Chapter 00250: Wrap
# Wrap
Chapter 250
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 250: Wrap
On October 29th, a major event took place domestically.
The State Council approved and forwarded the "Opinions on Several Issues Concerning the Implementation of the Economic Responsibility System in Industrial Production," marking the emergence of the "contract system" in urban state-owned and collective enterprises.
The key points of this system were: fixed base quotas, guaranteed handovers, retaining excess earnings, and making up for shortfalls independently.
Ownership and management rights were separated.
As policies became increasingly relaxed, China's earliest batch of star entrepreneurs were nurtured under this system.
For instance, Zong Qinghou, in 1987, contracted a school-run enterprise, which gradually grew into Wahaha.
Unfortunately, after his passing, his daughter threw Wahaha into chaos, with rumors swirling—though their veracity remains unknown.
…
*Beep beep!*
Early in the morning, the film crew's convoy drove into a villa district, stopping in front of a large house with a swimming pool.
Fu Qi came in person, shaking hands with a man in his thirties.
"Mr. Ho, thank you for your help! We really needed this location, so I had to swallow my pride and trouble you."
"Not at all, it was nothing!"
The other party responded cheerfully, his attitude warm and friendly.
"Your production has made quite a splash this year, with remarkable achievements. My father and I are both thrilled. Ah, where is that young friend of yours, Chen Qi?"
"Xiao Chen, come here!"
Fu Qi called Chen Qi over and introduced him.
This was none other than Vincent Ho, the eldest son of Henry Fok.
His son, Kenneth Fok, was only two years old this year.
"Truly a talented young man. I heard this film is being marketed to the U. S.?"
"Yes, we’ve hired two American actors. When it premieres, we’d be honored if you could attend."
"Of course, of course! Wishing you all the best!"
Vincent Ho stayed for a short while before leaving.
In the original *Orphan*, the setting was Canada, with its icy landscapes.
The final scene involved the female lead and Esther battling on ice, ending with the female lead kicking Esther into a frozen lake.
But now, relocated to Hong Kong, the geographical conditions didn’t allow for that.
So, it was changed to a fight inside the villa, where they crash through a glass window and fall into the swimming pool below.
The female lead, with her adult physique and strength, had greater endurance.
She climbed out first and, seeing Esther still struggling, kicked her back down, drowning her…
The villa was arranged with Vincent Ho’s help.
The Ho family needs no introduction.
Sir Henry Fok dabbled in gambling and real estate, but that didn’t stop him from transporting supplies to the troops during the Korean War or making numerous contributions after the reforms.
When he passed, his coffin was draped with the national flag.
Meanwhile, the crew was preparing for the shoot.
Ed Harris and Amy Madigan stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, measuring repeatedly.
Amy looked uneasy, asking repeatedly, "I have to crash through this glass with that little girl and jump into the pool?"
"No, not you two—stunt doubles."
"Stunt doubles? How can a little girl have a stunt double?"
"Come here!"
Tsui Hark waved, and two stuntmen—one large, one small—approached.
The adult was unremarkable, but the small one was truly tiny, about the same size and build as Chingmy Yau.
"Good heavens! He’s just a child!"
"You’re making him do such a dangerous stunt?"
The two foreigners began shrieking.
*Tch!*
Chen Qi rolled his eyes.
Child labor and child marriage were legal in their countries, yet they never protested that.
Still, he explained, "He’s actually 18, just naturally small, so he often plays child stunt doubles. He’s very professional, far more experienced than you."
The two foreigners were skeptical.
The stuntman in question, however, looked utterly unfazed.
Chen Qi patted him on the shoulder and smiled.
"Don’t worry, go get ready."
"Mr. Chen, I’ll do my best!"
The young man left without a shred of hesitation or complaint.
In Hong Kong, stuntmen were treated as expendable.
If you wanted to make a living in this line of work, you had to risk your life.
If you weren’t willing, someone else would be—and they’d get ahead.
Hong Kong had all kinds of stunt doubles for all kinds of actors.
For example, Eric Tsang started as a stuntman too.
Because of his short stature, he often doubled for actresses.
The original thick glass had been removed, replaced with a thin prop version.
Chen Qi went downstairs and stood by the pool, looking up.
Chingmy Yau followed, peering curiously.
Tsui Hark directed from above: "Let’s do a test jump first!"
"Ready?"
"3, 2, 1, action!"
With a loud *crash*, the glass shattered.
The two stuntmen, locked in combat, leaped from the third floor and plunged into the pool with a loud *splash*, sending water flying high.
Faint screams from the two foreigners could be heard in the background.
Chingmy shuddered, suddenly feeling lucky it wasn’t her jumping.
"How was it? Everyone okay?" Tsui Hark shouted through a megaphone.
The two stuntmen surfaced, waving.
"We’re fine! It works!"
"Let’s try again. Your positioning was off—you need to land on top of him so he takes the brunt of the impact. That’s how you survive."
"Got it, director!"
Dripping wet, the two ran back upstairs.
Chen Qi shook his head.
Though he disliked many aspects of the Hong Kong film industry, stuntmen truly earned their keep with blood and sweat.
Without them, there’d be far fewer thrilling action films.
"This is insane! You people are mad—jumping from that height just like that!"
The two foreigners were still worked up.
After nearly two months of shooting in Hong Kong, they’d come to understand the raw, untamed spirit of Hong Kong cinema—a boldness even wilder than Hollywood’s B-movies.
Truthfully, the leftist filmmakers weren’t usually like this.
This was mostly Tsui Hark’s influence.
Soon, it was time for the real take.
The stuntmen jumped again, dressed in women’s clothing and wigs, crashing through the glass.
This time, the larger one landed on top of the smaller, using him as a cushion—so the "little girl" would appear severely injured…
With another *splash*, they climbed out, dripping wet.
The shot was approved, but no one paid them any mind as they went to dry off.
Meanwhile, Chingmy Yau and Amy Madigan were made up with bloody gashes all over their faces and bodies, ready to film in the pool.
"Action!"
Amy surfaced first, gasping for air, thinking the little demon was already dead.
She began swimming toward the edge.
As she hauled herself halfway out of the water, Chingmy suddenly burst up behind her, her hair matted and wet, blood and water streaming down her face like a deranged creature.
She lunged forward, clinging tightly to Amy’s leg.
"Mommy, save me!"
"Mommy! Help me, don’t let me die! I don’t want to die!"
Amy’s character had been somewhat soft-hearted earlier, but with her husband and son dead and her youngest daughter and herself in danger, she finally hardened.
With a furious curse, she delivered a vicious kick.
A dummy was used for the shot from behind, ensuring Amy’s kick landed on its face—certainly not on a real person.
But Chingmy’s performance had to be seamless, so she jerked her head back, biting into a blood capsule to simulate the impact of the kick…
"Cut!"
"Good take!"
Tsui Hark called it a wrap.
Chingmy climbed out, and Chen Qi was already there with a large towel, wrapping it around her.
Shivering, she looked up at him.
"Shifu, how was my acting?"
"50 points."
"Huh? I didn’t even pass?"
"Kept 10 in reserve so you don’t get cocky. Go shower and change. Ew—don’t smile at me, your face is covered in blood…"
"Can’t you just praise me properly for once?!"
Pouting, Chingmy ran off, bundled in the towel.
In the shower, she stripped off her clothes and turned on the hot water, suddenly letting out a soft huff.
"He’s so stubborn. He obviously thinks I did well but won’t admit it. I’ll make him say it one day!"
…
The crew spent their final week filming in the villa.
Aside from the fight scenes, there were daily life snippets—since the wealthy protagonists lived in this very house.
In the blink of an eye, two whole months had passed on *Orphan*.
After filming a final slice-of-life scene, everyone instinctively stopped moving.
No matter where a film crew was from, they all shared this sense of ritual.
Tsui Hark and Chen Qi deferred to each other before finally announcing together:
"We hereby declare *Orphan*…"
"Wrap!"
(That’s all for today.
Four more chapters tomorrow!)
(End of chapter.)