Chapter 356: Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin, Bound Together

Wei Hong's question, Mei Linda didn't know either—I'm just your brother's ex-girlfriend, editor, partner, and bedmate, not his wife.

But Mei Linda did subtly probe Wei Hong about Wei Ming's romantic life back home.

"My brother? He's always been single."

Seeing her say it so confidently, Mei Linda smiled: "Hasn't he ever gotten close to any woman?"

Wei Hong's eyes rolled: "Well, there was one—but she's even younger than me, so it's definitely not what you think."

"Zhou Huimin?" Mei Linda said directly.

"You know her too?!"

Mei Linda laughed: "I saw her in Hong Kong—such a pretty little girl."

"She's only fourteen." Wei Hong implied Mei Linda had nothing to worry about; she held traditional views and believed love should be lifelong, so she hoped her brother and Mei Linda could rekindle their relationship.

But Mei Linda knew they couldn't go back—she asked: "You must know two Chinese actresses—Gong Yu and Zhu Lin."

"Of course! They're both huge right now!"

Wei Hong warmed up immediately: "Especially Sister Gong Yu—she just starred in my brother's new film, she's absolutely exploded in popularity. I think she's now the most popular female star on the mainland!"

Wei Hong based this on the popularity of "Mom, Love Me Once Again" before she left the country.

Already in theaters for a week, "Mom, Love Me Once Again" has swept across all major and medium-sized cities with the highest number of prints this year—even daytime screenings are sold out, and across Shenzhou, the whole country is weeping, with countless scenes of filial piety and maternal love emerging.

People seem to have a masochistic urge, rushing into cinemas just to cry their hearts out; every theater has posted signs reminding audiences to bring handkerchiefs.

Gong Yu, once only a second-tier star, has now been fully elevated to top-tier fame.

Gong Yu woke up in her apartment at Tuanjie Lake, having had a sweet dream—she dreamed of the little rascal, but Zhu Lin was there too, so embarrassing.

Beside her bed lay a script, delivered yesterday by Shanghai Film Studio—it was a historical costume drama called "Ink and Affection," set in the Wei-Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties.

She'd never done a costume drama before, but she found it intriguing; the script was solid, and it was directed by a woman—she wanted to give it a try.

But she wasn't sure if Beijing Film Studio would allow her to return to her "home"—she herself hesitated; returning to Shanghai to film would let her be near her parents, but what about Xiao Wei? Zhu Lin had gone to the northeast—wouldn't he be left alone in an empty house?

If Zhu Lin were in Beijing, Gong Yu wouldn't have hesitated—she'd have accepted immediately.

She felt her mindset changing too: before, she'd been wary of Zhu Lin stealing the little rascal away from her; now, they were sisters united, working together to keep him, not let some foreigner take him.

After waking, Gong Yu washed up and did her skincare, using only international luxury brands; Wei Ming had spent plenty at Friendship Store to buy them for her. At first she'd felt guilty, but once she learned his foreign exchange balance, she stopped objecting.

After getting ready, Gong Yu took the script and prepared to bike to Beijing Film Studio; now she dared not take public transport or even go anywhere crowded—once, even with a mask on, she was recognized.

In the building next door, Yanzi was breastfeeding while eating, her table laden with nutritious food—fish, meat, eggs, and even fresh milk, which Biaozi had arranged for her.

"Oh, honey, look at this headline."

Yanzi glanced: "'Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin: The Two Leading Ladies of Cinema, Equal in Talent and Beauty.'"

"This is… 'Baihua Film World'!"

Although "Baihua Film World" was a local Henan newspaper unrelated to "Mass Cinema" magazine or the Hundred Flowers Awards, its circulation was massive—it could be bought nationwide—and it offered precise screening schedules, film synopses, and reviews, regarded as the most authoritative "movie guide" of this era.

Huang Jiaoyan put down her chopsticks and read the paper; besides the article, there were side-by-side photos of the two actresses—both were stunningly beautiful.

They matched the era's aesthetic yet slightly surpassed it—true beauty capable of leading trends, the best of their generation; previous big stars like Liu Xiaoqing, Chen Chong, and Zhang Yu couldn't compare in looks alone.

Biaozi held his wife's hand: "If you hadn't married me and wasted your potential, with the popularity of 'Heroes Born in Youth,' you might've been 'Southern Gong Yu, Northern Yanzi.'"

"Heroes Born in Youth" and "Happy Family" were released close together, both earning billions in box office and audience numbers nationwide.

Huang Jiaoyan's lead role combined beauty and action; her momentum was huge, and the media dubbed her "Action Queen" and "Modern Heroine."

Unfortunately, marriage and pregnancy cut off her momentum; she rarely appeared in public, and gradually, people stopped talking about her.

Yanzi chuckled, kissing her daughter's chubby cheek: "All that stuff is empty—nothing compares to my daughter."

Biaozi laughed too: "True enough."

Yanzi added: "Besides, Zhu Lin is so graceful and beautiful—let her represent the north."

Just as she was about to put the paper down, Yanzi noticed the author's name.

"The author of this article—Liu Zhenyun—is that the Liu Zhenyun we know?"

"Old Liu?" Biaozi finally noticed. "Hey, probably him—he used to write literary critiques, never thought he'd start reviewing movie stars."

Liu Zhenyun: Actually, I was inspired by a master.

At Peking University, Liu Zhenyun had already seen his own article—it was shown to him by a junior; these 1981 freshmen were utterly uninterested in academics, paying more attention to stars.

The phrase "Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin" had gained widespread public acceptance—even Peking University freshmen came up to Liu Zhenyun saying, "Senior, you've got insight."

Liu Zhenyun originally just wanted to write a review of "Mom, Love Me Once Again" for some freelance pay—he and his girlfriend had both been deeply moved by the film—but when he discussed it with Wei Ming, Wei Ming proposed this framing.

"Imagine when these two reach the pinnacle of Chinese cinema, and decades later, generations of fans still reminisce about their glory—won't you feel honored knowing you were the first to coin this phrase?"

Wei Ming had barely restrained himself to pass this honor to Old Liu—after all, they were brothers; though mostly, it was due to family avoidance rules.

With Liu Zhenyun setting the tone, articles discussing "Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin" immediately sprang up across the country, and Zhu Lin, whose popularity had dipped, was suddenly featured again and again in newspapers.

This was the power of bundled marketing—Wei Ming had long wanted to tie them together; the release of "Mom, Love Me Once Again" was the perfect moment.

They had equal popularity, similar ages, one from the south, one from the north, comparable achievements—once linked, the public would easily accept them, and they'd become inseparable.

When Zhu Lin had a new hit, it would boost Gong Yu's profile; when they appeared together at an awards ceremony, their star power would completely overshadow every other actress.

This was 1+1 > 2!

Wei Ming had good media connections—he'd later have "China Youth Daily" deliver the final verdict, locking this couple in forever.

Liu Xiaoqing stared at the newspaper, troubled—she desperately wanted to be tied in too, like "Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin, Western Xiaoqing"—she was from the west, after all, and "The Mysterious Buddha" had been wildly popular, with viewership ranking among the year's top.

But east was missing—Shanghai was already the east; actually, Gong Yu should be "Eastern Gong Yu," and they'd need to find another from south of the Yangtze.

She was still puzzling over the east-south-west-north choices when Gong Yu arrived on her bicycle.

Liu Xiaoqing immediately smiled and greeted Gong Yu warmly; before Wei Ming left the country, he'd visited Beijing Film Studio and hinted that Liu Xiaoqing was a strong candidate for Empress Dowager Cixi, so she'd grown closer to Gong Yu.

She even showed Gong Yu the newspaper with "Southern Gong Yu, Northern Zhu Lin."

Gong Yu saw Liu Zhenyun's name and knew Wei Ming was behind it—she felt both delighted and slightly embarrassed.

She had no concept of "publicity stunts," but she felt this was wrong—as if China had only these two actresses.

"These newspapers are talking nonsense," Gong Yu said, glancing briefly before setting it aside, returning to her script for "Ink and Affection"—she hadn't finished reading it yesterday, and now she read while gesturing along.

The female lead had scenes writing calligraphy—if she took the role, she'd need to learn from Xiao Wei.

Frankfurt.

In the afternoon, Wei Ming stayed firmly at the China booth; to attract global publishers, he brought not only the Black Cat Detective doll but also ink, brush, paper, and inkstone.

Soon, the scent of ink spread through Pavilion Six; many came over drawn by the fragrance—Wei Ming's ink was premium calligraphy ink from Rongbaozhai, rich, fragrant, and expensive.

Wei Ming bent over writing calligraphy, while Mike and others explained to onlookers.

To attract attention, Wei Ming wrote in Mi style—he thought it was beautiful, visually striking—and had specially asked Old Wei to get him a replica of Mi Fu's "Shuixi Poetry Scroll" for practice.

Hearing it was Mi style, many publishers became interested; hearing it was Confucius's "Analects," those familiar with Eastern culture gathered around.

"This is so beautiful—what does it mean?" asked a Middle Eastern man with a thick beard.

Mike replied in Arabic: "It says, 'When three walk together, one of them is sure to be my teacher.'" Then he explained its meaning.