Chapter 513 Reba, this is my strong point!
This trip is at the invitation of Zhang Yimou.

The other party had previously invited Du Sheng to attend the celebration ceremony of "House of Flying Daggers", but it didn't happen due to schedule issues.

This time, Du Sheng was invited to Qingyi Tea House for tea tasting, so he could not refuse.

After all, Zhang Yimou also came to visit the headquarters today, so reciprocity is necessary.

Stepping into the teahouse, Du Sheng looked around, feeling the rich and elegant atmosphere, as if he was at a tourist attraction.

The originally quiet courtyard was decorated with many tea tables and chairs, which made it look interesting with greenery.

Guests were already seated at several tables, leisurely sipping tea and chatting.

Following the guidance of a waiter, Du Sheng came to a private room full of classical atmosphere.

In the private room, several guests were sitting around a long mahogany table.

One of the women, wearing a double-breasted Hanfu, was concentrating on making tea.

Her movements were skillful and graceful, and the whole room was immersed in a sense of silence.

Du Sheng did not disturb the peace and waited for the tea to be brewed.

Zhang Yimou noticed it then and stood up to greet him with a smile:

"Ah Sheng, I'm so sorry. I was just attracted by the tea-making technique."

"I have to say that the place Director Zhang chose is quiet and elegant, with ancient springs flowing, and it is quite suitable for meeting guests."

There is a saying that goes "business people flatter each other". Even if the other party chose a toilet, Du Sheng would still flatter it as being down-to-earth.

Zhang Yimou was very happy after hearing this.

Given that the two parties have collaborated before and the box office was good.

His intention in meeting her this time was to invite her to star in his new work.

However, there have been some rumors about Du Sheng's romantic affairs recently, and Zhang Yimou was originally a little worried about his health.

But judging from the current situation, Du Sheng is not only in excellent shape, but his speech and behavior are also becoming more and more like a master.

Zhang Yimou suppressed his surprise and introduced with a smile:
"Ah Sheng, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Ken Takakura, a well-known artist from Japan, and this is Mr. Yasuo Furuhata, a famous director..."

The last person mentioned is Jiang Wen, who is also one of Mou's girls and needs no further introduction.

Du Sheng exchanged a few polite words with a few people, neither humble nor arrogant.

Ken Takakura and Yasuo Furihata were quite polite when they met Du Sheng.

They naturally knew how outrageous Du Sheng's popularity was in Japan.

In addition, the good cooperative relationship between the other party and Fuji TV also made them sincere.

On the contrary, Jiang Wen treated Du Sheng in a lukewarm manner and sat intimately next to Zhang Yimou.

After the greetings, everyone started discussing the movie while sipping tea.

Zhang Yimou talked freely and shared his views on Japanese films.

The frequent conversations kept the translators very busy.

Obviously, Zhang Yimou has a very high opinion of Ken Takakura and even has a fan complex for him.

It is said that when he was filming "Hero", he hoped to invite Ken Takakura to star in the film, but unfortunately he was not able to do so.

Judging from today's interaction, the rumor seems to be confirmed.

After discussing the topic of Japan, Zhang Yimou turned to the customs of the mainland, and eventually unknowingly led to the new movie "A Solo Journey of Thousand Miles".

He talked extensively about topics such as traditional culture, family ethics, separation and reunion, and expressed his own creative ideas.

After hearing this, Ken Takakura and Yasuo Furukawa nodded repeatedly to show their agreement, regardless of whether they understood it or not.

Jiang Wen, as always, looked at Zhang Yimou with admiration, as if he were a beacon of the film industry.

Du Sheng had heard a lot about the deeds of Mou girls, so he just smiled when he saw this.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Zhang Yimou struck while the iron was hot and said:
"Ah Sheng, my movie tells the story of the emotional entanglement between two generations. Ken Takakura will play the role of the father.
If you want, you can play his son and use a dual storyline, how about that? "

Du Sheng smiled and replied:

“Needless to say, Director Zhang’s works have many people vying to film them.

It’s just a pity that I have to join the crew of The Return of the Condor Heroes next month, so my schedule may not be compatible.”

In fact, Zhang Yimou already knew that Du Sheng had no schedule recently.

This chance meeting was to see if I could convince him to give up The Return of the Condor Heroes and join A One Man's Journey.

Zhang Yimou had done similar "interceptions" many times before.

For example, in order to invite Jet Li to star in "Hero", he personally went to the Lighthouse Country.

Du Sheng's current popularity is no less than that of Jet Li back then, the only difference is in status and position.

Speaking of which, Zhang Yimou is facing a lot of pressure at the moment.

Because the closing ceremony performance of the Athens Olympic Games directed by him was subject to various restrictions and the performance was not satisfactory, it aroused widespread doubts.

In particular, the arrangement of the lead dancers wearing miniskirts caused a lot of controversy.

Many people accused Zhang Yimou of being immoral and overly accommodating to Western trends.

At that time, domestic thinking was still relatively conservative, and such criticisms were not groundless, leading many viewers to join the ranks of criticism.

If Du Sheng had not been on the hot search list recently for her works such as "House of Flying Daggers", "Full House" and "The Twins", indirectly sharing some of the public pressure for Zhang Yimou, the situation might have been even worse.

It is in this context that Zhang Yimou is eager to return to the top through art films such as "A Solo Journey of Thousand Miles".

He even planned to use this film to win international recognition again and rebuild his personal reputation.

To this end, he specially invited the country's top screenwriters to write the script, and was also extremely cautious in casting.

For example, Japan is led by the veteran actor Ken Takakura, who is famous throughout Asia.

In China, he plans to find a talented young actor who is both famous and has good acting skills.

Therefore, Du Sheng, with whom he had a very pleasant cooperation, became the ideal candidate in his mind.

"Ah Sheng, to be honest, you are already very well-known in China. I'm afraid that filming another TV series won't be a big breakthrough."

Zhang Yimou spoke with a tone of someone who had experienced it:
“Why not take advantage of my popularity to make an art film to calm down, win an award and enter the international stage.

Look at Jiang Wen, her goal has always been clear.

She is about to go to Neon to co-produce a movie called "Journey of the Soul".

If you participate in "A Thousand Miles Alone", it will not only consolidate your influence in Japan, but also help you become a true international star.

You probably don’t know much about this kind of cooperation opportunity, so you might as well think about it carefully.”

Zhang Yimou's words were sincere and earnest, and he obviously had high hopes for Du Sheng.

Du Sheng just smiled and responded politely:

"Ms. Jiang has high aspirations, and she is studying Japanese literature, which is something I cannot match.

In addition, I personally prefer to take it easy and secure my domestic job first, and as for international development, I will just let it take its course.”

Jiang Wen didn't seem to notice the teasing in Du Sheng's words, and looked at Zhang Yimou with a bit of complacency.

But Zhang Yimou ignored it and continued to try to persuade Du Sheng:

“Although you are one of the most famous people in the country, your foundation is still unstable.

The biggest reason is that he has not won many important awards, so his status in the circle is also limited.

Especially if one wants to gain recognition from authority and judges, winning awards for art films is the only way to do so.

Moreover, filming too many TV dramas actually doesn’t make much sense.

Look at Jiang Wen, she has never been involved in the field of TV dramas, and her next step is to develop in Japan. This is the path that an excellent actor should take.

Don't think you can spend money recklessly just because you are popular. In fact, there are only a few important turning points in an actor's life.

How to plan your career is the most important thing..."

If we ignore the actual situation, what Zhang Yimou said does make sense.

Most actors would probably be moved when hearing this.

But Du Sheng is well aware of the difficulties faced by Chinese people in making their way overseas.

Especially after superstars like Cheng Long and Jet Li left Hollywood, this road was almost blocked.
What's more, this movie is mainly from the perspective of Japanese people.

To be frank, this movie is a script that Zhang Yimou tailor-made for his idol Ken Takakura.

With what he had seen in his previous life, how could he possibly try to increase his popularity by paying for it?

"Director Zhang, I'm really sorry. Qianqian, Yang Mi and I have already agreed to play Zhang Zhizong. We can't just break our promise."

Du Sheng has declined many invitations to act, saying apologetically:

"I hope we will have the opportunity to work together again in the future and make up for this..."

Knowing that he couldn't intercept, Zhang Yimou just smiled.

In fact, he had a second and third choice, but he was always nitpicking.

I feel a little regretful that the best person couldn't perform.

However, the overall atmosphere of the tea party was quite harmonious.

Both sides changed the topic and started talking about porcelain culture.

After the banquet, Du Sheng was concerned about Fan Bingbing and Jia Jingwen who were still waiting for him on the pedestrian street, so he made a special trip there.

The two sides haven't seen each other for a while. As the saying goes, a day without seeing each other feels like three years. This time they must make up for it day and night.

.........

At the end of September, Du Sheng flew to the northwest region with Fan Bingbing and Gao Yuanyuan.

This year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival will be held in Yinyue, and it will be the last joint award ceremony. After that, the two will be separated.

This year's film festival will last for a few days, and the awards will be presented tomorrow night.

The group did not go to the hotel arranged by the organizer.

It's no wonder that there are paparazzi everywhere. Du Sheng doesn't want to be without freedom because of the two girls around him. At this year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards, "House of Flying Daggers" received 6 nominations, including Best Art Direction, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Feature Film, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Sound Recording.

If the award was not only given to mainland artists, Zhang Baizhi would probably also be nominated for Best Actress.

For example, in the previous version of "House of Flying Daggers", since the two male protagonists were not from the mainland, they were naturally not eligible for the nomination.

Similarly, Fan Bingbing was nominated for the Best Actress Award at the Hundred Flowers Awards for her role in "Cell Phone".

As for Gao Yuanyuan, she was also nominated for the Golden Rooster Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as a female educated youth in the period film "Beauty Grass".

After a short rest in the hotel, Fan Bingbing said to Du Sheng happily:
“The opening ceremony will begin at 7 o’clock in the evening and is expected to last more than three hours.

All we have to do is show up at the unveiling, make our presence known and leave.”

She has already made a budget plan with Gao Yuanyuan, including shopping, watching a play, having dinner, taking a walk, visiting a theme park, etc.

Never waste a single cent.

Du Sheng was a little surprised:

"More than three hours? Did the organizer prepare any special programs?"

Because in the past, the opening ceremonies were basically completed within two hours.

Fan Bingbing smiled and said:
"Maybe there aren't enough heavyweight guests, so we can only make up for it with the duration. I guess the organizers are also helpless."

Talking about the most anticipated crew of this year's Golden Rooster Awards, although "Beautiful City" received many nominations, it was not the focus.

The real hits are Zhang Yimou's "House of Flying Daggers", Feng Xiaogang's "Cell Phone" and "Jasmine" starring Zhang Ziyi and Jiang Wen.

However, during this period, Zhang Yimou was busy preparing for "A Thousand Miles Alone".

Feng Xiaogang is attending a foreign film festival, Zhang Ziyi is filming a movie in the Lighthouse Country, and Jiang Qinqin is in Bay City and has not returned.

The absence of these big-name directors and stars made the Golden Rooster Awards a bit awkward.

The influence of the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards during this period was indeed not as great as that of the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan or the Hong Kong Film Awards in Hong Kong.

In this context, the attendance of Du Sheng, the lead actor of "House of Flying Daggers", at the Golden Rooster Awards undoubtedly brought great support to the organizers.

You know, Du Sheng’s current popularity in the country is second to none.

The two people he brought with him, Fan Bingbing and Gao Yuanyuan, are also quite famous.

With their participation, the attention to the Golden Rooster Awards will be greatly increased.

Of course, it is tacitly understood that they will also receive corresponding care and support.

Otherwise, who would be willing to participate in the Golden Rooster Awards in the future?
Gao Yuanyuan listened for a while and took out a pink long skirt to try on.

This deep V skirt is simple and elegant in design, giving it a hazy feeling of a woman holding a pipa and half covering her face, yet still retains its solemnity.

Gao Yuanyuan turned around after changing into it and said softly:
"Asheng, do you think this one is suitable?"

Du Sheng took a look at her, and could vaguely see her round face and cleavage. He smiled and shook his head:

“This dress is really beautiful and suits your temperament very well.

But you have to go on stage for the opening ceremony, and if you keep covering your chest with your hands, the audience will probably have an opinion.”

He was telling the truth.

In her previous life, Reba was one of the best.

Gao Yuanyuan was always aloof in front of outsiders, but now she laughed:
"I thought you would mind if I dressed too revealingly.

Don't worry, I won't wear this tonight. In other words, I will be dignified and cool in public."

Du Sheng pulled the woman to sit beside him and helped her tidy up her appearance with a smile.

In fact, he doesn't mind women showing off their charm appropriately, but if someone who has always had a cold and aloof image suddenly changes to a sexy style, his image will be somewhat ruined.

In comparison, Fan Bingbing is more fashionable and simple.

She has always appeared charming and seductive, and this time she wore a bare-armed cheongsam with red flowers and white leaves.

The hem only reaches the knees, and the high slit goes all the way to the thighs, highlighting her graceful S-shaped curves, making her skin and bones more radiant, giving her a charming look.

Du Sheng didn't care much about these things. He put on a new "Kung Fu" suit, which focused on leisure and comfort.

The three of them arrived at the venue at 6:30, put on some simple makeup backstage, and met tonight's performers.

Most of these guests are artists, and there are also some singing and dancing groups.

In addition, several celebrities from Hong Kong Bay City were also invited.

Although the film festival wanted Du Sheng to sing two songs, he had already promised to accompany the girls shopping, so he only sang a Mandarin version of "The Blue Bird" at the opening ceremony.

Even so, the film festival ratings still opened high that night.

This made the organizers even more anxious.

After all, there are no big names coming tomorrow night, and many fans come just for Du Sheng.

In addition, after the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards parted ways, it was even more necessary to win people's hearts and minds to accumulate fame.

Du Sheng naturally didn't know about this, and that night he took the two girls out to have a great time.

The next day, Fan Bingbing slept until noon before he got out of bed by leaning against the edge of the bed.

As for Gao Yuanyuan, the consequence of jumping too happily was that she couldn't even get up.

If Du Sheng hadn't seen their love was overwhelming and out of control.

They have to do it early in the morning to let them know that practicing martial arts cannot be achieved overnight.

In the evening, the group dressed in their best clothes and walked across the red carpet of the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival awards ceremony with smiles on their faces.

Du Sheng wore a black stand-up collar Tang suit, which highlighted his elegance, handsomeness and grace.

Gao Yuanyuan wore a red off-shoulder long dress, which was graceful, noble and decent.

Fan Bingbing chose a cheongsam with a silk drape and a waist, which highlighted her oriental style.

Du Sheng has an upright posture, is handsome and elegant, and has the bearing of a master due to his long-term martial arts training.

Gao Yuanyuan, with her elegant and calm temperament, showcases the cool and intellectual beauty of women.

Fan Bingbing has a graceful and charming figure, and the cheongsam adds a touch of mature feminine charm to her.

Du Sheng was accompanied by two beauties on his left and right, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

The reporter came forward excitedly, and all kinds of clicking sounds were heard.

Since there were not many big stars attending the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards this year, Du Sheng was undoubtedly the most dazzling one among them.

So tonight his fans also sat opposite each other, and after seeing their idol, their excited screams and cheers were deafening.

There were even excited fans who pushed forward and almost pushed over the fence; the scene was too lively.

Additional security guards had to be deployed at the scene to try to maintain order.

Due to safety concerns, Du Sheng gave up his original idea of ​​signing autographs and just waved to the fans.

Then he quickened his pace, walked across the red carpet and entered the stadium.

After arriving at the venue, the group headed straight for the front row seats.

Compared to the opening ceremony which was crowded with people, tonight's award ceremony was quite star-studded.

Well-known artists including Liu Huan, Liu Gongzhu, Niu Zhenghua, and Li Xuejian were present.

Ge Da Ye and Zhang Guoli from the "Cell Phone" crew also appeared.

At around seven o'clock in the evening, with the end of a series of singing and dancing performances, the award ceremony officially kicked off.

The first award to be presented was the Hundred Flowers Awards, and hosts Park Cunxin and Zhang Yan took the stage to deliver speeches.

They reviewed the history of the Hundred Flowers Awards and introduced the voting results for this year's awards.

Park Cunxin smiled and said:
"This award is based entirely on the audience's voting results to ensure the principle of fairness and justice..."

Du Sheng just smiled when he heard that.

The so-called hundreds of thousands of valid votes may actually account for less than one-third of the total, and are mainly an internal and external operation.

For example, the low audience participation is enough to reflect the current status of the Hundred Flowers Awards in the public's mind.

Therefore, this change is imperative.

The Hundred Flowers Awards is the first to announce the shortlist of films shortlisted.

The three major awards were also announced one by one.

"The Heartbreak" and "Warm Spring" won the Outstanding Feature Film Award respectively.

Li Youbin and Zhang Yan won the Outstanding Actor and Actress awards respectively.

"Cell Phone" won multiple major awards and almost monopolized the focus of the Hundred Flowers Awards.

What outsiders don’t know is that these films are more or less related to Huayi.

To put it bluntly, the Hundred Flowers Awards is sponsored by Huayi.

In fact, everyone had already expected the result of this award ceremony.

When Fan Bingbing heard the news that she had won the award, she was both surprised and excited.

She hugged Du Sheng tightly, then walked onto the stage with great grace and received the trophy that symbolized honor.

When delivering his acceptance speech, Fan Bingbing made a self-deprecating comment with a hint of humor:

“Calling to mind, the movie Cell Phone was produced by my former company, and I thought it wouldn’t even get a nomination this time.

I didn’t expect Huayi and the organizers to be so generous. Thank you very much.

It seems that it was right to follow Du Sheng to join in the fun and attend the opening ceremony last night..."

Although this is a bit self-deprecating, the meaning is quite interesting.

Not only did he generously praise Huayi, but he also pointed out his relationship with Du Sheng. It can be said that he is very good at capturing hot topics.

.........

(End of this chapter)