So what if I work with celebrities?

Xu Zan followed the sailors to their destination by car, only to find out that the Lianzhu Society hadn't just sent a few of them; other brothers had also come by boat.

The New Righteous Society held its banquet at a restaurant. People in the underworld always value pomp and circumstance; they need to have many brothers and make it lively so that their power can be seen as cohesive.

Xu Zan kept a low profile, wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, standing next to the sailor like a bodyguard. After all, he was 1.8 meters tall and looked very big.

Since the old man from the Xiang family was driven away, the New Righteous Society had been run by Four-Eyed Dragon, who was twenty-one years old that year.

To wield such power at such a young age naturally requires a great deal of effort.

After all, people in the underworld sometimes talk about morality, sometimes they don't. Moreover, the Xiang family has reaped the lion's share of the profits over the years, so how could those outside the family possibly accept it?

Therefore, they will definitely cause trouble whenever they have the chance.

At the entrance of the restaurant, Four-Eyed Dragon greeted the sailor with a smile, though it seemed forced.

Even the fearless Wang Chao and Ma Han became reserved at this moment, and a dozen or so people followed Four-Eyed Dragon and the sailor into the private room of the restaurant.

They were seated according to their social status, and guests who had come from afar naturally sat in the seats at the head of the table.

The two bigwigs sat in the main seats, without using gestures to identify them as seen in the movie, and without any slogans.

The people sitting there were saying auspicious words; one praised the Lianzhu Association for growing bigger and stronger, and the other praised the Xinyi Association for its steady development.

It was through Four-Eyed Dragon's introduction that Xu Zan and his group met the people in the main private room. Several of them were Four-Eyed Dragon's mother's nephews, and the rest were leaders of the New Righteousness Association.

"Let me introduce you, this is my right-hand man, Tanuki, who's now making movies and is doing very well!" The sailor said, patting Xu Zan on the shoulder after introducing Wang Chao Mahan.

"Oh? This is a learned person!" Four-Eyed Dragon looked Xu Zan over carefully, feeling as if he had seen him somewhere before. "I have two younger brothers who are also involved in filmmaking, but they're both good for nothing and haven't made a name for themselves. You two should have something in common."

Four-Eyed Dragon was very open-minded, stating frankly that as long as Tanuki was filming on the New Righteous Association's territory, no one would disturb him.

After Xu Zan transmigrated, he actually looked up Xiang Huaqiang's background. He started out acting in movies in Taiwan and had some martial arts skills, but none of them were very popular.

Or rather, he doesn't know how to act; he just relies on fighting to grab attention.

Don't be fooled by the fact that they all share the same surname; their status within the family is worlds apart. In large families, the eldest son always takes all the credit, while the rest of the children just coast along.

If one harbors even the slightest disloyalty, accidents will almost always occur.

After several rounds of drinks, the sailors finally got down to business, seemingly preparing to do business with the New Righteous Society in reselling scarce goods.

Xu Zan was too lazy to listen to these things, so he made an excuse to go to the toilet, but unexpectedly ran into Xiang Huaqiang at the toilet door.

"You are, you are Xu Zan, Director Xu?" Xiang Huaqiang asked excitedly.

"Yes, you look familiar. Have you ever acted in a movie?" Xu Zan asked knowingly.

"Yes, yes, I've filmed some movies in Taiwan, but they didn't make much money."

Xiang Huaqiang was almost thirty years old at this time and didn't have a proper job. He would act when he could get a role, and help out at his brother's restaurant when he couldn't.

Now that I've met such a big-name director, I naturally want to get to know him.

"However, Director Xu, I'm very good at fighting, I know kung fu." Xiang Huaqiang, speaking in Cantonese, stood in place and waved his fists a few times.

Before Xu Zan could speak, they heard, "Brother Qiang, Brother Qiang."

A few moments later, a pretty girl with short hair ran in.

Ding Pei, dressed in denim, walked over and, having already sized up Xu Zan's appearance, leaned against Xiang Huaqiang and asked, "Are you Xu Zan, Director Xu?"

Xu Zan greeted the woman briefly. This woman was no ordinary person; she was not only Li Xiaolong's former lover, but also came from a very wealthy family.

She was well-connected in both the legitimate and underworld circles in Taiwan, and had a good relationship with people who couldn't swim.

"You're Four-Eyed Dragon's younger brother, right?" Xu Zan asked.

Seeing Xiang Huaqiang nod, he continued, "I'm going to shoot a kung fu movie soon, and there's a villain in it. Do you have any ideas?"

"Great! It's an honor to act in Director Xu's film. Thank you for giving me this opportunity." Xiang Huaqiang didn't even ask what kind of film it was.

It must be said that people from complicated family backgrounds often know how to leverage their connections.

Inviting Xiang Huaqiang was merely a favor to Si Yanlong. He had mentioned at the dinner party that Xu Zan's film company would not be disturbed by underworld figures while making movies.

So Lao Xu simply returned the favor by inviting Si Yanlong's younger brother to act in a movie.

As for the Shao family's arrangement, they can only blame the unfavorable timing, location, and people; a single phone call canceled his role.

Miss Fang of the Shao family had no objection to this, especially since she knew that the person who got in through connections was surnamed Xiang, so she knew exactly what was going on.

Xu Zan saw the sailors off onto the plane, then returned to Shaw Studios. He needed to finalize the props and architectural designs in the next few days.

This way, after returning to Taiwan, Shao's side can continue to make progress, so as not to delay the construction period.

The collaboration between Shaw Brothers and Panda Entertainment was quickly published in Hong Kong newspapers, mostly in a satirical tone.

Did the artsy young actor Hsu Tsan take the wrong medicine? He abandoned literature for martial arts and stormed the 36 Chambers of Shaolin Temple. Did Shaw Brothers, tired of living, accompany his madness?

"Xu Zan Wants to Destroy Shaw Brothers' Brand? He's Taking a Romance Film Script to Conquer the Eighteen Bronze Men Formation—Even Chang Che Shakes His Head!"

After all, Xu Zan was previously an art-house film director; kung fu films aren't something just anyone can make. Even a renowned director like Li Hanxiang has basically never tried his hand at kung fu films.

While having morning tea with Miss Fang, Xu Zan saw a newspaper article that read: "Miss Fang personally appointed Xu Zan to save the market? Shaw Brothers, in an attempt to shake Golden Harvest, actually wants an arthouse director to teach a monk how to talk about love!"

"Ms. Fang, these days newspapers and magazines prioritize grabbing attention and completely disregard the veracity of the news!"

"Mr. Hui, Hong Kong is an entertainment city, where entertainment is paramount. Whoever can attract the attention of Hong Kong people will make a lot of money."

Ms. Fang did not come alone; her ex-boyfriend was with her. The two did not appear to be very close and simply sat on one side.

In his previous life, Old Xu had read some biographies that described how Master Shao, Miss Fang, and Miss Fang's ex-boyfriend were together in Japan.

The way the three of them interacted was rather strange. As for the inside story, perhaps only the three of them know it.

Xu Zan only cares about making money and doesn't consider other people's private affairs.

"Yesterday, Chu Yuan gave me a movie ticket. His film, *Meteor, Butterfly, Sword*, has been released. Judging from Director Chu's confident demeanor, this film is bound to be a huge hit!"

"He's incredibly talented, but sometimes he just can't handle the audience. He's been losing money for years, and if he doesn't do well this time, he won't be able to stay here any longer," Ms. Fang said.

According to her, film directors must recognize reality and either make commercial films or art films; they cannot try to do both, otherwise they will end up poor.

Xu Zan instructed Shao's prop masters on how to build the Shaolin Temple set, which basically involved modifying an old film studio and customizing the costumes.

This was met with protest from Miss Fang, who showed Xu Zan the Shao family's warehouse and pointed inside, saying:

"The Shaw Brothers have the most theatrical costumes in all of East Asia!"