Dropping In

"..." Xiao Fangfang kept her head lowered and said nothing. Shi Hui said nothing either. She wiped Fu Mingxian's mouth again, all tender doting. Fu Mingxian was horrified. Mom! Am I not going to see tomorrow's sun? Only after a long while did Shi Hui go on. "You want for nothing now. You have a career, fame, wealth, and a family. Your husband dotes on you, and you have a lovely daughter. Wanting to study more is right. "But have you thought about it? You're 35 this year. By the time you finish school and come back, you'll be 37. For a female star of that age, there aren't many roles left that she can still make her own. Your turn to comedy has been excellent, but fine work is hard to come by in comedy. This film of mine is absolutely a piece that can take you a step further. "You've listened to your mother for half your life. Whatever she said, you did. Can't you decide for yourself even now? Don't you have a single idea of your own?" "But... but the Right..." "If you're afraid the Right will make trouble, that's fretting over nothing. You're going abroad anyway. Can they go to the United States and come after you? You won't be back for two years. Who knows what will have changed by then? China and Britain are going to negotiate!" Shi Hui looked at her and said at last, "I was the one who sought you out. If anyone truly makes things hard for you, I'll protect you even if it costs me my life." "Sister Hui!" Xiao Fangfang looked at her too. Her own life had been full of hardship, and she was proud of what she had achieved, yet set beside Shi Hui none of that amounted to much. Shi Hui had gone head-on against the British Hong Kong government and been thrown in prison! Mutual admiration between women—this was no little fairy off Xiaohongshu... "I... I'll look at the script first!" Xiao Fangfang finally gave in. Shi Hui smiled and brought out the script she had prepared. "Ghost? You want me to play a ghost?" "I want you to play the spirit medium. Take it home and read it. Your part is incredibly fun!" After that the two of them chatted idly for a long time—husbands, daily life, buying clothes and cosmetics, blah blah blah—and only parted after ages. Fu Mingxian followed her mother out, still puzzled. "Mom, why did you bring me along to talk business today?" "Because you're important. You earned a merit too. Come on, I'll buy you an ice cream." Shi Hui pinched her daughter's cheek. Fu Mingxian frowned. Eating a meal can earn me merit too? ... Clear Water Bay Studio. In the office, Chen Qi was writing an article for Wen Wei Po. He was paid for his writing, 200 Hong Kong dollars per thousand characters. Better than nothing. All of it went into corrupting Xiao Mo and Xiao Geng. When Liang Jiahui was running a street stall, Wen Wei Po had also lent a hand and opened a column for him called Hui's Brush Dashes It Off. Each piece was a few hundred characters. Sometimes, when inspiration struck, he could write more than ten pieces in a day, also at 200 Hong Kong dollars per thousand characters. He wrote that way for more than twenty years, and only stopped when the editor who had invited him retired. "The Chinese New Year slot is settled. Aces Go Places reigns alone over Hong Kong!" "Hong Kong society is changing. The moviegoing public is growing younger by the day. Cinema City's films are stylish and full of new ideas. Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest are still clinging to traditions already half in the grave. Being cast aside by audiences is exactly what they deserve. "I said long ago that Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest ought to join hands. They simply wouldn't listen. After this crushing defeat in the Chinese New Year slot, you'll have to join hands at last—open your theater chains to each other, and screen each other's films. But it won't really help. If your thinking on production doesn't change, you can't beat Cinema City. At most, you'll just lose looking a little worse..." Chen Qi finished the article. It would be sent to Wen Wei Po afterward. He ambled downstairs to the post-production room beside the soundstage. Tsui Hark was inside. They said nothing much. The two of them sat down and watched the rough cut of Orphan together. The effect was pretty good. The suspense that ought to be there was there, and so was the horror atmosphere that ought to be there. With Esther's strange behavior and the wife's investigation as the main thread, it unfolded gradually, and at last revealed the truth: She was actually an ailing adult of Japanese descent. Her real name was Ishikawa Mio! Ishikawa Mio was simply too good! After they'd watched the rough cut, Chen Qi nodded and gave his approval, then said, "Director Tsui, I've got another film. Want to come and try it?" "..." Tsui Hark rolled his eyes. "Come on! I'm still a Cinema City director. You come to me with one film after another. How am I supposed to conduct myself at the company?" "You're already serving Cao's camp while your heart's with Han—your loyalty's gone anyway. What's the difference between one film and two?" Chen Qi leaned closer and tempted him like a devil. "And this film of mine has special effects. It needs the highest standard of effects!" Tsui Hark shivered. "I also want to bring a Hollywood team over. It may only be a few seconds of footage, but don't you want to try?" Tsui Hark shivered again. He couldn't help asking, "What film?" "A love story about a ghost. I'm fretting over how some of the shots ought to be done. Say the ghost's body passes through an obstacle—how do you make it both natural and good to look at? Ah, it's truly maddening!" As he spoke he even acted it out, as if his own body were about to pass through. The impression Tsui Hark gave was that he could only shoot costume dramas. Not so. He shot modern films just as well—Black Mask, The Chinese Feast, Twin Dragons, and others. He was a fellow obsessed with special effects. In his heart he had already grown distant from Cinema City, and was only dragging his feet because he wanted to see how Orphan did overseas. Thinking it over now—Orphan would come out in May, so shooting another film hardly mattered. If it worked, he could join up on the strength of it. If not, they could part on good terms. So he said, "What's the script roughly about?" Chen Qi gave him a brief account on the spot. "Who's the male lead?" "Liu Dehua and Liang Jiahui. Both newcomers." "Who's the spirit medium? She's the key." "Settled. I got Xiao Fangfang!" Hm? Tsui Hark's eyes lit up. This casting was excellent. He asked, "And the female lead?" "I'm just about to go find her." "Just about to go find her?" "That's right. Next door! You carry on. I'm off." He left as soon as he said it. He called Xiao Mo and Xiao Geng. They didn't even take a car. They strolled out of the studio, walked north for a stretch, and came to Shaw Brothers' territory. A security guard kept watch at the gate. From far off he saw three baffling fellows ambling over, impossible to make sense of. When they drew near he asked, "Do you have business, sir? This is a film studio. Outsiders aren't allowed in." "A neighbor doesn't count as an outsider, does he?" "Neighbor?" "Next door. Is Fang Yihua in?" "Next—door—!" The man jolted as it hit him. Wasn't that the Left?! "Sir, may I ask who you are?" "Chen Qi!" "Wait a moment. I'll go ask for instructions!" The man went into his little booth and dialed the phone, glancing outside as he spoke. Chen Qi waited, bored. Honestly, this fellow wasn't even the snobbish sort who looked down on people. No face to slap or anything. Before long he came out and opened the gate wide. "Mr. Chen, please come in!" "Thanks!" It was the first time Chen Qi had dropped in on the neighbor. He looked all around. The place was much larger than the Left's. A dozen or so soundstages stood in neat rows. The post-production area, the main building, the canteen, and the dormitories were all in good order. The splendor of the old film kingdom could still be seen. This kind of big-studio system was, in some respects, much like the film studios on the mainland. Each year they too produced to plan. Wages were fixed. Big directors had their own crews. Meals and every daily need were included. All over the lot, staff came and went. Actors ran back and forth in period costume. Chen Qi reached the main building. A receptionist was already standing at the entrance and guided him up to an office. Inside sat his female lead... Pah! As if. Sitting there was the head of Shaw Brothers' production department, Shao Yifu's concubine. That's right—she hadn't been made a wife yet. Fang Yihua!