1990: Starting from Baojia Street

The school also wanted to hold a donation certificate awarding ceremony for Joey Wong, but she declined.

For this reason, Wang Ci Zhao called Zhou Yan again, hoping that Zhou Yan could talk to Joey Wong. Zhou Yan helped Joey Wong to refuse again.

Joey Wong had a hard time coming to Yanjing, so how could she have the time to attend any ceremony?

The weather forecast was very accurate. It started snowing in the evening of the 14th.

On the morning of the 15th, Joey Wong got up very early and excitedly made a snowman in the yard.

When Zhou Yan got up, her snowman was almost finished.

She made a very realistic snowman. Not only did she give it eyes and a nose, but she also gave it a hat and a scarf.

After she built the snowman, she wanted to go out for a snowball fight, but after walking around the door, she didn't see anyone playing snowball fights, so she went home disappointed.

"It's snowing so hard, and no one is going out to play snowballs? I thought there would be a group of kids playing snowballs in the alley."

She got up early in the morning just to go out and see if there were any kids playing snowball fights and see if she could join in on the action.

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Today is the middle of the week. The older children have gone to school, and the younger children probably haven't gotten up yet. It's so cold, who wouldn't want to sleep a little longer? The snow isn't going away, and there should be people having snowball fights in the alley after school tonight."

"Then I'll go out at night." She was still unwilling to give up and wanted to have a snowball fight with others.

After running around outside and returning to the house, Wang Zuxian felt extremely hot. While taking off her clothes, she asked Zhou Yan, "Do you have work today?"

"I'm not working today. I'm going to Sister Feng's house to eat hotpot."

"Ms. Xu? She came to Yanjing?" Joey Wong asked in surprise.

"Well, when you were out just now, she called me and said she had already arrived in Yanjing and asked me to go to her place and treat me to hot pot."

"I am coming too?"

"Go ahead. She knows you are in Yanjing and asked me to inform you."

"Well, is her residence far from here?"

"Not far." Zhou Yan pointed to the southwest. "She has a courtyard house near Changchun Temple. If the weather is good, it will only take about ten minutes to ride there by bike."

Xu Feng bought that courtyard house a long time ago. When they first met, Zhou Yan took his younger brothers and sisters there. Although it was not big, it was well decorated.

"Do you want to bring some gifts?" asked Joey Wong.

"Forget about the gifts. She doesn't live here often, and it would be hard for her to handle them if I brought them to her. I asked her if she wanted to bring meat, and she said she had already prepared it."

"okay."

……

At ten o'clock, the two packed up and set off for Xu Feng's courtyard house.

Xu Feng was cutting meat when he came out in an apron to open the door for them.

"Come in, it's cold outside."

After inviting them into the house, Xu Feng smiled and said, "Don't be polite when you come to my place. Pour your own tea. I don't live very much here, and the tea leaves are what I brought from Shanghai. You can just drink whatever you want. The red teapot on the table is filled with hot water that I just boiled."

"Sister Feng, don't worry about drinking water. We can solve it ourselves. Didn't we say we were going to have hot pot? What are you busy with?"

"Don't you want to cut the meat?"

“Just ask the enthusiastic stall owner to help cut it.”

"That's so boring. When eating hot pot at home, you want to feel like you're doing it yourself. Please take a seat. There's still some meat to be cut."

Her kitchen is right next to the tea room, but it is definitely not used very often. The last time Zhou Yan and the others came, Xu Feng also ordered food from outside.

Zhou Yan stood at the kitchen door and asked, "Why did you think of eating hot pot at home?"

"It was just a sudden idea. I was originally planning to take you out to eat tonight, but I suddenly wanted to eat shabu-shabu last night, so I went to buy meat this morning."

"Is there anyone else today?"

"And Director Han."

"Oh, Third Brother is here too."

"The movie is about to be released, and he's been quite busy lately. I wanted to invite more people, including the actors in Yanjing, but after thinking about it, I decided not to. Let's wait until more people gather for the premiere." She then looked at Joey Wong, "Xiaoxian, why did you come so early this time?"

Wang Zuxian smiled and said, "I haven't had anything to do recently. I heard it was going to snow, so I came here early."

"Are you worried that the snow will get heavy and delay your trip?"

"That's not the case. I just want to see the snow."

Xu Feng nodded. "Yes, we do not have much snow in Taiwan, let alone heavy snow like this. I was also very excited when I first encountered snow in Yanjing. The snow here is completely different from ours."

"Yeah, the snow over there melts as soon as it touches clothes. Unlike here, it doesn't even feel like snow. It feels like salt."

"You'll get used to it if you come here more often. I'm not as excited as I was back then when I see snow. I heard that you donated a piano to the Central Conservatory of Music. That's quite generous. Did Zhou Yan do some work for you?"

Wang Zuxian glanced at Zhou Yan and nodded, "Yes, I just heard him say that many pianos in the Central Conservatory of Music were no longer in good condition, so I donated some. The director has already asked me to do so, so I must have some foresight, otherwise the director will not ask me to act in a movie in the future."

"He himself doesn't donate, so he asks you to donate."

Zhou Yan said with a smile, "Sister Feng, our school has hundreds of pianos, most of which are no longer usable. The twenty pianos she donated this time are just a drop in the bucket. How about you donate some too?"

Xu Feng said generously, "Okay, Director Zhou, how many do you think would be a good donation?"

"Don't donate too much, I think a hundred or so will be enough."

Xu Feng rolled his eyes and said, "How dare you ask that? You might as well let me take over all the pianos in your school."

“That’ll have to be doubled.”

Xu Feng had just finished cutting the last piece of meat. She washed her hands and said, "Since you've asked me to do so, I can't leave it unanswered. How about this? My donation won't be in vain. For every extra 5 million yuan in the box office of Time Traveler, I'll donate a piano."

"RMB?"

"Well, RMB."

"Worldwide box office?"

"No, that won't work. It's just the box office in mainland China." Zhou Yan said with a smile, "Sister Feng, you are a bit stingy. Even if the box office is 50 million, it's only ten pianos, only half of what Xiaoxian donated. It doesn't matter to me, but it's mainly because you have no place to put your face. You are a film and television legend, and a famous female entrepreneur. This is not a loss of face."

"Don't push me up, I'll give in, three million a pop."

"One million, that's easier to calculate."

"Two million."

"Okay, deal." Zhou Yan said immediately.

If the box office of "Time Traveler" is about 40 or 50 million, Xu Feng will also donate more than 20 pianos. Together with the 20 pianos donated by Joey Wong, it can be said that this is a huge upgrade for the piano room of CAFM.

Not all of the hundreds of pianos in the Central Conservatory of Music are unusable. There are less than a hundred that are particularly bad. If these are replaced, the students' experience will be much better.

This money is nothing to Xu Feng. She wishes the box office could reach 100 million. She would donate 50 pianos without blinking an eye.

Fifty pianos only cost a little over 500,000 yuan, which is not worth mentioning if not a drop in the bucket compared to the profit of 100 million box office.

After Xu Feng washed his hands, he walked to the sofa with a cup of tea and sat down. He smiled and asked Wang Zuxian, "Xiaoxian, do you have a new job recently?"

Wang Zuxian shook her head, "No, I just want to take a rest recently."

"You've had quite a long break in the past two years."

"I didn't feel anything when I was working a lot before, but now that I've stopped, I've become lazy and don't want to work anymore. Besides, my parents are getting older, and I want to spend more time with them."

"Well, your idea is right." Xu Feng looked at Zhou Yan again, "You have to learn this point well. I am afraid of your current work intensity. You are even busier than my husband."

Xu Feng has always told Zhou Yan not to work too hard, but Zhou Yan didn't listen and has never stopped working over the years.

Now Xu Feng seldom says this to Zhou Yan, because she thinks Zhou Yan seems to be able to handle the work.

As for personal issues...Xu Feng looked around at Zhou Yan and Joey Wong, and she guessed that something must be going on between them.

The look in Joey Wong’s eyes when she looked at Zhou Yan could not be hidden at all.

In fact, Xu Feng felt a little regretful. She had a good personal relationship with Dong Wenmiao, and she had always thought that Zhou Yan and Dong Wenmiao were a good match, but the two did not seem to have any fate.

Based on her understanding of Dong Wenmiao, Dong Wenmiao must have feelings for Zhou Yan. When they met at Yanjing Film Studio, Dong Wenmiao took the initiative to speak for Zhou Yan.

Dong Wenmiao is such a proud girl. She can take the initiative to speak for a man. The situation must be unusual.

If Zhou Yan and Joey Wong were together, she would naturally support it. The two have known each other for so many years and should be very compatible.

And now Joey Wong is slowly putting her work aside, which shows that there is long-term potential for the two of them.

If Joey Wong continued to act in several movies a year like before, it would be difficult for the two of them to stay together for long.

Although Xu Feng is an independent woman, she is very clear that if two people form a family and are busy with their own affairs, their relationship will have problems over time.

One person has to make the adjustment, or two people have to make the adjustment together.

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I have been taking a break recently. After finishing the post-production of Time Traveler, I feel a lot more relaxed. I feel a little free during this period."

Xu Feng rolled his eyes. "You think your life is idle, but others may think it is crazy busy. I guess in your eyes, as long as you don't have to work until midnight, you are idle."

"It's not that exaggerated. Didn't I come to your place to eat hotpot today? If you didn't call me, I would just be reading a book at home today."

"Really? I heard that you were writing a script for a stage play recently."

"Well, I plan to write for a while in the afternoon."

"Look, you still can't rest."

In fact, Zhou Yan not only had to write the script for "The Greatest Showman", but also had to communicate with Alan Kleeman about the soundtrack for "The Winter Visitor".

Zhou Yan had previously promised Alan Kleeman that he would compose the soundtrack for his new film "Winter Visitors", and the film is about to start shooting.

Although the job is not big, Zhou Yan still has to put in some effort. The key is that it is too far away, so it is not very convenient to do the work.

Originally Zhou Yan was planning to go to the UK at the end of the year, but now it seems that the plan may have to be postponed.

Fortunately, Alan Kleeman is not in a hurry, so it doesn’t matter if Zhou Yan intervenes later.

……

It was not until half past eleven that Han Sanping finally arrived.

Han Sanping apologized as soon as he arrived, "I'm really sorry, there are still some things to do in the factory, and I kept you waiting for a long time."

"It's not late, it's not late. It's not time for dinner yet. You've come at the right time. Let's start cooking the hot pot." Xu Feng said.

Xu Feng got a copper pot, but the soup base was more like Chaoshan beef shabu-shabu. He only poured mineral water into the pot, put a few slices of ginger, and some wolfberries.

As for the dipping sauce, I went back to Yanjing Shabu-shabu, prepared some sesame paste, and also made some chili oil.

"Whatever dipping sauce you want, just choose it." Xu Feng took out the sauce and a bottle of Wuliangye and a decanter filled with red wine. "Director Han, although you have to work in the afternoon, this is a rare opportunity. Let's have two drinks at noon. You two men will drink white wine, and we two ladies will drink red wine."

Han Sanping did not refuse and nodded directly, "Okay, this is a rare opportunity, let's have a drink at noon. But I have promised that we must have a celebratory drink later."

"Of course, we weren't the only ones drinking the celebratory wine. When you weren't here just now, Zhou Yan coaxed me, saying that for every two million extra in the box office, I would donate a piano to the Central Conservatory of Music."

Han Sanping laughed, "Third brother is different now that he is the director. He has started to solicit sponsorship for the school. According to you, how many pianos can be donated this time?"

"No one can predict the box office. If the movie is well made and promoted, the rest is up to fate. "Time Traveler" is definitely a good movie, but a good movie may not necessarily get a high box office."

Xu Feng is confident about the box office of "Time Traveler", but she cannot be so sure in front of Han Sanping.

If something unexpected happens and the box office does not meet expectations, Han Sanping will also be disappointed.

Han Sanping certainly knew Xu Feng's concerns, and he said with a smile, "Boss Xu, you don't have to be so conservative in front of me. I personally think that this movie should have a box office of 35 million, and as long as it reaches this box office, I will be very satisfied."

The box office of 35 million is not particularly high, but it is not low either. It is reasonable for Han Sanping to set the target at this number.

Last year, there were nine films with domestic box office revenue exceeding 51000 million yuan, four of which were directed by Chinese directors, namely "The Chorus" with 5000 million yuan, "Sunny Days" with 4000 million yuan, "Red Powder" with 4000 million yuan, and "Red Cherry" with million yuan.

So far this year, the only Chinese films with box office revenue exceeding 3500 million are "Simple Mission" and "Kong Fansen", and "Kong Fansen" is the only one produced in mainland China.

So, the number 35 million is very interesting. It is very high, but the probability of Zhou Yan achieving it is also very high. After all, Zhou Yan has achieved this goal more than once. (End of this chapter)