Chapter 314: One Person Surpasses the Four Great Talents of Hong Kong

18-year-old Li Lianjie, carrying a backpack and wearing a sun hat, looked just like a primary school student because of his short stature.

Among this group, the person he was most familiar with was his senior fellow apprentice Zhao Zhao Debiao. However, his gaze lingered on Seeing Biaozi for only a moment before shifting to Li Zhi, and then he looked at Wei Ming with a shy expression.

Wei Ming took in all these details. In his opinion, his little aunt's face was much prettier than Little Li's, and her temperament was even more superior. Perhaps A-Jie just happened to like Little Li's type; meeting her several years early, his aesthetic preferences remained consistent.

However, A-Jie was, after all, a shy little virgin at this moment. He first greeted Senior Biao and Wei Laoshi, then, while patting little Wu Jing on the head, began to chat about Wei Laoshi's great achievements in Hong Kong.

"Oh, have you heard of my legends in Hong Kong too?"

"Yes, I bought a copy of *Ming Pao* on the way to the airport. It reported on your life story, including the song that shocked the international music scene."

Of course, what Li Lianjie envied most was the fact that a single song could earn a million Hong Kong dollars. To them as athletes, this was unimaginable. He had won so many championships since he was a child and had performed abroad several times, yet he hadn't even become a "ten-thousand-yuan household."

Having frequently performed abroad, he understood the importance of money all too well. This time, he was returning from a performance with his team in Singapore. While transiting through Hong Kong, he was called by Director Zhang Zhang Xinyan to reshoot a scene, so he ended up alone, and his newly grown hair was shaved off again.

Seeing Biaozi hurriedly said, "Where's the newspaper? Let me take a look."

The handsome Li Lianjie took the newspaper out of his bag and added, "Senior, you are also very impressive in Hong Kong. Although I arrived late, I've heard of your feat of tug-of-war with an elephant. Oh, I've even seen your advertisement."

Upon hearing this, Seeing Biaozi immediately pulled Li Lianjie to the side, casting a shadow over him: "What advertisement?"

He had shot quite a few advertisements during this period.

"The one for the leather jacket," Li Lianjie said innocently.

Seeing Biaozi breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that he had seen the underwear advertisement. That was a close call.

At this moment, that copy of *Ming Pao* had already passed from Seeing Biaozi's hands to Wei Ming's, but it was quickly snatched away by Wei Wei Lingling, who began reading it with her head touching Li Zhi's.

A-Jie immediately took the opportunity to ask, "Who are these two?"

Wei Ming: "This is Wei Zong Wei Lingling, and this is her assistant, Miss Li Zhi."

Wei Zong! So young and yet a female boss. A-Jie's thoughts became subtle, and he immediately wondered, *She also has the surname Wei? *

However, Wei Ming did not elaborate. He walked to Li Zhi's side and asked, "What does *Ming Pao* say about me?"

"Oh, *Ming Pao* first spoke of the literary achievements of the writer Wei Ming on the mainland, even using the phrasing that he could be called the 'number one person after Jin Yong,' and highlighted the long-form novel *Human World Righteous Path is Vicissitudes* currently being serialized in Hong Kong. Then it introduced several of Wei Shenme's works, calling Wei Shenme the 'King of Fairy Tales' of the mainland, and noted that his influence reaches as far as Europe and America..."

Li Zhi spoke in an admiring tone: "However, this article also says that 'Wei Shenme' is far less high-profile than Wei Ming. Apart from Elton John's statement, there is no other way to verify that Wei Ming is 'Wei Shenme,' that is to say..."

Wei Ming praised, "Rigorous." Other media outlets were just following TVB's lead, directly concluding that Wei Ming was him, but *Ming Pao* felt it was still open to debate.

Li Zhi added, "The article finally says that the original work of *Heroes Born of Youth*, which broke ten million at the Hong Kong box office, is by 'Wei Wei Kuangren,' with Wei Ming as the screenwriter. Those two might actually be the same person."

Wei Ming was startled. The writer of the article had some substance.

He asked, "Who wrote it?"

Li Zhi: "Oh, it's called Yi Shu."

Wei Ming was amused. This trip to Hong Kong really had him fated with the Ni family. At this time, Yi Shu had already published *Xi Bao* and *The Story of Rose*, preliminarily establishing her status in the Hong Kong literary scene.

Li Lianjie hurriedly asked, "So, is what the newspaper says true?"

Seeing Biaozi laughed: "Wei Shenme, Wei Wei Kuangren—they are all Brother Ming. Brother Ming's awesomeness is something they can't even imagine."

The outside world didn't know about Brother Ming opening a comic company, and Seeing Biaozi didn't even know about Wei Ming opening a company abroad.

A-Jie's mouth hung slightly open, which, in Li Zhi's eyes, looked incredibly foolish.

Meanwhile, Wei Ming was thinking that the news of him being "Wei Shenme" probably couldn't be hidden anymore. Hong Kong knew, so the Mainland wouldn't be far behind. It was time to let Reporter Zhu Wei take action.

"Let's go, A-Ming, we're going to the VIP lounge." Checking the time, his little aunt urged him.

Wei Ming said, "Aunt, no need to upgrade my cabin this time. I'll just stay with my brothers."

Li Lianjie: *Aunt? I thought they were siblings. So they are aunt and nephew! *

Wei Wei Lingling: "Then Little Li, come with me. I'll get you an upgrade."

"Ah, thank you, Wei Zong Lingling." Li Zhi had never sat in first class before. She waved at Wei Ming, smiling brightly, "Goodbye, Young Master Ming."

A-Jie watched, mesmerized, and waved along, yet Little Li's eyes held only Young Master Ming.

Finally, the four men and one baby boarded the economy class of the plane together.

Up in first class, Li Zhi secretly said to Wei Wei Lingling, "Wei Zong Lingling, did you see the old man in front of us?"

"I saw him. What about it?"

Li Zhi: "That's Jin Yong!"

In July 1981, Jin Yong, at the invitation of the Chief Designer, went to the capital for a chat, accompanied by his third wife and the youngest daughter born to his second wife.

As the plane took off, Jin Yong looked at the clouds outside the window and fell into deep thought. Perhaps he was thinking of the clouds of his hometown.

On the plane, through sweet talk, Li Lianjie managed to change his seat to be next to Wei Ming and the others. He wanted to find out about Miss Li Zhi's situation.

For example, was she single, was she from Hong Kong, how old was she, and so on.

However, Wei Ming didn't give him the chance, pulling him to ask about the situation of *The Shaolin Temple*, and teased him: "Get ready to become a huge star. Your Brother Biao can fascinate the people of Hong Kong even playing a big villain. You are playing the hero, and you look more handsome than Brother Biao, so the fighting in the movie must be very beautiful, right?"

Li Lianjie was humble in his words, saying he was far behind his senior: "These are all just flashy moves. Senior is the one with the real strength."

Yet, in his heart, he was secretly hoping that *The Shaolin Temple* could be as successful as *Heroes Born of Youth*. If a Hong Kong businessman were to ask him to shoot an advertisement, wouldn't he be able to become a "ten-thousand-yuan household" directly!

While Wei Ming and the others were chatting idly on the plane, A-Min was preparing to go to Teacher Dai Dai Sicong's house for a lesson. In order to sing the theme song for *Haolilai*, her mother had finally agreed to let her study vocal music.

However, just as A-Min was about to leave, the home phone rang. It was actually A-Lun, Tan Tan Yonglin, whom she hadn't been in touch with for a long time.

"Brother A-Lun, is something the matter?"

Tan Tan Yonglin said excitedly: "A-Min, is A-Ming actually Wei Ming? The one who wrote *Moonlight Shadow*?"

Zhou Zhou Huimin asked in surprise: "How did you know?"

"Oh yeah! I guessed right!" Tan Tan Yonglin said triumphantly, "Because A-Ming had written Mandarin songs, I initially thought he was a Taiwanese musician. But recently, Mr. Wei Ming has been very popular, and both names have a 'Ming' in them, so I couldn't help but make the connection."

"You're quite smart, then." A-Min regretted having such a loose tongue.

Tan Tan Yonglin laughed: "A-Min, as A-Ming's agent in Hong Kong, you must have met him already."

"Of course," A-Min said with a touch of pride.

"Then could you help me make an appointment? I want to thank A-Ming in person," Tan Tan Yonglin added. Of course, the main point was still to ask for a song. The two versions of *Water Flower* written by Wei Ming had allowed him to expand his territory in the music scene, a contribution of great merit.

"Unfortunately, he has already returned to the Mainland. He just left today."

"Ah, what a coincidence."

"He had actually left a long time ago, but was invited to the UK. This was just a stopover in Hong Kong on his way back to Yan-Jing, so he stayed for another day." To prove she wasn't fooling him, A-Min explained in great detail.

Hearing that Wei Ming had been invited to the UK, Tan Tan Yonglin felt a surge of excitement, thinking, *Could this musical genius have started creating English songs again? *

If he could write a song of the caliber of *Moonlight Shadow* for him, wouldn't that mean he might also have a chance to touch the possibility of million-copy sales!

"A-Min, although A-Ming has returned to the Mainland, my respect for him remains unchanged. Please be sure to convey my regards. Next time he comes to Hong Kong, be sure to tell me; I'll be the host."

"Got it, got it," A-Min said dismissively. However, she still had to tell A-Ming about this. *Hmm, I'll write him a letter. I've only been separated from him for a day and I already miss him. *

After a month, Wei Ming returned to his loyal Yan-Jing City. Having sat in economy class all the way with his poor brothers, he couldn't accompany them any further. Wei Ming had to send his little aunt to the Yan-Jing Hotel, so he parted ways with Seeing Biaozi, A-Long, and the others there.

Wei Wei Lingling was now a foreign friend, so entering customs was a bit more troublesome. Wei Ming waited for them outside. When he saw his little aunt, he also saw Jin Yong behind her.

However, both were in a hurry to get into the car. They didn't get to know each other. This was a vehicle provided by the Yan-Jing Hotel for their guests. On the way, Li Zhi also recounted the fact that she had recognized Jin Yong, and was curious why Jin Yong would come to Yan-Jing.

Meanwhile, Wei Wei Lingling was observing Yan-Jing City on both sides of the road. It was about the same as in her impression: poor and backward. There were few cars on the road, mostly bicycles.

However, the spirit of the pedestrians on the road was not dejected, which was different from what she had imagined. In her view, being this poor and left far behind by the world, they should be particularly anxious.

It wasn't until they entered Wang-Fu-Jing Street that the situation improved slightly, and some modern commercial aspects could be seen. This driver was also interesting; he deliberately took a detour through the most prosperous and modern parts of Yan-Jing City to let the foreign guests take a look, before driving them to the hotel.

When checking in, they ran into them again. Jin Yong's family of three was also staying here. Because he wasn't familiar with his family members, Wei Ming couldn't distinguish for a moment which one was his wife and which one was his daughter; the two were of similar age.

This time, it was Jin Yong who took the initiative to greet him. Since *Heroes Born of Youth*, he had been paying attention to this name. As the owner of *Ming Pao*, and with Wei Ming being a hot topic frequently appearing in newspapers recently, he naturally recognized him.

"May I ask if you are Mr. Wei Ming?" Jin Yong's Mandarin was quite standard.

"It is I. Hello, Mr. Cha."

"You recognize me too?"

*In my past life, I wanted to buy your copyright to shoot a web movie, but unfortunately, I didn't succeed. *

"Naturally. When I first started working as a guard at Peking University, I relied on telling *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils* to build rapport with my colleagues," Wei Ming said with a chuckle.

At this time, there were no authorized Jin Yong martial arts novels in the Mainland; they only appeared after this trip of his, so Wei Ming naturally read pirated or Hong Kong versions.

"Are you staying here too?" Jin Yong asked.

"No, I have a home in Yan-Jing. I came here to drop off friends and relatives."

Jin Yong glanced at Wei Wei Lingling and the other woman, not knowing which was a relative and which was a friend.

However, he was mainly curious about the relationship between Wei Ming and "Wei Shenme." Since he had happened to run into the person himself, he could settle this cold case.

"'Wei Shenme' is me, and 'Wei Wei Kuangren' is also me. They are the names I used to publish works abroad," Wei Ming said very frankly.

Jin Yong was astonished: "So 'Wei Wei Kuangren' really is you!"

"So you write martial arts, serious literature, fairy tales, and can also write lyrics and compose music?" Jin Yong thought for a moment and said, "It is said that you are also a gourmet and have written quite a few articles about food?"

Wei Ming nodded: "I wouldn't dare call myself a gourmet, but I am indeed a glutton. During those days in Hong Kong, I tasted quite a few good restaurants and could write another series of articles."

Jin Yong laughed: "In that case, one person like you could almost match the Four Great Talents of Hong Kong. It's just that you don't write science fiction."

Jin Yong rarely mentioned the Four Great Talents of Hong Kong himself; he was a generation apart from the other three. However, Wei Ming's versatility reminded him of this group that was widely circulated in Hong Kong.

The four of them were the authorities in Hong Kong in the four directions of martial arts novels, music, science fiction novels, and food.

However, Wei Ming said unceremoniously: "Although I don't write much science fiction, I did publish two pieces under the pen name 'Wei Shenme' some time ago, and I am already preparing to publish an English version."

"Oh, what are the titles?"

"*Jurassic Park*. It's about dinosaurs."

Jin Yong made a note of it, saying he would definitely read it when he returned: "So one person like you is stronger than all four of us!"

Wei Ming shook his head: "I just know a lot, but I can't claim to be an expert. When it comes to martial arts, I'm afraid no one can surpass the 'Flying Snow, Shooting White Deer, Laughing at the Book, Godly Hero, Leaning on the Green Mandarin.' As for music, I'm a self-taught amateur relying on inspiration, and I wouldn't dare compare myself to a grandmaster like Mr. Huang Zhan. As for food, I love to eat but don't like to cook. I heard that Mr. Cai Lan has already made Huang Rong's 'Twenty-Four Bridge Moonlight Night.' When it comes to gluttony, I am far inferior."

Wei Ming paused. Jin Yong thought he was going to continue being humble, but he didn't expect him to change the subject: "Thinking about it, only in science fiction novels do I have the confidence to surpass Ni Kuang. In my view, the *Wisely* series doesn't have a high level of science fiction, so the difficulty of surpassing it is also lower."

Jin Yong was not angry because Wei Ming looked down on his friend; instead, he felt it was reasonable. How could such a versatile talent not be arrogant? Just now, he had almost thought this young man was heavily influenced by Confucianism and was too moderate.

Seeing Wei Ming reveal his sharp edge, Jin Yong asked with a smile: "I wonder if I can publish these words of yours in *Ming Pao*?"

"Since I've said it, naturally there's nothing I'm afraid of letting people know."

As expected of a young man with sharp spirit. Jin Yong added: "May I have your contact information? Perhaps we might have a chance to cooperate."

"Sure." Wei Ming left him the phone number of the Overseas Chinese Apartment.

What Jin Yong was thinking about was reprinting Wei Ming's works in *Ming Pao*, while what Wei Ming was thinking about was the comic adaptation of Jin Yong's martial arts novels.

In the 90s, Huang Huang Yulang and Li Li Zhiqing, who was still dormant in Wei Kuangren Comics at this time, had both done this, and both were very successful.

Huang Huang Yulang used the style of traditional Hong Kong comics to draw Jin Yong's martial arts novels, while Li Li Zhiqing used the brushstrokes of traditional ink painting to build a world of the pugilistic scene with great artistic beauty.

After parting with Wei Ming, Jin Yong's 18-year-old youngest daughter, Cha Chuan-Na, even looked back at Wei Ming. She had heard all the conversation just now. This person was so young and yet so learned and talented; he was simply more amazing than her old man!

After sending his little aunt upstairs, Wei Ming didn't stay long. He said: "Rest well today. You can also go around with Little Li. Tomorrow I'll arrange for you to meet my father, and then we'll set a date to go to the Magic City."

Wei Wei Lingling: "And Wei Ping-An. I want to meet both of them."

"Okay." Wei Ming thought it was right. He had to confess the matter of his grandfather to Uncle Ping-An, and it would inevitably involve Wei Wei Lingling, so they should meet.

Wei Wei Lingling added: "He works at a university, so he should be on summer vacation, right? Let's go to the Magic City together then."

"Ah?" Wei Ming was a bit confused. Why did he have to call Uncle Ping-An to the Magic City?

Wei Wei Lingling said one sentence that directly stunned Wei Ming: "That house, Aunt said, the three of us will split it equally."

Nani!?

"Sister, Wei Ming is back!"

Among the two, Gong Zhu, Gong Xue was the first to receive the news of Wei Ming's return to the capital.

She received a call from her younger sister, Gong Ying, at the Beijing Film Studio dormitory.

And Gong Ying was with Liu Liu Rulong at this time. She tipped him off at the first opportunity.

Little Wei didn't stay in the UK and didn't become British. Gong Xue felt happy in her heart. After a month of feeling unsettled, the big stone in her chest finally landed.

"Then do you know where he is?"

Gong Ying handed the phone directly to A-Long, asking him to report in detail.

A-Long took the phone: "Sister Xue, it's like this. After A-Ming landed, he parted ways with us. He had to send a relative to the Yan-Jing Hotel. I don't know where he went after that."

There were only three places: the Overseas Chinese Apartment, the Beichizi courtyard, and the Tuanjiehu residence. But none of these three places belonged to her.

Gong Xue sighed and could only sit in the guest house room and wait, waiting for him to find her after he was done with his business.

Wei Ming borrowed the Yan-Jing Hotel's phone to call *China Youth Daily*, looking for reporter Zhu Wei.

The words were few, and the core was one meaning: I have been exposed.

Immediately, Wei Ming didn't even eat and asked the hotel's car to send him off, otherwise there was too much luggage.

At the Overseas Chinese Apartment, seeing Wei Ming being sent back by a car, the guard, Old Sun, felt very surprised. A month later, had this writer Wei been upgraded?

Wei Ming handed the old man a cigar and instructed him: "Don't inhale this stuff."

Old Sun opened the gate directly and let the car drive downstairs. Wei Ming went upstairs to call people, but there was only his grandmother, an old lady.

"Your mother went to deliver food, and your father and sister went back to their hometown. They'll be back tomorrow. Once he returns, I'll also have to go back to my hometown in Sichuan."

Wei Ming thought that the flooding in Sichuan should be happening recently. He smiled and said: "Grandmother, how about this? I'll call Little Yang over and have him escort you back, otherwise I won't be at ease. Besides, my father and I are going to the Magic City soon, so you just wait a little longer~"

The driver downstairs was urging him. Wei Ming: "It's settled then. I brought you a gift from Hong Kong. You wait~"

(End of chapter)