Hong Kong Entertainment 1979: A Beating Up the Manager at the Start

Li Jiangbo looked up and saw Hong Jinbao! Yuen Biao and Cheng Long were following behind him.

He hurriedly stood up unsteadily, exclaiming, "Oh! It's Mr. Hong! I'm a huge fan of yours!"

Upon hearing this, Hong Jinbao raised his glass and laughed, "Congratulations!"

After clinking glasses with Hong Jinbao, Li Jiangbo downed his drink in one gulp.

Seeing Li Jiangbo's generosity, Hong Jinbao also felt a surge of pride and drank his wine in one gulp.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Hung Kam-po introduced Yuen Biao and Cheng Lung, who were standing behind him, to Li Jiangbo.

"Director Li, these are my two junior brothers, Yuen Biao and Jackie Chan."

Li Jiangbo looked Yuan Biao up and down. He remembered very clearly that he had almost been paralyzed by this loan shark during the second mock exam!

However, Old Li was a kind-hearted man and didn't hold it against Yuen Biao.

Yuen Biao and Jackie Chan said in unison, "Director Li, congratulations!"

After having a couple more drinks with Yuen Biao and Cheng Lung, Hung Kam-po left with his men.

Li Jiangbo was still a little puzzled as to why Cheng Long was willing to wait behind Hong Jinbao for an introduction, but a single sentence from Wang Jing enlightened him.

"They're all fellow disciples, and Hong Jinbao is the eldest. If he doesn't help his juniors from the front, is he going to get scolded from behind?"

Upon hearing this, Li Jiangbo realized that the current Jackie Chan was not the future Jackie Chan; his Jackie Chan Stunt Team had not yet been formed, despite his box office champion achievements.

But Hung Chin-pao is no slouch either; he even won the Best Martial Arts Instructor Award in Taiwan! So the two are evenly matched, and at this point, seniority comes into play.

Li Jiangbo put down his wine glass. "Brother Jing, I'm preparing for a new film next month. How about we continue our collaboration?"

Wang Jing's eyes lit up. He put down his chopsticks and hurriedly asked, "What kind of film?"

Li Jiangbo chuckled, "If you're coming, then let's continue with urban comedies."

Wang Jing was a little excited at this point. A successful film and television IP could make money by making a sequel.

But Li Jiangbo asked him to be the assistant director, which made him unsure of what to do, so he decided to go home and discuss it with his father.

"Okay, I'll talk to my dad about it when I get home tonight and give you an answer tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll wait for you at the company tomorrow."

Actually, Wang Jing misunderstood Li Jiangbo's meaning here; Li Jiangbo had no intention of making a sequel to "Happy Ghost".

What he actually wanted to make was an urban fashion comedy film called "Chasing Girls".

This movie was originally produced by Cinema City in 1981 and was the second highest-grossing film of the year, second only to Golden Harvest's "Security Unlimited".

Moreover, Li Jiangbo's plan was to have Wang Jing direct the film, while he would simply serve as producer. This was probably a little tactic to bring Wang Jing under his wing.

Another reason is that this is an urban fashion film, and if Wong Jing directs it well, he might be able to suppress Cinema City.

Li Jiangbo didn't feel very comfortable during the meal. He had drunk too much alcohol and vomited up almost everything he ate.

Lee Kong-bo's home on Broadcast Drive, Kowloon Tong.

Zhao Yazhi helped the half-drunk Li Jiangbo wash up, and after he finished, she helped him back to the bedroom.

Only after finishing everything did Zhao Yazhi have time to remove her makeup.

Sitting in front of the dressing table, Zhao Yazhi looked at herself in the mirror and suddenly noticed a wrinkle at the corner of her eye, which inexplicably upset her.

These past few days, Zhao Yazhi has become increasingly unable to resist Li Jiangbo—both in terms of his physique and their seemingly endless intimate moments.

Although she was genuinely happy, she found it increasingly difficult to cope. She experienced daily physical discomfort, which even affected her work.

Actually, Zhao Yazhi can't really be blamed. The only one to blame is Li Jiangbo, that "cheat code" guy—back when the system only had basic simulation functions, he received three kidney function enhancements, each time a genuine "kidney function +3".

Zhao Yazhi could tell that Guan Jiahui, whom Li Jiangbo had signed, clearly harbored feelings for him.

And then there's Cherie Chung. Although she hides it very well, Zhao Yazhi's woman's intuition tells her that this girl also has feelings for Li Jiangbo.

Can a divorced woman with a child really keep Li Jiangbo's heart?

She didn't even dare to think about how many young girls would flock to Li Jiangbo as his career became more successful.

Thinking about this made Zhao Yazhi feel suffocated. Sometimes, she really wished she could have been born a few years later.

Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. I'll just take things as they come.

......

At 10 a.m. the next day, Wang Jing appeared in Li Jiangbo's office on time.

He was dressed more formally than usual today, and he was carrying a file folder.

As soon as Wang Jing sat down, he got straight to the point: "Bo-zai, I've made up my mind. I'll be the assistant director, but I have one condition."

Tell me about it.

Wang Jing said earnestly, "If this movie grosses over five million, you have to support me directing my next film independently."

Li Jiangbo asked in confusion, "Have you already planned out your next film?"

Wang Jing nodded, took a script out of the file bag, and handed it to Li Jiangbo.

"This is the script outline I wrote myself. It's called 'The King of Gamblers vs. the King of Gamblers,' and it's a gambling film."

Li Jiangbo was somewhat surprised to hear the name, only then realizing that this was Wang Jing's debut work! Why was it being released at this time?

This film, directed by Wong Jing in 1981, was a new milestone in Hong Kong gambling films, and it seems to have performed quite well at the time.

Speaking of which, Wang Jing's family seems to have a real connection with gambling.

Wang Tianlin's mother was a compulsive gambler who squandered all the family fortune that Wang Tianlin had worked so hard to build.

Wang Jing, however, entered the industry through gambling films, and later made quite a few gambling films.

After glancing at the script, Li Jiangbo closed it and said, "This is fine. I'll invest in it."

Wang Jing was surprised by Li Jiangbo's straightforwardness and immediately asked, "When will we start filming 'Happy Ghost 2'?"

Li Jiangbo shook his head. "Brother Jing, you've misunderstood. I don't want you to film a sequel to 'Happy Ghost'."

"Not a sequel?" Wang Jing was taken aback.

Li Jiangbo took a script outline from the drawer and handed it to Wang Jing. "Hmm! It's an urban fashion comedy called 'Chasing Girls.' You direct, I'll produce. The script is mostly finished; you can refine the rest."

Upon hearing this, Wang Jing frowned immediately. In his eyes, the immediate priority should be to continue filming "Happy Ghost" so as to earn more money.

Now Li Jiangbo wants to make some kind of urban fashion comedy film? This is like fighting in a tiger's den—it's suicide!

It's no wonder Wang Jing thinks this way. Currently, the best-selling films in Hong Kong are kung fu comedies, plus the campus comedies created by Li Jiangbo himself, while modern comedies have almost no market.

Thinking of this, Wang Jing advised, "Bo-zai, why don't we make a sequel? I'm not confident about this kind of film."

Li Jiangbo smiled slightly, "Brother Jing, what can you learn from the success of 'Happy Ghost'?"

Wang Jing shook his head, indicating that he couldn't tell.

"First of all, filmmaking in Hong Kong has established tracks. When you enter a mature track without experience, you'll eventually get crushed. What we need to do is pioneer new tracks. Even if we lose money, it will be a small loss and we won't waste too much time."

Wang Jing disagreed with Li Jiangbo's remarks, but he wouldn't say anything. After all, Li was the boss, and he was just an employee. He would just do whatever Li said.

When will filming begin?

"Next month." Li Jiangbo took out two more contracts from the drawer. "If you agree, we'll sign the director's contract today. The salary is 30,000, plus a share of the box office revenue."

Wang Jing carefully reviewed the contract terms; the conditions were quite favorable.

He took a deep breath, took out a pen, and readily signed his name.

After signing the contract, Li Jiangbo put it away. "By the way, Brother Jing, come with me to meet someone this afternoon."

Who is it?

"Hong Jinbao".