Chapter 43: The Album's Explosive Sales

After a full twenty-eight days in theaters, "Taxi Arbiter" finally concluded its wide release, with only a few small cinemas still showing it in late-night slots. Although the film’s rating barred a large segment of the audience and kept so-called decent folks hesitating at the threshold, its Category III status also drew crowds in droves.

While its final box office earnings couldn’t match the twenty-five million of "Merry Christmas" or the twenty-one million of "The Owl and the Little Elephant," its nineteen million eight hundred thousand was more than enough to bring unrestrained smiles to the faces of the Battle-Hardened Company and Yan Xu. This figure secured eighth place in the 1984 annual box office rankings, just edging out the Hollywood blockbuster "Indiana Jones II" by several tens of thousands. It was also Yan Xu’s first film to enter the annual top ten and his second to surpass fifteen million at the box office.

Over the course of the year, Yan Xu’s achievements left everyone satisfied. The final 1984 Hong Kong box office chart placed "Taxi Arbiter" eighth, "Rainy Night Butcher" fourteenth, and "Doctor Lamb," which he had written, in a respectable twenty-eighth. If his first film had left some doubting whether he was just a flash in the pan, the success of "Taxi Arbiter" cemented his status as a top-tier director.

Thanks to these films, Battle-Hardened Film Company ranked just behind Cinema City, Shaw Brothers, Golden Harvest, and Boho, on par with D&B, and far ahead of other companies, making them the dark horse of the film industry.

Yan Xu’s triumphs were not limited to film. His two companies flourished as well. Under the Dragon Clan Agency, new signings included Vivian Chow, Tai Chi Band, Lau Yik Tat, Ni Xing, and child star Lee Chun Shing. Just after New Year’s, they also secured a contract with Ng Man Tat. Though none were major stars yet, to Yan Xu, the roster already sparkled with promise, and with time, would only shine brighter.

On the Dragon Clan Records side, the addition of Lowell Lo and his wife became Yan Xu’s strongest support, allowing him to let go and trust the process. In terms of staff, the arrival of Chan Siu Kei and Yan Kwai elevated the company’s creative prowess, especially Chan Siu Kei, a rare talent indeed. Of course, Ko Ming Fai was also indispensable, even if he was currently just a jack-of-all-trades.

As the company’s leading musical acts, Vivian Chow and Tai Chi Band’s EP had been well received, with two of their songs breaking into the top three of major radio charts, rivaled only by George Lam’s "Who Understands Me."

Vivian Chow and Tai Chi Band’s albums were now ready for release, and with Yan Xu’s golden touch, both were sure to be of the highest quality. Vivian’s debut album included her original tracks "Lonely Heartache," "Beloved," "Winter Romance," "Love Never Ages," "Self-Inflicted," as well as "**," "Tears Amid Laughter," "Still," and "Zhong Wu Yan." The first three of these had each won Top Ten Hits awards, and "Zhong Wu Yan" was a Supreme Hit, among the top ten most requested songs. The lyrics alone, spanning over five hundred words, were daunting enough to memorize.

Tai Chi Band’s album, in addition to "Stormy Red Lips" and "Red Convertible," featured "Cry Out," "Cold Blooded Man," "Sacrifice Once More," and "Time Bomb," composed by Ah Pat and penned by Yan Kwai, as well as three songs brought by Yan Xu’s golden touch: Yang Pei’an’s "I Believe," Ga Diao Band’s "Loop Highway," and Paradise Band’s "Faith."

Both Yan Xu and Lowell Lo were confident these songs would make the albums favorites among music lovers. Whether pop or rock, selling more than twenty-five thousand copies and reaching gold record status seemed entirely within reach. Achieving such numbers with a company’s debut artists and albums was rare indeed.

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January 15, 1985—a perfectly ordinary Tuesday. In an unremarkable record shop in Sham Shui Po, weekdays like this would rarely see much foot traffic outside of lunchtime or evening. But today, groups of students and long-haired, eccentrically dressed youths had gathered early at the shop’s door, drawing frequent sideways glances from passersby, surprised to see so many students skipping class and young people in outlandish attire.

With a screech of rubber tires, a delivery truck pulled up outside the shop, immediately attracting everyone’s attention. The previously calm crowd erupted into excitement, especially when boxes of cassettes were carried inside; people surged forward, eager to be the first to enter.

"Boss, two copies of Vivian Chow’s ‘Lonely Heartache.’"

"Boss, five of Vivian Chow’s!"

"Boss, Tai Chi’s ‘I Believe,’ three copies!"

"Boss, one Tai Chi, please!"

As soon as the albums hit the shelves, the waiting youths waved their money in the air. Record store owners had seen album rushes before, but usually only for established stars—not for newcomers like these. Such scenes were rare, but the owners wished they happened every day. Smartly, they switched the in-store music to the brand-new albums.

This scene played out not just in Sham Shui Po, but across other districts in the city—especially near concentrations of schools. The campus promos by Vivian Chow and Tai Chi Band in the preceding days had worked wonders, drawing long lines. And with shop owners blasting the new releases, heartfelt ballads and stirring rock filled the air, each album resonating with a different crowd—some soothed, some exhilarated.

Li Yun, an ordinary office worker in Central, had only recently graduated college and landed her job after a difficult search. When she left campus, she was filled with passion and dreams, certain she would make her mark in the city, that one day she might even have a home on the hills above.

But once she started working, the chasm between reality and her ideals became painfully clear. At the company, her duties were little more than those of a tea-serving assistant. Colleagues wore completely different faces in public and in private, and the candid spirit of campus life had vanished. Over a year, her original passion and dreams were ground away. Though she gradually adapted to society, her job became nothing more than a means to earn a bit of money and get through each day—just a way to survive.

During afternoon tea, as the most junior member of her team, she was sent out to fetch drinks and snacks. After picking up her colleagues’ orders, her steps suddenly halted—the music drifting from a nearby record store caught her ear.

"...I believe I am myself, I believe in tomorrow, I believe youth knows no horizon. By the seaside at sunset, on bustling streets, these are the most beautiful paradises in my heart..."

The melody stopped Li Yun in her tracks and called forth memories she had buried deep inside. She remembered when she, too, had been so confident, so full of hope for tomorrow. The lyrics seemed to echo her own ambition upon leaving university. She didn’t know why, but a strange, inexplicable sorrow welled up in her, and tears slipped down her cheeks. Though the song had ended, her heart remained unsettled. Looking at the record store in the distance, she strode purposefully toward it.