Chapter 185: Pre-Sale Tensions and Shifting Fortunes

Actually,

it wasn’t just Fang Hou and the staff from Haofang Culture keeping an eye on the pre-sale box office numbers; Qi Haoyong and the Deputy Director from Ning’an Cultural Tourism were doing the same.

In Ning’an, inside the Chairperson’s office of Ning’an Cultural Tourism, both Qi Haoyong and the Deputy Director stared intently at their computer screens. Their expressions, once full of eager anticipation only minutes ago, had now turned into furrowed brows.

“What’s going on? We were supposed to surpass ‘Longmen Inn’ by a wide margin! How did it end up in a neck-and-neck race?”

A moment of silence fell.

Instinctively, Qi Haoyong glanced over at the Deputy Director.

Over the past couple of days, criticism of Longmen Inn had been mounting. Moreover, after Ran Xiangfei suggested that Qi Haoyong shell out for a swarm of water armies to aggressively promote the so-called box office curse on martial arts films, most netizens were convinced that ‘New Moon Legend’ would become the Spring Festival’s box office champion.

That result made Qi Haoyong even more convinced they would decisively beat Longmen Inn.

So what happened? In just the first few minutes of pre-sales, New Moon Legend’s box office wasn’t significantly ahead of Longmen Inn’s—instead, the figures alternated, with each film taking turns in the lead. Now, both had reached five million.

“Qi, it might just be the beginning. The gap will widen gradually!”

The Deputy Director scratched his head.

As a professional manager running a tourism company, he had never ventured into the entertainment world or fully understood the ins and outs of the film industry.

All he knew was that, during winter, 320 million was spent racing to complete New Moon Tower and New Moon Hall, over 60 million went to actors and the director, and roughly 10 million was allocated for extras during shooting.

With recent promotional expenses added, the total cost has hit 400 million! Based on the revenue-sharing ratios, the total box office needs to reach at least 1.2 billion for the company to break even—even if New Moon Tower and New Moon Hall remain with Ning’an Cultural Tourism.

But then again, if New Moon Tower and New Moon Hall were built in the summer, the cost would probably be only a quarter of what it is now.

That means the box office needs to hit 960 million just to break even.

These are steep costs!

“Do you really think so? I have a really bad feeling about this!”

Qi Haoyong rubbed his brow in concern.

If our competitors belonged to another company, he might not be this anxious, but Haofang Culture and Mingsha Tourism have never played by conventional rules.

“Qi, maybe I should check the forums!”

After a brief moment of thought, the Deputy Director glanced again at the live pre-sale box office data and said.

By now, twenty minutes had passed, and both New Moon Legend and Longmen Inn had reached 800,000 in box office sales. Although this number didn’t match Qi Haoyong’s target, it far exceeded Fang Hou’s estimates.

“Forums?”

“Yes, the netizens will surely be talking. Remember how the so-called box office curse for martial arts films started with a netizen’s comment, which President Ran then deliberately amplified?”

The Deputy Director quickly explained.

“Alright, then let’s take a look!”

Qi Haoyong was puzzled. Neither Fang Hou nor the staff from Haofang Culture had expected these numbers. A group of people stared at the figures on their screens, all filled with surprise.

Until one staff member softly remarked, “Mr. Fang, if this growth continues, our first-day pre-sale box office would easily exceed a hundred million! That means we’d not only break even on day one, but also make a tidy profit.”

By then, it was already 12:53 AM. Longmen Inn’s pre-sale box office had reached 12 million. If the first hour’s data were multiplied by ten, day one’s total would hit 120 million.

With figures like these, how could Haofang Culture not be excited? “The online buzz just shouldn’t be this high!”

Fang Hou looked equally bewildered.

Pre-sale box office success is largely driven by initial promotional hype. Netizens rarely get to see the actual feature—at best, they watch a trailer—so word-of-mouth has barely begun to form.

“We’ll see once the film releases. The numbers might drop later, but regardless, this opening has exceeded our expectations. Everyone, go home and get some sleep—tomorrow is still the Spring Festival, and our real challenge starts only after the celebrations.”

After a moment’s pause, Fang Hou continued,

“Since the data for the first hour is out, there’s no need to overanalyze the reasons. After all, Haofang Culture’s box office is entirely based on solid figures, not marketing gimmicks.”

“Understood, Mr. Fang!”

The staff immediately nodded their agreement.

Although they hadn’t been involved in Mingsha Tourism’s construction projects, their work wasn’t any less hectic than that of the other side. After Longmen Inn concluded, preparations for Haofang Culture’s fourth xianxia drama had already begun.

Currently, the production plan for the xianxia drama, titled ‘Legend of Swords and Heroes,’ had been submitted to the editorial department. The male lead has been cast as Hu Xiao, and the female lead is Liu Yi, a newly signed actress from Haofang Agency.

As for the script and shooting locations, they are still in the planning stages.

However, word is that after the New Year, both the script and locations will soon be finalized, and construction for the drama’s sets will commence.

Just as Haofang Culture’s staff began to wind down for the night, Qi Haoyong and the Deputy Director logged onto the forums, their expressions a mix of disbelief as they browsed the posts.

“Is this really acceptable? If we knew it would turn out like this, why have we spent so much money?”

Snapping back to reality, Qi Haoyong couldn’t help but gripe, “One screening on New Year’s Day isn’t enough—they expect to see at least two!”

Many netizens chimed in, “I bought tickets for both New Moon Legend and Longmen Inn.”

“Exactly, exactly!”

This left Qi Haoyong fuming. He had spent 30 million on advertising, yet a single netizen’s comment about needing two screenings on New Year’s Day completely nullified their advantage.

Over 30 million in ad costs required a box office of 100 million just to break even.

“Qi, I told you not to take President Ran’s words at face value,” one voice remarked.

Nearby, the Deputy Director couldn’t help but mutter under his breath.

In truth, if they had simply ridden on Haofang Culture’s coattails, the results might have been similar. But President Ran insisted on a full-scale push to outdo Longmen Inn.

“It’s too late to worry now. Let’s wait until the film officially releases and see what happens thereafter.”

Qi Haoyong hesitated, his resolve wavering.

He had felt the same way earlier, but now there was no turning back—they could only proceed step by step.

“All we can do is wait. After New Year’s Day, the box office will be dictated by word-of-mouth,” he added.

The Deputy Director nodded. After a brief pause, he quietly asked,

“By the way, Qi, once the film releases on New Year’s Day, should we still abide by President Ran’s advice?”

Just yesterday, President Ran had called, suggesting they spend a bit more to hire water armies. Once the film premiered on New Year’s Day, those hired would flood ‘New Moon Legend’ with rave reviews while pummeling ‘Longmen Inn’ with negative ratings.

In short, the momentum would only continue to build.

“Well…”

Qi Haoyong hesitated before, after a long moment, looking at the Deputy Director and saying,

“If we use this tactic to boost our film’s reviews while maliciously trashing Longmen Inn, Mingsha Tourism might sue us. We can’t end up handing our box office right back to them!”

“Alright, Qi. I’ll arrange it first thing tomorrow,” the Deputy Director replied, exhaling a long sigh of relief—as if our bosses had miraculously managed to cut their losses just in time.

“Good! That’s it for today. Get some rest early!”

“Yes, Qi!”

The next day, as the sun rose, the whole nation celebrated New Year’s Eve. From cities to rural hamlets, every household was decorated with lanterns and festoons as the festive atmosphere reached its peak.

Mingsha guesthouses were no different.

All construction halted; restaurants and the Vermilion Bird Building turned into lively hubs. At the gate of the Ancient City, two massive cranes were busy affixing Spring Festival couplets to both sides.

This move was nothing short of unexpected.

Plastering couplets on a main gate was common, but on a city gate? Each couplet measured 1.5 meters in width and 6 meters in length—almost enough to set a world record.

In Wudi City and the Ancient Building Courtyard,

Xu Hao was in the reception room chatting leisurely with Zhu Qiang, Luo Peng, and Fang Hou. After months of hard work, it was rare to find a moment this relaxed.

Initially, they discussed everyday matters, but soon the conversation veered towards plans for the guesthouse district.

“Brother Hao, the road to Langya Pavilion is nearly complete. When will we officially open Langya Pavilion to the public?”

Setting his teacup aside, Zhu Qiang asked.

Ever since the online streaming rights for Legend of Langya were sold, all that money has been reinvested to extend Qing Brick Avenue.

Now, walking along Qing Brick Avenue leads straight to Langya Pavilion. Additionally, the section connecting Qixia Town and Wudi City to Langya Pavilion is under construction. Once finished, the entire scenic area will form a complete character-like shape.

The crucial point of that shape will be Langya Pavilion, flanked by Wudi City and Qixia Town, with the tip at the City Gate.

“Have we finalized tenant arrangements for Langya Street?”

After a moment’s pause, Xu Hao asked.

“Yes. Many shops had completed renovations before the New Year, and after the holidays, about 90% of merchants are expected to move in. Several large supermarkets and department stores have already stocked their shelves,” Zhu Qiang replied in haste.

“In that case, we’ll open as soon as Qing Brick Avenue is finished!”

Xu Hao nodded in agreement.

“By the way, Brother Hao, should we extend the line of Ancient Guesthouses along both sides of Qing Brick Avenue leading to Langya Pavilion?”

Zhu Qiang glanced back at the model.

This section of Qing Brick Avenue spans roughly three kilometers. If extended, the guesthouse line would stretch to eight kilometers, turning Qing Brick Avenue into the central east-west axis for the entire area.

“Let’s hold off on that for now. There might be other projects in the pipeline.”

Xu Hao hesitated.

“Other projects? Haozi, you aren’t planning on building sets for that xianxia drama here, are you?”

At that, Fang Hou quickly interjected,

“Xianxia drama? Not at all! A xianxia drama set mustn’t be too close to the martial arts drama’s setting. Otherwise, it loses that ethereal, otherworldly quality.”

Xu Hao waved his hand dismissively.

Building the xianxia set here—with Langya Pavilion to the west and Qixia Town and Wudi City to the north and south—would feel overcrowded and blur the distinction between the two genres.

“Then where do you plan to build the xianxia drama set? I was under the impression that preparations for its pre-production would start after the New Year.”

Hearing Xu Hao’s remark, Fang Hou inquired,

“I’m thinking of placing the set at…”

Gazing at Fang Hou, Xu Hao immediately rose and moved to the model, with Fang Hou, Zhu Qiang, and the others quickly following close behind.