Hong Kong 1990: From stuntman to King of Kung Fu

Chapter 101 A New Project That Came to Our Door

Upon hearing Liu Qingyun introduce himself, Er Dongsheng quickly stepped forward.

"Hello Mr. Tang, I am Er Dongsheng. I heard that you and Qingyun are good friends, so I took the liberty of coming along to say hello."

"Ersheng, I have long admired your name. Actually, I saw you when I was a child, but you probably didn't notice me back then."

"Really? I don't recall it."

"My uncle is Tang Chia, and he worked with director Chang Cheh. Your second brother, David Chiang, was also mentored by Director Chang."

We've met him on Director Zhang's film set, and more than once.

Er Dongsheng suddenly realized that he hadn't really paid attention to the child before, but he didn't expect the child to remember him.

"I see, I'm so ashamed."

When Tang Long saw Liu Qingyun pulling Er Dongsheng over, he roughly knew their purpose.

They must be here for the movie they're working on together.

The reason Tang Long took such a big detour to establish a connection with Derek Yee was also because of this movie.

It's true that he went to the film set with Tang Jia and his father when he was a child, but he doesn't remember ever meeting Derek Yee.

But as David Chiang's younger brother, Derek Yee, who had also joined Shaw Brothers, would surely visit his popular older brother on set.

Although Tang Long wanted to invest in their film, he didn't seem impatient and kept chatting with Derek Yee about the past and the movie.

Liu Qingyun couldn't stand it any longer and interrupted the two: "Ah Long, Dong Sheng is preparing a movie and needs investment. Would you be willing to invest?"

What type of movie?

The movie is called "New Endless Love," an art-house romance film.

I also brought the script; Mr. Tang can take a look.

Derek Yee immediately responded, taking a script out of his bag.

"Your life is truly well-prepared."

"There's nothing I can do," Derek Yee said with a wry smile. "I'm hitting walls everywhere trying to get investment for this movie."

Originally, a Taiwanese film company was willing to invest, but later they informed me that the film must include nonsensical scenes, otherwise they would not invest.

This is an art-house romance film; adding nonsensical elements makes it incongruous and I have no choice but to reject it.

Out of desperation, and since it just so happened to be there, I decided to try my luck here.

Bringing a script is always a good idea, just in case.

Tang Long nodded in agreement. With his drive, he deserved to succeed.

"Currently, the most successful Hong Kong films are Stephen Chow's comedies, Tsui Hark's martial arts films, and Jackie Chan's crime films."

Stephen Chow's nonsensical comedies, in particular, have been unbeatable this year.

The Taiwanese film company's decision to include nonsensical plot points is clearly just following a trend; they obviously don't understand film.

"That's right, I think so too. Don't make me add nonsensical elements now, and then make me add kung fu elements later, and end up making the movie a mess. I might as well not make it at all."

"That's the attitude a filmmaker should have. I won't read the script; just tell me the gist of the story."

"The novel 'Endless Love' tells the story of a talented but unappreciated musician who, at the lowest point in his life, meets a girl suffering from bone cancer who remains optimistic. He is healed by her vitality and ultimately grows through her passing..."

Then Derek Yee began to talk at length to Tang Long about the specific details of the story and the original intention behind the film's creation, as well as the ideas he wanted to express.

Seeing that Tang Long was listening attentively and showed no signs of impatience, he spoke even more enthusiastically.

"The story is good, but it's not appropriate to discuss cooperation in this setting."

Bring your script to Tangde Film & Television tomorrow for discussions. If we think the script is good, we can sign a contract immediately.

""

"No problem, Mr. Tang, I'll definitely be there tomorrow."

Er Dongsheng readily agreed.

This is the first investor he has encountered who is interested in "Endless Love" after so many setbacks.

Er Dongsheng has come to regard Tang Long as his only lifeline.

If no one else invests, he is prepared to mortgage his house to raise funds.

"You two continue your conversation, I won't disturb you any longer."

He turned and left, but after taking only a few steps, he realized he had left Liu Qingyun behind and came back.

Liu Qingyun's face darkened further, both annoyed and amused: "You go first, Ah Long and I haven't seen each other in a long time, let's chat a bit more."

After Er Dongsheng walked away, Liu Qingyun looked at Tang Long and said seriously, "Ah Long, don't invest in 'New Endless Love' just because of me."

"You brought Er Dongsheng here to find me because you want me to invest, right?" Tang Long said with a smile and a relaxed tone.

"I was driven to desperation by him. Before the banquet, he kept asking me to introduce him to you."

17

"When did your relationship with him become so good?"

"Actually, we started spending more time together because of his film 'New Endless Love'."

Earlier this year, I collaborated with him on a TV series called "Empress Da Yu'er".

He played Dorgon, and I played Huang Taiji.

During a break from filming, he showed me the script for "New Endless Love".

I was deeply moved, especially by one line that instantly touched me:

I might complain about my bad luck, but I've never doubted my talent.

I volunteered to play the male lead.

Moreover, Ah Long, my contract with TVB is about to expire, and I'm preparing to enter the film industry.

I also considered using "C'est la vie, mon chéri" as a stepping stone to transition into the film industry.

Upon hearing this, Tang Long couldn't help but glance at Lan Jieying, who had been standing silently to the side.

TVB actors who become famous all want to make movies.

"Qingyun, putting aside the film itself, what do you think of Derek Yee's abilities? Is he capable of directing?"

His previous directing record wasn't very good.

"New Endless Love" was not Derek Yee's debut film, but rather the film that made him famous.

Prior to this, he had already directed three films: The Mad Monk, People's Hero, and Goodbye Mr. Bachelor.

Apart from "The Lunatics" receiving nominations for Best Director and Best Screenplay at the Hong Kong Film Awards, the other two films made no splash.

All three films flopped at the box office.

Derek Yee's repeated setbacks are certainly due to the unpopularity of the film genre in "C'est la vie, mon chéri" (New Endless Love), but his past poor performance as a director is also a contributing factor.

"Derek Yee's previous performance was indeed not good, but I think he should be able to do a good job with this film, 'New Endless Love'."

The story focuses on the lives of street performers in Temple Street. Before writing the script, he spent a lot of time doing field research.

He found a real family that sang for money and lived with them for two or three months to see how they lived. He then extracted touching material from their experiences to create the script he has now.

Few directors in Hong Kong are willing to dedicate themselves to preparing a film in this way.

Therefore, I think Derek Yee shouldn't fail this time.

Tang Long was already planning to invest in "New Endless Love".

As for why he didn't agree to invest directly, it was to prevent Derek Yee from thinking it was too easy.

Things that are too easily obtained are often not cherished.

"I trust your judgment. Since you think so highly of him and his movie, I'll invest the money."

Consider this my support as your friend, so you can enjoy playing the male lead.

But don't tell him the news beforehand.

Upon hearing this, Liu Qingyun was touched and replied with a smile, "Don't worry, I'm not stupid."

"Are you alright now?"

"It's okay."

"If there's nothing wrong, why don't you go find Derek Yee?"

Liu Qingyun was taken aback. Why was she suddenly being asked to leave when they were having a good chat?

He then noticed Lam Kit-ying standing to the side and immediately understood what was going on.

"Oh right, I should go find Derek Yee. I'll be going now."

Seeing that Liu Qingyun had left sensibly, Tang Long turned to look at Lan Jieying, a smile returning to his face.

"Ms. Lan, where were we?"

"We talked about how you were bad."

As soon as they finished speaking, the two looked at each other for a few seconds and then burst out laughing.

"Mr. Tang, calling me Miss Lan is too formal. You can call me Jieying or Aying."

"Then I'll call you Jieying, and you don't need to call me Tang Sheng anymore, just call me A Long."

"Well, Ah Long..." Lan Jieying was a little uneasy, "You agreed to invest so easily?"

"How complicated does it have to be to invest in a movie?"

Lam Kit-ying was speechless; she couldn't answer.

But Tang Long agreed to invest without even reading the script and only saying a few words, which felt different from what she had imagined.

But the sheer power of Tang Long's ability to decide the fate of a film with just a few words made her find him particularly charismatic.

Derek Yee is a senior figure to her, whose fame, status, and influence are all above hers.

When she saw him at TVB, Yammie Lam had to take the initiative to greet him.

But this person, who thought he was pretty awesome, adopted a very humble attitude in front of Tang Long.

This gave her a more intuitive understanding of Tang Long's status.

He's not just an artist; he's also an industry leader and the owner of a film company.

The gap between her and others was greater than she had imagined.

"Didn't you want to make movies? Would you be interested in playing a role in 'C'est la vie, mon chéri'?"

"The female lead?" Yammie Lam's eyes lit up.

"You can't carry the female lead role right now, but there's a male lead's ex-girlfriend who's basically the second female lead, which would be perfect for you."

"The second female lead is quite good. I can't even get a small role outside. Thank you, Ah Long."

"How do you plan to thank me?"

"How do you want me to thank you?" Lan Jieying lowered her head and asked in a low voice.

"Alright, I was just kidding. Do you expect me to repay you with my body?"

"Actually, offering yourself in marriage isn't out of the question."

Her voice was even lower; if Tang Long hadn't had exceptional hearing, he wouldn't have been able to understand what she was saying.

"are you serious?"

Tang Long gently pinched her chin, lifted her head, and looked directly into her eyes.

Faced with Tang Long's extremely aggressive gaze, Lan Jieying dared not meet his eyes.

She was already regretting missing out on Tang Long, a promising talent, and then, thinking about the difficulties of entering the film industry and the charm Tang Long had just displayed, her eyes finally stopped darting away.

"I'm serious."

Tang Long smiled slightly upon hearing this. He then saw Xu Ke waving for him to come over from not far away.

He gestured that he understood, then looked at Lan Jieying again: "I'll get a room upstairs to rest for a bit. If you're feeling a little sleepy too, you can come with me."

After saying that, Tang Long got up and walked towards Xu Ke.

As Lan Jieying watched his departing figure, she breathed a sigh of relief, then couldn't help but let out a soft sigh, so soft that only she could hear it.

"It's finally come to this."

>