Jiang Shu, who was excitedly singing a Girls' Generation song, was interrupted by a sudden phone call and unhappily picked up his phone.
His expression softened when he saw that the caller was President Li.
This was his chosen workhorse, and he had to treat her well.
"Hello, President Li."
"Chairman, something has happened in the industry."
"What is it?"
"Cube's Chairman Hong Seong-seong has fallen ill and been hospitalized. Now, President Shin Daenam is in charge of operations."
"Hong Seong-seong?" Jiang Shu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. He remembered that Hong Seong-seong left Cube in 2020, and at the same time, Cube was acquired by someone else.
Counting that, there wasn't much time left before Hong Seong-seong left Cube.
Shin Daenam would also be removed when facing a parachuted representative.
In an instant, Jiang Shu had an idea.
The YG Alliance incident had given him a warning: he couldn't be too ostentatious in his actions. The emergence of "Produce48" was an insurance policy for DM Entertainment.
But just one layer of insurance wasn't enough; he needed to cast a wide net.
He had already secured a seat on the S.M. board of directors, but before Li Xiuman left, he would definitely keep a close eye on him. It would be too difficult for Jiang Shu to cause trouble at S.M.
And JYP…
Forget it, they're stingy; just wait for the money distribution.
Cube…
Cube was a company founded by Hong Seong-seong. As the founder in charge, Hong Seong-seong still had control over Cube. Although it didn't reach the level of Jiang Shu's control over DM Entertainment, he was still the undisputed authority.
Now that Hong Seong-seong was ill and hospitalized, it was inevitable that some problems would arise with Shin Daenam, a second-in-command, suddenly taking over the big picture.
This was the perfect time to strike while the iron was hot.
Jiang Shu told President Li his thoughts. Before the YG Alliance even made a move, it was President Li who had sensed the impropriety beforehand, which showed her keen intuition. He could ask for President Li's opinion.
"I think it's feasible, but we can't make a move ourselves," President Li said after a moment of thought.
"Too many eyes are on us. Rashly interfering with Cube would be very troublesome, especially since I've already joined the S.M. board of directors." Jiang Shu finished President Li's unspoken words.
One S.M. could be explained as an investment, but another Cube would no longer be just an investment.
"How are the 'Produce48' numbers?" Jiang Shu abruptly changed the subject, leaving President Li unsure if he had dropped the idea or had other plans.
"'Produce48' has already met the threshold for a national-level variety show in all aspects, and the number of participants is still increasing. The appeal of Karina, Yuan Ying, and the Three Greats is still very high."
"Hmm, I understand."
The top three C-position judgment for twelve stars. fantasy fairy tale only considers the bond holders. Among the top three of "Produce48," only Little Sakura currently has a connection with this bond.
The popularity of the first episode had little reference value; they had to wait for the final group night to see the popularity rankings.
He just didn't know if the effect of the bond was based on actual popularity rankings or official popularity rankings.
If it was the former, the uncertainty was very high, but if it was the latter… then the manipulability would be too high.
Putting everything else aside, at least Ahn Yujin must be given a C-position bond, otherwise, if IVE only had six character designs, it would be difficult to meet Jiang Shu's expectations.
Sakura, who already had a C-position bond, didn't need to worry.
"Prioritize screen time for Ahn Yujin, raise her profile, avoid malicious editing, and heavily promote Ahn Yujin," Jiang Shu said.
"Reduce the screen time of popular trainees or last-place trainees?" President Li asked.
"Reduce the screen time of those trainees who are just there to make up the numbers."
The high-level executives of the three companies had already received the debut list. This variety show itself was a pre-debut warm-up for these three groups.
It was called a national producer system, but in reality, the public's opinion didn't count at all; they were just pretending to let them participate.
For those trainees who were just there to make up the numbers, it didn't matter whether they had more or less screen time.
"Okay, I understand."
After ending the call with President Li, Jiang Shu didn't put down his phone but instead dialed his mother Su Wan's number.
"Hello, son." Su Wan's gentle voice came through the receiver.
"Mom, do you have any relatively trustworthy business talents among your relatives?"
"What do you mean by trustworthy?" Su Wan asked, puzzled.
"I need one of my own people to help me with some things. He will hold a considerable amount of power, and I'm worried about problems if I find an outsider."
"Your cousin." Su Wan quickly offered a candidate.
"He won't do. His relationship with me can be easily traced. I need someone more discreet, at least not too obvious."
"Hmm…" Su Wan was stumped by Jiang Shu's question.
If it can't be a direct relative…
"Ji Lei, your brother-in-law. He's always worked with your dad. He's very reliable and capable. His whole family relies on our family for a living, so he's trustworthy."
The fact that his whole family relied on the Jiang family for their livelihood meant that even if he wanted to run away without considering their feelings, he would have to think about his family.
"Okay, he's the one." Jiang Shu still trusted his original parents very much. He had to trust them; he couldn't find any other of his own people.
"Have him start learning Korean immediately, as quickly as possible."
"Didn't your company just have some issues, making it difficult to go public?" Su Wan asked in surprise. Although they hadn't asked, they had clearly been following DM Entertainment.
"It's not about going public. Another company has run into problems, and I'm preparing to arrange people to go in, to make early arrangements and preparations," Jiang Shu explained.
"That certainly requires one of your own people." Su Wan realized, "How long will it take?"
"The sooner the better. The problem could be resolved at any time."
"Okay, I'll contact Ji Lei now."
"Mm."
After hanging up the phone, Jiang Shu looked at the sheet music in front of him and had no desire to continue writing songs.
The layout of Cube made him think of a possibility, a possibility that IZONE could withdraw for a suitable reason three years later.
This was just an idea, and it might take a long time to perfect, so there was no rush. IZONE hadn't even debuted yet.
"Cube, huh…"
Jiang Shu stroked his chin.
More than ten minutes later, Su Wan called.
"Ji Lei agreed to go, but he needs some time to learn Korean, and he's not familiar with your industry, so it might be difficult for him to meet your expectations in the short term."
"It's okay. I can guide him in the short term, but I can't guide him indefinitely."
"That's fine," Su Wan replied. "Is there anything else you need?"
"Uh… yes." Jiang Shu said, imitating his original self's tone.
Hearing this, Su Wan immediately laughed.
"Short on money?"
"Cough, my company isn't short on money, but this matter of investing in Cube…"
Although DM Entertainment had breached a contract and had to pay a lot of money, it was still within their means.
"I'll pay for that."
"Thank you, Mom!"