RPAGF Chapter 44 The Zhang Family and Chatting
Chapter 44 The Zhang Family and Chatting
On the Sunday night when the box office results for the first weekend were released, Lin Ruiyang's phone vibrated.
It wasn't a phone call, it was an email reminder.
From: Roeg Sutherland. Subject is only one line:
「Fox confirmed. Elizabeth arrives Beijing March 16. Meeting at China World Hotel, 10:00 AM. Be ready.」
Elizabeth Gabrielle will arrive in the capital in four days.
Lin Ruiyang read the email twice. Since returning from Berlin, he had been preparing for this moment.
He had prepared the complete script, the initial project preparation plan, the sponsorship direction, and the recommended candidate for the female villain.
But that wasn't what he was thinking about at the moment.
The 16th, with a three-day gap in between. He leaned back in his chair, looking at the gray sky outside his dormitory window.
He remembered something: it had been almost a year since he was reborn, and he hadn't officially gone home yet.
From the moment he opened his eyes in his dormitory last February until now, his time has been compressed into a compressed biscuit, each bite taken hastily.
I didn't go home for summer vacation, nor for winter vacation. Every time my mother called, she would say, "Everything's fine at home, you go about your business," but her voice became more and more cautious each time, as if she was afraid of disturbing him.
He opened a webpage and checked the flights. There were tickets available from Beijing to Chongqing early the next morning. He then checked the return flights and found a flight on the afternoon of the 15th, which would be just in time for his appointment at the China World Trade Center on the morning of the 16th.
Lin Ruiyang looked at it for a while, then clicked the mouse to make a reservation without further hesitation.
When the payment success notification popped up, he realized that he hadn't even decided what to pack, but there wasn't much to pack anyway.
He took an old backpack from the cabinet, stuffed two changes of clothes inside, put his laptop in, thought for a moment, and then took it out again.
Going back to my own home, it seems I don't need to bring much stuff.
The fat man was lying on the bed browsing a forum when he heard the noise and looked up: "What are you doing?"
"Going home for a bit," Lin Ruiyang replied.
"Now?" The fat man paused for a moment. "Your box office is picking up, aren't you going to keep an eye on it?"
"Watching it won't help." Lin Ruiyang zipped up his bag. "Prices will rise if they're going to, and they'll fall if they're going to. There's no stopping it."
Stepping out of Jiangbei Airport in Chongqing, the familiar dampness of the air hit me. It wasn't the dry, cracking wind of Beijing; it was a sticky, limp wind, carrying the scent of river water and earth.
Lin Ruiyang stood at the airport exit, watching the distant mountain mists emerge from between the rooftops and the mountains, and suddenly felt a lump in his throat.
He hailed a yellow taxi.
The driver, a middle-aged man in his forties, glanced at him in the rearview mirror and asked, "Hey kid, which way to?"
Fujiang District.
"Fujiang, it's a bit far. It takes about two hours by highway." The driver turned on the meter and stepped on the gas to get onto the airport expressway.
The car drove eastward along the Yangtze River.
In mid-March, the rapeseed flowers were in full bloom, covering the terraced fields on both sides of the river with a golden hue.
More than an hour later, the car exited the highway, passed through the old town, and the Yangtze River and the Wujiang River converged here, with the river surface widening considerably.
The wind blowing in from outside the window carried a salty, fermented smell, not pungent, but it evoked Lin Ruiyang's childhood memories.
When I was a child, every time the pickled mustard tuber was harvested, the docks along the river were filled with boats carrying mustard tubers. Those round mustard tubers were piled up on the decks, like small green mountains.
The taxi turned into a side street in the old town and stopped.
Fine moss grows in the cracks of the stone path, and the banyan trees by the roadside are still there, but all their leaves have fallen.
He took a deep breath, picked up his luggage and the local specialties he had bought, and went inside.
Jiang Yuehua had just finished watering the flowers by the door when she turned around and saw a person standing downstairs carrying a box. She was stunned for a moment, squinted her eyes, and almost dropped the water ladle in her hand.
"Mom," Lin Ruiyang said first.
Jiang Yuehua put the water ladle into the bucket, wiped her hands on her apron, and walked over quickly.
"You've lost weight. You've lost a lot of weight."
"You haven't lost weight, you're just wearing too little clothing."
"It's still a bit chilly in March, why are you wearing so little?" Jiang Yuehua frowned, her tone exactly the same as in her previous life.
"Let's go, let's go upstairs first." Jiang Yuehua took a bag from his hand, lifted it, felt it was heavy, and then stuffed it back to him.
"What's in here? It's so heavy."
"I bought this for you."
"Why buy anything? It's a waste of money." She said this, but her pace quickened a bit more than usual.
"You went out to study and haven't come back for a year." Jiang Yuehua poured a glass of water and brought it over, her tone not reproachful.
"Busy, huh? Here I am, look at the trophy I brought back."
"I saw it all; the local station just briefly broadcast the news." Jiang Yuehua's expression finally softened a little.
Dinner was cooked by Jiang Yuehua herself: twice-cooked pork, tofu pudding, and tomato and pork rib soup.
"Aunt Zhang next door's daughter got into Chongqing Normal University last year, and when she came back for the Spring Festival, she asked about you. She said she saw in the newspaper that you won an award and insisted that I keep the newspaper."
"Did you put it on or not?"
"It's been sitting in the drawer for about half a year now."
Lin Ruiyang lowered his head, took a bite of rice, put his chopsticks on the edge of the bowl, and suddenly said, "Mom, I came back this time to discuss something with you."
"What's wrong?"
"Come with me to the capital."
"Why go to the capital? I'm perfectly fine living at home."
I'm worried about leaving you here alone.
"What's there to worry about? Your mother is over fifty years old; how could she not take care of herself?"
"Besides, I don't know anyone there, and it wouldn't be comfortable for me to stay there."
Lin Ruiyang nodded and didn't say anything more. He knew that this wasn't something that could be changed with just a few words.
"Just do your thing," she added, "Don't keep thinking about me."
He replied, "Okay."
After dinner, Lin Ruiyang insisted on washing the dishes.
Jiang Yuehua was sitting in the living room watching TV. A period drama was playing on the screen, and she could vaguely hear a few lines of dialogue.
He dried his hands and came out, and saw Jiang Yuehua staring intently at the screen. Suddenly, a name came to mind—Yang Mi.
Back in his room, Lin Ruiyang turned on his laptop and connected to the home phone line to dial up and go online. These days, webpage loading speeds are frustratingly slow. After logging into QQ, the avatars on the screen gradually lit up.
Scrolling down, he found the contact name "Yang Mi, Class of 05, Performance Department, Beijing Film Academy," which was a nickname she gave herself when they first met.
He opened the chat box, typed a message and sent it: "I heard you were filming in Yunnan Province before the New Year? You're already working this hard even before you've started school."
A few seconds later, Yang Mi's profile picture lit up and popped up: "Senior?! How do you know everything! I just came back from there a few days ago. I was filming 'Tianheju,' a period drama set in the Republican era. I played Sun Li's younger sister in it."
"Is it hard?"
"Don't even mention it." Yang Mi typed extremely fast, one line after another popping up.
"The film crew was in a very remote mountain village in Yunnan, where there was a lack of medical care and medicine. I caught a viral cold halfway through filming and had a fever of almost 40 degrees Celsius. In the end, the production company went to the city to find a doctor who gave me ten IV drips over two days, and I still managed to film five episodes in a week. The worst part was that I infected everyone else."
(Interview after the broadcast of "Tianheju" in 06)
Lin Ruiyang stared at the words "Ten IV drips in two days" on the screen and remained silent for a moment.
In her past life, Yang Mi was known in the entertainment industry for her hard work, and it turns out she had this drive since her freshman year of college.
"Your health is the most important thing; don't overwork yourself."
"Okay, it's already finished filming." Yang Mi sent a smiley face.
"By the way, senior, I also filmed a short drama series last year, playing Nie Xiaoqian from the 'Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio' series, and I acted with Hu Ge. But I heard it won't air until the end of the year, so it's still a long way off."
Lin Ruiyang searched his memory.
Yang Mi's portrayal of Nie Xiaoqian in "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio: Xiaoqian" left a lasting impression on many viewers. Her cool and slightly bewitching appearance was one of her more outstanding early roles.
He remembered that the show premiered on Guangzhou TV in December 2005, and it was only March now, so there were still more than half a year before it aired.
"I'll check it out when it airs."
"No! Senior, you should focus on making the movie. I don't even think I acted very well myself." Yang Mi typed quickly and sent another message.
"By the way, senior, how's the box office for 'A Separation'? Have the opening week box office figures been released yet?"
"Nine million three hundred thousand in the first week."
"Nine million three hundred thousand!!!" Yang Mi exclaimed three times.
"For an art film to gross this much, you're amazing, senior. I wish I could win an award like you someday, any film or television award."
"Take your time. First, thoroughly understand the character. Awards are just results; the process is what you can control."
"Okay, I got it." Then the profile picture flashed again. "I'm going to rehearse now, senior. You should get some rest."
Lin Ruiyang replied with "OK" and closed the chat window.
The other avatars on QQ were still lit up, but he had no intention of continuing the conversation.
He closed his laptop, leaned back in his chair, looked out the window at the lights of the old town of Fujiang, and began to rediscover the comfort of this slow pace.