1990: Starting from Baojia Street

Zhou Yan did not go back to the hotel where the band was staying with them, but returned to the Sheraton again.

When he arrived at the room, Joey Wong was already there, half lying on the sofa, reading a book.

Hearing Zhou Yan coming in, Wang Zuxian turned sideways towards the door, smiled and raised the book in her hand, "Guess what book I'm reading?"

Zhou Yan glanced at it and smiled, "It must be Yu Hua's 'Xu Sanguan Selling Blood'."

This book was recently published as a single volume, and Zhou Yan remembers the cover.

However, "Xu Sanguan Selling Blood" has only been released in simplified Chinese for the time being, so Wang Zuxian should have obtained this book from the mainland.

"Yes, a friend brought it to me in the Mainland."

"If you want to read it, tell me earlier and I'll bring you an autographed copy."

"Take this copy back and have Teacher Yu Hua sign it."

Hearing Wang Zuxian call her Teacher Yu Hua, Zhou Yan smiled and said, "When you get to Yanjing, go find him for an autograph yourself. You two know each other anyway."

Joey Wong and Yu Hua have met before. When Zhang Yimou and others were filming "To Live", Zhou Yan took Joey Wong and others to visit the set, and Yu Hua was also there.

Wang Zuxian naturally knew that Zhou Yan had a good relationship with Yu Hua, and this was also the reason why she watched "Xu Sanguan Selling Blood".

"What do you think of this book?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

Wang Zuxian smiled and said, "His books are quite good to read."

Zhou Yan nodded, this evaluation was quite pertinent.

Yu Hua's writing style is relatively concise, and readers will find it easy to read. No matter what kind of story Yu Hua writes, readers can easily get into it.

"But," Wang Zuxian added, "many parts in it feel repetitive."

"Well, because suffering and repetition are twin brothers, which is also the characteristic of this book."

In fact, this is not just a feature of "Xu Sanguan Selling Blood"... It should be said that this feature runs through most of Yu Hua's literary works.

Like "To Live", there are also a lot of "repetitions", especially when Youqing and others died one by one later, it was like a series of diary entries, repeating over and over again.

However, in "Xu Sanguan Selling Blood", "repetition" is taken to the extreme and reflected in the specific text, which readers can see at a glance.

Zhou Yan walked over to sit next to Wang Zuxian. The two of them sat close together. Wang Zuxian buried her head in Zhou Yan's arms and asked with a smile, "How was the rehearsal today?"

"It's pretty good, that's why I can come back so early." Zhou Yan stroked Wang Zuxian's hair, "Have you had dinner?"

Wang Zuxian shook her head, "No, I'm waiting for you."

Zhou Yan scratched her nose and said, "You are so silly. You don't even know when I will be back, and you are just waiting like this. What if I come back very late? Will you still not eat?"

"If you stay up late, I'll have a midnight snack with you."

"What do you want to eat? Is there any good place nearby?"

"It's better not to go out for dinner. Just eat at the hotel. Don't you still have to write the script?"

Seeing that Joey Wong was so considerate, Zhou Yan didn't say anything else. He called the hotel restaurant and asked them to deliver the food.

The room they stayed in had a large floor-to-ceiling window facing Victoria Harbour, and the night view was extremely beautiful.

When dinner was served, the two sat at the dining table next to the floor-to-ceiling window, admiring the beautiful scenery outside while enjoying the delicious food.

Zhou Yan also opened a bottle of red wine and drank a little with Joey Wong.

After drinking some wine, Wang Zuxian's face was slightly flushed. She looked at the beautiful scenery outside and said longingly, "It would be great if we could have dinner together like this every day."

Zhou Yan looked at the Victoria Harbour outside, then looked at Joey Wong in front of him, and his body and mind were relaxed.

Such a pleasant day is very rare for him.

Zhou Yan is not a person who cannot stand loneliness, and sometimes he even enjoys solitude. However, after Wang Zuxian and others entered his world, his life did become more colorful.

"If you like the scenery here, I'll book this place for you." Zhou Yan said generously.

Wang Zuxian turned around and looked at Zhou Yan with a smile, then shook her head and said, "Although the scenery here is beautiful, it's not cost-effective to rent it out. It's better not to waste money. You can stay here when you want to."

Zhou Yan discovered that Joey Wong was quite fond of calculating financial accounts, which was better than him.

Although he doesn't like to show off like his second brother Zhou Hong, he has no concept of spending money. As long as he likes it, he won't think about whether it is cost-effective or not.

For example, his studio is equipped with the best equipment, but it is actually a bit of a waste to use such equipment in their studio, and the equipment is so good that it is not cost-effective to rent it out.

But when it comes to music, Zhou Yan will definitely not use bad stuff if he can use good stuff. As for whether it is cost-effective or not, he will not consider it.

Of course, the premise is that he has the money to support this.

……

After dinner, Zhou Yan began to write a new script, while Joey Wong continued to read "Xu Sanguan Selling Blood" while sitting on the sofa.

Even though they were just staying together quietly like this, Joey Wong felt very good.

After returning today, she brought some spare clothes and daily necessities. She will stay here for the next few days.

When Zhou Yan worked until half past eleven, he stretched himself and looked up to find that Joey Wong had fallen asleep on the sofa.

She must have fallen asleep while reading a book, which was still open and covering her chest.

Zhou Yan couldn't help but smile, and he was determined to tell Yu Hua later that the book he wrote had a hypnotic effect.

It was getting late, and Zhou Yan didn't plan to work too late tonight, so he put down his pen and closed the script.

He first stood up and took the book off Wang Zuxian's chest, then covered her with a blanket.

After doing this, he went to the bathroom to take a shower.

When he came out of the shower, he picked up Joey Wong and walked towards the bed.

He had just put Wang Zuxian on the bed when he heard Wang Zuxian say in a daze, "Have you finished your work?"

"The work is done." Zhou Yan responded softly.

"Well, let's go to sleep then."

"Okay, sleep."

The two of them obviously didn't mean the same thing when they talked about sleeping. Just as Wang Zuxian was about to turn over and lie on her side, Zhou Yan pressed on her and kissed her lips.

Wang Zuxian was dazed and was a little slow to react, but she soon started to resonate with Zhou Yan, closing her eyes and responding enthusiastically.

……

At eight o'clock the next morning, Wang Zuxian woke up sleepily and saw that Zhou Yan had already started writing the script. She yawned and muttered, "Are you really not tired at all?"

She couldn't understand why Zhou Yan was so energetic. He had clearly consumed so much energy last night, but he was still able to get up so early today.

"This level of intensity is nothing." Zhou Yan smiled, "If you want something to eat in the morning, I'll ask the restaurant to bring it over."

"Have some, have you eaten yet?"

"I didn't eat either."

"Then order some of your favorite food and we'll eat together."

"it is good."

……

After breakfast, Zhou Yan continued to write the new script, while Joey Wong began to dress herself up.

She washed her hair first, then started to play with her hair. After finishing her hair, she started to put on makeup.

Seeing her putting on makeup, Zhou Yan asked, "Are you going out?"

"If you don't go out now, you have to go to a concert this afternoon."

"The concert doesn't start until tonight. Are you ready now?"

"Of course, don't worry about it."

Zhou Yan curled his lips, ignored her and went about his own business.

It was not until lunch time that Joey Wong completed her series of procedures.

Fortunately, she didn't bring many clothes, otherwise it would take more time to choose clothes, and Zhou Yan would definitely have to get involved.

But even so, she hesitated for more than ten minutes among the clothes she brought with her.

At first, she wore a red dress, which Zhou Yan praised as very pretty. She also thought it was pretty, but she also thought it was too eye-catching. Then she changed into an overalls skirt. Zhou Yan thought the overalls skirt was also good, but she thought it was too plain.

The third set is black trousers and a gray shirt, which has a bit of an OL feel, but she also thinks it makes her look a bit mature.

After choosing for a long time, she finally chose the first red dress.

Seeing her choosing clothes, Zhou Yan shook his head and smiled, feeling that his new script was really well written.

……

At around three o'clock in the afternoon, Zhou Yan set off for the cultural center, while Joey Wong stayed in the hotel and waited until the concert was about to begin.

When Zhou Yan arrived at the cultural center, he found that there were still fans at the door today, and there were much more than yesterday. There were probably more than a hundred people on the scene.

The performance has begun tonight. Among the more than one hundred people, there must be some who have bought tickets to go into the concert hall to watch the performance, but they just arrived early.

The security at the center reacted quickly today. As soon as Zhou Yan arrived, seven or eight security guards surrounded him and protected him.

Not only music fans came today, but also several reporters, who arrived at the scene early.

As soon as Zhou Yan arrived, a microphone was put in front of him.

With so many people here today, Zhou Yan certainly can't sign autographs for everyone like he did yesterday.

Surrounded by security guards, he just chatted with fans, signed autographs for a few of the fans in the front, and answered some questions from reporters.

Because it was not a formal interview, Zhou Yan's attention was not focused on the reporters. If he encountered an appropriate question, he would answer it. If he encountered an inappropriate question, he would pretend not to hear it.

During this time, he also saw Charmaine Sheh. This girl was here again.

But there were a lot of people here today, so she, a little girl, couldn't squeeze to the front.

Zhou Yan didn't greet her specifically. After interacting with the fans at the scene, he entered the concert hall.

……

The concert starts at 7:10 and tickets are checked at 6:30.

But around five o'clock, a lot of people gathered in the cultural center.

Unlike ordinary concert halls, this concert hall is inside a cultural center, which is usually open, so people who come to watch the performance don’t have to wait outside the center. They can walk directly into the center and wait while touring.

There are also many rest areas in the center where they can stay.

Although there were a lot of people, order was still maintained.

Security team leader Lin Xiang stood at the door of the concert hall, holding his hands on his waist and took a long breath. Today's scene was a test for their security team.

Cultural centers often hold performances, concerts, and dance parties, so they have rich experience in dealing with such situations.

But I have to say that today was the most lively performance he had ever experienced, at least one of them.

After all, the concert hall can only accommodate 2,100 people, so under normal circumstances, even if the tickets for the performance are sold out, there won’t be many people coming to the center.

Under normal circumstances, there would be only a few people on site after five o'clock, and even at six o'clock when tickets were about to be checked, there would only be a few hundred people at most.

But today, just after five o'clock, hundreds of people arrived at the scene.

Lin Xiang knew that many of these people did not have tickets.

Today is the Piano Boys Orchestra's first performance in Hong Kong and also the first concert of the Piano Boys World Tour, so tickets are very hard to buy and were sold out shortly after they were released.

Although many people did not buy tickets, they still went to the scene, because everyone knows that Zhou Yan’s concerts have a habit, that is, after the official performance is over, there will be an additional free performance outside for the audience who did not buy tickets.

The organizers also made preparations in advance. A temporary stage with hundreds of seats has been set up at the entrance of the center.

They were destined to work overtime today. Even though there would not be many encores in the hall, it would still take a lot of time to wait for the orchestra to come out.

Moreover, the off-site performances will require more of their experience, as it will be difficult to maintain order outside. Fortunately, they are not the only ones here today, the police have also sent people to help maintain order, and they just need to assist from the side.

……

Lin Xiang knew that the most important task today was not when checking tickets or when free extra shows were added outside the venue, but when the stars arrived.

They had already received news in advance that many stars, all of them big names, would attend today's concert.

Any one of these big names appearing here would cause a sensation, but with so many showing up at once, the scene would surely be a mess.

And such a moment soon arrived.

At 5:55, the first star arrived.

The first person to arrive was Zhang Guorong.

Only insiders knew about this incident involving a celebrity, and it was not publicized.

There was no need to promote it in advance, after all, all the tickets were sold out.

So when they saw Zhang Guorong appear, the fans at the scene were surprised and happy.

In fact, many people know that Zhou Yan has a good relationship with Zhang Guorong, and they also speculate whether Zhang Guorong will be present at the scene. However, speculation is one thing, and seeing it with your own eyes is another.

After Zhang Guorong appeared, he was quickly surrounded.

He was not arrogant and greeted the audience with a smile. If someone wanted his autograph, he would sign it for them. He was in no hurry to go in.

Seeing him walking slowly, the security personnel became very anxious. They hoped that Zhang Guorong would rush into the concert hall at the speed of a 100-meter sprint so that they would not have to stand by and maintain order nervously.

With so many people gathered in the center, who knows if there will be fanatics inside? Every year, fans rush into the venue.

These fanatical fans may not necessarily cause any harm to the stars themselves, but they will put a great test on the security forces on site.

Lin Xiang and the others were also worried that before Zhang Guorong entered, another star would come...

Just when Lin Xiang was worried, cheers came from the door again. He patted his head helplessly. He knew that a star must have arrived without even looking.

Whatever you fear will come true!
Lin Xiang turned around and saw Carina Lau surrounded by a group of fans.

Fortunately, Carina Lau brought her own assistant, and the security guards at the door quickly came to her side, so the situation at the scene was not too bad.

Compared to Zhang Guorong, Carina Lau walked much faster and soon came next to Zhang Guorong, which also made Lin Xiang breathe a sigh of relief.

If every star was like Carina Lau, their jobs would be much easier.

But before he could relax, cheers were heard at the door again.

"Joey Wong!"

He heard someone calling the name of the person who came, and it was another big star.

In the next half hour, more than a dozen stars came, most of them were first-line stars, including Zhang Guorong, Wang Zuxian, Carina Lau, Lin Qingxia, Anita Mui, Zhang Xueyou, Faye Wong, Zhang Manyu, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Stephen Chow...

There are also some who are less famous, such as Zhao Wenzhuo, Luo Jiaying, etc.

In addition to actors, there are also directors, such as Chen Kexin and Tsui Hark, and musicians, such as Du Zichi.

Seeing such a dazzling lineup, many people sighed that if a red carpet was rolled out in front of the cultural center, it would be no different from the Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony.

It can even be said that today's scene is more impressive than the Academy Awards, because there are many ordinary actors and production staff participating in the Academy Awards, while today those who are less famous cannot come.

Although Zhou Yan is not active in Hong Kong, his connections in Hong Kong are beyond everyone's imagination.

However, in terms of status, these people really cannot surpass Zhou Yan, because Zhou Yan has the greatest influence internationally. His Berlin Film Festival Special Jury Award and the Oscar for Best Original Score give him a lot of points.

After entering the concert hall, these people basically go backstage to meet Zhou Yan.

The members of the Piano Youth Orchestra have become accustomed to seeing these stars. Following Zhou Yan, they have met too many big names, not only domestically but also internationally.

The others met Zhou Yan and then took their seats. They knew that Zhou Yan had to prepare for a performance and did not want to disturb him too much. However, Chen Kexin stayed and chatted with Zhou Yan for a while.

"Comrades: Almost a Love Story" will be released in November this year, and the post-production work of the film has not been completed yet. Chen Kexin is very satisfied with the soundtrack composed by Li Tao for "Comrades: Almost a Love Story", and he also praised it highly.

In addition to praising Li Tao's soundtrack, Chen Kexin also chatted with Zhou Yan about some things in Hollywood.

At first Zhou Yan thought Chen Kexin was just chatting, but as the conversation went on he discovered that Chen Kexin seemed to be very interested in Hollywood.

It is normal for Hong Kong directors to be interested in Hollywood. In recent years, there has been a trend of "developing in the United States" in Hong Kong. Both directors and actors want to develop in Hollywood.

In particular, "Broken Arrow" directed by John Woo performed well at the US box office this year, which gave Hong Kong directors hope. If John Woo can do it, then naturally they can do it too.

In addition, the appearance of Zhou Yan was also a shot in the arm, making them have great hope for the development of the matter.

Zhou Yan's movie "The Sixth Sense" did very well at the box office in the United States. After the remake, the box office was simply a miracle.

However, Chen Kexin did not express his thoughts. He just had a brief chat with Zhou Yan and then stopped talking. (End of this chapter)