Chapter 39: The Big Picture

"What Taoist temple is 'The Big Picture' referring to...?" Mr. Jiang asked himself.

He didn't quite understand Zhang Yuan's meaning, but he still made a polite gesture, signaling for the young man to continue.

"Although we are filming *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*, when writing the script, we cannot look at it in isolation. We must view it in conjunction with the *Condor Trilogy*."

Lai Shuiqing opened his mouth to speak, but remained silent. *This kid is dragging me into a field I'm not familiar with again. How frustrating.*

"The trilogy consists of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, *The Return of the Condor Heroes*, and *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*."

"We can start by looking at the core of the three stories."

"The core of *Condor Heroes* is essentially the concept of 'Chivalry' (Xia)."

"Although it is only explicitly mentioned in *Return of the Condor Heroes*, the phrase 'The greatest of chivalrous men serve the country and the people' is the true core of *Condor Heroes*."

"A story centered on chivalry will inevitably feature many martial arts scenes; you can see this in every adaptation of *Condor Heroes* throughout history."

"By the time we reach *Return of the Condor Heroes*, the core of the story shifts to 'Emotion' (Qing)."

"'Ask the world what love is, for it makes one vow to live or die together.' This is the guiding principle of *Return of the Condor Heroes*."

"That is why TV adaptations of *Return of the Condor Heroes* generally feature more dialogue-driven scenes, focusing on the expression of character emotions."

"But in *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*, Master Jin's writing prowess has become even more mature. The story has evolved from the previous two—one leaning toward martial arts and the other toward literature—into a perfect balance of both."

"Therefore, if we follow the intent of the original work, the dialogue-driven scenes and the martial arts scenes in this script should be at least equal, without leaning too heavily toward one side."

After listening to Zhang Yuan, Lai Shuiqing cursed inwardly.

*Damn it, this kid doesn't say a single word about reducing my action scenes, yet every single sentence is a way to reduce them!*

The current state of the script was heavy on action and light on dialogue. If Zhang Yuan wanted "balance," he was essentially saying they needed to increase the dialogue.

"Hehe, little brother Zhang Yuan, you might not understand. Film and television are one thing, and novels are another. When we film a TV series, we are making an adaptation."

"But adaptation isn't making things up, and 'storytelling' isn't just talking nonsense," Zhang Yuan replied, leaning back in his chair.

"Plot points can be edited or deleted, but the core of the story and the core of the characters cannot be changed. Otherwise, it becomes a completely different work from the original," he countered sharply.

"The story of *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber* revolves around the character Zhang Wuji, and the core of Zhang Wuji's character can be summed up in one word."

"Harmony!"

"The harmony of Yin and Yang!"

Lai Shuiqing looked at Mr. Jiang. Seeing that the latter was listening intently to Zhang Yuan, he had no choice but to suppress his irritation.

"Guo Jing, the protagonist of *Condor Heroes*, is loyal, righteous, and unyielding. His character is 'Yang'."

"Yang Guo, the protagonist of *Return of the Condor Heroes*, is aloof, wild, and disdainful of worldly conventions. His temperament is the exact opposite of a traditional male lead; he is 'Yin'."

"But in *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*, Zhang Wuji's father was one of the famous Wudang Five Heroes, and his mother was a demonic woman from the Sky Eagle Sect."

"His two masters—Xie Xun is 'Evil,' and Zhang Sanfeng is 'Righteous'."

"Furthermore, the place he was born is called Ice Fire Island, the very boundary where Yin and Yang meet."

"Thus, Zhang Wuji's very existence is the fusion of Yin and Yang."

As Zhang Yuan began discussing Yin-Yang theory, Mr. Jiang visibly straightened his posture, his expression becoming increasingly serious.

He was very interested.

"Now, speaking of martial arts."

"Guo Jing uses the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, which are extremely fierce and upright. Like his character, they belong to the extreme Yang."

"Yang Guo, on the other hand, uses the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra and the Melancholy Palm, which are clearly Yin."

When mentioning the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra, images of Shu Qi, Li Lizhen, and Xu Jinjiang suddenly flashed through Zhang Yuan's mind. He shook his head, quickly clearing them from his thoughts.

"As for Zhang Wuji, the Tai Chi Sword is undoubtedly a martial art of Yin-Yang fusion. The Great Heaven and Earth Shift is also a technique of absorption and release—the intersection of Yin and Yang."

Hearing this, Lai Shuiqing suddenly looked up, as if he had caught a flaw in Zhang Yuan's logic. He spoke up excitedly.

"Oh? If you put it that way, Zhang Wuji's martial arts are all about Yin-Yang fusion, then how do you explain his internal cultivation technique, the Nine Yang Manual!"

*Finally, something I'm good at...* The frustration in Lai Shuiqing's heart finally cleared. Feeling as though he had caught Zhang Yuan in a lie, he was as happy as a child.

"There's no need to explain. The original setting of the Nine Yang Manual was an extremely Yang technique, but in later revised editions, Mr. Jin changed it into a supreme internal skill that harmonizes Yin and Yang, combining hardness with softness."

"This actually proves that Mr. Jin intended to design Zhang Wuji as a character of Yin-Yang balance. Otherwise, why would he change it?"

Lai Shuiqing was left speechless. *I haven't read the new version!*

Seeing Director Lai being outmaneuvered by his own question, Yang Tao felt an immense sense of satisfaction and almost couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Since the protagonist is a character of Yin-Yang balance, having too much dialogue or too much action would be a disruption of that balance."

Why did Zhang Yuan start with Yin-Yang theory?

Because in a field Lai Shuiqing wasn't familiar with, he couldn't argue back.

Secondly, he had previously learned about Mr. Jiang's personality and hobbies from Yang Tao, knowing that the older man had an interest in traditional Chinese studies.

Furthermore, most bosses are somewhat superstitious; the concept of Yin and Yang could strike a chord with their interests.

During the preparation for the 1990 Spring Festival Gala, Feng Gong and Niu Qun performed a sketch called *The Thief Company*. It was praised by the judges but rejected because its content was too satirical. It contained these lines

"If they say you can do it, you can. Even if you can't, you can."

"If they say you can't, you can't. Even if you can, you can't."

"The horizontal scroll reads: 'You have no choice but to submit.'"

While satirical, these were golden rules of the workplace.

Being capable is useless, and having seniority is useless—it only matters if your leader recognizes you!

Therefore, from the very beginning, Zhang Yuan had no intention of arguing about the plot with Lai Shuiqing; it would be useless.

His goal all along was to win Mr. Jiang's trust, just as he had won Zhao Decai's trust.

China is a society built on personal connections; winning over the person is the most effective method.

Now, having been "persuaded" by Zhang Yuan, Mr. Jiang was clearly interested in him and his theories.

"Makes sense. I didn't expect Zhang Yuan to be so young yet so knowledgeable, even dabbling in Yin-Yang theory," Mr. Jiang said with a smile before turning back.

"Director Lai, how could you not know that there are differences between the revised and the old versions of *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*?"

Lai Shuiqing forced an awkward smile, not knowing how to answer, so he had to change the subject.

"Zhang Yuan, even if what you say makes some sense, this is Wuxia. What the audience wants to see are martial arts scenes. We can't have too few."

Zhang Yuan gave a light chuckle. "Director Lai, if audiences only wanted to see martial arts scenes, why did you come to Beijing to make a living instead of staying in Hong Kong?"

For the second time, Lai Shuiqing was left speechless by Zhang Yuan.

*That's right. If Wuxia is so popular, why has the Hong Kong film industry declined, and why did you come to the capital to seek your fortune?*

Leaving Lai Shuiqing to question his very existence, Zhang Yuan continued.

"Mr. Jiang, the 'big picture' I am referring to isn't just about connecting the three novels and understanding Master Jin's core philosophy. There are other aspects."

"Let's talk in detail." Mr. Jiang was becoming increasingly interested in this young man, ignoring the depressed Director Lai.

"In terms of production costs, martial arts scenes are extremely expensive—training, wirework, filming locations, and a large number of extras. Too much action can easily lead to budget overruns."

"More importantly, the market and audience tastes have changed!"

"What is the fastest-growing genre of television in the last two years?"

"What?" Mr. Jiang was now fully in sync with Zhang Yuan's rhythm.

"Idol dramas!"

*Hiss...* Mr. Jiang thought for a moment. It was indeed true.

Whether from Taiwan or South Korea, these genres had been dominating the mainland film and television industry in recent years.

Earlier this year, when *Meteor Garden* aired, it was banned by the SARFT after only a few days, deemed to have a negative social impact on teenagers.

Yet, even so, it couldn't stop the masses from flocking to it; pirated DVDs were selling like crazy.

Zhang Yuan knew very well that the "Ancient Idol" dramas that the youth of China would later love were actually an extension of Wuxia dramas. Specifically, the rise of Xianxia after *Chinese Paladin* planted the seeds for the explosion of ancient-themed idol dramas in the future.

"Since everyone loves idol dramas, let's produce *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber* as an ancient-style idol drama. We can add more romantic scenes between handsome men and beautiful women."

"This will attract young audiences while being less expensive than filming heavy martial arts scenes. Isn't that killing two birds with one stone?"

What do men like to watch? Answer: Beautiful women.

What do women like to watch? Answer: Handsome men.

It was actually that simple.

*Oh...* Mr. Jiang finally understood. This was the "big picture" Zhang Yuan was talking about.

Lai Shuiqing and Yang Tao had been tossing and turning, but they were only looking at the internal details of the story.

Zhang Yuan, however, was looking at what lay outside the story.

The author's intent, cost considerations, market analysis...

Mr. Jiang glanced at Lai Shuiqing and Yang Tao, then at Zhang Yuan. He thought to himself that while these two directors spent all day fighting, it was Zhang Yuan's words that hit home.

As an investor, he only cared about two things

1. How much will it cost? 2. How much money can it make?

Zhang Yuan's judgment on cost and market hit his sweet spot perfectly.

"Director Lai, do you have any objections to Zhang Yuan's suggestion?" Mr. Jiang asked kindly.

Lai Shuiqing thought to himself: *What objections could I possibly have? Every word I say is countered by this silver-tongued kid.*

Moreover, Lai Shuiqing wasn't a fool. He knew better than anyone that Zhang Yuan was right about the cost of martial arts scenes; they were indeed expensive.

As for the idea of market preference, although he didn't want to admit it, he had a vague feeling that Zhang Yuan's judgment was correct.

Lai Shuiqing shot a glance at Yang Tao, whose smug expression made him grit his teeth in anger.

But after the anger passed, a hint of envy surfaced.

*Where did Old Yang find such a talent? Why haven't I ever met such a brilliant young man?*

Director Lai shook his head helplessly.

"Fine. Then we will call the screenwriters and make some adjustments to the focus of the script," Mr. Jiang concluded.

"Mr. Jiang, Director Lai, Director Yang, I have said all I needed to say. I won't disturb you further. Please continue with your business."

Zhang Yuan stood up. Mr. Jiang was momentarily stunned, then revealed a gratified smile and nodded in approval.

"Leaving after the deed is done, hiding one's merit and fame..." Watching Zhang Yuan's retreating back, Lai Shuiqing was suddenly reminded of Li Bai's *The Knight-Errant*.

He was successful without being arrogant, unlike other impetuous youths who, upon achieving even a little, wanted the world to praise them to the heavens.

Instead, he chose to take a step back at this very moment.

*This kid really knows how to play the game!*

At that moment, Director Lai felt a sense of respect for the young talent.

This Zhang Yuan truly possessed the spirit of a young knight...

(End of Chapter)