1982 Started from Hong Kong

Chapter 137: Seize the old seat
With the most valuable awards of this year:

The Hong Kong Film Awards Lifetime Achievement Award is presented.

Uncle Zhao Liu, who was in high spirits, walked onto the stage supported by two emcees, pushing the atmosphere of this ceremony to an unprecedented height.

The Lifetime Achievement Award aims to recognize filmmakers who have made outstanding contributions to the development of Hong Kong film.

This non-standard award was given to Zhao Yifu this year, and the next time it will be Mary Huang Manli's turn will have to wait thirteen years.

Currently, the only person in the film industry who is eligible to receive this award is Zhao Yifu.

The applause was thunderous.

As soon as Zhao Yifu appeared on the side of the stage, everyone in the audience stood up and applauded to show their respect.

The Zhao family's terrifying dominance in the entertainment industry was fully demonstrated at this moment.

"Please take a seat."

Uncle Six smiled modestly and pressed his palms down, and then the applause and cheers gradually died down.

"I started working in the film industry when I was 16, and I have been doing this for 70 years. I founded Chiu Brothers Film Company with my third brother when I moved to Hong Kong at the age of 50. After decades of ups and downs, I dare not say how much contribution we have made, but we have produced more than a thousand Chinese-language films and expanded the film market. From the original Southern Experimental Theatre to the current Wireless Artist Training Class, we have provided young people with an opportunity to enter the industry..."

There is no need to add any embellishments, and you don't even need to bring a speech.

Uncle Zhao Liu's casual recollection of a few major events in the film industry is enough to bring 90% of the film workers present back to the period when he ruled.

Now there are indeed two more factions, Jiahe and Silver Princess. A few years ago, Jiahe’s boss Zhou Wenhuai was one of his younger brothers.

The speech lasted nearly ten minutes.

When the two emcees brought the trophy to the stage, the audience stood up again. No matter how much they privately criticized Uncle Zhao Liu for being stingy, at least at this moment no one dared to deny his contribution to the film industry.

Zhai Yuan also stood up and applauded, looking at Zhao Yifu who was like the moon surrounded by stars, and sighed in admiration.

"It's so stylish. I'll ask Shi Qiuyi to make one for me next year!"

With the departure of Zhao Yifu.

This year's Academy Awards, which lasted nearly an hour, finally came to a close.

"Uncle Six is worthy of being Uncle Six. His interview was published in Biweekly some time ago. I thought he would talk about the current situation today, but he only talked about movies without saying a single unnecessary word."

"Newspapers are retelling the story, this is a live broadcast. Do you think they are stupid enough to leave something to be said in front of the camera?"

"If it was the boss standing on the stage, I think he would definitely express his views vigorously. After all, he is the man who dares to play popular songs in Taiwan."

Zhai Yuan listened to the teasing of people around him and sat in his chair in silence.

"What are you still thinking about?"

Deng Leling sat next to him, crossed her arms and asked.

"I was thinking, I spent 100,000 bucks on these two pieces of junk."

Zhai Yuan held the two nomination trophies in front of the light, and said with a droopy mouth: "And they are made of plastic. My mother even shook her head when she saw the craftsmanship."

Having said that, participating in this year's Academy Awards is not without gain.

"Ayuan!"

After the ceremony, Chen Shilong, the elder brother who was dressed in a white suit and always had a lot of people following him wherever he went, supported himself with one arm and jumped over the row of seats as nimbly as a monkey.

He landed steadily and stood in front of Zhai Yuan, smiling familiarly, "Wow, you are quite sharp. You have just entered the film industry and you have already brought back two trophies. My entire team combined is not as good as you."

"One hundred thousand dollars each, take them all if you want."

Zhai Yuan looked up and glanced at him. It was obvious that the 29-year-old Chen Shilon wanted to be an idol. He not only put on makeup and powder, but also pinned a boutonniere on the left lapel of his suit, trying hard to be a gentleman.

It seems that because "Drunken Master" became a huge hit in Asia, especially after it broke the historical box office record in South Korea, he gained a lot of female fans, so he started to pay attention to his image.

Last year's "Young Master Dragon" even had a greasy slogan like "Let the Young Master accompany you to sleep".

"One hundred thousand? Can you give it to me?"

Chen Shilong challenged him. Even though he tried hard to act elegant, he still had a gangster vibe to him. "I've seen your movie. The script and story are good. Come to my company to help. I'll take you in."

"Don't tease me, Brother Long. You often hurt your bones in those scenes. I'm afraid of being teased to death."

"I'm not asking you to come out and fight. I'm tired of Republic of China martial arts movies. I heard that you made a modern gunfight movie. When you have time, show me the script."

The biweekly spread the news that Zhai Yuan spent five million to produce "A Better Tomorrow", which caused some splashes in the film industry, and even Chen Shilon received the news.

He has been used to being the big brother in the past two years, and his words are his final words. It is natural for him to ask Zhai Yuan for the script at this time.

"Okay, I'll give you the script when I get a chance."

Zhai Yuan said ambiguously.

Chen Shilong heard the rejection and frowned unhappily. He stared at him for a few seconds and waved his hands helplessly.

"Luckily you are not my martial arts brother, otherwise I would kick you away."

He went on to say, "You can't tell the good guys from the bad guys. I'm thinking about you, handsome boy! You can come to my company now and work behind the scenes. If you put up my Chen Clan's sign, the movie can still be released in Taiwan. Otherwise, how can you make money from your gunfight movie? Just rely on local theaters and theaters in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand? Theaters in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand will also schedule films based on production companies. If you put up my name, your schedule will at least increase by two or three times! I appreciate you, so I'm willing to talk to you actively. If you don't like signing a letter of repentance, it doesn't matter. I can make you famous by opening up theaters in Southeast Asia."

When Chen Shilong speaks, he likes to add gestures when he gets excited, shaking his hands back and forth.

Zhai Yuan waited for him to finish speaking and calm down, but he still felt an afterimage in front of his eyes.

Could this be the inspiration for the Ghostly Invisible Hand?
"Brother Long, you seem to be here to show off your connections."

Zhai Yuan smiled and said, "Tell me the truth, have you discussed this matter of inviting me with the big bosses of Jiahe in advance?"

"No!" Chen Shilong said frankly, "I just feel that neither Jiahe nor Princess Yin can handle you. If I can do it, it will be very face-saving."

"You will be disappointed. I have no intention of finding a boss for myself for the time being."

Zhai Yuan said seriously: "But if you need it, we can cooperate."

"Picking! You don't know how to be flexible at all."

Chen Shilong felt embarrassed after being rejected repeatedly, so he simply stopped talking and wrote down his phone number and handed it to Zhai Yuan.

"I'm the only one who helps the newcomers. It's not their turn to help me. Anyway, if you change your mind in the future, remember to call me."

After putting the phone paper into Zhai Yuan's hand, Chen Shilong waved his hand, and a group of martial artists surrounded him and left the venue.

As soon as Chen Shilong left, Bald Mecca and Old Monster Xu Qi came up to him.

Xu Qi and Wu Yusen are old friends. As soon as they met, they started talking about movies. When Xu Qi learned that Wu Yusen was going to film the dual-hero drama that they had discussed together, his eyes were full of envy.

"Ever since I lost money on the movie "Shushan", I've been sitting on the bench with Jiahe and Princess Yin in turn. How could I be as lucky as you?"

"Boss Zhai is a good person. He never interfered during the filming of the movie. But I suspect he is related to Uncle Zhao Liu. He is just as stingy. I only received a few hundred thousand yuan as a director's fee."

Although Wu Yusen complained, he was also showing off. Directors of their level have already started to care about reputation. The meaning of making a rubbish movie for a high price is completely different from making a high-quality movie for a low price.

Just like the directors attending the ceremony tonight, who wouldn’t envy Ann Hui who has won so many awards?
With the success of "Boat Man", her directorial fee for her next film will increase exponentially.

"Mr. Zhai, your previous movie "While You Were Sleeping" cheated the Silver Princess's cinema chain, and Boss Lei was very unhappy."

The bald guy was much more polite than Chen Shilong, but his intention was exactly the same: "But Boss Lei praised you for your promising young age. He asked me to ask you when I see you, is Jiuyi Entertainment willing to merge into Silver Princess? You will continue to be the person in charge, and all the company structures will remain unchanged, just like the current Xinyi City."

Lei Juekun offered higher conditions than Chen Shilon, but unfortunately he still couldn't impress Zhai Yuan.

He said: "If Mr. Lei is willing to invest in Jiuyi, I welcome it with open arms. But it is just a simple acquisition, I am not too interested."

"I figured you would refuse."

Mecca rubbed his bald head and smiled: "Boss Lei's second sentence is, if you don't agree, after your movie "A Better Tomorrow" is released, Silver Princess will simultaneously release a blockbuster movie."

Being overbearing is indeed the style of a businessman like Lei Juekun.

Zhai Yuan frowned, then shrugged nonchalantly: "Okay, we'll see at the box office then."

…………

"We need to speed up the process. We have to finish filming 'A Better Tomorrow' before the third episode of 'Best Partner' is finished." After leaving the Academy Awards venue, Zhai Yuan took his employees to a dinner, which he called a celebration banquet.

This was also the first time that all members of 91 Entertainment gathered together, even non-staff member Peng Jiayan was present.

It is said that after the first episode of "Best Partner" was a huge hit at the box office, Lei Juekun spent more than 500,000 Hong Kong dollars in one night on the New One City celebration banquet to celebrate.

Zhai Yuan felt that Mecca, Huang Baiming and others must have started out with only one dragon and two phoenixes, otherwise they would never have spent so much money.

The meal he treated his employees to, for more than a dozen people, cost less than three thousand yuan in total.

Half a million? Is the abalone you eat encrusted with diamonds?

After telling Wu Yusen the news he got from Mecca, Zhai Yuan no longer had the calm and composed look he had when facing the bald man just now.

He pushed the tipsy Wu Yusen and reminded him again: "Remember, we don't have an advantage in the cinema. If we collide with the reputation accumulated by the first two episodes of "Best Partner", we will definitely be defeated."

Zhai Yuan was not naive enough to think that he could compete with New One City's trump card by just releasing a movie like "A Better Tomorrow", so he chose to avoid it as much as possible.

Wu Yusen was dizzy from being shaken by him, and said helplessly: "Boss, you have explained it three or four times."

As soon as she finished speaking, Pang Chia-yan bit her chopsticks and added, "I heard that Jiahe is even more powerful this year. They spent 20 million yuan to shoot Chen Shilong's "Project A", and recently filmed on both sides of Hong Kong and Malaysia."

"Wow!"

When the other people at the table heard the production cost of 20 million, they all gasped.

Zhai Yuan scratched his hair and looked at the actors beside him: "Brother Long, Young Master Rong, Wan Zi, you all have to work hard. If you can beat Chen Shilong, I will invite you to go to Thailand to dance."

The three leading actors of A Better Tomorrow suddenly felt the pressure doubled.

…………

"The 12th Young Master asked me to do something. You should stay in the hotel for the next two days and don't go out. I will take you to the Netherlands when I am done."

The Peninsula Hotel, Tsim Sha Tsui.

Xie Hushan, the trusted bodyguard of the Twelve Young Master, walked out of the bathroom wrapped in a bath towel and said to the woman lying limp on the bed.

The woman's name was Qiao Yanni, and she was his mistress he brought from Taiwan.

"Brother Shan, why don't we leave tonight? You've been fighting for the Xu family in Taiwan. I don't want to be like this in Hong Kong. Besides, I'm not familiar with the place. What if something unexpected happens?"

Qiao Yanni sat up and hugged Xie Hushan's strong back from behind.

The man's back was covered with knife wounds and two thumb-sized bullet holes, which looked quite horrifying.

"Don't worry, Hong Kong people are timid, maybe we can handle it without any action this time."

Xie Hushan turned around and smiled, then kissed Qiao Yanni on the forehead: "When I was in Taiwan, I had seen all kinds of storms and waves. How could I fail in the waters of the Hong Kong River? Wait for me at the hotel and I will pick you up when I come back."

He comforted the woman a few more words and coaxed her to close her eyes and go to sleep.

After taking off the bath towel, Xie Hushan put on a sweatshirt, dug out a set of parts from his suitcase, and quickly assembled a short dog.
Putting the short dog in his arms, he called Xu Jiasheng.

"Twelfth Young Master, I've checked. Zhai Yuan has only risen to prominence in the past year or so, and his foundation is very shallow."

Xie Hushan spoke in a low voice. After he walked out of the hotel room and made sure that he would not disturb Qiao Yanni, he continued in a normal voice: "The only time he fought with the gangsters was when he took out the boss of Lian Shun Le, Deng Guangrong, a minor character, who was a soldier borrowed from Xin Ji Su Long."

"Su Long? Wait a minute."

Xu Jiasheng on the other end of the phone suddenly fell silent. A muffled rustling sound came from the receiver. After a moment, he returned to normal: "Don't worry, just do as I say. If you need help, feel free to tell me."

Xie Hushan raised his eyebrows. He knew Xu Jiasheng's background well. He did not transfer too many assets when he fled to Hong Kong, and he was the only one with him.

Now they have set up a new business in Hong Kong so quickly, it seems that the Xu family still has some foundation.

"The others are not available for the time being. I will go and warn that young man first and try not to cause any trouble for you by making any big noise."

"Okay, let me know if you have any news. That's it for now."

The phone hangs up.

Xie Hushan frowned and thought for a moment, then walked towards the elevator.

As the elevator bell rang, he stepped in and pressed the button for the first floor.

"and many more!"

Just before the elevator door closed, a woman's voice suddenly sounded outside.

A middle-aged woman dressed like a noble lady stretched out her hand to open the elevator door, followed by a Doberman Pinscher wagging its tail.

The lady glared at Xie Hushan when she entered the elevator, and then muttered, "I told you not to hear me later? You're like a log, not a gentleman at all!"

Xie Hushan smiled nonchalantly and leaned aside with a relaxed look.

Unexpectedly, the Doberman seemed to sense the hostess's dissatisfaction, and it bared its teeth at him and made a low growl in its throat.

"Sly eyes." The lady muttered sarcastically and pulled the dog leash: "Baby, we don't want to play with him. Mommy will take you home."

The Doberman still bared its teeth and barked at Xie Hushan. It suddenly pounced forward and bit Xie Hushan's thigh with its sharp white teeth.

Xie Hushan frowned, and quickly raised his knee to hit the Doberman's throat.

"Bang!" With a loud bang, the dog flew backwards and hit the side wall of the elevator, shaking the entire elevator.

"Oh! Baby, are you okay?"

The lady was so scared that she quickly lay down to check the injuries of her dog. The Doberman struggled for several times but couldn't get up, which made her very anxious.

She suddenly turned around, pointed at Xie Hushan's nose angrily and cursed: "You bastard, do you know how to respect the elderly and love the young? If anything happens to my baby, you can expect to be sued and pay money! My baby has been trained and has never bitten strangers. It must be you who has a sneaky look, and you might even be a murderer. I'm calling the police to arrest you now!"

The lady became angrier and angrier as she spoke, so she simply took out her brother's phone from her bag and pretended to dial three nines.

"Beauty."

The man's voice sounded with a smile, and she subconsciously looked up, the expression on her face froze instantly.

Xie Hushan had pulled out his rifle at some point, and the black muzzle was pointed at her. The lady's legs went limp and she collapsed to the ground.

"Your baby guessed it right."

He said this with a fake smile, put one arm around the lady's shoulders and pulled her up, and the hand holding the gun slid into her collar, and the cold muzzle moved from her chest to her lower abdomen.

Xie Hushan asked the other party politely: "Do you drive a car? What kind of car do you drive? Would it be convenient for you to give me a ride?"

…………

"Uncle Long, don't worry. Ah Shan has been with me the longest and is the most sensible. He won't easily kill anyone."

Yau Tsim District, Su Long Boxing Gym.

Xu Jiaqiang sat at a round table with his feet on the table, flipping through a best-selling book "Biography of Deng Guangrong" on the newsstand.

The contents of the book were exaggerated, and Lian Shun Le seemed to have become the underground emperor of Hong Kong.

He adjusted the gold-wire frame, looked up at Su Long who was sitting opposite him, and said with a smile: "Is this the work of Zhai Yuan? If the big guys in Hong Kong were this skilled, Wu Siyuan wouldn't have been beaten so badly!"

He was talking about a major event that happened in the film industry last year. The big producer Wu Siyuan made Chen Shilong famous with the movie "Drunken Master", and then set his sights on a newcomer named Li Yuanba, preparing to train a second Chen Shilong. However, as soon as Li Yuanba became a little famous, he wanted to break the contract. He colluded with the Taiwan film producers and beat Wu Siyuan, who was at the peak of his career in Hong Kong, so hard that he suffered a concussion and almost died.

This incident scared all the Hong Kong bosses so much that no one dared to step forward to resolve the situation.

In the end, it was Wu Siyuan who paid out of his own pocket and asked the Taiwanese boss Wang Yu to settle the matter.

He was the Wang Yu who was dissatisfied with Zhao’s commission system, sneaked into Zhao’s company, and burned all the contracts.

"Jia He did approach me about this matter, but I happened to be on vacation in Hawaii."

Su Long said with a smile, trying to save his face: "Twelfth Young Master, let's put Zhai Yuan's matter aside and talk about the main topic. Do you really want to start a film company?"

"Of course, I like making movies the most. I can earn money and play with female stars. What a good job."

Xu Jiasheng showed Su Long a harmless smile, snapped the book shut, and said, "Am I coming to Hong Kong to compete with my boss for the position of leader? He is my boss. Even if I really have this idea, no one will support me, Uncle Long!"

(End of this chapter)