1979: The child's mother is a celestial being.

Chapter 165 Hong Kong Film and Television Missed an Opportunity for Takeoff (Please Subscribe!)
Three days after the first round of negotiations between Chan Fuk-sang and the Hong Kong government, they sat down at the negotiating table again.

However, this time the team leader sent by the other side was no longer Huang Gangsheng, but a British man named James William.

He was also Lao Huang's immediate superior.

In addition, a military officer who identified himself as a captain from the logistics department also arrived.

"Chen, welcome to Hong Kong to invest in and make movies."

"Thank you, I need your continued support."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Chen Fusheng officially began this round of negotiations with Jims.

"Chen, we need to understand what your film is about first. If there are political risks, then this negotiation will be meaningless. I hope you understand."

"I understand, but didn't Director Huang Gangsheng report to you after he went back?"

His report was very simple.

"Haha, looks like Director Huang had too much to drink that day." Chen Fusheng made a casual joke, then handed over the printed Chinese and English script and gave a brief introduction.

Jims listened to Chen Fusheng's introduction, glanced at the script briefly, and then looked up and asked, "Chen, can we take this script back and study it?"

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid that won't work; it's a trade secret."

"Okay." Actually, Jims had only asked casually; he didn't have any particular ideas about the script. However, the rejection of his request still made him somewhat displeased.

Then he closed the script and said, "Chen, let's talk about the rental fees for the weapons you need for filming."

"Okay!" Chen Fusheng liked this kind of straightforward negotiation with foreigners the most.

"This is the price list we've compiled based on the weapons list you provided, Chen. You can take a look first."

It was the military representative who spoke. Chen Fusheng nodded to him and then reached out to take the price list that the representative handed him.

He didn't look at the details, but went straight to the summary.

When I saw that the total price was 100 million, I could actually accept it.

Because he subconsciously thought it was 100 million Hong Kong dollars.

So the total would be around 500,000 RMB, which was within his budget.

But the next second, when he noticed that the unit was not Hong Kong dollars but British pounds, his blood pressure spiked.

£100 million is equivalent to 331 million RMB at the current exchange rate.

Damn it, they're really treating them like easy prey.

Suppressing his anger, Chen Fusheng asked the other party again, "Mr. James, did your staff label the unit incorrectly? Are you sure it's pounds and not Hong Kong dollars?"

"That's right, it's £100 million. Actually, Chen, this price isn't high. Because when you're filming, you'll not only need to use a lot of advanced guns, but also tanks and planes. Many departments will also need to cooperate with you. Considering everything, £100 million is already a very sincere price."

If it were 2025, Chen Fusheng could accept this price, but it's 1982 now. In 1982, £100 million would be enough for him to buy all the weapons he needed for his film.

The other party now tells him that this is a very sincere price.

Such shameless words made Chen Fusheng laugh in anger.

Lingzi also took the list and glanced at it, and she was equally furious.

He angrily retorted, "A million pounds? Are you planning to just sell us the weapons?"

"Please don't be angry, gentlemen. This £100 million also includes our training fees for your actors, as well as the labor costs for our people to assist you with filming if needed. Of course, if you feel that £100 million is still too high, we can discuss it further."

Chen Fusheng and Ling Zi exchanged a glance, both feeling that the negotiation was no longer necessary.

Just over ten minutes later, the two sides left the negotiation hotel one after the other, neither of them smiling as they left. The result was obvious: the talks had broken down.

"Damn it, these foreigners are even more heartless than capitalists. A million pounds, why don't they just rob us?" Lingzi was still angry after getting into the car, cursing under her breath.

Chen Fusheng fared slightly better, but after this ordeal, he had completely lost all hope for Hong Kong before its return to China.

Originally, he intended to make Hong Kong the outlet to the sea for the Oriental Company.

He even considered turning Hong Kong into the Hollywood of the East.

But now it seems that his idea is unrealistic, because he is unlikely to gain the support of the local government.

So although the negotiations failed, it wasn't all bad; at least it made Chen Fusheng see many things more clearly.

I avoided taking a lot of detours.

Of course, this also caused Hong Kong's film and television industry to miss an opportunity to take off.

In other words, if it continues to operate in its current model, it will inevitably decline after the turn of the millennium.

But this is all for later.

Returning to the present, Chen Fusheng listened to Ling Zi's complaints and comforted her:
"It's alright, they won't be able to cause trouble for many more years. Sooner or later they'll have to go back to that little island of Great Britain."

"That's true. Hong Kong is ours. I heard that the higher-ups are already negotiating with Britain. Maybe it will be returned to us soon."

Thinking about it this way, Lingzi felt much better.

However, her concerns didn't last long, and she soon raised new ones:
"What should we do now?"

"What else can we do but film it in the country?"

"But no city in mainland China is as bustling as Hong Kong, so it would be difficult to find a suitable filming location."

"I've thought about this problem before. The solution is to film the indoor scenes in China and the outdoor scenes in Hong Kong. Of course, this means we'll have to spend more money on post-production special effects."

As soon as Chen Fusheng finished speaking, Ling Zi excitedly said, "Good, good, good, this is a good idea. You're truly amazing, Xiao Chen."

"Haha, what can I do? I'm the boss."

"Yes, yes, you're the leader, you're awesome!"

This interruption also dispelled the gloom of the previous failed negotiations.

Today is Friday, which is also the date of the first Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony.

Because Hong Kong's status in Chen Fusheng's heart had declined, he had completely lost any expectation for the Hong Kong Film Awards. However, since he had promised Chen Baisheng, he couldn't break his promise, so he still took Gong Xue to attend the event in the afternoon.

Well, the reason I included Gong Xue is because she is the female lead in "The Tuner".

The awards ceremony was held at the Birthday Theatre of the Hong Kong Arts Centre.

This year's Hong Kong Film Awards didn't feel like a film festival at all; it was more like a gathering of industry insiders.

Because most of the attendees were dressed casually, Chen Fusheng, who was dressed in formal attire, became a minority.

The key issue is that many of the prizes remain unclaimed.

For example, at the Top Ten Foreign Language Film Awards, none of the main winners were present. Even Xu Guanwen, who won Best Actor, did not attend; his younger brother, Xu Guanjie, accepted the award on his behalf.

What's even more hilarious is that Xie Jing's "Legend of Tianyun Mountain" also won one of the Top Ten Chinese Films, but Xie Jing himself didn't attend. Chen Baisheng heard that Gong Xue was from Shanghai, so he asked her to go up and accept the award on his behalf...

Seeing Gong Xue, looking completely bewildered, go on stage to accept the award for Xie Jing, Chen Fusheng couldn't help but laugh.

Isn't this just a makeshift operation?
"Mr. Chen, we have prepared a banquet for tonight. We hope you and Ms. Gong Xue will not leave yet."

"I'm sorry, Editor-in-Chief Chen, we're heading back to the mainland tomorrow and need to pack up and say goodbye, so we can't attend the banquet tonight. Thank you for the invitation."

"Ah? Are you so anxious?"

"There's no other way; there are still many jobs available in China."

"..."

Chen Fusheng was not lying. The next day, they boarded a plane back to China.

Although the negotiations with the Hong Kong government were unsuccessful, this trip to Hong Kong was still worthwhile.

Firstly, the goal of promoting the film has been achieved. Currently, "The Devotion of Suspect X" has been released in Hong Kong for 12 days, and the cumulative box office has exceeded HK$1560 million. Moreover, the daily box office is still maintained between HK$90 and HK$100 million. It is predicted that the box office in the first month may reach HK$2500 million.

With the film set to continue its run for the second month, it is expected to gross 30 million yuan.

Secondly, he secured the lead role in "Die Hard".

Finally, I also received an award!
(End of this chapter)