Chapter 556: Old Wang's Idea, Visiting the Set, and the Surprise Prepared by Sister Li

The premiere of *Tianji: Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains* has begun.

Invitations were sent out across the industry long ago; there are not many people left in the entertainment circle who would dare to snub both China Film Group and CCTV-6 at the same time.

Wei Jin could certainly be counted as one of them, though personally, he truly did not want to go.

But after receiving calls from Han Sanping and a certain bigwig from the event organizer, the Movie Channel, plus the fact that the filming location was right near Beijing, he didn't even have an excuse to refuse.

Fortunately, the timing was reasonable; Wei Jin finished the day's filming two hours early and took a simply dressed Yifei to keep the appointment.

Arriving at the Olympic Sports Center, Wei Jin looked at the scene before him and couldn't help but exclaim, "Good heavens."

For a single film, *Tianji: Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains*, more than half the entertainment industry had shown up.

"President Wei, Miss Liu, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to grace us with your presence at the premiere."

Although Wei Jin was not very familiar with this President Sun, who was directing for the first time, the saying goes that one does not strike a smiling face; since the man was greeting him with a smile, he had to give some face in return.

"You're too kind, President Sun. I wish you a massive box office success."

After exchanging greetings with President Sun, Wei Jin led Yifei toward the inside of the venue.

He saw the creative team already greeting guests everywhere, and Jiang Yiyan, one of the leads, spotted Yifei with a sharp eye and smiled as she came over to say hello.

Just after a few pleasantries, Liu Tianwang walked up to them.

"Hua Ge, long time no see."

"Director Wei, Yifei, thank you for coming to support us."

Liu Tianwang gave Wei Jin a firm hug, then patted his shoulder and sighed.

"Don't you go making fun of me after you watch the movie later."

In that instant, Wei Jin remembered what Liu Tianwang had said to him over the phone the year before last.

Having filmed for over a month, he had absolutely no idea what he was acting in. He felt the plot completely deviated from the main thread and was a mess from start to finish. For a movie to be criticized like this by Liu Tianwang, it was clear it was truly rotten to the core.

However, since he had come today, he certainly wouldn't say anything to dampen the mood; he just smiled and waved his hand.

"Hua Ge, you're being too modest. How could I?"

As one of the producers, Han Sanping appeared very busy today, surrounded by bigwigs of the same rank from the Shanghai Film Group, Changying, and the Western Film Group; ordinary people weren't even qualified to approach him.

Wei Jin was happy to be idle and went to chat and joke with Old Wang from Enlight Media, but he hadn't expected this old guy to actually set his sights on the directors at his company.

"Little brother, there are only so many capable directors in the circle right now. Isn't it a waste to have your company's people sitting idle?"

Wei Jin didn't rush to refuse, but asked curiously, "What kind of movie is it that requires you to seek outside help, brother?"

"Little brother, you know that *So Young* made quite a bit. I'm thinking of striking while the iron is hot and making another youth film. It just so happens another company has a script, so isn't that perfect?"

Wei Jin nodded, unsurprised. Such films have low production costs, short cycles, and decent box office returns; there were far too many companies following the trend now.

Old Wang, standing to the side, continued to explain excitedly:

"Little brother, you remember that song 'My Old Classmate' by Ai Dajin, right? He has already personally led a team to write the script. A youth theme combined with a nostalgic style—it's definitely worth doing."

Wei Jin frowned as he listened. *So Young* and *Left Ear* at least had the foundation of novels; did Ai Dajin have the ability to expand a song like 'My Old Classmate' into a movie? However, it was certain that such a film would make money; it just wouldn't help the director's reputation much. So, Wei Jin asked:

"I wonder who you're looking to invite, brother?"

"How about Lin Yufen?"

This name did not exceed Wei Jin's expectations. After *Left Ear*, Lin Yufen had gained a bit of fame in the industry, and it was a youth theme she was good at, so he nodded:

"Fine, I have no problem with that. But as you know, brother, the company's management has always been very relaxed. Whether she is willing to take it or not is something you'll have to negotiate with her yourself."

Hearing this, a smile appeared on Old Wang's face; as long as Wei Jin agreed, it would be easy to handle.

"Good, I'll arrange for someone to contact her shortly. I certainly won't treat her poorly regarding the pay."

"Mm."

After chatting with Old Wang for a while, the premiere on stage began, with the creative team sharing interesting stories from the filming.

When a reporter asked about box office expectations, Sun Jianjun even jokingly said he wanted to catch up to Wei Jin's *Thieves*.

Many people at the scene also expressed their anticipation, but unfortunately, once the movie started playing, everyone became more confused the more they watched.

Just as Sun Jianjun had said earlier, the film had many elements; the location shooting alone spanned several countries and regions, including Dubai, Milan, and Tokyo. The luxury cars, beauties, and other iconic Hollywood elements in the film were dazzling, and the color grading throughout was also very vibrant.

However, it was all gold on the outside but rotten on the inside; the film gave the impression of being forcibly stitched together, and it was impossible to tell what it was trying to express.

Overall, the movie was flashy and superficial, and the most memorable part was actually the taboo romance between Tong Dawei and Lin Chi-ling.

Wei Jin mused that since *No Man's Land* and *Tianji: Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains* were in the same release window, he might even get to reap some of the benefits from his competitor.

But since everyone helps carry the sedan chair, and the producers had enough face, the applause that rang out at the scene when the film ended was not small.

Subsequently, the media's press releases about the premiere were full of obfuscation.

They were all descriptions of the visuals and the 3D effects, with uniform praise; as for the plot and acting, they were not mentioned at all.

The producers' intentions could not have been more obvious.

But none of this had anything to do with Wei Jin; he poured all his energy into the filming of his new movie.

*The Fault in Our Stars* is an artistic romance film, filled with a large amount of daily life scenes, giving people a sense of a slow and relaxed pace.

In the script, over 80% of the scenes were between Wei Jin and Yifei.

After their first meeting at the "Support Group for Patients," the male and female leads began to slowly grow closer.

The male lead, played by Wei Jin, was the more proactive one; he always reminded the female lead to take her medicine on time, accompanied her to watch movies, and chatted and joked around... Time flew by, three days passed, and the crew welcomed an important scene.

It was also at this time that Zhou Xun, having finished her charity ambassador activities and spent a day at home adjusting to the jet lag, came to the set to visit.

"Old Wei, you're something else. Filming a movie and falling in love at the same time—you're managing both just fine."

Zhou Xun's tone was somewhat emotional; this scumbag was so promiscuous, yet he never crashed and burned—it was simply against the laws of nature.

"What? Envious? Hurry up and find a man; you're looking like you're about to hit forty, aren't you?"

"Get lost, don't bring up sore subjects."

Zhou Xun rolled her eyes, and not satisfied with that, she also gave him the middle finger, then looked at the crew preparing for the shoot, feeling a bit puzzled.

"What are you filming? The setup is quite large."

Wei Jin pursed his lips at Liu Yifei, who was currently applying makeup, "Look, I invited her to go on a trip, but it turned out she had pleural effusion, and her condition started to worsen and spread."

"Damn, it really is a standard art-house romance film; the tropes are classic enough."

After seeing Liu Yifei's new makeup, Zhou Xun gave a thumbs up.

"Yifei, this look of yours is definitely a plus. I believe now that you can film this well." The Liu Yifei before her, dressed in a hospital gown, with a sallow complexion, bruised eye sockets, and a pale face devoid of any blood, looked exactly like a terminally ill patient.

Although what Zhou Xun said was somewhat blunt, Liu Yifei's face was full of smiles.

"Hee hee, then thank you for the recognition from the Three Gold Best Actress."

Taking advantage of the time the set was being prepared, Wei Jin checked the situation of the previous few takes.

The first take today was Liu Yifei being awakened from her sleep by the feeling of suffocation caused by the pleural effusion, crying out with all her might.

Liu Xiaoli, who heard the news, hurriedly scooped her up in a horizontal carry and headed straight for the black private car parked in the courtyard.

The second take moved to the hospital, when the doctor informed Liu Xiaoli that the female lead's cancer cells had shown signs of spreading. Honestly, Liu Xiaoli's performance over the past few days had given Wei Jin a big surprise.

While fitting the character, there wasn't a trace of acting, and the details showed great skill.

"Asking her to act this time was really the right choice."

After sighing with emotion, Wei Jin saw that everything was ready and immediately picked up the megaphone.

"All units prepare, 30-second countdown."

Each team moved quickly, and the floor manager timed the clapperboard.

"The Fault in Our Stars, Scene 16, Take 1, Attempt 1."

"Action!"

In the shot, Liu Yifei, wearing the makeup just applied, lay on the hospital bed with quite a few tubes inserted into her body, waking up from a deep coma.

"I... what happened to me?"

A weak Liu Yifei was still a bit dazed.

"It's nothing, just too much fluid in your lungs; the doctor just drained it, you're fine now."

Liu Xiaoli tried her best to downplay the situation, soothing her daughter's emotions, attempting to cover up the fact that the cancer cells had spread.

However, having been together for over twenty years, how could the daughter not sense a trace of abnormality? She immediately had her suspicions, but neither of them exposed it, just looking at each other quietly. "Cut, this take is good, everyone take a break."

As soon as Wei Jin finished speaking, Zhou Xun walked over and gave Liu Xiaoli a thumbs up.

"Auntie, your acting is really good; professional actors are no better than this."

Liu Xiaoli blushed, feeling a bit embarrassed, "Hehe, Miss Zhou is joking. I don't have any acting experience; I just rely on feeling and emotion, so I'm not worthy of such praise."

"Not at all, it's truly good."

Seeing Zhou Xun and Liu Xiaoli exchanging pleasantries, Liu Yifei, lying on the hospital bed, was unhappy and hurriedly interjected.

"Young Master Zhou, what about me? What about me? Did I not act well just now?"

Zhou Xun teased playfully: "This, you should go ask your brother, haha."

Zhou Xun grabbed a lunch at the set and chatted with Wei Jin about the situation of Red Sorghum.

Regarding the actors, Jiang Xuerou had already reported previously.

During the audition phase, Zhu Yawen, under Wang Jinhua, performed well, portraying the "rough man" meant to rival Jiang Wen quite well, and he secured the male lead.

Secondly, Huang Xuan, who had collaborated with Wei Jin before, also got the role of the second male lead.

The rest, Qin Hailu and Yu Rongguang, were also veteran actors recognized by Zheng Xiaolong, and the company did not interfere at all.

Zhou Xun had already returned, and Zheng Xiaolong planned to start filming in three days, which could be considered giving her some time to adjust.

Unexpectedly, this actually drew a complaint from Zhou Xun: "In my opinion, why is that necessary? I am a dignified Three Gold Best Actress; this TV drama is a piece of cake for me..."

Zhou Xun's appearance left Liu Xiaoli, Luo Jin, and the others at the table dumbfounded. This is the Three Gold Best Actress? Is she fake?

"Tsk tsk, forget it. With that tone of yours, those who don't know would think you were a European Three Major Film Festivals Grand Slam winner."

Wei Jin smiled and teased her, and Zhou Xun immediately countered.

"Hey, Old Wei, don't say that. If you dare to write a script for me, believe it or not, a Grand Slam is nothing?"

Speaking of this, Zhou Xun raised her eyebrows and provoked: "Old Wei, how about we make a bet?"

"Forget it, your reverse psychology doesn't work on me. Two words for you: no way."

Just kidding, with four main ladies, Wei Jin couldn't even handle them all; where would he have the spare time to create a script for Young Master Zhou?

"Pah..."

At least considering Liu Xiaoli was there, the "scumbag" word Zhou Xun had in mind didn't come out, but Wei Jin could already tell from her lip shape.

In the afternoon, the crew filmed as usual, but Wei Jin specifically finished work an hour early and took Liu Yifei to attend the premiere of No Man's Land.

This film had been anticipated for four years. On stage, Ning Hao expressed that he would never let down everyone's "longing," and jokingly called himself, Huang Bai, and Xu Zheng the "stainless steel" Triangle.

And when asked about the sensitive topic of cuts, the high-EQ Huang Bai said it was mainly to protect the children.

After all, the original version where everyone was a villain was indeed too dark.

However, even after being cut and re-filmed, No Man's Land was still considered a commercial film of high standard.

This could be seen from the applause that erupted at the scene after the movie ended.

After the premiere, Wei Jin did not linger at the scene. After sending Liu Yifei home, he returned directly to the Yanjiao Villa.

Li Jie's press release was over, and today she had just returned; shouldn't he properly pamper the beauty? He just didn't expect that the mature sister would be so considerate, having already prepared a surprise for him.

Seeing the snow-white bed, Zeng Li was leaning against the headboard, wearing a black transparent ultra-short cheongsam, her fair skin and proud figure fully revealed.

The short and narrow hem of the cheongsam, besides adding a touch of brightness to her plump, beautiful buttocks, served no purpose at all. Looking down, what met the eyes were a pair of long, beautiful legs intertwined, wrapped in half-length high-transparency black silk, full of temptation.

Without a doubt, at this moment, Zeng Li,

"Li Jie, is this new?"

Wei Jin swallowed, walked quickly to the bed, and through the semi-transparent cheongsam, his hands went in two directions.

"Hmm~~ Little brother, do you like it?"

Ceng Li lightly bit her red lips, her eyes shifting with emotion, and she extended a long, fair finger to hook Wei Jin's chin, her tone full of provocation.

"More than just like, Li Jie, you are playing with fire."

Before long, the beauty raised her head, and one could see that her crystal-clear eyes, beautiful as amber, were already brimming with layers of mist.

"Little brother, what are you still waiting for?"

(End of this chapter)