Reborn in the Chinese Entertainment Industry: You're a Director, But You're a Casanova?

The capital city is already chilly as autumn arrives.

The residential compound for employees of the Beijing Film Studio is quite old.

There are no red carpets and flashing lights like in the outside world of fame and fortune, but any one of the people who live here is a figure written into the history of Chinese cinema.

Around 11 a.m., Liu Yuehua, carrying two bottles of Red Star Erguotou liquor and a pound of pig's head meat, knocked on the door of the Tianzhuang family.

The person who opened the door was an elderly woman with gray hair and a kind face.

This is Tian Zhuangzhuang's mother, Yu Lan, a pioneer of Chinese cinema and a true people's artist.

"Yuehua's here! Come in quickly, it must be windy outside!"

Teacher Yu Lan smiled and accepted the wine and pig's head meat from Liu Yuehua's hand.

"You're here, why did you bring anything? They're in the living room, dinner will be ready soon."

"Grandma Yu, I came here specifically to enjoy your noodles. No other restaurant makes them as authentic as yours."

Upon entering the living room, Tian Zhuangzhuang was wearing reading glasses and sitting on the sofa reading a newspaper.

Sitting next to him was a middle-aged man with a simple and thin appearance, who was taking notes on a thick script. This man was Li Xuejian, Tian Zhuangzhuang's cousin.

"Teacher Tian, ​​Teacher Li," Liu Yuehua greeted them politely.

In this room, he didn't act with the same nonchalant attitude he had outside; this was a sign of respect for a true veteran artist.

Li Xuejian put down the script and looked up, a gentle smile appearing on her face, which had portrayed countless classic characters on screen.

"Yuehua, please sit down."

"You've been making quite a stir these past few days."

"I was here yesterday too, and I watched your film. It was really good."

"When it's released, I'm going to see it myself and buy a ticket."

"Please excuse my poor workmanship. It was actually rushed out and isn't finished yet." Liu Yuehua sat down.

"The work may be rough, but the emotions are genuine." Li Xuejian shook his head, his tone earnest.

"I heard that you pushed that young man to the brink. The physiological reactions of a person under fear and guilt are something that idol actors can't fake."

"You can force out his deepest fears by using methods like staying up all night, drinking ice water, and applying psychological pressure. That's a really ruthless directorial technique."

"If this film gets 100 points, 50 points should go to the script and 40 points to the director."

"But this method can only be used once. Using it too often will harm the actors. That's a stress response, not a performance system."

"If he uses this kind of performance in his next film, he'll be ruined."

"A good actor has to learn to bottle up their emotions. They can pour out a little when they need it, and then close the bottle when they're done. But you've just smashed his bottle."

Liu Yuehua handed over the oranges and nodded.

"Teacher Li explained it very clearly, but I don't plan to teach him acting."

"I just wanted him to shudder. He got the box office and fame, and I got the material and the money. We each got what we wanted, and everyone has a bright future."

"I'm not his father, so why should I care if he becomes useless in the future?"

Tian Zhuangzhuang, who was listening nearby, laughed and put down her newspaper.

"You're a real scoundrel. Go wash your hands and get ready to eat."

Before long, Xiao Liu personally brought out four bowls of steaming hot hand-pulled noodles, a large bowl of fried sauce, and several small dishes of cucumber shreds, radish shreds, bean sprouts, and garlic.

The four of them sat at the table, mixed the noodles, and slurped them down.

Paired with the bottle of Erguotou that Liu Yuehua brought, a bite of noodles followed by a sip of liquor warmed me right up to my stomach.

After lunch, Ms. Yu went back to her room to rest.

Tian Zhuangzhuang put down her chopsticks, and the expression on her face slowly calmed down.

"Yuehua, you did a great job at yesterday's screening."

"Using Hollywood checks to slap Lu's face is a way of venting our anger for those of us who have been disgusted by him."

"But on the surface, it looks like you won, but in reality, you only captured a pawn that had crossed the river."

"Old Lu is just a shield that was pushed forward by others."

Liu Yuehua picked up a bottle of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) and poured it for Tian Zhuangzhuang, his eyes sharpening.

"Teacher, I brought this wine today because of this."

"I'm quite curious, wasn't your collaboration with Chairman Han quite pleasant before?"

"Why didn't he say a word in my defense this time? He just gave up."

"My master even gave up his position as deputy commander in order to smooth things over."

Liu Yuehua's voice turned cold.

"I'm not one to suffer a loss. My master took such a huge blunder for me, I can't not even know who fired the shot."

"That sycophantic old man doesn't have the power to make my master resign. Who's really pulling the strings behind the scenes?"

Tian Zhuangzhuang sighed, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, handed one to Liu Yuehua, and lit one for himself.

"You don't mind if I smoke, do you?"

Liu Yuehua didn't say anything. "You can smoke in your own home, what right do I have to tell you what to do?" But thinking of Teacher Li, he couldn't help but speak up.

"Teacher Li has only recently recovered from her illness; it's not good for you to smoke."

Tian Zhuangzhuang: "..."

Li Xuejian: "..."

Tian Zhuangzhuang casually put down his cigarette.

"Do you still remember Mr. Ma?"

Liu Yuehua frowned. Of course he remembered Mr. Ma, who was originally at China Film Group, but was dragged into trouble because Lu Chuan was at odds with him. After his comeback, he was transferred to the Film Bureau, but was suspended again because "Peng Zu" won an award.

"Remember."

Liu Yuehua gave a cold laugh.

"What? That guy surnamed Ma is still causing trouble even after he stepped down? He's back to his old ways?"

"He was very honest. He was transferred from the bureau to another unit, and now he's gone to Hong Kong and hasn't shown his face since."

Tian Zhuangzhuang remained silent for a moment.

"Because someone told him to shut up. The one who really came after you was Mr. Ma's brother."

"Did Mr. Ma really think he could have maintained his position so securely when he was so arrogant and domineering in the industry?"

Tian Zhuangzhuang dipped her finger in some tea on the table and wrote a few words.

"His older brother isn't in our system, but in this department." Niu Yuehua's pupils contracted sharply when he saw those words.

That was a crucial department that could directly intervene in policy and even send official internal reports directly to the highest levels of government.

And Mr. Ma's brother is the actual office director of that department, an absolute confidant of the top leader, and wields terrifying power.

"Now you understand, right?"

Tian Zhuangzhuang wiped the water stains off the table.

The document that Old Lu and a dozen others co-authored was not submitted by them; it was placed on the leader's desk by someone else.

Tian Zhuangzhuang looked at Liu Yuehua, afraid that he was too young to understand, so she broke it down and explained the situation to him in detail.

"Han Shanping is a businessman who understands film, but first and foremost he is the head of a state-owned enterprise within the system."

"Faced with this level of pressure, the political risks far outweigh the commercial rewards, leaving him with no choice but to shut up and back down."

"The document you got from the transportation department was useful, but it was only a buffer against that kind of person. In the end, it was your mentor who went to the retired leader, gave him face, and handed over his hat. Only then did that person feel that he had saved face and withdrew his hand."