Huayu Chunqiu, starting from being adopted by a fairy mother

Chapter 436 Professional Fox Spirit
Ah, my wife, Wang Baochuan.

You pitifully remain in this cold cave.

You're all alone, so pitiful.

I, Xue Nanpinggui, have been waiting for you.
Eighteen years in total...

The old house looks stylish on the outside, and even more stylish inside, like a children's playground.

The singer was not Liu Jing, but Zhang Min.

Liu Jing was playing with toys to amuse the child, while Zhang Min was watching TV when she suddenly started singing.

The TV was showing "Chinese Paladin 3," a local channel, which wasn't too difficult for Zhang Min's TV to find.

Tang Kun passed the Five Poison Beast to Xuejian, and then entrusted Tang Xuejian to Jingtian.

Jing Tian said that no matter what happens in the future, he will keep his promise and take good care of Xue Jian.

That's the scene playing on TV. Liu Jing glanced at it twice and lost interest in watching any further.

Because he not only knew the plot but also participated in the filming and post-production, when the images appeared on television, the first thing that came to mind was the filming scene, which was extremely distracting.

However, Zhang Min watched the Legend of Sword and Fairy series but sang the song "Wujiapo," which was somewhat unexpected.

"Xiaoxue, Mommy's singing is terrible, isn't it? Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Daddy will protect you." Liu Jing covered Xiaoxue's ears to prevent them from being contaminated.

"No." The daughter looked disgusted and broke free from her father's hand.

The little girl is one and a half years old and can already say a few words.

This afternoon, Gao Yuanyuan taught everyone how to catch ghosts, and then He Jiong led the guests through the recording process for tomorrow.

I was busy until after 7 p.m. and still hadn't finished. Liu Jing didn't have many scenes this time, so I didn't need to go over the schedule much and left Qiuzhuang early.

He's come to Shanghai, so he should at least go and see Zhang Min.

Everyone understood and readily let them go. The pure sibling relationship between Liu Jing and Zhang Min was known to all in the martial arts world and was already a beautiful story.

Gao Yuanyuan, Bai Bing, and Xiao Dao not only understood, but also knew more, and none of them mentioned what they were doing.

“Time flies. We’ve known each other for almost eighteen years. Does that mean I’ve been waiting in this cold cave for eighteen years?” Zhang Min said with a wistful expression.

"Do you want to go see a doctor? You might have postpartum depression?" Liu Jing said irritably. What kind of nonsense was this? Even if I were Xue Pinggui, you're still not Wang Baochuan.

"Get lost, Xiaoxue is already a year and a half old, her depression is cured." Zhang Min rolled her eyes. She was watching Yang Mi on TV and suddenly felt a pang of emotion.

Yang Mi also acted in "King of Beggars," but Zhang Min didn't pay any attention to this little girl at the time. She was a rising star heavily promoted by Win's Entertainment, and even directors had to treat her with respect, let alone a minor character.

That movie was filmed in early 1992, a few months before the eighteenth anniversary.

Eighteen years have passed, and the little girl from back then has grown into a young woman.

On TV, Tang Xuejian is youthful, beautiful, and full of energy; she exudes youthfulness from the inside out.

She was twenty-three or twenty-four years old that year, and Yang Mi is twenty-three or twenty-four years old this year. In Yang Mi, she vaguely saw herself—so proud, so youthful, so full of energy.

“Xiaoxue is already a year and a half old. You can go out for walks. Don’t always go back and forth between the company and home.” Liu Jing put Xiaoxue on the blanket and hugged Zhang Min.

“Aunt Lin went home to take care of her grandson, and Xiaoxue usually spends most of her time with her. Now that she’s gone, Xiaoxue is a little unaccustomed to it,” Zhang Min sighed.

"Aunt Lin quit? I thought you gave her a break." Liu Jing asked in surprise.

"Tomorrow is the Party Founding Day. Let's find an excuse to give the others a day off. Aunt Lin has been gone for a week. Bingbing wanted her mother to come and take care of Xiaoxue, but I didn't agree." Zhang Min wouldn't be as open and honest with Fan Xiaopang as Gao Yuanyuan was.

"Three aunties are enough."

"By the way, filming for 'My Love from the Star' starts in a few days. Would you like to attend the opening ceremony?" Zhang Min's expression shifted as she suddenly remembered this.

On July 7th, the filming of "My Love from the Star" is scheduled to begin in Shanghai, one of the main filming locations. Zhang Min provided several houses for the production, including an old-style villa.

"Of course I'll be there. I'll be in Shanghai a lot lately." As the producer, Liu Jing is definitely going to attend.

"Hehe, with my husband here, I, as a mother, can finally have a few days of freedom." Zhang Min was very happy.

“Sigh! You can be free anytime you want, but you still can’t let go. Your last trip was three years ago. Aunt Lin is gone, but you still have three other aunties. You don’t need to go far; you can go to a scenic area, go hiking, and enjoy the scenery,” Liu Jing suggested.

"I'm too weak to even kill a chicken, I can't climb the Five Sacred Mountains, at most I can climb the artificial hill in People's Park." Zhang Min curled the corners of her mouth, she was jealous.

She muttered to herself, "You're so carefree, not seeing your daughter even a few times a year." But there was nothing more to say; from the moment she became pregnant, she had no hope for Liu Jing.

The moment the child was born, her perspective subtly shifted; the child came first, and Liu Jing took a backseat.

"Sister, you can still carry me, even though I weigh over 100 pounds." Liu Jing was both amused and exasperated. When he entered the house, his older sister was so excited that she picked him up.

"Tch! You're not a chicken, of course I can carry you." Zhang Min scoffed, then sighed, "So what if I can carry you? If I can't carry you, it's all for nothing."

Liu Jing picked up Zhang Min and held her in his arms. Before he could comfort her, Xiao Xue became anxious, grabbed a rattle-drum, and started shaking it, yelling loudly to protest to her father.

"Haha, Xiaoxue is so filial! Hurry up and beat up your dad, he's bullying your mom." Zhang Min was overjoyed and suddenly felt that all her efforts were worthwhile.

She got up from Liu Jing's arms and quickly hugged and comforted her daughter.

"This rattle looks familiar, did you buy it?" Liu Jing teased the girl, who found the rattle increasingly familiar.

“Jing Tian brought this over. It was a gift you gave to her before, and she gave it to your daughter, saying it was a way of passing on traditions,” Zhang Min explained.

"That's so Jing Tian, ​​she can do that." Liu Jing sighed, "No matter how old Jing Tian is, she still retains a childlike heart."

“Besides Yuanyuan, Jingtian comes here the most. Every time she comes, she brings big bags of gifts, mostly for Xiaoxue. Xiaoxue is a little shy, but she gets along very well with Jingtian. Jingtian also likes her very much, but there’s one thing…” Zhang Min looked conflicted, “I told Xiaoxue to call Jingtian Auntie, but Jingtian insisted that Xiaoxue call her Sister.”

"Don't worry about it, it's just a form of address. Let them call you whatever they want." Liu Jing didn't find it bothersome. Back then, the person who dared to call Li Jie wouldn't care about such things.

“This is too messy. Jing Tian isn’t an ordinary person.” Zhang Min still felt it was inappropriate.

As they talked, Xiaoxue fell asleep in her mother's arms. Zhang Min gently placed her in her stroller, then tiptoed back to the sofa and turned the TV volume down. "When I'm done with my work, I'll take you out to play. We'll go to France, Egypt, Canada, Australia, Antarctica..."

Before Liu Jing could finish speaking, Zhang Min interrupted, "When will you be done with this? In what year? In what month? Is there any hope for you in this lifetime?"

"..." Liu Jing was stumped by the question. It seemed like he hadn't had much free time in the past few years.

I wanted to sleep through the holidays, and I ended up sleeping through the whole holiday, with a different incident every day.

The last time he was forced to take a vacation was after filming for "Chinese Paladin 3" wrapped up, when Xixi insisted on taking him to Hainan.

"It's impossible next year." Zhang Min suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

"What's impossible about that? After filming 'The Myth 2,' I'll take a break. Who dares to stop me from resting?" Liu Jing said confidently.

"I've gotten you a job, so you probably won't be able to take a break next year," Zhang Min said shyly.

"What kind of work? Terraforming Mars, or building a space station on the moon? As long as we're on Earth, nothing can stop me from taking you out to play," Liu Jing joked.

"The big bearded man is going to make a film called 'Journey to the West,' and after so many years of preparation, he has finally raised 100 million yuan. Casting for 'Journey to the West' will begin soon, and filming is planned to start next year," Zhang Min explained.

Liu Jing looked at him strangely. "Sister, you three aren't planning to snatch this movie back and then hand it over to me to direct, are you?"

Big Beard suffered a significant setback because of "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber," making the preparations for "Journey to the West" extremely difficult. Ciwen, the biggest investor, had reservations and only invested 30 million in start-up capital, leaving Big Beard to figure out the rest.

The bearded man himself spread the word that he wanted to remake "Journey to the West," so he had to swallow the bitter pill.

He was quite capable; he found two television stations to cooperate with, contacted several film and television companies, and even fooled a few coal mine owners, finally raising 100 million yuan to start construction.

"In your heart, are Li Jie, Wen Qiong, and I really that tasteless?" Zhang Min glared at her.

Liu Jing didn't dare to answer, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Zhang Min snorted lightly, "Xi'an Film Studio and Shaanxi TV have approached us for a collaboration, wanting to remake 'Investiture of the Gods.' They're providing 40 million yuan in funding, as well as broadcasting channels. I'm planning to put in 30 million, China Times Group will invest 20 million, and Tangde will invest 10 million. Fatty Bing holds a position at Xi'an Film Studio, and she's the one who brokered this deal, so she's bringing Tangde along. They've entrusted us with the entire production, but they've set a condition: they hope you can participate."

"The bearded man raises 100 million, you also raise 100 million. The bearded man films 'Journey to the West,' you film 'Investiture of the Gods.' The bearded man collaborates with Yunnan TV, you collaborate with Shaanxi TV..."

"Enough with the nonsense. I've already agreed to the investors' terms, so just tell me if you agree or not." Zhang Min was all bark and no bite; she certainly had the air of someone challenging her, but she couldn't say it. She didn't want Liu Jing to think she was as petty as Sister Li.

“You’re the boss, you call the shots. I’m just a brick in the revolution, I’ll be there wherever I’m needed.” Liu Jing chuckled, then changed the subject, “You guys really know how to make things difficult. Investiture of the Gods is even harder to work with than Journey to the West. Although there are many characters in Journey to the West, each one has their own characteristics. The characters in Investiture of the Gods are scattered, they’re all just tools.”

"The Journey to the West focuses on the four main characters, Tang Sanzang and his disciples, while the Investiture of the Gods focuses on Jiang Ziya, Shen Gongbao, Yang Jian, and Nezha. You don't need to worry about the cast; all the artists from Spring and Autumn, Golden Harvest, Tangren, Tangde, Qinhuang, and the future Zhouyi will be involved. Don't think that Sister Li and I are petty or deliberately targeting Big Beard. He didn't use our special effects team and has been intentionally or unintentionally slandering us. This isn't just a large-scale training exercise for the artists, but also for the special effects team and the entire Spring and Autumn system. With so much money invested by the special effects company, 'Chinese Paladin 3' and 'Storm Riders 2' are hardly enough. I originally wanted to use 'Journey to the West' to showcase what special effects with Eastern characteristics are like, but since that's not feasible, we'll start from scratch with 'Investiture of the Gods.' The scale of 'Investiture of the Gods' is much larger than 'Journey to the West.' At most, Sun Wukong can wreak havoc in the Heavenly Palace, but the Tongtian Cult Leader can destroy the heavens and the earth."

“Okay, I’ll take the job.” Liu Jing was persuaded by Zhang Min; special effects with oriental characteristics had always been his philosophy.

This concept was demonstrated in "Chinese Paladin 3", which he personally thought was great, but the film has just been released, and he doesn't know how the audience will feel about it yet.

“This time I’ll be the producer, you can just be the executive producer. We have a lot of pre-Qin props and a built film and television base, which will come in handy this time. I’ve read ‘Investiture of the Gods’ several times, and there are only a few dozen truly important characters. Jiang Ziya, Shen Gongbao, King Zhou of Shang, Daji, the Pheasant Spirit, Ji Chang, Ji Fa, Boyi Kao, Yang Jian, Nezha, Lei Zhenzi, Huang Feihu, Huang Tianhua, Tu Xingsun, Zhao Gongming, Nuwa, the Three Sages, the Three Immortals of Sanxiao, the Twelve Golden Immortals, etc. Other characters don’t have many scenes. It’s hard to invite big names in the entertainment industry, but there are plenty of actors who can play extras and small roles.” Zhang Min had done her homework, and she was very serious and meticulous.

"TVB filmed a version in '81, Taiwan filmed one in '86, another in '89, Shanghai TV filmed one in '90, Taiwan's CTV filmed one in '2000, and Hong Kong TV filmed one in '01. The most recent version was in '06, starring Ju Jueliang, with Bingbing playing Su Daji. Many viewers complained that Bingbing was acting in a romance drama, not a mythological one. Of all these versions, the Shanghai TV version is the most memorable. Lan Tianye's Jiang Ziya and Fu Yiwei's Su Daji are well-received by audiences. Most importantly, this version is the closest to the original work." Liu Jing had a headache. Adaptation was definitely necessary, but how to adapt it was the problem. It needed to stay true to the original while also bringing something new, otherwise it would be a poor imitation.

“We can invite Lan Tianye to continue playing Jiang Ziya, but Fu Yiwei won’t do for Su Daji. We still have Bingbing, let her continue playing Su Daji. If you think she’s not good enough, you can discuss it with Qianqian, but Qianqian might not be willing. She’s played the nine-tailed fox, Xiao Wei, and soon she’ll be playing Nie Xiaoqian, she’s practically become a professional fox spirit actress.” Zhang Min shook her head, such a beautiful celestial being, gone down the path of fox spirits with no return, she really had bad luck in choosing the wrong people.

"Sisi thought Nie Xiaoqian was a ghost, but it turns out she's been transformed into a fox spirit. She's very unhappy about this; it's the last time. The Goddess Nuwa can give it to her and let her refresh her image," Liu Jing sighed.

The script for "Nie Xiaoqian" isn't finished yet, but the outline is. He also wanted Nie Xiaoqian to be a ghost, but to pass censorship, she could only be a demon. Compared to chicken spirits, centipede spirits, and toad spirits, fox spirits are the most suitable.

Sisi was very upset, saying that Liu Jing had lost all credibility with her.

However, during filming, while letting everyone know that she is a fox spirit, the concept of a fox spirit will be downplayed.

This was proposed by Tsui Hark; he preferred filming ghosts to fox spirits.

The negotiations between Liu Jing and Tsui Hark have ended. It's a buy-one-get-two-free deal: film one "Nie Xiaoqian" and get one "Dragon Inn" as a bonus.

Liu Jing also set many conditions: if the box office doesn't meet the target, Tsui Hark will have to work as a laborer.

“Alright, you’re the director. I originally wanted to invite Zhao Yazhi; she played the White Snake and would be suitable to play Nuwa. If the role goes to Xixi, Zhao Yazhi can play Cihang Daoren.” Zhang Min didn’t care; she wouldn’t object to Xixi playing Nuwa or even Jiang Ziya.

Liu Jing sighed. Casting wasn't difficult; the problem was the script. Zhang Min still didn't understand.

"What's going on? Our Spring and Autumn period is full of talented people. Zeng Li can play Queen Jiang, Yan Danchen can play Yunxiao, Tang Yan can play Bixiao, and Shu Chang can play Qiongxiao. Li Xiaoran is a bit fierce, so she can play Lady Shiji. Yuanyuan can play Shang Qingjun, and Yang Mi and Chen Zihan, the sisters, can play the other two demons in Xuanyuan Tomb. Luo Jin can play Ji Fa, Zhu Yawen can play Yang Jian, and Zhu Yilong can play Huang Tianhua. Oh, and Shu Chang's little cousin played Nezha quite well; we can call her over." Zhang Min became more and more excited as she spoke, as if she had found the joy of casting.

Zhang Min had another ambition, which she hadn't told Liu Jing. If the TV series was successful, she wanted to rival Hollywood blockbusters and release a "Investiture of the Gods" movie.

She originally wanted to choose "Journey to the West," but the bearded man was filming it, so she decided to wait and see how it turned out.

"Sister, the actors aren't the problem, the script is the main issue." Liu Jing couldn't help but say, "You've even got your eye on Juanjuan."

"The script is a headache for directors and producers. As a producer, I am not responsible for the script."

What are you responsible for?

"I'm responsible for... for sleeping with the producer, since you're the one who can supervise the producer."

"What are you waiting for?"

"No, the baby is still here... um..."

"The child is still young."

Just then, a song came from the television: "Love hasn't come yet. The world is suddenly in turmoil, but those with love and righteousness will return. Love will always come. We'll love again in the next life, a love destined by life and death..."

"Oh dear, episode six has started." Zhang Min broke free.

"Let's just start, what's there to see?"

"I want to see it, get out of my way."

"Let Tang Xuejian see for herself how Ms. Min sleeps with the producer."

"Pooh……"

(End of this chapter)