This director loves making friends.

Qin Keqing's father was named Qin Jianjun, a simple and steady name that reflected the unique style of that era.

Upon hearing what the township official said, he visibly panicked and quickly craned his neck to look at the newspaper in the official's hand.

In Qin Jianjun's simple values, only those fugitives who commit serious crimes such as robbery and murder will appear in the newspapers and the township officials will come to find out about their situation.

Although Qin Jianjun was extremely dissatisfied with Qin Keqing's actions, and was so angry that he almost disowned his son and even forbade his wife to mention their son at home, he was still his own son, and if something happened to him...

Then, he looked bewildered and somewhat dissatisfied at the township officials.

Are you sick in the head?

That scared the hell out of me.

The newspaper clearly stated that he was a famous Chinese director!

My disobedient son of a bitch has become an actor, which has nothing to do with being a director, right? Besides, how long has he been away from home? Only a year and a half. How could he become a famous director?

It's really baffling.

That's absolutely impossible!

It's just that they have the same name.

If he really becomes a famous director in a year and a half, I, I, I'll call him Dad.

So Qin Jianjun waved his hand, suppressing the anger that welled up inside him at the thought of that bastard, and forced a smile, saying, "Xiao Qing works in the city, how could she be a director? You've got it wrong, it's probably just a coincidence of names."

Qin's mother secretly tugged at Qin Jianjun's sleeve, telling him not to lie. He would lose face if he was exposed. Everyone in the village knew that Qin Keqing had lost his "iron rice bowl," and it was Qin Jianjun himself who revealed the truth.

Qin Jianjun forbids his mother from mentioning anything about Qin Keqing at home, but that doesn't mean his mother is unaware of some things about Qin Keqing.

In those days, there wasn't even a telephone in the village.

The most common way to communicate is by writing letters.

Or send a telegram.

Another option is to call the other party's phone number if you know their number, but that's very expensive. In rural areas, people only think of making a phone call or sending a telegram when something is extremely urgent.

Before going to Hong Kong, Qin Keqing didn't have a telephone, and he couldn't afford a mobile phone.

But he would still write letters home.

However, Qin Jianjun basically didn't read the letters he wrote, and would pretend not to know or deliberately ignore them; it was always Qin's mother who read them.

This method of contact is inconvenient after all.

As a result, Qin's mother received information much later than usual, especially after Qin Keqing went to Hong Kong, making it even more inconvenient to contact him.

Qin Keqing made money in Hong Kong and sent 100,000 yuan home, intending to have a telephone installed. However, his mother secretly inquired about the price and decided against it.

Qin Jianjun was also aware of the 100,000 yuan.

Qin's mother said that this was money Qin Keqing earned from making movies, but Qin Jianjun didn't think so.

He had secretly inquired and found out that actors don't earn much money at all, and even famous actors don't earn much in a year—he had always thought that Qin Keqing had gone to become an actor.

So Qin Jianjun didn't dare touch the 100,000 yuan, fearing it was ill-gotten.

After all, it was an era when a village producing a household with ten thousand yuan could cause a sensation for miles around. Ten thousand yuan was a sum that ordinary rural people dared not even dream of.

This is also why he was afraid when the village head and township officials came to his home.

"Right? I also think it might be a case of the same name."

The township official was about to leave when he suddenly turned back and asked, "Is Qin Keqing's household registration at the design institute in the city?"

Qin Jianjun nodded. "Yes, after Xiaoqing graduated, he was assigned to the design institute in our city, and his household registration was also transferred to the design institute."

"I see."

The township official muttered to himself, "Then the county must have made a mistake."

According to some media reports, the registered residence of the famous director Qin Keqing is the Municipal Design Institute.

The municipal design institute was also a bit confused.

There's a college graduate in their company who took a leave of absence last year, also named Qin Keqing, but that graduate majored in design, which has absolutely nothing to do with directing.

So, while the municipal design institute suspected that some media outlets had made a mistake with the information, it still called Qin Keqing's hometown county and asked them to check what Qin Keqing was doing.

Although it seems ridiculous and outrageously wrong, since it has been reported in the newspapers, it must be investigated. If the higher-ups ask about it, we can't just say "maybe," "probably," or "it might be a mistake," right?

What would your leader think after hearing your "maybe," "probably," or "possibly"?

The city asked the county, and the county asked the township.

"lead."

Seeing that the township leaders were about to leave, Qin's mother mentioned weakly, "It seems that our young man went to Hong Kong recently."

"You went to Hong Kong? That's great!"

The township official became more enthusiastic, then paused, surprised. "You went to Hong Kong?"

"A Bittersweet Life" is a Hong Kong film, and the director is from mainland China; these are all publicly reported pieces of information.

It's possible to have the same name, but this Qin Keqing also went to Hong Kong?

"What did your son, Ke Qing, do before he went to Hong Kong?"

Township officials quickly pressed for further details.

Qin's mother glanced at Qin Jianjun and said, "After Xiaoqing went to Beijing, it seems she became some kind of assistant director, something like that..."

She couldn't remember the name of the movie for a moment.

The township official felt his heart pounding wildly. Could it really be such a coincidence?

"Woman Sesame Oil Maker?"

He had read the information provided above. The director who won a major award abroad, Qin Keqing, had worked as an assistant director on films such as "Woman Sesame Oil Maker" and "King of Beggars" before directing "Sweet Life".

"Yes, yes, it's 'Woman Sesame Oil Maker,' Xiaoqing was the assistant director for that movie..."

"oops!"

The township official slapped his thigh suddenly.

He turned around, grabbed Qin Jianjun's hands with both of his, shook them, and said excitedly, "..."

However, he opened his mouth but couldn't say anything. He originally called out the name, but added "comrade" after it, saying, "Comrade XXX, you have cultivated talents for the country."

But he didn't know Qin Jianjun's name.

Finally, he could only shake the hand he was holding vigorously and change his words, saying, "You're a good father! You're a good father, you've raised him so well. Without your guidance, there would be no famous Director Qin."

Qin Jianjun wasn't stupid; from the conversation just now, he could tell that he seemed to be at odds with Qin Keqing.

but!

Qin Keqing became a famous director?

Or is he a famous director who has won a major foreign award?

Why does this seem so unreal?

Furthermore, the more I listen to these words from the township leaders, the more unpleasant they become.

Qin Jianjun still clearly remembered the harsh words he had uttered to Qin Keqing to prevent him from leaving: "If you step out of this house today, don't ever come back, even if you die outside!"

This is... good teaching?

However, these are all minor matters!

It's a trivial matter.

All unpleasantness vanished in that moment, transforming into immense joy.

"Xiaoqing became a famous director? And even won an award abroad? This... hehe, hehehe..."

Qin Jianjun's originally dim eyes suddenly lit up, and the corners of his relaxed mouth uncontrollably turned up, as if something had exploded from his heart, running down his ribs to his limbs, and his wrists and ankles were also tingling with a slight itch.

Xiaoqing is doing well!

No need to worry about that kid anymore!

You've really made something of yourself this time.

OK, OK!

Qin Jianjun then shook the hand of the township leader he was holding, saying, "I didn't do anything. It was all Xiaoqing's hard work. That child has been smart since she was little, has her own opinions, and can learn anything very quickly..."

Qin Keqing was unaware of what was happening in his hometown, city, county, and township. He didn't actually intend to hide anything. Even if his hometown couldn't discover his identity, he would still go there to promote the movie when "Sweet Life" was released.

But before that, he needs to hurry up and film "The Man from Nowhere".

His good friend Pierre Lissent called today to say he would help him get his new film "Uncle" to the Venice Film Festival, but the film must be completed by August 25.

This day was the final date for the Venice Film Festival to announce the third batch of entries selected for the main competition.

If it doesn't make it to August 25th, it won't be able to be selected for the main competition at this year's Venice Film Festival.

Pierre-Lissent's words left Qin Keqing silent for a long time.

He never intended to go to the main competition at the Venice Film Festival; his initial idea was to find connections to get him a spot in the non-competitive screenings.

Qin Keqing was also thinking of accumulating more points and trying to see if "The Uncle" could become a special screening film or the closing film in the non-competitive screening.

Even if he were to go to the main competition at the Venice Film Festival in the future, Qin Keqing would be thinking of following the path of Marco Müller and developing Marco Müller into his "good friend".

Why is Pierre Lissent so enthusiastic? This film isn't even aiming for awards.