money player

Sin Yiu-man was unaware that someone was cricketing behind his back, and even if he did, he wouldn't care.

In any profession, those who reach the top are not fools. The Armadillo Squad is composed of veterans with rich combat experience. Those who survive battle after battle are not lacking in luck or intelligence. Some things don't need to be hidden; they can't be hidden anyway.

Every member of the Armadillo Squad knows the value of their equipment, how much their daily food supplies cost, and can roughly calculate their contribution and commission for each mission.

Overall, Sin Yiu-man did not treat them unfairly. Each person's income was slightly greater than the value they created. In addition, there were retirement and pension mechanisms. The Armadillo Squad's benefits were excellent. Anyone with common sense could roughly calculate how high the cost of maintaining the squad was.

So far, the Armadillo Squad has been undertaking missions where they have an absolute advantage, resulting in a low casualty rate. However, this is only temporary. The initial phase is about to end, and the Armadillo Squad will soon face opponents of a higher level. Naturally, the casualty rate will increase, but welfare expenditures will not decrease; instead, they will steadily increase.

First, with fewer people assigned, the average will naturally be higher. Second, the next step for the Armadillo Squad is to become a national wartime military, drawing personnel from elite squads to form new companies, using the battlefield as a training ground, giving them a little training, controlling the consumption of food and ammunition, and immediately sending them out on missions. If they die, so be it; if they survive, they will enter the next stage of more costly training before being sent out on missions again.

Those who survive three to five rounds of training possess the potential to become elites. Sin Yiu-man calls this stage "rust removal," or the "probationary period."

Team members on probation can only be called cannon fodder. It cannot be ruled out that, for tactical reasons, they may be deliberately sent to their deaths during missions, under the guise of strict discipline.

More bloodshed in battle, less money spent on training. If it weren't for the Armadillo Squad's desire to use superior equipment as a selling point, Sin Yiu-man would have really considered learning from the Soviet model: the lead soldier would be given a gun and three bullets, followed by a row of cannon fodder with bullets but no guns. This way, the casualty rate would be high, the training efficiency would be high, and food would be saved.

Polo Lounge

Sin Yiu-man, Bill, and Kelly chatted in hushed tones, not about anything important, and without any particular topic, just rambling about everything under the sun.

First, they talked about the Twenty-Second Amendment and what impact it would have on the United States if the president could only serve two terms. Sin Yiu-man and Bill were in perfect sync, not talking about politics with women, and just rambled on.

The second topic is AT&T's introduction of direct long-distance dialing. A few days ago, the mayors of Inglewood and San Francisco completed the first-ever cross-coastal direct long-distance dialing, connecting directly without the need for an operator.

This marked the beginning of the modern telecommunications era, dramatically changing the way people communicate.

As he looked to the future, Sin Yiu-man also reminded himself that the absence of operators does not mean that calls are not being eavesdropped on. He should pay more attention to call security in the future and avoid speaking recklessly on the phone.

Incidentally, he also briefly considered whether to follow in the footsteps of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and become a third-generation satellite engineer, investing heavily in rocket research and development.

He needs his own convenient and secure means of communication, and at present, satellite communication is the most likely way to achieve this.

However, this isn't something that can be done just like that. Even if he's willing to invest heavily, the US military would need to allow private companies to enter this field. Before thinking about satellite communications, he should first consider pagers. The theory and technology are already mature, and if profitability isn't a concern, it's relatively easy to implement.

The third topic is "The Catcher in the Rye," which achieved great commercial success immediately upon its publication ten days ago and has a good chance of making it onto the next New York Times bestseller list.

This success was largely due to the strategy of negative marketing. On the third day after the book was released in bookstores, many authoritative critics began to criticize it in newspapers for its vulgar language, loose plot, and the protagonist Holden Caulfield as a cynical and troubled teenager.

On the fourth day, another authoritative critic argued that The Catcher in the Rye's descriptions of sex, alcoholism, and rebellion were too explicit and that such cultural garbage should not be allowed into schools and libraries.

Which teenager isn't rebellious? The more you forbid something, the more it fuels their curiosity. It's precisely because of the widespread criticism that "The Catcher in the Rye" achieved high sales.

After this battle, 84 Charing Cross Road had one foot in the United States.

According to Augustine Hamilton's idea, the Perga Cafe model would be transplanted to the United States, opening in Greenwich Village, to guide and nurture American writers Perga (who are often referred to as "perga" in Chinese).

In addition, Hamilton began contacting Hodgson & Stotton Press in an attempt to acquire The Lancet, a journal with a very small circulation. Its circulation was indeed very small, distributed globally, with each issue selling only a little over ten thousand copies.

Sin Yiu-man is eyeing high-end medical connections. The Lancet is just the beginning. The next step is the Global Medical Forum, where he will network with current high-level talents and fund future high-level talents.

Hong Kong.

Wang Xiamin and Cai Jinman inspected the restaurant project of Haochi Company, as well as the Water Cube and underground water storage project of Haoshui Company, which is managed by Cai Jinman.

Next, we went to the side of Cen Peipei Primary School to check on the construction progress of Peipei Lake.

The excavation of Pepe Lake has been completed. The lake is shaped like an infinity symbol, 110 meters long and 55 meters wide at its widest point. At the junction of the two circles is a pavilion called Jidi Pavilion. There is a bridge on each side leading to Jidi Pavilion. Taking the Xian family as the base point, the bridge on the left is called Longmen Bridge and the bridge on the right is called Roman Bridge.

The lake's depth increases in stages: within 2 meters of the shore, the water is 40 centimeters deep; from 2 to 4 meters, it is 60 centimeters deep; from 4 to 6 meters, it is 80 centimeters deep; beyond 6 meters, the lake bottom is pot-shaped, with the water depth starting from 2 meters and reaching a maximum of 5 meters.

In this way, unless a child actively seeks death or is forced to commit suicide, the probability of them drowning in the lake is extremely low.

On either side of the two bridges, there is a lotus pond. The lotus seedlings were transplanted from Yuen Long, and it is currently the season when the lotus flowers are in full bloom. Wang Xiamin and Cai Jinman leaned on the railing to admire the flowers.

Wang Xiamin pointed northeast, "There's another lake being excavated over there. The gentleman said it's a place for the residents of Shek Kip Mei to wash their toilets. The drawings call it Anma Lake, and its common name is Night Fragrance."

"Why dig a lake specifically for washing toilets? You can wash them here too."

Wang Xiamin shook her head. "Madam should know that the water shortage has become increasingly severe since the beginning of summer. We added several water storage tanks to the roof of the house to ensure water supply."

I went to the Water Supplies Bureau and the Hong Kong Observatory to get the data. The water storage capacity of Pok Fu Lam Reservoir, Tai Tam Reservoir and Shing Mun Reservoir is not optimistic. The Hong Kong Observatory's forecast for rainfall in Hong Kong in the next few years is also not optimistic.

The construction of the Tai Lam Chung Reservoir, intended to alleviate water shortages, was progressing slowly and was not expected to be completed until 1957. This was a case of using water from afar to address immediate needs.

I went to the Shenzhen River in the New Territories yesterday. The water level has dropped drastically. This year, we can't pump much water from the river to supplement the water supply, and the situation next year may be even worse.

"The water tower and underground reservoir on the Water Cube were built by the old man to cope with water shortages."

Wang Xiamin nodded. “Sir, you excavated Pepe Lake to provide clean drinking water for the residents of Shek Kip Mei. This is stagnant water and cannot be highly purified. If someone washes their toilet here, diseases such as cholera, typhoid fever, bacterial dysentery, hepatitis A, and intestinal parasites can easily spread, causing an uncontrollable epidemic. Doing good will turn into doing evil.”

Cai Jinman glanced at Anma Lake and then at Peipei Lake. "But the two lakes are not in good locations. They are at different distances from Shek Kip Mei. Some locations are convenient for getting to Peipei Lake, while others are convenient for getting to Anma Lake. Some people will come to Peipei Lake to flush their toilets for convenience. Should we send someone here to maintain order?"

Wang Xiamin looked at the lotus flowers with a dreamy look in her eyes and said, "I asked the same question to the master. He said that he had already watered the lotus flowers, and we could not ask him to bring them to the water's mouth. He said that it would be too much trouble to manage the maintenance and distribution of the water. If they do not cherish it, then so be it."

Cai Jinman said quietly, "An elder of mine once said that Chinese people are narrow-minded and short-sighted. They can only see the immediate benefits and are afraid of being taken advantage of. If one person comes to clean the toilet, countless others will follow. If no one is here to uphold the rules, the lake will become dirty in less than two months."

"The gentleman said that once the lake is repaired and filled with water, after praising Mrs. Peipei, he will immediately hand over the management rights and come back to take back the land for building construction five years later."

Wang Xiamin pointed in one direction, “We should plant a row of lemongrass over there, and plant mint and rosemary on both sides. Extend the line to plant lavender and catnip. These plants all have mosquito-repellent properties and are also edible. When they are in season, we can harvest some at home to give the children at school an opportunity to earn pocket money.”

Following the direction Cai Jinman pointed, he saw a group of students bent over, pulling weeds and tidying up the ground. "Are the students on summer vacation?"

"There are still a few days left. The final exams are over, and there won't be any regular classes these days. They can earn popsicles and sweet soup by weeding here. In a couple of days, summer vacation will officially begin, and the China Garment Association will assign work to schools so they can earn money to supplement their family income."

"Are they already preparing to become workers?"

“Most of them are,” Wang Xiamin nodded. “Most children’s achievements are determined by their parents. Children are likely to follow in their parents’ footsteps and not be able to escape their parents’ circle. Only a very small number of them can become successful and stand out from the crowd. Their generation’s main task is to achieve a stable life and create a better learning environment for their own children.”

What about the geniuses among them? Should they be buried?

Wang Xiamin turned to look at Cai Jinman, and said with a slight dissatisfaction, "Madam, you shouldn't doubt the master. The master has always been meticulous. The school has established an extracurricular math interest group. In addition to the regular courses, students with high talent will receive more advanced math courses."

The school has already communicated with the primary school affiliated with the prestigious Mihaly Fázekas High School in Hungary to hold a math summer camp in Budapest next summer.

Hungary is a powerhouse in mathematics, and the Mihaly Fázekas High School is one of the best high schools in Hungary. Organizing a summer camp in conjunction with its affiliated primary school requires significant investment.

Wang Xiamin's tone became more serious, "Madam, the price must be borne by the gentleman."

Since returning from the United States, Wang Xiamin has accepted her status as Mrs. Xian, and her mindset has changed from that of a confidante of her husband to that of a member of the Xian family. This change has also altered her views on some things.

Cen Peipei, needless to say, was the first wife handpicked by her husband. At the tender age of marriage, she managed all the affairs of the household in an orderly manner.

There was nothing to say about Su Lizhen either; she single-handedly opened up a new situation and also handled the cooperation between the Xian family and the mainland.

Qi Weiwen willingly remained invisible to ensure the safety of the Xian family.

Liu Wanqing, capable of handling things independently, executes the grand plan devised by her husband.

Zhou Ruoyun neither worked nor exerted herself, but her family was well-off, and she entered the family through a marriage alliance. So, there was nothing wrong with her not putting in any effort.

This Cai Jinman, with no family background, merely from a middle-class family in Singapore, doesn't contribute to the Xian family, spending her days just running her small restaurant. She's already resentful of her, and now she's speaking without a care in the world, seemingly oblivious to how hard her husband works. She doesn't understand why he took this woman in. (End of Chapter)