Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 189 Is it lively enough?

I returned to the courtyard house near the China World Trade Center in the evening.

Upon entering, Zhang Yan was somewhat bewildered. He wasn't surprised at all that Zhang Fang would be in the living room, but what was up with Zhou Tao standing next to her?

"Brother~"

"Zhang Yan~"

"Honey."

Hearing the three greeting him, Zhang Yan paused for a moment before forcing a smile and asking, "Did you all have dinner together tonight?"

"Yes."

Chen Hong laughed and said, "When I went to see Fangfang this afternoon, Zhou Tao happened to be there too, so I just dragged her along. If we hadn't been having dinner together tonight, I wouldn't have known that you had planned a new program for her."

"Haha, I just mentioned it casually, I didn't expect her to take it seriously." Zhang Yan laughed and went over to ruffle his sister's hair, saying, "A lot of people have been concerned about you lately."

At the same time, he secretly gave Zhang Fang a look, questioning her about how she coordinated everything and how these two ended up bumping into each other again.

Zhang Fang rolled her eyes back and said irritably, "That's because you're getting more and more important."

Zhou Tao followed up with a smile: "It's mainly because Fangfang is so lovable. She even won over the school's heartthrob. Don't worry, once Kang Hui starts his internship at CCTV in two months, I'll definitely keep a close eye on him for you."

"I still trust him."

Zhang Fang said meaningfully, "He's not like some bad people, full of tricks and schemes—don't you think so, sister-in-law?"

Chen Hong smiled but didn't say anything. She went to the kitchen and brought Zhang Yan a soup made with dried tangerine peel and hawthorn to help him sober up. She also gave up her seat near Zhang Fang.

Zhou Tao frowned slightly when she saw this scene; she would never handle these things at home.

But then she thought that it was simply because she didn't have anyone around her worth making such a sacrifice; otherwise, she certainly wouldn't have done any worse than Chen Hong.

Shaking off his unease, Zhou Tao asked Zhang Fang across the room, "President Zhang, when do you have time to go to CCTV to provide on-site guidance? Our program has already started formal preparations, and it should be broadcast around the time of the holiday."

Let's talk about it later.

While sipping his soup, Zhang Yan replied, "Isn't this about opening up the film and television industry to private capital? The higher-ups told me to hurry up and set up a film and television company as a pilot project."

Zhou Tao's eyes lit up immediately. Although singers earn more, film and television professionals are definitely more prestigious, especially since Zhang Yan's film and television company is a pilot unit established by the higher authorities.

Sure enough, every time I saw Zhang Yan after a while, he would have achieved something new.

However, Zhou Tao immediately became worried: "From what I understand, movies are becoming less and less profitable, and TV series are losing money with every single one they're made..."

"You can rest assured about that."

Chen Hong rested one hand on Zhang Yan's shoulder and said with pride, "The proposal to open up to private capital was first submitted to the Tianjin delegation by Zhang Yan, so he must have thought of the supporting policies long ago - it is estimated that the broadcasting rights of TV dramas will be marketized soon."

Zhou Tao didn't quite understand this time, since she had never been exposed to the operation mechanism of TV dramas before, but she understood one thing: Zhang Yan was not only a beneficiary, but also the initiator of this major industry change.

This made her heart burn even hotter, and when she looked at Chen Hong leaning against Zhang Yan again, her eyes seemed to hold a knife.

Chen Hong was aware of this, but didn't pay much attention to it.

If it were Tao Hong, she might have been a little nervous, but Zhou Tao was clearly a calm and collected player, just like herself, when it came to scheming and intrigue.

After Zhang Yan chatted with Zhou Tao for a few more minutes, Chen Hong suddenly interjected, "Zhou Tao, it's so late, why don't you just stay home and keep Fangfang company?"

"This……"

Zhou Tao was taken aback when Chen Hong invited him to stay overnight.

Chen Hong picked up the mobile phone on the table and asked, "What's your home phone number?"

Zhou Tao hesitated for a moment, then gave his home phone number. Zhang Yan, who was listening nearby, remarked casually, "It's still the same number."

Zhou Tao later got a pager, and the two of them basically didn't use her home landline to contact each other, which is why Zhang Yan had this feeling.

But Zhou Tao didn't like it.

Before they got married, she and Yao Ke lived in a rented apartment. They've been married for two years and are still wasting their time there, while Yao Ke is always cheerful and not in a hurry at all.

In contrast, Zhang Yan was also renting an apartment when we first met, but now he owns several properties in Beijing and is even planning to build a small villa within the Second Ring Road soon...

Chen Hong had already made the call and heard that she had come to Zhang Yan's house with Zhang Fang. Yao Ke didn't think much of it and said to Chen Hong, "Thank you for your trouble."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Hong smiled and asked Zhou Tao, "Are you living in the same room as Fangfang, or...?"

Faced with her hateful smile, Zhou Tao even thought of a scene where he commits adultery in front of a woman for a moment, but in the end he still said, "I'll share a room with Fangfang—Fangfang?"

"Great, that's perfect, let's talk tonight."

Zhang Fang, who was usually much quieter than usual, finally got to play the straight man.

Chen Hong rummaged through drawers and found a new set of bedding. After settling the two of them in, she returned to the master bedroom in the east wing, took off her earrings and watch, and smiled at Zhang Yan while combing her hair.

Zhang Yanju made a gesture of surrender with his hands: "I'll change 'The Emperor and the Phoenix' to be about college students, and then create a character based on your template—but you have to act more lively, at least you have to have a bit of an innocent and naive spirit."

Giving Zhou Tao advice is one thing, but the main problem is that he also plans to promote Tao Hong to play the lead role in a film about fierce animals. If Chen Hong isn't given some compensation for this, it would be really inappropriate.

Chen Hong has a rather calm temperament, which is not really suitable for this kind of lively role. Fortunately, her appearance is convincing enough to make the audience understand why Zhengde did not love the country but love the beauty.

If the female lead isn't lively enough, then the male lead has to be even more energetic.

The Zhengde Emperor himself was indeed a rather unconventional figure. It would be best to portray him as someone who is both righteous and wicked, someone that people both love and hate. Female viewers today are into that kind of image.

I just don't know if Zhang Guoli can pull it off.

Just as I was pondering how to revise the script, I suddenly heard Chen Hong ask vaguely, "Now, is it lively enough?"

Zhang Yan looked closely and saw that Chen Hong had somehow styled her hair into pigtails, her coat was gone, and she had a semi-transparent balloon between her lips and teeth.

…………

the other side.

Zhang Fang placed a Walkman between the two pillows before she began to undress.

Zhou Tao asked, somewhat puzzled, "Fangfang, do you still listen to music to help you sleep at night?"

"It's not used normally."

As Zhang Fang spoke, she turned her head to look towards the master bedroom at the east end. Zhou Tao immediately understood and then said nothing more.

After the two quietly got into bed, they could hear some subtle noises coming from inside. Without saying a word, Zhang Fang turned on her Walkman.

"Sing if you want to sing, let the sound waves penetrate the barrier, every syllable..."

Hearing her sister-in-law's voice coming from inside, Zhang Fang decisively fast-forwarded, switched to Tian Zhen's "Persistence," and then turned the volume down to the lowest setting.

She turned off the light and said, "Sister Zhou Tao, let's go to sleep too. I have to go to class early tomorrow."

Zhou Tao gave a vague reply. Although Tian Zhen's singing was clearly playing in her ears, Chen Hong's voice kept echoing in her mind. That voice was sometimes enchanting, sometimes sharp, sometimes arrogant, and sometimes vicious...

Although he knew it was an illusion, and although he knew he had no right to be jealous or resentful, Zhou Tao's heart was still full of holes, and he couldn't sleep soundly all night.

(End of this chapter)