The documentary screening lasted two days, and Zhou You watched seven or eight films—this time, he truly indulged himself. After that meal together, he stopped worrying and fully immersed himself in the pleasure documentaries brought him. He never had this much free time to watch documentaries before; only during school could he finish one in a single sitting. Once work got busy, it took days to get through a documentary, watching it in bits and pieces. That seriously ruined the viewing experience. As a result, he watched fewer and fewer over time. While some documentaries didn't interest him much, that didn't stop them from being real. A person's life is short, and what they can experience is fleeting. Only through books and documentaries can you taste multiple lives. That's why Zhou You loved documentaries and reading.
After a pleasant few days in Shanghai, Zhou You decided to head to Thailand. One, it was already on his itinerary; two, the *Lost in Thailand* crew was filming there, so he could visit the set and kill two birds with one stone. He packed his documents, said goodbye to Xiao Bai, and flew straight to Chiang Mai. Taking Xiao Bai was out of the question—Zhou You was heading to Pattaya. Off the plane, through customs, tip given. Having worked in sales for so long, he'd been abroad before. Thailand was a better tourist spot than home—low prices, great service, beautiful scenery. A trip here cost way less than one to Sanya. "Our own people don't rip off our own people"—that was almost laughable. Too bad a weak nation has no diplomacy; without strong military power, everything's futile. The former Four Asian Tigers had turned into worms.
At the airport, Wang Baoqiang and Shi Wenxiu picked him up. It was Zhou You's first time seeing them in person. How to put it? She was pretty, but not strikingly so—no wonder he didn't remember her. Honestly, if you could make money, no one would want to be a star. In essence, they were performers and public pets, fawned over by a bunch of minors who didn't know which way was up—pretty ridiculous. Wang Baoqiang grinned at Zhou You, arms wide open for a hug. "Brother You, you're finally here!" Zhou You shoved him away—two guys hugging, you might not be embarrassed, but I am. Wang Baoqiang wasn't fazed, standing nearby with a goofy grin. Then Shi Wenxiu walked over, sizing Zhou You up. At first glance, he wasn't very handsome, lacking the polished faces of male stars in showbiz. But his vibe was something no one could fake—carefree, easygoing, natural, with a hint of a playboy charm.
"Xiu Xiu, right? Last time I visited your place, you were filming. By September, you'll probably be done, and I'll be reporting to your dad then," Zhou You said politely. "It's all thanks to you, Brother You, or I wouldn't have much work. Are you here for fun or to visit the set?" "Both. Let's head to the set first. Your scenes aren't done yet?" Zhou You was a bit puzzled—minor roles should've wrapped up by now. "My scenes finished ages ago, but I wanted to learn more, so I volunteered to come to Thailand," Shi Wenxiu replied, not stupid. With so many stars around and such good treatment, she'd stick around. "Good, learning more is a smart move. Let Baoqiang teach you—he's got solid acting chops. I was blown away by *Mr. Tree*," Zhou You said to Baoqiang. "No problem. Brother You's sister is my sister. She's been learning a lot with me lately, and her acting's already great. Graduating from Beijing Film Academy is way better than my rough start," Wang Baoqiang said, leading them to the car.
Thailand's traffic rules were different from home—steering wheel on the right, drive on the left, like the UK. So domestic driver's licenses were useless here; you basically had to retake the test. Even with a license, many couldn't adapt, so hiring a driver was best. Along the way, Zhou You took in the scenery. This place was great—the country didn't develop much else, just poured everything into tourism, attracting people from all over the world. Lots of Chinese, even more from Europe and America. Later on, many came to retire in Thailand. Western blue-collar workers with pensions of three to four thousand dollars a month barely scraped by back home, but here, that amount out-earned the middle class. And people here were used to being kept as mistresses; cohabitation was everywhere. Even more prevalent was the ladyboy culture—a phenomenon unique worldwide. Zhou You had watched a documentary about ladyboys: they started taking estrogen as kids, and those who made money got sex reassignment surgery. Most in this trade came from poor families. There were plenty of restrictions too—short life expectancy, lots of suffering—but they had no choice for the money. When he watched it, the comments were full of keyboard warriors saying, "Why not go work abroad?" That was classic third-party thinking! There were even more poor people in China. Maybe foreigners wondered why they didn't come to their countries to work. Same logic—how easy was it for the lower class to go abroad? Only along Fujian's coast, with centuries of overseas Chinese history and broad networks, were there channels. Inland areas had none.
As soon as he got out of the car, Xu Zheng came over to greet him. Zhou You quickly waved him off, telling him to get back to work. Having visited so many sets, Zhou You had lost his curiosity. It was like the extras in Hengdian—after a while, it was just the same old thing, nothing special. It was all just a job, sometimes dressed up in a shiny coat. Peel that coat off, and it was still work, no different at its core. Selling labor for money—that was it. "Almost done—a few more days and we'll wrap. Then back for editing, dubbing, scoring, and prepping for release. On schedule, it should hit theaters by year-end," Xu Zheng said, relaxed. His first project was nearly finished, and everything had gone smoothly—investment, actors. Inside, he was grateful to Boss Zhou. Someone so generous and easy to fool was hard to find. Zhou You chuckled too. Everyone laughs at me for being naive, but I laugh at them for being dense. How could they match my vision? Laugh now, but don't cry later. Xu Zheng was sharp. Zhou You didn't know all the inside details, only what he'd picked up online, so he kept his comments to himself. "Since it's almost wrapped, I'll hang out in Chiang Mai for a few days. When you're done, I'll treat you all to a good time in Thailand."
Before coming, Zhou You had Wang Baoqiang find some fruit vendors nearby, bring their carts over, and buy out everything for the crew to cool off and beat the heat. Thailand was a fruit paradise—watermelon, lychee, durian, pineapple, cantaloupe, grapes—you name it. And the fruit was cheap and delicious, sold fully ripe locally, unlike the half-ripe stuff shipped out that needed artificial ripening.