Chapter 211: Plans and Prospects in Mingsha City

“Alright, it’s settled then! Qiangzi will handle the expansion of the office building and staff dorms, while Little Luo is in charge of the river guesthouse and the project connecting the river with Oasis 1. I’ll spearhead the construction of the Nanzhao Ancient Kingdom at Oasis 23! And with spring arriving and nature awakening, now’s the perfect time to roll out the grass lattice and desert greening project—you don’t want to miss it,” Xu Hao declared as he laid out the plan.

He glanced at his watch and made further arrangements.

Tomorrow is April 1st, and by the end of May, he’s bound for Yan City—an entire two months away!

Zhu Qiang and Luo Peng’s projects were less time-sensitive.

But the construction pace at the Nanzhao Ancient Kingdom capital was no less intense than that of recreating a Qingming Scroll.

“Don’t worry, Brother Hao; everything for the grass lattice and desert greening has been set! We already laid a solid foundation last winter and will be expanding outward from there.”

“Alright then, that’s it for today. It’s getting late—get some rest!”

“Got it, Brother Hao!”

Days passed, and before long, half a month had flown by.

After the Ancient Architecture and Culture Forum wrapped up, the buzz around Mingsha Tourism finally began to cool down.

Meanwhile, the unveiling of Mingsha City didn’t spark much online debate.

To the netizens, it was a foregone conclusion—they saw it merely as the official name. From now on, visitors would say they were heading to Mingsha City instead of Hongsha Gang Village 256.

The only change to the Mingsha guesthouse was that

three bold, carved characters stating “Mingsha City” were now featured at the top of the city gate.

Moreover, the netizens were aware that the xianxia drama announced by Haofang Culture wouldn’t stir any activity until the end of May, so further discussion stalled. As for how Mingsha Tourism and Haofang Culture were preparing the drama, the netizens weren’t interested!

They cared only about whether the show was good and if its backdrop was fantastical enough.

But lack of interest in Mingsha Tourism’s infrastructure progress didn’t mean nobody cared at all.

In Yan City, at the Director Association, Ding Xiaoping’s brows furrowed as he read a message on his phone, his face etched with surprise and confusion.

“What’s going on? Weren’t they supposed to host things from Mingsha City? Why did they only get a subvenue while the main venue was moved to Jinlong Ancient City in Xiang Province?”

After a long pause, Ding Xiaoping muttered to himself as he slowly set his phone aside.

Since learning about the Long Kingdom Traditional Culture Expo, he had been closely monitoring the matter, even dispatching several insiders to gather information—all to ensure that the expo would tie up Mingsha Ancient City as its host.

And yet, what happened? Although nothing had been officially announced yet, today’s meeting confirmed the expo venue.

They gave Mingsha only a subvenue!

Though the subvenue would also host parts of the expo, the allocated projects were few and far between, mostly minor and miscellaneous; they could never compare to the main venue.

“So what’s the reason? Is the real-life Qingming Scroll just not impressive enough? And what’s up with Jinlong Ancient City—just a random addition to the hype?”

Leaning back slowly in his chair, Ding Xiaoping looked across at Bai Ming.

“Although the Qingming Scroll is indeed impressive, they probably chose Jinlong Ancient City as the main venue because most of Mingsha’s sites are just film and television IP check-in spots. Jinlong boasts far more ancient relics and ruins—in fact, it’s one of the finest in the Long Kingdom.”

Bai Ming couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

If Mingsha City didn’t secure enough traditional projects this time, knowing Mingsha Tourism’s tendencies, they’d still find a way to juggle a multitude of tasks.

“So what do we do now?”

Rubbing his temples, Ding Xiaoping admitted he was at a loss.

As expected, once the official announcement came, Jinlong Ancient City would undoubtedly be pushed to the top. H Country’s focus would also be on Jinlong, with Mingsha City just a side note.

No matter how vigorously the Director Association promoted Mingsha City, they couldn’t outshine Jinlong Ancient City.

“All we can do now is wait,”

Bai Ming said after a brief silence.

“Wait?”

“Yeah. It all depends on which projects Mingsha City can secure. If we can leverage them, fine—but if not, we might have to force the issue at the film festival!”

Bai Ming glanced over at Ding Xiaoping.

They could only gather rough insider information; the actual project allocations remained unclear. All they hoped was that Mingsha would land a few more challenging ones.

“Well, let’s watch and see,”

Ding Xiaoping offered no further comment, and the office fell into a heavy silence.

Meanwhile,

in Mingsha City at Oasis 23, atop a wooden structure base covering nearly two acres in a bagua pattern, Xu Hao was on a call while nearly a hundred carpenters hustled around him.

Flashback to half a month earlier,

after settling matters for Zhu Qiang and Luo Peng, Xu Hao had taken a trip to Kun City in Yun Province.

There, he spent two full days studying the Original Map of the Nanzhao Ancient City and finalized a project cooperation agreement with Yun Province TV before returning to Mingsha City.

The project, a light-hearted ancient costume comedy, was arranged with Yun Province TV

purely as a favor, with the official release slated for later this year.

Back at Oasis 23, the construction of the Nanzhao Ancient City began in earnest! Up until now, it has been a continuous three-shift operation. Xu Hao has been living on-site for over ten days without returning to Wudi City.

“Dean!”

The call was from Li Jue.

“Xiao Xu, is this a good time to talk?”

In the next moment, Li Jue’s voice came through the phone.

“Not busy, go ahead!”

“Here’s the thing: the venue for the Long Kingdom’s end-of-year Traditional Culture Expo has been finalized.”

“Already?”

“Yes! After discussions up top, they ultimately awarded the main venue to Jinlong Ancient City, while Mingsha City got only a subvenue.”

There was an inexplicable lightness in Li Jue’s tone.

Originally, the plan was to have Mingsha City host the entire expo, but after the Ancient Architecture Institute briefed them on Xu Hao’s upcoming projects, adjustments were made.

While the Long Kingdom Traditional Culture Expo was important, the restoration of 49 Imperial City was deemed even more crucial!

After all, 49 Imperial City is the Long Kingdom’s showcase, and it couldn’t afford any mistakes! “A subvenue is just fine!”

Xu Hao wasn’t at all surprised.

During a late-night chat with Li Jue and others, he had already mentioned that having only Mingsha City in charge might not be ideal.

“This way, the pressure on your end will be lighter,”

after a pause, Li Jue continued, “Mingsha City has been allocated five projects: Ancient Architecture, Traditional Cuisine, Traditional Medicine, Ancient Costumes, and the Imperial Sacrifice. Everything else goes to Jinlong Ancient City.”

“Dean, are those really only five projects?”

Xu Hao paused and asked.

It wasn’t surprising that Ancient Architecture went to Mingsha City, but he hadn’t expected even Traditional Medicine and the Imperial Sacrifice—areas in which Jinlong Ancient City would likely excel—to be assigned to Mingsha.

“Yes, just these five! There was even talk of including an ancient traditional wedding, but for some reason that went to Jinlong, leaving only these five.”

Still, five wasn’t bad. Mingsha City barely needed to prepare anything for Ancient Architecture—the existing resources could easily outmatch H Country’s offerings. Traditional Cuisine and Ancient Costumes were relatively straightforward, though Traditional Medicine and the Imperial Sacrifice were the real challenges.

Li Jue’s voice chimed in again.

“I’ll delve into the literature in the coming days.”

Xu Hao replied.

“Yeah, it’s never too early to prepare for the expo later this year. Oh, and one more thing!”

“Yes?”

“It concerns Mingsha Academy. After the forum, some of the officials held a meeting in Yan City. They expected to get the approval soon, but disagreements over the range of specialties emerged—so it seems the launch could be postponed until after June!

Which means this year’s admissions will definitely be missed!”

Mentioning Mingsha Academy,

Li Jue’s voice carried an inexplicable touch of dejection.

Back then, he had a simple idea—to establish an Ancient Architecture Institute that would not only upgrade Xu Hao’s status but also cultivate talent for the Ancient Architecture Research Institute. But now, the officials were quarreling as if they were about to turn Mingsha Academy into a full-blown comprehensive university.

Especially after some officials saw the cultural performances at the forum, some even argued that Mingsha Academy should add a specialty in ancient traditional rites and dances.

It felt like

if the discussions continued, subjects like Martial Arts, Traditional Wellness, and Bagua and the Five Elements could all end up on the table—since, in the eyes of some leaders, any traditional element stuffed into Mingsha Academy would be acceptable.

But this is a university—they still need qualified teachers!

There aren’t that many competent instructors out there!

“If we miss the mark, so be it.”

Xu Hao, unaware of what Li Jue was really thinking, actually felt a slight relief.

The blueprint for the Nanzhao Ancient Kingdom had turned out to be far more complex than he initially thought—even his super brain, combined with his uncanny ability to synthesize ideas, had taken three full days to finalize the draft.

Even if Mingsha Academy were approved now, it likely wouldn’t be able to commence construction simultaneously with the Nanzhao Ancient Kingdom.

“Alright then, that’s it for now! You keep busy—any issues with 49 Imperial City can be dealt with once we reach Yan City.”

“Understood, Dean!”

“So, how do we handle the five projects—Ancient Architecture, Traditional Cuisine, Traditional Medicine, Ancient Costumes, and the Imperial Sacrifice?”

The call ended.

As Xu Hao made his way to the center of the wooden structure base, he began to ponder.

No matter whether Mingsha City lands the main venue or just the subvenue, once a project is on board, it must be executed to perfection. That’s always been his—and Mingsha Tourism’s—principle.

Meanwhile,

as Xu Hao started work, in the Office of the General Manager at Jinlong Ancient City in Xiang Province,

Niu Hongchang, sitting behind his desk, couldn’t help but laugh heartily at the news.

“Ha ha ha, excellent! This proves that in the eyes of the leaders, Jinlong Ancient City remains the top ancient city in the Long Kingdom. Even if we didn’t get all the projects, what Mingsha City received is nothing compared to our twenty-five!”

In that moment, all of Niu Hongchang’s frustrations and irritations vanished.