Chapter 491: Boardroom Negotiations

In the meeting room, during the conference call with ‘Xi Zhilang’.

After initial introductions and pleasantries, both sides gave a brief overview of their companies.

From ‘East Morning Star Advertising’, Gu Xinxi shared some past clients and case studies.

On the call, ‘Xi Zhilang’s market manager Zheng Wan spoke up:

We reached out because of last year’s Jiaduobao ‘Afraid of Getting Heated’ ad…

The market director Kuang Lili added half-jokingly:

Our founder and chairman, Mr. Li Yongjun, really admires and appreciates the ‘Afraid of Getting Heated’ project, so he specifically asked us to get in touch.

Xu Chen humbly downplayed it a bit before diving into the project discussion.

Before outlining the project, Kuang Lili reiterated the confidentiality obligations over the phone.

This was standard in the industry.

The client’s side involved a new product and brand not yet publicly revealed; leaking it early could disrupt their release strategy or trigger competitors’ defenses.

For all projects handled, ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ emphasizes confidentiality in new employee training, including interns…

Market manager Zheng Wan sent over a PPT document to sync the current new product project requirements.

Everything unfolded as Xu Chen expected; the new product they wanted to push was ‘You Le Mei’ milk tea, and endorser Zhou Jielun was already in talks.

What concerned Xu Chen was whether Zhou Jielun’s contract was officially signed, as that would directly affect whether they could suggest Xie Bingran…

The overall project background matched what Xu Chen knew from his past life; ‘Xi Zhilang’ targeted this opportunity after seeing ‘Xiang Piaopiao’s rise last year.

They claimed it was to prevent ‘Xiang Piaopiao’ from expanding into other snack categories and becoming a full competitor, hence defensively launching ‘You Le Mei’ milk tea.

Xu Chen wasn’t fooled; it was clearly about seeing others make big money and wanting a piece of the pie.

The product name was already set as ‘You Le Mei’.

Xu Chen interrupted slightly to ask:

Has the product name been finalized?

Zheng Wan: The name is internally confirmed and registered; the related logo and visual identity designs are in progress.

Kuang Lili then asked:

Does Young Xu Chen have any doubts about the ‘You Le Mei’ name?

Xu Chen thought for a moment and said:

Not really any doubts, but if you’re going up against ‘Xiang Piaopiao’, the name puts you at a disadvantage.

Honestly, from a marketing and user recognition standpoint, ‘You Le Mei’ falls short in memorability, ease of recall, and association compared to ‘Xiang Piaopiao’.

That means we’ll need to spend more resources to get users to remember the name…

Xu Chen raised this point deliberately, with an underlying purpose.

It was to showcase some expertise right from the initial talks.

This was essential for building trust and would help with future proposal presentations.

Kuang Lili paused, seemingly considering it, then said:

Young Xu Chen makes a good point; I’ve had similar concerns privately.

But the product name is already finalized, and it was our chairman who approved it personally.

Xu Chen didn’t push for a change and went along with it:

That’s fine; even with its shortcomings, ‘You Le Mei’ is still a solid name.

It aligns well with the product and target users in terms of association and vibe.

It’s just that in the ads and scripts, we need to emphasize ‘You Le Mei’ more so users remember it easily.

Zheng Wan continued syncing the project background, moving on to the endorser part.

In the ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ meeting room, the young team members got excited hearing Zhou Jielun was the endorser and couldn’t help whispering about it.

But ‘Young Xu Chen’ was already plotting how to swap Zhou Jielun out…

On the other end of the call, Kuang Lili took over:

There are a few key points about the endorser we need to highlight.

The biggest hurdle and challenge for this project is actually with Zhou Jielun.

One issue is the endorsement fees and rights; we’re still negotiating internally.

But we’re determined to secure it, especially our chairman, who insists on the hottest star right now, so we’re going all out for Zhou Jielun, no matter the cost…

Xu Chen listened quietly, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders.

That meant Zhou Jielun’s deal wasn’t finalized yet; at least the fees and rights weren’t settled, and the contract wasn’t signed, so there was still room to maneuver.

Kuang Lili went on:

Another thing is Zhou Jielun’s team has high demands for ad concepts.

We’ve had several ad agencies pitch ideas, and some we thought were great got rejected by his team…

Xu Chen: Could you share the specific reasons for the rejections?

Kuang Lili: They really protect his image; mainly two points:

One is it has to match Zhou Jielun’s style and aura; they won’t accept anything weird or that lowers his personal image.

Second, they just want him to look sharp, cool, and charismatic…

But the core problem is that’s hard to judge.

At least, the pitches we’ve sent so far weren’t up to par; they said they either didn’t fit his vibe or the idea wasn’t strong enough, and he didn’t come off cool enough.

Xu Chen listened silently, feeling a bit speechless inside.

In his past life, Xu Chen had worked with Zhou Jielun’s team once.

Back then, he was handling a promotion for an FPS game at Tencent, and it was a collaboration with Zhou Jielun’s team.

Their various ‘specifications’ and revision requests gave project lead Xu Chen a massive headache.

Of course, that’s understandable; from the agent’s perspective, protecting the artist’s image is priority.

Kuang Lili continued:

So, we need to make this clear with the ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ team.

This project proposal has to pass not just us but also Zhou Jielun’s management team.

It needs to seriously consider the artist’s style, aura, and preferences…

Xu Chen wasn’t bothered; after all, he knew the ‘standard answer’.

In his past life, that ‘Held in the Palm’ ad went live, meaning it got Zhou Jielun’s team’s approval.

Analyzing it now, that ‘Held in the Palm’ ad did meet the points Kuang Lili mentioned.

For example, it matched Zhou Jielun’s vibe and made him look cool and charismatic.

Plus, the overall ad atmosphere was like some of his past music videos.

Kuang Lili paused briefly before adding:

One more thing: Zhou Jielun’s management specified a female actress.

She can’t be changed; she has to appear and get main roles.

…

Xu Chen felt a bit helpless.

He’d seen this project in his past life and knew the specified actress was a minor star from Taiwan Bay named Jiang Yuchen.

How she got that ‘specified’ spot was unknown.

Xu Chen couldn’t help joking:

They’re even specifying an actress? That’s a bit overbearing.

Kuang Lili: That’s another point we’re negotiating.

And her fee is high; she has no recognition in mainland China, so it doesn’t match the price.

Xu Chen: Got it; we’ll factor that into the creative process.

Kuang Lili chuckled, with a hint of awkwardness, and said:

And…

For the ad shoot, including the director, Zhou Jielun will probably specify his own team; he only works with them.

So, ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ is only involved in the creative proposal part.

…

Xu Chen shook his head silently; it matched what he remembered from his past life.

Kuang Lili’s awkward tone stemmed from industry norms where execution and shooting should involve ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ recommending production teams and overseeing.

That also cuts into ‘East Morning Star Advertising’s service and supervision fees.

Taking that away slashes a big chunk of their revenue and profit.

Kuang Lili added:

Please rest assured, Young Xu Chen; for the creative proposal service fee alone, our budget is above industry average.

Of course, provided… our proposal gets approved.

Xu Chen: Understood, Kuang. Thanks for the trust.

This project, ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ is happy to take on.

Hearing that, Kuang Lili on the other end sighed in relief.

She was worried ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ might refuse, especially after mentioning Zhou Jielun’s team’s difficulties.

Contacting ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ was actually ‘Xi Zhilang’s chairman Li Yongjun’s idea from the start.

‘Xi Zhilang’ headquarters is in Guangdong Province’s Pengcheng, and boss Li Yongjun is from Guangdong too.

He saw the ‘Afraid of Getting Heated’ ad turn Jiaduobao from a regional herbal tea into a national brand and got envious.

That sparked his interest in the agency behind it, ‘East Morning Star Advertising’.

With the ‘You Le Mei’ project kicking off as their big annual bet, he had the marketing department, led by Kuang Lili, reach out.

…

After syncing the requirements, Xu Chen had a clear picture.

With Zhou Jielun’s endorsement not yet on paper and his team’s demands creating openings, there was plenty of room to work.

But how to pitch Xie Bingran to them would need careful planning.

…

‘Xi Zhilang’ sent over some product documents for the ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ creative team to reference.

But this instant milk tea product didn’t have deep technical features or competitor differences, so it relied on ad marketing for branding.

They asked about the proposal timeline, and Xu Chen didn’t want to drag it out in case they signed Zhou Jielun.

Checking the time, he set the proposal submission for next Friday.

That gave enough time to develop the proposal and think through the persuasion tactics.

Kuang Lili expressed her thanks again for ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ taking the project.

Finally, she specifically reminded:

When Young Xu Chen brings the team next Friday for the proposal, our chairman Li Yongjun might attend.

This project is directly decided and controlled by our Li at the company level…

Once Li approves the proposal, it’ll go to Zhou Jielun’s team for discussion.

Xu Chen: No problem.

Kuang Lili: Thanks again, Young Xu Chen; we’ll chat in person next week!

…

After hanging up, the meeting room fell quiet.

They’d been excited about working with Zhou Jielun, but now everyone sensed the project’s challenges.

Gu Xinxi turned to Xu Chen and said:

Boss… this project sounds tricky.

We have to satisfy the client and get Zhou Jielun’s team on board.

Plus, if they specify the production and director teams, we might have no say in the shoot or final cut—who knows how the creative could get changed behind our backs.

Sun Aimi adjusted her round glasses:

And they specified a female actress; that’s tough too.

Even if we land it, all the revisions to accommodate the actress could wear everyone down…

Xu Chen smiled and said:

Don’t worry; let me think it through.

With that, he stood up to go eat.

Gu Xinxi was stunned and quickly stopped him:

Boss, aren’t you assigning tasks?

We have to pitch next Friday, so we need to start on the proposal.

Xu Chen: I’ll figure out the approach first; the proposal isn’t the main thing. I’ve got some ideas—it’s not that hard…

The team exchanged glances, especially the new Pan Mengting and the interns.

But Gu Xinxi and Sun Aimi, hearing Xu Chen, both smiled as if relieved.

…

…

At ‘Xi Zhilang’ headquarters in Pengcheng, in the meeting room.

Market director Kuang Lili ended the call and let out a breath.

Beside her, market manager Zheng Wan checked a message on her computer and said:

Lily, the proposal we just sent got rejected by Zhou Jielun’s team again.

Kuang Lili frowned: What’s the reason this time?

Zheng Wan scrolled with her mouse: They said it doesn’t fit Zhou Jielun’s style and the concept isn’t upscale enough…

Kuang Lili: This is getting nowhere!

Zheng Wan: Do you think ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ can handle it?

Kuang Lili: Let’s focus on getting Li on board first!

The project’s stalled, and with ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ pitching, at least we can ease up on Li’s constant pressure.

Zheng Wan: I feel like next week when ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ pitches, it’ll be the same old story.

Even if Li approves, Zhou Jielun’s team will reject it…

Then we’re back in the loop.

Kuang Lili sighed in frustration:

Let it loop; at least we’ll have some peace until next Friday.