Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 26 Humanity and Sophistication
As expected, Tianjin Literature stepped in at the last minute.

It's likely that Zhang Shaomei came up with this idea because she heard that Zhang Yan was quite interested in the film and television industry. Of course, even if an author isn't interested in the film and television industry, few can resist the temptation of having their work adapted into a film or television series.

Although Zhang Shaomei only told Zhang Yan to give it a try, she did not guarantee that he would be selected.

However, as the head of the Tianjin Literature Magazine and the executive secretary of the Writers Association, Zhang Shaomei wields considerable influence in Tianjin's cultural sector.

As long as Zhang Yan's script isn't bad, with his strong support, he'll at least be a top contender, if not guaranteed a spot.

This time, Zhang Shaomei didn't hold back. After offering the bait of a 'TV drama screenwriter,' he directly set the conditions: Zhang Yan's work relationship would be transferred to Jinmen Literature, and "The Detective of the Red Chamber" would be published by Jinmen Literature Publishing House. The payment could be either a one-time buyout or a 3.5% royalty.

Upon hearing the final royalty percentage, Zhang Yan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Since the government lifted restrictions on royalty contracts on September 7, the royalty rates that most authors can receive are between 2% and 5%, with only a very few famous bestselling authors reaching 6%—such as Wang Shuo.

3.5% is considered above average, similar to the terms offered by Times Literature and Art Publishing House, and slightly higher than those offered by China Youth Publishing House.

Although the Times Literature and Art Publishing House could probably negotiate further, Zhang Yan still preferred Tianjin Literature Publishing House due to the additional conditions.

So he said, "This is a big deal, after all. I want to go home and discuss it with my parents first."

Zhang Shaomei laughed when she heard this. Last time, Zhang Yan hadn't mentioned going home to discuss it with his parents.

"It should."

He stood up with a smile and said, "Hurry up and hand me your application to join the Tianjin Writers Association. If you want to recommend a script, it's more appropriate to do so in the name of the Writers Association."

Zhang Yan gave a vague reply, and was then escorted out of the office by Zhang Shaomei's secretary.

The secretary escorted Zhang Yan to the stairwell, but upon returning, he hesitated several times before speaking.

Zhang Shaomei, who was reading a document, said without looking up, "Say what you want to say, don't hold it in."

"President."

The secretary then cautiously asked, "Aren't you being too lenient with Zhang Yan? Although his novels are indeed quite popular, they are, after all, popular literature. I'm worried that some people in the publishing house might..."

What will happen to someone?

Seeing that her secretary hesitated and dared not continue, Zhang Shaomei directly revealed the answer: "They said I was engaging in factionalism and favoritism, and that I was doing favoritism and corruption?"

Popular literature has never been highly regarded in literary circles. Even though Zhang Yan's novels were very successful, many people still felt that he was not up to par.

So once the news gets out, people will definitely accuse it of forming cliques and engaging in favoritism.

"Since you already know this, why did you still..."

The secretary looked puzzled. It's only natural for people from the same hometown to help each other, but it's also important to consider whether it's worthwhile. This involves recommending Zhang Yan to join the Writers' Association, offering a relatively high share of the profits, and even using personal connections to recommend Zhang Yan's script to the TV station.

This seems a bit excessive no matter how you look at it.

If the secretary hadn't been familiar with Zhang Shaomei's family situation, she would have suspected that the two were related.

Zhang Shaomei put down the documents in her hand and asked in return, "Do you still remember the self-financing policy introduced in 1984?"

"of course I remember."

The secretary asked doubtfully, "But didn't it all just fizzle out in the end?"

Zhang Shaomei shook her head and said, "The national financial burden is getting heavier and heavier, and we will have to reach this point sooner or later. What I, as the president, need to do is to prepare for the impact in advance."

Moreover, I value Zhang Yan not only because he can generate revenue for the magazine, but also because this young man, although young, has a long-term and unique vision. If properly trained, he can become a capable person who can stand on his own.

That's why I hoped to keep him at the magazine; even if I couldn't in the end, at least I could leave behind a legacy of friendship.

…………

If Zhang Yan could hear Zhang Shaomei's words, he would probably be quite surprised, because he had only met Zhang Shaomei a few times, and they had only talked a lot and about various things at that family dinner.

After returning to the hotel, Zhang Yan started contacting his family. Since there was definitely no one in the tenement building at this hour, he called the Hengjiang Daily editorial department directly.

"What?! You're being transferred to the Tianjin Literature Magazine?! Great, great, we'll wait for you to come back tonight!"

Hearing the exaggeratedly loud voice on the other end of the phone, Zhang Yan couldn't help but find it amusing. No wonder his parents were a perfect match; they were truly cut from the same cloth when it came to showing off their kids.

There was no need to rush home, but it was Saturday, and Zhang Yan hadn't seen his sister in a while, so he bought a ticket for 1 p.m.

After enjoying more than five hours of driving in a stuffy can, Zhang Yan suddenly had the idea of ​​getting a driver's license. Although he couldn't afford a car yet, there was no harm in learning in advance.

Since it was already winter, it was completely dark when we arrived at Hengjiang Bus Station.

Using the light from the bus, Zhang Yan found his parents and discovered that his younger sister, Zhang Fang, had also arrived.

"elder brother!"

Zhang Fang excitedly moved closer to her brother, tugging at Zhang Yan's sleeve and asking, "How many copies of your novel are you planning to publish?!"

"It's not clear yet."

Seeing her disappointment, Zhang Yan could only give a rough estimate: "I think the total number should not be less than 100,000 copies."

"Wow!" Zhang Fang exclaimed in surprise, then lowered her voice and asked, "The price... what's the price?"

Zhang Yan then gave a rough estimate: "It should be around 18 yuan, since there are quite a few words and it will be divided into three volumes: upper, middle and lower."

"That is……"

Zhang Fang lowered her head and counted on her fingers for a while, then exclaimed in shock, "Then you can get more than 60,000?!"

"It's 63,000."

Sun Xiaohong, an accountant by training, had already figured it out. She snatched some of the luggage from her son and said excitedly, "Come on, let's go home and talk about it!"

Hearing that there was so much money, she was naturally very happy, but she was even happier that her son had become successful.

Zhang Xingguo also quietly helped carry some of the luggage. He let the mother and son, and the siblings chatter on the way home, until they entered the house, at which point he asked, "Shall we take a shower first, or eat first?"

Zhang Yan picked out two bottles of liquor and a pack of cigarettes from the gifts he brought back, and said to his parents, "I'll go to Director Li's house first, and then we'll go take a bath when I get back—since it's a job transfer, we should at least let the printing factory know first."

"It's time to go. I'll go with you."

Zhang Xingguo nodded. Although the printing factory was unlikely to block Zhang Yan's job transfer, they still had to go through the proper social interactions.

"No need, it's just a few steps up and down the stairs."

Back when the tenement buildings were being built, the printing factory was still a subsidiary of the newspaper, so Director Li was naturally entitled to a room, and it was a 'high-end' one-bedroom apartment.

Sun Xiaohong felt a little sorry for the cigarettes and alcohol in Zhang Yan's hands: "You could have just gone and told them, why did you bring such nice things?"

"You don't need to worry about it, I know what I'm doing."

Zhang Yan waved his hand and left the house, climbing the stairs to the top floor.

The factory director's family had just finished dinner, and his wife was clearing the table when she saw Zhang Yan arrive. She immediately greeted him warmly, "Oh my, when did our great writer get back?!"

"just came back."

Zhang Yan laughed and said, "I just need to see my uncle about something—look, I've come over without even taking a shower."

"What's up?"

Factory Director Li, also wearing a military overcoat, came out from the inner room to greet Zhang Yan. Seeing that Zhang Yan was carrying good cigarettes and liquor, he couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Now that you have so many connections, do you still need my help?"

"What are you saying?"

Zhang Yan laughed and said, "Everyone in our printing factory, from top to bottom, depends on you to solve their problems."

"Haha, you little rascal."

Factory Director Li laughed heartily and ushered Zhang Yan into the living room. After they sat down, he said directly, "Tell me what it is. If I can help, I will definitely do it for you."

"The first thing is that the Tianjin Literature Magazine wants to transfer my work assignment there..."

"Hey hey!"

Upon hearing this, Director Li's wife was the first to lose her composure, slapping her thigh and exclaiming, "Little Zhang, you've really made something of yourself this time! Do you think just anyone can go to Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai?!"

In 90, Tianjin's GDP had fallen to fourth in the country, surpassed by Guangzhou in Guangdong, but people still generally referred to "Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai" together.

Factory Director Li was also deeply moved. Although Zhang Yan had always been a standout among the workers in the printing factory, he never expected that Zhang Yan could achieve such success.

Noticing Zhang Yan's mention of "the first thing," Director Li pressed further, "And what is the second thing?"

"Is such that."

Zhang Yan said somewhat helplessly, "You must have heard about what happened to my second aunt, right?"

"I've heard that people in big cities are really cunning! Of course, your second aunt is also muddle-headed, daring to say anything to outsiders."

"Ah~"

Zhang Yan sighed and shook his head, saying, "I didn't want to bring it up again, but my mother has become estranged from her relatives because of this, and she sighs a lot whenever her hometown is mentioned."

So I was thinking, since there's a vacancy now, could I ask my cousin from my maternal uncle's side to work as a temporary worker at our factory?

Zhang Yan did this partly for his mother's sake.

Sun Xiaohong is soft-hearted and always felt that she had gone too far in trying to drive away her second sister-in-law and even asking relatives for money.

This time, Zhang Yan took the initiative to help his cousin from his maternal uncle's family find a job, mainly to resolve his mother's inner conflict.

Secondly, it was also to divide and conquer, to tell those troublesome relatives that coming to the Zhang family to cause trouble and act unreasonably would only backfire, while those who were law-abiding would receive preferential treatment.

"You kid."

Factory Director Li clicked his tongue twice, understanding the implication, and readily agreed: "If it were anyone else, I wouldn't agree even if they talked me to death, but since you've asked, I'll take care of it!"

(End of this chapter)