Based on the TV series of the same name**, the TV series "Prosperous" is directed by the famous Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai, which tells the inspirational story of a group of young people in Shanghai who struggled in the shopping mall in the early 90s in the early days of reform and opening up. However, Wong Kar-wai's fast-paced and memorably interspersed filming may take some time for viewers to get used to, so the response to the show has been mixed. As a fan who watched Hu Ge, at first I thought that the filming method of this drama was a bit messy and the plot was fragmented. The narrative has a great sense of speed, the characters have frequent and noisy dialogues, and the reality of the plot and memories are constantly interspersed, which can be confusing when watching the first few episodes. Especially the gloomy tone presented by the TV series made me mistakenly think that this is a drama that depicts the ** period.
The main character, Ah Bao, is a young but already successful businessman on the Yellow River, and the locals affectionately call him Mr. Bao. From a factory worker to a speculator, Ah Bao accumulated the first pot of gold in his life with the help of his uncle. Subsequently, he concentrated on foreign trade, and met Miss Wang, who was then in the Foreign Trade Company at No. 27 on the Bund in Shanghai, and started his legendary life and became the premier president of the Yellow River Road. In those days, business was often done in restaurants.
Therefore, the owners of several restaurants on Huanghe Road are often proud of Mr. Bao dining in their own restaurant. Po's success is inseparable from four women, and the TV series also revolves around the emotional story between him and these four women. The first woman was Xuezhi, who was also Bao's first love, who was working as a conductor on the No. 13 bus in Shanghai at the time. In order to pursue her, Po has to take the No. 13 bus to commute to work every day. Eventually, he managed to win Xuezhi's heart. However, the good times did not last long, in the early 80s, Xuezhi went to Hong Kong with her parents, and the two went their separate ways. One day in 1987, Xuezhi stayed in Shanghai for a few days, and when she met with Po, she took out a salary slip of 20,000 Hong Kong dollars a month, which undoubtedly conveyed to Po that they were already in a different world. After a huge blow, Po finally realizes that love without money is unrealistic. The collapse of this love strengthened his determination to go to the sea to make a lot of money. In a chance encounter, he vowed to surpass Xuezhi in ten years, because Xuezhi was just an ordinary hotel waiter at this time, not the CEO of the company back then. Despite the rejection, he once again proposed a ten-year contract, hoping that Xuezhi would be able to regain his strength, which became a suspense.
It is worth mentioning that without Xuezhi's decisive refusal back then, perhaps there would not have been a miracle of Bao's success later. Po's second female companion is called Reiko, whom he met in Tokyo, Japan. In the early 80s, in order to get a contract for a Japanese foreign trade business, he needed to find a Japanese boss in Tokyo. While waiting, he stumbles upon Suzuko. Because he didn't know Japanese, he couldn't walk an inch in a foreign country, but thanks to Suzuko's help, he finally managed to meet the Japanese businessman and get the signature. In order to thank Suzuko for her help, Po took her back to Shanghai and opened a small restaurant on Jinxian Road, named "Night Tokyo", to commemorate the night the two met. Although the small shop in Night Tokyo was actually given to Suzuko by Po, in order not to embarrass her, Po let Suzuko take care of it and promised that 50% of the profits of the shop would go to Suzuko. However, due to Suzuko's older age and knowing that she and Po have no future, she tries her best to make money, which eventually leads to the two breaking up. Po's third female companion is named Wang Mingzhu, and everyone calls her Miss Wang. She works in the Shanghai Foreign Trade Company and is known as the apprentice of the "No. 27" No. 27 section chief. With her help, Bao's foreign trade business is thriving.
Especially when creating the local well-known brand "Sanyang" clothing in Shanghai, Po cooperated with Miss Wang to create a myth in Shanghai at that time, achieved a legend, and earned the second pot of gold in his life. Miss Wang has a close relationship with Bao, and almost everything she says and does represents Mr. Bao's will, and she has almost become his spokesperson. She also takes care of the selection of restaurants and the booking of restaurants. In the process of mutual cooperation, she gradually immersed herself in her passion for Po. However, success often comes with misfortune. "Sanyang brand"Miss Wang's success made Miss Wang a little carried away, and Po felt the need to express her gratitude, so he gave her a pair of pearl earrings. However, Po never imagined that it was this pair of pearl earrings that made his two women, Reiko and Miss Wang, part ways forever. The actual purchase price of this pair of pearl earrings was only 200 yuan, but they were sold to Reiko's good friend for 2,600 yuan. Reiko, who has no sense of security, was sold to Ah Bao for 26,000 yuan. In the process of interacting with Bao, Miss Wang has always adhered to her principles and never accepted any gifts from Bao, and even if she did, she developed the habit of handing them in.
When she learned that this pair of pearl earrings was worth 26,000 yuan, she cherished it very much, and although she was reluctant to hand it over, she finally handed over 26,000 yuan to Reiko. When Ms. Wang was about to be promoted to section chief, her colleague and friend Mei Ping reported Ms. Wang's acceptance of pearl earrings due to strong jealousy. Although the matter was finally clarified, Miss Wang could not be promoted to section chief as she wished, but was sent to the warehouse of a foreign trade company for further investigation. This incident hit Miss Wang very hard, and she had the idea of quitting the workplace to help Po take care of the business, and was eager to get Po's consent. However, due to Bao's experience and age, his feelings for Miss Wang have always stayed"Pure revolutionary camaraderie"。When Miss Wang needed him the most, he didn't show up, which made her feel very sad, so she made up her mind to leave Po. After a warehouse inspection, Ms. Wang returned to No. 27. However, unexpectedly, she resolutely resigned from her job and cooperated with Mr. Wei, who had always been in love with her, to establish Mingzhu Company, specializing in foreign trade business, obviously to work against Bao. She wants to use her strength to prove that she can also become a successful woman on the Yellow River without relying on Bao.
And Bao's fourth woman, Li Li, runs the Zhizhenyuan Hotel on the Yellow River Road. A mysterious strong woman, Li Li, who runs the Zhizhenyuan Hotel on Huanghe Road, has caused a sensation. Her beauty and the temperament of the boss make her full of the demeanor of a domineering president, and the business of Zhizhenyuan is booming, full of guests, and it is even more difficult to book private rooms. At the same time, the business of other old restaurants is bleak, and the door is not busy. During this period, Po developed a liking for Li Li, and Li Li was also full of curiosity about this mysterious treasure. The strength of the two speaks for itself. After a battle, Ah Bao and Li Li fell in love. However, Po foresees that Zhizhenyuan will be attacked by a combination of other hotels, so he advises Li Lee, but Li Li fails to listen. Sure enough, more than a month after the opening of Zhizhenyuan, the proprietress of other restaurants joined forces to besiege Zhizhenyuan. In the face of the crisis, Li Li finally asked Po for help, and the two established a deep friendship. As for the ending of the TV series, there are still many cliffhangers. Xuezhi has two possible endings, either to be reinvigorated at the ten-year covenant, or to disappear forever as Po's eternal memory. Suzuko and Miss Wang may succeed after leaving Po and become a repetition of Po's success story.
As for Li Li, she is likely to become Po's best partner in business. It remains to be seen whether they will be able to come together. It's hard to predict where the facts will go, so let's look forward to how the story will develop.