Chapter 475: Chapter 475: 268: Dude, you're really putting on an act!

“We’ve got the script, but casting is still undecided, and it’s giving me a headache,” Xu Qingyan leaned back, resting against the chair, “We can’t really resort to using students as actors…”

“Spend some money,” Pei Muchan said.

She was one of the investors. To be precise, Xu Qingyan’s small film company was made up of three shareholders, each holding thirty percent of the shares, with the remaining ten percent claimed by Zhang Hongmei.

Xu Qingyan had caught the last train of policy, with capital commitments to be registered. He only needed to pay it off within a certain time frame, not needing to immediately throw a lump sum of money in.

Registered capital could be increased later, but not decreased.

With a small plate, they could only play minor tunes, lamenting the lack of money when the time came. These days, the bigger the risks, the more expensive the fish. Facing a once-in-a-lifetime lucrative deal, Xu Qingyan didn’t want to mess it up.

Pei Muchan was also aware that being able to write songs didn’t guarantee the ability to write scripts, and even a well-written script didn’t ensure a quality product would be produced. Even if a quality product was made, the market might not embrace it.

Filmmaking was somewhat mysterious, filled with significant financial risks. Some dove in full of confidence, only to end up completely bankrupt.

However, she was still willing to trust Xu Qingyan, investing money without any hesitation, thinking that everything had to go through a process of trial and error from scratch.

There was another thing Pei Muchan was reluctant to admit, but these days working with Xu Qingyan, having meals, taking walks, and occasionally shopping, life felt full and comfortable.

People are willing to pay for things that make them happy, even if Xu Qingyan’s film company looked unreliable.

“Okay, let’s see in a few days,” Xu Qingyan looked up and sighed, “It’s really troublesome without resources, if all else fails, we’ll just have to waste some money.”

In the afternoon, Pei Muchan was still busy preparing for the album.

Xu Qingyan drove away from the Cicada Studio, he had arranged to meet Zhou Mian at a coffee shop that afternoon. They had been in contact by phone, this being their first meeting since the new year.

Lin Chuan was even more elusive, being incredibly busy. After all, that was the norm for a popular singer; getting together was quite difficult.

Cases like Pei Muchan, the listless diva, were rare— who would always stay in the studio writing songs? No commercial performances, no concerts for years, with only two ever remembered,

Lin Wanzhou wasn’t as popular as Lin Chuan, but since she flew back to Xinghai on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, she too had been occupied with work. Half a month without a break was quite normal, given the high salaries of singers.

Although not as fast at making money as idols, singers like Lin Wanzhou, who were on the charts, were not weak earners. Early to work, early to rest.

As to when they would not be so busy, Xu Qingyan had no clue. Perhaps it would be after winning a platinum record, or maybe that would make them even busier.

But for Xu Qingyan, it was good that both were busy. After all, he couldn’t be in two places at once; what would he do during holidays?

If one of them was busy working, it would be easier for him to manage. Managing time every day can be tough on anyone; one mistake could lead to an explosion.

Arriving at the coffee shop without rush, Xu Qingyan was right on time.

To his surprise, Zhou Mian, whom he hadn’t seen for months, looked especially haggard. It was as though someone had sapped all his energy overnight, leaving him listless.

“You… have you been trying for a baby recently? Take care of yourself,” Xu Qingyan said cautiously.

“Ah, it’s a long story,” Zhou Mian sighed, leading Xu Qingyan to a seat, glancing around as if he wanted to smoke.

“Let’s sit outside, it’s not cold,” Xu Qingyan suggested, since they were just there for a small gathering, and they didn’t plan on bathing or anything like that; they were just getting straight to the point.

“Alright, thanks, Brother Xu,” Zhou Mian said with an awkward smile.

He was neither here nor there about it. The purpose of this meeting was both a casual catch-up and to inquire about Zhou Mian’s situation since he was starting to gather a team and needed to find connections.

Xu Qingyan and Zhou Mian had a good relationship, naturally Xu Qingyan considered him. If Zhou Mian was out of jobs recently, he could come over and help—a situation with multiple benefits.

Outside the coffee shop, seven or eight tables and beach chairs were laid out casually.

There were quite a few people having coffee at this time, with half the tables occupied. A pregnant woman was pushing a baby carriage, chatting and having coffee with her girlfriend while soaking up the sun.

No sooner had they sat down than Zhou Mian sighed softly again.

“Brother Xu, what will you have?”

“Anything, just a latte,” Xu Qingyan was not the target customer of coffee shops, rarely indulging in such drinks, opting to sleep when tired.

Having placed their orders and received their coffees, the two men finally began to chat. It was supposed to be casual, but Xu Qingyan did most of the querying, without immediately diving into work matters.

Instead, he subtly shared some recent happenings concerning himself, steering Zhou Mian to talk about his own experiences.@@novelbin@@

“By the way, Brother Xu,” Zhou Mian suddenly remembered, turning to ask, “That little company that wanted to step on you, what happened to them in the end?”

“Their little artist faded away, I heard that half of the company’s key business personnel were poached,” Xu Qingyan was nonchalant, sipping his coffee, “Small companies with shallow foundations can’t withstand such pressure.”

“That’s indeed seeking their own demise, a self-inflicted hardship,” Zhou Mian nodded.

“It’s nothing, just minor characters jumping high,” he said, “If it were a big company, like Cloud Wing, it might not have been so simple.”

Zhou Mian pondered for a moment, then looked up and said.

“So, Brother Xu, is that why you started your own film company?”

“Yes,” he replied.

“But… Brother Xu, how did you manage to offend so many people?” Zhou Mian was puzzled, unable to figure out how Xu Qingyan had come into conflict with Cloud Wing Entertainment.

“You’ve forgotten, I poached two of Cloud Wing Entertainment’s little divas,” he said.

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