Exciting 1979!

Chapter 302 Hoarding Hundreds of IPs for Retirement

Originally, Wei Ming didn't attach much importance to "Qin's Moon". He just wanted to give A Long something to do and take the opportunity to make use of the pre-Qin knowledge he learned from writing "Qin Yong Qing" and preserve a spark of commercial comics in mainland China.

At that time, there was no fertile ground for commercial comics in mainland China, only serial comics. Moreover, serial comics would not be popular for more than a few years. Although they were booming now, with annual sales of more than 400 million copies, and could double in two years, they would be swept away by policy adjustments in a few years.

It wasn't until the 90s, or more precisely, 93, with the launch of "The King of Comics," that mainland Chinese commercial comics truly took off.

Although this magazine only lasted for a year, it achieved a peak single-issue sales of 40 copies. A group of early Chinese comic book stalwarts, such as Yan Kai, Chen Xiang, Yao Feila, Ziyouniao, and Hu Qianrong, all started their careers here, and together with those pirated Japanese comic books, they cultivated the earliest batch of ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) enthusiasts in China.

However, since the market was opened up in the 90s, it was not possible to wait until the 90s to start developing. Wei Ming felt it was necessary to prepare for it ten years in advance. Otherwise, once the market opened up, the production capacity and quality of domestic comics would not be able to keep up, and they would only be beaten by Japanese comics.

Since there's no market in mainland China, let's publish in Hong Kong. The market is smaller, but it's enough for us to develop stealthily. Besides, there's a market in Southeast Asia, and who knows, we might even be able to launch a counterattack against Japan someday.

However, Huang Yulang was uncooperative, so Wei Ming began to think about how to break the deadlock and whether he could take his place.

Having lived two lives and working in the film and television industry, Wei Mingtai understands the importance of IP. Novels are the source of IP, and comics are also an upstream industry of IP.

Japan's Weekly Shonen Jump can be valued at $30 billion based on its decades of accumulated anime and manga copyrights.

Even though Marvel was on the verge of bankruptcy, it was still able to return to its peak and dominate the global film industry thanks to its animated characters.

Another example is Qidian.com in China, which has been able to maintain its leading position in the industry by monopolizing the entire male-oriented IP market and its continuous ability to generate revenue.

Similarly, the subsequent development of an IP can also benefit the original IP creator; the success of a film or television series that in turn boosts novel subscriptions is a case in point.

Even if Wei Ming writes novels at a very fast pace, even if he were to be used as three people, how many stories could he possibly write in his lifetime? And how many of those stories could sustain him for a lifetime?

He is most confident in the Black Cat Detective series and The Lion King, but he is not 100% sure that they will still be profitable forty years from now.

But what if you have many, many of these kinds of works?
Taking "Qin's Moon" as an example, apart from the time spent on the initial setting, once the initial work was done, the amount of text he wrote in one day was enough for Ah Long and his team to draw for one or two months.

He was only responsible for the character design, main plot, and story direction, while Ah Long filled in the story details. Ah Long and his team were responsible for the comic details. This collaborative model allowed him to participate in more IP development, making one person do the work of a hundred.

Thinking of this, Wei Ming couldn't help but feel enthusiastic. It seemed that it was really necessary for him to get involved in Hong Kong's comic book industry!

If things are done well, even if you miss out on those big opportunities, even if you lose all your money for some reason, as long as you have these IP sources in your hands, you can retire in peace.

They will become movies, animations, TV series, games, theme parks, and so on to support their father!
Thinking of this, Wei Ming could no longer restrain himself. He picked up a blank notebook and began to write, his pen flying across the page, unable to stop.

This matter must be handled quickly, not only because my days in Hong Kong are numbered, but also because of Wong Yuk-long.

Wong Yuk-long is by no means a blind man. He must understand the value of "Qin's Moon", but he still gave such harsh conditions. Either he looked down on Ah Long as a newcomer, or he looked down on Ah Long's mainland origins and felt that he had the right to take advantage of him.

Moreover, Wong Yuk-long has already read the first two chapters. With his abilities, he might be able to create a "borrowed" version very soon, so we need to act quickly.

~
"Amin, when are we leaving?" Alon asked.

"Ming-ge, where are we going?" Biaozi asked.

"Teacher Wei, what are we having for dinner today?" Wu Jing asked.

Because he went to bed late last night, Wei Ming also woke up late today. He glanced at the luminous watch Melinda had given him and thought, "Oh no!"

"Let's talk about that this afternoon, I have something else to do."

Since he hadn't discussed it with Amin beforehand, Wei Ming planned to spend the morning with her and then go find a way out for "Qin's Moon" in the afternoon.

"Amin, wait a minute."

Wei Minggang ran into Mr. Fu Qi again as he went downstairs. He was the husband of Shi Hui, one of the three princesses of Great Wall Film Company, and the father of Fu Mingxian, who cut off Gu Tianle's arm. He was also a director at Great Wall Film Company and had co-directed "The Jade Bow and the Cloud Sea" with Zhang Xinyan.

At this time, Zhang Xinyan was producing "Shaolin Temple," and Fu Qi, one of the founders of the Central Plains Film Company behind it, was also involved.

Since he was temporarily staying on someone else's turf, Wei Ming had to stop, no matter how urgent the situation was.

"Is there anything I can help you with, Mr. Fu?"

Fu Qi smiled and said, "I just received some good news and was just about to congratulate you."

The good news is the box office performance of "Heroes from Ancient Times". This morning, we received the statistics and the total box office has exceeded HK$500 million, currently ranking third for the year, just surpassing Shaw Brothers' "The King of Gamblers".

"The King of Gamblers vs. the King of Gamblers" is Wong Jing's directorial debut, and the cast includes Patrick Tse, who just had a son last year.

Fu Qi speculated: "At this rate, a box office of 10 million is almost a certainty, and the Beijing Film Studio has also started printing copies in preparation for release."

"That's great, but Yuan Xiangren might be in a bit of a predicament."

"Why?"

"Because he was the martial arts director, even though the film was a success, he couldn't tell others that he had contributed to it."

Fu Qi burst into laughter upon hearing this. Wei Ming glanced at his watch and said, "Mr. Fu, I'll be going now. I have another appointment."

"Oh, please go ahead."

Watching Wei Ming's departing figure, Fu Qi couldn't help but think about his company's "Shaolin Temple" film, hoping it would live up to everyone's hard work.

~
When Wei Ming arrived at the agreed location, Amin had already been waiting for a while. She had changed into a new outfit today. After all, women dress up for those they love, and she is increasingly willing to spend time on dressing up these days.

"I'm sorry, you must have been waiting for a long time."

“No, no,” Amin said with concern, looking at Wei Ming’s dark circles. “I know you want to write me the song you’re most satisfied with, but don’t stay up all night.”

Wei Ming chuckled twice, his words muffled: "I haven't had breakfast yet, let's eat together."

"Yeah, we'll eat on the way."

Where are you planning to take me today?

Ah Min: "Let's go for a stroll in Wan Chai."

She spent most of her 14 years on Hong Kong Island, so she is more familiar with the Central and Western District, Wan Chai District, Eastern District and Southern District, while Kowloon and the New Territories are relatively unfamiliar to her.

While eating wonton noodles at a street stall, Wei Ming told Amin, "I have some work to do this afternoon, so I think your sick leave can end now."

"Ah?" Amin felt terrible, so bad that she really had to take sick leave. She had originally planned to stay with Amin for the last few days, but it had only been a day and a half.

"What are you busy with? Maybe I can help." Amin still wanted to pester Wei Ming. As the old saying goes, even a strong man can be pestered by a woman.

Wei Ming: "I want to find some printing and publishing companies, and also a comic book company."

Amin: "Printing, I know that. Come with me."

After breakfast, Zhou Huimin led Wei Ming to a somewhat quaint street, decorated with festive red decorations.

This is a small street sandwiched between Johnston Road and Queen's Road East, called Lee Tung Street.

Ah Min explained, "This is Hong Kong's most famous printing street. Whether you want to print books, magazines, flyers, business cards, or red envelopes, you can come here."

"But it seems like more people are printing wedding invitations." Wei Ming looked at the festive colors.

Amin's eyes crinkled with laughter: "Yes, there are more and more wedding invitations being printed here now, so some people call it Wedding Invitation Street."

Upon hearing the name "Wedding Invitation Street," Wei Ming almost couldn't help but hum it out.

"The gold foil on the wedding invitations from back then was printed with his image / The wall where the wedding photos were framed / And all the beautiful memories of yesteryear / Tomorrow, they will all be taken down..."

Wyman Wong, a graduate of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, is as famous as Lin Xi from the University of Hong Kong in the lyric writing world. His song "Wedding Invitation Street," written for Kay Tse, is a very bright spot in the late Cantonese song era. However, he is most famous for "Exaggeration," written for Eason Chan.

However, the song is about the demolition and reconstruction of Wedding Invitation Street, which is completely out of place with the thriving Wedding Invitation Street at that time. It is said that the Hong Kong British government placed all of Hong Kong's publishing business on this small Lee Tung Street in order to facilitate the supervision of publications.

Even though the publishing industry is now booming everywhere, this place is still the most prosperous and densely populated place for the publishing industry. When Amin walked past a store, she blushed. Inside, there were printed pornographic books, and naked women were directly pasted on the outside as signs for advertising.

With Amin there, Wei Ming walked past without looking at her. He'd criticize her another time.

He mainly inquired about the price of printed comics. Of course, color comics and black-and-white comics are definitely different, as are newspaper comics and magazine comics. The price and service are equivalent.

Wei Ming was busy with his own things, while Amin was more focused on the various beautiful wedding invitations.

Thinking that she might need these wedding invitations in two years, her face involuntarily turned red. She looked at the invitations, then at Ah Ming who was seriously asking the price, and then secretly bought two from the shop owner behind Wei Ming's back.

"Ah Ming, are you going to make comics?" Vivian Chow asked as they left Wedding Invitation Street.

"Yeah, I have this idea."

"So, will you be coming to Hong Kong often in the future? Or even settling down here?" Amin asked expectantly.

“I will definitely come often, but I probably won’t settle down here. The property prices in Hong Kong are too expensive; I can’t afford it.”

I could have afforded it, but after giving Lao Gui some US dollars, I couldn't afford it anymore.

Amin sighed inwardly, "It really is expensive. We're still living in a housing estate."

Buying a house remains an unattainable dream for Zhou's mother, who is busy starting her own business.

"Will you be able to finish your work before you go back to the mainland?" she asked again.

"I'm not going back to the mainland."

"If you don't return to the mainland, do you mean...?"

Wei Ming: "Before returning to the mainland, I need to fly to the UK to discuss some cooperation matters."

Amin: Are you sure it's about discussing cooperation?

She knows what's going on in Britain, after all; she's an ex-girlfriend.

Wei Ming didn't explain anything. He said, "I really have to get back to work now. Let me take you home first. Home or back to school?"

“It would be terrible if my mom found out when I got home,” Zhou Huimin glanced at her schoolbag. “I’d better go back to school.”

Amin got into Wei Ming's van, and Wei Ming told her, "When I leave Hong Kong, this van will be given to Uncle Bin to drive, and you can all use it."

"Remember to come see me before you leave. You have to deliver the song to me personally."

"must."

Watching Wei Ming's car drive away, Amin took out the two wedding invitations from her bag, admired them for a while, and then put them back.

~
Before long, four more people joined Wei Ming's car: A Long, Biao Zi, Wu Jing, and Xu Jinjiang.

Xu Jinjiang was, after all, an artist, and comics were also art. He led the group to the offices of "Good News".

There once was a family surnamed Kwong. The father ran a general store, and half of the store was used to rent out comics. Under the influence of his father, Kwong Cheuk-hung, he often drew some self-made promotional posters and posted them in the store.

Later, the eldest brother was spotted by a comic book distributor who thought he drew well, so he recommended him to his father to become a comic book apprentice.

This man later adopted the pen name "Shangguan Xiaolong".

He not only drew comics himself, but also brought his two younger brothers into the industry, who were known by his pen names "Shangguan Xiaobao" and "Shangguan Xiaowei".

"Good News" is the business of the brothers Shangguan Xiaobao and Shangguan Xiaowei.

In the 70s, Bruce Lee sparked a kung fu craze, and Shangguan Xiaobao and Huang Yulang emerged to create the comics "Bruce Lee" and "Little Rascal" respectively. The latter was eventually renamed "Dragon Tiger Gate".

These two comics were among the most popular Hong Kong comics in the 70s, but Wong Yuk-long had a better business sense. His Yuk-long International and its comic book portfolio were far more popular than "Good News".

Now, Wong Yuk-long has extended an olive branch to the Kwong brothers, hoping they can join Yuk-long International and continue to use their talents in Yuk-long International's comic empire. Their works will still belong to them, only on a larger platform.

To be honest, Shangguan Xiaobao was somewhat tempted. He felt that despite his and his brother's hard work, they didn't earn as much as Huang Yulang gave them.

Just then, his younger brother Shangguan Xiaowei came in: "Second brother, we have a guest visiting."

"Who is it?"

"The visitor introduced himself as Wei the Madman."

"Wei Kuangren?" Shangguan Xiaobao was somewhat surprised. "We just watched his movie a couple of days ago, how come he's already contacting us? Did he find out about our plan to make a Biao Wang comic series?"

Shangguan Xiaowei said, "King Biao is here too, just as imposing as in the movies."

Shangguan Xiaobao: "Let's go out and take a look."

At this moment, Wei Ming and his group were being received by Ma Rongcheng, a disciple of Shangguan Xiaowei.

Ma Rong, who is the same age as Wei Ming, has grown up to be refined and handsome. He dropped out of school at the age of Zhou Huimin and entered the comics industry. He studied under Shangguan Xiaowei and worked as an assistant to Shangguan Xiaobao. At present, he only draws some random drafts, mainly imitating those famous comic artists.

Who would have thought that this young man would one day become a famous cartoonist on par with Wong Yuk-long, and even surpass him in popularity in mainland China?

Even if you haven't seen "Chinese Hero", surely you've seen "Storm Riders"!

It's already quite an achievement for a cartoonist to have one representative work in their lifetime, but Ma Wing-shing has two very popular IPs.

"But I'm sorry," Wei Ming said, looking at him. "It's mine now, but I can let you be the chief writer."

Besides Ma Wing-shing, the Kwong brothers' "Good News" is full of talent. Niu Lao, who drew the "Young and Dangerous" series, is Shangguan Xiaobao's disciple and is only 20 years old.

Feng Zhiming, who would later create "The Swordsman's Smile," was only 14 years old at the time and had just entered the industry. Xu Jinjiang, who was next to Wei Ming, had even acted in the movie adaptation of this comic.

In addition, there are Huang Guoxing, who is good at humorous comics, Li Zhiqing, who is good at traditional Chinese ink painting, and Zhao Rude, Xie Zhirong, Huang Weizhao, and other main writers who will help Yulang International expand its territory in the future. They are all now people from "Xibao".

These people are mostly teenagers or young adults in their twenties from families with average or even poor financial conditions. The two mentors give them a meager salary, but also teach them how to draw comics, which gives them a skill to earn a living.

So when Shangguan Xiaobao and Shangguan Xiaowei broke away from Huang Yulang and started their own businesses, many of their disciples were willing to go back to their master.

In terms of teaching apprentices, Xiao Bao and Xiao Wei have a much higher success rate than Huang Yulang.

Wei Ming was looking at these young men who would one day support half of Hong Kong's comic book industry, his mind racing, when he saw a refined-looking man wearing glasses come out.

"We are so sorry for not welcoming our distinguished guest properly. Please forgive us."

Shangguan Xiaobao immediately locked onto Wei Ming: "Is this the Madman Wei?"

"It's me, Mr. Xiaobao." Wei Ming shook hands with the other party.

Although Shangguan Xiaobao had been in the comics industry for over twenty years, he was only 36 years old at this time.

The Shangguan brothers invited the four people to their office, and only after they could no longer see their apprentices did they ask the two men why they had come.

Wei Ming asked, "I heard that Wong Yuk-long is planning to invite the two of you to join Yuk-long International?"

Shangguan Xiaobao admitted, "That's true. It seems there are quite a few rumors circulating in the martial arts world."

Wei Ming said, "Now that you've gone to Yulang International, are you interested in selling me the 'Good News'?"

(End of this chapter)