money player

Sin Yiu-man's understanding of Sneckes comes from publicly available information, which is a portrait fabricated by someone with ulterior motives. It's hard to say how much of it is true. However, according to international practice, only the part that is hard to hide and has no need to hide is true. As for the rest, regardless of whether it is true or false, we can only judge the acting skills.

Sneckes's portrait is not very positive. He strictly implemented Stalin's large-scale political repression and exile policy, sending Lithuanians to Siberia in batches of tens of thousands to make room for Russians to move in, in order to achieve the goal that in the near future, 80% or more of the "new Lithuanians" would wholeheartedly support the Soviet Union.

Pravda claimed that "the Soviet Union has eradicated prostitution" because the socialist system eliminated poverty, the root cause of prostitution. But in reality, even under Stalin's nose, Moscow had its share of half-closed doors, with many women imprisoned for selling their bodies to make a living, labeled as "parasites."

If even biological children are treated this way, it goes without saying that Lithuania, the stepmother country, is even worse off. Men are exiled to Siberia, the state refuses to provide them with jobs, and the few remaining small-scale artisans struggling to survive are breaking the law to hire others. For some women, there are probably only two options:

One option was to shout "CIA, hurrah!" and join the anti-Soviet guerrilla forces in the jungle; the other was to earn a pittance through the sex industry, which did not exist in the Soviet Union.

During this period, Snečkus mainly did two things: exiled Lithuanians and eradicated the Forest Brothers. In the eyes of most Lithuanians, he was the executioner of the Soviet occupation, and everyone feared him.

Obviously, it would be biased to call Snečkus an executioner at this point. The Soviet Union had been systematically reducing the population of its constituent republics, and Lithuania was no exception. If Snečkus did not act with dignity, Russians, in a biological sense, would force him to act with dignity. Once the initiative was no longer in their own hands, more Lithuanians would likely die.

In Xian Yaowen's memory, Lithuania's economy was not bad for the next few decades in the previous life, ranking 4th among the 15 constituent republics, after Estonia, Latvia and Russia.

Although Lithuania ranks last among the Baltic states, its economic starting point was lower than the other two countries, and its socio-economic development lagged behind by two or three decades. The fact that it was able to catch up from behind to being on par with them shows that Snečkus is not as bad as it appears.

Lithuania possesses the port of Klaipeda, one of the Soviet Union's important gateways to the Baltic Sea and Belarus's only outlet to the sea. Once this transport route is established, it can serve as a springboard to build trade routes with Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Estonia, and other countries.

Throughout the Soviet Union, everything was in short supply except for weapons. Milk, butter, sausages, cheese, fresh meat, sugar, fresh vegetables and fruits, fabrics and finished clothing, shoes, soap/laundry detergent, matches, toilet paper, medicines and medical equipment—anything a normal family needed could be exchanged for a large amount of rubles if it could be brought in.

However, this business, which seemed very good, as it could make money and bring benefits to the Soviet people, would damage the very foundation of the Soviet planned economy.

If the Soviet people could easily obtain "specially supplied goods" that were only available to the privileged class through the black market, it would greatly dampen their enthusiasm for work and thus diminish the value of the privileged class's distribution rights.

This business is fine on a small scale, but once it gets big, we'll lay down anti-aircraft machine guns and unleash 100,000 shells, not stopping until we shatter atoms.

Business with the common people is not viable; it's more reliable to develop the privileged class as potential customers. Luxury clothing, cosmetics, high-end wines and cigars, premium fruits and ingredients, erotic clothing and internal learning videos, etc. As the saying goes, everyone is equal. What capitalists have, Soviet cadres must not only have, but also have something better, otherwise the superiority of socialism cannot be demonstrated.

"Is there any potential in setting pearls in toilet paper or diamonds in sanitary napkins?"

After a slightly quirky little incident, Sin Yiu-man quickly compiled a list of highly feasible products, while also thinking about having the Kam Kai Trading Company's flying club conduct "high-drop, low-open" training.

For luxury goods, transportation costs are less of a concern; the priority is getting them to customers as quickly as possible. Airdropping from high altitudes or deploying parachutes at low altitudes near the coast is the fastest and safest way to transport them.

Sin Yiu-man was sorting out the new business here when, without anyone noticing, Quan Danru went into the study.

"Sir, two young ladies are looking for you. They are wearing school uniforms."

"Wearing a school uniform?"

Wearing school uniforms, and always together, Sin Yiu-man only knew Yeung Ching-yee and Lee Lai-chun. He had been back for several days and hadn't yet made an appointment with Yeung Ching-yee.

"Please ask them to sit in the pavilion. I'll be there in a bit."

"Ok."

Sin Yiu-man continued working on his strategy for conquering Lithuania, and once he had a general idea, he got up and went to the pavilion.

As soon as I approached, Yang Jingyi, who was fiddling with a teacup, came up to me and stood face to face with a resentful look on her face. "How long have you been back?"

"It's been a few days."

"Why don't you look for me?"

“There’s a lot to do.” Xian Yaowen stroked Yang Jingyi’s hair. “Go back and sit down.”

"Ah."

Upon entering the pavilion, Sin Yiu-man nodded to Lee Lai-chun. The little girl's complexion had become rosier, and she had grown a bit and was no longer skinny. It seemed that her family's circumstances had improved, and her basic nutritional intake was now guaranteed.

He sat down, and Yang Jingyi sat next to him, holding his right arm with both hands.

He picked up the plate of dried longan pulp from the stone table and placed it near Li Lizhen, saying, "Li, have some longan."

Li Lizhen hesitated for a moment, then nodded and picked up a longan with her right hand.

Yang Jingyi shook his arm and said coquettishly, "I want some too."

Xian Yaowen picked up a piece and fed it to Yang Jingyi, saying, "I'll just feed you one. Take some if you want."

Yang Jingyi sipped on the longan pulp, her face beaming with joy.

Sin Yiu-man was slightly troubled. The transition from boyfriend to father was not going to be smooth. He would have to give Yeung Ching-yee some space to make a scene, and there would be a rather awkward period of time.

He originally planned to give her the cold shoulder and ignore Yang Jingyi for a while. It would be best if she could fall in love with someone else. The young girl had just opened the door to love and was so eager to be in love that the object of her affections was not that important. It was normal for her to be fickle.

But now that she dares to come to my door, she has broken the taboo of "not showing your love to adults" for the second time. It seems that she has already erased the word "youth" from her mindset and is seriously thinking about the future of marriage, instead of remaining in youthful daydreams.

In short, she no longer had a childish mentality.

"trouble."

His relationship with Fei Baoshu, an older woman and a younger man, is already well-known. With the addition of Wang Youjia, his image as Xian Yaowen "fond of older women" in Taipei is basically established, making it a natural progression for him to have a sixteen or seventeen-year-old stepdaughter.

In this way, Yang Jingyi can be used for a marriage alliance quickly. Even if the other party knows that he and Yang Jingyi had a past relationship, it doesn't matter. As long as her body is clean, it is not considered an insult or going too far.

After sucking the longan flesh clean, Yang Jingyi took Xian Yaowen's right hand, spat the pit into his palm, and giggled.

Xian Yaowen tossed the pit into the nutshell bowl, then wiped his palms with a tissue. "What time is it? Did you guys skip class?"

“I didn’t skip class.” Yang Jingyi grabbed Xian Yaowen’s right arm. “How about we go see a movie?”

"I just passed by the theater yesterday, but there aren't any movies I want to see on screen right now. I'll treat you to dinner, and after dinner, you can go see the movie yourselves."

Yang Jingyi pouted, "No, come with me."

"I can accompany you, but can we not watch a movie?"

"Sure, will you come play marbles with me?"

"Playing marbles? Glass marbles?"

Yang Jingyi paused for a moment, then explained, "There's a table with four balls: one white ball with black dots, two red balls, and one yellow ball. There's also a cue stick. You use the cue stick to hit the white ball to knock down the colored balls."

"Oh, Carom."

"What's stuck?"

“Carom, a French game of billiards, is very popular in Japan.” Xian Yaowen pinched Yang Jingyi’s nose. “It’s a very simple word. If you can read it, you can spell it. You need to work hard.”

“I’m very hardworking, but I’m just not familiar with this word,” Yang Jingyi said, unconvinced.

"I'll assume you're right. Wait a moment, I'm going to change my clothes."

"Ah."

A FreeStyle white fitted crew neck T-shirt, a pair of Kennedy blue straight-leg jeans, a pair of Pallas high-top canvas shoes, and a string of silver bald eagle dog tags. The main tag has a sickle engraved on the front and the sentence "Don't blame yourself for sleeping in" on the back. The secondary tag has a hammer engraved on the front and the sentence "You came to earth to make up the numbers" on the back.

After changing his clothes, with a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses hanging on his collar, Sin Yiu-man returned to the garden. Yang Ching-yee and Lee Lai-chun's eyes lit up when they saw him. Yang Ching-yee rushed up to him, her eyes sparkling, and said, "You look so good in this."

Sin Yiu-man smiled faintly and said, "Don't I look good in a suit?"

"It looks good." Yang Jingyi nodded, then shook her head, "But you look much older in a suit."

“That’s the effect I wanted.” Xian Yaowen took off his sunglasses and put them on Yang Jingyi. “I have a jeep, a bicycle, and a sidecar here. Which one would you like to ride?”

Yang Jingyi adjusted her glasses and said with a grin, "Hurry up and clear the way."

"Hai~"

Sin Yiu-man pulled out the sidecar motorcycle, and Yang Jingyi let Li Lizhen sit in the trailer. She herself sat behind Sin Yiu-man and hugged his waist tightly. Sin Yiu-man twisted the accelerator, and the sidecar motorcycle sped off.

Once on the street, the sidecar motorcycle moved slowly, and Sin Yiu-man hummed a tune against the wind:
"Rain and tears all the same, But in the sun, you've got to play the game, When you cry in winter time, You can pretend, it's nothing but the rain, How many times I've seen, Tears coming from your blue eyes."

Yang Jingyi pressed her entire face against Xian Yaowen's back, looking completely ecstatic.

Sin Yiu-man thought of the movie "The Best of Times" and recited some lines:

"Miss Jingyi, time flies, several months have passed in the blink of an eye. The summer thunder is rumbling. Right now I'm humming Sin Yiu-man's song, 'Rain and Tears,' which is just like my mood. I hope you can eat less later to save me some money. Best wishes, may you always be beautiful."

Yang Jingyi hugged him tighter. "Xian Yaowen's songs?"

"Yes, Sin Yiu-man is a well-known musician."

Yang Jingyi laughed and said, "Then write a song for me called 'Yang Jingyi's Song'."

"next time."

"I want it now."

"I don't write songs while riding a bike, and I don't ride a bike while writing songs; I need to be careful."

When Yang Jingyi asked him to sing, several songs that could handle the situation had already popped into his head, but he didn't want to show them.

"I don't want excuses, I want songs."

"next time."

"no."

Do you think songwriting is as easy as drinking water?

"Uh... how long will it take to finish writing?"

"I don't know. Inspiration strikes in a few minutes, but without it, I could go years without writing anything. Shall we eat first or go play some marbles?"

"It's still early for dinner, let's go play marbles first."

"Where to go?"

"Over there in the small park."

"Give me directions when we get to the small park."

"Ah."

Upon arriving at the small park, following Yang Jingyi's directions, they circled two streets and came to a small alley. The tricycle stopped in front of a shop converted from a warehouse—directly opposite was a bicycle parking shed with several bicycles parked inside. Several young people of high school age were standing in front of the bicycles. The protagonist was in the middle, and a supporting character next to him punched him in the stomach.

Sin Yiu-man frowned. He had already sensed something was wrong when he entered the street. Billiard halls located in places like this were likely frequented by thugs, and now he saw that it was indeed true.

He turned to Yang Jingyi behind him and said, "It seems a bit messy here."

Yang Jingyi glanced at the "boxing ring" and said, "That's how the billiard room is. It's okay. They won't dare to cause trouble for the adults. Let's hurry in, or we won't be able to get a table."

"You know so much about the situation, do you come here often?" Xian Yaowen pulled out the car keys, put his right arm around Yang Jingyi, and got out of the car.

“Lizhen and I have been here twice.”

"Oh."

Sin Yiu-man went to the other side of the car and helped Lee Lai-chun out.

The three of them walked into the billiard room together. The room was laid out as a long corridor with three tables arranged in a vertical line. The innermost table was larger and was a snooker table, the middle table was an American pool table, and the outermost table was a carom table.

A number of people were standing in front of the snooker table, and one player was leaning over the table preparing to hit the ball. The onlookers were very excited.

Xian Yaowen glanced at the wall and saw a small blackboard serving as a scoreboard with two scores written on the left and right sides: 67 on the left and 3 on the right, a rather lopsided score.

A scorekeeper stood in front of the scoreboard, wearing a white shirt and floral skirt. Her face was not visible. She was intently watching the situation on the snooker table, and a few stray hairs on her neck, blown by the ceiling fan, revealed her tension.

All three tables were occupied. Yang Jingyi bit her lip in disappointment, then pulled Xian Yaowen inside, saying, "Let's go watch the game."

Pulled to the snooker table, Sin Yiu-man watched as a player made a shot—a cue-less, no-spin shot—with decent accuracy, sinking a red ball into the bottom pocket from a long distance.

After hitting the ball, the player squinted at his smoke-filled eyes, took the cigarette from his lips, and said with a forced smile, "Good luck, good luck."

The moment the fake smile appeared, Sin Yiu-man immediately recalled the scene of his younger brother taking him to play in the billiards room in his previous life. There were many people in the billiards room who made a living by betting on billiards. After selecting a 'sheep' (a winning hand), they would first 'raise fish' (a derogatory term for losing small bets) to show weakness to the enemy, and then increase the stakes to reap the rewards.

The fishpond in front of them was clearly past its fish-raising period, and harvesting was underway. The player who was faking the smile probably wanted to harvest more, so he gave the sheep confidence to turn the tables.

Sensing something amiss, Xian Yaowen approached the scorekeeper and asked, "Hello, how much do you charge here?"

The scorekeeper looked at Sin Yiu-man and then asked, "What game do you want to play?"

"Carlon".

"One game costs 50 cents, three games cost one dollar."

"If we're talking about time, how many games are in an hour?"

"If you want to calculate the time, one hour is considered four games."

Sin Yiu-man took out four dollars from his pocket and handed them to the scorekeeper. "I'll pay you for three hours first. Start timing once the table is empty. Don't give the table to anyone else."

"Okay." The clerk took the money and looked Xian Yaowen up and down again.

Xian Yaowen nodded slightly and returned to Yang Jingyi's side. Yang Jingyi immediately grabbed his hand, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in his ear, "They're paying, one dollar per cent."

"Wow, that's a big beating." Sin Yiu-man glanced at Yang Gu's high school uniform, thinking that his mother's watch or jewelry would soon be in trouble.

Do you know how to play snooker?

"You know how to play, do you want to play this?"

Yang Jingyi shook her head, "The snooker table is too big, I can't hit it accurately."

"Oh, I've already booked a pinball table. We'll come over to play after we've eaten."

"Watch this game."

"it is good."

Sin Yiu-man turned his gaze to the table. It was still the player with the fake smile hitting the ball. He aimed his cue at the upper left of the center of the cue ball, and hit a high left spin shot. The cue ball hit the black ball, which swung around the corner of the pocket before coming to a stop. The cue ball then bounced up and stopped at the hand position of a red ball.

"What a pity, that ball went in and we could have cleared the table," Yang Jingyi muttered.

"It's a real shame."

The player who faked the smile has already scored more points and is in an invincible position. To win a few more points, he should gently push the ball to the red ball position, use a cueing technique and a spin, and most likely set the ball for the high school student.

The high school student knew the spot cueing technique and had good accuracy. When given the opportunity, he easily circled the black ball and collected all the red balls, finally stopping at the blue ball. The two players spent more than three minutes poking around the three balls before clearing the table. When the scores were tallied, the player with the fake smile won by 14 points. With a fine sweat on his forehead and a confident smile on his lips, the high school student readily paid the money, and a new game began.

When the player with the fake smile teed off, Sin Yiu-man and his two companions had already arrived outside the store.

"Where to eat?"

"When I go to Huaining Street, I want to drink the Park No. 1 plum juice, eat Sanyezhuang ice cream and Suzhou Yangchun noodles."

Have you eaten this before?

I've never had plain noodles before.

"Suzhou Yangchun noodles have sugar, but Yangzhou Yangchun noodles are better."

"Is the noodle sweet?"

"What are you thinking? Sugar is so expensive. I only put a tiny bit in to enhance the flavor. You've been eating a lot of sugar lately, so you can't taste the sweetness."

How did you know I eat a lot of sugar?

"Your tongue is white, your mouth tastes sour, your eyelids are a little swollen, you kept drinking tea in the pavilion, and you went to the bathroom twice. These are all signs of excessive sugar intake. Have you been spending all the allowance I gave you on sweets?"

Yang Jingyi chuckled, "No, not at all."

"Eating less can easily lead to low blood sugar and a lack of energy."

Yang Jingyi nodded. "I understand."

Xian Residence.

When Chen Hua returned from outside, he saw Quan Danru sitting in the pavilion with a worried expression.

She walked into the pavilion and asked, "Secretary Quan, what's wrong?"

"Wang Youjia arrived and went straight to the master's bedroom with his luggage."

Chen Hua chuckled, "Oh, the mistress is back."

"Sister Chen, do you think the gentleman will be angry with me?"

"What can I blame you for? Don't worry unnecessarily." Chen Hua stretched. "I haven't been eating or sleeping well these past few days. I'm going to take a bath. Call me when it's time to eat."

Hong Kong.

Downstairs at the Xian family's house, dozens of people were gathered in a circle making mooncakes.

With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, it will soon be time to distribute mooncakes and pork to the residents of Shek Kip Mei. This year, three more items will be given out than last year: pagoda-shaped sugar from Pagoda Pharmaceutical and fish balls from Sin Kee Fish Balls.

The pagoda-shaped candy is only given to children, and the fish balls are cooked. On Mid-Autumn Festival, a stall will be set up, and each person can receive a small portion.

Chung Chieh-ling, heavily pregnant, inspected the area, making sure not to put the crushed mooncakes back into oil paper bags. She reasoned that with tens of thousands of dollars already spent, there was no need to be stingy with this step.

Xian Yaowu set up a stall on the side to provide legal advice to the neighbors.

Cai Jinman and several others carried pots, pans, and dishes down from upstairs and set up a table to prepare for the meal.

Two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup, along with unlimited Chinese soft drinks.

As soon as the table was set, Mr. and Mrs. Guo Lanchang carried over a fruit basket containing a Shatang pomelo, a pound of star fruit, a pound of wampee, a pound of seasonal phoenix-eye fruit, and two dragon fruits, also known as red dragon fruit.

Cen Peipei stood by the window upstairs, silently watching everything below. (End of Chapter)