Chapter 1120: Someone named Guan?

When Tong Zhenbang made up his mind, Zhao Fusheng was meeting someone.

"Mr. Guan, pleased to meet you. I'm Zhao Fusheng." Facing a round-faced man wearing glasses, Zhao Fusheng said very politely.

"Chairman Zhao is too kind. I'm already extremely grateful that you would see me." The man surnamed Guan was quite ill at ease, after all, the young man before him, though young, was already worth over a billion yuan. Although he had always been mysterious in the press, Guan knew well that their positions were vastly different.

"Mr. Guan, you're too modest. I've seen several of your works, and I've also mentioned that earlier film 'Lan Yu' was very successful. Thank you for helping my brother fulfill his wish, allowing him to retire from acting with peace of mind." Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to the man before him.

This man was named Guan Jinpeng, one of the few directors in the entire Hong Kong and even Chinese film circle who could tell women's stories. Or rather, on the subject of Republican-era women, Guan Jinpeng definitely ranked among the top three.

The 1980s and 1990s were a period when the Hong Kong entertainment industry gathered a century's worth of essence. It was no exaggeration to say that in that era, Hong Kong's film culture dominated Southeast Asia, South Korea, and even Japan. Whether commercial or art films, they were arguably the best.

And this director Guan Jinpeng, whom insiders habitually called Ah Guan, was one of the best.

In later generations, there was a saying in the film and television circle: a good director must be a good storyteller.

Guan Jinpeng was that kind of person. He excelled at filming women, and did it exceptionally well. Unlike Xu Laoguai, who at most liked to film men in drag or two women...

Of course, this might be related to his background. After all, someone who could share common language with Leslie Cheung—some things go without saying.

But even so, Zhao Fusheng had considerable respect for Guan Jinpeng, especially since Leslie Cheung had personally called him earlier, hoping he could meet with Guan Jinpeng.

Regardless of what favor the other party needed, Zhao Fusheng certainly had to give face to brother Leslie.

"If you don't mind, like brother Leslie, just call me Fusheng." Zhao Fusheng said to Guan Jinpeng with a smile.

He had different attitudes for different people. With someone like Tong Zhenbang, he didn't mind putting on a lofty posture.

But Guan Jinpeng was different. He was an artist; Zhao Fusheng felt it was only natural to show him some respect.

"Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony." Guan Jinpeng nodded. He also knew that although the man before him was a wealthy businessman, he had a close personal friendship with Leslie Cheung.

"Director Guan, you must have come to see me for a reason, right?" Zhao Fusheng didn't beat around the bush and asked Guan Jinpeng.

His time was limited; squeezing out two hours for Guan Jinpeng was already the limit. After meeting him, Zhao Fusheng still had an appointment. Jiang Wen had texted him earlier, saying he had called the Wang brothers to discuss business in the evening.

"Well, to be frank, this time I'm asking you to help me out." Guan Jinpeng knew that the other party had already been generous to give him a chance to meet. If he didn't seize the opportunity to state his purpose, it would be a pure waste of time.

"Please go ahead, Director Guan." Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to Guan Jinpeng.

He liked this man's straightforward way of speaking—no unnecessary words or explanations, directly stating his intention. That was far better than those hypocrites.

After all, many screenwriters and directors in this circle loved nothing more than to swindle investors.

Among them, some were purely greedy, liking to take advantage of deep pockets. Others, like Hou·box-office-flop·Hsiao-hsien, Yang·money-grubbing·De-chang, and Wong·sunglasses·Kar-wai—these three—it depended on which investor was unlucky enough to run into them. With them, besides collecting a bunch of trophies to display at home, you couldn't rely on box office to make money.

Ahem... not every film is called 'The Revenge of Lady Gong Er.'

Clearly, Guan Jinpeng was not that kind of person.

"It's like this: I have a script, a very good story, but I've been unable to find investment. So I wanted to ask if you might be interested." Guan Jinpeng said somewhat sheepishly.

To put it bluntly, his purpose in coming was to seek investment from Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled lightly. Actually, from the moment Guan Jinpeng walked in, he had probably guessed the other's intention. After all, given his current status and wealth, not many people would come to him, and Guan Jinpeng, as a well-known director with whom he had no prior connection, visiting at this time was most likely about a film.

"Director Guan, you mean you have a script, right?" Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and asked Guan Jinpeng.

Guan Jinpeng nodded: "This film is adapted from a novel called 'Red Beauty' by a female writer from Mingzhu. It's an art film that tells a story set in Mingzhu. The state-run Star Hair Salon attracts all kinds of women because of the young hairdresser Ahua, and Aini is one of them. Aini's mushroom haircut was once a classic on the Mingzhu Bund. Although times have changed, getting her hair done remains Aini's unchanging pleasure in life. Aini, delicate and beautiful, didn't marry well when she was young. Now she faces household trivialities, a boring husband, and a spoiled daughter every day. Only when Ahua works on her hair can she recapture the feeling of her glamorous youth. The state-run salon is about to close, Aini's marriage is at an end, and Ahua is going to work somewhere new. It seems Aini's era is coming to a complete end. One day, Ahua offers to do Aini's hair one last time..."

The story wasn't long, and as Guan Jinpeng narrated it unhurriedly, Zhao Fusheng soon recalled that he had probably seen some plot points of this film.

Or more precisely, he had occasionally seen a few segments.

After all, the female lead of this film was Guan·golf·uninhibited and freedom-loving·ball queen. As far as he remembered, the ball queen's works after the millennium were few, and this 'Hairdo' should be one of the more memorable ones.

Seeing Zhao Fusheng's expression quite gentle, Guan Jinpeng thought he was very interested in his film and, overjoyed, spoke even more enthusiastically.

Little did he know, Zhao Fusheng was just wondering whether this film had any selling points for the ball queen.

But because the memory was too distant, Zhao Fusheng thought for a long time and couldn't recall anything noteworthy about this film.

Perhaps the most attractive thing about the whole film was the ball queen herself.

With that thought, Zhao Fusheng looked at Guan Jinpeng, smiled, and said, "Director Guan, can you tell me how much investment this film has received so far?"

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's words, Guan Jinpeng's face immediately showed embarrassment. After a long silence, he said quietly, "Well, right now only a few investment institutions have expressed interest..."

Zhao Fusheng burst out laughing. So after all this, he was Guan Jinpeng's lifeline.