Entertainment Era: My Good Sister Is All Over the World

"There is no such thing as a perfect article, just as there is no such thing as utter despair."

—Haruki Murakami, Hear the Wind Sing (1979)

……

This meal together didn't last long.

Although Chen Huaikai introduced Huang Wenbin to some big names in Peking Opera, Huang Wenbin couldn't very well ask them questions during the meal.

Huang Wenbin was also aware of his own limitations, but this one acquaintance was far from enough to make these big shots open to him.

Therefore, he decided to start with his peers.

He went directly to Yu Rongguang with his notebook and pen to exchange contact information.

This young man didn't have a mobile phone; what he was exchanging were mailing addresses and landline phone numbers, or the numbers of public phone booths.

Yu Rongguang was also very curious about Huang Wenbin and readily wrote down his address.

Looking at the address and landline number written on the paper, Huang Wenbin smiled and said, "Should I call you Brother Rong or Brother Guang?"

"No, just call me by my name." Yu Rongguang waved his hands repeatedly, showing none of the arrogance and haughtiness he would later display. "If you have any questions about Peking Opera, you can ask me. If I don't know something, I'll ask my dad."

"Calling you by your name is too formal, I'll just call you Brother Rong," Huang Wenbin said, making the decision immediately. He then teased, "With your good looks, have you ever thought about making movies?"

"Making movies?" Yu Rongguang was slightly taken aback, a ripple appearing in his eyes, clearly indicating that he had considered it, but he quickly shook his head: "I am a Peking Opera actor, my main profession is still performing opera, I don't think anyone would want me to make movies."

Huang Wenbin said with a smile, "Brother Rong, what have you forgotten about me? I'm a screenwriter at the Beijing Film Studio and a directing student at the Beijing Film Academy. I'll definitely be making movies in the future, so please don't refuse when I ask for your help."

Yu Rongguang laughed nonchalantly, "Alright, feel free to contact me anytime, I'll definitely do my best. However, I only play positive roles, so please don't bother me with villainous ones."

Yu Rongguang doesn't have that strong passion for making movies right now, but once Li Lianjie becomes famous worldwide because of "Shaolin Temple," he won't be able to hold back any longer.

In 1984, he took on the role of the main villain in "The Cotton Robe".

After receiving Yu Rongguang's assurance, Huang Wenbin turned around and went to find Wei Huili.

"Sister Wei, could you leave me your contact information?"

Huang Wenbin looked at Wei Huili with utmost sincerity, "If I encounter any difficulties in Peking Opera in the future, I can ask you for answers and solutions."

Wei Huili stared at Huang Wenbin with her large, watery eyes, a half-smile on her face, her gaze carrying a hint of scrutiny.

Clearly, she was trying to discern whether Huang Wenbin genuinely wanted to ask questions or was using the opportunity to get closer to her.

Huang Wenbin's gaze was pure, without a trace of evil.

"I'm from the Shandong Peking Opera Troupe, so I probably won't be able to stay in Yanjing for too long."

Seeing Huang Wenbin's serious expression, Wei Huili smiled and said, "How about this, I'll leave you two addresses, one here and one from my hometown. Just write to me, I'll definitely receive your letters."

"What about the landline number?" Huang Wenbin pressed.

Yu Yanxia, ​​standing nearby, chuckled and teased, "Young man, you're too impatient. Even writing a letter can't quench your thirst!"

"Ah, I didn't mean that. I just wanted to gather the information as soon as possible." Huang Wenbin understood. In this day and age, directly asking for a girl's landline phone number was practically an indication that you wanted to date her.

Yu Yanxia continued, "You'd better mean it, otherwise it's too frivolous."

In this day and age, this assessment is quite serious.

Huang Wenbin was so frightened that he froze, not knowing what to say, and could only look to Chen Huaikai for help.

"He's still young, Mr. Yu, please stop teasing him!" Chen Huaikai said with a smile, trying to defuse the situation. "We shouldn't overanalyze young people's thoughts; let things take their natural course. Don't you think so?"

Yu Yanxia smiled but remained silent.

At this moment, Wei Huili had already written down the address and handed the slip of paper to Huang Wenbin: "Take this and write to me anytime. I will reply."

"Thank you." Huang Wenbin didn't dare say anything more.

After the meal, everyone went home.

Chen Huaikai then rode his bicycle to take Huang Wenbin back to the Beijing Film Studio, and then went home himself.

In a few days, they will be organizing the casting call. He needs to go home and talk to his wife and children so he can focus on filming later.

Huang Wenbin returned to his room, gently closed the door, and immediately began this month's lottery draw.

This time it's a little different, because the hard drive in my mind not only randomly selects three works each month, but also gives me a chance to draw a specific work once a year. Of course, I can only choose one work.

Huang Wenbin resisted using it last year, but today he finally got to use it.

"The selected work is 'Farewell My Concubine,' and the other two will be randomized. Begin."

He murmured a name, and a golden light flashed through his mind, followed by three works appearing in his thoughts.

[Winner of a set including the novel, screenplay, and film adaptation of "Farewell My Concubine"]

[I've won a copy of Yu Hua's short story "Leaving Home at Eighteen"]

[I've been selected to read the witty short story "The Celestial Game"]

very good!

Huang Wenbin nodded to himself. There's no need to say more about "Farewell My Concubine," it's a classic film that has made its mark on film history.

"Going Out into the World at Eighteen" is Yu Hua's most famous work, and it would be more appropriate for him to use it now that he is 19 years old.

Another work, "The Heavenly Game," may be a little less well-known, but it was popularized by Qi Tongwei in later generations, especially the phrase "winning half a move against Heaven," which became incredibly popular.

For the next few days, Huang Wenbin was constantly typing and revising his manuscript.

Even if he has already been selected for these works, he cannot write them all at once; that would be too fake.

Work needs to be documented.

Writing also needs to leave traces of gradual improvement.

Of course, his main task was to adapt the novel "The Coffin" into a screenplay.

This is nothing new. He originally won the script for "The Coffin in the Mountain," but changed it into a novel so he could earn more royalties.

While he was engrossed in writing, a considerable uproar occurred in the outside world.

This whole controversy was sparked by those two scripts of his.

Because of the involvement of several parties, the scripts for "Shaolin Temple" and "The Cotton Robe" caused a sensation immediately after being published in "Film Creation".

Several directors were interested, sparking a bidding war.

The story begins with director Zhang Xinyan, who was filming in Huangshan.

Zhang Xinyan was born in Ningbo in 1934 and is a famous Hong Kong director of new-style martial arts films.

In 1951, he entered the Nanyang Film Studio in Hong Kong to learn film processing techniques, and later learned editing.

He joined Great Wall Film Company in 1957, where he served successively as editor and assistant director.

In 1966, he co-directed the martial arts film "The Jade Bow and the Cloud Sea" with Fu Qi, which caused quite a stir in Hong Kong and was regarded as a new style of martial arts film.

If things had continued along the historical trajectory, he would have directed the film "Shaolin Temple" in 1981, thus making his mark on film history.

However, Zhang Xinyan was not in a very good mood at this moment.