Chapter 85. Blind Box Crisis

     On the fifth day of the Chinese New Year, in a corner of a film and television city, Zhou Qunfang was sitting on a chair drinking hot coffee. The assistant next to her looked at her phone and suddenly said in surprise: “Sister, Song Ruqing seems to have got a limited edition postcard of Xingzhou Island!”

     Zhou Qunfang paused while drinking coffee and said nonchalantly: “If she got it, she got it. It has nothing to do with me.”

     The assistant said: “Oh.”

     After a while, Zhou Qunfang asked: “How did she get it?”

     The assistant: “…”

     Obviously, she was very gossipy about the dynamics of her mortal enemy, but she pretended not to care.

     Can’t pretend anymore?

     “Look at the V blog she posted, it seems that someone else gave it to her.”

     “Tsk…” Zhou Qunfang said nothing more.

     After she finished filming a scene, she picked up her phone and looked at Song Ruqing’s V blog. The latest blog post was a photo of her holding a limited edition postcard of Xingzhou Island and pouting her lips. She also said that it was a New Year’s gift from a friend.

     Zhou Qunfang sneered and privately chatted with Song Ruqing: “What kind of friend are you? Don’t you know that this kind of item cannot be transferred?”

     Song Ruqing immediately replied: “Why, are you jealous that someone gave it to me, while you can only work hard to win the lottery?”

     “To win the lottery, I just need to move my fingers and forward the V blog, why would I have to work so hard?”

     Song Ruqing gritted her teeth, is she showing off her luck in Versailles? !

     She retorted to Zhou Qunfang: “I didn’t even bother to forward the post on Weibo.”

     Zhou Qunfang rolled her eyes: “If you just want to collect postcards, then I have nothing to say, but if you heard the rumor that it can increase good luck, then forget it. Generally, this kind of object is like amulets. It only works on whoever asks for it. If your fate is not compatible, you may suffer a counter-effect if you wear someone else’s amulet. How do you know that the postcard someone gave you was taken for you or that someone else hasn’t used it first?”

     After posting this, she continued to shoot the next scene.

     Song Ruqing thought, this must be Zhou Qunfang jealous of her, she didn’t believe it!

     Originally, she didn’t believe that this postcard could bring good luck, but since Zhou Qunfang was drawn for this postcard, several scripts are waiting for her to choose, variety show invitations are continuous, and she has even signed endorsements for two major brands.

     Not only that, the TV series she collaborated with Director Fu was completed in mid-November, and the post-production took more than a month. It is said that it has passed the review. It happens to be a TV series on Star TV, so the satellite TV has already started scheduling, and it is expected to be broadcast in March.

     This is the fastest drama to pass the review since the cold winter of film and television in recent years, except for the anti-corruption drama. You should know that this drama was prepared for one or two years before it was filmed.

     Normal dramas, especially urban dramas with magical elements, will be put on hold first. From the completion to the broadcast, it takes several years at the slowest, and half a year at the fastest. Director Fu’s drama took only three or four months, which is really too smooth!

     Everyone said that this was because Zhou Qunfang brought prosperity to the drama, so many directors and producers like to find Zhou Qunfang.

     She found that Zhou Qunfang’s boyfriend Zhou Bingyan also opened a blind box and got a postcard with the island owner’s stamp to start his luck.

     Originally, after his relationship with Zhou Qunfang was semi-public, he was boycotted and quit by some fans, but he didn’t expect a group of dugongs to send him to the hot search, attracting more attention from passers-by.

     Later, he went to a big variety show to save the day, and won the favor of sponsors and producers, so he became a regular guest, and various brand endorsements came to him, and he was invited to become an environmental protection ambassador.

     It is precisely because the people around him are big mouths that many people in the entertainment industry know that this kind of postcard can change luck…

     Everyone is very keen to buy the blind box of postcards from Xingzhou Island because postcards are different from amulets, Buddhist beads, etc. If others see them, they can say that they are interested in collecting postcards, or are more interested in tourist scenery, and fans are more willing to buy them.

     If it is an amulet or something like that, it will definitely be said to be superstitious after it is spread out, which will affect the reputation.

     This postcard was indeed given to her by a producer friend who had just returned from a trip to Xingzhou Island. The other party participated in a treasure hunt and drew this postcard. It is said that the New Year film he produced was originally ranked eighth at the box office. The second day after the postcard was drawn, it began to rise sharply, and the screening rate was greatly improved. As of today, it has squeezed to fourth and is still rising.

     As for why he gave her the postcard, one reason was that he was pursuing her, and the other reason was that he was just a producer. If the box office was good, the money in his pocket would not increase, so he didn’t care. It would be better to use a postcard to make the beauty happy.

     A few days later, Song Ruqing found that the box office of the movie had been rising, but she didn’t get better luck with the postcard. She was still the same as before.

     When the island owner opened a V blog account, a group of people followed the island owner, and it was on the hot search at that time. Even the eighteen-line little stars were counted by the marketing account.

     She also followed it recently, but the marketing account didn’t mention it, which made her angry!

     “This postcard is useless at all?!” She was unhappy, but soon remembered Zhou Qunfang’s words. Although she was very hard-mouthed, she couldn’t help but start to wonder in her heart. Is what the woman said true? Isn’t it because she is jealous of me?

     But thinking carefully, they debuted at the same time and have always disliked each other because of competing for resources, but no matter how they compete, the resources are the same.

     Now resources have begun to tilt towards Zhou Qunfang, and she has also won the title of “Sister Europe in the entertainment industry”, with more and more fans. It seems unnecessary for her to be jealous of herself who can only get a postcard by giving it to others…

     Song Ruqing had no choice but to ask her assistant to find a purchasing agent to help buy the blind box, and clearly stated that she was not allowed to open it on behalf of others.

     In fact, she was relieved about this, because the blind box packaging of Xingzhou Island has a unique design, and it is easy to see if there are signs of opening.

     The assistant suddenly said, “Sister Qing, in fact, if you want postcards, there is no need to open the blind box. The manufacturer of Xingzhou Island postcards has it printed on it. Even if the postcards are stamped by the island owner herself, they must be sent to the manufacturer for sealing, right? We can buy directly from the manufacturer.”

     Song Ruqing was stunned and said, “Can it be like this?”

     “Of course, there are too many people in the circle who want to buy this limited edition postcard. In addition to counterfeiters who come out to fish in troubled waters, some have found a way to go directly to the manufacturer. They have people who can help replace some of them. For only 800 yuan, you can get one. Isn’t this more cost-effective than buying 200 blind boxes and opening them?”

     “Do you have a channel?”

     “Of course I have, I’m in that small group!”

     “Then you help me…” Song Ruqing paused, “No, the postcards have been in their hands, will they be useless?”

     “They don’t just take out the limited edition postcards, but tamper with the blind boxes and then transfer the blind boxes out.”

     “Won’t Xingzhou Island find out?”

     “The tampered blind boxes will not be sent back to Xingzhou Island for sale. As long as the people who bought it don’t publicly post pictures online, how can Xingzhou Island know!”

 

…

 

     After Zheng Xuan came back from the Chinese New Year, she heard a bad news from the sales department a few days after she started work: “The sales of blind boxes have dropped. How could it be?”

     Although she went back to celebrate the Chinese New Year, she could still see the news in the work group. During the Spring Festival, the number of tourists on Xingzhou Island was no less than that during the National Day, and the sales of cultural and creative products increased. It was the sales of blind boxes that dropped, which was clearly abnormal.

     “Yes, the sales of blind boxes fell by 15% during the Spring Festival, and tourists who bought blind boxes often reported that they couldn’t draw limited edition postcards at all.”

     “The output of this batch of postcards has not changed. It is still 30,000 postcards and 6,000 blind boxes. Even the postcards with the island owner’s stamp have increased from 30 in the first batch to 100. Why is the probability of winning reduced?”

     The sales department couldn’t understand it either. She could only say: “Maybe those people are unlucky. Or maybe those postcards are in the remaining blind boxes. Another possibility is that limited edition postcards are not so popular.”

     Zheng Xuan rolled her eyes and said: “How can it be unpopular? Those celebrities in the entertainment industry have started to spend a lot of money to buy second-hand postcards. If it is not popular, will there be so many counterfeits?”

     She paused , as if she had realized something: “Is it because there are too many counterfeits and consumers can’t tell the difference between the real and the fake, so sales are affected?”

     “This is definitely part of the reason, but we have also been doing anti-counterfeiting work and reminding consumers not to buy blind boxes through third parties.”

     Zheng Xuan said: “I will talk to the manager again.”

     She went to her boss, Manager Jiang, who knew about this earlier than her and said: “We have to hold a meeting to find out the reason and see if the product design is not attractive or for other reasons. Of course, I will also communicate with the operations department and ask them to increase the publicity efforts to combat counterfeit and shoddy products.”

     After Zheng Xuan went back, she also held a meeting with the team members. Although they were responsible for the design and production of the products and sales were not their responsibility, the decline in sales was definitely not just due to sales, but also related to the products.

     For this matter, everyone studied for two days and finally made a preliminary judgment that the limited edition postcards of Xingzhou Island were popular. Many Tbao merchants smelled the business opportunity and began to make fake limited edition postcards and fake blind boxes and sell them under the name of second-hand transfer.

     Many people found out that it was fake after they bought it. Although Xingzhou Island is also a victim, it has affected the sales of genuine blind boxes.

     Although Xingzhou Island has always emphasized that it will not cooperate with third parties to sell any products produced by Xingzhou Island, there are endless merchants who sell pirated products.

     Vice President Qi has proposed that Li Yaolin invite professional lawyers to come back and set up a legal team to sue those infringing merchants.

     In addition to strengthening the crackdown on piracy, the design team’s tasks have also become heavier. They need to design and produce more attentive, exquisite and beautiful postcards to attract tourists and increase sales.

 

…

 

     At night, the clock pointed to ten and twenty minutes. Zheng Xuan turned her neck, turned off the computer and prepared to finish overtime and go back to take a shower and sleep. When she was cleaning the desk, she accidentally knocked over a photo frame. When she picked up the photo frame, a flash of inspiration came to her mind.

     The photo in the frame is not a portrait, but the first postcard with a stamp that Li Yaolin gave her. She thought it was meaningful, so she framed it and put it on the desk.

     She was used to it, so she didn’t think too much about it. But just now, she suddenly thought: “Could it be true what Sanniang said at the beginning?”

     Li Yaolin told her that the postcard with this stamp would receive good blessings, but she thought it was a gimmick that her sisters came up with and never took it seriously.

     Even though people who got the limited edition postcards later reported that their luck had improved, she also held this postcard and found that her life had not changed much. Therefore, she did not take this kind of feedback to heart, just thinking that it was the psychological effect of these people and taking the gimmick seriously.

     But doesn’t this just explain the problem?

     The increase in blind box sales is due to this limited edition postcard, but the original island owner has nothing to do with “good luck”. When netizens mention “full of luck”, they will definitely mention Zhou Qunfang, not the island owner.

     Besides, the island owner had millions of fans within a few days of opening her V-blog. Many people’s comments, in addition to admiration for wealth and gossip, regarded the island owner as a lucky cat, and touching and rubbing her would bring good luck.

     The change in the island owner’s image is most likely because people found that the postcards stamped by her personally can bring good luck!

     So everyone thinks that this postcard has no function of transferring luck, and they don’t like to buy blind boxes anymore?

     Not likely. A while ago, a popular little flower posted a V-blog related to the postcard, which shows that it is still very popular among celebrities. It is impossible that its appeal has declined.

     If you sort out these relationships, you can find that the decline in blind box sales may be due to the lower winning rate.

     But as she communicated with the sales department, in this batch of blind boxes, one hundred blind boxes come with this limited edition postcard, so it doesn’t make sense that the probability of winning has become lower.

     What went wrong, she thought, she had found the answer.

     After opening the postcard, she hurried to find Li Yaolin. Normally, Li Yaolin would work overtime in the office until this point. Recently, she was busy with the hotel opening, so she often went to the hotel.

     Sure enough, Zheng Xuan found the hotel and saw Li Yaolin lying on the bed playing with her mobile phone in the luxury suite on the fifth floor.

     “Sanniang, what are you doing?”

     “I’m trying out the luxury suite worth more than 2,000 yuan a night. You’re just in time. Let’s lie down together and try it out. This is the same bed as the Winter Olympics.”

     Zheng Xuan: “…”

     Thinking that there was a problem with the work she was responsible for, she had no intention of enjoying and relaxing.

     She said: “I want to tell you something. Tomorrow I have to go to the factory that produces postcards. I suspect that something went wrong when sending the postcards you stamped to them for processing and packaging into blind boxes.”

     Their design and production team is responsible for both design and production. The general process is to give the design draft to the factory for proofing. After confirming that the sample is fine, it will be printed and produced in large quantities for packaging. Among them, 100 postcards will be drawn out for the island owner to stamp, and then returned to the factory for packaging. When it is finally sent back as a blind box for sale, no one knows which blind boxes will have limited edition postcards.

     So she doesn’t know how many of the 6,000 blind boxes contain limited edition postcards.

     Although the second batch of postcard blind boxes has been processed and sold a lot, even if she goes there now, it will be useless, but the third batch of postcard blind boxes will be printed next. By then, it will no longer be 30,000, but 300,000.

     With such a large order, she doesn’t want anything to go wrong again, otherwise it will be a major work mistake if it is exposed at that time!

     Li Yaolin nodded: “Go ahead, and ask the finance department to reimburse the travel expenses when the time comes.”

     Zheng Xuan paused, somewhat helpless: “Don’t you have anything to say?”

     “Have a good trip?”

     Zheng Xuan said helplessly: “I suspect that the decline in sales of postcard blind boxes is due to problems in the production and processing links. If so, it is my work error, and you shouldn’t be so light-hearted.”

     “It’s a small matter. If it is a problem in the production and processing links, it is the responsibility of the factory, and it should be handled as it should be. If it is not a problem of the factory, then we can improve our business level. After all, we are all young, and there must be some things that are not considered in our work. Since we have found out where it is not thoughtful, just correct it. Why blame it? This little mistake will not make me bankrupt.”

     Zheng Xuan: “…”

     I have to say that Sanniang is really a good boss!

     Li Yaolin patted the mattress: “Really don’t you want to lie down with me and try the ultimate bed experience?”

     Zheng Xuan: “Get lost!”

     She turned and left.

     I have to go on a business trip tomorrow. She is not the island owner and has no time to enjoy it here.

     Island owner: “?”

     A smart bed that can massage, adjust sleeping positions, and give people the ultimate sleeping experience. It’s the same model as the Winter Olympics. Why don’t you try it?