Chapter 00017: Starting to Freeload
# Starting to Freeload
Chapter 17
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 17: Starting to Freeload
"I've never been to Mount Lu, but I've always yearned to go there."
"Whether it's Li Bai's poetry or Chairman Mao's 'Ascending Mount Lu,' I've had them memorized since I was a child. My parents worked at the Xinhua Bookstore, so I had access to many books. Once, I came across a 'Geographical Atlas' that introduced many of our country's famous mountains and rivers, including the stunning scenery of Mount Lu. I was mesmerized and began to imagine that such a beautiful place must have beautiful stories, like a young couple meeting on Mount Lu and falling in love at first sight... Following this inspiration, I slowly developed it into a script."
After Chen Qi finished speaking, everyone chuckled lightly.
"Young people yearning for love!"
"Indeed, it's different from our thoughts, full of romanticism."
"But it also represents some traits of contemporary youth..."
Jiang Huaiyan nodded with a smile, "Xiao Chen, I've read the letter you wrote to the China Youth Daily. You're a very thoughtful young man, and we're delighted to see new talents emerging in the film industry. You mentioned wanting to try your hand at writing, and we were quite surprised. Right after reading the newspaper, we received your submission."
"Yes, we were all startled, and then reading the script startled us again. You actually wrote a love story."
Shi Wenxin added, "You should know what it means to openly portray love in films? That's our concern. We discussed it for a long time and decided to invite you here. Since we're talking about a new era, there should be a new era's atmosphere. Since it's not present domestically, let's start with the Beijing Film Studio!"
Among the many film studios in the country, Changchun Film Studio, Beijing Film Studio, Shanghai Film Studio, and August First Film Studio are considered the four giants.
The August First Film Studio, being military-affiliated, is a different matter.
The other three are powerful, well-connected, and bold.
During the early stages of reform and opening-up, when things were still uncertain, they produced a batch of 'rebellious' films.
For example, Beijing Film Studio released 'Look at This Family' this year, which is actually a comedy—a 1979 comedy!
Next year, 'The Mysterious Buddha,' starring Liu Xiaoqing, will be released—the first commercial action film.
Also next year, 'The Second Handshake,' adapted from a banned book, will be released.
As for 'Romance on Lushan Mountain'...
A writer from Jiangxi named Bi Bicheng submitted a script to Shanghai Film Studio in July this year.
While revising the script, he used his spare time to write 'Romance on Lushan Mountain.'
The story is very simple: the daughter of a Nationalist officer returns from the United States to the mainland and falls in love at first sight with the male lead on Mount Lu.
However, due to the special era, they are forced to separate.
Five years later, after the reform and opening-up, the female lead returns to Mount Lu, and the two reignite their passion.
But the male lead's father is an officer in the Communist Party, and they had clashed on the battlefield.
The female lead thought it was over, but the male lead's father approached her and said:
'You are a good child who loves your country.
Although your father is overseas, he never forgets his homeland...
The realization of the Four Modernizations requires national unity and ethnic solidarity.
We welcome him back!'
It's very characteristic of the times.
Now it might seem awkward, but back then, it was groundbreaking.
Upon its release, it sparked a nationwide craze and became a milestone film.
One could even say that if writing about the history of Chinese cinema post-reform and opening-up, the first entry would undoubtedly be 'Romance on Lushan Mountain.'
However, Chen Qi's version deliberately omitted some content.
Thus, Jiang Huaiyan said, "We carefully reviewed the script. The strengths are the smooth writing, logical flow, and some beautifully written parts, vividly describing the scenery of Mount Lu. But the weakness is also this—you focus too much on the scenery, leading to a lack of dramatic conflict and real social life context. It feels like the scenery is there just for the sake of it."
"Our suggestion is to add some conflicts to create ups and downs in the plot, enrich the protagonists' life backgrounds, and more importantly, while you want to portray love, the ultimate focus should be on a larger theme."
"Larger theme? Love for the country?"
"Yes, something like that!"
Jiang Huaiyan grew more appreciative; the young man was quite perceptive.
Following this, other editors shared their thoughts, perhaps seeing his youth and inexperience, offering hands-on guidance.
Chen Qi knew they meant well and remained very humble.
After two hours of discussion, the meeting ended.
Liang Xiaosheng walked out with him, saying, "There are many people in the studio; take your time to get to know them. If you need anything, feel free to ask me. You don't need to rewrite the entire script; just paste the new content with glue. Once finalized, you can recopy it. We all revise this way, and in the end, the script becomes as thick as a brick. Imagine placing such a thick script in front of the leaders and saying, 'Look how many times I've revised it!' You'll score points right away!"
"Ha! Thanks for the advice!"
Chen Qi laughed, then thought for a moment and asked, "What's the fastest revision record here?"
"Twenty days! That screenwriter had family matters to attend to and had to return home. He revised the script overnight... Actually, we all know the real reason—the guesthouse conditions are good, and he came to freeload. It's nothing; we respect screenwriters and are willing to offer them this treatment."
As they spoke, they returned to the guesthouse.
Chen Qi entered his room, locked the door, and officially began his freeloading life.
Since the fastest record was twenty days, he figured he'd do about the same, then publish it in 'Film Creation' to avoid clashing with the original author.
Once the script was finalized and the production team assembled, he could continue freeloading.
After finishing 'Romance on Lushan Mountain,' he'd write another, and then another, endlessly freeloading...
Honestly, although 'Romance on Lushan Mountain' is a classic, he couldn't bear to watch it.
Some classics are products of their time.
Some classics are timeless.
For example, if he were to watch 'Shanghai Beach,' 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes (1983),' or 'Huo Yuanjia' again, he'd probably find them awkward.
But watching the CCTV versions of the Four Great Classical Novels, he could still enjoy them, even in the future, as they remain timeless.
Though the actor who played the Monkey King had questionable character, the Monkey King himself is endlessly watchable;
The Silver Horn King is adorably naive;
Daiyu and Baochai's first intimate encounter;
Lü Bu just acquired a batch of Western-style equipment, Pan Jinlian's legs are fair and long, and the Yang Simin version is even more captivating...
So why did Chen Qi still work on 'Romance on Lushan Mountain'?
Simply put, it's due to the times.
He didn't dare to test the waters of 1979 with other unproven films.
He had many ideas, but they were incompatible with the current environment, even seen as dangerous.
In an open environment, he could soar...
"Even though I'm freeloading, I should at least put on a show!"
Chen Qi opened the window, where willow branches swayed gently.
Sitting at his desk, he flipped through the script, filled with revision notes.
Following Liang Xiaosheng's advice, he fetched glue and paper, wrote a new section, and pasted it onto the script.
After pasting a few sections totaling a few hundred words, he snapped the script shut.
"OK! Today's work is done!"
(End of chapter...)