Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 272 Training Bai Zhi's Acting Skills! Uncle Da, you're the lead in "Shaolin Soccer"!

With a whoosh, the curtains were violently pulled open.

Bai Zhi instinctively covered her chest with her hand, but when she realized she was on a high-rise building, she put her hand on the floor-to-ceiling window.

Ma Xun really enjoys the view of Tokyo at night from above.

Especially from this angle, Bai Zhi's shoulders are very straight, the kind with a straight shoulder line, and strands of hair occasionally flutter up. These strands of hair not only do not obstruct the view, but also add a touch of charm to the night scene below.

To be honest, Tokyo is indeed a big city.

The night view is indeed very impressive.

Neon lights are everywhere, and traffic is heavy.

It's as if this is a city that never sleeps.

Once you've seen enough of the distant views, then look at the close-ups.

Bai Zhi's face was flushed, and her eyes were glazed over.

She would turn her head every now and then to ask him for a kiss.

Ma Xun knew that she had completely fallen into a state of depravity.

"Is the view beautiful?"

"It looks good, of course it looks good."

"Then why do you always turn your head to look at me?"

"Mr. Ma~ You're so naughty~ Don't..."

……

Bai Zhi was wearing Ma Xun's white shirt, her legs were bare, and she was holding two cans of beer.

Ma Xun sat on the sofa, took the wine, opened it, and took a swig.

After a fierce battle, a refreshing kick with this icy liquor truly doubles the exhilaration.

Bai Zhi simply sat on Ma Xun's lap and then took a sip as well.

Perhaps it was too cold, because her body shivered.

Ma Xun smiled and put his arm around her waist. "Although I like it when you say that, I still have to remind you to be more discreet when you're out in public. Don't forget your current persona."

"The Jade Maiden Sect Leader, huh? I remember that, don't worry." Bai Zhi shifted her body slightly, seemingly not particularly fond of this persona.

Yes, in front of Ma Xun, she was no innocent girl at all, but clearly a lustful woman.

Yes, that's probably her true nature.

But then I remembered that she was going to play Little Dragon Girl...

"I'm a little worried now."

"worry about what?"

"With your flirtatious and provocative nature, can you really play the role of Little Dragon Girl?"

"Oh! What's wrong with acting? She's just being flirtatious in front of you. You're my boss, of course it's different. In public, I'm very dignified."

"Really?"

"Of course it's true... um, I swear I'll definitely be a good lady from now on, and as for being sexy... I'll only be with you, only let you do it, isn't that enough?"

Bai Zhi spoke like a child, which made Ma Xun laugh.

"What they said is true. You're so amazing, and... Boss, you are my future. How could I ruin my future?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Xun couldn't help but laugh and said, "Dong Tianbao?"

"Yes, I only found out when I was in mainland China that audiences there really liked this movie. I've watched it many times myself."

She was talking about going to school.

With Ma Xun's advice and recommendation, Bai Zhi has successfully entered the Beijing Film Academy.

This incident even made the news at the time, surprising many people.

In fact, this is very beneficial to cypress branches.

She really studied it seriously, and the more she studied, the more she understood Ma Xun's intentions.

So, this time I made a special trip to Japan, and we became such good friends.

Have you looked in the mirror? Or watched any of the movies you've made before?

"Of course I've seen it." Bai Zhi found it very strange.

Why are you asking this?
Ma Xun continued, "Normally, you're like this, which is indeed very beautiful. But if you laugh loudly or cry loudly, you'll look ugly, you know?"

If it were anyone else, Bai Zhi would definitely be angry, but Ma Xun is her boss, so she has no choice but to nod and admit it.

That's absolutely right, and Baizhi herself knows it too.

However, she couldn't help but make a couple of excuses, "But everyone says it's good this way, like the media has written about it, it's about being true to oneself."

Ma Xun smiled after hearing this, "It's true that she's genuine, but this Little Dragon Girl is different. Look at how Sister Ruotong portrays her."

When Bai Zhi heard this, she immediately understood.

"I get it, it's frigidity! Um... Boss~ you didn't have sex with me too much, did you trigger it?"

Ma Xun couldn't help but burst into laughter.

“Idiot! It’s about keeping your expression steady! It’s about trying your best… like this.” Ma Xun even gave a demonstration.

It's about not smiling or showing any other emotional fluctuations, but also not having a too-serious expression.

Regarding the character of Little Dragon Girl, if we look at the previous versions, she didn't necessarily have to have a stern face.

However, Ruotong's portrayal in the 95 version was so successful that many subsequent actresses tried to emulate her style.

Even Qianlian was actually learning.

However, she already had a dark complexion, and she often wore black clothes in the drama, and her hair was styled into dreadlocks.

Originally, it was supposed to be about controlling facial expressions, giving the impression of calm and stillness.

Her face was dark and stern... Goodness, really goodness.

As for the original version with Zhang Dahuzi...

Ma Xun also admitted that in terms of appearance, that person is very outstanding, but her acting skills do have considerable problems.

Later, many media outlets criticized her acting as too wooden.

The "wood" in this context actually comes from Mr. Jin Yong. After reading it, he made a comment. He roughly meant that she was very beautiful and suitable for the role of Xiaolongnu, but her acting was too stiff.

As a result, many media outlets used this to say that the actor's performance was like that of a wooden doll.

Since Ma Xun knew all this, he couldn't afford to make such a mistake.

In fact, regarding the expression of Little Dragon Girl, Sister Ruotong actually learned from Chen Yulian in the 83 version of "The Return of the Condor Heroes".

This version was a huge hit back then, at least in Hong Kong, setting viewership records that were hard to break for many years. However, this version was not introduced to mainland China.

The Chen version of Little Dragon Girl had an expression that made her look like a female assassin. Back then, the lighting was terrible, which made her skin look very dark.

Therefore, at present, the most successful version is still Ruotong's version.

Then we must study hard.

Given the current situation, Ma Xun really has no other choice. Even if he wanted to replicate Zhang Dahuzi's version of Xiaolongnu, there's nothing he can do.

She's still young, while other female stars... are either too old or simply not suitable.

Bai Zhi is 21 years old this year. Chen Yulian was 23 when she played Xiaolongnu, and Ruotong was 29.

Considering fame, looks, and so on... honestly, only Cypress is suitable.

At that time, Mr. Jin Yong immediately thought of her.

Ma Xun could only use certain methods to transform the inherently flirtatious Bai Zhi into the somewhat aloof Xiaolongnu.

"How about this?"

"You're too rigid. You need to be a little warmer."

"how about this?"

"Add a bit more friendliness."

"But it wasn't because she practiced that mental cultivation technique that..."

"You actually read the original novel?"

"They just wanted to perform well."

I must say, since going to school, Baizhi is indeed a bit better than before.

Ma Xun actually thinks she's really beautiful, especially when she's not laughing or crying.

However, being too rigid can make one appear wooden.

This... wait a minute, it's starting to get a bit like that.

Under Ma Xun's guidance, Bai Zhi's expression didn't change much, but her gaze softened.

"Good, good, that's it, remember it. Actually, Xiaolongnu isn't without feelings; she does have them, but most of the time in the drama, she doesn't know how to express them, understand?"

Ma Xun's explanation shows that he truly understood the original work; in fact, it was written in "The Return of the Condor Heroes".

Xiaolongnu herself is not sexually frigid, nor is she a cold-faced female assassin; she mainly doesn't know how to express her emotions.

One reason is the cultivation technique she practices, and the other is that she rarely comes into contact with outsiders.

Of course, if things go wrong, many people might misunderstand it as being like Chen Yulian or Ruotong.

But if it's even more wrong, it becomes the Qianlian version.

Now, Bai Zhi's eyesight is quite good; she can even show some curiosity.

Ma Xun nodded and added, "When Xiaolongnu first came down the mountain, she had a bit of this expression on her face."

"Understood." Bai Zhi felt she had grasped the situation, but as soon as she spoke...

"It's not working again."

"Oh dear! This is so difficult!"

Only now did Bai Zhi realize that acting was indeed not easy; she had never seemed to have any sense of it before.

There's nothing we can do; she's simply blessed with natural talent.

Ma Xun was trying to come up with another idea, but Bai Zhi came up with her own.

"How about..." She twisted her body and wrapped her legs around Ma Xun.

"What are you doing..." Ma Xun wanted to laugh.

“We’ll just… um~” Bai Zhi’s meaning was already quite clear.

Maintain the expression of Little Dragon Girl, and then go all out.

If you can maintain this expression, then you've mastered it!
Ma Xunxin felt bitter.

It took quite a bit of effort for this old man to master the expressions of Little Dragon Girl.

For some reason, I thought of the "Jade Maiden Heart Sutra" in the book.

Doesn't it look a bit like it?
……

Ma Xun can be considered quite gifted, after all, he's the star of the extended version of the Korean drama "Dae Jang Geum".

But I can't practice with Baizhi every day.

That's too expensive for Han.

Well, of course, they mainly have important things to do.

Toho didn't have many objections to the marketing plan for "Shaolin Soccer".

After all, Ma Xun had already used his own resources.

Therefore, the Shaolin Soccer team will begin its preliminary promotional activities in a few days.

Although Cypress is only making a guest appearance, she'll still be involved in the event.

But the big-eyed thief arrived late, after the event had already begun.

Goodness, she's really making quite a scene, surrounded by a large entourage.

He's two levels above Stephen Chow.

Wow, is that really that amazing?

"Say less."

Even Bai Zhi couldn't help but complain when she saw it, while Ma Xun offered a slight reminder.

As for what others think...

Sure enough, not long after, Stephen Chow and her team had some conflicts. Creating a sensational publicity campaign is actually quite prone to generating conflict.

The most frequent issue is time conflicts.

However, if we have a proper talk, we should be able to resolve the issue.

Not long after, news came from both teams.

"Let's all get together tonight and have a nice meal."

Ma Xun and Bai Zhi, of course, had no choice but to go.

It should be that the big-eyed thief who paid the bill.

There were some unexpected things when we arrived at the destination.

Stephen Chow and Uncle Da were both there, but the big-eyed thief took the initiative to chat with Ma Xun.

"Mr. Ma, it's been a long time since we last met."

"It's true."

Big-Eyed Thief's words weren't wrong, after all, they had met before when they were filming "My Fair Princess".

But we basically didn't have a proper conversation; at most, we just nodded to each other.

Ma Xun was deliberately avoiding this person.

Their interests are not aligned, so there's no need to get involved.

If something happens to me someday, wouldn't I, Ma Xun, suffer an undeserved disaster?
So he chatted on and on, saying one thing here and there.

This big-eyed thief is quite proactive; he treats Ma Xun very differently from others.

Bai Zhi saw it all and was furious... but she had to hold back.

Interestingly, Pak Chi noticed that Stephen Chow and Uncle Tat seemed to have some strange expressions.

Why is this?

She couldn't figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it.

But after several rounds of drinks and several dishes, the big-eyed thief was completely drunk.

He couldn't resist asking Ma Xun for a kiss.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

Luckily, Ma Xun dodged quickly, otherwise she would have succeeded!

Then, we saw the big-eyed thief go on a drunken rampage.

"Waaaaah...waaaah...you don't like me! You don't like me! Waaaah..."

He...drank too much?

The group of people all had strange expressions.

Only the cypress branch seemed to want to laugh.

What is going on here?

……

"She wanted to be with Ah Xing before... you know what I mean."

"Really?"

"Of course."

"Wow, Uncle Da, you know so much about this gossip."

"No, I, I'm not a gossip person."

The banquet was ruined just like that. That thief with big eyes made such a scene, so Baizhi had to help her get back to the hotel to rest.

Stephen Chow, of course, went back as well.

But Ma Xun and Uncle Da were in no hurry; they walked and talked.

They walked to a bridge and leaned on the railing to gaze into the distance.

That's what happened at the banquet.

So that's how it is... But after Uncle Da's reminder, Ma Xun remembered.

In the original timeline, Hong Kong media broke a story that the thief with big eyes had an emotional breakdown, got drunk and acted crazy, and kissed a translator repeatedly.

I yelled that nobody loves me.

This gossip means that she wanted to talk to Stephen Chow, but he ignored her.

When I first saw this news, I didn't know if it was true or not.

Now... damn it! They're treating me, Ma Xun, like a translator?

Thankfully, the big-eyed thief didn't get away with it.

Uncle Da is bringing this up now, clearly hoping that Ma Xun won't spread it.

of course.

However, Ma Xun does have something to say.

"Let's just do the publicity ourselves and let her go back."

"Isn't this a bad thing? The female lead is just gone like that?"

Uncle Da's surprise was perfectly normal.

Our movie is going on a promotional tour, but there's no lead actor in it. Isn't that strange?

Ma Xun's decisiveness was certainly not without reason.

He asked with a smile, "Uncle Da, who do you think is the male lead in this 'Shaolin Soccer' movie?"

what?
That's a strange question.

If it's a Stephen Chow movie, shouldn't the main character be Stephen Chow?!

Moreover, isn't it clearly written in the cast and crew list of "Shaolin Soccer"?

Uncle Da gave him an expression he only makes in movies, "Who could it be?"

Ma Xun laughed, "Uncle Da, I've seen this movie, and the conclusion I've drawn is... you're the main character in this movie."

"..." Uncle Da was completely stunned.

But soon, he smiled and shook his head, "Impossible, absolutely impossible."

Ma Xun grabbed his shoulders with both hands, making Uncle Da look directly at him, and then said very seriously: "Uncle Da, think about it carefully. In this movie, who is the one with a complete storyline? Who is the one who went astray when he was young and now wants to prove himself, to turn his life around, and to have a showdown with his past self in his old age?"
It's you.

He's the football team coach in this movie.

This is you, ready to fight again to make up for your past mistakes!

Upon hearing these words, Uncle Da trembled involuntarily.

He looked at Ma Xun, as if trying to find some flaw in Ma Xun's eyes, as if to say: Kid, are you bluffing me?
But he couldn't find it.

Moreover, Uncle Da's mind was constantly replaying the filming process.

Actually, he hasn't seen the finished film yet, but he still remembers every detail of the filming process.

Indeed, just as Ma Xun said!
Uncle Da in "Shaolin Soccer" is the one with a complete storyline!

No other characters were included, including Ah Xing's character.

Upon closer examination, Ah Xing's so-called protagonist story is actually quite thin.

So……

"I, I, I'm just a supporting character."

When he said this, Ma Xun was no longer standing in front of him.

Uncle Da was talking to himself, laughing as he spoke, but as he laughed, tears involuntarily rolled down his cheeks.

Until his clothes were soaked.

A golden supporting actor, Uncle Da, who has played supporting roles in movies his whole life.

He never imagined that he would be able to play a leading role in the final stage of his acting career.

Moreover, it's a big-budget production!

But why didn't that guy say anything?

Why didn't he say so?

Stephen Chow, oh Stephen Chow, you...

Uncle Da laughed and cried, not knowing how much time had passed.

He wiped away his tears, and then...

"Are you kidding me! They didn't pay me the lead actor's salary!"

Ma Xun hadn't gone very far. He was worried that something might have happened to Uncle Da, but when he heard this, he immediately burst out laughing.

……

According to Ma Xun's logic, since the male lead of "Shaolin Soccer" is not Stephen Chow.

Therefore, the big-eyed thief is naturally not the female lead.

Therefore, it was only natural to remove her from the promotional activities.

Of course, when the big-eyed thief leaves, there will definitely be a lot of juicy gossip.

Then all sorts of news about "Shaolin Soccer" started appearing.

However, these news reports are mainly from Hong Kong media outlets.

It won't have much impact on Japan.

Never mind, let's just follow the publicity plan.

Soon, the summer movie season arrived, and "Shaolin Soccer" was released in Hong Kong and Japan almost simultaneously.

Upon release...it became a smash hit!

It raked in over 5 million yen in the first weekend alone!

In the current stagnant Japanese film market, this box office performance is nothing short of a bombshell!
Live-action films in Japan are almost dead.

Even with high box office returns, it's only a few billion.

Only a handful of live-action films have managed to gross billions at the box office.

The appearance of this "Shaolin Soccer" movie gave Toho a huge shock.

It’s so amazing!

While "Shaolin Soccer" was enjoying high box office returns, another major incident occurred.

The thief with the big eyes got into trouble while wearing clothes and got a scolding.

Live it!

They should be cursed to death!
Thus, Ma Xun's decision to kick the big-eyed thief out of the publicity team...

wise!

That's brilliant!

Of course, by this time, Stephen Chow and Ng Man-tat had already returned to Hong Kong to do promotional work.

But Ma Xun's work wasn't finished yet.

With such an excellent opening as "Shaolin Soccer," it's no wonder that it deserves to be celebrated in a big way.

The success of this film naturally spurred the creation of "Beijing Bicycle" and "Devils on the Doorstep".

Toho originally planned to screen both films at Iwanami Cinema, but now that they've seen it, they'll give them a lot of screenings first.

Let's schedule it to air right after "Shaolin Soccer".

Thus, Ma Xun's trip to Japan can be considered quite perfect.

They reaped a huge amount of yen.

But at that moment, another chance encounter occurred.

"Mr. Ma, we meet again."

Qin Lan's appearance did indeed surprise Ma Xun.

This woman is interesting...

(End of this chapter)