Chapter 198 - 196: Bargaining
"Ms. Lily Sterling, we’re sorry. We didn’t mean to."
"We’re sorry. We just heard it from someone else."
The two of them looked terrified, as if they were scared out of their wits. Extras at the film studio are terrified of offending the production crew, especially a well-known one. If the head of extras found out, they might never get another acting job again.
"I know. I’m not angry."
Lily Sterling said calmly, "You two aren’t hurt, are you?"
The two quickly shook their heads. Lily Sterling looked them over herself and saw no obvious external injuries. It was clear Andrew Sutton hadn’t hit them hard.
This made her breathe a small sigh of relief.
"Since you’ve apologized to me, I’ll apologize to you on Andrew Sutton’s behalf. No matter the reason, getting physical was wrong."
"No need, Ms. Sterling. As long as you’re not angry, it’s fine."
Lily Sterling looked at them and said earnestly, "Then regarding what happened today, can you promise me you’ll keep it to yourselves and not spread it around?"
One of them nodded furiously, while the other hesitated before speaking up. "We can keep quiet, but other people saw it too."
Hearing this, the assistant director warned in a loud voice, "You don’t need to worry about the others. Just worry about yourselves."
The man quickly nodded. "Okay, we promise we won’t spout any more nonsense."
At this, Lily Sterling nodded, relieved. Seeing this, the assistant director shooed them away. "Alright, don’t just stand there. Get out!"
"Director, can we still stay with the production?"
The assistant director looked at Lily Sterling. Seeing that she said nothing, he understood her intention. "Lily isn’t holding this against you, so you’d better be grateful. Watch your mouths from now on. If I hear you spreading any more of this gossip, I’ll definitely kick you off the set."
Hearing this, the two were overjoyed and thanked them profusely. "Thank you, Director! Thank you, Ms. Lily Sterling!"
"Alright, alright, just go," the assistant director urged impatiently. After the two had left the lounge, he stepped forward and sighed. "Ah, Lily, there have been a lot of rumors going around the set lately. I imagine you’ve heard them. Don’t take them to heart."
"I know. Don’t worry, Director. I don’t care," Lily Sterling said, sounding as calm and unbothered as if she were truly unaffected.
The assistant director knew Lily Sterling’s temperament well enough. She seemed to only care about acting. In all the time they had worked together, he had never seen her get distracted or distressed by anything else.
This was a good thing. In the entertainment industry, at least, such a mindset was a rare and unique advantage.
*
「In January, the weather in Lorcain took a sudden, sharp turn for the cold.」
Just two days prior, the complete data testing for the project had been finished. The Jennings Group was extremely satisfied with the results and wanted to sign a contract as soon as possible.
But clearly, the Jennings Group was unwilling to share such a cutting-edge program with other companies, so their opening move was an attempt at a buyout.
In the conference room, Reginald Jennings spoke earnestly to Cecilia Sterling and Timothy Rowe. "As long as you agree to sell this project exclusively to the Jennings Group, we will definitely make you a satisfying offer on the price."
But on this point, their entire team had long since reached a consensus.
So, before Cecilia Sterling could even speak, Timothy Rowe had already jumped in to refuse. "Sorry, Vice President Jennings, but we’ve already reached an internal decision on this. We will not allow any single company to buy out our project."
"You’re not even going to ask what price I’m offering?"
Timothy Rowe shook his head. "No matter how high a price you offer, it won’t change our original intention."
"So you’ve contacted other groups as well, correct?"
Timothy Rowe didn’t deny it. In fact, they had already made some progress with others, getting their foot in the door with a few smaller companies that were now also in the testing phase.
Everything was developing in the direction they had hoped.
Reginald Jennings was visibly disappointed. "I thought you would want a buyout. It would save you a lot of trouble, at least."
But Cecilia Sterling cut in with a playful tone, "Then you really thought wrong. The one thing we’re not afraid of is trouble."
Timothy Rowe smiled and nodded.
Reginald Jennings sat up straight, his expression turning serious as he looked at the two of them. "Well, if it’s not a buyout, then I’m going to have to drive a hard bargain!"
Cecilia Sterling and Timothy Rowe exchanged a glance and smiled. As was customary, the seller quotes first.
Timothy Rowe spoke. "A one-year license fee of 600 dollars."
Hearing this number, Reginald Jennings raised an eyebrow slightly. Clearly, the figure "600" was quite different from the number he had in mind.
He shook his head. "Are you deliberately overstating the price to give me room to haggle?"
Cecilia Sterling also shook her head. "No. The 600 is non-negotiable."
Reginald Jennings: !!
"This is no way to do business."
A smile never left Cecilia Sterling’s face. Hearing his words, she chuckled. "Vice President Jennings is probably just used to haggling. It must be rare to meet such straightforward partners as us."
"You say we’re overstating the price to give you room to negotiate, but the final outcome might not even change. So why waste time?"
Timothy Rowe added, "To be frank, this price was decided upon by our entire team in an internal meeting. You’re an expert. You should know our project is absolutely worth this price."
"The Jennings Group is the first conglomerate we’re partnering with. The final transaction price will be crucial for all our subsequent collaborations, so we don’t intend to make any concessions."
Closing the deal with the Jennings Group for "600 dollars" would establish a clear market price for their program, and they wouldn’t allow other companies to haggle later on.
If they made a concession here and let the Jennings Group slash the price—no matter by how much—other companies would inevitably follow suit.
But Reginald Jennings still shook his head. "No. 600 is too expensive."
Timothy Rowe’s expression tightened slightly, but Cecilia Sterling remained perfectly calm, smiling at him. "Good things are naturally expensive. And we’re not just making empty promises. The project’s advantages are all backed by data. It can be used across all Jennings Group products. The resulting profits and cost savings... for a company like the Jennings Group, that has to be at least several thousand, if not in the tens of thousands, right?"
Reginald Jennings looked at Cecilia Sterling and said, "Our other industries at the Jennings Group do have high throughput, but the ’artificial intelligence’ sector is just starting out. The profit margins really aren’t as high as you think."
Cecilia Sterling didn’t fall for it. "But with the support of our project, the performance of all Jennings Group ’artificial intelligence’ products will be drastically improved. Doubling your profits shouldn’t be difficult, right?"
"You’re a professional. You should know how much blood, sweat, and tears went into creating this program. 600 dollars? The Jennings Group pays a celebrity endorser more than that for a single product, don’t they? Do you really think it’s expensive?"
Reginald Jennings’s expression grew even more serious. "We have to consider the practical realities. We’ve held internal meetings and evaluated your project. The most we can offer you is 450 dollars a year."
Cecilia Sterling shook her head without hesitation, rejecting the offer. "600 dollars a year. Our project is worth that price!"