The literary era since 1979

Since the broadcast of "The Inspector General of Song Dynasty", it has caused quite a viewing frenzy in Hong Kong.

After all, no matter it is ATV or TVB, the TV dramas they produce all have a sense of pettiness. Even the martial arts dramas by Jin Yong, which advocates "the greatest heroes serve the country and the people", are greatly reduced due to factors such as the scenery, location, and costumes.

Whether it is the costumes, makeup, or the ideological structure, "The Inspector General of the Song Dynasty" makes the Hong Kong audience feel the grand atmosphere.

It is so eye-opening, and coupled with the progressive layers of weird suspense, the analysis and solving of the case like peeling off layers of silk, and the truth that comes out like the clouds are cleared and the sun shines, "The Inspector General of the Song Dynasty" naturally won the favor of many viewers, and the ratings remained high.

It even surpassed TVB and ATV's TV series "The Book and the Sword" and "The Thirteen Emperors of the Qing Dynasty" produced in the same period, and broke the TV ratings record held by "A Dream of Red Mansions" in Hong Kong, and won the weekly TV ratings championship for two consecutive weeks.

Even the actors in the main troupe, such as Chen Daoming, Zhu Lin, and Zhang Guangbei, began to become famous in Hong Kong.

Seeing such results, Run Run Shaw looked at Fang Yihua face to face and couldn't help but sigh:
"Sure enough, Yanzi's suggestion is a good one. This suspense drama is indeed a new direction worth producing and developing."

"I have already started asking the screenwriter team below to write a few suspense and mystery scripts."

Fang Yihua said that according to Fang Yan's suggestion, she plans to adapt "Song Ci, the Chief Justice of the Song Dynasty" into a street comedy suitable for the viewing experience of Hong Kong citizens.

Run Run Shaw said, “When Yanzi comes back, let him help take a look at whether the script written by these people is feasible.”

"I just don't know when he will return to Hong Kong." Fang Yihua sighed softly.

"I guess he won't be back until after the New Year." Run Run Shaw said, "Didn't Yanzai say before that he would stay in the mainland and wait until the crew of Farewell My Concubine is running smoothly before coming back." Then he showed a look of regret on his face, "What a pity, our Shaw Brothers has no part in this movie."

Fang Yihua shook her head. "After all, Shaw Brothers has just made some progress with gambling films and the "Baby Smart Star" series. It can't afford to suffer any more. If we take a wrong step, all our previous efforts will go to waste. Besides, "Farewell My Concubine" is an art film!"

"It's not an art film. Yanzi is talking about a commercial art film. Judging from his confident look, there must be a big difference between the two."

Run Run Shaw knocked on the table and said, "Otherwise, he would not have paid a high price to invite Zhang Guorong to film in the mainland."

"Maybe it's not a business consideration, but a political one?"

After saying this, Fang Yihua turned her gaze to the gloomy sky outside the window.

Compared to the cloudy weather in Hong Kong at this time, the weather here in Yanjing is extremely cold. Although the snow has stopped, the cold wind is still blowing like a knife.

Fangyan drove to the Beijing Film Studio, where an area was specially designated for daily use by the "Farewell My Concubine" crew.

In the training room, Zhang Guorong, who had just finished stretching his legs, began to practice water sleeves in an orderly manner under the guidance of Zhang Manling.

Shi Yansheng picked up the thermos and poured hot water into the cup. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Fang Yan standing outside the house, looking inside through the glass of the back door.

So he opened the back door and lowered his voice and said, "Teacher Fang, it's cold outside, you should hurry inside."

Fangyan nodded and asked as they walked, "How is Guorong doing in his studies these days?"

Shi Yansheng praised him highly: "Although Guo Rong had never been exposed to Peking Opera before, his comprehension was beyond imagination. He is a genius and is willing to endure hardships and work hard. He would go to the practice room for 4 hours every morning to practice leg stretching, running in circles, water sleeves, fans, and orchid fingers. Even when we were having a meal together, he was thinking about the movements. Sometimes, he would come to ask me and Teacher Zhang for advice as soon as he thought of something."

Hearing this, Fang Yan quietly turned his gaze towards Zhang Guorong.

Zhang Guorong was seen carefully demonstrating the movements while asking, "Teacher Zhang, look at my movements, is this how they should be?"

When he received praise from Zhang Manling, he was like a naive child who was just learning Peking Opera, so excited that he could hardly control himself.

"Cough cough!"

Shi Yansheng coughed and reminded the two of them.

Zhang Manling and Zhang Guorong came back to their senses and noticed that Fangyan was looking at them with a smile. "Guorong, I heard from Teacher Shi that you have not slacked off in your studies these days. You have really worked hard."

"This is what I should do. The essence of Peking Opera lies in the charm of movements. People like me who have no Peking Opera skills can only double their training."

Zhang Guorong smiled faintly.

Fangyan then heard Zhang Manling praising him lavishly, saying that Zhang Guorong would arrive in the classroom to practice Peking Opera before she arrived every day.

There were some moves that Zhang Guorong did not practice well that day, but he continued to practice hard when he returned to the hotel. The next day, the first thing he did when he saw himself was to perform yesterday's moves again, imitating them so vividly that even himself and Shi Yansheng were amazed.

"Have a heart."

The dialect also noticed that Zhang Guorong's Mandarin was not as awkward as when he first arrived, and it had a slight Beijing accent.

Zhang Guorong waved his hand and said it was his honor to be able to play the roles of Yu Ji, Yang Guifei and Du Liniang in "Farewell My Concubine" at the same time.

Fang Yan asked, "But I wonder which of these three roles do you like best?"

"If I have to choose between these three, I would choose Yang Guifei."

Zhang Guorong said: "But if you are referring to all the female roles in Peking Opera, I would choose Bai Suzhen. I think Bai Suzhen is the most representative Chinese woman portrayed in Chinese opera." As he spoke, he vowed that he would make a new "Legend of the White Snake" in the future.

Fangyan raised his eyebrows. It’s not that it’s impossible to let Zhang Guorong play the role of "Xu Xian" in "Green Snake".

After all, he played the "Ghost Rider" Ning Caichen in "A Chinese Ghost Story", so it's okay for him to be a "grassroots hero" again!
As the four of them were drinking hot water and chatting, Zhang Guorong suddenly asked about the dialect interpretation of "Cheng Dieyi":

"Mr. Fang, I find it difficult to understand Cheng Dieyi's complicated feelings towards Duan Xiaolou. I don't know what to do?"

"It's not that complicated. Whether you are doing it normally or practicing acting, just keep an eye on Jiang Wen."

The second half of the dialect sentence was stuck in my throat and was not spoken out, which is "Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder."

Zhang Guorong was stunned. "Is it okay to just stare at Jiang Wen?"

"The so-called 'eye contact', true affection actually starts with eye contact."

Fang Yan said: "The complex emotions between Cheng Dieyi and Duan Xiaolou do not need to be expressed with unnecessary actions."

Zhang Guorong pondered for a while, and had a vague epiphany, but suddenly he coughed violently a few times, and his head began to feel dizzy.

Fang Yan noticed that his face looked strange, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Zhang Guorong raised his hand and said that it was his first time in the north, and he was not used to the climate and the weather was too cold, so he might have caught a cold.

Fangyan frowned, "But why is your face so red?"

"Isn't it because you have a fever?"

Zhang Manling and Shi Yansheng also noticed something was wrong, and in order to verify their guess, they reached out and touched Zhang Guorong's forehead.

"Oh, it's so hot!" Zhang Manling was shocked.

"It's okay, I practiced." Zhang Guorong evaded the question by saying that he had practiced all morning and his body was hot.

However, Fangyan doesn't think so. "No matter if you have a fever or not, go to the hospital first. Don't be afraid of ten thousand, just be prepared for the unexpected!" (End of this chapter)