I was just thinking about taking the arts exam and you said I've been playing supporting roles

Chapter 494 Returning to China, Encountering Guo Fan Again!
"Hey~~~"

"I can't eat anymore. I never thought gaining weight would be so painful!"

Chen Jin looked at the plate of sea bass and black tiger prawns laid out in front of her, along with rice, pigeon soup, and many other Chinese dishes.

All of this was done by Zhu Yanmanzi following the previous weight loss team's requirements, ensuring a reasonable recovery of her diet with high protein and carbohydrates.

Three days have passed since filming wrapped on "Dallas". During these three days, Chen Jin did not binge eat. After suddenly becoming extremely thin, regaining her weight is a gradual process.

Although Chen Jin really wanted to eat, she was extremely hungry.

Just like the food Zhu Yanmanz made on the first day, which was not enough for him at all, this guy was like he hadn't eaten for months... well, he really hadn't eaten for months, and he was wolfing down his food.

When he looked up, he had already finished eating all the food.

The next second he obviously asked if there was any more, but Zhu Yanmanz didn't give him any more.

Because eating any more would be bad for his health, which is what is known as binge eating after losing weight!
It can cause many health problems.

Therefore, Zhu Yanmanzi has been gradually increasing his food intake over the past few days, and today he has given him a little more than usual. However, after two days of recovery, Chen Jin's appetite has returned to normal.

What he needs now is a diet that includes slightly more food than before he lost weight.

This makes it easier to regain weight faster.

But Chen Jin was clearly already full.

"Then I'll make less tomorrow?"

Zhu Yanmanzi was clearing away the dishes when Chen Jin shook her head and pressed her phone: "When are you going back?"

"Does he really intend to stay in the US and never go back?"

Chen Jin was smiling; this girl seemed to have adapted to life here.

"Aren't we waiting for you to speak?"

"I'm afraid you might want to gain some weight before going back!"

Zhu Yanman wiped her hands, turned around and sat down opposite Chen Jin. She rested her chin on her hand on the table and looked at her boyfriend with deep affection.

"You look better the way you are now!"

Zhu Yanman smiled with narrowed eyes, but Chen Jin thought for a moment and said, "I'll ask Yuanyuan to see if there are any plane tickets for tomorrow. Who wants to stay in this godforsaken place?"

Returning home for the Lunar New Year is a luxury for many Chinese people, but for Chen Jin, it is certainly not a problem.

With half a month to go before the Lunar New Year, Chen Jin's schedule doesn't start until next year at the earliest.

Although filming for "Whiplash" has already started, Chen Jin will join the crew on February 20th.

"Then go back!"

As Zhu Yanmanz was speaking, Chen Jin suddenly realized what was happening.

Having been in the US for so many days, it seems... I haven't taken her out for a proper visit, let alone to travel to places like New York.

Chen Jin's schedule is very tight; she's been constantly busy.

My girlfriend has finally come to the US, so I definitely need to help her relax.

Cooking for herself was enough to comfort her, so Chen Jin quickly suggested, "How about we go on a week-long trip before going back?"

"really?"

As expected, Zhu Yanmanzi's expression changed upon hearing this, and she became quite delighted.

But the next second, thinking of Chen Jin's health, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"sure!"

"I'm not sick, I'm just losing weight. I'm in the recovery period now, and I'll only get better!"

"Besides, you need to exercise regularly, and it's good to go on a trip to relax!"

"Then I'll go and devise a strategy?"

Upon hearing about going out, Zhu Yanmanzi's energy clearly returned. Chen Jin, needing to lie down for a bit, quickly said, "Okay, let me know when you're done!"

"If that doesn't work, I'll just hire a private guide and customize a tour for us!"

Being rich means being willful.

"No, I'll find a place myself. A week, right?"

"One or two more days doesn't matter, as long as I can go home for the Chinese New Year!"

Chen Jin was originally scheduled to perform on the Spring Festival Gala this year, but he declined. He's been busy all year and can't celebrate the New Year without being busy. He also has to go to Berlin to attend the film festival, so he probably won't be home during the Spring Festival.

Therefore, we will definitely have to celebrate the Chinese New Year early this year. He will probably be in Berlin on New Year's Eve with Wen Muye and a few others.

The five films scheduled for release on the first day of the Lunar New Year have also been confirmed.

Besides the two films from China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, "Lost in Thailand" and "Grandma's Grandson," as well as "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" by Huayi Brothers and Stephen Chow, the only imported film is the animated film "The Croods," produced by DreamWorks Animation, which caters to children during the Spring Festival.

Taking children to the cinema during the Chinese New Year is becoming the mainstream trend, which shows that the leaders of the Film Bureau have a lot of ideas.

The last one is "Love Without NG," which was just scheduled for release a few days ago. It is produced by Star Media and stars Li Dabai and Xin.

It's clear that Star Media isn't aiming for box office success during the Spring Festival Gala; they're aiming for a spot on next year's Gala. They're taking a gamble, and other film studios, unlike Star Media, don't have the financial resources to risk releasing their films as cannon fodder during the Spring Festival season.

Even if they were given a spot in next year's Spring Festival film season, many film companies would still be unwilling.

A movie can easily cost tens or hundreds of millions of dollars to produce; who can afford to lose money on such a project?

It's clear that the film is doomed to fail upon release. Even during the Spring Festival season, with four films from CETC, Huayi Brothers, and Hollywood, how can other movies compete?
Not only will they not get screenings, but audiences also won't choose their films.

As for Starlight Media's film, it was essentially a discarded project with little promotion; it was just a formality for the film bureau.

On the other hand, CETC and Huayi have already started building momentum for the Spring Festival film season.

There's a strong atmosphere that everyone is going to the cinema to watch movies during the Spring Festival. After last year's massive movie-watching frenzy, people are clearly not averse to watching movies during the Spring Festival and have already started choosing which films to watch.

Stephen Chow's reputation remains quite strong; at least according to online surveys, the vast majority of people want to see this "Journey to the West" movie!
Secondly, there are "Lost in Thailand" and "Grandma"!
Chen Jin's box office appeal is still somewhat effective, and Xu Guangtou, after several successful small-scale comedies, coupled with Bao Qiang's audience appeal, has many people who want to see this movie.

"Lost in Thailand" has established a group of die-hard fans.

The three films have been heavily promoted, with trailers and discussions appearing on Weibo every day.

Newspapers and local advertising outlets across the country have also launched extensive campaigns, creating the impression that the Spring Festival film season will sweep the nation; this is clearly the scene that the Film Bureau wanted to see.

The Spring Festival film season encourages more people to go to the cinema and spend money, boosting the national economy. Movies have made a significant contribution to this trend these days.

It was around this time that Chen Jin and Zhu Yanmanz, after a week of traveling in North America, finally arrived at Beijing International Airport on February 1, 2013.

After nearly 10 days of gaining weight, he successfully went from less than 90 pounds to 95 pounds.

Overall, he looks better than before. At least he's not so listless anymore, and he has the energy to walk, pick things up, and so on.

But... it's only a little better, not much.

He was still "skin and bones," looking like a wooden stick. He was even recognized by fans when he boarded the plane, which startled them.

Goodbye, Brother Jin!

I'll definitely go to the cinema to support the new movie!

The North American fan waved enthusiastically to Chen Jin, who smiled back at him while wearing large sunglasses.

Zhu Yanmanzi, standing next to her, was also wearing a trench coat and sunglasses, a matching pair, and the two looked quite affectionate.

Their relationship wasn't an open secret; paparazzi and fans had already posted countless photos of them on Weibo. Neither of them admitted to it nor confirmed it, but apart from the official announcement, it was basically out in the open.

The main reason is that the official announcement of a relationship, which is common in later generations, is not yet popular back then; people are free to date.

There's no reason why I have to tell my fans about something like this.

At least, that's what Chen Jin thought.

The two walked hand in hand towards the airport exit.

Guo Fan was already waiting for them outside the airport to welcome them.

Click! Click!
The sound of camera shutters seemed to come from nowhere, and then several reporters appeared in front of Chen Jin.

Several more suddenly appeared from all directions, and many people who had originally walked out of the airport turned around upon hearing the commotion.

"Chen Jin?"

"Is that Chen Jin?" "That's... Zhu Yanmanzi?"

"Are they really together?"

"..."

Countless people started discussing it, and the once quiet airport passageway suddenly became lively.

"Chen Jin, are you back for the New Year?"

"Chen Jin, are you and Zhu Yanmanz really in a relationship?"

“Chen Jin…”

Countless paparazzi crowded in front of Chen Jin, catching both of them off guard.

Having spent more than half a year in the United States, Chen Jin was really not used to being surrounded and interviewed by so many people all of a sudden.

The key point is that sharp-eyed reporters, upon noticing how thin Chen Jin was, immediately started speculating and frantically snapped photos.

"Hello everyone!"

"I am Chen Jin!"

Helpless, Chen Jin took off her sunglasses and waved to everyone present.

Screams erupted. The entertainment environment in China really changes every year. Fandoms have become particularly normalized. The birth of the "Four Returned Sons" and Hunan TV's star-making campaign have accelerated the invasion of the Korean wave into China.

Domestically, similar practices are being adopted, and the trend of fan culture is accelerating rapidly.

Chen Jin is a top star. Although she didn't have a management company to protect her fans or form any team, she still has spontaneous fans who have formed private fan groups.

Most of them are young girls.

On Weibo, many people are already arguing with talent show stars and the four former members of EXO who returned to China because of him.

Chen Jin, of course, didn't take such things to heart at all.

The fate of his die-hard fans is none of his business, and he's not the kind of person who likes to create hype. Once he establishes himself as a movie star, maintaining his mystique by appearing in public as little as possible is the way forward for a movie actor.

Chen Jin patiently answered the questions from the reporters. After finally breaking free from the crowd of fans, she was escorted to the car by Guo Fan and his men.

Guo Fan is indeed a loyal friend.

After waiting for a long time and Chen Jin still hadn't arrived, I knew something had happened.

They quickly called security personnel to maintain order and helped put Chen Jin and Zhu Yanmanz into the car.

"I've only been away for a little over six months, how come these people are so crazy?"

"There are still these reporters?"

Chen Jin was wiping her face as she spoke, having just gotten into the car and worked up a sweat, as was Zhu Yanmanz.

"The Weibo effect!"

Guo Fan sat in the passenger seat and turned to smile at Chen Jin.

"There are many bloggers on Weibo now, and they all get paid. Just like these journalists, they can just register a news media account and keep breaking news every day!"

"It's all for the sake of traffic!"

Guo Fan's observation was quite accurate. Chen Jin also thought of the so-called self-media and marketing accounts in the future news. Isn't this... the beginning of these two types of groups?

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Welcome back to China, Brother Jin!"

Guo Fan reached out and gave Chen Jin a big hug.

"So, how easy is it to make a sci-fi blockbuster?"

Chen Jin asked the question.

"Hahaha!"

The driver in the front seat laughed when he heard this; he was Guo Fan's assistant.

"Hey, don't mention it!"

"I thought it would be ready to start filming this year, but it might not even be ready until next year!"

Guo Fan got a headache whenever this was mentioned.

Even though he went to Hollywood for further studies and learned a few tricks from Nolan, he found upon returning that it would be incredibly difficult to create a true science fiction film on a land where science fiction had never existed before!

"I've recently been recreating some of the real-life scenes from 'The Wandering Earth,' and I'm so grateful to have partnered with China Film Group, who helped me find some insiders!"

"I've obtained some classified information!"

Guo Fan was speaking quietly.

"What confidential information?"

Chen Jin became interested as soon as she heard this.

"I already said it was confidential information, how could I possibly tell you?"

"Damn it, I'm also a lead actor, didn't you tell me when we were filming?"

Chen Jin gave Guo Fan a push.

The two of them had kept in touch over the past six months, mostly through online chat, and actually got along very well in private.

"Dude, it's really hard to tell you, it's all in post-production!"

"You only act in short scenes against a green screen; the post-production work is the real challenge. The special effects company we invested in is currently working on it!"

Guo Fan spoke with a worried expression.

The challenges of making a sci-fi blockbuster are indeed far greater than those of a romance film; fortunately, he doesn't have his biggest worry, which is funding, as he has two giants, China Film Group Corporation and China Film Group Corporation, behind him, which is enough for him to focus on creating.

"Can I join the crew next year?"

Chen Jin asked the question.

"It should be possible, by the end of next year!"

"I plan to release it during the Spring Festival two years from now, in 15, but it's just an initial plan!"

Guo Fan spoke very maturely, and the experience of working on the film crew for the past six months had made him much more composed.

"Okay, remember to let us know before you join the team!"

"Ok!"

Guo Fan nodded, then, clearly not wanting to continue the discussion, waved his hand and said, "Let's give Brother Jin a welcome-back dinner. He's worked hard these past few days!"

"Look how thin you've gotten, I didn't even recognize you!"

"I was thinner before!"

Zhu Yanmanzi, standing to the side, said with heartache.

"That's way too much, buddy. You're risking your life. Is it really necessary?"

"I heard you invested in the movie?"

Guo Fan asked, puzzled.

I think it's necessary!

"Tanzi, do you think awards are important?"

"What awards are you looking at!"

"Oscar!"

"cut!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Fan revealed a hint of disdain: "Oscars? That's an award that Asians can win?"

"Brother Jin, I'm not belittling your acting skills, but the Oscars have nothing to do with acting!"

"Connections, public relations, and powerful backing!"

Guo Fan felt that it was even harder for a Chinese person to win this award than to win the grand slam of the three major film festivals!

(End of this chapter)