Tuesday, morning.

Pei Qian was sleeping soundly when he was suddenly awakened by the phone ringing.

Opening his drowsy eyes to check the caller ID, it was a call from Huang Sibo.

Pei Qian answered the phone: “Hello?”

From the other end came Huang Sibo’s slightly excited voice: “Mr. Pei, reporting good news! The film ‘Mission and Choice’ has wrapped! We just finished shooting the last scene this morning!”

Pei Qian wasn’t fully awake yet, his mind still somewhat foggy: “Oh?”

But in the next second, he immediately caught on.

The film wrapped!

Though very reluctant, this day had finally arrived.

After deciding on the joint project of ‘Mission and Choice’ game + film, Pei Qian hadn’t paid much attention to it.

The reasons were complex. One was that Pei Qian feared his attention might create an observer effect, or that one of his subconscious suggestions might inexplicably hit the nail on the head and backfire; another was that this project spanned two settlement cycles, and Pei Qian had more important projects to handle.

Of course, there was also the reason that Pei Qian felt he’d done enough preparation before the project launch. ‘Mission and Choice’ almost condensed all failure factors, even He An thought it would definitely fail, so Pei Qian was full of confidence in this project.

Not until he happened to meet He An recently did Pei Qian think to check on the development status of the ‘Mission and Choice’ game at Tenda Games.

As for the film, Pei Qian hadn’t even visited the studio once, not even knowing the basic story outline.

All he knew was that the story background of ‘Mission and Choice’ was set by him, supposedly about the war between humans and Zerg.

Because a decade ago, that game called “national gaming shame”—the original ‘Mission and Choice’—used this background, and Pei Qian required Director Zhu Xiaocai to keep it, which Director Zhu certainly complied with.

He just didn’t know what the situation would be once this film was made.

Thinking of this, Pei Qian sat up from bed with a sudden start.

“Wrap-up is great news! We definitely need to celebrate!”

“How about this—today at noon, let’s have lunch at Mr. Li’s Minfu Family Feast, I’m treating! Everyone from the crew should come!”

“Then organize everyone to play around Jingzhou for a few days. Next Monday happens to be the 20th, we’ll have another meal at the Nameless Restaurant!”

Previously, when ‘Beautiful Tomorrow’ wrapped, they had the same treatment and standards: two high-end gatherings + playing around Jingzhou for a week. For Pei Qian, the spending on treatment could only go up, never down. Not a penny less could be spent.

Huang Sibo was very happy: “Great, Mr. Pei!”

…

Noon, Minfu Family Feast.

Today was Tuesday, so there were few customers to begin with. Pei Qian had called ahead to reserve the place, so the entire restaurant was filled with crew members.

Besides Huang Sibo, Zhu Xiaocai, Lu Zhiyao, and on-site staff like cinematography, editors and post-production team members also came, gathering together.

Normally, editing and post-production should be the busiest right now, but ‘Mission and Choice’ was filmed segment by segment. After completing each segment, they could do rough cuts and post-production, so the editing and post-production pressure wasn’t particularly heavy.

Moreover, no matter how busy the work was, when Mr. Pei treats, attendance was mandatory!

Everyone knew Mr. Pei’s dinners didn’t have too many rules, so they all sat casually, waiting for Mr. Pei’s arrival.

Huang Sibo, Zhu Xiaocai, Lu Zhiyao, and others sat at the same table, eagerly anticipating Mr. Pei’s arrival.

“He’s here, he’s here!”

“Mr. Pei, over here!”

Huang Sibo stood up, waving at Pei Qian.

Pei Qian immediately told the waiter: “What are you waiting for? Bring all the best wine and dishes! Order the most expensive ones, hurry up.”

Then he sat down at Zhu Xiaocai’s table.

Only now could Pei Qian properly see these crew members.

After looking around, his gaze stopped on Lu Zhiyao.

Well, of course Lu Zhiyao was here again.

Pei Qian was mentally prepared for this. After all, Lu Zhiyao had close ties with Fei Huang Studio, and their collaborations were pleasant, so it was natural they’d work together again.

Previously, when discussing casting, Pei Qian’s requirement was only one lead actor allowed, with everyone else only as extras. The lead could be anyone, even A-listers were fine, but absolutely no excessive expressions.

Though Lu Zhiyao’s acting was good, how could he showcase his acting skills without expressions?

So Pei Qian wasn’t very angry and accepted it calmly.

Hopefully the film would bomb spectacularly, lose everything, Lu Zhiyao would return to being “box office poison,” eliminating any possibility of future collaborations—mutual liberation!

After some pleasantries, servers began bringing dishes.

Pei Qian looked around again, suddenly realizing something.

Something’s not right. Why is Lu Zhiyao the only one here? Where are the other actors?

Pei Qian’s previous instruction to Huang Sibo and Zhu Xiaocai was that there could only be one lead, with everyone else as extras.

Where are the extras?

Could it be that because they’re extra actors, they’re not even invited to meals?

That would be outrageous! Completely against Tenda’s spirit!

Pei Qian’s expression grew serious as he looked at Huang Sibo: “Where are the other extra actors? Since this is a celebration dinner, not one person should be missing!”

Huang Sibo was stunned, then quickly explained: “Oh, Mr. Pei, everyone from the crew is here, including the runners.”

“There are no extra actors because we didn’t hire any extras. Lu Zhiyao is the only actor.”

Pei Qian: “?”

This Huang Sibo even overachieved!

Pei Qian’s requirement had been one lead with everyone else as extras.

But Huang Sibo eliminated even the extras!

So this entire film, from start to finish, is Lu Zhiyao’s solo performance?

That sounds extremely unreliable and very likely to bomb at the box office!

Pei Qian couldn’t help giving a thumbs up: “Great! Well done!”

Huang Sibo and Zhu Xiaocai exchanged smiles, both seeing pride in each other’s eyes.

Mr. Pei was indeed Mr. Pei, instantly catching on to the brilliance of their “solo performance script,” which earned such praise.

What a kindred spirit!

Pei Qian looked at Lu Zhiyao: “How did it feel during filming?”

Lu Zhiyao smiled somewhat guiltily: “Mr. Pei, honestly, it didn’t feel great.”

“The entire film was a solo performance. It was too hard to act!”

“Plus Director Zhu required minimal expressions—facial muscle changes had to be minimal. I felt really constrained, almost went crazy…”

Pei Qian couldn’t help beaming.

Hmm, excellent!

A solo performance where the lead’s acting skills weren’t fully utilized—definitely bound to flop, no doubt!

Pei Qian initially wanted to ask Zhu Xiaocai for the script, but reconsidered. What’s the point of reading a flop’s script?

Besides, filming was already done—the deed was done. Even seeing the script now wouldn’t allow reshooting, which might delay the film’s release and affect settlement.

So Pei Qian didn’t bother looking for trouble. He raised his drink: “Everyone’s worked hard these past months! Eat and drink well today, enjoy yourselves in Jingzhou for a few days, and on the 20th, I’ll treat everyone to another meal at Nameless Restaurant!”

Everyone cheered immediately.

Nameless Restaurant meals were rare treats. After months of work, everyone was waiting for this moment—how could they not be excited?

Now that filming was officially wrapped, everyone relaxed. While enjoying the food, they chatted and laughed, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

…

After finishing his meal, Pei Qian left early, citing work commitments. The crew was clearly not done enjoying themselves—some even ordered drinks, continuing to drink and chat.

Zhu Xiaocai and Huang Sibo continued discussing post-production for ‘Mission and Choice.’

Camera operators and staff could rest now, unless minor scenes needed reshooting. But fine editing and post-production still had many issues. Zhu Xiaocai and Huang Sibo couldn’t relax yet.

While discussing, Huang Sibo’s phone rang.

Checking the caller ID, it was Rui Yuchen.

“Huh?”

Huang Sibo was somewhat surprised since his work usually had no overlap with Rui Yuchen’s.

Rui Yuchen managed Fish Takeout. Why was he calling? Perhaps Rui Yuchen wanted to place product placement for Fish Takeout in the film?

That was impossible. ‘Mission and Choice’ was sci-fi—how could they insert Fish Takeout advertising? That would be ridiculous!

Somewhat puzzled, Huang Sibo answered.

After brief pleasantries, Rui Yuchen explained: “Brother Huang, you know Mr. Pei bought a company called Cold Noodle Girl recently, right? I talked with their manager a few days ago and learned they want to produce a documentary about street food.”

“I heard your team previously made documentaries, so I thought I’d connect you. They could find others to film, but we don’t know outsiders’ capabilities—what if the result is unsatisfactory?”

“The only issue is, you’ve done esports documentaries before. I’m not sure if you can handle food documentaries?”

Huang Sibo said: “Hold on, I’ll ask Director Zhu.”

He briefly summarized Rui Yuchen’s words, getting confirmation from Zhu Xiaocai.

Huang Sibo replied: “Yes, Director Zhu says if we can make films, we can certainly handle food documentaries!”

“Though for optimal visual effects, we might need additional specialized camera equipment. But that’s manageable—our studio needs these anyway. We’ll just purchase them.”

“You really know how to pick your timing—calling right after we finish filming!”

Rui Yuchen was pleased: “Really? What perfect timing then!”

“Great, it’s settled! I’ll give you a contact. You can discuss specifics with their manager—how to film, what budget’s needed.”

Huang Sibo: “No problem.”

Working with outside companies would bring many concerns:

What if they haggle over price? What if they’re unsatisfied with the result? What if disputes arise over costs during filming?

All very troublesome.

But collaborating with Tenda’s internal departments removed such worries. Everyone received money from Mr. Pei—whether client or contractor, the money just moved from one hand to another, with no concerns about disputes.

Perfect timing too—the film wrapped, leaving many crew members idle. Using this opportunity to film food promotional videos, especially street food, wasn’t demanding work—just a pleasant change of pace.

Therefore, Huang Sibo readily agreed.