Chapter 136: The Spy Conspiracy

A while ago, the company investigated European distribution companies. Wei Dongling and Xiao Ran selected two with considerable strength but that had been losing money recently. Of course, given Phantom’s current financial situation, they wisely chose companies with low debt.

One of those two distribution companies was a publicly listed firm, and that was Xiao Ran and Wei Dongling’s target. If they could acquire it, they would have the ability to raise funds through the stock market or at least qualify for loans to support their development.

It should be noted that Phantom’s lack of eligibility to go public had always been a major frustration for Xiao Ran. If they could go public, he believed it would take him only two years to dominate the Southeast Asian market and even extend his influence to Hollywood.

That French distribution company once had a market value of over a billion dollars, but now its value was less than 150 million. Acquiring it wasn’t particularly difficult—Xiao Ran had even delayed his plans to build a film city for this purpose.

Of course, Xiao Ran had nothing to say about it. After all, acquisitions and negotiations were handled by specialized people; he didn’t even dare to get involved. If it came to acquisition, with the traders under Tianxia Fund, it shouldn’t be too hard. The key was how much money it would cost and how much loan they could get after acquisition.

According to the report from the Investment Department, acquiring 40% of the shares would ensure control over the company. Of course, for absolute control, 51% would be ideal.

Acquiring those 40% would cost around 500 to 600 million. Phantom had recently sold some Hong Kong stocks and real estate, leaving them with about 2 billion in liquid funds, more than enough for the acquisition.

As for how much loan they could get after acquisition, after research by the Investment Department, it was concluded that they needed to turn losses into profits first. Once performance improved, they could secure at least 200 million dollars in loans.

Based on Xiao Ran’s assessment, at this rate of expansion, Phantom’s market value could reach 10 billion by 1989. By the end of the year, with Dai’s stock price soaring, they would have almost enough funds for further development.

Of course, Xiao Ran had considered all this. He had already given instructions on everything, so there was nothing left to say. He just joked, “Stop wasting time. If you don’t bring me and Qingxia two gifts this time you go to Europe, you’ll regret it!”

While they were talking, An Yuxuan knocked on the door and came in to inform Xiao Ran that Yu Jiayu had arrived. When Xiao Ran returned to his office, he saw Yu Jiayu and An Yuxuan chatting. He couldn’t help but smile knowingly. After An Yuxuan left, he said with a laugh, “Yuxuan is a great woman. Don’t let her slip away!”

Yu Jiayu was taken aback by Xiao Ran’s sudden remark and didn’t know what to say. Xiao Ran smiled understandingly—clearly, Yu Jiayu liked An Yuxuan. Setting aside these trivial matters, he said solemnly, “Is the preparation for ‘Spy Conspiracy’ complete?”

When it came to work, Yu Jiayu was full of energy and replied without hesitation, “Everything in the U.S. and locally is taken care of; only the mainland part hasn’t been finalized yet!”
“Alright, let’s do it this way—shoot this movie first!” Xiao Ran made an immediate decision. It would be perfect to finish filming this movie as soon as possible.
The behind-the-scenes team for 《Spy Change》was extremely strong and large, with a total budget of 25 million—by far the largest investment Mirage had made so far, and likely the largest in all of Hong Kong as well. There were numerous explosion scenes in the script alone, larger than the biggest explosion scene in 《Police Story 2》, along with many action sequences.
In short, Xiao Ran was trying to create a movie that was both artistic and commercially viable. Of course, the action sequences served commercial purposes, while the patriotism was used as a cover. Xiao Ran thought this might help the country in some way.
In late April, Xiao Ran and the crew flew thousands of miles to the U.S., with the budget just for shooting there amounting to 1.5 million dollars. So everyone on the team understood that time was money.
Of course, not all crew members came this time—only the most important ones. Xiao Ran didn’t want to hire production companies in the U.S. First, cultural differences could lead to a failure to understand the film’s core message, and second, it would be difficult to coordinate with them.
Two staff members from the distribution department also came, tasked with promoting the movie as much as possible. If it were only released in places like Chinatowns, Xiao Ran was sure its box office would be high. But what he wanted was to enter mainstream U.S. theaters properly—that’s the real way to gain fame.
Actually, Mirage’s previous movies could also be sold to U.S. distributors, but Xiao Ran didn’t want to sacrifice Mirage’s reputation for such small profits. He wanted to break into the mainstream U.S. market, not just niche markets. So, Mirage’s works were only made into videotapes and sold in North America (including Canada).
《Spy Change》was a movie aiming for realism, with a very gritty tone. This time, Xiao Ran’s old partners Huang Yongheng and Zhang Yaozong came as cinematography and editing supervisors, with their main task being to train the crew members handling the actual filming.
Since they were in the U.S., they simply prayed and started shooting. Daisy didn’t understand the strange behavior of this crew from the East, but she clearly had no complaints about it.
Daisy was beautiful and a struggling actress who had always been seeking opportunities in Hollywood. In the script, she was barely a major supporting character, which is why Yu Jiayu took some time to select her according to Xiao Ran’s requirements.
However, what annoyed Yu Jiayu was that when he first met Daisy to discuss the price, her agent dared to demand one million… dollars. At that moment, Yu Jiayu thought about walking away. He wasn’t ignorant of the market, especially after being taught by Xiao Ran, who had given him a deeper understanding of Hollywood.

One million dollars—forget about third-rate actors; even first-rate stars would only fetch that much. Later, Yu Jiayu made it clear to Daisy that it was fifty thousand dollars, plus two more film contracts. Daisy glanced at Yu Jiayu, who was earnestly lighting incense and praying over there, feeling furious inside. She admired, or rather, despised, this Easterner’s bargaining skills. When Yu Jiayu offered fifty thousand dollars and two more contracts, telling her that she would either have no films to act in or have to take on this project, Daisy knew this Easterner had hit her weak point. Come on, there were plenty of people willing to do it—Hollywood was always full of dreamers waiting for such opportunities. So, Daisy could only comfort herself by thinking of it as the first step toward becoming famous; maybe she could even become famous in Hong Kong. Who would play the lead? It wasn’t Zhen Zidan—it was Stephen Chow. Xiao Ran had initially favored Zhen Zidan, but Zhen’s acting skills were far from satisfactory, yet the role required acting talent, which posed a problem. In the industry, to play such a role well, certain qualifications were necessary. Zhen Zidan was originally from the mainland, moved abroad later, and finally returned to Hong Kong. His mindset and background were undoubtedly suitable, but his acting skills were the biggest obstacle. The next candidate was Xiao Ran. Given his looks, experience, and increasingly impressive skills, he would be perfect for the role. Unfortunately, Xiao Ran believed that Stephen Chow was the most iconic local superstar, and with his status, he could bring a truly exemplary flavor to this film. So, Zhen Zidan could only be disappointed. But it didn’t matter—there was a script about mercenaries being written, and he would play the lead. Xiao Ran had started conceiving this film, “Spy Change,” even while writing the script. He wondered why directors who combined writing and directing could handle things so effortlessly. The reason was simple: when writing a script, the director already imagines the scenes and shots. That was Xiao Ran’s situation too—films with a commercial focus didn’t allow for too much complexity in structure, so he used a very concise narrative approach. In fact, his scenes in the U.S. weren’t many, making them easy to shoot. The most important scene in the U.S. was the night when the protagonist’s mindset changed; the character Hu was played by Xiao Ran in a cameo. As the camera rolled, Xiao Ran’s expression in front of the computer gradually turned surprised, and the cameraman took a close-up of his face at the right moment. Liu Yongjian, the assistant director promoted by Xiao Ran, shouted “Cut,” and the scene ended. Xiao Ran sighed in relief—his acting skills in business settings were foolproof. But acting in front of a camera wasn’t his forte. Outside the acting area, Stephen Chow gave Xiao Ran a thumbs up in surprise, “Ah Ran, you did really well!” “Forget it, I still don’t know what kind of person I am,” Xiao Ran said with a smile, pushing Stephen Chow aside. “Go get ready; it’s your turn to act in the next scene!”

Smiling as he watched Fa Ge and Daisy get ready, Xiao Ran turned to the editor and asked, “Ah An, what are your thoughts on this scene?”
Editor Zhang Yaozong smiled at his apprentice Ah An. Ah An scratched his head, thought for a moment before saying, “I think we could use close-ups for this scene. Later on, we could use a top-down shot or an extended shot to enhance that…”
“The melancholic effect?” Xiao Ran was somewhat impressed by Ah An, though his lack of experience meant he still needed to plan things out. If it were Zhang Yaozong, he would likely be able to figure out the key points of the scene right during filming and know how to handle it during editing.
Xiao Ran nodded and then looked at Lin Daoyun. “Daoyun, these scenes are crucial. Your soundtrack must be perfect. What do you think right now? Share your thoughts.”
“For the previous action scene, I think we can make the rhythm faster and use electronic instruments to accompany it—that would definitely create a tense atmosphere!” Lin Daoyun answered without hesitation, in contrast to Ah An’s hesitation.
Lin Daoyun was referring to the earlier action scene where Xiao Ran made a cameo as Hu, chasing after several Chinese agents alongside CIA agents. That scene was one of the more important action sequences in the film. It’s no exaggeration to say that the number and intensity of action scenes in this film are extremely rare, even twenty years later.
The next scene wasn’t entirely Fa Ge’s—it was Daisy’s. In this scene, Daisy secretly watched Fa Ge in the darkness, thinking it would be easy to act. But she soon faced difficulties.
Fa Ge sat in an armchair, looking extremely confused. In the dim light softened by several reflectors, Daisy, lying on the bed, suddenly opened her eyes. Xiao Ran frowned and called for a stop—something wasn’t right in his vision.
Yet, just this simple act of opening her eyes resulted in six or seven re-takes. Daisy wasn’t just confused now; she thought the director was deliberately making things difficult for her. Out of anger, she got off the bed and snapped at Yu Jiayu, “I’m done acting. That bastard director is just trying to mess with me.”
Not many crew members on set understood English, but a few did. Yu Jiayu was clearly one of them. He clearly didn’t like Daisy either and said coldly, “Daisy, you signed a contract. If you don’t want to do this, I’d be happy to see you in court!”
Xiao Ran couldn’t help but shake his head. He walked over to Daisy with relaxed steps and said to her in fluent English, “Miss Daisy, I’m very sorry to tell you, but I’m not a bastard. Of course, if you insist on thinking that way, I have no objection!”
Daisy was stunned. She thought Xiao Ran didn’t speak English. Xiao Ran remained calm and added, “Also, I want to tell you that with your attitude, I don’t think you deserve any position in Hollywood. You’re an actor—you need to understand your role. Do you get it?”

Daisy stared blankly at the director, who was extremely dedicated to his work, and nodded involuntarily. The rest of it became much easier. Regarding Daisy’s scene, Xiao Ran simply gave a brief instruction: “Have her open her eyes slowly; just a slit is enough.”
The next scene marked the beginning of the defection. Xiao Ran appeared in the performance area once again. It continued until Brother Fa saw the footage on the disk and his attitude changed, leading to the decision to defect. This part was crucial for the performance; if not done well, the entire film would lack credibility.
*****
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