Huayu: Returned Overseas Chinese

After Chen Jingming and Zhao Wenbo had been arguing for a while, Chen Jingming was about to invite Zhao Wenbo out for a meal when the phone rang suddenly before he could even speak.

He reached under the pillow and saw Liu Yifei's name displayed on the screen. Chen Jingming picked it up casually and said with a smile:

"Yifei, what brings you to call me today? Don't you have training?"

"Jingming, my mom said she'd like to invite you to dinner tonight. Do you have time?"

On the other end of the phone, Liu Yifei's soft voice came through the receiver. Zhao Wenbo, who was sitting not far from Chen Jingming, immediately leaned closer out of the phone upon hearing the girl's voice. Chen Jingming tried to push him away a few times, but to no avail, and could only glare at Zhao Wenbo helplessly.

"Yifei, why did Aunt Liu suddenly invite me to dinner? Is there something wrong?"

Chen Jingming asked curiously. When Liu Yifei first returned to China, the two of them spent a few days together. Later, Liu Xiaoli helped her find a professional training coach, and she became busy with training all day long, gradually losing her free time. She would only occasionally make a phone call.

"Hehe." Liu Yifei chuckled on the other end, then explained seriously:

"Brother Jingming, I'm preparing to enter the entertainment industry, right? My godfather was very supportive after he found out, and said he wanted to set up a separate company for me to help me develop. But after discussing it with my mother, I inevitably have some concerns, so I wanted to ask for your opinion."

After hearing her story, Chen Jingming instantly realized who the so-called "godfather" she was referring to was. In later years, many people on the internet fabricated rumors and spread vile speculations.

However, the other party had established a godfather-godfather relationship with Liu Yifei when she was five years old, and the two families were old friends. Those malicious smears were pure fabrication. Thinking of this, he slowly nodded and said:

"Okay, then send me the address later, I'll go there then."

"Okay, Jingming, see you tonight."

Liu Yifei was overjoyed when she saw Chen Jingming agree. Chen Jingming responded cheerfully, and the two chatted for a few more minutes before slowly hanging up the phone.

As soon as he put down his phone, Zhao Wenbo immediately leaned forward and asked eagerly:

"Well, buddy, so you were already hanging from the tree. Tell me, are you from our school?"

"Go away, you're the one who's hanging on." Chen Jingming pushed Zhao Wenbo away with disdain, then got up from the bed and explained casually:

"He's just a regular friend. He's only fifteen. What are you thinking about all day?"

This explanation, instead of dispelling Zhao Wenbo's doubts, made his expression turn strange. Zhao Wenbo looked at Chen Jingming with amusement, making "tsk tsk tsk" sounds repeatedly. Chen Jingming glanced back at him, immediately took a half step back, and, seeing the other's odd expression, asked somewhat helplessly:

"What's wrong with you?"

"Damn, I never thought Jingming was this kind of person. He could do something like that to a fifteen-year-old. Sure enough, people who come back from America think differently."

Zhao Wenbo teased him in a mocking manner. Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming helplessly cursed, "You're crazy," then picked up his washbasin and turned to wash up.

Zhao Wenbo wasn't angry at all. He still grinned and followed behind, carrying the washbasin, asking all sorts of questions and gossiping non-stop. Chen Jingming ignored him completely, quickly finished washing up, changed into clean clothes, and walked straight out of the dormitory.

"Jingming, are you coming back tonight?"

As Zhao Wenbo watched Chen Jingming leave, he quickly chased after him, shouting loudly.

"roll."

Chen Jingming shouted without turning his head, then disappeared around the corner of the corridor. Zhao Wenbo smiled, turned around, and leisurely returned to his dormitory.

Walking out of the dormitory building and arriving at the school gate, Xu Hu had already been waiting there in his car for quite some time. Chen Jingming got into the back seat and casually gave the order:

"Go to the company."

Xu Hu nodded, started the car, and slowly drove towards the China World Trade Center. After about forty minutes, the car came to a smooth stop in front of the building. Chen Jingming got out of the car and walked straight into the building.

After taking the elevator to his floor, Chen Jingming stepped out and went straight into his office, where he picked up the landline phone and made a call.

"Mr. Yang, come to my office."

"Okay, Mr. Chen, I'll be right there."

Yang Jie responded and hung up the phone. Chen Jingming lit a cigarette, then walked to the French windows and quietly watched the bustling street scene below. A moment later, a knock sounded at the door right on time.

"Enter."

After receiving permission, Yang Jie pushed open the door and walked in. Chen Jingming turned to look at Yang Jie and asked with a smile:

"Mr. Yang, has the script for 'Plowing the Court and Sweeping the Caves' that I asked you to complete been finished?"

Yang Jie nodded upon hearing this, and said with a smile:

"The entire draft has been revised and finalized; it's gone through several revisions. Would you like to take a look?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingming immediately became interested and then said:

"Then let me take a look. If the content is fine, let's arrange for its filing directly."

Yang Jie nodded, then walked to Chen Jingming's desk, picked up the internal phone, gave a brief explanation, and hung up.

After handing over the work, the two sat in the office, quietly drinking tea and waiting patiently. A short while later, a clerk from the scriptwriting department knocked on the door, placed the script on the table, and quietly left.

Chen Jingming glanced down at the document cover, which bore the four large characters "Plowing the Court and Sweeping the Cave." He picked up the script and slowly began to read it.

The first page contained detailed biographical information about the two main characters, Generals Zhao Fu and Li Bing. Chen Jingming glanced at it briefly, then asked:

"Are these historical materials artistic fabrications or based on true historical records?"

"Mr. Chen, most of these historical materials are authentic and verifiable. We specifically visited university history professors and experts specializing in Ming Dynasty history, and consulted with various sources before writing the content."

Yang Jie blurted it out without even thinking.

Chen Jingming nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this, and then continued to carefully read through the pages.

The entire storyline unfolds around the third year of the Chenghua reign: the Jianzhou rebels repeatedly invaded the borders of the Ming Dynasty, burning, killing, looting, and harming the people everywhere. Zhu Jianshen was furious about this and immediately ordered General Zhao Fu to lead an army of 50,000 to conquer Jianzhou, with Li Bing as the supervising officer.

After quickly skimming through several key plot scenes, Chen Jingming flipped directly to the end of the script and read the concluding paragraph. It clearly stated:

The army annihilated the Jianzhou rebels' main camp, beheading rebel leaders Dong Shan and Li Manzhu, and destroying more than forty camps. After this battle, the main force of the Jianzhou rebels was completely wiped out, and except for the elderly, weak, women and children, the entire tribe was almost on the verge of collapse.

Chen Jingming slowly closed the script, gently stroking the cover with his palm, and sighed inwardly: "The Great Ming Dynasty's most decisive campaign to quell border rebellions was also the most decisive battle it ever waged against the rebellious forces on the border."

Yang Jie noticed Chen Jingming's solemn expression and soft sigh, and quickly asked:

"Mr. Chen, is there anything in the script that you're not satisfied with? If there are any problems, we'll go back and revise it immediately."

"No need, let's finalize the draft like this. Just organize the materials and submit it for review. Call me as soon as the approval is granted."

Chen Jingming shook his head and slowly said. Right now, the film and television market is flooded with Qing Dynasty dramas, a genre he's always disliked. That's why he specifically asked the scriptwriting department to polish the script for "Plowing the Court and Sweeping the Caves," using real history as the main framework, which would make the content easier to fill in.

"Okay, Mr. Chen, I'll organize all the materials later and submit them for review today."

After the script was finalized, Yang Jie paused, then changed the subject to another matter, continuing:

"Mr. Chen, the Chinese New Year is just around the corner. I'd like to ask when the company plans to give us a holiday? Some colleagues who live in other places have been asking about it these past few days."

Chen Jingming was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then calmly made the arrangements:

"After I discuss this matter with General Manager Wang Shuo, we will issue an internal email notification. Please tell all employees to pay close attention to company announcements."

P.S.: In the section related to the work, I wrote a scene from the script of "Plowing the Court and Sweeping the Cave". If you are interested, you can take a look. If you like it, leave a comment. I will slowly write out the rest of the plot.