Chapter Sixty-Nine: After the New Year, I'll Bring Home a Beautiful Wife for You

Chapter Sixty-Nine: After the New Year, I'll Bring You a Beautiful Daughter-in-law

The profits from "Crazy Stone" have far surpassed anyone’s imagination. Its current box office figures alone have left everyone numb with shock, and the fervor continues unabated. The contrast between its box office performance and its modest budget is even more staggering.

This film is a dark horse, and an exceptionally remarkable one at that. It has outperformed several star-studded productions to become the most talked-about movie of the moment, with its momentum showing no sign of slowing. How many more films will meet their downfall before its advance remains to be seen.

The film has become something of a phenomenon, discussed within the industry and beyond. The leading actors and even the supporting cast have become overnight sensations; even those with minor roles are now widely talked about and noticed.

The actors have greatly benefited from this film, with their fame skyrocketing and offers pouring in, not to mention a substantial increase in their fees. Previously, the most prominent among them were at best third or fourth-tier, or even mere extras, some struggling to secure a speaking part, others content just to get a boxed meal on set.

When you compare the before and after, the transformation is striking.

Yet, the one who has gained the most from this film is not the actors, but Zhang Le, the director. Just as in his previous life, when this very film made many actors famous, it was the director who shone the brightest. Mention this film, and it’s not the leads or supporting actors who come to mind first, even if those actors later become top stars.

This is a film with a distinctive directorial style. When you think of it, you first think of the director. It’s like "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels"—mention the film, and you think of Guy Ritchie before Jason Statham, even though Statham became an international superstar. Even when discussing that film, it’s always the director who’s mentioned first.

In his past life, the actor who played Heipi in "Crazy Stone" became a box office king with fifty billion to his name and one of the most bankable stars in China, yet the director Ning Hao was still the first name associated with the film.

That is what makes this film unique.

"Crazy Stone" has become a sensation—an explosive one. Zhang Le is now more popular than ever, but this time, his fame is solid and well-earned, not the fleeting, illusory kind that Yang Xiner once enjoyed.

He is a young director who has created a box office miracle, a director with a distinctive style—his fame is only natural. A film rejected by countless production companies has achieved such success; its impact goes far beyond mere embarrassment for those companies.

Countless film companies have been slapped in the face by Zhang Le's success, and the media, of course, seized the opportunity for ridicule. But many people are pondering: how did such an excellent film nearly die before it was born?

Many film companies began to reflect on their own processes. Was there something wrong with their internal systems? Should they be giving more opportunities to young directors?

After all, the future of Chinese cinema rests on the shoulders of the younger generation.

"Crazy Stone" has also shown everyone that a film without big stars or a huge budget can still achieve great box office results.

Audiences go to the movies not just for big-name stars or grand spectacles—they care about the story itself. After this film, major production companies began to greatly increase their emphasis on scripts and screenwriters.

The witty dialogue from "Crazy Stone" spread widely online, and people compiled some of Zhang Le’s most memorable lines into the “Zhang Le Quotations.”

The moment the "Zhang Le Quotations" appeared, they spread rapidly on the internet, further boosting the film’s box office.

It broke one hundred million in five days; by February 9, after a week in theaters, it had surpassed one hundred and fifty million. With this film, Xinle Film Studio’s profits have easily exceeded one hundred million.

With one hundred million, you could buy a luxury house, even in a city as expensive as Beijing.

Of course, neither Zhang Le nor Yang Xiner ever considered spending all the film’s profits on real estate. With this revenue, the company would undergo a qualitative transformation.

Yang Xiner watched Zhang Le busy in the kitchen, a happy smile blooming on her face. She suddenly realized how beautiful the sight was: the man she loved preparing breakfast for her.

"Your phone is ringing!"

The movie ringtone sounded, pulling Yang Xiner back to reality from her dreamy observation.

"Who is it? Can you answer it for me?"

Zhang Le was busy in the kitchen and called out from inside.

"I’m not sure, it’s a call from a long-distance landline," Yang Xiner replied as she picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Ah! Sorry, I think I dialed the wrong number." The voice on the other end spoke with a Sichuan accent, not standard Mandarin.

"Wait—are you looking for Zhang Le?"

The caller seemed about to hang up, but Yang Xiner quickly intervened. She was clever enough to realize the caller might have assumed it was a wrong number because she, not Zhang Le, had answered.

Most likely, the call really was for Zhang Le.

Zhang Le was from Sichuan, and their accents were similar. It must be someone from his hometown.

"Yes, yes! I’m looking for Zhang Le. I’m his mother. And you are?"

"Ah! Hello, Auntie, hello!" At the sound of Zhang Le’s mother’s voice, Yang Xiner grew instantly nervous and hurried to introduce herself, "I’m Zhang Le’s girlfriend, my name is Yang Xiner."

"So you’re Yang Xiner! Xiao Le told me he found a famous actress for a girlfriend, but we thought he was bragging, trying to fool us! Recently, he called home and said you two were on TV together. Unfortunately, we don’t get those channels here, so we didn’t see it."

"Ah, I see." Yang Xiner was flustered and at a loss for words, so she quickly said, "Auntie, please hold on, I’ll get Zhang Le for you."

She hurried into the kitchen, handed the phone to Zhang Le, and said, "It’s your mother."

"Okay." Zhang Le noticed her flushed cheeks and awkward expression, smiled, and took the phone.

"Mom, what made you call me today?" Zhang Le asked, "Is everything alright at home?"

"Can’t I call just to talk?" his mother replied. "Everything’s the same here. Your brother will be back in a couple of days, and this year he’s bringing his girlfriend home. I just wanted to ask if you’re coming back for New Year’s. You haven’t been home for the New Year in years. Now that you have a girlfriend, why not bring her back for us to meet?"

"I’m afraid I can’t make it back for New Year’s this year, got work," Zhang Le replied apologetically, not wanting to disappoint his parents again. "But I’ll be back shortly after, in the early days of the new year. I’ll bring your beautiful daughter-in-law to meet you then!"

"What’s so important that you can’t come back till after the holiday?" His mother, though delighted he was coming home this year, still sounded a little peeved.

"I’ve been so busy lately, I forgot to tell you—Xiner and I are going to be on the Spring Festival Gala, so we can’t come back before New Year’s," Zhang Le explained quickly. In fact, he’d meant to call home about it but hadn’t expected his family to call first.

A parent’s longing for their children will always outweigh the children’s longing for home.

"The Spring Festival Gala? Which one?" his mother asked, puzzled.

"The one on New Year’s Eve, the big show everyone watches," Zhang Le said.

"Oh, that one! Really?" She was clearly surprised. At first, she hadn’t even considered that possibility.

Being on TV was already unimaginable to them; being on the Spring Festival Gala was even more so.

"Of course it’s true. You’ll see us on TV then," Zhang Le assured her.