Around 1949, many mainland filmmakers "going south" to Hong Kong with different purposes, including commercial filmmakers like Zhang Shankun, Tao Qin, Yue Feng, etc. who were unwilling to cooperate with the CCP, as well as filmmakers like Sima Vinson and Feng Lin who were sent by the CCP to Hong Kong and had more political purposes.

No matter what purpose, these filmmakers must survive in Hong Kong and have their own propaganda positions, so they formed or reorganized production companies, including Zhang Shankun and famous filmmakers Yuan Yang'an and others, in 1948, to establish Great Wall Pictures.

Zhang Shankun established a film company in the 1930s and was a famous film tycoon in the old Shanghai. Therefore, when Great Wall Pictures was established, Hu Die, Li Lihua, Zhou Xuan and Bai Guang were the top ten most popular female stars at the opening ribbon cutting ceremony, and the popularity was unparalleled.

As soon as the Great Wall was established, Zhang Shankun immediately summoned some old Shanghai filmmakers and started filming five movies at the same time. However, he died before he could finish his career. Before the film was finished, the company fell into a financial crisis and was immediately reorganized. Zhang Shankun was eliminated. Yuan Yangan controlled the power and transformed Great Wall Pictures into Great Wall Film Production Company.

Zhang Shankun was close to Taiwan and alienated, Great Wall Film Company was called the "Old Great Wall", Yuan Yangan was close to Taiwan and alienated, and Great Wall Film Production Company was called the "New Great Wall".

After Yuan Yangan reorganized and established the "New Great Wall", he recruited a large number of left-wing filmmakers, including a director and directing committee composed of Li Pingqian, Tao Qin, Liu Qiong, etc., to check the content of the film and accept guidance from the mainland. "New Great Wall" has thus become the leader of Hong Kong's left-wing film companies.

Before the Great Wall Film Company was buzzing, there were talented directors such as Li Pingqian, Hu Xiaofeng, and Zhang Xinyan, screenwriters such as Tao Qin and Jin Yong, as well as top actresses such as Xia Meng, Shi Hui, and Chen Sisi. In the 1950s and early 1960s, it was the leading major production company in Hong Kong. In 1952, in the box office rankings of Mandarin films in Hong Kong, Great Wall occupied six seats and took the top three. The entire Southeast Asia is rushing to buy Great Wall's movies.

Unfortunately, after 66 years, Great Wall Film Company was severely impacted by the extreme left-wing thoughts in China. Not only did the films filmed in the past be considered as "the product of the black line of literature and art, and released a lot of poisoning in Hong Kong, Macao and overseas", but all the editors and directors had to study in China in batches and carry out "revolution in the depths of the soul". As a result, the production business was completely stagnant and a large number of talents were lost, and even the more than 10 million accumulated profits accumulated in the past decade were exhausted.

After introducing the company's history and current situation, Fu Qi, the current manager of Great Wall Film Company, said: "Mr. Shen, I want you to come here because I want to ask you for help." (Note 1)

"Uncle Fu must not say that, just call me A Chong." Shen Chong quickly said politely, "My father was also an employee of Great Wall. Director Zhang and Uncle Li both watched me grow up. If you have anything to help, just give me instructions."

"Okay, since that's the case, I'll just say it." Fu Qi glanced at Zhang Xinyan, and then said, "That's right. There was something wrong with the budget of "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch", and the company is in a mess. The funds are tight and I can't afford it. I wonder if A Chong can help."

"I am also one of the crew members of "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch", and this matter is unavoidable," Chen Chong agreed with a clear promise and agreed to it cleanly. He asked, "I don't know what the gap is?"

Zhang Xinyan felt embarrassed to raise money by Xiang Chen Chong, so he didn't say a word from beginning to end. Seeing Chen Chong responded simply, he felt relieved and said, "The budget was originally 1 million, but now it's still about 300,000 yuan."

"I'll bring 500,000 yuan." Chen Chong said generously: "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch is about to be filmed in the mainland. There must be a lot of money to spend. The budget is a little more, and there are only benefits but no harm."

Zhang Xinyan was overjoyed when he heard this.

"A Chong, 500,000 is not a small amount, you should be careful." Great Wall now needs money everywhere, and it can be more than 200,000 yuan. Fu Qi is also very happy, but he is the company manager and has a relatively thorough consideration. "Let's negotiate the loan and repayment charter first. Everyone should not mess with the rules when doing business. Do you think this money is considered an investment, or a loan?"

"It's time to calculate the loan." Chen Chong decided to do the good guy to the end, and said indifferently: "Just write an IOU, and I will pay it back after "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch" is released."

Fu Qi and Zhang Xinyan looked at each other and asked, "What about the interest?"

"Uncle Fu, you're so sad about me." Chen Chong waved his hand and said, "No interest."

It is estimated that Great Wall Film Company is indeed in financial difficulties. After Fu Qi pretended to say a few words, he stopped raising interest.

After notifying the company's finance department to go to Great Wall Film Company to handle the relevant procedures for the loan, Chen Chong stood up and said goodbye. He had to fly to Los Angeles tonight.

Chen Chong had something to do, but Fu Qi and Zhang Xinyan were not inconvenient to try to keep him. They just said a lot of words of thanks and then jointly sent him to the company's door.

Before saying goodbye, Chen Chong looked at the sign of Great Wall Film Production Company and said unintentionally: "My broken film company only has funds but no one, and there are people in Great Wall with shortage of funds. Uncle Fu, can we two companies cooperate and make movies together?"

Zhang Xinyan's eyes lit up and he rushed to say, "A Chong and I thought of going together. Our Great Wall needs people and equipment, and there is nothing short of money. If we can cooperate and make full use of resources, we can make a lot of more movies every year."

"This matter will be discussed when A Chong comes back from the United States." Fu Qi did not dare to make a promise and said in an official voice: "Even if we cooperate, we need to hold a meeting to discuss first."

The system of left-wing film companies is even more rigid than Shaw Brothers. Shaw Brothers is internally rigid, while the left-wing film companies are not only internally rigid, but also wear a tight curse on their heads. In a prosperous commercial city like Hong Kong, they can't even make the most basic financing.

No wonder "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch" was filmed for more than a year and was not released until 1980. It turned out that it was because of insufficient funds. Great Wall Film Company was really sad.

However, Great Wall has a strong foundation at least. It can only make one or two movies and struggle to survive. Other companies are not so lucky. Just now, when Shen Chong asked about the situation of other left-wing film companies, Fu Qi said that among the three left-wing film companies of "Changfengxin", Xinlian, which ranked last, has reached an unsustainable level. It relies on the mainland to provide some pitiful funds every month to save his life, and maintain the brand's unsuccessful...

When he returned to Jiahui Garden, Chen Chong unexpectedly saw Li Kaiyuan at home.

"Why are you back?"

"I heard from Sister Qing that you are going to Los Angeles tonight. I will come back to help you pack your luggage." Li Kaiyuan pointed to the box next to the door and asked, "Why are you going to the United States so suddenly?"

"Do you still remember that Barbara?" Chen Chong said, lifting the suitcase, then frowned and asked, "Why is it so heavy?"

"I put a few bottles of pickles in it. Sister Qing asked you to bring it to Wen Renjie." Li Kaiyuan turned off the TV and said dissatisfiedly: "Are you going to see that old woman again?"

"No." Chen Chong smiled and said, "This time I'm going to make back the 30,000 dollars I spent."

"Really?" Li Kaiyuan didn't believe it, "If she had money, she wouldn't be too old and would come out to have dinner with others. What money would you make from her?"

"She has no money." Chen Chong walked over, picked up the cup on the coffee table, took a sip of water, and said, "But she can help me indirectly contact a very rich person. No, it is not very rich. He is very famous. This famous person can help me make a lot of money."

"It's a mess, I don't know what you're talking about!" Li Kaiyuan gave him a blank look and said, "Anyway, you're not allowed to meet that old woman, especially if you can't go to bed, foreign women are so dirty."

"I'm not a hungry ghost in lust, I bite you whenever I see someone." Chen Chong lay down on the sofa, rested his head on her lap, and said, "I have a very high taste."

"I'm clamoring to be the emperor and open the harem every day, but I'm not lustful." Li Kaiyuan gently flicked his forehead, and after a while, he said, "Sister Qing is now big, so hard work. You can transfer Wen Renjie back to Hong Kong to work."

"I give Brother Jie five days of paid leave every month, and reimburse the round-trip air tickets, but he doesn't have the intention to come back." Chen Chong said: "It's better to let him stay in the United States than to come back. When Sister Qing comes back, she has to take care of him."

"What is a tech dead house?"

"It's the common name of Wen Renjie who stays at home every day for the sake of video games and doesn't even want his wife."

"This name is quite appropriate." Li Kaiyuan thought of Wen Renjie's image and couldn't help laughing, then said, "But Sister Qing and him are not the solution."

"Don't worry, he should be back at this time next year." Chen Chong asked, "Sister Qing works on your side, how is the situation?"

"It's okay. I just asked her to help organize some documents, which was very leisurely." Li Kaiyuan frowned and said, "Sister Qing is a very good person, but she is too soft-hearted. Whatever others say is what they say."

"If she has a tough personality, can Wen Renjie get married?"

"That's true."

After chatting for a while, Chen Chong sighed and said, "It's really troublesome to transfer from Tokyo tonight. When you have money in two years, you can buy a private plane and fly wherever you want."

"I don't even have a car, and I'm still thinking about the plane." Li Kaiyuan said: "It's really tiring to take a plane. You can sleep for a while."

"Um."

...

Los Angeles International Airport, California, USA, after 10 o'clock in the middle of the night.

"Hi, Allen." As soon as we met, Michael Orwitz gave Chen Chong a warm hug, "How do you feel?"

"It's very tired, very tired." Chen Chong smiled bitterly, pulling the corner of his mouth, and said, "I hate long-distance travel, I hate ANA!"

"The delay in the plane is really annoying." Orwitz expressed deep sympathy. He helped carry his sunken luggage and led the way, saying: "Take a hot bath, have a big meal, and have a comfortable sleep, and you will get better tomorrow."

Walking out of the airport gate, Orwitz led Shen Chong to a black extended Cadillac, and then opened the door himself.

"Mirke." Shen Chong held the car door and said, "Thank you for picking me up."

"We are friends." Orwitz said with enthusiasm, "and you are the VIP guest of our company. It is our pursuit to provide the best service to our customers."

I got into the car and sat on the spacious and comfortable leather seat. I stretched my waist and let out a comfortable moan. Since it was a temporary decision to travel, I only bought an economy class ticket. I curled up in the narrow seat for more than 20 hours, and I felt uncomfortable all over my body.

"Come on, drink this." Orwitz handed over a glass of amber spirit and said, "It will be much better after drinking it."

Chen Chong took it and drank it all. The spicy taste rushed straight into his mouth and nose. He couldn't help but silence, and then felt refreshed. The fatigue in his body seemed to be discharged from the body with the silence.

Putting down the wine glass, Chen Chong rubbed his face with both hands, and then asked, "Why is the time schedule so tight?"

"George Lucas is going to Norway to film Star Wars 2." Orwitz said with a hint of smug look on his hard face: "He is the hottest big shot in Hollywood now, and it is not easy to contact him."

"Yes." Chen Chong picked up the wine glass, shook it, signaled Orwitz to have some more wine, and then said, "Where should we meet?"

"In Marin County, Northern California." Orwitz said: "You have a good rest tonight, and I will accompany you tomorrow morning."

———————————————————
Chapter completed!