Chapter 1

The probability that we live in the real world is less than one in a billion!

In 1997, in Xianggang, inside a coffee shop near Victoria Harbour, Jiang Heng spoke solemnly.

Wu Yanzu opposite him became interested, leaned forward slightly, and asked in non-standard Hong Kong Mandarin: "So what's the basis for that?"

Have you heard of the wave-particle duality of light?

I learned some of that when I was studying!

Jiang Heng then started from the wave-particle duality of light, talked about Schrödinger's cat, and also mentioned the Mandela effect.

Of course, Mandela in 1997 was still president of South Africa, and the term 'Mandela effect' did not yet exist; Jiang Heng only spoke of similar matters, evoking Wu Yanzu's agreement.

Actually, what he said cannot prove that the world is virtual.

On the contrary, being reborn and returned is very much like reloading a save and reviving in a game.

In the original history, Jiang Heng experienced his father's death and mother's remarriage in early 1997, inheriting a luxurious mansion of thousands of square feet in the Causeway Bay area, a luxury car, and over ten million in cash.

If he could hoard properties and become a landlord, he could live a carefree life, enjoying wealth and pleasure.

But unbeknownst to him, having fallen into some evil, he actually tried to direct and star in a film himself, and immediately lost his entire investment.

If he had promptly gone north to seek a way out, relying on his handsome appearance and his identity as an Xianggang actor, he also had a chance to become a big hit.

Instead, he stubbornly stayed in the Hong Kong film industry for over ten years; by the time he went to the mainland to develop, the opportunity was long gone, so he could only play bit parts in some low-budget film and TV works, and later even fell to shooting 'web big' productions.

Although his acting career had fallen to utter ruin, over these years he still managed to save up some wealth.

The houses he didn't want to buy were left unfinished, the heavily leveraged trust exploded, and the second round of heavy losses drove him to the point of wanting to jump off a building.

Jiang Heng went to the rooftop and sat there, spending the whole night thinking through his life.

Having lived forty years, drifting through half a lifetime, he had lost everything—family, career, kinship, love, property.

He didn't understand why, despite carefully planning his choices, he still walked the wrong path. He had worked hard to make a living, yet in the end he had nothing.

He drank beer, gave a wry smile, and asked the heavens, "You're playing me, aren't you?" but got no reply at all.

At dawn, after tossing away his cigarette butt and bottle and going downstairs to eat breakfast, he was hit by a flowerpot that fell from the sky.

His final thought was, "Holy shit, is the Grim Reaper here???"

When he woke up again, it was already early 1997.

His former memories felt like a nightmare; recalling the past, he increasingly felt that he lived like an NPC in a game.

He often idled about with nothing to do (not many acting jobs), staying year-round in the small map (Xianggang), modeling… well, he seemed even more handsome than before, to the point of lamenting, "Who is more beautiful, me or Yan Zu from the north of the city?"

What surprised him even more was that his mind now housed a Super Microcomputer, which could not only connect to reality but also had powerful self-driven simulation capabilities.

For example, an ordinary person's dream has a chaotic plot and blurry details.

But with this Super Microcomputer, scenes he had once seen could appear clearly in his dreams; even the scales of a flood dragon or the feathers of a phoenix could be simulated according to imagination and displayed clearly.

If he abandoned reality and became addicted to dreaming, he would be a god in the virtual world!

However, thinking of the decadent appearance of those addicted to dreaming in Inception, Jiang Heng felt that enjoying the real world was still better.

With the Super Microcomputer's help, not to mention becoming a film mogul or the nation's richest person, achieving a hundred or so small goals and enjoying wealth and honor is still possible.

The method is also simple: just make a special-effects blockbuster.

Although in 1997 the Xianggang film industry was gradually losing the Taiwan, Japanese, Korean, and Southeast Asian markets, making a blockbuster amounted to seeking one's own death, but he didn't have to spend money on special effects!

He only needed to find some low-paid new actors to finish their scenes, then add gorgeous, realistic special effects in post-production, and he could surely swindle (earn) some retirement money!

Combining his own experience, Jiang Heng, without much thought, settled on the classic sci-fi film The Matrix, and set his sights on Wu Yanzu, who had just graduated from university, come to Xianggang to travel, and work as a model.

Speaking of Wu Yanzu at this moment, he had no confidence whatsoever about making a film; he was studying architecture at the University of Oregon.

Just because an acquaintance introduced him, he couldn't directly refuse, so he thought he'd come over for a casual chat.

Unexpectedly, after hearing Jiang Heng outline the plot, his worldview was completely overturned, and he really wanted to join the crew; the amount of pay no longer mattered.

"Yan Zu, you're a newcomer; the crew's budget is limited, so we can only offer you 100,000 Hong Kong dollars. What do you think?"

"For a newcomer, that's already very generous!"

Wu Yanzu gave a simple, honest smile and said, "Should we ask for a star as the female lead?"

Jiang Heng smiled and slowly shook his head, saying, "She's also a newcomer!"

Wu Yanzu blinked, instantly feeling that this crew seemed unreliable—both the male and female leads are newcomers; how do you attract an audience, relying purely on the plot?

But he didn't know that the female lead in Jiang Heng's mind, who also had a connection to him, was Li Meiqi, whose English name is Maggie Q.

Li Meiqi is an Asian-American; in 1997 she first went to an island country to work as a model, but she encountered obstacles everywhere and soon went to Taiwan, where her development still wasn't going well.

In the original history, she only came to Xianggang in 1998, then appeared in several films, and rose to fame overnight thanks to Naked Weapon.

As for now, she is merely a low-tier little model, and finding her is also rather troublesome.

Fortunately, the entertainment and fashion circles of Xianggang and Taiwan are closely connected; asking around for help will eventually yield results.

Jiang Heng entrusted the request to Yuan De of the Seven Little Fortunes, namely the big bald head who played Yang Shuang in the film Ma Yongzhen.

This person's kung fu is superb, but his physique is overly thin, unable to bear the aura of a leading man; in his early years he also starred in a few films, later he retreated behind the scenes to become a martial arts instructor, and, together with Yuan Kui, won the Golden Horse Award for Best Action Choreography for Kung Fu Emperor Fong Sai-yuk.

He isn't famous, but his skills are not small, his connections are wide, and his pay is not high—truly perfect for the job.

Jiang Heng invited him to serve as the martial arts instructor and the main villain in The Matrix, the antivirus program Smith; with Yuan De's skill and the looks of Wu Yanzu and Li Meiqi, he expected the action scenes would not fall short of the original.

Once the male and female leads plus the main villain were set, the crew's outline was formed; as for art, props, lighting, cinematography, and production matters, those are easy to arrange.

At this moment, the Xianggang film market is sluggish, film output has plummeted, and there are plenty of film industry workers with nothing to do, so one can find people anytime, anywhere.

The only problem is not knowing when word will come from the female lead's side; if we can't find anyone, we really haven't figured out who would be a suitable replacement.

Just as he was pondering that, Yuan De called.

"Hey, Ah Heng, the matter you entrusted me with has some leads; come to the set for a detailed talk!"

Jiang Heng was overjoyed; after saying goodbye to Wu Yanzu, he drove to the Shaw Brothers lot on the Clear Water Bay Peninsula.

Here, in its heyday, there were over two thousand employees, fourteen soundstages, and several major directors working simultaneously.

But at this moment it appears somewhat desolate and dilapidated; few crews are active, and the one with the greatest fame is precisely Yuan De's crew—the Ma Yongzhen production.

(End of Chapter)