Traveling Through the Tokyo Bubble Era

Chapter 1009 Interested in Anyone with Talent

Hideki Yuzuru didn't intend to explain, but Zhou Wenqiong still didn't give up "educating" Miss Yang and Ning Jing about just how remarkable her brother-in-law, Hideki Yuzuru, really was.

Despite the fact that Hideki Hanyu has been introduced in various ways on CCTV in the past and now during the Asian Games.

However, as an official media outlet, CCTV can only introduce Hideki Hanyu's public identity. In addition, it only has a general understanding of certain aspects, so the information it can provide is superficial and vague.

For example, when CCTV introduces Hideki Hanyu as a writer, it only mentions what famous works he has published and what awards he has won.

However, it is difficult to clearly explain the impact of these works after their publication, and the significance of the awards they received.

Most importantly, it quickly and in detail tells the ordinary people what they care about most: how much money Hideki Hanyu has made from these works.

Although Zhou Wenqiong didn't know the details, she had heard some things from Hideki Yuzuru in the past.

So when she mentioned that Hideki Hanyu earned in the hundreds of millions of dollars from selling books...

Miss Yang and Ning Jing were completely shocked.

In a time when the era of "ten-thousand-yuan households" in China has just passed and millionaires are still a legend, hundreds of millions of US dollars are an astronomical figure that is simply unimaginable to two girls.

Especially for Ms. Yang, who came from an ordinary single-parent family and was easily swayed by a fleet of Mercedes-Benz cars after becoming famous, it was difficult for her to describe her specific feelings at this moment.

Of course, the income that Hideki Hanyu receives as a writer is only a small part of his wealth.

When CCTV reported on Hideki Hanyu, it informed viewers that Hanyu had been named the world's richest person this year by Forbes magazine with a net worth of over 20 billion US dollars.

Despite the fact that this net worth figure is a joke to Hideki Hanyu.

However, the meaning behind wealth is something that CCTV finds difficult to articulate when introducing it.

Even citing examples, Hideki Hanyu owns multiple companies such as Elf Entertainment, Cloud Entertainment, Origin Group, etc.

However, the actual influence and strength of these companies are difficult to demonstrate through introductions.

For example, CCTV could use Elf Entertainment's apparent market share in the gaming industry to introduce Elf Entertainment's monopolistic position in the gaming market.

However, they will not mention the important position of Elf Entertainment in today's global semiconductor industry chain.

They can describe the market size of cloud entertainment, but they can't describe its power in the global entertainment media market.

Most importantly, there are the relationships between Cloud Entertainment and Crescent Cinemas, Universal Pictures, and other indirectly controlled companies.

As for the Origin Group, apart from its market value and number of employees, its extraordinary influence in the upper echelons of Japan is something that CCTV has no idea about.

Not to mention the various schemes by which Hideki Hanyu, through the Origin Group's overseas investments, secretly colluded with powerful figures in American capital and exchanged benefits.

Of course, Zhou Wenqiong doesn't know all of these things.

But she was able to take things that CCTV hadn't reported, convert them into the most intuitive terms, and directly "popularize" them to the two women around her.

In Zhou Wenqiong's words, Hideki Yuzuru is the kind of person who can support millions of people and directly influence the rise and fall of a country's industries.

Even the real net worth of these super-rich individuals is much higher than their publicly disclosed net worth.

After Zhou Wenqiong said that, both Miss Yang and Ning Jing seemed to have a new understanding of Hideki Yuzuru.

They couldn't believe that the gentle and handsome Hideki Yuzuru in front of them was such a great figure, far beyond their imagination.

At this moment, they finally understood why CCTV had given such a serious and comprehensive report on Hideki Hanyu's participation in the Asian Games opening ceremony.

But it was precisely this kind of person who was driving them at this moment.

For a moment, both of them felt as if the world around them had become unreal.

However, as Zhou Wenqiong was taking advantage of the situation, the car arrived at the film set they were visiting that day without them even realizing it.

In the Hong Kong film industry, apart from special films made specifically for Lee Young-ae, companies under Hideki Hanyu, or even companies that invest in them, do not participate in the production and investment of Hong Kong films.

Whether it's to avoid getting involved in the murky waters of Hong Kong cinemas or to maintain the neutrality of Asian cinemas, that's at least on the surface.

Even though his plan for Asia Cinemas appears to be about sharing the pie, but in reality, it's about cashing out at a high point and whitewashing his image, he still doesn't intend to relinquish control of Asia Cinemas.

As for the excuse, it is naturally to maintain the neutral status of Asian cinemas.

The movie we visited today was not "God of Gamblers II," so naturally it had nothing to do with Hideki Hanyu in terms of production.

However, Hideki Hanyu's choice to visit the film set was not simply to show Zhou Wenqiong and her two daughters around; he had some other motives as well.

The movie is called "Once a Thief".

It's the movie "Once a Thief," directed by John Woo and starring Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-fat, and Cherie Chung, not the TV series directed by Wong Jing.

The reason this movie came about is because John Woo's previous film, "Bullet in the Head," was a box office failure, and John Woo specially prepared this film to help the investor, Golden Princess, recover their losses.

To produce this film, John Woo founded a production company called "New Milestone Films Ltd."

Among the partners of this company are Gu Weili, the former production manager of Cinema City, and Zhang Jiazhen, a famous producer.

The former is the sister of Vincent Kok, who played Tang Niu in Stephen Chow's "The God of Cookery".

The latter's resume is absolutely familiar to domestic movie fans.

For example, John Woo's "Face/Off," which made him famous in Hollywood, and "Windtalkers," which was such a disastrous failure that it indirectly led to MGM's bankruptcy.

He later participated in many well-known domestic films, including "Red Cliff 1 & 2", "Reign of Assassins", "The Crossing", "Brotherhood of Blades", and many others, whether successful or unsuccessful.

Hideki Hanyu is interested in anyone who is talented.

Of course, having not seen Leslie Cheung for so long, Hideki Hanyu also wanted to take the opportunity to visit him.

He heard from Florence Chan that the crew of "Once a Thief" would be going to France to film on location after finishing their scenes in Hong Kong in the last two days, so he decided to take the opportunity to visit the set.

Because his previous visit to the set of "God of Gamblers II" disrupted the filming process, Hideki Hanyu notified the crew in advance this time.

However, because he was notified in advance, the welcoming party for him was quite grand when he arrived at the scene.

The sprightly old man at the head of the group was none other than Lui Kwok-kwan, the investor of "Once a Thief," an indispensable figure in the history of Hong Kong cinema, the boss of Golden Princess, and a former major shareholder of Cinema City.

In this timeline, because Hideki Hanyu crossed the river like a dragon, and with the help of ruthless capital, he forcibly unified the Hong Kong cinema market. Unable to compete, Lui Kok-kwan's Golden Princess began to focus on film production.

Although Golden Princess had competed with Asia Cinemas when it was first established, Hideki Hanyu and Lei Juekun were considered rivals.

But after so many years, Asian cinema chains have long since dominated the world, and Golden Princess Cinemas has been swallowed up so much that not even a trace remains.

What rivals or opponents are now just a passing cloud.

Besides, no matter how arrogant Lei Juekun is, he wouldn't think he'd be a match for Hideki Yuzuru.

Although Lei Juekun is undoubtedly a member of a wealthy family in the eyes of celebrities in the entertainment industry, he is not actually considered a top-tier wealthy family in Hong Kong as a whole.

In terms of current market value, he is probably not as good as Pan Disheng, who works for Hideki Hanyu.

Today, there are almost no top Hong Kong tycoons who can compare with Hideki Hanyu in terms of net worth.

However, people like Li Ka-shing and Zhao the Shipping King still maintain a certain level of personal relationship due to their business collaboration.

But this circle is no longer something Lei Juekun can participate in.

This is why Lei Juekun, the big boss, personally came to receive Hideki Hanyu when he visited the set of "Once a Thief".

After all, the impact of Hideki Hanyu on the film set was far greater than that of Li Ka-shing bringing Hong Kong's four shipping magnates to the set.

Ordinary staff and celebrities may not understand the significance of this due to limited knowledge, but Lei Juekun, a wealthy man who has entered the field, can truly feel it.

This is why, when Hideki Hanyu visited the set of "God of Gamblers II" and messed up the filming, the boss didn't dare to blame him at all, and was willing to entertain Hideki Hanyu even though it affected the filming.

Following closely behind Mr. Lei are the film's main creative team: director John Woo, Gu Weili and Zhang Jiazhen from New Milestone Films Ltd., and stars Chow Yun-fat, Leslie Cheung, and Cherie Chung.

Under these circumstances, Hideki Yuzuru's original plan to take Zhou Wenqiong and the other two women to see the filming was thwarted, and he could only wait to first socialize with the people who were there to greet him.

It wasn't until Lei Juekun suggested changing the venue and inviting Hideki Yuzuru to dinner that Hideki Yuzuru had no choice but to explain his purpose.

"Mr. Lei, I came here simply to visit the set."

As he spoke, he pointed to Leslie Cheung, "I'll take this opportunity to see an old friend."

Then he pointed to the three people following him, including Zhou Wenqiong, and said, "And to show them how Hong Kong movies are filmed."

Then he declined, saying, "So there's no need for a meal or anything like that. I don't want to disrupt the filming schedule. Let Director Wu continue working."

Upon hearing Hideki Hanyu's words, Lei Juekun naturally had no choice but to comply with Hideki Hanyu's request.

But at the same time, the way people looked at Leslie Cheung also carried a different meaning.

After all, to be called an old friend by such a big figure as Hideki Hanyu, the significance behind it is immeasurable.

In Hong Kong's entertainment industry, many people work hard their entire lives but never achieve the title of an entertainment mogul.

However, to call Hideki Hanyu a Hong Kong entertainment tycoon would be a complete disparagement of him.

Even if you apply that prefix to the whole world, Hideki Hanyu is undoubtedly deserving of the title.

Hideki Hanyu's power extends far beyond the entertainment industry; he also controls a vast global media empire.

Being publicly acknowledged as a friend by Hideki Hanyu instantly elevated Leslie Cheung's status in the entertainment industry—a rise that seems inadequate to describe.

After Leslie Cheung and Hideki Hanyu said goodbye, the crew resumed filming.

Before Hideki Yuzuru even made a move, Zhou Wenqiong and her two friends ran over to watch with great interest.

After all, the three main actors in this movie are Chow Yun-fat, Leslie Cheung, and Cherie Chung.

While Cherie Chung's fame in mainland China is only average, the former two are incredibly famous.

Especially Chow Yun-fat, whose role in the 1980s film "Shanghai Bund" made him a household name across China.

It would be impossible for the three women not to be excited to meet the real person today.

Meanwhile, Hideki Hanyu, who had other motives, leisurely walked over with the others.

Watching the filming process, Hideki Hanyu suddenly said to Terence Chang, who was standing next to him, "I think Director Wu's film style is very suitable for developing in Hollywood. Mr. Chang, would you like to consider it?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jiazhen's eyes immediately lit up with surprise.

After all, as someone in the industry, he was aware of Hideki Hanyu's abilities, especially his influence in Hollywood.

At least we know that after the change of ownership, control fell to Universal Pictures, which is now Cloud Entertainment, and Hideki Hanyu has a lot of say in the matter.

In this situation, if Hideki Hanyu were willing, helping John Woo enter Hollywood would be a simple matter of a word.

Thinking of this, Zhang Jiazhen suppressed his emotions and answered cautiously, "Of course I am very interested in developing my career in Hollywood, but I am just Director Wu's partner, and the final decision is up to Director Wu himself."

"Okay, if Director Wu is interested, we can contact you after we finish our current work."

After Hideki Yuzuru finished speaking, Kaoru Chiba immediately handed Zhang Jiazhen his business card.

The business card couldn't possibly contain Hideki Hanyu's contact information; it could only be used to contact his assistant.

Although it's still several years before John Woo makes "Face/Off" in another time and space, it's always good to make contact and act as a go-between.

After seemingly casually recounting this matter, Hideki Yuzuru, accompanied by Lei Juekun and others, watched the filming of several scenes.

Before the film crew could wrap up, Hideki Hanyu took his leave.

Zhou Wenqiong and her two companions had already taken photos with the main actors during a break from filming, and their curiosity about visiting the film set had been satisfied, so they had lost their earlier enthusiasm.

Before parting, Hideki Hanyu chatted briefly with Leslie Cheung and made an appointment to have a late-night snack together after work, but said nothing more.

As for Chow Yun-fat and Cherie Chung, although they were quite enthusiastic when facing Hideki Hanyu, showing that they wanted to get closer to him and take the initiative to befriend him.

However, Hideki Hanyu and Chow Yun-fat were not familiar with each other, so they didn't have much interaction, let alone invite each other to have a late-night snack.

As for Cherie Chung, although she had met other women a few times, and one of them was a charming and beautiful woman.

But their relationship is stable and they're about to get married. Although Hideki Hanyu is a scumbag, he has no interest in stealing someone else's partner.

Of course, there was another reason, which was that, apart from Leslie Cheung, the other person who invited him to dinner that night was not suitable for Cherie Chung to appear.

After leaving the film crew, Hideki Hanyu drove straight to his destination for a late-night snack.

This time it wasn't a Western restaurant or a high-end establishment, but a small, quaint eatery I'd been to before, full of local charm.

Upon arriving at his destination, Hideki Hanyu had barely stepped out of the car when he saw the person who had invited him to dinner, who opened her arms and hugged him.

"Yuzuru, I just arrived and you're already here."

Hideki Hanyu hugged the person who came in and said with a smile.

"Ah Long, I heard you were filming in the desert and a lot of fun things happened there, so I naturally wanted to come and hear your stories as soon as possible."

Judging from this title, the person inviting Mr. Yuzuru for a late-night snack tonight is none other than Jackie Chan, who has just returned to Hong Kong to rest after completing filming in Monaco.

(End of this chapter)