Chapter 29: He Does Not Rely on a Woman

On December 15, at noon, Li Wenyu appeared at the gates of the Beijing Film Academy. No sooner had he stepped onto campus than he was surrounded by shouts of "Senior Brother Li," "Senior Brother Wenyu," and "Junior Brother Li."

A crowd quickly swarmed him.

For over a month, the viral marketing campaign for *The Shallows* (12-22-08) had been in full swing. Countless netizens had memorized the date; it had become a catchy, almost hypnotic sequence of numbers. It was also a period defined by the nationwide craze of voting for campus heartthrobs and the excitement surrounding the sea-themed production.

Leslie Cheung had announced the details of his new film, and posters began appearing on major landmarks across the city. The posters featured a star-studded lineup: Leslie Cheung, Fan Bingbing, Andy Lau, and Joey Wong!

What did "star power" mean? This was it.

While there hadn't been an explicit promotional campaign highlighting it, many observant people noticed that the credits on the posters listed Li Wenyu as both director and screenwriter.

The Beijing Film Academy was in an uproar once again.

They had originally thought Li Wenyu was just lucky enough to be assisting Leslie Cheung. But goodness, he had become the director of Leslie Cheung’s new film!

Some wondered if it was just a nominal title, a case of someone stealing the credit for another's work. But don't be ridiculous—no mainland director had the stature to hijack a Hong Kong blockbuster’s success. Though his behind-the-scenes work might have kept him low-profile elsewhere—and he hadn't exactly been splashing his own photos around—he was now a bona fide sensation at the academy.

He was ten times more famous than Ning Hao.

Naturally, the news had set the student circles of the '99, '00, and '01 classes into a frenzy.

After much social maneuvering, Li Wenyu managed to escape with the help of campus security and headed toward the teaching building. He was here to deliver signed photos of Leslie Cheung and tickets to his concert on the 18th.

Before he even reached the building, he was surrounded by his roommates—Lao Wang, Yu Bo, Yang Zhigang, Xiao Yang—as well as Huang Shengyi, Dong Xuan, and others who had heard the news.

Li Wenyu coughed to quiet the noise and said, "Brother Rong is coming to Beijing on the 18th for a concert to promote our new film, *The Shallows*. If you behave, there will be tickets. More importantly, once *The Shallows* is a success, many of you will be able to join me at the celebration banquet to eat, drink, and take photos on set."

"You guys joined later, but you’re still contributors to the marketing. Don't cause trouble at this crucial juncture. I’m officially announcing that Lao Wang gets no ticket, no invite to the banquet, and at most, a red envelope."

A burst of laughter erupted; many were clutching their stomachs in amusement.

Lao Wang wanted to retort but didn't dare, and no one stepped in to defend him.

With a dark expression, Li Wenyu pushed away Dong Xuan, who was clinging to his arm in hopes of a handout. "That’s enough. Spreading rumors in public is out of line; whoever started them will have to answer for them."

The rumor in question had started on the 5th, while Le Jiatong was flirting with him in a hotel room in Hong Kong. Now, on the 15th, there was only one week left until the premiere of *The Shallows*.

Even CCTV had begun airing commercials, broadcasting to the entire nation that *The Shallows* was coming soon—a commercial blockbuster featuring Leslie Cheung, Fan Bingbing, Andy Lau, and Joey Wong!

After a month of intense promotion, millions of new netizens had emerged across China. Even those who didn't go online in their daily lives had been bombarded by the CCTV advertisements.

That particular rumor had truly spread, even though Xiao Yang and Yu Bo had tried to do some damage control.

Fan Bingbing didn't know; no one had told her.

But even Cecilia Cheung, while flirting, had started making jokes about it. She might not compare to Kathy Chow in her prime, but Chow was getting older now.

"I’m so young and single," she’d teased. "Instead of acting as a homewrecker or trying to live off a woman, why don’t you have a 'deep-dive' meeting with me?"

Vivian Chow and her partner, Ni, weren't married, just dating, and Chow was wealthier than him.

Before his rebirth, he had boasted about this in his youth. Lao Wang had pointed out it was just bragging, citing his own infatuation with Song Hye-kyo. Zhou Yiwei had said all the boys in the '99 and '00 classes were like that, but it didn't matter; they weren't famous—they were just nobodies.

In his previous life, Lao Wang had almost cried himself to death when he heard about Song Hye-kyo's personal life, spending all his savings to take Li Wenyu to clubs until he went bankrupt.

Who hadn't fantasized about Vivian Chow in their youth? She didn't have many classic works, but *The Greed of Man* was enough to captivate countless people.

The absurd part was that because Li Wenyu was famous, the rumors followed him. Another "Chow"—Sharla Cheung—had somehow gotten his number and sent a message saying that if he wanted to meet Vivian Chow, she could help set it up.

She claimed that Vivian Chow's relationship wasn't happy and that Ni was a serial cheater, averaging once or twice a year.

Since they weren't married, if the emotional investment hadn't been so high, they would have broken up long ago.

She suggested that a young, handsome, talented man like him, with his extensive network, would be a good match for Vivian Chow.

Sharla Cheung had started a business in '96 and had dated one of the "Four Young Masters of Beijing," Wang, in '99. She had since been dumped—though it wasn't officially public, as that Wang was currently busy with other actresses.

His reputation as "Old Li of the Film Academy"—forget it. He didn't want to live off a woman!

He coughed again to suppress a laugh. "For the sake of us sharing a dorm for two years, Lao Wang, I’ll still give you the red envelope I owe you for your work, but don't count on any professional opportunities."

"And the rest of you, don't think you can get a free ride either. I’ve been collaborating with Director Zhang Yimou; he even offered me a supporting female role in his next film to cast as I see fit."

"Now, none of you have a chance!"

The room fell into a dead silence, followed by awkward apologies before the crowd dispersed.

Li Wenyu was serious about warning his classmates: if you can't control your mouth, you pay the price. As for who started it—was it someone from these three years or someone else? There were simply too many people in the world who hated to see others succeed and laughed at those who didn't.

With his directorial debut *The Shallows* set to be a box-office smash, he had no shortage of new projects. His good relationships with major directors and crews gave him significant power in casting.

Instead of having students and juniors beg him for roles, he decided to use the rumor to shut them all up at once.

A professional online PR team would be useful; a little rumor control was the perfect excuse.

After the crowd dispersed, he continued toward the office building. His phone rang; it was a text from an unknown number: "What's so great about Vivian? Ah Yu, I'll pay you a million a month to be mine. Interested in living off a woman?"

Li Wenyu: "..."

Who was this now?

As he kept walking, another text came from the same number: "It's Rosamund Kwan. More charming than Vivian, right?"

Li Wenyu nearly cracked. Vivian would be 35 after the New Year, and Rosamund was pushing 40—she was practically an auntie—but she still had her allure.

If he hadn't made his first bucket of gold, he might have been tempted to see what an "auntie" had to offer, but now, he’d pass.

Curious, Li Wenyu replied, "Sister Lin, aren't you and your male model boyfriend doing well?"

Who was Rosamund Kwan keeping at this time? She had been showing off her relationship at high-profile events.

Rosamund Kwan replied quickly: "I heard you were interested in the 'older sister' type, so I kicked him to the curb. I heard Brother Rong mention you at a party in July, so I’ve been keeping an eye on you."

"You were quite thin back then; I was worried about your stamina. Who knew you’d get so ripped from swimming and working out?"

"Who would have thought that a talented, wealthy, and powerful young man like you would have a thing for older women? But if you don't mind, I’d certainly like to make a big score. If you have any new projects, I’ll join for free—you can live off me."

Li Wenyu was speechless.

A 39-year-old woman joking around like this was much more intense than someone like Le Jiatong.

What a mess! He really didn't have a thing for "aunties."

His new film did require an older actress. He had considered Sharla Cheung, not Vivian Chow. Sharla had better acting skills than the other "Chow," but with these rumors, if he approached her, wouldn't she get the wrong idea?

She had just offered to help him meet Vivian Chow, and now he was offering her a role? What would she think?

She might even mistake it for him having a crush on her!

He would have to ask his professor to contact Gong Li, or perhaps...

The role he had in mind for Sharla wasn't a standard lead, but it had the most screen time of any female character and required someone ruthless and lacking a conscience. Rosamund Kwan lacked the "conscience" part, but her acting was a bit lackluster.

Gong Li, on the other hand, had the presence and even better acting chops than Sharla Cheung.