Chapter 1 Do you believe that the world is virtual?
"The probability that we live in the real world is less than one in a billion!"

In 97, in a cafe near Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, Jiang Heng spoke very seriously.

Wu Yizu, who was sitting opposite him, became interested. He leaned forward slightly and asked in not-so-standard Cantonese: "Do you have any basis for saying that?"

"Have you ever heard of the wave-particle duality of light?"

“I learned some of it when I was in school!”

Jiang Heng started with the wave-particle duality of light, talked about "Schrödinger's Cat", and then talked about the "Mandela Effect".

Of course, in 97, Mandela was still the president of South Africa, and the term "Mandela Effect" did not yet exist. Jiang Heng only said similar things to arouse Wu Yizu's approval.

In fact, what he said cannot prove that the world is virtual.

It's like being reborn, just like being resurrected in a game.

In the original history, Jiang Heng experienced the death of his father and the remarriage of his mother in early 97, and inherited a thousand-square-foot mansion in Causeway Bay, a luxury car, and more than million in cash.

If you can hoard houses and become a landlord, you can live a carefree life, rich and happy.

But for some unknown reason, he ended up learning to direct, act and make movies, but soon lost all his money.

If he goes north to find a way out in time, he will have a chance to become popular with his handsome looks and identity as a Hong Kong actor.

He stuck to the Hong Kong film industry for more than a decade. By the time he went to the mainland to develop his career, he had lost all his opportunities and could only play supporting roles in some low-budget film and television works. Later, he even ended up on the set of a "net movie".

Although his career in the film industry was extremely miserable, he has still accumulated some wealth over the years.

The house he didn't want to buy was unfinished, the trust he had invested heavily in collapsed, and the second huge loss made him so devastated that he wanted to jump off the building.

Jiang Heng walked to the rooftop and sat there, spending the entire night thinking about everything in his life.

I have lived for forty years and sleepwalked for half of my life. Family, career, family ties, love, property, everything is gone!

He didn't understand why he was still on the wrong path despite carefully planning and choosing. He worked very hard to build a good life, but in the end, he had nothing.

He drank beer and asked the sky with a wry smile, "Are you fucking kidding me?", but there was no response!

At dawn, he threw away his cigarette butts and wine bottles and went downstairs to have breakfast, but was hit by a flower pot falling from the sky.

The last thought was, what the hell, death is coming???
When I woke up again, it was already early 97.

The memories of the past seem like a nightmare. As I recall the past, I feel more and more like an NPC in a game.

I often daydream with no tasks to do (not much filming), stay in the small map (Hong Kong) for a long time, modeling... Well, it seems that I am more handsome than before, so much so that I sigh, who is more handsome between me and Chengbei's ancestor!
What surprised him even more was that there was a super microscopic computer in his mind, which could not only be connected to the real world but also had powerful self-deduction capabilities.

For example, the dreams of ordinary people have confusing plots and vague details.

But with this super-microscopic computer, the scenes you have seen before can appear clearly in your dreams. Even the scales of a dragon and the feathers of a phoenix can be deduced based on your imagination and presented clearly.

If he gives up reality and indulges in dreams, he will be a god in the virtual world!

However, thinking about the decadent appearance of those people obsessed with dreams in "Inception", Jiang Heng felt that it would be better to enjoy the real world.

With the help of a super microcomputer, even if he doesn't become a movie tycoon or the richest man in the country, it is still possible to achieve a hundred small goals and enjoy wealth.

The method is simple, just make a special effects movie. Although in 97, when Hong Kong movies gradually lost the markets in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia, making a blockbuster movie was tantamount to seeking death, but he didn't have to spend money to make special effects!
All you need to do is find some new actors with low pay to finish the scenes, and then add gorgeous and realistic special effects in the later stage. At least you can cheat (earn) some money for retirement!
Combining his own experience, Jiang Heng chose the classic science fiction movie "The Matrix" without much thought, and the male lead was set on Wu Yizu, who had just graduated from university and came to Hong Kong to travel and work as a model.

At this moment, Zu had no confidence in making movies. He studied architecture at the University of Oregon.

It’s just that I couldn’t refuse directly after being introduced by an acquaintance, so I thought I’d come over and have a casual chat.

Unexpectedly, after listening to Jiang Heng's explanation of the script outline, my three views were overturned. I really wanted to join the crew, and the amount of pay didn't matter to me.

"Master, you are a newcomer and the crew has limited funds. We can only pay you 100,000 Hong Kong dollars. What do you think?"

"For a newcomer, it's already very generous!"

Wu Yizu smiled naively, "The hostess wants to invite a celebrity, right?"

Jiang Heng smiled and shook his head slowly, "He's also a newcomer!"

Wu Yizu was stunned, and instantly felt that this crew seemed unreliable. The male and female protagonists are both newcomers. How do you attract the audience? Just rely on the plot?

Little did he know that the heroine in Jiang Heng's mind was somewhat related to him, namely Maggie Q Li.

Maggie Q is an Asian American. She first went to the island country to be a model in 97, but encountered obstacles everywhere. She soon went to Taiwan, but still did not develop well.

According to the original history, he did not come to Hong Kong until 98, participated in a number of movies, and then became a star with "Naked Weapon".

As for now, I am still just a small-time model, and it is difficult to find her.

Fortunately, the entertainment and fashion circles in Hong Kong and Taiwan are closely connected. If you ask more people for help, there will always be results.

The person Jiang Heng asked for help was Yuan De from the Seven Little Fortunes, the bald guy who played Yang Shuang in the movie "Ma Yongzhen".

This man has excellent Kung Fu skills, but he is too thin and cannot carry the aura of a protagonist. He did star in a few films in his early years, but later he retired behind the scenes to become a martial arts instructor. He also won the Golden Horse Award for Best Action Director together with Yuen Kwai for "The Kung Fu Emperor Fang Shiyu".

He is not very famous, but he has great skills, extensive connections, and the salary is not high. He is simply perfect.

Jiang Heng invited him to be the martial arts instructor of "The Matrix" and the main villain in the film, the anti-virus program Smith. With Yuan De's skills and the looks of Wu Aizu and Li Meiqi, it is expected that the action scenes will not be inferior to the original.

Once the male and female protagonists and the villain are determined, the outline of the crew is established, and everything else like art, props, lighting, photography, and stage management are all easy.

The Hong Kong film market is sluggish at the moment, and the number of films shot has dropped significantly. There are a lot of film practitioners who have nothing to do and can be found anywhere and at any time.

I just don’t know when there will be news from the heroine. If I still can’t find her, I really haven’t decided who would be suitable to replace her.

While I was thinking about it, Yuande called.

"Hey, Ah Heng, the thing you asked me to do seems to be working out. Let's go to the set to discuss it in detail!"

Jiang Heng was overjoyed. After saying goodbye to Wu Qiuzu, he drove to the Shaw Brothers Studio on the Clearwater Bay Peninsula.

When it was prosperous, there were more than 2,000 employees, 14 studios, and several big directors working at the same time.

But at this moment it looks a bit desolate and dilapidated. There are not many crews working on the project, and the most famous one is the crew that Yuan De is in - "Ma Yongzhen".

(End of this chapter)