Writer 1978: I Need to Give the Literary World a Lesson

Chapter 497 Zhu Lin Becomes Famous Throughout Southeast Asia

Inside Zheng Dongguo's courtyard house, everyone kept sharing news about the island that they had received from their relatives and friends.

When they learned that "The Overseas Chinese" was going to be filmed in collaboration with Southeast Asian Chinese to introduce the history of Southeast Asian Chinese supporting the War of Resistance against Japan and building the Burma Road, they couldn't help but talk about the Expeditionary Force.

Liu Yimin heard familiar names from them. Zheng Tingji talked about the descendants of Dai Anlan, a famous anti-Japanese general, whose house was looted by G army soldiers.

At this point, Zheng Tingji became very angry, feeling that he had let Dai Anlan down.

Dai Anlan was the commander of the 200th Division of the Expeditionary Force. He led his troops back to China through the Hukawng Valley. He was wounded on the way and eventually died due to the lack of medical care and medicine in the rainforest.

Zheng Tingji and Dai Anlan were close friends and also served as superior and subordinate. When Dai Anlan sacrificed his life, he entrusted his family and troops to Zheng Tingji, who, along with another general, Gao Jiren, led the army back to China.

“It’s all in the past. How is Old Dai’s son doing now?” Zheng Dongguo comforted Zheng Tingji, who was in a bad mood.

Zheng Tingji then rallied and said, "Fu Dong is really promising. He will soon be promoted to dean of Tongji University. Cheng Dong is also doing well. He is doing a great job now."

"Yimin, when you're writing the script for 'The Overseas Chinese', could you show the history of the 25 million people in Yunnan Province who built the Burma Road?" Cheng Siyuan asked Liu Yimin.

Huang Wei also said, "This road was the only way for us to receive supplies from the West back then. I led my troops in a bloody battle on the Burma Road, and my troops made great sacrifices. We paid a heavy price for this road."

“There will be a showcase,” Liu Yimin said confidently.

“Alright, if you need any historical materials for the filming, just come find us old men,” Zheng Dongguo said loudly.

The film "The Overseas Chinese" has been listed by the Film Bureau as a key film to be produced in the second half of the year. After hearing about it, film studios from various regions are vying for the rights. Whoever gets the filming rights will be the center of attention in mainland China and Southeast Asia.

Unfortunately, the film studio cooperating with Southeast Asia had already been internally selected. The entire Film Bureau had no objection to selecting a director from the August First Film Studio to participate in the filming, and the August First Film Studio, under the leadership of Liu Peiran, was discussing the director selection.

After leaving Zheng Dongguo's house, Liu Peiran found Liu Yimin and thanked him for securing a big job for the August First Film Studio.

"Director Liu, this is no easy task. If we don't film it well, not only will we lose five million dollars, but the August First Film Studio will be laughed at both domestically and internationally," Liu Yimin earnestly instructed.

Liu Peiran understood the stakes involved. If the project didn't turn out well after spending five million US dollars, he, as the deputy factory director, would have to resign due to the pressure.

Five million US dollars to make a movie is an unprecedentedly wealthy undertaking for a domestic director.

"Yi Min, the Film Bureau has set up a special filming coordination team, with the participation of the Film Bureau, August First Film Studio, and Fujian Film Studio, to liaise with the Zhongqiao Association and the Fuqing Guild Hall. Now the chief director of August First Film Studio has become a problem. I heard you recommended Li Jun?" Liu Peiran asked.

Liu Yimin said, "I think Director Li is particularly good at shooting war scenes and large-scale films. He has a strong ability to control the language of the camera and the actors' performances. Of course, this is just a suggestion. You will have to discuss the specifics."

“I personally respect your opinion and agree that Li Jun should be the director. We plan to mainly select actors from Fujian and Guangdong provinces, as most of the Chinese in Southeast Asia are from these two places, and having some local accents will make it more authentic.”

After Liu Peiran finished speaking, she asked Liu Yimin when the script would be completed so that they could arrange the filming schedule accordingly.

Liu Yimin expects to be able to revise the script for them by mid-May: "You should get ready, and you can even send Director Li to Fujian and Guangdong provinces to select actors."

Upon hearing this, Liu Peiran was overjoyed and prepared to go back and approve Li Jun's request to immediately head south to begin preparations. As for who Fujian Film Studio would choose as his assistant director, that would be up to the studio.

After discussing "The Overseas Chinese," Liu Peiran told Liu Yimin about the preliminary decisions regarding the director and actors for "Brotherhood of Blades."

"When we filmed 'Huo Yuanjia' last time, several directors from Beijing Film Studio learned from him. I plan to invite director Li Wenhua to assist the August First Film Studio in filming. Our directors will be Zhai Junjie and Wei Lian. I saw Zhai's directorial potential in 'The Battle of Taierzhuang'. He is a good director whose talent has been wasted."

Liu Yimin heard a familiar name from Liu Peiran's words—Ji Chunhua, who debuted as a villain and played the villain Zhao Jingzhong in the Embroidered Uniform Guard in "Brotherhood of Blades".

In addition, Zhao Changjun plays the role of Shen Lian. Zhao Changjun is a martial arts athlete. After Jet Li retired, Zhao Changjun ushered in the peak of his career. His disciple is Donnie Yen.

"The August First Film Studio is quite fast. I was only in Singapore for about ten days, and you've already selected half of the directors and actors," Liu Yimin praised.

Hearing Liu Yimin's praise, Liu Peiran was secretly pleased, but outwardly said:
"We are eager to earn foreign exchange. This time, 'Fearless' has made the August First Film Studio the talk of the town. According to data from China Film Group, 'Fearless' earned nearly two million US dollars on its first day of release in Southeast Asia. In Hong Kong and Heung Shan O, it has already earned four million three hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars."

Liu Peiran recited numbers, his heart burning with jealousy. Jet Li, with his film *Fearless*, gained countless fans in Southeast Asia, and his line, "This punch is the culmination of twenty years of kung fu, can you withstand it?" became a catchphrase among Southeast Asian moviegoers.

In addition, Zhu Lin has gained fame in Southeast Asia with her role in "Huo Yuanjia". Her beautiful face and skillful acting have won her the love of movie fans.

Many viewers began to consciously collect mainland film magazines, and newspapers gathered information through various channels, discovering that Zhu Lin was actually the most famous actress in mainland China, having won the Best Actress awards at the Hundred Flowers Awards and the Golden Rooster Awards twice.

The more the audience liked it, the more enthusiastically the newspapers reported on it. After the relationship between Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin was reported, Zhu Lin became a sensation throughout Southeast Asia.

Lianhe Zaobao reprinted a photo of Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin featured in Time magazine—the two made dumplings on New Year's Eve, praising them as a "talented man and a beautiful woman." Countless viewers blessed their beautiful love, while of course, there were also some envious and jealous people.

"Director Liu, don't be envious. 'Fearless' made domestic kung fu movies famous, and when 'Brotherhood of Blades' went overseas, the situation became even clearer!" Liu Yimin poured Liu Peiran a cup of tea to calm her down.

Liu Peiran, with a toothache, said, "I'm under a lot of pressure too. While you were away, I was so worried about the actors and director that I was practically on edge. The more successful 'Huo Yuanjia' is, the heavier this weight on my heart becomes. Yimin, I'm not jealous."

You understand, everyone's working with the government's money, and they're terrified of not achieving the desired results.

Liu Yimin comforted him, saying, "When I came back, I saw Gang Gong. Gang Gong said that everyone should not have any mental burdens. Reform allows for making mistakes and bearing some losses, as long as the whole moves forward. Old Shen specifically talked about 'Hachiko, the loyal dog,' and the leaders were very supportive."

When it came to filming "Hachiko: A Dog's Tale," Liu Peiran of the August First Film Studio overruled objections and contributed 400,000 yuan. However, everything was delayed because Liu Yimin went to Singapore.

"Director Huang Zumo will be coming to Beijing in a few days. I hope the August First Film Studio will provide him with full support," Liu Yimin said.

Liu Peiran said firmly, "Don't worry, come to me directly if you have any problems. If I do a bad job, Yimin, you can scold me directly at the Institute of Literature and Art Conference."

With Liu Peiran's words, Liu Yimin was relieved. After all, Huang Zumo was not a very big director, and the resource coordination ability of such directors was much worse.

It was alright at the Shanghai Film Studio, but if I come to the August First Film Studio and can't coordinate any resources, I'm doomed.

After seeing Liu Peiran off, Li Jun rushed to the courtyard house after dinner to thank him. Li Jun was beaming with pride, and upon seeing Liu Yimin, he eagerly gave him a hug: "Yimin, thank you, thank you."

"Old Li, I'm only doing this because of your directing skills, I'm not being biased," Liu Yimin quickly said.

"I know, I know, I know even if you don't tell me." Li Jun excitedly shook Liu Yimin's arm.

Zhu Lin smiled and said to Li Jun, "Director Li, please sit down. Have you eaten?"

"Director Zhu, I've already eaten. Is your Beijing People's Art Theatre busy lately?" Li Jun asked politely.

"It's alright. We're also preparing to stage 'The Nanyang Overseas Chinese Mechanics.' Yimin's 'The Best Restaurant Under Heaven' and a few other plays are our People's Art Theatre's grand finale. Even if there aren't any new plays, we'll still have something to perform." Zhu Lin had Ximei bring over some fruit and place it in front of Li Jun.

Li Jun took the opportunity to discuss some ideas about the script with Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin. Li Jun skillfully pointed out several place names along the Burma Road, which he had studied extensively recently.

Liu Yimin suggested that before leaving Beijing for Fujian Province, he should visit Huang Wei and several other generals who had participated in the expeditionary force, so that through their accounts he could better understand the importance of the Burma Road.

“Okay, I’ll listen to you, but…” “I’ll introduce you to someone,” Liu Yimin said.

Li Jun was relieved, as this meant he wouldn't have to go alone.

After seeing Li Jun off, Liu Yimin wrote a script in his study for a while before eagerly returning to his room to immerse himself in his love.

In the CCTV recording studio, Liu Yimin and Wu Zuxiang sat facing each other, recording an episode about Liu Yimin's trip to Singapore. The format was that Wu Zuxiang asked questions and Liu Yimin answered.

Outside the recording studio, the film crew stood ready.

Liu Yimin said with a smile, "Professor Wu, shall we begin?"

"Anyway, you're the main speaker. As long as you're prepared, I'm fine with it," Wu Zuxiang said cheerfully.

Liu Yimin nodded and said, "Hello everyone, today is May 8th. I am Liu Yimin. Today I will focus on sharing my trip to Singapore with you."

"Hello everyone, I am Wu Zuxiang." Wu Zuxiang's voice automatically adjusted, and his tone was very clear.

"Professor Liu, could you please tell me who you met in Singapore?"

Liu Yimin gave a presentation on all the guests present and then focused on analyzing the members of the delegation from the island.

"As far as I know, you had a dispute with Li Ao, a member of the delegation from the island, at the beginning. Could you tell me about it?"

Through Wu Zuxiang's question, Liu Yimin naturally brought up the debate with the views of the West: "Through the debate, Mr. Li Ao agreed with my point of view. We believe that the West will not make us stronger, and the West will neither help nor allow a strong China to emerge in the world."

The West is an expansionist civilization, built on plunder; they need the world's resources. If one day plunder ceases, their civilization will be unstable. If everyone else develops, from whom will they plunder?

Liu Yimin recounted the entire process from the initial debate to the final consensus, culminating in everyone agreeing to sign the joint article.

"Reunification across the Taiwan Strait is the common aspiration of all Chinese people."

"Professor Liu, what are your views on the Chinese community in Southeast Asia?"

"They are one of the most patriotic Chinese groups. Chinese people all over the world have an expectation for the mainland, which is to make Chinese civilization shine on the world again. They are wanderers, longing for a strong motherland. We, the comrades on the mainland, should also keep the wishes of our compatriots in mind, work together to build our country."

Wu Zuxiang and Liu Yimin worked together more and more closely. Wu Zuxiang shared his understanding of the Chinese world and, combined with Liu Yimin's experience, continued to delve deeper into the interesting content.

Liu Yimin tried his best not to make his speech too dry or make the audience feel it was too abstract. When he mentioned the enthusiastic donations from overseas Chinese businessmen in Southeast Asia, the crew members outside were all excited.

After Liu Yimin and Wu Zuxiang came out, the producer said to them, "The next episode will definitely spark heated discussions among the audience. By the end, we all felt a sense of mission as mainlanders to fight for Chinese people all over the world."

Wu Zuxiang cleared his throat and went back in to give another talk about "Dream of the Red Chamber." Yang Weiguang invited Liu Yimin into his office, mainly to discuss program revenue sharing.

"We produce about four episodes a month, and the combined revenue from advertising and content is about eight thousand yuan. According to our 50/50 split, the Institute of Literature and Art gets four thousand yuan."

The revenue mainly comes from radio stations in various regions rebroadcasting the "Youth Night Talk" program. A total of four radio stations in Tianjin, Hubei, Guangdong, and Henan provinces rebroadcast their program.

The main expense for the research institute is the cost of the program guests, which is 200 yuan per episode. If the guests live far away, there are also issues such as accommodation fees.

"Professor Liu, we should explore more program production methods in the future when we have the opportunity." Yang Weiguang smiled and shook Liu Yimin's hand.

"Okay, Director Yang, our program is good, but it's mainly limited by the overall number of radio subscribers."

"That's already pretty good; there are far more radio viewers than television viewers."

After Wu Zuxiang finished recording the program, Yang Weiguang escorted Liu Yimin out of the office. Liu Yimin suddenly asked, "Director Yang, when will the next episode of 'Journey to the West' air?"

"That's not decided yet. The whole film will take a while to finish shooting," Yang Weiguang said.

Liu Yimin didn't say anything more. He drove Wu Zuxiang away from CCTV and dropped him off at home. After that, Liu Yimin handed Wu Zuxiang an envelope.

"What is this?" Wu Zuxiang opened it and glanced at it: "So much? You can use it for the construction of the Institute of Literature and Art. I eat and live at the university, so it won't cost much!"

"Professor Wu, this is what you should take; it's the rule. In the future, it won't just be our institute's teachers giving lectures; we'll also have to invite outsiders. This kind of appearance fee for TV programs needs to be implemented as a system."

Wu Zuxiang happily put the money into his pocket: "I heard that you donated a primary school to your hometown. I also want to save some money and donate some money to Maolin. I really hope to see fellow villagers among the students."

Liu Yimin left Wu Zuxiang's house and went to the Institute of Literature. Dai Jianye and a few others were arguing over a paper. Liu Yimin leaned over and glanced at it: "What are you arguing about?"

The group jumped in fright and quickly stood up straight. Dai Jianye was the first to react, and chuckled, "Those guys just won't admit defeat; they have to argue with me!"

Dai Jianye handed his paper to Liu Yimin, while Yi Zhongtian, who was standing next to him, said, "Old Dai's research definitely has some unscientific aspects."

Liang Yong'an said, "Old Yi, I think you're a bit of a historical nihilist. Old Dai's content has real-world evidence, but yours doesn't."

Liu Yimin didn't let them continue arguing. Instead, he carefully looked at their research and told them that there wasn't much time left in the training, and everyone should calm down.

Seeing that Hai Zi was in a good mood, Liu Yimin smiled and nodded at him.

"Yan Zhen, how did your postgraduate entrance exam go?" Liu Yimin asked.

Yan Zhen smiled and said, "I passed the re-examination. The graduate student supervisor assignment will take place at the end of June. I wonder if Professor Liu would be willing to take me on as a supervisor?"

Liu Yimin laughed and cursed, "Are you trying to trip me up?"

Yan Zhen smiled and sat down. Li Liangrong reported to him on the research progress of the Xinhua News Agency project.

Liu Yimin assigned each of them a research direction. After looking through the list, Liu Yimin said, "Through my trips abroad and exchanges with Xinhua News Agency staff, I've found that Xinhua, including the People's Daily's overseas correspondents, has shortcomings in its capabilities. Talent and content are the key areas of research."

Li Liangrong said, "We looked into the characteristics of some famous Western journalists and also looked at the characteristics of domestic journalists. I think the national conditions are also different."

"We can't always attribute the reasons to the national conditions and system. In my view, it's more about a lack of courage and a reluctance to argue. Western journalists dare to talk nonsense without regard for the facts, but our journalists don't."

Li Liangrong asked hesitantly, "Teacher Liu, isn't it a bit wrong of him to make such a statement that ignores the facts?"

"I didn't say he was right, but he was right in dealing with scoundrels. Bad people are often brought down by wicked people, and that's how the battlefield of public opinion works—whoever has the most momentum gets the most followers. You should read Le Bon's 'The Crowd,' the power of public opinion is extremely strong."

For example, during my recent trip to Hong Kong, I saw some media outlets spreading nonsense; our media failed to set the record straight.

Li Liangrong seemed thoughtful; his philosophy had always been to let the facts speak for themselves. Liu Yimin could only say that he was too young and didn't understand the international public opinion arena.

(End of this chapter)