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

The weather has turned cooler, and November has arrived in the blink of an eye.

Jiang Lai dragged his suitcase out of Hong Kong Airport. The weather here was quite comfortable, neither too hot nor too cold.

After filming the last scene at Cangyan Mountain a while ago, the crew had to move to Zhejiang Province, and then they were told they would have to go to Hengdian. Jiang Lai really wanted to go there, but then Jiang Zhiqiang suddenly approached him and said he had a favor to ask him for help.

"You know director Wong Kar-wai, right? He's short an actor, it's not a big role. Why don't you give him a try? Whether you get the part or not, I'll consider it a favor I owe you," Jiang Zhiqiang said sincerely.

Jiang Lai asked curiously, "Why didn't he find someone himself?"

Jiang Zhiqiang smiled and said, "He looked for many actors, but none of them were satisfactory."

"How can you be so sure I'll be fine?"

"Lai Zai, I believe in you!"

Jiang Zhiqiang patted Jiang Lai's arm.

In reality, he had no idea what Wong Kar-wai's standards were; he just said he wanted someone with a sexy back view, and he felt that Jiang Lai's muscular physique was quite sexy right now.

Having said that, Jiang Lai couldn't refuse. Besides, he was genuinely curious about Hong Kong, the "Hollywood of the East." Although it had declined, there was no harm in going to take a look.

What's more, the movie that Jiang Zhiqiang recommended for the audition is called "In the Mood for Love," so I definitely have to go see it.

Upon arriving at the arrival hall, Jiang Lai looked around and soon spotted a sign with his name on it being held up and waved vigorously.

Jiang Lai walked towards the sign, and when he saw the person holding it, he suddenly felt like laughing.

"Hello, hello, I am Jiang Lai."

The man put down the sign, looked him up and down, grinned, and said, "Oh, Mr. Jiang, hello, hello. I'm Jiang Yuecheng. Director Wang sent me to pick you up."

Jiang Yuecheng, it doesn't matter if you're not familiar with this name, he acted in a movie, "A Chinese Odyssey", playing the blind man from the Axe Gang.

But he is a director by training and is currently an assistant director on Wong Kar-wai's film crew.

"It's an honor to meet you." Jiang Lai suppressed a laugh and shook hands with the other person.

Jiang Yuecheng clearly had no idea what he was laughing at, and enthusiastically helped him pull his suitcase over, "Let's go, let's go, the car is outside."

The two walked out of the airport, and a gray van was parked on the side of the road. They got in and drove onto the highway.

Jiang Lai looked out the window. The high-rise buildings here were extremely dense, and neon signs stretched out of the street in layers, with traditional Chinese characters and English mixed together, making it dazzling to look at.

The streets were bustling with people, and everywhere you looked there were stylishly dressed young men and women. Queues formed outside the tea restaurants, and the trams swayed along the tracks, making a clear, ringing sound.

"How is it? Hong Kong is nice, isn't it?" Jiang Yuecheng asked as he drove.

"It's quite lively," Jiang replied.

"Of course, Hong Kong is very prosperous, it's just that the film industry is a bit sluggish right now." Jiang Yuecheng sighed.

Jiang Lai didn't reply and continued looking out the window.

As the car entered Kowloon Peninsula, the streets narrowed, and the buildings on both sides became older, with air conditioner units and clothes racks covering the walls. It looked messy, yet it had an indescribable sense of everyday life.

"We're almost there," Jiang Yuecheng said, turning into a side road.

Austin Road.

The street wasn't wide, with rows of tenement buildings standing side by side on both sides. The walls were mottled, the windows were small, and the ground floor was filled with all kinds of small shops, such as hardware stores, grocery stores, and herbal tea shops. The signs were one after another, crowded together.

Jiang Yuecheng parked the car on the side of the road and pointed to one of the buildings. "This is it."

Jiang got off the bus, looked around, and thought, "These buildings are definitely very Hong Kong."

"Let's go upstairs." Jiang Yuecheng led him into the stairwell.

Upon reaching the third floor, Jiang Yuecheng pushed open an iron door.

Inside is a renovated space. What used to be several separate apartments has been opened up and repartitioned into rooms. It's obvious that it was renovated for filming a movie.

Just as Jiang Yuecheng was about to call for help, Jiang Lai grabbed him and pointed ahead.

It turned out that a film crew was shooting a movie.

A room was filled with people. Wong Kar-wai sat behind a monitor, while Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung performed in front of him.

Tony Leung, wearing a white shirt and sporting a slicked-back hairstyle, sat on a stool by the bed, smoking.

Maggie Cheung sat on the edge of the bed, wearing a high-necked cheongsam that perfectly accentuated her slender waist.

"Do you think they'll play until dawn?" Maggie Cheung asked, holding her water glass, her whole body radiating tension and unease.

"Mrs. Sun said she'd only play eight rounds," Tony Leung replied.

"You believe her?" Maggie Cheung raised her glass and took a sip of water, trying to hide her nervousness.

"Why don't you take a nap? I'll wake you up once they've dispersed."

"And what about you?"

"I'll finish writing this part first."

Tony Leung turned around and began writing on the small table. Maggie Cheung put down her water glass, crossed her legs, and leaned over to look at him.

Jiang was captivated by the performance. Although he didn't understand the lines very well because he wasn't very familiar with Cantonese, he could sense an ambiguous, restrained, and unspoken tension flowing through the performance.

And Maggie Cheung is really too beautiful.

That kind of beauty is not flamboyant, but a quiet and restrained beauty. The cheongsam clings to her body, from her shoulders to her waist and then to her hips, every curve is just right.

"Cut! That's a good take. Let's take a break." Wong Kar-wai's voice came from behind the monitor.

The staff immediately sprang into action, with some helping Maggie Cheung up and others handing water to Tony Leung.

Jiang Lai secretly felt it was a pity, as it wasn't quite enough.

"Let's go, I'll take you to find the director." Jiang Yuecheng tugged at him.

The two walked up to Wong Kar-wai.

Jiang Yuecheng stepped forward. "Director, the person has been brought here. This is Jiang Lai."

Wong Kar-wai looked up, his expression behind his sunglasses was unclear, but the corners of his mouth were up, so he must have been smiling.

He had heard from Jiang Zhiqiang that this person was not only an actor, but also a major investor in mainland China, and that directors are always enthusiastic when dealing with their financial backers.

"Hello, Mr. Jiang." He extended his hand and spoke in broken Mandarin.

Jiang Lai grasped his hand. "Director Wang, hello."

Wong Kar-wai then asked with concern, "Would you like to rest for a bit? Flying must be tiring."

"No need," Jiang Lai shook his head. "Let's just get straight to the audition and not waste everyone's time."

Wong Kar-wai glanced at him and nodded. "Okay, let's get started."

He turned to the staff and shouted, "Bring the mahjong table out."

Several people brought over a square table, laid out a tablecloth, set out mahjong tiles, and pulled up four chairs. The lighting technician adjusted the lights, casting a soft halo on the tabletop.

A staff member led Jiang to a small cubicle next to him and handed him a white shirt and a pair of black suit pants.

"The clothes might not fit perfectly, please bear with it for now," the staff member said apologetically.

Jiang looked at the size and it was indeed a bit small, but he didn't say anything and quickly changed into it.

The white shirt was a little tight, clinging to his body and outlining the contours of his well-developed muscles.

As he walked out of the cubicle, Wong Kar-wai glanced at him and scratched his chin inexplicably.

"Come on, sit here." Wong Kar-wai pointed to a chair.

Jiang Lai walked over and sat down.

The chairs in the other three directions were empty.

"This scene is very simple." Wong Kar-wai stood behind him, speaking slowly and deliberately. "You don't need to show your face, just your back."

Jiang Lai was taken aback. "Just a view of his back?"

"Yes, just a view of your back." Wong Kar-wai nodded. "But I want you to use that view of your back to convey a feeling."

"How does it feel?"

Wong Kar-wai didn't say anything, turned around, walked to the side, picked up a tape recorder, and pressed play.

The music started playing.

It is an instrumental piece with a soothing melody, carrying an indescribable ambiguity and languor.

After listening for a few seconds, Jiang Lai suddenly remembered that this was the background music that appeared more than ten times in "In the Mood for Love".

He had seen this movie in his past life. Although he couldn't remember the plot, he had a very deep impression of the music.

Every time I hear it, I picture Maggie Cheung walking gracefully down an alley in a cheongsam, exuding charm and elegance.

Because of this movie, Jiang Lai feels a strange sultry vibe every time he hears this song.

"This piece is called 'Yumeji's Theme.' I want you to use the silhouette of someone playing mahjong to express the feeling of this song," Wong Kar-wai said casually.

Jiang Lai blinked in confusion, "Use your back view... to convey the feeling of this song?"

"Yes," Wong Kar-wai added, "And the back view must be sexy."

Jiang Lai fell silent.

Is this human talk?