This director loves making friends.

Chapter 106 Explosive Popularity

Why?

Lok Yee-ling still wanted to struggle a bit more.

She originally thought Qin Keqing was going to fight to the death.

Little did anyone know that her film "Lover and Confidant" was completely pulled from theaters by Xinbao Cinemas, while "The Man from Nowhere" was showing on Dongfang Cinemas.

It is still showing in theaters.

Isn't Huang Baiming afraid of the four major families?

Huang Baiming is a big shot in the film and television industry, but he is not comparable to the four major families.

Lok Yee-ling was unwilling to accept this.

So she went directly to Fang Yihua.

Out of consideration for their long-standing relationship, Fang Yihua did not refuse to see him.

However, Fang Yihua couldn't really explain anything about Le Yiling's question. She was Shao Yifu's lover—well, now his girlfriend—and she knew some things from Shao Yifu.

She certainly wouldn't dare to speak carelessly about that matter before there was a clear outcome, even though she was almost 97.

If the governor wants to make things difficult for the Shao family, he will definitely make them suffer.

Before any results are available, would she dare to spread rumors that Qin Keqing is the mistress of the second young lady of the Governor's Mansion, thus damaging the reputation of that young lady?

At most, they could only chat with Lao Shao in their bedroom after meals, lamenting that Qin Keqing had gotten incredibly lucky.

"Why so many 'whys'? Your movie is bad, it doesn't sell well at the box office, why are you dragging others into it?"

Fang Yihua glared at Le Yiling, somewhat annoyed that she was just being difficult and causing trouble for no reason.

"What 'mainland boy'? Uncle Six was also born in Shanghai. He left the mainland for Singapore at the age of 19. And me, I was also born in Shanghai and came to Hong Kong in 1940."

We are not native Hong Kongers, are we also the mainlanders you are talking about?

'

The "Sixth Uncle" she mentioned was Shaw Brothers' boss and film tycoon, Shaw Yi-fu.

"No, no, Sister Fang, I didn't mean that. How could I dare to say that about you? How could I dare to say that about Uncle Liu?" Le Yiling quickly waved her hand in denial.

"Didn't mean that? Hmph, when you said that 'mainland boy,' did you ever think about these things? Did you ever think that the heads of the four major families were all born on the mainland, and are all the 'mainland boys' you mentioned?"

Fang Yihua complained.

Of course she knew that Le Yiling didn't mean it that way, nor did she have the guts to say it; "Mainland boy" was definitely just something she was referring to Qin Keqing.

Anyone else would never dare to associate "Mainland boy" with the heads of the four major families; that would be suicidal.

But Qin Keqing made up an excuse.

The four major families wouldn't say anything.

Sigh—out of so many people, why did you choose to offend the toughest one?

"Ah Ling, there are some things I can't say, but let me tell you this: even if you offend Shaw Brothers, Golden Harvest, or Win's Entertainment, you can still stay in the film industry."

But if you offend Qin Keqing and he keeps pursuing you, none of the five major cinema chains will risk giving your film, or any film related to you, more screen time.

"What? How is that possible?"

Le Yiling was stunned. "He's a director from mainland China, and he's the governor's illegitimate son?"

Fang Yihua thought to herself, "Pretty much."

"Sister Fang, I beg you, please help me, I'm really at my wit's end. If I leave the film and television industry, I don't know what I can do. I can't leave the film and television industry—Sister Fang—"

"Sigh, you should issue a public apology in the media first. Your attitude should be proper and your tone sincere. As long as Qin Keqing doesn't pursue the matter further, I'll try to arrange for you to work at TVB after the storm has passed."

Fang Yihua ultimately softened her heart.

She also knew that Lok Yee-ling had basically said goodbye to the film industry, and even if she wanted to arrange for her to join TVB, it would be very difficult, at least before 97, or before Chin Ke-ching broke off his relationship with that second young lady, it would be almost impossible.

Maybe it will be okay for those born after 97.

Of course, there is another premise: that the four major families will not hold a grudge against Le Yiling. If someone from the four major families steps forward, the post-97 generation will most likely have no chance.

Anyone with eyes to see knows that this matter is not directed at the four major families, so they probably won't hold it against her.

So, Yue Yiling quickly held a press conference, where she broke down in tears, choking back sobs as she said it was all her fault and that she shouldn't have discriminated against people from certain regions.

The matter seemed to have passed just like that.

However, Li Peiyi, the third daughter of the Li family, suddenly gave an interview. When asked for her opinion on the matter, she laughed and said, "You shouldn't ask me; you should ask my father. He's the one some people call a 'mainland boy'."

Now the matter is truly over.

The box office for "The Man from Nowhere" is still soaring.

Young talents don't care what kind of stylistic or auteur-driven experimental film it is; it's a work that strives for a balance between commercialization and artistry.

All they knew was that this style of action was simple and deadly, with very few superfluous movements, fast, accurate, and ruthless, with a strong sense of impact. Movies that emphasized speed had a visual impact far exceeding that of traditional Hong Kong action films.

In addition, the male lead played by Lam Kwok-ping, whether in "A Bittersweet Life" or "The Man from Nowhere", is always dressed in a suit and tie when he actually goes to fight, which is incredibly cool.

Besides being popular among young people, "The Man from Nowhere" was also selected for the main competition at the Venice Film Festival. Media interpretations have also shown it to be highly artistic, which has attracted a segment of people who enjoy art films.

Coupled with the controversial events of the past few days, this has served as a comprehensive and extensive free publicity campaign for "The Man from Nowhere".

It would be hard for "The Man from Nowhere" not to be a hit.

In its first week, "The Man from Nowhere" achieved a respectable 1260 million views.

Compared to "A Bittersweet Life" which grossed 980 million in its opening week, "The Man from Nowhere" grossed a full 280 million more.

It's worth noting that "A Bittersweet Life" ultimately grossed HK$2786 million in Hong Kong. Based on the box office trend, "The Man from Nowhere" should have no problem surpassing HK$3000 million in its final box office; the question is whether it can reach HK$3500 million.

If "The Man from Nowhere" can ultimately gross around 3500 million HKD, even in last year's Hong Kong box office boom, it would still rank 8th on the Hong Kong box office charts.

Hong Kong's box office this year is significantly lower than last year.

It's almost October, and apart from the super blockbuster "Jurassic Park" which grossed an unprecedented 60 million, the highest-grossing film is Stephen Chow's "Flirting Scholar," which was released on July 1st and grossed just over 40 million.

Below "Flirting Scholar" is "All's Well, Ends Well," produced by Huang Baiming's Oriental Film Company, which grossed a little over 3500 million.

This film boasts a stellar cast, including Hui Koon-kit, Wong Pak-ming, Cheung Kwok-wing, Hui Koon-ying, Ng Man-tat, Rosamund Kwan, and Mo Shun-kwan.

Sandra Ng, it can be said that the venue is filled with stars.

If "The Man from Nowhere" can achieve box office success comparable to "All's Well, Ends Well," Qin Keqing will definitely become a highly sought-after director in Hong Kong.

After all, the cast of "The Man from Nowhere" is rather meager. What attracts audiences to the theater is not any particular star, but the film itself.

This greatly benefits the director.

Perhaps in the future, no one in Hong Kong will regard Qin Keqing as an art film director, since his two films have made more money than most Hong Kong commercial films.

One week after its release in Hong Kong, on September 23, Wang Yingxiang's Longxiang Film Company arranged for the film to be released on a large scale in Taiwan.