Chapter 338: The In-Laws

Wang Wang Changtian is clearly about to do something big!

Just before New Year's Eve, Enlighten Media announced a major notice to the outside world: the "Enlighten Media — Actors — New Director Plan"!

"Enlighten Media will provide comprehensive support — including dedicated funding, teams, publicity, and distribution — to mature actors who aspire to become directors."

"Those who are interested may send an email. And have a face-to-face detailed discussion with Chairman Wang Wang Changtian…"

Enlighten Media's move sent shockwaves through the film and television industry; large numbers of idealistic actors began looking on with keen interest, eager to give it a try.

Everyone in the industry knew that, apart from Chen Chen Jiashang who could barely hold his own, Enlighten Media had no choice but to do things this way if it wanted to break through.

After all, freshly graduated directing students from school certainly couldn't compare with those talented, mature actors looking to transition. Xu Zheng was a living example!

Moreover, compared with freshly graduated students, the training cost and difficulty would inevitably be greater — not a good deal.

"I've always hitched rides with you before. Once the group has a good project here, I'll give you a shout then?"

Wang Wang Changtian even made a special phone call to Lin Nan to brag about it.

"Haha, then I'll be waiting for Director Wang's project invitation." Lin Nan agreed very readily.

Compared with the other companies, Enlighten Media truly had the resolve and boldness to get real things done.

"By the way, how many people have contacted Director Wang now?" Lin Nan asked curiously.

That question seemed to hit right at the heart of Wang Wang Changtian's thoughts; the other party laughed out loud.

"Xu Zheng set a good precedent. Plenty of actors who had the idea before now dare to speak up. Enlighten Media is willing to give them a chance, and they reached out right away."

"Who's there?"

"Deng Chao, Huang Bo…"

Hearing these names, Lin Nan wasn't surprised at all — all A-listers, with ideals and ambition.

But speaking of Deng Chao, now that's interesting.

Lin Nan had heard that this couple was still at odds over the Jiang Jiang Yiyan affair.

A couple of days ago, when Sun Li went with the "Legend of Zhen Huan" crew to Taiwan Province for promotion, she was actually photographed having dinner alone with Heren Dong.

Although they didn't end up becoming husband and wife, their relationship is still quite good. It's just that one wonders how Deng Chao feels about it.

They chatted for a while longer, then ended the call.

From what Wang Wang Changtian meant, his talks with Xu Zheng went well, but he hadn't secured him yet. Xu Zheng was the type who wouldn't cast his line until he saw the rabbit — still comparing and choosing.

…………

"Cloud Atlas," which had been cut by nearly forty minutes, performed predictably mediocrely at the box office; mainland audiences straight up said they couldn't make sense of it.

But even so, relying on its special effects, it still attracted quite a few viewers.

Over its opening four-day weekend, it brought in 73 million. But this result probably won't hold for long either.

Because too much content had been cut, word-of-mouth was sliding straight down, and daily box office kept dropping.

……

In the morning, Lin Nan drove to the airport to pick up Watching Lao Lin.

After much back-and-forth, it was only when Liu Liu Yifei stepped in that Watching Lao Lin was finally persuaded to come to the capital.

"Let's get one thing straight — I'm only staying a few days. After New Year's Eve, I'm heading back…"

Once in Lin Nan's car, Watching Lao Lin looked left and right, muttering:

"This foreign car of yours won't do — can't even compare with my jeep!"

Lin Nan smiled and went along: "Right, it really can't compare with your domestic jeep."

He didn't dare mention that the car under his butt could buy ten domestic jeeps…

Lin Nan drove, heading all the way toward the villa. By the time he got home, photos of him at the airport pickup were already online.

"Director Lin Nan was spotted at the capital airport today, apparently picking up his father…"

The photo showed Lin Nan — tall and upright in a down jacket — and an ordinary-looking old man.

Before long, plenty of people from the industry called, all asking whether they could come by to pay a visit during the Spring Festival.

Lin Nan declined each one politely.

"You little bastard, you tell me straight — how much did this house cost?"

The moment he got out of the car and laid eyes on the villa with its garden, lawn, and recreational facilities spread over more than three mu and nearly four mu of land, Watching Lao Lin suddenly fired off the question.

Lin Nan was caught a little off guard. After a moment, he told a little white lie:

"Mm, a few million. Mainly bought it early — it's appreciated a lot since."

"Uncle, it really was just a few million."

Miss Liu hadn't even arrived yet, but her crisp voice drifted over first.

Lin Nan and Watching Lao Lin followed the sound and looked over at the same time.

There was Liu Liu Yifei, in loungewear, leading her entourage, a sweet smile on her face as she walked into the villa.

"Oh, girl, haven't seen you in a year — you've gotten thinner. I brought soy sauce beef and beef jerky; you have some later…"

Lin Nan was instantly a bit speechless — his own dear dad wasn't even this happy to see him, and he hadn't even mentioned what was in the snakeskin bag!

"Mm, alright, I'll have some later."

As she spoke, Liu Liu Yifei stepped forward on her own, ready to help carry the stuff out of the trunk.

"Don't you move."

Watching Lao Lin stopped her at once, then glanced at Lin Nan. "You clueless thing — what? Still gonna let the girl do the heavy lifting?"

Fine, fine, fine — Lin Nan couldn't afford to offend anyone.

Under Liu Liu Yifei's grinning expression and Watching Lao Lin's "lecture," he picked up the bag and headed into the villa.

…………

The premieres of "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons," "Finding Mr. Right," "Together," "Village Evening Gala," "The 101st Proposal," and other films were all crammed into three days.

This time, the premiere of "Journey to the West" was the biggest in scale — after all, that was Zhou Zhou Xingchi.

At the premiere of "Finding Mr. Right," Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei only showed their faces briefly before leaving.

Anyone with eyes could tell that Lin Nan's own father had come. Showing up just for a moment and then leaving — he was probably going back to keep the old man company.

The New Year's Eve dinner was eaten at Lin Nan's place.

The gap in education and outlook between Watching Lao Lin and Liu Liu Xiaoli was simply too vast — there was almost nothing they could talk about.

In the end, the two could only bring up their own children and the stories from when they were little.

Lin Nan discovered, to his amazement, that the only one who had truly lost face was himself.

As for Miss Liu when she was little — she had genuinely been raised as a proper young lady from a good family.

For a moment, faced with Liu Liu Yifei's teasing gaze, Lin Nan was utterly sullen!

…………

No sooner had New Year's Eve passed than Watching Lao Lin started muttering about going back — he was particular about his own bed!

Lin Nan knew that was just an excuse; he was simply not used to the environment here.

Another, more important reason was that he didn't want to disturb Lin Nan's life too much — perhaps this was the quiet fatherly love inside an old man's heart.

"If you insist on going back, then leave tomorrow. Today we're taking you to see a movie."

"See a movie?" Watching Lao Lin paused, then finally agreed.

With a single phone call, Lin Nan got hold of tickets to the IMAX 3D giant-screen auditorium — tickets that were nearly impossible to get.

He and Liu Liu Yifei took Watching Lao Lin to Wanda to watch "Journey to the West: Jiang Mo Pian."

It had started out as a heartfelt gesture of filial piety, but after two hours coming out, Lao Lin was already a bit grumbling.

"This 3D thing — it made me dizzy."

"Tang Seng is in a romance? Isn't that a mess of an adaptation! How could they film it like that?"

……

Good lord, Lin Nan was stunned.

He hadn't expected that his own father would actually be on Teacher Liu's side! Was this the generation gap?

Liu Liu Yifei hugged Lin Nan's arm, blinked at him, wanting to laugh but holding it back, afraid it would be rude.

On the second day of the New Year, Lin Nan really couldn't hold Watching Lao Lin back any longer and had to buy him a plane ticket.

Liu Liu Xiaoli watched as Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei drove Watching Lao Lin to the airport.

"Mother-in-law, you go back, no need to see me off."

Hearing this, Liu Liu Xiaoli couldn't help but smile. "Once you're home, give Lin Nan and Liu Qianqian a call."

"Alright, alright, I will, I will."

Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei, sitting in the driver's and passenger's seats, were also made a bit shy by Watching Lao Lin's form of address.

…………

A little over an hour later, outside the airport.

Liu Liu Yifei was dealing with a few reporters, while Watching Lao Lin was tugging at Lin Nan, giving him instructions.

"I know, people in your line of work don't marry early, but you can't leave it too late either. Are you planning to keep playing around for a few more years?

You little brat, don't mess around. If I find out you're fooling around left and right, watch out for your legs…"

Lin Nan could only nod along again and again, smiling, promising to be an upright, decent person…

Watching Watching Lao Lin enter the airport, Lin Nan and Liu Liu Yifei finally relaxed.

"We can head back now, Liu Qianqian."

"Mm, let's go." Liu Liu Yifei nodded, in a very good mood.

Halfway there.

Miss Liu suddenly spoke up and asked, "What did Uncle just say to you?"

"Told me to get married sooner."

Hearing this, Liu Liu Yifei instantly turned her head away, the tips of her ears turning red. "Who's going to marry you…"

"Huh? Then fine, I'll find someone else."

Lin Nan deliberately tossed out a joke.

"What did you say? Say that again!"

Liu Liu Yifei whipped her head around to look at Lin Nan, cheeks puffed out, and said fiercely.

That gaze — it looked adorably as if she wanted to eat someone!

"Wasn't there a 'mother-in-law' just now? I'm planning to go find her daughter and ask…"

Hearing this, Miss Liu instantly deflated, putting on a proud, tsundere face:

"Hmph, that won't be easy…"

…………

The opening-day numbers for "Journey to the West" were already out — explosively good.

"'Journey to the West: Jiang Mo Pian' reported an opening-day box office of 76.85 million yuan, with hopes of challenging the 1-billion-yuan mark. Zhou Zhou Xingchi is still that Zhou Zhou Xingchi…"

"Lin Nan, Liu Liu Yifei, and Lin's father spotted at Wanda Cinema, watching 'Journey to the West: Jiang Mo Pian'…"

"'Village Gala: Better and Better,' starring Miss Jing Tian and 31 other actors and stars, reported 7.2 million yuan on its opening day."

"Over the next four days, multiple domestic films will be released one after another. The box-office war is about to erupt!"

…………

"Finding Mr. Right" is the industry-recognized film that comes right after "Journey to the West: Jiang Mo Pian."

Xue Xue Xiaolu is a director in the 300-million-yuan box-office club — let's not forget that. "Love Is Not Blind" is still fresh in memory.

"The day after tomorrow, it premieres. If the box office really takes off, then our starting point will truly be amazing."

Ceng Jia was a little nervous and excited.

Li Li Bingbing has claimed the top spot among the Four Dan Actresses; if the box office of "Finding Mr. Right in Seattle" gives a little more push,

Jiaxing's opening will simply be unimaginable—too good!

"It all depends on the premiere the day after tomorrow." Li Li Bingbing nodded as well; she was endlessly looking forward to it too.

"By the way, the company worked overtime and settled all the accounts. That includes your last payment for the New Year's Eve gala commercial performance—after taxes were deducted, it's already been deposited into your account."

Li Li Bingbing nodded. This basically severed ninety-nine percent of her ties with Shanhai Media and Lin Nan Pictures; only a little over a month remained on the contract.

"Speaking of which, Director Lin and Liu Liu Yifei—that counts as both sets of parents meeting, right?"

Ceng Jia brought the matter up out of nowhere, leaving Li Li Bingbing somewhat at a loss.

"Probably so. Congratulations to her."

"There shouldn't be a single actress in the industry who doesn't envy her. From campus days she met Lin Nan, and walked all the way to where she is now…"

Li Li Bingbing spoke somewhat absently, then smiled helplessly—truly incomparable.

"Fan Li Bingbing once said something especially well: 'Why marry into the wealthy? I am the wealthy!'"

"The principle is the same—you can succeed on your own too, no need to envy her…"

This last comforting line, Ceng Jia said without much conviction, but still said it out loud.

………

(End of chapter)