Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

"Who said that? I don't even need to look to know. There are countless people in the country crying and begging to marry you right now."

"Hey, you said you were in China. It's about time, let's go eat."

"You'd better behave yourself, or I'll break up with you along with the girl with braces."

"Snapped!"

"......."

The restaurant is on the 23rd floor. Although it's called the top floor, it's not. The upper floors are separate guesthouses that are not open to the public.

The restaurant's decor is simple and bright, with white as the main color. The dining space is quite large, with only eight tables and two private rooms. At this moment, Yang Che and his group are the only customers.

Looking down at the snow-covered scenery of Nanshan through the large floor-to-ceiling windows is quite pleasant.

The group sat at a long table in the private room, with three cups in front of each person, and the dishes were served individually.

Korean food has three treasures: kimchi, soybean paste, and a saucepan. Although this meal looks very high-end, with beef and various seafood, it's pretty much the same. To be fair, the taste is still good; at least Yang Che really likes kimchi.

People stared silently at the dishes laid out before them, a dozen or so in total. They couldn't help but feel grateful that they had listened to Yang Che and finished their airplane meals on the plane. Otherwise, they would not have been able to handle the work this afternoon and evening. They were all in their early twenties, the age when they would be hungry again as soon as they finished eating.

However, Zheng Bingyuan, being a China expert, specifically ordered a bowl of ramen for each person in addition to the set meal...

After the meal, without taking a break, I immediately went back to work. There was no other way, since I was flying to Japan the next day.

The main force for overseas publicity was naturally Fan Bingbing, Huang Haibo, and Cheng Er. First, they dealt with the newspapers and magazines that Zheng Bingyuan had brought to the hotel, and then the group went to MBC TV station for an interview. This time, all four of them went together.

The female host is named Park Sun-mi. She's very pleasing to the eye and always seems to be smiling.

The interviews were actually quite similar to those in China, mainly focusing on the core of the story, the actors' thoughts, and behind-the-scenes stories.

The difference was that everyone would say "hello Korea" from time to time and greet each other in broken Korean. Except for Cheng Er, who had a cold face the whole time, the other three were as friendly as could be, as if they regretted not being Korean in this life.

Although Yang Che did not say "I feel like I am half Korean", he still received friendly faces and applause from the crew in the studio after the recording ended.

Chi Longtian, the translator in the corner, clicked his tongue in amazement. He felt that Yang Che understood Koreans better than he, a Korean-Chinese who had studied in South Korea for three years. Yang Che had a firm grasp on Korean psychology.

Outside the television station building, Zheng Bingyuan shook Yang Che's hand solemnly and said, "Thank you, Yang Chexi."

Yang Che looked completely bewildered: "What are you thanking me for?"

Jung Byung-won shook his head and said with great emotion, "I have been studying Chinese culture for more than ten years and have had several interactions with you. You are a very proud person and a person with a strong sense of national pride. I naturally want to thank you for praising South Korea and its people in this way."

Yang Che smiled, then said very seriously, "South Korea is indeed the fastest-growing economy in the world right now, and Korean pop culture is indeed influencing the whole world. 'My Sassy Girl' was indeed influenced by Korean film and television culture. So I'm not praising it, I'm just stating an objective fact."

Zheng Bingyuan paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Haha, Yang Chexi is really honest."

Fan Bingbing, who was behind them, secretly rolled her eyes. Before going abroad, her brother had given them a thorough training.

"When promoting our work in Korea, we have to praise everything, from the delicious kimchi to the wonderful soybean paste stew, and how everyone on the streets has such great makeup and looks so energetic..."

Cheng Er raised his hand: "I can't say anything."

"Just think of it as going to the zoo and seeing some funny monkeys."

"Then I can't bring myself to praise it either."

"Then you should act cool and play the supporting role."

"....."

"When you get to Japan, it's a bit different from being in China, so don't be too enthusiastic. Just keep it simple. For example, if a host asks you what you like about Japan, don't say you like Japanese anime. Instead, say you like Hayao Miyazaki. Remember that, and then go do your homework on what else you like."

"....."

After the scheduled interviews were completed, it was already 6:30 p.m.

After everyone had a light meal together, the "fan meeting" began.

When the crowd appeared on the stage of the Chungmuro ​​Cinema, they were met with a deafening roar of cheers, something that would be impossible in China.

Of course, these were still employees, but these people were really professional, much more professional than the "audience" of some singing shows in later generations, shouting at the top of their lungs.

This is not surprising, since the theater was quite noisy when the movie was first shown, with not only laughter but also conversations.

Furthermore, people are allowed to bring their own alcohol and food into the theaters, so don't be surprised if you hear a cacophony of slurping noodles and clinking glasses while watching a movie in Korea.

This is a unique feature of South Korea. The workplace and academic environment in this country are extremely competitive, and the general public suffers from long-term mental repression, which they call "fire disease." Cinemas and concert venues are rare, low-cost public spaces where one can relax without suppressing emotions. Therefore, when South Koreans watch movies, they instinctively release their emotions when they encounter exciting, funny, or thrilling scenes. The louder they are, the more cathartic they feel, just like howling like wolves on a mountaintop.

Of course, this only applies to commercial films; art films remain relatively quiet in this regard.

However, Fan Bingbing still encountered real fans, because they were holding up stills from "Princess Pearl" and shouting "Suozi" (a character from the TV series "My Fair Princess").

Little Fatty was experiencing a bittersweet mix of pain and joy. During the greeting and interaction segment, he even specially invited this girl with small eyes and a round face onto the stage.

After being hugged by the chubby boy, the girl covered her face and almost fainted: "My name is Pei Minjing. It's like fate. The first time I saw you on TV, I fell in love with you. After seeing your Song Xingxing, I liked you even more. I've decided to get plastic surgery to look like you."

The audience applauded and cheered for this touching scene...

The four people on stage had very strange expressions after hearing the translation. Fan Bingbing forced a laugh and subconsciously looked at her boyfriend.

He said very quickly, "I wish her all the best in everything she does."

Fan Bingbing instantly switched to a friendly smile and looked at her fan Pei Minjing, saying, "There's an old Chinese saying, 'May everything go as you wish.' I sincerely wish you all the best, and I'll write that on a bookmark."

Then Fan Bingbing took the bookmark, wrote on it, and signed her name. She also gave all the other small gifts to her excited, tearful little fan.

Seeing this, not only did Yang Che's eyes show admiration, but the audience and reporters below the stage, led by professional spectators, were already applauding Fan Bingbing wildly.