“He fell asleep early, like a pig, so we didn’t wake him.”

Samuel Reed shook the bottle of liquor in his hand and asked, “Want a drink?”

Andrew Clark glanced back at Richard Morgan, saw that he had also gotten out of bed with his clothes on, and smiled, “Sure, let’s have some!”

The three of them moved the coffee table to use as a table, placing it between the two beds. Samuel Reed said, “I’ll go check if Steven Grant is asleep yet.”

Andrew Clark took the opportunity to rummage through the plastic bags. One bag had peanuts, another seemed to have chicken giblets or something similar, mixed with cilantro and chili peppers, giving off a greasy, savory aroma.

He had just tossed a big piece of something—he wasn’t sure if it was intestine or stomach—into his mouth when Steven Grant came in, shouting loudly:

“Hey! Stealing food!”

Andrew Clark laughed, “I’m eating fair and square.”

He was the youngest among them, and the others all treated him like a little brother, often joking around and looking after him.

The four of them sat on the beds, using big porcelain mugs and thermos lids as cups. With no chopsticks, they just used their hands.

Each poured a bit of baijiu and downed it in one go.

Richard Morgan was clearly not used to it, choked on a sip, and coughed repeatedly, “What brand is this liquor? It’s so strong!”

“There’s no brand, it’s loose liquor,” said Samuel Reed.

Richard Morgan had never heard the term “loose liquor” before, so Andrew Clark explained it to him. Only then did he understand, but he still worried, “Is this kind of liquor up to standard? Isn’t it illegal?”

The other three exchanged glances, unable to explain to this Hong Kong guy just how widespread loose liquor is in rural China.

Samuel Reed changed the subject, “This is your first time in a small county town like this, right, Wei?”

Richard Morgan sighed, “Yeah, first time. I’m really surprised. I’ve been to Beijing and Shanghai before, and those places develop so fast—skyscrapers everywhere, everything’s connected. I didn’t expect there were still such underdeveloped places inland.”

Samuel Reed snorted, “Those two places are just this country’s bonsai, not the real thing. Here is what’s real.”

“Don’t start with your nonsense again, just drink!” Steven Grant, being his classmate, clearly knew him well.

The four of them took another shot. Steven Grant said, “He’s just stubborn, always getting stuck in dead ends. Sooner or later, he’ll suffocate himself.”

Samuel Reed glanced at him, smiled, and said nothing.

Suddenly, Steven Grant seemed to remember a funny topic and asked excitedly, “By the way, do you guys know what this film was originally called?”

“No idea,” Andrew Clark shook his head.

“It was called ‘Jin Xiaoyong’s Buddy, Hu Haimei’s Family, Liang Changyou’s Son: Xiao Wu!’” Steven Grant announced proudly, as if it was something to be proud of.

“Pfft!” Andrew Clark was sipping his drink and sprayed it out, staring at Old Jia.

That’s supposed to be a movie title? Ridiculous!

Samuel Reed defended himself, “That’s not even long. Did you know there’s a British film called ‘When You Tell Me You Love Me, Why Should I Believe You, Because I’ve Always Known You’ve Been Lying Your Whole Life’?”

Richard Morgan chimed in, “I know that one. But have you seen ‘Evil Mutant Alien Flesh-Eating Hell Zombie Living Dead Invasion Terror Revenge Return of the Bride’s Son’s Dawn’s Day’s Night Part Two: Shocking 2-D Version’?”

Andrew Clark was baffled, “What on earth are you talking about?”

“A movie,” said Steven Grant.

“There are movie titles that long? Is it any good?” Andrew Clark asked, curious as a child.

Richard Morgan shook his head, “Total trash!”

Steven Grant grinned at Samuel Reed, “Your movie title is short, just two characters, so it must be a good film!”

Samuel Reed laughed too, “Then a one-character title must be even better?”

“Exactly, like ‘Chaos’!” said Steven Grant.

“‘Blade’!” said Richard Morgan.

“‘Well’!” said Samuel Reed.

“‘Road’!” said Steven Grant.

“‘Evil’!” said Richard Morgan.

“‘Spring’!” said Samuel Reed.

……

The three of them had a blast playing a one-character title game, leaving Andrew Clark, who knew nothing about it, to drink alone in silence.

That’s just mean!

But soon the three realized they were leaving Andrew Clark out and stopped their childish game.

“Qingzi, what’s your favorite movie?” Samuel Reed asked.

“Me? I don’t really have a favorite.”

Andrew Clark couldn’t admit that his favorite movie was “Spider-Man,” so he just played dumb.

Samuel Reed was a bit incredulous, “You don’t watch movies?”

Andrew Clark answered honestly, “Not really, I prefer TV dramas.”

Samuel Reed gave up on the conversation, lowered his head and took a big gulp of liquor, staying silent for a while. When he looked up again, his face was already flushed.

A bit emotional, he said to Richard Morgan, “I took the film academy entrance exam three times, Steven Grant took it twice, David Cooper also took it twice. Last year, when we shot a short film, we only had a hundred yuan left. David Cooper managed to make some interest by playing mahjong all morning. I never thought we’d actually be able to make a real movie today. Wei, thank you, thank you!”

Richard Morgan understood how he felt, patted him on the shoulder, and the two of them clinked thermos lids and took a drink.

With a “bang,” Samuel Reed slammed his cup down hard on the coffee table.

Andrew Clark was startled, and Steven Grant waved his hand, “It’s fine, he’s just had a bit too much.”