It's reasonable for me to be a three-time Golden Horse Award-winning director and an all-around

Chapter 38: Taking Liu Yifei home for the New Year?

After handing over the script for "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" to Han Sanping, Lü Rui's work was finally over.

The company had already given him a holiday, so he quickly packed his luggage and headed straight to the airport.

During the Spring Festival travel rush, airfares have more than doubled!
He spent over a thousand yuan to buy a first-class ticket and, guided by staff, entered the VIP waiting area.

"Senior?!"

A familiar voice suddenly rang in my ears.

Lu Rui looked in the direction of the sound, and a smile involuntarily crept onto his lips.

It's Liu Yifei!

This girl wrapped herself up tightly, looking just like a chubby little penguin.

He was wrapped in a thick cotton-padded coat, complete with a hat and cotton gloves, looking so fully armed that it was hard not to laugh.

However, the color scheme... is really a bit "eye-searing".

"Aren't you hot wearing so many clothes?"

The airport was very warm, and Lü Rui even had some sweat on his forehead (not just a little).

"It's hot!" Liu Yifei hopped over, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling. "But Harbin is very cold, so I need to prepare in advance."

As she spoke, she took off her gloves and hat, and her long hair cascaded down, revealing her pure and sweet face.

In an instant, Lü Rui suddenly felt that this exaggerated outfit didn't seem so out of place anymore.

"Director Lü? Where are you headed?" Liu Xiaoli approached in her high heels, her gaze sweeping over the plane ticket in Lü Rui's hand.

Lu Rui waved the ticket: "What a coincidence, we're going the same way, to Harbin."

"Really?!" Liu Yifei tiptoed over to peek at Lü Rui's seat number, her eyelashes fluttering as she excitedly exclaimed, "Senior! Our seat numbers are next to each other!"

"What a coincidence?"

"Hehe, let me check my boarding pass..." The girl's rummaging around brought with it a sweet, milky scent. "That's right! They're right next to each other!"

An announcement was made at the appropriate time to announce boarding.

Once on the plane, Lü Rui realized that the girl wasn't lying.

The three seats were arranged in a "2+1" layout. He and Liu Yifei sat side by side by the window, while Liu Xiaoli sat across the aisle.

Amidst the hum of the engine, Liu Yifei chirped like a nightingale:

"Filming for 'Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils' has wrapped up! 'The Story of a Noble Family' is scheduled to air on CCTV-3 on March 20th! I'll go back to school to catch up on my studies first, and after the Lunar New Year, my mom said she'll take me to audition for a new script..."

She even told me which district her house in Harbin was in, and what gifts to bring when we went to her maternal grandmother's house in Wuhan on the second day of the Lunar New Year.

On the other side of the corridor, Liu Xiaoli sighed helplessly.

"That brat! She's spilled the whole family's secrets!"

Upon landing in Harbin, as soon as I stepped out of the airport, a cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed towards me.

Lu Rui helped the mother and daughter put their luggage into the trunk.

When Liu Xiaoli suggested carpooling with a smile, Liu Yifei excitedly shouted, "My home is in Dingxiangyuan!"

"What a coincidence." Lu Rui closed the car door and smiled, "My family lives there too. We just moved there last month."

Now that he's made money, he naturally won't hide it.

In the preceding months, he had sent a considerable amount of money home, and his parents finally moved out of their damp and dilapidated old house and into a bright, fully-furnished apartment.

He's been quite busy lately, so after the New Year, he plans to have his father come with him to the capital to buy a few suitable houses as a backup.

This can also be considered a kind of investment.

Otherwise, after the Olympics, housing prices will skyrocket!
Even more coincidentally, things happened one after another.

The three of them got out of the taxi, dragged their luggage, and turned into the apartment building, only to find that it was the same building and the same floor!
Lu Rui pointed to room 301, and Liu Yifei immediately pointed to the next room and exclaimed, "My house! 302!"

Liu Xiaoli stared at the house number, her gaze lingering on Lü Rui's face, her expression quite intriguing: "This house was empty last year, so you bought it?"

"Hey? What a coincidence." Lu Rui knocked on the door.

The security door opened with a click, and Mr. and Mrs. Lü, wearing aprons, leaned out. The warm yellow light, along with the aroma of stew, wafted into the hallway.

"Hello, uncle and aunt!"

Liu Yifei greeted everyone crisply, her hands twisting her scarf, her eyelashes fluttering like a startled fawn.

"Wow, this little girl is so pretty!"

The warmth and enthusiasm of the Northeasterners were instantly ignited.

When she learned that Liu Xiaoli and her daughter were going to spend the New Year alone, Lu's mother grabbed her hand and said in a loud voice, "How can this be? You two are back so late? There must be nothing to eat at home."

Come to my house on New Year's Eve! Plenty of dumplings—pickled cabbage filling, three-delicacy filling—you'll eat your fill!

Mother Lü kept calling her "little sister," and Liu Xiaoli couldn't resist, so she had no choice but to nod in agreement.

So, on New Year's Eve, the mother and daughter brought gifts to the door.

Father Lü was tossing a large ladle in the kitchen, the aroma of braised pork mingling with the crisp sound of frying meatballs.

Liu Yifei and Lü Rui were learning to roll out dough at the cutting board, while Lü's mother and Liu Xiaoli were figuring out how to make frozen pears, a specialty of Northeast China. Laughter filled the room with the steam.

When the Spring Festival Gala started, the two tables were combined into one.

"Happy New Year to my seniors, mom, uncles and aunts!" Liu Yifei raised a glass full of juice, her hair still dusted with flour from rolling out dumpling wrappers, like a layer of fine icing sugar.

Under the warm yellow light, her rosy cheeks glowed like apples, her eyes curved into crescents, and the smile that overflowed between her fluttering eyelashes made the whole room feel sweet.

Lu's mother, who had always dreamed of having a daughter, was overjoyed and immediately took out a large red envelope and stuffed it into her pocket.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, when Liu Yifei and Liu Xiaoli went to Wuhan, their mother specially brought them a large amount of Northeastern specialties such as frozen pears and sausages.

"Bye-bye, senior, uncles and aunts~"

"Well, bye."

"be careful on the road!"

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Lü Rui returned to the capital first, and his father would come to see the house after the Lantern Festival.

After landing, he didn't stay idle; he bought a lot of gifts and wandered all over Yanjing.

Jiang Wei, Zhang Jiandong, Xie Xiaojing, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Han Sanping... these are all people who have helped him. Regardless of their status or position, he must pay them a visit and be courteous to them so that they can't find fault with him.

After visiting each household to offer New Year's greetings, the last stop was Jiang Wen's house.

To Lü Rui's surprise, a woman appeared behind the door when he knocked!
"Director Lü?"

The way the other person addressed him made Lü Rui's brow twitch.

Upon closer inspection, oh my god! It's Zhou Yun!

He subtly withdrew his gaze and asked, "Director Jiang isn't home?"

"Yes, I'm washing up now."

Zhou Yun was clearly aware of the relationship between Lü Rui and Jiang Wen, so she stepped aside to let him in.

"Director Lü, have some water."

After handing her the warm water, she turned and called for someone from the bathroom.

A moment later, Jiang Wen emerged with a towel draped over his head, and introduced himself casually: "My girlfriend, Zhou Yun, is also an actress. We met while filming 'Warriors of Heaven and Earth'."

"Hello."

Lu Rui gave a polite response, but his eyes kept lingering on Jiang Wen.

What's this guy up to?

Why are you becoming more and more indecent as you get older?
He played a couple with his ex-girlfriend (Ning Jing) in a drama, paid a fine for his ex-ex-girlfriend (Liu Xiaoqing), lived apart from his current wife in a foreign country, and now a bright and beautiful new love has appeared.

How many people are they dating at the same time?

And you think my diary writing isn't proper?

You're even older and more indecent than me!

"You guys chat, I'm going to buy groceries." Zhou Yun's face flushed slightly as she hurried out the door.

Before Lü Rui could ask any questions, Jiang Wen laid his cards on the table: "Sanderlyn and I are having some relationship problems. When we go to Cannes after the New Year, we'll take the opportunity to get a divorce certificate."

The couple lived apart in different countries, only seeing each other once a year. It would be strange if their relationship didn't have problems!
Lu Rui shook his head inwardly; this was nothing new in the entertainment industry.

Thinking back to all the absurd news stories before her rebirth, including farces like accusing her impotent husband of "rape" her, what is Jiang Wen's situation compared to that?
"Is the Cannes jury appointment finalized?" Lü Rui changed the subject.

Jiang Wen mentioned this invitation before the New Year, but at that time it was still far from being finalized. Now, judging from his tone, it seems that it has been settled.
"It's settled." Jiang Wen leaned back on the sofa. "One of the judges, but unfortunately I didn't get the chairman's position."

Lu Rui nearly choked on his water, looked Jiang Wen up and down, and said with a wry smile, "You still have your eye on the chairman's position?"

Given Jiang Wen's temper and personality, who would dare to appoint him as the chairman of the judging panel?

If he were to actually sit in that chair, he might turn the film festival into a temple fair!
After chatting for a while, Lü Rui took the opportunity to invite him to play a cameo role.

The wild photographer who travels all over the world in "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" would be quite a good fit for Jiang Wen.

“Sure, no problem. Just call me when the time comes, and I’ll do a cameo for you for free.”

A Venice Film Festival Best Actor award further elevated Jiang Wen's already high status in the industry.

He was so grateful to Lü Rui!

After spending the morning there, Lü Rui said goodbye and left.

Back at the company, he didn't rest, making one phone call after another.

He plans to invite Leslie Cheung to play the male lead role.

The other party readily agreed, saying they would come to the company to see the script after the New Year.

As for the role of customer service on the dating website, he plans to have Zhang Fengyi fill in for a while.

The only problem is finding a female lead.

A single mother with a unique temperament and a special charm that sets her apart from ordinary women, she makes the male protagonist fall in love with her at first sight...

After pondering for a long time, Lü Rui still couldn't think of anyone in the industry who would be suitable for the role, so he simply put it aside for the time being and started dealing with other matters.

On the thirteenth day of the first lunar month, the extended key for "Hero" ended, and the total domestic box office reached 2.5 million yuan!
The film and television industry was in an uproar once again! And the ridicule from the outside world suddenly subsided considerably.

The following day, the Film Bureau issued a notice that the script for "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" had officially passed the review!
In an instant, countless pairs of burning eyes were cast toward Ruishijie Film and Television Company, which had only been established for a year.

On that very day, Leslie Cheung flew in from Hong Kong.

To Lü Rui's utter surprise, he had brought a friend with him!
(End of this chapter)