Magnate Tycoon: How Did Simply Enjoying Life Make Me a Male God?-Chapter 621 - 425: Conflict (Part 2)

Only upon hearing this did Zhang Fuqiang stop and smile, "Oh, that's what it's about! Since it has something to do with me, that's excellent. You leaders just give the orders, and I promise to handle it properly!"

After speaking, he sat down with Wu Bo on the sofa in the reception area.

Wu Bo's expression became serious, he slightly furrowed his brows, carefully choosing his words as he looked towards Huang Shi and slowly began:

"President Huang, our show has been gaining constant traction due to the early promotions, frequently appearing in search trends, and the audience's expectations have been raised to a high level.

Moreover, recently Guangxian Media released that fantasy drama, where they really put effort just on the costumes and props.

You wouldn't believe it, the female lead's costume was hand-embroidered by a Su embroidery master, every stitch was intricate double-sided embroidery;

The props were all meticulously replicated to scale with antiques, the texture, the details...

It's directly elevated the production standards of fantasy dramas by several levels, raising the aesthetic standards of the audience as well."

He paused, his tone reflecting concern: "If the quality of costumes and props in our show doesn't match up, once it airs it will certainly be a major point of criticism, affecting not only the overall quality of the show but also its reputation."

Upon hearing this, the smile on Zhang Fuqiang's face instantly froze, a trace of panic flashed in his eyes.

But he quickly adjusted his expression, turning to look at Huang Shi seated behind the executive desk, waiting for his response.

Huang Shi was silent for a moment, rhythmically tapping the armrest with his fingers, after considering for a while he said:

"Old Wu, I've heard about this as well, now the audience demands more from film and TV dramas.

It's not just about whether the script is good or the actors' performances are convincing, but the details of set design, costumes, and props are also a focus, everyone's become 'detail-oriented', their tastes are getting increasingly picky."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Zhang Fuqiang and continued:

"Luckily you're here today. This time, most of the costumes and props are sourced from your company. Think about whether you can adjust the overall quality to enhance it a notch.

I've told you before, your company's standards for costumes and props were decent in typical fantasy dramas, but our show aims to benchmark against this year's best, to become a hit, quality must strive for excellence, you need to put more thought into it."

Zhang Fuqiang immediately showed a difficult expression, revealed a troubled face and said:

"President Huang, Director Wu, to be honest with you, our company accepted this job by squeezing profits to the lowest, it's practically operating on thin margins.

Increasing the level of costumes and props now, is really challenging. However... there's still a solution."

"What solution?" Wu Bo asked immediately upon hearing this.

Zhang Fuqiang smiled, a flash of cleverness in his eyes, "Actually it's simple, just increase the budget allocation for props.

With sufficient funding, whether it's customizing high-end costumes, purchasing exquisite props, or creating realistic scenes, it can easily be resolved.

Once the money is in place, props can naturally become more refined, and set design can shine brighter!"

Wu Bo listening to this, shook his head disappointedly, looked serious and said: "Fuqiang, it's not that I don't want to give you more budget, the crew's funds are already very tight, each sum has to be carefully planned, there really isn't extra money to invest."

Then, he turned his gaze to Huang Shi, his tone holding some helplessness and hope:

"President Huang, to be honest, apart from the costume and prop issues, the whole project's funding gap is 50 million. Can you find a way to inject more funds?"

Huang Shi's brow furrowed tightly, his expression became rather serious, he said heavily:

"50 million isn't a small number, such a big sum of money, I need to consult with the investors and board, to see if it's truly necessary to add this money.

Besides, time is so pressing, finding new investors, whether it's looking for suitable parties or going through approval processes, is not easy, it's complicated..."

The office fell into silence, and the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.

Seeing the topic could not continue, Huang Shi promptly changed the subject, casually chatting about other things.

The three of them conversed sporadically about shooting progress, during which Zhang Fuqiang made several industry jokes, causing Huang Shi to chuckle lightly.

Only after nearly an hour did he get up to leave, and when leaving, he specifically pushed the chair back gently.

Director Wu Bo looked at the tightly closed office door, reached to adjust his black-rimmed glasses, then looked at Producer Huang Shi.

He cleared his throat, carefully considering his words: "President Huang, there's something stuck in my throat, it's truly uncomfortable not saying it, but to speak out..."

Before he could finish, Huang Shi drank the half-cooled tea in one gulp, his bushy brows knitted into the character '川': "You're trying to talk about Zhang Fuqiang, right?"

Wu Bo's heart slightly relaxed, he straightened:

"You hit the nail on the head. I have no complaints about Zhang Fuqiang's acting, but the props rental company behind him..."

Saying this, he pulled a stack of documents from a folder, the edges of the paper showed signs of repeated perusing,

"I conducted undercover visits to seven suppliers, for the same quote sheet, other companies' props were at least thirty percent more detailed in terms of weathering techniques and set construction than his company.

Although switching to another company may not necessarily meet the audience's expectations, it would be better than Zhang Fuqiang's props.

When he was present earlier, I could only swallow my words."

Huang Shi closed his eyes, rhythmically tapping the table with his left hand.

Wu Bo quietly waited, his tightly clasped hands revealing his inner concern.

After a long while, Huang Shi finally spoke slowly: "You yourself said, switching companies might not hit the mark either. Moreover, we just signed an intent agreement last week, the penalty is enough to eat up the special effects budget for two episodes."

"But..." Wu Bo was about to argue, but Huang Shi raised his hand to stop him.

"I understand your concerns," Huang Shi calmly looked at Wu Bo. "We're all striving for the show's success, Zhang Fuqiang included."

His gaze swept over the shooting progress chart on the wall, "Here's the deal, if we can find a supplier offering the same price, high standards, without incurring additional costs, replace them immediately.

Otherwise, negotiate with Zhang Fuqiang, let them optimize the plan within the existing budget. As for the shooting team and cast, we'll further refine them."

Wu Bo let out a bitter smile, the phone in his suit's inner pocket vibrated aptly, it was a list of new suppliers sent by his assistant.

He forced a somewhat reluctant smile, "I'll pursue this right now, aim to resolve it this week."

Huang Shi smiled and said: "Then Director Wu will have a hard time. After all, we're all in the same boat."

Wu Bo walked out of the meeting room, looked at the dense supplier contacts on the phone screen, took a deep breath, and dialed the first number.

...

Elsewhere, at home, Li Jing was lying on the sofa wearing loose knit loungewear.

Behind the sofa, Wei Jia stood with lowered eyes, wearing a smoke-gray camisole home dress that outlined her enchanting curves, at the hem, lace trim layered like clouds, faintly brushing past her ankle with her movements.

The once powerful and efficient businesswoman had shed the sharpness of her tailored suits, her silk-like long hair casually tied up, stray strands falling near her collarbone, adding a touch of laziness and allure.

She extended her long slender fingers, with the scent of hand cream lingering at her fingertips, gently pressing on Li Jing's temples.

Her movements were skilled and gentle, her fingertips skillfully massaging the acupoints.

Li Jing slightly tilted his head back, enjoying the pleasantness, a relaxing aura filled the air.

After an unknown period of time, Li Jing slowly opened his eyes, a hint of satisfaction in them:

"Not bad, it seems President Wei has indeed earnestly learned some skills lately. Your massage is very comfortable."

Wei Jia hearing this, moved to the back of the sofa, her red lips curled into an enigmatic smile, her tone carrying a playful hint:

"I've sincerely learned massage for you, yet you always think about going out and having fun."