Chapter 5: Overkill
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This is not your best option right now.
Upon hearing this, how could the worldly-wise Xu Kai not understand that his father had already thought of a way out for him?
"Dad, what do you think is the best way out for me now?"
Seeing that Xu Kai finally got the message, Xu Yun suddenly became excited: "Of course, we live by the mountains and by the water."
The Xu family's ancestor was a high-ranking official in the late Ming Dynasty.
When the Ming Dynasty fell and the Qing Dynasty began, Xu Zu was unwilling to change his ways and become an official in the Qing court, so he took his servants and personal soldiers with him and moved south with his family.
Arriving at Furong Village, Xu Zu saw three cliffs towering into the sky, with red and white colors complementing each other, just like lotus. He was attracted by the unique scenery and decided to settle down here.
After traveling around for hundreds of miles, Xu Zu finally chose a natural flat land of more than ten acres, as smooth as a mirror, in the middle of the southern cliff of Furong Mountain, to build a large house with five entrances and exits and a large garden as the ancestral home of the Xu family.
Xu Zu's servants and personal soldiers settled down and started a family at the foot of the mountain.
Furong Village was born from then on.
Later, the Xu family's genealogy was lost in the war, and after experiencing the special period in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, no one mentioned the master and servant relationship anymore.
However, Xu Kai's great-grandfather had participated in a series of wars in modern times and had a group of old comrades-in-arms who were friends with him. With his mediation, the Xu family successfully preserved the ancestral home intact and handed it over to Xu Kai's grandfather, and later to Xu Yun.
Unfortunately, more than 20 years ago, the Xu family ancestral home caught fire and the back three courtyards and the surrounding gardens were severely damaged.
At that time, the Xu family really couldn't afford to renovate such a large ancestral home.
As a result, the back three courtyards and the surrounding gardens can only be used to store firewood, old items, junk and even garbage on weekdays.
In the early 1990s, the state introduced the policy of holding mountains.
No one was willing to contract the forest on the southern cliff of Furong Mountain where the Xu family lived, so the village cadres persuaded Xu Kai's grandfather to contract the forest, saying that it was a one-time investment with a lifetime return, and that for only three thousand yuan, one could own a large piece of forest for fifty years, and would have priority if he wanted to renew the contract after fifty years.
Xu Kai's grandfather was a bit ambitious and impulsive, so he paid three thousand yuan to contract the forest without consulting anyone.
Then, the Xu family members realized that they were not allowed to cut down or sell the trees in this forest.
The key point is that this forest has no other resources that can generate income.
In fact, even so, there are ways to make money.
The solution is to sell cemeteries.
Many people who lease land make money by selling cemetery plots.
But before Xu Kai's grandfather could implement it, Furong Pond and Pingshan next to Furong Mountain were designated as Pingshan Park. As a result, burials of ancestors were not allowed in the nearby mountains and forests, and all those already buried had to be moved.
There is no way out; this piece of forest can only rot in the hands of the Xu family.
Xu Kai thought that after the past ten years, Xu Yun had finally found a way to make money in his own deserted house or in this useless forest, which was why he said that he lived by the mountain and by the water.
"What do you want me to do with our old house? Or do you want me to do something with our forest?" Xu Kai asked.
"Don't mention this shabby house and this shabby forest to me. It makes me upset."
"I don't know what our ancestors were thinking, building a house on this remote mountainside. If our house was at the foot of the mountain, we would have to live on this 6,000 or 7,000 square meter house for ten lifetimes. Even if we didn't move, we could rent it out and collect rent. But our shabby house is right on the mountainside. It takes more than 20 minutes to climb up. If it rains, it will take more than half an hour to climb up. No one wants to live in it even if we give it to someone else for free."
"And this broken forest, I really don't know what your grandfather was thinking when he leased it. If he had leased the Pingshan forest, our family would have become rich long ago."
Xu Yun waved his hand and said, "Forget it, let's not talk about this. When I say live by the mountain and eat by the mountain, live by the water and eat by the water, I'm not referring to this shabby house or this shabby forest, but to the fact that our Furong Village is close to Hengdian, the Oriental Hollywood."
After a pause, Xu Yun told his plan: "Given your current situation, you can just do extras. Extras don't require academic qualifications or work experience. The key is that we can help you."
"Be an extra?" Xu Kai was stunned. "Is this the best way out you think of for me?"
Xu Yun glared and said, "Why, do you look down on us extras?"
Xu Kai then remembered that his father, mother, brother, and sister-in-law were all extras. Even if he looked down on extras, he couldn't show it.
Xu Kai quickly pulled back the words: "No, I just didn't expect that the way out you found for me would be this."
"snort!"
After a heavy snort, Xu Yuncai continued, "Don't underestimate us, the extras. Not everyone can do this job well."
"Let's not talk about others, just take Xu Li for example. When he first entered the industry, he couldn't even find work."
"It took him more than two months to finally get some work, but he only earned 20 or 30 yuan a day, which was not enough for him to spend."
"It took him nearly half a year to get his money back."
"Later, I learned that in order to make more money, he would take on roles such as carrying sedan chairs, carrying coffins, getting caught in the rain, wearing mourning clothes, and even acting out the death of a person. Sometimes when our family was in financial difficulty, he would even take roles where he actually got beaten."
"Why? You can get an extra 10 yuan for carrying a sedan chair, carrying a coffin, getting wet in the rain, and wearing mourning. You can get a red envelope for acting out the death of a person, and if you really get beaten, you get 30 yuan..."
Listening to Xu Yun's words, Xu Kai, who was familiar with everything about the entertainment industry, immediately had scenes of Xu Li carrying a sedan chair, carrying a coffin, wearing mourning clothes, acting dead, and being beaten up flashed before his eyes.
Xu Li's heart suddenly soured! "During those two years, I had no real work, running around everywhere, and never made any money. Your mother had to take care of Mai Mai, and her body was very weak. Mai Mai was still breastfeeding at that time, and she had to drink milk powder every day. The naughty child was picky and would not drink domestic milk powder, but only the extremely expensive imported milk powder. There was no other way, Xu Li could only buy her imported milk powder."
"During that time, Xu Li was the one who supported the family. At such a young age, he shouldered the burden of the family."
"But Xu Li never complained about the hardship or tiredness. He just gritted his teeth and persevered."
"Later, Xu Li and Tang Yun got together. Tang Yun was able to take care of Mai Mai together with your mom. Your mom and I took Mai Mai with us to play minor roles with Xu Li and Tang Yun. Only then did our family life gradually get better."
"Now Xu Li has become a big special agent, earning 500 to 800 a day. Your mother is a medium special agent, earning 200 to 300 a day. Tang Yun and I are small special agents, earning 150 a day. The four of us can earn more than 1,000 a day. If we encounter good work, it is not impossible to make 2,000 a day."
"Last year, when we were filming The Great Eunuch in Troubled Times, Xu Li got the role of a young eunuch, and he brought all of us into the crew. Your mother played the nanny, Tang Yun played the palace maid, and I played the prince's attendant. In more than half a month, we earned more than 20,000 yuan."
"The only pity is that there is never enough work to do. We have to be idle for most of the month."
"We discussed it and believe that the main reason for this situation is that the leader of the group we follow is not good enough. He doesn't consider us first when he has a good job, even if it's just an ordinary job."
"So, I learned from my mistakes and decided to be the leader of the group myself."
At this point, Xu Yun pulled his collar and said, "Now let me formally introduce your dad to you. I am already a group leader with nearly ten fixed extras."
Xu Kai quickly applauded the old man to satisfy his vanity.
Xu Yun pressed his hands down and said, "Don't applaud yet. I just opened this shop not long ago and I still need help to grow and develop."
This time, Xu Kai understood. It turned out that the old man wanted to pull him in to expand his team.
really!
Xu Yun immediately said, "Although I have nearly ten people under my command, except for Xu Li, your mother, and Tang Yun, the others are all useless. Every time I go out to contact business, I feel guilty, for fear that people will ask me if I have a martial arts master or special actors."
"With your muscular body, you can definitely be a martial artist. With your good image, you can definitely be a special actor. I will help you make good money. You will definitely be able to earn five to seven thousand a month."
"And this is just the beginning. My goal for you is to become a big special agent like Xu Li, or even a role player."
After listening to Xu Yun's plan, Xu Kai didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "You actually let me, the 18th generation direct descendant of Fuyaozi, play a supporting role with you. You are wasting my talent."
"Besides, based on my more than 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry in my previous life, even if I return to the entertainment industry, I won't be an extra."
key--
In his previous life, Xu Kai was an outstanding graduate of the directing department of Beijing Film Academy.
After graduation, Xu Kai worked in the entertainment industry for more than 20 years. He has done everything from stage management, makeup, coordination, lighting, art, photography, music, special effects, scripts, to acting. In the end, he became an executive director with his all-round and solid skills, and has participated in the filming of many blockbuster productions.
It can be said that as long as Xu Kai had a better opportunity in the future, he would definitely become a well-known director.
But unlike many people who are obsessed with becoming famous, Xu Kai's more than 20 years of entertainment career has made him see through the flashy nature of the entertainment industry, where there are thieves, prostitutes and intrigues. If it weren't for the sake of living, Xu Kai would have quit the entertainment industry in his previous life.
Now, having lived his life again and mastered so many other skills, Xu Kai really doesn't want to be in the entertainment industry anymore.
But before Xu Kai could organize his words to reject Xu Yun, Xu Yun sighed and said sincerely: "I asked you to be an extra with us, not just to find you a job. Xu Li has made a lot of sacrifices for our family and for you over the years. You should repay the kindness. Now it's too difficult for Xu Li to fight in the entertainment industry alone, and your mother and I are getting old, so I thought that if you can also enter the entertainment industry, you two brothers can at least take care of each other."
…
(End of this chapter)
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