msmithbooks Chapter 126 The Phone Called
Chapter 126 The Phone Called
After a few rounds of back-and-forth wordplay, Jiang Wen sobered up completely, slapped his thigh, and burst into laughter: "You're totally my type! When we get back this time, we absolutely have to collaborate and put together a script!"
The two raised their glasses and clinked them together, then smiled at each other.
That's settled. The prototype for "Let the Bullets Fly" has been finalized.
On the afternoon of the 28th, before boarding the plane, Yang Mi took Gu Heng back to the compound to say goodbye to her parents.
Holding her daughter's hand, Yang's mother repeatedly reminded her, "Take good care of yourself when you get to Venice, and don't wander off."
Yang Mi, clinging to Gu Heng's arm, blinked her big eyes, looking like a well-behaved child, and said in a sweet, childish voice, "Mom, don't worry, I'll definitely take good care of myself and Gu Heng over there."
Upon hearing this, Yang's mother and Gu Heng's mother, who had come to see them off, exchanged a glance and both burst out laughing. The meaning couldn't be clearer.
Gu Heng's eyes twitched violently as he stood to the side.
You?
Why don't you go and kill Tang Sanzang and his disciples?
If I take you out, I'm just thankful if you don't get lost.
However, Gu Heng still had to express his opinion in front of his father-in-law.
He patted his chest and smiled at Yang Xiaolin, "Uncle Yang, don't worry, I'm here for you!"
Mr. Yang, with his hands behind his back, snorted coldly and glanced at him sideways: "It's precisely because you're around that I'm most worried!"
Afterwards, Gu Heng led his team to meet up with Jiang Wen's crew at the airport, and they headed towards Venice in a grand procession.
On the 29th, at the opening ceremony, Gu Heng led the cast and crew of "Mr. Tree" on the red carpet.
Wang Baoqiang was wearing an ill-fitting suit and grinning widely, completely carefree.
Although this guy had already won the Best Actor award at the Dowell International Film Festival, that's nothing compared to this, which is one of the three major European film festivals! He could brag about that for a lifetime back home.
Yang Mi wore a formal dress today, and she looked exceptionally dignified, elegant, aloof, and noble on the red carpet.
Of course, the premise is that she absolutely must not open her mouth.
The moment this little fox makes a sound, the true nature of this Beijing girl is sure to be revealed.
In fact, having spent so many years by Gu Heng's side, she had become quite familiar with the ways and tricks of the industry.
But as long as Gu Heng is around, her clever little brain will tell her it's time to use her external brain.
On the side of the red carpet, the reporters from Princess Six were the same familiar faces they had interviewed last year.
The rhetoric was the same old thing: congratulating Director Gu on his consecutive victories and winning gold and silver medals.
However, because of Gu Heng's actions last year, the Sixth Princess gave him special face this time, deliberately throwing out several extremely favorable and positive questions, clearly to help Gu Heng elevate his official image.
Following the opening ceremony was a series of screenings.
When "Mr. Tree" was screened, the theater was packed with people.
This extremely oppressive yet magical realist tone, coupled with Wang Baoqiang's almost superhuman acting skills, completely thrilled the foreigners in the audience.
As soon as the movie ended, a group of blond, blue-eyed film distributors swarmed around him like cats smelling fish.
These guys saw Gu Heng as a young, new director and thought he was easy to fool. They drove the copyright price down to an insane level, trying to get something for nothing!
Gu Heng didn't even glance at them, and with a few evasive words, he managed to brush off all the foreigners.
Do you really think I've never seen the world?
I won't sell it cheaply even if I hold it in my hand.
Stealing a moment from his busy schedule, Gu Heng took Yang Mi for a stroll to watch a few other competition films.
It must be said that Venice is indeed rich in artistic elements.
The two even went to see Ang Lee's film "Lust, Caution".
Hehe, this is the original, uncut version!
Watching the difficult stunts on the big screen, Yang Mi blushed so much she almost bled, and reached out to pinch the soft flesh around Gu Heng's waist tightly.
Gu Heng gasped, clicking his tongue inwardly. This was absolutely outrageous! It was just a shame about Teacher Wang (Tian Yu)!
I don't know what Tang Wei was thinking at the time. Did she really sacrifice herself for art?
The most infuriating thing is that after this film caused such a huge stir in China, director Ang Lee just packed his bags and went to Hollywood, and nothing happened to him.
The male lead, Tony Leung, has also disappeared from the public eye.
They singled out Tang Wei as a scapegoat, and she was immediately blacklisted by the higher-ups.
Halfway through the screenings, it was time for the premiere of "The Sun Also Rises".
Finally, in front of the world's media cameras, Uncle Jiang Wen embraced Zhou Yun and announced to everyone that she was his wife!
Gu Heng sat in the audience clapping wildly, cursing inwardly: "Damn it, so all that surprise you talked about after coming to my courtyard in the middle of the night to drink Erguotou and holding back for so long was this!"
Uncle Jiang really knows how to have fun!
Time flew by, and it was the last day of the film festival. This was what industry insiders called "waiting for the phone call day."
According to the unspoken rules of the three major organizations, as long as the organizing committee calls your production team in advance and insists that you stay to participate in the closing ceremony, you will receive a prize.
No phone? Sorry, you'd better buy a plane ticket and get out of here.
In the afternoon, the main creators of the four Chinese-language film crews—Ang Lee, Du Qifeng, Jiang Wen, and Gu Heng—unusually stayed in a large suite to wait for news.
A group of people waited for more than half an hour, but the phone didn't ring at all.
Du Qifeng's dark face was so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.
Just when everyone thought it was hopeless, suddenly, "Beep beep beep beep..." a very discordant cell phone ringtone broke the silence.
Everyone turned their heads immediately, looking in the direction of the sound.
It wasn't a landline; it was Gu Heng's cell phone ringing in his pocket!
Yang Mi blushed with excitement, shaking Gu Heng's arm vigorously while urging, "Call it quickly! Hurry!"
Gu Heng took out his phone, glanced at the special local number, a smile playing on his lips, and pressed the answer button.
Gu Heng, holding the phone, repeatedly said in extremely irritating English, "fanfanfan...okokok...No problem!"
The moment the call ended, the crew of "Mr. Tree" went wild!
Wang Baoqiang jumped for joy, while Yang Mi threw herself into Gu Heng's arms, shouting excitedly.
However, human joys and sorrows are not shared.
As night fell, the other three film crews still hadn't received a single phone call.
Du Qifeng, his face ashen, snorted coldly and left with his men. The Hong Kong media had previously lauded them to the skies, but now they'd been thoroughly humiliated.
Jiang Wen, on the other hand, is a real man and takes things very lightly.
He walked over and patted Gu Heng on the shoulder to congratulate him. Finally, he touched his stubble-covered head, sighed, and said, "It doesn't matter that I didn't win the award, but I feel a little sorry for the investors behind me. I'm probably going to get a lot of flak when I get back."
After listening, Gu Heng rolled his eyes dramatically and looked at Jiang Wen, saying quietly, "Hey Lao Jiang... do you think it's possible that I'm actually one of your investors?"