Visitors from Back Home

Kai Tak Airport. A flight from Shanghai touched down. Once the gate opened, Li Wenhua led the group out. Most of them had been to Hong Kong before; only Li Jianqun, He Qing, and Tao Huimin had not. They looked around with wide-eyed excitement. The two young girls, in particular, peered at this person and gawked at that one, feeling more and more like country bumpkins. "Listen up, everyone!" Li Wenhua clapped his hands and said, "A few of our actors are here for the first time. You must strictly observe discipline, stay with the group, and don't wander off. If someone really goes missing, that would be a serious diplomatic incident, and none of us could bear the responsibility! "Comrade Xiao Chen and Comrade Fu Chi will be picking us up shortly. Follow their arrangements. "For our trip to Hong Kong this time, we've been approved for ten days. Let's strive to finish shooting our scenes, or else we'll have to apply for an extension, which is a huge hassle." "Director!" He Qing raised her hand high, looking up with her chubby face and asking, "Will our daily allowance here be in Hong Kong dollars?" "In your dreams! It's still two RMB a day. All your expenses are covered by the collective. What, you thinking about going shopping?" "No, I just wanted to see what Hong Kong dollars look like!" She shook her head. Tao Huimin nudged her and whispered, "Always running your mouth. I told you not to say anything." "How would I know if I didn't ask?" He Qing stuck out her tongue, not minding at all. After waiting a short while, Fu Chi arrived with Chen Qi in a rented bus. Greetings were exchanged, and they all boarded the bus and headed for the Great Wall company dormitories. The dorms were quite empty at the moment anyway, so there was plenty of room to put them up. Amidst all the hustle and bustle of unpacking and settling in, evening arrived in the blink of an eye. Fu Chi treated everyone to dinner. Chen Qi conferred with Li Wenhua. Only these few scenes remained for *Tai Chi 2*, mainly depicting the Red Lantern fighting foreign invaders, while Ji Chunhua indulges his men to loot amidst the chaos, harming the innocent, until Yang Yugan, enraged, beats Ji Chunhua to death. Then he sees the Red Lantern's Holy Mother of the Yellow Lotus and the Two-Faced Bodhisattva—ordinarily so awe-inspiring and revered by tens of thousands—fall so easily before foreign guns. No matter how formidable your martial arts, no matter how clever your mystical trickery, nothing could withstand the surging torrent of modern technology... The Yuen Brothers were back as well, so the action scenes were naturally under their helm. These scenes involved a huge number of people, putting Li Wenhua under immense pressure. Chen Qi, however, had a sudden thought: *Tsui Hark is right here—might as well put him to work!* But he couldn't suggest it right away; he still had to consider Li Wenhua's pride. Afterward, he began visiting everyone one by one to check in on them. "Xiao Li!" "Brother Qi!" Li Lianjie came running out cheerfully to greet him. He was very pleased with the dorm arrangements—it was a two-bedroom apartment, so he got a room all to himself. He said with a grin, "In the blink of an eye, you've been gone for three months. We've all missed you." "I haven't missed you in the slightest. I've been striving in Hong Kong for the great literary and artistic cause of the motherland—I haven't had the leisure for that." Chen Qi patted his shoulder and looked him up and down, putting on the air of a good big brother. "Looks like you've slimmed down a bit, and you seem sharper. How's filming going? Running into any difficulties?" "It's going great. Feels even better than the first film. Just a bit dull staying cooped up on set..." Li Lianjie scratched his head and asked, "Brother Qi, can I go out and look around?" "No, rules are rules!" "Then... then when *Tai Chi 2* hits theaters, will we come back for promotional tours?" "Of course. Just like the first film, I'll take you around to see everything properly then. One thing at a time: when discipline must be observed, observe it; when flexibility is called for, I'm not a rigid person either. You're all my people now—when have I ever shortchanged any of you?" "Yeah, yeah, I know Brother Qi treats us best!" Li Lianjie grinned. "All right, get some rest early. To the set tomorrow." Chen Qi stepped out of the room and rolled his eyes. The kid's heart was already wandering! And this was only his second movie. The company's startup capital was only 4.32 million. The budget for *Tai Chi 2* was 1.8 million, and *Orphan* had a budget of 2.6 million HKD—split in half and converted to RMB, that was about 430,000. That already added up to 2.23 million. However, running his own company meant promotional costs had to come out of his own pocket too. For instance, publicity in Hong Kong, attending international festivals, and distribution expenses overseas were hardly small sums. Not to mention launching a magazine. At best, current funds were just barely enough. Once the films sold and revenue flowed back next year, things would be much more comfortable. When that time came, he'd have to raise the employees' benefits. After that, he stopped by to check on Tao Huimin and the chubby girl He Qing, before knocking on Li Jianqun's door. *Knock, knock, knock!* "Is it convenient for me to come in?" "Please wait a moment!" Ge Chunyan's voice came from inside; the two shared a room. Ge Chunyan opened the door, her hair damp and her clothes wrapped tightly around her—she had obviously just washed her hair. Right behind her, Li Jianqun emerged with a towel draped over her head. "You heated water yourselves?" "Yeah, it's so convenient here. You just turn the knob on the stove and it lights right up—no need to burn coal," Li Jianqun said. "That's called a gas stove! There are even gas water heaters where you can run water and shower directly, which is even more convenient. But those are pricey, so the dorm doesn't have them installed..." Chen Qi sat down and subconsciously glanced at the room door—it was closed. If this were on the Mainland, who would dare shut the door? People had to leave the door wide open just to chat. One man, two women, late at night, with damp hair—if word got out, it would give the country's entire arts and cultural circles fodder for half a year. After chatting for a while, Ge Chunyan tactfully retreated to her bedroom first. With just the two of them left, Chen Qi reached out his hand and smiled. "I got a letter from the company saying you've joined us, but I haven't had a proper talk with you yet. Welcome to becoming an official employee of the company!" Li Jianqun looked at his hand and couldn't help but chuckle. With one hand clutching the towel to her head, she held out her slightly damp hand and shook his, smiling. "You'll be my leader from now on. Since you're being so formal, I suppose I should report for duty just as formally!" "Think nothing of it. The company was sorely lacking talent like yours. Have your personal matters been sorted out?" "All sorted out!" Li Jianqun pursed her lips, looking calm and composed now. "Splitting up was painful at the time, but thankfully, work saved me. One time, Director Li needed a set design, so I went to help out. After busying myself for three straight days, I woke up and had forgotten all about it." "Wow, you're quite open-minded and free-spirited!" "Not at all. I hesitated for a long time too, but once it actually happened, I suddenly felt relieved. I don't see any point in letting the past weigh down my future." "No, you truly have a strong inner resolve. Impressive!" Chen Qi spoke from the heart, feeling somewhat surprised. Was Li Jianqun really this independent and bold? Yet, thinking about her life experiences, it made sense. If nothing else, very few people dared to get divorced in the 1980s... In 1980, the crude divorce rate nationwide was a mere 0.35%. Come to think of it, Liu Xiaoqing got divorced in the 1980s as well. Well, such things tended to happen more frequently in literary and artistic circles. "All right then. Since you've made the rare trip to Hong Kong, I'll buy you some international fashion magazines and theoretical books one of these days so you can take a look. Don't just design period costumes; practice modern attire too. There'll be plenty to keep you busy once you start working for the company." "Thank you so much!" Li Jianqun's eyes lit up; that was exactly what she wanted. *** The next day. *Tai Chi 2* relocated to the Clear Water Bay Studio, kicking off the intense workload. While the lead actors had traveled over, foreign actors and extras were all hired locally in Hong Kong. Labor in Hong Kong was expensive, and that was where the 1.8-million-yuan budget was being spent. "What are they filming next door? So many people!" Tsui Hark, who was filming *Orphan* in the adjacent soundstage, heard the commotion and asked around. Someone replied, "Must be *Tai Chi 2*, the crew from the Mainland." *Tai Chi?!* Tsui Hark immediately thought of Li Lianjie. Just like Yuen Woo-ping, he had been yearning to work with Li Lianjie. During a break, he sneaked over furtively. "Mm, I've got to go take a look!"