Facing Tyrannical Qin

"Of course not! There's one more crucial point." Chen Qi smiled. "You have to poach their talent!" "What do you mean?" "Cinema City's core is their Seven-Person Creative Group. Break them apart, and you break Cinema City. When the time is right, I'll launch an attack in the newspapers. I've already touched base with Fang Yihua at Shaw Brothers. Shaw Brothers is stingy and won't spend money, but she promised to kick them while they're down. "You guys have deep pockets, so you can poach people directly. "This project happens to need plenty of star power anyway. Whoever you're close to, poach them over. Cinema City is rife with internal friction as it is. With me sowing discord, we're bound to dismantle the Seven-Person Group! "Facing tyrannical Qin, the states must form alliances to stand against the mighty foe!" "Uh..." Neither of them caught the historical allusion in that last line, but that didn't stop them from buying into the plan. Jackie Chan grinned. "Mr. Chen, aren't you worried you'll just be asking for trouble if we secure the top spot at the box office?" "Haha!" Chen Qi laughed and spread his hands—bring it on! He added, "I've said this many times before: Hong Kong is too small. What's there to be so thrilled about being number one here? The two of you truly have rare talent. You ought to come with me to take on Hollywood." "Hey, we were having a good chat. Don't try turning us into defectors!" Hong Jinbao broke in to stop him. "Exactly. We're just trying to earn a living; we can't afford to offend Taiwan." Jackie Chan chimed in, "The people I admire most are those with real ability. Right now, I'm halfway there with you. Once everything you said actually comes true, I'll admire you for real!" "That's one way to look at it. You fawn over Taiwan simply because you want their market. If I lead you straight into Europe and America, won't that be far sweeter than Taiwan? But of course, you have a point. Right now, words alone are no proof, and they won't convince anyone." Chen Qi dropped the subject and raised his glass. "Today went quite pleasantly. That calls for a toast!" *Clink!* *Clink!* The three clinked their glasses together and drank them dry. "It's getting late. I'll take my leave!" He got up to go. The two walked him out. After dealing with him in private, he didn't seem quite so obnoxious anymore—even if he was still foul-mouthed. "Don't bother seeing me out. Let's catch up another day!" Chen Qi opened the door and stepped outside. Only then did Hong Jinbao and Jackie Chan notice that his imperial bodyguard had been standing right outside waiting the entire time. The guard swept a look over them and followed after him without an expression. "Honestly, I'd love to have a bodyguard like that too!" Jackie Chan said, looking rather envious. "He probably guarded state leaders back in Beijing. Where would you ever find someone like that?" Both had good Mandarin, and having spoken it the whole time earlier, they didn't switch back now. Hong Jinbao said, "His proposal is very workable. I think there's real potential here." "We can give it a shot. First, let's put a story together. Are we really going to poach someone?" "Not you—me. You don't even know anyone at Cinema City." Hong Jinbao thought for a moment and said, "I have ties with Mai Jia, but he's one of the bosses; he won't defect easily. If we're putting together a star-studded cast, besides the two of us, looking for someone on the next tier down... there really is a perfect candidate." "Who?" "Zeng Zhiwei!" …………………… "Action!" Filming for *Ghost* officially got underway with the full cast and crew assembled. In the studio, on the set of the male and female leads' home, an empty wine bottle sat on a table. Liang Jiahui and Zhong Chuhong sat on the sofa. Liu Dehua sat beside them in his ghost state, invisible to the others. "Thank you so much. Without you, I really wouldn't have known what to do!" "No need to be so polite. Ah Jie was my best brother. It's only right that I look after you." Liang Jiahui was hitting on her, intentionally moving closer to comfort her, being patient and understanding, and had already won her good graces. He smiled. "If you really want to thank me, why don't you mix me a drink? Ah Jie told me you're an amazing bartender." "Cut!" Tsui Hark called a cut to approve the take, then moved on to the next scene. On set, Zhong Chuhong mixed a Margarita, her motions already practiced and pleasing to the eye. Liang Jiahui took the glass in hand, and when she wasn't looking, *splash*—he tipped it onto himself. "Oh dear, why are you so clumsy?" "Sorry about that... got my clothes all dirty... It'll dry in a bit." Liang Jiahui unbuttoned his shirt. He wasn't wearing anything underneath, exposing a reasonably decent upper body. Liu Dehua watched from the side, feeling like he was about to turn into a cuckolded ghost. "Hahaha!" Zhong Chuhong suddenly burst out laughing. Tsui Hark called a halt and asked, "Ahong, what are you doing?" "Sorry, I just looked at Jiahui's awful physique. How's he supposed to seduce me? Am I that boy-crazy?" "Just make do with it. I haven't had time to work out," Liang Jiahui rolled his eyes. "You're trying to seduce me! You've got to have something to show! If you're out of shape, the audience will laugh too." Tsui Hark took a look as well; it really was lacking. "How about this: put on a tank top instead of going bare-chested. The lines of your neck look fine, so I'll shoot you from here." He gestured from Liang Jiahui's collarbone up. And so, filming resumed. Chen Qi observed for a while, feeling everything was in good shape. The director and actors were all great; they just needed to find their groove together. Just then, Fu Chi walked in and waved at him. "Come on, let's go pick someone up." "All right!" He caught Tsui Hark and gave a few quick reminders. Tsui Hark nodded. Zhong Chuhong watched him leave the soundstage and twitched her lips—what a busy man! Chen Qi headed out, got in the car, and drove straight to Kai Tak Airport. After a short wait, a flight from the United States landed. Chen Xiangmei's assistant, Jessica Xiaojuan, appeared with a tap-tap-tap of heels, still wearing her sunglasses and rolling a designer suitcase. "Gentlemen, we meet again!" "You've completed the movie. Madam was very pleased when she heard and sent me over to screen the sample cut first. But I'll lay my cards on the table: regardless of how it turned out, we won't be providing any distribution assistance whatsoever." Jessica was still putting on that same act. Chen Qi smiled. "That's fine. We don't trust Hollywood's profit-sharing games anyway—they can turn a film that nets a hundred million into a paper loss. We're looking to sell the rights." Jessica choked on her words, unable to throw her weight around. To throw one's weight around, one needed either overwhelming strength or an overwhelming informational advantage. The three got into the car, settled her into a hotel first, and then went straight back to Clear Water Bay Studio. In the screening room, *Orphan* made its full debut for the very first time. The film ran 115 minutes, slightly shorter than the original. "..." Jessica watched with utmost focus. From the moment Qiu Shuzhen first revealed her sinister side by smashing a pigeon to death with a brick, Jessica's mouth had fallen open. She knew then that this film was pretty much on target. Sure enough, when the screening ended, she couldn't help clapping. "It far exceeded my expectations. The completion quality is very high, and the standard is excellent. You'll definitely have the confidence to screen this in American theaters. Congratulations!" Though she had claimed she wouldn't help, and indeed would not meddle in the actual distribution process, she could still fan the flames of public opinion. For instance, Chen Xiangmei loved to write articles; a casually penned film review from her would carry no small amount of influence. Of course, that was on the premise that *Orphan* was up to par. "We also have to thank you for your help, or we wouldn't have been able to finish this movie..." Chen Qi smiled and smoothly took the opening. "Since you're in Hong Kong, I have an impudent request." "What is it now?" "We're shooting a romance film and need to use a song, 'Unchained Melody.' Could you please help us negotiate the rights to avoid future disputes? And one more thing..." Chen Qi took out a thick stack of script pages. "This is a new film project for this year. It requires a lot of American actors." "You really are a handful!" Jessica took it and stuffed it casually into her bag, having already acknowledged his competence.