Is Huang Feihong really like this?

Her fear stemmed not from what she heard, but from the realization that they expected her to experience the same life.

—Margaret Atwood, *Life Before Mankind*, 1979

……

Hong Kong, Shaw Brothers Studio.

The various photography studios were filled with the sounds of "ping-pong" and "hahaha" as well as strange shouts.

"Click!"

"Alright, let's take a break!"

Executive director Xu Xiaoming shouted into the walkie-talkie, then said to the production crew, "Hand out the boxed lunches, eat them and keep filming. We need to catch up on the work and see if we can schedule a Christmas release."

"That's basically impossible!" A thin, somewhat monkey-like young man next to him sighed.

This man was Yuan Heping.

Last year, his films "Snake in the Eagle's Shadow" and "Drunken Master" were huge hits, making Jackie Chan, the lead actor, and investor Ng See-yuen a fortune, while he, the director, only received a fixed salary.

He was naturally somewhat resentful, so this year he founded the Peace Film Production Company.

He is currently filming his company's debut work, "Buddha's Palm Arhat Fist," which has a very clichéd plot of learning martial arts and seeking revenge.

He lacked confidence in directing alone, so he brought in Xu Xiaoming, who worked as a screenwriter and director at RTV.

Xu Xiaoming is a man of both literary and martial talents. Although he is only 26 years old this year, he has been practicing martial arts since childhood. He started working as a stuntman at the age of 13 and became a martial arts instructor at the age of 17. He has already made a name for himself in the industry.

He joined RTV (Rediffusion Television) in 1973 and became a popular leading man. In 1976, he transitioned to behind-the-scenes work, becoming a director and producer. During this period, he also released records, which sold quite well.

Xu Xiaoming was taken aback: "Why?"

Yuan Heping shook his head: "Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest both have several films in reserve, just waiting for the Christmas season."

"That's true." Xu Xiaoming lowered his head and murmured, "If this film is postponed any further, the hype will have died down by then, and I'm afraid it won't sell much at the box office."

Yuan Heping shared this concern; he was simply capitalizing on the buzz surrounding "Drunken Master" to make some money. If the release is postponed until next year, it's uncertain whether it will still generate the same level of interest.

"It's okay. As long as I don't lose money, I can make another 'Snake in the Eagle' or 'Drunken Master'."

Yuan Heping said, trying to comfort himself.

"You're missing a big nose (Jackie Chan)!"

Xu Xiaoming shook his head and muttered, "He's incredibly famous now, everyone in Hong Kong is fighting over him. Golden Harvest even wrote him a check for a million dollars, and that kid printed it out and flaunts it in front of us every day."

Yuan Heping's face showed worry: "I'm afraid Luo Wei won't release them; they're a cash cow!"

"No way, Golden Harvest offered over four million." Xu Xiaoming looked puzzled. "What kind of newcomer is Luo Wei? Doesn't he know his own limitations? Big Nose has been flopping with him, but he became famous after filming one or two movies. How could he possibly hold onto Big Nose? He doesn't have that ability."

"We don't need to worry about Big Nose. With Jiahe around, he'll be fine."

Yuan Heping waved his hand and sighed, "As for us, if we fail this time, the company will have to close down and go bankrupt."

Xu Xiaoming asked, "So what do you plan to do?"

Yuan Heping gritted his teeth and said seriously, "While the popularity of 'Drunken Fist' is still there and there are still bosses willing to invest money, you should write a script about Wong Fei-hung for me. Even if it doesn't become a huge hit, we can still make a fortune."

"Big Eyes, you're really confused." Xu Xiaoming shook his head, showing a regretful expression: "Once 'Drunken Fist' became popular, more than a dozen similar scripts have already come out. Not to mention Wong Fei-hung, there are drunk dogs, drunk monkeys, drunk sticks... the list goes on and on."

Yuan Heping was certainly aware of this situation. That's just how the Hong Kong film industry is. Whatever becomes popular, everyone rushes to make films on that subject until the subject matter is completely exhausted.

Xu Xiaoming sighed deeply: "The station leaders are urging me to write a martial arts TV series, and I'm having a headache about it too. I can't help you with that."

"Wow, that's awesome!"

"This is the real Wong Fei-hung!"

"Exactly! Beating up foreigners, killing Qing dogs... how satisfying!"

"..."

"Hey, what are you guys talking about?" Xu Xiaoming heard several stuntmen shouting something not far away, so he went over to ask.

One of the stuntmen grinned and said, "Reading martial arts novels, huh?"

"How many words do you even know? All you do is read novels!" Xu Xiaoming snapped irritably.

These days, most martial arts practitioners drop out of school after only a few years of education and start their careers; many are completely illiterate.

"Hey, Ming, don't talk to me like that," the stuntman said somewhat unhappily. "I did finish third grade, so I know all the characters I'm supposed to know. Those guys are the illiterate ones; I have to read to them."

Xu Xiaoming reached out: "What are you looking at? Let me see it."

The stuntman had no choice but to hand over the paper in his hand.

"Foshan Literature and Art?" Xu Xiaoming was immediately taken aback when he saw the newspaper in his hand: "Where did you get this?"

"It was carried by a northerner who fled to Hong Kong; it was used to hold his money."

The stuntman replied, "His money was stolen by a gambling addict, and he threw the newspaper on the ground. I was planning to use that newspaper to wipe my butt."

"The invincible benevolent Wong Fei-hung?"

Xu Xiaoming glanced through the short stories, but found them to be of low quality and had no interest in them. He focused his attention solely on the long novels serialized on the front page.

He was captivated after reading only ten or so lines.

This novel is so insightful!

Was Wong Fei-hung really like this?

Wuxia novels can be written like this!

Xu Xiaoming, being a screenwriter himself, naturally recognized its quality: "It's so well written! Big Eyes, come and take a look!"

Hearing the shout, Yuan Heping immediately jogged over: "What's wrong?"

"Take a look at this novel!" Xu Xiaoming handed over the Foshan Literature and Art magazine.

He glanced at it and couldn't help but mutter, "Huang Feihong? Another piece of trashy fiction from some tabloid jumping on the bandwagon!"

"This is different!" Xu Xiaoming pointed out, "This is a magazine from mainland China!"

Yuan Heping was startled and immediately began to read carefully.

After reading for a while, he became increasingly surprised: "Have martial arts novels in mainland China developed to this point? Weren't they only unbanned last year?"

"That place is vast and rich in resources, with many talented people, and naturally, many geniuses!"

Xu Xiaoming remarked with a touch of emotion, "I often tell you guys that things will develop over there eventually, but you never believed me. The scope of this novel completely surpasses that of a large number of writers from Hong Kong and Taiwan!"

"Grand in scale, magnificent in imagination, with a plot full of twists and turns, incredibly captivating—truly a genius!"

Yuan Heping finished reading quickly and asked in surprise, "What happened next? What happened after Baozhilin burned down? Was Huang Feihong alright? Was Aunt Thirteen alright?"

"It'll definitely be fine," Xu Xiaoming laughed, "Big Eyes, don't you often use this technique in your movies?"

Yuan Heping exclaimed, "This is truly different. The setup is so well done that you can't help but be drawn in. Aside from Jin Yong and Gu Long, it's been a long time since I've read such an exhilarating martial arts novel. Even Ni Kuang falls short, let alone others."

Xu Xiaoming's eyes lit up: "Big Eyes, do you think it would be a good idea to buy this novel and turn it into a movie?"

"Hmm?" Yuan Heping was taken aback for a moment, then thought about it seriously: "This has potential! Although it's also about Wong Fei-hung, it incorporates a sense of patriotism that hasn't been seen before. It'll definitely be a bestseller!"

"This novel has also opened up new ideas for me!" Xu Xiaoming looked up at the sky and said with great enthusiasm, "Then other similar martial arts masters from the Republican era can also be written in this way, such as Huo Yuanjia, such as Bruce Lee's master Ip Man, such as... There are so many materials, we can't even use them all."

"Hurry up and get it done!" Yuan Heping suddenly thought of something and pointed at Xu Xiaoming, saying, "If we've seen this magazine, others will definitely see it too. With this half-page, you can finish the ending, and we'll start filming tomorrow!"

"No way!" Xu Xiaoming shook his head. "This novel was written by an elderly gentleman from mainland China; it must be given the utmost respect. I plan to make a trip there!"

Yuan Heping was startled: "Are you crazy? Who knows what the environment is like over there? What if you get detained?"

"No, that won't happen." Xu Xiaoming laughed and explained, "Actually, Master Zhu Mu has already gone there once. He wanted to co-produce a movie with them, but they just lifted restrictions and don't have a department for co-productions yet, so they refused. However, they expressed their welcome for Hong Kong filmmakers to collaborate with the mainland. I heard that a co-production company was established last month, and I'd like to give it a try."

"It's up to you then. But are you really going to just rush over there like that?" Yuan Heping's personality has always been cautious, so he didn't dare to try anything easily, but he also didn't interfere with other people's decisions.

Xu Xiaoming laughed and said, "Of course not. Liu Songren is an old friend of mine. He's brought along Liu Jiang and a new director from TVB to make a martial arts movie, and they're going to film in Guangdong province. I'm seeing if I can hitch a ride with them. If not, I can go by myself."

As he spoke, he waved the copy of "Foshan Literature and Art" in his hand and exclaimed, "I absolutely must meet this old gentleman!"

The stuntman said discontentedly, "Old man, doesn't it say the author is Young Abin?"

"What do you know? This is called a pen name!" Xu Xiao glanced at the martial arts actor and said, "The ban on that area has just been lifted, and he's writing martial arts novels. He definitely needs to avoid suspicion, so he deliberately chose a pen name that's the opposite of what he meant. It's perfectly normal. You're not a cultured person, you wouldn't understand."

The stuntman couldn't help but roll his eyes.

……

Huang Wenbin, who was far away in Jiangmen, was naturally unaware that he had been mistaken for an old man.

At that moment, he was also having a headache.

Because of an accident that happened to the crew, it's even possible that the filming can't be done!