“Our leader is not bad, but he’s a bit aloof. He was a college student in the 1950s and is very cultured, so his attitude towards individual business owners outside is inevitably…” Cui Lili gave Fang Qiao a knowing look.
"I see."
In the early days of reform and opening up, people's attitudes had not yet changed. Everyone still wanted to be a cadre or a worker, and they looked down on self-employed individuals, thinking that only unemployed people would become self-employed.
For many people, even a homeowner's home isn't a second-best option.
"But don't worry too much. I've already convinced our leader. As long as you say a few nice things to him when you see him later, he won't make things difficult for you."
"Okay, thank you for telling me all this."
Cui Lili smiled, lowering her voice, and said, "Of course, it's mutually beneficial."
The two exchanged a knowing smile, their understanding unspoken.
Fang Qiao smiled and said, "How about this, I'll treat you to dinner after everything is done."
"Okay, okay."
Fang Qiaosi, knowing that young girls like to pursue novelty, suggested, "Do you like Western food? There's a new Western restaurant that recently opened in the city, and it has a pretty good reputation. How about I treat you to Western food there sometime?"
"You mean the one across from the department store?" Cui Lili asked with a look of surprise.
Fang Qiao nodded.
"Wow! That's great! I've wanted to go for so long, but the food inside is too expensive. It would cost me half a month's salary to go once, so I haven't been able to bring myself to go!" Cui Lili jumped up happily, took Fang Qiao's arm, rested her head on her shoulder, and promised, "Sister Qiao, you're so kind. Don't worry, I'll definitely handle this perfectly for you."
As they spoke, the two had already reached the door of the leader's office.
Cui Lili released Fang Qiao's arm, straightened her hair and clothes, coughed lightly, and said seriously, "Report."
"Come in." A refined male voice came from inside the office.
Cui Lili pushed open the door and led Fang Qiao into the office.
"Good afternoon, Director Chang."
"Ms. Fang, this is Director Chang, the leader of our film studio."
"Director Chang, Ms. Fang Qiao is the factory manager of Formula Clothing Factory that I mentioned to you. She came to discuss cooperation with us."
Director Chang has regular features, wears a white shirt and gold-rimmed glasses, and his hair is neatly combed. Although he is almost forty years old, he looks very young, like he is just over thirty.
Upon hearing this, he put down the newspaper in his hand, raised his eyelids, and glanced at Fang Qiao.
Upon seeing Fang Qiao's face, Director Chang's eyes flashed with amazement. He carefully examined her features with admiration and suddenly asked, "Comrade Fang Qiao, right? You have a very beautiful face and excellent features, suitable for the big screen. Would you be interested in coming to our film studio to make movies?"
Before Fang Qiao could speak, Cui Lili interrupted with a laugh: "Director Chang, Comrade Fang Qiao is a college graduate who is going to become a high-ranking official in the government. He wouldn't come to our little temple to make a movie."
Cui Lili subtly revealed Fang Qiao's identity, and Director Chang's slightly hunched back immediately straightened.
He nodded slightly and asked, "A college student? Which college?"
Fang Qiao: "People's University in Beijing."
"Renmin University. Renmin University has high admission scores; it's not easy to get in."
Director Chang was somewhat surprised. He took off his gold-rimmed glasses and casually put them aside, then asked, "Since you are a top student from Renmin University, why did you suddenly think of opening a clothing factory?"
Fang Qiao explained with a smile, "My sister is a student at a textile university. She is very good at making clothes, and we run a clothing factory together."
Director Chang nodded to indicate that he understood, and then said, "Tell me, how did you come up with the idea of making such a... celebrity-endorsed item?"
"It's also because our movie 'My Memories of Old Beijing' is so popular that many of the women around me like Lili's portrayal of Xiaochunhua, imitate her clothes and even get their hair permed like hers."
Fang Qiao gave a small compliment: "Our 'Old Tales of South City' has only been airing for a week and it's already achieved such great results. It's sure to be a huge hit. I was thinking that if we made some clothes similar to Xiao Chunhua's, they would definitely sell like hotcakes. So I came to you. You have a keen eye and you can definitely see the potential of this. If you agree to cooperate with us, we can definitely achieve mutual benefit and win-win results and make progress together."
"You're right. The popularity of the movie 'My Memories of Old Beijing' will boost consumption in the surrounding area."
No one dislikes hearing compliments. Director Chang himself was the supervisor and producer of "My Memories of Old Beijing," and when Fang Qiao praised the show's success, he felt honored.
Director Chang relaxed his grip and said, "I'm very interested in what you mean by mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. I agree to the cooperation, but the details need to be adjusted."
Fang Qiao immediately followed up: "Then what aspects do you think need to be adjusted?"
"I read the proposal Lili gave me a few days ago, and it was very well written. The 'co-branding' concept in particular was excellent. However, the price was a bit low; it would be best to raise it a little more."
Hearing Director Chang say this, Fang Qiao felt relieved.
In business negotiations, it's all about asking for the moon and then settling for a bargain. The fact that Director Chang is willing to sit down and discuss pricing with her is a good thing; it shows he's also interested in cooperating, and all that's missing is a mutually beneficial agreement.
Fang Qiao had already left some leeway in the budget, so the two of them discussed and negotiated the price for half an hour before finally reaching an agreement.
The final quote was a bit higher than Fang Qiao's initial budget, but Director Chang promised that after the costumes were released, the studio's actors would wear them for photoshoots and advertisements, essentially a free advertisement. Fang Qiao agreed, since it was free advertising; if they had hired actors separately, the price wouldn't have been this high.
After signing the cooperation agreement, it was almost lunchtime. Fang Qiao suggested treating Director Chang and Cui Lili to dinner, but Director Chang waved her hand and declined, saying that she would invite them to celebrate after she achieved something.
Fang Qiao readily agreed and said with a smile, "Thank you for your kind words. When our 'celebrity-endorsed products' become a hit in Beijing, we'll hold a grand celebration banquet, and I'll invite you to join us."
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