Dreaming With My Dragon Lover - Chapter 158

Amélie went upstairs to Yuan Ge’s office and saw that he was indeed talking to Du Jinghai about the price of cameras in a TweeChat video call. It seems that he hasn’t forgotten Yin Fenghua’s mockery about Dragon Dreams’ humble filming condition, and is probably thinking of adding a new camera position when “Qingqing” resumes production.

However, it is clear from the conversation that Du Jinghai’s mind is not entirely focused on the issue of adding equipment to the company.

“…… Have you heard, the marketing buzz for King Guan’s new movie is all over the place and the hype is getting hotter by the day! It is said that the girls on all the major media platforms have gone crazy! Thousands of new topics and discussion groups for ‘A Journey in Brocade’ have been created overnight!”

“What’s the point of creating so many discussion groups?” Yuan Ge is quite bemused by these online marketing phenomenon.

“The point? It’s called laying the groundwork for the final kill. The first stage is to attract as many eyeballs as possible by setting up hot discussion topics; the second stage is to follow the shooting progress, sneak photos on set, and create marketing hype; the third stage is to sell show-related merchandise and media products. The savviest group leader can make enough money to buy themselves a house with sea view every year!”

“Really? Is it that dramatic?”

“Of course it is! The promotion poster for this movie has already hinted that it’s a double male lead drama. And the original book has four relationship lines surrounding Chu Jiliang – three men and one woman – what a messy tangle of relationships! The role of the emperor is said to have been specially cast by ‘Emperor Chung’ Warren, who is known in Hong Kong as the first man in period dramas, while the eunuch-in-chief is played by popular idol He Yuen, who did not audition for the role but parachuted into …”

“He’s the chief director’s own nephew, isn’t he? It can’t be helped, with a relationship like that …” Amélie joins the discussion as she hears the two chatting merrily.

The time flew by quickly as the three of them talked about various issues related to A Journey in Brocade.

It was only when Du Jinghai learned that Amélie was at Yuan Ge’s house at the moment that his speech became less natural. He wished he could transform into an electric wave instantly and rush over to have a bowl of Buddha Jumping Over the Wall cooked by Amélie personally.

When they returned to the kitchen again, Rong Qiuchen had already opened the lid of the clay pot and slightly moved the lotus leaf, allowing the steam to come out from the pot, a delicious aroma wafting through the kitchen. Amélie notices that Rong Qiuchen has also made a few simple home-style dishes to accompany this Buddha Jumping Over the Wall. Judging by the colour and aroma, this guy can really be called a master chef.

Amélie suddenly regrets going upstairs to discuss the business matters with Yuan Ge and Du Jinghai. She should have stayed and cooked a few more dishes to show off her cooking skills properly. Although her career is important, in the end, the reason why she has been working so hard on her career is still because of Yuan Ge.

While Rong Qiuchen is serving them each a bowl of Buddha Jumping Over the Wall, Yuan Ge is rubbing his hands together in anticipation, and Amélie is feeling more than ever that she has made a mistake. Losing the kitchen as a battleground is akin to putting the cart before the horse, and it really isn’t worth it.

Luckily, Rong Qiuchen doesn’t want to take the credit. After tasting a spoonful of the soup he compliments, “The dish Sister Amélie made is very aromatic, the ingredients are soft but not falling apart, the soup is thick but not greasy, and the meat and vegetables have a nice aftertaste. The result almost rivals that of the imperial kitchen.”

Naturally, Yuan Ge does not hesitate to praise her either, “You Cantonese people are really good at making soups. Thank you for bringing me so many wonderful ingredients and condiments this time. You must come and cook for me more often!”

“Nice try! Cooking is so fiddly and laborious. If it wasn’t for the fact that I thought you were spending the New Year alone and not knowing how to cook, I wouldn’t have come back and asked for trouble.” Amélie replies, glancing at Rong Qiuchen and sighing, “If I had known that you had a companion for the New Year who was also a good cook, why would I have come back in such a hurry? It was enough to have him cook for you.”

Before Yuan Ge can answer, Rong Qiuchen replies with a smile, “How can my crude cooking skills be compared to Sister Amélie’s? I am afraid that once Gege becomes famous after this new film, he will be like a big juicy peach that will attract countless warblers and butterflies to compete for it. Sister Amélie, you as the producer, must stay close behind to help Dragon Dreams guard this fruit.”

“When did you change the film to ‘Journey to the West'[1]? How did I become a big juicy peach?”

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[1] Journey to the West is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. The novel is an extended account of the legendary pilgrimage of the Tang dynasty Buddhist monk Xuanzang, who travelled to the “Western Regions” to obtain Buddhist sacred texts and returned after many trials and much suffering.  The monk is referred to as Tang Sanzang in the novel. Gautama Buddha provides the monk with three protectors who agree to help him as an atonement for their sins. These disciples are Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing, together with a dragon prince who acts as Tang Sanzang’s steed, a white horse.. The group of pilgrims journeys towards enlightenment by the power and virtue of cooperation.