Artists under the Rebirth of the Coal Boss

Chapter 257 Showing You My Precious Baby
The plot and style of "Love in a Puff" are very typical of Pang Ho-cheung's films.

Films with such a strong auteur style, unless the author himself is willing to make changes, will only end up being a hodgepodge if outsiders interfere, resulting in a complete failure...

The defining characteristics of Peng Haoxiang's films are their pure Hong Kong flavor, energetic pacing, and precise attention to detail!
Going further is cult, taking a step back is vulgar.

He, on the other hand, skillfully navigated the critical point, relying on his innate cleverness to walk the tightrope with great enjoyment!
It's a bit lewd, a bit perverted, a bit bandit-like, a bit roguish, but surprisingly not annoying. It's innocent, painless, funny, and has a bit of a scoundrel vibe!
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In the movie, it only took Zhang Zhiming and Yu Chunjiao seven days from meeting to falling in love.

How about it? Hong Kong style, right? Fast food, right? In a rush, right?
However, seven days is actually enough for a lot to happen.

God created all things in just seven days!!

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The two met while smoking in a back alley.

One day, Yu Chunjiao felt a bit bored, so she sent a text message to Zhang Zhiming. Coincidentally, Zhang Zhiming was also feeling a bit lonely, so he replied immediately.

After a while, they became a couple.

Most romances begin like this...

It's not that I'm in a rush, nor that I'm certain, and it's certainly not that I can't live without you, but since you're here, let's fall in love!

This is the unique frivolousness of urban men and women in Peng Haoxiang's films!

After all, what is called unforgettable is something that happens much later, and in fact, most relationships don't even last that long.

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Classic lines from Casablanca:

"There are so many towns in the world, and so many bars in those towns, and she just happened to walk into mine."

Indeed, some loves are like destiny, inescapable and irreplaceable, captivating the soul and requiring a life-or-death struggle.

This moved audiences to tears, leaving them deeply saddened and lamenting that such an absolute love had never happened to them!

However, Zhang Zhiming, who can never say "I like you," may be the answer to love in this era's metropolis.

It deliberately avoids the grandeur, magnificence, and tumultuousness of love, instead focusing on the small romances of ordinary people.

Even if the emotions are light and shallow, as thin and crisp as potato chips, they are still undoubtedly real.

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In his previous life, Lin Xingzhuo had compiled a list of urban romance films from Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and even wrote a paper on it, which he submitted to a "Double First-Class" journal included in Nanjing University's CSSCI.

Behind the sexual liberation movement in modern East Asian Confucian circles lies a hidden inferiority complex!
With the poignant love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai set before them, the petty bourgeois romances of urban men and women seem somewhat overshadowed.

However, if someone is willing to make a special trip to the back alley's smoking area on their day off to meet you, that's already love...

Even if it's trivial to the point of being insignificant, even if it only takes the time of a cigarette.

This is what love between urban men and women is all about.

I remember what brand of cigarettes you smoke, how you get annoyed when someone tries to chat you up, and how even the most boring things seem fun when we're together.

And I just said goodbye, but the moment I turned around, I was already missing you.

........................

This meeting has ended.

Peng Haoxiang compromised a little in response to market demands, adding a flashback storyline about Zhang Zhiming's campus romance with his ex-girlfriend Huiying, played by Ajiao.

Peng Haoxiang is very good at portraying imperfect male characters!
The key to the success of this drama is how to make the audience, especially female viewers, see Zhang Zhiming's flaws while also evoking some empathy for his struggles!

The flashback scenes between Zhang Zhiming, played by Lin Xingzhuo, and Huiying, the school beauty played by Ajiao, can serve as an "empathy regulator."

It can soften some of Zhang Zhiming's hateful behaviors in the current relationship, allowing the audience to see them.

"Oh, so he wasn't born such a jerk. He also had moments of innocence and hurt."

This subtly shifted the audience's perception of him, gradually transforming it from simple dislike to a complex mix of love and hate.

That's how the character's charm is cultivated!
This delicate, maneuvering technique of controlling the audience's emotional fluctuations regarding the characters is precisely director Peng Haoxiang's forte!
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Normal female celebrities would definitely be very happy to have this opportunity.

However, Ah Jiao's situation is a bit special...

Last year's major upheaval in Hong Kong's entertainment circle dealt a devastating blow to her confidence! She locked herself in her house, afraid to open the curtains, spent her days in tears, and even had suicidal thoughts.

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I had a cameo role in "Just Another Pandora's Box" a while ago.

Throughout the entire filming process, Ah Jiao kept her eyes on the ground, avoiding eye contact with anyone. Even simple lines of dialogue required dozens of takes.

Director Lau Chun-wai had no choice but to keep cutting her lines in the script to barely complete her cameo role...

Because of what happened last year, all the advertising and film contracts that had already been signed were cancelled.

This filming mishap only made things worse; she couldn't even get offers for minor roles or cameo appearances anymore...

This immense psychological trauma and lack of self-confidence severely impacted her performance and level of engagement.

Ah Jiao was very worried, feeling that she was not up to the task of playing the role in "Love in a Puff".

If she messes up again this time, her acting career will be truly over!!
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After the meeting ended, Asa rushed off to film an advertisement for Uni-President Assam Milk Tea, and asked Lin Xingzhuo to help take Ajiao home.

After the incident last year, the company stopped using Ah Jiao's nanny van, and she sold her own car to a used car dealership to pay off her mortgage. She usually hitches a ride on Ah Sa's nanny van.

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Lin Xingzhuo led Ajiao to the hotel lobby entrance, where Xiao Ma was already waiting in the parking space in his Toyota Alphard.

Lin Xingzhuo leaned back against the soft cushion in the back seat, opened his Alienware laptop to check emails, while Ajiao next to him looked worried and her brows were furrowed.
Lin Xingzhuo said to Ajiao, "Come here! Let me show you my precious treasure!!"

Ah Jiao: "???"

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I am a pretty girl

I'm a girl who cries easily.

I am a strange girl
I'm a girl, you don't understand girls.

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Xiao Ma turned on the car radio, which was playing Xu Huanyu's "I Am a Girl".

Ah Jiao recalled the incident that broke in the Hong Kong and Taiwan entertainment circles this summer...

At that time, Xu Huanyu was performing commercially at a bar in Lin'an City, mainland China, through the introduction of Tai Bei's agent.

After the event, her agent led her to a private room, saying that a boss particularly liked her performance in "The Legend of the Mermaid".

Xu Huanyu toasted everyone in the private room, and the portly boss forced her to look at his treasures.

After watching it, she still wanted to eat the baby.

Finished eating! This fat pig boss is going to use his "treasure" to dig a hole again!!

Xu Huanyu, unable to bear it any longer, escaped while retching.

Upon returning to Taibei, Xu Huanyu was sidelined by Longyan Film & Television International Co., Ltd., with all her drama series contracts, album creation, variety show appearances, and commercial activities suspended.

In addition, the company sued her for NT$1300 million in damages.

In the TV series "Star Class Reunion" co-starring Sandra Ng and Chin Ka-lok, Xu Huanyu's situation was mentioned...

Her situation was dire; she was hundreds of thousands of NT dollars in debt and had only NT$2000 left in her account.

He now relies entirely on loans from fans and financial assistance from relatives and friends to make ends meet, and is even considering applying for a job as an assistant at a law firm to earn a living.

A pop diva who rose to fame through the common people has fallen...

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Looking at Lin Xingzhuo gesturing to her from the side, Ajiao suddenly felt extremely wronged.

Sure enough, not a single one of those men is any good. They were just making a scene in the meeting, waiting to humiliate me like this!
Given his current situation, the company would be more than happy to fire him and completely free Asa from his clutches.

Jiao was both angry and anxious, trembling all over, completely at a loss, when Lin Xingzhuo had already come over...

(End of this chapter)