Chapter 38

The conversation with his father was the most failed negotiation in Xiahou Zhongying's life so far. Not only did he fail to recruit any manpower or increase funding, but his father even cut his living expenses. And he was even more foolish, actually reducing his living expenses and increasing the difficulty of his work on his own initiative.

That night, Xiahou Zhongying lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep, worrying about the funding for the shoot. Even if he saved on clothes and food in the future and tried to use all one million of his living expenses for the micro-film, it would still be like a drop in the bucket, not even enough to rent a camera.

In the morning, when Xiahou Shang saw Xiahou Zhongying with dark circles under his eyes, he couldn't help but secretly laugh. Finally, his heartless son was forced to use his brain, and he felt extremely pleased.

Xiahou Shang pretended not to see his son's worried face. After breakfast, he waved his hand lightly and went to work, leaving Xiahou Zhongying feeling very depressed.

Sighing and groaning, Xiahou Zhongying arrived at school. The three lackeys saw Xiahou Zhongying's worried face and didn't dare to speak loudly. No matter what Xiahou Zhongying asked or what he asked them to do, they responded carefully, afraid of angering him and getting themselves into trouble.

During the break, Xiahou Zhongying took his proposal and went to find one of the school leaders he had contacted, Vice Principal Li. After straightening his clothes at the door of the vice principal's office, Xiahou Zhongying gently knocked on the door.

"Come in." Vice Principal Li's voice came from inside the room.

Xiahou Zhongying gently pushed the door open and walked into the office, taking light steps. He couldn't be impolite; he was here to ask for help. If he acted as arrogantly as he did the last time he entered the principal's office, there would be no chance of getting things done.

"Good morning, Principal." Xiahou Zhongying walked to Vice Principal Li's desk, bowed deeply, and greeted him.

Vice Principal Li lifted his head from the documents, pushed up his thick glasses, and looked at Xiahou Zhongying with confusion. This student had left a deep impression on him, and he couldn't forget him, but he didn't understand why he had suddenly come to see him.

"It's you. Do you have something to ask me?" Vice Principal Li asked.

"Hehe, Principal, I do have something to ask you." Xiahou Zhongying smiled first, thinking that a smile would always be good. He smiled before speaking.

"What is it? Speak up." Vice Principal Li waved the document in his hand, nodding to indicate that Xiahou Zhongying should quickly state his purpose, as he had other things to do.

"It's like this, Principal. I have a proposal here and I want you to help me review it." Xiahou Zhongying handed over his proposal with both hands, bowing and nodding.

Xiahou Zhongying had never asked for help from anyone before, except his father. This was his first time asking for help from someone outside his family, and he didn't know how to gauge the right level of humility. He felt that when asking for help, one should be humble, and the lower the better. Besides, he was under a lot of pressure and had already boasted to his father, so he had to do everything possible to get things done.

Communication with the school was one of the most important aspects of this project. If he couldn't get the school's support, his plan would be impossible to implement. The pressure made Xiahou Zhongying feel like he couldn't breathe.

Since entering Vice Principal Li's office, Xiahou Zhongying had been on edge, fearing that the school would outright reject his request without any room for negotiation.

Under these circumstances, Xiahou Zhongying didn't know how to control his negotiation skills and attitude. He just wanted to be as humble as possible, not realizing that he looked like a lackey.

"That's enough. There's no need to be so cautious. Helping you review your proposal isn't a bad thing, so there's no need to act like this." Vice Principal Li couldn't help but laugh and guide him.

"Yes." Xiahou Zhongying dryly laughed and nodded, but his heart remained on edge.

Vice Principal Li looked at the anxious Xiahou Zhongying, shook his head lightly, took the proposal, and began to read it quietly. During the reading, he raised his head several times to look at Xiahou Zhongying, then continued to read, almost making Xiahou Zhongying's heart leap out of his throat.

"Interesting." Vice Principal Li nodded inwardly and looked at the nervous Xiahou Zhongying, who was sweating. He was amazed by this young man's ideas. For someone his age, coming up with such an idea was quite impressive.

"I've finished reading your proposal." Vice Principal Li looked at Xiahou Zhongying and nodded.

Xiahou Zhongying didn't dare to make a sound, looking at Vice Principal Li with tension and anticipation.

"Sit down, don't stand there." Vice Principal Li gestured for Xiahou Zhongying to sit on the sofa by the wall, then stood up himself, took a cup of tea, and sat down on the sofa, saying, "Tell me your ideas."

Xiahou Zhongying was delighted. The fact that Vice Principal Li didn't immediately refuse him meant there was a chance. Half of the weight on his heart was lifted, but he still didn't dare to relax until it was confirmed.

Xiahou Zhongying took a deep breath to calm his nervousness, organized his thoughts, and then slowly explained his ideas and general plan to Vice Principal Li.

Actually, most of what Xiahou Zhongying explained was already mentioned in the proposal. This explanation was just an expansion of the proposal, adding his initial purpose and other details. He explained why he had this idea, how he planned to implement it, and what effects he hoped to achieve.

Vice Principal Li nodded lightly as he listened, occasionally asking a few questions at key points to get a clearer understanding.

"What content do you plan to shoot?" Vice Principal Li asked.

"We haven't decided yet, only have a general idea." Xiahou Zhongying answered honestly, "But I hope to shoot something positive. Of course, it will inevitably involve some student romance, which is unavoidable. After all, people nowadays like to watch such content, and without it, it would be hard to attract the audience's attention."

"That won't do." Vice Principal Li shook his head, "Students should focus on their studies. If you make it like those romantic movies, there's no point in making it. The target audience for your film is mainly students, and adding romantic content could easily mislead them."

"Principal, we'll try to make it as positive as possible, okay?" Xiahou Zhongying pleaded helplessly, "You know, even if we don't make it, they will still watch movies and be influenced. If we can guide them positively, we can at least lead them in the right direction, or at least make them think about what is right."

Vice Principal Li didn't speak, just nodded lightly and thought for a moment. After a while, he said, "Continue."

"Principal, can I get a glass of water first?" Xiahou Zhongying was already parched, but Vice Principal Li still hadn't given his opinion, which made him very frustrated. Seeing Vice Principal Li leisurely drinking tea while listening to him, he felt his throat burning and couldn't help but ask.

"Brat, go get your own water. Do you want me to get it for you?" Vice Principal Li scolded with a smile.

"Yes, yes, I wouldn't dare trouble you, Principal. I'll get you some more water too." Xiahou Zhongying eagerly took Vice Principal Li's teacup, went to the water dispenser, refilled it, and handed it back to him before getting a glass of water for himself.

"Principal, making this micro-film will also help promote our school, right?" After taking a sip of water to moisten his throat, Xiahou Zhongying changed his negotiation strategy, trying to entice Vice Principal Li, "If the film is successful, it will only bring benefits to our school."

"I know that without you reminding me. Do you think I'm wasting my time listening to your nonsense?" Vice Principal Li scolded with a smile, "Continue, or I'll kick you out if you don't say something substantial."

Xiahou Zhongying's little trick was exposed, and he dryly laughed, having no choice but to continue. "How about this, we add some negative consequences of student romance to the film as a warning to students. What do you think?"

"That won't do." Vice Principal Li shook his head vigorously, warning, "Our school cannot have such things, even in a film. It would damage our school's image. Even if it's fake, it would still influence people's perceptions. Films are based on life, and if such things haven't happened, we can't make a film with such content."

"Alright." Another bad idea was rejected by Vice Principal Li, and Xiahou Zhongying was a bit disheartened.

"How about adding some teacher-student relationships, showing the care teachers have for students?" Xiahou Zhongying racked his brains and came up with another idea.

"Let's leave that for later. You can shoot, but I need to review the script first. If it doesn't pass my review, you can't shoot it." Vice Principal Li saw that Xiahou Zhongying didn't have many good ideas and didn't want to discourage him too much, as such creative students were rare.

"Does that mean you agree to our plan?" Xiahou Zhongying was almost jumping with joy, looking at Vice Principal Li with anticipation, hoping to hear a positive response again.

"Let's say I agree." Vice Principal Li smiled and nodded, then continued, "But don't take my words lightly. If the script doesn't pass my review, there's nothing to talk about."

"No problem." Xiahou Zhongying confidently patted his chest, as long as the school agreed to let them use the facilities, everything else would be manageable.