Global Film Emperor

Chapter 516 Chase!
"We are in Shanghai now, and I'm going to visit an old friend."

Outside the parking lot of Shanghai Airport, there was a vending machine nearby. Lu Ze took a small bottle of soda water from the vending machine, took a sip, crossed his arms, and casually surveyed his surroundings while talking, preparing to get into the car and escape as soon as he was recognized.

Having just finished negotiating a contract in Beijing that morning, Lu Ze bought a ticket and flew directly to Shanghai that afternoon. Zhang Hongchang was moved when he heard the news. Lu Ze was the first artist he knew who was so diligent. Most artists are like lazy donkeys trying to get on a millstone; they would never take the initiative to participate in the announcements they've become numb to unless they're urged and pushed.

The rest of the crew only participated when the production team said to start. Lu Ze, on the other hand, didn't even give a kiss. He didn't even need the production team to book his plane ticket. He just took a plane and left. This impressed Zhang Hongchang and Director Liu. They immediately decided to give Lu Ze two cameramen as a gift... After all, going back and forth between cities to find connections is one of the great joys of the show, isn't it?
Without a script or a producer, they simply walked and filmed casually. Lu Ze's series of actions amazed the two cameramen, who would always talk about how great Lu Ze's variety show skills were when he wasn't around.

The two cameramen are veterans who see celebrities big and small every day. There are very few who can be as relaxed and at ease as Lu Ze, and act so freely in front of the camera.

It's an open secret that variety shows have scripts. Many celebrities in hit variety shows seem to be living very ordinary lives, but in reality, they have to memorize the scripts. During filming, the celebrities will actively steer the conversation toward the flow of the variety show at the turning points marked in the script, and then add some actions or expressions that show off their looks or intelligence. Combined with the personality that the team has tailored for the celebrity, they can have material for basic life segments.

It looks plausible, but think about it carefully. Who would deliberately make faces and act cool in front of a camera or mirror for no reason? Do you have to strike a pose after doing something? To put it bluntly, this is a process of creating a persona, and it hasn't completely broken free from acting. It's not the norm in an artist's life; it's just how the audience perceives an artist's daily life. If you don't see through this, then the brainwashing effect of variety shows is quite strong.

Even though many shows claim to be unscripted or to break the script and not follow the rules, the actions of all the artists may actually be carefully designed by the production team. What you see as breaking the rules is just a backup plan B, C, or D made by the production team when designing the scenes. Just watch it for fun, and don't be a nitpicker if you understand it. Just treat it as a way to relieve stress and don't believe it.

Meanwhile, what was Lu Ze, who was filming the two, doing? He drove to the flower and bird market and bought two bags of urea to take home. On the way, he admired the koi fish sold by the vendors, staring at them longingly and praising them repeatedly. However, he didn't buy any. On the way to the airport, he listened to Huangmei Opera the whole way, which made the two cameramen sleepy. Lu Ze had to wake them up when they arrived at the airport.

Once on the plane, the three chatted casually. Without deliberately trying to get information out of him, they revealed where they lived, where their wives worked, and where their children went to school. The two of them even brought it up on their own initiative, and afterwards they felt that they had had a good chat with Lu Ze.

It wasn't until they got off the plane and collected their luggage that the two realized what had happened. They were filled with lingering fear and could only be thankful that Lu Ze had taken the right path. Otherwise, they would have had to quit their jobs the next day and go out with Lu Ze to conquer the world.

Now they were staring at each other, looking at the three sets of labels on the equipment, and then at Lu Ze standing in front of the trash can, drinking water and puffing on his cigarette. This was the first time someone had dared to smoke in front of the three sets of cameras and they found it perfectly normal, without feeling any disgust. Carrying the drinks Lu Ze had bought for them and the ten or twenty-pound camera, they waited patiently for him to finish smoking.

They were impressed by Lu Ze's affability and emotional intelligence; it was the first time they'd ever met someone who could confuse them so easily.

"It's only a little past three o'clock, it's a bit early for dinner. Let's go to my friend's place first, he lives nearby. We'll go eat after we finish filming."

"okay."

Usually, when the boss tells them to get to work as soon as they get off the plane, without even planning to eat first, the two of them would definitely curse inwardly. But Lu Ze made the decision directly, and the two of them didn't have a single complaint in their hearts. They ran over, quickly picked up the equipment and threw it into the trunk, not forgetting to close the car door for Lu Ze. But this time, in the car, the cameraman sitting in the passenger seat immediately turned off the music, determined not to let Lu Ze listen to music anymore.

The car belonged to the investors and had already been set up with microphones and cameras. However, the rear seat space was a bit cramped for a car that cost over 200,000 yuan. Lu Ze's long legs were uncomfortable no matter how he positioned them, feeling like he was sitting on a small stool. As a result, Lu Ze was so focused on his thighs that he didn't say much. All that equipment was essentially wasted on this trip.

We arrived at a villa area near the airport in a relatively quiet manner. It looked quite old, as it was a detached house, something the government had long since banned from being built.

It's not exactly dilapidated, with no sense of decay. The moss in the corners, the wildflowers stubbornly growing in the cracks between the bricks, the ivy and morning glories on the walls, along with the cream-colored exterior paint of the European-style villa, which has been washed away by the rain and the red triangular tile roof, actually give it a lazy and languid feel after the passage of time.

Humans have been trapped in the concrete jungle for too long, and the latent longing in our genes for a life of lush grass and scattered wildness will inevitably stir. This is a kind of happiness that no matter how prosperous the city or how bustling the street, it cannot provide. It is a happiness that can only be experienced by one person.

So the two cameramen would unconsciously glance out the window a few times, their longing in their eyes hard to describe, yet excessively frank.

Lu Ze was alright, after all, the scenery in his hometown, in the deep mountains, was much better than this. There wasn't even a stream of running water here, which wasn't unusual for a child from the mountains; it was similar to the environment he lived in England.

After registering and having called security, the owner was easily allowed to pass. They drove through the highly green park, arriving at villa number thirty-six. After parking, Lu Ze knocked on the door, which was soon opened.

"come in."

Do I need to change my shoes?

"Oh dear! Come in, my head is throbbing."

The slightly overweight man rubbed his temples, opened the door without a word, turned around, and plopped down on the soft sofa, lying motionless like a pig being electrocuted, his "face serene." Guo Mingde had gained a lot of weight, probably around 200 pounds. Time had bleached much of his hair and beard, and a disastrous plastic surgery had only added more wrinkles. Smelling the lingering smell of alcohol on him, Lu Ze walked over, sat on the single sofa next to him, grabbed two oranges from the coffee table, tossed them to the cameramen, and gestured for them to turn off the cameras.

"I have a camera here, Brother Guo, can't we at least have some decorum?"

Hearing this, Guo Mingde was displeased. He groaned in pain, turned over, and placed two white and green embroidered cushions on his head. He stretched out his hand, raised it high, and pointed his index finger in the opposite direction at himself.

"Go ahead and film it. I'm not an actor, what do I care about my image? I don't care about my reputation, just film it..."

"Who were you drinking with? You've gotten so drunk."

"With whom? Can you guys please stop torturing me? That bastard Song Guiyuan came to my house last night, dragged me outside, and started drinking with Liu Ming, Zhao Xiaogao, Momo, and the others. Do you know what time I didn't get home? Seven in the morning! Seven! They drank for almost twelve hours! How could I outdrink them? How could I?"

"Song Guiyuan?"

Lu Ze's face immediately turned green after hearing this. He glared at Guo Mingde, who was slumped on the sofa, and squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth: "When I called you, I was in the capital. I asked you if you had a new project approved, and you said yes. I said I would come over, and what did you say? 'Fine! Come on over.' I even specifically asked if Song Guiyuan was coming, and you told me he wasn't!"

Do you see that pineapple on the table?

He pointed at himself, changed the direction of his finger, pointed at the unpeeled pineapple on the coffee table, then let it fall limply, bouncing several times on the soft cushion.

"He was sitting right next to me, holding that pineapple, and he was pricking me with the thorns! He was giving me a creepy grin... I swear! Do you think I'm not angry? You bastard! You dare hit me with a pineapple! And you even threatened me!"

"Couldn't you have just sent me a text message?"

Lu Ze could almost picture that bastard carrying a pineapple, grinning smugly, right behind him on the phone, and he was instantly furious.

"I texted him? He'd only been gone ten minutes! You two were practically side by side! He even confiscated my phone! What could I do? Besides, why do you two always blame me for everything? Are you two toads?"

"Only ten minutes have passed?"

"It will probably take about ten minutes."

"Chase!"

Before he could even settle in, Lu Ze immediately got up to chase after him. If it were a friend he wasn't close to, Lu Ze would have let it go, since they wouldn't do something so unethical. But with Song Guiyuan, he was determined to snatch him! This shout startled the two cameramen so much that they dropped their oranges. They hurriedly grabbed their cameras and prepared to sprint after Lu Ze. However, once they had the cameras on, the two became much more composed, after all, it was their job.

The two of them used to film "Running Man".

Lu Ze rushed to the front door, then suddenly stopped. After a few seconds of hesitation, he quickly turned back to the coffee table, picked up a pineapple and tossed it lightly onto Guo Mingde's round belly. Then he pushed hard again to open the door and rushed outside.

"Ow!!!!"

"Lu Ze! Go to hell! You're fucking not step foot in my house again! Get out!!!"

"..."

(End of this chapter)