Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 222 This Bow

Because the factory manager was very drunk, Zhang Yan and Zhang Guoli chatted with him for a few more minutes before helping him into the car.

Guan Hu's father, "Old Master Bao," also got into the car—the other was the driver; these days it's normal for a leader's driver to sit at the table with them.

Seeing that 'Grandpa Bao' was still peeking inside, Zhang Yan said with a smile, "Uncle Guan, you should go back first. I'll take Guan Hu away by myself later. If it's really not possible, he can sleep at my place."

The BY factory bus then drove away.

Watching the car drive away, Zhang Yan turned around and glanced around, noticing that the tall girl had also come out. He then looked at Zhang Guoli standing to the side.

Zhang Guoli then asked, "Qu Ying, did you need to see me about something, or...?"

Qu Ying brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and asked eagerly, "Brother Guoli, President Zhang, do you still need actresses for your Dream Come True event?"

She didn't mention Zhang Guoli's directing career, since he hadn't revealed anything about it earlier, and to have it pointed out now would be somewhat embarrassing.

Just then, Cao Ying and Guan Hu came out together, and Cao Ying immediately said, "Brother Guoli, I heard you're a director now?"

Qu Ying rolled her eyes at this.

Zhang Guoli laughed and said, "It's all thanks to Mr. Zhang for giving me the opportunity. Otherwise, with my background as a latecomer, how would I be qualified to be a director?"

Qu Ying quickly added, "I've long heard that President Zhang has a discerning eye. Since he chose you, Brother Guoli, it proves that you definitely have the ability!"

She paused, then brought up the old topic again: "I just don't know if I'll have a chance..."

As he spoke, he struck a pose on his own.

As a former model, even in casual clothes, her poses still stand out from the crowd.

Upon seeing this, Cao Ying quickly said, "I also want to sign a contract to fulfill my dream, and I'm a professional stylist!"

Zhang Yan smiled noncommittally and said, "If you want to sign a contract and realize your dream, you can try in Tianjin—my girlfriend manages the agency, so I generally won't interfere."

As he spoke, he beckoned Zhang Guoli and Guan Hu to get into the car, showing no intention of giving them a ride along the way.

Cao Ying was very disappointed, but Qu Ying felt that it was enough.

Even if Zhang Yan doesn't usually interfere with the agency that helps him realize his dream, just mentioning during the interview that he was introduced by Boss Zhang will definitely have a different effect.

On the other side, inside the Crown car.

Guan Hu complained indignantly, "These young girls nowadays really don't know what's good for them. I told her I'm a director too, and she gave me a dirty look."

"Haha~"

Zhang Yan laughed and scolded, "You asked for this, buddy. Why are you wearing an earring when you're out having dinner with the boss?"

"Isn't this about showing off my individuality? Since the movie came out, I've been considered a big shot in the rock scene..."

“It’s been several months already, you should get back to work.” Zhang Yan said, “Seriously, the script for ‘A Messy Life’ is almost finished. If you’re willing, I’ll let you take the lead on this drama.”

"I'm a film director, after all, and I even got a nomination..."

"Just tell me whether you want to do it or not?"

"Uh~ let me think about it some more."

As Guan Hu spoke, he deliberately changed the subject, saying, "How is the preparation for the second season of 'I Am a Singer' going? I heard that many singers who have come to Beijing have signed up, and there are even some veterans in the rock scene."

"There are indeed quite a lot of people signing up, and it will probably take another month to sort things out. This time I'm going to let Zhang Fang give it a try. If she can handle it, then we won't need anyone else."

"Hey, now that you mention it, our girl is a junior in college this year, right? It's about time she got out and gained some experience—by the way, I recently..."

"Shh~" Zhang Yan suddenly interrupted him, pointing to Zhang Guoli in the passenger seat. It turned out that in just a few words, Zhang Guoli had already fallen asleep in the passenger seat.

…………

The next morning.

When Zhang Yan drove Zhang Guoli to the Summer Palace, the person in the back seat had changed from Guan Hu to Zhang Fang.

Zhang Fang had just started school and, before classes officially began, planned to visit her sister-in-law.

"Brother, you and sister-in-law should have a baby soon!"

Zhang Fang couldn't help but complain in the car: "I've been listening to Mom nagging about you all summer. I asked her to go to Tianjin for a few days, but she didn't want to go out. She just kept nagging me."

“I don’t believe it. I call home quite often. Mom probably asks about Kang Hui the most. Seriously though, are you sure you can host the second season of ‘I Am a Singer’? If you’re not, I’ll find someone else.”

"What's the rush? Let me try it first..."

After exchanging a few words with his sister, Zhang Yan felt a bit neglected by Zhang Guoli, so she took the initiative to ask about the filming progress.

"It's fortunate that we found veteran actors, so they can adapt well even when shooting in reverse chronological order. However, there is one problem: the older actors couldn't handle the night scenes."

A while ago, there was a scene where the ministers were having a fireside chat. I made fake charcoal as a prop, but it never looked right when we filmed it, so we ended up using real charcoal. As a result, the actor playing Liu Jin almost got heatstroke.

Zhang Yan had actually heard Chen Hong mention these things before, but he still pretended to listen with great interest.

Zhang Fang was genuinely interested and asked curiously, "Why film it backwards? I've heard that some TV dramas are filmed in a haphazard way, while others are filmed in sequence, but this is the first time I've heard of filming it backwards."

Zhang Guoli smiled but remained silent.

Zhang Yan didn't mince words and said directly, "It's all to accommodate your sister-in-law. She's a bit slow to get into character, and that lively energy has to be brought out little by little. So I discussed with Director Zhang that we should shoot from back to front, which is perfect since the female lead gradually matured and became less eccentric later on."

Zhang Guoli added, "Actually, the effect of filming like this is not bad, especially the scenes where they forced a smile at the beginning..."

Ironically, this turned out to be a lucky accident. The plot was filmed from the back to the front, and Chen Hong's slow start became part of the female lead's growth.

The trade-off was that the production team had to change from a three-part shooting style to a six-part shooting style, and the process was much slower than that of a typical production team.

This significantly increased the casting fee. Even Liu Xiaoqing might not have received this treatment if it were another actor, but Chen Hong is the boss's wife, which is even more impressive than bringing investment to the production.

They chatted incessantly along the way.

Upon arriving at the Chengde Mountain Resort, Zhang Guoli immediately called over the staff waiting by the roadside to unload drinks from the car—all of them Jianlibao, gifts from Boss Li when he visited Tianjin a while ago.

When Mr. Li heard that Zhang Yan had set up two companies from the very beginning—a record company affiliated with the TV station and a privately owned, most profitable agency—he deeply regretted not having made such plans earlier when he was young.

Now that Jianlibao has become a target of criticism, it can no longer pull off this tactic.

While carrying drinks with everyone, Zhang Yan couldn't help but think of the scene when he sent Chen Hong to the Three Kingdoms. Judging from the time, the Three Kingdoms should be almost finished filming by now, right?
And just as I wished, it came true.

Zhang Yan had just put down his drink and hadn't even had a chance to speak with Chen Hong when he received a call from Wang Fulin, the chief director of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

Judging from what Old Wang meant, he wanted Han Lei to sing the interlude from the sworn brotherhood ceremony of Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei.

Perhaps fearing that Han Lei, now a big star, might look down on a mere interlude, Old Wang emphasized, "Don't underestimate this song. It appears three times in the TV series, essentially running throughout the entire Oath of the Peach Garden."

"What's the name of this song?"

"Let's call it 'This Bow'."

(End of this chapter)