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

Zhang Ziyi really suits red.

In that golden expanse, amidst the gray and white crowd, that splash of red stood out brilliantly.

Inexperienced yet passionate.

This scene was filmed several times, and Zhang Yimou always felt he couldn't get enough of it. He loved every eye contact and every subtle expression between the two actors.

It seems that he, as the director, doesn't need to arrange anything; he only needs to faithfully record everything with the camera.

He has his own set of lens aesthetics, loving beautiful compositions, beautiful colors, and beautiful images. For the first time, I felt that these two people were beautiful enough just by appearing in the lens.

As a director, Zhang Yimou understands one principle well: strike while the iron is hot. What if these two lose that feeling later?

He changed the shooting schedule directly, prioritizing the scenes between the two, and filmed their outdoor scenes first, while also finishing the construction of the classroom.

Jiang Lai had such a miserable time, having just finished filming one scene, and now he had to go build a house.

On the village road not far from the classroom.

Hou Yong and Director Zhang finalized the camera positions, set up the lens, adjusted the focus, and confirmed the blocking with Zhang Ziyi. That was it. With only natural light and no dialogue, there was no need for sound recording. This kind of shot couldn't be easier.

One pressed the power button, the other shouted "start," and then they started chatting casually, completely unconcerned about their performance.

Zhang Ziyi carried water buckets and stepped onto a winding country path, while Jiang Lai and the villagers worked enthusiastically in the distance.

She looked around searching for that figure, and he inadvertently caught a glimpse of that red.

She hurriedly lowered her head, but didn't notice the pebbles under her feet. She tripped and stumbled. In his haste, he didn't catch the wooden beam handed to him by the villager and almost hit his foot.

This wasn't required by the script; it was entirely a natural performance by the two actors.

Even after Zhang Ziyi had completely walked out of the frame, Director Zhang still hadn't yelled "cut." The two looked over in confusion, only to find the other person chatting away non-stop.

Zhang Ziyi ran over helplessly, and Director Zhang then said, "Okay, that's good, let's do one more take."

After that, when Zhang Ziyi was fetching water, the two looked at each other, and when they were carrying water back, they looked at each other again. Even when they were far apart, their eyes could still meet in the air.

It seems ambiguous, but it's purer than that word, and it makes your heart itch even more.

Just like when you're young, you'll always unconsciously chase after that figure you like, deliberately taking a longer route, deliberately walking slowly, just to steal a glance at the other person, and you'll be secretly happy, clumsy yet innocent.

The story is set in the 1950s.

According to the custom at that time, for any major event like collective labor, every household had to send food to the men working on the construction site; this was called sending public meals.

But at that time, there were many things that women couldn't do, such as building houses or digging wells, because they were afraid of being tainted by evil spirits.

Building a school was no exception. After delivering the meals to the villagers, the women could only watch from a distance. Zhao Di was one of them.

She cooks different delicious dishes every day, serving them in her biggest, prettiest, and cleanest celadon bowl, hoping that her sweetheart can enjoy the food she has prepared.

"Big sister, what kind of food did you deliver today?"

"Steamed buns and pancakes."

"Zhao Di, what kind of food did you bring?"

"The scallion pancakes I delivered."

"Wow, scallion pancakes are much tastier than steamed buns or flatbreads."

The women chatted idly, and Zhang Ziyi gave perfunctory replies, gazing at the construction site in the distance. Even though she couldn't see clearly, she hoped that the person who would take her share of the communal meal was the one she liked.

There was a custom back then that when a new house was built, a piece of red cloth would be wrapped around the beam for good luck. This cloth was called "red" and was usually woven by the prettiest girl in the village.

The task of weaving the red cloth naturally fell to Zhao Di.

Holding the finished red brocade, she happily headed to the classroom, wanting to hand it to him personally.

It was still that country path, and Zhang Ziyi walked with unusual tension with every step, as if she was constantly considering what to say when she saw him.

Fortunately, someone solved her problem.

A young man surnamed Xia was running towards them from a distance. He was the village carpenter, and everyone called him Carpenter Xia.

"Zhaodi! You brought the red ribbon? I was just about to go to your house to pick it up."

Carpenter Xia greeted them from afar, and as he approached, he began to ask for the red [item] in Zhang Ziyi's hand.

"Give it to me, give it to me!" he urged.

Zhang Ziyi looked reluctant to part, but in that era when free love did not exist, liking and loving someone were completely unspeakable.

"Okay, okay, here you go! It saves me the trouble of delivering it to you!" she said, though she didn't mean it.

Now it's great, I don't have to worry about what to say when we meet anymore, because someone else has already taken it all.

She then asked, "Have you been eating well these past few days, sir?"

Carpenter Xia nodded. "Okay."

"He also gets a government job?"

"Of course I'll eat it."

"So she also tried to eat it?"

"No way, they're cultured people from the city, they can't fight with us for food."

Zhang Ziyi laughed, his gaze passing over the person in front of him and looking towards the construction site in the distance.

"Then how will he eat?"

"Every time, I always make sure my husband gets the first serving."

Zhang Ziyi lowered her head, her eyes darting around, and a little scheme began to take shape. From then on, whenever she delivered meals to the public, she would place that large celadon bowl in the most conspicuous position on the wooden table.

That way, if the husband serves himself a portion, he's more likely to get the food she made.

Young girls always harbor unique little thoughts, their innocence and cuteness making people laugh, yet their deep affection moving people to tears.

Unfortunately, she could only watch from afar and couldn't confirm whether the food her beloved was eating was actually cooked by her.

Love back then was mostly like this: no expensive gifts, no vows of eternal love, just expressing that affection through meals prepared with homemade food.

The last beam, wrapped in Zhao Di's red, was lifted up by the villagers, and the classroom was finally completed.

Mr. Luo was about to give the children their first lesson, and the villagers curiously gathered around the classroom.

In the footage, Zhang Ziyi smiles happily as she runs towards the classroom.

"Respect and order should be maintained between elders and juniors, and this should be observed."

"Respect for elders and juniors should be maintained."

"In life, one must have ambition and aspirations."

"One must have ambition in life."

The sound of Jiang Lai and the children reading aloud could be heard from the classroom.

Zhang Ziyi walked slowly outside the courtyard, listening intently. She was illiterate and couldn't understand the words, but she loved listening to it and thought that the man's voice was the most beautiful sound in the world.

After that, the villagers got used to it and no one came anymore, but she came every day and listened every day.

Zhao Di in the story has been listening to it for over forty years.

Zhang Ziyi, off-camera, also perfectly conveyed that deep emotion.

That day, Zhang Ziyi once again used the excuse of fetching water to take a detour to the well near the classroom.

She stopped and peeked through the fence, just as Jiang Lai opened the door and came out for some fresh air.

It's that touch of red again.

Jiang Lai's eyes lit up, and he unconsciously curled up the corners of his mouth.

Zhang Ziyi hurriedly averted her gaze, took small steps towards the well, and wanted to look back but was too embarrassed.

Jiang Lai stared at the retreating figure, blinked, and then, with a sudden inspiration, looked at the water buckets in the yard, his eyes revealing a shrewdness.

Zhang Yi frowned behind the monitor. Something seemed off. "Not sure, let me check again."

Filming continued. Zhang Ziyi was drawing water from the well, constantly glancing towards the classroom. Just as she finished drawing water and was about to pick up her carrying pole, she saw Jiang Lai come out of the classroom, also carrying a bucket, seemingly there to fetch water.

Seeing that no one was around, she emptied the full bucket back into the well and started drawing water again, waiting for Jiang to come so that the two of them could have some time alone.

A hint of smugness appeared on her lips. I'm so clever.

However, the appearance of one person once again shattered her beautiful fantasy.

It was still Xia the carpenter.

"Sir, are you going to fetch water?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Come on! Let me help you choose!"

A conversation reached her ears, and she turned her head to look. She saw Xia the carpenter pestering Jiang Lai, trying to snatch the water bucket away.

"No need, no need, I can do it myself."

"Don't be so polite! We're used to doing this kind of work, let me do it!"

"Really, I don't need to. I'm not tired at all."

"You're a teacher, how can you do this kind of work!"

After a brief struggle, Xia the carpenter finally managed to snatch the bucket from Jiang Lai's hands.

Jiang Lai even shouted, sounding particularly aggrieved, "I can do it!"

Zhang Ziyi's smile froze.

Carpenter Xia walked to the well with a simple smile and waved to Zhang Ziyi, "Zhaodi, what brings you here to fetch water?"

Zhang Ziyi's face darkened, and he didn't even glance at him.

Jiang Lai, whose water bucket had been taken away, could only follow behind dejectedly. As Zhang Ziyi brushed past him, her expression turned shy again, and she said in a barely audible voice, "You should come to my house for dinner tomorrow."

Because my husband is from out of town, we usually eat at the homes of fellow villagers, rotating from one to another each day; this is called "sending meals."

"I know," Jiang Lai nodded.

Even after Zhang Ziyi had walked away, he kept turning back to look at her, sighed, and whispered, "What a pity."

Zhang Yi frowned even more. This Luo Changyu seemed to be different from what she had imagined.