I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 53 Oh, my damned charm!
"a long long time ago……"

"When I first walked into the movie theater and saw the interplay of light and shadow, I was deeply moved!"

"So, the screen can be this big..."

"So this is what sound can be—so clear, so vivid, and so stunning..."

"That day, I walked out of the movie theater..."

"That day, I couldn't sleep a wink..."

"The art of film is like a tiny seed planted in my heart, which, nourished by time, gradually sprouted..."

"..."

Outside the window, neon lights spilled over the folds of his suit.

Zhou Yang's deep gaze was fixed on the reflection in the windowpane.

In Zhou Yang's deep voice, Li Yijie seemed to be transported back to the old cinemas of the film era, and saw a little boy stunned by the big screen.

"I come from Jiangsu Province, a remote village in a small county that's so small you could hardly find it on a map even with a magnifying glass..."

“I’m a very good student, one of the top students in my class, but my family is very poor; we’re a well-known recipient of government assistance in the area…”

"From a young age, I've always remembered one saying: knowledge changes destiny..."

"If it weren't for that accident, I would probably have finished high school properly, pursued my childhood dream, worked hard to get into Yanying Film Academy, and then become a screenwriter, cinematographer, or director... Even if I didn't become one, I would probably still be a film professional..."

"But fate is so unpredictable..."

"My mother passed away in an accident, and my father was diagnosed with cancer. The treatment exhausted all of our family's savings, and in the end, he couldn't be saved..."

"..."

As Zhou Yang reminisced about the past, his voice gradually became dry, as if something was stuck deep in his throat.

A somber atmosphere filled the large room. As Li Yijie listened, a strong sense of unease welled up in her heart, and she couldn't help but let her eyes gradually redden.

She wanted to say something, but in the end, she couldn't say anything at all.

After briefly introducing himself, Zhou Yang turned his gaze back to the script.

"Having nothing left, I once thought of ending my life in the simplest way..."

"Two months ago, I jumped into the swift-flowing river..."

"The choking sensation of water is still vivid in my memory..."

"I thought I was dead..."

"But, no one expected that, in the end, fate would grant me a second life..."

"I was washed ashore, and I survived..."

"..."

"From that moment on, I vowed that I would live my life to the fullest!"

"My passion and enthusiasm for movies are like a force that not only brought me step by step to Yanjing, but also motivated me to do everything I could..."

"In just a few months, I met many people on the road. We shared a common dream and survived in this unfamiliar city!"

"Then, because of our lack of professionalism, because of our poverty, and because we wanted to eat, we ended up making a 'terrible movie' that was ridiculed by the entire internet, 'Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2'..."

“During this period, we have been in a slump, encountering all kinds of insults and doubts, and even being treated like clowns…”

"But we never gave up!"

"We've been persevering!"

"I don't think it was a humiliation, nor was it a painful memory."

"It's the way I came from!"

"..."

inside the house.

Zhou Yang's gaze gradually hardened, and in its depths, it seemed as if a flame was burning.

Li Yijie across from her kept wiping away her tears, wanting to say something, but ultimately unable to utter a single word.

For some reason, when Zhou Yang introduced himself, especially talking about his experiences over the past few months, images of people came to mind... images of people who were constantly moving forward, falling down, and getting back up on the road to their dreams, never giving up even when covered in mud.

……

next door.

When I overheard this sentence...

Zhang Jiali's body trembled slightly.

She then kept wiping her tears with tissues.

It turns out that Mr. Zhou, who used to freeload off others, has a painful past.

........................

After a brief silence.

Zhou Yang composed himself, smiled, and looked at Li Yijie with exceptional sincerity.

“Ms. Li… In fact, in this world, as long as we keep persevering and keep reflecting, we can make progress step by step…”

"It's simply a matter of some people moving fast and some people moving slow..."

"Just like us, after filming that movie 'Monkey King vs. Superman 2,' we learned a lot. I even compiled a series of photography notes..."

"..."

As Zhou Yang spoke, he silently pulled a notebook out of his pocket.

The notebook was titled "Shooting Notes".

With teary eyes, Li Yijie opened her notebook...

[On July 1st, filming began. Today's shooting was quite bumpy. The props team has been working on props, but it just doesn't quite look right...]

[July 2nd, the camera angles were really difficult. Also, we had a meeting, and I don't know how to take good shots...]

On July 3rd, we resolved many issues, but we realized that what we filmed seemed to be a bit rubbish. Everyone in the crew was having enough, and some people left early. We held another meeting and tried very hard to summarize the problems...

【…】

Page after page of shooting notes filled half the notebook.

Looking at the pages of the diary, Li Yijie felt a mix of emotions.

"So, you guys were like this before..."

“Yes!” Zhou Yang nodded, his gaze becoming even more sincere and earnest. “So, not having attended a professional school isn’t really a difficult thing… Not having a degree doesn’t mean anything. Life is about falling down again and again, getting up each time, constantly correcting ourselves, so that we can walk better and more steadily…”

After Zhou Yang finished speaking, he paused slightly and then took out the script again and placed it on the table.

“Ms. Li, I can’t guarantee how this movie will turn out, but I can guarantee that it will be even better… I can’t guarantee how others will view our movie, but I can guarantee that as long as you have a dream, love movies, and are willing to give it a try, then you will reap countless joys and successes on this journey…” Zhou Yang stood up and looked at Li Yijie with the most sincere gaze.

Li Yijie trembled slightly.

After thinking for a long time with his head down, he nodded: "I'm willing to try, but I may not know anything about it, so you'll have to be patient..."

“Everyone who knew me before said I was a sculptor… They all said I was good at discovering the strengths in everyone and carving them into perfect pieces of jade. Miss Li can do that too!”

“Then…” Li Yijie nodded excitedly: “Okay, Zhou Yang, I will invest in your movie and act in it!”

"You won't regret it!" Zhou Yang nodded seriously.

“Zhou Yang, I…” Li Yijie hesitated.

"you say……"

"Can I hug you? I've been looking for you all this time..."

“Miss Li, this is not good. I make movies, not sell my body. I don’t think this is right…” Zhou Yang shook his head, his expression gradually becoming serious.

Li Yijie looked at Zhou Yang, her eyes reddening, her pretty face full of seriousness: "I'll ask my dad to invest an additional 50 yuan in you!"

“Ms. Li, I am a very principled person. My principles keep me pure and allow me to maintain my distance from many girls in this complicated entertainment industry. It's not about the 500,000 yuan. Although I need it right now, I believe I can earn it back with my talent in the future. However, when I think of Ms. Li's sincerity, her pursuit of art, and her genuine and pure pursuit of her dreams... I imagine you put a lot of effort into finding me online. So, come on!”

"..."

Zhou Yang stretched out his arms with a serious expression, and smiled as he looked at the girl who was blushing and came over to hug him.

(End of this chapter)