Exciting 1979!

Chapter 458 Old Wei Has a New Identity
Having just finished a train ride, he was now on another train, with one locomotive pushing two carriages – a considerable test of Wei Ming's physical strength.

Fortunately, he did not neglect his physical training during filming. On the contrary, because he often climbed mountains, his physical fitness was even better than before.

Besides, the sisters stayed up all night just to eat something good, so Wei Ming naturally wouldn't hold back.

It's been a month since the last team building activity. For them at their age, it must have been very tough to endure.

Wei Ming was no different; they were both at the peak of their lives.

Nobody will get any sleep this night!

~
The next day, Wei Jiefang was about to go for a city walk when he received a call from Ping An.

"Brother, Xiaoming is back. Come over for dinner tonight."

"What? Xiaoming is back?" Old Wei was taken aback.

"Oh right, you didn't know?" Wei Ping'an asked in surprise. "I picked Xizi up from the train station in the early hours of the morning."

“Oh, then he probably went to sleep in Beichizi because he was afraid of disturbing us,” Wei Jiefang laughed. “Okay, we’ll all go there tonight.”

Wei Pingan said, "I'll be responsible for informing Xiao Hong."

After hanging up the phone, Lao Wei and Xu Shufen exchanged a glance: "I wonder where they've been hanging out."

Xu Shufen pushed him, telling him not to talk about his son, because a son cannot express his feelings without restraint.

However, when she thought about the condom she found under Wei Ming's bed, she felt like she was deceiving herself.

“Then I’ll buy the groceries and go to Ping An’s house. Neither of them are good cooks,” Xu Shufen said.

Wei Jiefang nodded, got on his bicycle and went out the door. The ground was too slippery, and it was a bit dangerous to ride a motorcycle.

~
Wei Ming got up around noon. He went to the kitchen to cook some porridge and made a simple meal before waking the two of them up and having a light snack.

Both older sisters had rosy complexions, clearly having absorbed plenty of yang energy.

"Are you going to the Beijing Film Studio today?" Gong Xue asked.

Wei Ming said, "After working hard for half a year, it's time to rest. Let's go in a couple of days."

Anyway, we definitely won't be able to finish post-production before the end of the year, but there are still four months until the Cannes Film Festival, so there's plenty of time.

He put his arms around his two older sisters' shoulders and said, "Let's go to Tuanjiehu tonight, so we don't have to start a fire ourselves. I'll go home first."

If I don't go back soon, they'll suspect I'm having an affair.

However, not far after leaving the courtyard, Wei Ming saw Wei Jiefang wearing a tattered coat and recognized him from behind.

"Dad? Why are you dressed like this?" Wei Ming jogged a few steps and confirmed that it was indeed his father.

"What do you know? Dressing like this makes it easier to bargain when buying things." Old Wei hadn't made a sale yet today; actually, he was deliberately wandering around this area, hoping for a chance encounter.

Wei Ming had guessed it too, but he didn't say anything: "Then let's go home and talk?"

"Go back now, your Uncle Ping An is having dinner at home tonight."

"Oh, I guess they want to talk to me about donations."

"Donation? What donation?"

Wei Ming: "Actually, it's not really a donation, more like a scholarship. I plan to set up a Wei Ming Scholarship at Peking University, donating 100 million yuan to use the interest to reward students with excellent grades."

Upon hearing the number one million, Wei Jiefang's mind went blank for a moment before he was completely relieved.

I was worried about the HK$30 worth of calligraphy and paintings before. Compared with my son's big spending, what is my money? You can't care too much about money. Money is a bastard.

"Oh, by the way, could you pick out a few of those paintings and calligraphy for me to give to friends? You can keep the rest," Old Wei reminded him. "I promised to send them over before the Lunar New Year."

"How many do you want?" Wei Ming asked.

“There were five old men from Hong Kong. I met them in Happy Valley, but we weren’t really close friends. However, I’ve won quite a bit of money from them. I just pick a few mediocre ones.”

Wei Ming: "Then I'll take a look when I have some free time. You can also provide their names."

"What's the point of having a name?"

"Just cater to their preferences. If someone's surname is Ma, send them a painting of a horse by Xu Beihong; if someone's surname is Niu, send them a painting of an ox."

"That makes sense." Old Wei thought to himself that his son was more thoughtful. There's an art to giving gifts. This kid probably has as much knowledge about gift-giving as he does about livestock habits, given how many girlfriends he has.

Back at the Overseas Chinese Apartment, both mother and son were overjoyed to see his mother, whom he hadn't seen for half a year. Like any mother, Xu Shufen touched Wei Ming's face and said, "You've lost weight."

So, maternal love is blind. Last night, Zhu Lin and Gong Xue both agreed that Wei Ming had become stronger, and Wei Ming felt that they had more right to say that than he did.

We're going to Uncle Ping'an's house this afternoon. My parents went ahead, and Wei Ming called Tuanjiehu to say he'd go after dinner.

“Brother, I passed the TOEFL! I got the highest score in the whole school!” Wei Ming met Wei Hong downstairs and she showed off to her older brother, “The teacher said that if I study abroad, he can help me apply for the Bao Zhaolong Scholarship.”

This is a $100 million scholarship established by shipping magnate Y.K. Pao, open to all university students in mainland China.

Wei Ming said, "You shouldn't apply for it. Let's leave this money for those who need it more."

"I know I have enough money of my own. I made a lot of money from Hong Kong stocks last year. It's a pity I didn't go there to trade myself, otherwise I would have made more than that. What a pity."

Wei Ming laughed and said, "There's no need to feel sorry. There are plenty of opportunities to make money from the stock market."

Wei Ming later heard from those veteran investors that the Hong Kong stock market experienced a Hong Kong dollar crisis this year, forcing the Hong Kong dollar to be directly pegged to the US dollar. He thought that Xiao Hong could practice her skills then.

Uncle Ping An hasn't come home from get off work yet; Aunt Xiao Yan is at home preparing groceries with her two kids.

Right now, Xizi is complaining, "When can I go to Xia Lin's house to play? We made that promise on set."

Lü Xiaoyan was both amused and exasperated: "He's a middle school student, what's there to play with an elementary school student like you? Wei Xi, I've found you really funny."

"I can bring Lele along. They all love music, so they'll have something to do!"

Lele beamed with joy upon hearing this, seemingly agreeing. Lü Xiaoyan shook her head helplessly, "Silly girl, your brother is just using you."

Wei Ming also felt that this kid was going a bit too far, using his sister as a wingman.

"Auntie, it's alright, let him go. Anyway, Xia Lin, oh, she's changed her name to Wang Fei now. She's going to Hong Kong to reunite with her father and grandfather soon, so we probably won't see her again."

"what?!"

After hearing Wei Ming's words, Xi Zi's face clearly showed the bitterness of heartbreak.

Wei Ming then got down to business with Lü Xiaoyan.

"Auntie, I recently wrote a novella in English for Melinda to use as a picture book. Do you want it? If you do, I can translate it for you."

"Yes, what's it about?" Then Wei Ming explained the concept behind "Night at the Museum".

“Good stories, very interesting, can make young readers interested in history and cultural relics,” Lü Xiaoyan praised. “You don’t know, new magazines are emerging one after another. Our Yanjing has launched “Oriental Youth”, and this month Shanghai launched “Story King”.

"Oh, this name is very targeted."

Lü Xiaoyan: "Oriental Youth is competing with Juvenile Literature, and Story King is naturally targeting our Fairy Tale King. Although you, Xiao Zheng, and Sun Youjun have created a number of excellent medium and long works that readers love, the competitive pressure is real. Your story is very original, and I guess young readers also want to see Wei's new works besides Black Cat."

Since "Calabash Brothers", Wei Ming has not started a new series using "Wei something" for a long time. Some of the younger readers who are growing up have already learned that Wei Ming = Wei something, but they still don't understand some of Wei Ming's works.

“Okay, since Melinda has quit her job and started her own publishing company, I’ll be writing a lot of similar novellas recently. I’ll be working on both English and Chinese versions simultaneously. She’ll be in charge of the English version, and you can handle the Chinese version.”

Lü Xiaoyan thought to herself, "Sure enough, this foreign ex-girlfriend is really useful. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been willing to write more stories. I'm benefiting from her influence."

As they were talking, Wei Ping'an returned: "Our family is finally all here today. Xiaoming, have you prepared your money?"

Wei Mingxi asked, "Has it been officially approved?"

Wei Ping'an nodded. These days, scholarships aren't something you can just give out on a whim. When Bao Yugang wanted to spend money in mainland China, it took a long time of meetings and discussions before the top leader finally approved it.

With his example as a precedent, coupled with Wei Ming's consistent integrity and upright conduct, the "Peking University Wei Ming Scholarship" was officially approved after being reported to the Ministry of Education.

A separate account will be set up at that time, and Wei Ming's 100 million can be deposited into it.

The funds in this account will be subject to joint supervision by Wei Ming, Peking University, and the Ministry of Education.

Wei Ping'an was the representative of Peking University. Wei Ming looked around and finally his gaze fell on Wei Jiefang.

"Dad, why don't you become a director in this foundation?"

Wei Jiefang, who was having a small drink, asked, "What's a director?"

"For just one honorary title, what you need to do is..."

Wei Ming wanted to explain in detail what this identity required, but Wei Ping'an simply said, "Anyway, when the time comes, you can say you're a staff member of Peking University and no one can find fault with you."

"I'll do it!"

Old Wei agreed immediately, no longer dwelling on the details. After all, it was something to brag about, since Peking University was so prestigious that even people in Hong Kong knew about Tsinghua and Peking University.

"Remember to get me one of those business cards when the time comes," Lao Wei added, noting that he had collected quite a few business cards in Hong Kong.

During the bragging session after dinner, he showed Wei Ping'an a lot of business cards he had received in Hong Kong, which he even carried with him at all times.

"Son, this one, and this one, and these few." Old Wei took out five business cards and told Wei Ming that these were his five horse-riding friends.

Wei Ming took it and looked at it, and wow!
I've heard of most of these people and companies. While they may not be as prestigious as the four major families in Hong Kong, they are still considered to be among the top-tier wealthy families. Old Wei is quite good at making friends.

“The New Year is just over half a month away. I’ll go find some for you now. Uncle, whose paintings do you like? I’ll get you a few too. My dad buys them wholesale, so please don’t be shy with him.”

Wei Pingan waved his hand, he didn't have that kind of hobby, but he glanced at the expectant Lü Xiaoyan and said, "Do you have a Bodhisattva painting by Zhang Daqian? I can get one."

Xizi Lele's maternal grandfather prefers that one.

"Okay, I'll go back and look for it."

Then Wei Ming leisurely rode his motorcycle to Tuanjiehu. It's still more stable to drive a car. The thing Wei Ming and Lao Wei found hardest to get used to after returning to Yanjing was the issue of using a car.

Starting the next day, Wei Ming led Gong Xue through the paintings, opening and hanging them one by one, then putting them away. He would then slip a piece of white paper inside each painting and give it a rating in addition to the painting's name.

Of course, since it's just a cursory glance and he's not exactly a professional, it's just a personal preference assessment, with a maximum score of 10 and a minimum score of 1.

9 or 10 points are the kind that are given to no one and are placed directly in a secret room.

A piece worth 6 to 8 points should be carefully collected and preserved. It can also be given as a gift to a distinguished friend, such as Uncle Ping'an's father-in-law or Lao Wei's horse racing friends.

The vast majority of those who scored below six points...

A week later, although most of the boxes had not been opened and examined, Wei Ming had already collected all the calligraphy and painting works to be given as gifts.

Wei Ming selected two Zhang Daqian paintings for Ping An's father-in-law, while for Lao Wei's five horse-related friends, each painting was paired with a set of calligraphy. Wei Ming made the selections based on their names and company businesses.

As for how to get the gifts to them...

It's more appropriate to deliver such valuable items in person.

~
Wei Ming was also ready to start working, but instead of going to the Beijing Film Studio, he went to the Yanjing Television Studio.

"Master Ming!"

Feng Xiaogang was incredibly friendly to Wei Ming, quickly going over to greet him and introducing him to the new friends he had met there.

One was Zheng Xiaolong, and the other was Zhao Baogang; the latter was just a temporary worker.

Zheng Xiaolong is from a branch campus of Peking University, and he is not familiar with Wang Xiaoping yet, so Wei Ming is not familiar with him either.

"Zhao Baogang, oh, you studied at the Film Academy, right?"

"Oh, Teacher Wei even knows this!?" Zhao Baogang was somewhat surprised.

Wei Ming also heard it from Zhu Lin.

"Oh, I heard it from the great Confucian scholar, Li Chengru."

“No wonder, no wonder, we’re classmates,” Zhao Baogang laughed. “We even have a Zhu Lin in our class!”

Zhao Baogang spoke of this with a proud expression. Wei Mingzhen envied him, for he could be so unrestrained in his pride, while she herself couldn't and had to keep it to herself.

"I'm here to see Lin Dian. Are the two brothers still here?"

"Yes, I just got back from filming out of town, but I'm staying at a hotel."

Wei Ming wanted to hire Lin Dian and Qian Jiale as bodyguards to help him escort goods.

We won't even mention payment; they'd be too embarrassed to accept it.

"Ming-ge, who knows when we'll meet again after this parting? Remember to come find me for a drink when you come to Hong Kong." Lin Dian cupped his hands in greeting, and Qian Jiale followed suit.

Their performance in the "Journey to the West" production team over the past six months has been outstanding. They have contributed many action designs that have amazed their mainland counterparts and have also officially introduced wire work technology to the mainland.

So Yang Jie really didn't want them to leave, but no matter how much they were offered a raise or better treatment, they were determined to go. The Hong Kong film and television industry was changing rapidly, and they were worried that if they stayed in the mainland for too long, they wouldn't have a place for themselves when they returned.

They originally thought six months would be enough to film a TV series, but they've only filmed this much in six months. They can't afford to waste any more time.
However, in the past six months, they have also trained a group of young people from martial arts schools and opera schools who can perform high-difficulty martial arts moves, which can be considered as doing their last job well.

Wei Ming expressed his understanding and then handed them the five sets of gifts and the corresponding addresses.

Upon seeing these five addresses in the upscale residential area of ​​Victoria Peak, they were all stunned and amazed by Mr. Wei's connections in Hong Kong.
(End of this chapter)