Huayu: Returned Overseas Chinese

After lunch, led by Sha Jing, Chen Jingming and his group arrived at the hotel. The entire film and television city has comprehensive facilities, with three partner hotels within the park providing dedicated support services.

After saying goodbye to Zhang Jiandong in the hotel corridor, Chen Jingming went into his room, washed up, and stood at the window overlooking the film studio below, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Looking down at the entire industrial park, Chen Jingming understood. Although the village collective had invested their land in the film and television city, the villagers only enjoyed the right to receive dividends and had no actual management or decision-making power. The initial intention of building the film and television city was to find a way out for the villagers, but ultimately, the core purpose was still to make money.

Therefore, the entire film and television city has clearly defined boundaries. Except for the new rural area, all other areas are under unified planning and management. For example, the farmhouse restaurant that Yang Weidong just opened is a rented shop within the film and television city. The park strictly prohibits villages from privately occupying land to build houses or operate businesses; villagers who want to do business can only rent storefronts within the film and television city.

His gaze slowly fell on the new rural village not far away, where someone incredibly important to him lived. Two years had passed since their last parting.

In this life, Chen Jingming's return was more timely and better than in his previous life. It did not trigger too many past entanglements, nor did it evoke any emotional resonance from Aunt Lin. They merely became acquainted with each other.

Actually, Chen Jingming had considered bringing Aunt Lin to live with him and taking good care of her two years ago. But he never knew how to bring it up, and he knew that given Aunt Lin's personality, she probably wouldn't accept it easily.

His thoughts grew increasingly jumbled, and the afternoon drowsiness slowly crept in, causing his eyelids to droop. He walked slowly to the bedside, and without even taking off his coat, lay down and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Around 2:30 PM, Xu Hu knocked on the door. Chen Jingming woke up from his sleep and said:

"Coming, please wait a moment."

He rubbed his face, got up, opened the door, and saw Xu Hu standing in front of him. He asked, "..."

"What's wrong?"

"Mr. Chen, it's time. Director Zhang and General Manager Sha are already waiting downstairs."

Xu Hu responded with a smile.

Chen Jingming was taken aback upon hearing this, then raised his hand to check the time, and said:

"Go down and tell General Manager Sha and Director Zhang that I'll wash up and come right away."

Xu Hu nodded upon hearing this and turned to leave. Chen Jingming went into the bathroom, quickly washed and tidied himself up, finishing in just five minutes. After a quick grooming, he went out and took the elevator downstairs.

Stepping out of the elevator, Chen Jingming saw the group chatting in the distance and said with a smile:

"Sorry, I overslept and kept you waiting."

"Mr. Chen, we just arrived. The car is already waiting outside, and we can leave at any time."

Sha Jing stood up and replied with a smile.

Chen Jingming nodded upon hearing this, and then the group went outside and set off by car. The car drove deep into the mountain valley, and after passing through a dense bamboo forest, the scenery suddenly changed. At this moment, Sha Jing spoke up:

"Old Wang, you can park now."

Upon hearing this, the driver smoothly parked the car on the side of the road, opened the door, and the group got out one after another. Sha Jing pointed to the open space ahead and introduced it to Chen Jingming and Zhang Jiandong behind her:

"This filming location was built entirely to resemble the rural landscape of Northwest China during the Republican era. The earthen slope in front of us was specially constructed by hauling soil, and the trees planted behind it were all transplanted from the Northwest region. The entire area replicates three villages, satisfying the needs for filming from 800 different angles."

Chen Jingming looked at the desolate and barren yellow earth before him, then turned to Zhang Jiandong and asked:

"Director Zhang, take a look at this environment. Does it meet the filming requirements?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jiandong did not answer immediately. Instead, he waved to the crowd, signaling them to follow, and then walked forward to conduct an on-site inspection of the environment.

The hike took a full hour. Chen Jingming, wearing hard-soled leather shoes, had his heels raw and aching. Looking at Zhang Jiandong, who remained calm and composed throughout, and seeing the latter's casual attire, he felt a pang of regret. He realized he had been careless and had been outmatched by the younger man's stamina.

Zhang Jiandong was dressed in loose-fitting sportswear, soft, comfortable, and highly breathable, so he wouldn't feel stuffy even if he sweated a lot. In contrast, his own cotton-padded clothes were already soaked with sweat, making him vulnerable to catching a cold in this slightly chilly weather.

Wearing a pair of lightweight sneakers, which were much more comfortable than leather shoes for long walks, Chen Jingming leaned down slightly and gently massaged his stiff and sore calves to relieve his fatigue.

"Mr. Chen, the overall landscape of this place does indeed meet some of our filming needs. I think we can shoot some scenes here."

Zhang Jiandong said without turning his head.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming straightened up, walked to Zhang Jiandong's side, and asked curiously:

"Director Zhang, does it only meet some of the criteria?"

Zhang Jiandong nodded and explained earnestly:

"Indeed, only a portion of the scenes can be used. The explosion scenes in the film require collaboration with the August First Film Studio team, and this artificially constructed location is not suitable. This is not the original natural landscape, and if explosions are filmed here, it could easily damage the existing scenes. If the location is damaged, this filming location will be completely unusable for any future films or television dramas with a Northwest rural theme."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming slowly nodded and responded:

"Then let's select some suitable scenes to shoot. Taking advantage of the film crew's location shooting, we can also give our film and television city some free publicity."

Zhang Jiandong understood his deeper meaning and nodded in agreement. He knew Chen Jingming's considerations and readily agreed. If he were to finance the filming entirely on his own, he would never have chosen this location. Not only would the round trip be time-consuming, but the filming costs would also increase considerably.

With the filming location finalized, the group slowly descended the mountain and returned to the car. As soon as they were seated, Chen Jingming felt a chill run down his back and said to Zhang Jiandong and Sha Jing:

"Director Zhang, President Sha, you can continue to look around and inspect the place. My clothes are completely soaked with sweat. I'll go back to the hotel to shower and rest so I don't catch a cold later."

Upon hearing this, the two nodded in agreement. Zhang Jiandong smiled and gave them some instructions:

"Mr. Chen, when you're working with the film crew in the future, please prioritize comfort and light clothing. Please don't wear formal attire anymore."

"Thank you for the reminder, Director Zhang. I've got it."

After thanking Xu Hu, Chen Jingming got out of the car at the hotel entrance and went inside. Zhang Jiandong and General Manager Sha stayed outside to continue their inspection and sightseeing.

"Mr. Chen, should we cancel tonight's dinner?"

Inside the elevator, Xu Hu looked at Chen Jingming, whose face was noticeably pale, and asked him in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming waved his hand and forced himself to speak:

"No need, the schedule goes as planned tonight. I'll just go back to my room to wash up and rest for a while."

Xu Hu nodded upon hearing this, got out of the elevator, watched Chen Jingming walk to the room door, then turned and left to quietly prepare cold medicine.

Chen Jingming entered the room, took off his clothes, and instantly shivered. He had sweated profusely while climbing the mountain and had been exposed to the cold wind for a long time at the summit, so he had clearly caught a chill. He quickly went to the bathroom to wash up, drank a glass of warm water, and then lay down on the bed to rest.

Lying in bed in a daze, it was around five o'clock in the evening when Xu Hu knocked on the door, and Chen Jingming slowly woke up. His head was throbbing and he shook it slightly, then used his hands to support himself on the edge of the bed and managed to sit up.

After several minutes of rest, when his body had calmed down a bit, Chen Jingming finally got out of bed and opened the door. Xu Hu, seeing his haggard appearance, immediately became anxious and said:

"Mr. Chen, please don't go to the dinner party tonight. You're not feeling well right now."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming went into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. His face was pale, his complexion was sallow, his eyes were dull and lifeless, and he looked completely listless.

"Let's go as planned. We can't be absent, lest the town officials misunderstand and think we're putting on airs or acting like big shots. By the way, arrange for a few people who can hold their liquor to accompany us tonight. I'm not feeling well, so I probably won't be able to drink tonight."

"Understood, Mr. Chen. I will arrange for Xiao Zhang and Xiao Li to accompany you later."

Xu Hu stood not far away, responding respectfully.