What shall we do today?

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Since the event notes specifically emphasized the "time," Yu Zhi made sure to check in advance. Feng City is a transportation hub, primarily composed of the main city and three county-level cities. Currently, Yu Zhi was located in the main city. The sacrificial altar was situated in a county-level city in a place called "Phoenix Terrace," which the locals also referred to as the Phoenix Terrace. This was also a scenic area where many cultural relics had been unearthed, and next to the Phoenix Terrace stood a museum.

Xun Yi was a researcher at the museum, sixty years old this year, and had been rehired as an expert. She held guided tours of the sacrificial altar every weekday morning from 9:45 to 10:00. Outside of that time, she returned to her workplace and did not conduct any public activities. This must be the reason for the specified "time"—missing it would be a loss.

Yu Zhi thought, "Let's see how long it takes to get there..." Then she realized she had forgotten something: "The car hasn't been arranged." Pei Zhao and the others should have prepared transportation for them; the screenwriters also needed laptops and such. When signing the contract yesterday, all payments were directly deducted from the 200 million yuan budget in the screenwriter app, since everyone was part of the crew. So the 100,000 yuan from Zhengzheng Films remained just that—100,000 yuan. Renting cars and laptops was affordable, though not overly ample.

While pondering the cars, laptops, and logistics, Yu Zhi searched for the route to the sacrificial altar. It wasn't far; Feng City's downtown area was not large, and driving from south to north took just over forty minutes. Including the county-level cities, it would add another twenty or thirty minutes. Traveling from the main city to other areas was quite convenient. If Yu Zhi took a taxi, it would take about twenty-five minutes to reach the destination from where she was.

She initially wanted to book tickets and arrange for a guide, but a quick search on Xiaohongshu revealed comprehensive guides and even stated, "You can just buy tickets at the entrance." China, vast and rich in history, had countless relics scattered everywhere. Such lesser-known spots attracted very few tourists. Yu Zhi could leave at nine o'clock, giving her plenty of time without worrying about traffic.

Now fully awake, she got up, freshened up, and went out for breakfast. The breakfast was a free buffet, open to guests until 10 a.m. She had told Bo Qiao and Xu Huang the night before, and the two insisted on getting up no matter what. Bo Qiao said, "Why not eat if it's free?" and Xu Huang added, "It's only until ten." Without classes this semester, the two had been busy substituting for classes, earning 40 yuan for an early morning session. Although they didn't substitute five days a week, they managed two or three sessions regularly. Their schedule was chaotic but maintained a delicate balance. Ten o'clock was definitely doable.

Each had their own room in the suite, and when Yu Zhi left, the other two rooms were still quiet. She glanced at the time—7:30 a.m. "So healthy," she remarked to herself.

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During breakfast, Yu Zhi ate while checking the recruitment app's backend on her phone. After registering an account and posting the position by paying, many resumes had come in. She hadn't yet had time to review them all; the chat window scrolled endlessly. A quick glance suggested they had enough candidates to discuss with Bo Qiao and Xu Huang for a whole day.

She then opened Taobao, intending to buy office supplies like computers. While browsing, she suddenly recalled something. "I remember, the company provided is fully furnished, right?" Adjusting the screen angle and resting it on the table, she pretended to operate her phone while reviewing the previous side mission description. "Oh, a fully furnished company," she murmured.

This raised the question: what counted as fully furnished? Did it include soft furnishings? To what extent? Was it move-in ready? Previously, when she had considered buying a house, she had searched extensively for such information. Move-in ready for housing sometimes meant even clothes and shoes were prepared for the resident. Of course, such luxury was only for the very wealthy. Could the screenwriter app provide such a service? Yu Zhi had reason to suspect it could.

Looking again at her phone, the computer priced at 8,000 yuan seemed rather expensive, and it might not be as good as what the screenwriter app offered. She hesitated. "So the new side mission requires gathering ten people before it triggers. Recruiting ten today isn't too hard..." Or should she wait? Just one day. Once the company task was confirmed, they could select the required supplies.

At that moment, Pei Zhao arrived. "Up so early?" Since her mother fell ill, she had started paying attention to health and wellness, rising early for morning exercise when possible to maintain a routine. But once filming started, that wouldn't be up to her. Fortunately, this was still a break period.

Pei Zhao assumed that after staying two days at a five-star hotel, they would move elsewhere. She happened to meet Yu Zhi, brought a tray, and sat down to ask, "When are you leaving?" Yu Zhi, happily eating, looked up in surprise. "Why leave?"

Pei Zhao replied matter-of-factly, "To change locations. It's so expensive here; the costs are huge."

Yu Zhi blinked in confusion. "No, we'll be staying here for the next month."

Pei Zhao doubted her hearing. Just then, Lang Qingwen and Zhai Duo came over for breakfast. Since it was free, why not eat? After learning that Yu Zhi had rented two floors of the hotel for a month as a temporary interview venue for the crew, Pei Zhao and the others were somewhat unsettled.

Pei Zhao: "Even 200 million yuan couldn't cover this kind of spending, right?" Spending hundreds of thousands on a five-star hotel for a month was nothing in a 200 million budget, but such spending was still excessive. Was the treatment really this generous? Yu Zhi calmly said, "The investors are covering it, free of charge." The wealthy benefactor's alias was indeed useful, always serving as the ultimate explanation. If the screenwriter app provided anything good later, she could attribute it to this "nonexistent wealthy sponsor."

Zhai Duo and Lang Qingwen reacted with astonishment. The three directors maintained very healthy schedules, and Yu Zhi couldn't help but glance at them. Looking toward the restaurant entrance, she saw no screenwriters were present.

Actually, the screenwriters were excited. They weren't well-known in the industry; in truth, Yu Zhi contacting them had left them nervous. "How did she find out about us?" they wondered, especially since they were all desperately short of money and work at this time. The contract was broad, ensured credit for original authors, provided royalties after airing, promised a stay at a five-star hotel, and even allowed them to pick their rooms. The advance payment alone saved three out of five screenwriters' lives.

Screenwriters joked, "What? Advance payment means she might run away? Ridiculous. With such good conditions and environment, only fools would leave."

Writers cared little for schedules; if Yu Zhi didn't have a golden touch constantly pushing things along, her own routine would likely be chaotic. Pei Zhao whispered, "I thought you were just putting on a show, but it turns out you're really powerful." Zhai Duo found it hard to believe, "So the investment isn't just two hundred million?" Lang Qingwen sipped her soup. Delicious. She could enjoy this for another month.

Pei Zhao came back to her senses and said, "...Your funder is quite generous." When had such a person appeared in the industry?

Yu Zhi nodded in agreement, "Yes, very generous."

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Lang Qingwen said, "We need to organize the script information within two days and send it to actors for auditions. If we can do it here... I think we can lure several top-tier stars." Pei Zhao agreed. They didn't need the whole script, just one or two episodes for auditions would suffice. The story outline was already prepared by Yu Zhi and just needed some polishing.

Yu Zhi said, "We should first see if they're suitable, though. I'm fine with newcomers as long as their looks and acting skills meet the standards." The three looked at her intently. Yu Zhi felt a little guilty; her statement was not just out of kindness—she intended to vet the lead actors using the screenwriter app and compare the options. What if unexpected new actors or amateurs appeared on the list?

Pei Zhao replied, "Newcomers don't have the fanbase. Your 200 million investment scale is enough to attract top industry actors." This was true; online, productions often boasted "200 million investment" or "300 million in special effects," much of it false. Some with 80 million would claim 200 million, and those with 200 million often pretended they had a billion.

Pei Zhao continued, "I know some good newcomers and mid-tier actors... Since you say so, I'll send out more info and not limit the star level." Zhai Duo sighed contentedly after a bowl of soup, though it was unclear if it was because of the soup or the conversation.

Lang Qingwen said, "We need capable actors. The female lead and several heavy female roles are very demanding. For male roles, I guess top stars won't want them since the lead female actors overshadow the males. Those guys are picky. We'll have to find second or third-tier actors with solid skills and good looks—the main thing is good looks."

Pei Zhao: "Definitely."

Lang Qingwen added, "I actually have some good candidates. When directing previously, I met a young girl..." Seeing her glance at Yu Zhi, Yu Zhi nodded, "I really don't care about fame or status. As long as the acting is good and fits the role, I can accept even a complete novice picked off the street."

Lang Qingwen sighed in relief, "Good." Zhai Duo murmured, "This feels like what my mentor once told me." Yu Zhi was curious, "What was that?"

Pei Zhao explained, "The era of coal baron investment." Yu Zhi was puzzled. Lang Qingwen clarified, "They only provided funds, with the sole requirement that the handsome men and beautiful women could insert their own people as minor roles, and those inserts were usually attractive men and women."

This was unlike now, where either the offspring of capitalists were ugly, or arrogant people who arbitrarily rewrote scripts insisted on equal or more screen time in female-led dramas—something not seen in male-led dramas, where no one expected such parity, so scripts didn’t need adjusting.

Yu Zhi chatted with them for about ten minutes—short but packed with information. They basically finalized the work plan for the following week.

Around eight o'clock, Yu Zhi stood up to leave. Pei Zhao asked, "Aren’t you staying to work on the script together?" The screenwriters all brought their laptops, no matter how old, always carrying them. They had agreed yesterday to finalize the filing information this afternoon.

Yu Zhi said, "No, I have something this morning and might only return in the afternoon. If I’m late, you can start without me."

She had to complete the check-in task first. But before that, she needed to buy a gift. Since it was clear she was going to meet Xun Yi, arriving empty-handed felt awkward. But what to buy?

Thanks to the wonderful new guide—Xiaohongshu—someone who had been to the sacrificial altar mentioned that Xun Yi loved a certain Feng City pastry. Yu Zhi planned to buy two boxes and pretend, "Here, have a piece! Wow, grandma, you like this so much? I'll give you some since I bought plenty."

A casual but deliberate gesture. She had used this tactic many times before, always successfully.