He plays Feng Yuxiu, and his girlfriend is a fairy-like beauty.

set.

Zhang Yuan handed the tablet to Ye Mo, on which was a project briefing.

Yuen Kui, the director of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes," is one of the Seven Little Fortunes and a junior apprentice of Sammo Hung.

He started as an action choreographer and later became a director.

He has acted in the first and second parts of "Fong Sai-yuk", as well as "Ma Yongzhen".

His films have one distinctive feature—the action scenes rely on real kung fu, not editing.

He can tell whether an actor has a solid foundation or not just from one shot.

"The main villain in this film suddenly canceled his contract yesterday. The producer is in a hurry to find someone to fill the role overnight. The filming schedule is very recent, and the filming period is about one and a half months."

"The reason I recommend this is—" she held up one finger.

"First: villain. You're now called 'Add Money Bro' or 'Very Run Bro' online. Feng Yuxiu, that martial arts fanatic, has been turned into memes and circulated for half a year. The audience has already welded you to the word 'villain.' Instead of struggling, you might as well go with the flow. Playing a villain well is no cheaper than playing a protagonist."

"Second: salary. Last-minute replacements are like paying extra. Producers aren't choosing actors now, they're begging. Normal villains can't be forced to ask for too much, but last-minute replacements are a different story. I estimate we can negotiate around ten million, depending on how urgent they are. The overlap with the filming of 'Infernal Affairs' is low. You can finish filming your scenes here and rush to film your night scenes there. It's hard work, but the money is real."

Ye Mo nodded: "And third?"

"Third—" Zhang Yuan pushed up her glasses, "Yuen Kui is Sammo Hung's junior apprentice. You filmed 'SPL' with Sammo Hung's team. Sammo Hung personally pushed you into 'Infernal Affairs.' In terms of trustworthiness, no one is higher than you. This movie was prepared for you—saving face, action skills, Sammo Hung's team connections, you have it all. The only problem is—Yuen Kui doesn't know you have time in Hong Kong yet."

Ye Mo took the tablet and looked at the project briefing again.

"Sister Zhang, please contact me."

"They might not have it over there yet—"

"Contact her directly." Ye Mo handed the tablet back to her. "You're right, these kinds of roles aren't something you wait for, they're something you snatch."

Zhang Yuan took the tablet and watched his back as he walked into the dressing room.

This young man made an almost insane bet last night, and this morning he was sitting in front of his vanity mirror as if nothing had happened.

She has seen too many artists—when they encounter setbacks, they either become depressed or become so excited that they lose their shape.

Ye Mo is different; he swallows all the pressure and transforms it into a cold, ruthless execution force.

She turned around, took out her phone, and opened her contacts.

She had a whole page of contacts in the Hong Kong film and television industry, and she had already prioritized them by the time she finished sifting through them last night.

She found the name and pressed the call button.

At the same time, in an old office building in Kowloon City.

Yuan Kui was sitting behind a table piled high with storyboard drafts, holding a cup of instant coffee that had gone cold.

He was in his fifties, lean and wiry, with his hair shaved very short, and his hands, calloused from years of martial arts practice, rested on the table.

A framed old poster hangs on the wall—"Fong Sai-yuk," starring Jet Li in 1993, which was his most glorious era.

But his expression now has nothing to do with the word "glory".

"Breaked the contract yesterday? And you're telling me today?" He slammed his coffee cup down on the table. "Filming starts next week, and you're telling me the main villain is gone?"

"Brother Kui, it's not that I'm trying to hide it from you—it's just that the actor isn't answering his phone, and his agent can't be reached either. He just sent a text message this morning saying there was a scheduling conflict."

Production assistant Xiao Gao stood across the desk, his forehead covered in sweat: "Right now, all the male actors in Hong Kong who can both fight and act are fully booked. They're all filming movies in the middle of the year. Where are we going to find anyone available?"

Yuan Kui closed his eyes and rubbed his temples vigorously.

"Find a body double, and do post-production dubbing—"

"There were too many close-ups of the main villain; the stunt double couldn't handle it."

"What about the mainland?"

"Mainland actors who can fight and act are more sought after, and their pay is higher than in Hong Kong. I made a round of calls, but they were either unavailable or quoted exorbitant prices. One was even more outrageous; he said he could take the role, but he wanted 20 million RMB. I almost threw the phone down."

Yuan Kui shut Xiao Gao up, but he himself was speechless.

He knew that Xiao Gao was telling the truth.

The Hong Kong entertainment industry is already facing a tight cash flow, and with the opening of the mainland market, all the talent is flowing north.

Those who stay and don't mind the low pay are mostly those who have been eliminated by the market.

True talent earns astronomical salaries.

He leaned back in his chair, his hand tapping unconsciously on the table.

The ink on the action scenes drawn on the storyboard had dried.

The initial sketch of the main villain is still pinned to a corkboard—the outline of a cold-blooded killer. No face.

The landline on the desk rang.

Xiao Gao answered the phone, listened for a few words, and his eyebrows suddenly jumped up.

"Brother Kui, an agent called and said that one of her artists wants to take on our project."

"Who?"

"Ye Mo, from the mainland, that's the one—" Xiao Gao carefully chose his words, "Brother Jiaqian, the one who charges extra, the very slick one, Ding Xiu from 'Brotherhood of Blades'."

Yuan Kui frowned slightly.

"Ye Mo".

He repeated the name.

The feeling of familiarity wasn't the familiarity from the "Add Money Bro" meme, but something else—someone had mentioned the name to him recently.

Where? Who mentioned it to him? He thought for three seconds, then jumped up from his chair.

"Kill Zone" - He is Ah Jie.

Xiao Gao was taken aback: "Ah Jie? That blond guy?"

"Yes." Yuan Kui began pacing back and forth beside his desk, his steps slow but heavy.

"Someone from Sammo Hung's stunt team told me that last year when the eldest brother was filming 'SPL,' he cast a newcomer from mainland China as Ah Jie."

"He only has one line in the whole film, but the action scenes were all done in one take. He even handled the bullets. My older brother specifically told me that there's a really good fighter coming out of the mainland now, someone who fights even harder than we did back then."

He stopped and looked at Xiao Gao.

"Is it him?"

"It's him." Xiao Gao nodded. "And he's currently filming in Hong Kong, so he happens to be free—his agent specifically said his schedule can be squeezed in."

Yuan Kui picked up his phone.

"Don't reply yet, let me make a phone call first."

He pulled out Hung Kam-po's number.

The phone rang five times before it was answered.

Hung Kam-po's voice was languid, and there was the sound of a wok in the background, indicating that he was having lunch.

"Old Yuan, what's the matter?"

"Brother, I have a question for you about someone, Ye Mo."

The sound of the wok on the other end of the phone suddenly faded into the distance; it must have been that Hung Kam-po had moved to a different spot.

"Ye Mo? What happened to him?"

"His agent just called me, saying he wants to take the lead villain role in my new movie. My villain role has fallen through. Do you know how important this role is? Can he handle it? Tell me the truth."

Hung Kam-pao remained silent for a moment.

Then he put down his chopsticks.

"Old Yuan, I have three things to tell you."

"you say."

"The first thing is that he played Ah Jie in my movie 'SPL: Sha Po Lang,' with only one line in the whole film. But when I was filming that chase scene, he did the blocking that the action director designed in one take. Afterwards, he even helped the action director change two connection points. The stuntmen under you who worked with me in Sammo Hung's stunt team for ten years still call him Teacher Ye when they see him now."

Yuan Kui's eyebrows twitched.

"The second thing—his current role is one of the two male leads in Liu Weiqiang's 'Infernal Affairs,' playing Chen Yongren. His co-stars are Andy Lau, Wong Chau-sing, and Tsang Chi-wai. You know Wong Chau-sing, he doesn't talk much to anyone, but after filming the rooftop scene with him, Wong Chau-sing voluntarily placed his thermos next to him. Do you know what that means?"

Yuan Kui remained silent.

But Hung Kam-po knew he understood.

"The third thing is that you are not the first director to dislike him. Before Chen Desheng used him, he thought he was a good-for-nothing who had been running bit parts in Hengdian for two years."

"He auditioned for Feng Yuxiu and signed the contract on the spot. 'Kung Fu Jungle' grossed 1.7 billion yuan. His character Feng Yuxiu is still the character with the most viewed martial arts highlights. Before Lu Yang used him in 'Brotherhood of Blades,' he thought that the newcomer was just going through the motions. But after his audition, Lu Yang completely rewrote Ding Xiu's script. Now, look at the popularity of Ding Xiu and Brother Qian on Weibo. That's all I have to say. Think about it yourself."

Yuan Kui moved the phone away from his ear a little and looked at the call duration on the screen.

Then stick it back on.

"Brother, how much is his salary?"

"The movie 'Infernal Affairs' cost 8 million, and now his value is around 12 million. But that's the price for the male lead. If you want to use him as the villain, you can negotiate the price yourself."

"I want to sign."

"Sign it. If you let him go, don't call me 'senior brother' next time." Hung Kam-pao hung up the phone.

Yuan Kui placed his phone on the table.

I stared at the "Fong Sai-yuk" poster on the wall for three seconds.

Then turn to Xiao Gao.

"Call the agent back and schedule a meeting this afternoon to discuss the contract."

Just as Xiao Gao was about to turn around, he was stopped again.

"Wait a minute—the villain has a face now. Tear up that makeup sketch on the corkboard. We don't need the sketch anymore; we'll use this one."

.......