Chapter 121
Zhang Shijie waved her hand, and the slips of paper with comments flew towards the group, neatly arranging themselves in front of everyone.
Yuan Shijie, the most impatient among them, quickly picked up one slip, glanced at it, then grabbed another from underneath.
Her expression froze for a moment, and she began to sift through the slips, rapidly scanning the opinions written on them.
When she finally looked up, she found the others watching her intently.
“No need to look anymore.”
“What’s wrong?”
“They all have one comment—too short!”
---
**Chapter 130: Master and Apprentice**
“Zheng Shidi, Zhang Shijie, you two need to hurry to the market!”
At Zhang Shijie’s home, Zheng Fa was chatting with her when Yuan Shijie burst in like a whirlwind, urgency written all over her face.
“What’s going on?”
“Our little building is blocked! I went there this morning, and I couldn’t even get in the door!”
Yuan Shijie’s words left Zheng Fa and Zhang Shijie both stunned.
When did the disciples of Jiushan Sect become so bold?
Zheng Fa exchanged a glance with Zhang Shijie, and they both took off towards the market.
Before they even got close, they spotted a massive crowd gathered around the small building where Yuan Shijie usually worked.
Among the crowd were many familiar faces.
There were vendors who used to set up stalls in the market.
There were disciples who frequently shopped there.
Their gathering not only left the market nearly empty of customers, but it also reduced the number of vendors by more than half.
It was as if the streets were deserted.
As soon as the crowd caught sight of Zhang Shijie, the previously noisy throng fell silent.
Clearly, they held a deep respect for her.
But Zheng Fa could still hear someone in the crowd excitedly whispering, “Zheng Shidi is here!”
“There’s going to be a show!”
“Let’s ask Zheng Shidi to put on another performance.”
… Upon hearing this, Zheng Fa began to understand how this rare collective event at Jiushan Sect had come about.
He scanned the crowd and spotted three even more familiar figures.
“Han Qi, what are you guys doing?”
Han Qi and his companions hesitated, sheepishly emerging from the crowd, heads bowed as they stood before Zheng Fa.
“Haven’t you three already seen it?”
Zheng Fa had seen them there yesterday.
“Uh… we have,” Han Qi mumbled, “but we want to see it again.”
“…”
“Those senior brothers have seen it too, right?”
Han Qi pointed towards the crowd, and Zheng Fa followed his finger to see a group of senior brothers mingling among the crowd, smiling sheepishly at Zheng Fa and Zhang Shijie.
These were Zhang Shijie’s loyal supporters, and a few of them were even enforcement disciples in the market. They had certainly been the first to support the trial screening of *Saving Little Cultivator Pang Qian*.
Zheng Fa had seen these senior brothers at the theater last night.
Zhang Shijie looked at the group with a somewhat cold gaze.
“We… we’re here to maintain order,” one senior brother named Yang said, “With so many people here, if something goes wrong, we need to protect Zhang Shijie…”
Zhang Shijie narrowed her eyes at the group of Foundation Establishment disciples and lightly questioned, “Hmm?”
“Uh, I mean, protect Yuan Shijie…”
“Hmm?” Yuan Shijie pointed to herself.
“Uh, I mean, protect Zheng Shidi…”
“Hmm?”
Zheng Fa echoed her “Hmm.”
“You agree, right, Zheng Shidi?” Yang smiled kindly at Zheng Fa.
“…”
---
“There are just too many people wanting us to put on another show.”
Watching the senior brothers being persuaded to leave, Yuan Shijie was a bit taken aback.
“Those who saw it yesterday want to see it again, and those who didn’t have heard the praises from those who did,” Zheng Fa shook his head. “There really aren’t many entertainment options in Jiushan Sect.”
After being here for so long, the only entertainment venue Zheng Fa knew of was—Xunfang Pavilion.
The one run by the Su Nu Sect.
Though that place was fun, it was also costly and not as fresh as a play.
“What do you think, Shidi?”
“This is a good thing,” Zheng Fa replied first. “If it can attract the disciples of Jiushan Sect, it can also draw in outside cultivators.”
“Should we put on another free show?”
“Let’s do it, but not for free this time… the cost of the play isn’t low.” After pondering for a moment, Zheng Fa continued, “In the future, we might as well separate tickets into internal and external ones. Internal tickets for Jiushan Sect disciples, just enough to cover costs. External tickets for profit.”
The cost of a play was indeed significant.
Not to mention the salary of the sect leader, a Yuanying stage cultivator.
Just the ten spirit talismans alone were pricey—these had to be Earth-grade talismans to create an environment that could accommodate thousands.
In Zheng Fa’s view, the costs of the play could be divided into two parts:
One part was the cost of the talismans, which in modern terms would be akin to production costs.
Currently, the only producer in Jiushan Sect was the sect leader.
Even if this technology spreads in the future, it would require at least a Jindan stage cultivator to produce a play—generally, only Jindan cultivators could draw Earth-grade talismans.
The other part was the salary of the projectionist.
Zheng Fa had figured out the sect leader’s personality—he was quite lazy.
The only reason the sect leader was willing to handle the projection this time was that it was the first screening; he likely wouldn’t want to do it again in the future.
The job of the projectionist didn’t require a Jindan cultivator; a Foundation Establishment cultivator could manage it.
However, to maintain order in the theater, it would be better to have someone like Zhang Shijie, a Jindan cultivator, in the early stages.
Adding the two costs together, Zheng Fa estimated that a single screening would require at least a hundred spirit stones.
Zhang Shijie nodded and said, “In that case, let’s tentatively set the price for internal tickets at one spirit stone for ten.”
Zheng Fa calculated; this price wasn’t cheap—one ticket for the play was roughly equivalent to the price of three Yellow-grade talismans.
This might be the total income for a Qi Refining stage disciple in a day.
But for most disciples, watching a play once a month wouldn’t be too much of a burden.
“Also, how will we split the income in the future?” Zhang Shijie suddenly brought up another topic.
She looked at Zheng Fa, her expression somewhat hesitant: “The Bureau of Affairs wants thirty percent.”
Zheng Fa understood why Zhang Shijie was so reluctant. The most crucial aspect of the play was actually the sect leader’s *Luzhong Tiandi* technique.
The venue provided by the Bureau of Affairs wasn’t worth much.
“I’ll be responsible for the projection in the future,” Zhang Shijie continued, “but the Bureau of Affairs still needs thirty percent.”
This distribution seemed much more reasonable.
Zheng Fa thought for a moment and said, “How about this: the Bureau of Affairs takes thirty percent, the producer, which is the sect leader, takes sixty percent, and the screenwriter, which is me, takes ten percent.”
Zhang Shijie’s gaze softened as she looked at Zheng Fa: “That does seem a bit unfair to you.”
Unfair?
Sister, you have no idea how tough it is for modern screenwriters!
“The *Luzhong Tiandi* is what truly matters,” Zheng Fa said earnestly. “As for the script, we can let other disciples try their hand at it in the future.”
“Wait, what’s he feeling unfair about?” Yuan Shijie, who had been listening, asked in confusion. “Isn’t the Bureau of Affairs making money just the same as Jiushan Sect making money? In the future, isn’t Jiushan Sect—yours?”
“…”
“And what about the sect leader’s money in the future…”
“Wuwu…” Yuan Shijie, her mouth covered by a talisman from Zhang Shijie, couldn’t say a word.
Yuan Shijie, fixated on the inheritance of a lonely old man… it’s something to think about, not to say!
---
Although the disciples of Jiushan Sect were eager to see the play, considering the costs, Zhang Shijie and Zheng Fa decided to wait half a month before screening *Saving Little Cultivator Pang Qian* again.
In the future, the frequency of the play screenings would likely follow this pattern.
Once every half month, partly because the income of Jiushan Sect disciples was limited, and watching two plays a month would be considered a high expense.
More than that might encourage the disciples to indulge in distractions.
On the other hand, it also corresponded with the arrival of the ferry every half month.
After all, those outside cultivators were the primary target audience for the play.
Half a month later, *Saving Little Cultivator Pang Qian* was screened again.
This time, the turnout was much larger.
Out of the several thousand disciples in Jiushan Sect, about two-thirds showed up at the theater, along with some curious outside cultivators.
At first glance, the theater, which could accommodate ten thousand people, appeared to be packed.
Zhou Qian was sneaking around in the crowd.
He was wearing the face of Sun Daoyu, a senior brother—before coming, he had used a transformation talisman on himself.
In the past half month, the popularity of *Saving Little Cultivator Pang Qian* had only grown within Jiushan Sect.
Especially among those who had attended the trial screening, they had been boasting about how great the play was these past few days.
It made others itch with curiosity.
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