money player

Madam Lan didn't pick up Li Moyun's shots, and her luck wasn't as good as Fei Baoshu's, so she lost the most. Naturally, she set the rules: everyone moved to the dining room, ate, and then continued playing.

Mrs. Lan sat next to Xian Yaowen, ate a couple of bites of noodles, and then whispered in his ear, "Could you spare me some cement?"

"Where would I get cement?"

“Mr. Xian must know that Prince Trading has just signed a contract with Taiwan Cement to act as its export agent, with 5 tons of cement to be exported this year.”

"Mrs. Lan must know that Taiwan is short of cement, so why is Taiwan Cement squeezing out 5 tons for export?"

"Exchange foreign currency."

"Do you know why this good thing happened to me?"

"Mr. Xian is not short of US dollars."

Xian Yaowen put down his chopsticks and whispered slowly in Madam Lan's ear, "Don't even think about taking the cement. Everyone's watching. If you take away even one bag of cement, someone will find out. I'll be fine, but it's hard to say about Madam Lan."

Madam Lan shuddered. "Can't move?"

“People will die.” Xian Yaowen put his arm around Madam Lan’s small shoulder. “There are plenty of ways to make money in the club, you can never make enough money.”

Madam Lan did not reply, picked up a mouthful of noodles with her chopsticks, and continued eating.

Xian Yaowen withdrew his hand, picked up the vinegar bottle on the table, and poured a little vinegar into the noodle bowl.

As he said, the annual export quota of at least 5 tons was a foreign exchange earning task imposed on Taiwan Cement by the Nationalist government, with prices on par with those for military use. The reason why Taiwan Cement took the initiative to approach Prince Trading and force this good deal upon them was twofold: first, Prince Trading had previously cultivated an image of not lacking US dollars; and second, everyone knew that they would do it.

Taiwan Cement's price is US$21/ton, while the price of the same grade of cement in Hong Kong is HK$160/ton, with a normal price difference of HK$40.3. After deducting transportation, customs and other costs, a gross profit of HK$36/ton can be guaranteed. After deducting a small amount, a minimum of HK$150 million can be made annually.

This is a legitimate business, and he must be crazy to go to such lengths to earn a pittance.

Even if he's willing, Taiwan Cement will be furious. What was supposed to be a quiet, unnoticed way to make some extra income has turned into a scandal. They'll say, "You, Sin Yiu-man, are you even fit to do business?"

After taking a couple of bites of noodles, Sin Yiu-man walked past Wong Yau-ka and said to Fei Po-ki, "Sister, is it convenient for you to take out 10 yuan now?"

Fei Baoqi was slightly taken aback, but quickly realized why Xian Yaowen was asking about money and guessed why he was asking at this time. She glanced at Li Moyun casually and said, "I don't have 10 yuan. I can come up with 5 yuan if I can scrape it together."

"5 is fine too. Bring it over to me tomorrow. I need to invest some money in a business deal. We'll see the results in about half a month."

"How much profit can be made?"

"Sixty to seventy percent."

Is the risk high?

"good."

"I'll bring the money over tomorrow."

"No need to trouble yourself, it's not much money. I'll lend it to you, sister. If I'm unlucky and lose it, I'll ask you for it back."

Fei Baoqi nodded, "Okay."

Li Moyun found it intriguing; she couldn't believe there was such a business. She was very curious about what kind of business it was, but she didn't inquire. She thought that the results would come soon, and if she came over more often, she might bump into it. Even if she didn't, she could ask later.

Tang Yiying realized that Xian Yaowen was subtly encouraging her, Madam Lan seemed thoughtful, and Wang Youjia was thinking of asking her in bed later.

Each person at the table had their own thoughts, but they were all talking about reviewing the previous card game, pointing out which card they shouldn't have played and which card they played wrong.

Finished eating.

There are still three and a half laps to go.

Wang Youjia made an excuse to take a shower, showing no intention whatsoever of helping Xian Yaowen wash the dishes.

After washing the dishes, Xian Yaowen moved a chair and sat next to Fei Baoqi to watch. Fei Baoqi was having an incredibly lucky night; she seemed to get good tiles no matter what she drew. Even when she was waiting for a winning hand, she could win within three or four rounds. If things weren't going well, she would secretly touch Xian Yaowen's thigh, and her hands would immediately warm up again; she would only draw the two of bamboo instead of the two of dots.

A little after ten o'clock, the card game ended. After seeing Fei Baoqi and Li Moyun off at the courtyard gate, Tang Yiying showed no sign of leaving.

She closed the courtyard gate and said, "Wang Youjia is quite shameless."

"If you're still upset, you can stay here."

“I wasn’t planning on leaving.” Tang Yiying took Xian Yaowen’s arm. “I’ve never slept in that bed before, I’ll sleep in it tonight too.”

"Whatever you want. Did you see Chen Hua?"

"I went out to answer a phone call and left a message saying I'd be back later."

"Oh."

Tang Yiying tugged at Xian Yaowen's arm, "Take me back?"

"Are you not staying here?"

Tang Yiying teased, "You want to enjoy the blessings of having two wives?"

Xian Yaowen patted Tang Yiying's shapely buttocks, then turned around and opened the courtyard gate that had just been closed. "Let's go, I'll take you back."

One-on-one is the bottom line, and also the last fig leaf. Once it's torn off, the nature of the relationship changes instantly, turning from dating into manipulation.

The two chatted all the way to the Tang residence. Xian Yaowen did not leave in a hurry, but instead knocked on Jin Jingyan's door.

"I didn't sleep."

Xian Yaowen opened the shoji door and saw Jin Jingyan lying on the tatami mat, holding a book in her hands. He stopped and didn't go in. "You didn't buy a bed?"

Upon hearing this, Jin Jingyan frantically patted the edge of the tatami mat a few times, found her glasses, quickly put them on, and looked at Xian Yaowen, saying shyly, "Why are you here?"

"May I come in?"

"Please, please come in." Jin Jingyan sat up and carefully covered her lower body with a thin blanket.

Xian Yaowen sat down next to the tatami mat. "Why don't you buy a bed?"

“Sleeping on a tatami mat is quite nice.” Jin Jingyan lowered her head, not daring to look at Xian Yaowen.

Sin Yiu-man nodded. "Are you settling in well in Taipei?"

"pretty good."

Do you like your current job?

"Fortunately."

"To be honest, this concerns my plans for you."

Upon hearing this, Jin Jingyan raised her head, gazed at Xian Yaowen's face, and then shook her head, "I don't really like it."

"Still want to be a poet?"

Jin Jingyan said timidly, "I like writing poetry."

Sin Yiu-man said casually: "In 16th-century England, there were very few records of the private lives of ordinary people. Shakespeare, as a playwright from a commoner background, did not leave any direct records such as diaries or letters, and no one seriously recorded his life. However, from the few words in the relevant records, we can infer that his private life was probably not very clean."

Another important figure in the Sonnets, Petrarch, had a very chaotic private life, which is well documented.

In fact, the private lives of European literary giants were generally chaotic, and it seems that Chinese writers are no exception. Without their repeated desecration of love, they cannot write love stories that reach the depths of the soul.

Sonnets often celebrate love, and depict the philosophy of life and the passage of time. The latter two themes require the sedimentation of years; forcing them into writing before reaching the age of mature maturity and rich experience will only result in affected lamentation. Love…

Xian Yaowen dragged out his words, his gaze sweeping over Jin Jingyan's face with audacity. "Now, if I were to put you in a debate about love, you could probably only quote classics: Shakespeare said, Tolstoy said, Wang Shifu said, Cao Xueqin said. Do you have your own insights into love?"
Your best chance is to emulate contemporary female writers of love stories, using flowery language to depict fabricated, imagined, and artificially imbued stories to capture the hearts of female readers who are trapped by reality, naive, and restless.

The writer and the reader are actually the same kind of people: their lives are bland, their experiences are shallow, and their hearts are…

Sin Yiu-man waved his hand, "Forget it, I won't embellish it. There's also the word 'slutty,' the 'slutty' of a slut, the 'slutty' of someone who only dares to imagine but not act on, a slut in spirit."

Because we're like-minded, it's easy to resonate with each other. Jin Jingyan is amazing; she wrote down everything I've ever imagined.

Jin Jingyan blushed and retorted, "I, I'm not provocative."

"No, you are just very flirtatious. People who aren't flirtatious wouldn't have the desire to describe love." Xian Yaowen said frivolously, but his expression was anything but frivolous; on the contrary, it was quite serious.

"No matter what you are like, I am willing to support you in pursuing your dream of becoming a poet. If you don't like your current job, then you don't have to do it anymore. Just hold on for a few more days to give Yiying time to find someone, and then you can go back to Hong Kong to pursue your dream."

When you get back to Hong Kong, call my home and ask for Fang Jingyin. You can tell her what kind of house you want to live in, what kind of car you want, what kind of maid you want, and she will take care of everything for you.

In the future, if—and I mean if—you discover you don't have the talent to be a poet, yet cling to the empty title, and don't mind having someone else write your work, I will help you too.

"Why?" Jin Jingyan asked, puzzled. "Why are you so good to me?"

“Darling, this isn’t love,” Xian Yaowen said with a faint smile. “It’s a transaction. I need your surname, Aisin Gioro, and I need you to endorse a jewelry brand. That’s all.”

You don't need to put in a lot of effort. Just be a normal woman and date men normally. If one is wrong, you can find the next one that you think is right. It's okay to date several, as long as you don't ruin your reputation.

Then it involves attending events in cooperation with the brand, making statements that are beneficial to the brand image, and, oh, not wearing jewelry from other brands.

If you have a daughter, she can choose to inherit the transaction or not. If she doesn't want to inherit, I will pay you a fee for using her surname and find someone else to impersonate your daughter.

"That's it?" Jin Jingyan seemed a little disappointed.

Sin Yiu-man nodded. "That's it for the transaction. Is it settled?"

"I promise you."

“Okay, it’s settled then. Our contract is signed, and the topic of the transaction ends here.” Xian Yaowen paused, then continued, “Regarding love, bad men have a special attraction for women, always making them like moths to a flame, unable to resist. Coincidentally, I am a bad man. If you have already fallen for me unintentionally, I can give you a lesson in love.”

"Hmm, no need to blush yet. Not today, but next time. Wait until your love-struck brain calms down and you've thought things through carefully before deciding whether to go crazy one last time."

With that, Sin Yiu-man stood up. "Good night, sweet dreams!"

The shoji door opened and closed again, and Jin Jingyan's emotions remained unsettled for a long time. Her face was damp and flushed, as if it had been steamed.

……

The next day.

Still getting up early, Sin Yiu-man changed his running route and passed by Lung Hok-mei's residence. The two ran together for a while and discussed the business of Prince Enterprises along the way.

Long Xuemei was a proper secretary, busy all day long, and needed a quiet environment to rest. She moved out of the Xian residence right after Tang Yiying.

After having breakfast, Sin Yiu-man went to Shan Fung Bookstore.

With Gao Lan away and the little girl sent to school, only Gao Xiong and Meng Xinyao, the couple, were busy. Even in a sluggish economy, it didn't hinder literate people's pursuit of affordable intellectual enjoyment, and Shanfeng Bookstore's business was quite good.

When things calmed down in Kaohsiung, Sin Yiu-man called him aside and asked, "Do you know which Taiwanese opera actresses are famous?"

"Liao Qiongzhi, Chen Maling, Sai Yuejin, Lin Xiuqin, and Liang Chenlan are the most famous actresses today."

Which Taiwanese opera troupe is the most famous?

“Ming Hwa Yuan has been established for over twenty years. In the past, they performed on outdoor stages (temple fairs and outdoor stages) all over Taiwan. Most Taiwanese people probably know this group.”

"Now performing on the inner stage (ticketed theater show)?"

"We mainly perform on the indoor stage. There's a show every two days at the Taipei New Stage and Tainan Yongle Theater. We're also still performing on the outdoor stage. Recently, we've been performing 'The Living Buddha Ji Gong,' which is very popular. Our schedule is booked until the end of the year."

"Oh." Sin Yiu-man nodded. "Any groups that are neither too famous nor too obscure?"

"What is Mr. Xian going to do?" Kaohsiung paused, then explained, "I know what Mr. Xian is going to do, so I can answer this question."

Sin Yiu-man, hearing Kaohsiung's words, seemed quite familiar with the Taiwanese opera troupe. He didn't hide anything and said frankly, "Because of business reasons, I need a Taiwanese opera troupe. I can spend money to support it for a year or two and not interfere much in the affairs of the troupe. I only have one requirement: when I need the troupe to perform on stage, they must obey unconditionally."

Don't get me wrong, I'm not the kind of nouveau riche who keeps a theatrical troupe as a plaything. Let me put it this way: my new business requires me to deal with people in the countryside frequently. If I encounter someone difficult to communicate with, perhaps sending a theatrical troupe over to perform for a couple of days will make them easier to talk to."

Kaohsiung suddenly realized, "In that case, Mr. Sin doesn't need to maintain a theater troupe. Inviting someone temporarily not only provides more options but also saves the money of maintaining the troupe."

Sin Yiu-man chuckled and said, “I will be used very frequently, so it is not cost-effective to hire someone temporarily in the long run. Besides, maintaining a troupe does not necessarily mean spending without earning. My troupe is different from other troupes. The troupe leader does not take the lion’s share of the income. I will distribute the lion’s share to the members and only take a small share.”

Since you're familiar with the troupe, could you help me with this? My condition is that I'll fund the investment period, and once the harvest period arrives and I get my investment back, we'll split the profits 20/80, with me taking 20%.

Kaohsiung hesitated, "Mr. Sin, for a Taiwanese opera troupe to succeed, money alone isn't enough; it requires..."

Sin Yiu-man waved to interrupt Kaohsiung, "I forgot to mention, I've opened a film company in Taipei. I plan to turn Taiwanese opera into movies and also release Taiwanese opera records. For ambitious people who lack money and connections, I'm a benefactor. Got it?"

Kaohsiung nodded. "Understood."

Sin Yiu-man patted Kaohsiung on the shoulder, "Don't be too honest. This is a lucrative job, but please stay true to yourself and don't lose sight of anything."

Kaohsiung nodded thoughtfully. (End of Chapter)