Chapter 35: Let Them Fight to the Death! A Glimpse of Joey Wong

"1979, that was a spring..."

"There was... an old man..."

"... ..."

This song, "The Story of Spring." It really is a great tune. And, where are we now? Although not exactly in that inner circle, we aren't far off either. Naturally, this is the song one should sing!

However, the current singer and the venue are truly something special.

Singer: Lung Ng!

Venue: A certain nightclub.

But, credit where credit is due, Lung Ng actually sang it quite well. Although he had a heavy Hong Kong accent, and his technique was truly painful to listen to—not to mention he went off-key from time to time, as if the melody were a policeman constantly chasing him—our Brother Five from Hong Kong sang with such raw emotion and sincerity that he poured his heart out.

As the song ended, applause erupted!

"Brother Five, that was amazing!"

"Brother Five, absolutely brilliant!"

"If you were a bit younger, you could have debuted as a singer!"

Clearly, there is never a shortage of sycophants. Interestingly, Ma Xun and Sun Donghai were there too. They joined in the applause, though the truth is, Lung Ng's croaking, duck-like voice really did make them want to laugh. But, they had to cheer. We are in a business partnership now, after all. This was textbook corporate flattery.

Still, for Lung Ng to be singing this song, he was clearly in an excellent mood. And why wouldn't he be? *The Emperor's Shadow* had been urgently pulled from theaters. Could the Chen brothers still be arrogant? In truth, those two were never a match for Lung Ng to begin with. It was just that they had achieved great success investing in the mainland over the past two years. They had a film called *Red Powder*, which not only won numerous awards—the Silver Bear in Berlin and the top prize at the International Film Festival of India—but also grossed over ten million at the box office. Through copyright management, a film like that could bring in a fortune overseas. That was how the two brothers made their name, and the director of that film was Li Xiaowan, who also rose to prominence because of it. The massive success of *Red Powder* made the brothers determined to invest in mainland cinema. Then came *The Emperor's Shadow*.

Now, the director and several other key figures had been arrested. The film was forcibly pulled from theaters. The losses for the Chen brothers were immeasurable!

For Lung Ng, this result wasn't just about blowing off some steam. The key was that theaters had already ordered many copies of *The Emperor's Shadow*. Now that the film couldn't be shown, those copies were a total loss. But the theaters had to keep running! Which film's copies would they order instead? *The New Shanghai Bund*, the only choice!

Lung Ng, of course, was smiling. He even claimed the copies were being shipped in from other regions, effectively "saving the day." Look, those theaters even owed this Hong Kong Brother Five a debt of gratitude. Lung Ng had gained both face and substance this time. He was overjoyed!

Was the stuff really shipped from out of town? No one cared about that detail anymore. Being this happy, Lung Ng treated everyone to a night of luxury at the nightclub in the best and largest private room. Ma Xun and Sun Donghai, being honored guests, received the highest hospitality—Hong Kong and Taiwanese beauties!

One girl, named Zhong Zhen, immediately caught Sun Donghai's eye. Ma Xun was secretly startled; wasn't she the one who would later star in *Peach 3*? Lung Ng even added that if they went to Hong Kong, Lai-chun and Shu-qi could also accompany them.

What? The entire cast of *The Erotic Story*? Ma Xun even worried if he could handle the intensity of such a lineup.

***

But that is what it means to be a big shot. Of course, this also had to do with the current downturn in the Hong Kong film industry. The Asian financial crisis was drawing ever closer. But since Lung Ng was being so sensible, Ma Xun and Sun Donghai had a pleasant conversation.

The song earlier was something they had casually mentioned. "Since you're in such a good mood today, Brother Five, why not sing a mainland song?" Lung Ng chose this one himself. He picked it, we didn't force him. He was the one who wanted to express his patriotic enthusiasm. Everyone can testify to that. If *Walking into a New Era* had been released yet, Ma Xun would have made this guy sing that one, no matter what!

I must say, once the song was over, the atmosphere in our private room reached a climax.

"Boss~ sing another one."

"What's there to sing!"

"Just one, I'll help you pick... ah~ don't just focus on touching..."

Sun Donghai was truly something else. Ma Xun was much more reserved, perhaps because the girl beside him was quite thin... hmm? She looked familiar; she seemed to have been with Brother Kam-kong too... I remember now, this is the *The Official I Want* lineup. The intensity here wasn't low either.

A word rose in Ma Xun's mind: Vulgar! But then again, am I not a vulgar man myself?

Just as he was thinking this, someone entered from outside and whispered a few words in Lung Ng's ear. Lung Ng laughed heartily after hearing them. "Quick, invite him in, invite him in."

Who was it? Soon, a smiling little chubby man walked in.

"Greetings, bosses, haha..."

"Let me introduce everyone; this is the second young master of ATV, Mr. Lam Kin-ngok."

"Oh, we all know each other."

"Indeed, we do."

Lam Kin-ngok? Ma Xun was naturally unfamiliar with him, but he had heard plenty of anecdotes. Everyone knew he was the second son of ATV, and ATV itself had no shortage of drama. His father, Lim Por-yen, was a Teochew man. After making his fortune, he married four wives—the law in Hong Kong allowed it at the time. The result was that his household was in constant chaos. Yet, Lim Por-yen was a very interesting person; he didn't think it was bad at all, but rather considered it a success. Later, he even had his story made into a TV drama, *I Come from Chiu Chow*. That should be next year. The drama was actually quite well-made, especially the cast, which featured almost every big name in the Hong Kong television circle. This meant he had poached many people from TVB. It really did expose his family's affairs; he truly wasn't afraid of losing face.

The key was that his sons were even more bizarre. Lam Kin-ngok had an older brother who simply turned his own television station into a harem. He certainly knew how to have fun. As for Lam Kin-ngok himself, he was greedy for money. Ma Xun had heard so much gossip about this guy he couldn't keep up. But for now, it was good to get to know him. You never know when it might come in handy. After all, they were all in the film business. Lam Kin-ngok was also looking to expand north, later founding Media Asia. In the future, his relationships with Zhang Guoli and Feng Xiaogang would be quite good. Right now, he was probably here to learn from Lung Ng on how to expand into the mainland.

Sure enough, after Ma Xun and Sun Donghai were introduced to him, the chubby young master was very excited, repeatedly saying they would have opportunities to cooperate. Was he asking to be swindled? Ma Xun was naturally very happy. Today was meant to celebrate Lung Ng's complete victory, and the atmosphere became even more lively.

But before long, Lung Ng received more news, and his expression changed.

***

"That..."

"What's wrong?"

He had taken the initiative to talk to Ma Xun and Sun Donghai, but seemed to have some unspoken difficulty.

"It seems a gentleman has arrived outside. His surname is Bai."

Rumors of Lung Ng being beaten up in Beijing had already spread within the Hong Kong circle. He was naturally not in a position to talk about it now.

Bai Xiaohang! We understood, of course. But how to deal with him?

"Let me go out and have a word with that guy."

"Good!"

Ma Xun was so proactive, and it was his wit that had solved the problem before. Lung Ng was, of course, overjoyed. In truth, Ma Xun had other motives.

Stepping out of the private room, Ma Xun went straight to Bai Xiaohang.

"Buddy, still following us?"

"Didn't you say I could follow?" Bai Xiaohang was still acting tough.

Ma Xun smiled. "We don't mind, but Lung Ng inside is a bit afraid of you."

"Heh! Let him be afraid! If he's got the guts, let him come out!" Bai Xiaohang was becoming increasingly reckless.

Ma Xun said with a smile, "Come out for a walk with me, let's talk about that business."

"What do you mean?"

"Do me a favor, you're tailing me anyway."

"Fine." Bai Xiaohang figured that was fair enough. So, the two of them walked out.

The path out of the nightclub should have been quite ordinary, but Ma Xun unexpectedly saw a woman. She was sitting there, drinking quietly. Her black hair cascaded like a waterfall, her facial features were clear and three-dimensional, and she carried a hint of heroic spirit. She was...

"Joey Wong?" Bai Xiaohang saw her too.

Ma Xun simply pulled him away. "Show some class, don't disturb her."

This remark won Bai Xiaohang's approval, and the two walked off. Ma Xun knew that Joey Wong should be Lam Kin-ngok's girlfriend right now. She hadn't gone to the private room, probably because she knew the situation inside. But... never mind, business first.

Just like that, Ma Xun and Joey Wong missed each other. But that one glance was stunning enough; Ma Xun would likely find it hard to forget.

The two left the nightclub and strolled through Guangzhou. When they found a phone booth, Ma Xun pointed at it. Bai Xiaohang nodded. The call was finished quickly. Bai Xiaohang didn't ask much. Soon, they appeared at a street food stall.

"What do you mean?"

"Hungry, let's have a bite and a drink."

"Aren't we talking about that business?"

"Would you even understand?"

This question was so piercing that it made Bai Xiaohang too embarrassed to keep asking. So he simply ate and drank with Ma Xun.

But not long after, they heard a series of police sirens. Several police cars sped straight toward the nightclub.

"What's happening?"

"How would I know?"

Ma Xun wasn't telling the truth, because it was he who had called the police. "I'm reporting! There's prostitution going on in the nightclub... it's absolutely scandalous!" He had used his broken Hong Kong accent.

Before long, he saw Lung Ng and his group being brought out.

"You should enjoy the same treatment as those *Emperor's Shadow* people," he thought.

"They..." Bai Xiaohang was stunned.

Ma Xun added, "It must have been the Chen brothers who did this!"

Right, who else could it be? And with this, the two sides would surely fight to the death! And that, for me, Ma Xun, is where the big opportunity comes in!