National Tide 1980

The lawyer introduced by Alain Delon was Henry René, a man in his late fifties.

The first meeting in the lawyer's office left a good impression on Ning Weimin.

This is not only because of his smart and capable face and gentleman-like dress, but also because of his calm, pragmatic work attitude and extremely high professionalism.

You know, even though he knew that being a legal consultant for such a large transaction would earn him a lot of money, the French lawyer still insisted on making the following remarks to Ning Weimin as soon as they met.

"Let me make it clear that I am a lawyer who has served Mr. Alain Delon for a long time. So sir, I have to make sure you understand that this time I am only providing you with legal services on a temporary basis regarding your deal with the studio. And this is on the basis that Mr. Alain Delon stays out of the matter. If... I mean in case... your business negotiations with those two studios involve Mr. Alain Delon's interests, Then I will have to suspend my services for you and will also act as Mr. Alain Delon’s agent to fight for his legal rights.”

Looking at Alain Delon, who looked slightly embarrassed on the side, Ning Weimin fully understood this.

"No problem, I agree."

What Henry lawyer said next made Ning Weimin believe in his ability to work even more.

"Let me make it clear again that I did not mean to target you, let alone humiliate you. Sir, I would do the same thing if I were the most powerful filmmaker in France, or even a Hollywood movie giant. This is my profession. Principle. If you ask Mr. Alain Delon, you will know that I have never been afraid of big shots and I like to confront them in court. I will do my best to ensure that my agent obtains reasonable benefits in every transaction. It’s my career pursuit. Of course, my price is never cheap, and it matches my work ability. I hope you can be mentally prepared for this.”

Ning Weimin glanced at Alain Delon beside him, and he nodded slightly in agreement.

So out of "confidence", Ning Weimin then turned to face the lawyer and said with a smile, "I appreciate your frankness, Mr. Lawyer. Henry, I can call you that. I have completely understood your point." Meaning. I can also assure you that I am not a stingy employer. If you are willing to be my lawyer, I have a check for one million francs ready to be given to you right away. Advance payment, and if the deal ends up being completed at a relatively reasonable price, you can also send me more bills.”

"How should I understand your so-called reasonable price?"

"If the other party can make an offer based on the normal market price, I would like to offer a 20% discount on top of that. After all, it is a large transaction, and everyone thinks I am doing something stupid and buying a bunch of junk that no one wants. . So in this case, my small goal should not be difficult to achieve, right?"

The lawyer finally smiled now.

After Henry took the check from Ning Weimin, he shook hands with Ning Weimin solemnly.

"As you wish, sir. From now on, I will be your agent. I will do my best to help you realize your wish as soon as possible."

Then he said to Alain Delon, "Alan, we all have to have a drink together. Thank you for introducing me to a high-quality customer."

…………

Three days later, Ning Weimin took the lead in receiving feedback from World Television and Film Company.

He immediately called his temporary attorney.

Then Ning Weimin took Matsumoto Keiko and met with Henry René in his office.

It's a coincidence that the lawyer doesn't have any urgent work at the moment.

So after they reviewed the terms of the contract that had been prepared in advance, they took the law firm's car and went to the World Television and Film Company resolutely to attend the appointment.

This film studio started in the 1920s and still maintains the style of that era, completely looking like a traditional studio.

The layout is similar to the large shipyard of Shochiku Pictures and the Fog Film Factory bought by Matsumoto Keiko.

The vast site is dotted with small buildings, which are all different studios.

The main building has only six floors and is an old building. Under the original architectural pattern, only modern facilities have been repaired.

So the administrative space at this studio was very small and crowded.

Ning Weimin and his group arrived at the sixth floor, where they met several senior figures from the studio who had been waiting for them in a relatively spacious conference room.

The studio's general manager, administrative director, and deputy general manager in charge of distribution operations have been authorized by the board of directors to negotiate a library deal.

So in addition to them, it is inevitable that the studio's legal counsel is also here.

But what was a bit unexpected was that Henry Rene and the other party's legal advisor actually knew each other. They were lawyers from the same well-known law firm, and they seemed to have a very good relationship.

The two of them were very happy to meet on such an occasion, and they exchanged pleasantries without hesitation for a while.

This undoubtedly adds some additional favorable factors to the successful conclusion of this transaction.

In fact, the process did go quite smoothly.

After both parties got to know each other, the studio first took out the catalog from the film library and distributed it to Ning Weimin and his party for them to browse and read.

Henry also took out his preliminary contract framework on behalf of Ning Weimin and had it read through in public.

Then the studio staff brought hot coffee and snacks.

The two sides began to drink coffee and talk about business and contracts like friends in a friendly atmosphere similar to a chat in a cafe.

As if the deal was not important, it didn't matter if it was more or less, they slowly and gentlemanly discussed the terms and prices.

There was no verbal battle, bickering, insults and attacks at all.

To be honest, this surprised Ning Weimin a little.

Perhaps because he was poisoned by Hollywood, in his impression, he always thought that foreigners would not speak well, especially when talking about money, they would get excited easily, and they especially liked to slam the table and yell to talk about big business.

Originally, he had made some mental preparations for this meeting in advance, and warned himself that if this happened, he must not be anxious and angry, just treat himself as a bystander.

Unexpectedly, the confrontation on the spot was so civilized.

And he really became a bystander, just watching the two sides like spring breeze, gentle and elegant, and actually negotiated the deal.

Neither side did anything aggressive to each other, and behaved quite harmoniously.

So much so that in an environment where the language is unfamiliar.

Ning Weimin did not have time to think carefully about the offer of 426,597,800 francs given by the other party.

In just one hour, his temporary lawyer Henri René followed his advance instructions and negotiated the final transaction price for him.

"They agreed to all your requests. I negotiated the price for you to 330 million francs. This is better than the target price you requested. So please sign, sign these documents, and all the commercial rights of these TV series and movies in the catalog in Asia in the future will belong to you and your wife. Of course, signing this document means that you must fulfill your legal obligations on time. The important thing is that you have to pay within a week, at least 200 million francs. Otherwise, you will be in trouble. So...what do you want, you decide..."

Henri René spoke in English and happily spread the contract in front of Ning Weimin.

However, the French lawyer who was proud of his efficient work results did not expect that Ning Weimin would return some of his words three days ago to him.

"I want to send the final terms of the contract to Paris by fax machine and ask the lawyers there to review it for me. Is it okay? Sorry, Henry, I am very satisfied with your work. I also hope you can understand that I am not targeting you, nor do I disrespect you, but..."

This made Henry René feel a little bit like he had sprained his waist.

However, he was a professional lawyer after all, and he just shrugged his shoulders in surprise, and he was not too emotionally resistant.

"I understand. Just to be cautious, do it in a fair way."

Then he took the initiative to ask.

"Send the fax now, or do you have to go back to do it? If you do it now, I will ask them to provide equipment..."

"Okay, send the fax now."

Just like that, in the afternoon of that day, when Paris replied to Ning Weimin who had been waiting for several hours, saying that there was no problem with the contract, he could sign it boldly.

Ning Weimin, who had tasted coffee, had a staff meal, and was drinking afternoon tea at World Television and Film Company, finally ended his good time of eating and drinking for free at other people's studios and formally signed his name on the acquisition contract.

So from this point on, he bought out all the copyrights and commercial rights of 2,100 film copies, more than 600 TV series, more than 60 animation series, and more than 80 documentaries originally belonging to World Television and Film Company in Asia.

And he was going to transfer all of this to the name of Matsumoto Keiko's fog production through another document later.

That's not all. After signing, Ning Weimin wrote a check for 200 million francs on the spot.

He also understood that since it doesn't matter whether he pays early or late, why wait until a week later?

It would be better to pay the down payment in the presence of lawyers from both sides, which would reduce legal risks and make him look generous.

And when these things were completed one by one, needless to say, Ning Weimin and Matsumoto Keiko were extremely excited.

For Ning Weimin, this was almost the biggest deal he had ever made, and it was a trick against old-fashioned capitalism.

No one knew better than him what he had taken from the French. This was a great bargain for cultural copyright.

He already had a fairly complete plan in mind. Just based on the Japanese's preference for pink movies and the existence of many independent theaters in Japan that were willing to play art films, perhaps in a few decades, the French would regret it.

He hated that they had been so stupid that they sold the crystallization of their strongest creative period at such a cheap price, which made him, an Oriental, make a lot of money.

As for Matsumoto Keiko, she was completely intoxicated by the happiness of love and marriage.

You know, she herself was obsessed with movies and took movies as her lifelong career.

Her beloved not only did not let her retire after marriage, but also helped her improve the finances of the firm, helped her buy a studio, and made a hit movie like "Li Xianglan" that shocked Asia, saving her acting career.

Now, he even bought countless copies of films from a major French studio for her.

How could she not be moved and excited?

With her understanding of the film industry, she knew that these copies were a hot potato.

But she didn't care at all whether the deal brokered by Ning Weimin contained risks.

Because in her eyes, Ning Weimin did this all for her.

Rather than saying that she was superstitious about Ning Weimin's business ability, it would be better to say that she was glad that she had found true love.

So no matter what Ning Weimin chooses to do or what she is willing to do, she will never object.

She will only support without any conditions, cooperate without reservation, and regard it as the greatest happiness in her life.

She didn't know the Chinese proverb "if you marry a chicken, follow the chicken, if you marry a dog, follow the dog", but she already had this awareness and determination.

As for those French people, several senior executives of World Television and Film Company are certainly very happy.

None of them expected Ning Weimin to do things so happily. They originally thought they would have to compete on price with another studio.

Unexpectedly, the negotiation was concluded, and the contract was signed on the same day, and the money was given immediately after signing the contract.

So even though the deal was completed, the overjoyed general manager of the studio still stayed with him sincerely.

"Excuse me, I would like to take up a little more of your time, gentlemen. I propose that we drink a toast to our happy cooperation."

There was no chance for objection at all, and the staff who had been prepared took action upon hearing the sound.

In the blink of an eye, several female employees from the studio walked into the conference room carrying a tray of wine glasses and a bottle of Rémy Martin cognac, and respectfully presented a glass to every big shot present.

At this time, the general manager took the lead in raising his glass and said, "To our happy cooperation and to our opportunity to work together again, please cheers to our friends from the East!"

Just like that, everyone on the scene drank all their wine.

Of course, there was actually another person who was also very happy that the transaction could be completed so smoothly, and that was Henry René, the lawyer who temporarily took over the business.

Under normal circumstances, both parties to a transaction of such a large amount are usually very cautious, and it is easy for variables to arise in the middle of the negotiation due to large differences between them.

According to Henry's own estimate, even if Ning Weimin did not have unrealistic demands, it would take at least two weeks.

After all, there is another studio that will provide comparison, so you can choose the best.

He really didn't expect that his job ended in just four days, and Ning Weimin didn't even wait for another company's quote.

And this means that like a pie falling from the sky, he easily made a lot of money and can get his reward soon.

He was even considering whether to take an early vacation for himself, and rented a yacht to take his wife and children to Morocco and Nice for a few days.

So he was so happy that when he just left the studio, as soon as he got into the car, he couldn't help but ask for payment for himself.