The so-called western bladesman story was, of course, *The Swordsman in Double Flag Town*.
That film was artistic and atmospheric; before anyone could blink, the blades flashed, the fight was done, and the scene was over, placing all emphasis on mood. That definitely wouldn't work on the mainland right now. Chen Qi wanted to flesh out the fighting while keeping the narrative structure faithful to the original.
After hearing it through, Wang Yang asked, "You want to go shoot on location in the Northwest?"
"Right! You can look at it as a Chinese Western. The desolate grandeur of the Loess Plateau, the raw vitality of the Guanzhong bladesmen—audiences in Hong Kong will definitely find it fresh, and foreigners will find it even fresher."
"Sounds a bit abstract. What about the second story?" Wang Yang asked.
Chen Qi moved on to Yanzi Li San.
Thanks to the reach of Hong Kong film and television, southern martial artists like Wong Fei-hung, Hung Hei-gun, Fong Sai-yuk, and Ip Man were household names on the mainland. Northern martial artists, by contrast, were few and far between; only figures like Huo Yuanjia and Big Knife Wang Wu enjoyed any real fame.
Yanzi Li San was one of the few exceptions. In 1999, CCTV had aired a wildly popular TV series about him starring Zhang Li, Lin Fangbing, and Li Qi.
Chen Qi framed him as a folk phantom thief who robbed the rich to help the poor and resisted both the imperial authorities and foreign invaders—the image familiar to later generations. Wang Yang's eyes lit up as he listened, and he nodded repeatedly. "This works. Put it on the back burner for now. Keep going!"
"The third one is Yang Luchan. He was a famous historical martial artist, and his descendants are still alive today. To avoid unnecessary complications, we'll use an alias and call him Yang Yugan.
"Yang Yugan is from Hebei, comes from a well-off family, and has trained in martial arts since childhood. Hearing that Chenjiagou has a master named Chen Zhengying, he rushes over to apprentice himself. But Chenjiagou's Tai Chi is never taught to outsiders, so he resorts to every trick in the book to secretly learn the art. Along the way, he meets Chen Zhengying's daughter, our female lead.
"The female lead falls for him at first sight and takes his side against her family. We can add plenty of laughs here and lean into the comedy.
"The two of them wander the scenic spots around Chenjiagou, playfully chasing each other with plenty of laughter. We shoot the landscapes beautifully, and it'd be even better if we composed a song and set it to music...
"Chen Zhengying eventually finds out and is furious. Just as he is about to cripple Yang Yugan's martial arts, an enemy clan arrives on their doorstep. In the chaos of the brawl, Yang Yugan saves the female lead. Chen Zhengying lets bygones be bygones and makes an exception to accept him as a disciple.
"Yang Yugan is exceptionally gifted and improves at lightning speed.
"Chen Zhengying's enemies are based in the capital. One day they attack again, wounding Chen Zhengying with poisoned hidden weapons.
"Yang Yugan travels north to the capital in search of an antidote. The story is set during the Daoguang era—opium dens everywhere, foreigners flooding into China, a bizarre and decadent spectacle. The enemy has powerful backing, but Yang Yugan gets a martial arts-loving prince to mediate, and the enemy agrees to set up an arena for an open tournament.
"Yang Yugan defeats several top masters in succession, making a name for himself. In the end, he takes on disciples in the capital, aspiring to strengthen the body and thereby strengthen the nation through martial arts, while carrying Tai Chi forward so that it survives to this very day!"
"..."
Wang Yang listened in silence, pacing around the room for several turns before saying, "You little rascal, you really know how to cater to leadership's tastes. The state leaders love this stuff. Liao Gong loves practicing Tai Chi, and Deng Gong loves it even more. Your angle is way too obvious."
"When Comrade Fu Chi visited last time, he mentioned Liao Gong's remarks. Liao Gong said that Chinese martial arts are divided into two main schools: one is Shaolin, and the other is Tai Chi. Since someone is already making Shaolin, we might as well make Tai Chi!"
Chen Qi shrugged. "There's no other choice. We have to consider passing censorship first. If it can't pass review, anything we shoot is a complete waste. Even if it does pass, there will always be random busybodies trying to find fault, so we have to cater to the top.
"Besides, Tai Chi represents Chinese martial arts even better. It has history, story, and culture. Why shouldn't we shoot it?"
"And can you guarantee it will sell overseas?"
"Do you want me to sign a military pledge? Old Director, I'm only nineteen. I just want to earn a bit of foreign exchange for the country. You're not going to dump the whole burden on my shoulders, are you?"
"Get out of here! If anything goes wrong, I'll shoulder it—it's not your place to carry the blame!"
Wang Yang gave him an affectionate scolding, then added, "Just thinking about foreign exchange makes me impatient. All right, give me the specifics on this Tai Chi project!"
"You have strong connections, so please ask around first: can we use the real-life Yang Luchan as a basis? I heard his family graves were razed.
"This film is pure martial arts; as long as the story logic holds together, that's enough. There are two key points to focus on: one is showcasing breathtaking scenery, and the other is delivering spectacular fights. I suggest hiring an action choreographer from Hong Kong. They have plenty of experience and are far better at designing action sequences."
"That will be tough! Any other ideas?"
"One last thing: how much will you allow me to get involved?" Chen Qi asked suddenly.
Hm?
Wang Yang froze, then caught on, eyeing him with keen interest.
Film studios were places steeped in seniority. When a newcomer joined, they spent three years doing odd jobs, three years as an assistant, and three years as an assistant director. Only after grinding away for ten years would they get the chance to direct a film—unless they came from an established cinema family, like Tian Zhuangzhuang, who had already directed four short films while still a student.
"You rascal, you want to be a director? Forget it. Even if you had heaven-sent talent, and even if I held absolute authority, there's no way I could make you a director. Hundreds of people in the studio are watching!"
"No, no, I don't want to direct..."
Chen Qi had wanted to say executive producer, but on second thought, the mainland didn't have that title yet. He said, "If possible, could you give me the position of creative planner? I'd be satisfied just being able to offer suggestions during production."
"Creative planner?"
Wang Yang clicked his tongue. The kid certainly didn't lack ambition. But if he wanted to make use of the boy's talent, he had to take on the corresponding risks and responsibilities. And that was something he could definitely stomach.
He kept that to himself for now, saying only, "Go write the screenplay. I'll look into the other matters first. Oh, right—I think that Yanzi Li San story is good too. If you have time, write that one as well."
"You can't exploit me like this! My hands are already full. Anyway, I think we should move as fast as possible. It's best if we unveil Tai Chi before *The Shaolin Temple* comes out, so no one can accuse us of jumping on the bandwagon."
Having said his piece, Chen Qi slipped away.
Trotting down the stairs, he felt a flutter of excitement.
This story of Yang Yugan was largely drawn from Wu Jing's TV series *The Tai Chi Master*. Chen Qi had cherry-picked elements, mapped out a main narrative line, added a few touches of his own, and condensed it into a feature film.
Liao Gong's words were spot on.
Although Chinese martial arts encompassed countless styles, the two most famous were undeniably Shaolin and Tai Chi.
Tai Chi also had a massive audience overseas. Plenty of foreigners traveled to China specifically to study Daoism and martial arts, and Keanu Reeves had even directed a movie called *Man of Tai Chi*, though it turned out to be a dud.
Compared to Shaolin kung fu, there were far fewer film and television works centered on Tai Chi, yet the subject had always maintained an overseas market. That aligned perfectly with Chen Qi's goal of earning foreign exchange: it could sell!
As for how much it would make—the entire country's foreign exchange reserves were only 840 million US dollars. If a single film of his could bring in three million, he would be treated like royalty!
Back at the guesthouse.
Chen Qi finally felt a twinge of work pressure. He had to write *The Tai Chi Master*, *Romance on Mount Lu* was still filming, and thankfully he had already finished the first half of *Invincible Dual Kicks* and dumped the second half on Liang Xiaosheng. Otherwise, he would have worked himself into the ground.
"Write, just keep writing. Brought this exhaustion on myself!"
"Who told me to have such a dedicated, patriotic heart?"
Chen Qi cracked his neck, instantly snapping into hard-working laborer mode.
Chapter 66