blueteamnovel Chapter 148
Chapter 148
Chapter 148
Zhou Wenzhe wasn't surprised that Jessica Jung suddenly brought this up. He had already guessed that this was her purpose in inviting him to dinner, but he didn't expect her to be so direct.
It seems she has really reached a dead end.
Zhou Wenzhe pretended to genuinely consider her suggestion. If he didn't urgently need to complete the mission and obtain the elixir as soon as possible, he certainly wouldn't have invested in this project whose outcome was obvious at a glance, because the result would be losing money and going bankrupt, there would be no other possibility.
But now, he will definitely invest, and the amount he invests will be substantial. Ideally, he should become the absolute majority shareholder of the brand, so that he can bind the two sisters together.
Besides Krystal Jung's mission, there's also a mission for Girls' Generation, and the reward for that mission is pretty good too.
As for the small amount of money invested, it's the least important thing. Even if he loses it all in the end, he won't feel the slightest bit heartache.
Of course, he would need some acting skills to make Jessica Jung grateful to him.
As the saying goes, it's better to lend a helping hand in times of need than to add flowers to brocade. You should reach out to her when she is most desperate to maximize your benefits.
After pondering for a while, Zhou Wenzhe shook his head. "Jessica, I've actually learned a bit about your brand. To be honest, I'm not optimistic about it, and our company rarely invests in small projects like this."
19
Zhou Wenzhe's rejection instantly brought Zheng Xiuyan's expectations back to reality. However, she still wanted to try again, since she didn't have much time left and had no other choice at the moment.
"Wen Zhe, actually my brand has a pretty good reputation and sales volume. The problem is that I'm facing funding issues because I want to expand the market."
"Really?" Zhou Wenzhe smiled and looked at Zheng Xiuyan. From what she said, he was certain that she was not suited for business.
While founders often try to portray their companies in a positive light to attract investors, this depends on the context and the person, and is usually the case for startups.
Her company has been operating for several years already; a simple search would reveal the truth. Her continued spouting nonsense is a gross underestimation of her intelligence.
Faced with Zhou Wenzhe's gaze, Zheng Xiuyan was speechless. She gave a bitter smile, picked up her wine glass, and drank it all in one gulp.
At this point, she had given up on the last shred of hope in her heart.
Since its founding in 2013, Blanc & Eclare has experienced both highs and lows, undergoing numerous trials and tribulations and making many difficult choices over the years.
Now that her hard work is finally coming to an end, she feels a sense of relief amidst regret and reluctance.
Over the years, she has carried too much burden and lost too much.
Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Zhou Wenzhe wanted to take things a step further. Just then, Zheng Xiujing walked into the restaurant and was led over by a waiter.
Upon seeing her, the words he was about to say were suddenly stuck in his throat.
When Jessica Jung saw her sister arrive, her disappointed expression instantly returned to normal, and she let her sit next to her.
At this time, the waiter started serving the dishes, and all three of them received some. It turned out that Jessica Jung knew that Krystal Jung would be coming and had ordered the food for her in advance.
No wonder she wanted to talk about investments before we even started eating; she didn't want her sister to hear, or maybe she didn't want her sister to see her begging for help in such a pathetic state.
Since Jessica Jung didn't want her sister to know, he decided not to bring it up for now. Anyway, he already had her phone number, so he could contact her again in a few days. This would better highlight the preciousness of his timely help.
Throughout the meal, Jessica Jung did not mention the company or investments again, but instead chatted with Zhou Wenzhe about everyday matters.
After the dinner, Zhou Wenzhe said goodbye to the two sisters, found a designated driver, and left the hotel.
As soon as he left, Krystal Jung eagerly asked, "Unnie, how did your talk with Moon-cheol go?"
"Not bad." Jessica Jung smiled.
"He said he wanted to invest?"
"Not yet, he said he needs to think about it first. Let's go home first." Jessica Jung gave herself an out, took the car keys out of her bag and handed them to Krystal Jung.
Krystal Jung did not drink alcohol, so she can drive.
After getting into the car, Krystal couldn't contain her curiosity and asked, "Unnie, is your company still doing alright?"
She had only heard from her parents that her sister's company had recently encountered some difficulties, but she didn't know much about the extent of those difficulties.
"Our performance hasn't been great lately, but I'm confident we can get through this."
"How much money do you need? I have some left here, I'll give it to you first."
"No need. You should keep whatever money you have for yourself."
Jessica Jung waved her hand. Although her younger sister had been in the industry for almost ten years, given SM Entertainment's exploitative nature, she hadn't earned much money at all. In addition, she had very little work in the past two years, so she had even less money.
Her company is in dire need of money, otherwise she wouldn't have approached Zhou Wenzhe.
"Does the company have a significant funding gap?"
"Sigh, never mind that, I'll think of something else."
Jessica Jung sighed. Since leaving Girls' Generation, she has only had sporadic work in the Korean entertainment industry, which has led her to focus all her energy on the brand she founded.
At first, the company did develop well. She not only made money but also received many honors. Fans also portrayed her as a powerful businesswoman. Everything was moving in a positive direction.
However, starting last year, the brand's sales began to decline rapidly, from hundreds of millions of Korean won per month to only around tens of millions of Korean won per month.
The revenue wasn't even enough to cover employee salaries and shop rent. She poured all the money she had earned over the years into it and tried many ways to salvage the business, but she still couldn't stop the company's decline.
When Krystal saw her sister's worried expression, she guessed that her talk with Zhou Wenzhe hadn't gone very well.
How can I help my sister?
Or... why don't you go and talk to Zhou Wenzhe yourself?
But what right or qualification did she have to talk to him, since their relationship was really just so-so?
She knew that he was close to Im Yoon-ah.
If my sister finds out that I asked Yoona for help, she definitely won't forgive me, and she definitely won't accept it. This whole thing will be a complete disaster.
There was another person, and that was Choi Sulli.
When she thought of that name, Krystal Jung was a little lost in thought, and felt a sense of emptiness in her heart.
There was a time when the two were so close that they could talk about anything.
But now, everything has changed.
Just as Krystal was reminiscing about the past, Jessica patted her hard on the shoulder and said, "Krystal, the light is red ahead."
Coming to her senses, Krystal Jung quickly slammed on the brakes, by which time the front of the car had already crossed the stop line a considerable distance away.
"What are you thinking about? You didn't even see the red light."
"I wasn't thinking about anything, I was just a little tired and my mind wandered."
"Then you can sleep at my place tonight and don't go back."
"No need, I'm not going to the set until tomorrow afternoon, so I can sleep in a little longer."
"Alright, then you can drive my car back."
"Don't you need a car?"
"Not needed these next few days."
19
"All right."
After dropping her sister off at her apartment building, Krystal watched her sister go inside and then drove away.
She had only driven a short distance when she parked the car on the side of the road.
After parking the car, she picked up her phone, opened her contacts, scrolled down, and found the number labeled "Sulli".
She hesitated after placing her finger on the "call" icon.
After much hesitation and struggle, I ultimately decided not to make the call.
. . .
In the following days, in addition to being busy with Tianyi Investment, Zhou Wenzhe also had to shuttle between several entertainment companies.
First up is ITZY.
Zhou Wenzhe never expected that the debut song he wrote for them would actually help them win first place on nine music shows.
He promised that if the song could get six number one spots, he would take them to Europe to shoot the music video.
Now that their first mini-album is in preparation, the members are all looking forward to what songs Zhou Wenzhe has prepared for them and where he will take them to shoot the music video.
Inside the practice room.
Five girls surrounded Zhou Wenzhe, who had just walked in.
What are you doing?
"Oppa, what's the name of our new song? Let us hear it!" Shin Yuna shook Zhou Wenzhe's arm, her face full of anticipation.
Because of their song "DALLADALLA", ITZY was dubbed a monster rookie by the media and became one of the best new generation girl groups.
They know that Zhou Wenzhe is the biggest contributor to their success, so they are all looking forward to seeing what kind of songs he will write for them and whether he can continue this momentum.
"Who said I was going to write songs for you guys?" Zhou Wenzhe asked, feigning ignorance.
Upon hearing this, the five girls were stunned. They had imagined what kind of songs Zhou Wenzhe would write for them, but they never expected that he wouldn't write any for them.
Seeing their disappointed looks, Zhou Wenzhe changed the subject and said with a smile, "Just kidding. I've already written the song, but I can't let you hear it now."
"Oppa, you're just teasing us." Lee Chaeryeong pouted, but the disappointment on her face disappeared instantly.
The same goes for everyone else.
"Why can't we hear it?" Shin Ryujin asked.
"It's not the right time yet. You should rehearse other songs first."
ITZY's first mini-album is planned to include 5 songs, and 4 songs have been confirmed so far, with only Zhou Wenzhe's title track missing.
"You can at least tell me what style of song it is."
"It's a summer-themed song."
"A summer breeze."
The five girls looked at each other, wondering if they were suited for a summery style.
There are indeed many South Korean girl groups that became popular because of their summery style, the most famous of which is SISTAR under Starship Entertainment.
But what are the members of this girl group like? They have healthy tanned skin and show off their figures in the music videos.
These elements don't suit them at all.
"What's wrong? You don't like it?" Zhou Wenzhe was a little surprised by their reaction. He had put a lot of effort into writing this song for them.
"No, I like it." Huang Lizhi quickly replied. In fact, as newly debuted idols, they have no right to choose at all. The company arranges for them to sing whatever type of song they want, and they have to sing whatever type of song they want.
Even if you're going for a sexy style, you just have to bite the bullet and go for it.
Of course, no matter how you look at it, none of the five of them are sexy, especially since there are underage members in the group.
"The summer breeze is so nice! So, Oppa, where are you taking us to film a music video?" Shin Yuna asked with a smile, as this was the question she was most concerned about.
What comes to mind when you think of summer?
Jeju Island.
Bali.
Hawaii.
"Australia."
Maldives.
The five people gave different answers, but they were all basically related to the seaside.
They have a point; in summer, the first thing that comes to mind is the azure sea.
Zhou Wenzhe shook his head, "The summer-themed song I wrote for you has nothing to do with the sea, so the music video won't be filmed in the places you mentioned."
"Where are we going?"
The five of them were somewhat disappointed when they heard that they weren't going to the beach.
"You'll find out when the time comes." Zhou Wenzhe kept everyone in suspense. In his plan, the music video would be filmed in Los Angeles, and he would also take the opportunity to go home to visit his parents. Although they now live in New York, he usually goes back to their home in Los Angeles every time he goes back.
"oh."
"Cailing, come with me for a moment."
Zhou Wenzhe called Li Cailing out of the practice room.
"Oppa, what do you want?"
"Is your unnie busy lately?"
"You mean the dress recital?"
"Of course! Do you have any other unnies besides her?"
"Yes, isn't Yeji unnie one? Hehe."
"Don't interrupt, is she busy lately?"
"I don't know, Oppa, is there something you need from her?"
"Um, something came up."
"What's wrong?" Li Cailing asked with curious eyes.
"I have something to ask her, but never mind, I'll just go directly to her."
"You can't find her now. IZ*ONE recently debuted in Japan and has been staying there for a while."
"Really? So you're entering the Japanese market already?"
"Of course, several of them are Japanese."
"That's pretty fast too."
Zhou Wenzhe recalled that Twice officially entered the Japanese market more than a year after their debut, while IZ*ONE had only been debuting for half a year.
"It's because some of them had already debuted in Japan and had a considerable fan base."
"Okay, let's wait until she gets back."
Actually, Zhou Wenzhe's purpose in seeking out Li Caiyan was to inquire about Zhang Yuanying's situation, since his father had asked him to take care of this so-called "sister."
"Um, Oppa, when can we debut in Japan?"
"What's the rush? You guys should focus on establishing a foothold in South Korea first," Zhou Wenzhe said, tapping Li Cailing on the head.
They're trying to run before they've even learned to walk! Aren't they afraid of falling down?
ITZY and Red Velvet share a common problem: all members are Korean, with no green card holders. This makes it difficult for them to expand into overseas markets, primarily due to language barriers.
"It hurts." Li Cailing covered her head and looked at Zhou Wenzhe with a wronged expression.
"Go back now, I'm leaving. Call me if you need anything."
"Okay."
Li Cailing returned to the practice room, and Zhou Wenzhe also left.
After leaving JYP Entertainment, he joined YG Entertainment.