Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 28 Return to the Capital
After gathering at a Moscow restaurant at noon, Zhang Yan, Dou Wei, and Jiang Xin naturally started talking about Eastern European issues.

East and West Germany officially reunified in October, Bulgaria underwent a political upheaval in November, and by this month, with Poland also experiencing turmoil, anyone would think that the Soviet Union was having a tough time.

However, people like Zhang Yan, who were absolutely certain that the Soviet Union would soon collapse, were still in the minority at the time.

In fact, Zhang Yan had also thought about whether he should do something after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but he only knew that the Soviet Union later collapsed, but he did not know exactly when it collapsed.

Besides, he didn't know what he could do. Anyway, he had been doing quite well lately, so there was no need to go to great lengths and take this risk.

After discussing international affairs, Zhang Yan steered the conversation back to their own lives: "By the way, I heard that the morgue incident has now become an urban legend in Beijing?"

"Anyway, it wasn't me who said it."

While struggling with the mushroom-baked rainbow trout, Dou Wei said disdainfully, "It was probably spread by Zhang Youdai, Zhang Chu, Wang Yang and the like."

"It must have been them who said it!"

Jiang Xin's voice was a little high-pitched, or rather, a little weak: "I heard that Lao Lang hasn't been singing lately, and he's just been bragging at school!"

Dou Wei asked, somewhat puzzled, "Isn't it because Gao Xiaosong stayed in the south, and the Bronze Age Band couldn't gather enough members for the time being?"

"Uh~"

Jiang Xin was speechless when Zhang Yan asked curiously, "And who is this Gao Xiaosong?"

He hadn't seen the name on the playlist, but he had seen it on Baidu's trending search list; it seemed to be a rather controversial figure.

Jiang Xin felt as if she had been granted a pardon and hurriedly poured out everything about the Bronze Age Band.

The original founders of the Bronze Band were Gao Xiaosong and Lao Lang. This summer, Bronze Band got a big job - performing in nightclubs on Hainan Island.

Everyone else thought it was unreliable, but Gao Xiaosong insisted on going. Later, Lao Lang was also influenced by him. As a result, the two of them went to Hainan and didn't earn a penny. Their return travel expenses were only enough for one person.

There was no other way but to send Old Wolf back to the capital to raise travel expenses.

When Lao Lang finally raised enough money, Gao Xiaosong refused to come back, saying he had found love in Xiamen.

After hearing this anecdote, Zhang Yan wasn't surprised at all. These rock band members are capable of anything when they get carried away.

After dinner.

Dou Wei went to pay the bill, and Jiang Xin went to the restroom.

Zhang Yan was carefully observing the decor of the hall, pondering how to describe a similar scene in the future, when a group of people came out of the private room with a clatter, among them a man being helped up who was wailing loudly.

Drawn by the sound of crying, Zhang Yan couldn't help but take a second look.

"What are you looking at?"

At this moment, Dou Wei turned back, glanced over in that direction, and said in surprise, "Hey, the one at the front looks like Wang Shuo."

So this is Wang Shuo!

Zhang Yan stared at the round-faced man at the front for a couple more moments, then asked curiously, "And who's the one crying?"

Dou Wei rolled his eyes at him: "How would I know that? I guess it's something you novelists would say."

Although Zhang Yan was very interested in Wang Shuo and the others, he had no reason to force his way in. So, after Jiang Xin returned from the restroom, the three of them left the famous Moscow Restaurant.

Since Zhang Yan had already planned to visit Professor Shi Tiesheng's home in the afternoon, and Jiang Xin also had to go back to school for class, the three of them went their separate ways after leaving the restaurant.

Zhang Yan first found a hotel to stay in, stored his luggage, and then went to the vicinity of Ditan Park.

When he arrived at Shi Tiesheng's house, Shi Tiesheng and his wife Chen Ximi were playing Go in the living room.

Seeing that he had come carrying things again, Chen Ximi stood up and teased, "Zhang Yan, are you here for a treat again?"

"Haha, no, this time I'm here on official business to deliver a gift." Zhang Yan showed the two canned food jars to Chen Ximi: "My mom heard that you like spicy food, so she asked me to bring you two jars of tomato chili sauce—this is a family secret recipe that my mom learned from someone at the farmers' market when she was working there."

As she spoke, she took out a book with a hint of helplessness: "This is a collection of qigong manuals that my dad collected. He insisted that I bring it with me—I said this thing is useless, and he even scolded me a few times."

I like this gift.

Chen Ximi took the two jars of chili sauce, then covered her mouth and laughed, "Actually, Tie Sheng used to collect a lot of qigong manuals, enough to fill a whole box."

Shi Tiesheng didn't feel embarrassed at all, and said cheerfully, "Who wouldn't want to try if there was even a glimmer of hope? But now I don't need to anymore, because I've found a better health preservation secret than Qigong."

As he spoke, he looked at Chen Ximi.

Chen Ximi was a little shy as she carried two jars of chili sauce into the kitchen.

"Hahaha~"

Shi Tiesheng laughed heartily, then pointed to the chessboard and asked, "Want to play a game?"

"Then let's have one."

Sitting down opposite Shi Tiesheng, Zhang Yan tidied up the chess pieces while recounting recent events, adding, "Thanks to your guidance, otherwise I wouldn't have had such a good opportunity."

Hearing that Zhang Yan had joined Tianjin Literature and would have the opportunity to participate in Tianjin TV's creative projects, Shi Tiesheng was very happy for him.

However, he also gave Zhang Yan a heads-up: "Because Wang Shuo pulled me into Haima Film and Television, I've also come into contact with some things in this field."

Writing is a solitary endeavor, but screenwriting is different. You must be prepared to compromise; only when all aspects are coordinated can a screenplay be considered a good one.

Otherwise, no matter how beautifully you craft your words, what you present to the audience will only be a jumbled mess.

After Zhang Yan solemnly expressed that he had learned something, he recalled the scene he had seen at Lao Mo at noon and briefly described the situation at that time.

"That must be Ma Weidu."

Shi Tiesheng sighed, "He used to be an editor. He recently made some money, quit his job, and started a nightclub. But it went bankrupt after only a few months. I heard he lost hundreds of thousands of yuan."

Zhang Yan clicked his tongue in amazement. This was hundreds of thousands of yuan in 1990. When it comes to making money, we have to look to the people of the capital.

hmm~
Only in the north.

The two played from 2:30 to 5:00, and Zhang Yan's record was two wins and one loss.

Because she was worried about her younger sister, Zhang Yan declined Chen Ximi's offer to stay. After finding out Zheng Ming's preferences, she left Shi Tiesheng's house before dark.

Once outside, he first found a public phone to contact Dou Wei, intending to ask about the evening's arrangements.

Dou Wei received the message from the paging station and quickly called back: "You really should buy a pager, otherwise I can't reach you even if I want to!"

"I'm saving up to buy a house, where would I get spare money for that stuff?" Zhang Yan asked, puzzled. "What's wrong? Didn't we say we'd talk about Zhang You's matter tonight?"

"Fourth Brother has already spoken with Zhang Youdai. I'll give you a pager number; you can contact Zhang Youdai directly."

"Is it appropriate for me to contact him directly?"

"What's wrong with it? You've all met before. Besides, it's not a big deal. Let's try contacting them first."

Since things had come to this point, Zhang Yan didn't bother with any pretense. He borrowed paper and pen from the grocery store owner, wrote down Zhang Youdai's pager number, and then contacted Zhang Youdai.

Zhang You was quite enthusiastic on the phone, saying that although he didn't come from an arts exam—he majored in literature and drama at the Central Academy of Drama.

But the Central Radio Station doesn't have much else, but it has the most people with broadcasting and hosting backgrounds. If Zhang Yan needs to, he can find some familiar friends to chat with.

Zhang Yan was overjoyed and immediately suggested that since there was no other time, he would host a dinner for Zhang Youdai and his friend that evening.

(End of this chapter)