Literary Master 1978.

Chapter 489 I'm just picking up some wind
A black Mercedes drove out of the gate of Clearwater Bay Golf Course. Outside the car window, on the roadside was Tseung Kwan O, which was undergoing massive construction, with tall buildings and cranes everywhere.

Lin Chaoyang sat in the back seat with a calm expression. Although he was looking out the window, he was thinking about the conditions he had reached with Luo Bin in his mind.

Lin's Pictures' films still cannot be shown in Taiwan, but the Freedom Association will no longer interfere with the normal operations of Lin's Pictures.

Externally, in order to ease the wave of public opinion, the Freedom Association shook hands with Xu Guanwen and made peace, as a way of giving an explanation to the people.

But the fact that the actors who have worked with Lin are banned will not change, it’s just that it will not be indefinite. The ban will be automatically lifted after two years. This is regarded as maintaining the reputation of the Freedom Association in the film industry and also as an explanation to the higher-ups.

It seems that Lin doesn't get any benefit from this negotiation.

But in fact, resolving the interference of the Freedom Association is already a very important achievement.

The most crucial thing is that Lin Chaoyang and Luo Bin have reached a tacit understanding that the Freedom Association will turn a blind eye to Lin's future delivery of his own films to the WD market in the form of gloves.

This should be said to be the biggest benefit of Lin Chaoyang's negotiation this time.

Lin Chaoyang sighed helplessly in his heart. If he hadn't found a few "good brothers" this time, and if Freedom hadn't made some stupid moves, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly.

After this incident, Lin was finally able to temporarily break free from the control of the Freedom Association and could go into battle with ease.

It’s not easy to work hard outside without the protection of parents!
Freedom will always settle this account, and he will settle it sooner or later.

The day after Lin Chaoyang and Luo Bin met, Xu Guanwen said in an interview with reporters that he had met with relevant personnel from the Freedom Federation and reached an understanding.

A few days ago, a reporter photographed him entering and leaving the mansion of Liberty Association ZX Luo Bin. The media had already anticipated this situation.

Since there has been private communication, there will definitely be a reconciliation.

After all, Xu Guanwen is just an actor, and it is impossible for him to go head-to-head with a behemoth like the Freedom Association.

When the news came out, the people who were originally filled with indignation were stunned.

Is that all?
They originally regarded Xu Guanwen as a hero who was not afraid of power, but in just two days he reconciled with the Freedom Association?
Some angry people immediately prepared to vent their anger towards Xu Guanwen, scolding him for being a villain who was playing both sides and seeking fame.

At this time, several media outlets including Ta Kung Pao and Ming Pao spoke out.

It is commendable that Xu Guanwen speaks out on behalf of Hong Kong films, but the power of an individual is ultimately limited.

The fundamental cause of this incident is that the Hong Kong film industry is fragmented and each one of them is fighting on its own, with no sense of the overall situation and is at the mercy of others.

One newspaper said it was nothing, and then several newspapers said the same thing. Soon the public's attention was diverted from Xu Guanwen to the leading Hong Kong film companies such as Golden Harvest and Cinema City that had close ties with WD.

Faced with the rapid turn of public opinion, Golden Harvest and Cinema City, which were caught in the crossfire, felt that they were wronged.

But the people don't care about all this, they just need an outlet to vent, and now that they have an outlet, they can vent.

The public opinion storm caused by the ban lasted for nearly half a month, which is extremely rare in a fast-paced city like Hong Kong.

However, no matter how popular the news is, it will eventually become outdated. It’s not because it is outdated, but because there is more popular news in the media.

On October 10, the Dow Jones Index in the United States fell sharply by 16 points.

On Monday, the 19th, the Hong Kong stock market opened. Affected by the rapid decline of the Dow Jones Index, the Hang Seng Index plummeted 402.81 points, from 3783.20 points at the close of last weekend to 3362.39 points.

The severity of the decline is extremely rare.

At first, not many people paid attention to this situation. The current world situation was stable, there were no major economic disasters in various countries, and Hong Kong's economy was also prosperous.

In the past two years, Hong Kong's local GDP has been growing rapidly at an annual rate of over 15%. The stock market has been rising for more than a year, but there has been no fever or bubble like the stock market crash in 73.

However, the Hang Seng Index unexpectedly fell for three consecutive days. On October 10, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange suddenly announced a four-day suspension of trading.

The original intention of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for this suspension of trading was to ease investors' panic and stop the sharp drop in the Hang Seng Index.

But what the Hong Kong Stock Exchange could not have imagined was that the four-day suspension of trading not only failed to calm people's hearts, but instead aggravated the panic in the market.

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange resumed trading on October 10, and selling orders that had been pent up for several days flooded into the market, forming a herd effect.

Investors and investment institutions trampled on each other, and the Hang Seng Index plummeted 1120.70 points in one day, a daily drop of 33.33%, creating the biggest tragedy in the history of the Hang Seng Index.

Hong Kong's stock market is highly linked to the real economy, and the Hang Seng Index has caused an unprecedented tragedy. Hong Kong society is suddenly filled with grief.

For a week in a row, almost all media gave front-page headlines to the Hong Kong stock market.

"It's terrible! It's terrible! It's terrible! My 50 yuan is gone!"

At the Golden Harvest Studios, Maggie Cheung had just finished a phone call while holding her mobile phone. She looked so miserable and almost cried.

"What's the fuss? What happened?"

Wan Ziliang, who had a slicked-back hair, had just finished acting with Andy Lau. Seeing Maggie Cheung's face full of despair, he asked nonchalantly.

"The share price of the stocks I bought has fallen again. Now I don't even have 50 of my 20 yuan left." Maggie Cheung said with a bitter face.

Wan Ziliang held a cigarette in his mouth and said, "I don't think it's a big deal, it's only 50. I lost 200 million yuan and it became more than 80. It doesn't matter, it's just a movie."

"Brother Wanzi, stop joking. This is the only 50 I have."

"Hey, pretty girl, are you serious? You make hundreds of thousands for a movie, and you tell me that you only have 50?"

"I can't help it. My expenses are too high and I can't save any money."

"You're still investing in stocks with so little money left?"

“How can you make money without investing in stocks?”

Wan Ziliang was so impressed by Maggie Cheung's powerful logic that he was unable to refute her for a while.

"Have you sold your stocks?"

"No, the stockbroker was just trying to persuade me."

"Why are you waiting? Just sell at a loss and run. In this stock market crash, so many stocks have become penny stocks!"

The "cent" in penny stock is the transliteration of the English word "cent", which refers to stocks whose prices are already lower than 1 yuan and therefore can only be priced in cents.

"But someone told me that Cathay Pacific could make money if it held on," Maggie Cheung said hesitantly.

"Silly girl, could that man have foreseen a stock market crash? Be careful, in a few days you may lose even 20!"

Wan Ziliang's advice made Maggie Cheung hesitant. After thinking about it, she still didn't make a decision.

"Maggie, come and act with Hua Zai."

Not far away, the tall and thin director wearing sunglasses was calling Maggie Cheung.

"Coming!" Maggie Cheung responded, no longer having time to think about stocks.

At around eight o'clock in the evening, the crew finally finished work, and Maggie Cheung drove to the Garden of Regent Mid-Levels.

"Why are you here so late?"

Tao Yumo asked with some surprise when he saw Maggie Cheung.

Maggie Cheung whispered something to her, and Tao Yumo took her to find Lin Chaoyang with a strange expression.

"Brother-in-law, have you bought any stocks recently?"

“I didn’t buy anything. The Hang Seng Index has fallen so much. What should I buy?”

"The Hang Seng Index has plummeted, and Maggie's stock has fallen sharply in the past few days."

Lin Chaoyang handed the toy ball in his hand to Dong Dong, then turned to look at Zhang Maggie Cheung, "Why? Want to sell stocks?"

Maggie Cheung said with a sad face: "Brother-in-law, you said that buying Cathay City can make money..."

"Hey, don't talk nonsense! I'm talking about long-term holding."

"But there's a stock market crash right now. Cathay City's share price has fallen by more than half. Even if it can go back up in the future, when will it go up?"

Maggie Cheung's tone was a little anxious. She thought she could make money this time, but ended up encountering the stock market crash.

Lin Chaoyang's expression was calm and indifferent. "As for the stock market, it's normal for it to go up and down. If you can't bear it, you can sell your stocks now."

Maggie Cheung said anxiously: "Then I will have to pay hundreds of thousands more!"

Lin Chaoyang really wanted to say that he had already paid more than one million yuan in compensation, so a few hundred thousand yuan wouldn't make a difference, but he thought it was a bit cruel.

Still comforting: "It doesn't matter, you are not the only one whose stock price is falling now, the stock price will slowly recover in the future. If you really feel impatient, you can sell at a loss first, and then use the money to buy at a low price."

Maggie Cheung thought it was a good idea, but then she thought, what if she ended up buying at the bottom halfway up the mountain? Or what if she bought a worse stock?
She expressed her doubts, and Lin Chaoyang smiled and said, "So, holding it is the safest way. Behind Guocheng is Century City, and its development potential is not bad.

In a stock market crash, everyone is losing money. When this wave is over, high-quality companies will be the first to make efforts.”

After thinking it over, Maggie Cheung felt that what Lin Chaoyang said made sense, and it would be safer to continue holding Cathay City shares.

After this counseling, she felt much more at ease.

Lin Chaoyang teased her, "It's only 50, which is not a lot for you. You can come back after taking a movie, right?"

Maggie Cheung shook her head firmly, "Brother-in-law, you don't understand. Acting is working, and stocks are investing."

Lin Chaoyang looked at her with amusement, "I didn't expect you to have the ambition to be a 'financial tycoon'."

"I don't want to be a financial tycoon. I just want to make enough money to retire quickly."

Her words seemed to have triggered some kind of restriction, and Tao Yushu suddenly appeared, "Maggie, you are only in your twenties, the right age to work hard on your career..."

Maggie Cheung finally got rid of Tao Yushu's "Tang Monk chanting sutras", but she was still frightened. From then on, she never dared to talk about lying down and retiring in front of Sister Yushu.

Then she came close to Lin Chaoyang and asked curiously: "Brother-in-law, why haven't you bought any stocks recently?"

"Nonsense, a stock market crash!"

"I mean before, before the stock market crash."

Maggie Cheung is now very curious. Lin Chaoyang is obviously a writer and has only been in Hong Kong for two years. Why does he have such a thorough understanding of the Hong Kong stock market?

Of course, Lin Chaoyang couldn't say that he was cheating. "I haven't decided what to buy yet. I'm just going to collect some information. Stock trading is also a way to experience life."

If he hadn't mentioned it, Maggie Cheung would have forgotten, "By the way, it seems like you started investing in stocks in order to write a novel."

"You are so lucky!" She couldn't help but mutter to herself again.

She originally only envied Lin Chaoyang for grabbing the Cathay City stock, but now she is even more jealous of him for escaping the stock market crash unscathed.

She was in the film industry and was more or less superstitious. She thought Lin Chaoyang might be the lucky person that the master talked about.

Otherwise, how could he make a fortune by investing in stocks while writing novels and still get away with it?
"Brother-in-law, why don't you help me with stock trading in the future!" Maggie Cheung said with a greedy look on her face.

"Whatever you buy will fall in price. We have no grudges against each other. Please don't harm me!"

Maggie Cheung's eyes suddenly widened, her face filled with grief and indignation, "How can you hurt others with your words? I just have bad luck!"

Lin Chaoyang said: "You can cheat others, but don't cheat yourself. Everyone is investing in stocks, but you are the only one with bad luck?"

His words completely broke Maggie Cheung's defense, "I treat you as a family member, and you say this to me..."

"Okay, okay, the child is sleeping, why are you making a fuss?"

Tao Yushu came out and separated the two.

Zhang Manyu suddenly grabbed Tao Yushu's arm and said, "Sister Yushu, my brother-in-law looks down on me!"

That look was exactly like Ah Ju who was cursing and complaining.

"Don't talk about him. You'd better not trade stocks anymore. If you make money, even if you don't invest it, you can just keep it in the bank! Why waste it all in the stock market?"

Maggie Cheung's reaction to Tao Yushu's persuasion was completely different. She shook Tao Yushu's arm and said, "It will all be spent if I put it in the bank. Sister Yushu, when will your company go public? Let me buy your company's stocks and make tens of millions."

"Don't think about the good things, just focus on filming."

After chatting for a while, Maggie Cheung was about to leave. Before leaving, she saw a copy of The Great Era on the coffee table and put it in her bag. They were all stock investors, and she had entered the industry a year earlier.

If Lin Chaoyang wasn't too lucky, then he must have some extraordinary skills in the stock market. She had to study this book carefully.

It was already 11 o'clock in the evening when we drove back to New World Apartments in Tsim Sha Tsui.

Maggie Cheung changed clothes, removed makeup, and took care of her skin until 12 o'clock. Thinking that she had to get up early to film the next day, she threw herself on the bed.

Just as she closed her eyes, she opened them again and took out the movie "Big Times" that she brought back from Jiahui Garden from her bag.

I want to see, what's your secret?

She muttered to herself and opened the novel.

"Ding Hai, you bastard!"

"Little Jew, stingy sister, so cute!"

……

The next morning, at Golden Harvest Studios.

"Ah Cheng, what's the situation with Maggie? Did you call?"

Assistant Director Jiang Yuecheng responded, "I called, but no one answered. I guess there was a traffic jam. Director, why don't we shoot the scenes with Andy and Jacky first?"

"The play between Andy and Jacky Cheung has not been written yet. Forget it, let's wait for her."

The director wears sunglasses regardless of day or night, and it is impossible to tell whether he is happy or angry.

Jiang Yuecheng couldn't help but complain in his heart. It was really bad luck to join this crew. Not only was the leading actress unreliable, but the director was even more unreliable.

He has also filmed quite a few dramas. "Flying paper" is very common in Hong Kong crews nowadays, but at least they are written while filming, and the contents of the scripts are all out before filming.

But this crew is not ordinary. The flying of papers depends entirely on the director's mood. Sometimes, after the previous scenes are shot, the director has not thought about the subsequent plots.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t have content at this time, just start shooting. Inspiration will come to you as you shoot!
Jiang Yuecheng felt that if he were the investor of this play, he would probably be so angry at the director that he would get a cerebral hemorrhage.

All of this is real gold and silver!
"Sorry, sorry! There's a traffic jam on the road. Sorry, Director Wang!"

Just when he was daydreaming, the late heroine Maggie Cheung finally arrived. As soon as she arrived, she apologized with a face full of apology.

Then she took out another thousand yuan to treat the crew members to milk tea, which not only dispelled the resentment of the crew members, but also gained a wave of goodwill.

The morning scene was filmed for more than an hour, and the crew stopped again. It was said that the director was not satisfied with the previous scene and wanted to change it, so he was revising the scene.

Everyone suddenly became idle, and the staff were chatting in twos and threes. Apart from entertainment gossip, the topics were horses, real estate, and stocks.

The Hang Seng Index has plummeted recently, and stocks are the most talked about topic.

Wan Ziliang is not here today, and Andy Lau and Jacky Cheung are sitting together chatting.

Maggie Cheung, contrary to her usual behavior, sat there quietly reading a book, which was completely different from her usual state when she was resting.

Andy Lau has been filming for several years, but he has never seen any Hong Kong star reading a book while filming.

This is too pretentious!
Could it be some new packaging method created by the agent?
The two of them became more and more curious as they talked, and finally they couldn't help but run over and ask, "Maggie, what book are you reading?"

Maggie Cheung was absorbed in reading a book, and for some reason she was gritting her teeth. Suddenly, two people appeared, and she immediately closed the book in panic.

"Nothing, I'm reading a novel."

"What novel is so mysterious?"

Maggie Cheung had already relaxed at this time and was just reading a book, but when she thought about the content she had just read, she still felt very depressed.

Why haven't I seen this novel earlier?
Although she was upset, she still answered, "It's a new novel about stock speculation."

When they heard the word "stock speculation", Andy Lau and Jacky Cheung showed curiosity.

Recently, the streets of Hong Kong have been dominated by the topic of the "stock market", which has been widely reported in the media, with all kinds of groundless news emerging one after another.

Maggie Cheung took out the book, and the two of them flipped through it and put it down without any intention of reading it.

Seeing that the two had no interest in reading, Maggie Cheung was not willing to give up. She piqued their interest with just one sentence.

"There's something interesting about this book. The stock market crash it describes is somewhat similar to this one."

"real or fake?"

"You'll know if you see it for yourself!"

Maggie Cheung's words made the two more curious, but she put the novel away and said, "If you want to read it, go buy it yourself. I haven't finished reading this one yet!"

"Tsk!" Jacky Cheung curled his lips in disdain, thinking that Maggie Cheung was being mysterious, while Andy Lau was skeptical.

After the two men left, Maggie Cheung opened the book again. The more she read, the more depressed she felt.

The TV series "Big Times" tells a story from the stock market crash in 73 to the stock market crash in 87, and then to the "Great Miracle Day" in 94.

It is only 1987, so Lin Chaoyang has made drastic changes and improvements to the content of the TV series, using the three stock market crashes in 73, 83 and 87 in the Hong Kong stock market as the background to improve the story line.

The stock market crash in 87 had not yet occurred when the novel was published.

Lin Chaoyang deliberately adjusted the content of the stock market crash, which is quite different from reality.

From the reader's perspective, one can see at a glance that the stock market crash in the novel is very similar to the real stock market crash, but they are not exactly the same.

What made Maggie Cheung upset was the stock market crash in the novel. The more she read, the angrier she felt.

If she had seen the novel ten days earlier, she would have definitely noticed it and avoided such a huge loss.

This idea was of course just wishful thinking that she realized belatedly. Even though she had seen the prophetic stock market crash in "Big Times" ten days ago, it hadn't happened yet, so she would have just laughed it off and not taken it to heart at all.

Her heart was so overwhelmed by the regret of going to a mountain of treasure but coming back empty-handed that she didn't even bother to read the novel, and went to find other people in the crew to promote the "stock market crash" depicted in "The Big Times".

She only has a simple thought, I can't be the only one who regrets it.

News about the stock market crash has been very popular during this period. When Maggie Cheung publicized the fact that The Greed of Man "accurately predicted" the stock market crash, it immediately attracted a lot of attention from the crew.

Although no one has seen the novel, what she said was so convincing that many people planned to read the novel after work.

The next morning, the crew was still filming on and off. Maggie Cheung had nothing to do and observed the crew members. She actually found that a few of them were reciting "The Greed of Man".

Obviously, this is all thanks to her recommendation.

"Maggie, the book you read yesterday was on the news! The newspaper said that the stock market crash plot in the book is strikingly similar to the current stock market crash." Andy Lau suddenly found Maggie Cheung and said.

Maggie Cheung was a little surprised when she heard this, but then she calmed down.

If he could see that The Big Times had foresight about the stock market crash, there is no reason why so many readers couldn't see it.

"Big Times" had been on sale for half a month, and the Hang Seng Index had been falling for more than a week before the media reported on it. She thought the media's reaction was a bit slow.

After the crew finished work that evening, she ran to Jiahui Garden again.

He took credit to Lin Chaoyang, saying that he recommended "Big Times" to the crew and many people bought the novel.

At this time, Tao Yumo threw a newspaper over and said, "Do I need you to tell me? It's all reported in the newspaper!"

Maggie Cheung argued: "A newspaper is a newspaper. People in our crew bought the novel because of my recommendation."

"Okay, okay, you're awesome!" Tao Yumo's tone was perfunctory.

Maggie Cheung ignored her and focused her attention on Lin Chaoyang, trying to take credit for it.

She has finished reading "Big Times" these two days. Although her main purpose was not to read the novel at the beginning, she was still moved by the refined and profound words and the wonderful story in the end.

When she saw the little Jew die in Fang Zhanbo's arms, she even buried herself in the quilt and cried for a long time, and her eyes are still swollen now.

Lin Chaoyang listened to Maggie Cheung's exaggerated description of her feelings after reading the novel. He knew in his heart that Maggie Cheung was not a literary girl, and there must be something fishy about her sudden courtesy.

"Brother-in-law, it was only after I watched Big Times that I realized that you have such a thorough understanding of the stock market and stock trading. It is much better than those stockbrokers and securities company analysts."

"No wonder you can make a lot of money in the stock market so easily and get out of it safely. Brother-in-law, you are really a modern stock god!"

……

"Brother-in-law, please take me with you next time you buy stocks!"

The more Maggie Cheung spoke, the more disgusting and exaggerated she became, until finally she revealed her true intentions.

The sincerity of her words and the humility of her expression were not at all out of place when she was dealing with Tao Yushu at ordinary times. It was the first time that Lin Chaoyang enjoyed such treatment.

"I wish I were the stock god. I could make clouds and rain with just a wave of my hand. Your sister wouldn't have to start a company anymore!" Lin Chaoyang said with a relaxed expression.

Seeing that Lin Chaoyang did not reject her right away, Maggie Cheung thought that the hitchhiking opportunity was possible and she flattered him even harder.

Tao Yumo was familiar with Maggie Cheung's sad history of stock speculation, and said sarcastically: "Maggie, just give up stock speculation. The money you worked so hard to earn is thrown into the stock market, and you can't even hear a sound. Why bother!"

"Bah, bah, bah! What a crow's mouth!" Maggie Cheung glared at Tao Yumo, "With my brother-in-law's protection, I will definitely make my money back this time!"

"That's what you said last time you bought Cathay City."

After saying this, Garen really used Whisper - silence and defense break.

Maggie Cheung paused for a while before saying, "I just... have bad luck."

Then she looked at Lin Chaoyang again, her eyes shining, "It's different now. With my brother-in-law here, I can expect a return in no time!"

Look at the losses suffered by the children. They can only dream of making back their money. They are almost catching up with the leeks with cancer.

Lin Chaoyang summed up Maggie Cheung in just four words: unskilled and playful.

Before he could attack, Tao Yushu had already spoken.

"With your personality, even if you make money in the stock market, you will lose it sooner or later."

Maggie Cheung felt depressed and sad when she heard this. She seemed to feel the mood of those geniuses who were not understood by the world.

Seeing her unconvinced face, Lin Chaoyang said with a smile: "Alright. Don't deify me. If you really follow me in stock trading, what if you lose money like this time?"

Maggie Cheung hesitated and said, "We can't always run into a stock market crash, right?"

"It has nothing to do with the stock market crash. Even Li Zhaofu can't guarantee that he will make money from stock trading."

Although everyone has a good relationship, Lin Chaoyang will not do anything to repay a favor.

If Maggie Cheung really had no money or was heavily in debt, he would definitely help her.

But she earns hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong dollars for making a movie, and any endorsement she takes is enough for ordinary Hong Kong citizens to earn for several years. There is absolutely no need for me to help her.

Before, Maggie Cheung’s mind was full of “making back the money”. After being rejected by Lin Chaoyang, she calmed down and thought carefully, and realized that her behavior was a bit rash.

After a while, she laughed heartlessly and joked, "I'm tired of losing money, and I can't lose money with you again."

Then she changed the subject and said, "By the way, the news now links the stock market crash to The Great Era. My brother-in-law's new book should sell well, right?"

"It's not clear yet. There's no feedback from the publisher yet."

Tao Yushu frowned and said, "I always feel that this is not a good thing. With such public opinion, how can readers care about the content of the novel?"

She said this because she was worried that the work Lin Chaoyang had worked so hard to create would be wasted, but Lin Chaoyang smiled and said, "It's better to have someone watching it than no one."

Maggie Cheung agreed, "Yes, the stock market crash has such a big impact, maybe my brother-in-law's novel will be a best-seller this time!"

Her words were spoken without meaning, but they confirmed the reality.

(End of this chapter)