director of the millennium

The not-so-large camping area was already bustling with people.

There are about a hundred tents standing here, some large and some small, each tent emitting warm yellow light, embellishing the dim mountaintop scenery.

"I heard there will be fireworks later?" Sitting on the picnic table, Wu Yuan chatted with Xia Yu while enjoying the barbecue grilled by his wife.

We couldn't just spend the whole night reminiscing about literary youths. Xia Yu's emotions came and went quickly, and soon everyone was laughing again.

"Fireworks were banned in previous years, but this year they are allowed."

"Maybe it's also to get rid of the old and welcome the new, clear away the haze, and make everyone happier."

Xia Yu smiled and said, "Maybe they won't be allowed to release it next year."

The ban on fireworks is still very strict in big cities. This custom that has continued for thousands of years has been banned gradually across the country. Nowadays, only a few sporadic fireworks can be heard during the New Year, and they are all set off secretly.

But the Chinese have an inexplicable obsession with setting off fireworks and firecrackers. The louder the sound, the more lively the festive atmosphere of the New Year.

Fireworks and firecrackers represent people’s expectations for a better life in the coming year, and setting off fireworks at the beginning of the year is also to bring good luck.

The control was strict in previous years, but this year is different. In order to "get rid of the old and welcome the new", and for the moment when the fireworks bloom and burn, people can release all the negative emotions accumulated in the whole year, so the setting off of fireworks is specially allowed this year.

Who says the past year was so special that everyone needs a festive atmosphere?

Wu Yuan was also looking forward to it. There was no "ban on burning" when he was a child. The New Year atmosphere was very good at that time. It was truly "the year is gone with the sound of firecrackers". It was not like now when it is very quiet outside during the New Year and no sound can be heard.

Of course, it’s not the Chinese New Year yet, it’s just New Year’s Eve, but the atmosphere is still necessary.

“When will it be released?”

"It should be set off at 12 o'clock."

"It seems like they have prepared a lot of fireworks, which can be set off for ten minutes straight."

"Hey, that's a good feeling."

Everyone chatted in groups of three or two, and time passed by little by little.

We waited until we were almost sleepy. In the tacit countdown, the last day of 2020 passed. With the arrival of the first second of 2021, countless fireworks rushed into the sky, exploding into a gorgeous and beautiful scene.

Wu Yuan hugged his wife, looked up at the colorful fireworks in the sky, and whispered in her ear: "Happy New Year."

The first impression Wu Yuan had on the first day of 2021 was foot pain.

After camping in the mountains for a night, his legs were shaking when he came down the mountain and returned home.

Wu Yuan hadn't exercised much in recent years. After climbing the mountain so hard, he still had some muscle soreness. In addition, it was cold on the top of the mountain at night. Even in the sleeping bag, he couldn't sleep very comfortably. It felt like he was dreaming of returning to Hulunbuir.

In general, this New Year's Eve camping trip was romantic, but the experience was not very good. It would be more comfortable to live in a modern villa. After returning home, Wu Yuan and Liu Yifei lay still for a few days until January 1, when they almost recovered from the tossing of Hulunbuir and New Year's Eve.

“I’m really old.”

"If I were 20 years old, climbing such a small hill would be a piece of cake, and I wouldn't feel tired at all."

"I can't do that now. My legs and waist ache when I come back."

Wu Yuan drank a sip of the chrysanthemum and wolfberry, then said to his wife who was holding their daughter affectionately: "The Spring Festival this year is relatively late, February 2 is the first day of the Lunar New Year, so there is no rush to go back first."

"By the way, the Spring Festival Gala has sent another invitation. Are you going to watch the show live this year?"

Liu Yifei, who was coaxing the child, was not moved at all. "No, it's boring and it will delay things."

"Aren't we going back to Jiangcheng on the 27th of the twelfth lunar month?"

"Oh, yes!" Wu Yuan slapped his forehead, a little embarrassed: "Look at my brain."

He had just received an invitation call from the Spring Festival Gala program team last night, so he asked casually, completely forgetting that his family was no longer in Beijing at that time.

Speaking of the Spring Festival Gala, in recent years the Gala has not only invited Wu Yuan's family to watch the show every year, but has also always hoped that Wu Yuan could be the chief director of the Gala.

After all, the Spring Festival Gala has been reforming over the years in an attempt to restore its reputation, but the results have not been very good.

For the first time in the history of the Spring Festival Gala, an external director was invited to serve as the chief director. The director invited was the film director Feng Xiaogang. What's more interesting is that this Spring Festival Gala is considered to be the last peak of the Spring Festival Gala.
After the 2014 Spring Festival Gala directed by Feng Xiaogang, the show has been getting worse and worse each year. The reputation has been getting worse and worse, and there have been more and more complaints. Naturally, CCTV wants to find a capable director to create another miracle.

Naturally, the great director Wu Yuan became the target and was invited to be the chief director almost every year, but Wu Yuan refused every year. He had refused for so many years and even refused to have any feelings.

"The headquarters is interesting too." Thinking of this, Wu Yuan said somewhat unhappily, "They are so persistent in wanting to invite me, isn't it because they hope that I can use my connections to make something big?"

Although the Spring Festival Gala is known as the number one stage in the country, in fact, its appeal is not as high as before. In the past, everyone was scrambling to be on the Gala, but now the truly top-notch actors and singers are not very willing to go to the Gala, as they feel it is a thankless job. In addition, there is a lack of successors in the sketches, with no outstanding successors, and there is a lack of jokes.

In this embarrassing situation, if the Spring Festival Gala wants to be successful, it must rely on the director's ability to a certain extent. If the director can invite a few big names, such as Jay Chou, Jackie Chan, and Edward Lau, it is not impossible to attract the audience's attention again, and the evaluation will always be better.

If Wu Yuan could become the chief director, with his status and influence, whoever he invites would agree to come, and there would be no possibility of rejection. At least for song and dance programs, he could put together a very luxurious team.

Even in the language category, he was not unable to convince a bunch of top actors to put together a few skits to give it a try.
But Wu Yuanzhen was not interested in selling his reputation for the Central Radio and Television Station. It was not easy to owe too many favors. As a filmmaker, he did not need the relationship with the Central Radio and Television Station that much. It would be better for him to maintain the relationship with the General Administration, because the General Administration was his immediate superior.

"Speaking of which, the film 'Flowering' that the Central Radio and Television Station and Shanghai Film Studio collaborated on seems to have started filming for more than half a year?" Wu Yuan raised his eyebrows, and then thought of another thing, and said with interest: "The King of Sunglasses actually went to film a TV series."

"It was done by CCTV, Penguin, and Film Studios together. This is a big deal among big deals."

"Wife, do you think I should also try to film a TV series? It sounds interesting!" (End of this chapter)