1982 Started from Hong Kong

Chapter 265 Release
"Marketing is a neutral word. It is just to promote ourselves and let more people know about the two companies, 1024 and Entertainment."

Went through a short midnight show cycle.

On April 4, "God of Gamblers 15" was officially released in 2 and its affiliated cinema chains.

Zhai Yuan read the apology letter from the Independent Commission Against Corruption in the newspaper and opened his arms to let Zhou Huimin help him tidy up his clothes.

He then glanced at Shi Nansheng and others standing by and said with a smile, "Even an agency like the ICAC, which is always so high and mighty, has personally apologized to me. This time, the promotion of God of Gamblers 2 should be more effective than posting posters on the streets."

Wang Jin flattered him and said, "Mr. Zhai, good job. Old Lian is famous for his imperial privileges, just like the eunuchs of the East Factory. This time, you forced him to apologize in the newspaper."

"ICAC seems to have only been forced to apologize once in recent years for leaking the identity of a police informant." Shi Nansheng recalled the old news and looked up to ask Zhai Yuan: "How did Mr. Zhai do it?"

"How I did it is not important." Zhai Yuan said calmly, "The most important thing is that I did it."

"Makes sense!"

“That makes sense!”

"There is a level!"

In the office, a group of backbones and creative people echoed in agreement.

Wang Jin and Liu Zhenwei showed expressions of deep approval and enlightenment on their faces.

Shen Wei leaned against the door frame, pursed his lips, bit his cheek and looked serious, for fear that he would not be able to hold back his laughter and ruin his boss's show.

She threw a tantrum in the ICAC office, as expected of a housing estate worker, learning the tricks of the neighborhood gossips.

In the past, Lao Lian only arrested the elites of upper society, and had never seen a scoundrel like him.

"All right."

Zhou Huimin ignored the discussions around him and concentrated on helping Zhai Yuan tie his tie. She looked up and gave him a faint smile.

Zhai Yuan touched his neck and said, "I hate wearing this kind of ornament the most. It makes me look like a hanged ghost."

The head of the public relations department at the side said with a smile: "You still need to pay attention to your image. There have been a lot of negative opinions out there recently. Boss, if you go out listlessly in a shirt, shorts and slippers again, I'm afraid people will misunderstand you as a dragon chaser."

Everyone in the office laughed quietly.

A few days ago, Zhai Yuan was photographed yawning when he went out. A tabloid reporter who wanted to take advantage of the popularity said that he was addicted to chasing dragons, and then linked it to the fact that he sold his company in order to buy goods in the Golden Triangle.

At that time, Zhai Yuan suspected that this report was written by a fellow Taoist who was high on drugs. He probably thought that in the eyes of the fellow Taoist, chasing dragons was already a top-level consumption, otherwise the report would not have contained such words as "Zhai Yuan had to replace the tin foil used for chasing dragons with gold foil, and the syringe was made of pure gold."

Then he called Xu Jiaqiang and said, "Have someone find the person in charge of that newspaper. If you can't find any tinfoil or syringes in his house, you don't have to contact me anymore."

That evening, several sets of No. 4 heroin were found in the tabloid newspaper office. Everyone from the newspaper owner to the editor-in-chief to the editors were taken to the drug investigation department by enthusiastic people.

"It doesn't matter. Let them write whatever they want. I never bear grudges."

Zhai Yuan smiled disapprovingly, raised his wrist to check the time, put his arm around Zhou Huimin's waist and said to everyone, "It's almost time, let's go!"

A group of people followed one after another and walked out of the company, heading downstairs to the nearest Ngau Tau Kok 1024 Cinema.

…………

"Dear audience, behind me is the cinema at 1024 Ngau Tau Kok. A few hundred meters further east is the headquarters of Entertainment! It's a pity that I didn't see Mr. Zhai Yuan at today. I wonder if I'll bump into him at the cinema?"

Outside 1024 Cinema.

The female reporter from the wireless program team played a title clip to the camera and walked into the theater with the crew. The whole way was filled with audiences.

On the second floor of the theater, Ye Yuqing was dressed like a spy, wearing a baseball cap and holding a walkie-talkie.

Seeing the film crew walking into the hall, he said in a serious tone: "Attention, all units, there are reporters coming in, Group A approach, Group B support on the side..."

The president of Zhai Yuan’s fan club gave an order.

A group of young audiences around immediately stood up and moved closer to the film crew.

The TVB reporter was unaware that the people around him had changed. He pulled over a male audience member and asked, "Hello, audience member. Are you a member of the 1024 Cinema?"

Male audience: "No, I'm just a passerby."

Female reporter: "Excuse me, have you heard about the recent closure of this theater?"

Male audience member: "Of course I've heard of it, but I think it's just nonsense. People these days are easily incited. It's said that the owner of 1024 Cinema is a housing estate worker who worked his way up, so he's most concerned about the audience's feelings. Look at the decoration style of this cinema, it's completely different from the old-fashioned cinemas outside. He truly serves the customers wholeheartedly. However, his actions affect the interests of others. I'm not in a position to go into too much detail. Those who understand will understand, so it's natural that they will be slandered and defamed by rumors. I think anyone who believes such rumors must have a mental problem and can't think independently. Ms. Reporter, do you believe that 1024 is going to go bankrupt?"

Female reporter: "...I don't believe it either. What do you think, young lady?"

The camera turned to another female audience member.

The female audience member spoke in a coquettish voice: "First of all, I'd like to state that I'm just a passerby. I never knew this theater existed before, but after coming here this time, I found that it's luxuriously decorated and very suitable for young and fashionable girls like us to spend money. I have decided to apply for a membership card first. I heard that during the release of "God of Gamblers 2", not only will you get a % discount when you apply for a membership card, but you will also get a rare God of Gamblers playing cards, and you'll have the chance to get autographed photos of Anthony Wong and Chung Ho-hung..."

The female reporter quickly interrupted her speech. If she continued the live broadcast, she would definitely be fined by the Film Censorship Office for product placement.

It's strange. A few days ago, public opinion was overwhelmingly saying that Zhai Yuan was going to run away. Why was there a sudden reversal?
The female reporter was completely confused.

Ye Yuqing on the second floor snorted while biting bubble gum: On the territory of 1024, how can you spread negative news about my idol?
The first movie at noon has not started yet.

Actors led by Wan Ziliang and Zhong Chuhong also rushed to the theater to support the new movie.

The TVB crew interviewed several audience members, all of whom gave positive comments from casual passers-by. Then, when they saw the actors entering the venue one after another, they quickly moved the camera over.

The female reporter pushed aside the actor's fans and held up the microphone. "Brother Wan Zi, 'God of Gamblers 2' opens today. We see Gao Jin in the movie looking even more impressive than in the previous film. What do you want to say to the audience watching on TV?"

Wan Ziliang, who has been the leading actor in hit movies one after another, is in high spirits and smiles confidently: "Movies are all fake, Gao Jin is a fictional character, there is no such thing as the God of Gamblers in real life, I hope the children in front of the TV will not get infected with this bad habit~"

The female reporter then asked Chung Chu-hung: "Ms. Chung, you are now the most popular actress in 91 Entertainment. This time you are working with the company's top star Wan Ziliang. Both of you are single. Did you have any romantic sparks outside of the film?"

As soon as this question was asked, the audience around immediately started to boo.

Chung Chu-hung smiled and said: "Of course there were sparks. We had to install reactive bombs for several gun battles in this drama, so sparks flew everywhere during the filming."

Then came the interviews with other supporting actors.

From Chen Baixiang to Mei Yanfang, they took turns according to their seniority and fame.

Finally, the microphone was passed to 12-year-old Fan Shaohuang.

"Xiaolu, how do you feel about acting in a movie for the first time?"

"No, I've been in the industry since I was two years old and have acted in six movies. Haven't you seen Cheng Dieyi in Farewell My Concubine?"

As soon as Fan Shaohuang opened his mouth, he shocked the audience around him. It turned out that this little child star entered the industry earlier than big stars like Wan Ziliang and Zhong Chuhong.

"So what's different about this shoot compared to the previous ones?"

"In the past, I played roles of children who were bullied. My classmates who knew me thought I was weak, but this time I play a character who is smarter than adults. They will definitely think I am very powerful."

The crowd watching burst into laughter.

After interviewing a circle of actors, the topic finally came back to Zhai Yuan.

The female reporter from TVB asked, "There have been some rumors recently that are not friendly to 91 Entertainment. If the company really goes bankrupt, what plans will Brother Wan Zi and Miss Zhong have?"

Wan Ziliang played dumb and said, "What rumors? I've never heard of them, so how can I answer you?"

Zhong Chuhong smiled and said, "I've heard of that, but why should we assume that? The boss of Jiuyi is Mr. Zhai. It is well known that he can write any script and make over 10 million at the box office. He is a well-known genius. It is impossible for him to be as short-sighted as the rumors say..."

"So Miss Zhong thinks so highly of me. She is right. How can I be so shortsighted when my name is Zhai Yuan?"

Behind him, Zhai Yuan walked into the theater surrounded by Wang Jin and others, and winked at Zhong Chuhong across the crowd: "Don't worry, even for a confidant like you, I will continue to work hard to make the company bigger and stronger~"

In the 1024 home court, Zhai Yuan's appearance caused more sensation than that of Wan Ziliang and other stars combined.

The theater audience swarmed over.

This time it was not the female reporter's turn to ask questions, but Zhai Yuan's fans couldn't wait to speak first.

"Mr. Zhai looks so handsome today."

"'Blue and White Porcelain' is very nice, and I chose this song for my school performance."

"Teacher Zhai, thank you for your hard work in filming God of Gamblers 2!"

"Brother Yuan, is your depression better? We all care about you." "Ayuan, you have to eat on time~"

In the 1980s, the distinction between actors and stars was unclear, and the fan economy had not yet emerged, but under Zhai Yuan's management, he already had a group of fans.

Including but not limited to career fans, girlfriend fans, mom fans...

Zhai Yuan smiled and greeted his fans: "First of all, I want to say thank you for making 1024, the best theater in Hong Kong, have the best audience. And to those who have been paying close attention and trying their best to discredit us, please say those six words to them in front of the camera. Do you know what they are?"

A group of fans faced the TVB crew's camera and said in unison: "Please lower your voice (your mother's stinky thing)!"

The female reporter from TVB turned green in the face.

Live broadcast, bro!
…………

In the cinema, "God of Gamblers 2" officially opened.

The lights dimmed and the screen lit up.

Accompanied by exciting background music.

The logo of Sanhe Film Company appeared on the screen.

At the beginning of the film, it is still a big scene full of gimmicks.

A helicopter hovered over the city, and in case the audience didn't understand that the film was shot abroad, it was specially marked with the eye-catching words "Paris, France".

Long Wu, played by Xu Jiaqiang, gets off the helicopter and enters a luxury house. At this point, the filming location has actually changed to Hong Kong.

The scene changed, and Long Wu walked into the mansion and nodded to Wen Rou, played by Chen Lan, who was sitting on the sofa.

The camera follows a gentle gaze as Wan Ziliang, who plays the gambling god Gao Jin, paints an oil painting in a corner of the living room. The painting shows him and his wife tenderly holding a swaddled baby.

Zhai Yuan looked at the gently bulging pregnant belly on the screen, and thought that if this scene was filmed later, Chen Lan wouldn't even have to act as a pregnant woman, and could just "act with her natural belly".

"Didn't the God of Gamblers' wife die in the last movie?"

"Maybe Gao Jin married another woman who looks the same. Now she even has a baby. She will definitely not die this time."

The audience murmured.

Zhai Yuan exchanged glances with the main creators including Wang Jin beside him, and malicious smiles appeared in their eyes.

On the screen, the three characters Gao Jin, Long Wu and Wen Rou are having a conversation.

Long Wu: "I haven't seen you for four years. You've gained more than ten pounds."

Gao Jin: "The soup is good! My wife got the wrong ingredients and gave me all the fat. I guess when the baby is born, I will become a big fat guy, right, honey?"

Wenrou: "If you become a fat man, I won't want you~"

Zhou Huimin sat next to Zhai Yuan. Seeing the dim light, she gently leaned her head on his shoulder and asked, "What if I become a fat woman?"

Zhai Yuan pretended to frown and said, "That's not good. You occupy my heart even though you are so thin now. If you get fatter, won't you be stuck inside and unable to get out?"

Zhou Huimin was stunned for a moment when she heard that, then she laughed and moved a little closer to him.

The male compatriots around him, including Wang Jin, Wu Yusen, Liu Zhenwei, etc., all looked at Zhai Yuan with surprise in their eyes, saying "Wow, it can be like this!"

Zhai Yuan met their gazes and sneered, his eyes revealing the calmness of a "learning kid".

In the timeline of the original film "God of Gamblers 2", Andy Lau's Gambler and Stephen Chow's Gambler have already become successful.

However, the role of God of Gamblers has now been given to Tony Leung Ka Fai, and the Saint of Gamblers is still playing a minor role as the host of a children's program on TVB, so the lines on the screen naturally have to be cut accordingly.

Long Wu: "Gambling devil Chen Jincheng is out of prison."

Gao Jin: "I know that he is hanging out with that Taiwan guy named Qiu Xiaochi. They have been looking for me for the past few months, but I ignored them."

Long Wu: "Qiu Xiaochi is ruthless and cruel, you have to be careful, I heard that he has come to Europe."

Gao Jin: "Not necessarily looking for me."

Long Wu: "It must be."

The scene changes.

Several cars led the way.

In the previous episode, Bao Hanlin played the role of Chen Jincheng, the gambling king of Xingjiapo, who made a friendly guest appearance and talked with Qiu Xiaochi, played by Chen Guobing, while sitting in the car.

Chen Jincheng: "Mr. Qiu, the God of Gamblers lives in the ranch in front."

In order to film this movie, Lin Guobing cut off his fashionable thick bangs, shaved his head into a slightly mature buzz cut, and played the role of a big boss with a serious expression.

In line with Qiu Xiaochi's identity as a native of Taiwan, his voice-over in the film was changed to Mandarin, and he held up a photo and asked, "Is this what the God of Gamblers is like?"

Chen Jincheng: “Yes, he never takes pictures.”

Qiu Xiaochi: "I've followed Mr. Zhu for so many years, but he still doesn't trust me and handed over the 1.6 billion US dollars of the World Children's Charity Fund to outsiders..."

The commercial film has a fast pace. Within the first few minutes and just a few lines of dialogue, the main conflict of "God of Gamblers 2" has been clearly explained.

Then comes the first famous scene in the film.

While Gao Jin and Long Wu were still practicing shooting in the shooting competition, Qiu Xiaochi had already led his men into Gao Jin's mansion.

After a chaotic gunfight, Qiu Xiaochi left calmly.

Gao Jin and Long Wu worked closely together to eliminate the remaining killers and found his wife Wenrou on a table in a guest room.

"I lost it!"

"Top you a lung!"

"Director, I'll fuck your mother!"

The audience in the theater immediately burst into curses.

Wang Jin silently shrank his neck and rolled up his collar to cover his face.

On the screen.

Wenrou, played by Chen Lan, was lying flat on the table, her pregnant belly was cut open, and the already formed fetus was soaked in a jar of formalin.

Wenrou, who was still breathing, said weakly: "Ah Jin, there are mountains that are higher than the other. I want you to promise me that you will not admit that you are the God of Gamblers within a year, and you will not gamble with others within a year. You have been out of the arena for four years and worked so hard, why do you want to go back..."

This line of dialogue is a completely forced setting. If you think about it carefully, there is no logic. However, the scene is too tragic, which invisibly weakens the audience's demand for rationality.

Then, Gao Jin spoke another famous line in front of his wife's body: "Arou, no normal person in this world can beat me, except Zhang Baocheng from Yanjing. He is the only one who has changed my cards once. I will definitely avenge you in a year..."

Everyone stared at the screen intently.

Zhai Yuan was sitting in the audience. He looked at his watch several times and sighed softly.

Zhou Huimin asked curiously: "What's wrong?"

Zhai Yuan said helplessly: "I have an appointment to discuss business at 12 o'clock. It's already 11:30. I'm afraid I won't be able to make it... But for the sake of watching a movie with you, forget it. It's just a loss of a few million!"

Zhou Huimin immediately said anxiously when she heard this: "Then hurry over!"

Zhai Yuan was entangled and said, "But what if I can't accompany you?"

Zhou Huimin blushed and said, "There will be plenty of time in the future, so go and get busy with your work."

Zhai Yuan then reluctantly stood up, kissed Zhou Huimin on the mouth, and walked out of the theater reluctantly.

As soon as you go out!

Walk like flying!

Zhai Yuan jumped into the pickup truck parked at the door and dialed Zhou Haimei's number directly: "Hello, cousin, I have dealt with my affairs here. Where are you? I'm here to pick you up now..."

(End of this chapter)