Chapter 147: Stand in Line, Press the Elevator, Can't Find the Hollywood Door (5k)

In just an instant, all the reporters present widened their eyes in unison, utterly unable to snap out of Zhou Yi's words—

Sun Yanzi, reacting the fastest, instinctively felt something was wrong. She grabbed Zhou Yi's right hand and tried to rush forward, her face stern as she raised her hand and shouted, "Make way, make way, please let us through—ah!"

"Zhou Yi! Is this statement your response to Chow Yun-fat?!"

"Zhou Yi, what do you mean by saying this? Do you look down on Chow Yun-fat?!"

"Zhou Yi, may I ask if you have some unknown conflict with Chow Yun-fat?!"

"Zhou Yi—"

The reporters surged forward, each one wildly excited. Sun Yanzi, who had been trying to pull Zhou Yi away from the scene first, not only failed to get out but was instead slammed full-force by the surging crowd, stumbling backward several steps as her balance was instantly lost—

"Conflict? You'll have to ask Chow Yun-fat about that."

With one arm around Sun Yanzi, Zhou Yi, under the bright lights of the lobby, casually took out his phone. After sending messages to Fan Bingbin and the others still upstairs, as well as to Ren Quan who had been pushed away, he faced the cameras and laughed: "It's a pity that the God of Gamblers, Gao Jin, whom I loved as a child, was ultimately just the God of Gamblers, Gao Jin, not Chow Yun-fat."

Under Sun Yanzi's horrified gaze, Zhou Yi, with one arm still around her, forcefully "bashed" a path through the wall of wildly excited reporters before him.

"Zhou Yi, does your statement mean that Chow Yun-fat truly looks down on you in private?! But Chow Yun-fat has already denied it, saying it was just a reporter from 'Next Magazine' taking things out of context; he was merely drunk that night and didn't mean that."

"Chow Yun-fat has denied many things. I suggest you check the news or ask 'Next Magazine' if they have any documentary backup. I believe 'Next Magazine' would be very happy to provide evidence."

Seeing that the reporters were still holding microphones up to him, Zhou Yi didn't mind adding a few more words: "If Chow Yun-fat has spent half a lifetime in the entertainment industry and still doesn't understand that the most powerful way to deny rumors is to directly sue the accuser in court for the corresponding charge, then my advice is to learn from me. I won't charge him tuition."

"You can go back and ask him: does he dare to sue?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

Ruthless!

He is so ruthless!

Zhou Yi's blatant, fatal blow tore the last shred of decency from Chow Yun-fat's apology statement to pieces. The reporters, who had come to block Zhou Yi's path hoping to scoop a major story, were so desperate they almost knelt right there, calling Zhou Yi "Dad," begging him not to leave, and suggesting they just hold a press conference on the spot.

Meanwhile, Fan Bingbin and the others, who had received Zhou Yi's message and hadn't left the KTV, listened to Ren Quan, sweating profusely, describe the scene outside. They all exchanged glances—

"That's Chow Yun-fat! Saying such things in private is one thing, but publicly escalating the conflict like this, is it really okay?" Lu Yi, who always wore a smile, couldn't smile this time.

That was Chow Yun-fat. Even if his attempt to break into Hollywood failed, he still held considerable influence in the Hong Kong entertainment industry.

Zhou Xun, leaning by the window nearby, looked down at Zhou Yi below, who was struggling to break through the heavy encirclement of reporters step by step. Her lively eyes were full of admiration, and her tone carried a hint of emotion: "Youth is good."

Hearing this, Lu Yi and Ren Quan were utterly baffled.

Zhou Xun is only 27 this year; isn't she a young person herself?

"Don't mention Chow Yun-fat; even if it were Qiong Yao, he would have the same attitude."

Fan Bingbin, also pacing to the window, rested her head sideways against the wall ledge, looking down at the man with a straight spine below, a smile playing on her lips.

Lu Yi, who suddenly recalled that when he first met Zhou Yi in Taiwan last year, Fan Bingbin was still by his side, immediately shut his mouth—

It really seems that way.

Qiong Yao's status in the entertainment industry is indeed higher than Chow Yun-fat's, plus she has that high-minded identity as a literary figure.

Qiong Yao dramas are comparable in fame to Jin Yong dramas.

Ren Quan, who didn't know what had happened in Taiwan last year, couldn't understand the exchange among the people in front of him; he only felt utterly shocked—

This was somewhat different from his long-held perception of mainland celebrities.

Or rather, Zhou Yi had shattered the perception in his mind.

"Are you crazy? No matter how annoyed you are, you shouldn't say such things in public. Do you know this could bring you a lot of trouble?"

"Tomorrow, newspapers will be flooded with news about you and Chow Yun-fat. The heat on this matter had already died down. Don't forget you have the Hong Kong Celebrity Charity Football Match coming up. Hong Kong celebrities."

Sun Yanzi, whom Zhou Yi had protected into the car, sat in the driver's seat. Watching the man push away the reporters, close the car door, and step on the accelerator, she was deeply puzzled at that moment.

Facing the woman's worried accusation, Zhou Yi tilted his head toward her with an ambiguous expression: "Is this the first day you've known me?"

"..."

Sun Yanzi's breath was instantly choked back into her throat. She gripped the steering wheel, staring straight ahead, her mouth open but unable to utter the next sentence.

Facts proved that Sun Yanzi's worry was not unfounded.

There was no need to wait until the next day; even while the two were driving back to the Warner Building, all the major and minor newspapers across Hong Kong received this explosive news.

The gossip magazine 'Eastern Weekly' also obtained the first-hand information. After hesitating for a moment, they immediately contacted the boss behind the scenes, Albert Yeung—

"What did you say?!"

"Ah Yi publicly blasted Chow Yun-fat?!"

Warner (Hong Kong) Building, Qian Jiang's office.

Qian Jiang, who was helping Zhou Yi prepare his graduation EP, nearly jumped off the sofa upon hearing the news: "Didn't anyone stop him?! Ah Yi is willful, but are you willful too?!"

"Zhou Yi went to sing KTV and refused us to follow. He usually doesn't use bodyguards, just a personal assistant to handle daily trivialities."

"... Alright, go tell the PR department first. All the press releases originally prepared to accept Chow Yun-fat's apology statement are now void."

Qian Jiang closed his eyes and rubbed his temples for a while before adding: "Also, tell them to buy up all of Chow Yun-fat's dirt for me. Buy as much as there is."

"Okay."

Sigh, what a sin!

Sitting in his office, Qian Jiang looked up, staring at the ceiling above, feeling a bit of a headache.

This is not like Qiong Yao last year; at least Qiong Yao didn't publicly tear up the relationship.

No matter what, Chow Yun-fat is one of the representative figures of the golden age of the Hong Kong entertainment industry. He is someone you simply cannot bypass when discussing that history. Over so many years, he has accumulated quite a few connections and resources.

He even dared to publicly mock Jackie Chan at the Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony; it's not certain he would bow to Zhou Yi after publicly tearing up the relationship.

And Chow Yun-fat, upon hearing this news, was indeed furious.

"What does he mean? What does he mean? I already said it was taken out of context in private, and I issued an apology statement. What does he mean?"

At Chow Yun-fat's home, after his wife and manager, Annie Chen, immediately came to inform him of this news, Chow Yun-fat nearly dropped the tea set in his hand: "Some country bumpkin still wants to turn the sky upside down?!"

Facing her husband's anger, Chen Chen Huilian sighed: "Warner has spoiled him too much."

"Warner is formidable, but I, Chow Yun-Fat, am not made of mud."

Since achieving fame and success, Chow Yun-Fat had never been ridden over the face by such a junior; he only felt his face was thrown to the ground and trampled, and trampled by a young mainland fellow at that.

"Zhou Yi is still young after all; it's normal that he can't swallow this indignity."

Chen Chen Huilian analyzed calmly: "How about I help you contact Warner again to see if we can sit down and have a proper talk?"

"Who hasn't been young? Who hasn't suffered hardships and wrongs when young? Young people don't follow any rules." Chow Yun-Fat, who even dared to publicly mock Jackie Chan at the height of his fame, kept cursing: "Coming from the mainland is just coming from the mainland."

Even if Warner Music is strong, it's just so-so in Hong Kong; it's not a monopoly. Do you really think Warner's words carry weight in Hong Kong? If they were truly that strong, they wouldn't have fallen to the verge of dropping out of the first-tier market before Zhou Yi and Sun Yanzi.

"I'll release a press statement saying those media outlets indeed misinterpreted your original intent, claiming Zhou Yi misunderstood you."

Seeing her husband was still fuming, Chen Chen Huilian could only say that first. Chow Yun-Fat nodded, then got up and followed his wife to the company.

But just as they arrived downstairs at the company, despite a crowd of bodyguards, the media reporters waiting in ambush surged up like a tide—

"Brother Fat, Brother Fat, what do you think about Zhou Yi saying you are not worthy of being Gao Jin?"

"Brother Fat, Zhou Yi said he only calls you 'Brother' to give you face; what do you have to say to that?"

"Brother Fat, Zhou Yi said your lies are so thick that debunking rumors is worse than not debunking them, saying if you don't know how to debunk rumors, you can pay tuition and learn from him—"

"..."

"First, I feel there must be some misunderstanding here."

After stopping the bodyguards who wanted to push people, Chow Yun-Fat faced the cameras with his usual smile: "Zhou Yi is still young; young people are easily confused by rumors from gossip weeklies and are prone to impulsiveness. I understand that; who hasn't been young?"

"I spent most of my life learning how to be a star. Zhou Yi is currently only—unless I'm mistaken, his birthday is in December, which means he hasn't even turned twenty yet; he is still very young."

"But..."

Dense questions rained down on Chow Yun-Fat like hail, and his answers became a series of responses published in newsstands across every street and alley in Hong Kong—

"Zhou Yi Bombs Three Thousand Miles! Brother Fat Subtly Mocks He's Too Young!"

"Young and Impetuous! Controversial Little King Zhou Yi Causes Trouble Again!"

"Zhou Yi Tears Apart Brother Fat! Brother Fat's Wife Tears Up!"

"..."

When the newspapers and magazines rushed out with overtime work were almost entirely about this sudden quarrel between Zhou Yi and Chow Yun-Fat, the entire Hong Kong, and even the entire Taiwan and mainland, fell into shock!

This is Chow Yun-Fat!

The idol of an entire generation; how many people's youth was Gao Jin and Little Brother Ma?

No one is perfect; he just drank some alcohol and complained to friends privately about his frustrations, and commented on you, Zhou Yi, from the perspective of an elder. How can you not tolerate even a bit of grievance?

How can one be a star like this?

The connections Chow Yun-Fat had built over decades in the entertainment industry were mobilized at this moment, instantly shifting the public opinion's tide into an offensive, washing Chow Yun-Fat clean as an unintentional mistake. This made Zhou Yi, who reported the truth, appear somewhat narrow-minded, relying on his own fame and refusing to let go even when in the right.

"Brother Fat has publicly apologized, saying it was just an unintentional mistake after drinking. Are you, Zhou Yi, just looking for an opportunity to step on Brother Fat to promote yourself?"

Zhou Yi's fans fought back fiercely: "What kind of dog thing are you, Chow Yun-Fat, to dare spray on my Warner Crown Prince?! You even hire people to smear him behind his back; if you have the guts, come out and face him yourself?! You're just a rat hiding in a gutter!"

"Warner Crown Prince? The brains of fans who like Zhou Yi, such an arrogant man, are sick. I think Brother Fat's evaluation was correct; he knows people well. Look at Zhou Yi's arrogance during interviews; isn't he just ignorant of the heavens' height and the earth's thickness?"

"Agreed. Brother Fat has struggled in the entertainment industry for so many years and is called the Son of Hong Kong. What is Zhou Yi to dare speak to Brother Fat like that?"

"He's just a soft-rice man who rose to power through women; in the beginning, with no works at all, he directly spread rumors with Elva Hsiao."

"Warner doesn't know how much marketing they invested in him; heaven knows what this man paid behind the scenes."

"He's just a marketing guy who only knows how to make false accusations, and he even forcibly made false accusations against Xie Tingfeng."

"..."

Chow Yun-Fat's fans' crazy abusive letters flew towards Warner like snowflakes; even Zhou Yi himself wanted to laugh when he saw them.

"Don't be angry, A-Yi. Leave this matter to the company's PR department; there are plenty of dark secrets on Chow Yun-Fat."

On July 30, Zhou Jianhui, who had originally rushed over for the soundtrack of "Rush Hour 2," happened to catch this sudden incident and immediately started the fight without a second word.

What happens to Chow Yun-Fat doesn't matter; Zhou Yi is his treasure.

One must distinguish between primary and secondary.

"No, no, no. Having the PR department handle this kind of thing is meaningless."

To the surprise of Zhou Jianhui, Qian Jiang, and Sun Yanzi, Zhou Yi rejected this proposal: "PR departments digging up each other's dark secrets will only muddy the waters, and in the end, he will just let it slide and get away with it."

Essentially, Chow Yun-Fat didn't break the law at all; there is no way to find fault with him legally.

In a place like Hong Kong, Chow Yun-Fat's marketing ability is no worse than Warner's; otherwise, how would the so-called "Son of Hong Kong" have come about?

Moreover, there are still many people in Hong Kong who, like Chow Yun-Fat, look down on Zhou Yi; these people will also help muddy the waters behind the scenes.

"A-Yi, what do you mean?"

Qian Jiang hesitated somewhat; based on his understanding of Zhou Yi, he didn't seem like the type willing to suffer grievances.

It was impossible for Zhou Yi to be scolded by Chow Yun-Fat and not retort, let alone the fact that the latter only contacted Warner to issue an apology press statement and hadn't even apologized to Zhou Yi personally.

"I'll do it myself."

Zhou Yi rubbed his fingernails and smiled with a playful expression: "Since he looks down on me, a mainland person, and refuses to apologize to me, and still wants to wash himself clean, then let's drag him down to play together."

"It's so boring for paid trolls to argue; if we argue, the main characters must get involved. Since I'm getting involved, does he still want to escape and earn a reputation? Dream on."

Sun Yanzi looked completely confused: "Zhou Yi, what do you mean?"

"Hold a press conference; I'll respond to how Chow Yun-Fat can be a qualified star."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Qian Jiang frowned: "Zhou Yi, what do you want to do? Don't do anything reckless."

As an agent, he felt he must be the most powerless agent in the world; the artist under his management, Zhou Yi, simply didn't listen to him, yet he was helpless about it.

"You're overthinking it. I just came to teach Chow Yun-fat how to argue properly to be a qualified star."

Zhou Yi curled his lip, speaking with disdain.

Since you don't want to apologize and just want to fight, then fight to your heart's content. What does it mean to hide behind the water army and refuse to come down to the field for so long?

Since Chow Yun-fat claims to be an international superstar, let him teach Chow Yun-fat the advanced version of how international superstars fight—by coming down to the field personally.

July 31, 2001, Tuesday, 14:30, sunny.

The Warner official press conference announced on the afternoon of the 30th was held as scheduled. Facing the eyes and lenses below, Zhou Yi, Zhou Jianhui, and Qian Jiang stepped onto the main podium.

"Zhou Yi, may I ask if you are holding this press conference to clarify the dispute between yourself and Brother Fat?"

"Dispute? No, no, no, you're mistaken. There has never been a dispute between him and me. Didn't he say that young and impetuous people don't know how to be stars, implying in every word that he is unwilling to take me, someone who doesn't know how to be a star, seriously?"

Zhou Yi smiled: "I am holding this press conference to apologize to him."

"Apologize?"

"Apologize?"

Apologize? He's backing down?

The reporters below couldn't help but look at each other upon hearing these words.

Brother Fat is still Brother Fat after all; even though Zhou Yi has become so popular—

"Yes, an apology. After listening to Mr. Chow Yun-fat's teaching, I specifically went to admire his great artistic career and worked hard to learn from him how to be a good star."

Ignoring the murmurs below, Zhou Yi leaned back tactically, his gaze sweeping over the crowd below. Facing the lenses, the corners of his mouth turned up: "Then, I discovered I cannot do it."

"Because I really cannot do it every day, dressing up brightly to stand guard at the door and press the elevator for people."

—?!

Holy crap!

Holy crap!!!

What kind of apology is this?!

Upon hearing these words, the reporters below instantly widened their eyes, looking in disbelief at the young man on stage who seemed to fear nothing.

"Zhou Yi, what do you mean by saying this? Are you mocking Brother Fat? Didn't you say you were going to apologize to him?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi nodded: "That's right. Isn't this an apology?"

"..."

Zhou Jianhui and Qian Jiang, standing nearby, struggled to keep their faces stern, maintaining a serious expression.

"However, at the recent Golden Horse Awards ceremony, Mr. Chow Yun-fat said that for a female actress to become an international star, she needs to be obedient and listen to instructions."

"I think he must have said it wrong."

At the moment when the reporters' collective brain CPUs were fried, Zhou Yi casually pointed to the big screen, and a series of old documents immediately appeared behind him—

"From the perspective of his personal artistic career, what is most needed to become an international star is to learn how to stand guard at the door and press the elevator."

"Oh, no, I seem to have misunderstood. It seems Mr. Chow Yun-fat was swept out of Hollywood with a broom in a disgraceful manner."

Zhou Yi, who had directly unleashed his ultimate move at the press conference, chuckled lightly when mentioning this: "His personal understanding and actual behavior both seem to be wrong. No wonder he can't become an international superstar; could it be that he can't find where the door to Hollywood is?"

—?!

Following Zhou Yi's words, Warner directly pulled up several of Chow Yun-fat's movies in Hollywood that suffered box office disasters, and very thoughtfully highlighted the loss figures in red.

Killing the person and piercing the heart!!!

PS: A bit late, editing took some time. Originally it was three chapters totaling over six thousand words, but after cutting and cutting, it became five thousand words.

(End of this chapter)