Chapter 23: The Return of Sister Hong and an Eighty-Twenty Split

Two months later.
It was already summer.
The production in North America had wrapped.
As soon as Chen Hong stepped off the plane, she hurried toward the old city district.
Not long after entering the alley, she spotted a "new" courtyard.
Unlike the other small dwellings, the gate alone gave away its "newness."
A red gate, freshly painted.
It even featured antique-style door knockers.
Though they were treated to look aged, one could tell at a glance they were new.
Still, the design of the knockers was quite attractive.
It looked like some sort of mythical beast.
Chen Hong didn't know much about folklore, but she knew there had to be some significance behind it.
She grabbed one of the knockers.
A rhythmic clanging echoed inside.
Before long, the door opened.
"Sister Hong, returning from overseas in such a rush—missing someone, are we?"
The one who opened the door was, of course, Ma Xun.
The guy didn't hold back, teasing her immediately.
Chen Hong couldn't help but roll her eyes at him. "Even if I were missing someone, it’s none of your business!"
It was a retort, but Ma Xun was clearly unfazed, just smiling.
He ushered her inside.
As soon as Chen Hong stepped into the courtyard, her eyes lit up.
"Not bad, you’ve really fixed this place up well."
Blue bricks and green tiles, clean windows and tidy tables.
A persimmon tree, a stone table.
It was a quite decent little courtyard house.
"I’ve spent all this time tinkering with this place," Ma Xun said, which was the truth.
He had sold those 300 seconds of advertising time to Bai Daqing.
That man was truly a wheeler-dealer.
He had sent 1.5 million as a deposit first, with the rest to be paid after the television series aired.
So, Ma Xun had received 900,000 in cash.
With that money, plus his previous 200,000 and the portion from the Hong Kong film rights, he had about 1.2 million.
Ma Xun had bought this courtyard for over 600,000.
Then he spent another hundred thousand or so on renovations.
It wasn't bad; renovations weren't expensive in this day and age.
That was how it came to look the way Chen Hong saw it now.
In fact, in this day and age, such a courtyard in Beijing wasn't cheap.
Six hundred thousand was definitely a massive fortune for an ordinary family.
With that kind of money, most people today preferred to buy apartments.
Actually, anyone who has ever lived in a single-story house knows that the quality of life is very poor.
Waking up in the morning to queue for a public toilet—which were mostly dry latrines back then—was enough to make anyone dream of living in a high-rise.
Ma Xun had focused his renovations on that aspect, and fortunately, there were some policies in Beijing now.
There was no need to go into the details.
Ma Xun gave a brief explanation, and Sister Hong asked a few casual questions.
Then...
"Is there some story behind those door knockers?"
"Taotie."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
"An ancient mythical beast, greedy and ferocious."
"Oh, I've heard of it. So you put such a beast on your door—are you planning to follow its example?"
"Sister Hong, this is folklore, it's Feng Shui—what do you know about it? Many door knockers use this mythical beast."
"But to me, you're even greedier than this Taotie."
With Sister Hong putting it that way, Ma Xun knew exactly what she wanted to discuss.
"The sun is vicious out here; let's go inside to talk."
Sister Hong nodded.
The two entered the main room.
Once inside, she set her suitcase aside and took off her coat.
She was wearing a tight, white, body-hugging skirt today.
Bare legs, no stockings.
It exuded a mature, sexy charm.
Ma Xun couldn't help but feel his eyes brighten.
Sister Hong was indeed a rare beauty.
At 28, she was in her prime.
In any case, Ma Xun felt that her age was perfect.
Without further ado, Ma Xun sat on the sofa and patted the cushion beside him.
This detail spoke volumes.
Sister Hong glanced at him before sitting down.
This was her response to Ma Xun.
Now, they could talk properly.
"You don't intend to be a famous director's wife anymore?"
"I never said that."
"Then you're planning to borrow some 'seeds' from me again?"
"Ma Xun, your mouth is utterly wicked!"
"I was talking about farming."
"You really are wicked!"
Sister Hong was truly full of charm.
Even now, as she scolded him, it was heart-stirring.
Ma Xun thought to himself: If this woman turned on the charm, she wouldn't be some Diao Chan; she would be an outright enchantress.
"Let's talk business. What are your actual plans, Sister Hong?"
That’s right, they needed to talk seriously.
But today, Sister Hong seemed to want Ma Xun to be anything but serious.
She leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them.
"You haven't forgotten the thing you mentioned to me before I left, have you?"
Thankfully, this was said quite seriously.
Ma Xun was met with a view of snow-white skin, almost losing his train of thought.
He steadied himself and said, "Of course I haven't."
As he spoke, he reached for a newspaper on the coffee table and handed it to her.
"What's this?" Sister Hong asked, taking the paper, confused.
"Look at the program schedule, CCTV Channel 6," Ma Xun said with a smile.
Sister Hong looked as instructed and quickly spotted the issue.
"'A Chinese Odyssey'? What's going on with this movie? Why is it playing twice in one week?"
Newspapers in this era carried television schedules. Viewers could check what was coming up to manage their time.
But anyone could see it.
This movie called "A Chinese Odyssey" was appearing with a very high frequency.
Ma Xun laughed, "It’s possible that in the future, it might even play five or six times a week."
"What? This, this..."
Sister Hong had discovered the problem, but she couldn't quite wrap her head around it.
"Is this the business you’re doing with Sun Donghai?" She guessed at least that much.
Ma Xun slapped his hand down on a leg—specifically, Sister Hong's leg.
He laughed, "You really are smart."
Sister Hong couldn't help but roll her eyes at the gesture. "You dishonest rascal!"
Ma Xun leaned in closer and teased, "You know perfectly well just how dishonest I can be."
So bold!
Sister Hong’s pretty face flushed, but she was still captivated by the 'business.'
"Is the business like this? You buy the rights to Hong Kong films and sell them to Channel 6 to broadcast?"
Ma Xun shook his head with a smile, "That’s too conventional. You won't make any real money doing business that way."
Sister Hong didn't understand. "Then tell me... hey~"
Ma Xun’s hands were not staying put; in fact, nothing about him was staying put.
"The business is like this: we take the Hong Kong films, air them first, and then pay them depending on how things go."
Sister Hong was shocked!
"Those guys are gangsters; how could you dare?"
That was a valid point.
But Ma Xun continued, hands still wandering, "It’s precisely because they are gangsters that we can do this business. Hong Kong cinema is already failing. Those triad bosses are looking for a way out. Their only path is to move north, but I ask you, with their status, would they dare to go to CCTV to negotiate business?"
Sister Hong wasn't stupid. Once she heard this, the whole logic clicked.
"That's right! In the mainland, we’re the ones holding the cards!"
Having worked with Hong Kong and Taiwan partners many times before, Sister Hong had always harbored resentment toward them.
There were double standards, and they always acted superior.
Pah!
Now, hearing Ma Xun’s words, she could finally hold those people from Hong Kong and Taiwan in her grip.
What a thrill.
So satisfying! Hey~
"You!" Sister Hong pushed Ma Xun’s hand away firmly.
This guy was really going too far.
Look at what he’d done to her.
However, he had his reasons.
On one hand, it was a test. Sometimes, the body doesn't lie.
On the other hand... turning a refined lady into a vixen, isn't that one of life's great pleasures?
Of course, Ma Xun had seen it from the start.
Sister Hong was the type of socialite who was dignified on the outside but wild on the inside.
He wasn't just messing around, either.
"What do you think of this business?"
Back to business.
Sister Hong composed herself and said, "You're already working with Sun Donghai, why find me?"
Ma Xun looked helpless. "You can't be that dense, can you? Does the mainland only have one TV station? Does Hong Kong only have one 'Lung Wu' making movies? And is he the only one with triad connections?"
This barrage of questions made everything clear to her.
That’s right!
They do their thing, we do ours.
"But what if we clash with you later?"
Sister Hong’s question was clever.
"We," "you"—they both actually included Ma Xun.
Ma Xun laughed, "The answer to that, of course, depends on you."
There was a lot of subtext in that.
Sister Hong smiled, "Ma Xun, you really are ruthless."
However, Ma Xun followed up by saying, "Let’s talk about the split: 20-80."
"Huh?" Sister Hong was stunned. "You mean..."
"What are you thinking? Of course, I take eighty percent."
Ma Xun was as cold as iron; in the face of profit, he wouldn't yield even to a beauty like Sister Hong.
Chen Hong was proud of her beauty; many men spoke softly in her presence.
But only this Ma Xun...
He was truly wicked!
But... wickedly likable.
"But twenty percent is too little!"
Clearly, Sister Hong had already agreed; she just had issues with the profit distribution.
Ma Xun knew he had already won. "What's little about it? Sun Donghai and I are at the front, essentially clearing the mines for you. You just have to follow behind and pick up the profits."
Sister Hong was speechless for a moment.
Ma Xun continued, "Besides, once we establish the company, we can expand into other businesses. I have two newcomers here that you need to sign."
He was referring to Gao Yuanyuan and Hao Lei.
Sister Hong rolled her eyes at him and didn't press for details, but the split...
"Twenty percent is still too little."
"I'll make you the legal representative."
This...
Sister Hong had never started a company or done business before; she was indeed tempted.
"But it's still too little."
"Don't you get it? My focus is on you."
Bluffing, keep bluffing.
Sister Hong then proposed a requirement.
"I want to invest in making movies."
"What?"
"I told you before, my career as an actress has reached its limit. So, I want to direct myself."
"You want to be a director?"
"Is it impossible? You can help me! I can tell that you understand film, from when we were taking photos."
Finally, he understood.
She didn't want to be a director's wife—she wanted to be the director herself!
Ma Xun smiled, "Then it depends on whether you can convince me!"
With that, he hoisted her onto his shoulders...