I am a historical film director in the entertainment industry.

In 1993, "Farewell My Concubine" burst onto the scene and became a sensation at home and abroad. The emergence of "Farewell My Concubine" not only marked the rise of Chinese cinema, but also became an insurmountable peak for the entire film industry.

With this film, Chen Kaige became a leading figure among China's fifth generation of directors and the first Chinese to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

Although Chen Kaige was praised to the skies, he did not forget to thank his father for the help he had received.

Although one classic film is enough to sustain Chen Kaige for a lifetime, he is not one to be content with the status quo.

Because "Farewell My Concubine" differs greatly in style from his previous works, Chen Kaige has faced considerable criticism.

After that, he began to desperately try to prove himself. However, neither "Temptress Moon" nor "The Emperor and the Assassin" received high ratings. Instead, he never produced a masterpiece like "Farewell My Concubine".

However, he is not the only good director in China. During the period when Chen Kaige was in a slump, the accumulated strength of directors such as Li An, Zhang Guoshi, and Feng Xiaogang seriously shook Chen Kaige's status in the directing world.

In 2000, Lee An's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" grossed $2.14 million worldwide, becoming the first film in North American box office history to gross over $100 million.

In 2002, Zhang Yimou's "Hero" set a record for the highest-grossing Chinese film worldwide, boosting the development of the film industry.

In 2004, Feng Xiaogang solidified his position in the comedy film industry with the movie "A World Without Thieves".

Seeing his peers surpass him one after another, Chen Kaige could no longer sit still.

So he wrote the highly controversial film "The Promise" himself, which resulted in widespread ridicule.

Even Li Chengru said that he has never seen a film directed by Chen Kaige since Chen directed "The Promise".

A few days before the release of the film "The Promise", Liu Yan almost got blacklisted for asking Chen Kaige, "What if the film doesn't reach the expected box office?"

It is clear that "The Promise" is of great significance to Chen Kaige, and it may be a turning point in his directing career.

However, the awkward plot and nauseating dialogue of the entire movie have left many wondering: why would Chen Kaige, who once created a miracle in the film industry, make such a "bad movie" that can be compared with "Tiny Times"?
Not only "The Promise", but all of Chen Kaige's films after "Farewell My Concubine" are far inferior to "Farewell My Concubine" in terms of both content and artistic appeal.

Of course, Chen Kaige does have directing skills, but he has a really disgusting bad habit: he likes to arbitrarily change the script...

"Farewell My Concubine" became a classic precisely because the script was strictly prohibited from being altered at will.

Of course, it's not just Chen Kaige who does this; every well-known director likes to arbitrarily change scripts and force their own so-called artistic elements into the film.

The result was predictable.

Therefore, Cheng Sheng wanted to nip Chen Kaige's idea in the bud.

Chen Hong did not immediately agree, but fell into deep thought.

If you were to ask who understands Chen Kaige best in this world, it would undoubtedly be Chen Hong.

In love, the more humble you are, the less likely you are to get results.

In this respect, she differed from Ni Ping. At that time, "Farewell My Concubine" had just been filmed, and Chen Kaige received worldwide acclaim.

Only she, with a furrowed brow and calm demeanor, said: "The greater the halo, the greater the pressure on the next work."

Men sometimes don't need excessive worship, but they do need their wives' guidance.

In this respect, Chen Hong is on par with Chen Kaige.

Chen Kaige's penchant for improvising and his penchant for drastically altering scripts are well-known in the entertainment industry.

Take the movie "The Promise" for example.

Her husband deeply intervened in the script of "The Promise" while on set, and even chose to completely scrap the first draft and start from scratch.

It's harder to stop him from changing the script than to kill him.

After listening to Cheng Sheng's words, Chen Hong couldn't guarantee anything, as artists' tempers are hard to persuade.

If she agrees now, and Chen Kaige changes the script later, she won't know how to explain it to Cheng Sheng. It might even cause Chen Kaige and Cheng Sheng to fall out.

Thinking about the consequences, Chen Hong shuddered.

Cheng Sheng is no ordinary director.

Putting aside Cheng Sheng's status in the entertainment industry, just considering his background, few people dare to mess with him.

It's important to know that behind Cheng Sheng stands the Central Academy of Drama and Han Sanye from China Film Group.

As one of the two major academies in Kyoto, the Central Academy of Drama has an incredibly prestigious background. It is directly under the Ministry of Education and is a Double First-Class university, making it a school with impeccable political and cultural credentials.

Drama and Film Studies has also been selected for the national list of world-class disciplines.

It has held a prestigious position since 1950; even Chairman Mao wrote the school's name for it!

Moreover, the current president of the Central Academy of Drama, Xu Xiaozhong, has connections within the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. It's safe to say that you shouldn't mess with the Central Academy of Drama.

Cheng Sheng, a rare gem in the directing department of the Central Academy of Drama, is closely protected by the academy.

If it weren't for the Central Academy of Drama protecting him, given Cheng Sheng's rate of earning money, many big names in the industry would have already started eyeing him.

Although Chen Kaige also has a background at Beijing Film Academy, he graduated long ago. Compared to Cheng Sheng, who is still pursuing his master's and doctoral degrees at the school, Chen Kaige is worlds apart.

The Beijing Film Academy certainly wouldn't offend the entire Central Academy of Drama just because Chen Kai is separated from someone else.

Ring ring ring!
Suddenly, a cell phone rang, breaking the quiet atmosphere in the room.

"yours."

Cheng Sheng's ears twitched; the ringtone was different from his own. He immediately glanced at Chen Hong.

The phone rang from under the pillow. Chen Hong fumbled for it and her expression changed abruptly when she saw the caller ID.

"My husband!" Chen Hong exclaimed in surprise, her expression tense and uneasy.

"Take the call! I won't say anything," Cheng Sheng said calmly.

While Cheng Sheng was alone with Chen Hong, her husband called, which gave him a strange feeling.

It's like you've become the neighbor's wife, and then her husband catches you in the act.

"Hey, honey, where are you? You haven't come home all night, and the kids are looking for you."

Chen Kaige's impatient voice came through the phone; clearly, Chen Hong's absence all night had greatly displeased him.

"Don't worry, I had dinner with Cheng Sheng yesterday and drank a bit too much, so I slept at the hotel for the night."

Chen Hong is a smart woman. Since she was asking Cheng Sheng to invite her to write a script, she couldn't hide the fact that she had seen Cheng Sheng yesterday.

If nine parts are true and one part is false, it will actually prevent Chen Kai from becoming suspicious.

What do you want with Cheng Sheng?

As expected, Chen Kaige hadn't thought of that aspect at all, after all, Cheng Sheng and Chen Hong were too far apart in age.

If this were ancient times, Chen Hong could be Cheng Sheng's mother.

“You often talk about Cheng Sheng’s scripts, right? I’m planning to ask Cheng Sheng to write a script specifically for you,” Chen Hong said.

Did he... agree?

Chen Kai's voice trembled. (End of Chapter)