Chapter 52: Happy Qingxia

Xiao Ran was stunned—this was indeed a serious problem. Mirage had signed quite a number of male actors now, including Zhou Xingchi, Liu Hua, and other actors he had deliberately met over the past year, all of whom became Mirage’s contracted actors. Yet, there seemed to be very few female actors…
Zhong Chuhong was definitely an excellent choice, but unfortunately, she had already signed with New Art City. Zhang Aijia, a talented woman who could write, direct, and act, was even less of a possibility—she was also a priceless asset to New Art City, and borrowing her wouldn’t be an issue. To take away the director of New Art City’s Taiwan branch, Xiao Ran thought it would be no easier than bringing down New Art City itself.
Guan Zhilin, that beautiful woman with big eyes, was also a good option—her father, Guan Shan, was the first Chinese actor to achieve success overseas. Unfortunately, she was now a top priority for Golden Harvest. If he had a choice, Xiao Ran would never miss Zhang Manyu, but Golden Harvest had already signed her first. Liu Jialing also fell into Golden Harvest’s hands, which made Xiao Ran feel like vomiting blood.
At present, the only one Xiao Ran could choose from was still the free agent Wang Zuxian, or perhaps Zhang Min as well. Zheng Yuling and Mao Shunjun were still TVB actors, and if a short-term contract were needed, Xiao Ran believed that wouldn’t be a problem. However, Zheng Pei, known as the “Empress of Wuxia,” was still at Shaw Brothers, which was about to shut down, so there might be a chance to get her.
Wu Junru, the female version of Zhou Xingchi, was still free—her father, Xia Chunqiu, was a famous Hong Kong comedian and host who hosted the Hong Kong Mark Six lottery. In the future, Wu Junru would be dating a highly talented director named Chen Kexin, so Xiao Ran thought it was necessary to sign her as well.
Unfortunately, Hu Huizhong and Yang Ziqiong were both favored by Deppa, which really posed a challenge for Xiao Ran. But in terms of action actors, he still had one option—Hui Yinghong. She was a star that Shaw Brothers had supported earlier, and he remembered that she was free at that time, which made things much easier.
In two years, Li Jiaxin would win the beauty pageant, so he had to act quickly. Wu Xianlian was also another actress he couldn’t afford to give up. After reminding himself harshly like this, Xiao Ran couldn’t help but shake his head—there weren’t many truly outstanding female actors in Hong Kong’s film industry, and this was a huge problem.
He told Wei Dongling, who was waiting anxiously for a reply, all the names he could recruit. This time, Xiao Ran decided to ignore historical trends and rely on his own efforts to discover new talents. He knew very well that the shortage of actors was a serious issue in the 21st century. If he wanted to save Hong Kong cinema, he couldn’t ignore the actor problem.
After planning everything in his mind, Xiao Ran carefully instructed Wei Dongling: “Hire scouts. If there are anyone with a suitable image, male or female, as long as we sign them, they’ll receive a large reward! In my opinion, the best solution is to train our own scouts! Uh, we also need an agency!”

At this thought, Xiao Ran suddenly felt annoyed. The film industry involved so many aspects that it was truly difficult for him to take care of everything alone. Wringing his hands in frustration, he said, “The matters related to the agency department must be resolved as soon as possible. Only then can we maximize the potential of these actors’ resources!”
“And tell the scouts that we don’t just want those with good looks—we need actors with distinct personalities and characteristics,” Xiao Ran growled indignantly. “These bastards! If we don’t make it clear, they’ll only recruit guys with faces but no brains!”
Thinking about the list, Wei Dongling’s Adam’s apple moved several times as he asked strangely, “Why isn’t Lin Qingxia on this list? I assume you have no reason to forget her!”
Xiao Ran was instantly stunned. He had forgotten Lin Qingxia, someone who was particularly close to him? Such a mistake was absolutely unacceptable from any perspective. Moreover, Lin Qingxia was currently free (actually signed with a film studio; the details had been slightly altered for the plot), so there was even less reason for him to forget that.
Of course, he had no idea what his subconscious was thinking. He stood up immediately, looking up at the ceiling with determination. “I’ll go talk to her right now. You should sign the actresses on this list as soon as possible. Oh, and there’s also Liang Chaowei. I’m not sure if he’ll agree to sign, but go give it a try!”
After taking a few steps, Xiao Ran suddenly remembered something extremely important—Shadow was in urgent need of experienced producers. And coincidentally, there was a top talent emerging in the film industry: Chen Kexin, the future director of “Sweet and Sour”. Chen Kexin came from a good background; his father, Chen Tongmin, had worked in film and film magazines. Chen Kexin was able to make a name for himself in the film industry right after returning from studying in the U.S. thanks to his father’s recommendation. Currently, he was working as a producer on Cheng Long’s “Brothers in Arms”, and it was precisely because of this film that he had risen to fame. Now, before the film was released, was the perfect time to secure him.
Lin Qingxia had been quite relaxed lately, as she had temporarily declined all her current film projects to take a break. As Xiao Ran made his way there, he kept wondering if it was the right time to bring this up.
When he arrived at Lin’s house, Lin’s mother cheerfully told him that Lin Qingxia was in her room, so he went upstairs. Before reaching Lin Qingxia’s door, for some reason, his heart started pounding violently. He took two deep breaths to calm his racing heart before gently knocking on the door.
The moment he knocked, Xiao Ran suddenly regretted it. He could have just called her to discuss this—why did he have to come in person? But before he could feel much regret, Lin Qingxia’s clear yet tender voice came through: “Who is it…?”
“Sis Lin, it’s me, Aran!” Xiao Ran still felt his heart beating abnormally. He punched his left chest several times with his right fist to calm it down.

The door opened, and before Xiao Ran’s eyes appeared a perfect woman dressed in a dreamy nightgown, her expression exuding a lazy charm. With just one glance, Xiao Ran’s mind went completely blank; even the “her” he had thought about day and night seemed to pale in comparison.

Lin Qingxia then realized her own attire and blushed slightly, wanting to poke Xiao Ran’s forehead hard. But somehow, her delicate fingers merely lightly touched his forehead, resembling a playful flirtation between a man and a woman.

“I’m Xiao Ran from the 21st century—what haven’t I seen? How could I still be dazzled by a woman?” he thought angrily. Yet sometimes thoughts and consciousness don’t always align. When Xiao Ran saw Lin Qingxia’s extremely beautiful face, he felt an unusually strange sensation in his heart.

Inside the house, as Lin Qingxia put on her coat, Xiao Ran couldn’t help but admire the room. The decor gave off a refreshing vibe, with a pinkish hue in the air that always evoked strange feelings in him.

“Ah Ran, is there something? Or do you want me to take you for lunch?” Lin Qingxia asked gently, looking at him. “I remember it’s been almost a month since you last asked me!”

“Well, the company just opened, so I’m definitely busy!” Lin Qingxia put on her coat, and Xiao Ran managed to regain his composure, smiling as usual. “Besides, didn’t I come here to see Sister Lin? Let’s go out for lunch together!”

“You, with your playful smile, must have tricked so many girls! Just like that last one… Hmph!” Lin Qingxia hummed in a somewhat unfriendly tone, yet it carried its own charm. “There’s no need to go out. Let’s eat here.”

In the kitchen, upon seeing the Filipino maid, Lin Qingxia waved her away and smiled at Xiao Ran. “Do you want to try Sister’s cooking? I rarely cook for others!”

Seeing Lin Qingxia’s joyful expression, Xiao Ran knew the worries he had had all along were finally over. The entanglements between Shuang Qin and Lin were world-famous, but Lin Qingxia had suffered greatly in both relationships. Especially with Qin Han this time—although Xiao Ran didn’t know the details, he knew Lin Qingxia hadn’t taken any roles for half a year after breaking up with him. That was proof enough…
And Lin Qingxia hadn’t taken any roles recently either, which made Xiao Ran worry about something bad. Fortunately, it seemed those wounds had almost healed. Thinking of this, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He didn’t want to see the woman who was closest to him in this era suffer—not only because he respected her deeply in his dreams but also because he now regarded her as a sister, at least that’s what he thought.
At this moment, he had no reason to refuse such a wonderful thing. So, he playfully stuck out his tongue and pretended to be surprised, saying, “Sister Lin, you can actually cook? I just can’t believe it!”

“Stop trying to provoke me. Don’t you think I understand you?” Lin Qingxia gave Xiao Ran a disdainful look, seemingly seeing through his tricks. “I said I’d let you try it, so it will definitely be there. Go watch TV and wait for me!”
“I want to watch here. If it’s really that great, I’ll learn it so I can use it to tease my wife in the future!” Xiao Ran chuckled and refused to leave no matter what.
A series of sizzling sounds came from the wok. Xiao Ran quickly pulled Lin Qingxia back three feet away, afraid of being splashed by the oil. A strange glint appeared in Lin Qingxia’s eyes as she stared at Xiao Ran. But Xiao Ran, unaware of this, just kept staring at the pot and shouted, “Sis Lin, be careful! It’s not good if the oil gets on your skin!”
“Enough! Stop disturbing me here!” Lin Qingxia stared at Xiao Ran for a moment before showing a gentle smile. “Either stay here and don’t do anything!”
Xiao Ran couldn’t cook—this was a fact, and it was also a source of shame for him. It seemed he was simply not born to understand such things; even by following others’ methods, he couldn’t do it. Moreover, he seemed unlucky too—while others could add oil while cooking without any problems, he would always get splashed. No wonder Xiao Ran had been so sensitive earlier.
It didn’t take long to prepare the meal. A few simple and light dishes made by Lin Qingxia were enough. They were placed on the dining table. Lin Qingxia checked the time and realized her mother had already eaten, so she didn’t call her over and ate with Xiao Ran instead.
“Here, eat more vegetables!” Sis Lin picked up some vegetables with her chopsticks and teased him, “Maybe this will turn your skin green, so you won’t have to worry about people calling you dark!”
Xiao Ran broke into a sweat. He hadn’t expected Lin Qingxia to be so playful and sharp-tongued. Strangely, both of them ate very slowly, as if enjoying the atmosphere. But no matter how much food there was, it would eventually run out. After taking a sip of water to moisten his throat, Xiao Ran praised, “I haven’t had home-cooked food in a long time. Sis Lin, your dishes are truly rare in the world. They’re definitely the best I’ve ever eaten. I wish I could eat them every day.”
Lin Qingxia was momentarily stunned, and again, a strange glint appeared in her eyes as she looked at Xiao Ran, about to say something. Suddenly, the phone rang. After answering it, she found out it was someone looking for Xiao Ran. She wondered who could be calling here for him. As soon as Xiao Ran heard the phone, he jumped in surprise. “Oh no! I still have to go to class!”
*****
Novel name — Zeng Zhiwei
Real name — Tseng Chi-wai
Occupation: Film company owner, director, producer, actor
Tseng Chi-wai joined after the establishment of New Art City. He was an extremely remarkable person—having played football, worked as a martial artist, done background roles, worked as a producer, and also as a director. In the 1990s, he co-founded the famous UFO Film Company with Chen Kaixin and others. In the 21st century, Tseng Chi-wai worked even harder to help promote new talents. He was considered a decent person with excellent popularity in the industry.
Acting works: “A Double Life,” “Fortune Star” series
Directing works: “The Five Tigers: Separation”