Shadow Empire

Chapter 1236 Bad News
Although somewhat reluctant, the state of Likalai supported Lance's plan to rebuild a more comprehensive film and television city in the western region.

Besides his excellent control over all aspects of Likale State, the most crucial factor was that the development of Valley City did indeed limit the film industry.

Or, to put it another way, the film industry has limited the development of Creek Valley, and even the entire state of Likale.

Even if Lance doesn't intend to rebuild a large project in the West this time, some people in the Film Association have mentioned these things before, regarding future development.

With the continuous growth of the local entertainment and shipping industries, the economy of Golden Harbor City is expanding. The state government is already discussing the idea of ​​merging Valley City into Golden Harbor City to provide strong impetus for its future economic development.

At this point, the film production industry, which is the main industry of Xigu City, is obviously in a difficult position.

Jingang City's intention to annex Xigu City is not for its film production industry, but for the land, population, and various supporting facilities that have already been developed. They don't want the film industry or filming bases.

Therefore, the film industry will definitely have to relocate.

At the same time, the film industry has reached a bottleneck in its development here. If it wants to expand further, it needs a larger land area, more supporting facilities, and a city policy that focuses on film as the core of its development.

The "breakup" was inevitable; Xigu City was too close to Jingang City, which was the reason for its limited development.

The governor's idea is to find a place within Likalai State to house the film industry. Everyone can see that it is a booming industry, and they are not stingy in building a new city for the film industry here.

However, there are some problems with this.

A new, emerging region, receiving attention and preferential policies from the state government, needs a large population. Where will this population come from?

The film industry, or even the emerging "film industry," is not a low-level manual labor industry like a boat cleaner, which requires no culture or skills to perform.

The faster the film industry develops, the more difficult it becomes for ordinary people to enter the industry.

When movies were first invented, anyone with a camera could be the lead actor in front of the camera.

Now, actors need to receive systematic basic acting training before they can perform what the script requires of them in front of the camera.

In a few years, actors without professional training will find it very difficult to find work, and assistants such as lighting and prop masters will also need to have professional skills.

Therefore, it is difficult for new cities to find refugees or illegal immigrants to fill their populations. They need to siphon resources from other cities by relocating some blue-collar and middle-class workers there.

There are also various supporting issues. These supporting upstream and downstream industries are not simple workshops that can be completed by a few people by hand. Instead, they require a complete industrial system to support them.

For example, many movies now use very special shooting methods and have produced a lot of exquisite props, many of which use the Federation's cutting-edge technology.

It also requires a large number of filming studios and landscape design, and sometimes it may be necessary to shoot explosion content, which requires a larger area of ​​land and more autonomy.

Everything required for the development of the film industry will become increasingly demanding and cutting-edge.

The concentration and supporting facilities of the industry, as well as the large population required for its development, necessitate an urban development plan that prioritizes the film industry, rather than treating it as an adjunct.

But now, everything is resolved; Lance has moved it away.

It's a pity though.

During this period, many management personnel, board members, and members of the film industry union from various production companies in Valley City have come here to conduct on-site inspections of the vicinity of Sher City.

This place boasts unique natural scenery, inexpensive land, and is located next to Scheer, a city with no distinctive economic development model.

In other words, the new city can use Scheer as a blood bank to exploit the local economy without worrying about the negative impact on the local economy.

If they had dared to even think about leeching off Hong Kong's wealth, Mayor Williams and the state's conglomerates would have sent the nascent film industry back to its primitive state.

But these problems don't exist here.

The lower filming costs compared to the eastern region, the superior scenery, and the various tax breaks within the protected area have made the inspection team, which has already gained a preliminary understanding of the area, generally very satisfied.

Lance may not approve of the tax breaks for Indigenous protected areas, but that doesn't mean these production companies don't, since not everyone can earn that much money.

With the support and affirmation of these people, the matter is basically settled.

"...This is the design plan for our upcoming 'new city' project. I had someone draw a sketch of what it might look like in the future, which can serve as a reference."

Lance displayed a huge painting that included his vision for the new city as well as sketches of its plans.

"My idea is to leave this area for you to set up a large number of movie sets, gather them together, and any company can use them directly by paying a portion of the fee, including ordinary tourist groups."

"Recreating scenes from the movie will be a... unique feature of tourism here!"

“Continuing east from here, we’ll reach the entrance to the Great Rift Valley, which is also an indigenous conservation area. We’ll build something like an industrial base nearby, where all companies will register.”

"This way, everyone can enjoy the tax breaks that are unique to the protected area. Of course, the prerequisite is that you need to find an indigenous person to be a shareholder, even if it's just an agreement to hold 3% of the shares."

"This can save you at least 10% to 20% in taxes each year, or even more. Only a professional accountant can tell you the specifics."

Lance introduced his plans, and finally he emphasized, "We will build a larger theme park here, and move some of the landscapes and scenery that are no longer needed after filming is over here. We will create seasonal theme parks based on some of the best-selling movies that are suitable for building amusement parks each year."

"Companies that provide the materials can receive a percentage of our ticket revenue."

"And here..."

Lance's grand vision gradually unfolded before people, and everyone was amazed by the scale and sophistication of his plan.

People never imagined that movies, parks, tourism, and the entertainment industry could be completely linked together.

One production company representative couldn't help but exclaim, "This will be the happiest place on earth!"

Lance heard his statement and affirmed his point of view, "Yes, you are absolutely right, this will be a city of bliss!"

"The benchmark for the entertainment industry in the Federation and even the world. No matter what kind of entertainment cities the Federation or other countries build in the future, they will have to benchmark against us, and at the same time, we will be far ahead of them!"

Someone couldn't help but raise their hand and ask, "Mr. Lance, everything you've said is perfect. I can already imagine how lively and prosperous it will be when it's completed."

"I have a question now, which is how long will it take us to finish it?" "It's like restoring a huge painting on a blank sheet of paper, which may take many years?"

Lance glanced back at the huge new city plan, then stroked his chin. “I plan to complete the major projects within two years, with more than 50,000 construction workers involved in the overall construction.”

"Gentlemen, we live in an era where miracles happen frequently. Time is no longer as insurmountable as it used to be in the face of money!"

There is a wise saying: "Time is like gold, every second is as precious as a grain of gold, but time can be exchanged for gold, but gold cannot be exchanged for money!"

"Now, as long as we have enough money, money can also bring us convenience in terms of time!"

Those who heard these questions also stopped having questions, since a large construction project often only has one or two thousand workers.

The most magnificent Federal Building in New Gold City was built in just one year using only three thousand people.

With more than ten times the number of workers as the Federal Building, divided among each area, the tasks were not as complex as those for building the Federal Building. Two years would be more than enough time.

When Lance says that more than 50,000 workers are working on the project at the same time, it means that the construction period will be shortened.

Problems that can be solved with repetitive manpower are not problems at all.

At this moment, another production company representative stood up and asked with some anticipation, "Mr. Lance, I wonder if this entire project... includes any portion that accepts additional investment?"

More people's attention turned to the project, and judging from what Lance showed them, they were certain that the new city project would be a huge success.

Although 90 percent of the people here work in the film industry, they also represent an emerging capital sector.

They have money and are willing to invest, especially in large-scale investment projects with potential.

It's possible that just by investing, huge profits can be generated continuously.

Lance thought for a moment, “Your participation in the project is part of the investment itself. Of course, if you are interested in other projects, you can give me a letter of intent, and then we can sit down and discuss the matter further.”

"There are so many projects that it's difficult for me to answer everyone's investment questions here. But don't worry too much, we have plenty of time!"

Everyone seemed very excited. The fact that he didn't refuse outright meant that they had the opportunity to invest some money and enjoy the joy of victory!

While chatting with these people about the construction of the new city, Erwin stood at the door of the room and gently knocked.

Lance turned and glanced at him, then smiled and said to the others, "You guys talk first, I'll go see what happened."

He walked outside and looked at Erwin. "What's wrong?"

“The construction workers have come to the company; they're downstairs.”

After hearing this, Lance went straight into a room next door, walked to a spot by the window, and looked down.

A large crowd had already gathered downstairs, numbering at least several hundred, and they were putting on a great show for people holding up camera flashes.

"Should we send someone to disperse them?"

Just then, another person jogged into the room. "Boss, I have your phone number. It's from Jinzhou."

Lance nodded slightly, but did not answer immediately. Instead, he went to his office.

"I am Lance."

"You seem a bit busy, but that's alright, I'll just say a few words and be done."

The call was from Senator Cleveland. He rarely relays messages through Tom these days, since Lance's status and influence are no less than his own; the only thing he might lack now is political standing.

In terms of social status alone, Lance was not necessarily lower than him.

Given that they are partners, it would be inappropriate to have Tom relay everything.

"The National Security Agency has been approved by Congress, and the first director of the National Security Agency is Porter's son."

Lance was also taken aback when he heard the news. "Nobody... said this person is unsuitable?"

Potter's son, the guy who was directly responsible for silencing several witnesses, was a ruthless man.

Regardless of whether he's smart or stupid, he's ruthless.

Placing a ruthless person in a position that amplifies their ruthlessness is not good news for the Socialist Party.

Moreover, there is an even more troublesome factor: he is Porter's biological son, which means that President Porter could grant him a pardon without any worries or other burdens.

He might consider whether it's worth granting a pardon to someone else, but he wouldn't consider such things when it comes to his own son.

So this Mr. Porter would essentially have "near-unlimited right to fire," he could do whatever he wanted, and then wait for his father to grant him a pardon.

Senator Cleveland sighed, "We're not in the majority now, there's no way to stop them."

"This is not good news!" Lance assessed the news.

Senator Cleveland hummed in agreement. "He might continue to cause you trouble, or he might not. You should be careful."

"We will do everything we can to ensure your safety, but we can't put all our hopes on him not being able to handle you. Be prepared for anything that may happen."

"Don't give them opportunities, and have the courage to face the consequences when necessary."

He didn't mention the murders Mr. Potter had committed, and bringing them up at this point wouldn't be very useful and wouldn't cause any fatal damage to President Potter.

As long as President Porter remains president, he will always find a way to pardon his family members; these materials will only become valuable if they are released during an election.

Lance put down the phone and frowned...

(End of this chapter)