Seeking good fortune and avoiding misfortune, I became a legend in the entertainment industry by avo

Chapter 208 Elder Lan Agreed

Various garments hang in succession on the display racks.

Each set has a small tag attached to it, indicating the origin of the outfit.

Some are portraits from the Ming Dynasty, some are restoration reports of unearthed textiles, and some are derived from a few sentences of text in local chronicles.

Lan Tianye looked through the sets one by one.

He didn't speak, but just looked very carefully.

Occasionally, I'll stop in front of an outfit to examine its details.

The trim on the cuffs, the way the waistband is tied, and the curve of the collar.

Upon seeing Qin Liangyu's plain clothes from her later years, he suddenly asked, "What kind of fabric is used for this?"

"Plain silk, a common fabric in eastern Sichuan during the late Ming Dynasty," Dong Qiyu quickly replied. "We found a master craftsman who specializes in traditional weaving techniques to weave it on a hand loom. The dyeing formula is also from the Ming Dynasty, using the coloring of smoke tree wood and locust flower buds."

Lan Tianye nodded and continued walking forward until he reached a set of court robes.

It was a red silk robe, with an upper garment and a lower garment, and a wide belt around the waist.

The person on the platform wore a five-ridged crown, which was the rank of Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion.

Lan Tianye did not rush to reach out.

He first walked around it, looking at it from the front to the back, from the crown to the boots.

Then he stopped.

He stopped in front of Liang Guan.

Each beam of the main beam was woven from fine bamboo strips and wrapped in black gauze, with the spacing between the beams being perfectly precise.

A jade ornament was inlaid on the forehead of the crown. The jade was warm and smooth, and cloud patterns were carved on it.

Lan Tianye stretched out his hand, his fingers hovering above Liang Guan, without falling.

"This crown," he said softly, "was it modeled after?"

Dong Qiyu immediately replied, "We consulted the illustrations of official robes and hats in Volume 60 of the 'Collected Statutes of the Ming Dynasty,' as well as photographs of actual Ming Dynasty beam-shaped hats from the Confucius Mansion in Qufu. We measured the curvature, spacing, and height of each beam."

Lan Tianye reached out and gently touched the edge of the beam: "Five beams, Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, fifth rank."

"Yes," Dong Qiyu nodded, "but Sun Chengzong was appointed Grand Secretary and Commander-in-Chief of Jiliao, with the additional title of Minister of War. The Minister of War is a second-rank official, so we studied it for a long time and finally decided on the Five Beams."

Why?

"Because the History of Ming records that Sun Chengzong was appointed Minister of War and Grand Secretary of the Dongge Pavilion in the second year of the Tianqi reign, but his original official title was Grand Secretary and Minister of War was an additional title. The dress code for additional titles in the Ming Dynasty was based on the original official title, so we follow the five beams of Grand Secretary, not Minister."

Lan Tianye turned and glanced at Dong Qiyu.

There was surprise in his eyes.

The girl's ability to explain the official system to this extent exceeded his expectations.

He offered no comment and continued reading the second and third sets.

"Xiao Zhang," he called Zhang Qilin.

"Teacher Lan, please speak."

Lan Tianye pointed to the various costumes on the display shelf: "These clothes, after the play is over, don't put them away in the storeroom to gather dust. Find a place to hang them up so that future performances can enjoy them."

Let people see just how dignified our ancient Chinese artifacts really were.

Zhang Qilin looked into the old man's eyes, and there was something in them that he had never seen before.

It is an old man entrusting his last remaining thoughts about life to someone.

"Teacher Lan," Zhang Qilin said, "Don't worry, our Chinese cultural treasures shouldn't be buried. After the play is over, I will definitely find a suitable place to display these costumes and let more people appreciate the charm of our ancient costume culture."

Lan Tianye nodded with satisfaction, and the group moved to the other side, where the standard equipment of the White Spear Soldiers was displayed.

Each weapon was restored to its original form; the hook-and-sickle spearhead even had an aged finish, making it look like it was actually used on the battlefield.

Lan Tianye picked up a waist knife, weighed it in his hand, and then put it back.

He turned around and looked at Zhang Qilin.

"How much did these cost?"

Zhang Qilin paused for a moment, then answered truthfully: "The budget for costumes, props, and sets is around six million, and we may need to add more later."

"Six million," Lan Tianye nodded slowly.

Lan Tianye continued his tour and saw a row of looms.

"Are these looms," he began, "just for show, or are they actually used?"

"It's really useful," Dong Qiyu walked over and took a piece of cloth that hadn't yet come off the loom from beside the loom. "Look at this piece of cloth, we wove it ourselves. The warp is silk, and the weft is mixed with ramie. The texture is crisper than pure silk and softer than pure ramie. This kind of cloth was used for the everyday clothes of the literati in the late Ming Dynasty."

Lan Tianye took the fabric, touched it with his hands, and nodded in satisfaction.

He toured the entire workshop.

When he saw the python pattern being embroidered on the patch of a python robe, he stopped and bent down to look at it for a full five minutes.

The embroiderer's hand froze in mid-air, hesitant to put the needle down.

"You continue embroidering," Lan Tianye said with a gentle smile. "Let me take a look."

The embroiderer then continued.

Golden threads danced between her fingertips, revealing the scales of the python one by one.

After embroidering each piece, she would gently flick the gold thread with the tip of her needle to make it adhere to the satin surface.

After Lan Tianye finished reading, he straightened up.

He walked back to the center of the workshop, stood there, and looked around the entire workshop again.

Then, he looked at Zhang Qilin with an approving smile: "The work is very well done; you can tell that a lot of effort was put into it."

"Let's go then," Lan Tianye took two steps outside, then stopped, looked back, and said, "Miss Dong."

"Teacher Lan, please speak."

"You did very well," the old man said, looking at her earnestly. "Really very well."

Dong Qiyu bowed and said, "Thank you, Teacher Lan."

Several people walked out of the factory.

On the way back from the studio, the car was unusually quiet.

Lan Tianye leaned back in the back seat, closed his eyes to rest, and his face was expressionless.

Pu Cunxin glanced at the mirror a few times but didn't say anything.

When the car arrived at Lan Tianye's house, the old man opened his eyes, pushed open the door, and got out of the car.

"Xiao Zhang," he called to Zhang Qilin, who was about to get off the car, "have someone send the script to me tomorrow or the day after."

Zhang Qilin's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly replied, "Okay, Teacher Lan."

Lan Tianye nodded, turned around and went home.

The car door closed, Pu Cunxin started the car, and slowly drove away.

Upon returning to the Beijing People's Art Theatre, Zhang Qilin immediately went to find Ren Ming.

When Ren Ming heard that Elder Lan had agreed, he excitedly patted Zhang Qilin on the shoulder: "Great! Elder Lan agreed, so this film is halfway to success. With him overseeing it, both its artistic quality and influence are guaranteed. You'll be busy with work from now on. Are you still going to film?"

"Director Ren, I won't be going out to act for a while; I'll focus on this project."

"Very good, there are still many things that require your communication and coordination —"

After discussing the matter for several hours, Zhang Qilin finally left the office.

He returned to the rehearsal room, where all the interns were scattered in various corners, resting.

Upon seeing Zhang Qilin walk in, Li Wei and the others quickly surrounded him. Song Yi looked up, hesitated for a moment, and then continued reading.

Li Wei asked cheerfully, "Brother Lin, what have you been busy with lately? I haven't seen you around for a long time."

Zhang Qilin smiled at her, then clapped his hands: "Everyone come here for a moment, I have something to announce."

Hearing Zhang Qilin's greeting, everyone gathered around, their faces filled with curiosity.

Zhang Qilin looked around and said with a smile, "I have good news for you all. The theater will be putting on a play called 'Qin Liangyu,' and I will arrange for each of you to have one or two lines."

Upon hearing Zhang Qilin's words, everyone was first taken aback, then their faces lit up with surprise.

Li Wei asked eagerly, "Brother Lin, really? We can have lines in the play too! That's amazing!"

The interns around them also started whispering among themselves.

Seeing everyone's excited expressions, Zhang Qilin smiled and continued, "Not only that, but many of the theater's pillars will be joining this production, including Grandpa Lan. You should cherish this opportunity."

Upon hearing that Old Master Lan would also be in charge, everyone was briefly taken aback, before erupting into an even more heated discussion.

"Wow, is it really Teacher Lan Tianye? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"

"I'm so excited to be able to act on the same stage as Teacher Lan."

Even Song Yi couldn't help but get excited when she heard the news.

For these interns, being able to share the stage with a senior like Mr. Lan is a rare opportunity in their careers.

Li Wei said with anticipation, "It's such a rare opportunity to share the stage with a senior like Teacher Lan. I must make the most of it. Maybe a few pointers from Teacher Lan will help my acting skills improve by leaps and bounds."

Another intern excitedly chimed in, "Yes, this is a rare learning opportunity. I can be proud of it for a long time when I talk about it with others."

With an excited expression, Zhao Hong asked, "Brother Lin, how did you manage to get this opportunity for us? It must have taken a lot of effort."

Zhang Qilin looked at Zhao Hong with satisfaction. Among these interns, he was the one who knew how to flatter, while the others were all blinded by the news.

Zhang Qilin said modestly, "This play was originally created for you, but it grew bigger and bigger as more teachers joined, so you can only play one or two lines now. But don't be discouraged, this play brings together many veteran artists from the academy and can provide you with an excellent learning platform."

Everyone was deeply moved when Zhang Qilin told them that he had put on this play just for them.

They stayed in the academy for more than a year and were very familiar with the situation there. For the first two years, interns like them could only play minor roles in various film crews.

It is extremely difficult to obtain even a single line of dialogue, so one can imagine the difficulties Zhang Qilin faced in putting on a play for them.

Li Wei's eyes were slightly red: "Brother Lin, you've sacrificed so much for us, we'll definitely act well and live up to your expectations."

Zhao Hong quickly chimed in, "Brother Lin, we will definitely work hard to improve ourselves and follow you closely in the future."

The other interns nodded in agreement.

Seeing the admiring looks in everyone's eyes, Zhang Qilin had achieved his goal. He comforted everyone for a few moments and then went to attend to other matters.

Back in the courtyard that evening, Zhang Qilin quickly washed up and sat down at his desk to think about what to do next.

The play is progressing smoothly, but Zhang Qilin is well aware that there are still many crucial aspects that need to be coordinated.

Especially the lead actors and their teachers, they are all very busy, so we need to confirm rehearsal times with them in advance.

And most importantly, he had five million in cash flow, and he couldn't let it sit there. With that in mind, Zhang Qilin walked to the bedside and sat down cross-legged.

Use your hands to perform the Zi-Wu Mudra.

"The Heavenly Cycle is forty-nine, and one is removed—"

"Starting a business with 5 million in startup capital, how can I make money?"

The fortune stick container spun, deducting all the luck points and sending out several sticks.