Chapter 524 Golden Maze

May 24th, Tuesday.

Haunted Dormitory.

Chen Kangtuo was anxiously looking around at the entrance of the old industrial area.

Suddenly, he saw a taxi stop outside, and a young man got out of the car.

For a moment, Chen Kangtuo was a little hesitant to go forward, because he knew that he was meeting with an architect surnamed Liang today, and that he was relatively young, but this person looked a little too young.

But then he thought, the two of them had agreed on a time yesterday, and it seemed that no one else would be coming?

Chen Kangtuo hesitated for a moment before quickly stepping forward, "Mr. Liang?"

Liang Qingfan nodded, "Yes, are you President Chen?"

"It really is Mr. Liang? Hello, hello!"

Chen Kangtuo happily shook hands with Liang Qingfan, and then the two returned to Chen Kangtuo's office.

As soon as they entered, two people in the office stood up from the sofa to greet them.

Chen Kangtuo said to Liang Qingfan, "Mr. Liang, let me introduce you. This is Hao Qiong, my colleague who is jointly responsible for the Haunted Dormitory project, and this is Shi Zherui, the designer currently responsible for the renovation and decoration of the Haunted Dormitory."

Liang Qingfan exchanged greetings with the two of them, especially with Shi Zherui. Both were architects, and they had a lot in common.

Shi Zherui was a very talented young architect in Jingzhou, one year older than Liang Qingfan, but not as outstanding as Liang Qingfan in terms of education and experience.

As for why Pei Qian chose him to be responsible for the Haunted Dormitory project… obviously, it was for the same consideration as choosing Liang Qingfan, which was not to find architects who were too famous to build the Haunted Dormitory project, so as not to bring too much unnecessary fame and attention to the Haunted Dormitory project.

Chen Kangtuo poured a cup of tea, "Mr. Liang, you are really a timely help, solving my urgent need."

Liang Qingfan was stunned, "Oh? What do you mean?"

Chen Kangtuo gently placed the hot tea in front of Liang Qingfan, "It's a long story. The Haunted Dormitory is an amusement project led by President Pei to respond to the call to renovate the old industrial area, you should know that, right? A group of investors were also inspired by President Pei to invest in this area."

"This group of investors proposed to actively build a large shopping mall for President Pei and the Haunted Dormitory, to sell related peripheral items and props. We provide the plan, and they provide the money."

"So I asked Teacher Shi to make a more common shopping mall design, and planned to do it according to this."

"But, President Pei is a person who likes to strive for perfection! He sent an email yesterday, saying that we must design this shopping mall as a maze!"

Shi Zherui took over, "I was also dumbfounded when I heard President Chen say this. I originally thought, what else can be done with a shopping mall? So I first made a more conventional plan, but I never expected that President Pei would not be satisfied!"

"But now, I am also responsible for the construction of the Haunted Dormitory, so I have to keep an eye on it, and if there are any problems, I have to modify the plan at any time, and the time is already very tight; President Pei even asked to make a maze, which is even more difficult."

"I don't have much in-depth research on mazes, and I am also unable to spare the time! So… this matter is stuck, and President Chen is worrying about it."

Chen Kangtuo nodded, "Yes, fortunately Mr. Liang is here! Mr. Liang, do you have any good ideas about this plan?"

Liang Qingfan raised an eyebrow.

Turn the shopping mall into a maze?

What a bold idea!

I'm afraid only President Pei in this world could come up with such a whimsical idea, right?

Liang Qingfan took a sip of tea and asked, "What exactly did President Pei say? I do have some ideas about mazes, but the premise is that I have to understand President Pei's needs, and don't misunderstand."

Chen Kangtuo chuckled and said proudly, "Don't worry, I am an old employee from Tengda Games, and I am very experienced in understanding President Pei's needs!"

"President Pei mentioned two points in the email. First, it must be expensive, luxurious, and resplendent, in the style of many luxury goods stores; second, most of the peripheral merchandise stores should be hidden in the maze, so that most customers who enter will accidentally walk out of the exit without even finding a store."

"Let me first interpret President Pei's meaning from my perspective. If everyone thinks there are other aspects, you can add to it."

"I think President Pei's idea of a 'maze' must be related to games! Like many games that collect elements, hiding various collectible props, players have to search repeatedly, which can well extend their playtime."

"At the same time, players finding hidden stores is like finding hidden merchants in the game, which actually creates a psychological suggestion that it is not a loss to buy something since they finally found it, right? In this way, it can also well promote consumption."

"It would be even better if each store regularly changes the items and small gifts for checking in."

"As for why the decoration should be expensive, I haven't figured it out yet."

Liang Qingfan nodded slightly, gently stroking the teacup with his right hand, "Well, the 'maze' design can definitely extend the player's playtime, but from an architect's point of view, there should be some other considerations."

"President Pei said that you can accidentally come out from the exit, which means that there are many exits in this maze, which means that the crowded people can be diverted, improving the shopping experience of tourists, and at the same time ensuring that tourists can quickly evacuate in case of emergencies."

"Moreover, making a maze means zoning, and in architectural design, zoning can greatly improve space utilization. On the surface, it seems that the cost is increasing, but it is actually a long-term vision."

"I think the walls of some key nodes in the maze can be made movable, closing them means that the road is blocked, and opening them means that there is one more passage. After it is made into automatic control, the maze terrain is automatically generated through computer algorithms, and it can be changed every once in a while, so that tourists can always maintain a sense of freshness here."

"Of course, for safety reasons, manual control should also be allowed, and someone should always be on duty to stare at it, even if there are sudden situations such as power outages, it must be ensured that tourists can quickly find the exit and will not be trapped."

"As for why it should be expensive… I think, does President Pei like the style of a golden maze? Giving people a feeling that treasures are everywhere, invisibly setting off the value of the goods inside."

"Like many luxury goods stores, why is the decoration so flashy? It is to invisibly create an atmosphere that makes you feel like you are in a palace, and the exquisite jewelry in front of you is something that only royalty can wear. At this time, you will can't help but want to pay to buy it."

"Facts have proved that if you want to achieve this effect, this kind of golden, nouveau riche, and flashy style is the best to use."

"In this way, when the Haunted Dormitory is promoted, you can say: In the remote and terrifying Haunted Dormitory, as long as you pass the thrilling horror test and walk out of the magnificent golden maze, you can find the buried treasure!"

Chen Kangtuo's eyes lit up, "I see!"

"Before, I just answered President Pei's ideas from the perspective of game design, and I already thought this design was very good. Now, after listening to Teacher Liang's interpretation from the perspective of architectural design and psychology, it makes more sense!"

"President Pei has also considered this issue from an architectural point of view? His knowledge is really broad."

"In that case, let's just call this shopping mall the Golden Maze. At that time, it can be used as a shopping mall and as a free tourist project in the Haunted Dormitory, killing two birds with one stone!"

"Mr. Liang, the matter is urgent, so the design of the Golden Maze will be entrusted to you! We will give you the design fee according to Tengda standards!"

Chen Kangtuo looked at Liang Qingfan with eager eyes.

Liang Qingfan thought for a while, "Of course there is no problem with the design, but… President Pei will also ask me to design a new Sloth Apartment in a while, I'm afraid I won't be able to follow the whole process."

Shi Zherui patted his chest, "It's okay, Mr. Liang, you just need to come up with a design plan. Li Zong and the others can find a construction team for the construction, and I can also help keep an eye on it."

"But… if you encounter problems that can't be solved, you still have to come here in person."

Liang Qingfan nodded, "That's easy to say, even if I am responsible for the Sloth Apartment, it must be in Jingzhou, and I can rush over at any time."

Chen Kangtuo was very happy, "Then everything is up to Mr. Liang!"

…

…

May 25th, Wednesday.

Pei Qian silently browsed the web page, his face full of dazed expressions.

The development of the situation was somewhat beyond his expectations.

The entire internet was once again swept by *A Beautiful Tomorrow*!

The last time this happened was when *A Beautiful Tomorrow* was released in China and just became popular.

The movie was released for more than a month, and then continued to be broadcast on Aili Island for more than a month. The time has been long enough.

Those who wanted to watch it have already watched it, and the plot and various details in the movie have been discussed countless times. Logically speaking, this popularity should have passed.

As a result, he never expected that this award would bring the attention back again!

And this time, the focus of domestic netizens is no longer on the film itself, after all, the content of the film has been thoroughly studied.

What netizens are more concerned about is the overseas box office performance of this movie and the evaluation of it by foreigners!

Not only that, but a vigorous "grave digging" campaign was launched on the Internet.

From the beginning of the release of *A Beautiful Tomorrow*, people who blacked this movie have never stopped.

Among these haters, some are trolls, but many are true haters.

After all, no matter how good something is, it is impossible for everyone to like it. What's more, many people who like to watch popcorn movies are not interested in studying the various connotations in *A Beautiful Tomorrow* at all.

In addition, the praise of many people on the entire network easily stimulates some people's rebellious psychology, and they feel that this movie is obviously overhyped and must be blacked out.

As time goes by, the points that these people blacked out are constantly changing.

When it was first released, it was said that the movie forcibly used the Western story background, which was neither fish nor fowl, and was neither liked by Chinese people nor by foreigners;

After the release, the box office data was good, and it was said that this movie was actually pseudo-profound, and it became popular entirely by marketing. Most of the box office was watered down, and it would be exposed in at most a week;

After a period of time, the box office was still strong. As a result, when *Journey of the Flying Stars* was released, it was said that the real blockbuster was coming, and *A Beautiful Tomorrow* was about to be crushed;

After *Journey of the Flying Stars* flopped, it was said that *Journey of the Flying Stars* was too rubbish and could not represent the true level of Western movies. *A Beautiful Tomorrow* just happened to occupy a good schedule, otherwise it would not have this box office;

After *A Beautiful Tomorrow* was released overseas, the opening box office was not good, and there was almost no response. The haters came out again: See, I said that this movie is neither fish nor fowl, and it is just fooling domestic audiences. Foreigners don't buy it at all!

The fans of *A Beautiful Tomorrow* have really been holding back for a long time. The key is that this group of haters output against the wind and are so sarcastic, and they jump out at the slightest movement, so there is no way to kill them all.

Especially the poor overseas box office of *A Beautiful Tomorrow* made the fans outputted by the haters for a long time, holding back a belly of fire.

But now, *A Beautiful Tomorrow* has won the Jury Prize again after eleven years, and the situation has instantly reversed!

How could the fans let go of this opportunity?

They have been outputted by the haters for so long, and now they finally have a chance to fight back. Won't they dig up the ancestral graves of the haters?

The hatred aroused by the haters rebounded strongly in a very short period of time, directly leading to the surge in popularity of *A Beautiful Tomorrow*, and once again swiping the screen!

A movie released in February is still so popular until now…

Pei Qian said, this is really fucked up!