Chapter 331 - 328: A Long, Heart-to-Heart Talk

Chapter 331: Chapter 328: A Long, Heart-to-Heart Talk

To this day, Lin Gaoyuan still remembered how Jiang Xia had taken two punches from him. Even though it was a misunderstanding, Jiang Xia had stood at attention and accepted the blame without a single word of complaint.

In fact, he hadn’t offered a single explanation from start to finish, not even when he was thrown out of the house.

"Jiang Xia, I lost control of my emotions and hit you that day. Please, allow me to apologize again."

"Dad, it’s all in the past. Besides, I never took it to heart."

Jiang Xia smiled. "Honestly, you didn’t do anything wrong that day. As a father who loves his daughter, I can understand why you were so furious. If it were my own daughter, I might have been even rougher."

"You’re too good-natured. Anyone else in that situation would have argued with me, maybe even started a fight," Lin Gaoyuan said with a soft sigh.

"Arguing doesn’t solve anything; it only makes the conflict worse. I knew you were furious at the time, so I figured I’d wait until you’d cooled off to explain things," Jiang Xia said.

"Did it ever occur to you that I might have been stubborn about it? What would you have done if I had adamantly opposed your relationship with Yanwan?" he suddenly asked.

’Jiang Xia hadn’t really considered that possibility. After all, with the experience from his past life, he knew Lin Gaoyuan’s temperament all too well.’

"Dad, you’re not that kind of person," he said, shaking his head.

"But what if I was?"

Jiang Xia gave a slightly resigned sigh. "Then you probably would have seen Yanwan and me elope."

’In any case, their two lifetimes of love was not something a single person could stop.’

"And even then, you still wouldn’t have been willing to tell me the truth about *Cat and Mouse*?"

"Dad, there’s really no point in discussing that kind of hypothetical. Let me ask you this: if I had used the merchandise rights as a bride price, would you have agreed or not?" Jiang Xia countered.

Lin Gaoyuan was suddenly caught in a difficult silence. If he agreed, he’d essentially be "selling his daughter" for money. If he disagreed, it would mean the family’s toy factory would go bankrupt.

Thus, Jiang Xia’s actions had completely prevented such an awkward situation. He had been looking out for him.

"You really thought everything through."

Lin Gaoyuan gently exhaled a puff of smoke. He’d never imagined that Jiang Xia had been the one secretly helping him the most.

"Tell me about how you started your company."

Jiang Xia nodded and gave his father-in-law a brief overview. When Lin Gaoyuan heard that it only took four people to create the first season of *Cat and Mouse*, and that Jiang Xia had gone with Li Weiya to Yu Du TV Station to negotiate a partnership, he was deeply moved.

’He was just a high school student back then. How could he have been so mature and forward-thinking?’

"I saw the trailer your company released. The upcoming new animation seems to be sports-themed, is that right?" Lin Gaoyuan asked.

Jiang Xia nodded. "Yes, a passionate series about basketball."

"That genre doesn’t seem to have any hit shows in the country yet. You should be prepared for that," Lin Gaoyuan advised.

’He didn’t understand why Jiang Xia was in such a rush to start a new show, especially in the unpopular sports genre. Logically, he should have continued to build on his success in children’s animation. But still, Jiang Xia’s strategic planning probably wasn’t wrong.’

"Dad, *Slam Dunk* is no ordinary show. Just get ready to make the figurines for it. I’ll send you the design drafts in a few days," Jiang Xia said with a chuckle.

’He was absolutely certain that *Slam Dunk* would spark another nationwide basketball craze.’

"You’re planning to give me the merchandise rights for *Slam Dunk* as well?" Lin Gaoyuan asked, slightly surprised.

"Dad, what are you saying? If I don’t support our own family’s factory, who would I support? It’s not just *Slam Dunk*. From now on, the merchandise rights for all of Qitian Animation’s productions will be yours to handle."

Lin Gaoyuan’s breath hitched. Given Qitian Animation’s scale, even just getting a taste of the profits would be enough for Gaoyuan Toys to make a fortune in the future.

"Do you have any suggestions for the toy factory?"

"How many production lines do we have right now?"

"Four."

"That’s too small," Jiang Xia said.

’Four production lines, even working 24/7, would have a hard time meeting the domestic market’s demand.’

"I’ve thought about expanding before, but I was worried the merchandise contract would expire. I was afraid that after expanding, I’d be left with useless production lines," Lin Gaoyuan said.

"That’s not what I meant, Dad. I think you can slowly grow the Gaoyuan Toy Factory into the Gaoyuan Group, with subsidiaries in various industries and products spanning multiple sectors. That’s how you can maximize the profits from the merchandise rights."

At these words, Lin Gaoyuan froze. He’d never considered this, content with just managing his own little plot of land. But now, Jiang Xia’s words revealed a brand-new path to him.

’Gaoyuan Group... It sounded so much grander.’

’After all, what man doesn’t dream of building an empire?’

"Establishing a group can’t be that easy, can it?"

"It’s certainly not something that can be done overnight, but we can take it slow. The IP rights are in our hands, after all. As long as the shows are a hit, there will be no shortage of sales for official merchandise. To start, Dad, you can try branching into toy-related businesses, then expand into other sectors from there," Jiang Xia said.

’As for Qitian Animation, it should just stick to content creation. The money-making side of things could be left entirely to the Gaoyuan Group.’

"Are you laying the groundwork for your future animation projects?"

Jiang Xia nodded without hesitation. He had many animations he wanted to create in the future; shows like *Four-wheel Brothers*, *Gundam*, *Yu-Gi-Oh!*, and *Pokemon* were all part of his plan.

’The merchandise sales for those series were simply terrifying. He still remembered the four-wheel drive race cars that were all the rage throughout his childhood, the Gundam model kits that would stop him in his tracks whenever he passed a store, not to mention *Pokemon* toys and *Yu-Gi-Oh!* cards.’

’In other words, even for *Slam Dunk*, which was set to air in March, they could move beyond simple clay figures and do tie-ins with jerseys, sneakers, and basketballs.’

’As long as his father-in-law dared to dream big, he was willing to throw all his resources behind what was currently Gaoyuan Toys.’

"I’ll give it a try," Lin Gaoyuan said.

After finishing his cigarette, he dusted off his pants and stood up. "Alright, let’s head back in. They’ve probably finished eating by now."

Jiang Xia nodded.

Back in the private room, Li Weiya watched as the father-in-law and son-in-law came back in, one after the other. She guessed the two must have had a heart-to-heart. ’As for what they talked about,’ she thought, ’I’ll ask when we get home.’