Movie: Get Alpha Dog at the start

Chapter 1598 Struggle Among All Sides

With Lin Zhanqiao gone, there was naturally no need for the meeting to continue.

Zhao Lanxin closed the manuscript in front of her, watching the editors get up and leave the meeting room in twos and threes, her lips slightly pursed. She sat there for a few minutes before slowly standing up, picking up her folder, and walking out.

Her gaze followed Ling Yikai's retreating figure at the end of the corridor.

Ling Yikai was carrying his ever-present thermos cup, swaying as he walked towards his office.

"President Ling."

Zhao Lanxin called out to him in the corridor.

Ling Yikai turned around, saw it was her, and gave her a polite but distant smile: "President Zhao, is there something you need?"

"Let's chat for a bit."

Ling Yikai did not refuse, stepped aside to let Zhao Lanxin go first, and followed her into the office.

His office wasn't large, but it was surprisingly tidy. A row of filing cabinets lined the wall, and the desk held nothing but a computer and a thermos; not even a photograph. A potted green ivy sat on the windowsill, its leaves drooping, clearly having been neglected for a long time.

Ling Yikai went around to the back of the desk and sat down. He habitually unscrewed the thermos and took a sip. He looked up at Zhao Lanxin, waiting for her to speak first.

Zhao Lanxin did not sit down immediately. She stood in front of the desk, crossed her arms, and looked directly at Ling Yikai.

This posture instinctively alerted Ling Yikai. Zhao Lanxin was capable, decisive, and had excellent analytical skills, but her appearance was truly unappealing. To put it nicely, she was "unremarkable," to put it bluntly, she was ugly, short and stout, and her family background was very ordinary, offering him no help whatsoever.

His criteria for finding a girlfriend have always been clear: either she must be beautiful, like Lin Zhanqiao and her best friend Zhou Mei, or she must be able to save him twenty years of hard work. Zhao Lanxin doesn't meet either of these criteria, so she's a bit like a toad trying to eat swan meat.

Zhao Lanxin pulled out the chair opposite her desk, and was about to sit down—

“If you want Qin Hao’s contact information,” Ling Yikai suddenly spoke, his tone calm, “you should contact He Han or another editor. If you wait too long, someone else might snatch it up.”

Zhao Lanxin paused noticeably as she sat down.

She stared at Ling Yikai for two seconds, a half-smile playing on her lips, before slowly sitting down.

"Have you considered this?" Zhao Lanxin's tone suddenly turned serious: "If Lin Zhanqiao simultaneously controls the resources of two top authors, we'll completely lose our say in the company."

The casual look on Ling Yikai's face disappeared.

After a few seconds of silence, he chuckled self-deprecatingly, "It's not like we have any say in this. Hasn't Lin Zhanqiao always been the one making the decisions? She founded the company, she signed the top authors, so frankly, aren't we just working for her?"

Zhao Lanxin smiled. The reason she chose Ling Yikai over someone else was because she knew him too well. On the surface, Ling Yikai seemed indifferent, but deep down he was a shrewd and calculating person. His submissive demeanor towards Lin Zhanqiao wasn't because he truly respected her, but because he lacked the leverage to challenge her.

"Therefore," Zhao Lanxin said solemnly, "if we want to change the current situation, we need at least one top-tier expert who can rival He Han."

Upon hearing this, Ling Yikai curled his lip, revealing a dismissive expression: "You know Qin Hao, he can't stand not pulling some crazy stunt every day. Relying on him to contend with He Han? You're probably overthinking it."

It's no wonder Ling Yikai didn't believe it. Qin Hao's record of having seven books banned in two years was practically legendary in the online literature world, albeit in the reverse. Every time his work was about to take off, he couldn't resist stuffing in content that would instantly overwhelm the censorship system, resulting in his books being banned in a flash, and all his previous efforts being wasted. For an author like that, no matter how good his writing is, it's all for naught.

Zhao Lanxin remained unmoved. Her red lips curled slightly, revealing a confident smile.

"Have you ever considered why Lin Zhanqiao would be in such a hurry to confirm on Dingqi.com if that were really the case?"

Ling Yikai's expression changed slightly.

Zhao Lanxin continued, "Although I don't like Lin Zhanqiao's assertiveness, I have to admit that her eye for discovering authors is unmatched in the entire industry. If I'm not mistaken, Lin Zhanqiao must have seen the potential for explosive success in this book, 'The Great Feng Night Watchman,' otherwise, given her personality, she wouldn't be so nervous."

Ling Yikai remained silent.

He picked up his thermos and took another sip of water, but this time he drank very slowly, as if using this action to buy himself time to think.

“Okay.” Ling Yikai put down his thermos, leaned forward slightly, and for the first time showed a serious expression in front of Zhao Lanxin: “Tell me what you really want.”

Zhao Lanxin was waiting for these words.

She straightened up, placed her hands flat on her knees, and said seriously, "If I can sign the author of 'The Great Feng Night Watchman,' we'll have the confidence to compete with Lin Zhanqiao. If Lin Zhanqiao wants to reduce our shareholding in the future, you must stand on my side."

Ling Yikai pondered for a moment, then unconsciously tapped his fingers twice on the table.

"Sign it first, then we'll talk."

Zhao Lanxin didn't pressure Ling Yikai to give an answer right now. She knew that, given Ling Yikai's personality, he would never back down when his own interests were involved.

Zhao Lanxin straightened up again, picked up the folder on the table, and quickly turned to leave.

For her now, time is the most precious thing.

-

Just as Zhao Lanxin had guessed, Lin Zhanqiao was also racing against time.

It takes forty minutes to drive from Zixing to Dingqiwang.

Lin Zhanqiao tossed her phone onto the passenger seat, her brow furrowed.

Although "The Great Feng Night Watchman" has only been published for tens of thousands of words and hasn't even reached its first major climax yet, based on the existing content alone, she can already conclude that as long as the book doesn't fall apart later on, it will definitely be a huge hit.

Regardless of whether Qin Hao is the author of this book or not, she is determined to get him to sign it.

Dingqi.com's headquarters occupy three entire floors in an office building complex in the east of the city, making it one of the largest online literature platforms. Lin Zhanqiao has known their CEO, Uncle Fan, for over ten years. Back when He Han was still unknown, it was Uncle Fan who overruled objections and gave He Han his first homepage recommendation, which led to his later meteoric rise to fame.

Since then, a subtle "strategic mutual trust" has been established between Lin Zhanqiao and Uncle Fan—you help me promote books, and I provide you with good content; everyone gets what they need, and the cooperation is pleasant.

The elevator reached the twelfth floor. Lin Zhanqiao stepped out and gave her name to the receptionist. The receptionist clearly recognized her and immediately called upstairs to inform her. A moment later, someone came down and led her to Uncle Fan's office.

Uncle Fan's office was more than three times larger than Ling Yikai's, and the decor was much more sophisticated—mahogany bookshelves, genuine leather sofas, and an old-fashioned record player in the corner. Uncle Fan himself was in his early fifties, full of energy, wearing a light gray polo shirt, and was drinking tea in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. When he saw Lin Zhanqiao enter, he turned around with a smile.

"Mr. Lin, what a rare guest!"

“Uncle Fan.” Lin Zhanqiao gave him a professional smile, quickly stepped forward to shake his hand, but her gaze was already eager to get to the point: “Uncle Fan, I’ve come today to ask you about someone.”

"Sit down, please sit down." Uncle Fan calmly poured Lin Zhanqiao a cup of tea, then sat back down on the sofa, slowly blowing away the foam on the surface of his tea. "Who is it?"

“The author of ‘The Great Feng Night Watchman’.” Lin Zhanqiao stared into Uncle Fan’s eyes.

Uncle Fan's hand holding the teacup remained completely still.

"The Great Feng Night Watchman?" Uncle Fan feigned a reminiscing tone. "Oh—that new book, it's been quite the sensation lately. What, you've got your eye on it too?"

Lin Zhanqiao put down her teacup and leaned forward: "Uncle Fan, to be frank, I want to sign this author. Could you please give me his identification information?"

Uncle Fan put down his teacup, cleared his throat, and his expression became somewhat troubled: "President Lin, it's not that I don't want to help, but this involves the author's personal privacy. Our platform has regulations that prohibit us from arbitrarily disclosing the identity information of contracted authors."

This answer was exactly what Lin Zhanqiao had expected.

"Oh, Uncle Fan," Lin Zhanqiao lowered her tone, her voice sweet and coquettish, "We've known each other for so many years, you wouldn't refuse to help with something so simple, would you?"

Uncle Fan sighed, "Xiao Lin, it's not that I'm ungrateful. Your Zhixing already has He Han, you have to give our platform a writer who can hold its own, right?"

Although He Han is under the banner of Zhixing, all his books are published on Dingqi.com, bringing enormous traffic and brand value to Dingqi.com. However, He Han is ultimately an author under Zhixing, not an in-house author of Dingqi.com. Dingqi.com needs a truly top-tier author of its own, someone who can rival He Han, to solidify its position in the online literature platform landscape.

Lin Zhanqiao, of course, understood Uncle Fan's subtext. She continued with a forced smile, "Uncle Fan, you're being too modest. Everyone knows that Dingqi.com is now a behemoth in the online literature world, with countless top-tier authors under its umbrella. How could you say it can't live up to its reputation?"

"An aircraft carrier?" Uncle Fan chuckled, a hint of self-deprecation in his smile. "An aircraft carrier is big, but without the most advanced carrier-based aircraft, it's just a sitting duck. There are certainly many great authors on Dingqi.com, but none can compare to He Han—" He held up a finger and shook it: "Not a single one."

After a pause, Uncle Fan narrowed his eyes, his tone suddenly becoming playful: "How about this, I'll trade you ten top-tier experts for one He Han, how about that?"

Lin Zhanqiao's expression changed drastically.

"Uncle Fan, do you really believe that the author of 'The Great Feng Night Watchman' can become someone comparable to He Han?"

Uncle Fan picked up his teacup, took a slow sip, and only after setting the cup down did he look up with a sly smile: "I wasn't very confident to begin with."

His gaze lingered on Lin Zhanqiao's face for a second, with a meaningful look.

"But you rushed over here so quickly, you must be right. After all, President Lin is a top editor in the industry, your judgment can't be wrong, right?"

Lin Zhanqiao took a deep breath, knowing it was impossible to get any information out of Uncle Fan today. She stood up, picked up her bag, and resumed her professional smile: "Then we won't keep Uncle Fan from having tea any longer. Let's get together another day."

"Take care." Uncle Fan stood up and saw Lin Zhanqiao to the door. "President Lin, come over often when you have time. We're all family."

"Uncle Fan taught me a lesson today. I hope you will continue to guide me when you have time."

"Hey, you're too kind."

After seeing Lin Zhanqiao off, Uncle Fan returned to his desk and picked up the internal phone: "Have Editor-in-Chief Zhou come over."

Less than three minutes later, Editor-in-Chief Zhou pushed open the door and came in. Today he was wearing a dark jacket that had been washed a little faded, and his gold-rimmed glasses were perched on his nose as always. The balding area on the top of his head reflected the light.

"Mr. Fan, you wanted to see me?"

Uncle Fan leaned back in his chair, his fingers interlaced on his stomach, his gaze sharply fixed on Editor-in-Chief Zhou: "Have you had any contact with the author of 'The Great Feng Night Watchman'?"

Editor-in-Chief Zhou nodded: "Xiao Cai has been in contact with him, and currently they've signed a standard contract."

Uncle Fan's tone was decisive: "Contact Qin Hao as soon as possible and try to get the top-tier contract signed with him."

"A top-tier author contract?" Editor-in-Chief Zhou's surprise was palpable, followed by a hint of hesitation: "But President Fan, 'Da Feng the Night Watchman' has only updated less than 100,000 words. Signing him a top-tier author contract like that might upset other established authors."

The top-tier author contracts on Dingqi.com aren't signed casually. Out of hundreds of thousands of authors on the platform, fewer than a hundred receive such contracts. Each one is a veteran who has cultivated their craft on the platform for many years, with millions of words to their name and countless fans. To offer a top-tier contract to an author with a new book of less than 100,000 words would be met with discontent from both existing and those waiting in line.

Uncle Fan sneered, "Not convinced? Fine, let them write a hit like 'The Great Feng Night Watchman.' I'll say it again—content is king."

Editor-in-Chief Zhou pursed his lips, remained silent for a few seconds, and then cautiously spoke again: "President Fan, I'll reassure the author. My main concern is... whether Qin Hao's subsequent writing will go astray."

The word "deviated from the intended path" is already quite polite, according to Editor-in-Chief Zhou.

Based on Qin Hao's previous record—seven books, seven aliases, each book had a pretty good start, but each time, he let himself go at the most crucial moment, stuffing a lot of harem plots that went too far, and then he was banned, and everything was back to zero.

This guy is a ticking time bomb. You think he'll write obediently this time, but then he suddenly drops a bomb, catching everyone off guard.

Although Uncle Fan is the CEO of Dingqi.com, there is still a board of directors above him. Once he signs a contract with Qin Hao as a top author, it is equivalent to guaranteeing Qin Hao with his professional reputation—if Qin Hao goes astray again and causes the book to be banned, Uncle Fan will also be held responsible.

Uncle Fan fell silent.

Editor-in-Chief Zhou's words indeed hit the nail on the head regarding his biggest concern. Qin Hao's writing skills were excellent; his creativity was even better; and his ability to capture readers' enjoyment was genius-level—but all these strengths seemed incredibly fragile in the face of his fatal flaw of "unpredictably letting loose."

Seven books, each one crashing at its peak, without exception. Is this a habit, or a character flaw? If it's the former, there's still a chance to correct it; if it's the latter, then it's truly beyond redemption.

However, Uncle Fan recalled how Lin Zhanqiao had rushed over earlier.

Uncle Fan decided to take the gamble anyway.

It's not that I trust Lin Zhanqiao as a person, but rather that I trust her professional judgment.

"sign."

Uncle Fan made the final decision without the slightest hesitation in his tone.

Editor-in-Chief Zhou was taken aback: "General Manager Fan?"

"I said sign," Uncle Fan repeated, his gaze sharp as a knife. "A top-tier contract, sign it first, then we'll talk. I'll handle everything else."

He paused, then added, "But there's one thing—have the editor make it clear to Qin Hao that a clause should be added to the 'Great Author's Contract' that if the book is banned due to inappropriate content, the contract will automatically terminate, and all rights will revert to the platform. This is to give him a constraint."

Editor-in-Chief Zhou nodded. Although this additional clause could not fundamentally solve the problem of Qin Hao "letting himself go," it at least provided a line of defense.

"I'll take care of it right away." Editor-in-Chief Zhou turned and left.

Uncle Fan looked at the closed door, leaned back in his chair, and let out a long sigh.

He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and found that the tea had gone cold.

-

At the same time, Lin Zhanqiao walked out of the Dingqi.com building, sat in his car and started the engine, but did not drive off immediately.

She took out her phone, scrolled through her contacts, found He Han's name, hesitated for two seconds, and then dialed the number.

The phone rang three times before He Han answered.

"Hello."

He Han's voice was as gentle as ever, with a calm and reassuring quality that made people feel inexplicably at ease.

"I made a mistake." Lin Zhanqiao got straight to the point, his tone calm, but every word seemed to be spoken through gritted teeth.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone.

"You went to Dingqi.com."

Lin Zhanqiao unconsciously smiled, even though she was far from happy at the moment. This was the tacit understanding between her and He Han; many things only needed to be started before the other understood, without any extra groundwork or explanation.

This is also one of the reasons why she likes He Han.

On the other end of the phone, He Han continued, "Uncle Fan didn't give you the author's identity information for 'The Great Feng Night Watchman,' did he?"

Lin Zhanqiao sighed, switched the phone to her other hand, and leaned against the car window: "Yeah. I've tried everything—begging and acting cute—but Uncle Fan just won't budge. It's only made him realize my potential."

After about ten seconds, He Han sighed, "How about I ask Lao Qin to come out and talk to him?"

Lin Zhanqiao's eyes lit up, and she unconsciously tightened her grip on her phone.

"You also believe that Qin Hao was the author of 'The Great Feng Night Watchman'?"

He Han's tone was certain: "The writing style and prose are very similar, and don't you think the timing of 'The Great Feng Night Watchman's' release is too coincidental? You just terminated your contract with Qin Hao a few days ago, and it suddenly appeared."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhanqiao frowned.

"You mean, Lao Qin deliberately had the War God Diagram blocked to provoke me into terminating my contract with him?"

"That's possible. He mentioned to me that he wanted to go solo."

Lin Zhanqiao complained, "Is that so? Why didn't you tell me?"

"What's the point of saying anything? You'd already terminated your contract with him by then."

Lin Zhanqiao felt a lump in his throat. Yes, he had almost made Qin Hao leave Chengxing back then; he wondered if he could ever make amends. (End of Chapter)