Global Film Emperor

Chapter 187 Dinner Party
"Get out of the car."

After parking the car, the two went to a very famous restaurant. Since they had children at home, they naturally couldn't gather at Song Guiyuan's house, so they had to move the battleground to the restaurant.

Although the Lu family's living conditions have improved, Lu Nan hasn't changed much. He still eats in the cafeteria every day, and occasionally when he craves something delicious, he and his friends will go to a small, affordable restaurant to improve their meals, and that's about it.

She had hardly ever eaten at fancy restaurants, except for the few times Lu Ze had taken her there. This pretty young girl became rather reserved once inside the restaurant, looking around nervously and obediently following behind Lu Ze.

She was still troubled by that matter. Although she knew her brother was strongly dissatisfied with his boyfriend, how could she just let go of her first love? And how could she possibly break up with him tomorrow, as Lu Ze had said?

Lu Ze ignored her and followed the waiter to the door of the private room. After the waiter knocked, he led his sister inside.

"You're back? You're the only one missing. Come on, sit down. Is this our sister? Wow! She's tall and pretty. Sit down next to your sister. I'm telling you, Lu'er, our sister is much prettier than you."

As soon as she entered, Wang Zhen sat with her back to the door. She turned her head, took a sip of her juice, joked with Lu Ze, and pulled Lu Nan's hand to sit next to her.

"I've just gone astray. My dad is more handsome than me. He's the one who surpasses his father, but I'm getting worse as I grow up."

Although Lu Ze was joking, he wasn't lying. When he was a child, around sixteen or seventeen, the villagers and people from Zhao Jiabangzi said that Lu Ze looked like Fei Xiang, with big eyes, a high nose, and fair skin—he was really handsome. Back then, when he was in high school, he received a lot of love letters.

But for some reason, the older he got, the rougher he became. He used to be called a pretty boy, but after spending a few years in Hengdian, plus the wind and rain he endured while filming after his debut, he can only rely on his original looks to get by now.

Lu Nan, on the other hand, was quite different. She was incredibly ugly as a child, as dark as a potato, and unlike other little girls, she didn't care about her appearance. She would run around the village wearing an Ultraman T-shirt that Lu Ze had discarded when he was a child.

When she got home that evening, Lu Ze gave her a wash. He brought her a basin of clear water, but it turned muddy as soon as she put her hands in it. She could scrub off two pounds of mud with a washcloth.

But as she grew up, she became fair-skinned and tall. Her long, straight legs made even the stinky boys in the village who used to laugh at her for being ugly drool. As for her appearance, if you had to say who she looked like, Lu Ze thought his younger sister looked a lot like Joey Wong.

Looking at the people present tonight, there were only a few, including Song Guiyuan and his wife, Wang Zhen, and Zhuang Yu. After having Lu Nan greet them, Lu Ze poured himself a beer and asked a question.

"Sister-in-law, where's the child?"

“I’ll take care of my mother-in-law for one night. It’s rare for everyone to have some free time today, so we all came over to get together. My husband, Lao Song, is also quite happy, so I’ll let him have a few more drinks today.”

Zhuang Xue is indeed a virtuous woman. Originally a university music teacher, although her appearance is not top-notch, her temperament is truly outstanding. She is also very sensible in public and gives Song Guiyuan face. Perhaps, this is why Old Song insisted on marrying her.

Everyone chatted and laughed as the waiter began to serve the dishes. The plating was exquisite, but the portions were too small. A large plate was bigger than Lu Ze's fat face, yet it only held a tiny amount of food.

But the main task tonight is drinking. Everyone poured a glass of baijiu. Zhuang Xue couldn't drink because she had just finished her postpartum confinement, and Lu Nan naturally couldn't drink either. Everyone else raised their glasses.

"Come on, Brother Song, I have to have a toast with you. It's my fault for not coming back earlier; I've been filming in Hong Kong the whole time and didn't even attend Xiao Liang's one-month celebration. Anyway, I'll have a drink."

"What are you saying? We're all actors, do you think I don't know what's going on? Do you think we need to talk like this among our own brothers? Don't punish me, I'm telling you, come on, let's have a drink."

The two drank their wine in one gulp, and the atmosphere became lively. Wang Zhen started whispering to Lu Nan, which Lu Nan did quite well. Even when she was troubled, she didn't let her emotions get the better of her when talking to others. Lu Ze had been watching Lu Nan closely, and seeing that she was behaving well, he felt quite gratified.

"Brother Zhuang, after talking about Brother Song, I still need to ask you, I heard you signed it?"

Lu Ze didn't mean anything by it; he just wanted to ask about Zhuang Yu's recent situation. Directors definitely need to sign contracts, unless you're a big director who can set up your own studio. Ordinary directors usually only have two options: either sign with a media company, like Han Chen of Qian Shijia, or sign with a big director's studio so that it's easier to attract investment when they want to make a new movie in the future.

"He signed, just like Gui Yuan, he signed with Tiancheng."

Tiancheng Media is a leading media company in China. Its director Lu Ze has also worked with them before, as has Guo Mingde, the director of "My Chief and My Regiment". This is a good choice.

"Congratulations, Brother Zhuang." "It's nothing, nothing to congratulate me on."

Zhuang Yu, who neither smokes nor drinks, was also influenced by Song Guiyuan. He raised his glass and clinked it with Lu Ze's, then took a sip of baijiu. He had something he wanted to ask Lu Ze.

"Filming in Hong Kong is finished. What are your plans? Are you planning to take on a new role or what?"

"I haven't decided yet. I'm just planning to take a break. I've been filming non-stop for the past few years, sometimes even working back-to-back. It's quite tiring. I really want to go on a trip or something to relax."

Last September, Zhuang Yu had told Lu Ze that he was going to write a new script. Now, he was asking Lu Ze this question because he wanted to find out if Lu Ze was interested in taking on a new role, or if he had already taken on a new role. Lu Ze understood this.

But as he said, he had been working in Hengdian for more than two years and had been in the industry for more than three years. He was either filming or studying scripts to prepare for filming. Although he was not as hardworking as Jiang Wenshu, she had not rested for a single day since she became famous. Lu Ze even heard her say that she went home on New Year's Eve and went back to work on New Year's Day.

But in reality, Lu Ze wasn't much more relaxed than Jiang Wenshu.

He's actually someone who's content with a modest life, or rather, he's someone who's happy with modest wealth. It's just that without financial pressure, he'll want to relax and balance work and rest. After working so hard for so long, he wants to take a break, whether it's going out to play or recharging. There's no need to be stuck on set all year round, constantly keeping his mind on edge.

"Okay, my new movie is probably going to start filming in the second half of the year. I'll ask you about it then?"

"Okay, we'll talk about it later."

After that, they stopped talking about work and started chatting about life. Zhuang Xue took out her phone to show everyone her child's daily life and told them about some interesting things that happened to the child. Everyone listened quietly, looking at the maternal glow emanating from Zhuang Xue's face.

After a few rounds of drinks, Lu Ze got up and went to the restroom. He had just come out to wash his hands when he heard the sound of high heels next to him. He turned around and saw Wang Zhen fixing her clothes beside him.

"I heard you don't like Xiaonan's boyfriend? You told her to break up with him after just one meeting today?"

Lu Ze wasn't surprised at all that Wang Zhen knew. How could Lu Nan, with her foolishness, possibly outmaneuver Wang Zhen, this cunning vixen?
Moreover, Wang Zhen already knew, since they were very close friends, especially after the Golden Rooster Awards incident, their relationship had become even closer. At the dinner table just now, Lu Ze could also see Wang Zhen's affection for Lu Nan.

Lu Ze didn't hide the fact that he had met the boy today. He talked with Wang Zhen for a while. Wang Zhen frowned, took out her lipstick and applied it twice in front of the mirror. She was a woman in her thirties and was much more rational than Lu Nan. When she heard that the boy had this kind of personality, she sighed.

"From what you've said, this boy is indeed not suitable for Xiaonan, at least not now. But I have to criticize you. Your reaction today was too extreme. You can disagree, after all, you're her brother. But she's an adult now, with her own independent thoughts. She's not at the age where you used to tell her not to play with certain people and she would obediently listen. She has her own social circle and friends you don't know about. It's really inappropriate for you to resort to scolding her now."

"Then I'd like to ask you to give Xiaonan a lesson, Teacher Wang. I know I went too far, but there are some things I really can't say. Actually, I'm quite worried about this too."

"Come on, I'd rather tear down ten temples than break up one marriage. I won't be your mediator. I can only tell her to look at this relationship and her boyfriend rationally. If she still thinks it's right, I won't continue. If she thinks it's not right, then let this relationship end without any regrets."

"That's great. Some things are best left for women to talk to. Thank you, Teacher Wang. I must treat you to a meal."

"You're too kind. We're like family. Let's go back and have dinner. There's always a way out. Don't worry about it."

Wang Zhen patted Lu Ze on the back, put his hands on Lu Ze's shoulders, pushed him toward the private room, and even massaged Lu Ze's shoulders.

"Sure, you've practiced before, you have a set of skills."

"Fuck off!"

"."

(End of this chapter)