Earning One's Way to Liangshan

Hong Kong was a tiny scrap of land, yet it had nearly a hundred Chinese- and English-language newspapers. Sing Pao, Hong Kong Daily News, Ming Pao, Oriental Daily, Sing Tao Daily, and the rest were the favorites of Hong Kong people. They liked to read about local murders, traffic accidents, sex scandals, stocks and property, gambling and the racing form, and entertainment gossip, and they cared little for international news or news from the mainland. Newspapers of the Left were thick with politics, and their sales had never been high. But after Chen Qi arrived, he often published pieces in the supplement of Wen Wei Po, and sales climbed steadily. He also meant to settle Hong Kong's film world into a habit: once a piece appeared in Wen Wei Po, it meant he had come. Only, until now he had always commented on old masters of the film world. This time he turned his gaze to a newcomer, and the public felt there wasn't enough gossip to chew on. "Stamp, stamp, stamp!" "Stamp, stamp, stamp!" In a first-floor corridor of the TVB building, Jiang Fengqi's leather shoes nearly stamped a hole through the floor. His face was frighteningly grim. His strides were especially long, and in the blink of an eye he reached an office. He did not knock. He barged straight in. "Mr. Jiang!" Xiao Guowei jolted to his feet and said hurriedly, "Please hear me out. This matter has..." "No need to explain!" Jiang Fengqi stared at him across the desk and said sharply, "You were the one who came to us to plead. You said Liu Dehua was nothing but a newcomer, and a private repentance would be enough. We gave you that face, and you, damn it, were given face and wouldn't take it! No sooner had he written the letter of repentance than he turned around and worked with the Left, and they even published a public notice of it in the paper! You are slapping President Tong in the face, slapping the Government Information Office in the face, and showing no regard at all for the Party-state!" "Mr. Jiang, I've been wronged! It was all laid out by them in advance. Our loyalty is absolute—the sun and moon can witness it!" "Scheme against what? Scheme against some nobody of a newcomer? As if the Left were bored from eating their fill! President Tong was right. We've been far too lenient with you people. The letter of repentance has truly become a joke. After this, anyone can come and write one..." Jiang Fengqi gave him no chance to argue. He said coldly, "This must be punished severely. Liu Dehua's films, television series, music, and any other cultural work are banned from appearing in Taiwan!" With that, he fixed his eyes on Xiao Guowei. Xiao Guowei was miserable inside. This was the Association's decision. If he truly wanted to satisfy the man, he had to give him an answer of his own. He could only say, "Set your mind at ease, Mr. Jiang. We won't use him either. He will not appear in any TVB or Shaw Brothers production. Another day I'll host a banquet to make amends, and I hope Mr. Jiang will do me the honor of coming." Only after much pleading did Jiang Fengqi leave. Xiao Guowei sat in his chair, stewing without a pause. In theory, Liu Dehua could still appear in TVB dramas, so long as they were not sold to Taiwan. But there was no need to provoke the Right any further. If the person involved had been a big star, he would have tried his best to keep him. Unfortunately Liu Dehua was a newcomer. However high his potential, he was still only a newcomer, and he would have to be sacrificed. ... The set of Beggar Su. A scene was being shot in full swing. Chow Yun-fat struck a stance and ran through a few moves, looking the part. Liu Dehua watched from the side. Suddenly someone hurried up beside the director and muttered a few words in his ear. The director frowned at once, then muttered a few words to the producer. Some TVB series were shot while they aired. They paid close attention to audience opinion and revised at any time. If a series' ratings were truly poor, it would be axed halfway through. Take Lunliu Zhuan in 1980: it had been planned for eighty episodes. They shot thirty first, and after twenty-two had aired it was pulled. "Recast him? Several episodes have already gone out. How are we supposed to recast him? His part is huge!" "Nothing we can do. It's orders from above!" "This is really annoying!" The producer's mind turned once. "How about this. We don't shoot today's scenes. We arrange a fight scene. He gets killed off. Then we add a new role, his younger brother, and shift the part over to the brother." At once the director clapped his hands and shouted, "Hold it! Hold it!" "Change of plan. We're shooting a fight scene today!" "Where's Miao Qiaowei? Get him over here. Huazai, you come here!" The director called Liu Dehua over. "In a moment you'll fight Miao Qiaowei. He kills you off, and then you can call it a day." "D-d-director! Why am I getting killed off?" "The script's been changed!" "What about my later scenes?" "You don't need to worry about that... Hurry and get ready. Don't slack off!" Liu Dehua looked utterly dumbfounded. He could not accept being suddenly killed off when he had been perfectly fine. But this was the crew's decision, and he did not dare defy it. Then Miao Qiaowei arrived, just as dumbfounded, because he had no scenes today. And so, with nobody knowing why and no logic to it at all, they shot a fight. Liu Dehua cried out, collapsed to the ground, said a few last words to Chow Yun-fat as he came running, spat blood, and died... Don't go thinking Hong Kong television dramas were all that proper. Like Hong Kong films, they were turned out workshop-style. Hong Kong films produced two hundred pictures a year, and TVB more than twenty series a year. Quality was wildly uneven, and most of them were rotten shows. What mainland audiences saw was already what the great waves had left after sifting the sand. When that scene was finished, the others went on shooting. Liu Dehua packed his things in gloom. He hesitated a long while, then gathered his courage and asked the producer, "Is there some other arrangement for me?" "How should I know?" "Can I still keep acting, then?" "Don't bother me. Ask somebody else!" "..." He could not afford to offend anyone. He had no choice but to leave the set in low spirits, and decided to go ask at the company. ...... "Ring, ring!" "Ring, ring!" The jangle of the telephone broke the quiet of the office. Xiao Guowei snatched it up. "Hello? Who is it?" "Manager Xiao!" A man's voice came from the other end. Xiao Guowei paused, then suddenly raised his voice. "It's you?!" "We only met yesterday. How have we grown distant in a single day? I'm calling to ask about something. My film is already in preparation, and I need Liu Dehua to join the crew at once. When will you release him?" The voice was light, with a trace of mockery—or perhaps not. Xiao Guowei was worked up, and had already decided for himself that the man was being rude. Honestly, one mere Liu Dehua was not the key problem. What made him angry was the feeling that he had been played. He snapped, "Mr. Chen, I have been perfectly courteous and proper with you, and I keep to the rules. It was agreed I would release him. You were the one who broke the rules first! I'm telling you, even if Liu Dehua dies at TVB, I will not let him shoot a single production for you!" "..." He spoke fast and urgent, and in Cantonese besides. The other party was silent for two seconds, as if taking it in, then said, "What right do you have to talk rules with me? You're a mid-level manager at a television station. My coming to your door in person was already the greatest courtesy I was showing you!" "You!" Xiao Guowei choked. "If you won't let Liu Dehua act, fine. The contract states it perfectly clearly. You will pay the penalty for breach. We can meet in court. Boss Shao is such a stingy man—who knows whether he would fire Liu Dehua first, or fire you first? Release him tomorrow. Don't hold up my schedule!" Beep, beep, beep! The line went dead. "Damn mainland brat!" Xiao Guowei cursed viciously, but he was also unable to sit still. The matter had already blown up. He had to report it. If he waited for his superior to come asking, he would be even more on the back foot. He got up at once and hurried to a senior executive's office. He went through the whole story from beginning to end, then offered an idea. "We can perfectly well let Liu Dehua go and shoot first, and then shelve him. That way we won't have to pay the penalty." "You pig-brain!" The executive cursed him without mercy. "The Association has named him for a ban, and you actually want to keep him at the company? What do we gain by shelving a newcomer? Paying him a salary every month for nothing? Please. You're stupid beyond all saving!" "Then... then what should I do?" "Terminate the contract! Why keep a scourge like this around? Kick him out and let him sink or swim!" Xiao Guowei took the scolding and slunk back. Not long after, there was a knock at the door. It was the man himself, Liu Dehua. He was quite uneasy, and asked carefully, "Manager Xiao, I wanted to ask why I'm not allowed to act in Beggar Su anymore..." "Enough, enough!" Before he could finish, Xiao Guowei cut him off. "Nothing you say now means a thing. Good thing you've come. I'm announcing a company decision. Owing to wrongful conduct on your part alone, which has caused the company serious adverse effects, all your performance contracts are terminated as of today. You are no longer a TVB artiste!"