Chapter 9: Screenwriter Wei Zu

Wei Jiahui? Xiao Ran felt as if his head was about to explode with a buzzing sound, followed by the terrifying symptom of sweating all over. How could he not have heard of this name? Wei Jiahui was currently working as a director at TVB, and his works included “Rogue Tycoon,” “New Brothers,” and “The Legend of the Condor Heroes.”
These dramas had been extremely popular over the years. If Xiao Ran claimed he didn’t know them, Yu Zhi would surely look down on him. Before he could say anything, Wei Dongling nodded and said with an interesting expression, “I’ve heard of this name. It seems to be related to quite a few dramas!”
Hearing this, Wei Dongling became even more interested in movies. Of course, Xiao Ran had no idea what Wei Dongling was thinking, nor was he interested in finding out. He simply tried to suppress his excitement and said to Yu Zhi, “When can we invite him out for a meal? I really want to be friends with him!”
“Ah, I see!” Yu Zhi thought for a moment. Knowing that Wei Jiahui was resting, he smiled and said to Xiao Ran, “Why wait? Let’s do it today!”
After just one phone call, everything was decided. This time, they weren’t going to a street food stall—Xiao Ran didn’t want to welcome his idol and half-master in such a casual setting. He had written novels in his dreams, and his writing style had been greatly influenced by Wei Jiahui, so how could he not be excited?
Before long, Wei Jiahui arrived. He still looked pretty much the same as before—perhaps the only difference was that he was a bit thinner now, and he hadn’t grown that attractive mustache yet.
Yu Zhi introduced Wei Dongling and Xiao Ran, and after they exchanged greetings, the conversation began. Wei Jiahui was clearly an easygoing person. He quickly shared some good news with Yu Zhi: thanks to his efforts, TVB had finally decided to bring Yu Zhi back.
After some congratulations, Wei Jiahui, having heard Yu Zhi’s introduction earlier and knowing that Xiao Ran was a screenwriter, smiled at him and said, “Since Yu says your scripts are great, why haven’t you joined a film company yet? I’m sure they’d be very eager to have someone like you!”
“I don’t want to be a cheap, trapped pig!” Xiao Ran joked with a slight smile before continuing, “I’m not used to that, so it’s better to be free!”
“I really envy you!” Wei Jiahui clearly agreed with Xiao Ran’s view and nodded in approval. “Being free is indeed better. But for someone like me who writes dramas, it’s difficult! There’s no such thing as freedom!”
“Really?” Xiao Ran smiled mysteriously, giving Wei Jiahui a meaningful look, as if trying to see into his heart, which surprised Wei Jiahui greatly. Then Xiao Ran continued, “TV dramas and movies are completely different. Although TVB also produces TV movies, that’s definitely not enough to give ambitious people enough room to showcase themselves!”
If it were anyone else, they would surely find their conversation boring. But Wei Dongling didn’t think so. Instead, he watched the two of them talking with great interest. Wei Jiahui’s eyes lit up before dimming again. “You’re right. The TV station isn’t the end. But with contracts binding us, it’s hard to think of anything else!”

“It doesn’t matter. Opportunities are always around us; it depends on whether you’re willing to seize them! Do you want to do this?” Xiao Ran certainly knew that Wei Jiahui really wanted to, because he knew everything about the future. In his dreams, Wei Jiahui would collaborate with Du Qifeng in the mid-1990s to found Galaxy Images, the most renowned film company of the post-1997 era.

Some things obviously don’t need to be explained in detail, and Wei Jiahui wasn’t willing to dwell on this topic. So, he quickly changed the subject: “Mr. Xiao, what do you think is the most important thing in writing a script? I think we could exchange some experiences!”

“Surprise—using surprise to gain an advantage!” Xiao Ran blurted out without hesitation. When he realized something was wrong, he immediately noticed Wei Jiahui’s strange expression, as well as You Zhi and even Wei Dongling’s thoughtful looks. Xiao Ran knew he was in trouble. This idea, even this phrase, was completely plagiarized from Wei Jiahui, and now it had definitely been exposed.

“Great!” Wei Jiahui exclaimed enthusiastically. “Mr. Xiao, your words immediately made me think of something that had puzzled me for a long time. It’s surprise—just like readers never want to read identical novels, the same goes for movies. You’re truly a genius! How did you come up with this?”

Xiao Ran’s heart, which had sunk to the bottom in an instant, immediately rose again. He was both shocked and delighted, with cold sweat pouring down his body. Only then did he realize that Wei Jiahui wasn’t yet Wei Zu—he hadn’t taken on a production role at TVB, so he naturally hadn’t said those words that would later be regarded as classics by screenwriters.

Yet the feeling of plagiarizing a classic idea in front of his idol still made Xiao Ran, who had a casual personality, extremely embarrassed. After cursing himself in his heart for being shameless and despicable, he immediately put on an expression of humility and said, “You flatter me, Mr. Wei. I think it’s better if you call me Aran.”

He had intended to brush off the second question, but Wei Jiahui was clearly not someone who gave up easily. He immediately asked with a smile, “Alright, then call me Xiaobao—that would be fair. How exactly did you come up with this?”

Xiao Ran could tell that although Wei Jiahui had some beautiful aspirations for movies, he clearly hadn’t thought too far ahead. Most of his thoughts remained focused on being a screenwriter. But for now, he didn’t overthink it and just shook his head helplessly, trying to muddle through. “I don’t know. Have you ever experienced this? When you’re struggling to think of something and can’t figure it out no matter what, suddenly, some trivial thing reminds you of it!”

“I understand!” Wei Jiahui’s eyes indeed showed understanding, which relieved Xiao Ran, who was afraid Wei Jiahui would think he was dodging the question. Wei Jiahui continued thoughtfully, “In Buddhism, this is called sudden enlightenment.”

Buddhism? Xiao Ran suddenly understood the origin of *Big Head, Big Wisdom* (its Hong Kong title: *Da Zhi Lao*). On the surface, this film, which later won the Golden Horse Award for Best Film, was directed by Wei Jiahui and Du Qifeng together. But Xiao Ran knew it was actually driven by Wei Jiahui’s themes and concepts, and could only be considered his work. It seemed that Wei Jiahui was greatly influenced by Buddhism.

“Hearing Ayou say that you also want to make movies?” Xiao Ran turned his gaze to Wei Jiahui and asked, “Actually, I think working at a TV station isn’t bad either—at least it helps you gain experience. Such opportunities don’t come around every day. Once you have enough experience, you’ll be able to make a big splash when you step out!”
Of course, he didn’t know whether they believed Xiao Ran or not, but he knew his ambiguous words would surely come true in the future. By 1988, Wei Jiahui would be promoted to producer due to his outstanding success. One should never underestimate the role of a producer—after all, it’s the producer who truly holds the authority as a director during TV series production; the so-called TV series director is more like an assistant.
As is well known, Wei Jiahui was extremely successful as a producer. Just one work, “A Time of Great Change,” was enough to make him one of the greatest figures in TVB’s history. Later, Wei Jiahui partnered with Du Qifeng to found Galaxy, but the early years were quite difficult. In short, Xiao Ran planted two long-term clues in his words.
After talking for a while longer, Xiao Ran was deeply impressed by Wei Jiahui’s remarkable talent, while Wei Jiahui was equally amazed by Xiao Ran’s sharp judgment and vision. They exchanged contact information and agreed to get together whenever they had time, then left separately.
Back at Xiaoyaowo, they heard Wei Dongling sighing dejectedly, “I really don’t know when I’ll be able to achieve anything!”
Xiao Ran smiled brightly and said to Wei Dongling, “I think no matter what you do, persistence is key. I believe that as long as you stay in Hong Kong for a few years, you might achieve great success—perhaps even beyond your imagination.”
Wei Dongling naturally didn’t know that Xiao Ran’s intention was to get him to stay. Hearing this, he looked troubled. A few years—would his drive be worn down here? How many people could endure years of loneliness? Talented people often have to wait years before getting a chance to show themselves!
The next day, after seeing off You Zhi, who moved back to TVB’s dormitory, the three of them, though having known each other for only a short time, had developed some rapport, especially with Xiao Ran, whom they had deliberately tried to get close to. Naturally, they felt reluctant to part. Xiao Ran, ever mischievous, advised, “If you don’t do well at TVB and can’t realize your ambitions, come to me. I have ways to help you.”
Xiao Ran wasn’t sure whether You Zhi was doing well or not at TVB. But he didn’t think it was necessary for him to know too much—he only needed to know about You Zhi’s ambitions in filmmaking. With that, he was confident he could get hold of You Zhi in the future.
This time, he didn’t go straight to the higher-ups to submit the script; his methods were quite targeted. Xu Ke from New Art City was already a leader of Hong Kong’s New Wave cinema and was much more open-minded in certain aspects, which was why he succeeded. If this method were applied to Cathay, the chances of failure would be over 90%.

Jiahe is a veteran film company that managed to establish itself back in the day thanks to Bruce Lee, allowing it to compete head-on with its former employer, Shaw Brothers. By acquiring Sammo Hung, it grew even faster. So, it’s obvious to everyone that Sammo Hung is the backbone of Jiahe, and the best way to follow Jiahe’s path is to secure Sammo Hung’s support.

After doing some research, Xiao Ran realized his guess was wrong—Sammo Hung hadn’t yet founded Weihe Company. Of course, the film “A Chinese Police Story” hadn’t been shot either. But the key issue now was how this obscure guy could even meet Sammo Hung!

Among the celebrities he knew, aside from Xu Ke who was truly famous, there was no one else. This gave him a headache. He thought it was urgent to find himself a powerful protector, otherwise, he might be in trouble with no one to help him.

It can’t be said that Xiao Ran was unprepared for all this. He deliberately met Wei Jiahui, Liang Jiahui, and You Zhi for his long-term plans. But since he had no fame, power, or money at the moment and had only been here for a short time, he naturally couldn’t meet many celebrities.

However, if even this posed a challenge to Xiao Ran, then he wouldn’t be able to wander around in his dreams either. He had one last resort, one he wouldn’t use unless it was absolutely necessary. That was to get to know Sammo Hung through Lin Qingxia. Sammo Hung might not give face to others, but it would be hard for him to refuse Lin Qingxia’s request.