1978: Female educated youth, don’t want an illiterate husband

A meal of Peking duck and a display of wealth completely won over that group of thugs and also captured the heart of his future mother-in-law.

However, Cheng Xuemin's heart was only devoted to his wife; it would be good if all the others could become his in-laws.

then!

The people of the whole country also celebrated the 40th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Li Lianjie, Wang Qun, Sun Jiankui and a group of young men also performed a martial arts performance at the Yan Film Studio's National Day celebration.

The festive atmosphere is always short-lived. The three-day National Day holiday passed in a flash. The martial arts instructor who came north from Hong Kong arrived late, but finally did!
Cheng Xuemin personally drove the car, accompanied by the former factory director Wang Yang, to pick him up at the airport.

"Huh, this mural has been lifted up? I haven't been here for a while, the wind direction has changed quite a bit!"

Wang Yang, the former factory director, was surprised to find that the most eye-catching mural at the airport had been lifted up and was no longer covered up.

It's worth noting that when this mural was completed, it was once embroiled in controversy because it depicted nude figures.

"Old factory director, the wind has indeed changed, and things will only get better from here on out!" Cheng Xuemin knew about this nude painting and this mural, which could be considered a barometer of the winds for the ten years before and after the reform and opening up.

Sometimes tightening it up to cover it, sometimes loosening it up to uncover it, thoughts surging left and right.

"Yes, yes, everything will get better and better!" The old factory director nodded repeatedly and sighed. Even the mural at the Capital Airport has been unveiled, which shows that the environment is indeed getting better and better. It is the time for them to show their skills and make a big splash.

This made the old factory director, Wang Yang, appreciate the young man even more.

If, before he retires to the second line, he assists this young man in successfully fulfilling this pledge, Wang Yang's name will surely be etched in the annals of Yan Film Studio.

"Here he comes, over there!" Cheng Xuemin recognized Yuan Heping, who had just exited the station and entered customs, and pointed over there with a smile.

"They're here!?" The old factory manager looked over upon hearing this, then asked in great surprise, "Xuemin, do you know them?"

Anyway, the old factory director wouldn't recognize him. There are quite a few passengers coming out of customs over there, yet this kid can recognize him at a glance.
Isn't this a bit unscientific?

Cheng Xuemin had never been to Hong Kong, let alone met the person. How did he recognize them?
"It should be those few. Actually, I'm just guessing!" Cheng Xuemin definitely knew Director Yuan Heping, but that was decades later. Now, Director Yuan, who is entering the station and passing through customs, is young and in his prime, but Cheng Xuemin still recognized him at a glance.

"They're here! I told you it was them!" Cheng Xuemin quickly reminded Yuan Heping as he led a companion over.

"You guessed?!" The old factory manager was surprised, but soon he saw two young men walking towards him, so he perked up and went to meet them.

"Hello, hello, are you Master Yuan from Hong Kong?" Cheng Xuemin went up to greet him.

"I told you! It's them!" Yuan Heping, who was walking over at that moment, smiled confidently at the greeting from the young man next to him.

It turned out that the two brothers had also been guessing and heading this way. Yuan Changren didn't quite believe his boss's sixth intuition, but in fact, his boss had guessed correctly.

"Hey, hey, I'm Yuan Heping, and this is my brother Yuan Changren. But I hope that after we join the crew, you'll call us by the pseudonym Yuan Daye. We've already discussed this with you!" Yuan Heping extended both hands to shake hands, but he still had to emphasize that the two brothers must use pseudonyms when they go north this time.

Moreover, their journey north was quite complicated. They first entered the country through Shenzhen, then took a train from Guangzhou, and finally changed planes in Shanghai. The whole trip was like an intelligence operation, with them using aliases and not daring to reveal their true identities.

So now that they've arrived here, they still hope that Beijing will continue to keep their identities confidential and not expose their original identities from Hong Kong.

“I understand, I understand. We’ve already discussed it beforehand. We’re keeping the identities of the two Master Yuans strictly confidential. Only the old factory director, you and your entourage know!” Cheng Xuemin expressed his understanding. After all, in this era, people from Hong Kong who came north to film movies usually used aliases. No one dared to openly use their real names.

After all, the Golden Horse Group in Hong Kong is no pushover. If they discover that Hong Kong artists are going north to film movies, they will definitely be blacklisted.

As far as Cheng Xuemin knew, the two films already in pre-production, "The Empress Dowager" and "The Burning of the Yuanmingyuan," were produced and invested in by Hong Kong, and directed by Li Hanxiang, who also secretly went north under an alias to film them.

However, not long after the film was completed, Li Hanxiang was reported and exposed, and was directly blacklisted by the Golden Horse Group.

This news caused quite a stir in Hong Kong at the time.

However, the Golden Horse Group is selective in its approach. Their so-called blacklisting may have a great deterrent effect on small fry like Yuan Heping, but it doesn't matter much to big directors like Li Hanxiang.

However, Li Hanxiang's "Ruling Behind the Curtain" is still being secretly prepared for filming. I heard the old director mention it some time ago, saying that they have already started script production, but Li Hanxiang is not very satisfied with the several versions of the script and is still refining it, so the exposure and ban have not yet happened.

It's understandable that Yuan Heping and his brother are so cautious; they can use pseudonyms if they want.

Anyway, what Cheng Xuemin wanted was the guidance techniques of the world's number one martial arts choreographer, not their reputation as the world's number one martial arts choreographer.

Besides, they haven't yet established their reputation as the best in the world; they're still in the early stages of their business and are far from being number one.

Speaking of aliases, Cheng Xuemin couldn't help but complain.

Since you're worried about being exposed and insist on using a pseudonym, why not just use a better one? What the heck is Yuan Daye?

Is it because you have big eyes?
Using such obvious facial features as a pseudonym, it's like they're not wearing any makeup at all!
Cheng Xuemin thought to himself that he was complaining, but he was definitely polite on the surface. In fact, he could just call him Master Yuan, which saved him a lot of trouble.

"Thank you! Thank you for your understanding, Lei!" Yuan Heping was delighted with the young man's words and thanked him repeatedly. He then added, "The Great Wall team members who accompanied us are still handling customs procedures, so we may have to wait a little longer!"

This trip north was facilitated by Fu Qi of the Great Wall, who also arranged for people to accompany and escort the Yuan brothers to the north, handling customs clearance from behind.

"Okay, okay, then we'll wait a little longer!" Cheng Xuemin nodded in agreement. After exchanging pleasantries, he began to introduce, "By the way, this is Wang Yang, the former director of our Yan Film Studio. He heard that you were entering the country today, so he came here especially to welcome you!"

"Huh? This...this...this is your factory's former director?" Yuan Heping was stunned and bewildered upon hearing this, and was even more flattered and overwhelmed!

Because on their way here, they had inquired with the people from the Great Wall who were accompanying them and learned that it was the Yan Film Studio that had invited them to go north to be martial arts instructors.

Yanying Film Studio is the largest and highest-ranking film production unit in mainland China, at the level of a department director. Therefore, their director is also a department director, a powerful figure who can directly reach the highest levels of government and freely enter and exit the lake.

Don't quite understand?
To put it bluntly, it's equivalent to the position of the Governor of Hong Kong in their country. This immediately made the situation clear, preventing the Yuan brothers, who were aware of the situation, from feeling overwhelmed and apprehensive. To be invited by a mainland leader, essentially the Governor of Hong Kong, to come north to make a movie—what an honor!
On the way here, I was still hoping that the factory manager would receive me and that I would meet them. After all, they were just ordinary citizens struggling at the bottom of society in Hong Kong, and they valued a sense of江湖 (jianghu, a kind of chivalrous spirit).

Unexpectedly, as soon as the plane landed, the old factory director, who was comparable to the Governor of Hong Kong, came to the airport to greet them in person. The Yuan brothers, Yuan Heping and Yuan Changren, were so shocked that they were trembling with fear and did not know how to greet him.

"Welcome, welcome! We in Yanjing welcome Master Yuan and his two mentors to the north to provide martial arts guidance for our mainland film industry!" Seeing that Cheng Xuemin had finally introduced himself, the old factory director Wang Yang was unaware that the other party already regarded him as a figurehead like the Governor of Hong Kong, and greeted him warmly without any airs.

"Hello, old factory director!" Yuan Heping was once again flattered and trembling as he shook hands with the old factory director, saying in a trembling voice, "Old factory director, you are too kind. You flatter me. I dare not offer guidance; it is about mutual learning!"

"Uh? Master Yuan, your Mandarin is quite good!" the old factory director greeted him with a smile.

Yuan Heping replied very cautiously, "It's alright, it's alright. My father is from Beijing, and my brothers and I have been speaking Mandarin with him since we were young. Although we speak Cantonese more often in Hong Kong, we never forget our native tongue!"

"Good, good, good! This will make it much easier for us to communicate!" The old factory director nodded and patted Yuan Heping's hands, indicating that he could let go and not be so reserved.

The old factory manager was also surprised that the martial arts instructor from Hong Kong was so reserved, completely unlike the person who had once quoted them an exorbitant price of HK$200,000.

So, is it really true, as Cheng Xuemin said, that the martial arts choreographer is really amazing?
I didn't notice either!

"Oh my, old factory director! What brings you here to greet me in person?"

"I am filled with trepidation, trepidation!"

Following closely behind Yuan Heping and the others, a young man ran over quickly. He must have known the old factory director, Wang Yang. He was quite startled to see Wang Yang come to greet him personally and quickly went up to greet him.

You have to understand, this is the former director of Yanying Film Studio. Even if their Great Wall boss, Fu Qi, came, it wouldn't necessarily alarm this big shot to personally come to the airport to greet them. But they never expected that the three of them would receive such a welcoming treatment from the former director.

If this gets back to Hong Kong and the boss finds out, he'll be shocked.

"Alright, alright, it's you, Xiao He! Just the three of you, right? Then let's go back!" The old factory director obviously recognized this person accompanying Changcheng. He remembered that he had been to Yanying Factory once with Fu Qi before, and he greeted him politely.

"Yes, yes, old factory director, it's just the three of us, just the three of us!"

Following that, the Yuan brothers got into Cheng Xuemin's car after being greeted by the old factory director.

"I don't know!"

Yuan Heping, who was a step behind, secretly asked Xiao He, who was accompanying him, who the young man next to the old factory director was.
He recognized me at a glance and greeted me politely, but he didn't introduce himself.

So even now, Yuan Heping is still very confused about this young man. He is said to be the old factory director's driver, but his speech and attitude towards the old factory director just now do not seem like that of a driver.

Yuan Heping's intuition told him that this young man was no ordinary person and that he should keep in touch with him. Unfortunately, the other man had not introduced himself, leaving Yuan Heping unsure of how to address him or start a conversation.

He had intended to ask the people accompanying him on the Great Wall, but all he got was a shrug and an answer that he didn't know either, which made Yuan Heping even more frustrated.

The other party clearly knows me very well, but I know nothing about them, not even their name. What's going on?!

"Master Yuan, this must be your first time in Yanjing, right?" Seeing the young man driving the car speaking to him through the rearview mirror, Yuan Heping nodded repeatedly and replied, "Yes, yes, although my father is from Yanjing, he went south to Guangzhou in his early years. I was born in Guangzhou!"

"This is indeed our first time in Yanjing, both of us brothers!"

Cheng Xuemin nodded upon hearing this, and then said, "Uncle is also from Yanjing? Then Master Yuan, do you know any relatives in Yanjing? If you need to find your relatives, we can help you!"

"We're not too sure about that. My father didn't say who else was in the family. Anyway, the world was in chaos back then, and everyone fled south to escape the war. I'll go back and ask!"

"The world was indeed chaotic back then, but fortunately, times have changed for the better now. Our Yanjing has changed a lot. Master Yuan, you can travel around and ask around while you're at it!"

The Yuan brothers nodded repeatedly, still feeling somewhat uneasy and restrained, and inwardly they were wondering, "Who exactly is this kid?"

To be so casual in front of their former factory director is somewhat like overstepping one's bounds and showing a great lack of respect for such a high-ranking official as their former factory director.
"By the way, Master Yuan, considering that you are using aliases on this trip north, we did not arrange for you to stay at the usual grand hotel that caters to compatriots from Hong Kong and Macau. Instead, we changed it to the Yanjing Grand Hotel, which is not far from our Yan Film Studio, to avoid being recognized by acquaintances in Hong Kong and Macau and exposing your identities!"

"But please rest assured, Master Yuan, although it's not a special Hong Kong and Macau Grand Hotel, our Yanjing Grand Hotel is still quite up to standard, so it's not a matter of lowering your hospitality standards!"

Cheng Xuemin then explained the accommodation issue to Yuan Heping and the others, all to accommodate their use of aliases. However, he added, "Of course, if you feel this arrangement is inappropriate, Mr. Yuan, we can arrange for you to stay at the Hong Kong and Macao Compatriots Hotel. It's fine. Just let us know if you have any needs!"

"Okay, okay, thank you so much! This arrangement is excellent!" Yuan Heping didn't want to stay in a large hotel that specifically caters to compatriots from Hong Kong and Macau.

As people have said, the two brothers used aliases when they went north this time. If they happen to be seen by acquaintances because of their accommodation, wouldn't that be a big problem?

Therefore, the young man's arrangements were very thoughtful, and Yuan Heping was very satisfied.

The only thing I'm not entirely satisfied with is that after all this talk, I still don't know the other person's name. Even if it really is the driver, shouldn't we at least have a proper way to address each other?

Immediately, Yuan Heping didn't beat around the bush and asked directly, "By the way, young brother, I still don't know how to address you!"

"Huh? I...didn't I say that?" Cheng Xuemin was speechless for a moment after hearing Yuan Heping's words. Hadn't he introduced himself?
Seeing the other person's reaction, he immediately said, "We hit it off immediately! We really hit it off immediately, Master Yuan. I even forgot to introduce myself. I thought you knew me!"

"My name is Cheng Xuemin, Master Yuan, you can just call me Xiao Cheng!"

"Cheng Xuemin?" Upon hearing the other person's self-introduction, Yuan Heping was instantly dumbfounded and asked in surprise, "Is that Cheng Xuemin, the screenwriter who wrote 'Qimen Dunjia' for us?"

"If there isn't another screenwriter like Cheng, then it's me!" Cheng Xuemin said with a smug smile!
"It really is you?! Unbelievable! Screenwriter Cheng, you're so young and talented, truly remarkable!"

The old factory manager next to him squinted and didn't say anything, thinking to himself, "This kid is more than just not simple, he's far from simple!"

...(End of chapter)