Chapter 210: The Night Before the Confrontation

July 13, 1990—a peaceful night, yet storms were brewing beneath its calm surface. A clash between two extremes, a struggle of forces—whose side would prevail? Even heaven might not be able to give a definite answer, at least not until the outcome was known.

Xiao Ran lay in bed, feeling Lin Qingxia’s warm, delicate body, yet he could not fall asleep. He didn’t even know what he was thinking. Sometimes he recalled saving money from breakfast to head to the video rental shop in the afternoon, or sometimes at night.

If it was in the afternoon, it must be because there was a film with irresistible appeal, or else his money wasn’t enough. If it was at night, the ticket price was higher, but he still preferred going at night, as there were occasionally films that men liked—famous actresses like Ye Yuqing, Zi Mei, and Weng Hong became well-known through such films. Compared to later adult film stars like Yan Xianwen and Lin Yashi, who came from beauty pageants, he always thought the former four were more exciting and interesting.

Now, he clearly had no interest in adult films. Although there was a film company under the Shadow Group that specialized in producing such films and even built a theater chain dedicated to showing them to avoid wasting quotas, with Ye Yuqing and Zi Mei acting for that company, he still wasn’t interested.

Of course, he wasn’t interested—after all, beside him lay a breathtakingly beautiful woman. With her, Xiao Ran felt as if he had lost interest in any other woman. Sometimes love truly can change a person greatly. In the past, he would occasionally fantasize in his erotic novels about having many women in the future, but that was clearly unrealistic. For those in love, no one else can fit into their hearts. Not everyone is like this, but surely some are, and Xiao Ran and Lin Qingxia were among them.

He remembered back in his “dreams,” when he was around twenty years old, he had made plans with friends to travel to Huangshan. But his friends never had time, so eventually, Xiao Ran couldn’t wait any longer and went alone. There, he experienced the charm of nature and began wandering around like a vagrant, just to admire the beautiful scenery everywhere.

At first, he was a bit timid when setting out alone, but gradually he grew bolder, unafraid even when facing robbers. Thinking of this, a graceful smile formed on his lips.

Perhaps it was those experiences that tempered him, enabling him to establish himself in this era and use his tactics to eliminate the underworld’s worst threats. Xiao Ran gradually realized that it was the countless movies he had enjoyed in the past and the occasional things he read in newspapers and magazines that had led to where he was today.

Xiao Ran used to have a friend who worked in TV dramas and was a descendant of Wei Jiahui. It was that friend who taught him how to write scripts—perhaps this was the foundation for his survival in this world, the first step he took.

He missed more those forum friends he had met in “Made in Hong Kong” – they were the real masters of Hong Kong cinema. He even thought that any one of them could probably do ten times better than he could.
What am I doing? Xiao Ran smiled lightly, wondering if he had grown old. Had he aged to the point where he needed to rely on memories to make up for his emotional shortcomings? Perhaps he had, at least in terms of his mental age. Moreover, in the business world, he had no choice but to become extremely mature. Profit was the most compelling force, and also the most motivating one.
Tomorrow was the preview for “Terminator 2”, no, “The Terminator”. That meant that after the preview, the war between Phantom and Hongguo would begin, and so would the battle between Xiao Ran and Mo Huaien.
Xiao Ran didn’t stay up at night because of this. Sometimes people suffered from insomnia for no apparent reason, and it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; it might even help them think of things they wouldn’t otherwise consider. For Xiao Ran, tomorrow was the most important battle. Whether the liquid-metal men could conquer the people of Hong Kong, or even the whole world, depended on tomorrow.
Mo Huaien! At the mention of this name, Xiao Ran couldn’t help but smile faintly. This man wasn’t worthy of being his opponent – just a foolish guy who thought he was smart. Being foolish wasn’t a big deal, but never think you’re smart. Or, being smart wasn’t a big deal either – never think you’re foolish.
Among Xiao Ran’s opponents, the one whose personality and tactics were most similar to his and thus the most threatening was Fang Ruohai. Like Xiao Ran, Fang Ruohai didn’t like to use underworld forces; both had adventurous yet cautious natures. They preferred strategy, which brought about the beauty of intellectual clashes.
Unfortunately, Fang Ruohai eventually fell. He was wrong from start to finish. He shouldn’t have challenged Xiao Ran in the film industry. That had always been Xiao Ran’s domain, and it would remain so in the future. Xiao Ran seized this flaw and took advantage of it to complete the first, and most crucial, step in Phantom’s rise.
Sometimes, Xiao Ran really missed Fang Ruohai – he was a good opponent. Fighting against a good opponent could spark enthusiasm in both sides, just like Liu Qingyun and Liu Hua in “Dark Battle”. To some extent, it could even evolve into mutual respect.
Xiao Ran believed Fang Ruohai could make a comeback, but he also knew they would never meet again. He was doomed to lose such an excellent opponent. Yet he didn’t need to worry; there were probably even better opponents waiting for him in Hollywood.
“What are you thinking about? Is it the conflict with Hongguo?” Lin Qingxia had been asleep but was awakened by Xiao Ran’s movement. Blurring her eyes, she turned on the light and asked concerningly, “It’s almost twelve o’clock now…”
After a slight rustling sound, Xiao Ran leaned against the headboard, gazed affectionately at Lin Qingxia, and smiled. “Qingxia, who do you think will win in my battle with Mo Huaien?”
“I trust you, that’s why I chose you, right?” Lin Qingxia looked at Xiao Ran tenderly, then said jokingly, “Besides, you and A Dong have always hidden something from me. I’m sure it’s related to this!”

“Amazing, Lady Zhuge!” Xiao Ran teased, giving a thumbs-up. “But I can’t tell you the full plan for now—only Ah Dong and I know it.”
Lin Qingxia smiled gently, her eyes and face brimming with joy. She had known all along that Xiao Ran was very cunning and deep-minded in such matters; otherwise, why would he have endured Fang Ruohai for half a year? “But this time, don’t let Mo Huaien get away again. He’s not Fang Ruohai—he’s by no means as magnanimous as you think!”
“Qingxia, you…” Xiao Ran was utterly surprised, staring at this face that had captivated so many people. “When did you become so…”
“Do you mean ruthless?” Lin Qingxia couldn’t help but laugh heartily. Xiao Ran suddenly found the laughter somewhat familiar, but then Lin Qingxia tapped his finger lightly. “It’s because of you—you’ve influenced me. Besides, I don’t think you’d want to kill him! I mean, don’t give him any chance to make a comeback, so he can’t cause trouble in the future!”
Xiao Ran burst into laughter. At this moment, Lin Qingxia didn’t seem like the fragile woman she used to be; instead, she appeared strong and composed. No wonder Lin Qingxia had been able to come up with some pretty good suggestions in business lately—her personality had also changed gradually.
“What’s there to laugh about…” Lin Qingxia glared at Xiao Ran playfully before leaning on his shoulder and saying softly, “I know, given your personality, you wouldn’t give someone like Mo Huaien any chance. But actually, he once pestered me and almost drove my father into bankruptcy. Other than that, he really isn’t that bad. Thinking about it, maybe he is a bit problematic.”
Xiao Ran smiled. It seemed Lin Qingxia hadn’t turned her gentleness into determination but rather her fragility into strength. He knew that behind this strength was his influence. Gently stroking her smooth long hair, he didn’t quite agree with Lin Qingxia’s view.
Humans are the strangest creatures in the world—just like him. Usually, he could treat everyone as friends. But when dealing with opponents, he could be as ruthless as he was during the confrontation with the three major gangs. So, he could never predict what Mo Huaien would do after failure. Given Mo Huaien’s pragmatic personality, the most likely outcome was that he would go to extremes.
However, he didn’t voice any objections. He was already very happy that Lin Qingxia had changed so much. He definitely didn’t want her to remain weak all the time—she was too vulnerable that way. Being stronger was the best.
On the evening of July 14th, at the leading cinema, Yinghua Theatre, Xiao Ran entered with Wei Dongling, not with the crew. Both of them needed to watch the movie first before making a proper decision.
They looked quite amusing, both wearing sunglasses and makeup to avoid being recognized. Especially Xiao Ran, a frequent cover model and the star of the globally famous “Unfinished Business,” was highly recognizable.

The theater is built exceptionally well—its simple and bright layout, along with its spacious yet not isolating design, gives it a grand atmosphere as the flagship cinema of the film chain. Xiao Ran glanced at the promotional posters and exquisitely crafted flyers, feeling deeply impressed. Ye Jinhong’s “Yi Lu Zhe” was filled with a nostalgic vibe, and the theater’s posters were designed and painted by hand, even with professional artists involved.

Today, however, Phantom’s posters are designed by trained professional poster designers, using computers in their creation, making them far more exquisite and professional compared to those of other companies. This might also be one of the reasons why posters are the easiest products to sell in the entertainment industry.

As the flagship cinema of the film chain, the Cinema Theater naturally covers a vast area. But that’s not even the most impressive part—it’s also the largest theater in Hong Kong, with a unique total of sixteen screening rooms and over four thousand seats. It’s undeniable that watching a movie at the Cinema Theater is an absolutely exceptional experience.

Despite its large size and ample space, the theater was still packed with audience members eager to enter that night. Xiao Ran appreciated this atmosphere—everywhere he looked, there were hundreds of spectators, many of whom traveled great distances just to enjoy the movies here.

Xiao Ran and Wei Dongling exchanged a knowing look, their eyes filled with satisfaction. Bai Wenjing’s marketing skills were becoming increasingly ingenious; he collaborated with other companies to take advantage of such opportunities to promote their products.

After entering the theater, they watched a few commercials, which were quite valuable. Just a 30-second ad could cost over a million, and that was only for local screenings. Overseas screenings would incur additional costs.

The currently showing film, “Mechanical Warriors,” was expected to generate returns of over ten million solely from advertising revenue. If the hidden advertisements within the film were included, Phantom had invested only about forty million. Among these investments, the Changhe Group under Li Chao Ren accounted for a significant portion.

While it’s common for Hollywood films to cost hundreds of millions today, back when special effects hadn’t fully developed, a film with an investment of forty to fifty million dollars was already considered a blockbuster. Phantom’s largest current investment was this film, costing eighty million Hong Kong dollars, still falling short in terms of production costs.

The difference in budget doesn’t necessarily mean a difference in quality—it’s determined by various factors. At least, Xiao Ran bet that the technical quality of this film already matched, if not surpassed, that of North American films. Of course, soft skills like artistic creativity are not as easily measurable as hard skills.

After the commercials, a “PG-2” rating appeared, which made Xiao Ran smirk. This film certainly didn’t deserve an “PG” rating, but determining whether it belonged to PG-2’s “A” or “B” category wasn’t easy.

If judged by standards of pornography and violence, this film actually doesn’t qualify as a B-grade movie, and one of the main characters is even a teenager. Yet it was still classified as B-grade, while Hongguo’s film was classified as A-grade. This means Hongguo’s film can appeal to a wider audience, which is definitely beneficial for box office earnings.