I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 52 I originally wanted to make a living with my talent!

2003 years.

The Chinese internet is still in its early stages of development.

BBS, Maobu, Jiaoya and other forums are booming. Countless young people from all over the country are influenced by the Internet wave and gather in these forums to talk about everything under the sun. Some people have attracted a lot of attention and discussion because of their words and deeds, and quickly become the focus of people's attention and become so-called "internet celebrities".

In June of this year, Li Yijie, who had just graduated from high school and been admitted to a good university in Beijing, received her first computer.

She was no stranger to computers...

Their school was one of the earliest in China to offer computer courses.

Li Yijie was very quick to pick up new things. After a few lessons, she not only learned to type quickly, but also soon became a regular on various forums and chat rooms. After the college entrance examination, she was completely liberated and immersed herself in the high-intensity surfing of the Internet, enjoying the series of explosive information that the Internet brought her...

One night in June, I couldn't sleep after listening to all sorts of chilling ghost stories in the "Ghost Stories" section of the Jiaoya Forum. Eventually, I inadvertently clicked on a post titled "[Handsome Guys Taken Photos at the Entrance of Yanying]".

At first, as usual, I just browsed through it casually...

But as she browsed, for some reason, her gaze was drawn to a figure dressed in a suit and leather shoes.

The photo appears to have been taken secretly; although the resolution isn't high, the overall atmosphere is incredibly evocative.

In the photo, a figure wearing sunglasses and looking extremely aloof is leaning against a red Audi A6 supercar.

This figure wasn't particularly tall, but standing alone at the entrance of Yan Ying, surrounded by a group of handsome men, she possessed a captivating charm.

He resembles a celebrity, a model, or even the dashing male protagonist in a novel or movie.

This photo received numerous comments and shares, and even male netizens used it as their chat profile picture, which attracted the attention of many girls.

However, the internet in 2003 was still in its infancy and far less developed than it would be later. Li Yijie excitedly flipped through many photos, but unfortunately, she couldn't find any detailed information about the boy. She only found a side profile photo of him riding an electric scooter without sunglasses...

Until yesterday, while watching TV with my father who had just returned from the coal mine, I inadvertently saw a news report...

Then, I saw a melancholy face...

……

【XuanShi Entertainment】

Soft light illuminated a gentle profile with a smile on its face.

His smile was very comforting, like a gentle breeze that brought coolness and dispelled the sweltering heat in the room.

"Hello, my name is Zhou Yang!"

"Hello, my name is Li Yijie... You really look much prettier than in the photos!"

Seeing the other person greet her with a smile, Li Yijie excitedly shook hands with Zhou Yang.

Zhou Yang's hands were soft yet strong, gripping hers tightly, which somehow made her heart race.

After a brief handshake, she and her father, Li Dachun, sat down to one side, drinking plain water poured for them by a girl next to them.

She surveyed everything around her...

【Xuan Shi Entertainment】The company is very simple.

A few rooms, a table, and some basic office supplies...

Apart from that, there's nothing in the company, well, not even a single computer.

Watching and watching...

Li Yijie suddenly felt a pang of sadness, especially when she thought of Zhou Yang crying his eyes out on TV because he was desperate for a movie.

Having grown up in a family that wasn't wealthy, she couldn't help but feel a little sad.

Zhou Yang must have had a tough journey, right?

"I'm sorry, Mr. Li, our facilities here are rather basic..."

Zhou Yang didn't hide his embarrassment. On the contrary, he was exceptionally sincere when facing Li Dachun and Li Yijie, the father and daughter: "I believe you two have seen it too. We are actually quite poor, and I won't hide it from you... We are just a group of ordinary young people. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe us as scraps of society... Last month, we made a movie. The movie didn't receive good reviews, and the box office performance was also mediocre. However, it sold relatively well in the DVD market, selling nearly 2 copies..."

As Zhou Yang spoke, he handed a set of data to Li Dachun.

The portly Li Dachun took the data, glanced at it, and then handed it to Li Yijie: "It's alright. I like honest young people like you. I find all your fancy stuff hypocritical... It's normal for young people to be poor. When I was your age, we couldn't even afford a bite to eat. When our kids cried for candy, I couldn't bear to buy them..."

"Mr. Li, it seems you have quite a story to tell..."

"Haha, my story is a long one. Aren't you guys in the movie industry? I think my life story is quite interesting and could definitely be made into a movie. Why don't you adapt my story a bit?"

"Oh, sure, Mr. Li, could you please tell me more about it?"

"Okay, okay!" When Li Dachun saw Zhou Yang go to get paper and pen, looking like he was about to gather material for a story, he couldn't hide his smile and lit a cigarette: "Back in 1985, when my child was just born, our hometown was hit by a locust plague..."

"Dad, don't smoke!"

"It's nothing, it's nothing... I'll just have one. I'm in a good mood today. Oh, and get those two bottles of Moutai from my car, and we'll go buy some side dishes from the street vendor..."

"Dad, the doctor said you can't drink alcohol!"

"It's nothing, just a little bit won't hurt. Oh dear, look at you, Director Zhou, your wife's gone, but I didn't expect there would still be someone keeping an eye on me..."

"dad!"

"Okay, okay, no drinking, no drinking..."

"Dad, we're talking about me today. Can you let me make the decision?"

"Sure, sure, but isn't it because of Director Zhou's seriousness? Director Zhou is clearly the kind of person who understands art. Art comes from life, and we coal miners' experiences are rich, but life is full of stories... Let's give Director Zhou some divergent suggestions. What if the movie wins an award?"

"Dad!" Seeing her uneducated father boasting again, Li Yijie felt extremely embarrassed and couldn't help but stomp on his foot.

"Okay, okay, you talk, you talk, you all talk..." Li Dachun, who had his legs crossed, finally changed his expression slightly when he saw his daughter's murderous gaze, and awkwardly stubbed out his cigarette: "Director Zhou, let's talk about my story after we finish discussing business. My daughter is also very artistic, and look how pretty she is. She's a real beauty at school..."

"dad!"

"Okay, okay, I won't say anything more. I'm going out for a smoke. You guys chat..."

Seeing that her shameful, boastful coal mine owner father was about to lose his temper again, Li Yijie stomped her foot once more.

Coal mine owner Li Dachun gave another awkward laugh and made a move to stand up and leave.

"Dad, how much are you planning to invest?"

Is one million enough?

"Dad! If the movie is good, one million might not be enough... I think directors with dreams like Director Zhou deserve more!"

"Sure, you decide. I don't know anything about movies... Anyway, as long as you're happy... I'm going out for a smoke and to check on what driver Xiao Wang is up to... You guys talk, you guys talk..."

"it is good!"

When the coal mine owner wiggled his hips, left the house, lit a cigarette, and went outside...

Li Yijie finally felt relieved...

Then, he subconsciously glanced at Zhang Jiali next to him.

Zhang Jiali was taken aback, then understood what Li Yijie meant. She lowered her head and said to Zhou Yang, "I'll go and think about the script first..."

"Ok!"

After Zhang Jiali left...

Zhou Yang coughed lightly.

“Miss Li, this is the script for our new movie. Would you like to take a look? Oh, and there's another script called ‘The Distant Man: Reboot.’ It's a science fiction film based on Superman, but actually…”

“Um… Director Zhou…” Li Yijie blushed slightly, her pretty face looking at Zhou Yang somewhat shyly.

"you say?"

"Director Zhou? Do you think my looks are suitable for making movies?"

"It suits her perfectly. Miss Li is so beautiful, she definitely suits her..."

"But I haven't studied acting professionally, I'm afraid..."

"It's alright, it's alright, Miss Li, you don't need to worry about this at all. We're in the arts, especially me, who's good at discovering the strengths in everyone. I think Miss Li would be perfect for the role of the beautiful female lead in our new movie, 'Lin Daiyu vs. Lu Zhishen,' oh no, I mean 'The Haunted Village'..."

"Really?"

"real!"

Zhou Yang adjusted his glasses and looked at Li Yijie with a very serious and earnest expression: "Actually, when I saw Ms. Li walk into our company, a strong thought immediately came to my mind..."

"Director Zhou, I'm serious. Don't think that just because I invested in your movie, you'll..."

"Oh, Ms. Li, you've misunderstood me by saying that... Although some of us are short of money, we value the art of film itself above all else. You know, a person's dream is very pure and has absolutely nothing to do with money..."

Zhou Yang took a sip of water, his gaze silently fixed on the scenery outside the window, his voice growing increasingly somber: "Actually, the journey has been very difficult for us..."

(End of this chapter)