1982 Started from Hong Kong

Chapter 525 Welcome to Moscow

Soviet Union

A familiar yet unfamiliar federal country.

It is familiar because it is always present at the center of the world stage.
It is unfamiliar because few people know about its daily life.

All anyone knew was that this was a colossal hegemon capable of rivaling the United States.

A hard, cold, steel behemoth.

It is also a continent isolated by a thick iron curtain.

Even though the singers on The Voice of China wrote a song called "Glorious Years" for Nelson Mandela, the black leader of South Africa, and even learned more or less about the apartheid and democratic evolution of this southernmost country on the African continent.

But what was the Soviet Union's situation like?
When talking about America, people might mention department stores, Coca-Cola, and Hollywood blockbusters.

When talking about Japan, people mention the shopping district of Ginza, the bubble baths of Shibuya, and the popularity of cartoons and manga.

When it comes to the Soviet Union, most people just shake their heads and pretend to be clueless.

Hong Kong residents only know that there are a group of White Russian devils in the police force and a group of cheap White Russian devils in the massage parlors.

The citizens of Japan only knew that four pieces of their own land had been taken away.

South Korean citizens only knew that the Soviets were begging to do business with them.

That's all there is.

In most East Asian countries and regions, the only occasional glimpses of Soviet information they received were from politically propaganda-laden newspapers and magazines.

For example, Singapore's all-encompassing Lianhe Zaobao.

Hong Kong – Singapore – Istanbul – Moscow.

An official air route.

Zhai Yuan had just transferred in Singapore, chatted briefly with the head of his company's "September 1st Daily" office, and bought a copy of "Lianhe Zaobao" before boarding the plane again.

The cabin was dimly lit, and the loud roar of the Il-86 was irritating.

Ye Yuqing, who was standing next to her, had her earphones in and had already fallen asleep.

Zhai Yuan leaned back in the wide, thick seat of the first-class cabin, flipping through a copy of Lianhe Zaobao.
I found a recent report about the Soviet Union in the small section of the page.

The news reported that last year, South Korea and the Soviet Union began trading, and according to official and private statistics from the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, the total transaction volume was approximately US$150 million.

Figure:

Scrolling down further, you'll find information on trade between South Korea and mainland China. Bilateral trade between China and South Korea has increased from US$1800 million in 1978 to US$20 billion last year.

Scrolling down further, you'll find the Soviet Union's eagerness to engage in trade with Japan, its sincere attitude, yet it was still met with angry denunciations from the Japanese for being shameless.

"Tsk! The Big Brother's economic openness and market vitality have fallen so far behind..."

Zhai Yuan gently tapped the newspaper, quite curious: "So who exactly is reminiscing about it?"

Unlike the Soviet Union's short, block-like news reports,
Today's Lianhe Zaobao also reported another sensational news story.
It dominated most of the political news section.

Yesterday, then-Premier Lee Huan resigned as Premier, and today rumors circulate that the island's leader will appoint Defense Minister Hau Pei-tsun as his successor.

In the report,
Interspersed among these reports were the shock and condemnation from Taiwanese media regarding this insider rumor.

The Formosa Morning Post published a large "Damn it" on its front page to express its indignation.

The Independence Evening Post published the word "Silence" in large characters on its front page.
The supplement columns were mostly titled with headlines like "When the island is about to perish, XX will surely emerge," "Oppose the military forming a cabinet," and "No writing for 49 days."

After reading it, Zhai Yuan let out a soft breath. He wasn't surprised; instead, he felt a sense of relief, as if "it's finally here."

After all, he had anticipated this day when Sun Zhongmou took the initiative to approach him; otherwise, he would not have dug a pit for TSMC, which claimed to be from the same clan and origin, in advance.

Judging from the information, Kobayashi Tetsuo and his men from Mount Kami should have successfully joined forces with Sun Quan in Nanjing by now.

According to Sun Chung-mou and his team's plan, they would acquire the technology from Shenshan, then contact Taiwan to have the new Premier intimidate TSMC, and finally have the other party act as if they had no choice but to abandon the Jinling City project as a victim.

Unfortunately, this time I ran into Zhai Yuan.

"There isn't a single good person among them!"

Zhai Yuan casually tossed aside the newspaper, stretched with a sigh, took out a cigarette, and snapped his fingers at the Belarusian flight attendant beside him.

The tall White Russian woman immediately put on a fawning smile, quickly placed the ashtray in front of Zhai Yuan, knelt down on the ground with her plump thighs covered in stockings, pulled a lighter from the pocket of her protruding buttocks, lit it, and handed it to Zhai Yuan...

The plane slowly descended; we had arrived in Istanbul.

Next stop, Moscow.

…………

In early summer of 1990, the sky over Moscow was overcast.

Beneath the red-painted Lenin statue, several policemen in gray-blue uniforms lazily patrolled the area.

In the distance, the airport runway is shrouded in fog.

As the old Volga cars slowly drove by, the patrolling officers perked up and their posture instantly became ramrod straight.

The car door opened, and several middle-aged men dressed in neat black suits got out of the lead car.

The man in the lead wore thick-rimmed glasses, had slightly high cheekbones, and a straight nose—a typical Russian appearance.

“Principal Dmitri.”

The bespectacled man gazed at the empty airport runway and asked his subordinate, "The Hong Kong educator that Lieutenant Alexei mentioned landed here?"

"Yes, Director Ivan."

Dmitri glanced at his watch and said, "There are still twenty minutes until this flight arrives."

Director Ivan nodded. A gilded bronze medal, adorned with ears of wheat and an organ design, hung on the chest of his sharp suit, gleaming faintly in the morning mist.

"Remember, the Ministry of Culture is different from other departments."

Ivan Konstantinovich Alexandrov, then head (deputy minister) of the Moscow Ministry of Culture, adjusted his glasses.

He reminded his colleagues in a cold and hard tone: "We are not only administrative officials, but also shoulder the mission of spreading culture and educational ideas. Although the educators in Hong Kong come from a city where capital and commerce are intertwined, education knows no borders. In order to let them understand and learn the great spirit of the Soviet Union, we must show full enthusiasm and respect."

His subordinates stood solemnly by his side and responded in unison, "Understood, Director Ivan."

Ivan gave a soft "hmm" and waved to Dmitry.

Dmitry Mikhailovich Karavaev, the then rector of Moscow State University, nodded knowingly.

He strode quickly toward the Volga cars behind him, whose doors were tightly shut.

Gently tap on the car window,

The train doors opened, and rows of tall female university students in Soviet-style aprons and school uniforms stepped off, each holding a small flag and standing in neat rows. "Students, as representatives of Moscow State University, your task today is extremely important!"

Dmitry's gaze swept over the neatly lined-up female university students, his tone steady yet authoritative: "Discipline, enthusiasm, and respect are the school's consistent requirements. Today you will be welcoming Mr. Zhai Yuan, a renowned educator from Hong Kong. I hope you will all abide by the school rules and allow our friend from afar to feel the solemnity and power of Soviet education. This is not only a welcome, but also a mission to transmit knowledge and spirit!"

The female students in the row straightened their chests slightly: "Understood, Principal Dmitri!"

At this moment,
Two military vehicles roared toward the crowd.

"Chief Ivan!"

A bald man in military uniform stepped out of the car and greeted Ivan with a smile: "I didn't expect you to arrive so early."

"Lieutenant Alexei."

Ivan shifted his gaze to the soldier who had introduced him to the Hong Kong tycoon, a slight smile appearing on his face: "It seems Lieutenant General Vladimir has granted you permission to work in Moscow?"

"Yes, Director."

Alexei stepped forward and showed the appropriate respect to the high-ranking director.

He then dusted off his uniform and revealed a brand-new medal.

Alexei continued with a smile, "However, I am no longer a lieutenant in the Vladivostok border guard battalion. Lieutenant General Vladimir just issued my commission, and I am now Captain Alexei Kozlov of the 4th Tank Division in Moscow."

Ivan's eyes flashed with surprise upon hearing this. He stared at Alexei for a few seconds, then a smile appeared in his eyes: "Very well, Captain Alexei. I'm becoming increasingly curious about the guest from Hong Kong you mentioned."

On the horizon, the outline of an airplane gradually became clearer, drawing closer and closer, before slowly landing on the airport runway...

…………

The plane is taxiing and coming to a stop on the runway.

The hatch opened.

A cold wind, carrying a metallic smell, rushed into the cabin.

The gangway was lowered.

Zhai Yuan, dressed in a dark suit, walked steadily out of the cabin.

His composed expression froze when his gaze swept over the two rows of female college students standing in neat rows in the square below.

A black bodysuit and a white sleeveless apron were the standard school uniform for female university students in the Soviet Union at that time.

At first glance, there seemed to be two rows of tall maids standing below, waiting to welcome the distinguished guests.

As Zhai Yuan descended the gangway step by step...

Ye Yuqing followed closely behind, followed by the four Shaolin patriarchs, including Weixing, and finally a twelve-person trade team led by Lizhi, Shen Wei, and Chen Jiale.

Zhai Yuan and his group of 21 people walked out of the cabin, and a few more passersby and passengers disembarked, leaving the plane completely empty.

In fact, due to the scarcity of passengers traveling to and from Moscow, if Zhai Yuan and his group hadn't taken this flight, the other passengers would have had to wait at least another day until the airline had enough passengers to take off.

The sparse number of flights also reflects the Soviet economy's decline and its near-zero attractiveness to the outside world at that time.

"Principal Zhai, welcome to Moscow!"

When Alexei first saw Zhai Yuan, his eyes lit up, and he greeted him with a loud laugh, speaking in a strange Cantonese accent.

As one of the first Soviet officers to launder his rubles into US dollars on the Natural Selection gambling ship, Alexei knew Ye Zhiming and Chen Jiale better.

After Ye Zhiming was arrested, Alexei finally got in touch with Zhai Yuan. Together with several other officers who frequently visited gambling ships, they became Zhai Yuan's guides, or rather, brokers, on his trip to the Soviet Union.

"Old Xie, we meet again."

"You should now call me Captain, Mr. Zhai."

Alexei quickly stepped forward, hugged Zhai Yuan, patted him on the shoulder, and whispered, "Let me first introduce you to Director Ivan of the Ministry of Culture. Tomorrow I will introduce you to my current superior, Lieutenant General Vladimir. In Moscow, only he can help you deal with those real big corrupt officials."

Alexei, a lieutenant in the Vladivostok border guard battalion, was in a gray area, largely unregulated by the security services. He frequently used a shipping route from Hong Kong to the South China Sea to smuggle military supplies in exchange for foreign exchange for military funds.

This guy has been in Hong Kong for a long time, and he's become so shrewd that he's long since betrayed his class.

The two separated as soon as they touched.
Immediately afterwards, two rows of female college students raised their small flags and shook them.

Welcome, friends from Hong Kong!

Several female students, who were at the head of the group, quickly stepped forward, holding clusters of red carnations in their arms, and enthusiastically handed them to Zhai Yuan.

Alexei winked at him and whispered, "They're all female students from Moscow State University. Let me know if you have any you like later..."

Zhai Yuan smiled but didn't say anything.

A quick glance revealed that the female students who came to pick them up were all quite attractive.
Besides Belarusians and Eastern Europeans, there were also many faces of compatriots from mainland China. Given the current situation, most of them were students studying abroad on government scholarships.

Zhai Yuan accepted the bouquets of carnations with a smile, then suddenly remembered that 'Aunt Xue' had also studied at this so-called national university. After all, they had a misunderstanding that led to friendship in their naive past lives. He wondered if there was any chance of running into her again...

"Principal Zhai, welcome!"

Ivan's cold, hard voice interrupted Zhai Yuan's chaotic thoughts.

With Alexei's introduction, Zhai Yuan shook hands with the second-in-command of the Ministry of Culture.

Finally, Alexei said to Ivan, "Comrade Director, although Principal Zhai is from Hong Kong, Hong Kong will soon become part of socialism. He is fluent in Chinese, so you can communicate with him in Mandarin."

Ivan was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then his smile widened.

"Moscow is proud to welcome educators from Hong Kong."

Ivan's Mandarin was surprisingly good, and he said in a steady and powerful tone, "Whether in the mainland or Hong Kong, we look forward to building an educational bridge with people from all over the world."

This man spoke with much more confidence than Alexei, his demeanor as solemn as if he were presiding over a major diplomatic ceremony.

"Of course, Hong Kong also has many things to learn from the Soviet Union."

Zhai Yuan nodded and smiled, then said to Ivan, "As far as I know, the Moscow Ministry of Culture, in addition to the education department, also oversees all enterprises, including those involved in film, news, broadcasting, book trade, and labor reserves. It's quite a coincidence that I've also made some small achievements in Hong Kong, especially in the cultural and entertainment sector."

“Hong Kong is a capitalist place, which I have never liked, but as the Chinese saying goes, ‘My body is in Cao Ying, but my heart is with Han.’ I heard that South Korea reached a $1000 million trade agreement with the Soviet Union last year through an audio equipment project. I hope that while conducting educational exchanges with the Ministry of Culture this time, we can also take the opportunity to carry out cooperative trade.”

"The teaching materials used by Chunqiu Performing Arts Academy are now being taught using our company's VCDs and CDs, and some have also been introduced to the mainland, with generally positive feedback. To demonstrate the importance I attach to this cultural exchange, I plan to unilaterally donate a batch of teaching equipment to the Ministry of Culture to support educational development, valued at approximately US$1200 million. I wonder what Director Ivan thinks?"

After this conversation, not only Ivan, but even Alexei, who was always aware of Zhai Yuan's lavish spending, was shocked and his eyes widened.

What does that mean? They started by using money to pave the way right after meeting, directly targeting South Korea's entire year's worth of single-item trade?

Ivan's fingers, which had been gently stroking the bronze medal, suddenly stopped. His breath caught in his throat, and an undisguised fervor flashed in his eyes behind his thick-rimmed glasses.

Zhai Yuan smiled slightly and said, "However, I am new to Moscow and unfamiliar with the place. I hope that you can take this opportunity of educational exchange to publicize it to the outside world, so that everyone knows that I am engaged in friendly and formal cooperation with Moscow. In this way, I will not have to worry about some rumors of unknown origin, and I can stand tall and make progress together with Director Ivan."

"Principal Zhai, rest assured..."

Ivan's eyes flickered, and his tone softened considerably, even carrying a hint of barely perceptible ingratiation: "I will definitely instruct the news department to pay close attention to this matter. Although it is only our first meeting, I am absolutely certain that you will become one of our closest friends in socialism!"

(End of this chapter)