Exciting 1979!

Chapter 496 Wei Ping'an: Who's the Father and Who's the Son?

Before leaving Hong Kong, Gong Xue went to Qingniao Company to explain his trip abroad to Ms. Xia Meng. However, the start date for filming was set for September, so it would definitely not delay his business.

Xia Meng also offered her congratulations: "Are your parents going with you?"

Gong Xue shook his head: "My nephew and uncle plan to visit their hometown in Shanghai during the Spring Festival. The two families will get together then. I'll go ahead and make arrangements."

Actually, it was mainly to accompany Xiao Wei and also to broaden his horizons.

“Oh, and this too,” Gong Xue said, taking out a piece of paper. “This is the theme song that Xiao Wei wrote for our movie.”

"Oh?" Xia Meng hadn't intended to trouble Wei Ming, but he took the initiative to write it himself. It seems he really cares about Gong Xue.

"Like flowing water, time flies~" Xia Meng nodded slightly when she saw the song title. "Good times and beautiful scenery, but what a pity! Delightful things, whose courtyard is this? It is you, my beautiful wife, like flowing water, time flies."

The phrase "like flowing water" comes from Tang Xianzu's "The Peony Pavilion," and these older generation artists are no strangers to Tang Xianzu's works.

She was even more pleasantly surprised after seeing the lyrics. The song perfectly matched the life experience of the female protagonist, Shan Shan. It was truly tailor-made for her.

Gong Xue said, "This is a new song he wrote for Anita Mui, so the company will need to communicate with Capital Artists Records about it."

"Anita Mui, well, although she's relatively young, I've heard her songs, so I think she could sing this song with the sense of vicissitudes she's experienced. Please thank Xiao Wei for me."

After Gong Xue left, Xia Meng thought for a moment and then called director Yan Hao, asking him to ask Jin Yong to help her choose a name. The original name was "Purple Butterfly," and there was also "Returning Home." Wei Ming's song title "Like Flowing Water" could also be considered.

~
After arriving in Hong Kong, Gong Xue maintained constant correspondence with Zhu Lin, and she even sent a telegram directly informing him of her upcoming trip abroad.

When Zhu Lin saw the telegram at his home in Tuanjiehu, he was both amused and exasperated. This was unbelievable!
Unfortunately, my family really doesn't have any overseas connections, so the possibility of going abroad to broaden my horizons through this method is nonexistent.

Oh dear, Xiaoxue and Xiaowei went to America, they're probably going to be even more unruly now, Zhu Lin admits she's jealous.

Just then, the phone rang, and it was Xu Shufen.

After hearing Xu Shufen's words, Zhu Lin immediately stood up: "Okay, Auntie, please don't move yourself, wait for me to come over."

After hanging up the phone, Zhu Lin first rummaged through the medical kit at home before setting off.

Xu Shufen was originally supposed to go to Hong Kong with Lao Wei and the others, but she caught a cold before leaving and felt weak. She was worried about not feeling well on the plane, so she decided not to go.

Old Wei immediately said he wouldn't go either, and that Ping An should go by herself, but Xu Shufen didn't agree: "I can come to you after I'm better. Anyway, I've taken a plane more than once or twice. I'm not going to lose myself."

"No, no, how can I leave a sick person like you at home?"

“Who said I’m all alone? I still have Xiao Zhu,” Xu Shufen said with a smile. “We get along well, she can’t just abandon me.”

Sure enough, Zhu Lin arrived as soon as Xu Shufen made a phone call. Although her aunt was sick, Zhu Lin was secretly pleased, as she could get closer to her future mother-in-law.

So staying in Yanjing doesn't seem so bad.

Old Wei waited until Zhu Lin arrived at the door. When he saw that she had even brought a medical kit, he felt a little relieved, remembering that she had studied medicine before.

After examining the patient, Zhu Lin concluded: "It's probably just a heat-related cold, nothing too serious. I have some medicine here."

Old Wei laughed and said, "Then I'll leave Auntie in your care. You can come over and keep her company after you get off work."

Zhu Lin hurriedly said, "I don't have to go to work recently. My work hours are quite flexible, so I can stay with Auntie until she recovers."

Old Wei smiled even more happily, and Xu Shufen also held Zhu Lin's hand. Some families believe that having more sons is a blessing, but having more daughters-in-law is just as good.

Seeing that his wife was being taken care of, and that Ping An had already arrived, Lao Wei decided to go to the airport with her.

On the way, Wei Ping'an said, "So this big star Zhu Lin came to my house to take care of my sister-in-law like this?"

"Yes, we usually get along well, and he also knows about medicine." Old Wei was beaming, feeling very proud.

"What about the other big star, Gong Xue?" Wei Pingan asked mischievously.

"Oh, that's good too, but I heard they're going to the US to meet their relatives."

Almost simultaneously, Wei Ming and Gong Xue also boarded a flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco, unfortunately missing a good show.

~
At Chiu Shu-chen's home, she and her seven siblings were playing around when the phone rang. Her mother answered it and told everyone to be quiet.

"Ah... are you sure you're not scammers? Okay, okay, we'll go tomorrow. Wait a moment, let me write this down..."

Chiu Shu-chen has many children, which is quite similar to the movie "Home Alone". She is the fifth among eight siblings. Although she is the middle child, she was favored by her parents because she was beautiful from a young age. In order to cultivate her, they sent her to learn singing and dancing when she was very young.

"What's wrong?" the youngest son asked his mother.

Mrs. Qiu beckoned Qiu Shuzhen to her side: "Shuzhen, did you participate in some kind of 'Youth Star' competition?"

"Yes, they even made it into the top ten!" Qiu Shuzhen's fourth brother said. "Mom, did our fifth daughter win an award?"

“She didn’t say, but she claimed to be a producer and asked Ah Zhen to go to DreamWorks Movies. Here is the address. I will personally accompany you there tomorrow.”

"Ah, to the movie company? I'd definitely be the champion! Only the first place winner gets a chance to act in a movie!" Chingmy Yau jumped up excitedly.

Actually, when she saw Michelle Reis in the top ten, she didn't have high hopes. Unexpectedly, she actually won first place. It seems that she still doesn't have a clear understanding of her own beauty.

Chiu Shu-chen was invited to DreamWorks Hong Kong, but when Cheng Yi-kin learned that he had been invited, his first reaction was not to be happy, but to ask why he wasn't going to Madman Comics: "I would rather visit Madman Comics, and isn't this an event organized by Madman Comics?"

In the end, Lizhi agreed and asked Liu Rulong to help with the hospitality before signing the contract.

As for Michelle Reis, the second-place winner in the girls' group, she only received a phone call granting her the right to use her image. She also learned that she had only come in second place. As for who came in first place, they would only find out when the new magazine was released.

This incident greatly affected her. She felt that the readers and audience of the Madman Comics lacked taste, while she was still invited to play a role, which showed that Brother Wei Ming did have aesthetic sense.

I shouldn't participate in these tasteless beauty pageants in the future. If I'm going to participate, I should go for Miss Hong Kong or Miss Asia. It's just a pity that I'm only 13 years old, too young to meet the requirements. I can only wait and see.

As the producer of "Home Alone," Lizhi rubbed her neck after personally making the phone call. Actually, she wanted to go on a business trip to the United States with Wei Ming, but unfortunately, he already had a female celebrity by his side.

Next, she planned to visit the set of "Home Alone," where Xizi was filming. On her way out, she bumped into Wei Lingling.

“I’ll go with you, and we can check on the product placement of Langning products,” Wei Lingling said.

At this point, they had just started filming indoor scenes, which were mostly Ah Bin's solo performances. However, Biao Zi was also there. After his scenes were finished, he would stay on set. He was there to keep out all the evil spirits and monsters; he had an aura of malevolence.

It's quite a coincidence that Zhou Huimin and Wei Hong also came today, and even earlier than expected.

Zhou Huimin wanted to know what role she would be playing, but Wei Ming didn't tell her, so she came over to ask the director.

Huang Baiming was so happy to see Zhou Huimin that his eyes were almost closed. Hong Kong people now call her the Little Queen. The "Little" part is mainly because of her young age and lack of experience, but her achievements are by no means bad.

She now has one of the top three best-selling albums in Hong Kong, and in a short period of time, she has gained an influence comparable to that of Alan Tam.

Although she doesn't get much exposure, every public appearance she makes drives fans crazy. Take the recent New Talent Singer Competition finals, for example. It's said that half the audience are her fans because she said that Lui Fong is her fellow student, and the audience members all fell to the ground in support of Lui Fong.

However, this was only verbal support; the final rankings were determined by the judges.

This film, as Vivian Chow's big-screen debut, is definitely a marketing gimmick worthwhile; he even wanted to lure her to Cinema City to play the female lead.

"Oh, Wei Ming put a lot of effort into your role; you play a princess in the movie."

"what?"

Not only was Zhou Huimin surprised, but Wei Hong was also puzzled: "Isn't this a modern drama?"

"Yes, but modern countries also have princesses. Not to mention distant countries, Japan, Thailand, and Cambodia all have kings."

Vivian Chow asked worriedly, "Am I going to play a Japanese princess?"

"No, no, it's a fictional princess from a small Asian country. You'll step in to help the male protagonist's mother when she's anxious to go home, and let her take your private plane back to Hong Kong."

"Oh, that's how it is."

Originally, Zhou Huimin wanted to do some research beforehand and experience the life of a princess, but now it seems she can only go back to reading novels and imagining it.

Huang Baiming was responsible for chatting with Zhou Huimin, while Gao Zhisen was responsible for the actual filming. Huang Baiming would occasionally give some pointers.

As they were chatting, Lizhi and Wei Lingling arrived, and Huang Baiming quickly stood up.

He wasn't afraid of Lizhi, but he had to show respect to Wei Lingling. Langning Group was very powerful now, making frequent moves and bringing a constant stream of good news.

Ms. Wei may not be as good as their big boss, Lei Juekun, but she's young. Given time, she might become Hong Kong's richest woman.

Moviemakers love these rich people. Isn't "Home Alone" a product of Lang Ning's reckless investment?

In just one film, both he and his apprentice Clifton Ko honed their directing skills, and were soon able to direct films for Cinema City. What could Karl Maka possibly be unhappy about?

Wei Lingling told them to continue filming and not to stop for her sake. She then took Lizhi, Wei Hong, and Amin upstairs for a look around. Great, the second brother's character is a Transformers fan, so his room is basically decorated with Transformers elements.

The eldest sister is a bookworm who loves history, so her room is definitely filled with all sorts of history-themed merchandise.

My second sister is very fashion-conscious and has a cute style. Her room is filled with products from Langning Gift Shop, including the latest design of McDull pig.

The prop master is very skilled. Although so many things were incorporated, the transformation was very lifelike and didn't feel forced at all.

Wei Hong said to Wei Lingling, "Auntie, my dad and Uncle Ping'an are coming to Hong Kong today. Would you like to come with us to pick them up?"

Wei Lingling: "I know, they said they'd arrive by train tonight. Do you miss your dad that much?"

Wei Hong: "No, I was just worried that Xizi missed Uncle Ping An too much. I came here to ask him to come with me to pick up the person."

Wei Lingling nodded: "Okay, I won't work overtime tonight. Let's pick them up and go to Grandpa's house for a family reunion dinner."

Lizhi smiled and said, "Amin, their family is reunited. Let's go see a movie tonight. The left-wing cinema recently released a movie called 'The Xi'an Incident,' which is said to be very good."

Upon hearing that it was a mainland Chinese film, Vivian Chow thought for a moment and said, "Okay."

Lizhi didn't have any bad intentions; she just wanted to casually mention the good news that she would be studying in San Francisco later during the movie, and she thought Lizhi would be happy for her.

Because Wei Ming strictly requires that filming should not be done overtime unless necessary, and he doesn't want Xizi to stunt her growth in the future, Wei Lingling and Wei Hong picked Xizi up when the time came.

On the way, Wei Hong boasted to Wei Lingling, "Auntie, do you know how much money I've made lately?"

"How many?"

"Over a million, and in US dollars!"

"What!" Xizi exclaimed in surprise, "Sister, you earned US dollars!"

I don't know if he didn't hear "one million" or if he had no concept of "one million".

Wei Lingling laughed and said, "Oh, not bad."

Wei Hong: "I know this money is nothing to you, but our principal is only 400 million."

"You have four million?"

"No, I have 500,000, Amin has 500,000, and my brother has 3 million."

Wei Lingling: "Your brother is really amazing. He bought a million dollars worth of Nintendo stock, and now it's worth more than two million. He didn't use any leverage."

"what!"

Wei Hong was amazed. She had originally wanted to show off to her father and Uncle Ping An, but she didn't mention it after seeing them. She still had to practice.

Wei Lingling and her two little ones met up with their two older brothers. Wei Ping'an was still holding a newspaper, which he had bought on the train from Guangzhou.

During Wei Ming's absence, the old man finally spoke in Beidaihe, emphasizing the need to "severely and swiftly crack down on criminal offenses" and pointing out that "this is a necessity of the people's democratic dictatorship."

That's what the newspaper was talking about. Wei Ming had been watching this operation with bated breath for a long time, and it was finally about to officially begin.

"Xizi!"

"dad!"

Although he usually acted as if nothing was wrong and adapted to Hong Kong quickly, Xizi was still very excited to see his father again after more than half a month. His eyes welled up with tears as he smiled, while Wei Hong was much calmer.

Wei Ping'an half-squatted down and hugged him: "Oh my, even a big star is crying."

"No, it's just that the wind is a bit noisy today."

Wei Ping'an laughed and said, "You must have learned that from your brother Ming. It's quite artistic."

Wei Lingling: "Let's go, get in the car. The old man is probably waiting at home."

“Okay, okay.” Wei Ping’an nodded solemnly. He still had the photo of Wei Senhao and his mother Cheng Ziyan in his bag.

However, when they got home, they found that Old Ghost wasn't there at all.

“You must be Ping An,” Lin Ni greeted them as they entered. “You are indeed a handsome young man, no wonder you are the first college graduate in our Wei family. It’s a pity your uncle went night fishing on Lamma Island.”

Wei Jiefang asked, "Didn't my dad know we were arriving today?"

Lin Ni: "He didn't say, so he probably doesn't know."

Wei Lingling was puzzled. She had clearly informed him, and when did he develop a hobby of night fishing? Back in Taiwan, he always fished during the day, and he usually came back empty-handed.

Wei Jiefang said, "In that case, Aunt Lin, let's go back and settle in first, and then have dinner together tomorrow."

Wei Ping'an asked unwillingly, "Then, Aunt Lin, do you know where he usually fishes?"

Lin Ni: "At sea, they rent boats to fish in the waters off Lamma Island. If he performs well this time, you might be able to eat grouper tomorrow."

Wei Ping'an was now at a loss. He glanced at Wei Lingling's surprised expression and wondered if she was deliberately avoiding him.

At this moment, Xizi said, "I'm hungry."

Wei Lingling said, "Mom, have you eaten yet? If not, let's go outside and find a restaurant to eat something."

Lin Ni: "Okay, okay, I'll have a good talk with your dad when he gets back. What kind of fishing is this at this hour?"

After going downstairs, they ran into Zhou Huimin, who was carrying a water tank that looked quite heavy.

Wei Hong hurried over and asked, "Amin, what is this?"

Zhou Huimin was still a little confused: "I just ran into Uncle Gui. He gave it to me, saying it was a grouper he had just caught and asked me to deliver it to you."

Wei Ping'an: "Where is he?"

Zhou Huimin: "Oh, he said one fish wasn't enough, so he went to a restaurant to order more. This must be Uncle Ping An."

Xizi: "He is my father. I won't mind if you call him Uncle Ping An now, but when you get to Peking University, you'll have to call him Director Wei."

Hearing that Lao Gui was back, Wei Ping'an's tense mood relaxed a bit. He flicked Xi Zi on the forehead: "Don't listen to his nonsense, just call him Uncle. You must be Xiao Ming's pen pal."

Wei Hong linked arms with Zhou Huimin: "Now we're more than just pen pals."

Vivian Chow lowered her head shyly; it hasn't been officially announced yet.

Wei Jiefang coughed twice: "Alright, let's go upstairs and wait. It's too conspicuous with so many people. Amin is a public figure."

Wei Ping'an said, "You guys go upstairs, I'll wait for him downstairs. In case there's too much stuff, I can help."

Wei Lingling: "Then I will too..."

Wei Jiefang tugged at her: "No need, Ping An is enough on her own. Let's go up first."

Wei Ping'an looked at the look in Jiefang's eyes before he went upstairs. Did he know something?

Wei Ping'an didn't have to wait long, just as short a time as when Lao Gui caught the grouper.

Today, Wei Senhao originally planned to go home if he caught a grouper, and if he didn't, he would go out and hide for a while. It would be quite easy for him to go to Macau.

Unexpectedly, this time, the air force pilot was miraculously helped. Before the ship even stopped at sea, a plump grouper took the bait.

So he decisively ordered the captain to return to port, as he was going to personally cook a steamed grouper for his son that night.

After the car stopped, Old Ghost naturally said, "Peaceful arrival, lend a hand."

Opening the trunk revealed two large bags from Holiland; worried that his family would have to wait too long, he had simply bought some of their own products.

Wei Ping'an didn't move: "Uncle, I want to ask you something. This matter has been on my mind for a long time."

Old Ghost pulled the things out: "I know what you want to ask. That's right, you are my father."

Wei Ping'an was so shocked his eyes almost popped out: "What?!"

Old Ghost spat, "You misspoke. You are my son, my biological son. You're so smart, you must have already figured it out."

Wei Ping'an shook his head, his eyes slightly red: "I didn't dare to think in that direction. If that's the truth, then how inhuman must this father be!"

(End of this chapter)