he was just running out of things to say and trying to break the ice.

He just hadn’t expected Yun Zijin to be such a conversation killer.

Just then, Chen Chuan’s phone chimed. He quickly opened it and, sure enough, saw a reply from his director friend.

"Miss Yun, would it be convenient for me to add you on WeChat? I can transfer the script to you."

"You can."

Yun Zijin presented her QR code to Chen Chuan and quickly pulled it back as soon as he had scanned it.

Soon, Yun Zijin received the script sent over by Chen Chuan.

"I’ll take a look."

Yun Zijin opened the file and began to read.

Chen Chuan didn’t disturb her, simply waiting quietly as she read the script.

But he was still on edge. ’After all, everyone’s tastes are different. Just because my friend and I think the script is good doesn’t mean Yun Zijin will feel the same way.’

The script was quite long. Ten minutes passed by the time Yun Zijin had finished reading the whole thing.

For those ten minutes, Chen Chuan had been on pins and needles.

"I’ve finished the script."

Yun Zijin put down her phone and looked up at Chen Chuan.

"So... what’s your decision?"

Chen Chuan felt his heart leap into his throat.

"To be honest, the genre is quite niche. As far as I know, none of the blockbuster hits have been in this genre."

Before giving her final verdict, Yun Zijin pointed out the script’s shortcomings.

Hearing her say that, Chen Chuan’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

The last rejection he’d gotten was for this very reason: the genre was too niche.

"However, I think the plot is handled very well. If it’s filmed with care, anything is possible."

After all, it wasn’t unheard of for an underdog series to overcome all obstacles and become a dark horse in the ratings.

"So your decision is?"

Chen Chuan felt like he was about to have a heart attack if Yun Zijin kept drawing things out like this.

"I can invest, but since the genre is so niche, it’s a high-risk investment. I can’t offer a lot.

This much." Yun Zijin raised her right hand and made an "OK" sign.

"Three million?"

Yun Zijin had said she couldn’t give much, so he didn’t dare guess too high, but too low didn’t seem right either. He compromised with a guess of three million.

"Of course not. What could you even film with three million? That’s not even enough to cover the actors’ salaries.

I can invest thirty million under my personal name. However, I want to be involved in the entire casting process."

No matter the film crew, there were always people trying to shoehorn in actors with connections. What Yun Zijin wanted to do was to keep all of them out.

Of course, if they had genuine talent, it wouldn’t matter if they had connections.

But when Chen Chuan heard her words, alarm bells started ringing in his head.

’An investor wanting to be involved in the whole casting process... she isn’t planning on forcing her own people into the production, is she?’

Thinking of his friend’s stubborn personality, Chen Chuan felt another headache coming on.

"When you say you want to be involved in the whole process, you mean..."

"This is my first time investing in a film crew, so I’d like to see how it works in person. But don’t worry. As long as there are no issues of principle, I won’t interfere with your casting decisions."

Leave professional matters to the professionals—Yun Zijin had no intention of randomly meddling in the casting.

Hearing Yun Zijin’s words, Chen Chuan’s heart finally settled a bit.

As long as she wasn’t going to be some know-it-all pointing fingers, he wouldn’t mind if she followed the entire production from start to finish, let alone just the casting.

"The casting is a collaborative decision anyway. If you have an opinion, you’re certainly welcome to voice it. As long as it’s reasonable and within the rules, we’ll do our best to accommodate your requests."

Within reasonable limits, Chen Chuan was willing to satisfy Yun Zijin’s requests.

Yun Zijin remained noncommittal. In any case, thirty million wasn’t a huge sum of money for her.

"Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Since this is an investment, we’ll definitely need a contract. We should find another time for everyone to meet and sign it."

After speaking, Yun Zijin looked at Chen Chuan.