Chapter 73: Auntie, You Wouldn’t Want Me Unable to Even Pay Ah Ming’s Salary, Right?
Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Auntie, You Wouldn’t Want Me Unable to Even Pay Ah Ming’s Salary, Right?
"Can I ask which episodes Ah Ming worked on? I asked him, but he cited company confidentiality and wouldn’t tell me anything," Li Weiya asked curiously.
"It’s nothing too secret. It was mainly episodes eight, nine, and ten. The voice acting for episode ten is still being recorded, and Ah Ming is drawing the keyframes for episode eleven right now."
Jiang Xia took a sip of his herbal tea and smiled. "I really have Ah Ming to thank. If it weren’t for his help, I’d probably still be working on episode nine."
"You should just be grateful he’s not causing you any trouble."
"Teacher Li, Ah Ming and I grew up together. He’d cause trouble for anyone but me."
Li Weiya chuckled softly. This young, bare-bones crew only had two animators—one was her former student, and the other was her son. If *Cat and Mouse* managed to become a hit, she would be incredibly proud.
"Xiao Xia, just call me Aunt Li from now on. ’Teacher Li’ sounds so formal." She lifted the teapot and refilled Jiang Xia’s cup.
"Okay, Aunt Li."
"You’re really incredible, you know? Planning, character design, scriptwriting, storyboarding, keyframe animation, and even post-production work like coloring, editing, and sound—you handle it all by yourself. I’ve been in this industry for over ten years, and it’s rare to see someone so versatile, especially at your age." Li Weiya was filled with admiration. "It’s true what they say: each new generation excels the last."
"It’s mostly because we’re short-staffed. I’m just forced to do it all myself," Jiang Xia said with a wry smile.
He only looked young. What people didn’t know was that this eighteen-year-old high school graduate had already toiled away in the animation industry for ten years. His head was also filled with countless masterpieces of animation, which was why he could be so efficient.
Anyone else with over a decade of experience would have become an animation director or supervisor long ago. Who would still be drawing keyframes by hand?
Li Weiya just thought he was being modest. Such a talented person could easily command a high salary at any company.
"Is the music and sound for *Cat and Mouse* also your work?" Li Weiya asked.
With her expert eye, she could immediately tell that the brilliant music and sound were the very soul of the show’s high quality. Watching it on mute, it just lost all its charm.
"No, I’m completely clueless when it comes to music," Jiang Xia said, shaking his head. "I found a friend to help with that. I couldn’t have continued the project without her."
Hearing this, Li Weiya was surprisingly relieved. The soundscape of *Cat and Mouse* was incredibly complex; watching all nine episodes was like having a full symphony orchestra performing in the background.
If Jiang Xia could also be so perfect in the realm of music, he’d be a genuine monster. A whole team in one person.
"By the way, Xiao Xia, have you ever thought about jumping ship to another company?" she asked, half-joking.
"Aunt Li, if you’re going to try and poach me, you could at least wait until *Cat and Mouse* fails," Jiang Xia replied, a little exasperated.
"I’m afraid that after it airs on TV, you’ll blow up overnight. No one will be able to afford you then."
"If that really happens, then I’ll hire Aunt Li to be my company’s art director," Jiang Xia said with a grin.
Li Weiya smiled faintly. "Sure, but your Aunt Li’s salary is a bit high. You can’t afford me yet. So, keep up the good work, young man. I have high hopes for you and your company."
"Why don’t you stay for lunch? You can try your Aunt Li’s cooking."
Jiang Xia thought for a few seconds, then nodded lightly. "In that case, I’ll have to trouble you."
Li Weiya smiled faintly, then rose and headed for the kitchen, her movements graceful.
With time to kill, Jiang Xia wandered into Wang Ming’s room to check on his progress.
"You two finished talking?" Hearing the door open, Wang Ming turned and saw it was his childhood friend.
"Yeah. It’s true what they say—the older, the wiser. She cleared up a lot of things for me."
"So what’s the plan?"
"Once Yanwan finishes recording the sound for episode ten and sends it over, I’ll go talk to the TV station in Yu Du," Jiang Xia said, sitting on the bed and silently mulling over the upcoming negotiations.
"I’ll stay out of all that. All I need to do is focus on drawing my keyframes."
Wang Ming shrugged, picked up a storyboard, and asked him, "How exactly am I supposed to draw this scene where Tom gets hit by the telephone pole? No matter how I draw it, it just doesn’t look right."
Jiang Xia leaned in for a look. The title of the eleventh episode was *Flying Cat*. It was the story where Tom, in an attempt to catch a canary, pole-vaulted, accidentally stepped on a roller skate, and by a stroke of luck, gained "wings."
"Oh, this one. Let me explain. Tom chops down the telephone pole with an axe. As the pole falls, he panics and starts running in the same direction it’s falling, but he gets hit again and again, getting squashed shorter each time."
He took a pen and quickly sketched the gist of it on some scrap paper: after being smashed multiple times, Tom ends up as a perfectly square cat.
"Alright, I get it now. Go on, get out of here. Don’t bother me," Wang Ming said, unceremoniously shooing him away.
Jiang Xia: "..."
’How had I never noticed this guy was so punchable before?’
Around 12:30 PM, Li Weiya, wearing an apron, called the two of them to eat. Lunch was simple: a typical home-style meal of three dishes and a soup. Compared to what he was used to, it had a special flavor all its own.
"Mom," Wang Ming said suddenly in the middle of the meal, "I was just thinking... you watched our animation, but you didn’t sign an NDA. You’re not going to steal our creative concept, have your company quickly knock off a copy, and release it before we do, right?"
Li Weiya was taken aback by the question. When she recovered, she shot him an exasperated glare.
"So that’s the kind of despicable person you think your own mother is?"
"You wouldn’t understand, would you? Business is war. Even brothers have to keep clear accounts. I have to be on my guard, even with my own mom," Wang Ming said smugly.
Li Weiya didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
"Relax, I do have some professional integrity. Besides, *Cat and Mouse* is an animation my own son helped create. I wouldn’t stoop to making money that way."
Jiang Xia found himself nodding along.
"In that case, Aunt Li, when I go to negotiate with the TV station, could I ask you to come along as an advisor?" he asked hesitantly.
"Hmm... don’t you already have your own plan? What would you need me for?" Li Weiya asked, puzzled.
"Heh heh, to those executives, I’m just a kid. I’m worried they’ll try to lowball me. Aunt Li, you wouldn’t want me to get to the point where I can’t even pay Ah Ming’s salary, would you? Having you there would give me much more of a backbone."
Wang Ming couldn’t help but roll his eyes. This guy was bringing up his salary, yet he was the same person who’d threatened to dock his pay just for taking a break.
"Alright. Once you’ve set a time, have Ah Ming let me know. Just make sure you tell me in advance so I can schedule the time off."
Li Weiya agreed without much hesitation. She, too, wanted to see just how far this young man’s project could go.
...
(Phew, all done. Good night.)