Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 501 Cost Economics

On the last day of April, Beiping was shrouded in a drizzle, with gray-white clouds hanging low like a thin veil.

In her office on the top floor of the technology building, Song Ci stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the city skyline blurred by the rain, her phone screen displaying the latest developments in the "forced donation incident".

This uproar was finally brought under control by Tengda and relevant departments, and public opinion was stabilized and the heat gradually subsided.

Even excluding Liu Shishi's donation of 50 million yuan, the total amount of donations from the entire arts and culture sector has exceeded 140 million yuan in just ten days.

This scale far exceeds any previous fundraising effort, demonstrating its significant impact.

The sound of rain pattering down was interrupted by a crisp knock on the door. Song Ci turned around to see his secretary, Jian Ning, enter: "Chairman Song, Professor Liu and General Manager Zhang have arrived."

"Mom, Xiaoping, please come in." Song Ci put down her phone, a gentle smile spreading across her face.

"New Year's Day, your environment is even more impressive than I imagined."

Liu Xiaoxian walked to the panoramic glass curtain wall, looked at the car lights flowing below, and chuckled, "Beijing in the rain has a unique poetic charm."

Song Ci pulled out a chair for his mother: "It's all just for show. Jian Ning, brew a pot of Zhengshan Xiaozhong."

He then turned to Zhang Xiaoping, his tone warm: "Xiaoping, was there any traffic on the road?"

"Fortunately, the rain isn't too heavy." Zhang Xiaoping bowed slightly and took a black folder out of his briefcase.

"Chairman Song, the first hovering test of the rocket recovery is scheduled for late May, and the launch pad is under construction."

Song Ci's movements as he reached out to take the document noticeably quickened.

As I ran my fingertips over the rocket logo on the cover, I took a deep breath. After a year of relentless investment and a long march of thousands of miles, we were finally about to take the first step.

"Okay, okay, okay!" she said three times, her eyes still fixed on the schedule. "Mom, Xiaoping, what are your estimates for the success rate of the first experiment?"

Zhang Xiaoping adjusted his glasses: "Chairman Song, hovering technology itself is not complicated. We have conducted a lot of real-world simulation tests with the help of the digital twin system of Beihang University's aerospace laboratory, and the success rate should be very high."

He paused, then cautiously added, "Of course, there will always be uncertainties in space experiments."

"No rush, let's proceed steadily and slowly, one step at a time." Song Ci raised her head, her eyes burning with a burning light. "I will definitely be there on the day of the test."

Liu Xiaoxian raised an eyebrow in surprise: "You're going on New Year's Day too? The conditions there are very harsh."

"How could we miss such a grand occasion as our own Rockets' debut?" Song Ci chuckled, her tone unusually firm.

"It would be good to go and take a look." Liu Xiaoxian took a sip of black tea, put down her teacup, and smiled as she spoke. "By the way, I have some good news to tell you."

The government's policies on the aerospace sector are about to loosen, and private capital will soon be allowed to fully enter the market.

"That's wonderful!" Upon hearing this, Song Ci's face lit up with joy, and she clapped her hands together, making a crisp sound. Suddenly, she laughed out loud: "Without policy support, we were really held back. From now on, we can really unleash our potential."

"The information revealed by Principal Huai is basically accurate." Liu Xiaoxian was also delighted to see her son's rare display of excitement.

Zhang Xiaoping, who was standing nearby, also smiled. The policy relaxation meant that Dewen Manufacturing would no longer need to use Beihang University's name for many experiments, and its R&D efficiency would be greatly improved.

"Giving Principal Huai face over that little thing involving Consort Xu back then was a really good deal," Song Ci murmured, stroking her chin. Then she became serious. "But in the end, it was just the trend of the times, wasn't it?"

“That’s true.” Liu Xiaoxian nodded, her scholarly nature naturally revealed. “The national team’s energy and funding are now focused on key tasks such as the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System and the lunar exploration program.”

The already mature expendable rocket technology approach is more reliable and has controllable risks; it's impossible to switch to rocket recovery technology, which involves huge upfront investments and extremely high risks.

Looking at his son, his eyes filled with pride, he said, "Since you have the ambition to usher in a new era for China's aerospace industry, the higher-ups will naturally be happy to see it happen."

Zhang Xiaoping suddenly sighed: "Actually, the national team has already conducted detailed research on rocket recovery technology."

Seeing the mother and son looking at him, he said in a deep voice, "But in the end, we chose to give up! This is not only based on the current technological and economic situation, but also on risk considerations."

Rocket recovery is like accurately throwing a pen into a pen holder on a 100-story building—it's incredibly difficult.

“I understand.” Song Ci smiled subtly, knowing full well that if he couldn’t profit from the financial markets of Europe and America, and didn’t have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on research and development, he wouldn’t be able to sustain such a money-burning lifestyle.

Although they have abundant funds and invest heavily in the early stages, they still need to consider the economics for sustainable development.

His fingers tapped unconsciously on the table as he casually asked, "Xiaoping, how many times can a rocket be reused to break even?"

Zhang Xiaoping organized his thoughts and answered very meticulously: "Chairman Song, we have done detailed calculations."

If the engine or first-stage rocket body can be successfully recovered and reused more than five times, economic benefits will be apparent; if it can be used more than ten times, the cost advantage will be extremely significant.

Song Ci immediately understood the subtext: break even in 5 launches, make a huge profit in 10. He couldn't help but recall that in his previous life, Musk's Falcon rockets could be recovered more than 30 times; no wonder they could support the Starlink project's frequent launches.

Zhang Xiaoping continued to explain: "The main costs of each recovery are refurbishment, testing, secondary manufacturing, as well as propellant and launch service fees."

Every additional use of recycled parts saves on the cost of manufacturing new parts, resulting in a significant decrease in marginal cost.

Liu Xiaoxian picked up her teacup, blew on it gently, and added, "On New Year's Day, when it comes to recouping costs, we can't just look at the number of recyclings; we also need to consider the actual cost of renovation and maintenance."

And most importantly, there's the demand from the launch market. There must be enough launch missions to utilize reusable rockets; otherwise, no matter how many are recovered, they'll just sit idle.

Song Ci nodded in agreement. The economics of rocket recovery is essentially about reducing the cost of a single launch by reusing expensive hardware.

As for the profit model, I already have a plan in mind.

Once the technology matures, and we collaborate with domestic giants like Huawei to build a satellite network belonging to Devon, that will be the real blue ocean.

After discussing a few more technical details, Zhang Xiaoping got up to leave. The office door closed gently, leaving only the mother and son.

"Is Shishi going to join another film crew?" Liu Xiaoxian asked casually, her fingers lightly stroking the rim of her glass.

"Mm," Song Ci responded, her gaze lingering on the city skyline outside the window.

Seeing that her son didn't seem to care, Liu Xiaoxian hesitated for a moment and then gently advised, "Whether Shishi becomes an actress or not is not important. What's important is to give you a child as soon as possible. It's time to consider the issue of an heir."

“I know.” Song Ci turned around, her smile gentle. “She accepted this role a long time ago. The crew waited for more than half a year and couldn’t back out. After filming this one, she won’t take on any new roles.”

Hearing that her son and daughter-in-law already had plans, Liu Xiaoxian felt a little relieved and stopped asking questions.

Outside the window, the rain had stopped sometime earlier.

A ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating a family photo on the corner of the desk. In the photo, Song Ci and Liu Shishi smiled at each other, seemingly foreshadowing the family's future.

In May, early summer, all things flourish.

In the makeup room of Donghai Tangren Film and Television, Liu Shishi, having ended her more than half-year of leisure, is about to join the film crew. At this moment, she sits upright in front of the mirror, letting the stylist's nimble fingers dance through her hair.

The costumes in "The Imperial Doctress" are extremely exquisite and complex; just the hair styling alone takes nearly an hour.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Liu Shishi felt as if she had truly returned to the Ming Dynasty, a time when elegance and intrigue intertwined.

"Sister Shi's hair is so beautiful, it makes styling so easy and neat." The stylist praised softly as she secured the last hairpin.

Liu Shishi smiled faintly and turned her gaze to Jiang Yuanyuan, who was flipping through documents beside her.

While the stylist went to retrieve the headdress, Jiang Yuanyuan seized the opportunity to report: "Shishi, the total investment for 'Wolf Warrior' is estimated at 1.2 million yuan, and the box office needs to be over 3.6 million yuan to break even."

Although Wu Jing is quite talented, she is not a popular celebrity and has not demonstrated strong box office appeal before.

Even with the current market enthusiasm, it will still be difficult for this film to break even.

Liu Shishi listened quietly, her eyes showing approval.

After two years of experience, Jiang Yuanyuan has become able to calmly and objectively analyze project risks and has grown into a qualified manager.

"Your analysis is spot on." He affirmed softly, then spoke after careful consideration.

"However, 'Wolf Warrior' is, after all, a military-themed film and received strong support from the military. Considering this alone, it deserves more attention."

Liu Shishi paused, her gaze gradually becoming distant. After so many years in the film and television industry, she had come to understand that sometimes investment cannot be based solely on immediate economic benefits.

As the top female writer in the industry, I have a responsibility to support innovative themes and outstanding creative talents.

“Wu Jing only needs 4000 million, not much money, let’s invest!” Liu Shishi finally made the decision, light and calm, “Give him a chance, and give this kind of subject matter a chance.”

Jiang Yuanyuan nodded in understanding and made a mark on the document: "Understood, I'll arrange it right away."

For her, now that the top leader has made the decision, all she needs to do is execute it perfectly.

Even if the investment of tens of millions is lost, it's just a matter of swiping Mr. Song's card; the Song family has no shortage of money.

In another corner of the dressing room, the semi-transparent Li Chengyuan and Jin Chen, along with the barely visible Hu Bingqing and Yuan Bingyan, listened in stunned silence.

They exchanged envious glances, secretly marveling at the eldest sister's wealth, power, and decisiveness.

After finalizing the investment for "Wolf Warrior," Jiang Yuanyuan continued to report on other tasks:

"As for 'The Breakup Guru,' Yang Mi has already joined the cast and is busy filming. The pre-release promotion for 'Day and Night' has begun, and it's scheduled to premiere exclusively on Toutiao Video on July 1st..."

He presented the studio's recent key projects in a clear and organized manner, handling them in an orderly fashion.

Liu Shishi nodded from time to time and occasionally asked a question or two, turning the entire dressing room into a temporary meeting room.

More than two hours later, Liu Shishi's makeup was finally completed. With the help of her assistant, she changed into an exquisite Ming Dynasty-style dress.

The light green long dress is embroidered with delicate floral and bird patterns, and the wide cuffs are embroidered with cloud patterns in gold thread, which shimmer with a soft luster under the light.

Upon hearing the news, Cai Yi-nong rushed over. As soon as he entered the dressing room, his eyes were immediately drawn to the "Queen's" look, and he couldn't help but stop and examine it closely.

"Sister K, what do you think?" Liu Shishi smiled gently, her long sleeves fluttering as she turned gracefully. Her elegant dress billowed, like a blooming blue lotus.

Cai Yinong's eyes lit up with amazement. He circled around the star and exclaimed repeatedly, "So beautiful! This look is simply tailor-made for you."

Examining every detail of the outfit closely: "The light green color makes your skin look as white as snow, and the embroidery is exquisitely crafted, giving you an elegant and graceful air as you move."

Her hair ornaments were exquisite, with a kingfisher feather phoenix hairpin inserted diagonally into her cloud-like hair, with delicate tassels hanging down, swaying gently with her movements, exuding both nobility and elegance.

The overall look highlights Liu Shishi's elegant and noble temperament, while also exuding the wisdom and gentleness of a doctor.

"This look alone is enough to attract a large number of fans," Cai Yinong said confidently.

She has high hopes for "The Imperial Doctress," hoping it will become another blockbuster for Tangren Media after "Scarlet Heart" and "Xuan-Yuan Sword."

Looking at herself in the mirror, Liu Shishi was very satisfied with the look: "Director Li's aesthetic sense is indeed unique."

Suddenly remembering something, she turned and asked, "By the way, Sister K, did Director Li really retire after filming 'The Imperial Doctress'?"

Cai Yinong sighed, his face full of helplessness: "Yeah, I said I'm not going to be a director anymore, I'll probably just be a producer from now on."

At a crucial time for Tangren Media's IPO, Li Guoli's retirement is undoubtedly a significant blow to the company.

Liu Shishi gently comforted him, "Everyone has their own ambitions, there's no need to force it. Director Li has worked hard for decades, it's only natural that he wants to rest. Maybe after a few years of rest, he'll be eager to get back to work and will make a comeback."

"I hope so." Cai Yinong forced a smile and clapped his hands. "Let's go, Shishi, it's time to take the costume fitting photos. The two male leads are already waiting in the studio."

The group arrived at the photography studio and, as expected, found Chen Xiao and Huang Xuan already waiting there. Upon seeing Cai Yinong and Liu Shishi arrive, the two immediately went forward to greet them.

"Young Master Chen, it's been a long time," Liu Shishi said with a light laugh.

Hearing Liu Shishi greet him using her online nickname, Chen Xiao scratched his head a little embarrassedly: "Sister Shishi, please don't make fun of me."

Liu Shishi turned her gaze to Huang Xuan and saw that he was slightly hunched over. She couldn't help but shake her head: "Teacher Huang, you need to be particularly upright to show your temperament when filming period dramas."

Huang Xuan was taken aback for a moment, then straightened his back and replied humorously, "Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Liu. I'll order a posture corrector tomorrow."

Everyone was amused, and the atmosphere in the studio immediately became much more relaxed.

The photographer guided the three lead actors to stand in front of the backdrop.

The lighting technician adjusted the lights, while the assistant busied herself adjusting the hem and cuffs. Liu Shishi's magnificent gown appeared even more splendid under the strong light, the embroidery on the fabric reflecting a delicate luster.

"Okay, let's start with solo shots," the photographer said. "Senior Sister, please stand here, yes, slightly to the side, and look this way..."

Liu Shishi quickly got into character, every glance and every movement precise and accurate.

Her extensive dance training made her impeccable in demeanor, and every gesture she made exuded the elegance of a lady from a prominent family in the Ming Dynasty.

The photographer kept pressing the shutter, repeatedly praising, "Great! This angle is perfect!"

The photoshoot lasted all afternoon, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when the last photo was taken.

Liu Shishi gently stretched her somewhat stiff neck, already eager to send the official photos of herself in her phoenix robe to her husband.

(End of this chapter)