Hong Kong film: The cop backs down, the ladies beg me to check his license.

Ye Tian turned his head to look at him: "Haven't you raised enough money yet?"

Liang Kun sighed: "He has money, but most of it is 'dirty.' It's troublesome and costly to launder it."

"How much difference?"

"Around fifteen million. The main problem is the exorbitant money laundering fees."

Ye Tian almost choked on his own saliva, glaring at his opponent: "So you don't have much clean money at all? You have a huge turnover, how come you can't even come up with 15 million in clean cash?"

Handsome Kun sighed again, sounding utterly helpless: "There's a lot of money involved, but it's all shady. To launder it, you have to hire professionals. Those people are ruthless; they take 40%! After laundering ten million in dirty money, you're left with only six million. They're even more ruthless than us gangsters!"

Ye Tian was shocked: "You've been paying this price all along?"

Liang Kun struggled to sit up straight on the sofa, carefully putting the check Ye Tian later handed him into his pocket before saying, "What else? I've inquired, this is the market price all over Hong Kong, there's no room for bargaining."

Ye Tian sighed heavily, looking at him with the eyes of someone who was completely clueless: "Calling you stupid is no exaggeration. Spend some time reading a couple more pages of a book with me, and sharpen your brain. Money laundering doesn't have to be this complicated!"

He stubbed out the remaining half of his cigar. "Give me control of your 'Qiankun Films,' and I'll only take 15%. Much cheaper than those vampires."

Liang Kun froze, then abruptly turned to look at him, his eyes practically bulging out of their sockets: "You know how to launder money?! Why didn't you say so sooner?!"

Ye Tian was puzzled: "You didn't ask."

Liang Kun stood there, mouth agape, speechless for a long time. Suddenly, he raised his hand and slapped his forehead hard, letting out a frustrated yell: "Ugh! I'm so stupid! You always think of me when there's something good, and I actually foolishly gave money to a stranger!"

Ye Tian ignored his rant and turned to Lin Fu, saying, "Xiao Fu, you should go and redeem the lottery ticket you bought a while ago. You probably won around ten million, which should be enough for you for a while."

Lin Fu's eyes lit up, and he quickly nodded, "Thank you, Brother Tian! I'll go right away!"

Liang Kun slumped on the sofa, pretending to be dead. He was incredibly frustrated! Even Lin Fu could win ten million, while he was still agonizing over money laundering fees. He had lost face big time.

……

The office of Qiankun Film Company was filled with the smell of old film reels and dust.

Liang Kun looked at Ye Tian, ​​his face filled with utter confusion and suspicion: "You mean... making pornographic films can also be used for money laundering?"

Ye Tian rolled his eyes, too lazy to hide his disdain: "Why can't we wash erotic films? It's just that the amount we can wash is limited, the ceiling is low."

He walked to the window and looked down at the bustling crowds on the street. "But I didn't take over your company so you could continue making those lowbrow things. That's pathetic."

Liang Kun was taken aback: "Sexy porn is very profitable now! Low cost, quick return on investment!"

"We're businessmen now, we need to think like businessmen." Ye Tian turned around, leaning against the windowsill. "The only men who like watching porn are a small group, the market is narrow. Besides, given the atmosphere in Hong Kong, apart from a few women in certain professions, what respectable woman would watch it? Using this to launder money, you can only manage a maximum of ten or twenty million, any more than that, and the risks become uncontrollable."

Handsome Kun's eyes lit up: "You mean... if you came, you could wash over ten million?"

Ye Tian rolled his eyes again: "What's the point of a small business worth ten or twenty million? If you're going to do it, do it big. Ten million? That's just the starting price."

Handsome Kun let out a long sigh, his face full of regret: "I was so stupid, really... if I had known you were so good at money laundering..."

"Stop." Ye Tian raised his hand to stop him. "Do you still want to hear the specifics of how to do it?"

Liang Kun's expression changed instantly. He deftly pulled an elegant aluminum box from his pocket, opened it, and inside were several dark, slender cigars. He eagerly offered one to Ye Tian, ​​then pulled out a lighter and held it out to him. Ye Tian glanced at it and saw it was a niche brand from Cuba, each cigar costing over a hundred US dollars. Without hesitation, he took the box and the cigar and stuffed it into his pocket.

"It's free, and it smells good." He felt perfectly at ease.

Handsome Kun's smile froze for a moment, then turned into one of heartache: "Hey! At least leave me one! It's expensive!"

Ye Tian thought about it and seemed to realize that it was indeed a bit excessive. He took out two more cigarettes from his pocket, tossed one back to Liang Kun, and tossed the other to Lin Fu next to him. He then carefully put the rest back into his pocket.

Watching his swift and decisive actions, Liang Kun was exasperated: "You're worth hundreds of millions, can't you be a little more generous? Are you really that happy to steal my things?"

Ye Tian beamed, genuinely happy: "Free stuff tastes at least three times better."

Liang Kun was speechless and could only mutter to himself: The richer you are, the stingier you are. The ancients were right!

After carefully savoring the rich aroma of the cigar for a couple of puffs, Ye Tiancai slowly spoke: "Actually, money laundering isn't that mysterious. If you have the right connections and the right tools, you can launder as much as you want. The cost is much lower than you imagine."

Liang Kun couldn't wait any longer, leaning forward: "Tell me quickly, how exactly do I do it?"

"First, establish a film project under the name of your Qiankun Films. Make a proper film," Ye Tian said slowly. "The subject matter can't be erotic or violent, nor can it be a Category II film with blood and violence. A narrow audience would exclude a large number of young viewers. If we're going to launder money, we need to do it properly and comply with industry regulations. Family-friendly comedies are best. A large audience base makes it easier to inflate box office numbers and launder money."

Disappointment and worry crossed Liang Kun's face: "Making a movie isn't that easy. You need a good script, a good director, and good actors. Even if you have all of those, if the audience doesn't buy it, you'll still lose everything. If you can't even recoup your investment, what's the point of laundering money?"

Ye Tian stared straight at him, his gaze a little strange.

Handsome Kun felt uneasy under his gaze: "What? Did I say something wrong?"

Ye Tian sighed, his tone tinged with pity: "Brother Kun, read a few more pages of a book when you have time, broaden your horizons, so you don't get sold out and still be counting the money for someone else." He paused, "Who told you that a movie that loses money can't be used for money laundering?"

Handsome Kun stared wide-eyed, as if struck by lightning: "A money laundering operation for a film that lost money? How is that possible?!"

Ye Tian twitched the corners of his mouth, his smile cold and mocking: "Why not? I'll tell you right now. The process is very simple."

"Our goal is money laundering, not box office success. So the quality of the film is completely unimportant." He spoke calmly, as if stating a simple fact, "Just pick two artists from the few you've signed with your company, put together a cast, spend a week or two making a terrible movie. Then release it. You can still launder money."

"For a film like this," he held up three fingers, "I could rake in thirty million. Believe it or not?"

"I don't believe you for a second!" Handsome Kun blurted out.

Ye Tian's smile remained unchanged: "Don't believe me? Then let me give you an example. Take the three of us for example."

"I'll be the director, and you and Xiao Fu will be the leads."

"Publicly, my director's fee is four million."

"Your salaries will each be five million."

Handsome Kun's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets: "Four million?! Five million?! Four million could hire a top-tier director! Five million would be enough for a top-tier star! You're offering us this price? Nobody believes that!"

Ye Tian sighed again, growing impatient: "Then why don't you direct? You arrange everything?"

Liang Kun immediately wilted, waving his hands with an embarrassed smile: "No, no, no, you tell me, you tell me, I'll listen to whatever you say."

Ye Tian then continued, his tone direct: "Shouldn't our three salaries be included in the total cost of the film?"

Handsome Kun nodded: "Of course."

"Making a movie requires set construction, right? Building a set, spending twenty million, is that alright?"

"Twenty million for a set?! Are you building a movie theater?! What kind of movie set costs twenty million? Which prop company would dare to quote such a price?" Liang Kun couldn't help but exclaim.

Ye Tian's mocking smile deepened: "Oh, Brother Kun, you seem to know quite a bit about the film industry? My apologies."

Liang Kun raised his chin smugly: "After all, I'm a film company owner, so I know the basics. Professional!"

Ye Tian remained expressionless: "Since Boss Kun is so professional, then tell me, how do you launder money from this movie?"

Liang Kun's smugness vanished instantly, and he chuckled dryly, "Hehe... You do it, you do it. I was just saying it offhand."

Ye Tian snorted and continued, "Look, our combined salaries are 14 million. The set design is 20 million, that's 34 million. The rest—film, wire work, costumes, props, crew salaries, lunch money… all sorts of miscellaneous expenses—can be added up to a total cost of 50 million. Not difficult, right?"