Chapter 008 You, young man, are quite wicked
Liu Shiqing waved his hand, "This is a lesson for us. It's better to trust those we know well; even if outsiders are close, in the end, it all comes to nothing. Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Now, the most important thing is to figure out how to stabilize them."
Li Ziran said, "If it had been before today, I could have guaranteed that Tingting and Fujia wouldn't engage in such harmful and unprofitable schemes, but their performance today disappointed me. Shiqing, since they're asking for a signature, why not differentiate the primary and secondary roles during the signing? You are the creator, and we can give them the title of assistants."
"This is not enough. They both need to guarantee that no matter what economic benefits this music score obtains, they cannot enjoy any material or monetary benefits, and must hand them over to you intact. Also, we can't let them sign for free. If this music score is really selected as the theme song for the Fog City Olympic Games, let each of them pay one hundred thousand Yuan as a signature fee. Right, they also need to make a promise that in any situation, when they talk about this music score, they must respect the truth, admit you are the creator, and they are just assistants. They can't overshadow you…" Zhang Songsheng added a harsh litany of terms under his breath.
Liu Shiqing chuckled, "Songsheng, with so many conditions, how can I bring myself to propose this?"
Zhang Songsheng said bluntly, "It doesn't matter if you're shy, isn't there still me? Brother's got a thick face, I'll go talk to them. If they disagree, then let's drop it. We won't send the music score to Fog City; we'll just release it on the Internet for public download. Then, the cunning plans they hope to hitch a ride on will totally fall through, infuriating these two unethical women."
Li Ziran grumbled, "Zhang Songsheng, how can you speak like that? Tingting and Fujia just asked for a bit too much, how does that make them unethical?"
Seeing the two ready to start arguing, Liu Shiqing hastily smoothed things over, "Alright, that's settled then. We'll do as Songsheng suggested. But a hundred thousand each is too lenient for them; shouldn't it be at least five hundred thousand?"
Liu Shiqing wasn't just shooting for the moon. He remembered watching an entertainment program on Southern Satellite TV, which invited various music companies and celebrities as guests who would auction original songs and decide their rights based on the auction results. He vividly recalled that most songs could scarcely fetch two or three hundred thousand Yuan, and it was rare to see any go higher; the record was around five hundred thousand. In other words, as the original creator of the music, one could only get about five hundred thousand. Other benefits had nothing to do with him.
Having a clear picture of the future influence of "Beautiful Galaxy," Liu Shiqing simply doubled the highest transaction price and shared the signature rights with Wang Fujia and Gao Tingting. By doing so, not only could he secure an early one million Yuan but it also wouldn't impact the future economic benefits from the song. After all, even if "Beautiful Galaxy" was successfully chosen as the theme song for the Fog City Olympic Opening Ceremony, the Olympic Organizing Committee would only award Liu Shiqing twenty thousand Pounds as a bonus. Compared to one million Yuan, it was significantly less, and it wouldn't affect the twenty thousand Pounds.
Zhang Songsheng stood there agape, "Damn, I thought I was cold-hearted, but here's someone even colder than me. Shiqing, being so ruthless even to beauties, you better watch out, or you might have trouble finding a wife in the future."
Liu Shiqing laughed, "Get lost, don't throw stones while living in a glass house. Songsheng, you take the lead, go talk to them. The conditions are just as you've mentioned, a million Yuan signature fee for the two, plus several other clauses. Right, also make it clear to them that not only their names should be added during the signing but also yours and Company Chief's names. Your names should appear ahead of theirs. They wanted the signature rights, didn't they? I'll make sure it sickens them."
Though he said this, Liu Shiqing still built up a defense in his heart because of Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia's demands. Everything related to the Signal Receiver absolutely must not be exposed to anyone. This time it was just a music score causing people to scramble for benefits; if more got out, wouldn't he be devoured whole?
Of course, if conditions were right, Liu Shiqing wouldn't mind developing and utilizing the Signal Receiver more deeply, but such development must keep its core benefits tightly in his own hands. Only then could he best preserve the secret of the Signal Receiver.
Zhang Songsheng chuckled, "You sly dog, I like it."
Li Ziran hurriedly interjected, "Liu Shiqing, isn't this inappropriate? Zhang Songsheng and I haven't contributed much, right?"
Liu Shiqing laughed, "It's just a song, right? If it really gets chosen as the theme song for the Olympic Games in Fog City, we'll have to go watch the Opening Ceremony live. It would be too lonely by myself, so it's the perfect excuse to have you two accompany me."
Li Ziran wanted to decline, but Zhang Songsheng straightforwardly said, "Class leader, don't be polite with Shiqing. If you don't take advantage of him, you're missing out. I'll go negotiate with those two women. Wait for my good news."
Zhang Songsheng pulled open the balcony door and excitedly rushed into the living room.
Li Ziran looked slightly awkwardly at Liu Shiqing, "I didn't handle things well today, Shiqing. I hope you won't hold it against me."
Liu Shiqing chuckled, "Class leader, don't worry. If I were to hold a grudge over such a small thing, Songsheng would come after me with a vengeance. But let's make it clear, from now on, if I need your help, you'd better keep your eyes wide open and make sure you don't let the wolf into the house again, making me lose troops and lose my wife."
Li Ziran laughed and said, "If the old class head finds out you're misusing idioms like this, he'd definitely grab you by the ears and drag you to his office for a good lecture."
Liu Shiqing and Li Ziran chatted idly for a while until Zhang Songsheng came running back, "Class leader, your two friends are really rich. As soon as I mentioned they should pay half a million each for the Signature Fee, they agreed without batting an eyelid. Damn, why are there so many rich people in this world?"
Liu Shiqing laughed, "Your family isn't too bad either. Your dad owns a food factory, so you're pretty much part of the rich kids' club, unlike me, a worker's child, and poor!"
"I despise you so much." Zhang Songsheng flipped his middle finger at Liu Shiqing, "Just keep playing the sympathy card here. If your dream song gets chosen, you'll be a millionaire instantly. And you call me a rich kid; you're the real deal!"
Liu Shiqing, Zhang Songsheng, and Li Ziran went back to the living room. Liu Shiqing signed an agreement with Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia, putting down all agreed terms in detail. Both Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia, coming from very wealthy families and not wanting to miss this opportunity, quickly signed their names and even added their handprints.
Afterward, things became much simpler. Liu Shiqing repeatedly hummed "Beautiful Galaxy," while Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia wholeheartedly dedicated themselves to recording and arranging the Music Score.
Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia were busy until nine o'clock at night. They finally arranged and wrote out "Beautiful Galaxy" according to their understanding and both played it, one on the Violin and the other on the Erhu. These two high school girls had some talent—the essence of "Beautiful Galaxy" was captured somewhat in their performance, certainly sounding a lot better than Liu Shiqing's humming. Of course, it was still far from the original piece. If listening to the original had been like wandering in the Galaxy, listening to their version was like dog-paddling in a narrow ditch.
The five of them went to an internet cafe where, in front of Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia, Liu Shiqing sent the Music Score with their signatures to the Olympic Organizing Committee's email.
As they left the internet cafe, Gao Tingting and Wang Fujia reached out their hands to Liu Shiqing, "Shiqing, if there's a chance for future cooperation, please be sure to include us."
Liu Shiqing shook each of their hands and smiled, "Of course, if I dream of a good song again, I'll definitely call you."
Gao Tingting, Wang Fujia, and Li Ziran got into a taxi and sped away. Zhang Songsheng aggressively spit towards the disappearing taxi, "Pah! What nonsense!"
Liu Shiqing put his arm around Zhang Songsheng's shoulder, "Come on, if I, the emperor, am not in a hurry, why should you, the loyal eunuch, be? Let's go to my place. I'll cook you some noodles."