Hong Kong films: From street thugs to Hong Kong financial tycoons

Early morning, Kai Tak Airport, VIP lounge.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today's flight is a direct flight to Geneva, Switzerland, and then we will transfer to a flight to the Netherlands."

Chen Zheng, dressed in a perfectly tailored dark blue bespoke suit, pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and sharply scanned the fifty well-dressed elites standing in front of him.

These fifty people were multinational M&A experts that Chen Zheng poached overnight from top law firms and accounting firms in Hong Kong at high salaries.

Each of them earns thousands of Hong Kong dollars per hour and is usually an arrogant industry leader, but at this moment, in front of Chen Zheng, they are as well-behaved as a group of primary school students preparing for a spring outing.

Because inside the seemingly inconspicuous black briefcase in Chen Zheng's hand was a cash promissory note, personally signed by the global president of a Swiss bank, worth a full five billion US dollars, enough to trigger a small financial tsunami.

"Mr. Chen, don't worry. We've already investigated ASML's current financial situation. They're so poor that they're almost unable to pay next month's electricity bill."

"If we just throw US dollars at them, those Europeans will be begging to sell us their shares!"

A seasoned lawyer confidently patted his chest.

"Don't make any definitive statements."

Chen Zheng gave him a cold look.

"Before leaving, the boss instructed us that Europeans have a strange arrogance to their core. If they hold back and refuse to relinquish absolute control and core patents..."

Chen Zheng paused, a sneer of capitalist tyranny, just like Lin Yao's, curling up at the corner of his mouth.

"Then let's proceed with the boss's backup plan: take the money and bombard Philips' board of directors to forcibly separate them from the source."

"If they still don't sell, we'll use this five billion US dollars to acquire all their upstream and downstream suppliers, cut off all their parts supply, and starve them to death."

"In the face of Yaosheng Capital, if you don't sell, you'll die!"

"hiss--!"

The fifty M&A experts gasped simultaneously, feeling a chill run down their spines.

That's insane! This isn't a business negotiation; it's like robbing someone's backyard in an aircraft carrier!

However, as an employee who earns ten times the commission from Yaosheng Capital, this kind of work, where you use money to push others to their death, is incredibly satisfying.

"Let's go, carry that printer back for the boss!"

With a wave of his hand, Chen Zheng led this pack of financial wolves onto a private charter plane bound for Europe.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ocean, in Hong Kong, at Victoria Peak, inside the Yiu Shing Estate.

Lin Yaogang had just finished a simple Australian lobster seafood porridge and was comfortably lounging in a deck chair in the garden, basking in the sun.

Without the cutthroat competition in the financial markets and the daily transfers of hundreds of billions of dollars, life suddenly becomes dull and tedious when the pace slows down.

"Boss...this is a huge problem!"

Just as Lin Yao was about to fall asleep, Fatty Wang and Master Lin Zheng, each with huge dark circles under their eyes and carrying a bunch of messy blueprints, rushed in through the manor gate in a great hurry.

"What's wrong now?"

Lin Yao lazily opened one eye. "If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. If the crew is short of money, just go to the finance department. Don't bother me with such trivial matters."

"It's not that we're short of money, boss, it's that you're offering too much; we can't handle this job!"

Wang Sanri plopped down on the grass, his face full of bitterness as he spread out the pile of blueprints in his hands.

"Boss, you said yesterday you were going to shoot a new movie, and that you were going to build a life-size replica of the Maoshan Celestial Master's Mansion..."

Fatty Wang wiped the grease off his face.

"Uncle Nine and I spent the entire night searching for the top film set designers and feng shui masters in Hong Kong to try and draw up a sketch of this Celestial Master's Mansion, but... but we just couldn't get it done!"

"Why can't I draw it?"

Lin Yao sat up straight and raised an eyebrow.

Master Lin sighed and chimed in, "Boss, the kind of overwhelming, mythical sense of oppression you're looking for can't be faked by just a few planks of wood and a styrofoam set up in a photography studio."

"According to your design, the Celestial Master's Mansion should be built against the mountain, with a magnificent presence. The main hall should be able to accommodate the images of the Three Pure Ones, and underground it should suppress the gates of ten thousand ghosts in the eighteen levels of hell..."

"This is equivalent to building a real, large-scale palace complex with a grand architectural structure out of thin air in a desolate wilderness!"

Master Lin was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

"Those set designers in Hong Kong can manage to build a dilapidated two-story inn, but asking them to construct a magnificent ancient building spanning tens of thousands of square meters is a nightmare. They don't even know how to calculate load-bearing walls. This building is bound to collapse halfway through construction!"

It turns out we were held back by the architectural blueprints.

In the Hong Kong film industry of the 1980s, everyone was used to making quick money, and sets were often done haphazardly. Who would actually spend real money to hire a professional construction team to build a real palace for filming?

Upon hearing this, Lin Yao not only didn't get angry, but instead let out a cold laugh.

"I thought it was nothing serious."

Lin Yao stood up, walked to the pile of sketches that looked like children's scribbles, and kicked them away without any mercy.

"Why hire these half-baked set designers from Hong Kong? Their minds are filled with fast-food culture; how could they possibly create the grand and magnificent works of our ancestors!"

"Boss, shall we hire top architects from Britain or the United States?"

Fatty Wang tentatively asked, "As long as you pay enough, the foreigners will definitely be able to draw it."

"fart!"

Lin Yao immediately swore and looked at Wang Sanri as if he were an idiot.

"We're filming Chinese mythology, about the Three Pure Ones, and you're hiring a bunch of blond, blue-eyed foreigners to design the Taoist Celestial Master's Mansion?"

"Do you want to stick a cross on top of the Sanqing Hall, or build a fountain next to the Gate of Ten Thousand Ghosts? Have you lost your mind?!"

Fatty Wang shrank back after being scolded, repeatedly saying, "The boss is right to reprimand us. So... so where are we going to find someone?"

Lin Yao put his hands in his pockets and looked intently to the north.

"Go look in mainland China!"

Lin Yao's tone was decisive, exuding an undeniable air of dominance.

"The essence of China's five thousand years of history lies entirely in the vast land of China. Why look for foreigners or feng shui masters?"

"Go to all the major universities in mainland China and find me architecture students!"

Lin Yao pointed at Fatty Wang's nose and loudly ordered, "Stop focusing on those arrogant, presumptuous old scholars from prestigious universities! Go find me some down-to-earth, hardworking ordinary public university students!"

"Oh, you're looking for ordinary college students?"

Fatty Wang was stunned. This was a super real-life project with an investment of hundreds of millions of yuan. Could they really find a student who hadn't graduated yet?

"You don't know anything!"

Lin Yao glared at him. "These students are lacking in practical experience. Tell them this isn't some theoretical assignment; it's an epic project that's going to be built with real money."

"Take these messy sketches you have with you and use them as their graduation project. Let them revise, improve, and optimize them for me."

Lin Yao's eyes lit up as he spoke. In this era without computer-generated special effects, physical infrastructure is the most hardcore and reliable approach.

"I don't want the kind of beautiful ink paintings on paper; I want extremely precise, airtight blueprints that can be handed over directly to the construction team to lay the foundation."

"How the mortise and tenon joints of the main hall fit together, how the reinforced concrete of the underground Ghost Gate bears the load—every single brick and tile must be drawn for me, down to the millimeter level!"

"You can spread the word that which university team can produce the most perfect set of architectural drawings that conforms to modern mechanics while also taking into account the aesthetics of Eastern mythology."

"I directly gave them a super bonus of ten million Hong Kong dollars in the name of Yaosheng Capital, and I also took care of all the subsequent supervision for their team."

boom!

The HK$10 million prize, just for a set of architectural blueprints, sent chills down the spines of Wang Sanri and Master Lin Zheng, and made their blood boil.

They spent tens of millions of dollars to bribe ordinary college students in mainland China, just to get them to optimize a set of blueprints for a movie set.

Is there any boss in the world who is more outrageous and more wealthy than this?

For those university students in mainland China, what did ten million Hong Kong dollars mean in 87? It was an enormous sum of money that could change their lives!

A generous reward will surely attract brave men. Once this news reaches universities in mainland China, it will definitely trigger a nationwide competition among architecture departments, comparable to the national college entrance examination.

I wonder how many talented young people, who are struggling to find a platform to showcase their abilities, will go bald from working so hard for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gain practical experience!

"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant, boss!"

Fatty Wang was so excited that his whole body of fat trembled, and he slapped his thigh.

"This move not only solved our blueprint problem, but it also boosted our film's popularity in mainland China. Boss, your business acumen is something I, Fatty Wang, could never match, even if I were reincarnated ten times!"

"Stop flattering me and get to work. Take the money and smear the universities in mainland China until they hand over the most perfect blueprints to my desk."

Lin Yao waved his hand dismissively.

"Yes, boss, I'll go buy the plane tickets right away!"

Wang Pangzi and Master Lin Zheng, as if they had been injected with chicken blood, grabbed the pile of scrap paper and sketches and ran off in a flurry of activity.

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Lin Yao lay back down on the rattan chair.

In the 1980s, when everything was still in its infancy, using forward-thinking methods to solve problems was always a simple yet highly effective approach.

What's wrong with students from ordinary public second-tier universities? As long as they are given enough money and a platform to showcase their talents, the creativity they unleash will absolutely crush those so-called foreign experts.

"Once this Celestial Master's Mansion is built, even if we stop making movies, we can make a fortune just by collecting entrance fees and developing it into a tourist area. What a terrible investment acumen I have."

Lin Yaomei happily picked up a glass of chilled watermelon juice and took a big, satisfying sip.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of Yiu Shing Media Building in Kowloon Tong.

Now that he had bought the TV station, Lin Yao naturally couldn't actually make it play trailers on an endless loop 24 hours a day. That was just to give Shao Baichuan a hard time and, incidentally, to make some exorbitant fees.

Now that the GG fee has been earned and a ratings miracle has been created, the TV station must get back on track.

In the conference room, the newly appointed acting director of the TV station was nervously watching the security deputy left behind by Thirteen Sister, Sang Gou, who was sitting in the main seat.

Today, Sang Gou was ordered by Lin Yao to inspect the business adjustments of Yaosheng Media.

"Mr. Mature Dog..."

The acting station manager wiped away his cold sweat and took out a brand new program proposal.

"The boss previously instructed us to cut all those boring soap operas and afternoon tea programs. This is the new program list that our planning department worked on overnight. Please take a look."

Wearing sunglasses and a black suit, the malevolent dog looked every bit the part of a mafia godfather.

He didn't even glance at the proposal; instead, he tapped the table with his finger, his voice cold and mechanical.

"The boss's exact words: We'll do the opposite of how Shaw Brothers used to make televisions."

Sanggou recounted Lin Yao's toxic variety show approach, which was enough to shatter the values ​​of traditional media professionals.

"First, a talent show. We'll create the largest grassroots talent show in Hong Kong, called 'The Voice of Hong Kong'."

"I don't want those pretty faces who can't sing. As long as they have a good voice, I don't care if they're selling pork at the market or carrying bricks on a construction site, I'll drag them all onto the stage!"

"Secondly, matchmaking. We'll create a large-scale lifestyle service program called 'If You Are the One'."

"Find twenty-four of the most outspoken, materialistic, and daring female guests to stand on stage and let all the single men in Hong Kong go up and get yelled at. The more dramatic and controversial, the better!"

"Third, in interviews, don't ask serious hosts to ask trivial questions."

"Let's create a show called 'Kangxi Lai Le,' inviting celebrities from the entertainment industry to ask them their most private and embarrassing questions. Whoever dares to reveal juicy gossip will win the ratings!"

Listening to the cold, repetitive program plans recited by the sullen dog, the acting station manager and several program directors gaped so wide their mouths could fit an ostrich egg.

This is insane! This is absolutely insane! Once these three shows are released, it's like dropping three nuclear bombs into the relatively conservative television industry in Hong Kong.

A talent show featuring ordinary people, a blind date for a gold digger, and a celebrity interview revealing their secrets?

This kind of fast-paced variety show, full of conflict, drama, and controversy, and extremely catering to the public's gossip-loving mentality, was practically a ratings poison—no, a ratings aphrodisiac—in Hong Kong in the late 1980s.

"Brother Dog... isn't this a bit too much?"

The acting station manager stammered, "What if we face public condemnation?"

"condemn?"

The dog sneered, his eyes behind his sunglasses revealing absolute contempt.

"The boss said that in the media industry, the biggest failure is the absence of controversy."

"The harsher the criticism, the more viewers there are, the higher the ratings, and the more expensive the fee."

"The money has been allocated to you. I want to see sample episodes of these three programs within a week."

Sanggou stood up, straightened his tie, and turned to walk out the door.

"If you don't do a good job, you'll all be sent to clean toilets in the New Territories factory area."

As the conference room door closed, the entire planning department of Yaosheng Media fell into a deathly silence, which was then followed by a frenzied discussion.

They knew that Hong Kong's television industry was about to undergo a brutal and devastating upheaval.

Meanwhile, Chen Zheng, far away in Geneva, had just stepped off his private plane and onto European soil.

He gripped his briefcase tightly, looked at the exotic buildings in the distance, and took a deep breath.

"ASMA, just wait, Yaosheng Capital is coming to buy goods."

Chen Zheng pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and, leading fifty international M&A enthusiasts, stormed towards the makeshift prefab house where the lithography machine behemoth was about to be born.