Zhang Zenghua was only forty-eight years old, but years of rushing about and socializing had already turned his temples somewhat gray.
"Tiancheng, when did you get back?"
Zhang Zenghua had always felt a deep sense of guilt toward Zhang Tiancheng, and his tone of voice was exceptionally gentle whenever he spoke to him.
"Dad, I've only been back for a few days."
Zhang Zenghua gave a dry laugh, then didn't quite know what to say next. They spent so little time together that they simply lacked common topics of conversation.
Sensing his father's awkwardness, Zhang Tiancheng took the initiative to start a conversation.
"Dad, how is the company doing lately?"
A smile immediately bloomed on Zhang Zenghua's face. "Not bad at all. Domestic apparel is extremely competitive internationally right now. On this trip to South Korea, I managed to secure two clothing orders worth fifty million each."
"Two deals of that scale? The company must be expanding its production capacity."
"Right, I've already arranged to expand our production lines. The new lines will go into operation after the Lunar New Year."
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After a brief casual chat, Zhang Tiancheng brought up the real purpose of his visit.
"Dad, I've applied for an extended leave of absence for next semester."
Zhang Zenghua froze for a moment, then immediately asked with concern, "Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"
"No. Next semester's courses are all unimportant, so I figured I'd use the time to shoot a movie and gain some practical experience."
Zhang Zenghua breathed a sigh of relief. As long as it wasn't a health issue, everything else was a trivial matter.
"I support you making a movie. How much is the investment? I'll cover it."
"I'm planning to shoot it in Hong Kong, and I'm not sure how much it will take yet. Dad, why don't you give me three million first? If it's not enough, I'll ask you for more."
Although Zhang Zenghua thought three million was a bit steep—enough to add an entirely new production line—this was the first time in years that Zhang Tiancheng had actually asked him for money. After pondering for two seconds, Zhang Zenghua agreed.
"I'll wire the money to your card tomorrow."
With that settled, Zhang Zenghua recalled what Zhang Tiancheng had just mentioned and hurriedly advised, "Tiancheng, don't go thinking that place is completely safe just because it was returned. Privately, it's still quite chaotic over there. Why don't you skip shooting in Hong Kong and do it in the Mainland instead? Pengcheng would be best. Whatever locations you need, I'll go find them for you."
"Dad, you don't need to worry. Uncle knows quite a few people in Hong Kong. With his help, nothing will go wrong."
"Him?" Zhang Zenghua said with utter disdain. "He's just a hired hand, and the people he knows are just hired hands too. What kind of pull could he possibly have?"
Zhang Tiancheng felt a headache coming on. To him, his old man was a decent enough father, but in the eyes of their relatives, the man was driven solely by profit and recognized only money.
Even though Uncle Zhang Kailin had risen to become a vice general manager at Edko Films, in Zhang Zenghua's eyes, he was nothing more than a poor laborer. He had always looked down on Zhang Kailin, convinced that his sister had been swindled into marrying him.
"Dad, the company Uncle works for, Edko Films, holds massive influence in Hong Kong. The boss, William Kong, is an entertainment tycoon. You can rest easy—with Uncle helping out, nothing will go wrong."
Zhang Zenghua's eyes lit up. "Wouldn't it be even better to go straight to William Kong himself? I know plenty of friends who run companies, and they frequently collaborate with the Hong Kong side. Friend helping friend, through a few connections, I'm sure we can establish ties with William Kong. A meal, a few drinks, and everyone becomes fast friends. Asking him to look after you in Hong Kong will be an absolute breeze."
Zhang Tiancheng sighed helplessly. "Dad, if you do that, where does that leave Uncle? Your own nephew comes over and instead of seeking him out first, goes straight to his boss—you'd make Uncle lose all face."
Zhang Zenghua curled his lip dismissively. "What face does he have? He's just a wage laborer."
Feeling utterly helpless and realizing persuasion was useless, Zhang Tiancheng deepened his voice and said firmly, "Dad, we're doing this my way."
Confronted with Zhang Tiancheng's firmness, Zhang Zenghua didn't dare say another word.
"Fine, we'll do it your way. But I must get you a few bodyguards, otherwise I won't have peace of mind, and neither will your mother."
Zhang Tiancheng had no objections to such a minor detail.
"Dad, just handle the arrangements as you see fit."
"Oh, right, Dad. You'll need to call my teacher and explain the situation so he knows my extended leave isn't some trick."
"Alright, I'll call him right now."
Zhang Zenghua pulled out his cell phone to call Li Changxiong. Glancing at the time and seeing it was nearly seven o'clock, Zhang Tiancheng got up and headed to the kitchen to cook.
The next morning, Zhang Zenghua wired the money directly to Zhang Tiancheng's card. With the funds in hand, Zhang Tiancheng went off to register a film company, using his home address as the registered location.
This film company was merely established for the convenience of the upcoming shoot; Zhang Tiancheng had no grand ambitions for its development. It was nothing more than an empty shell.
A few days later, a little past ten in the morning, Zhang Tiancheng received a call from his mother, Li Yiling, and hailed a cab to her residence.
Li Yiling didn't live in a detached villa; instead, she resided in an upscale apartment complex.
"Mom."
Li Yiling was forty-six years old. In her youth, she had been striking and gorgeous, and Zhang Tiancheng had inherited her looks.
However, she had put on a lot of weight over the years, and as the saying goes, a bit of fat ruins everything, making her look quite ordinary now.
Her personality was domineering, bordering on aggressive.
Sometimes Zhang Tiancheng even wondered how his parents had ever ended up together in the first place—one driven entirely by profit, the other sharp-tongued and overbearing. No matter how he looked at it, they seemed destined to quarrel over minor trifles every three days and major blowouts every five. How on earth had they ever tied the knot?
Upon seeing Zhang Tiancheng, Li Yiling's eyes lit up first, before her tongue immediately launched into a stream of sharp remarks.
"Son, why have you gotten so thin? Did that bastard fail to give you money and leave you starving?"
Zhang Tiancheng sighed inwardly. "Mom, I haven't lost weight. I weighed myself a few days ago, and I'm still at a hundred and fifty."
Li Yiling paused, looked Zhang Tiancheng up and down, and muttered suspiciously, "How come you still look like you've lost weight?"
"Mom, I really haven't."
Eager to drop the subject, Zhang Tiancheng quickly changed the topic.
"Mom, how is your company doing lately?"
"How could it be anything less than fantastic? On this trip to Japan, Mom managed to connect with a major trading conglomerate there. From now on, all the cargo they ship into the country will come through me."
Li Yiling possessed a fierce entrepreneurial drive, and her face glowed with radiant excitement whenever she spoke of her business.
After a few minutes of idle chatter, Li Yiling brought up Zeng Li.
"Son, you mentioned to me last time that you've got a girlfriend. How are things going now?"
"We're still going strong."
"She's in your same year, right?"
"Mhm, she's a junior too."
"Do you like her?"
Seeing the solemn expression on Li Yiling's face, Zhang Tiancheng was slightly taken aback.
"Mom, why are you asking that?"
"Never mind why Mom is asking. Just answer me—do you like her?"
"I do."
"Good. Then you tell her that you two are getting married right after graduation."
"Ah!"
Zhang Tiancheng was utterly stunned. "Mom, getting married right after graduation? Isn't that way too early?"
"Not early at all. You started school late, so you'll be twenty-four by the time you graduate. What's late about getting married at twenty-four?
Besides, you said she's a performance major. Once someone who studies acting graduates, they'll have to go everywhere to shoot movies. They say when a man meets too many women, his heart easily wanders, and the same goes for women. If she goes off to shoot films, you obviously can't follow her around everywhere. With the two of you so far apart, problems in the relationship are bound to crop up. Even if her heart doesn't wander, acting requires getting all lovey-dovey with male actors. You might be able to stomach that, Son, but Mom certainly can't.
Get married right after graduation, and Mom will bring her into the business. When Mom gets old later on, the company will be handed over to her. That arrangement is best for both you and her."
Zhang Tiancheng fell silent. He had initially pursued Zeng Li purely out of attraction to her looks, so he hadn't thought that far ahead.
Later on, however, he *had* considered this very issue: would Zeng Li's feelings change, and could he endure seeing her acting all affectionate with male actors on the silver screen?
He had pondered this question for a long time. Eventually, he concluded that whether Zeng Li's feelings changed or not was her own choice; if she truly wanted to change her mind, no amount of obstruction on his part could stop her—he couldn't very well lock Zeng Li in a cage.
As for the prospect of her being lovey-dovey with male actors on screen, he couldn't stand the thought. He was a normal man with a possessive streak when it came to someone he cared about; the idea of Zeng Li acting intimately with other men on the big screen was intolerable to him.
Yet, this wasn't something he could easily bring up to Zeng Li. He couldn't very well tell her to stop acting!
Noticing Zhang Tiancheng's dejected expression, Li Yiling's heart instantly softened.
"Alright, Son, let's drop the subject. When does your semester start?"
"I've taken an extended leave of absence for next semester, and I'm planning to shoot a movie."
In Li Yiling's eyes, everything Zhang Tiancheng did was right. The fact that he was going to direct a movie before even graduating didn't worry her in the least; instead, her eyes lit up with proud delight as she lavished him with praise.
"My son really has amounted to something! Going to become a director before even graduating. Tell Mom, how much money do you need for the movie? Mom will cover all of it."
Zhang Tiancheng's bright eyes rolled around mischievously, and he smiled. "Mom, Dad already transferred the money to me a few days ago. It's enough to make the film."
Li Yiling's eyes widened in indignation. "How much did that bastard give you?"
"Three million."
Without a second thought, Li Yiling declared, "Mom will give you four million. If this movie doesn't use it all, keep it for the next one—in any case, Mom won't be outdone by that bastard."
Earlier, Zhang Tiancheng had been worried that three million might not be enough, but with another four million dropping into his lap, it would undoubtedly be more than enough.
True to her impulsive nature, Li Yiling took Zhang Tiancheng out to lunch and then dragged him straight to the bank to transfer the funds.
Just a few days after Li Yiling returned, the Lunar New Year arrived.
Neither Zhang Tiancheng nor Li Yiling were natives of Pengcheng; both hailed from Hunan, having migrated to Pengcheng to make their livings fifteen years ago.
They had no relatives in Pengcheng, and back in Hunan, there were only distant kin. There was no need to make the trip back for the New Year—a simple phone call to exchange holiday greetings sufficed.
Their only close relative, Aunt Zhang Wenli, remained in Hong Kong.
Though he didn't need to go out visiting relatives for the New Year, Zhang Tiancheng wasn't left idle. One day was spent keeping Zhang Zenghua company, the next with Li Yiling, alongside lengthy phone chats with Zeng Li and squeezing in practice for his Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
By the eighth day of the first lunar month, the festive atmosphere of the New Year was gradually fading. Li Yiling and Zhang Zenghua dove back into their busy schedules, leaving Zhang Tiancheng with some free time at last.
A few days later, on February 20th, Zhang Tiancheng set off for the Lo Wu Control Point accompanied by the four bodyguards Zhang Zenghua had arranged for him.
Crossing the border into Hong Kong, Zhang Tiancheng spotted his aunt, Zhang Wenli, running excitedly toward him.