Chapter 36: Taking a Beating

"Fatty" Wong produces movies with one primary focus: speed. *God of Gamblers II* was not filmed in sequence; once the Thousand-Island Lake incident scenes were wrapped, there was very little left of the entire production. The climax for the final sequence was shot on location in Taiwan, where pouring rain nearly derailed the schedule.

After *God of Gamblers II* finished filming, Liu Jing returned to the mainland and completed his school enrollment. From that day on, he became a proud elementary school student. With Xixi in second grade and him just starting first, they were senior and junior. He had barely been in school long enough to know his classmates before he had to take an extended leave.

*The New Legend of Shaolin* was about to start shooting. Produced by Win's Entertainment, written by Wong Jing, directed by Corey Yuen, and starring Jet Li—they were all familiar faces. This would be Liu Jing's fourth collaboration with Jet Li. With money beckoning, Teacher An and Sister Li reached a silent understanding; no one brought up the contract again. The contract stipulated that Liu Jing’s filming schedule should be arranged during winter and summer breaks so as not to interfere with his studies.

Sharla Cheung, who debuted in 1986 with *Magic Crystal*, had been in the industry for eight years. Whether released or unreleased, she had made nearly seventy films in that time. She had long since purchased property in Hong Kong; while not a top-tier luxury mansion, it was quite respectable compared to the average home. During his time in Hong Kong, Liu Jing stayed at Sharla's house whenever he wasn't on set. She had specifically set up a room for him, fully equipped with everything he needed.

At that moment, Sharla’s home was bustling. Two men and two women sat around a table laden with good food and fine wine. The men were the "big and small" duo: Fatty Wong and Liu Jing. The women were two beauties competing in elegance: Zhou Wenqiong and Sharla Cheung. The conversation flowed, glasses clinked, and the atmosphere was lively.

"Kid, what do you think of this script I wrote? Haha, this time you'll be working with Andy Lau." Wong Jing was full of himself; the inspiration for this script had actually come from those few photos of Liu Jing.

" *Casino Tycoon II: Five Beauties Rescue Two Dragons*? The name alone sounds terrible." Sharla curled her lip. Just hearing the title, she knew the plot—it was destined to be a trashy film. Fatty Wong’s gambling movies were all inextricably linked. There was Ko Chun, the God of Gamblers, played by Chow Yun-fat; Sing, the Saint of Gamblers, played by Stephen Chow, who wanted to be the God of Gamblers' disciple; and "Dagger" Chan, the Knight of Gamblers, played by Andy Lau, the disciple of the God of Gamblers.

"The 'five beauties and two men' are siblings—biological ones. The oldest is Dagger Chan, played by Andy Lau. The five beauties are the second through the sixth, and it wasn't until Liu Jing that they finally had two boys..."

"Are they pigs? Seven kids? That's some serious preference for boys over girls," Sharla interrupted.

"You don't understand. Back then, everyone had lots of children. Seven was the standard, and five boys and two girls was the perfect configuration," Wong Jing explained, raising his glass for a toast. "Listen to me! Dagger Chan takes his youngest brother on a trip to Taiwan and accidentally gets caught up in a gold heist, leading to a police manhunt. The five older sisters rush from all over to rescue their brothers. That’s the main plot."

"That is pure melodrama. It’s really not good." Sharla rolled her eyes; it was classic Wong Jing—cobbled together and failing to stand up to any scrutiny.

"Fatty, how come the plot of *Five Beauties Rescue Two Dragons* is so similar to this *The Little Flying Dragon* script?" The auntie lifted the script in her hand with a look of disdain.

"You don't get it. It's Hong Kong cinema; the core is always the same, you just swap out the tropes. People come to look at beauties and excitement; hardly anyone actually studies the plot," Fatty Wong replied dismissively, grinning.

"Fatty, *God of Gamblers II* just wrapped, and *The New Legend of Shaolin* is starting any minute. Now you’ve brought over two more scripts, *The Little Flying Dragon* and *Five Beauties Rescue Two Dragons*. The kid is only six, not a donkey on a collective farm. Don't work him to death," the auntie huffed.

"Heh, donkeys are very useful. They pull carts by day, grind grain by night, and after they die, their skin makes donkey-hide gelatin and their meat makes donkey burgers," Fatty Wong joked, never serious.

"Bullshit! If this continues, we really need to talk about the contract." As Liu Jing's agent, the auntie was very dissatisfied. She had realized by now that the signing bonus wasn't as easy to collect as it seemed. No matter how much an ordinary person calculates, they cannot outsmart capital.

"It’s not that extreme! Even if the kid has the time to film, I don't have the time to produce. The kid has two more movies this year. After *The New Legend of Shaolin* wraps, he’ll film *The Little Flying Dragon* during winter break. As for *Casino Tycoon II* and the unwritten *Saint of Gamblers II*, those are plans for next year," Wong Jing explained.

"That’s more like it," the auntie’s expression softened. After all, no matter how many films Liu Jing made in a year, he didn't receive a salary. These films served no purpose other than to boost his fame. Liu Jing, however, was tireless; every set he entered brought him energy bubbles, and every film released rewarded him with "Cultural and Entertainment Essence." Now that his roles were becoming more significant, a successful box office could mean tens of thousands of points.

"Don't worry! If I actually did that, even if the company agreed, a certain sister would come to cause a scene," Wong Jing said, glancing at Sharla. She had been using the company's resources to push Liu Jing quite a bit. Sharla snorted and glared back.

"Wenqiong, want to know who is playing the five beauties?" Wong Jing didn't mind; when he promoted Chingmy Yau, he was already prepared to offend Sharla. But to his surprise, Sharla was only annoyed with him—she didn't take any action against him, nor did she make things difficult for him at the company.

"I don't," the auntie replied flatly.

"I want to know," Liu Jing said.

"Haha, I’m planning to invite Brigitte Lin, Rosamund Kwan, Athena Chu, Joey Wong, and Chingmy Yau. The five of them..." Wong Jing was smug. The scene would be spectacular. Showing off long legs and beautiful chests—everyone would be watching the beauties; who would bother analyzing the plot?

Sharla’s face darkened. Before, he was cutting my screen time; now he wasn't even inviting me. "You damn fatty, you're eating at my house..."

"Andy Lau plus those five—the salary must be astronomical," the auntie said in surprise. Another huge investment.

"Even all of them together don't cost as much as Jet Li. Stephen Chow is truly greedy, that guy..." Wong Jing was complaining.

After three rounds of drinks and plenty of food, the business was settled, and the pleasantries were exchanged. Fatty Wong staggered out of Sharla’s place. A cool breeze blew, but instead of sobering him up, it left him with blurry, drunken eyes. The auntie took Liu Jing to see Fatty Wong off; Sharla was too annoyed to bother.

"Kid, film well. Don't listen to what Brother Fat says. In a few years, you'll have more money than you can spend in a lifetime. When that happens, you can keep filming or go back to school. You can do whatever you want. Because you have the capital and the experience. In this society, knowledge is priceless, but it's also the cheapest thing around. Whether you are cultured or not isn't up to you, and it's not up to me—it's up to money. Once the money is there, every beauty will throw themselves at you, and any title you want will be pinned to your name..."

As he spoke, four men in suits walked side-by-side toward them, looking like they were heading to work. Fatty Wong’s drunken stupor vanished instantly; he grew alert and clamped his mouth shut. Before he knew it, the four men surrounded him and began beating him without a word.

"Ah! What are you doing? Do you know who I am? I’m Wong Jing! I’m with Win's Entertainment..."

"That’s exactly right. We're beating you because it's you!" the leader sneered, then barked, "Keep going! Did you guys not eat today?"

"Stop!" The auntie mustered her courage and yelled—she was truly brave. Liu Jing frowned, standing in front of her, feeling that the woman was incredibly foolish. Beautiful, dressed lightly, in the middle of the night, facing bad guys... This was the moment to turn and run, or hold one's breath and become invisible to reduce one's presence. Catching the smell of alcohol, he frowned again—drunkenness gives cowards courage.

"Pretty lady, this has nothing to do with you. Be careful not to get burned," the man warned.

"He's my friend! I'm calling the police!" The auntie persisted.

One of the men walked over, grinning lecherously, looking nothing like someone on their way to work. "Pretty lady, why call the police? Let's get to know each other..."

*Aaaah...*

A scream echoed through the dead of night...