Chapter 93

Wang Jing is famous in the Hong Kong film circle as a 'quick draw', and his biggest characteristic when making films is speed.

line starts with dash, so it's a note, no Chinese to translate (except maybe the Chinese inside parentheses but it's already translated). We skip.

But we also have "Quickdraw" in quotes. We'll treat it as a nickname.

It is said that The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber: The Devil Cult Leader was filmed in only seven days, but due to its rough production and the overly subversive roles, it suffered a box‑office disaster, causing the planned sequel to be aborted.

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Yet years later, many wuxia fans have come to regard this film as a classic.

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At this moment, he is preparing to produce a film called Around the Atlantic as quickly as possible.

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After securing Lin Xiaoming's investment, Wang Jing did not immediately start preparing the crew; instead, he called Hong Jinbao.

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"Hey, big brother, do you have any time lately? Come play a role in my new film!"

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At this stage, Hong Jinbao will take almost any job that comes his way, so he asked, "What kind of film is it?"

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"A mecha‑type special‑effects blockbuster?"

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"You're still making special‑effects blockbusters, you're spoofing… I'm saying, Wang Pangzi, you wouldn't be trying to spoof Around the Pacific, would you?"

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Wang Jing chuckled and said, "Big brother, you guessed right—I've already secured 20 million in investment from Lin Xiaoming, the boss of Huan Tai, and I'm planning to cast Xie Tingfeng as the male lead."

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"You dead fatty, do your own dirty work and don't drag me into it!" he said, then promptly hung up.

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Hearing the dial tone on the phone, Wang Jing looked stunned and couldn't react for a moment.

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In the Hong Kong film scene, following trends and making spoofs is completely normal.

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Jiang Heng could make Around the Pacific, so why couldn't he do Around the Atlantic?

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If we want box‑office success, we're even planning to make Around the Indian Ocean and Around the Arctic Ocean!

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But I didn't expect Hong Jinbao's reaction to be so strong—it's nothing like before!

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He didn't realize that Hong Jinbao used to take on all kinds of roles back then because he truly had the clout, daring to take Cheng Long's idea and give it to Li Lianjie to film Western Region Hero Lion, all because their brother‑like bond was really solid.

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But his relationship with Jiang Heng isn't that solid.

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Besides, Around the Pacific has China Film's investment, so even if we're not afraid of offending Jiang Heng, we still have to consider China Film's reaction.

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Han San ye's reputation is no joke!

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Wang Jing's side didn't believe it, so he called Xie Tingfeng again, asking if he'd be willing to join a special‑effects blockbuster, but he didn't even mention the script's name.

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Xie Tingfeng didn't mind and just asked about the main plot.

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Wang Jing said that in the future world, a wormhole appears at the bottom of the Atlantic, and a monster emerges to attack an offshore oil field in the United Kingdom.

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The British Royal Navy was deployed to fight the monster, but the creature landed in the UK and repeatedly attacked several coastal towns, leaving the British police and army in disarray.

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The Minister of National Defense proposed launching a mecha program, recruiting pilots worldwide, and the male and female leads—who were studying at Oxford—were selected…

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Upon hearing this, Xie Tingfeng reacted, "This isn't just a spoof of Around the Pacific, is it?"

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Even his cameo in Around the Pacific came about through a recommendation.

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During filming, he got along well with Jiang Heng, and he also had some reputation at China Film.

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I was still thinking about future opportunities to work together—why would I go crazy making a spoof film and risk offending Jiang Heng and China Film?

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Xie Tingfeng, young and hot‑headed, didn't even bother with an excuse—he just hung up.

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Hey, Wang Jing's anger flared up after being turned down by two people in a row.

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You're all avoiding Jiang Heng for fear of offending China Film—well, I'll go find someone who isn't afraid of them.

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He immediately called Zeng Zhiwei; the old guy, upon hearing it was a spoof of Around the Pacific, laughed and said, "Oh, that's great—I like it! The female lead should be prettier, even more beautiful than Gao Yuanyuan!"

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Wang Jing laughed and agreed, then asked if there were any suitable male leads to recommend.

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Zeng Zhiwei chuckled and said, "You're being silly—Chen Zemin's son, the guy from Ninth Brother's family, is a handsome newcomer who just debuted and doesn't cost much; he couldn't be a better fit!"

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After a moment's thought, Wang Jing pictured a young, handsome face and exclaimed, "He really is a perfect fit!"

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He promptly hung up, contacted Yinghuang Entertainment, and the matter was quickly settled—preparations for the Around the Atlantic crew began.

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On Jiang Heng's side, he naturally heard that Wang Pangzi was planning to make Around the Atlantic, so he merely noted it down, intending to settle the score later.

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After all, it's really hard to draw a line between borrowing and plagiarism.

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Besides, he's quite busy now—the script for Splitting the Mountain to Save Mother is still being revised, the Hero crew has already started shooting, and he's waiting for his turn to film the Broken Sword scenes.

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Jiang Heng made some arrangements and then led his assistant team to the set.

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As it turned out, the first scene was a major showdown between Nameless and Broken Sword at the Lake Heart Pavilion.

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The shoot was extremely difficult, requiring both actors to perform wire work.

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Zhang Yimou had especially high standards for the final effect—every time a take failed, they had to wait for the lake surface to calm down before shooting again.

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I had thought that, lacking any martial‑arts background, Jiang Heng would need several days to get used to the wire work, but he went from complete novice to a seasoned performer in just over an hour.

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During breaks, many crew members gathered around Jiang Heng, showering him with praise.

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They said Jiang Heng's coordination and balance were truly outstanding—even if he didn't make movies and just did action films, he'd become a kung‑fu superstar.

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Li Lianjie wasn't just being polite; he truly felt he had never seen such talent.

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He couldn't help but ask, "How did you adapt so quickly?"

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Jiang Heng thought to himself, "It's obviously thanks to that super micro‑computer!"

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Because it has super‑strong computation and self‑deduction abilities, it can not only be used for special effects but also gives Jiang Heng's eyes powerful dynamic vision.

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In short, it's like seeing everything in slow motion, just like a cat.

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Of course, since his physical condition remains that of an ordinary person and he hasn't had any professional combat training.

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Jiang Heng estimates he's a bit stronger than the average person, but he still couldn't beat a boxer like Zhou Bilin or someone like Li Lianjie who trains martial arts year‑round.

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He laughed and said, "Maybe it's just innate!"

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"Your talent would be wasted if you didn't train in martial arts!" Li Lianjie said regretfully, because he understood just how important talent is.

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Jiang Heng laughed and said, "When I was a kid I just played around and never thought about this!"

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Li Lianjie said, "Honestly, your talent is one in a million—it's never too late to start training, by the way, how old are you?"

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"Um, born in 1980, so I'm 22."

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22?

Not only Li Lianjie, the people around all had astonished expressions.

Although I knew Jiang Heng wasn't old, I never imagined he'd be this young — the type who hasn't even graduated from college — yet he's already shot several international blockbusters and is a super‑wealthy billionaire worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Li Lianjie said: "At your age, it's never too late to learn martial arts! Are you interested? I'll teach you."

Seeing Jiang Heng hesitate, he added: "You don't even have to call me teacher — just come practice for fun!"

Having said that, he rose and performed a set of his best Flicking Fist, chuckling: "Want to give it a try?"

"Come on, try it, Director Jiang!" a girl called out.

"Come on!" a girl said in a sweet voice.

The atmosphere had reached this point, so Jiang Heng could only stand up, go to the center of the floor, close his eyes, and the image of Li Lianjie's just‑finished punches instantly appeared before him, clear and continuous.

After recalling it two or three times, he rose and performed a set, actually managing to execute it continuously, with every move correct, leaving the onlookers beside him stunned.

Li Lianjie had intended to praise him a bit and offer some pointers, but seeing Jiang Heng close his eyes and perform another round.

This time, his movements were smoother and more precise, matching his tall, straight posture and youthful, handsome face — he actually had the aura of a grand master, surpassing even his "Kung Fu Emperor" nickname.

"Holy shit, this is a one‑in‑a‑million absolute genius!"

(End of chapter)