The Book of All Things: Born for Joy

96.

The next day, Li Zichun went out by himself, leaving Zhao Qianfan and Li Ke at home to practice singing. The songs for the new album had already been written for them, and all that was left was to practice singing, prepare for the competition, and go back to release the album.

Li Zichun set off early in the morning with a portable cat carrier and arrived at the Shangjing Film and Television Shooting Base. The area had been developed to resemble Hengdian World Studios in later years, and was more like a large tourist area. Wandering through the streets and alleys, it was easy to travel from one dynasty to another.

With plenty of time before the agreed-upon time with Xu Chengfeng, Li Zichun wandered around aimlessly, taking the opportunity to learn about what this sub-world was like in the past.

Li Zichun, wearing a hood, sat on the tour bus and wandered around aimlessly. One film crew after another was shooting in the designated locations, and many tourists stopped to watch from a distance, taking photos in various costumes.

After walking around the entire area, he chose a stop that was close to the agreed-upon location and got off.

The ancient city walls, the streets paved with bluestone bricks, the shops lined up one after another, and the tourists thronging the streets—what a magnificent scene!

Li Zichun led Qi Tong through the area, ostensibly to meet and talk, but actually to conduct an inspection and perhaps find some stunningly handsome men and beautiful women.

He fondly remembers Hong Kong's golden age of producing outstanding talents, a time of "madness and excess" in the entertainment industry, a time when stars and idols influenced the entire Chinese-speaking world, and films and songs that impacted generations.

Li Zichun wandered aimlessly through the park, stopping to watch whenever he encountered a film crew shooting. After watching a few performances and hearing a few lines of dialogue, he almost doubted his ears. It turns out that actors with titles like "one, two, three, four, five, six, seven" are everywhere these days; this is the way of the world in an era where traffic reigns supreme.

Li Zichun shook his head, checked the time, and went to meet up with Xu Chengfeng and the others.

When Li Zichun arrived at the private room in the coffee shop, Xu Chengfeng and the other two had already been sitting there waiting for quite some time.

Zhang Yimao, a renowned director in Beijing's film circle, was also very curious about the identity of this mysterious writer who had set rules before even starting the collaboration and whose identity couldn't be revealed. These days, there are very few people who dare to act like a diva in front of him. Someone who dares to say that he has to review the lead actors and the script before filming can begin must already have a basic expectation for the film, which immediately piqued Zhang Yimao's curiosity.

The moment Li Zichun took off his mask and sat down opposite him, Zhang Yimao and Lu Wei exchanged a glance, then touched Xu Chengfeng with a hint of uncertainty and asked, "Is he really Senluo?"

Xu Chengfeng found it somewhat amusing and said to Li Zichun with a smile, "Why don't you introduce yourself?"

Li Zichun took off his mask and said with a smile, "Do I still need to introduce myself? Wouldn't that mean I've been working for nothing for the past six months?"

As soon as he said that, everyone laughed.

Yes, with that face alone, even without the ubiquitous advertisements and endorsements, the music and square dancing everywhere, the New Year songs in supermarkets, the well-known classic songs, the covers by contestants on various shows, the explosive viewership of his show videos, and his gossip and entanglements with the eight major entertainment news outlets, all of these proclaim his existence.

A true guarantee of high viewership ratings, and an undisputed top newcomer. Even people who don't watch TV have heard his songs on the streets.

Zhang Yimao laughed heartily and shook hands with him, saying, "Little guy, you really are a surprise. I was wondering who had such great power that we had to keep our meeting a secret, but it turns out it's you. You truly are a young talent capable of stirring up a storm."

Li Zichun replied with a smile, "Haha, Director Zhang, you flatter me. I've watched several of your masterpieces over and over again."

After a round of mutual flattery, everyone quickly got down to business.

Li Zichun strongly agreed with Lu Wei's script, but the final debate revolved around the film's length, the complete fidelity of the content, and the selection of actors.

Li Zichun said with a smile, "Director Zhang, screenwriter Lu, this movie is different from a book. If a film is too long, the audience may not be able to accept it. Besides, I think you also have your own ideas. Just keep the spirit of the content consistent, there is no need to completely restore it. This will also leave you with room to play your part."

Li Zichun's words were not unfounded. Zhang Yimou's 1994 version of "To Live" was not a complete adaptation, nor was it a direct copy of the book; it contained his own reflections and examinations. The book is so bitter that many people even feel that such suffering is somewhat unrealistic. But who among those who lived through that era didn't carry immense hardship on their shoulders? Therefore, when Zhang Yimou made this film, he added many warm elements to it.

As Yu Hua himself said, "Life is a personal experience and does not belong to anyone else's opinion."

Zhang Yimao, Lu Wei, and Li Zichun engaged in numerous discussions, revising and adding to the script. Xu Chengfeng, an observer, then offered his opinions and suggestions. The four of them discussed the script from midday until evening, finally finalizing a preliminary version.

After that came the revision and finalization. Lu Wei promised to give him another review after the final draft was completed, and he temporarily stopped.

Zhang Yimao was not surprised that Li Zichun was involved in the casting process. Over the years, investors and producers have liked to put a few of their own people into the production team. There are quite a few who have been forced into the roles with money. As for whether they can become famous or not, that is up to fate. Even if they don't become famous in the end, at least their resumes will be very impressive.

Li Zichun didn't have any particular recommendations or preferences for the actors. He simply told Director Zhang to let him participate in the final casting process and not to allow anyone else to force in actors. He emphasized that acting skills were the most important factor.

Director Zhang hesitated. These days, it's not easy to get investment. If someone gives you money, you naturally want to secure a few spots, no big or small, to feel that the money was well spent. If they don't give you anything and the box office is bad, you'll lose a fortune.

Li Zichun probably sensed his hesitation and quietly waited for his decision.

He wasn't particularly fond of the film, given that it involved many scenes from a particular era, which is why it was rarely broadcast on television—something he knew, and he figured the same was true in this era. The film could be cut, but it absolutely couldn't have a bad ending; it had to at least be worthy of the book.

He didn't actually have anything special to say about the casting choices; he just didn't want any rotten apples or cheap imitations involved. This film, after all, made him the first Chinese actor to win a Best Actor award. In 1994, Ge You won the Best Actor award at the 47th Cannes Film Festival for his role in "To Live," becoming the first Asian actor and the first Chinese actor to receive this prestigious award, causing a sensation. Everyone else who starred in the film later became pillars of the film industry. He didn't want one bad apple to spoil the whole bunch.

He waited quietly for Zhang Yimao's decision, and finally, after exchanging a glance with Lu Wei, he compromised. He hadn't seen such a good script in years, and he didn't want to miss out.

Li Zichun was very satisfied with this, but he wouldn't easily compromise until the script and actors were officially finalized and filming began. He was prepared to either part ways or let a gem tarnish its reputation.

Zhang Yimao and Lu Wei were also impressed by the author and entertainment star before them. These days, there were very few people who could argue and discuss the script with them so calmly and respectfully, practically none. Everyone seemed to be bowing and scraping before him, afraid of offending him by speaking loudly. This passionate debate and back-and-forth exchange made them feel as if they had returned to their youth.

The three exchanged contact information and created a group chat for future communication.

Qi Tong had already fallen asleep listening from the side, and raised his little tail to brush against Li Zichun's chin.

Li Zichun was amused by it and stroked its head, saying, "Good boy, if you're tired, go rest in the bag. We'll be leaving soon."

Watching Qitong meow and jump into the bag to sleep, everyone marveled at how intelligent the little creature was.

The four shared their views on the subsequent film planning and shooting. Zhang Yimao was amazed by his ingenious ideas and boldness and meticulousness. Lu Wei was also impressed by his script conception and content deletion. Xu Chengfeng, the chairman of the Writers Association, took notes and made suggestions. All parties benefited a lot from the conversation.

Finally, everyone reached an agreement on the film investment collaboration, and the four people present decided to invest on their own.

Li Zichun said with a smile, "Don't rush in like I did. This movie might not even be allowed to be released in China, and it might even lose money at the box office."

Li Zichun's words were not unfounded. This film was indeed banned for many years in his time due to censorship issues and was never shown in mainland China. It was also the only film directed by Zhang Yimou to be banned. The entire film had a budget of 30 million RMB, but its global box office only totaled a little over 10 million RMB, resulting in a loss of over 20 million RMB.

Why were the box office results so low? It's probably just bad timing; that's the only explanation, since it wasn't released in mainland China.

Hearing him say this did not dampen the crowd's enthusiasm for investing at all. Zhang Yimao laughed and said, "You probably don't know, but at our age, money isn't that important anymore. We've lived most of our lives, enjoyed fame and fortune for most of our lives, and now we just want to film things that we're truly interested in."

The others nodded in agreement, so Li Zichun didn't say anything more. The group chatted happily and signed contracts with everyone on the spot.

The group agreed to discuss follow-up arrangements, including actor selection and film promotion, in a group chat. After explaining everything, everyone went their separate ways.

That evening, Zhang Yimao launched an actor recruitment campaign on his Weibo account and invited famous actors who fit the character descriptions in the story to audition.

Lu Wei, Xu Chengfeng, and Li Zichun also personally reposted the video using their company accounts, and its popularity immediately surpassed their newly released square dance song, soaring to number one.

Everyone was incredibly curious about this movie, which featured a renowned director, editor, Writers Association chairman, and a rising star in the music industry all working together to promote it. But once they saw that the movie was titled "To Live," they all shut up. The book alone deserves such a lineup.

That same night, Li Zichun was too exhausted to speak. Talking to these celebrities and big shots was exhausting; there was no room for relaxation or compromise, and she had to maintain the initiative.

After exchanging a few words with Zhao Qianfan and Li Ke, he went back to his room to rest, too lazy to move. The two had already checked their phones and were aware of the news online; it seemed the meeting had gone very smoothly.

The news spread like wildfire across the capital and throughout the country. Many actors and aspiring individuals headed to Beijing with a "let's give it a try" attitude, as such nationwide recruitment opportunities were rare. If they didn't get in, they could just consider it a trip.

The next day, a long line formed in front of Director Zhang's company. It was filled with a star-studded lineup, both famous and unknown, and countless people were turned away every day.

Li Zichun naturally didn't go in person. He only cared about whether the final selected person had a clean past and whether they had acting skills. He didn't care about anything else.

Riding the wave of popularity, he glanced at Zhao Qianfan and Li Ke, who were practicing singing and exercising nearby, and decided to let them practice in peace. He then went into the recording studio to record a song and released it on the company website.

Li Zichun sang none other than "Living," a song of the same name as the movie and written by Hao Yun:

Every day I stand on a high-rise building and watch the little ants on the ground.

Their heads are big, their legs are thin.

They were holding iPhones; they were wearing Nike and Adidas.

They were very anxious because they were going to be late for work.

My poor jeep hasn't climbed up or crossed the river in a long time.

He felt very repressed in this city.

Although he didn't say anything, I knew he was very sad.

I secretly made a wish to take him to Mongolia.

Hurriedly, in a rush, why is life always like this?

Is this how I envision spending my life?

Neither humble nor arrogant, neither flustered nor hurried—perhaps this is how life should be.

Does that mean I should wait until I'm 60 to seek the freedom I desire?

Year after year flies by, and I still have the same little bit of savings.

There are still many things I like that I can't afford.

Life is always full of troubles, and I still haven't gotten used to it.

Everyone says money is a bastard, but she's really good-looking.

......

I don't want to live like this...

I don't want to be in such a panic, rushing around.

Why is life always like this...?

I often tell myself that people should learn to be content and happy, but what's the point if you just laugh everything off?

Li Zichun actually wanted to change the lyrics, since there are no famous brands or labels in this alternate world, but he decided against it. As I said before, should the changed lyrics be attributed to him or the original author?

The restoration of ancient buildings emphasizes restoring them to their original state, and naturally, the songs being moved should also be kept in their original form.

PS: Data is from the internet.

"Living" is an urban folk song written, composed, arranged, and sung by Hao Yun. It was released on September 12, 2013, from Hao Yun's third self-titled album of the same name. Hao Yun won the Best Male Singer-Songwriter award at the 2013 MusicRadio China TOP Chart Awards and was nominated for Best Rock Artist at the 9th Annual Music Billboard Awards in 2015 for this song.