Tokyo: My Best Actor Gear List

Chapter 271 Shocking the Jackie Chan Stunt Team for 1 Years

Chapter 271 Shocking the Jackie Chan Stunt Team for Ten Thousand Years

The door to the private room in the upscale private club was pushed open, and a rich aroma of Cantonese cuisine wafted out.

Jackie Chan strode in with Kitahara Shin. The large private room was already full of people. Besides a few burly, sharp-looking core members of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team, there were also several beautiful women sitting at the table.

In 1996, the Hong Kong film industry was in its golden age, a time of fierce competition and dazzling beauty. Kitahara Shin glanced around and immediately recognized Chingmy Yau and Rosamund Kwan sitting next to Jackie Chan. These two were undoubtedly top goddesses in the Hong Kong film industry, their every smile and gesture exuding a natural Hong Kong charm.

When Jackie Chan walked in with a tall, handsome young man, everyone in the private room stood up. Although some of them didn't watch Japanese dramas often, Kitahara Shin's face had recently become incredibly popular internationally. Even the two actresses, who were used to seeing handsome men, couldn't help but show a hint of amazement when they saw Kitahara Shin in person.

"Come on, let me formally introduce you all. This is the other male lead in our upcoming movie, Kitahara Shin!" Jackie Chan said with a smile, patting Kitahara Shin on the back.

Kitahara Shin smiled and glanced at everyone. He didn't use the Mandarin Jackie Chan had expected, nor did he bring a translator. Instead, he spoke very naturally in fluent and authentic Cantonese: "Hello everyone, nice to meet you all. I hope you'll all take good care of me during the filming in Hong Kong."

The moment those words were uttered in perfect Cantonese, without a trace of a regional accent, the entire private room fell silent for a full three seconds. Everyone's brains momentarily went blank.

Jackie Chan froze on the spot, staring at him with wide eyes: "You brat—when did you learn to speak Cantonese?! Before in Japan, you always used Mandarin when discussing the script with me!"

"7

Kitahara Shin casually joked to defuse the shock: "Brother Jackie Chan, you didn't ask me. I really enjoy watching Hong Kong movies, and after watching so many, I naturally learned a little bit."

This was obviously an excuse, but it instantly bridged the gap between everyone present. It's important to understand that in mid-1990s Hong Kong, Mandarin wasn't widely spoken, and the stuntmen and local stars often struggled to communicate in Mandarin. Kitahara Shin's fluent Cantonese completely shattered all language barriers.

The Jackie Chan Stunt Team members breathed a sigh of relief, and their gazes toward Kitahara Shin changed from initial "awe towards a foreign big boss" to the warmth of "one of their own."

Everyone took their seats. Jackie Chan introduced the core action directors of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team to Kitahara Shin one by one, and finalized the upcoming schedule: the action team would accompany Kitahara Shin to Yau Ma Tei and Sham Shui Po to scout locations early the next morning, and filming of the Hong Kong scenes would officially begin the day after tomorrow. Since everyone knew that Kitahara Shin had a huge business empire to operate in Japan, Jackie Chan taking the time to personally organize a welcome dinner was already a huge favor, so work efficiency naturally had to be maximized.

After several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became increasingly lively.

During the event, two glamorous female celebrities showed great interest in the young, wealthy, handsome Japanese tycoon who spoke fluent Cantonese. As the event drew to a close, they approached him with their wine glasses, half-jokingly and half-seriously asking for his personal phone number, and even hinting that they could go to Lan Kwai Fong later to "have a drink and relax."

Faced with this undisguised overture, Kitahara Shin simply smiled gently, raised his teacup to clink with their wine glasses, and politely declined in Cantonese, "Thank you both for your kindness. However, I have to pick up my family from work tonight. I'll treat you all to tea another time."

After saying this, he politely bid farewell to everyone and turned to leave the private room.

Watching Kitahara Shin leave without a backward glance, Rosamund Kwan couldn't help but sigh. She turned to Chingmy Yau beside her and remarked, "So handsome, with so many resources at his disposal, yet he doesn't even blink at opportunities offered to him. Is he really such a rare breed of good man in this industry?"

Upon hearing this, Jackie Chan, who was drinking tea, almost choked.

He put down his teacup, rolled his eyes, and couldn't help but retort, "A good man? You're kidding me! He doesn't even need to cheat! He has a backyard that's practically a paradise on earth. Any one of his women could shake up the entire Japanese entertainment industry. He wouldn't have time to bother with other women."

After hearing Jackie Chan's rant, the actresses exchanged glances and covered their mouths, giggling. They clearly took it as Jackie Chan making excuses for men's womanizing.

"Brother, do you think everyone is as promiscuous as you?" the actresses teased without any mercy.

Jackie Chan sat in his chair, speechless with frustration. He thought to himself, "I'm telling you the truth, and nobody believes me." But then again, it made sense; Kitahara Shin's reputation was indeed much better than his own, that playboy's.

Meanwhile, Kitahara Shin returned to the Peninsula Hotel.

After taking a shower, he turned on the living room TV and happened to tune to Hong Kong's Jade Channel's weekend variety show. The TV screen—

In the studio, Akina Nakamori and Izumi Sakai were special guests. They not only sang several of their classic Japanese hits a cappella, but also, at the host's urging, attempted a few lines of a popular Hong Kong song in somewhat broken but extremely earnest Cantonese.

Looking at the two people on the screen, their expressions a mix of shyness and radiance, Kitahara Shin glanced at his watch, guessing that their recording was almost over.

He picked up the car keys on the table, went downstairs, and drove the sports car that Jackie Chan had lent him towards the TV station.

In the dead of night, neon lights illuminate the Hong Kong streets, painting the night sky with a mesmerizing purple hue.

As Akina and Izumi walked out of the TV station under the escort of staff, and were about to get into the nanny car arranged by the organizers, a flashy sports car honked twice and came to a smooth stop in front of them.

The car window rolled down, and Kitahara Shin, with one hand on the steering wheel, tilted his head towards them: "You two great singers, are you done for the day?"

"Get in the car, I'll take you for a drive."

Upon seeing the familiar man in the driver's seat, Akina and Izumi exchanged a glance, their eyes simultaneously lighting up with delighted smiles. Without hesitation, they said goodbye to the staff, opened the car door, and got in.

The sports car drove smoothly along the coastal road of Victoria Harbour, and the warm sea breeze blew in through the half-open car window, dispelling the fatigue accumulated by the two of them while recording the program.

"I just saw you guys singing a Cantonese song on TV, and your pronunciation was quite cute," Kitahara Shin teased with a smile as he drove.

Akina leaned back in her chair and casually hummed a few lines of a popular Cantonese song that was playing everywhere in Hong Kong. After humming, she leaned forward and looked at Kitahara Shin, asking, "Shin-kun, do you think it would be great if we prepared a few Cantonese versions of songs as a surprise for our future Asia tour when we stopped in Hong Kong?"

"Of course. In fact, many of Hong Kong's most popular songs now are actually covers of Japanese songs." Kitahara Shin nodded and casually listed a few examples, "For example, Hacken Lee's hit song 'Red Sun' is originally Kan's 'That's the Most Important Thing'; and Priscilla Chan's 'A Thousand Songs' is also a cover of 'Song of the Setting Sun'."

If you could sing your own songs in Cantonese, Hong Kong fans would absolutely go crazy.

Upon hearing these familiar connections, Akina and Izumi both smiled knowingly. Occasionally changing the environment and experiencing different musical atmospheres can indeed bring joy to both body and mind.

"By the way, the three of us should go to Sham Shui Po to check out a location tomorrow during the day." Kitahara Shin said, glancing at the road ahead, before getting down to business. "I've talked to Jackie Chan, and we're going to register a dedicated audio-visual product distribution company in Hong Kong. We're going to directly distribute the official DVDs of 'Ultraman Tiga' and all subsequent films and TV shows in the Hong Kong market. The prices will be much lower than in Japan, specifically targeting the pirates here."

This market is huge. Rather than letting pirates make a profit for nothing, it's better to proactively lower prices and seize the lower-tier market.

Akina and Izumi have always had complete trust in these business plans. Sitting in the back row, they laughed and said in unison, "We'll listen to you on business matters, no objections whatsoever. Just make sure you take us to eat some authentic Hong Kong food after you're done tomorrow!"

"No problem, leave it to me."

the next day.

Kitahara Shin demonstrated remarkable initiative and business acumen. Before even visiting potential company locations, he dedicated an entire morning to the financial district of Central.

He used a large sum of money to discreetly and swiftly open several secret stock and foreign exchange accounts with top brokerages in Hong Kong. Half of 1996 had passed, and the financial storm that would soon sweep across Asia and wipe out countless fortunes was gathering strength in the shadows. Kitahara Shin needed to prepare his capital pool in advance so that when the opportunity arose next year, he could wait patiently and reap a stunning harvest of capital.

He then visited several office addresses and quickly completed the registration procedures for branch offices through a local intermediary.

Because he was new to Hong Kong, a place where local connections and networks are extremely important, Kitahara Shin didn't have time to slowly cultivate a local team he could absolutely trust. So, he went directly to Jackie Chan and, in exchange for a portion of his shares and profit sharing, entrusted Chan's company to send experienced people to jointly operate the CD distribution company.

Even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake. To quickly establish distribution channels in a completely new market, the safest and smartest approach is to bring in a local giant like Jackie Chan to share the profits. Jackie Chan wouldn't cheat him for the profits from the DVD business; after all, Jackie Chan's sights are set on Hollywood, and he still needs to leverage Kitahara Shin's connections in theaters in Japan and Europe. In a sense, both get what they need, and their interests are highly intertwined.

A busy day passed by in efficient operation.

That evening, Kitahara Shin kept his promise from the previous night. He changed into an inconspicuous casual outfit, and together with Akina and Izumi, who were also wearing hats and masks, he plunged into the bustling night markets of Mong Kok and Temple Street.

Curry fish balls, chilled pineapple bun, and steaming hot typhoon shelter-style fried crab —

The three people, like any ordinary tourist, wandered through the crowded and noisy streets and under the flashing neon signs. Although some passersby occasionally thought the three tall and distinguished foreign tourists looked familiar, in the night market without bodyguards or spotlights, everyone just thought they were good-looking ordinary people, and it didn't cause any disturbance.

Enjoying authentic street food and listening to the lively yet bustling Cantonese vendors' calls, this night in Hong Kong left them with the most vivid memories amidst relaxation and laughter.

It was the morning of the third day.

According to the latest script adjustments, Kitahara Shin, as the "ultimate villain" in this film—a Japanese yakuza boss who is deeply hidden and controls a vast underground order—cannot possibly have his action scenes set in a dirty and chaotic typhoon shelter-like pier.

The film crew spent a fortune to book an extremely luxurious retro nightclub in Tsim Sha Tsui today. The dazzling crystal chandeliers and dark red leather sofas transformed the place into a perfect arena for high-level negotiations between international gangsters.

When Kitahara Shin emerged from the dressing room, he had changed into an impeccably tailored, all-black three-piece suit, with gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose. His hair was neatly combed back, and he exuded a cold, elegant, yet chillingly authoritative aura.

At the scene, a dozen or so members of Jackie Chan's stunt team were already on high alert.

The martial arts instructor, script in hand, rushed over to explain the scene to Kitahara Shin: "Mr. Kitahara, the premise of your scene is an ambush by a local Hong Kong triad. You're playing a high-ranking boss, so the action choreography absolutely can't be like a street thug's random fighting. The key is 'cold-bloodedness' and 'one-hit kill.' When the stuntmen come at you from the side with machetes, first sidestep, block with your arm, then disarm them, perform a joint lock, and finally pin them to the bar. Don't rush, we have a whole day today to break down the action, one shot at a time, and work it out slowly—"

In the conventional thinking of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team, a top actor like Kitahara Shin, who is used to shooting pure romance dramas and art films, even if he has some muscles built up in the gym, would definitely be all show and no substance when it comes to real action films. The biggest fear when teaching such a big star to fight is that the other party will get injured, so the movements must be broken down very carefully.

Kitahara Shin listened quietly, then reached out and loosened his tie, making a request: "There's no need to disassemble it piece by piece."

"Have your two stuntmen demonstrate this entire sequence of actions with the speed and intensity of real filming, so I can see the overall effect first."

Hearing this, Jackie Chan, standing next to the monitor, stroked his chin and couldn't help but laugh and tease, "Brother Kitahara, you don't have to pretend like that, do you? This is continuous close combat, including dangerous disarming maneuvers. Do you think you can memorize it all after just one glance?"

Kitahara Shin turned to look at Jackie Chan, smiled and shook his head: "It's not that amazing. I just wanted to check the visual continuity and rhythm of the whole set of movements so I could have a better understanding of it."

"Okay, grant his wish!" Jackie Chan waved his hand.

Two agile stuntmen from the Jackie Chan Stunt Team immediately stepped to the center of the arena. With a shout, one swung a prop machete and slashed fiercely, while the other displayed his fluid, crisp, and clean set of unarmed disarming and joint lock techniques.

As soon as the demonstration ended, Kitahara Shin unbuttoned his suit jacket and walked to the center of the venue.

He looked at the stuntman who had been demonstrating the moves with the knife and said calmly, "Let's get started. Let's try sparring once first."

Jackie Chan stood on the periphery, watching Kitahara Shin's eager expression, and shook his head helplessly. He chuckled inwardly: This young man, no matter how seasoned he is in the business world, still has that drive to show off deep down. But that's normal; young people are all about daring, daring, and fearless. Thinking back to his early twenties, wasn't he just as reckless on set, chasing after a single shot?

Jackie Chan crossed his arms, ready to watch Kitahara Shin make a fool of himself in a flustered manner, and then personally teach him a few moves to build a closer relationship.

"Get ready!" the martial arts instructor shouted.

The stuntman raised his prop machete, shouted, and charged towards Kitahara Shin following the route he had just demonstrated. Although he had reduced his strength, his speed was still extremely fast, carrying a fierce gust of wind.

However, at the very last 0.1 seconds before the blade was about to strike.

Kitahara Shin's eyes changed instantly. His previously gentle gaze turned icy, revealing a cruel and cold indifference to life.

The extreme neural reaction speed brought by the [Ring of Life], as well as the "Martial Arts Proficiency" passive attribute granted by the [Sword Saint's Worn Wooden Sword] in the system inventory, were fully activated at this moment.

In Kitahara Shin's eyes, his opponent's movements were full of flaws. Instead of using his arm to block as the martial arts instructor had taught him, he subtly shifted his body with terrifying precision. The blade barely grazed the fabric of his suit.

Immediately afterwards, Kitahara Shin's right hand, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, snapped shut and gripped the wrist of the man holding the knife.

Without further ado, he suddenly exerted force from his waist, his left elbow striking the martial artist's ribs with precision, like a heavy hammer (of course, he skillfully dissipated 90% of the force at the moment of contact). Taking advantage of the moment when the opponent bent over in pain, Kitahara Shin executed an extremely swift over-the-shoulder throw!

"Bang!"

Before the stuntman could react, he felt a dizzying sensation before his eyes, and was thrown over by an extremely domineering force, crashing heavily onto the thick carpet. The prop machete, unnoticed, had somehow already found its way into Kitahara Shin's hands.

Kitahara Shin pressed one knee against the stuntman's chest, gripping the hilt of the knife upside down, the blade hovering less than a centimeter above the man's neck. He pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, looking down at his prey on the ground with a villainous elegance and deadly pressure that instantly overflowed the screen.

The whole process happened so fast, it took less than two seconds!

A deathly silence fell over the scene.

The stuntman who had been thrown to the ground was completely stunned. His eyes widened as he stared at the man above him, who resembled a thug in a suit, his mind blank. He was one of the most capable fighters in the Jackie Chan Stunt Team, yet in that instant, he felt as if he were facing not an actor, but a real gangster godfather who had emerged from the bloodbath of Hushan! That sharp, forceful exertion, that precise, millimeter-level muscle control—it was ten times more impressive than anything they had just demonstrated!

Kitahara Shin casually tossed the prop sword aside and reached out to help the bewildered stuntman to his feet. Then, he withdrew the terrifying murderous aura he had displayed, turned to Jackie Chan on the periphery, and gave him a relaxed smile: "Jackie Chan, how was the villain's pacing and intensity?"

Jackie Chan froze on the spot.

His eyes were wide open, his mouth was agape, and his jaw almost dropped to his chest. His astonished and shocked expression was exactly the same as the iconic, poster-cover-all look on his face when he saw the gangsters crash a double-decker bus into the street in "Police Story"!

Jackie Chan rubbed his eyes hard, looked at his subordinate who was still questioning his existence, and then looked at Kitahara Shin, who looked calm and collected and whose suit was not messed up at all. Finally, he couldn't help but swear.

"Holy crap—what kind of monster did you come out of some deep mountain forest?!"

Amidst the astonished gazes of Jackie Chan and the entire cast of stuntmen, as if they were looking at a monster, Kitahara Shin's villainous action scenes in Hong Kong officially began filming in this extremely hardcore, even somewhat unbelievable atmosphere.

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