Ronald packed up his mood and began to prepare for the vacation.
Five major Italian families were involved, and Ronald didn't know what the relationship between the producer Dino De Laurentiis from Naples was and them. After private discussions with his agent and legal team, he decided to deal with Dino's family.
Revenge will not be launched immediately for the time being.
Ronald also officially hired McPike on a long-term basis, leaving him to do all the background checks on filming and financing. The other party asked for a high price, but Ronald was very willing to pay the money.
It's like buying an insurance policy. With Detective Mike Pike's well-informed information in the NYPD and the five major families, if someone wants to take the risk to frame him, there will be an appropriate warning time.
"Sorry, Ronald. It's more troublesome to apply for the visa there. We have already submitted the visas for the thirteen delegation members. Now that you want to join temporarily, I can only help you try, but I may not be able to approve it.
.”
Jack Valenti, the president of the Film Association, learned that Ronald wanted to join the American film delegation. Although he was happy to have a young film director who was willing to go there, it would not be just a bunch of old men and old ladies, but the visa
is a problem.
"Is it so difficult to apply for it?" Ronald didn't know how difficult it was to apply for a visa.
"I can help you submit the materials. The thirteen of us have to submit the materials collectively, along with the invitation letter, before it is approved. There are too many people going to travel now, and some people have to queue for several years."
To increase his chances, Ronald contacted his agent Niceta.
"I can't help it. We haven't had any exchanges in the cultural field for a long time. If I want to find someone for help, I don't know who to ask."
I really didn’t know who to ask for this kind of thing. Only Ronald’s accountant, Lawrence, hired a senior travel agency manager from Los Angeles Chinatown to provide some consultation.
"Since the two countries opened travel permits, hundreds of thousands of Americans want to see the ancient Great Wall every year. However, only a little more than one tenth of them are approved. This matter largely depends on luck. We
The travel agency doesn’t know what the standards are.
It’s just that those with Chinese ancestry will be approved faster than the average person.”
"Isn't this the same as not saying anything?" Ronald touched his ears, "Is there anything else I can do to increase the chance of getting a visa? I'm going with the American film delegation, and it's official business."
"Oh, if it's official business, it'll be easy if you have an invitation letter from a domestic institution."
"But the delegation's invitation letter has already been sent to approve other people's visas." Ronald sighed. He really had no choice but to ask Weintraub to arrange a trip to Japan. Or let Minahan arrange it.
It’s not bad to visit Israel.
"You were added after the invitation list? Do you want to go on a trip with them? This road is not very convenient now. You can ask if you can let the other party send another invitation letter, as long as there is a ministry, or
Invitations from cultural and sports associations and other organizations are almost 100% approved for visas, and the speed is very fast.”
The manager of the travel agency thought that Ronald just wanted to take advantage of the delegation and go on a trip. Many Americans who could not get travel visas had done this before. So he gave him some advice.
"Culture, sports, invitation?" Ronald suddenly had an idea, "I think I have one."
"What do you want to do? Why was you not included in the list Mr. Jack Valenti submitted before?"
A visa officer from the embassy took the materials submitted by Ronald and looked over them over and over.
When Ronald heard this accent with a Chinese flavor, he sighed in his heart. He had not heard it for a long time. Chinese Americans born in America did not have this special accent with a smooth charm.
"I have long wanted to go on an inspection trip with the American Film Association delegation. But I was delayed by other things, so I didn't make it in time to submit the visa application."
"What's going on? Are you so busy? You even forgot to submit the materials collectively?" The other party didn't have any ill intentions toward Ronald, but the cultural differences between the two countries made the other party a little confused.
"I'm really too busy. But I still have a supplementary material that can prove my consistent thinking." Ronald handed over a letter.
"Okay, we will verify with the Film Association as soon as possible and give you an approval as soon as possible. In the future, it is best to apply for this kind of visa some time in advance to avoid delaying the trip. Even if we speed up the process this time, it may take five days. You
We may not be able to catch the delegation’s plane.”
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, I can just buy the ticket myself." Ronald was very happy when he heard that there was hope for a visa to be granted, and finally found time to go back and have a look.
"Ronald, why are you here?"
As soon as he left the visa office, Ronald was stopped.
"Chaoli?" Ronald discovered that the person who had just entered the door was the Chinese actor who taught him Tai Chi to dry the white crane's wings before filming "The Dragon King".
"I was watching 'Eagle Crest' with you and Jane Wyman recently?" Ronald shook hands with him, "I'm here to submit a visa. Jack Valenti's film delegation came over recently.
I want to communicate with film artists there, and I also want to see it. Why, are you going too?"
"Yes, I want to go back to my hometown to visit. In addition, my son and daughter don't speak Chinese very well. This time I will take them to participate in a Chinese summer camp. Hey, I haven't been jealous of my hometown for a long time, Xiangyin
There is no change in the loss of hair on the temples.”
Chaoli said the last sentence in Chinese, and he touched his graying temples.
"Then I just laughed and asked where the guest came from." Ronald also switched to Chinese and answered a poem.
"Why, you speak Chinese very well and your attainments in ancient poetry are also very high."
"I took an appreciation class on 300 Tang poems at New York University."
"Okay, let's exchange phone numbers and maybe we can meet there."
After Chaoli and Ronald parted ways, he did not enter the visa office where ordinary people go. Instead, he greeted the receptionist and went directly to the senior management's office at the back. He knocked on the door.
"Come in," a man wearing plastic glasses and a Chinese tunic suit said in a loud voice, "Xiaoji? Why are you here?"
The two shook hands and hugged excitedly.
"Your brother asked me to say hello to you. He is now an ambassador in Fiji."
"We are all very good. This time I am taking my son and daughter back to attend a Chinese summer camp, and I will also go back to my hometown to visit."
"Okay, everything is fine. The summer camp is very good."
"They can only speak English now. Chinese people cannot forget their roots. Our generation was separated by war and the Cold War. Now we just hope that our children can live a better life. Being able to speak fluent Chinese in the future will definitely have many advantages.
.”
The two old friends chatted for a while, and Chaoli said to him, "I just saw a new Hollywood director, Ronald Lee, and he seems to have come to apply for a visa. This man is very friendly to Chinese Americans, and it is worth making friends with him.
friend."
"Oh? Is he famous in Hollywood?"
"Didn't you watch the news? He's the boyfriend Brooke Shields dated."
"Oh? Is he her boyfriend?" My old friend has been here for a long time and knows this beautiful American idol.
"Do you have the visa application materials for Ronald Lee? Let's take a look." The old friend called and asked his subordinate to get Ronald Lee's application materials.
"It's an ex-girlfriend. He is a rare director in Hollywood who is friendly to China. This time, the movie 'Year of the Dragon' contains a lot of vilifying content about Chinese Americans. He stood up and spoke up for Chinese Americans, and even quarreled with the director and producer.
There was a huge commotion, and the scandal about his ex-girlfriend was revealed.
"Scandal?" The other party raised his eyebrows.
"It's all slander. In the end, we found out that Ronald was a hero who saved the beauty and helped the female star escape the scam. In America, this is also a dirty attack tactic. It proves that Ronald is friendly and he is worth doing."
friend's."
"Leader, here are the visa materials you want. Ronald went with the delegation of the American Film Association. But his application was not submitted with the group, so the process... do you think?" The staff came to ask
I received the application documents that Ronald just submitted.
"This person is very friendly to Chinese Americans. Go and say hello to the clerk. Get it done for him as soon as possible. Don't delay your trip. Give him a visa for the longest period of time. Invite him to travel. I am also a friendly person.
Open a back door."
"Okay, leader, I'll take care of it right away. Since you are a friendly person, it's not too much to give him special approval."
"What do you think? When the Air China flight arrives, I will call you and your two nieces and nephews and arrange them on the same flight. You can also chat more with Ronald and other members of the delegation."
"Okay." Chaoli knew that it was just a matter of chatting with Ronald about his views on the Chinese, and it would be a good thing to be able to get a seat on a transoceanic flight, so he immediately agreed.
"lead!"
The clerk just now came in a hurry again, forgetting to knock on the door and rushed in.
"What's wrong? You're in a panic and not calm at all. Diplomacy is no small matter, and you must remain calm at all times."
"Yes." The clerk took out an opened envelope and a handwritten invitation letter.
"This is the supplementary application material submitted by director Ronald Lee. He said that he had an invitation letter from someone in the arts and sports circles. We thought it was from the film industry, but we opened it and found out it was..."
"Who is it?" the leader asked. Chaoli was also curious beside him. Who invited them to report in such a hurry?
"It's an invitation letter from the Chinese Women's Volleyball Team."
"What?" The leader took the letter and it turned out that when the women's volleyball team participated in the Los Angeles Olympics, they received financial support from Ronald and provided them with delicious Chinese food, so they could perform well.
The attacker and setter also invited Ronald to come and take a look in the letter.
"Hahaha, it seems there is no need to go through the back door. This is our old friend. What are you waiting for? Hurry up and approve it. Now people all over the country are learning the spirit of the women's volleyball team."
On the Air China flight, Ronald chatted with Jack Valenti, chairman of the Film Association, the Chaoli family who were returning home to visit relatives, and other members of the delegation.
"I've always wanted to go, but this is the first time." Ronald admitted that it was his first time to visit.
"I was there when 'Roman Holiday' premiered." Another big-name member of the delegation, the famous movie star Gregory Peck, laughed.
"Roman Holiday? Ronald almost counted the time on his fingers."
"No, no, it's a local premiere. It's the American Film Festival held by Mr. Valenti last time. It was screened in several big cities and had premiere events."
Pike corrected him with a smile.
"So are you revisiting your old place? Do you have any recommended attractions and food?"
"There is the Great Wall, and you can also eat roast duck. In addition, there is a small soup dumpling in Jiangnan. It is very delicious. It tastes much better than the Chinese restaurants in Hollywood."
"Okay, I've written it all down. Then I'll take more photos and eat more delicious food." Ronald also flashed his Nikon SLR camera.
"Ladies and gentlemen, what would you like to drink? We have Coke, red wine, black tea, and Maotai here."
"Is there an orange-flavored energy drink called...yes, it's called Jianlibao?"
"Yes, I'll get it for you." The flight attendant also glanced at Ronald. This person might be a Hua Guotong.