Exciting 1979!

Chapter 412: Journey to the West costumes, theme song, and the Queen of the Women's Kingdom.

Here it comes, this problem has finally arrived.

As a junior, Wei Ming was a little embarrassed to answer, mainly because his grandfather and second grandmother's posture and expressions were too ambiguous, and he couldn't help them cover it up.

“Uncle, my great-aunt said that you should visit her when you get to America, and she’ll tell you about the photos.” Wei Ming cleverly passed the task to his great-aunt.

However, Wei Ping'an felt that this was already the answer; it seemed that it really was his uncle.

Why bother going to the US? If you have the chance to go to Hong Kong, you should figure this out yourself.

"Brother, what did Uncle Ping An want to see you about?" Wei Hong asked after they left.

"It's nothing, just work-related." Wei Ming drove Xiao Hong back to Peking University.

Aren't you going home?

"Why go home? You don't have school tomorrow, so you can sleep in a little longer." Wei Ming dropped her off at school and left, heading back to Nanluoguxiang to find Sister Xue.

Xuejie had already finished eating and was sitting cross-legged on the sofa watching TV.

Wei Ming watched with her for a while, but he was somewhat absent-minded. After Xue Jie lay down again, he went to his study and wrote a letter to send to Lao Gui, telling him about the photos, so that Uncle Ping An wouldn't confront him one day and catch him off guard, since he was his own grandfather.

The next day, Xuejie went to the Beijing Film Studio, while Wei Ming went to his usual post office. Coincidentally, he received a letter from Zhou Huimin, who talked about the Hong Kong Film Awards nominations and asked if he would attend.

In addition, Ah Long also sent himself a telegram about this matter, as well as the other party's formal invitation.

Wei Ming was too lazy to go, so he casually wrote back to Amin, asking her to let him know the results later.

He brought a painting with him this time, and then went to Rongbaozhai. When Manager Yu saw the big customer, he smiled like a chrysanthemum.

"Manager Yu, don't be so happy yet, we're not buying any paintings today."

Even if Mr. Wei doesn't buy any paintings, he is still our most honored guest at Rongbaozhai. It would be our honor if he just came over for tea.

This Manager Yu is quite unlike the style of a state-owned store manager; he's very adept at social maneuvering. Perhaps it's because they deal with artists or foreign friends, so they can't be too rigid in their speech and actions.

Wei Ming didn't beat around the bush with him.

"I have a painting here that I'd like to have appraised by Rongbaozhai."

"Oh, is it the work of a famous artist?"

Wei Ming: "Qiu Ying of the Ming Dynasty."

"Wow!" Because calligraphy and paintings are mainly made of paper, they have a lower probability of being passed down to later generations compared to gold, silver, porcelain, wood, and lacquerware. Works by famous artists are even rarer. Tang and Song dynasty works are already scarce, and Ming dynasty works are considered very precious.

Qiu Ying was one of the "Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty," alongside Tang Bohu and Wen Zhengming. His works are naturally very valuable and are collected by major museums.

"Could you show me?" Manager Yu asked expectantly.

"Horizontal axis." Wei Ming took out the scroll, and Manager Yu called over two employees, one of whom held one end and slowly pulled it open.

"Along the River During the Qingming Festival!" Manager Yu exclaimed in amazement upon seeing only the first inch of the painting.

Wei Ming: "That's right, it's Qiu Ying's copy of 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival,' not the one in the Liaoning Provincial Museum, so I was a little unsure and came here specifically to have Rongbaozhai take a look."

After the entire painting was unfolded, Manager Yu asked, "Mr. Wei, how much did this painting cost?"

“I didn’t ask for money; it was a gift from someone,” Wei Ming said. “In addition, I have already had a carbon-14 test done at a laboratory at Peking University, which confirmed that the paper is from the Ming Dynasty. This is the test report.”

Manager Yu said, "Even with paper from the Ming Dynasty, we cannot be certain that this painting is an authentic work by Qiu Ying. Rongbaozhai does have paper from the Ming Dynasty in its collection."

Wei Ming nodded: "I understand that too, so we still need to ask the masters at Rongbaozhai to appraise it."

Manager Yu also worked his way up from the bottom; he wasn't just an administrative staff member. He first carefully reviewed the document himself.

"Yes, it is indeed in the style of figures and scenery from Suzhou in the Ming Dynasty. Because it is said that Qiu Ying copied many copies of 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival,' some people forged Qiu Ying's version during the Qing Dynasty. But anyone with eyes can see how difficult it was to draw 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival.' Qiu Ying also spent three years completing a satisfactory copy, so it is impossible that there are really too many copies circulating in the world. At present, the only one that can be confirmed as the original is the one in the Liaoning Provincial Museum. It has a clear provenance and Emperor Qianlong stamped it."

However, Wei Ming's painting has relatively few seals, giving the impression that it was kept privately after he acquired it and was not circulated or displayed much.

Manager Yu suggested, "How about we schedule a time for me to find a few senior scholars specializing in Ming Dynasty calligraphy and painting to conduct a 'consultation'?"

Wei Ming nodded: "Okay, you have my home phone number, but I'm not home sometimes, so I'll leave you another number. If you can't get through to that one, call this one."

Then Wei Ming bought some more writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, preparing to equip the study in the courtyard house in Nanluoguxiang as well.

In the afternoon, Wei Ming returned to work at the library and took out a new notebook to start writing the script for "The Shepherd's Spring". He would write the English novel in the evening.

After getting off work, Wei Ming first went to Beichizi to bring Yinxing and the police chief to their new home.

Ginkgo wasn't too difficult to handle; it actually liked to go for walks. However, the sheriff was quite alert. Wei Ming tried for a long time but couldn't get it to stay put in a box. He had no choice but to give up and come every day from now on.

Back at the courtyard house in Nanluoguxiang, Sister Xue was already back and had put the kitchen to good use, making sweet and sour spare ribs with a Shanghai flavor for Xiao Wei.

Although the quantity was small, the taste was good, and Wei Ming could accept the sweetness, just like Xue Jie's lips and tongue.

"Didn't you buy writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones? Let's go practice calligraphy and see how good I am now."

“Okay.” When they arrived at the study, Wei Ming even took out the Qingming Scroll.

"Are there any results from the testing?"

"The paper is confirmed to be from the Ming Dynasty, but we can't be sure if the painting on it is by Qiu Ying. There will be a consultation with experts in a few days." Wei Ming didn't care too much. Anyway, whether it was real or fake, he was unlikely to end up selling paintings to make money. What mattered most was that he liked it.

After getting into bed, Xuejie told Weiming about "Journey to the West" again.

"Today, Director Yang Jie brought her two senior brothers to the workshop of Beijing Film Studio to have their hair and makeup done by Master Wang Xizhong. They'll be coming again tomorrow."

Wei Ming laughed and said, "That's perfect, I'll take you to work tomorrow."

Sister Xue became embarrassed: "You don't need to take me, I'll ride my bike myself."

"Okay, you ride the bike, and I'll ride you!"

~
After a shameless night, the next day, because Sister Xue didn't let Wei Ming take her, Gong Xue was still on her way when he arrived at the Beijing Film Studio. Once inside, Wei Ming went straight to the makeup workshop, where Director Yang Jie, along with Teacher Liu and Dehua, were already there. Wang Xizhong and Cui Jie were also present.

Wang Xizhong was the chief costume designer for "Journey to the West," while Cui Jie was the makeup artist who accompanied the crew throughout the entire filming process. Being a woman made it easier for her to do makeup for the fairies and demons on set.

"Xiao Wei, you've come at just the right time. Let me introduce you. This is Liu Xiao Ling Tong, and this is Ma Dehua. You should be familiar with them, right?"

Both of them were on Wei Ming's list of main characters, so he obviously had some prior knowledge of them.

"I have seen Comrade Ma Dehua's dramas and movies. I am not very familiar with Comrade Liu Xiao Ling Tong, but I have heard of Liu Ling Tong's name for a long time."

Liu Xiao Ling Tong wasn't very good at socializing yet, being young after all. He just smiled reservedly, also afraid of revealing his accent. He wasn't very good at speaking Mandarin, and these days, TV dramas are all dubbed.

Ma Dehua was much more enthusiastic. After all, he was a seasoned veteran nearing forty and had been in the drama industry for twenty years. He was very happy to be chosen to play Zhu Bajie. Even if the influence of a TV series is not as great as that of a movie, it is still stronger than that of a traditional opera.

As they were talking, Gong Xue pushed the door open and came in.

"Oh, Xiao Wei, you're here too?" she said in surprise.

You have to admit that Sister Xue's acting is great. This subtle surprise is not exaggerated, but very real. No one would have guessed that these two crawled out of the same bed in the morning.

"I heard they're researching the makeup and costumes for the eldest and second senior brothers, so I came to join in the fun."

Before finalizing the materials, they first needed to determine what kind of Monkey King they wanted—whether to portray him as a painted-face character from a play or as a completely anthropomorphic figure.

Director Yang Jie had already considered this. She didn't want either of them. She hoped to get rid of the influence of traditional opera, but she wanted to look like a monkey with fur on his face.

As requested, Wang Xizhong has come up with three solutions after working overtime last night.

Yang Jie looked at them and felt that only Plan No. 3 was barely acceptable, but not satisfactory either.

Wei Ming took a look and found that Plan No. 3 was already quite similar to the makeup in the first three episodes of the TV series "Journey to the West" from his previous life.

Later, because the general feedback was that the Monkey King was not beautiful enough and the appearance was sloppy and lacked charm, the design was redesigned in the fourth episode, and it finally looked much better.

Wei Ming said, "How about I draw it?"

Gong Xue: "Great! Xiao Wei is really good at drawing."

After he finished speaking, Gong Xue realized that he had gone a bit too far, but he couldn't help it and really wanted to praise her, this talented and versatile little man.

Yang Jie and Wang Xizhong had no objections. Drawing was not Wang Xizhong's forte, even though he was a first-level artist, much better than Wei Ming's third-level artist, but he had originally studied makeup.

Wei Ming closed his eyes, and the image of the Monkey King immediately flashed through his mind. Soon, a portrait of Sun Wukong based on Liu Xiao Ling Tong's image came to mind.

"Yes, yes, this is the Sun Wukong I wanted!" Director Yang Jie exclaimed excitedly. "And the body, draw the body too."

Wang Xizhong glanced at it and thought, "Teacher Wei has such good skills! He actually drew Liu Xiao Ling Tong directly." His eyes were sharp, and he could tell that Liu Xiao Ling Tong would look like this if he had hair on.

After Wei Ming finished drawing the complete Sun Wukong, Yang Jie pointed to Ma Dehua and said, "Teacher Wei, would you please draw Zhu Bajie as well?"

Wei Ming, disguised as a rooster artist, said: "Don't draw them one by one. I'll draw all four of you, master and disciples. Forget about the horse, just find a white one yourself."

In order to see "Journey to the West" as soon as possible and to help the production team avoid some detours, Wei Ming directly helped them solve the problem of the four main characters' costumes, which had been undecided.

Looking at the four characters, Director Yang Jie slapped her thigh and said, "These are the ones! Let's go with them!"

Tang Sanzang and Sha Wujing were relatively easy to deal with, as they were both human. The biggest challenge was Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie. Once their makeup problem was solved, the other demons and monsters were no longer a problem.

Then Wei Ming began to discuss special effects makeup with Master Wang Xizhong, describing his own experience from his later years as the advanced experience he had seen during his visit to Hollywood, which greatly inspired Wang Xizhong.

Although they can't afford some advanced materials, there are still some cheaper alternatives.

Hearing that the two were going to glue hair onto his face, Liu Xiao Ling Tong swallowed hard. But his father said that to become famous, one cannot be afraid of hardship. What is this little bit of hardship compared to the hardship of practicing acting since childhood?

At noon, Wei Ming and Wang Xizhong went to the Beijing Film Studio for lunch together. During the meal, they continued to exchange ideas. Wei Ming shared valuable insights, many of which were summaries made by the "Journey to the West" crew during filming and passed on to those who came after.

While listening, Wang Xizhong took notes. Taking advantage of Wei Ming stuffing food into his mouth, Director Yang Jie asked Wang Xizhong, "Old Wang, how's the preparation for Director Ling Zifeng's 'Journey to the West' going?"

Wang Xizhong shook his head: "What's the point of preparing? In the end, it didn't pass. The cost was too high, and we were using foreigners and foreign equipment. Foreign exchange is so rare. We're not like Teacher Wei. Filming 'Journey to the West' is not as cost-effective as filming 'Dream of the Red Chamber'."

Beijing Film Studio ultimately decided to fully support director Xie Tieli in making "Dream of the Red Chamber," so director Ling Zifeng had to find another source material, which he later chose from Shen Congwen's "Border Town."

In the afternoon, Wei Ming and Wang Xizhong continued tinkering in the workshop, and even used Liu Xiao Ling Tong and Ma Dehua directly for experiments. Gradually, they began to resemble the senior and second senior brothers that Wei Ming was familiar with.

With Wei Ming's assistance, Yang Jie boldly predicted: "We should be able to start filming early next month! We'll let the audience see the first episode this year!"

Filming started two or three months earlier than in the original timeline. To make the filming process smoother, Wei Ming asked, "Can I take a look at the script for the first episode?"

"Of course, you are our chief advisor."

So Wei Ming helped them revise the script of "Exorcising Demons in Wuji Kingdom", changing some awkward lines and disjointed plots.

You can tell if someone is good or bad just by looking at their actions.

When Yang Jie received the revised script from Wei Ming, she took his hand and said, "Teacher Wei, why don't you write the remaining episodes?"

She's no longer afraid of Wei Ming's excessive power; the difference in their character is simply obvious.

In fact, Wei Ming was basically satisfied with the scripts for the subsequent stories. It was just a pilot episode, and it was bound to be awkward the first time.

Wei Ming couldn't agree: "Director Yang, I also have an urgent job right now. Director Yu Lan of the Children's Film Studio wants to make 'The Spring of the Shepherd's Class,' and I'm busy working on the script."

Yang Jie is a very self-centered and stubborn person. In order to dissuade her from her idea, Wei Ming said, "I'll give you two songs. I'll take care of the theme song and the ending song."

Yang Jie also knew how valuable Wei Ming's songs were; a single song could earn millions of dollars in foreign exchange abroad, so this proposal was very sincere.

"Okay, thank you so much, Teacher Wei. Oh, and if Comrade Zhu Lin returns to Beijing, please remember to have her come to CCTV to see me so we can discuss her styling."

Wei Mingxin said, "Why do you need me to inform them? We're just ordinary friends. Go tell Gong Xue. Everyone knows that Gong Xue in the south and Zhu Lin in the north have been inseparable for a long time."

Zhu Lin couldn't help but remark that the day after Yang Jie finished speaking, she returned from Shanghai to Beijing, the capital city where she was born and raised.
……

(Yesterday's guaranteed minimum)
(End of this chapter)