My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 864 Therefore, those who know contentment are always content.
Having seen Leung Ka-fai's performance in "The Chess King," the veteran actor nodded without hesitation: "Our Chess Association will cover all the investment costs for this film, and we will also cover the costs of its release in mainland China!"

As a result, Wei Dong said, "We'll split the money 50/50 and use the name of the Chess Association. I only ask one thing of you: please allow this actor to appear in public. He was blacklisted by the Right Bank because he acted in mainland China and can only set up a stall, but he stubbornly refuses to bow his head."

This statement, when made to those Hong Kong businessmen who are on the fence, will certainly make them consider whether their business in the Right Bank market will be affected.

The market of a city is never as big as that of a province.

Only those with a nationwide perspective would nod without hesitation: "Good! This kind of actor should be taken good care of; he performed very well."

She really acted well.

Wei Dong only described the outline, but went into detail about the scene where they ate rice.

When Liang Jiahui and Ah Ling went to the Jiangnan region to collect folklore, they found the original novel containing this story.

It's just that Wei Dong's "Chess Maniac" has been changed to "Chess King".

It was published a few years ago and has been widely circulated.

Among them was the detail about eating rice that Wei Dong mentioned in detail.

That's quite simple. Leung Ka-fai can just take the initiative, spend some money, buy the film rights, and adapt it.

He even took the novel and script to Citibank for his boss to review.

It is indeed the story he was telling.

Wei Dong only asked that the suffering of the educated youth era be downplayed, or even that the suffering not be described directly, because the literary and artistic trends of the 1980s were all about reflecting on those sufferings, and were even named things like "scar literature".

From being busy with business to encountering this kind of literary trend on the university campus, Wei Dong thought it was all nonsense.

Do not glorify suffering, nor exaggerate it.

He has never been interested in extolling suffering, much less in digging up old wounds. Only those who lack the ability to innovate in scientific research and start businesses like to linger in those so-called touching literary and artistic expressions.

This kind of self-pitying and self-loving melancholy is seen as pretentious by someone who lost a hand forty years ago.

Moreover, it is a negative emotion that can spread and be contagious.

He demanded that things be handled cleanly and efficiently, promoting a yearning for a better feeling.

Leung Ka-fai did just that.

He designed a small action for the protagonist in the novel that wasn't originally there.

Although the educated youth wore tattered clothes, they always dressed neatly and faced the chessboard with their backs straight.

From the very beginning of their acting careers, Stephen Chow and Tony Leung Ka-fai have distinguished themselves by their penchant for creating small gestures to bring characters to life.

Of course, designing these details when playing a minor role will only invite the director's scolding.

Back then, they didn't understand the hierarchy of roles, where supporting characters must be subordinate to the main characters.

Doing this as a lead actor demonstrates professional dedication.

If we say that in "A Better Tomorrow," Chow Yun-fat designed that matchstick, which wasn't in the script, to hang from the corner of Mark's mouth and dangle into the sky, it's still unforgettable forty years later.

The way Liang Jiahui designed the top button to be fastened gently conveys the sense of ritual as the protagonist escapes the hardships of reality and enters the world of chess.

From the turmoil to becoming a sent-down youth, neither the flames of factional conflicts, the fervor of the Great Cultural Revolution, nor the sorrow of parting before going to the countryside, nor the internal and external wounds of wasted years, seemed to disturb the peace in his heart.

He calmly held the chess manual, reflecting the sentiment of "When Zhuangzi's wife died, Hui Shi offered condolences, but Zhuangzi was sitting with his legs spread apart, drumming on a basin and singing."

While others are either excited or crying, emotions like sadness, boredom, and weariness never appear on the protagonist.

"People should be content. Being full at every meal is a blessing. Lao Tzu once said that there is no greater misfortune than not knowing contentment, and no greater fault than greed. Therefore, being content is true contentment."

Those cheap, semi-transparent frames eventually fell apart, yet Leung Ka-fai still managed to portray a calm and composed demeanor.

Only after he gently buttoned up his collar did he immerse himself completely in the game of Go.

Obsessed, resilient, and composed, he poured his entire life into the ever-changing world of chess.

In times of turmoil, economic depression, and hardship, when even basic survival needs cannot be met.

Not everyone has the insightful thinking that allows someone like Wei Dong to kick aside his uncle and start a business selling cured meat.

Didn't you make a slight mistake in your past life, and end up completely ruining your career by selling melon seeds?

So regardless of whether this kind of thinking is negative or not, it is at least a kind of alienation and transcendence from social reality.

I have things I'm obsessed with, so I won't get involved in the bizarre and outlandish things in front of me.

The scene of eating was performed very vividly, with a calm yet powerful performance, even if it was just white rice with some pickled vegetables in a deformed aluminum lunchbox.

The protagonist, played by Leung Ka-fai, can also chew very carefully and meticulously, occasionally pausing to wipe the rice grains from the corners of his mouth or chin with his middle finger and suck them clean.

Finally, rinse it with hot water to ensure that even the last bit of oil on the lunchbox is absorbed.

With a contented expression, he finished the small amount of dishwashing "soup" and immersed himself back in what he could "study." Nothing in the outside world could harm him anymore.

However, the ending was altered from the novel. When his opponent begged him to spare his dignity and draw the game at the end of the match, the protagonist thought about it and refused. This was his last spiritual fortress, and if he gave up even this, what was the point of his life?

He insisted on winning the game, but didn't take the prize. He staggered out with a satisfied smile.

Then, on his way back to the production team in the countryside, he saw a child drowning and calling for help in the river. Without hesitation, he carefully put down the chess set that had been with him for many years and jumped into the water...

The movie ends abruptly at this point.

There's no need to explain whether the protagonist's life is in danger while saving people; his life is already rich and noble enough that he will not be enslaved by anyone.

That's what makes the "King" in the title worthwhile.

Leung Ka-fai truly captured the essence of pursuing inner peace and spiritual freedom in his performance.

But few people in Hong Kong can relate to this.

This is the best era for Hong Kong. Even South Asian refugees who flee to Hong Kong can go from "having enough to eat" to "eating well".

Writers have moved beyond the stage where they couldn't even get enough to eat and still had to desperately build their inner world to withstand the pressures of the times.

They were talking about demands and aspirations.

So even though the veteran actor warmly shook hands with Leung Ka-fai in front of a large number of cameras after the premiere, thanking him for making a good film for the Chess Association, announcing that the Chess Association would bear all the filming expenses, and giving each of the lead actors, director, cinematographer, and even the logistics staff a HK$100,000 red envelope.

It significantly boosted media attention.

It failed to boost the film's box office. On the first day, it grossed over 800,000 yuan, and after the news spread on the second day, it barely reached a little over a million yuan, before quickly dropping to 200,000 to 300,000 yuan.

The number of cinemas will definitely shrink rapidly afterward. Cinemas need to make a living, and they can't let unpopular movies occupy their release slots.

Some even immediately pulled out "God of Gamblers" for release, with Hop Shing pushing various distributions with all its might, definitely aiming for a box office hit.

They'd all probably think, "It's so easy to make money, why bother with all that profound stuff?"

After the premiere, Chow Yun-fat patted Leung Ka-fai on the shoulder and then took the basketball team to Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand for a friendly match to practice.

Kemp was initially reluctant to leave.

The president of the Windsurfing Association had already found a place in Southeast Asia to hold windsurfing competitions and immediately sent Li Yue'e and several teammates and coaches out to experience it!
Little Blackie immediately followed along, like a carrot dangling in front of him.

Even Li Yue'e could see through the boss's teasing of the two of them. Her face turned red with embarrassment, and she told Kemp to get lost and not disturb her game.

Chow Yun-fat gestured to Wei-tung from afar, indicating that he would resolutely stop the kid's early romantic relationship.

Leung Ka-fai showed no sign of frustration: "As long as the boss doesn't criticize me for not doing well, I'll try my best to improve. Or should I act in another comedy?"

He'd even set up a street stall; all he wanted was for the film to meet the boss's expectations for mainland audiences.

Tell Wei Dong not to worry, and that once he sees the box office performance of Stephen Chow's movie, he will take him and the movie back to the mainland.

Leung Ka-fai, however, did not forget his original intention: "How about I start a magazine to make up for the deficit?"

Wei Dong laughed heartily: "Didn't you see that I even managed to persuade the Chinese Chess Association to sponsor and subsidize the filming costs? It's sure to be a hit in mainland China."

Wang Xin, who had already received seven or eight million, wasn't worried either: "Let's try showing it in Japan first. They seem to like this kind of subject matter quite a bit."

Wei Dong exchanged glances with Wei Dong, but the person who really needed comforting was Zhou Xingxing. It felt like he had been sentenced to death, seeing people getting their heads blown off and others being spared, and now he was sweating profusely just sitting in the movie theater.

His first film was too unconventional and risky; he was so nervous and anxious that he reportedly suffered from insomnia.

This reminded Wei Dong of Yu Songhai's description.

Patting Stephen Chow's arm, he said, "I have an older brother who said that the most painful and difficult times are often when you are tempering yourself. If you can get through it, you are like Sun Wukong who came out of Laozi's alchemy furnace. If you can't get through it, you are just a handful of ashes. Since you believe that you are made of steel, don't be afraid of tempering. Learn from Hui Zai and relax."

Leung Ka-fai slapped his face cheekily: "I'm thick-skinned! And I'm proactive in asking to work, so the boss can't fire me. Really, I think I'm most reliable when it comes to running a magazine. Besides, it's empty living on Peak Road with Ka-ling. Why don't we have Sing move in? Or we can start a magazine company."

After the whole family moved to a luxury house in Repulse Bay, the small townhouse on Peak Road in Tsim Sha Tsui was vacated. In the spirit of not wasting anything, Wai Tung lent it to Leung Ka-fai and his wife. Moreover, being neighbors with Chow Yun-fat would make it easier for them to communicate.

After all, let's stay at home and see what kind of people these talented freaks on the basketball team are like first.

For this trip to Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand for the competition, we enlisted the help of several basketball association staff members and local Hong Kong players to join the coaching team and provide excellent service.

This can also be seen as preparation for the various warm-up matches that will run until July or August next year.

This expense is not insignificant.

Hopefully, Lu Bin, as the elder brother, can keep troublemakers like Ma Jian in check and prevent him from causing problems.

This meant that Wei Dong had to sort out all the Hong Kong construction matters he was handling after November so that he could arrive in Shanghai by the end of December.

The Second National Managers Conference of Dongsheng Trade was held.

At this point, we should call Chi Shiming back. Damn it, how can our lord be so busy and tired?

(End of this chapter)