"But before that, there is more important things to do. Ye Zhao said, "That is, to carefully understand the story of Mr. Kono and Miss Oshima, including the news at the time and subsequent related reports." ”

Since you want to shoot other people's stories, of course, you have to do your homework in all aspects.

"This is a must-do. Yukihiko Tsutsumi nodded.

"In addition," Ye Zhao added, "I also want to watch "Gazing at Love and Death" starring Miss Yoshinaga a few times to feel what director Saito conveys from it." …… How's that, Tysan, interested in this project?"

"Well, that's natural. Tsutsumi Yukihiko straightened his sitting posture, "If you can make the trip, you will have to ask Ye Jun again." ”

"I'm here for it," Ye Zhao picked up the wine jug, filled it for Tsutsukihiko, and poured it for himself, "There is so much experience missing, if there is no person like Tysang who is so tolerant, it is really impossible to start and make a mess of things." ”

After talking to Tsutsumi Yukihiko about this "Gazing at Love and Death", Ye Zhao immediately put it into action.

The first thing to do, of course, is to find the book published by Minoru Kono that he wrote with Michiko Oshima and read it carefully, although he mentioned the film adaptation to Yukihiko Tsutsumi, but all he knows about this story comes from the TV Asahi documentary.

Although the documentary has told the story of these two people in detail, the more specific 386 letters still need to be thoroughly understood through books.

Minoru Kono's book was published in 1963, and although it caused a sensation when it was published, it was reprinted in 1.5 million copies, but in the years since, it has not been reprinted, so what finally arrived in Ye Zhao's hands was an old book retrieved from a second-hand bookstore with some yellowed paper.

The person in charge of going to the book for him is his newly recruited assistant Takahashi Ryuya, entering the new year, Ye Zhao's workload is only a lot more, and only one Uemura Yuki can't take care of it, so he added this assistant to help deal with trivial matters.

After getting Minoru Kono's book, Ye Zhao read the book carefully when he went back and forth to various places of work or study, or waited for the work to start.

To tell the truth, after reading these letters, he was also really moved. The 386 letters that have been sorted out according to the timeline are not only the sincere love between Minoru Kono and Michiko Oshima, but also the strength of Michiko Oshima and her desire for life that touches him even more.

It was also after reading this book that he was able to somewhat understand why the outside world would react so much after the marriage of Minoru Kono and Junko was exposed, because the source of the strength that supported Michiko Oshima to live, even if she lost half of her face, and the source of the strength to fight the disease to the end came from Minoru Kono.

Perhaps it is because of this that the Japanese people feel that Kono is a "betrayer".

But it is precisely because of this that Ye Zhao is more able to understand Kono's future approach.

The person who gave Michiko Oshima the confidence and courage to live was Minoru Kono, but the fact that Michiko Oshima was alive also gave Minoru Kono the confidence and courage to persevere. Both of them are each other's "pillars".

Michiko Oshima finished the last days of her life with the support of Minoru Kono, so, with her passing, the pillar that once supported Minoru Kono fell, how can he, as a living person, spend his life without a pillar?

That's why Junko said, "Actually, we're not as strong as everyone thinks."

While reading Minoru Kono's original book, Ye Zhao also went to the library and found the newspaper archive about this matter at that time, and found some reports when Minoru Kono and Junko announced their marriage.

In addition to being accused of being "traitors", there were even radical populaces who poured paint on Minoru Kono and Junko's new homes. Of course, as the heat of the matter decreased, the story was gradually forgotten, and the lives of Minoru Kono and Junko returned to normal.

Of course, in addition to reading the original book and related reports, Ye Zhao also saw the film released in 1964 as he wished after paying a film cost fee and storage fee through the way pointed out by Yukihiko Tsutsumi.

As far as the plot is concerned, the adaptation is a collection of letters from the book that was published, and there is not much new, but it is better because the rhythm is moderate, and the plot is also clear, and it is a good movie.

Of course, in addition to these, nineteen-year-old Sayuri Yoshinaga must also be mentioned.

Although when mentioning her, she is often described as a "national treasure-level actress", but this word is actually not very appropriate, after all, there are almost hundreds of various things that are enshrined as "national treasures" in the book, but there is only one person like Sayuri Yoshinaga who is just such a Sayuri Yoshinaga .

After getting to know each other in general, the next step was to contact Minoru Kono and his wife.

It was not too difficult to find Minoru Kono, after all, it had caused a sensation at the level of a social phenomenon at the time, and the publisher of the book could also find the materials that existed at that time. Although it is old, it is easy to find it by touching the vine.

Speaking of Minoru Kono, although he was a student in Tokyo at the time, his hometown was in Osaka, and he was a fellow villager with Michiko Oshima, which is why he ran from Tokyo to Osaka for ear treatment.

After Michiko Oshima's death, Minoru Kono continued her legacy as a journalist and later in international consulting. After marrying his wife, Junko, the couple has been living in Tokyo ever since.

The person in charge of finding Minoru Kono and his wife for Ye Zhao, and the person who got in touch was Jun Takeda. At first, Minoru Kono was reluctant to meet with Ye Zhao, and it was not until Ye Zhao conveyed his reasons for wanting to make this movie through Jun Takeda that the other party nodded and agreed.

But it's just a meeting, and the specifics are still to be discussed.

Minoru Kono was nineteen years old when she met Michiko Oshima, and Michiko Oshima was twenty-two years old when she died. Now, thirty-two years later, he is 54 years old and lives with his wife Junko, who is three years younger, in Nakano, and their two daughters were married a few years ago.

The meeting was scheduled for an afternoon in late April. Together with Jun Takeda, Ye Zhao brought snacks for the visit and went to Minoru Kono's house. Shortly after ringing the doorbell at the gate, Minoru Kono's wife, Junko, came over to open the door for them.