Chapter 63: The Grand Martial Arts Master Plan, The Flying Dagger of Li Xunhuan! Trouble with The Untold Legend! (Fourth Supplementary Chapter)

"Ma Xun, sometimes I really don't understand you."

"Of course you don't understand me. Isn't it enough that I can handle you?"

"You're something else~ So wicked."

"You're something else~ So seductive."

"Oh my, I can never win an argument with you."

"Then talk less and do more."

Under Ma Xun's guidance, Sister Hong was becoming increasingly seductive.

Of course, she still appeared extremely dignified in public, surrounded by countless prestigious labels.

A lady from a distinguished family, a renowned actress, a promising blockbuster director...

She maintained these personas effortlessly.

The only place she truly flexed her core strength was right in front of Ma Xun, right around her waist.

The arrangements for *The Soong Sisters* and *The Mad Phoenix* were basically finalized.

Ma Xun's strategy here was definitely something Sister Hong would need a while to study and master.

Everyone was betting high on *The Soong Sisters*.

And understandably so; the film was a major blockbuster with a budget of forty million.

Yet, Sister Hong maintained a low profile.

It made her stand out from the crowd.

As for *The Mad Phoenix*, Sister Hong operated with high visibility, running errands everywhere.

The two films were scheduled to premiere almost back-to-back.

When the time came, if things unfolded exactly as Ma Xun predicted—

*The Soong Sisters* failed to meet expectations, while *The Mad Phoenix* scored an unexpected triumph in the Guangdong and Guangxi regions—

Sister Hong's status within the industry would instantly ascend to a whole new level.

After that, plenty of Hong Kong film producers would be lining up to work with her.

If things progressed along this trajectory, both Ma Xun and Sister Hong would reap massive rewards.

Even if things didn't go according to plan—

If both films bombed at the box office, or if *The Soong Sisters* actually became a massive hit—

It wouldn't matter!

Sister Hong would still enjoy the dividends from *The Soong Sisters*.

And as for *The Mad Phoenix*, well, she had given it her absolute all.

In short, following Ma Xun's strategy meant being in an invincible position from the start!

Sister Hong hadn't foreseen any of this at the beginning.

Once she finally figured it out, she naturally became completely submissive and devoted to Ma Xun.

Not to mention, Sister Hong was already head-over-heels in love with that *Jewel in the Palace* concept.

However, there were still other matters to discuss.

"Why on earth did you paint such a huge pie in the sky for Elder Zhang?"

"A pie? What pie?"

"The wuxia project you mentioned! Can wuxia even be made successfully nowadays?"

"Huh? I was being completely serious."

Good grief, those two sentences from Sister Hong completely threw Ma Xun off.

She actually thought he was just making empty promises!

Ma Xun couldn't help himself and burst into a hearty laugh.

Seeing this, Sister Hong became displeased.

"Oh~ If you're serious, you're serious, why are you making fun of me like that?"

Was he laughing at her?

Ma Xun simply executed a grand roc spreading its wings.

As the two of them lay in bed, this single move pulled Sister Hong right into his embrace.

"I am dead serious about making wuxia. Moreover, I am fully convinced that wuxia will be the next major directional trend."

This time, Ma Xun stopped laughing, his attitude turning completely earnest.

Only then did Sister Hong's heart settle.

"Really?"

"Of course it's really."

"But right now, wuxia doesn't seem very viable, and over here in the mainland, the risks are simply too high."

"That's precisely why I plan to join forces with Elder Zhang. His shooting style, which is rooted strictly in traditional martial arts, has become somewhat outdated. But through my hands, this wuxia genre can definitely burst into brilliant brilliance."

Ma Xun actually had a lot on his mind, but right now, there was simply no way to voice it all.

In the mainland over the next few years, wuxia television dramas were destined to become an exceptionally hot trend.

Following *Grandmaster of Tai Chi*, there would be *The Legendary Siblings*, *State of Divinity*, *The Legendary Twins*, *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, *The Return of the Condor Heroes*, *Wind and Cloud*, and so on.

Virtually every single one of them became an overnight sensation.

Yet, at this exact moment, the risks were indeed immense.

There were already quite a few wuxia TV dramas being produced right here in the mainland.

Yan Shuangying had filmed several of them himself.

Many people might not realize that before he started playing with guns, he was a master of swords and blades.

*The White-Browed Hero* and *Gan Shijiang* had both been quite popular.

However, there were also plenty of utter failures.

The Changchun Film Studio had once produced *A Vicious Sword*.

This television series could be said to be China's very first adaptation of Gu Long's wuxia works.

Furthermore, the series was extraordinarily faithful to the original novel.

The dialogue was almost entirely copied verbatim from the source material.

The casting was also exceptionally fitting.

To be fair, there was never actually a book called *Little Li's Flying Dagger* in this world.

The true title of that book was *Bystander's Sword*.

Interestingly, after the story was introduced to our mainland, the title got mixed up with another.

That's why it is now referred to here as *The First Blade in the Wind and Clouds*.

In truth, this happened mainly because Gu Long had a conflict with his publisher at the time.

Friends who have genuinely read *Bystander's Sword* would notice that the work is actually split into upper and lower halves, and the style and plot don't quite connect smoothly.

And while writing this book... how could the world possibly give birth to such a ruthless, vicious, yet utterly seductive character like Lin Xian'er?

It was simply because Gu Long had been deeply, terribly hurt by a woman at that time!

Yet, looking across all of Gu Long's works, *Bystander's Sword* remains unequivocally his finest masterpiece.

Among the series of wuxia films directed by Chu Yuan, that adaptation was also the most brilliant.

The Changchun Film Studio had made it, and they had made it properly, with utmost sincerity.

It was even more faithful to the original than Chu Yuan's version.

And yet, it bombed.

It bombed so hard not a single ripple was made.

The actor who played A Fei in it eventually quit acting and became the president of the Shenyang Conservatory of Music.

And this was a meticulously crafted wuxia film; there were countless other productions that didn't even pass muster.

The outcome of those went without saying.

Wuxia flops were simply too common these days!

It was entirely natural for Sister Hong to think Ma Xun was just feeding Elder Zhang empty dreams.

As for Ma Xun...

With a wave of his large hand, it was like plucking the five strings of a lute.

The delicate contours trembled incessantly.

"Sister Hong, I am determined to adapt Jin Yong and Gu Long, and specifically, I have a clear plan to shoot Gu Long's *Bystander's Sword* next year. What does my sister think of that?"

This was hardly a question asking "what do you think."

Upon hearing this, Sister Hong was filled with boundless joy.

"You're not just making empty promises, and you're being so serious about it—of course your sister will support you all the way!"

Hearing this, Ma Xun was naturally overjoyed.

He indeed had many things he couldn't explain just yet, but given the current situation...

Wu Jing, aka A Fei, was already in his pocket.

All that remained was Little Li's Flying Dagger itself.

Drink a beer and eat some clams... cough, never mind that, let's not mention it.

Teacher Vincent Jiao was undoubtedly an absolute super-heartthrob right now.

Yet just thinking about the fact that he was probably still sharing a giant wooden tub with Grandma Ximen in the bath—

Incredible!

At the mere thought of it, Ma Xun got goosebumps all over his body.

Let's not think about that anymore; let's bring it back to the present.

"So, who will my sister play?"

That didn't even need to be asked.

Sister Hong smiled and said, "Lin Shiyin, of course."

Indeed, that role suited her quite well.

Yet this rascal Ma Xun couldn't resist a bit of teasing.

"Sister Hong, but you are born so breathtakingly beautiful, and you're also so... don't you actually want to play Lin Xian'er instead?"

The unspoken words trailing behind that were—*so seductive.*

How could Sister Hong fail to understand that?

"You are simply incorrigible!"

Though she said that, her movements grew even more intimate.

"If you set this production up properly, I'll direct it!"

"Alright, no problem."

To be honest, Ma Xun didn't actually intend for Sister Hong to direct this particular project.

Because if her goal was to become a major director, she should focus on directing feature films, striving to win awards and capture the box office.

Still, there was no need to dampen the mood right now.

They could always figure it out when the time came.

In fact, Ma Xun was acutely aware of the show *Little Li's Flying Dagger*.

In the original timeline, it was an enormous success.

Its viewership ratings were only a fraction shy of *My Fair Princess*.

Later on, it was rerun countless times.

And right now, he had already gathered well over half of the main cast in his hands.

A Fei, Lin Shiyin, and Li Xunhuan—who was practically guaranteed to be played by handsome Jiao.

Along with that girl Xing'er... which inevitably brought Fan Bingbing to mind.

Actually, the original novel didn't feature characters like the Stunning Fairy and Xing'er.

However, this was still just a blueprint at the moment.

No need to rush.

Next up, those two films—

*The Soong Sisters* and *The Mad Phoenix*—were about to hit the screens.

...

Time advanced to May.

Articles and reviews concerning *The Soong Sisters* began flooding the press.

"*The Soong Sisters*, spearheaded by Jiang Wen and Maggie Cheung, is about to premiere!"

"Though not the leads, Cecilia Yip, Elaine Jin, and others deliver equally stellar performances."

"A galaxy of stars with a powerhouse cast! Award-winning directors and screenwriters from the Hong Kong Film Awards..."

To be fair, this film truly carried an overwhelming, unstoppable momentum.

And it was indeed a massive investment.

Forty million.

In this era, an investment of that scale was enough to fund endless press releases.

Moreover, from Ma Xun's perspective...

There was actually a very peculiar detail from the original timeline.

Ma Xun remembered it quite clearly: initially, this film wasn't even released in the mainland.

The reason remained unknown, but the film itself had no actual issues.

After all, it was broadcasted on television many times later on.

The same went for *The Mad Phoenix*; although it wasn't officially imported, it aired repeatedly on television, especially on CCTV-6.

Yet, at the time, *The Soong Sisters*—despite not being imported for theatrical release in the mainland—

Had genuinely received a substantial amount of "advertising"!

CCTV-6 had produced special feature reports on it, and numerous tabloid newspapers and media outlets across the country had promoted the film.

That was truly bizarre!

Clearly, it hadn't even entered the mainland market, so what on earth were all these mainland media outlets doing?

Ma Xun had been quite young back then, and he simply found it baffling.

He genuinely couldn't wrap his head around the logic.

As he grew older, he finally understood.

The film hadn't entered theaters for screening, that much was true.

But pirated copies could get in!

Even when the film bombed in Hong Kong, the mainland was still hyping it up.

The question arose: who was making the pirated copies?

And who was cashing in?

He used to have no clue, but looking back as an adult—

Instant enlightenment!

Now that this film could actually be imported for theatrical release here, it went without saying.

The hype had reached astronomical proportions!

Sister Hong naturally benefited from this.

However, this film... still failed to escape Ma Xun's "curse."

It was released!

With a primary focus on the Beijing and Shanghai markets.

Yet, a box-office slump manifested almost immediately!

Almost concurrently.

*The Mad Phoenix* premiered in Guangdong and Guangxi.

Within a single week, its box office broke five million!

The outcome was nothing short of exhilarating.

Ma Xun's strategy was a complete success!

However, it wasn't long before Ma Xun received a call from Sister Hong.

"Something's happened!"

"What happened?"

Sister Hong squeezed out two words.

*The Emperor's Shadow*.

Ma Xun understood the moment he heard it.

It must have been a situation very similar to the controversy surrounding *The Emperor's Shadow*.

What was to be done?

If it were the old Ma Xun, he certainly would have panicked.

But now, he simply replied directly to Sister Hong.

"Has the film been pulled?"

"Not yet, they're investigating."

"Alright, stay calm. I'll handle it!"

That was Ma Xun's composure, and instantly, Sister Hong felt entirely at ease...

Two more chapters coming up. There will definitely be some today, I'm heading off to type them right now, please bear with me just a moment.