Chapter 299: Movie released, first day explosion! Giving the Hong Kong film industry a

Ni Kuang had always been quick-witted, but encountering this kind of thing today, he could only choose to run away first. And the *Ta Kung Pao* reporter who had been next to him also used his camera to record the scene of him stealing away with his wife.

Although this kind of shit-and-piss report didn't fit the style of *Ta Kung Pao*, it could be placed in the *New Evening Post*, which had a more market-style style under its banner.

And so many interesting things happened in Lai Chi Kok today, how could one or two articles be enough? This reporter was also preparing to use a pseudonym to submit articles to some other market tabloids.

Not only could he earn a few more royalties, but he could also get an extra reward from Comrade Wei Ming. Why not do it?

Although the official reporters were only these two from the left wing, there were hundreds of people at the scene, and everyone had a mouth. Various legends about Lai Chi Kok, the elephant Tiannu, Zhao Debiao, *Legend of a Fighter*, and Ni Kuang started to spread in tea restaurants, living rooms, buses, and offices.

And some tabloid reporters had already started collecting relevant information after smelling the scent. Market people liked these outrageous news the most.

Wei Ming cleared up the loose ends at the zoo. After shaking hands with Ah Kun, he saw Old Ghost touching Tiannu's nose and saying something, finally waving goodbye to it.

"What were you talking about?" Wei Ming asked the old man.

Old Ghost said: "I said that the place it lives in will become bigger in the future, and it will live more comfortably."

"Will it?"

"It depends on how successful your hype is. I hope the boss here can realize Tiannu's value." Old Ghost said. He cooperated so actively with Wei Ming besides the grandfather-grandson affection, but also thinking about helping Tiannu improve its living environment.

"Would you like to come to our store for a meal later? All kinds of classic snacks from the north and south are available."

"Is there douzhi?" Wei Ming asked.

Old Ghost thought for a while and reiterated: "All kinds of classic delicious snacks from the north and south are available."

Very good, douzhi was excluded. Please find the reason from yourself for the snacks that weren't included.

Wei Ming smiled: "Wait until these two days are busy. I still have to take Biaozi and the others to deal with some interviews and program recordings. What to say when facing the media, all need me to teach."

"Then you must be quick. That pen pal of yours really wants to meet you. Heard you invested in Haolilai, and she has been coming to the store to help after school these days, just wanting to see you." Old Ghost reminded. For this grandson, he had broken his heart.

Wei Ming could understand this urgent mood of meeting netizens. However, having experienced so much, Wei Ming didn't have any special expectations. A 14-year-old little girl, what could he expect?

However, Old Ghost's reminder was also very timely. He thought of a song he promised Ah Min before. He had to think carefully about which one to copy tonight.

Regardless of whether there was a chance to meet during this Xiangjiang trip, this song must be given to her.

The next day, the various tabloids hadn't started to exert their full strength, but the follow-up influence of the elephant tug-of-war event yesterday had already arrived.

Xia Meng suddenly called Wei Ming and told him a piece of good news.

"Mr. Chiu Tak-ken promised to lend the two theaters of Lai Chi Kok and Song Cheng to us to show the movie. You really did it!"

Chiu Tak-ken was also a cinema tycoon. At most, he owned more than a dozen theaters. However, later his industry became bigger and bigger, and the theater business had to give way to real estate. Now he only retained two theaters in the two tourist attractions of Song Cheng and Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park, which could show movies and also hold performances.

Early this morning, Chiu Tak-ken saw a report on the grand occasion of the elephant tug-of-war at Lai Chi Kok Zoo in *Wen Wei Po* while eating breakfast.

Seeing the sea of people in the photo, Chiu Tak-ken felt dazed. Was this definitely Lai Chi Kok Zoo, not Hong Kong Ocean Park?

How long had Lai Chi Kok not been this lively? Before acquiring Rediffusion, he still attached great importance to the amusement park industry. He immediately called to ask what happened yesterday and what the elephant tug-of-war was about.

Reasonably speaking, if it was just adding an entertainment project of elephant tug-of-war, it shouldn't have such a sensational effect.

So the zoo manager told the big boss the whole story of what happened yesterday, including the famous writer Ni Kuang standing up first, promising to eat shit, and escaping the bill.

And the bodybuilding team members from St. Paul's Co-educational College, 50 gangsters, and the four-person group of *Legend of a Fighter* that finally set off a climax at the scene, especially Zhao Debiao, who was like a god descending to earth.

This report had a group photo of the four people with Tiannu. The sturdy Biaozi was even sitting directly on Tiannu's head, like an elephant-riding warrior.

Chiu Tak-ken immediately praised the manager's ability to handle things.

Thinking of Old Ghost's nether-like eyes, the manager didn't dare to steal the credit: "Actually, it wasn't my idea. It was the *Legend of a Fighter* film crew that took the initiative to propose cooperation."

"Actually they took the initiative to propose?" Did film crews have such brains now? Chiu Tak-ken asked again, "Which company is this movie from? Shaw Brothers or Golden Harvest?"

"It's a new company, Bluebird Film Company, opened by the eldest princess of Great Wall, Ms. Xia Meng."

People of Chiu Tak-ken's age couldn't possibly not know the three princesses of Great Wall back then, and Xia Meng was even more famous in Xiangjiang.

"So it's Ms. Xia Meng." Chiu Tak-ken immediately generously indicated to let the manager contact Bluebird, and his two theaters would be lent to them to show the movie.

Thinking of Old Ghost's instructions, the manager said again: "Boss, then can we improve Tiannu's living environment? The original place is too cramped. It has signs of turning red now."

"You look at this kind of small matter yourself." Immediately, Chiu Tak-ken hung up the phone.

Others didn't dare to have a relationship with left-wing filmmakers, but he, Chiu Tak-ken, wasn't afraid of any Free General Association. Would that Tong Yuejuan dare to let him write a guarantee?

So the cinemas

Two are on Hong Kong Island, three in Kowloon, and the remaining five are all in the New Territories.

When Wei Ming first asked Xia Meng to help make a few outfits, she had thought the child was being whimsical; she hadn't expected him to actually pull it off. Now, more people would be able to see their movie.

At this time, the first thing to consider when making a movie in Hong Kong is how to get more audiences to see it, because most theater chains only show films from the production companies they have exclusive partnerships with, making survival very difficult for small film companies.

What Xia Meng didn't expect was that this influence would go even further. The day before the film's release, multiple media outlets suddenly reported on the heroic deeds of the "Unrivaled Tough Guy Zhao Debiao."

And whenever he was mentioned, it would always bring up "Heroes Shed No Tears" and the one kilogram of elephant dung that Master Ni Kuang owed.

"Muscle Man Battles the Divine Elephant Tiannu! Tug-of-War at Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park Shocks Hong Kong!"

"A Sky-High Tugging Match! Muscular Tough Guy Rips His Clothes and Scares the Elephant Tiannu!"

"Tough Guy Descends from the Heavens! Come See What This Man Did to an Elephant!"

"Father of Wesley Vows to Eat Dung, Witnessed by Thousands!"

"The King of Tough Guys Arrives! Northern Expert Vows to Defeat All Challengers in Hong Kong!"

Although the only truly major newspapers were "Ta Kung Pao" and "Wen Wei Po," the headlines in the smaller tabloids struck a chord with the public, and their sales were significantly higher than usual.

It had been a long time since Hong Kong had seen such interesting and lively entertainment.

Seeing the embarrassing headlines on the tabloids that Wei Ming had asked Donnie Yen to collect, Biaozi felt a secret thrill and prepared to take these newspapers back to show Yanzi.

"But I never said that last part about defeating all challengers in Hong Kong," Biaozi said.

Wei Ming held the newspaper: "I never said it either. I didn't submit this article."

As it turned out, Wei Ming had personally written many of the articles himself. Some newspapers hadn't reacted yet; seeing the submission under Wei Ming's pseudonym, they found it interesting, and since no contact information was left, they published it readily without having to pay a fee.

Donnie Yen worried: "Won't this provoke our relationship with the Hong Kong martial arts community?"

Biaozi asked: "Will that have any impact?"

Donnie Yen thought for a moment: "The worst-case scenario is that they might come to challenge you while we're promoting the movie."

"Is that all?" Biaozi immediately felt relieved. Isn't it just a martial arts contest? Before leaving, his master had taught him plenty of practical combat techniques.

Although Wei Ming had confidence in Biaozi's practical combat ability, he was, after all, someone he had brought up himself, and with a child not yet born, he had to ensure his safety, so he gave Biaozi a series of instructions on what to do if he really encountered a challenger.

At this moment, in a convenience store in the Wan Chai district, Li Zhi, wearing a tight work uniform, had just seen off a customer.

Her father, Li Yongxi, worked at a theater at the time and was considered a stage actor, but he had a new wife and new children to support. Getting Li Zhi to Hong Kong was already the limit of his ability, and he couldn't provide much more help to this daughter he had barely seen.

Li Zhi had found this sales clerk job herself. She was quite adaptable; after all, she was a tough person who had run away from home at the age of eight, traveling alone from Xi'an back to Guangzhou, and then back to Shanghai.

Because the previous customer had been overly lecherous and kept staring at Li Zhi, he had accidentally left his newspaper behind.

With no customers around, she simply picked it up and started reading. This way, she could learn about Hong Kong while also practicing her adaptation to traditional characters and Cantonese writing.

"Horse racing again. These Hong Kong people really love horse racing," Li Zhi muttered, skipping over the reports about horse racing. After flipping the page, she saw a headline: "The King of Tough Guys Arrives! Northern Expert Vows to Defeat All Challengers in Hong Kong!"

Is this about the martial arts circle?

Li Zhi didn't know much about that circle, nor did she know who the mainland all-around martial arts champion Jet Li was.

But it was still more interesting than horse racing. She immediately started reading and only then learned that the so-called Northern expert "King of Tough Guys" was the actor who played the main villain in the movie "Heroes Shed No Tears."

Because he won the tug-of-war against an elephant yesterday, he had attracted media attention.

Li Zhi had a high school education, at least, and thought to herself, being able to pull an elephant—isn't that ridiculous?

Oh, it wasn't just him; there was also a child and two short people. It was only after he joined at the end that the tide of the battle turned. Still, it was very ridiculous.

But what caught Li Zhi's attention was the name of the movie. Hadn't that Peking University writer Wei Ming said that "Heroes Shed No Tears" was a work he scripted? She had even met him at Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park a couple of days ago.

Although he hadn't shown enough respect for her charm, Li Zhi was still willing to support the movie; after all, it was made by fellow mainlanders.

As a "Northern girl" in the eyes of those Hong Kong people, Li Zhi wanted nothing more than to integrate into them, but seeing things from the mainland still felt intimate. She had gone to see "The Herdsman" when it was released in Hong Kong a while ago—oh, that movie was also by Wei Ming.

She had wanted to chat with him about that movie last time, but when she turned around, he was gone.

Besides Li Zhi seeing this report, Vivian Chow also saw it at school. It was when her male classmates were looking at a newspaper that she heard the name "Heroes Shed No Tears" and borrowed it.

Unfortunately, the whole article was about that clothes-ripping maniac, and there wasn't a single word mentioning A-Ming, nor was he in the group photo of the four people.

If not for the investment mentioned by Uncle Ghost earlier, she would have thought A-Ming hadn't come to Hong Kong at all, though he was just too busy.

Wei Ming was indeed very busy; he had to accept an interview with "Ming Pao" tonight. The interview was for their entire cast and crew, and of course, the focus was on the "King of Tough Guys" who claimed to be invincible in Hong Kong.

This morning, "Ming Pao" boss Jin Yong discovered while reading his old company "Ta Kung Pao" that the debut work of Blue Bird was about to be released, and because it had become the talk of the town for winning a tug-of-war against an elephant at Lai Chi Kok, he immediately sent his reporters to interview the parties involved.

"Is it an interview with Mr. Ni Kuang?" the subordinate asked.

Jin Yong: "Of course it's this Zhao Debiao!"

On the surface, it was chasing trends and riding the hype, but what he was actually thinking in his heart was unclear. Even though he had been married three times, what man doesn't have that one woman in his heart whom he desires all the more the less he can obtain her?

By this time, Jin Yong had long since stopped writing, and "Ming Pao" had long passed the stage of relying on martial arts novels to boost sales. Now, each issue sold over 100,000 copies, and the users were mainly the Hong Kong elite, who were also the most commercially valuable users among Hong Kong's 5 million population.

If "Ming Pao" could join the promotional camp in the early stages of the film's release, it would definitely be a huge help in spreading the film's popularity.

Before the interview began, Wei Ming asked a question: "May I ask if this report will be published in 'Ming Pao' or 'Ming Pao Weekly'?"

"Both will publish it. 'Ming Pao' can publish it tomorrow, while 'Ming Pao Weekly' will have to wait until next week. Also, the focus will be slightly different; 'Ming Pao Weekly' will be more entertainment-oriented," the reporter answered sincerely.

Wei Ming had no more questions. Old Cha is too authentic!

On the first question, Biaozi first declared: "I never said I was invincible in Hong Kong. Some media in Hong Kong are too irresponsible, making things up out of thin air. We are all about seeking truth from facts. Before I truly defeat all the experts in Hong Kong, I will never say I am invincible in Hong Kong. I can only say that at our Shichahai Martial Arts School, I am the best fighter, and Shichahai Martial Arts School is the best martial arts school in the mainland."

Wei Ming nodded with satisfaction. Just say it like that.

The reporter hissed, feeling that this was even more arrogant!

"Then what is the martial art you specialize in?" the reporter asked again.

Zhao Debiao glanced at Wei Ming and replied: "Divine Elephant Prison-Suppressing Power."

"What?" The reporter suspected he had misheard. This kung fu sounded a bit unreal.

Biaozi repeated it: "This Divine Elephant Prison-Suppressing Power is a martial art that cultivates both internally and externally, and it is very niche. In all of China, those who know it can be counted on one hand. Once mastered, one can have the strength of an elephant."

"Uh, some people say that the reason you were able to win the tug-of-war against the elephant was not because of strength, but because you used your aura to suppress the elephant Tiannu. What do you think about this? Is it because of this... this Divine Elephant Prison-Suppressing Power?"

Biaozi: "I'm not sure how I won exactly. I wasn't looking at the elephant at the time; I only had that rope in my hand. And I have only achieved a small success in this divine skill."

"Then what kind of expectations do you have for your movie?"

Zhao Debiao: "Of course, I hope everyone goes to see it. If you don't, it's your loss. Ms. Xia Meng said that if the box office is good, she will give us red envelopes."

"Then have you ever thought about staying in the Hong Kong film industry to become a kung fu superstar like Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan?"

"I haven't thought about it. My wife is pregnant, and I just want to finish my work as soon as possible and go back to take care of her and watch the child be born." Biaozi said this part sincerely, and it wasn't taught by Wei Ming.

The reporter nodded, indicating that this bit of tenderness from a tough guy must be written in.

When this report was published in "Ming Pao," "Heroes Shed No Tears" was officially released.

At this time, Jackie Chan had just returned from the United States. A few days ago, Golden Harvest's "The Cannonball Run" was released in North America, and the box office results were not bad. Although it was overshadowed by "Raiders of the Lost Ark" released in the same period, it was still expected to make the top ten of the year.

Jackie Chan and Michael Hui both participated, but Jackie Chan felt it was too awkward; this was not the movie he wanted to make at all. Just thinking that this movie would land in Hong Kong in a month made him feel uncomfortable.

His good mood from "The Young Master" being a hit in Japan was gone, and he felt regret for his unproductive 1981.

After returning, his senior brother Sammo Hung showed him this article in "Ming Pao": "These Northerners are too arrogant."

And what Jackie Chan focused on was: "Senior brother, you are knowledgeable and experienced. Have you ever heard of Divine Elephant Prison-Suppressing Power?"

Sammo Hung: "Listen to his nonsense, it must be made up. But I am very curious about this matter, so..."

"So you want to go watch the movie with me, right?" Jackie Chan answered preemptively.

Sammo Hung tapped Jackie Chan on the head lightly: "I want us to go tug-of-war with the elephant too. The brothers haven't gathered for a long time. I took you all to play at Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park when you were young. This is an opportunity to connect. I dare not say everyone will show up, but forty or fifty people should be possible, don't you think?"

Besides the sense of responsibility as a senior brother to maintain the bond between brothers, Sammo Hung also realized the popularity of this elephant tug-of-war. Lai Chi Kok Zoo had been packed these past two days. If the Seven Little Fortunes could play once, it would be great publicity regardless of winning or losing.

He and Jackie Chan didn't need it, but the other brothers did.

Jackie Chan thought for a moment and agreed: "But we have to watch the movie too. How about this: watch the movie today, go tug-of-war tomorrow."

"Alright, you pay for the movie," the senior brother decided.

The Peking opera "Seven Little Fortunes" had a total of 7 roles, but the so-called "Seven Little Fortunes" of Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan were actually a 14-man group, divided into two groups for fixed performances.

And the brothers who studied art with Master Yu Jim-yuen back then numbered more than 70, but only a few made it big.

Those who agreed to watch the movie together today were familiar faces in the film industry like Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, and Yuen Wah.

Silver Light Cinema was a theater with better construction by the Leftists, and the Silver Light Group, which integrated the Leftist film forces in the future, originated from this.

When the brothers walked into the cinema, they found it was already packed.

"So many people!" Yuen Biao exclaimed, "I wonder how the action scenes shot in the mainland are~"

(End of chapter)