The crew had a lot of people, and the six-tiered cake was divided up. Lu Wen has been controlling his diet for the role. He broke his fast once tonight, occupying a whole piece of the top floor.
A blackout cloth was spread on the lawn, and Lu Wen and Qu Yanting sat cross-legged facing each other, digging up cakes to eat one bite at a time. Lu Wen carefully ate the edge, but Qu Yanting forked a piece directly from the middle.
"Hey!" Lu Wen said anxiously, "You ate the words!"
Qu Yanting smacked his lips: "It tastes better with jam."
Of course Lu Wen understood, but he was reluctant to destroy the words on it, and struggled silently and naively. Qu Yanting dug another large piece and stuffed it firmly into his mouth.
The phone rang, and after midnight, friends both inside and outside the circle sent blessings, and Lu Wen sent a circle of friends, which counted as a unified reply and thanks.
Qu Yanting was subtly influenced and asked, "Did you give out red envelopes?"
"It's necessary, don't break up." Lu Wen opened the chat group, collected money, clicked on a voice, and the chorus of the three came, "Happy birthday to you..."
Lu Wen grinned and replied: I had a very happy birthday today.
Lian Yiming: Thirty years old, Wen'er.
Gu Zhuoyan: Although you are in your thirties, I hope you are as happy as you were in your twenties.
Su Wang: Don't be sensational, he is happy any day.
Lu Wen chatted in the group for a while, then switched back to Moments, glanced at the dense likes and comments, and found that Lu Zhanqing liked him two minutes ago.
"My dad hasn't slept yet?" He said, "Just like it, and don't bless me."
Qu Yanting said: "Don't you understand Uncle's character? Don't be arrogant, take the initiative, and I want to see Commander Huang."
Lu Wen sent a video invitation to Lu Zhanqing, and he got connected. He moved to Qu Yanting's side and entered the camera together. The light was not very good, and the conditions seemed to be difficult.
Lu Zhanqing didn't say anything, but his brows frowned. Fortunately, Lu Wen happily said a lot, so he was a little relieved.
When it came time to talk about when the filming would end, Lu Wen and Qu Yanting couldn't be sure, but the Spring Festival should also be spent on the set, which made Lu Zhanqing's frown wrinkle again.
After the celebration, the whole group continued to shoot and was busy all night.
It was a little cold in the morning, and when work was over, Qu Yanting's hands were slightly stiff from the cold, and he slowly packed the walkie-talkie and the script.
Lu Wen came over after taking off his make-up, took off his warm functional jacket, wrapped it around Qu Yanting's body, picked up his bag, and walked out of the studio with him in his arms.
Qu Yanting picked up his pocket, found a car key, and asked, "Have you borrowed a bicycle from the "Beacon" crew again?"
"Please, it's been a month and a half since the finale." Lu Wen hooked the car key, "Your expression just now showed a hint of surprise."
Indeed, Qu Yanting was so exhausted after work every day that he didn't want to take a step. A few days ago, he was envious of a child who passed by on a sledge ride in the scorching heat.
He asked curiously, "Then where did you get the car?"
Lu Wen said stinkingly: "Me, there are many connections, and the backstage is relatively hard, it's a trivial matter."
Walking to the canteen near the studio, Qu Yanting saw a car parked at the door, which turned out to be a four-seater sightseeing car with a roof, and the body was spray-painted with the colorful words "Happy Tour in Charming Ancient Town".
Lu Wen threw the bag on the back seat and said coolly, "Get in the car."
There was no car door, and Qu Yanting sat down low, feeling that he could step on the ground as soon as he stretched out his legs. Lu Wen started the car next to him. He didn't know where he pressed the wrong button, and the stereo sang loudly: "What a winter jasmine..."
"Damn it," Lu Wen fumbled and turned off the music, "It will be winter jasmine in a few months."
Qu Yanting was still cold just now, but now he was sweating, and asked, "Where did you get the car?"
Lu Wen replied: "Just... the management office of the scenic spot rented it. It was not rented to individuals. The boss's daughter is my fan, so she rented it to me. How about it?"
Qu Yanting said truthfully: "It seems that the two elderly people are going to the market to buy vegetables."
"Ah?" Lu Wen hesitated, "I'm really going to buy some food on the way..."
Qu Yanting smiled and said: "Go ahead, maybe our old age life is like this, it's good to experience it in advance."
Lu Wen retorted: "At least I have a pilot's license, so I won't be old enough to drive a scooter, right? No, I'm eighty years old and I want to go for a drive."
Qu Yanting said worriedly, "Don't shake the bones apart."
They were not used to it at first, but within a few days, Lu Wen and Qu Yanting could not wait to drive on the set. Wandering around the town after work every day, once the electricity was out, the two of them took turns pushing the cart back to the hotel, and when other crews passed by, they immediately stopped and pretended to look at the scenery.
The weather is getting cooler and cooler, which is in line with the changes in the plot of the movie.
Meng Chuntai gradually realized that the people who came to him to study antiques were changing quietly. The number of officials and businessmen in some political and business circles decreased, while the number of Japanese people increased.
The flames of war spread, some people transferred their assets and left Guangzhou, some people waited and waited, and some people were blindly optimistic. The old high society had different people's hearts, and the ordinary days of drinking and drinking became precious.
Meng Chuntai didn't like the Japanese, even contemptuously. Faced with the Japanese's invitation, he showed his red license. However, one day, the red license, which symbolized the power of the army/command, also failed.
Meng Chuntai couldn't help but feel panic. The things that everyone bowed their heads to could no longer shake the power of the Japanese. In this city, under the current situation, the status of all walks of life is subtly changing, and the cards are being shuffled every day.
Chen Bizhi often asked him when the Japanese would leave and whether Guangzhou would become a battlefield. He didn't know, and when he was annoyed by the question, he would just say something perfunctory. In fact, he felt more and more confident.
To Meng Chuntai's surprise, soon after, Tang Deyin began to work for the Japanese as the president of the chamber of commerce. People with prestige and power want to endure humiliation and treason, which can only show that the situation is really bad.
The checks at the city's ports are getting tighter day by day, and the common people dare not speak out, they can only pray that the gunshots come later.
For Meng Chuntai, the Japanese invitation has become a threat, and he has no room to resist. His antique treasures have changed from a close capital to a coveted prey.
Finally one day, the Japanese asked about "Lvbaoer".
Life forms an unsolvable closed loop, and the crisis is coming again, and it is more menacing than the previous two times.
The difference is that Meng Chuntai has lost the depression and cowardice he had before. He still dresses exquisitely and suavely every day, goes in and out of high-end restaurants, and mediates with various forces in a neither humble nor haughty manner.
Occasionally, when he was free, he ordered the driver to park the car near the church. The war was tight, and the church took in some homeless children. Tao Suyi often came to help, and he would watch him from a distance for a while.
The tranquility was about to be broken soon, Meng Chuntai looked at the cumulonimbus clouds in the sky, waiting for a storm that would come sooner or later.
As the story advances to the middle and late stages, the difficulties in all aspects of interpretation, shooting and scene scheduling are increasing. Qu Yanting was very calm, taking it slow and persevering meticulously.
The crew spent the Spring Festival. Those two months were the least crowded in Guzhen. They concentrated on shooting large scenes with more group performances. One of the climax scenes took more than half a month to finish filming.
Qu Yanting is the backbone of the crew, and also the god of the sea. As long as he is not chaotic, everyone can work in an orderly manner.
Under the dual pressure of physiology and psychology, Qu Yanting's well-balanced figure lost too much weight, and her waist was so thin that it would break if she pulled it out.
Lu Wen didn't say anything, but he always grabbed Qu Yanting lightly on his knees, wrapped him in a thick coat, and tied him tightly. They read the script in this way, talked about the lines, and talked about the play. In the end, Qu Yanting would fall asleep tiredly in his arms.
When spring begins, flowers are everywhere in the ancient town, and everyone is more energetic.
During this period, the four-person chat group became more and more restless, and the other three people wanted to harass them by voice from time to time—
"Have you settled down in Guangdong?"
"How much Cantonese do you have?"
"What kind of epic masterpiece did you shoot? It's four hours long?"
"My donkey friends have gone back and forth to Tibet several times!"
Lu Zhanqing also felt that it was too long, but he had a different idea. He asked insincerely if there was a shortage of funds, and suspected that Lu Wen and Qu Yanting were soliciting investment while filming.
Lu Wen hesitated for a moment, and almost couldn't help but cheat a sum of money.
Until the end of April, the supporting actors were cast one after another, ushering in the shooting of the final scene.
The flames of war raged to Guangzhou, and the situation in the city was chaotic. Massacres and deaths occurred every day. The wharf was controlled by the Japanese army, and the escape ticket was hard to find.
Several batches of courtesans were kidnapped, and Chen Bizhi hid at home. She didn't know how long she could survive. She hid a pistol/gun, and jokingly said, "I can't beat the Japanese all the time. It's a relief to kill myself at a critical moment."
Meng Chuntai heard a sense of sadness, grabbed Chen Bizhi's gun, and said, "I won't let you die."
Chen Bizhi laughed at him: "You can't protect yourself."
Meng Chuntai is not joking, inflation is serious now, banknotes are like waste paper, and his antiques are even more in demand in troubled times. He gave Chen Bizhi all the antiques as a dowry and married a bureau chief as his concubine in exchange for the qualification to escape to Taiwan.
When parting, Chen Bizhi said: "I don't know if you will be willing."
Using her original words, Meng Chuntai replied: "One night husband and wife, one hundred days of kindness."
After sending Chen Bizhi away, Meng Chuntai was completely alone, leaving only a piece of green treasure that was hard to distinguish between good and bad. Before the Japanese came to arrest him, he went to find Tang Deyin first.
Meng Chuntai knew that although Tang Deyin was willing to be a lackey, he would never be ambiguous in the face of interests. He wanted to pretend to promise the Japanese to present Lu Baoer, but actually handed the things over to Tang Deyin.
"What conditions do you have?" Tang Deyin asked.
Meng Chuntai knew that a transoceanic ship would leave the pier in three days and would send away the foreigners in the city, so he said, "Uncle, please tell the Chief Commander that if you want to get Lu Baoer, you can exchange the boarding quota."
Tang Deyin laughed at his naivety: "You still dream of leaving Guangzhou?"
"No, not for me." Meng Chuntai said, "I will leave here safely and go to San Francisco to find her grandfather."
Tao Suyi was the bargaining chip Tang Deyin had been holding, and it finally came in handy. He stroked the jade wrench in his hand and agreed to Meng Chuntai's conditions.
Three days later, the pier was crowded with people, Tao Suyi was holding the child alone, and when she was about to board the boat, she couldn't help but look back.
Meng Chuntai stood quietly not far away, wearing the dark brown suit he wore when he first arrived in Guangzhou. It was very old and was gently agitated by the sea breeze. He approached and tightened Tao Suyi's cloak.
The child was hidden in the package, Meng Chuntai pressed down a little and said, "It's fatter than before."
Tao Suyi's eyes were red: "What will you do in the future?"
"Don't worry." Meng Chuntai looked down at her, "When you get to San Francisco, live well and get married again."
Tao Suyi burst into tears: "Cousin..."
Meng Chuntai hugged her and buried his head in her fluttering hair. The moment of lingering is the last souvenir in this life.
Jiujiu let go of his hand, he said: "Go on board, take care."
The deck was full of people, and Tao Suyi's figure became small. Meng Chuntai waved his hand, smiling like the day we first met in Peking in midsummer.
The whistle whistled, and the ship sailed away from the pier.
Meng Chuntai turned around, walked along the side for a while, suddenly jumped, and jumped into a small cargo ship at anchor amidst the screams around him. All of a sudden, the gendarmes under surveillance were mobilized, and dozens of bayonets/knife lengths/guns were aimed at the hull.
Reeling, Meng Chuntai got into the empty cabin and sat powerlessly on the ground.
This space was like a cold prison cell, Meng Chuntai leaned against the wall of the ship, his eyes fixed on a certain point, and a chaotic scene flashed before his eyes.
His father held him to teach, Fei was a red-feathered sparrow, and Cui was a green-feathered sparrow.
He went to school, identified all kinds of treasures, threw a lot of money at a gambling table, the tree fell and his family was ruined, and he went south after another ups and downs.
Meng Chuntai's face was as calm as the sea, his eyes were as dark and dull as a handful of burnt ashes, through the window, he saw the white smoke from the ship, and wondered if Tao Suyi had found the things he stuffed in the child's bag.
Let's fly away with Lu Baoer.
With a little afterglow, fine dust swirled in the humid air, Meng Chuntai hid in the simple cabin, and took out the pistol/gun from his arms.
Bang, a gunshot.
Seagulls skimmed the waves, and crows flew over the mountains and forests.
The final act of Qu Yanting's directorial debut "Hiding" has been completed.
The leading actor, Lu Wen, is officially finished.
They hug each other tightly off camera.
The author has something to say: I like period dramas very much. I wrote such a story through a drama within a drama. I am grateful. If you think it is long-winded, please ignore it. Although Si Nian is mentioned, it has nothing to do with Suiyu Touzhu, and it can't be linked. It can be regarded as a fragmented father's story I imagined (it's just a rough one, and the details can't be delved into). Anyway, just make do with it. It has nothing to do with it. I don't like to watch it. Just skip it and feel free to complain.