Entertainment Era: My Good Sister Is All Over the World

Chapter 93 Black Cat Hotel (Please Subscribe)

Cao Sihuo was a newly appointed official, so he was eager to make achievements, but unfortunately, even a skilled cook cannot make a meal without rice.

His clinging to Huang Wenbin was actually a desperate attempt to find a cure.

If he succeeds, he will have achieved the development of the film studio at the lowest possible cost.

However, Huang Wenbin knew he wasn't a savior. A film studio can't develop on just one or two scripts; it needs supporting talent and resources.

"Producer Huang, I don't ask for much, I just hope you can give our factory one or two scripts of decent quality."

Cao Sihuo lowered his stance and said very humbly, "Even if you gave me scripts like 'Let the Bullets Fly' and 'The Cotton Robe,' we still couldn't make them."

Huang Wenbin nodded to himself; this Factory Director Cao did have some self-awareness.

"You are a great writer and a well-known screenwriter in the industry —"

Cao Sihuo continued to flatter Huang Wenbin, showering him with compliments, before casually revealing his true intentions: "When you're creating, you must have some scripts you write for practice, right? Could you spare one or two for our factory? You'll definitely get your royalties!"

Huang Wenbin didn't actually have such a script on hand, mainly because the conditions at the Hubei Film Studio were indeed quite difficult.

However, his dream is to create a golden age of arts and culture, and helping small film studios is part of that dream.

"I don't actually have the script."

After a moment's consideration, Huang Wenbin made a decision: "However, I have two pretty good ideas that I can share with you. You can find a screenwriter to write them down yourselves."

"Great! That's wonderful!" Cao Sihuo was actually a little disappointed, but he didn't show any dissatisfaction on his face. Instead, he said to Zhang Zhongbin next to him, "Zhongbin, go get some paper and write this down."

Zhang Zhongbin didn't show any resistance. He immediately went out and returned two or three minutes later.

"Your film studio is small, with few people. If you want to break out of your niche and become popular, you have to take an unconventional approach!"

Before discussing the two ideas, Huang Wenbin gave Director Cao and Zhang Zhongbin a heads-up: "How can we use the best budget to make a movie that will amaze the public and make them want to buy tickets to see it?"

Cao Sihuo was captivated by these words, which reflected the predicament faced by many small film studios: "Yes, what should we do?"

"Then we have to create hype, to provide visual stimulation," Huang Wenbin said slowly. "What kind of visuals are the cheapest yet most exciting? What kind of plots are the simplest yet most captivating?"

Cao Sihuo was getting impatient: "Planner Huang, stop keeping us in suspense. We're all a bit slow on the uptake, just tell us directly."

Zhang Zhongbin, standing to the side, seemed to have grasped something.

"I'll tell you these two stories, and you'll understand."

Huang Wenbin, no longer intending to keep them in suspense, cleared his throat and began to tell the story: "One day, a plane crashed in the snowy mountains. Five people survived, three men and two women. One of the women had a broken leg, and the three men abandoned her because they thought she was in the way. They found a wooden cabin and moved in. The four of them agreed to take turns on watch, and then they discovered that there was an extra person in the cabin—"

The story Huang Wenbin tells is called "The Haunted Snow Mountain," which comes from a 2000 special film episode of the Japanese "Tales of the Unusual" series. It is one of the most terrifying chapters in the entire series.

"Is this...is this a ghost story?" Cao Sihuo was horrified after hearing the story. "Isn't this promoting feudal superstition? This wouldn't pass censorship, would it?"

Huang Wenbin said calmly, "You can interpret it as a ghost story, or as a hallucination they experienced while near death, or simply as a dream one of them had. Isn't it normal for such inexplicable realities to appear in hallucinations and dreams?"

"Huh, what you're saying makes sense." Cao Sihuo came back to his senses and thought about the plot again. It was indeed quite simple. It could basically be filmed in a wooden house, with at most some snow scenes.

"And another story?" Zhang Zhongbin's interest was piqued, and he quickly pressed for an answer.

He was originally a screenwriter, so he knew all too well how important a good story was. He was transferred to the Hubei Film Studio in 1970, thinking he would have a chance to make a name for himself, but he found himself trapped in shallow waters.

Over the years, he could only make documentaries and had no opportunity to direct feature films. In 1991, he took over as factory director and later became the vice chairman of the Hubei Film Association.

Liu Xiaoli, standing to the side, began to look at Huang Wenbin with a slightly sullen expression.

At this time, she was most attracted to men who were both good-looking and talented.

Huang Wenbin perfectly met her criteria for a partner, but she was still a little hesitant about whether to take the initiative and make a move on this man.

"The second story takes place in Taiwan!"

Unaware that the woman beside him was plotting against him, Huang Wenbin continued with the second story, suddenly becoming suspenseful before beginning, "Have you heard of the Black Cat Hotel?"

Cao Sihuo and Zhang Zhongbin exchanged a glance and shook their heads simultaneously.

None of the people present knew.

It's normal that they don't know, because this was made up anyway.

The story Huang Wenbin is about to tell is called "Taiwan Black Cat Hotel," an 8-episode TV series produced by Hubei Film Studio in 1988, adapted from the novel of the same name. Because of its explicit content, it was completely banned after only a few episodes aired, but its videotapes sold like hotcakes, setting a record for the highest sales volume for a domestic film at the time.

The original novel was considered a bit erotic, so the adapted drama naturally had some suggestive elements.

This TV series is set in Kaohsiung, Taiwan in 1979, and tells the story of a brothel called the Black Cat Hotel.

It involves several romantic entanglements arising from jealousy and rivalry, implicating many high-ranking officials and young masters on the island. It vividly depicts the decadent and dissolute lifestyle of the island society at that time, while also including many scenes expressing the homesickness of veterans. The ending is also quite intriguing.

This TV series touches on many topics of interest to contemporary mainland Chinese, and features numerous captivating elements, such as the ecology of Taiwan, the homesickness of veterans, the struggles of prostitutes, power struggles, and brutal murders.

It has a very cult flavor.

"This—" Cao Sihuo was shocked again and couldn't speak for a long time.

Zhang Zhongbin was also stunned, and said in a trembling voice, "How could the Film Bureau possibly approve a movie about Taiwan at this time? We'd probably get criticized."

"You should write the script first, and then submit it to the United Front Work Department for review." Huang Wenbin gave them a direct suggestion: "As long as the United Front Work Department has no objections, the Film Bureau will have to keep quiet even if they do."

"Huh? That's a good idea!" Cao Si's eyes lit up, and he immediately thought of several similar solutions, even solutions to many problems. "Thank you so much, Planner Huang! You're like a second parent to us!"

"No, no, don't do that!" Huang Wenbin quickly waved his hands: "I only provided two ideas. How you write and film them is your business. There's no need to drag me into it, and it's best not to put my name on it."

"How can that be!" Cao Sihuo quickly waved his hand: "This is your idea, we can't take credit for it."

Huang Wenbin thought for a moment and said, "If you insist on signing your name, why not use my pen name?"

What is your pen name?

"The Taoist of Longjiang".

Liang Xiaosheng, far away in Yanjing, suddenly sneezed: "Achoo—"

Do I have a cold?

Liang Xiaosheng thought to himself.

He never imagined that years later, he would hold a press conference to publicly clarify that he had never written any erotic novels, nor was he the screenwriter of the movie "Black Cat Hotel," and that all erotic novels and dramas attributed to "Longjiang Daoren" had nothing to do with him.

He only wrote a few martial arts novels under the pen name "Longjiang Daoren," and those were co-authored with Huang Wenbin, who had already become a world-renowned writer at the time.

Unfortunately, his clarification was completely useless.

Rumors that Liang Xiaosheng, a literary giant of the educated youth movement, once wrote erotic novels continue to spread widely on the internet.

Liang Xiaosheng was furious and wanted to know who had started ruining his reputation in the 1980s.

He is mortal enemies with this person!