Chapter 532

"Miura-kun, ah ah ah ah ah!"

"Miura, I love you! Ya ya ya ya ya~"

Li Ye had never been to a concert in his previous life, so he truly didn't know that a girl's scream could actually be "earth-shattering."

Li Ye and the others entered the screening venue for *Typhoon Club*, and then waited for director Shinji Sōmai to bring Tomokazu Miura and the rest of the cast onto the stage.

But before the director could even begin the film's introduction, the audience below erupted into a torrential downpour of shouting.

The crew on stage had clearly anticipated this situation; they smiled and waited for a long time, only beginning to explain the film's themes and share their filming experiences once the people below were tired of shouting.

During this introduction, the audience, having caught their breath, shouted in unison several more times, causing the presentation on stage to be intermittent.

Everyone from the Chang'an Film Studio was shocked.

Most of the people who came to watch the movie today were young students, but these students were completely different from the students back on the mainland.

Female students on the mainland were shy, while the Japanese female students seemed too mature and too excited.

So much so that Old Xiong couldn't help but say, "That Tomokazu Miura is in his early thirties, right? And he's a married man. Is he really that great?"

Li Ye tilted his head to look at him and smiled slightly.

【You truly don't know the power of a charming middle-aged man!】

Although the film venue was noisy, once the movie started, the venue immediately fell silent, and everyone remained quiet very politely.

The plot of *Typhoon Club* wasn't complicated; it described the rebellious release of several third-year middle school students who ignored multiple warnings as a typhoon approached and the storm arrived.

The director used the camera to capture every lively, cheerful, and excited moment of the young people, while also giving a sense of narrative continuity.

In the film, through various cinematic languages like typhoons and dancing, the director vividly expressed the young people's release from all constraints and their indulgence in a madness they themselves didn't even understand the reason for.

This was, in fact, a film that changed the direction of Japanese youth cinema and holds significant importance in Japanese film history.

Many people from the Chang'an Film Studio nodded repeatedly as they watched, just like when listening to Peking Opera and catching the subtle nuances within.

But Li Ye was feeling a bit sleepy.

Isn't this just a bunch of "middle-school-syndrome" youths messing around? Plus, it was rambling on without Chinese subtitles; if one couldn't resonate or find an echo with their own "middle-school-syndrome" behavior from their youth, it really wasn't that interesting to watch.

Li Ye didn't find any resonance, because, pfft, I was never like that in middle school.

So Li Ye felt it would be better to finish the movie quickly and go back to play cards with his mother, sister, and wife! They had agreed to play cards together today.

The movie gradually reached its climax; the typhoon finally arrived, and the six middle school students—two boys and four girls—began to sing and dance in the torrential rain.

At the beginning, the four girls were still wearing their little clothes, but as they sang and danced, they began to pull off their tops and throw them away.

The director was using this method to express the rebellion and repression of young people, and the audience seemed to understand it all, watching with great interest.

A pain from fingernails lightly pricking his skin traveled up Li Ye's wrist.

Turning his head, he saw Wen Leyu staring at him with bright, sparkling eyes, pouting her little mouth as she met his gaze.

Li Ye asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

Wen Leyu didn't make a sound, but the pricking pain on his hand disappeared, and her little face turned red.

Li Ye chuckled inwardly; of course, he knew what Wen Leyu meant, but teasing little Yu was endless fun!

Li Ye turned his head to look at the movie screen again, just as the heavy rain was pouring down. As the camera pulled back and the light dimmed, bare buttocks appeared and disappeared in the dark night.

Just at this moment, a small hand suddenly appeared in front of Li Ye's eyes, blocking his view.

Li Ye was very puzzled. Logically speaking, there were still "reference films" on the mainland! With Wen Leyu's family background, it was impossible for her to be this closed-off and conservative!

Yet, Wen Leyu's attitude was clearly "not allowed to watch."

If I can't watch, I won't watch.

Li Ye turned his head and quietly looked at Wen Leyu.

The two stared at each other until the entire sequence ended, and only then did Wen Leyu smile with satisfaction.

But Li Ye leaned into her ear and whispered, "I promise I'll only look at you from now on."

"Hiss~"

Li Ye's wrist felt excruciating pain; even in the dim theater, he could see three deep fingernail marks, now blood-red.

Li Ye felt very aggrieved. How much determination did I have to muster to painfully give up observing so many future technical-style teachers, and you're still pinching me?

The next morning, Team Leader Zhou asked Li Ye, "Student Li Ye, you will be participating in today's cultural exchange activities, right?"

Li Ye nodded, "Of course I will, this is my responsibility."

Today was a very important day for the mainland delegation, because not only was *Wangxiang Wangxiang Gujun of the Homeland* being screened at the film festival, but there was also a large-scale exchange event for Chinese ancient culture.

Because *Wangxiang Wangxiang Gujun of the Homeland* had already been released in Japan and the market response was very explosive, a trend of High Tang culture had recently emerged in Japan.

Thus, the film festival organizers agreed to Ah Min's request and provided a large space to support her in hosting this cultural exhibition.

The film's screening was very successful, because the overseas markets that *Wangxiang Wangxiang Gujun of the Homeland* had attacked over the past few months were mainly the Asian Confucian cultural sphere, causing a sensation in Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia.

And this time, even Western film buyers offered quite good indicative prices, and the people from the mainland film studio were overjoyed.

Even if they didn't win an award this time, just this amount of foreign exchange earnings was worth reporting in newspapers and on television when they returned; it was absolutely a great achievement.

And the cultural exhibition that followed exceeded the expectations of everyone from the film studio.

The content of this exhibition was props and cultural elements related to the film, such as armor, long spears, court costumes, and several genuine cultural relics borrowed from the Chang'an Museum.

Originally, the people from the film studio felt that the Hong Kong side's commercial atmosphere was too thick, actually listing armor, weapons, and court costumes for sale, and setting a price that could almost be called "sky-high."

But when the Japanese people, who had been queuing up to visit, actually started scrambling to place orders, everyone's jaws dropped.

Old Xiong from the Chang'an Film Studio rubbed his hands excitedly, "Brother Li Ye, how many handicrafts do you think we can sell this time?"

Li Ye said indifferently, "I've told you many times, what we are selling isn't handicrafts, it's history."

"Yes, yes, yes, it's history, history with deep foundations."

Director Xiong nodded repeatedly in agreement, but only he knew what he was thinking inside.

These things were all produced through a joint venture between the film studio and several handicraft factories in Chang'an because of a casual mention by Li Ye; he didn't expect that after only a few years of effort, it had actually become a steady, long-term industry.

And looking at the situation on-site today, it was possible that the joint venture factory, which had already been expanded twice, would have to be expanded again.

Those Japanese people looked at the "history" produced on the mainland with faces full of worship; if one didn't take them for a ride, it would be a disservice to the folks back home.

Director Xiong even pondered in his heart whether he should discuss with the leadership after returning, not to be promoted to deputy factory director, but to just go and be the factory director of that joint venture factory.

Deputy factory director, he was ultimately just a "deputy"!

"Tsk tsk tsk, Brother Li Ye, look, there are really so many rich people in capitalism! They are extravagant and unrestrained, one after another; they don't even blink at an 8,000-yen long spear or 20,000-yen armor.

And they also take young mistresses. Look at that old man, it really is 'a pear blossom tree pressing down on a begonia'."

The allusion of "a pear blossom tree pressing down on a begonia" comes from Su Dongpo; it is said to be a teasing work he wrote to mock his good friend, the lyricist Zhang Xian.

When Zhang Xian was 80 years old, he married an 18-year-old concubine, and Dongpo teased, "Eighteen-year-old bride, eighty-year-old groom, white hair against red makeup. In the mandarin duck quilt, a pair for the night, a pear blossom tree pressing down on a begonia."

The pear blossom refers to the white-haired husband, and the begonia refers to the young woman with a red face; the word "pressing" says it all, covering countless unspoken words!

The exhibition site today was definitely not full of young people like yesterday's *Typhoon Club*; most of those who came to visit had some strength, and old men with young wives on their arms could occasionally be seen.

However, since the special circumstances around the 1950s on the mainland, there were basically no couples with a difference of several decades in age, so when Old Xiong saw the old husband and young wife, he naturally couldn't help but feel a bit sour.

Li Ye smiled and shook his head; there would be more and more of these things in the future.

But when Li Ye followed Old Xiong's gaze and saw the old man with the young wife on his arm, his eyes widened instantly.

That old man was sixty or seventy years old, thin and small, and he even had a lame leg, but the young wife on his arm was truly young and vibrant.

【Damn it, I was still worried about you, old thing, suffering outside, but it turns out you came here to enjoy life!】

Old Song naturally saw Li Ye too; from far away, he grinned and laughed at Li Ye.

Li Ye was surprised to find that Old Song's signature yellow teeth had actually turned white.

Li Ye kept a cold face and walked alone to a corner that no one noticed.

Not long after, Old Song came over, limping.

Li Ye asked with a fake smile, "Where is your young wife? Do I need to give you some wedding money?"

Old Song restrained his smile and said with a serious face, "Zhuangyuan Lang, you've misunderstood. That is my apprentice and assistant, not some wife."

"I believe you, you ghost~"

Li Ye said with disdain, "Still your apprentice? What is she learning from you? Learning the *Dongxuan Zi*?"

Old Song looked at Li Ye, stunned for two seconds, then said mysteriously, "Zhuangyuan Lang is indeed learned, actually knowing the *Dongxuan Zi*. Let me tell you, I've collected quite a few good things in Japan; I even have a Ming-Qing edition of *Jin Ping Mei*..."

Holy crap~

Li Ye looked at Old Song twice, speechless, and said helplessly, "A sixty or seventy-year-old man taking a twenty-year-old female apprentice—can you be any more fake?"

Old Song blinked and finally said helplessly, "Zhuangyuan Lang, my wife has been dead for a long time, and besides, I don't intend to remarry! I will absolutely not disgrace my ancestors."

Li Ye finally understood: this Old Song was a guy who frequented brothels and drank flower wine when he was young; even at eighty, he wasn't a good person.