Entertainment Era: My Good Sister Is All Over the World

The moon shines in the dark sky, and the river water glistens like scales.

River waters, river waters, when will they wash away the evil struggles of humankind?

—Wen Ruian, *Heroes of Guangdong and Guangxi*, 1979

……

In summer, Huangshan is shrouded in a sea of ​​clouds.

Everywhere you look, there are breathtakingly beautiful views.

However, renowned director Zhang Xinyan was not in the mood to enjoy the scenery. Even the excitement he felt after his chance encounter with Deng Xiaoping on Huangshan Mountain last month was dampened by a letter.

At this time, he was filming the martial arts movie "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch" in Huangshan. The filming was progressing very smoothly and would be completed in another month or two.

As a result, I received an urgent letter yesterday. The writer was Liao Disheng, the chairman of three film companies: New Union, Phoenix, and Great Wall, who was also my boss.

The letter was not complicated; it simply urged him to finish filming the movie he was currently working on as soon as possible and then rush back to Hong Kong Island to film another Shaolin-themed movie, "Thirteen Shaolin Monks Save the Tang Emperor".

This film is quite important because it was specifically requested by Liao Gong, who was in charge of Hong Kong and Macao affairs.

The cause of the matter is quite complicated, and it involves a rather controversial Japanese monk, which I won't go into here.

(Let's see if the young woman Bai elaborates on this later. If he writes about it, then it's none of my business. If he doesn't write about it, then it's definitely a trigger point, and I can't write about it either.)

When Liao Gong was in charge of Hong Kong and Macao affairs, he watched some kung fu and martial arts movies from Hong Kong Island and suddenly had an idea: why doesn't the mainland make a movie about Shaolin Temple or Tai Chi?

It can express patriotism and boost national self-confidence.

After Liao Gong proposed the idea, Xinlian Film Company took on the filming task.

They selected veteran director Chen Wen to direct this film, and the actors were all artists from Great Wall Film Company. The lead actor was Wu Gang (not the Wu Gang from "In the Name of the People"), and some opera actors played supporting roles.

This group of people approached the task with a purely mission-oriented mindset, and followed the model of Shaw Brothers martial arts films, filming in the studio for a period of time.

However, the quality of the final cut was so poor that the company chairman burned the half-hour sample after watching it. By then, the company had already spent HK$40.

At this time, director Chen Wen suffered a serious ankle injury and was unable to continue filming.

The situation reached a stalemate, but filming still had to continue, as it was an order given by Liao Gong.

Chairman Liao Disheng could only write to Zhang Xinyan, urging him to finish filming "The Bride with White Hair" as soon as possible and then return to Hong Kong to take over the business.

Zhang Xinyan was also a little uneasy; this film was not so easy to shoot.

The requirement from above is that the film should be made famous and profitable internationally.

Following the Shaw Brothers' usual methods, it would definitely be impossible to meet the requirements.

Moreover, if we want to promote Shaolin Kung Fu, we can't use those martial arts actors from Hong Kong.

Even established stars like Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan can't be used, because they have their own companies and their fees are very high.

To create a world-shaking martial arts film within a limited budget, you still need to use real martial arts athletes.

Also, the original script cannot be used.

He had read the script called "Thirteen Monks Save the Tang Emperor," which was not only very rough but also completely in the style of Shaw Brothers.

However, if the script is rewritten, filming won't start until at least next year.

A good script is hard to come by without several months of polishing.

Of course, there are also some exceptionally talented screenwriters who can write and film whatever they want without any effort.

Screenwriters like this are truly rare finds.

Hong Kong Island filming often involves writing scripts on the fly, a process of filming and writing scenes simultaneously, also known as "crossing the bridge."

"It's difficult!"

Zhang Xinyan didn't know how to reply, so he got up, walked out of the house, lit a cigarette, and slowly smoked it.

He finished his cigarette before realizing there was another person sitting next to him.

This person is his go-to screenwriter, named Liang Ziqiang.

"That's really something!" He was engrossed in a book, occasionally slapping his thigh.

Zhang Xinyan couldn't help but ask, "Ziqiang, what are you looking at?"

"Ah, a friend sent me this script." Liang Ziqiang looked up at Zhang Xinyan and said with a smile, "It's really well-written, it's strange that the Beijing Film Studio didn't want it."

"Beijing Film Studio doesn't want it?" Zhang Xinyan was taken aback. "Then how did you get it? It's a bit against the rules, isn't it?"

"What's the big deal? They don't want them anyway." Liang Ziqiang explained with a smile, "I have a friend in the literature department of Beijing Film Studio. I often ask him to send me some scripts that Beijing Film Studio doesn't accept. What if there's a good one among them? Then we can pick it up."

Zhang Xinyan said dismissively, "If even the Beijing Film Studio doesn't want them, what good scripts could they possibly have?"

"This book is really something else, it's absolutely brilliantly written." Liang Ziqiang shook his head at Zhang Xin'an and said seriously, "It's about Shaolin Temple, it's very interesting. If you could get a group of people who know martial arts to film this book, it would definitely blow people's minds."

"Shaolin Temple?" Zhang Xinyan was immediately startled and reached out, "Let me see it."

Liang Ziqiang was stunned for a moment, not expecting Zhang Xinyan to be so excited, so he closed the manuscript in his hand and handed it over.

Zhang Xinyan glanced at the book and immediately noticed the words "Shaolin Temple".

Then look at the author's column, the name is Huang Wenbin.

What follows is the main text of the script.

The very first scene captivated him. It tells the story of Wang Renze, who, during the late Sui Dynasty, was overseeing the construction of river defense works. His excessive tyranny caused discontent among countless river workers. Zhang, nicknamed "Divine Legs," led a rebellion but was brutally murdered, while his son, Xiaohu, escaped by sheer luck.

"That's really powerful!"

Zhang Xinyan is an expert in making martial arts films. The scripts he looks for are never those with strong literary qualities, but rather those with a captivating plot that also leaves room for action scenes.

This script is very complete, and it was almost written in one go.

After reading it, Zhang Xinyan was amazed: "This is exactly the Shaolin Temple script I've been looking for. With it, I finally have the confidence to take over that mess!"

"What kind of mess is this?" Liang Ziqiang asked, looking completely bewildered.

Zhang Xinyan didn't explain, but said directly, "Ziqiang, go to Yanjing immediately and find the author of this script as soon as possible. I want this script; I'll buy it no matter the cost."

"Oh, okay!" Liang Ziqiang didn't ask any more questions and nodded sensibly.

Zhang Xinyan glared at him: "What are you standing there for? Go now."

"Now?" Liang Ziqiang was taken aback. Could it be that urgent?

"The sooner the better. I'm worried someone will snatch this script." Zhang Xinyan said earnestly, "If this screenwriter can't get the Beijing Film Studio, he'll definitely submit it to another studio. If another studio manages to get it, it'll be too late for me to regret it."

Liang Ziqiang replied, "Okay, I'll go buy a train ticket to Yanjing right now."

"Why buy train tickets? Buy plane tickets!" Zhang Xinyan couldn't help but glare at him. "The team isn't short of money! I'll transfer five hundred yuan to you. Go sooner and come back sooner."

Liang Ziqiang was overjoyed. A plane ticket from here to Yanjing only cost sixty yuan. He didn't need to pay for the script, so the extra money would definitely be his.

This business trip was worthwhile.

Liang Ziqiang couldn't help but feel extremely curious about this screenwriter named Huang Wenbin.