Shi Yi couldn’t help but wonder if she and Teacher Chen had some kind of history together.
Teacher Chen’s attitude towards her was truly too intimate; the way she looked at her was like looking at her own niece. She could feel Teacher Chen’s genuine sincerity, and almost thought she really did have such an Auntie.
Shi Yi asked this question openly and generously.
Teacher Chen Hongmei pulled her along to eat, giving her a teasing glare. “Is it a crime that we just hit it off?” She placed her scalding hot phone on the table and deliberately said, “I liked you the moment I saw you. If it wasn’t for the fact that I don’t have a son, I would have wanted you to be my daughter-in-law.”
Shi Yi’s eyes curved into a smile.
She thought Teacher Chen was joking.
The person on the other end of the phone: …??? 1 —
Teacher Chen and Shi Yi got along very happily.
As a teacher, her favorite kind of child was one who was obedient and perceptive. You give her a single pointer, and she immediately understands, summarizes, reflects, and comes up with her own insights and comprehension. Shi Yi was exactly this kind of person.
After teaching for a while, Teacher Chen was genuinely getting into it. The more she taught, the more addicted she became, wishing she could teach her absolutely everything.
Director Lu kept a straight face, “The soup is going to get cold.”
Chen Hongmei waved her hand, “What soup? I just drank a coconut when we got back.”
Director Lu: “…” “Well, if you aren’t going to drink it, little Yi still needs to drink.”
Chen Hongmei finally stopped and looked at Shi Yi. “That’s true. Little Yi, you eat first. We’ll continue after we finish eating.”
Shi Yi stood up and served Teacher Chen a bowl, smiling, “Together, Auntie should drink some too.”
“Alright, alright, alright, together.”
After the two finished eating, Teacher Chen set down her bowl and wanted to pull Shi Yi out for a stroll. “As screenwriters, we need to pay more attention to the details in life and carefully observe scenes.” “Many things in life can be used…”
Director Lu put down his bowl, “I’ll be done in a second.” Teacher Chen Hongmei didn’t look at him. “You don’t need to follow us. We’re just going out for a stroll.”
Director Lu: ??? He put down his bowl and silently followed them, thinking to himself: You don’t even know English, would it be okay if I didn’t tag along?
The three walked out, one after another.
Teacher Chen Hongmei broke it down for Shi Yi bit by bit. “A screenwriter must tell a story visually. When you write a novel, you can use words to describe it; you can directly write that so-and-so is a liar. But a screenwriter can’t. A screenwriter can only display a scene. You have to use your scene to let the audience understand what story you’re telling.”
“For example, if the protagonist is extremely heartbroken. In a novel, you write ‘so-and-so was heartbroken’, and those few words can describe it perfectly. In a script, you have to transform the word ‘heartbroken’ into a visual scene.” “You can’t just slap a few words above the female lead’s head saying she’s currently heartbroken, right?”
Shi Yi immediately thought of a TV drama she had watched. A misunderstanding occurred between the male and female leads, and the female lead was sitting alone in her room copying a book. An empty room, a dim, yellowish sky, trembling hands, and a tear stain that finally fell onto the paper. These were all scenes.
Chen Hongmei patted her hand in relief. “Exactly, you’re absolutely right.”
She wanted her to observe scenes in life more, just to let her know what many people in reality look like when they’re sad, or what scenes play out when they’re happy. These might all come in handy.
The two walked along the asphalt road towards the small hill behind the hotel. Tall trees were planted on both sides of the road, and reddish leaves fell to the ground, forming a thick red carpet that crunched as they stepped on it.
Teacher Chen talked eloquently as they walked. Her reputation in the screenwriting world was clearly well-deserved. When she spoke about the key points, she made the complex seem simple and easy to understand. With just a few words, she taught Shi Yi a lot.
Seeing Shi Yi deep in thought, a smile appeared in Chen Hongmei’s eyes. “Don’t worry too much about it. I think the script you wrote is very good.” Shi Yi spoke honestly, “There’s still a lot I need to learn.”
Chen Hongmei patted the hand linked with hers, liking her even more. “Let me tell you two more areas where novice screenwriters often misunderstand.”
“Please do.”
“First, you don’t need to pay too much attention to camera angles. We are screenwriters; we only need to describe the content within the scene. Exactly how to shoot it and how to realize it is a problem for the cinematographer and the director.” “You did this very well in your script.”
Shi Yi: The main thing was she didn’t know what a filming set looked like before, so she couldn’t write it even if she wanted to.
“Second, you don’t need to overly detail things. Like what clothes the male and female protagonists are wearing, or if there are patterns on the clothes—you don’t need to write these too specifically. It’s not that you’re not allowed to, but it’s unnecessary. There is a dedicated costume and makeup team responsible for the attire. A screenwriter’s pen should be concise, trying to ensure that every scene, content, and dialogue depicted serves a purpose…”
Shi Yi listened earnestly, reflecting on whether such issues appeared in her own script as she listened.
Without realizing it, the two walked to the end of the road. The surroundings grew more and more bustling. Turning the corner, a cacophony of voices could be heard not far away.
The two people’s train of thought was interrupted. That was fine, they would pause here for now. Teacher Chen Hongmei narrowed her eyes and peered into the distance. “What’s ahead?”
Shi Yi had better eyesight. “It’s a temple.” Shi Yi remembered what Lu Mengmeng had mentioned earlier, though she was a bit unsure. “It might be the Sea God Temple. A staff member told me before that there’s a very famous Sea God Temple nearby.”
“Sea God?” Teacher Chen held a curious attitude towards many things. “Let’s go, let’s take a look.” “Alright.”
The Sea God Temple was probably really famous. The further they walked, the more people there were. Shi Yi was afraid Teacher Chen would get squeezed, so she reached out to protect her a bit. With great difficulty, they followed the flow of people to the temple entrance.
There was no one collecting an entrance fee at the door, but many people consciously dropped paper money into the donation box.
Shi Yi heard a local man behind them speaking with a proud tone, saying that this was their Kande’s holy land, and all Kande people believed in the Sea God Lady. Two years ago, there was a tsunami in the area, and the neighboring country of Sangluo was half flooded, but only their Kande remained completely unharmed! He also showed off, saying, “The Sea God Lady Temple is also very accurate when it comes to predicting romance! My wife and I met at the matchmaking tree…”
Shi Yi: The Sea God Lady also manages Yue Lao’s1 duties…
Teacher Chen followed her gaze and saw the man holding forth loudly, asking curiously, “What is he saying?” Most people of her generation didn’t understand English.
Shi Yi translated it for her.
Teacher Chen Hongmei’s eyes lit up instead. “You can calculate your romantic fortune here? Let’s go take a look.”
Shi Yi: ?
Teacher Chen Hongmei: “We’re already here anyway.”
We’re already here anyway, four magical words to the ears of any Chinese person. Shi Yi was successfully persuaded.
The place for fortune-telling at the Sea God Temple was similar to those back home, except instead of drawing bamboo lots, they used tarot cards. The fortune-teller was dressed in local traditional clothing, looking somewhat mysterious.
“What can we calculate?”
Director Lu finally found his use, translating for Chen Hongmei what the tarot cards could predict. Teacher Chen made Shi Yi step forward and mischievously suggested, “Then let’s calculate your peach blossom luck2.”
The fortune-teller reverently brought out a deck of tarot cards, asked Shi Yi to close her eyes, and then softly sang a mysterious chant. The music was emotional, and amidst this chant, Shi Yi involuntarily relaxed.
The fortune-teller reminded Shi Yi to silently repeat ‘peach blossom luck’ in her heart and shuffle the cards herself. “Now please open your eyes and arrange the cards into a spread.”
Shi Yi arranged them one by one according to the spread he provided.
Alright. The fortune-teller’s expression turned serious; he was about to start revealing the cards.
The several people present watched his reverent actions. Although they didn’t really understand, they maintained basic quietness and waited to see what would happen.
The fortune-teller pondered for a moment and told Shi Yi that the tarot indicated a thick pink aura surrounding her… but her main peach blossom seemed a bit domineering. The underlying meaning was: her peach blossoms were blooming alright, but they would be pinched off one by one by her main peach blossom.
Shi Yi: “…”
Teacher Chen: “…”
Director Lu: “…”
Teacher Chen Hongmei suddenly burst out laughing. Great, what a great reading!
Shi Yi thought of Gu Zhan, but instantly suppressed the thought. Where would she get a true peach blossom?
Shi Yi didn’t believe it, but Chen Hongmei did. How could she not know what her own nephew was like?
After reminding Shi Yi to come to her place at 6 AM tomorrow morning so they could leave together, Teacher Chen returned to her own room, and the laughter she had been suppressing could no longer be held back.
She picked up her phone, “Oh my, A-Zhan, you still haven’t hung up?”
Gu Zhan didn’t answer this question. It seemed that not hanging up the phone was perfectly normal for him.
Auntie Chen continued, “Then what do you think of that test just now? The fortune-teller said little Yi’s peach blossom luck is very strong.” She placed heavy emphasis on the words ‘peach blossom luck’. With so many romantic rivals, are you scared?
The tone of the person on the other end of the phone was completely unruffled, reminding her, “Don’t be superstitious.”
Heh, keep pretending. Auntie Chen felt her nephew’s reaction wasn’t fun. Unwilling to continue talking to her nephew, she hung up the phone and dialed her sister-in-law’s number. “Sister-in-law, let me tell you something. Do you know who little Zhan’s sweetheart is?”
“Could it be fake? The day before yesterday, he begged me to take extra care of her on the variety show.”
“Hey, you don’t even know. I was talking to his little girlfriend, and he stubbornly listened for three whole hours, refusing to hang up…”
Translator’s note:
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