Chapter 34 2/2

The production team structure is so large, and with more people, there is more friction. However, those who offended Yu Xiangwan’s interests were dealt with by her the same day, without the need to spend the night. No, to be precise, it’s not that they offended Yu Xiangwan, but rather, they offended Sheng Quan’s interests.

Xu Man is on Sheng Quan’s side and hasn’t had the chance to experience Yu Xiangwan’s strong methods. However, she has heard some people talk, saying that although he looks stable and refined, his methods are more cunning than anyone else’s.

Now, the person who is praised for being ruthless and cunning, Yu Xiangwan, is calmly and gently peeling a pomelo for Sheng Quan. The gentle look on his face, seen by those who have been dealt with by Yu Xiangwan, is absolutely jaw-dropping.

Sheng Quan asks Xu Man, “Are those investors still bothering you?”

“Yes, a lot of issues. They want to invest, but they are afraid of losses. They think the scale is too large and might collapse easily. When I mentioned that your side would add more investment, they all shut up.”

Sheng Quan doesn’t say, “Then let’s not include them, and I’ll be the sole investor.” She is now half knowledgeable and understands that making a movie is different from making a TV series. There are many more aspects to compete in.

Leaving aside other factors, just in terms of scheduling, Starlight Entertainment is inexperienced, and if she takes full control, it would be time-consuming and not very effective.

However, when combined with those investment companies and investors, it’s different. The cake has become a shared resource, and Sheng Quan doesn’t need to do much. Naturally, there will be a group of people trying hard to decorate the cake that belongs to everyone.

Their investment amounts won’t be large, as these people only want a share, not to bear the risk and pressure. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so hesitant now.

Although he is not physically present, Sheng Quan, who has been receiving reports from Yu Xiangwan, knows very well how the budget for “Cultivator” will be spent. After thinking for a moment, she asks, “Do they have any objections to the scenes that require constructing the Ten Great Immortal Palaces?”

“They have quite a few objections,” Xu Man can understand. “Indeed, if we want to construct real scenes, the budget for this will be too high. But the plot involving the Ten Great Immortal Palaces is significant. If we construct them casually, the effect will definitely be poor.”

Sheng Quan smiles.

Just as she expected.

She turns her head to look at Yu Xiangwan. He understands and gets up to wipe his hands.

“President Sheng, I’ll take Director Xu and the investors to take a look.”

Xu Man: “?”
Look around? Look at what?

After finishing the pomelo given to her by Yu Xiangwan, Sheng Quan hears Xu Man’s question and replies, “We’re going to tour the Ten Great Immortal Palaces.”

“Are you already constructing the outdoor scenes?”

“Are you constructing them in the Magic City?”

“If it’s in the Magic City, isn’t the cost too high? No wonder the budget is so high.”

As the biggest investor, Sheng Quan’s face needs to be given, and everyone is relying on her to handle the biggest pressure. Besides, it’s not far, so it won’t waste much time.

Of course, in their eyes, not being far is a big problem.

Although the audition location is not in the city center of Magic City, it’s not in the suburbs either. When constructing buildings for filming on this land, the rent must be high.

“Do we have to choose a suburb, or no, we shouldn’t construct in the Magic City at all. We should find a small county with cheap rent. Constructing in the Magic City is wasting money, right?! Director Xu, your expenses are really unnecessary.”

It’s not that these people are picky; what they say does make sense. The crew usually rents a place to construct scenes.

When filming is done, these scenes will be demolished.

In other words, this money is genuinely wasted.

So, although Xu Man is troubled by what they say, she is only using Sheng Quan to shut their mouths because the budget is indeed unreasonably high.

Not to mention the rent, which is a considerable sum of money. Just thinking about constructing realistic buildings that look fake involves huge expenses. Some crews, for the sake of the shooting effect, even go mad and build real structures.

Clearly, in the eyes of these investors, Xu Man is going crazy.

Crazily Xu Man: “It’s not me who chose this location.”

As the two most significant figures in the crew, she and Yu Xiangwan have clear responsibilities, and selecting the location for building scenes is Yu Xiangwan’s responsibility.

Xu Man looks around, and in her mind, a picture of the enormous rent is automatically formed. After madly calculating the beads on the abacus in her mind, she almost feels heartache, making it difficult for her to breathe.

“Producer Yu, what’s going on? Why did you choose to build scenes here? The rent… this budget…”

Yu Xiangwan remains as calm as ever. Except when he’s in front of Sheng Quan, he’s mostly wearing a shallow smile, seeming very pure but indicating that he’s not easy to mess with.

“We’ll know when you get there.”

In fact, they are already halfway there because they can see the busy construction workers in the distance.

The spacious construction site that seems endless at first glance, the tall tower cranes, and at least a few hundred workers busy on the site are all visible. There are also lifting machines, excavators, and concrete mixing trucks.

And there are already-built frameworks; even though they are just skeletons, they still indicate the grand scale of the immortal palaces.

Xu Man’s eyes widen.

No director can refuse such a set.

Seeing the perfect set, Xu Man immediately forgets about the budget and starts imagining how to shoot.

“Wow, this is so well done. It looks great when it’s built. It looks just like the real thing.”

Investment representatives with small mustaches beside them: “Director Xu, look carefully. This is obviously real!”

Yu Xiangwan confirms his words: “Yes, President Sheng’s idea is to do it well. So, all the sets are made with real materials, following construction standards. Rest assured, all these constructions have government approval.”

Investors: Who cares about that?

“What we care about is spending so much money, building on such expensive land, and having to demolish it after it’s built. Isn’t that just a waste of money?”

 Yu Xiangwan pushes his glasses and says, “You’ve misunderstood.”

“Sheng Dong has no intention of demolishing the buildings of the Ten Great Immortal Palaces.”

“Not demolishing?” Everyone feels that this is unreasonable. “Does she think she can decide not to demolish, and it will really not be demolished? Do you know how much the monthly rent for this kind of place is?”

Yu Xiangwan shows a standard faint smile and says, “I believe President Sheng is aware of that.”

“Because this land belongs to her.”