Chapter 192192 [Falling in Love]
Shudian is located in a hilly basin, surrounded by mountains, with solitary peaks rising up in all directions, more than 500 meters above sea level, and is a non-disaster-affected area. (Note ①)
July and August are the months when floods are most severe. Mr. and Mrs. Xu took four little girls, carrying backpacks and luggage, and first took a car, then a boat, and then a bus. The road leading to Shudian went all the way up, and not only were they not affected by the flood, but when they were almost at Shudian, the girls even felt tinnitus due to the pressure difference. Their ears began to feel blocked and buzzing.
"Oh my god, why do I feel like I can't hear anything!" Liu Ping was the first to react. She had never left her hometown and had never been on a plane. This was the first time she had this feeling. She was so scared that she shook her head and scratched her ears.
Xu Xiuli gently pressed her ears with her hands, turned around and said, "My ears also feel a bit blocked, it's so uncomfortable."
Among the few people, only He Xiaofang had no reaction and turned around to look at them curiously.
They were sitting near the front, and the conductor at the front heard their conversation and said loudly, "It's okay! This is a normal reaction! Is this your first time here? This is a hilly area, with high in the south and low in the north. It's all uphill all the way, with the highest point being 532 meters above sea level. It's normal to have a reaction, and it will get better slowly! It's okay, don't be nervous!"
After hearing what the ticket seller said, the girls looked embarrassed as if they were going out for the first time. They stuck out their tongues in embarrassment and became too shy to speak.
Xu's father and mother also had some reaction, but it was relatively mild. After hearing their daughter say that her ears were buzzing as if they were blocked, they quickly unscrewed the water cup, poured a glass of water for Xu Xiuli, asked her to drink it, peeled lychees for her to eat, and called the other girls, "Come on, come on, have some fruit."
The local area mostly produces persimmons, apples, pears, watermelons and other melons. Lychees are relatively expensive fruits here. Among the girls, except Xu Xiuli, the other three have never eaten lychees. He Xiaofang was a little embarrassed to eat it, but Liu Ping was very generous. She grabbed seven or eight lychees and greeted He Xiaofang and Lu Xuehua like a host: "Thank you, auntie." Then she stretched out her hand and gave two lychees to He Xiaofang and two to Lu Xuehua: "Come on, try the lychees given by auntie. I haven't eaten lychees yet. I have only read in books that 'I can eat 300 lychees a day and I am willing to be a Lingnan person forever' and 'A horse gallops through the red dust, the concubine smiles, no one knows it is lychees'. Today, thanks to Xiuli and uncle and auntie, I will taste the lychees that Yang Guifei liked to eat in ancient times!"
After giving them to He Xiaofang and Lu Xuehua, her action of reaching out and grabbing a handful didn't seem so abrupt, so she had four left in her hand, which she ate with gusto.
Xu Xiuli: ...
Although she didn't care about those lychees, Liu Ping's behavior of blatantly taking advantage of others and letting others know always made people feel uncomfortable.
Xu's father and mother didn't care. They simply spread the bag of ice lychees in front of the girls and let them eat. Then they carefully peeled the lychees for Xu Xiuli to eat.
Xu Xiuli was not in good health when she was a child, and was protected and taken care of by her family like the apple of their eye. When she was in junior high school, the school management was lax and there was not even a guard at the gate, so anyone could enter freely.
During the summer vacation, when she was taking extra classes at school, her father would come over during the breaks to give her a popsicle, ice cream, fruit, etc., so that she could have a few bites during the break. Then, when she was about to go to class, he would ride away on his bike.
But during her three years of high school, she became much more independent. When she saw Xu's father and mother peeling lychees for her, she said softly, "You don't have to peel them for me, I can do it myself~" with a puffy little mouth.
Dad Xu coaxed her, "It's uncomfortable to have lychee juice dripping on your hands." He took out a fork from somewhere and handed it to Xu Xiuli, "Use this to eat with the fork. My hands are already sticky. It doesn't matter. Don't let your hands get covered with juice from peeling."
Mother Xu was watching with a kettle in her hand and said to Xu Xiuli, "Listen to your father." Then she took out a handkerchief and wanted to wipe the corners of Xu Xiuli's mouth. Xu Xiuli reluctantly took the handkerchief and wiped it herself.
Xu Xiuli felt helpless as she looked at the gazes cast at her by her three friends around her.
Xu's father and mother looked at He Xiaofang and the others and chatted casually: "Where did you apply for your major?"
Liu Ping pointed at Lu Xuehua and said, "Wherever she reports, I'll report."
Mother Xu smiled and said, "I can see that you have a good relationship. Young girls are like this. They like to be with good friends."
When Liu Ping heard Mother Xu say that she and Lu Xuehua were good friends, she smiled brightly and leaned her head on Lu Xuehua's shoulder. She rarely gave Lu Xuehua another lychee in her hand, but Lu Xuehua rolled her eyes at her.
Lu Xuehua's answer was much more serious, saying, "I applied to the Industrial University in the provincial capital."
In May of this year, the country selected the best universities for the first time, which also meant to build them into the top universities. The "211 Project" was proposed in 1995. With Lu Xuehua's grades, she could not be admitted to such 211 and 985 universities, and could only apply for ordinary undergraduate programs.
He Xiaofang smiled shyly and said, "I applied to study English at the provincial normal university."
Xu's father and mother nodded approvingly and said, "You are right. The provincial capital is good. It is close to home and our parents can take care of her." He glanced at Xu Xiuli and sighed, "Our Xiuli wants to apply to a university in Beijing. The universities in Beijing are good, but they are so far away that it is difficult for us to visit her. How can it be better than our hometown? It is close and we can go home anytime we want."
Before Xu Xiuli filled out her application form, she told her parents that she wanted to apply to a university in Beijing. But they were scared and strongly opposed, saying it was too far from home. They told her that she could only apply to schools within the province and the farthest could not be beyond Shanghai.
The only option outside the province is universities in Shanghai.
They are mainly afraid that they are too far away and cannot take care of their daughter. If their daughter is bullied outside, they don’t know it, or if a boy from another place pursues their daughter, and if their daughter falls in love with a foreigner and marries someone from another place thousands of miles away, wouldn’t they, the couple, cry their hearts out.
Hearing what Xu's father and mother said, Xu Xiuli turned away her eyes uncomfortably and puffed her cheeks.
She is not a rebellious girl. She can feel the deepest love of her parents and naturally listens to her parents.
Her parents said that the farthest she could apply to was Shanghai, so she applied to a university in Shanghai. In fact, she really wanted to apply to a university in Beijing, but was afraid that her scores were not high enough.
She knew that Jiang Ning had bought a house in Shanghai and moved his household registration there, and that he might settle there in the future, so she also wanted to stay in Shanghai.
Because her parents have always been very concerned about her since she was a child, she has had few friends since she was a child. Jiang Ning is the first person she can truly call a good friend.
Firstly, Shanghai is a big city, and she still yearns for life in a big city.
Secondly, she has been controlled by her parents since she was a child. Now she is 19 years old, but in her parents' eyes she is still like an ignorant child. She really wants to break away from her parents and be independent.
She wanted to rebel, but was afraid of hurting her parents, so she didn't rebel too much.
After listening to Xu Xiuli's words, Xu's father and mother knew that she wanted to stay in Shanghai to work. They thought that Shanghai was not too far from home, only two or three hours' drive away. They also knew that her good friend had bought a house in Shanghai, so they planned to buy her an apartment near her school after Xu Xiuli started school.
Now that the girl has her own house, she will feel confident. It will be convenient for them to come and live with their daughter in the future. Even if they find a partner in Shanghai, they can come over at any time.
They also thought that they could earn more money and buy a house near their daughter so that they could live closer to her and not be afraid of her being bullied by her son-in-law in the future.
The three of them felt envious when they saw Xu Xiuli, who was loved wholeheartedly by Xu's father and mother. Even Lu Xuehua, who had been spoiled since childhood, felt a little disappointed.
Her parents do not discriminate against her and her brother. Her brother has even been lenient and protective of her since she was a child. However, everything in her family is tacitly given to her brother. She will get married in the future, and if she can get a dowry, it can be considered as spoiling her daughter.
Even though it is said that boys are not favored over girls in terms of education, Lu Xuehua knows that it is still different.
When they arrived at Shudian, it was already past one in the afternoon. Several people left the station and went to the telephone booth at the station guard post to call Jiang Bai.
As soon as I picked up the phone, I heard a rough and loud voice shouting, "He Xiaofang!"
When He Xiaofang turned around, she saw a 1.85 meter tall, sturdy and strong young man standing not far away. He raised his hand to signal her, then trotted over. When he got close, he smiled and showed his big white teeth: "Haha, I saw a black girl from a distance, and I knew it was you!"
He Xiaofang was not familiar with Tong Jingang at first. She had only met him a few times in Jiang Ning's shop. When he teased her with such familiar words, she immediately rolled her eyes and snorted, "How can I be more rude than you?"
Tong Jingang got himself very dark because he loves playing basketball and it is difficult for him to become white again.
He Xiaofang was working in the fields at home and also got a very dark tan. This year because of the flood, she did not go out to the fields to be exposed to the sun, so she did not get as tanned as in previous years after the double harvest. She looked a little whiter, but standing in the crowd, especially between Xu Xiuli and Liu Ping, who had lighter skin, she still looked shiny dark in contrast.
Her temperament is also very simple, somewhat like Gong Huang in "Chun Lan Goes to Court".
Tong Jingang laughed and said, "Then I'm still a little darker than you!"
He Xiaofang was not at all happy about losing the black contest with him. Instead, she felt even more depressed.
After Tong Jingang teased her, he greeted Xu's father, mother and other girls and said, "Hello, uncles and aunts, hello, junior sisters, I am Tong Jingang, Jiang Bai's good brother, and I also graduated from our No. 1 Middle School. You can call me senior or Jingang. Baizi is still filming and can't leave, so it's the same if I come to pick you up. You haven't had lunch yet? Come on, I'll take you to eat first!"
He spoke authentic Wucheng dialect, and they felt very friendly when they heard his accent. In addition, Tong Jingang was a bit of a social nerd, so he was very outgoing and took the initiative to help them carry their luggage and backpacks.
When Xu's father and mother saw that there was really someone waiting at the station to pick up their daughter and her family, they felt more relieved.
Tong Jingang took them to have a simple ramen meal. For these young girls who had just graduated from high school and had not yet entered college, a bowl of beef ramen for one dollar was already a luxury. He Xiaofang, Lu Xuehua and others were usually locked up in school and could not go out. Even though there were such ramen restaurants in Wucheng, and there were more than one, they had never eaten out. It was their first time to eat Northwest-style ramen. The noodle bowl looked about the same size as their washbasin, with plenty of noodles. Although there was not much beef, it was topped with a layer of tomato slices, green vegetables, and onions, which looked very rich.
As soon as He Xiaofang entered the store, she looked up at the menu hanging on the wall and the prices clearly marked on the back. She moved her body uncomfortably. Tong Jingang seemed to see her discomfort and said with a smile, "If it's not enough, add more noodles!"
He Xiaofang and the others quickly said, "Enough, enough, enough!"
Lu Xuehua and the others thought that such a big bowl of noodles would be enough to feed a pig.
I don’t know if it was because it was already past one o’clock, but they were already hungry. Some of them drank up even the soup, not to mention the noodles.
Tong Jingang did the same, and then took them to where he and Jiang Bai lived.
He and Jiang Bai rented a room together, one big and one small. Tong Jingang lived in the big room, and Jiang Bai lived in the small room. The monthly rent was 80 yuan, including water and electricity bills, the monthly rent for the two of them was less than 100 yuan. Splitting the bill equally, it was about 50 yuan a month for the two of them.
Jiang Bai didn't like eating boxed lunches outside as he thought they were not clean, so the two of them bought a small rice cooker, noodles, tomatoes, eggs and other things, and ate tomatoes, eggs, vegetables and noodles every day. Occasionally, Tong Jingang couldn't stand it anymore and wanted to improve the meal, so he would go to the vegetable market to buy some chicken legs and feet and braise them in the rice cooker.
So when Xu's father and mother came, they saw that the big room outside was a bit messy. Tong Jingang didn't expect so many people to come, so he quickly cleaned up the room and said, "Uncle and aunt, I'm sorry, the room is a bit messy and I haven't cleaned it up yet."
Because it was a rented house, the room was really very simple, a gray cement house, and apart from a bed against the wall, there was only a square table in the corner, with things like an electric rice cooker on the table, and two plastic stools.
So many people came into the room at once that there was no place to sit.
Tong Jingang quickly asked them to sit on the bed and said, "This is the temporary house that Baizi and I rented. We rented here when we worked here during the summer vacation last year. We are somewhat familiar with the landlord. If you stay here for a long time, like us, you can rent a house. It's cheaper. If you just come here to play and have enough budget, you can stay in the guesthouse."
There is a guesthouse in the town.
Mr. and Mrs. Xu didn't expect the environment here to be so simple. This was obviously an old house that belonged to someone in the town in the past. The landlord should have moved to a new house.
In the past, this was a place where no one laid eggs or birds pooped, and no one would come here. But since the film and television city was built here, more and more film crews have come here to shoot movies, and the town has gradually become popular. These uninhabited old houses can be cleaned up, with some cement on the floor and lime on the walls, and renovated, and they are quite easy to rent.
They put down their luggage, looked around, and asked Tong Jingang: "Is there a better room?"
Tong Jingang said hurriedly, "Yes, they rent the house upstairs from the landlord. The house they live in is a new house. They live on the first and second floors, and the third and fourth floors are all rented out. The big room on the south side costs 80 yuan a month, and the small room on the north side costs 50 yuan a month. If you want, I'll take you there!"
The landlord's new house was about six or seven minutes away from where Tong Jingang lived. He took a few girls to knock on the landlord's door. When the landlord heard that they were here to rent a house, he took them upstairs.
Shudian Film and Television City had not been fully built yet, only part of it had been built. There were not many people in the city at that time, and it was completely lacking in the prosperity it would be more than a decade later. The landlord still had several empty rooms upstairs, with the doors open, and he took a few people upstairs.
This room is much better than the house that Tong Jingang and his friends rented. The floor is tiled and it has its own small bathroom that combines a toilet and a shower. However, there is no hot water in the bathroom, so one has to get hot water from a boiler. A kettle of water costs one cent. The room is equipped with a bed and a simple old wardrobe.
The 50-yuan room at the back is separated from the 80-yuan room facing south by only a corridor. Because it faces north, a little sunlight can only come in at four or five in the afternoon. There is no wardrobe inside, but there are two beds, a single bed placed horizontally against the wall, and a double bed placed vertically against the wall, leaving an aisle less than one meter wide, with a narrow bathroom inside that also serves as a shower and toilet. The only advantage of the house is that it is new, clean and bright.
When Liu Ping saw the two beds in the room, she immediately shouted, "This one, this one! I want this one!"
Father Xu walked in and looked around and said, "There's no place to step when you walk in here."
During Liu Ping's three years of high school, there were eight people living in one dormitory, let alone the four of them?
But Xu's father and mother rented a large south-facing room opposite them for Xu Xiuli for 80 yuan, and went to the town to buy her a desk fan and a new mat. They cleaned her room thoroughly and also washed the mat.
He Xiaofang and her friends were reluctant to buy an electric fan, so they brought their own cool mats. They went to Tong Jingang to pick up the luggage bag, spread the cool mats on the bed, wiped them, and went to sleep.
Dinner was treated to by Xu's father and mother, and they finally got to meet Jiang Bai.
Jiang Bai is much more down-to-earth than Xu's father and mother think. Apart from the halo given by the big movie screen, he is just an ordinary college student. Not as outgoing as Tong Jingang, but not distant either. He is just polite and shy.
But he is really handsome!
He is 1.83 meters tall, wearing only a white T-shirt, light-colored jeans, and black leather sandals. But standing in the crowd, he seems to be shining, making people notice him at a glance.
The first reaction of Mr. and Mrs. Xu was to go see their daughter.
Seeing that her parents were looking at her, Xu Xiuli looked at Xu's father and mother in some confusion. When Xu's father and mother saw their daughter's reaction, they knew that she had not yet figured it out. Fortunately, it was okay.
Mr. Xu is not tall, and when he talked to Tong Jingang and Jiang Bo, he had to look up at them. He said to Tong Jingang and Jiang Bo very politely: "When I saw you in the movie before, I knew you were handsome, but I didn't expect you to be even more handsome in real life than in the movie!"
Whenever this happened, Jiang Bai was so embarrassed that he didn't know what to say. He just smiled and said, "No, no, it's okay."
Tong Jingang laughed and said, "Uncle has good taste. He saw my handsome appearance at first sight. Baizi and I are in the shop, and we are known as the black and white handsome guys!"
Liu Ping laughed out loud: "Are they the Black and White Devils?"
Everyone laughed. It had to be said that the nickname of the Black and White Devils was really appropriate. When Tong Jingang and Jiang Bai stood together, they really looked one black and one white.
Father Xu said politely, "They just graduated and are unfamiliar with the place, so they are relying on their two brothers to take care of them. I'd like to trouble you to take care of them during the time they are setting up the store."
Tong Jingang said proudly: "Hey, what's the big deal? They are Jiang Ning's classmates, and they are also my sisters. Let's not talk about anything else. I will make sure that no one will bully them in this store!"
He was not exaggerating. Although there were no big names like those in later generations in that era, the proportion of an actor's roles in a play could also reflect his status in the crew.
Otherwise, why do people say his sister is awesome? He actually gave Baizi the role of the second male lead.
Jiang Bai is even more infuriating. If it weren't for the money, this guy would not even be willing to act. He complains that there are too many parts and too many lines to memorize, and it would be better to be a supporting role.
No matter how much the role of the second male lead fits Jiang Bai himself, it still requires a certain level of acting skills. So every night, Tong Jingang helps Jiang Bai rehearse and hone his acting skills.
Jiang Bai himself is a very stubborn person who is willing to study hard. He believes that since he has accepted this job and has been paid, he must do it well and be worthy of the money given by others. So after finishing the filming every day, he does not leave the crew and stays in the crew to learn very seriously.
The fourth male lead in the crew is a professional actor, as he was recommended by Ning Meng. Although he doesn't know Ning Meng, after hearing that Jiang Bai is Ning Meng's brother, he is very happy to teach him some acting skills he learned in school.
Jiang Bai has nothing special about him except that he is quite quick in learning. In addition, his role is somewhat similar to his own personality, so he acted the role quite well.
At the dinner table, Tong Jingang didn't brag too much because it was useless. He would find out when he took them there tomorrow morning.
He only gave them a brief introduction to what a supporting actor does, saying, "Let me first introduce to you what a supporting actor is. It is an extra. Most of the time, they are actors on location. They usually make around 10 to 20 yuan a day, and are paid daily. There is also an extra who can show their faces, and they make around 20 to 30 yuan a day. If you can get an extra with one or two lines, you'll get more money."
If Tong Jingang didn't have classes at school, he would have almost become the leader of the group here, which shows how popular he is.
At present, Shudian Film and Television City has not established any actors' guild, and there is no certificate to take. Many crews select actors from various drama academies or film academies. Extras are also found randomly, and the scale of extras in later generations has not yet been formed. Basically, if the crew needs extras and needs a certain role, and you happen to be there and you can play the role, then you take the role.
This is also the reason why Tong Jingang and Jiang Baineng played many supporting roles in various crews last year.
Tong Jingang's introduction shattered the dream of Liu Ping and others to be actors on TV. They thought that playing a role like Yinsuo was called a supporting role, but in fact it was an important female supporting role such as the third, fourth or fifth female lead. In fact, the supporting roles were not even palace maids, but pedestrians and passers-by in ancient costumes who were grabbed by Xiaoyanzi on the street when she made a scene at the wedding and escaped.
But they were still very curious, so they followed Tong Jingang to the crew of "The Imperial Guards" the next day.
Jiang Ning had already told the producer Huang Lan and the director that she wanted to introduce a classmate to come over to work during the summer vacation to see if there was any suitable role as an extra, an extra in the group, or doing odd jobs. The girl's hometown was hit by a disaster this year, so she came out to work and study.
Director Zhang and the producer want to continue working with Jiang Ning in the future, and they will also need Jiang Ning's help with promotions later on.
They also heard the news that a movie of "The King's Guards" was also being filmed, and it was directed by a well-known director. Of course, they would not refuse to help with such a small favor, and their crew was already short of extras.
At that time, Shudian was not as prosperous as in later generations, and extras were not systematic and large-scale. Many extras were played by villagers in the town. However, some roles could not be played by the temperament of those villagers, such as the lady from a noble family, the chivalrous woman in this play, etc.
The first thing Director Zhang thought when he saw He Xiaofang was, "Wow! The girl is quite dark, and has a strong body." He called the costume crew, "Give her a set of Jinyiwei clothes to try, and do her makeup."
"The Imperial Guards" itself is a group drama with many characters. There are always a group of Imperial Guards riding together, or many people wearing Imperial Guards uniforms running in unison through the streets. There are also many scenes with female Imperial Guards, as well as various people watching the fun from the rivers and lakes. If Tong Jingang and Jiang Bai were not so distinctive in appearance and too tall, and the fourth male lead Yan Yichang's face was too handsome, he would have wanted to arrange everyone as extras in other group dramas, otherwise there would not be enough people.
He Xiaofang's dark face and sturdy body are obviously suitable for the role of a female Jinyiwei. I wonder how about she practice fighting scenes with the martial arts instructor. If she can imitate a few moves, maybe she can get a chance to appear on camera.
Look at the little girls following her. Xu Xiuli has a small and slender frame, and has a gentle and graceful temperament. She is very well-mannered.
Liu Ping is actually very pretty. Her eyes and eyebrows are somewhat similar to those of the Little Dragon Girl in the TV series broadcast this year or last year. She has deep eye sockets and a high nose bridge. She is just a little shorter, so she looks stronger in the camera.
It's strange, she is obviously a pretty girl in adolescence, but I don't know if her temperament is too rough or what, in life, many people don't think she is good-looking, and think she is very ordinary, and looks similar to Lu Xuehua.
The one who is truly ordinary in appearance is Lu Xuehua, but she can be said to have regular facial features, with eyes that are neither big nor small, a nose that is neither high nor low, and a mouth that is neither thin nor thick. She has the appearance of an ordinary person.
Director Zhang waved his hand and pointed at Liu Ping: "You should also try to put on the clothes of the Jinyiwei." He then pointed at Lu Xuehua: "You should wear the clothes of a maid."
They were quickly assigned some minor roles, of course, none of which had any lines.
However, Xu Xiuli, who came along to play, although only had a pretty appearance, had a small face and an indescribable classical temperament, and she actually got the role of a supporting actress of a lady from a wealthy family.
Of course, these are not their final roles. They are just roles that require these extras in the scenes filmed today. Even Xu's father and mother, who came along to watch the fun, were dressed in ancient people's clothes and headgear, and became background people on the street.
Xu's father and mother watched the crew for two days and felt that it was a regular crew. Their daughter had no problem getting along with everyone in the crew, so they went back.
They also have business to run at home, and it's impossible for their parents-in-law to look after the store all the time.
Lu Xuehua and the others thought that Jiang Ning was able to find them supporting roles because of Jiang Bai, because Jiang Bai played the second male lead in the drama.
It was several days later that they learned from Tong Jingang that the author of the original novel of the play "The King's Guards" was Jiang Ning.
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