84 Mr. Yin's Challenge

Once these words were said, no matter how good Yuan Ge's temper is, he can no longer hold back his anger and slaps the megaphone in his hand on the seat as he responds angrily.

"Mr. Yin, what do you mean by saying such things now! The purpose and spirit of the film is clearly written in the script, and we have had many discussions and detailed analyses since the shooting began. Why can't you dispel these rigid and superficial perceptions in your mind now? It was because the world stubbornly viewed the opera singers of that era with prejudice, and looked at the lives of these male actors who performed in female costumes with novelty-seeking eyes, that we had to make the film 'Qingqing' to prove that many of them were in fact great artists. And, on the other hand, to show that same-sex romance is not all about physical lust and what you might call 'getting laid' or 'thrill-seeking'. I believe that there is real love between two men... However, what you just said undermined the two main plot lines of our entire film and inadvertently insulted everybody in the process! No wonder that you are unable to immerse yourself in acting, not getting the performance right, because your understanding of the script is totally out of whack!"

"Insult? Who did I insult? The Operatic Circle? The male prostitutes? Or your Qiuchen? Your pure and innocent Qingqing of your dreams? Don't be so pretentious! In this day and age, when making this film of yours, mix in a bit of gay scenes, a bit of sex scenes, find your commercial selling point, that's enough! If you don't want to make a flop like you did last time, then don't be so high and mighty. What with making art and exploring emotions... that's not what the public wants to see! If I may say so, your use of the Qing Dynasty rent boys as a marketing tactic was quite successful. Following that tone and making a thrilling gay movie is enough to grab people's eyeballs. Brother Run had it all figured out a long time ago, how come you just don't get it!"

Good, a flop. So that's what Chow Mingrun really thinks about my last film. In the end, the so-called non-interference he promised me is all but a lie. Yuan Ge thinks angrily.

When it came to the marketing and promotion, he certainly wouldn't be able to control him. Thinking back to Chow Mingrun's behaviour at the shooting opening day, and Yin Fenghua's words today, what is there not to understand? What he couldn't say to his face, he must have been counting on his old partner to deliver.

The more Yuan Ge thinks about it, the angrier he becomes, and he didn't want to say anything anymore. He can tolerate when Yin Fenghua acted like a prima donna or posed as an arrogant senior, but what he cannot tolerate is that he has now utterly sullied the Jinyu Troupe and Rong Qiuchen he has created. Is his attempt to change the narrow-mindedness of the public through this film destined to be in vain?

The atmosphere becomes unbearably awkward.

Seeing Yuan Ge's silence, Yin Fenghua is rather pleased with himself.

It looks like this pampered boy living in an ivory tower has finally taken a bit of a beating. Not bad, he deserved it! A returnee from overseas with Hollywood experience, so what? Let me teach him a good lesson on how to keep his feet on the ground!

Thinking of this, Yin Fenghua becomes even more reckless, pointing at Stephen on the side and saying, "Hey kid, you don't know how to act the sex scene. Stand back, let me and your director show you how to do it properly."

After saying this, he turns to Yuan Ge and takes on a stance of coaxing a child, saying with a softer tone, "Director Yuan, are you angry with me? I'm saying this for the good of the company and the film. After all, it's your big production. I'm the male lead in it, and if it doesn't do well at the box office, it won't do neither of us any good. I think today's male-male scene is the selling point of the whole movie. Stephen and I can't get into the emotions of the characters, so could I ask you please to try out this scene with me?"

Yuan Ge feels as if his most precious blood has been turned into mosquito blood[1]. His own work and the characters he has given birth to are trampled on by Yin Fenghua in such a way that their ideas are completely at odds with each other, so what is the point of forcing the film to continue to be made? He wished he could call off the shooting today. However, Yin Fenghua's sudden softening of his stance after his tough words puts him in a difficult position.

"There was nothing wrong with Stephen's performance. I don't feel the need to demonstrate."

Yuan Ge answers in a fit of pique, and Yin Fenghua couldn't help but laugh, "Fine, there's no problem with his acting, but there's a problem with mine. Then can I ask Director Yuan to demonstrate exactly how Rong Qiuchen you have in mind actually stays pure in bed? I wanna learn from you."

Of course Yuan Ge understands that Yin Fenghua is calling his bluff. It is one of the best moves an actor can use to challenge the authority of a director.

If he can avoid it, he really doesn't want to act with the type of person he least admires, but Yin Fenghua insists on acting opposite him for some reason.

"I heard that Director Yuan not only made it to the third round of King Guan's big audition, but was also taken in to be interviewed by the young master Guan himself, very impressive. We've been working together for so long, but I haven't had the chance to see you in action. How about it, do you dare to do a scene with me?"

Before Yuan Ge could reply, he heard Stephen muttering in a low voice, "What's there to be afraid of? Our director was the last man standing in that audition. Even I have passed their second round, unlike someone who was eliminated in the first round and still has the nerve to put on airs and act like a senior."

Little did Yin Fenghua realise that his early elimination from the King Guan audition was already widely known in Dragon Dreams. Feeling embarrassed, he says angrily, "The roles they chose were strange and didn't suit my acting style. Don't change the subject. Talk is cheap. Just show me how you're gonna play your Qingqing. You're obviously good at doing gay scenes, since your Eve's Fallen was quite daringly made and exciting to watch."

After saying that, he no longer gives Yuan Ge a chance to evade and presses him down on the chaise longue, "I am now playing Liang Zitang. You tell me, how exactly can love and lust be distinguished with the eyes. How can a man show love to another man without sex being involved?"

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[1] The phrase "mosquito blood" first appeared in the Chinese writer Eileen Chang's novelette Red Rose, White Rose. It is often used to refer to something or someone that is no longer cherished but is vaguely disgusting.

"Maybe every man has had two such women - at least two. Marry a red rose and eventually she'll be a mosquito-blood streak smeared on the wall, while the white one is "moonlight in front of my bed." Marry a white rose, and before long she'll be a grain of sticky rice that's gotten stuck to your clothes; the red one, by then, is a scarlet beauty mark just over your heart." that is no longer being treasured, instead disgusted.