Chapter 207: Celebration Banquet

The day of the program.

Jiang Dawei suddenly arrived to celebrate with Di Long; the two brothers, estranged for many years, embraced tightly, and Di Long was so moved he became incoherent.

The next day, the front pages of all the newspapers in Hong Kong featured large photos of the two reconciled, and countless people were moved and filled with emotion.

Director Wu Yusen faced the camera with deep emotion: "At my most frustrated and lost, and also when I most needed to affirm myself and needed friends, Mr. Chen and Xu Ke found me...

Finally, I regained my dignity in this film. Thank you to my boss, Mr. Chen, and thank you to all the creative staff for their dedication."

Zhou Runfa gripped the microphone excitedly: "I have filmed dozens of movies in the past few years, but the only one people remember is this A Better Tomorrow.

At first, I hesitated when I received the script, but when I finished reading the script for this film, it was as if, in the dark, I had found the feeling I wanted. Thank you, Mr. Chen, for choosing me. At the same time, I also thank one of my special fans for their strong support."

Below the stage, the fifth-generation wealthy heir—Deng Yongqiang was clapping. He looked at his driver: "The car hasn't been sold yet, has it?"

He had enthusiastically sponsored his own car, only to discover after watching the movie that it was used as a hearse. As soon as he left the cinema, he ordered his driver to get rid of that unlucky thing immediately.

"Boss, after you finished watching the movie, didn't you tell me to sell it immediately?"

"Ah? Who did you sell it to?"

"It was acquired by Mr. Chen."

For a moment, Deng Yongqiang was filled with regret, feeling that he was the only one hurt in this world...

Zhang Guorong smiled brilliantly, full of spirit: "I have known Mr. Chen for over two years. In my eyes, he is a good Big Brother who values relationships and righteousness. Two years ago, a friend of mine went astray, and it was Mr. Chen who saved him..."

Zhang Guorong was referring to the gambling debts of his good friend—Paul.

Because of the huge success of A Better Tomorrow, the peripheral products for A Better Tomorrow also became completely popular; young people coming to buy trench coats, sneakers, shirts, and sunglasses were endless.

To complete this four-piece set, you absolutely had to have a toothpick hanging from your mouth.

According to incomplete statistics, the sales of toothpicks and matches in Hong Kong in 1981 increased by more than double compared to previous years.

And the brand under Guojun Garment Factory also became completely popular; paired with the several advertisements filmed by the actors of A Better Tomorrow for the brand, it had the momentum to become popular both at home and abroad.

One week later, the box office statistics were out.

The opening day box office was 3.5 million, the cumulative box office for the first week was 25.7 million, and the average attendance rate for the first week of release was as high as 96%.

Such terrifying data made Shao Yifu shed tears, made Zou Wenhuai heartbroken, and made countless film and television practitioners in Hong Kong tremble with fear.

Zhou Runfa became completely red-hot, the kind of red that turns purple; film offers from major companies flew in like snowflakes.

Li Zixiong also became popular. Originally, he was just a small civil servant, occasionally filming commercials to earn some pocket money; now, he had leaped up to become an A-list movie star.

As for Zhang Guorong, who was originally just a small television actor, his salary also suddenly rose to 500,000, which could be called a carp leaping over the dragon gate.

Ceng Ziwei drove the Toyota he had just bought a few days ago, beaming with joy, and headed toward the Shangri-La Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui.

On the outer wall of a building in the distance, on a 20-meter-tall giant poster for A Better Tomorrow, Zhou Runfa was wearing sunglasses and lighting a cigarette with a banknote.

A Tesla double-decker bus that passed by Ceng Ziwei also had promotional advertisements for A Better Tomorrow on its body.

On the street, several hoodlums were wearing ill-fitting trench coats, wearing sunglasses, and chewing on matches while singing How Many Winds and Rains.

In the past half-month, I don't know how many white-collar workers in Hong Kong have changed their English names to "MARK," and the big bosses of the triads are also calling themselves Xiao Ma Ge one after another...

Quietly, Hongxing Records was established, and the original soundtrack for A Better Tomorrow was released accordingly.

Several of the interlude songs inside were dubbed by the media as Cantonese classics and Mandarin classics.

Even a Minnan song like Floating Brothers had quite a wide reach in Hong Kong.

The A Better Tomorrow original soundtrack had been on the market in Hong Kong for a week, and sales had actually quickly exceeded 100,000. Looking at the growth rate of these sales, selling 200,000 would be no problem at all.

In the early 1980s in Hong Kong, what was the concept of 200,000 record sales?

25,000 counted as a Gold Record, 50,000 as a Platinum Record, 100,000 as a Double Platinum Record, 150,000 as a Triple Platinum Record, 200,000 as a Four Platinum Record, and so on.

Before this, perhaps only a certain album by the two great singing gods, Xu Guan-jie and Tan Yonglin, had reached Four Platinum Record sales.

Could such a record really sell Four Platinum Record sales in Hong Kong?

This made other record companies sigh, feeling that they understood this world less and less.

Ceng Ziwei's car stopped steadily at the Shangri-La Hotel, and there were already many entertainment reporters at the entrance surrounding Jing Kun for interviews.

The A Better Tomorrow celebration banquet tugged at the hearts of many media outlets in Hong Kong; it could be said that this was the highest-grossing film in Hong Kong in recent years.

For this celebration banquet, the Shangri-La Hotel even laid out a long red carpet at the entrance, leading all the way to the banquet hall.

Just as Jing Kun was accepting an interview with a glowing face, a burst of exclamations suddenly erupted at the hotel entrance; Chen Jiajun appeared with Guan Jiahui.

As soon as Chen Jiajun got out of the car holding Guan Jiahui's hand, he attracted the attention of all the reporters.

The two stood together, looking quite like a golden boy and jade girl, truly making others envious.

Just as the reporters gathered around to ask questions, a group of sturdy and burly young demon slaves got off a Mercedes-Benz motorcade and formed a human wall.

Chen Jiajun immediately stood still and generously accepted the interview: "Dear reporter friends, please come one by one, one question per person."

"Mr. Chen, I heard that you and Miss Guan are dating?"

Although Guan Jiahui was no longer in the entertainment industry, the industry still had heat for her; after all, Guan Jiahui was the daughter of Guan Shan and had previously collaborated with Zhang Guorong and Paul on a television drama.

Regarding this question, Chen Jiajun answered briefly: "Let me clarify, we are not dating; Jiahui and I have been living together for eighteen months."

Hearing her husband's answer, Guan Jiahui suddenly felt sweet.

And the reporters were suddenly in an uproar, not expecting that Guan Jiahui's two-year retirement from the screen was because she had been raised as a canary by a big boss.

The big boss's Zhuangyuan was in Repulse Bay, which was a wealthy area; ordinary reporters would be questioned by the Police when entering or leaving.

And the elite school Guan Jiahui attended was also in the Xianggang Zai area, which also belonged to a wealthy area; it was normal for reporters not to know.

"Mr. Chen, has Miss Lin Qingxia officially signed with your company?" the second reporter asked.

Chen Jiajun replied: "There is an intention to cooperate; you should ask the staff for details."

"Mr. Chen, can you reveal specifically what the current box office for A Better Tomorrow is?" the third reporter asked.

"Specifically, we have to wait for the company to calculate the data."

"Is A Better Tomorrow 2 ready to start filming?" the fourth reporter asked.

Chen Jiajun replied: "The script is already prepared. Once the schedule is adjusted, we will begin filming, with a release expected next year."

"I heard your company is prepared to spend 30 million to invest in a xianxia masterpiece and is inviting Lin Qingxia to serve as the lead actress?" the fifth reporter asked.

Chen Jiajun replied: "I am not aware of the relevant filming plans. Alright everyone, the interview ends here for today."

Hongxing Film was indeed going to invest in a xianxia masterpiece, 【Shushan Jianxia Zhuan】.

The matter had to be traced back to three months ago; this was an idea Xu Ke had while producing 【A Better Tomorrow】. Xu Ke presented the script to Chen Jiajun's desk: "Mr. Chen, please take a look."

The script Xu Ke presented was already worlds apart from the original 【Shushan】 in his memory.

After all, with a big mountain to lean on, Dalao Jun had money.

Chen Jiajun had scolded Xu Ke severely after finishing the script. In truth, Xu Ke's script was not as rotten as Dalao Jun had said, it was just that when Xu Ke was writing the script, his mind was full of special effects and those famous mountains and rivers.

In order to maximize the presentation of the scenes, he had neglected the rhythm of the plot, which was why Chen Jiajun felt the plot was pale and weak.

In Chen Jiajun's view, for a good movie, special effects and such things should all serve the plot, rather than adding plot into big special effects scenes.

Therefore, Chen Jiajun established a production crew for Hongxing Film, gathered all the excellent screenwriters in Hong Kong, and conducted collective creation and polishing for the Shushan IP, even inviting Master Jin to serve as a consultant and director for the script.

Before filming had even begun, over a million had already been poured in.

In Chen Jiajun's mind, Hongxing Film's 【Shushan Jianxia Zhuan】 had to be filmed into a magnificent masterpiece similar to 【The Lord of the Rings】, carrying Dalao Jun's dream of impacting the global box office.

Chen Jiajun and Guan Jiahui entered the banquet hall. Quite a few people had already arrived inside, and more than half of the people from Hongxing Film had come. When everyone saw Chen Jiajun, they stood up in unison:

"Mr. Chen."

"May Mr. Chen's wealth roll in."

"Mr. Chen."

After Chen Jiajun entered the banquet hall for the 【A Better Tomorrow】 celebration banquet, he shook hands almost the entire way. If one were to ask whose contribution to this movie was the greatest, Chen Jiajun was the first to bear the brunt.

The script, director, lead actors, framework, interludes, and promotion were all things Chen Jiajun was responsible for or had made the final decision on.

And the one with the second greatest contribution was the director Wu Yusen and the producer Xu Ke.

Jing Kun followed behind his boss. Seeing his boss so respected, he felt a shared honor and disgrace; this was a feeling he could not get from peddling drugs.

If his boss hadn't persuaded him not to sell anymore back then, he might have already been sent by the Police Station to Stanley Prison.

"Zhao Yazhi?"

When he saw the peerlessly beautiful, elegant, and magnificent female star beside Zhou Runfa, Chen Jiajun thought he had seen wrong.

Zhou Runfa introduced: "Boss, Zhizhi came over tonight because she wanted to see your demeanor, Boss."

Zhao Yazhi bowed slightly, took Dalao Jun's hand, and said: "Mr. Chen, hello."

She saw that Zhou Runfa was a huge hit in the movie, so she also wanted to develop in the film circle. Why?

The reason was simple: Zhou Runfa's market value had skyrocketed recently. Although his salary for filming 【A Better Tomorrow】 was only 200,000, Dalao Jun had privately given Zhou Runfa a red envelope of 2 million.

Not to mention the various influences brought about by filming 【A Better Tomorrow】.

Furthermore, in the entertainment industry, regardless of the market anywhere in the world, there is a chain of contempt: movie stars are greater than television stars.

"Don't be so formal, have a good time drinking tonight."

Chen Jiajun nodded and arrived at the main seat.

Jing Kun looked at Chen Jiajun and said: "Ada, you have to propose a toast tonight."

"Fine."

Chen Jiajun stood up generously, raised his wine glass with great spirit, and said: "Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend the celebration banquet today. Everyone should drink according to their capacity tonight, and please don't drink too much."

"Good."

"Cheers."

Everyone cheered loudly, following Dalao Jun's rhythm, raising their glasses every five seconds, and downing three cups of wine in a row.

What can best stimulate the enthusiasm of participants at a banquet is this moment of cheering.

Under such circumstances, everyone would unconsciously watch the most eye-catching protagonist in the room.

Under the blessing of multiple halos, the women in the banquet hall could not help but develop an interest in Chen Jiajun.

To call it infatuation would be an insult.

After all, there are not many women who fall in love at first sight or are fickle.

But curiosity and admiration were unavoidable.

As for the men, their thoughts were not so sensitive and delicate, and their focus was completely different; they all felt the boss was rich and righteous, spoke well, and the key was that he was overflowing with talent.

After the wine had gone three rounds and the food had been tasted, Wu Yusen sat beside Chen Jiajun: "Boss, I will set off for Taiwan tomorrow to do promotions. A toast to you, thank you for your guidance."

"Have the itinerary and accompanying personnel been arranged properly?"

Chen Jiajun clinked glasses with Wu Yusen and asked with concern.

Wu Yusen nodded: "Zhou Runfa, Zhang Guorong, Di Long, and Zhu Baoyi, the four of them are going with me."

"After the promotions in Japan and South Korea are finished, come back early to film the second one," Chen Jiajun nodded and said.

"Yes." Wu Yusen finished the wine in his cup.

Just after clinking glasses with Wu Yusen, Xu Ke brought Lin Qingxia over. Lin Qingxia raised her glass and said: "Mr. Chen, thank you for your appreciation."

The lead actress of 【Shushan Jianxia Zhuan】 was personally selected by Chen Jiajun; in essence, Lin Qingxia had already joined Hongxing Film.

As for why?

The reason was simple: because this was a transformation work for Lin Qingxia, and she had also heard of Dalao Jun's grand blueprint. Dalao Jun planned to film the Shushan series in three parts initially, with the production cost of each part being no less than 30 million.

In other words, for the next three years, Lin Qingxia would have movies to film.

"Qingxia, if you have any difficulties in Hong Kong, tell the company at any time, or even tell me directly. This is my business card."

Chen Jiajun clinked glasses with her and handed out his private business card.

"Thank you, Mr. Chen." Lin Qingxia put away the business card and finished the wine in her cup.

Just as Lin Qingxia left, the lead actress of 【A Better Tomorrow】, Zhu Baoyi, came over: "Mr. Chen."

In this film, Zhu Baoyi was the easiest to overlook; after all, it was a man's movie, but Zhu Baoyi did not let Dalao Jun down, and her performance in the film was quite commendable.

Zhu Baoyi, who had assumed she would be unemployed once the film ended, received a long-term contract from Hongxing Film, as well as an invitation from the production crew of Shushan Jianxia Zhuan to play the role of Ruolan; she even vaguely heard that there would be a solo film about Ruolan from Shushan Jianxia Zhuan in the future.

"Are you getting used to life in Hong Kong?" Chen Jiajun looked at Zhu Baoyi with a smile.

"Thanks to Mr. Chen, I am used to everything." Looking at the incredibly handsome Chen Jiajun, Zhu Baoyi's face turned red: "I'm just afraid of failing Mr. Chen's expectations; the production of this Shushan film is truly too grand, and I'm afraid of holding everyone back."

"It's fine, I'll come over tonight to go over the script with you."

Dalao Jun said with a smile, his expression sincere.

His original intention in starting a film company was to play with female stars, and now that the film company had been established for over a year, it was time to relax a little.

Hearing that Dalao Jun wanted to go over the script with her, Zhu Baoyi immediately understood what Chen Jiajun intended to do.

(End of this chapter)