Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh, Caledonia Suite.

"You bought all the property rights of Harry Potter for 45,000 pounds?, a tiered royalty for overseas distribution, with a minimum of 7%?" Zhang Chen flipped through the agreement that Xie Lier brought back, and said expressionlessly.

"Yes, I went to her house and consulted with her the contract of Bloomsbury, which only stipulated the distribution rights of this Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the Commonwealth countries, and there was no agreement on other rights, and there was no prohibition clause. To avoid surprises, I also called Fiona, a partner at Brystaus Law Firm, for a consultation. Here's Rowling's signature, and if you think it's okay, sign it and you're ready to go. Cheryl Sandberg smiled.

Although she was not very proud of her victory in the first battle, Cheryl Sandberg still gave herself a high score of 99 points in her heart, and the remaining one point, of course, was afraid that she would be too proud.

In terms of efficiency, it only took four hours, from meeting to finally negotiating the agreement, and printing and signing, all the work was completed. For an hour, she waited for a lawyer friend in the UK to send her a formal agreement, and Cheryl was very satisfied with her efficiency.

As a result, it only took £45,000 to achieve this goal, buying all the copyright rights of Harry Potter except for the British domestic distribution rights, and the royalties of one pound per copy are far below the industry average of 15%, can there be a better result?

"Annie, prepare the car, Cheryl and I are going on a trip. Zhang Chen lowered his head and thought about it, and said something to his life assistant.

Cheryl Sandberg had a smile on her face all the time, going out?

In August, due to the high latitude, even though it is already past eight o'clock in the evening, Edinburgh is still bright, and under the sunset, this small town full of medieval atmosphere is covered with a golden coat, and even the green lawn is particularly dazzling.

"Cheryl, you just said you went to Joanne Rowling's house, did you remember the address?" Zhang Chen asked as he got into the car.

"7 Longen Street, Leith District, on the ground floor. Cheryl Sandberg was a little surprised, "You're going to see her?"

Zhang Chen smiled, nodded, instructed the driver, and stopped talking.

Cheryl was a little dissatisfied in her heart, what do you mean? Aren't you still satisfied with this result? You want to talk about it yourself?

Edinburgh is a small city, only three or four kilometres from Princes Street to Ron Street, and it didn't take long for the car to stop in front of a three-story apartment.

The environment of this apartment is good, and the community environment of many so-called high-end communities in China after 20 years may not be better than this apartment. Pushing open the door of the apartment, there is a five- or six-meter-long corridor, and on the left hand is the apartment rented by Joanne Rowling.

Zhang Chen rang the doorbell, and it didn't take long for the apartment door to open a crack, and a blonde woman in her thirties appeared in Zhang Chen's sight, with doubts in her eyes: "Who are you looking for?"

Cheryl flashed out from behind Zhang Chen, "Joe, it's me, this is my boss, he wants to meet you in person." ”

Joanne Rowling didn't expect that this fair-eyed Asian young man was actually the boss of Cheryl Sandberg, so she hurriedly opened the door and ran from the living room to deal with a three or four-year-old girl, her eyes blinking.

"Sorry, it's just me and Jessica, it's a mess in the house. Joanne Rowling said embarrassedly, and then a little worried, "Is there something wrong with the agreement?"

Zhang Chen looked at Rowling's living environment and couldn't help but shake his head, not because Rowling's living environment was too poor, but because he lamented that chicken soup was harmful.

Before Harry Potter became famous, the divorced J.K. Rowling was poor, living in a cramped apartment, with neither heating nor air conditioning, and in order to keep warm, so he went to a café to write, and this story is almost well-known in the country.

But after Zhang Chen came to Rowling's house, he found that although Rowling is indeed very poor, the living conditions of the people are not bad at all, and there is no air conditioning, which is because the temperature in Edinburgh is very low all year round, and there is no need for air conditioning at all, but there is definitely heating.

Moreover, the apartment rented by Rowling has a usable area of at least 60 square meters, where is it narrow? If this is narrow, how can you let those snail dwellers in the imperial capital of the demon capital live in the future generations?

People not only have a living room, a bedroom, but also a special study, the door of Rowling's bedroom is open, and you can see that the big bed is at least 1.8 meters, and she and her daughter have no problem rolling on it.

Of course, Edinburgh is a small city and is located in the poorest north of the UK, and if you were in a big city like London or Manchester, the low-income allowance of £69 a week was really not enough to rent an apartment.

Rowling took Zhang Chen and Cheryl to the living room, cleaned up the messy sofa, and let the two sit on the sofa, while she moved a chair and sat opposite.

"There are some issues with the agreement, so I'm going to talk to you in person. I'm the CEO of Tindersource Capital, you can call me Zack. Zhang Chen touched Jessica's head and took out a small Winnie the Pooh from his arms.

Joanne Rowling's expression darkened, and she smiled reluctantly: "Is it because the price is too high? I can promise to write at least five books, a total of one million words." ”

Cheryl Sandberg was hesitant, if Zhang Chen still felt that this price was too high and wanted to continue to lower the price, it would be too much.

Let's not mention that this is disrespectful to myself, and I don't mention that Rowling is a single mother, which is very difficult, just say that Harry Potter is an excellent work, as long as there is enough publicity, even if it is only released in the United States, it can also earn a lot. If this is the case, Zhang Chen still feels dissatisfied, and blindly squeezes Rowling, which is too black-hearted.

A wave of disappointment welled up in Cheryl Sandberg's heart, maybe it was a mistake to join the Tinder Source herself.

Zhang Chen smiled: "Ms. Rowling, you misunderstood, Harry Potter is a very imaginative work, I like it very much." So, I don't think some of the things in this agreement are unfair to you as an author. ”

Rowling was stunned when she heard this, and couldn't help but look at Cheryl Sandberg on the other side, but saw that the other party was also at a loss.

Zhang Chen turned his head to Cheryl Sandberg and said, "I'm sorry, Cheryl, you made you a villain, your negotiation work is very good, and the agreement is very rigorous." Forty-five pounds for a thousand words and 10%-7% overseas royalties are fair enough for the average work. You can do everything so well in such a short period of time, and seriously, you're the best assistant I've ever met. ”

"But Harry Potter is an excellent, no, should I say great work. Zhang Chen turned his head and stared at Joanne Rowling, "If I only give such conditions for a great work, I will be ashamed of my vision." ”

Joanne Rowling barely believed her ears and waved her hand: "Great? no, no, it's just a children's book." ”

"That's why it's great. Zhang Chen stared at Rowling word by word.

"You use fantasy writing to build a fantasy magical world for every child, and this fantasy world is so real that every child who reads this book has more good memories of childhood and adolescence. More importantly, each of them can feel the greatness of love from this work, and it can also let them know how valuable qualities are bravery, kindness, and self-perseverance, and let them understand that no matter what time, they should not lose hope for the future. ”

"So, I hope that more people, more children, can see your work, even if your work only makes a child's childhood better, which is a kind of greatness. Of course, this also requires you to be able to continue to maintain such a level of creativity in your subsequent works, and you need to invest more resources in publicity and promotion. ”

Joanne Rowling really didn't expect Zhang Chen to have such a high opinion of the book she wrote, and her mood was like an online author hearing that her work was going to be bought out of copyright and film and television, both excited and apprehensive, "This, this is just a story I've always wanted to write... ”

Rowling was surprised, and Cheryl Sandberg was no less surprised than Rowling, "Zack, are you going to increase the royalty transfer price and royalty ratio?"

What's the matter, is this a fan meeting? Isn't it good to talk about business?

Rowling looked at her hopefully, but the British reserved made it difficult for her to open her mouth to ask Zhang Chen what his conditions were.

Zhang Chen smiled: "Under the condition that the scope of copyright transfer remains unchanged, I have two plans, Ms. Rowling, you can choose it." ”

Rowling nodded quietly, and Zhang Chen said calmly: "One, the copyright transfer fee has been increased from 45,000 pounds to 100,000 pounds, and the royalty ratio has been increased from seven to ten percent to ten to fifteen percent, I just said, this is a great work, I think it is worth the price, if you agree, I can write the check now." ”

Rowling was so excited that she almost screamed, the ratio of the pound to the dollar is now about 1:1.66, and the purchasing power of the pound is extremely strong, and it is considered the most expensive currency among the world's major currencies. Now it's just £100,000 to buy an apartment near the University of Edinburgh.

In other words, as long as Rowling agrees, she will be able to get the $160,000 in an instant and get out of poverty in one fell swoop!

The letters OK were almost blurted out, and Rowling heard Zhang Chen continue: "The second plan, the copyright transfer fee is still 45,000 pounds, and the royalty ratio is the same as the first plan. Hearing this, Rowling felt a little disappointed in her heart.

"But. Zhang Chen paused and looked at Joanne Rowling, "I can give you ten percent of the income from the property rights of other works." ”

Rowling was confused, isn't writing a book just a copyright transfer and royalty sharing?

"Can you explain?" Rowling couldn't help but ask, and although she was now more inclined to the first option, she couldn't help but want to ask what this other benefit was.

Zhang Chen smiled: "Of course, for example, if you play Harry Potter's radio drama on the radio, then this belongs to the category of broadcasting rights adaptation rights, and you can get some of the benefits." For example, if you make a game based on Harry Potter, you can get a part of the revenue from the transfer of the game's copyright. ”

Rowling sighed in disappointment, both of which seemed too illusory to her, and it was still possible to change them into radio dramas, but the benefits would not be too high. As for games, she had never touched them, but she couldn't believe them if they could add up to more than £50,000.

As soon as she wanted to say that she chose the first plan, she heard Zhang Chen say again: "Actually, these are not the main ones, the main benefits are in film and television." ”

Rowling was blinded for a moment, "TV series?"

Zhang Chen shook his head, "Movie." ”

Joanne Rowling was really blindsided, she never thought Harry Potter would be made into a movie. This is a magic book, and both the magic and the scenes in it are difficult to reconstruct in reality. Joanne Rowling has seen special effects blockbusters like Terminator and Jurassic Park, but the investment in this kind of film is at least tens of millions of dollars. Harry Potter needs to use a lot more special effects and scenes than these films, even if computer technology is changing with each passing day, investment is absolutely indispensable, will anyone really make this movie?

Zhang Chen smiled: "When Harry Potter is influential enough, I hope to bring it to the screen." Now computer effects have been able to make the impossible possible. James Cameron is filming "Titanic" using a lot of computer special effects, and can even recreate the thrilling shipwreck of the year. I believe that in a few years, the fantasy world of Harry Potter will be brought to life, and I believe it will be a great success at the box office. And Ms. Rowling, you can also get more benefits from film and television. ”

"Now, you can make a choice, A or B?" Zhang Chen looked at Rowling quietly.

Joanne Rowling picked up the glass of water on the table and took a sip to hide her excitement. She was really moved by what Zhang Chen said, every writer hopes that their works can be displayed more intuitively in front of readers, and making movies is undoubtedly the most effective means.

"I don't know how to make movies, but I know it costs a lot of money. Rowling still couldn't believe that her book by five authors, who had sold only five hundred books, could be made into a movie, and besides, did the teenager in front of her really have the financial strength to do so?

Cheryl Sandberg could see that Zhang Chen wanted Rowling to accept the second plan, she knew that Zhang Chen was very optimistic about the future of Harry Potter, but she didn't understand why Zhang Chen chose a plan that was completely unfavorable to her and recommended it to the other party.

"Joe, Zack is now the youngest billionaire in the United States, and you know iCom? Zack is the founder of this company. If he's willing to invest, I don't think funding will be an obstacle, no matter how big the production is. Whether she doubts it or not, as a qualified assistant, it is her duty to help her boss achieve her goals.

The relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom has been unstructured and chaotic, and the iCom craze has long since reached the United Kingdom, and although Rowling has no interest in computers, she has seen information about this acclaimed personal computer in various news.

Rowling looked at Zhang Chen again in disbelief, originally she thought that Zhang Chen was the heir to a family business, but she didn't expect that this young Asian in front of her was actually a self-made billionaire.

Billionaire, the word is too far away from oneself.

"I'll take the second option. As soon as the words came out, Rowling almost thought that she had gone crazy, and was it a bit too big to bet fifty-five thousand pounds on this future?

————————————

"Thank you, your restaurant is unique. Zhang Chen smiled and thanked the waiters at Palermo No. 1 Restaurant.

"This is the worst Michelin restaurant I've ever had, with nothing but dessert and plating. I thought English food was already hard to eat, but I didn't expect the food here to be even worse, so I really didn't want to tip. After the proud waiter with a bow tie left, Zhang Chen couldn't help but complain.

Cheryl Sandberg was a little preoccupied and smiled reluctantly.

Zhang Chen snapped his fingers and asked the waiter to pour two glasses of Glenfarclas for 25 years, except for a few whiskies from single malts, most of the whiskies were actually mixographies, which were different from red wines. While vintage is important, it's not always the case that older the vintage, the better. Zhang Chen is not so keen on whisky, so he does not pursue the so-called ultimate taste.

"In Scotland, you still have to drink whisky. Zhang Chen raised his glass to Cheryl and drank the wine with ice cubes.

Cheryl only took a shallow sip, "Zack, I don't understand why you took the initiative to raise the purchase conditions. Although Harry Potter is an excellent work, it is unknown whether Rowling will be able to maintain this level of creativity in the future. Cheryl Sandberg couldn't help but ask Zhang Chen about her doubts.

Zhang Chen smiled: "Cheryl, do you know how much it costs for us to come to Edinburgh?"

Cheryl Sandberg was stunned for a moment, and Zhang Chen smiled: "Two hundred thousand dollars, this is just the travel cost of this trip, if you count the time cost, it will only be higher." ”

"Would I spend such a high cost to make a 50,000-pound business?" Zhang Chen poured himself another glass of wine. "Cheryl, this business is essentially a venture capital, you can try to think about the pros and cons with the thinking of a venture capital, maybe there will be new ideas. ”

Cheryl Sandberg thought thoughtfully: "I seem to understand something, but I can't say it clearly, can you tell me about it?"

Great English is great, great, outstanding, excellent can all use this word, a little weaker than the greatness of Chinese.

In '98, Harry Potter's U.S. distribution rights were auctioned for $105,000, and Rowling said she was "so excited that she almost died" when she received the money.

Don't scold and send money, I am also an author, and I can't bear to squeeze JK Rowling, who is also a creator.

(End of chapter)