At this time, Xiao Xiao sneaked up to Li Tang and said softly: "Brother, tell me honestly, who is this friend of yours?"
Li Tang glanced at her and asked, "Don't you want to see what the gift is for you?"
Xiao Xiao's eyes suddenly lit up. Imagine that Li Tang's friend gave his mother a Hermès silk scarf, so it must be a good thing for her. But the more Li Tang concealed it, the more curious she became.
He smiled and said: "I'm more curious about the person who gave the gift than the gift. You just said that she went to film temporarily, so she must be an actress too."
She was very smart and thought that this mysterious man would not talk about the turmoil Gao Yuanyuan had with her brother a few days ago, otherwise her brother would not be so confident just now. And it must be a woman, otherwise I wouldn’t give my wife something like an Hermès scarf.
"Brother, it turns out you have other good friends hidden in your pocket?"
"Well……"
Li Tang was speechless for a moment, so he could only threaten with a straight face: "Let me ask you if you want something?"
In fact, having a sister who is too smart and gossipy can be quite annoying sometimes.
Xiao Xiao quickly said: "Yes, of course I want it!"
Li Tang then took out a pink packaging box from the big bag he just brought in. There was no logo on the packaging box, but it looked like a high-end product.
Xiao Xiao couldn't wait to grab it and looked over it. The pink was just the outer packaging, and there was a white box hidden inside. There was a rose logo in the center of the white box, and two rows of large English letters "LANCOME PARIS" below.
"Wow, Lancôme!"
"What Lancôme?" Aunt Xiao came over and asked.
Just now she was struggling with a silk scarf costing two to three thousand yuan. Such an expensive silk scarf was unheard of, and it completely refreshed her understanding of luxury goods.
"French cosmetics are as French as your silk scarf."
Xiao Xiao opened the box carefully and saw seven or eight various cosmetics lying inside, such as lipstick, powder, mascara and the like.
"They are all from France, Tangtang, how much does this cost?" Aunt Xiao asked quickly.
"I'm not sure either," Li Tang said.
He really didn't know the price of this kind of female cosmetics, but with Teacher Jiang's handiwork, he probably wouldn't be cheap.
Seeing her daughter's face full of joy, Aunt Xiao touched the silk scarf she liked very much in her hand again, and couldn't help but quietly asked Li Tang: "Tangtang, is this good friend of yours a girl?"
"Uh...ah!" Li Tang responded vaguely.
At this time, Lao Li happened to open the door and came in, cheerfully saying: "My son is here!"
"Abba."
Li Tang quickly stood up and shouted, and at the same time looked at his father carefully. Comrade Lao Li's face was rosy and his complexion was very good, and he was obviously fatter than the last time we met. This showed that with Aunt Xiao's company, his father's life was quite comfortable.
"Did Nong Xin buy this new Guangdong book outside?"
Xiao Xiao rushed to answer: "It's not my brother's, it's a good friend of my brother's."
This quirky girl emphasized the word "good friend" with a special emphasis and winked at Li Tang.
"Oh, it's from a friend."
Lao Li glanced at his son with deep meaning.
Li Tang looked embarrassed. On the one hand, he was really embarrassed. After all, his family now believed that Fan Xiaopang was his girlfriend. On the other hand, it also had a somewhat deliberate expression, paving the way for Teacher Jiang's appearance in the future. Be mentally prepared, you can't let Teacher Jiang give gifts in vain.
At this time, Xiao Xiao yelled again: "Dad, this good friend of my brother has bought us gifts, and you have some too. Brother, can you take them out quickly?"
"Hey, I have one too!"
Seeing his precious daughter talking, Lao Li suddenly felt happy.
Li Tang didn't show off, and quickly took out the last box from his bag, which contained a stick of Shenxiang brand wild ginseng. Although the price tag on the outside of the package has been removed, anyone who knows the product will know at a glance that this wild ginseng costs at least more than 10,000 yuan.
Lao Li and Aunt Xiao both came from the supply and marketing cooperative. The supply and marketing cooperative has medicinal materials companies under it, especially the Shenxiang brand, which is a famous brand in Shanghai. Of course they can understand it.
The couple took a closer look at the wild ginseng lying in the box and looked at each other for a moment.
Especially when Lao Li saw Aunt Xiao's silk scarf and Xiao Xiao's cosmetics, he also learned about the scary price of this silk scarf from Aunt Xiao. Lao Li looked at his son with a complicated look, a little relieved and a little worried.
But in front of Aunt Xiao and Xiao Xiao, he didn't say much. He just pretended to be indifferent and said: "Your friend is too polite. I should know better!"
"Got it!" Li Tang responded hurriedly.
Then he flattered me and said, "Abba, let's soak this wild ginseng in old wine for a little longer, and then we can eat it with Aunt Xiao."
Xiao Xiao also joined in and said: "Yes, yes, let's use Moutai!"
"I'm talking nonsense about how Moutai can be used to make medicinal wine. It's such a waste!"
Aunt Xiao glared at her daughter, then looked at Lao Li, and said with a smile: "Lao Zaozi always uses red panda's to make medicinal wine."
Red Panda sounds a bit old. In the original memory, it was a local liquor produced in Shanghai, with 52% alcohol content. The factory was located at the foot of Beigan Mountain, not far from my hometown, on the banks of the Dianpu River. When Li Tang was a child, he often helped Lao Li buy this kind of liquor, which cost NT$30 per bottle. It was a popular ration liquor among ordinary people in Shanghai. It's just that the Shanghai China Distillery that produces this liquor has already closed down in the wave of reform.
Now that I mention it, I feel a little nostalgic. Old Li smiled and said: "Last time, my old comrade in Fengxian just brought a box of Immortal Daqu, which is perfect for soaking ginseng."
"That's right, I forgot about it if you didn't tell me." Aunt Xiao looked at Lao Li and said in a coquettish tone.
Looking at the two people who played well together, Li Tang and Xiao Xiao looked at each other in unison, both feeling that they were a little redundant.
…
On the second day after the Lantern Festival, on the evening of February 16th, local time in Europe, the 53rd Berlin International Film Festival finally came to an end.
The two Chinese-language films shortlisted for this year's film festival won two Silver Bears in succession. "Hero" won the Alfred Bauer Silver Bear Award, which is an award that encourages film innovation; while another low-cost independent film "The Blind Shaft" unexpectedly won the Silver Bear Award for Outstanding Artistic Contribution.
Li Tang has not seen this movie, but it is said that the director of this movie, Li Yang, has a strong German background.
"Director, congratulations!"
Although he was unable to go to Berlin with the crew this time, Li Tang immediately called the director to express his congratulations.
"Haha, Li Tang, congratulations, congratulations, everyone deserves this award." The director was in a good mood on the phone.
In fact, it is not easy for "Hero" as a commercial blockbuster to be shortlisted for the Berlin Film Festival. From the beginning, the original intention of the director and producers was to use the Berlin Film Festival as a platform to promote it to the world. Unexpectedly, it actually won a Silver Bear. .
In addition to the jury's affirmation of the director, it also fully demonstrates that the movie "Hero" can still be welcomed in the Western world.
After the two chatted on the phone for a while, the director suddenly changed the subject and said, "Xiao Li, are you free recently?"
"I'm free." Li Tang said quickly, feeling a little nervous.
Sure enough, I heard the director say: "If you have time, let's sit down and talk."
"Okay, director, you decide the time and place. I'll be waiting for your call at any time."
The director pondered for a moment and then said: "I'll leave tomorrow morning... let's do this. We'll meet on the afternoon of the 20th. If it's convenient for you, come to my studio."
"Okay, director, I'll be there on time at one o'clock in the afternoon on the 20th!"
The moment he died, Li Tang jumped up excitedly. The director took the initiative to make an appointment with him, it must be for his new movie. Although he only knows that the director's new movie is still a costume martial arts film, it is director Zhang Yimou after all! Just like in Hollywood, there is no actor who does not want to work with Spielberg.
At the end of the conversation, when the director hung up the phone, Zhang Weiping, who had just been sitting next to him and listened briefly, looked at the director unexpectedly and said, "Have you decided?"
Zhang Yimou let out a long breath and said, "It's decided."
As he spoke, he grinned, and his weathered face looked even more ravaged under the light.
"I was still hesitating at first, but I just received a call from Li Tang, and the idea suddenly came to me."
After hearing this, Zhang Weiping also laughed happily: "Isn't that right? Don't let them lead you by the nose all the time. Although their investment accounts for the majority this time, you can't always give in everywhere. You still have to persist. Persistence. You can’t let me rush ahead every time, right?”
Although it was just a joke, Zhang Yimou still smiled apologetically at his old partner.
Although his old partner has a lot of problems, such as being strong, controlling, and profit-seeking, etc., he always remembers the help Zhang Weiping gave him when he was filming "Speak Well."
He is a grateful person. Although there may occasionally be some unpleasantness in cooperation, cooperation always requires constant stumbling and running-in. What's more, some of Zhang Weiping's deliberately high-profile actions also relieved a lot of pressure on himself.
This time the director's new film project is still jointly invested by Jiang Ershao's Anle Film Company and Zhang Weiping's New Picture Company, but this time Anle Film Company accounts for the majority of the investment.
"Hero", which was just released last month, hit a domestic box office of 248 million, making Zhang Weiping, a chicken thief, even more interested in the film's domestic distribution rights.
After several close cooperations, his New Picture Company has firmly grasped the domestic distribution rights of Zhang Yimou's works. For example, with the release of "Heroes" this time, he strongly increased the share ratio from the original fixed upper limit of 38% to 43%. At the same time, he enjoyed a 10% distribution agency commission, plus other channels such as television, audio and video and other distribution income. Easily get it for tens of millions.
However, there are gains and losses. This time, Anle Film Company has taken up the majority of the investment and is bound to have a greater say. This time it is still a big production. In order to ensure the box office, big stars must be used. Therefore, among the four leading actors this time, in addition to Zhang Ziyi who was appointed by Zhang Yimou to play the female lead, Anle Film Company recommended Andy Lau, Takeshi Kaneshiro and Anita Mui. The three stars play the roles of the male lead and the second female lead respectively.
This made Zhang Weiping, who had always been very controlling, very uncomfortable. He had been secretly encouraging Zhang Yimou, who was also the producer, to join forces with him to fight against Jiang Ershao.
In fact, Zhang Weiping has a strong desire for control on the one hand, and on the other hand, he wants to be more closely tied to Zhang Yimou. Since cooperating with Zhang Yimou, he has not only made huge profits from movies, but also extended to other business fields. For example, in his main business of real estate and decoration business, due to the celebrity effect, whether it is acquiring land or expanding business, it is easier and more favorable than before.
Compared with Zhang Weiping, who is full of Xiao Jiujiu, Zhang Yimou thinks more from the perspective of movies. He has no objection to using Andy Lau. After all, he is a big star and has strong box office appeal throughout East and Southeast Asia.
As for Anita Mui, although she is a singer, Zhang Yimou still admires her unique charm, and she is also quite talented in acting, such as "Rouge Button", such as "When Will You Come Again", such as "The Next Life" are all excellent performance.
But for Takeshi Kaneshiro, Zhang Yimou is always full of worries, idol style, and his acting skills are very good. If it was a normal role involving two men and three men, forget it. But specifically for this new movie, the role that Takeshi Kaneshiro wants to play is the real male lead. It is only because of Andy Lau's celebrity status that the so-called dual male protagonists are used.
As for the candidate for this role, Zhang Yimou was more inclined to choose Li Tang from the beginning. In addition to Li Tang's skills, more importantly, his acting skills are guaranteed. However, Anle pointed out that Takeshi Kaneshiro is Japanese, and since his debut in Hong Kong and Taiwan, because of his Japanese identity, he has also emerged in the Japanese entertainment industry in the past two years.
It has to be said that these days, apart from North America, Japan has always been the second largest film market in the world. The use of Takeshi Kaneshiro was mainly out of consideration for the Japanese market.
But again, the role played by Takeshi Kaneshiro was so important that Zhang Yimou was always hesitant even out of consideration for the Japanese market.
For Zhang Weiping, in addition to competing for the right to speak, due to the shrinking investment share, the Japanese market actually does not mean much to him. He only needs to firmly control the domestic market.
Zhang Weiping knew that Zhang Yimou had chosen Li Tang to play the male lead role from the beginning. Although Li Tang is not as famous as Takeshi Kaneshiro, the two previous literary films he starred in have achieved good results in the domestic box office market, which is enough to prove his box office appeal.
Because of this, Zhang Weiping believes that Li Tang is no worse than Takeshi Kaneshiro in terms of the domestic market. Moreover, with him and Andy Lau as partners, it can also create a gimmick of a PK between the two major movie stars from the Mainland and Hong Kong.
Of course Zhang Yimou also understood Zhang Weiping's little thoughts, but he was unwilling to get involved in the fight between Zhang Weiping and Jiang Ershao. So after smiling, he changed the topic and said, "Have you got any explanation from Harvey?"
Not all in dialect, but retaining some dialect characteristics. What do you think?
(End of chapter)
