2001 Media Godfather

Chapter 56 Visiting Team
A week later, Chu An dealt with some trivial matters in Ningyuan and then followed Lu Mingze south to Shengjing.

As for how Chu An would be settled upon arriving in Shengjing, that was not a problem at all.

"Your school registration will be transferred to Shengjing No. 13 Middle School, which is a key middle school and also my alma mater."

Chu An's knowledge of schools in Shengjing was limited to No. 4 Middle School and the High School Affiliated to the Normal University; he had no idea about No. 13 Middle School at all.

Moreover, his university admission has little to do with his grades; Lu Mingze will help him apply through the university's independent admission process.

"It's up to you to decide."

Chu An gave a casual, perfunctory answer, then asked, "Where are you staying?"

Lu Mingze: "It's even easier to say where to stay, you can stay at my place!"

Chu An immediately objected, "Isn't that inconvenient?"

Chu An isn't short of money now, so he should forget about living under someone else's roof.

Lu Mingze smiled, "Just like I'd be willing to live with you. Don't worry, I have two houses, you can live in one, and I'll live in the other."

Upon hearing this, Chu An said, "That's more like it! But why don't you just sell it to me directly, so you won't have to think about selling the house whenever you're short of money?"

Director Lu was not too happy to hear that, "That's what I bought for my daughter's wedding. I didn't even want to take it with me when we divorced!"

"You, you, you should just buy a villa yourself."

Chu An glanced at him sideways, thinking to himself, "He's so stingy with him."

As soon as they landed in Shengjing, Tong Meng, who had returned earlier, personally drove to pick them up and headed to Lu Mingze's house.

To his surprise, the further they drove in, the more uneasy Chu An felt.

Finally, the car turned south on the North Second Ring Road and entered Jiugulou Street, and then it entered Yandaixie Street, where cars can still run in this day and age.

Chu An finally lost his composure, "Old Lu, where exactly is this house of yours?"

Isn't this Shichahai?!

Lu Mingze's answer confirmed Chu An's guess: "It's the fourth house on the north side of the front street."

Chu An, "..."

Previously, Lu Mingze said that his two houses could be sold for 400 million yuan, and Chu An thought they were villas!
result……

A lakeside courtyard house in Shichahai!

What concept?

Draw a one-kilometer circle centered on Lu Mingze's home; the Drum Tower, Soong Ching Ling's former residence, Nan Study, Prince Chun's Mansion, and Prince Gong's Mansion are all within that circle.

As for places like Houhai Bar Street and Nanluoguxiang, there's no need to mention them.

Many netizens in later generations still talk about the prices of courtyard houses in Beijing around 2000, saying that you could get one for tens or hundreds of thousands of yuan.

Those were referring to the large courtyard houses in Chongwen and Xuanwu districts.

Courtyard houses in prime locations like Shichahai and Nanluoguxiang have never been cheap, from ancient times to the present.

After unloading the luggage from the car, Chu An entered the courtyard and saw that Lu Mingze had packed everything neatly. It was clear he had put thought into it; no wonder he was unwilling to sell.

It covers an area of ​​over 200 square meters, has been restored to its original state, and is equipped with modern facilities.

After the tour, Chu An patted Lao Lu on the shoulder and said, "Remember, I saved your life!"

The kind of courtyard that costs hundreds of millions in later generations, that's what they're talking about!!

"Really not selling?"

"Do not sell!"

"So what kind of man is our niece looking for? Do you think I'm suitable?"

Lu Mingze, "..."

If Lu Mingze hadn't realized Chu An was joking, he would have almost said yes, it's better than finding a blond guy abroad, right?
After settling Chu An in, I said, "You should rest for a few days. The enrollment procedures haven't been completed yet."

"We can start the preliminary work for organizing the event in a couple of days."

Lu Mingze is a workaholic. He said he would take a break before the New Year, but that just meant he wouldn't work day and night anymore.

As for Chu An's enrollment procedures, No. 13 Middle School is located next to Prince Gong's Mansion. It was originally the Affiliated Middle School of Fu Jen Catholic University, a key school in Xicheng District, and its school building was the former residence of Prince Hong.

Before leaving, Tong Meng tossed Chu An a new phone, saying, "I've got the SIM card ready for you. Tomorrow night, I'll take you to the bar street to broaden your horizons."

Chu An rolled his eyes. "It's only two hundred meters, do you really need to lead the way?"

After seeing them all off, Chu An took a good stroll around the courtyard. The pomegranate tree in the corner of the courtyard must be at least several decades old, if not a hundred years old.

Looking out from the window of the reverse-facing house, you can see the northern shore of Qianhai.

"No, we have to find a way to get him here!"

Chu An liked it more and more the more she looked at it.

I went back inside, put the SIM card in my phone, and sent a text message to Xu Shu, Lin Wanxing, Lu Mingze, and Ji Yinglai. The gist of it was: This is my phone number, please write it down.

He called home again to let Chu Ning know he was safe.

Chu Ning then launched into a long tirade, instructing his younger brother to study hard and improve every day, and not to cause trouble for Director Lu.

Chu An simply told her to give her number to Zhao Yang and Li Chunming before hanging up hastily, not wanting to listen to her older sister's rambling.

Then, Xu Shu called.

"You've arrived?"

Chu An: "Just arrived, aren't you filming?"

Xu Shu: "They're filming, they're adjusting the lighting."

Chu An raised an eyebrow. "That will take quite a while."

The most troublesome thing on set isn't actors' retakes, but adjusting the lights. But adjusting lights is different; a single light can take ten or twenty minutes at most, and an hour or two at most, to meet the director's requirements. Sometimes, adjusting a whole set of lights can take half a day if the director is being picky.

Therefore, besides the cameraman, the person the director likes to work with most on set is the lighting crew. The lighting team knows what effects he wants and what kind of lighting he prefers, which saves a lot of time.

I chatted with Xu Shu for more than half an hour, from whether the game had registered her to the damp and cold winter in Sichuan Province.

Finally, I heard a voice on the phone, "Okay! You can take pictures now."

Xu Shucai hung up hastily, agreeing to call back after work.

Chu An had just hung up when the phone rang again almost seamlessly.

Chu An answered the phone and immediately heard Lin Wanxing roar, "Chu Shikuai, you're quite busy with work! Who are you chatting with so enthusiastically? Is it your Geng Geng?"

Chu An was too lazy to argue with her. Knowing that she was also filming, he said, "Have your brother write down the number so he can come visit me later."

The brother and sister lived in Shengjing, so it was easy for them to meet.

Lin Wanxing, "Have we arrived?"

Chu An: "Mm."

"Where are you staying? He needs to talk to you about something, I'll go tonight!"

Chu An revealed the exact location of his residence in Shichahai.

After a moment of silence, Chu An, though unable to see anyone, could hear Lin Wanxing's excitement. "Guess where I am!?"

Chu An: "Where? It can't be very close to here, can it?"

Lin Wanxing, "I'm in Dajinshi Hutong!"

Chu An, "..."

Dajinshi Hutong...

My gaze involuntarily turned to the courtyard gate, which was about 200 meters away from the wall.

Before Chu An could react, Lin Wanxing's shouts were so loud they made his eardrums hurt, "Hurry up and come visit the set!! I want to drink the coffee from that shop near Yinding Bridge!"

Chu An, "..."

Yinding Bridgehead...

Turn left after exiting the building and walk 30 meters to the top.

Okay, Chu An knew that Lin Wanxing was making a period drama set in the Republican era, but he really didn't know that it was being filmed in Houhai.

With no other option, Chu An said a few more words and, urged by Lin Wanxing, had to leave.

First, I went to the coffee shop at the head of Yinding Bridge and ordered 60 cups of coffee and some pastries and cakes. It took more than an hour to make them, and then the staff helped deliver them to Jinshi Hutong on the other side of the bridge.

Chu An didn't even need to look for the film crew anymore; Lin Wanchen was already waiting at the bridgehead with a smile. "Look, President Chu has gone to great lengths, hasn't he?"

Chu An smiled generously, "I've already made an appointment with the coffee shop to deliver twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon, for a whole week."

"We must give Wanxing face!"

Lin Wanchen immediately gave a thumbs up. "That's great!"

There are specific customs and etiquette involved in visiting the film set and offering the crew drinks or extra meals.

Generally, when the main actors join a production, they will treat the entire crew to drinks. Even for actresses like Xu Shu who present a cool and aloof image, Tian Du will arrange for them to have a meal together.

It's considered an unspoken rule in film crews.

It is also the lowest-cost investment in reputation.

After all, paparazzi and reporters can't just focus on digging up news and gossip about celebrities; anyone who has contact with a celebrity becomes their target. And the reputation that comes from these people is the real reputation.

Spending a few hundred dollars to make a good impression on the whole team, even if only one person says a good word about you to reporters or paparazzi, is worth it.

There's no better deal than this.

The gift given during the set visit wasn't a favor to Chu An, but rather to give Lin Wanxing face.

Moreover, it was twice a day, once a week, and the crew remembered all the good things about Lin Wanxing.

How could Lin Wanchen not give a thumbs up?

Leading Chu An into the alley, they hadn't gone far when they saw several equipment vehicles parked in front of a courtyard, which was where Lin Wanxing's film crew was located.

The gatekeeper, who naturally recognized Lin Wanchen, let him through without permission.

The group consisted of people in the industry, and they could see the filming taking place inside from the doorway. Lin Wanxing was wearing a moon-white cheongsam and a wig with short, ear-length hair reminiscent of the Republic of China era.

Like a ray of moonlight emerging from the past, she is acting opposite a male actor.

Chu An and Lin Wanchen wisely kept quiet until the director yelled "cut," at which point Lin Wanchen silently leaned over and whispered a few words in the director's ear.

The director glanced towards the door for a moment, then, very politely, announced loudly, "Our friend Wanxing is visiting the set, please have some coffee, everyone take a break!"

Lin Wanxing had already seen Chu An, but he didn't come over even when the director yelled "cut." Now, she clapped her hands with a smile, acting like the hostess, "Come on, everyone, come and get your coffee."

She personally handed the items to the people around her, not forgetting to roll her eyes at Chu An as she did so, "Didn't I tell you to hurry up? Why are you only just arriving!?"

Chu An: "..."

While helping her serve coffee, I muttered under my breath, "Keep pretending! Keep pretending! You're practically drooling."

"Get out!" Lin Wanxing said angrily.

She handed the coffee-serving task to Lin Wanchen and pulled Chu An along, saying, "Come on! I'll show you how to expand your network."

As he spoke, he walked towards the director and several lead actors.

……

.

(End of this chapter)