money player

After taking a phone call, Ethel Winters, who was sitting at his desk, said to Sin Yiu-man, "Mr. Hepburn, it's your call."

Ethel is Winters' secretary and wife.

Xian Yaowen walked to the desk, thanked her, and took the phone. "Hui Xian, what's up?"

"Clay called and said that Grace had just called him to say that she had come across a good opportunity, and Grace was waiting for him to call back."

"I'll call Grace's number directly."

Having obtained Grace Kelly's number, Sin Yiu-man dialed it immediately.

Hi, Grace.

"Adam?"

"It's me. What great opportunity have I encountered?"

"You knew I was on the set of 'High Noon' in Sonoma?"

"of course."

"The production crew is in trouble. Mr. Carl Forman, a former member of the Communist Party USA, has been subpoenaed to testify before the House Committee on UnAmerican Activities. He refused to reveal the names of other party members and has been listed as an uncooperative witness. He will soon be blacklisted by Hollywood."

"Go on, explain in more detail."

Sin Yiu-man was not familiar with the name Carl Forman, nor with the "High Noon" project. The only thing he knew was that this Western film held an important place in American film history and seemed to be a film that achieved great success with a small budget.

It can only be that he saw the film, but didn't finish it. The soul of Westerns was infused by Akira Kurosawa. Before the appearance of "A Fistful of Dollars," which plagiarized Kurosawa's "Yojimbo," Westerns weren't very interesting.

"So, you don't know anything about this project?" Grace Kelly said sourly.

"I know you fought for this leading role opportunity yourself, your salary is $5000, and I know you worked very hard. Isn't that enough?"

“You should know more,” Grace Kelly retorted, then continued, “The ‘High Noon’ project was initiated by Carl Forman, who brought in Gary Cooper as the male lead to persuade director Fred Kinneman to join, and to persuade Stanley Kramer to invest under the name of Stanley Kramer Company.”

"Wait, isn't Stanley Kramer Corporation a company owned by Stanley Kramer alone?"

“Karl Forman owns 30% of the shares.”

"continue."

"Stanley Kramer's company initiated the project with a budget of $75. In order to maintain control over the creative process, they didn't approach a major studio but instead went to United Artists. Now... do I need to make myself clearer?"

"Is Stanley Kramer very rich?"

"Part of the $75 was borrowed."

"Is he in Sonoma?"

"On my way to Los Angeles."

"Oh, how much do you think Carl Forman's shares are worth?"

"Stanley Kramer is valued at approximately $50."

"Understood. Let's end the call first. If time permits, I'll come to see you in Sonoma."

"OK."

After ending the call, Sin Yiu-man called Clay Simpson and told him not to go out and to wait for the fax.

After hanging up the phone, Xian Yaowen said to Winters, "Dick, I have to deal with something that came up unexpectedly. I'll come over in a few days and have a family dinner at your house."

As he spoke, he asked Ethel, "Is that alright?"

“Very welcome.”

"Thank you."

After exchanging pleasantries, Sin Yiu-man spoke a few words to Law Yin, then immediately got into the car and sped off towards Greenwich Village.

On the way, he drafted the content of the fax and sent it to Simpson as soon as he got home.

Back in Hollywood, Simpson received the fax, read it, and immediately called Reagan to schedule a meeting. Carl Forman and Stanley Kramer weren't under enough pressure; they needed more responsibility.

After sending the fax, Sin Yiu-man poured himself a glass of wine and was about to stand by the window for a while when the phone on the table rang.

"Ok?"

“A man who called himself Mr. Poland called looking for Quan Xu, saying he had something urgent to discuss.”

“I know him, you don’t need to worry about him. Come over for dinner after work.”

"Ah."

Mr. Poland was Sheriff Andrei Dudka of the Fifth Precinct, whom he had met at the Port Arthur restaurant. Later, he entrusted this connection to Quan Xu.

“Andrei, it is I, Adam.”

"Oh, Adam, it's been a long time."

"Long time no see," Xian Yaowen replied, then asked, "What happened?"

"Charlie Chen's father was beaten to death, just over two hours ago. Damn it, Chinatown is going to be in chaos again."

"Who did it?"

"Flying Dragon Hall".

"I'll treat you to afternoon tea tomorrow."

"OK."

After putting down the microphone, Xian Yaowen swirled his wine glass and went to the window, recalling the information Quan Xu had reported.

Both On Leong Tong and Hip Sing Tong have already begun to launder their money, not because they've stopped being involved in organized crime and are switching to legitimate businesses, but because the United States has intensified its crackdown on gangs, and the main force in combating gangs is shifting from the police to the FBI.

Although the New York police can be bribed, the FBI can also be bribed. But if an extra portion of income is used to bribe the FBI, those shady businesses will lose their appeal. All the profits will go to the foreigners, and what will the gang eat?
In response to this situation, On Leong Tong and Hip Sing Tong's main strategy is to "follow the law." The FBI can't do anything to them without evidence. If someone has something on them, they'll bribe whoever has it, unlike the police who receive monthly tributes.

Another thing is to become low-key. In the early years, he did something that he wanted the whole world to know. "The one who cuts the bar is Chan Ho-nam of Causeway Bay." He's a short mule, after all. How can he recruit followers and intimidate those who want to collect protection money if he doesn't have a big name?

In recent years, the senior members of On Leong Tong have become much more low-key and have all become good people, doing good things to maintain the stability of Chinatown. They leave the bad things to their subordinates. After all, there are plenty of people like Chicken who want to become the boss of Tuen Mun. Throwing out some petty benefits will get some people to risk their lives.

This makes it much harder for the FBI to find fault with them.

As for Hip Sing Tong, since its establishment, the senior members have kept a low profile, always using nicknames and hiding their real names. Even the famous head of the hall, Su Ya, at the beginning of this century, no one could say for sure who he was. Looking back now, even the seventh uncle Wu Jiazhao, whom Sin Yiu Man knew in his previous life, is hard to say whether the name "Wu Jiazhao" is real or not.

Perhaps because of their consistent caution, Hip Sing Tong's efforts to legitimize itself are more sincere than On Leung Tong's. The higher-ups probably genuinely want to lead Hip Sing Tong to find legitimate business, support those they favor to establish new gangs, and act as the main source of revenue, waiting to reap the benefits from these new gangs.

Fei Long Tang, or Fei Long Gang, is a youth gang supported by Xie Sheng Tang. Its main members are American-born ABCs (American-born Chinese). They may speak Chinese, but they no longer follow the Hongmen tradition. They are a relatively pure criminal gang, and the young people all want to rise to the top, so they tend to be radical and extreme in their actions.

They're out here to make money, not to ruin their families. After decades of hard work, they finally climb to the top and sit back and enjoy the benefits of their rank and seniority. Even if the two branches don't get along, they can just let their subordinates fight it out. They can take down Bai Zhishan in one fell swoop. If Xie Sheng Tang dares to do this, isn't An Liang Tang afraid of doing it again?
Needless to say, they were definitely afraid. Even if they had never been to school, they could still hear from storytellers that "to shoot a man, shoot his horse first; to capture a thief, capture his king first." Who didn't know that beheading was a good tactic?
Without absolute certainty, who would dare to attempt a decapitation strike against an evenly matched enemy?
Isn't it better to persuade your subordinates to spare no expense?
As long as his men are not all dead, his own life is not in danger. Even if they are all dead, he can admit defeat and make a vow, and he might still have a chance to go to Vancouver and live a life of leisure.

Therefore, it is unlikely that the murder of Chan Chi-sang was the work of the Hip Shing Tong. It is more likely that the Flying Dragon Tong had disloyal intentions and was preparing to become independent, or that someone within the On Leong Tong had ambitions and played a trick of collusion between insiders and outsiders.

"Interesting. Who is Li Yuan, and who is Liu Wenjing, the envoy to the Turks? Are the Turks the Flying Dragon Hall or the Mafia?"

Sin Yiu-man recalled the gunshots he heard on Mulberry Street at noon, and realized that Carlo Gambino had only recently come to power and was at the peak of his desire to expand his territory, so it was not surprising that he coveted Chinatown.

Just as he was trying to deduce the truth, the phone rang again.

He went to the phone, answered it, and was surprised to find that it wasn't Zheng Huixian, but Sun Shuying.

"Shuying, how did you know to make this call?"

"Hehe, my stepmother told me."

"Oh, the Paris telephone exchange is open at night?"

"I'm not in Paris, I'm in the capital of Ohio."

"Columbus?"

"Ah."

"What are you doing there?"

“I’ve run into a problem while negotiating a patent sale at the Battelle Memorial Institute and I need your help.”

"what is the problem?"

"An inventor named Chester Carlson invented electrophotography in 1942. In 1945, Bartel began to act as Carlson's patent agent and paid for further research."

Battier tried to get licenses for the idea from major printing and photography companies such as Kodak and Harris Seibould, but ultimately failed.

By the end of the following year, Battelle finally negotiated a licensing agreement, granting Harrods a non-exclusive right for $1. Harrods used electrophotography to develop the first commercial copier, the Xerox Model A, and renamed the electrophotography technology electrostatic copying.

After understanding the whole situation, I realized that simply acquiring the electrostatic copying patent wouldn't maximize profits; it would be best to acquire Harrods as well.

Sin Yiu-man frowned, then grinned and said, "Is the company owned by your family? You think you can just buy it like that?"

"Oh dear, I'm not joking. Sales of Xerox Type A are not very good. Harold needs funds to continue research and development, and also needs funds to buy patents. Otherwise, non-exclusive licensing will be a big hidden danger."

"Putting aside the price, are you absolutely certain you can acquire Harold?"

“Even if we can’t acquire it, we’ll still invest in it. My idea is to buy the patent first, and then talk to Harold.”

"how much money do you need?"

Harold is currently valued at approximately $500 million.

"I'll find a way to rob the money. Fly to New York when it's convenient for you; I need to see a detailed report."

"I'll be there the day after tomorrow."

"Okay, I won't say much more over the phone. See you the day after tomorrow."

After hanging up the phone, Xian Yaowen shook his head. This girl had no sense of vigilance at all, saying everything over the phone. He wondered how many people were eavesdropping on the call at the same time. It was just that the operator and the intelligence department were okay, but he was afraid that professional eavesdroppers might overhear it.

This girl is quite adventurous; she always goes for big things right away. Last time it was a prebaked aluminum electrolytic cell, and this time it's a photocopier. But Harold is the future Xerox; he's got potential.

A phone call was made to Arthur Locke of Silver Sulfide, changing his plans to go to Silver Sulfide's office the next morning.

At four o'clock, I put aside all the myriad things and went into the kitchen to cook a few dishes. When Zheng Huixian came over, we continued our previous discussion about how to be a good leader.

Hugh Hefner is not a born genius; he needs time to grow. The idea of ​​"returning him to his rightful owner" and promoting him to general manager of the Flower Company has faded. Besides him, no one else within the Flower Company is more suitable than Zheng Huixian for the time being. Zheng Huixian can only continue to be a puppet for a while longer.

It's impossible for Zheng Huixian to be the actual leader of the Flower Society. Putting aside her abilities, her gender and skin color also make it impossible.

If Ruore Guinuo's agency causes any trouble with "Global Village" and "Bond" magazines, Flower Society will immediately launch an IPO, and the leader will need to make an appearance to support her. This will hurt the stock price.

At 7:30, after Zheng Huixian left, Xian Yaowen found a stainless steel cigar box and two 3mm thick nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloy blocks, sandwiched several layers of inner tube rubber in between, stuffed them into the cigar box, and put the cigar box into the inside pocket of his suit.

He tucked a tactical pen, a product of Tongfa that he didn't plan to sell for the time being, into his outer pocket. He changed his pants into tactical jeans, put a CGB-made replica of the Deringer pistol in his pocket, and wore a pair of canvas basketball shoes developed by Pallas.

Xie Zhanran and his sister also prepared "breast protection" for themselves, each carrying an extra M1911 with two magazines of tungsten carbide armor-piercing rounds.

There isn't actually a clear dividing line between Little Italy and Chinatown. Canal Street, which runs east-west, is the clearest dividing line, separating the northern boundary of Chinatown from the southern boundary of Little Italy. The northwest boundary of Chinatown borders the southeast corner of Little Italy via Canal Street. Italian bakeries are adjacent to Chinese grocery stores, and this street is a key patrol area for the police.

Mulberry Street runs north-south through the heart of Little Italy, intersecting with Mott Street in Chinatown at its southern end. Chinatown is lined with underground gambling dens and brothels. Parallel to Mulberry Street is Bustard Street, with Little Italy to the west and Chinatown to the east. Chinese rotating credit associations and Italian moneylenders compete for customers here.

At the north end of Mulberry Street, the night is more lively than the day. Near the alley, there are always varying numbers of Italian women standing on the street, heavily made up and with cigarettes in their mouths.

There was still some distance to the Raven Club, so Sin Yiu-man and his two companions got off the car early and walked along the elevated sidewalk to their destination.

“Ciao!”

“Ciao!”

"Did you close the deal?"

"Not yet, sir. Will you take care of me?"

"I've already made plans, I'll contact you next time."

Passing by a beautiful prostitute, Sin Yiu-man uttered a few flirtatious words.

On the street of mulberry trees at night, the Chinese faces did not seem out of place. Surprisingly, there were quite a few Chinese people mixed in with the Italian pedestrians on the street. They did not look shy or cautious, and it was clear that this was not their first time here.

Several men struck up conversations with prostitutes, or were quickly led into alleyways by them, or perhaps they hadn't agreed on a price and started chatting up other prostitutes.

Some people wandered into cafes or bakeries, but they were probably not diners; they were more likely gamblers.

No wonder Chinese people aren't ostracized here, and earning money isn't considered shameful. Even if a dog gives you dollars, they'll still give you dollars; they won't turn into Korean won.

With a sense of感慨 in my heart, I arrived at the entrance of the Ravenman Club. I pushed open the glass door and went in, and someone immediately came to greet me.

“Mr. Hepburn, Mr. Gambino is waiting for you inside.”

Sin Yiu-man nodded and followed the newcomer deeper inside. (End of Chapter)