Chapter 00247: The Long Shot
# The Long Shot
Chapter 247
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 247: The Long Shot
Unconsciously, the ninth day arrived.
The film crew worked late into the night.
Chen Qi, Li Wenhua, the Yuan brothers, and even Tsui Hark, who had come to help, were utterly exhausted, slumping in their chairs to snatch whatever rest they could.
The extras had it even worse—some sitting on the ground, others outright lying down.
*The Tai Chi 2* had only one final long shot left.
The crisscrossing alleys were divided into over a dozen small zones, each depicting a different scene.
The camera would sweep over them from above, capturing the entire panorama in one go.
This meant not a single mistake could be made—it had to be perfect in one take.
For this scene alone, the crew had already spent three sleepless nights, yet still hadn’t managed to nail it.
"Midnight snacks are here! Midnight snacks!"
"Everyone, grab something to eat and drink, then we’ll get back to it!"
The production assistants wheeled in carts, distributing meals to everyone—each came with soup, and for those who didn’t want soup, there was lemon tea or cola.
People shuffled over in small groups, collecting their meals and eating in silence.
Chen Qi wasn’t hungry, so he just grabbed a cola and sipped at it.
"Don’t lose heart," he said.
"Even though we’ve failed many times, each attempt has been an improvement. Just push a little harder—success is right around the corner."
"I never knew mainland filmmakers worked this hard. Even in Hong Kong, we don’t shoot scenes like this," Tsui Hark sighed.
"Like Xiao Chen said, since this is a sequel, we have to bring something new to the table. We’d never half-ass things for the audience," Li Wenhua replied, a hint of pride in his voice.
Mainland films might be hit or miss in terms of quality, but one thing was certain—their dedication was never in question.
Hearing this, Tsui Hark turned to Chen Qi with a grin.
"Never took you for an ‘art above all’ type."
"No, no—I’m all about attitude. And I don’t believe in pitting commerce and art against each other. They’re like two legs of cinema—you can’t do without either. If you can blend a bit of art into commercial films, or a bit of commerce into art films, that’s the highest achievement. Sadly, most people can’t pull it off. But even just making commercial films entertaining or art films profound would be great—yet most fail at that too. Most just end up making commercial films unbearably tacky and art films impossibly pretentious. And that’s just boring."
"Right now, I’m firmly in the ‘unbearably tacky’ camp," Tsui Hark sighed again, thinking of *All the Wrong Clues*.
Yuen Woo-ping chuckled.
"You don’t know how good you have it. Cinema City’s momentum is unstoppable—you guys have a bright future."
"You’re not doing too bad either. Maybe we’ll collaborate someday."
"Sounds good!"
Yuen Woo-ping agreed readily.
Though they belonged to rival studios—Cinema City and Golden Harvest—somehow, Chen Qi had managed to bring them together for this small collaboration.
After the meal and a short rest, Chen Qi stood up.
"Back to work! Let’s go!"
The five of them dispersed to their respective zones to resume filming.
"Cut! Why didn’t that gun go off?"
"Cut! Are you stupid? How many times do I have to tell you?"
After several more exhausting takes, it was past midnight, and everyone was nearing their breaking point.
They gave it one last try.
"All positions ready!"
"3… 2… 1… ACTION!"
For this aerial shot, a higher angle would’ve required a plane, while a lower one could be done with a crane.
They had a crane that could reach about 11 meters, carrying a cameraman, an assistant, and a lighting technician.
Great Wall Studios had the equipment, and Li Wenhua took charge of the camera himself, returning to his roots.
Standing on the platform, he focused the lens as a chaotic, decaying panorama of late Qing Dynasty unfolded before him:
The tangled web of alleys.
Fake Boxer rebels with savage grins tearing at a woman’s clothes, pinning her down as she screamed and struggled, begging her child to run.
Qing soldiers wielding ropes and weapons, hunting the rebels.
The rebels drinking talisman water to summon spirits, first killing a hapless addict fleeing an opium den.
Nalan Yuanshu directing the chaos with calm authority, civilians fleeing in panic behind him.
Yang Yuqian (played by Jet Li) battling the Nine Palaces Master (Ji Chunhua).
The Two-Faced Bodhisattva lying in a pool of blood, while the Yellow Lotus Holy Mother leaped onto a rooftop, fan in one hand and a red lantern in the other, glaring furiously at a group of foreigners—vengeance for her fallen sister.
Blood and brutality everywhere, a world of wolves and dogs—the crumbling Qing Dynasty in its death throes.
From the first frame, Li Wenhua had a gut feeling—this was the one.
As the camera panned, his conviction grew stronger, his heart pounding.
Finally, the lens settled on the last scene: a burned-down opium den.
"We got it!"
He nearly shouted, straightening up eagerly and grabbing the megaphone.
"Perfect!"
"That’s a wrap!"
For two seconds, the set was dead silent—then erupted into cheers.
Three sleepless nights hadn’t been in vain.
The extras might not have had a deep passion for filmmaking, but after investing so much effort, they couldn’t help but get swept up in the moment, sharing in the collective triumph.
Tsui Hark grinned.
"Wow, shooting this scene was an eye-opener!"
"Then come join the leftists! Jet Li could be your daily leading man. A hundred extras? That’s nothing. The support we get for films here is beyond your imagination—tanks, cannons, seas of people, galloping horses, vast landscapes. Resources you’d never find in Hong Kong!"
Chen Qi seized every chance to recruit.
Tsui Hark gulped, shaking his head vigorously.
"Let’s not talk politics, let’s not talk politics!"
……
Working against the clock, they finally wrapped within ten days.
The group came and went in a whirlwind.
Chen Qi and Fu Qi saw them off again.
Jet Li asked, "Qi-ge, when are you coming back?"
"Shouldn’t be long—winter, probably. I still have to go back and handle the magazine."
Then Chen Qi remembered something.
"Oh, right—you’re still living at the martial arts team?"
"Yeah, all my ties are still there, so of course I can stay. Got a better place for me?" Jet Li asked hopefully.
"Nope, not at all. You might as well stay there. We’re short on housing ourselves," Chen Qi laughed, then turned to Li Jianqun.
"Teacher Li, has the company sorted out your living arrangements?"
"They said I’ll stay at Lechun Alley for now."
"Ah, well, that’ll do for the time being."
"It’s fine. I’ve seen it—much nicer than my dorm back in school. The courtyard’s lovely," Li Jianqun smiled.
During filming, she and Ji Chunhua could stay at the guesthouse, but once shooting wrapped, they had to move to Lechun Alley.
Chen Qi planned to ask the Ministry of Culture for any available space—even non-residential buildings would do.
They could renovate and make do for now.
Next year, he’d need to hire even more people.
Then he’d hurry and apply for land to build company housing—no more dealing with this housing headache.
"Alright, time to go!"
Li Wenhua called out, and everyone stood, reluctant to part with Chen Qi.
"Come back soon!"
"Qi-ge, we’ll be waiting!"
"Go on, get going!"
Chen Qi waved them off, emotions welling up.
As much fun as he’d had in Hong Kong these past months, it still wasn’t home.
……
After seeing them off, he returned to the Clearwater Bay studios.
He and Fu Qi entered the administrative building, shutting the office door behind them.
Fu Qi asked, "It’s already late October. Can *The Tai Chi 2* finish post-production in time for the Lunar New Year slot?"
"New Year’s early this year—end of January. That leaves just two and a half months for November and December..."
Chen Qi shook his head.
"Even if we could, it’d be rushed. I don’t recommend releasing it for New Year. How about the summer blockbuster season instead?"
"Summer works too. Then we’ll give the New Year slot to *Shaolin Temple*. Director Zhang has worked hard for two years—he’d like to see the results."
(End of Chapter)