Giacchino, who was busy composing songs for "Pirates of the Caribbean," couldn't refuse the boss's request, even if he was swamped with work. He could only smile bitterly as he helped her transcribe the music.
In reality, he didn't want to take on this task. Every time the boss came up with a whim to compose music, it felt like a malicious attack on his soul. This time was no exception. What troubled him the most was that not only could she write English songs well, but her Chinese songs also sounded so good.
Great songs transcended boundaries; even if you didn't understand the lyrics, you could still be captivated by the beautiful music. Giacchino's love and talent for music were undeniable, and he could tell that his boss had created another excellent song while listening to it.
"Boss, appearing before me at this time makes me think you're not satisfied with my music creation," Giacchino complained while working on the composition.
Laila raised an eyebrow. "When did I ever express dissatisfaction? You're doing a great job."
Well, she had to admit that she had no idea what kind of music he had composed for other movies, but she could confidently say that his work for her films had always been of high quality.
"After listening to your songs, I feel like my previous compositions are like chewing gum that's lost its flavor after an hour."
Laila couldn't help but chuckle. "Then, get a new pack of gum and try a different flavor. You can also change things up a bit."
Giacchino laughed wryly and, despite thinking she was joking, suddenly stopped his work. He stared at her with a thoughtful expression. Why not create songs in different styles if his previous ones had lost their appeal?
He grabbed Laila's hands and shook them vigorously. "Boss, that's an excellent idea! I think I have a new inspiration!" With that, he hurried back to his workstation and got busy again, not even finishing the composition he had started.
Laila watched him in amusement as he left her hanging and returned to his work. She wondered if he thought he was getting paid too much and wanted her to deduct some of his salary or if he felt that his position was too easy and wanted more challenges. Or perhaps he thought she, as the boss, was too inconspicuous?
She knew that once inspiration slipped away, it might not be easy to recapture it, so she left the half-completed composition behind and quietly left the room.
Being a boss like her was truly pitiable.
On her way back to her office, before she even entered the elevator, she overheard some conversations coming from the nearby break room.
"The boss is really interesting. Every movie she makes ends up making just 300 Million. Do you think she'll never make a 300-million-dollar movie, as some people are speculating?"
"Yeah, I didn't notice it until I saw it in the newspaper."
"I was browsing online at home, and there were jokes about the '300 Million Director' everywhere on the forums. I tried to defend the boss a bit, but I got laughed at too. It's so annoying."
Laila listened to the chatter of her secretaries in the break room, her brow furrowing. She couldn't believe that even after several days, the topic of the so-called "300 Million Director" was still circulating, and now her employees were involved in it.
It seemed that the person behind this didn't want the topic to die down. But that person must be incredibly bored. 300 million dollars! Why didn't anyone see it as an impressive record? In all of Hollywood, you could count on one hand the number of directors who had achieved her level of success. Why were they so fixated on making fun of her?
Just as Laila was about to head back to her office, she heard Demi's stern voice coming from behind the wall.
"That's enough! Don't you have any work to do? I have a lot of files that need to be organized. If you have nothing to do, you can help with that!"
"Huh? Come on, Demi sis!" The secretaries pleaded.
"We were just chatting for a bit, didn't say anything bad about the boss."
Demi snapped, "Not saying anything bad about the boss isn't enough! She's already worked hard enough, and if she hears more of these things, it'll just be more trouble. Instead of chatting here, why don't you work harder? Blah blah blah..."
"Got it." The secretaries left the break room, looking a bit dizzy from the scolding.
Laila chuckled as she watched them scurry out one by one. In the two-plus years she had been with the company, Demi had come a long way from being just a decorative secretary to becoming a professional assistant. She had truly grown as a person.
However, the title of "300 Million Director" did irritate her. No matter how she heard it, it just didn't sound right. It was $300 million! Why didn't anyone see it as a remarkable achievement? But apparently, her thoughts had already infiltrated the secretaries' minds.
Demi asked with curiosity, "Is there anything you need, BOSS?" as soon as she entered the break room.
Laila, standing by the window with a teacup in hand, smiled at her. "I just came up from downstairs and made some tea along the way. Would you like a cup?"
"I'm fine!" Demi hurriedly declined, not daring to let the boss serve her. Besides, she wasn't particularly interested in tea; she preferred coffee. "I left something here," she added hesitantly, pointing towards the spot behind Laila.
Laila glanced behind her and saw a folder on the table. She picked it up and handed it to Demi. "Any interview invitations recently?"
"Huh?" Demi was momentarily surprised. "What kind of interviews are you looking for?" It was quite unexpected that the boss, who disliked interviews, would ask for them. Besides, the new movie wasn't scheduled for release until next summer; it was a bit early for promotion.
Laila thought for a moment. "I'm looking for influential media outlets—newspapers, magazines, and television."
"You've received numerous interview invitations as always. If you're interested in accepting interviews, how about 'Entertainer'?"
Laila sipped her tea to conceal her inner embarrassment. It seemed her employees had picked up on her intention to keep all the good opportunities for herself.
However, Demi's suggestion was a good one. With Laila's growing influence, "Entertainer Newspaper" had seen a significant increase in sales. Even NBC's ratings had risen due to her reality show ideas, taking up more airtime than other TV stations.
"Arrange two interviews for me. I have some things I want to say."
"Of course." Demi noted down her boss's request on her memo pad and then asked curiously, "What should they interview you about?"
"The '300 Million Director,'" Laila replied.
Upon hearing the answer, Demi's face turned beet red. She swore that the boss must have overheard her scolding the secretaries earlier. This was truly embarrassing!