Chapter 60: The Grand Plan to Outdo Others

After overseeing the prayer ceremony and announcing the official start of filming, Xiao Ran mostly stopped staying on set, only stopping by occasionally to check on progress. His main focus now was on the post-production of “God of Gambling.” Since Meiying didn’t have enough funds to purchase equipment for such post-production work—such as subtitles and recording—he had no choice but to use Jiahe, which had the most advanced technology.

This was quite normal. For example, Huang Bai Ming’s Oriental Film Company later specialized in film processing, yet it still managed to keep the company running. Xiao Ran was very jealous of Jiahe’s well-developed post-production facilities, but there was nothing he could do for now. As the saying goes, the revolution is not yet complete, and comrades must keep striving.

There were no issues with post-production. Fa Ge took time out from shooting “Prison Storm” and “A Fairy Tale in Autumn” to do voice work, which wasn’t a big deal. Interestingly, according to Fa Ge, Wang Yu had already started shooting “Jianghu Qing” using the script he got from Xiao Ran.

Before shooting began, Wang Yu had intended to cast Fa Ge as the lead, but Fa Ge disdainfully told Xiao Ran that he firmly rejected that guy. Wang Yu didn’t dare threaten Fa Ge either, mainly because Fa Ge was familiar with the two bosses of Yongsheng—Xiang Qiang and Xiang Sheng, top figures in Xin Yian.

This surprised Xiao Ran greatly. There were rumors before that Fa Ge and Singer were both part of Xin Yian, but he hadn’t believed them. Now it seemed they might be true. However, Fa Ge could tell what Xiao Ran was thinking from his expression and explained, “It’s not what you think. I’m just a personal friend of Xiang Qiang.”

No wonder Fa Ge was so popular back then without ever facing any threats. What amused Xiao Ran even more was that Wang Yu, despite his power, ended up inviting Wan Ziliang as the lead. Everyone in the industry said Wang Yu originally wanted to threaten Wan Ziliang, but after being severely criticized by ATV, he had to back down and hire him with a decent salary.

After learning this, Xiao Ran couldn’t help but sneer. Just because Wang Yu hired some unknown director didn’t mean he could make this movie a success. What a joke! “Jianghu Qing” was originally a work by Mai Dangxiong, known as a “film tycoon” of his time, created alongside his close partner Xiao Ruoyuan. And in reality, it wasn’t even considered a classic. Just because Wang Yu wanted to make it good? He was asking for trouble!

With a quick calculation, Xiao Ran figured that “Jianghu Qing” would likely be released during the summer vacation. With another cold smile, he knew what he should do. What to do? Of course, it was to pit “God of Gambling” against “Jianghu Qing.” He didn’t believe those movies could achieve great box office success.

That day, Xiao Ran and the most skilled editor, Zhang Yaozong, were at Jiahe for the final editing session, along with other editing assistants. Generally, a 90-minute movie has around seven to eight hundred shots, requiring edits every few seconds—so it takes a lot of time.

When it comes to editing, it really can’t be ignored. It’s best for the editor to go through the filming process alongside the director so they can have a thorough understanding of everything, enabling the best possible results during post-production.

For example, they were currently editing the scene where Zhou Runfa uses gambling skills to save Daocai after losing his memory. Since both the initial and revised edits had been completed, the film was basically finished, leaving only the final polishing. If this scene were placed later in the film, optical effects would surely be used to depict the gambling god’s split mind at that time. But Xiao Ran didn’t want to do that, because he knew full well that the true charm of this scene lay in Stephen Chow’s acting. In this scene, Chow perfectly combined the role of a amnesiac with his original identity as the gambling god, delivering an outstanding performance that was even used as a teaching example for acting in the mainland film industry. dazzling visual effects must not overshadow Chow’s performance, otherwise it would greatly diminish the film’s quality. Zhang Yaozong, truly the best editor nowadays, quickly finished editing this scene. Although Xiao Ran might not have much else, he still had a keen eye for movies. Even for just a single shot, he could tell what was good or bad. By afternoon, the entire film had finally been edited. Zhang Yaozong let out a sigh of relief and smiled at Xiao Ran, saying, “A Ran, this time we’ve lived up to the expectations. Among all the directors I’ve seen, aside from Xu Ke, only you have such high standards!” As he left the room, Xiao Ran laughed heartily, “Do you think having high standards is bad? Editing is the most crucial part of post-production. The slightest mistake can ruin the film—there’s no way I can afford to neglect it!” “At least…” Zhang Yaozong smiled slyly, “I like feeling valued!” After parting with Zhang Yaozong, Xiao Ran rushed to the villa that Fang Ruohai had just bought. He had made an appointment with Fang Ruoxin to go out for dinner together that night—a privilege he had fought hard to obtain. Giving it up now would fill him with regret. Instead of seeing Fang Ruoxin, he encountered Fang Ruohai first. Fang Ruoxin’s expression was neither happy nor angry; she just stared at Xiao Ran intently before asking after a long while, “A Ran, you’ve been pursuing Ruoxin lately. Tell me, do you really like her?” “Of course I like her!” Xiao Ran replied without hesitation, as he had always told himself he liked Fang Ruoxin. But as soon as those words left his mouth, a voice in his mind began to question him: Do you really like her? Do you really like her…? Xiao Ran didn’t know, nor did he want to know. He was afraid of the answer. Fang Ruohai didn’t know what Xiao Ran was thinking; otherwise, he might have kicked him away. After thinking for a while, he slowly and solemnly told Xiao Ran, “You may not know this, but she is the sister I and my whole family love the most. If you really like her, go ahead and pursue her. I won’t stop you!” Fang Ruohai had dealt with Xiao Ran many times. He thought that although Xiao Ran lacked managerial skills, he was a very careful person (how else could he have survived on the streets?). Moreover, he had always believed that Xiao Ran had talent in filmmaking. If his sister ended up with him, it wouldn’t be a bad outcome—better than being used as a bargaining chip in business deals. Hearing this, Xiao Ran was overjoyed. But before he could enjoy his happiness for long, Fang Ruohai stared at him coldly, his gaze sharp, “But if you ever let her down or treat her badly, my family and I will never forgive you…”

Xiao Ran didn’t hesitate. Without a second thought, he nodded and said, “Don’t worry. I like her so much that I’d never treat her badly. It’s just a pity she doesn’t seem to have any feelings for me right now!”
With Xiao Ran’s promise, Fang Ruohai’s expression relaxed, and he couldn’t help but laugh heartily. “Do you really not understand girls’ minds? From my experience, Ah Xin at least has some fondness for you. It’s just that she’s always been the little princess in her family—very proud—and naturally won’t show such feelings! Haven’t you noticed that she’s much more affectionate toward you now than at first?”
A bitter smile—what else could he do? Xiao Ran thought gloomily, If you were often played by Ah Xin, you’d know whether that was affection or not!
These days, he had tried his best to win over Fang Ruoxin, sending her flowers almost every day. Unfortunately, whenever he gave her roses, she would return chrysanthemums, which was truly embarrassing. He had also tried to take her out for dinner many times, only to be stood up. He didn’t even know if it would be the same this time…
Fortunately, Xiao Ran wasn’t stood up this time. As he was chatting happily with Fang Ruohai, Fang Ruoxin came downstairs. What appeared before Xiao Ran’s eyes was like a fairy—at least that’s what he thought; it was his first impression. The same overwhelming sense he felt the first time he saw her surfaced again, enchanting him.
“Ah Xin, you look beautiful today!” Xiao Ran could swear on everything he had that his words were sincere. Unconsciously, he compared her to Lin Qingxia, and upon comparison, they seemed quite alike.
“Thank you!” Fang Ruoxin smiled slightly, and Xiao Ran, looking into her eyes, was momentarily stunned.
All this time, Fang Ruoxin had never been kind to him. The first time they met at Lin Qingxia’s house, she had smiled politely. But after he started working with Fang Ruohai, her attitude toward Xiao Ran gradually turned cold. Although it had improved recently, she was still very indifferent. This charming smile was one Xiao Ran had longed for.
After saying goodbye to Fang Ruohai, he went to a high-end restaurant with Fang Ruoxin. There was no choice—Fang Ruoxin wasn’t like those delicate young ladies in TV shows or movies who were interested in street food; instead, she despised it. Moreover, with her appearance today, as beautiful as a fairy, Xiao Ran didn’t even dare to take her there.
Xiao Ran didn’t really like the atmosphere of high-end restaurants—they were too pretentious. To put it bluntly, they were too showy. He preferred a sense of freedom. Even though he couldn’t enjoy freedom now, he still hoped to feel it amidst his daily life. For him, the environment of a high-end restaurant was undoubtedly oppressive.
After ordering food, Fang Ruoxin was puzzled to see Xiao Ran sitting motionless. After all, almost every time they met, he would bring her a bouquet of flowers. His absence from doing so was unusual for her, who had grown used to it.

She naturally didn’t know that Xiao Ran didn’t like giving flowers, as he felt it was somewhat cruel to pick them. Although he didn’t pick the flowers himself, buying them was no different from picking them personally. It was only recently that Xiao Ran seemed obsessed with pursuing Fang Ruoxin, which made him resolve to buy flowers. Now that Fang Ruohai had promised to help, he might as well do without the flowers.
“You… don’t have anything to give me this time?” Fang Ruoxin hesitated for a moment. Unaccustomed to days without flowers, she still asked.
Xiao Ran couldn’t take his eyes off Fang Ruoxin, gazing at her face that captivated him completely, his heart filled with admiration. “What do you want? I’ll give it to you. Even if it’s the moon in the sky, I’ll pick it down for you!”
“Really?” Fang Ruoxin naturally didn’t believe it, but she watched Xiao Ran with interest. After thinking for a while, she smiled. “Then, pick the moon down for me later! Okay?”
*****
Recommended: “Star Gate” by Lengku
http://www.feiku.com/showbook.asp?bl_id=32607