Exciting 1979!

Chapter 393 Flying Chess Returns to the Scene, Three-Player Version!
"Still sleeping in?" Gong Xue chuckled, reaching his hand under the covers.

However, the area she touched was flat. Where was Sister Lin's chest?

When she realized something was wrong, Wei Ming had already pulled her into bed.

It's a man!
Gong Xue was so frightened that she was about to scream when she heard a voice: "It's me."

"Huh?" Then she couldn't make a sound.

Every morning is when Xiao Weiming is most energetic, so she's lucky to have come, and she even carries Sister Lin's scent.

An hour later, the two were snuggling together when Wei Ming told Xue Jie that he had taken on a scriptwriting job in Hong Kong for a million Hong Kong dollars with a share of the profits, which left Xue Jie stunned.

"I also heard that your song was nominated for a Grammy Award in the US, that's pretty impressive, isn't it?"

Wei Ming: "I guess so. If I can win an award, I'll be able to offer more favorable contracts to the American music scene in the future, and I can earn more foreign exchange for the country."

"You're amazing, I'm so proud of you!" Sister Xue's eyes were full of admiration for the young man, and then another round of verbal sparring ensued.

Sister Xue didn't have that many remarkable experiences. She started telling Xiao Wei about the interesting things that happened on set, including how two male actors were noticed by director Yang Jie when she visited the set.

"Comrade Chi Chongrui has already begun studying Buddhist scriptures. He will shave his head and go to the temple to study as soon as the movie is finished."

Wei Ming laughed and said, "I heard that Wang Yue from Beijing Film Academy is also studying at a temple in Yanjing. It seems that Director Yang has some options."

Oh, and there's also Tang Sanzang. I wonder if he'll get a chance. To be honest, Xu Tang Sanzang is the most handsome and the most suitable to play the role in the episode about the Women's Kingdom.

After talking for a while, he regained his strength and washed up. Gong Xue asked, "You haven't eaten yet, have you? I'll make you some noodles."

"Add a fried egg."

When Gong Xue had almost finished, Wei Ming had already gone over in his pajamas and hugged her from behind, saying affectionately, "I missed you two so much."

Sister Xue nuzzled the little man's head: "Me too. I heard that 'Rickshaw Boy' has been released. Let's go see a movie later."

Wei Ming: "Okay, let's watch the movie and then wait for Sister Lin to come back at home."

Gong Xue blushed and said, "Don't even think about that kind of thing. We won't agree to it. Besides, I just got back and I'm staying at my parents' house tonight."

"I didn't say anything. We were just the three of us chatting and playing cards or something," Wei Ming said innocently.

Wei Ming was in charge of queuing to buy tickets. The two of them sneaked in in the dark just before the movie was about to start, and they were all covered up tightly.

The saying "Gong Xue in the South and Zhu Lin in the North" is no joke. It has been proven that bundled marketing is indeed effective. The fan base of the two has surpassed that of the three golden flowers of Beijing Film Academy, Chen Chong and Zhang Yu of Shanghai Theatre Academy, Jiang Lili of Changchun Film Academy, and Pan Hong of Emei Film Academy.

After the release of "Mom, Love Me Again", Gong Xue appeared on more than ten magazine covers, and was especially loved by her fellow Shanghainese. Although she worked at the Beijing Film Studio, the label of "Shanghainese" could not be removed from her, and the Shanghai Film Studio was also trying to snatch Gong Xue away from the Beijing Film Studio.

Although "Rickshaw Boy" was a new film, it was still morning, and the cinema was only about half full. No one paid any attention to the two of them sitting in the corner.

The movie is really good, and most importantly, the characters are very fitting. Zhang Fengyi is simply the perfect choice for Xiangzi. Some people just stand there and they are the character without having to do anything.

Although Siqin Gaowa isn't considered pretty among female celebrities, she's still much prettier than the character Hu Niu in the book. So she deliberately used two exaggerated tiger teeth to make up for her lack of good looks. Coupled with her strong tigress-like temperament, she absolutely crushes the newcomer Zhang Fengyi in terms of acting skills.

After watching the movie, Wei Ming said, "You and Sister Lin will have rivals at next year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival."

"I'm not good enough. I don't have many scenes in 'Love in the Brush,' so I probably have no chance of winning the female lead role."

Because her role was small, she didn't have to stay on set all the time after returning to Shanghai.

"The Golden Rooster Award is out of the question, but the Hundred Flowers Award is still a possibility. Ordinary viewers often vote based on the actors, not the performances. You can enjoy the benefits of the Lotus role for at least two more years." Wei Ming felt that Xue Jie was almost certain to win the Hundred Flowers Award this year. If she didn't win, then it would have to be Lin Jie from "Joyful Reunion". No one else had a chance.

Gong Xue suddenly thought of something: "So, are you going to watch it with Sister Lin again?"

Wei Ming sighed, "Yes, but let's wait until I'm about to leave to see it. By then, I should have forgotten most of it."

~
At that time, first- and second-tier cities in mainland China were showing "Rickshaw Boy," while third- and fourth-tier cities were still showing "Mom, Love Me Once Again."

In Hong Kong, the film industry enters its off-season as the Lunar New Year approaches, with everyone waiting for the holiday period before the new year.

Cinema City, seeing this, simply moved up the release date. Previously, the four new films from the four major forces were all scheduled for January 22nd, but now Cinema City's "Aces Go Places," directed by Tsang Chi-wai and starring Karl Maka and Sam Hui, has been moved up to January 16th, a Saturday.

The film launched a massive publicity campaign before its release, first by bringing in Sam Hui, a star under Golden Harvest, and shocking the Hong Kong film industry with his astonishing HK$200 million salary.

Before this, only Jackie Chan could command a salary of over a million, and that was because Jackie Chan had an overseas market, making him comparable to Bruce Lee.

At that time, Hong Kong's big stars generally only received tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in film remuneration, and the cost of a movie was only one or two million dollars.

The second selling point of "Aces Go Places" is its big production. It is said to have an investment of HK$800 million, but in reality, it must have been at least HK$600 million. It is an absolutely huge investment and is known as the "Hong Kong version of 007".

The advertisements were so hype that many people lined up to watch the movie on its opening day.

Amin is already on vacation, and without Amin by her side, looking around at the people around her, she can only go with Aunt Linni. Old Gui is also hoping that someone can free him from his young wife.

Lin Ni excitedly explained to Vivian Chow, "The female lead in this movie is named Zhang Aijia. When she was little, she often came to our house to pay New Year's visits with her parents. She was a very unique girl."

"Auntie, have you ever met Teresa Teng?" Amin asked curiously. If we're talking about the number one female singer in the Chinese music scene right now, it has to be Teresa Teng from Taiwan.

Although Paula Tsui, Hong Kong's leading lady in the music scene, is also very influential in Taiwan, Teresa Teng not only had a huge influence in Hong Kong and Taiwan, but her works also successfully entered Japan, the world's second largest music market.

"I've seen her before. She's performed at our residence. She has a round face," Lin Ni said. "Her voice is really sweet."

As they arrived at the Golden Princess Cinema, Amin quickly put on a mask to avoid being recognized.

However, the mask got in the way while watching the movie, preventing her from eating popcorn.

The two of them ate, laughed, and exclaimed "Wow!" all the while. After watching, they exclaimed, "It was worth it!"

As expected of an 800 million dollar production, it has everything you'd find in Hollywood blockbusters, including explosions and car chases. Sam Hui even did a real-life skydive, making it feel like they might have to replace him and reshoot if they weren't careful.

Moreover, the theme song of the same name sung by Sam Hui is also very good.

At the same time, the Seven Wonders of Cinema City were also observing the audience's reaction in the cinema. After watching it, they knew that they had made the right bet. Big investment would yield big returns, and this time the box office in the local area might break even.

The film's actual cost was 600 million. As long as the box office surpasses that of "Modern Bodyguard," it will break even, and it will make a profit overseas!
Their initial estimate was seventeen or eighteen million, but once the film gained momentum, its explosive power was beyond even the creators' wildest imagination.

~
Shanghai, evening.

When Zhu Lin returned home, he immediately smelled the aroma of food as soon as he entered.

She saw that Wei Ming was not the only one in the kitchen; Gong Xue was also there.

"Xiaoxue, you're back!"

Zhu Lin first gave Gong Xue a hug, and Wei Ming wouldn't miss the opportunity, so he hugged her too, and the three of them hugged each other tightly.

Then, Zhu Lin asked, "What does it smell like?"

"Ouch, my steak!" Wei Ming quickly turned off the heat. Luckily, it was only slightly burnt, which could be scraped off.

Gong Xue laughed and said, "He insisted on making steak at home himself."

Wei Ming sighed, "It won't be easy to go out for a fancy meal with you guys anymore. I'll have to develop it myself at home."

Zhu Lin: "What's so difficult about that? We'll go to the Red House tomorrow. I have a way to cover it up."

It's actually quite simple. Zhu Lin and Gong Xue went to eat first, and then Wei Ming came in. Hey, it's an acquaintance, let's share a table.

The shop assistants would only assume that Nan Gongxue and Bei Zhulin's love was unbreakable and locked in, how could they possibly imagine that Wei Ming was dating both of them at the same time? That would be incredibly far-fetched.

After dinner, Gong Xue was about to leave. Wei Ming was reluctant to see him go, as they hadn't even played Dou Dizhu together yet.

But if we don't leave now, it will get dark soon. The security situation in Shanghai isn't much better than in Beijing; both are on the verge of collapse.

Zhu Lin was also reluctant to see her leave, saying it would be more lively with more people: "Why are you leaving? I'll be staying up all night, and you'll be staying up all night. It's been so long since the three of us got together. What if you, such a big star, run into some thugs on the street?"

Gong Xue bit her lip. How could they discuss this in front of him? It was too embarrassing.

Finally, she softly uttered, "I want the first half of the night."

Zhu Lin: "Deal, I'll call Auntie right now."

In Beijing, Zhu Lin's parents believed that Tuanjiehu belonged to Gong Xue, while in Shanghai, Gong Xue's parents believed that the house belonged to Zhu Lin.

Because Gong Xue returned to Shanghai last night and stayed at home, I had to make this call. Gong's mother was easy to talk to; her daughter is grown up and has her own social life now.

Then the three of them went upstairs, and Wei Ming took out a set of Ludo (a board game) from the master bedroom.

This was inherited from Melinda, and Wei Ming had never shown it to anyone since. He specially dug it out and even made some modifications to suit the three-person gameplay.

Upon seeing the punishment measures, Gong Xue and Zhu Lin were horrified. However, Zhu Lin was somewhat eager to try them out, while Gong Xue was too shy to go home and find her mother.

She glanced at the drawn curtains and suddenly felt very sleepy.

Wei Ming took out three little figures and a die: "Let's begin, dear sister, I'll show you... Take five steps forward, and the result is, kiss your opponent. Is it one by one or all at once?" Zhu Lin and Gong Xue exchanged a glance. All at once?
~
It was a crazy night. Taking advantage of the game's scale, Wei Ming almost wiped out his opponents in the first half of the night.

However, Sister Lin kept her word. Although she really wanted to, she promised herself that she would refrain from touching Xiao Wei during the first half of the night.

The two older sisters completed a handover at midnight, and then Gong Xue quickly ran to the next room to hug the quilt tightly. She was excited, reminiscing, regretting, and blaming herself, but she also pricked up her ears to eavesdrop on the next room.

~
The next day, when Zhu Lin and Gong Xue bumped into each other in the kitchen, even Zhu Lin blushed a little, admitting that they had indeed gone a bit crazy the night before.

She hugged Gong Xue and said, "It seems like we can't go back."

Gong Xue nodded in agreement: "We've all been corrupted by that little rascal."

The two whispered about Wei Ming's misdeeds, even suggesting that they kick him out and send him to a hotel, but in the end they blamed Melinda for his excessively free and unrestrained behavior.

Comrade Xiao Wei is a good person at heart; he was definitely corrupted by foreign women.

“If he proposes this kind of game again, let’s firmly refuse, okay?” Gong Xue said.

"I'd refuse when there are three people, but it's okay when there are only two. I'll just treat it as a bit of fun," Zhu Lin said weakly.

"You're really addicted to playing!" Gong Xue said angrily. "I'm going home tonight, so I won't be bullied by you guys."

However, they still went to the Red House for Western food at noon, just like they had said yesterday. In the end, Wei Ming ate a meal with them in a public place and even paid the bill.

After dinner, Zhu Lin went back to the film set, Gong Xue went back to her parents' house, and Wei Ming thought for a moment and then took a taxi to the Shanghai Animation Film Studio.

Director Wang Bairong told Wei Ming some good news: "The Legend of the Heavenly Book" is expected to meet children across the country during the summer vacation.

"Can't we move it forward a bit more, and make it to the Cannes Film Festival in May? I remember the filming of 'Nezha Conquers the Dragon King' was very fast back then."

Director Wang shook his head regretfully: "That was to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Almost all the key personnel in the factory were on that one project. 'The Legend of the Heavenly Book' can't compare."

Wei Ming sighed, "It seems we can't go to Cannes, so we'll have to go to Venice."

"Director Wang, there's something else I wanted to talk to you about when I came here today."

"what's up?"

Wei Ming: "It's about letting Shanghai Animation Film Studio earn foreign exchange."

In short, it's OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer).

"This is a transforming toy I designed that can switch between car and robot modes," Wei Ming said, taking out the blueprints for Optimus Prime.

Director Wang was puzzled: "How do I switch like this?"

Wei Ming flipped the page, showing Wang Bairong the detailed transformation process. Wang Bairong was astonished; it was truly amazing.

"Teacher Wei, what's wrong with your brain?!"

Wei Ming smiled and said, "Read more books and see more of the world. I have licensed this toy design to a Hong Kong toy company. In order to promote this toy, the company not only produced a comic, but also plans to make an animated series."

"You mean you're making an animated series just to advertise toys?"

“Yes, and this animation will be shown all over the world. We will keep the Shanghai Animation Film Studio’s brand,” Wei Ming said. “If we complete the whole thing, it will be a project no smaller than ‘The Legend of Sealed Book,’ and its global influence may even surpass it.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Bairong couldn't sit still any longer: "Come on, let's go see Director Te Wei!"

When we arrived at the factory director's office, we explained the situation and even showed the blueprints to Director Te Wei.

However, Te Wei's attitude was not positive. How could the great Shanghai Animation Film Studio do subcontracting for others, especially for films that were essentially advertisements?

As for OEM production, we've done it before, like with "Space Battleship Yamato," but we were only responsible for a certain step and it doesn't count as a Shanghai Animation Film Studio production. Whether it's good or bad, it won't damage the Shanghai Animation Film Studio's reputation.

But now I have to be responsible for the production of a TV series from start to finish. If it's a disaster, it will damage the global reputation of Shanghai Animation Film Studio.

At that time, Shanghai Animation Film Studio still enjoyed a certain degree of global recognition.

But Wei Ming knew that in a few years, with the end of the era of state funding and the requirement to be self-sufficient, the Shanghai Animation Film Studio's model of treating animation with the utmost care for art would be completely finished, and the studio would be nothing more than a memorial tablet to be worshipped.

Wang Bairong was anxious. What a great opportunity! They could earn foreign exchange and improve the salaries of the factory workers.

"Director Te, if you're worried that works with no artistic value will damage the reputation of Shanghai Animation Film Studio, then we can have the factory set up an animation company and put their name on it. The money will still be the same."

Te Wei thought for a moment and asked, "Teacher Wei, what exactly is your relationship with this toy factory?"

Wei Ming: "The biggest connection is that I designed this toy. I think it's a toy that can go global and make the world take notice of Chinese manufacturing and Chinese creativity. I don't want people to think of ancient things or scenes of poverty when they think of China. I also want foreigners to know that we Chinese are also envisioning the future and vigorously developing science and technology. I not only designed this toy, but I am also currently writing a science fiction novel in English, all for the same reason."

After Wei Ming finished speaking in one breath, Wang Bairong, surprised but also unable to bear it, said: "Factory Director, why don't you take it? Set aside some manpower, and I'll personally direct it."

Wang Bairong was a young reformist, and Te Wei knew he was popular in the workshop and could make money from him.

But if we abandon our artistic principles, Shanghai Animation Film Studio will still be Shanghai Animation Film Studio. Robots, do they fit in with Shanghai Animation Film Studio?
However, Wei Ming's righteous words provided a step forward for Factory Director Te Wei's insistence.

“Then I’ll have to wait and see. I really want to see what kind of craze your Transformers will create around the world, whether it will be even more popular than the Monkey King and Nezha,” Te Wei approved. “Besides, you don’t need to set up another company. That’s just burying your head in the sand.”

As soon as he left the office, Wang Bairong asked eagerly, "Teacher Wei, when do we start?!"

"After the New Year," Wei Ming said, "we'll have that boss come to the factory in person to sign the contract and discuss the specific details."

"That's fine, that's fine too." Wang Bairong rubbed his fists together.

Then Wei Ming became interested in "Black Cat Detective".

"Three episodes are too few! My younger cousins ​​are getting tired of watching them. Can you please make the total number of episodes ten this year?!"

"Haha, the response to 'Black Cat Detective' has been really strong lately. The kids have been sending us letters asking for the next episode, and we've accumulated several boxes of them." Wang Bairong was both proud and helpless. The Shanghai Animation Film Studio is a big industry, and so many directors are waiting for their chance to direct. It's impossible to pour too many resources into "Black Cat Detective." Other directors also need to have a chance to work.

Thinking of this, Wang Bairong asked about "Calabash Brothers" again: "I wonder when this work will be finished?"

"It will be finished in the first half of the year." The fourth and fifth babies just appeared this month, and the sixth baby will be next month. Wei Ming has actually already finished writing this story.

It's normal that Shanghai Animation Film Studio took a liking to it; currently, among the most popular children's stories in China, Black Cat is number one, Calabash Brothers is number two, and Rubik's Cube is number three.

Wei Ming thought that Shanghai Film Studio could also consider making "The Magic Cube Building".

Next, they went to see director Dai Tielang, who was still working on the fourth episode.

He also told Wei Ming some good news: "He can be released before the Spring Festival."

Wei Ming was pleasantly surprised: "So fast?"

"Actually, part of it was already completed when the second and third episodes were released."

"So how long does each episode take on average now?" Wei Ming asked.

Director Dai: "We're getting more and more comfortable with it now, and we can manage one episode every two months." Wei Ming thought for a moment, and it seemed like they had a chance to finish filming ten episodes in 82.

After they came out, Wei Ming said to Wang Bairong, "My hope for Transformers is two episodes a month."

"Huh? This, this?" Wang Bairong felt it was very difficult.

Wei Ming said, "This needs to be coordinated with other companies' product promotions. We must seize the opportunity, otherwise, once other companies release similar products, our advantage will be gone. So, as the director of this drama, you need to put a lot of effort into selecting the cast. Of course, you can make a few sample episodes first to see the effect. These first few episodes must be carefully crafted."

Wang Bairong fell into deep thought. This not only required selecting skilled workers from the factory, but also more manpower.

Although no new company was ultimately established, Wei Ming had already made up his mind to really establish an animation company. Knowing that Wang Bairong would go into business in a few years, he also became a talent that Wei Ming wanted to recruit.

However, animation companies did not focus on the domestic market. In the 1980s and 1990s, domestic television stations were almost entirely dominated by high-quality animations from the US and Japan, which were practically given away for free.

They were just trying to capture the market, and since they could recoup their costs in the local market, they were willing to give it away for free. This fostered a mindset among TV stations that they could take advantage of others for free, to the point that even the Shanghai Animation Film Studio was powerless to resist, and private companies were doomed.

Therefore, he wants to take advantage of the overflow of animation talent resources after the collapse of the Shanghai Animation Film Studio and make a high-level move!

~
Hong Kong.

After two days of screenings over the weekend, Cinema City announced that "Aces Go Places" has grossed over 400 million in two days!
"Nonsense! Impossible! It's a lie! Just another propaganda tactic!"

Raymond Chow shook his head frantically as he looked at the newspaper. How could the box office be that good? 400 million in two days, wouldn't that break 2000 million and crush "Modern Bodyguard"?
Ho Kwun-cheung, standing to the side, laughed and said, "I don't think it's necessarily fake. We also sent people to check out the Golden Princess Cinema, and it was indeed packed every time. Now that the economy is booming, people have more money to spend on movies. Besides, a whole year has passed since 'Security Unlimited' was released, and ticket prices have gone up. Now even the cheapest ones cost twelve or thirteen dollars, and high-end cinemas can even reach nearly twenty dollars."

Zou Wenhuai was comforted and said, "Then it seems that Ah Long's 'Young Master Long' won't be bad either."

"Definitely, the market is different now."

Raymond Chow suddenly regretted it: "If I had known, I would have offered Wei Ming too low a price. Ten million would have been no problem for Ah Long at all. I should have said twenty million!"

……

(Bonus chapter for 2000 and 3000 monthly votes in May! Guaranteed chapter tonight~)

(End of this chapter)