Chapter 36 will be released simultaneously.
Under the onslaught of pepper spray, the group shouldered their cameras and turned to leave. Rounding a corner of the studio, they quickened their pace, cautiously crouching low as they swiftly crossed a flowerbed, and under the cover of the branches, they ran rapidly toward the low hill.
Jiang Yu turned off the live stream on his personal terminal, only realizing where the group of reporters had gone when they were halfway there.
He quickly emerged from behind the road sign he had just been hiding behind and ran towards the entrance of the photography studio.
The filming content on set must not be leaked; he needs to hurry over and tell Boss Fang that the group of people haven't left yet.
Jiang Yu was in much better physical condition than the reporters, and successfully arrived at the entrance just as they reached the foot of the mountain.
As soon as the iris scanning device on the studio door was activated, the two doors slowly opened, and Fang Zhuo walked out with a folder in his hand, bumping right into him.
Seeing Jiang Yu panting, Fang Zhuo said lazily, "What are you panicking about?"
"Mr. Fang, those reporters haven't left yet. They went towards the low hills to the southeast. We can still use a forklift to seal up the windows of the studio in time."
Fang Zhuo: "No need to seal it off. They're rehearsing inside right now, let them film as they please."
It's just a rehearsal; it's normal to rehearse in casual clothes outside the studio. He is not responsible for anything captured by these reporters.
Fang Zhuo leisurely beckoned Jiang Yu over, and together with Deng Jiaqiang, they took a walk towards the office building.
The interior design company just moved in yesterday afternoon and installed all the furniture. Now the first floor of the office building is a huge coffee corner, but they haven't started leasing out the space yet, so all the coffee machines are idle.
Fang Zhuo projected the live broadcast footage from the reporters onto a large screen next to him and ground coffee beans with great interest.
Unlike his timid demeanor when he first arrived in the Star Federation, Deng Jiaqiang now has a much rosier complexion. He not only sits casually on the sofa, enjoying the aroma of coffee, but also has the leisure to comment on the pace of these reporters.
Jiang Yu, however, did not share the same positive mindset as the other two.
He was restless, constantly watching the reporters' progress on the screen, worried that they might film something they shouldn't and leak the plot prematurely.
A cup of coffee with a faint citrus aroma was handed to him. Jiang Yu accepted it with both hands with a little trepidation, and then heard President Fang ask, "How is things on Ruan Zihan's set?"
Jiang Yu finally snapped out of his nervousness and worry, scratched his head, and said sincerely:
"Their venue and props were a bit rough. I wrote a booklet for them about a card academy, but their academy was just an ordinary school building. It didn't even look like a university teaching building. It looked more like a primary school, with only three floors."
"The classroom used for filming was also very ordinary, like the kind of small classroom that MCNs use to shoot short drama videos, with an indoor area of only about 30 square meters."
Deng Jiaqiang was also thirsty, gulping down his coffee like water. Hearing this, he asked in confusion, "Didn't they say they would invest 50 million? Where did they spend all the money?"
Jiang Yu quickly explained, "The actors they hired are very famous. Ruan Zihan invited Yao Mengran, a top-tier actress."
Deng Jiaqiang gave a meaningful, drawn-out "Oh".
Yao Mengran is currently a top-tier celebrity in the entertainment industry, known for her ability to generate buzz and carry dramas.
She has many die-hard fans and previously created a legendary comeback story by turning a low-budget C-rated drama into an S-rated one.
Since she terminated her contract with her previous company, countless agencies have extended olive branches to her, and her market value has naturally soared. The high salary promised by Ruan Zihan must also reflect his desire to bring her under his wing.
Fang Zhuo had previously studied Xinghan's financial statements. The vast majority of the company's revenue came from artist fees, and they rarely produced their own dramas. Ruan Zihan clearly lacked experience in independent production.
Almost half of Xinghan's 50 million yuan budget was spent on actor salaries, and the other half on special effects. Props, scripts, and locations had to be cut back as much as possible.
Fang Zhuo's side spent over 30 million yuan just on costumes, props, and materials, not to mention the more than 200 million yuan on post-production and the director's salary.
The nearly six-fold investment difference, along with a more reasonable allocation of funds, will result in a significant difference in the final product. Fang Zhuo believes that the public has discerning eyes.
Of course, he had more faith in Jiang Yu's writing ability.
The three sat and chatted, while on the screen, several reporters finally made their long journey up the small hill, set up their equipment, and aimed at the row of high windows on the facade of the photography studio.
The camera lens moved from one corner of the high window to another, revealing that the entire shed was almost entirely white, with all the workspaces covered by white partitions.
Just when everyone was disappointed, several of Juyu's junior anchors finally appeared on camera. Instead of the complicated and gorgeous outfits that had been revealed before, they were wearing simple casual clothes.
The exquisite jade pot from the promotional photo is gone; Tao Mi is now holding a weightless hollow glass ball and wearing a pair of cheap plastic slippers.
The reporters exchanged glances and quickly zoomed in on their cameras.
Zhang Kaigang was not in the scene; there was only a young director constantly correcting the positioning of the group.
The reporters searched the director's name on the StarNet and found that he had no independent directorial works before, and was just an assistant director with a small reputation in the industry.
They finally got some big news, and the group looked pleasantly surprised.
This time they captured the faces of several streamers clearly, so they definitely won't make the mistake of shooting the wrong set like the paparazzi who was returned by their employer last time.
The live stream continued, and the chat was constantly refreshing. Someone couldn't resist reaching out to turn off the live audio recording and jokingly called out to everyone:
"Come on, whoever bet that the leak was fake, send me a 100 RMB red envelope in the group now! No cheating, okay?"
"Damn, how did they become so poor after their funding chain broke? They sold their costumes, the props disappeared, and they can't even afford a proper director... Logically speaking, Lala Investment should have been able to hold out until the new short drama was released."
"Trying to attract investment? Which bigwig would dare invest in a company like this?"
"Giant Entertainment became popular because it started with big-budget productions. Isn't this kind of operation a slap in the face to those top entertainment companies? Now Star Entertainment is full of padded dramas and variety shows. What will those old guys do after Giant Entertainment survives?"
"It's kind of like Gresham's Law, buddy, what you're saying is making me a little uncomfortable."
"I don't understand what the boss of Giant Entertainment was thinking. If they had insisted on finishing the filming of the cards before going bankrupt, they would probably have become the most cherished company in the entire Star Entertainment Group. They had capital and were willing to invest. Sigh, it's a real pity now..."
"If Mr. Fang wants to take revenge on his family, could you transfer the trust to me, Shuangshuang? I also want to know what it feels like to spend a billion in a month. It's absolutely awesome."
"Don't even mention it, I'd like to act in two episodes too."
They were chatting idly when they spotted a pure white spaceship descending from a blind spot in the camera's view.
The group tried to switch their live stream camera to film the spaceship, but all they could see was a blur of white static; their camera equipment was clearly being blocked.
The hatch slowly opened, but the spaceship's living room was not open to them; what was presented to everyone was only a small front hall of about ten square meters.
The reporters realized they had been discovered by Giant Entertainment and that staying any longer would only result in a lawyer's letter. Resigned, they packed up their equipment and waited in the lobby for Giant Entertainment's spaceship to take them back to the main planet.
Through the porthole, they could see that the flight path was going in the opposite direction of the main star, heading straight towards the cluster of film and television stars.
When the spaceship stopped at the docking point of the 46 Star Film and Television Base, the group looked at each other, completely unaware of what had happened.
At the shuttle gate, a staff member wearing a red baseball cap was waving a flag. Seeing them get off, he greeted them familiarly:
"Are you here to interview people on the set of Xinghan's new project? Please follow me."
When did Xinghan start a new project?
Could it be a classified project?
The group's news sense was very sharp; they immediately stopped looking puzzled and their backaches disappeared. They carried their live-streaming equipment and chatted casually with the staff member.
"Yes, yes, we're here to interview Teacher Ruan. How long has Xinghan's new drama been airing?"
"Filming has only been going on for one day, and they say it will wrap up in seven days."
They exchanged a glance—it looked like a short play.
"Oh, do you know what genre Teacher Ruan's short plays are?"
The staff member nodded: "Like Giant Entertainment, it's a card game, and we plan to release it at the same time as Giant Entertainment's new short drama."
Xinghan Media rarely produces its own dramas, and the subject matter happens to be exactly the same as Juyu's, which made everyone's eyes light up.
Such controversial topics always generate a lot of buzz, and at this moment, the number of people watching their live stream was even higher than when they were watching the Giant Entertainment film set.
Led by seemingly professional staff carrying flags, the group successfully arrived at the filming location of Xinghan's new drama while live-streaming.
Shockingly, despite being touted as a surreal card game background, the building in front of everyone looked no different from a primary school building from the last century.
The building is only three stories high, and some of the paint on the exterior facade has peeled off, revealing the silver insulation layer underneath.
It was already past 7 p.m., and there was only one room left in the building where they were filming. There were very few production assistants on set, and they arrived at the room door without any hindrance.
The interior furnishings resembled a teacher's office, with the desks, chairs, and bookshelves made of thin sheet metal, as if it were a model room set up in just a few tens of minutes.
The whole setting doesn't feel like a card game setting; it feels more like a period drama.
Meanwhile, Yao Mengran and another young woman were casting spells on a middle-aged man dressed as a headmaster, each holding a green card between their right fingers.
The longsword held by the headmaster, who was facing off against them, was just an ordinary prop sword commonly seen in fantasy dramas, the kind that sells for a few dozen yuan on shopping websites.
However, although he was holding a long sword, the group did not actually fight; they simply stood there posing.
After a moment of stiffness, the head of the teaching department suddenly leaned backward, smashing a group of desks and chairs. A crack appeared in the middle of the broken chair, and the paper texture could even be seen in the cross-section.
After watching the film, the director didn't ask for a reshoot; he simply waved his hand and said, "We'll handle it in post-production."
The reporters, carrying cameras, perfectly blended in with Xinghan's filming team. It took them nearly twenty minutes before someone noticed them through the various uproar on Xinghan's website.
Yao Mengran's fans are known for their fierce fighting spirit, and this 20-minute live stream video directly sparked a fierce battle between her die-hard fans and Xinghan.
[@XinghanMedia, @XinghanMedia, Xinghan has gone bankrupt! Ruan Zihan, you dead man, can you come out and explain why the short drama is of this quality? Can you please be a little nicer to Yao Yao?]
[What? Xinghan hasn't produced a self-made drama in three years? Is this the quality of their domestic dramas?]
[@Yao Mengran Studio, hello? Is the studio working? Are you reviewing scripts? Why did you give my daughter this kind of terrible drama?]
[@Xinghan Media, you're changing costumes and venues now? Is Ruan Zihan being disrespectful? Stand up and give us an explanation.]
[Giant Entertainment has already designed the costumes, Ruan Zihan, you can't even copy a similar style properly??? If all else fails, could you just buy their costumes?]
Nobody at Xinghan knew how these reporters with live-streaming equipment had managed to sneak in, and Ruan Zihan was in a complete panic, having been pulled from his dinner party.
Standing in the corridor outside the banquet hall, he first pounded the wall hard, then took the hallucinogenic syringe from Chi Yingying, injected himself with it, and only then did he gradually calm down.
Everything before his eyes became bright and vibrant. He personally edited a piece of text and posted it on Xinghan Media's official account, claiming that what the reporter had photographed was just a clip from the end credits advertisement.
Chi Yingying witnessed his "debunking" process and couldn't help but chuckle softly.
"why are you laughing?"
She wiped the smile off her face, but her words remained sarcastic: "Isn't what you're making the main feature film? Sooner or later, the audience will find out that it's not what they expected. What's the difference between this and burying your head in the sand?"
"Do you even know anything about filmmaking? If you don't, don't talk nonsense."
Ruan Zihan, still basking in the afterglow of the hallucinogen, tilted his head back and took a deep breath: "I know a really good post-production company. The audience thinks it's low-quality now, but it'll be different once special effects are added. That's how it is with these kinds of special effects dramas."
Chi Yingying lit a cigarette, inhaled the smoke, and exhaled lightly: "Whatever makes you happy."
This statement was like a prophecy. Until the day the short drama wrapped up filming, Ruan Zihan was busy dealing with public opinion and couldn't find a single day to smile.
Having just finished filming, he thought he could finally take a break. But the day after he handed the negatives to the post-production company, his assistant suddenly called to tell him that Juyu's new short drama had been officially announced and would premiere the day after tomorrow at noon.
After receiving the call, Ruan Zihan sat in his chair for a long time.
How is that possible? He clearly started filming the morning after Giant Entertainment released the promotional photos. Theoretically, the filming schedule should be the same. How could Giant Entertainment release it so quickly?
Even for short dramas, which are small in scale, post-production and editing take at least a week.
The only possibility is that Fang Zhuo really went bankrupt and gave up, and rushed to go online without doing much work in the later stages.
But Ruan Zihan dared not gamble.
The cold look in his eyes on the red carpet had filled him with boundless fear.
Even if that person really ran out of money, he was unwilling to let his short drama be released later than Juyu's, otherwise all his previous planning would have been in vain.
When Ruan Zihan dialed the post-production company, his voice sounded tired: "Old Hou, can you move up the schedule a bit?"
As expected, he received a negative reply. He shoved the table forward forcefully, but his tone on the phone remained humble.
"Old Hou, Xinghan has given you quite a few orders over the years, right? Just speed things up a bit on your end, as long as you can launch at the same time as Juyu."
There was a long silence on the other end of the call. Old Hou declined, saying, "Dude, it's not that I don't want to do it, it's just that my men are really inefficient."
Old Hou changed the subject, then hinted, "Back when Juyu Entertainment was looking for post-production work for Grandma Taizu, do you know how much they paid for expedited service? Sixty million..."
Ruan Zihan covered the microphone of the terminal and cursed loudly.
After scolding him, he softened his tone and pleaded, "I'll add more money, another five million, see if you can expedite it."
"Okay, bro, I really wouldn't want to take on such a rushed job if it were anyone else, but I'm only giving it a try because of you... I'll find a few more outsourcing companies and try to get it cut out by the morning of the day after tomorrow. But the quality of outsourcing varies, I hope you can understand."
"I understand."
After Ruan Zihan finished his apologetic smile and hung up the phone, he raised his personal terminal high, held it up for a while, and finally slammed it hard onto the sofa.
The terminal bounced a few times on the soft foam pad, making a dull thud, just as the assistant knocked on the door.
"Mr. Ruan, all three major platforms have rejected our request to launch the day after tomorrow. They said they don't plan to expand into short dramas for the time being. Currently, the platforms only support paid memberships for long dramas. Should our company create our own mini-program?"
Ruan Zihan wiped his face hard.
The original budget did not include building his own platform. After all, given Xinghan's long-standing relationship with drama platforms, he thought those long-form video platforms would at least give him face and agree to let him go online on a revenue-sharing basis.
How much does it cost to develop a mini-program?
The assistant sent a quote from a third-party company: "Time is too tight now. There are only three days left before the broadcast. The quote for the mini-program alone is nearly two million. It's definitely not possible to create a new app like Giant Entertainment did."
"Are they out of their mind for money? They want to spend two million to make such a simple mini-program?"
The assistant hesitated for a moment, wanting to say that a three-day timeframe was also crazy, but after seeing the boss's bloodshot eyes, she ultimately didn't say it.
"Try negotiating with them and see if we can lower the price a bit more. The aesthetics of the interface don't matter, as long as it works."
Ruan Zihan sat at his desk, supporting his drooping upper body with his arms—
This short drama has already burned through most of his investments and all the cash on the company's books, and it continues to generate all sorts of unexpected expenses. He has no choice but to sell the shares of another company that is doing quite well and cut his losses to fill these holes.
He currently only has a few ongoing projects that he can't withdraw his investment from, and he has staked almost all of his personal assets on this short drama.
He's always been lucky; there's no reason for him to lose this round.
As soon as the news of the two short dramas competing against each other was released, fans from all sides immediately started arguing fiercely. Supporters of Juyu, Xinghan, and Yao Mengran each held their own opinions, and the fighting alone made it to the top of the trending searches for several days.
Juyu accused Xinghan of trying to ride the wave of popularity, while Xinghan mocked Juyu for its broken funding chain and poorly executed short drama.
Yao Mengran's toxic fans acted like they had a split personality, simultaneously focusing on promoting Xinghan Short Drama and cursing Ruan Zihan on Xinghan Media's official account.
What is strikingly consistent is that everyone is eagerly anticipating the two dramas, with many even setting alarms for their release dates.
Gongzhou set the alarm clock to 11:30 a.m. and tapped his fingers impatiently on the workbench.
He has never experienced such a big storm since he entered the industry.
It started ten days ago when countless people sent him private messages asking if he had participated in the costume design for Juyu's new short drama. Then a few days later, someone inexplicably came to question him about whether he knew the identity and background of President Fang. Immediately afterwards, a large group of people came to accuse Juyu of plagiarizing his design and told him to find a lawyer to sue them now.
Before the drama even aired, the number of visits to the homepage of his sub-brands increased a thousandfold in just ten days, and sales also rose inexplicably.
Giant Entertainment was clearly operating perfectly well, and he even attended the wrap party three days ago, but President Fang wouldn't allow him to clarify before 11:30.
Gongzhou was in a hurry; he was even more anxious than the audience.
He had already edited the text and was just waiting for the time on his personal terminal to reach 11:30.
The alarm finally rang, bringing with it three photos of Gongzhou with the actors from the wrap party. Gongzhou quickly clicked to post the status update.
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