Chapter 00268: Teacher Li
# Teacher Li
Chapter 268
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 268: Teacher Li
This year's Spring Festival holiday lasted three days.
*Justice Bao* finished its first run on the third day of the new year and immediately began rebroadcasting, yet it remained immensely popular.
With ten million television sets now in households, the show had made a significant impact—though unfortunately, there were no viewership statistics at the time.
Still, it left a deep impression on certain groups, especially those working in the television industry.
Last year’s *Eighteen Years in the Enemy Camp* had been too traditional, but *Justice Bao* truly stood out—it was inherently commercial, packed with elements that delighted audiences.
Oh, so this is how TV dramas can be made! So this is how historical figures can be written!
It broadened everyone’s horizons.
......
Back then, the Spring Festival atmosphere lingered much longer than in later years, where the festive feeling vanished right after New Year’s Eve.
On the morning of the seventh day of the new year, the air in Beijing still carried the strong scent of sulfur, and the streets remained adorned with celebratory red decorations that wouldn’t be taken down until after the Lantern Festival.
*Beep beep!*
A bus pulled up to the stop, and Li Jianqun, carrying a large bag, struggled to board.
Leaning against a handrail, she tugged down the scarf covering her face to catch her breath and fumbled in her pocket for her wallet—only to be startled by a sudden exclamation:
"Qin Xianglian!"
"You’re Qin Xianglian, aren’t you?"
A plump, middle-aged woman who looked every bit like a government official strode over, scrutinizing her from head to toe in an instant before declaring confidently, "It’s definitely you! No doubt about it!"
"Uh... yes, I played Qin Xianglian."
"Oh my, I knew it! Come, come, there’s a seat in the back... No need, no need—I’ll buy your ticket. You’ve got so much to carry, it must be tough."
The woman insisted on paying for her ticket and enthusiastically pulled her to a seat.
The entire bus watched, some murmuring among themselves—some had seen the show, others hadn’t.
"Great..."
Li Jianqun twitched her lips.
Her days of anonymity were over.
She had already experienced this once while celebrating the New Year in Wuhan.
Her family didn’t own a TV, but a neighbor did—and the place had been packed! It felt like the whole street had crowded into that house, gawking at her as if she were some kind of circus attraction.
"I chose to act—guess I’ll just have to deal with it."
Her attitude was fine, really—she just didn’t enjoy socializing with strangers.
But now, she had no choice.
"You poor thing! A widow raising two children all alone—what was so great about that Chen Shimei? A spineless social climber, that’s what he was! You should’ve just exposed him right away! How could you still care about him? Women hold up half the sky—haven’t you heard that saying?"
"Well, Qin Xianglian hadn’t heard it!"
The woman didn’t care what Li Jianqun said—she just kept venting, rambling on and on before finally concluding, "Look at you, born to be bullied! If anyone dares to pull a Chen Shimei on you, just speak up—the people will stand up for you!"
"That’s right! We’ll stand up for you!"
"Chen Shimei deserved to be executed!"
*Heh.*
Li Jianqun maintained a polite smile.
It wasn’t that she looked down on them—she just genuinely had nothing in common with these people.
Enduring the entire ride, she jumped off the bus before her actual stop.
She was actually sweating.
Wiping her brow, she exhaled.
"So this is what fame feels like? Not great, huh."
She walked a long distance before finally arriving at Lechun Alley.
Everything was just as she remembered.
The gate was half-open, and Dai Hanhan, broom in hand, was sweeping snow from the entrance.
She ran over to greet her:
"Teacher Li! Happy New Year!"
"Happy New Year to you too!"
"Wow, you’re a big star now—no, wait, a TV star! The newspapers wrote about you! Maybe reporters will come knocking!"
"If they do, block them for me!"
Li Jianqun waved her off and entered the courtyard, spotting Ji Chunhua next.
After exchanging New Year’s greetings, she asked, "Has Teacher Chen returned?"
"He’s inside discussing something. Director Yang Jie is here."
"Oh?"
She went inside, set down her things, shed her heavy winter coat, and wrapped herself in a blanket, instantly transforming into a bohemian.
Only then did she start tidying up.
Meanwhile, in the main room...
Chen Qi, looking surprised, shook hands with a familiar face and grinned.
"How’d you end up in Director Yang’s team? Weren’t you in a training class?"
"That class ended last year! When I heard *Journey to the West* was being filmed, I auditioned for Tang Sanzang. Director Yang didn’t pick me, but she kept me on as a production assistant. Never thought I’d see you again—what a coincidence!"
This was none other than Li Chengru.
They had met once before at the Beijing Film Academy, where Chen Qi had chosen Zhang Guangbei for *Justice Bao* instead of him.
Li Chengru was technically employed by Jingshan Garment Factory, but he hardly ever showed up for work, instead drifting around aimlessly.
He had joined *Journey to the West* as a production assistant, sticking with it from start to finish, hoping to secure a position at CCTV.
But when the show wrapped without that happening, he angrily turned to business instead.
After exchanging pleasantries, Yang Jie spoke up:
"Our leadership asked me to check—are you still interested in writing *Justice Bao* scripts? They want to film more."
"Would you be directing?"
"No, I don’t have the time!"
"Then I won’t write it. I don’t have time either."
"Alright, I’ll let them know."
Yang Jie smiled and continued, "I watched *Journey to the West* twice over the New Year and immediately started assembling a team. Right now, we have six people—me, Wang Chongqiu, Li Chengru, an art director, a lighting technician, and a script supervisor. In a few days, we’ll scout locations across the country. Once we’re back, we’ll start filming."
"You’re not doing intensive training?"
"What’s there to train for in *Journey to the West*? How to play demons and monsters? Nobody’s done that before! I’ll just hire opera actors—they’ve got the basics down. I’m not like Wang Fulin. He’d never even read *Dream of the Red Chamber* and insisted on a full year of dedicated study before filming. Good grief..."
Yang Jie still couldn’t let go of *Dream of the Red Chamber*, then added, "I’ve contacted two screenwriters, but that’s unrelated to you. Just write as you always do and hand it over when it’s done. Today, I’m here to borrow two people from you."
"First, Li Jianqun. Her historical costumes are stunning—I absolutely must borrow her for more filming. She’s yours now, right?"
"She’s with my company, not *mine*!"
"Same difference! Second, Gong Xue. I’d like her to join."
"She’s with Beijing Film Studio—why ask me?"
"..."
Yang Jie gave him a sidelong glance, her expression clearly saying, *You know why.*
Chen Qi could only nod.
"Fine, I’ll talk to her. Actually, why not this—I have a small team that could help out. Like Ji Chunhua—he knows martial arts and wirework. And Li Jianqun—don’t just treat her as an actress. She’s an art director. Let her handle costume design for a few episodes. *Journey to the West* is set in the Tang Dynasty, right? If you’re depicting Tang customs, she’d be perfect..."
He wanted his team to gain more experience, but his own projects were limited each year. *Journey to the West* was an excellent training ground—a golden opportunity.
Yang Jie thought it over and agreed verbally, knowing his people were all highly capable.
Just then, the cotton door curtain was pushed aside, and Li Jianqun walked in, wrapped snugly in her blanket, completely at ease.
"Haha!"
Yang Jie couldn’t help but laugh.
"Why are you dressed like that? You never looked like this on my set."
"With you, it’s work—you’d scold me. Here, it’s different. What were you discussing?"
"Actually, we were just talking about you. Want to act in *Journey to the West*?" Chen Qi grinned.
"Huh?"
......
This year’s Spring Festival was especially lively.
While Chen Qi was busy with various matters, things were even more chaotic in Hong Kong—because the battle for the Lunar New Year box office had already reached its climax.
(End of Chapter)