Chapter 124: No Director Dares to Take It? I Will!

At this moment, Tang Tao felt a sense of absurdity.

Just moments ago, he had clearly seen the look of disapproval on Xiao Jiangxu’s face while he was browsing the proposal for "Where Are We Going, Dad?". In particular, Xiao’s subsequent remarks had been a clear expression of rejection.

Yet, why? Why did Xiao Jiangxu’s attitude perform a 180-degree turn after Wang Mo’s explanation? Tang Tao was utterly bewildered.

After a brief hesitation, he asked, "Mr. Xiao, what do you think of this variety show project proposed by young Wang?"

Before he could finish, Xiao Jiangxu gave a thumbs up and exclaimed, "Excellent. In my opinion, this show is full of creativity and novelty. As young Wang said, there is almost no similar parent-child variety show in China. As long as we film it, it will surely become a beautiful highlight in the industry."

Tang Tao opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing. Was the show really that good? Was he the one who was blind? He felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

...

Wang Mo, sitting nearby, had witnessed the change in Xiao Jiangxu’s attitude firsthand. He was deeply shaken: "The effect of the 'Trust Fragment' is truly powerful. It can completely change the mind of someone who originally looked down on my proposal within just a few minutes, making them trust me enough."

He knew that Xiao Jiangxu’s change in attitude was precisely due to the effect of the Trust Fragment. Otherwise, would his words alone have been enough to convince him? That would be a pipe dream!

Suddenly, a thought crossed Wang Mo's mind, and he hurriedly asked internally, "System, if the duration of the Trust Fragment expires, will the other party’s attitude change back?"

If the effect wore off in half an hour and Xiao Jiangxu’s attitude reverted, it would be a disaster.

System: [Please rest assured, host. The Trust Fragment changes a person's deep-seated beliefs, and its effect is permanent. Its influence on a person does not disappear when the time of the Trust Fragment ends.]

Wang Mo breathed a sigh of relief. Now he could be completely at ease.

Half an hour later, Wang Mo left Mango TV with Tang Tao. Although Xiao Jiangxu had said he would hold an emergency meeting to finalize "Where Are We Going, Dad?" as soon as possible, for a major network like Mango TV, confirming a variety show takes at least a week, even at the fastest pace. Therefore, they had to return to Shanghai first.

Upon returning to the hotel, Tang Tao did not take Wang Mo to the airport, but immediately initiated a video conference from the hotel. The attendees were the same as the last meeting Wang Mo had participated in; basically, the entire leadership of the variety department was present.

During the video conference, Tang Tao explained the requirements set by Mango TV and stated, "According to Mango TV, if we cannot produce a hit show with a rating above 0.5 in the coming months, there is a high possibility that they will cooperate with Canxing Culture instead. Therefore, my suggestion is that the variety department must go all out to produce a high-quality show; otherwise, the losses next year will be immeasurable."

Silence filled the conference room. Clearly, everyone was stunned by this news.

Finally, many could not help but speak up.

"Isn't Mango TV being too greedy?"

"Producing a show with a rating over 0.5? Such ratings would qualify as a flagship show; that’s rare and hard to come by."

"The first half of the year's 'Idol Singer' hit over 0.3, and that didn't satisfy them?"

"I think Mango TV has long wanted to work with Canxing Culture, which is why they set a requirement we likely can't meet."

"Heh! If Mango TV dares to work with Canxing, we dare to work with Tomato TV. Who's afraid of whom?"

"Exactly, and Tomato TV is closer; we won't have to keep running to Xingcheng all the time."

The conference room was noisy, but everyone understood that this matter had to be resolved, or else Yunhai Media would suffer the most.

After a long while, seeing that everyone’s expressions were grim, Tang Tao clapped his hands and said, "Of course, I also have two pieces of good news from my trip to Mango TV."

"The first good news is that I have successfully signed the contract for the variety show 'Youth and Maturity: The Clash of Two Generations'. I think this show has great potential. If it is produced well and the promotion is on point, it might just break the 0.5 rating mark."

The expressions of those present softened slightly.

"That's right, the content of this show is exactly what's trending right now."

"It will definitely break 0.5."

"We are still the ones producing it. Colleagues in the production department, it's up to you!"

"And the other good news?"

Tang Tao said, "The second good news is: the variety show 'Where Are We Going, Dad?', planned by young Wang, has been picked up by the head of the variety department at Mango TV. Barring any accidents, they will purchase the rights to this show in a few days."

...

!!!

The conference room fell into an eerie silence. Everyone looked at each other with incredibly colorful expressions.

During the last meeting, they had all heard with their own ears the impractical show Wang Mo had proposed, and they knew that Tang Tao had allocated two million just to indulge him and keep him happy. They had even sent Wang Mo to Mango TV with his proposal this time. Everyone had thought it was a farce. Even Yang Hua had already mentally prepared how to comfort Wang Mo when picking him up at the airport and how to take him out for drinks to drown his sorrows.

But! Now!

"This..."

"Mr. Tang, what did you say?"

"Damn!"

"Is this for real?"

"Are you sure Mango TV picked it up?"

Hearing these comments, Tang Tao frowned and said, "It is a cause for celebration that young Wang's show was picked up by Mango TV; let's not discuss irrelevant things."

"But I don't necessarily think it's a good thing."

A manager stood up with a serious expression: "In the past, I would have congratulated young Wang if his show had been picked up by Mango TV. But now, Mango TV has set a requirement: we must strive for excellence and aim for high-rated hits, or we will be replaced by Canxing Culture. Everyone has seen young Wang's show; I won't go into detail about what kind of show it is. Mango TV likely picked it up for its novel concept, but to be blunt, the chances of this show succeeding are extremely slim. Mango TV releases about 50 shows a year. At most, one or two are hits, a dozen or so are average, and over 70% are flops. Mango TV has deep pockets and can afford to experiment, which is why they dare to sign 'Where Are We Going, Dad?'. Even if it fails, they can gain some experience from it. But we cannot afford to lose! If 'Where Are We Going, Dad?' ends up a total flop, it will consume Yunhai Media's already crumbling reputation. It might even become the last straw that convinces Mango TV to cooperate with Canxing Culture. So... my suggestion is: even if Mango TV wants it, we cannot sell the rights. We can't afford to gamble! We can't afford to lose! Please reconsider, Mr. Tang!"

Wang Mo glanced at the guy who spoke with a blank expression, a surge of primal energy welling up inside him. Damn it. He was wholeheartedly trying to save the company, yet this person was stabbing him in the back without mercy.

In the conference room, this person's words had already caused quite a stir. Many people nodded secretly.

"Manager He has a point."

"Indeed, at a critical moment, 'Where Are We Going, Dad?' might hold us back."

"We really can't afford to gamble."

But others frowned.

"If Mango TV really wants to work with Canxing Culture, one show from young Wang won't change their mind."

"Exactly! Wang Mo worked hard on this proposal and sold it to Mango TV; it's worthy of praise. How can you say he's holding us back?"

"What we need now is to plan better shows, not scapegoat 'Where Are We Going, Dad?'."

"That's right. If we can produce a hit show with a rating over 1 in the next month or two, do you think Mango TV will say a word of complaint?"

Gradually, everyone’s eyes focused on Tang Tao, waiting for his decision.

Tang Tao looked at Wang Mo and smiled slightly: "Young Wang, what do you think?"

Wang Mo’s expression was calm: "Everything is up to Mr. Tang."

He had already decided: if Tang Tao agreed to pull "Where Are We Going, Dad?" back, he would contact Tomato TV and never worry about the company’s messy affairs again.

Tang Tao looked at Wang Mo’s expression carefully, patted him on the shoulder, and laughed: "Yunhai Media has achieved its current status not by being timid or cautious. It’s because we dare to forge ahead and strive. Your show being picked up by Mango TV is proof of your ability. If we were to withdraw your show to preserve the company's reputation, that would be sacrificing the interests of our own people to please others. Such behavior is unacceptable!"

His words were firm and powerful. Many people were silenced. Only Wang Mo’s mouth curled into a faint arc; it seemed... he had helped the right person.

...

At the same time, in Xingcheng, at the Mango Building, Xiao Jiangxu was also presiding over a meeting. The topic of the meeting was the review of "Where Are We Going, Dad?".

In the conference room, more than twenty executives were gathered, all in suits and ties with serious expressions. In front of each of them lay a proposal for "Where Are We Going, Dad?".

After a long while, everyone had finished reading the proposal. Their expressions were complex.

"Mr. Xiao, this show is indeed very creative, but it's a bit too idealistic."

"Yes, very novel, but also very wishful thinking."

"Difficult to implement."

"Even for the five pairs of celebrity fathers and children mentioned, I'm afraid it will be hard to invite suitable guests."

"Four or five-year-old children are the most uncontrollable; safety and entertainment value are both insufficient."

"Too unreliable, not advisable."

Xiao Jiangxu felt very strange at this moment. He felt that what everyone said was very reasonable, but deep down, he felt that what Wang Mo had said was even more reasonable.

In the end, his trust in Wang Mo prevailed.

He coughed and said, "Everyone’s points are valid, but I noticed that everyone agreed on one thing: 'Where Are We Going, Dad?' is very creative. I think the word 'creative' is enough. Mango TV has never lacked variety shows; we launch dozens every year, what kind of creativity haven't we seen? So, a show that can still make our eyes light up is rare. 'Where Are We Going, Dad?' has achieved that. As for the difficulties involved, aren't those exactly what we need to overcome? Mango TV fears a lack of creativity, but we have never feared a challenge."

Since the boss had spoken, what else could they object to? The people in the conference room looked at each other.

"Agreed."

"Agreed."

Soon, everyone passed the review of "Where Are We Going, Dad?". Anyway, Mango TV saw dozens of variety shows every year, and they had seen shows even more bizarre than "Where Are We Going, Dad?", so they didn't find it particularly abrupt.

It was just that everyone felt in their hearts: this show is likely another flop! Because although they thought the show had some creativity, it had no highlights, right? A few dads taking a few kids to experience life—what is there to watch? No conflict! No tension! Not even the games had any excitement!

Just thinking about it felt boring. Of course, since the boss liked it, they had nothing to say.

However, Xiao Jiangxu then asked, "So, who is willing to take over this show? Who is willing to be the director?"

*Whoosh!*

Instantly, everyone lowered their heads. *Don't call me, don't call me, don't call me.*

Xiao Jiangxu waited for a long time, and when no one volunteered, he frowned: "Nobody? Is this show really that difficult to film?"

The crowd remained silent. Xiao Jiangxu was helpless, as he knew the difficulty of filming this show was indeed sky-high. Just finding suitable celebrity father-child pairs would likely be a struggle for the production team. But he couldn't help but have a voice in his heart reminding him: Young Wang is very trustworthy, and this program has great prospects.

A few days later, Mango TV officially passed the final audit for "Where Are We Going, Dad?", but the director position remained vacant. Based on his full trust in Wang Mo, Xiao Jiangxu dialed Wang Mo’s phone: "Young Wang, 'Where Are We Going, Dad?' has passed the network's audit, but there is a problem: it seems there is no suitable director at the station to take over this program. How do you think we should solve this?"

No director to take it?

Wang Mo thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Xiao, if you trust me, how about you let me be responsible for the program?"

Xiao Jiangxu was stunned. Let Wang Mo be responsible?

"You... can you do it?"

He couldn't help it; Wang Mo was just too young. And Xiao Jiangxu knew clearly that Wang Mo had never been in charge of a variety show before. So, his first reaction to handing over a program with a production budget of tens of millions or even over a hundred million to Wang Mo was that it was absurd.

Wang Mo immediately shouted internally: "System, use the Trust Fragment!"

System: [Request received. The Trust Fragment has been used. The duration is half an hour. There are two more uses remaining.]

Wang Mo: "I can be in charge for a period of time first. If you are not satisfied, Mr. Xiao, you can change the person at any time."

The next second, Xiao Jiangxu said: "Okay!"