Huayu: Reborn in 97, transferring to the Central Academy of Drama's star-studded class

In the era of print media, the entertainment industry hated paparazzi the most.

Especially in Hong Kong, because of the booming economy, entertainment magazines were incredibly lucrative. Before the internet was popular, if you wanted to get the latest gossip, you had to buy newspapers and magazines.

Back then, paparazzi and newspapers didn't talk to celebrities about "I'll take your dirt and you can buy it." They just wanted to publish whatever they could get their hands on, which was definitely more profitable than that.

With the development of online media, print media sales have declined, which is why they might consider letting celebrities buy them.

With the advent of the self-media era, paparazzi have almost disappeared because everyone can be a paparazzi. Celebrities no longer buy paparazzi because they simply can't buy them all. So nowadays, celebrities all act like pushovers, pretend to be good people, and are extremely low-key.

Everyone now knows that most gossip reports are taken out of context and exaggerated, just to grab attention.

Whether a report is true or false, it will cause harm to the person involved. Of course, illegal reports must be severely punished, but others are debatable.

To give a famous example, the Edison Chen photo scandal. Most people believe that Edison Chen offended those women, but in the eyes of people in the Hong Kong entertainment industry, Edison Chen and these female celebrities were all victims.

Whether these people's behavior is moral is a matter of opinion; everyone has a different view. But the most fundamental thing is that this is their privacy.

It wasn't Teacher Chen who exposed these photos; they were leaked accidentally by someone else, and all those involved are victims.

Let's look at what Teacher Chen did. He held a press conference and frankly admitted that he took the photos, but he didn't expect the photos to be leaked and cause harm to so many people. He admitted that it was all his fault and took all the blame on himself.

The most manly thing about him was that at the peak of his looks and the rise of his career, he announced an indefinite retirement from the entertainment industry.

Of course, his acting career won't be good whether he retires or not, but his willingness to admit his mistakes is at least better than many who do things but don't dare to admit them and still try to make money.

Next Magazine, a newspaper that claims to operate around the clock, specializes in tracking and secretly photographing celebrities to expose their private lives.

They all claim to operate around the clock, so of course they won't rest during the Chinese New Year either.

Wei Dashen is a veteran paparazzi for this newspaper.

On New Year's Eve, after following a female celebrity, he was on his way home when he saw a beautiful figure while passing by a seaside promenade.

The paparazzi have such sharp eyes; they have practically memorized all the big and small stars in Hong Kong. He recognized Maggie Cheung at a glance.

Out of professional habit, he quickly jumped into the bushes and lay down; his intuition told him that something was definitely up.

Sure enough, a man walked over not long after and acted intimately with Maggie Cheung. She knew that man; he was Jiang Lai, another boss of Tianmu. She had also attended the banquet a while ago.

Wei Dashen was instantly excited, and the thought of the big news he was about to break made him tremble.

He followed them filming until it started raining heavily, until the two ran into the hotel, and until Maggie Cheung left in the morning.

All I can say is that the paparazzi's professionalism is truly amazing; they were soaked to the bone themselves but didn't let their cameras get wet.

After waiting for a long time without seeing Jiang Lai come out, Wei Dashen decided to leave, as he had already gathered enough material.

Back at the newspaper office, he excitedly went to find the editor-in-chief.

"Editor-in-Chief Mai! Look at what I took!"

Editor-in-Chief Mai looked at each photo one by one with his camera.

Wei Dashen stood to the side, rubbing his hands together, his face full of anticipation. "Editor-in-Chief Mai, isn't this scoop amazing? Zhang Manyu! That's Zhang Manyu!"

Editor-in-Chief Mai remained silent for a long time before saying, "Don't publish it yet."

Wei Dashen was taken aback. "Huh? Why?"

"Maggie Cheung is alright, but how many people in Hong Kong know Jiang Lai?"

Wei Dashen scratched his head.

"If you send it out now, readers will just glance at it and move on."

Editor-in-Chief Mai leaned back in his chair. "If we're going to publish it, we have to wait until this person is at their most newsworthy. That's when it really explodes, and our sales will be even higher!"

Wei Dashen thought for a moment, then gave a thumbs up, "The editor-in-chief is really something, I just couldn't have thought of that."

Editor-in-Chief Mai smiled and said smugly, "You still have a lot to learn."

"Editor-in-chief, when will this person be at their most popular?"

Editor-in-Chief Mai's smile froze on his face as he glared at Wei Dashen. "I sent you to photograph Zhang Baizhi, and what did you photograph?"

Wei Dashen shrank back, "Not...not yet..."

"If you can't take a picture, then go take one!"

Wei Dashen ran away sheepishly.

Editor-in-Chief Mai leaned back in his chair, thought for a moment, and then picked up the phone.

"Hey, can you investigate someone for me? The new boss of Sky Curtain."

Jiang Lai was unaware that he was being watched. He spent a few more days in Hong Kong before flying back to Beijing.

Turning our attention to Berlin, just a few days after the New Year, Sister Ying flew from New York to Berlin.

When Zhang Ziyi saw her in the hotel lobby, he happily rushed up to her for a hug, "Sister Ying? What brings you here?"

"I just came to see you." Sister Ying smiled and hugged Zhang Ziyi.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Yingjie said she needed to talk to Zhang Yimou about something, so Zhang Ziyi led her to Zhang Yimou's room.

Just before I went in, Sister Ying waved her hand and said, "Don't come in. I'm talking to him about private matters."

Zhang Ziyi didn't think much of it, but still waited at the door, intending to catch up with Sister Ying and learn more about Jiang Lai from the side.

However, not long after, Zhang Yi's shout could be heard coming from inside the room: "What's mine is mine, and I won't agree to this!"

The door was opened, and Sister Ying came out, only to be slammed shut again.

Zhang Ziyi quickly grabbed her, "Sister Ying, what's wrong?"

Ying patted her head, "It's nothing, it's just a disagreement about work."

Zhang Ziyi wanted to ask more, but Sister Ying waved her hand, indicating that there was no need to ask anymore.

In the following days, Sister Ying left early and returned late, and no one knew what she was busy with or why she had come.

When Zhang Ziyi asked her, she said she went out for a walk. Zhang Ziyi knew she wasn't telling the truth, but he didn't press her further.

Time flies, and it's already February 9th, the opening ceremony of the film festival.

Yingjie knocked on Zhang Ziyi's door early in the morning, carrying a formal dress.

"Try it on."

Zhang Ziyi took it; it was a floor-length, orange-red dress.

"Valentino haute couture," Yingjie said. "Jiang Lai specially commissioned someone to make it for you."

Zhang Ziyi smiled shyly, her doubts vanishing. She changed into the dress, stood in front of the mirror, and twirled around. It fit perfectly, and the orange-red color made her skin look very fair. She looked dignified and elegant.

Yingjie leaned against the side with her arms crossed, somewhat amazed by the young girl, and unconsciously recalled a sentence Jiang Lai had said back then.

"It's better than that red bellyband."

I have no idea what this bastard is talking about, the red bellyband.

That evening, Zhang Ziyi walked down the red carpet arm in arm with Ying, who was dressed in a smart women's suit.

Even though she had a fight with Director Zhang, I don't know how Sister Ying got into the team.

She suppressed her doubts and waved generously to the crowd.

She wasn't the kind of woman who would be stunning at first glance, but she had a clean and elegant demeanor, and her orange-red dress made her stand out in the crowd.

A reporter followed her with a camera, and she turned her head slightly, revealing a polite smile.

Sister Ying patiently stayed with her; female stars always need more opportunities to be in the public eye.

After walking the red carpet and taking their seats, the opening ceremony officially began. Zhang Ziyi was surprised to find that the chairman of this year's jury was a familiar face.

Gong Li!

Zhang Ziyi secretly glanced at Zhang Yimou.

Zhang Yimou, on the other hand, remained remarkably calm, staring straight ahead.

As the chair of the jury, Gong Li was obliged to give a speech. She spoke in Chinese, at a slow pace, with a touch of humor.

"Because of the language barrier, the organizers needed to hire a translator for me. I'm probably the most expensive employee the film festival hired."

After the translation, laughter erupted from the audience, creating a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.

Zhang Ziyi smiled as well, but her gaze kept lingering on Gong Li.

Both are "Zhang Yimou girls," but the other has already reached this position.

Her eyes flashed with envy and a burgeoning ambition.

After the opening ceremony, the film festival officially began its screening phase.

The premiere of "My Father and Mother" was scheduled for the seventh day, a time that would maintain a sense of novelty before the awards ceremony and prevent it from being overshadowed by many other films.

Zhang Ziyi continued to follow Zhang Yimou around for promotions and to attend parties, while Yingjie acted as her translator.

The film received rave reviews, with some critics describing it as "pure Eastern-style love."

Foreigners may not understand the historical context, but thanks to Jiang Lai's modifications, everyone can understand the passionate, mutual love between the naive young woman and the refined man.

Zhang Yimou's clever trick is to film the commonalities of humanity, rather than suffering.

Time flies, and the closing ceremony is here in the blink of an eye.