Hmph! A Sycophant

Chen Kaige was bursting with high spirits. Tian Zhuangzhuang was indifferent—he had always been quite laid-back—while Li Shaohong was more or less just tagging along. The three quickened their pace, crossed a green patch, and came in sight of the main building. Quite a crowd had gathered on the small square out front, where a blue BJ130 light truck stood parked—manufactured independently by the Beijing No. 2 Automobile Plant. The truck bed was loaded to the brim with Spring Festival welfare distributions, and staff from the labor union stood up top, handing out the goods. Why did everyone want to get into a good work unit? Aside from the regular benefits, these holiday welfare handouts alone were enough to make outsiders green with envy. Decades later, good units would still be good units. But there would also be a vast sea of people getting two zongzi for the Dragon Boat Festival, a single mooncake for Mid-Autumn, and a few digital red packets tossed into a chat group at year's end, where whatever scraps people could scramble for counted as their year-end bonus... "Come sign here!" "One wall calendar, one hamper of apples, one basket of pears, one portion of hairtail, and one package of pastries and sweets!" "When are the rice, flour, grain, and oil coming?" "Tomorrow!" In those days, fruit was packed in woven baskets or hampers rather than cardboard boxes, to say nothing of the hairtail and calendars, which were standard fixtures of the package. When the trio walked up, Chen Qi was right there among the spectators watching the bustle. Li Shaohong was the first to step forward, greeting him with a smile. "Hello. You're Xiao Chen, right?" "And you are?" "I'm Li Shaohong. Both my parents work at the studio. I've heard a lot about you..." "You flatter me. It's your name that thunders in my ears! I knew early on that several top students were studying over at the Film Academy, but I never had the chance to meet you." Running into these future luminaries caught Chen Qi by pleasant surprise. Li Shaohong introduced the other two. Well, well! Chen Qi beamed ear to ear and strode forward in a single bound. He seized the future Great Director's hand and wouldn't let go, overflowing with genuine, unfeigned warmth. "An honor, truly an honor! Uncle Chen mentions you all the time, saying how exceptionally talented you are. I've wanted to learn from you for ages!" *Who on earth is Uncle Chen?!* For a moment, the Great Director couldn't process the name. But he had come specifically to pick a bone, so he kept a stony face and said, "You're too kind. I hear you've written a screenplay. I know a thing or two about writing myself, so we..." Just as he was about to sneer a few criticisms, a voice shouted from across the way: "Xiao Chen! Xiao Chen!" "Director Wang!" Chen Qi glanced back, hurried over to Wang Haowei, and said, "These apples are pretty heavy, and you're carrying them yourself... Tell you what, I'll take them to your place in a bit. I've got my bicycle." "Sounds good! What else would I have called you for!" Chen Qi lent a hand, then jogged back, saying, "Sorry about that, please go on." "I was saying, we could discuss—" "Xiao Chen!" Jiang Huaiyan was shouting from over there as well. "Can your bike hold any more? Carry a share for me!" "I can fit it, load it on!" Chen Qi ran back again, giving Jiang Shan a playful tap with his foot along the way. Jiang Shan dodged, giggling as she pulled a face at him. "Since you're carrying two already, one more won't hurt." Shi Wenxin—Ge You's mother—was thoroughly irritated after picking up her rations. "Every year they hand them out at the main building! I've said it so many times, we still have to haul it all home ourselves! My son is frail—do you expect me to carry it, or Old Ge?" "You're a veteran staff member, so we'd have delivered it to your home. Who asked you to come in person?" a union worker replied with a cheeky grin. "Forget it. Whatever you deliver are the leftovers. Last year it was a basket of rotten apples... Sorry to trouble you, Xiao Chen!" "Youzi and I are buddies. Your business is my business." These prominent directors and great artists were just ordinary people once they stepped away from the camera. They had to scramble for housing, fight for benefits, worry about firewood, rice, oil, and salt, and rejoice over Spring Festival rations. The trio stood nearby, watching. Li Shaohong said with curious surprise, "He's quite well-liked. Knows everyone, too." "A sycophant!" The Great Director gave a cold snort, only for another voice to call out: "Kaige!" "Dad!" It was Chen Huaikai who had arrived. He also went over to pick through the apples, muttering under his breath, "Handing out rotten apples every year, never anything good... Hey, Xiao Chen! That's Kaige over there. You two should get to know each other and spend more time together down the road. Kaige, this is your Uncle Qi—no, wait, you two..." "We've already said hello. Let me carry that for you!" Chen Qi offered with a grin. "No need, no need..." With his own son present, Chen Huaikai certainly couldn't let an outsider do the heavy lifting. He waved at the Great Director. "Come over here! What are you standing there like a statue for?" "Not a lick of initiative! Can't even lend a hand—just look at Xiao Chen!" "Uh..." The Great Director had no choice but to shuffle over. His left hand sank under a bundle of hairtail, and his right hand sank under a hamper of apples. In an instant, his high-minded aspirations felt infinitely far away. "What are you youngsters up to here?" It was exceptionally lively downstairs today, and Wang Yang had stepped out to join the fun. The Great Director immediately broke into a smile, his thick eyebrows curving down to the ground. "Old Studio Head!" "We just came back from a walk." "Oh, alright. Go on and collect your things." The Great Director wanted to squeeze in a bit more awkward small talk, but Wang Yang ignored him and waved toward Chen Qi. "Xiao Chen, come here!" "Old Studio Head, what is it?" "Let's talk over there." Wang Yang led him to a quiet spot and said, "Word came back from Hong Kong. Yuen Woo-ping is asking for one hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars. And if he brings martial arts choreographers, each gets fifteen thousand a month, whether they fall ill, get injured, or not—the pay stays the same." "That expensive?" "I think he just found it awkward to turn us down directly. Knowing we aren't rich, he gave us an astronomical quote to scare us off." "Let's wait until after the New Year, then. I'll take a story to trade with them and see if that works." "Prepare a few alternative plans. Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Having passed along the instructions, Wang Yang left. Chen Qi jogged back yet again. "Terribly sorry about that. What were you about to say?" *Say my ass!* Carrying the hairtail, the Great Director walked off, refusing to lower himself to the level of such a vulgar creature. Tian Zhuangzhuang, on the other hand, found him quite interesting. He smiled and said, "Will you still be around after the Spring Festival? Let's find some time to chat and be friends." "Sure, sure. Whenever you're free, let's meet up." Chen Qi's bike was already loaded with several bundles. He hopped on and pedaled toward the tongzilou dormitories in the back. As he passed the three on the road, Tian Zhuangzhuang gave him a wave, Li Shaohong glanced over without reacting, while the Great Director kept his eyes locked straight ahead, looking thoroughly petty. Chen Qi thought: *Nonsense, of course I know those two hold grudges. Why else would I have used a pen name?* * * * Feng Kuzi once said something along the lines of: "I came from an ordinary working-class family. If I wanted to make a name for myself, I had no choice but to go against some of my inner principles to please others. People like me and Zhang Yimou had to hack out our own path with brute force. We had no background, nobody to rely on." In the artistic circles of that era, the main players were the offspring of the establishment. When Tian Zhuangzhuang took the Beijing Film Academy entrance exam in 1978, he turned in his paper after just thirty minutes and ran outside to suck on a popsicle. The exam question was an analysis of *Heroic Sons and Daughters*—his father had played the lead role, and since childhood, an endless stream of uncles and aunties had visited his home to discuss how that film was shot. Later, after entering school, before his classmates had even touched the equipment, Tian Zhuangzhuang was already directing short films, with the cinematography department's "Big Three"—Zhang Yimou, Hou Yong, and Lv Le—operating the camera for him. Upon graduation, he was assigned directly to Beijing Film Studio. Director Chen's family background was slightly less influential, so he was assigned to the Children's Film Studio. Meanwhile, Zhang Yimou, having no background whatsoever, was banished to the remote Guangxi Film Studio. To serve as cinematographer for *One and Eight*, the foundational work of the Fifth Generation, Zhang Yimou had to sign a pledge with the studio: if he botched the shoot, he was willing to serve as a camera assistant for ten years. Things other people could do before even graduating required him to gamble his entire youth on tomorrow. It was true for directors, and just as true for actors. For example, Hu Jun's father was a singer with the Song and Dance Troupe of the Naval Political Department. When Hu Jun auditioned for the Central Academy of Drama, he sang "O Sole Mio" in Italian. And Guan Gege from the Beijing circle—her grandfather Guan Xuezeng was the chairman of the Beijing Quyi Artists Association. She acted in *The Promise* at eight, *The Treasure Hunter* at eleven, and *If You Are the One 2* at thirteen. Who could compete with that? Wang Jingwen was even more formidable. Her grandfather was a member of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan who retired to Hong Kong in his later years, which was why her family had been able to relocate there in the first place. Chen Qi's family background was ordinary, though still far better off than Feng Kuzi's or Zhang Yimou's. Now that he was making his way at Beijing Film Studio, he inevitably had to deal with these second-generation insiders. Li Shaohong was small fry, not worth bothering with. The Great Director, however, was a source of great entertainment; even if Kaige didn't come looking for trouble, Chen Qi would have felt like giving him a kick anyway. Though arrogant in his youth, the Great Director still had some self-awareness and didn't dare act brazenly in front of his elders. It was only after winning the Palme d'Or that he would truly let his ego fly off the rails... As for Tian Zhuangzhuang, Chen Qi thought he was worth befriending. It would make for a useful connection in the future.