Chapter Sixty-Four: How Will This End?

Seeing that Chen Qi was unwilling to say more, Zhao Qingqing did not press the issue. After thinking briefly, she said, "Of course, that's not a problem. If you really have a good project, I can help facilitate this cooperation."

"Alright!" Chen Qi smiled and nodded. "I'll organize my thoughts when I get back and contact you in a few days."

Zhao Qingqing nodded slightly, then asked curiously, "Are you short on manpower and equipment?"

From her understanding of him, unless he happened to lack those things, he would not have taken the initiative to invite them to collaborate.

"I'm short of everything." Chen Qi looked at her sincerely, without a hint of embarrassment.

Zhao Qingqing looked at him, amused and exasperated, then suddenly recalled something and ventured, "So, does that mean you originally joined Blueprint just to make quick money? Did you use the startup funds for this drama from what you earned at Blueprint?"

"Yes," Chen Qi admitted freely, as it was nothing to be ashamed of.

Zhao Qingqing was surprised yet again.

If he were given enough funds and matching resources, would he be able to produce even better works?

Thinking this way, she found herself genuinely looking forward to Chen Qi’s innovative idea for his program.

"Alright, I'll wait for your call," Zhao Qingqing said.

The two then exchanged phone numbers, and Chen Qi took his leave.

Before leaving, he made a point to ask about the airing time for "Unexpected." Zhao Qingqing told him that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, it should go online at eight o'clock tonight.

Generally, unless it was a major drama requiring early publicity, small-scale productions like this were usually uploaded to the server the same day they were purchased.

...

Leaving Simple Video and walking onto the street, Chen Qi turned back to look at the building, feeling quite pleased.

If nothing unexpected happened, he should be able to secure a partnership with them.

This could truly be called a legendary alliance of strength.

"Tsk!" Chen Qi clicked his tongue in mild frustration.

He had forgotten to ask Zhao Qingqing whether Simple Video or YouYou Video held a larger share of the market.

He had no other motive—just pure curiosity.

Based on his experience today, Zhao Qingqing’s capability, execution, market sensitivity, and keen insight were all clearly superior to Hong Youcheng at YouYou Video.

With such an analysis, shouldn’t Simple Video occupy a greater portion of the market?

After letting his thoughts wander for a while, Chen Qi shook his head to clear away the clutter and dialed Xu Bunian, informing him that "Unexpected" had been sold to Simple Video for half a million and would likely be online tonight.

Like Chen Qi, Xu Bunian was not particularly sensitive to industry market prices, so he had little reaction to the figure. He was not surprised that Chen Qi managed to sell it to a major platform like Simple Video.

Though "Unexpected" was visibly rough in production, its solid content made it perfectly reasonable for it to be sold.

At the end of the call, Xu Bunian made sure to tell Chen Qi that Zhao Qingqing had been inquiring about his background.

Upon hearing this, Chen Qi was momentarily startled, then simply smiled, unfazed.

Since there was a plan for a deeper collaboration, it was only natural for her to look into his background.

Based on today’s interaction, Chen Qi felt quite at ease with Zhao Qingqing—she had ability, vision, and the necessary caution. All things considered, she should make an excellent partner.

At that moment, he was unaware that Zhao Qingqing was facing a moderate but troublesome issue.

...

At the same time Chen Qi left Simple Video, Zhao Qingqing began the internal process for putting "Never Expected" online.

She encountered a minor complication.

The initial steps for online release went smoothly, but she ran into resistance when applying for a homepage recommendation slot.

Since Zhao Qingqing's current position was still content procurement, her authority was limited, and many decisions required approval from the current content director.

For reasons unclear, the director felt that giving a homepage recommendation to a short drama totaling only an hour was a waste.

He refused.

Even after Zhao Qingqing argued the pros and cons and praised the drama to the skies, the director remained unmoved.

He simply did not believe in the drama.

He thought its brief duration would not make much of a splash.

Worse yet, upon learning she had spent half a million on her own initiative to acquire it, his anger exploded. He berated her loudly, right in front of the entire department.

"This kind of lousy drama? You paid five hundred thousand? Are you out of your mind?!"

"Look at this shoddy production! The scenes are so simplistic it's outrageous, and the voice acting is cheap! Five hundred thousand for this?!"

"Zhao Qingqing, what's wrong with you!"

The director was furious, his voice so loud it seemed to echo through the entire building.

Zhao Qingqing stood opposite him, her expression calm and silent.

Nearby, her colleagues pretended to be busy, not daring to look over.

They were on the verge of tears!

One was a director, the other a manager—couldn’t they take their divine quarrel behind closed doors in an office? This was so awkward and uncomfortable for everyone!

What made it worse was that nothing like this had ever happened before. No one knew why the director had erupted as if he’d been provoked.

Only upper management knew Zhao Qingqing was set to be promoted to director next month. The others had no idea; otherwise, someone might have risked seeking fortune in the chaos.

"Give me the recommendation slot, and I'll prove whether it's worth the price," Zhao Qingqing said calmly, her mood seemingly unaffected by his tirade.

"Impossible! Isn’t the loss already great enough? You want to waste one of my recommendation slots too?" the director nearly roared in refusal. "Zhao Qingqing, who gave you the authority to squander company assets like this?"

Zhao Qingqing looked at him with a sympathetic gaze and quietly said, "The general manager."

The director’s pupils contracted sharply at her words.

All the eavesdropping colleagues were also struck by shock, their faces contorted.

Then, silence fell.

The entire floor seemed to freeze into a quiet so deep one could hear a pin drop.

The director stared at her, utterly stunned, his expression a masterpiece of disbelief.

All the anger he had so painstakingly worked up vanished without a trace.

Now, only one thought remained in his mind.

That damned woman... she actually went over his head!

In front of so many people—how could he possibly save face now?