Chapter 275 Starlight Land
Ming Zhou nodded cheerfully: "Of course, I'll just pick you up to put your luggage away first, and then go to the set to visit my brother."
The car slowly drove into the Hollywood area. Mingzhou rolled down the windows to let the California sunshine in. While driving, he introduced Xia Lili to this dream-making place.
"Look to the right." Mingzhou pointed out the window. "That's the famous Sunset Boulevard. I wonder how many dreams of stardom have been born beneath these neon signs along the street."
Xia Lili looked along the street and saw retro theaters and fashionable shops lining both sides of the street, with huge billboards scrolling the latest movie trailers.
Turning a corner, a cluster of Spanish-style buildings appeared before us. "This is the Paramount Studios."
Ming Zhou slowed down the car. "There are dozens of crews filming at the same time every day."
Through the iron fence, you can see the New York street scenes and western towns built inside, and workers are adjusting the scenery.
"Hollywood is actually a very magical place," Mingzhou said, pushing up his glasses. Behind the glamorous surface lies the hard work of countless people. As the car drove past a white building, he added, "That's the Screen Actors Guild headquarters. The first thing actors who come here do is register there."
Xia Lili leaned on the car window curiously, watching the various people hurrying by on the roadside: young actors carrying scripts, staff pushing costume racks, and even extras in alien costumes smoking on the roadside.
"We're here. This is the hotel."
Ming Zhou stopped in front of an Art Deco building. "Thanks to you and your brother, this is the first time I've stayed in Hollywood for so long and met so many partners."
He smiled and took the luggage.
Xia Lili shook her head: "Brother Mingzhou, don't say that. If you hadn't been out there taking care of my brother, it wouldn't have been so smooth."
After putting away their luggage, Mingzhou took Xia Lili to the core area of Hollywood.
Just as she left the hotel, a delivery man on an electric scooter passed by Xia Lili. He moved leisurely, carrying an insulated box on his back and moving flexibly among the crowd.
The delivery man was adjusting the headphones on his head. The headphones were the latest model from a big brand and cost $800.
Xia Lili, with her excellent eyesight, noticed a light-colored ring-shaped mark on his left wrist. It was probably because he often wore a smart watch or bracelet on his left wrist, which caused the color to differ due to the sun exposure.
In addition, there is a 2 cm horizontal scar on the knuckle of his right ring finger, which looks like a surgical suture mark.
"Brother Mingzhou," she couldn't help but wonder, "I saw online that takeout delivery in the US is incredibly slow. Is that true?"
Ming Zhou smiled helplessly, "It's definitely not as fast as back home. Takeout here takes an average of 45 minutes to an hour. During peak hours, a two-hour wait isn't uncommon."
"Then what do they mainly use for delivery?" Xia Lili pointed at the scooter going away.
"The most common ones are electric scooters, and some people drive their cars," Mingzhou explained as they walked. "But labor costs are high here, and if you don't tip enough, no one might take the order."
Ming Zhou said this as he took Xia Lili through the layers of security in the core area. Security personnel in black uniforms were standing at each checkpoint.
At the first checkpoint, they were asked to show their ID and scan their faces for recognition.
At the second checkpoint, all personal belongings must be scanned by an X-ray machine.
At the last checkpoint, the security personnel held a metal detector and asked Xia Lili to raise her arms for a full body inspection.
These layers of checkpoints made Xia Lili think that she had entered some key military area.
"Please open your bag," a female security officer said sternly. Xia Lili complied and opened her small bag, which contained only simple cosmetics and a cell phone.
Security carefully inspected each item, even shining a UV light on the lining.
"So strict?" Xia Lili muttered softly, watching a man in front of her being taken aside for detailed questioning because he brought a camera.
After Ming Zhou waited for her to pass security, he lowered his voice and explained, "The crew of 'Extraction' was secretly filmed last week, and hackers are blackmailing Aurora Pictures for $5 million."
His eyes glanced around warily. "They threatened to post the 30 minutes of unedited footage online if I didn't pay."
"Do you know what this means?" Ming Zhou's voice lowered. "If these clips were leaked, not only would the $280 million investment be ruined, but the carefully designed plot suspense would also be ruined."
"The team's six months of work and all the actors' preparation for their roles could all be undone by these few videos. Not to mention the potential plummet in stock price..."
Xia Lili's eyes widened in shock, her gaze sweeping over the newly added anti-secret camera warning signs and the ubiquitous surveillance cameras. "This is the Hollywood way of life. Even the security has to be on par with spy films."
She pondered, "It turns out that behind the dream factory is such a cruel business game."
Ming Zhou lowered his voice with a solemn expression, "All of Hollywood is in a state of panic right now. Just the day before yesterday, the crew of Starlight Pictures' annual blockbuster, 'Star Expedition,' also suffered. A thief used the same method to film the crucial scene where the protagonist sacrifices himself."
He tugged at his collar irritably. "Every crew is on tenterhooks right now, afraid of becoming the next target."
Ming Zhou showed Xia Lili the internal information on his phone: "The seven major film studios have jointly established a special response team, and even the LA Police Department has sent a special task force. Look at this—"
He pointed to the eye-catching number on the notice and said, "Seven major film studios have jointly offered a reward of $600,000 for the capture of this illegal filming ring."
Xia Lili noticed that the announcement also specifically stated that the reporting channel was "absolutely confidential," and even the communication software used was encrypted.
Mingzhou put away his phone and shook his head helplessly. "Now everyone who joins the crew has to sign a confidentiality agreement, and even the delivery guys have to undergo background checks. Yesterday at Galaxy Studios, a stagehand was taken away by security because a recorder was found in his backpack."
Xia Lili shook her head and just hoped that the crew her brother was in would not suffer any disaster.
After passing through numerous security checks, Xia Lili finally arrived at the core filming area of Hollywood with Ming Zhou. Nearly an hour had passed.
Pushing open the heavy soundproof door of Studio No. 3, Xia Lili's attention was immediately attracted by the figure under the spotlight.
Xia Xubai sat upright on a mahogany armchair, his moon-white Tang suit making him look even more handsome and elegant.
The cloud pattern embroidered with silver thread on the lapel was faintly visible in the light, and an ivory fan was playing between her slender fingers.
“Action!”
Hearing the director's command, Xia Xubai raised his eyes slightly. Although his iconic fox eyes were no longer visible, his aura remained undiminished.
He turned his wrist slightly, and the folding fan opened with a "swish". The ink bamboo patterns on the fan trembled slightly with his movement.
"What kind of scene is this?"
Xia Lili lowered her voice and asked Mingzhou.
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