Literary Master 1978.

Chapter 425 Eastern Garden
The 1980s was an extremely brilliant and glorious era for Hong Kong. With the reform and opening up of the mainland, Hong Kong, as a bridgehead for exchanges between the Chinese economy and the Western world, saw its economy take off, all industries flourish, and the stock market soar. It can be said to be a golden decade.

After getting off the plane, I looked around and saw tall buildings everywhere, a prosperous scene.

Tao Yumo sat in the back seat of the car, looking at the street scenes on both sides of the street, and his eyes were not enough.

Although she had often read news about Hong Kong and city glimpses in newspapers, magazines or on TV, and often watched Hong Kong movies, when she actually arrived there, she still found herself shocked by the towering skyscrapers.

“There are so many tall buildings in Hong Kong!”

"The place is small, so we can only build higher." Lin Chaoyang replied.

The street scene outside the car window is bustling with traffic and shops. On one side are office workers in suits, and on the other side are poor people carrying shoulder poles to make a living.

It is prosperous, but it is also true that living here is not easy.

"Hong Kong is a very small place, and the population has been growing rapidly over the years. We have to build high-rise buildings. Now some of the newly opened buildings are already 30 or 40 stories high," Li Hanxiang introduced casually.

Before returning to Hong Kong, Li Hanxiang had made arrangements for Lin Chaoyang's family. After getting off the plane, they got on a business car and went to the house with Li Hanxiang and his wife.

Kai Tak Airport is located in the Kowloon City District. Coming out of Kai Tak Airport, the business car sped all the way to Ho Man Tin in the southwest of Kowloon.

During the Qing Dynasty, there were only a small number of residents living here. Because most of the land was owned by a landlord named Chen Hewen, it was named Ho Man Tin.

In the 1930s, this place had become a cemetery, and in the 1950s it became a resettlement area to accommodate people fleeing from the mainland.

It was not until the 1960s that the government began to develop and build this area, and it gradually became a purely residential area.

The car finally drove into a community called "Oriental Garden".

“This is the land that Taikoo acquired in 67 and built in 68. All the buildings are stories high and very comfortable to live in.

A few years ago, when house prices were high, my wife was planning to sell it, but I was a little reluctant, so I ended up putting it off until house prices plummeted, and it’s now empty.”

Hong Kong's real estate industry has always been cyclical, and it is common to see large ups and downs within a decade. When the real estate market reached its peak in 1981, housing prices had increased by 76% compared to the prices in 400.

But soon with the decline of the international trade environment and the negotiation between China and Britain over the Hong Kong issue in 82, citizens experienced a crisis of confidence and Hong Kong housing prices began to collapse rapidly in 82.

By the end of 84, China and Britain jointly issued a joint statement, which completely confirmed the return of Hong Kong. Only then did Hong Kong's property market bottom out and rebound, and there was hope for price increases at the beginning of this year.

The car was parked downstairs of the residential building. Li Hanxiang said, "This parking space was given by Swire when I bought the building. If you need the car in the future, you can park it here."

After getting off the car, Li Hanxiang took a few people upstairs.

The Oriental Garden is filled with twelve-story low-rise residential buildings. The greening rate is very high, with many trees and shady areas. The environment is clean and elegant, which reminds Tao Yushu of the environment of the Overseas Chinese Apartments.

Several people entered the unit door. The entrance lobby was paved with dark brown marble and the walls were covered with tiles. Lin Chaoyang seemed to see the commercial housing in the mainland more than 30 years later.

Li Hanxiang and his wife led a few people to the seventh floor. The house was a three-bedroom residence. In the words of Hong Kong people, it was a thousand-square-foot mansion, which is about 103 square meters when converted into square meters.

The interior of the house has been renovated for more than ten years and is kept quite clean, so there is definitely no problem living in it.

Li Hanxiang's wife was named Zhang Cuiying. She came to Hong Kong with Li Hanxiang in the 1940s and they had four daughters together.

She and Tao Yushu were both from Yanjing. They chatted about their hometowns and became familiar with each other quickly. She introduced them with a smile:
"Old Li asked me to clean up the house a long time ago. There is a living room, two bedrooms and a study here, which should be enough for your family to live in.

The developer of this community is the British-owned Swire Group, which has a very good reputation. Both the living environment and property services are good, and the environment is quiet.

A few years ago, the surrounding area was quite desolate, but now the living facilities are very convenient.”

Tao Yushu stood on the balcony and looked at the scenery outside. The temperature in the north in March was still a little low in the morning and evening, but here in Hong Kong it was already spring and the temperature was just right.

Looking around, there are lush trees everywhere, dotted with some residential buildings.

Compared to the bustling street market we just drove past, the environment here is indeed more livable.

"Old Li, sister-in-law, thank you so much for your thoughtful consideration." Lin Chaoyang thanked them politely.

"Don't say those things. We are all good friends. We should help each other!" said Li Hanxiang.

Zhang Cuiying then took Tao Yushu aside and told him some details of her life.

Li Hanxiang asked Lin Chaoyang, "You don't have a driver's license here, can I send you a car during this time?"

Lin Chaoyang quickly refused, "No need to bother, just take the bus or subway."

While the two were talking, Zhang Cuiying took Tao Yushu to buy some daily necessities and get familiar with the surroundings. Tao Yumo also followed them out, holding the child.

Lin Chaoyang and Li Hanxiang stayed at home and chatted about their arrangements in Hong Kong.

Lin Chaoyang's main purpose of coming to Hong Kong this time is to get an identity for Tao Yushu. The work has been arranged. Next, he will let her go to New Kunlun Pictures to adapt to the environment here.

"My company is on Lockhart Road, and it's not big. Your sister-in-law is in charge of the daily operations. She has hired a clerk and a financial officer.

When Yushu has time, she can come to my place and get familiar with the environment. After a while, I will ask someone to help her get an ID card, which may cost some money. "

New Kunlun Pictures is a small workshop. There are no less than a hundred shell film and television companies like this in Hong Kong.

The only difference between New Kunlun Pictures and those companies is that it has the great director Li Hanxiang behind it.

Lin Chaoyang nodded. It is possible to get Hong Kong identity without spending any money, but it will take longer. Lin Chaoyang and his wife did not plan to stay in Hong Kong for long, so it would be best if they could solve it with some money.

"What are your plans for the recent period?" Li Hanxiang asked Lin Chaoyang.

"Prepare for a new novel." Li Hanxiang asked again: "Really don't you want to start a film and television company? You write the script, I'll be the director, we'll invest together and make a lot of money."

Lin Chaoyang came to Hong Kong, why did Li Hanxiang work so hard?
Isn't it because he admired Lin Chaoyang's abilities and wanted to pull him along?
Unfortunately, Lin Chaoyang was not as optimistic as him. "Old Li, I'm going to say something you may not like to hear."

Li Hanxiang looked puzzled, and Lin Chaoyang said, "You are a little behind the times now."

"What do you mean?"

"You are good at historical films and erotic films. Haven't you noticed that in recent years, the popularization and mass appeal of Hong Kong films has become a general trend.

"The Last Emperor" seems to be a success, but in fact it has already explained the problem.

Without the support of foreign markets, "Beyond the Curtain" could only be considered to have a small profit.

Investing in a movie of this scale involves huge risks. Even if this one is a success by chance, the money earned may not even be a fraction of the losses you will suffer in the next one.

Look at those films at the top of the box office charts. Their local box office is higher than yours, their overseas copyright buyout prices are higher than yours, and their investments are less than yours..."

Good medicine tastes bitter, but honest words offend the ears.

Li Hanxiang felt a little angry when he first heard Lin Chaoyang's words, but when he thought about it carefully, it made sense.

The success of "The Last Emperor" can be said to be the pinnacle of Li Hanxiang's directorial career. From then on, he went downhill all the way. One of the key reasons for this was the ban from Taiwan, which caused some investors to dare not invest in him.

In the following ten years, Li Hanxiang traveled between the mainland and Taiwan, trying to return to the top, but unfortunately his era had long passed.

The few movies he made during those years basically didn't make much of a splash, with neither box office success nor word of mouth, let alone any awards.

In this time and space, "The Last Emperor" is still a huge success, and Li Hanxiang made a lot of money from his investment in "The Chess Master". He has been in a state of confidence for some time.

Although Lin Chaoyang's words today were unpleasant to hear, they were a warning to him. Li Hanxiang frowned and thought for a long time but couldn't come up with any clue.

He loves the profession of director, otherwise he would not still be working on the set in his sixties and seventies.

Stopping him from making movies might be more painful than killing him.

Li Hanxiang smiled bitterly and said, "What can I do? This is the field I am good at."

"I'm just reminding you. If you really want to invest, you still have to control the risks. Don't invest in your own film."

Lin Chaoyang's words made Li Hanxiang so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood. I don't invest in my own films, but invest in other people's films. Wouldn't people laugh at me if I tell others about it?

"After all, you just look down on my small workshop, right?" Li Hanxiang said depressedly.

Lin Chaoyang smiled and said, "Why would you waste so much time talking to me if you don't think I'm worth it?"

Li Hanxiang's eyes lit up when he heard this. "Then let's work together? What do you think?"

"I have an idea, but it's not mature yet. I'll wait until I finish writing my new work."

Li Hanxiang became interested and asked, "Adapt your new work into a movie?"

Lin Chaoyang nodded, and Li Hanxiang immediately felt a sense of confidence filling his heart. The movies adapted from Lin Chaoyang's novels have all been huge successes!

"Okay, then I'll wait for your new work, so you better hurry up!"

"Good food is never too late." Lin Chaoyang said with a smile.

In fact, he has been writing a new work since the Chinese New Year, but he has been very busy during this period. It has been almost two months, and he has only written less than 100,000 words in fits and starts.

Fortunately, the novel is not long, and there are no mundane things to disturb him during this period of time in Hong Kong. Lin Chaoyang plans to finish writing the novel during this time.

After Zhang Cuiying and Tao Yushu came back from their shopping, Li Hanxiang suggested going out for dinner as a welcoming party.

The group did not walk too far for the welcoming banquet and found a Sang Kee Restaurant near Ho Man Tin. After the meal, Lin Chaoyang and his family were sent back to the entrance of Oriental Garden.

"You've been traveling a lot today, so you should go to bed early. Yushu can call your sister-in-law when she has time, and she can come to the company at any time.

I have arranged a party on Sunday, Chaoyang, please think about coming to attend it then."

After giving these instructions, Li Hanxiang left.

Tao Yushu looked at the car's back as it drove away and said, "Thanks to Lao Li and my sister-in-law, I don't know how much effort I saved with their arrangements."

With Zhang Cuiying's advance arrangements, the residence in Oriental Garden basically met the standards for move-in ready; even the bedding had been purchased, so Tao Yushu didn't have to worry about anything at all.

She added: "They are so concerned about you, right?"

Lin Chaoyang smiled and nodded, "There is no free lunch in the world. Lao Li has always wanted to cooperate with me again."

"So what do you think?" Tao Yushu asked.

Lin Chaoyang looked at her and said, "It's not my idea, but your idea."

Tao Yushu looked surprised, "What does it have to do with me?"

"Even if we're working together on a movie, the most I can do is write a script. You're the one who really needs to worry about it."

(End of this chapter)