Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

Kowloon, Kai Tak Airport.

As one of the world's busiest and most dangerous airports, the roar of engines never ceases at Kai Tak Airport. Huge Boeing 747s whiz past the rooftops of Kowloon Walled City, their landing gear seemingly within reach.

On the VIP tarmac, a Gulfstream business jet adorned with the Lubbers family crest was ready for takeoff, its silver-white fuselage gleaming coldly in the winter sun.

At the bottom of the spiral staircase, a black Rolls-Royce sat quietly.

Lu Chen stood in the wind, the hem of his trench coat fluttering in the airflow from the propeller.

"Darling..."

Sofia wore a burgundy cashmere coat, a wide-brimmed hat, and sunglasses, which covered most of her face, but could not hide the elegance and nobility that came from Sicily.

At this moment, the heiress of the Italian Mafia family was like a little girl, tightly gripping Lu Chen's collar with both hands, practically hanging on him, refusing to let go.

"I don't want to go back..." Sophia buried her face in Lu Chen's chest, her voice muffled and thick with a nasal tone. "Those old guys are so annoying, all they do is hold meetings, look at reports, and have to fake smiles at those hypocritical parties. I want to stay on Hong Kong Island, I want to sunbathe with you in Deep Water Bay, I want to take Coke and Sprite to the beach..."

For the past two weeks, she had enjoyed a rare period of freedom. There was no infighting within the family, no tedious business engagements, only Lu Chen's doting affection and Ruan Mei's companionship. This kind of life made her reluctant to leave.

But she is Sophia, the current head of the Lubbers family.

"obedient."

Lu Chen reached out and took off her sunglasses, revealing a pair of blue eyes that were slightly red with reluctance. He gently stroked her cheek, his fingertips lightly caressing her delicate skin.

"You are the patriarch of the family, and there are still many things waiting for you to handle. Those old foxes from the collateral branches are still eyeing your position."

"But..." Sophia bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

"There's no 'buts'," Lu Chen lowered his head, kissed away the tears at the corners of her eyes, his tone becoming domineering and firm, "Go and finish dealing with things, show your queenly power, and let anyone who dares to disobey go see God. I'll be waiting for you to come back for the Lunar New Year. I'll set off fireworks with you then."

"Really?" Sophia sniffed, her eyes lighting up.

"When have I ever lied to you?" Lu Chen laughed.

"Then... pinky promise." Sophia extended her little finger, looking as childish as a child.

"Okay, pinky promise." Lu Chen hooked his finger with hers, both helpless and affectionate.

Under the silent gaze of Tian Yangsheng and several blond, blue-eyed family bodyguards, the two shared a passionate kiss in the cold wind. Only after the captain's repeated reminders did Sofia reluctantly board the plane, turning back every few steps.

"boom--"

The engine roared, and the air churned.

As he watched the silver bird soar into the sky and eventually become a black dot on the horizon, the tenderness on Lu Chen's face gradually faded, replaced by his usual calm and profound expression.

"Boss, shall we go back to the company?" Tian Yangsheng asked respectfully as he opened the car door.

"No," Lu Chen got into the car, straightening his tie that Sophia had messed up, "Let's go to Tai Po. I want to see my new big toy."

……

Tai Po Industrial Area.

Unlike the glitz and glamour of Central, this place is filled with the smell of engine oil, welding fumes, and the roar of machinery.

Weicheng Electronics Factory... oh no, it should now be called "Jiahe Electronic Entertainment Manufacturing Factory".

The 5,000-square-meter factory was officially handed over yesterday. Cheng Yiyan acquired the company, which was originally on the verge of bankruptcy, for a "bargain price" of HK$23 million, including the land, equipment and workers.

The black Rolls-Royce drove into the factory area without attracting much attention.

As instructed by Lu Chen, there was no ribbon-cutting ceremony or a welcoming procession of all the workers. Every minute in the factory was money to him now, and he didn't need any empty formalities.

The factory manager's office is located on the second floor, and through the huge glass windows, one can directly overlook the entire production line on the first floor.

Lu Chen sat in the somewhat worn boss's chair, holding a technical parameter sheet in his hand.

Cheng Yiyan stood to the side, his face full of excitement. Next to this financial tycoon stood a middle-aged man wearing blue overalls, thick glasses, and a receding hairline.

He was the factory's former director and technical chief, and his surname was Liu.

Factory Director Liu was so nervous that his palms were sweating. He had already heard that the person who acquired the factory was Lu Chen, the "God of Wealth" who wielded considerable influence in Central. He never expected to actually meet him in person today, and that he was even younger and more imposing than in the newspapers.

"Director Liu," Lu Chen put down the report in his hand, his gaze sweeping over the other man, "how is the equipment setup at the factory going?"

"Reporting...reporting to Mr. Lu!"

Factory Director Liu straightened his back and stammered, "The production line we imported from Germany is very well maintained and ready to start operations at any time. The injection molding machine and mold-making machine have also been debugged. As long as we have the blueprints, we can manufacture anything, from the outer casing to the joystick buttons."

When it came to technology, Director Liu became more confident.

"very good."

Lu Chen nodded, glanced at Cheng Yiyan, who immediately understood and smiled.

"Mr. Liu, I have some great news for you," Cheng Yiyan said. "The boss has secured the exclusive distribution and production rights for Nintendo's latest arcade game, *Donkey Kong*, in Hong Kong and Macau through overseas channels!"

"What?! Dokkyuu!!?"

Engineer Liu stood up excitedly, his glasses almost falling off. "It's that...that game with the gorilla throwing barrels that went viral in North America?"

As a veteran in the electronics industry, he knew all too well the significance of this game. It was one of the most popular and technologically advanced games on the market at the time! The reason why Weicheng Electronics Factory went bankrupt was because it couldn't obtain the license for such a top-tier game; it could only produce knock-offs, which nobody played.

And now, Golden Harvest has not only secured the deal, but also the exclusive agency?!

Nintendo was indeed a tough nut to crack. When Ruan Wen first approached them, they only wanted to sell complete systems and absolutely refused to sell the license for the gaming motherboard separately. They claimed it was to ensure brand quality, but in reality, they were afraid that Ruan Wen would buy the system, disassemble it, and use it to make a profit on the price difference between the case and the monitor.

But when Ruan Wen later offered "super dollars," with unlimited quantities, Yamauchi Hiroshi's eyes widened at the sight of that pile of green US dollars. Brand, quality, principles—all vanished. In the end, they not only agreed to sell the motherboards separately, but also signed exclusive distribution and production licenses for Hong Kong and Macau to Golden Harvest.

That's the power of money.

In this era of foreign exchange controls, for Nintendo, which was in a period of expansion and urgently needed US dollars to purchase advanced international technology, the "super dollars" in Nguyen Van's hands were an irresistible poison.

Moreover, with last year's sales, the market for Donkey Kong in Europe and America is basically saturated. In addition, Nintendo plans to develop a sequel to Donkey Kong this year. Nintendo is not so keen on this soon-to-be-obsolete product, so it is easy to sell it for a good price.

"The first batch of one thousand original motherboards for 'King Kong' has already cleared customs," Cheng Yiyan said, glancing at his watch. "If there are no unforeseen circumstances, they should be delivered to the factory by tomorrow morning."

"tomorrow……"

Lu Chen's fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a rhythmic "tap-tap" sound.

"Director Liu."

"Yes!" Factory Director Liu replied quickly.

"Do you have enough stock of other components, such as the chassis, screen, joystick, and coin acceptor?" Lu Chen asked.

"Enough! Absolutely enough!" Factory Manager Liu patted his chest and assured them, "The previous boss had a bunch of unsold computer cases. With just a few minor changes to the stickers and button layout, they're completely compatible! The screens are also readily available; they're all original CRT monitors imported from Japan."

"it is good."

Lu Chen stood up, walked to the glass window, and looked down at the workers wiping the machines.

"I'll give you a week," Lu Chen said, holding up one finger. "I want to see six hundred brand-new 'King Kong' arcade machines, each bearing our Golden Harvest logo, roll off the production line."

"Is there a problem?"

"A week? Six hundred units?"

Factory Director Liu hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth, "No problem! As soon as the motherboard arrives, I'll have people work in three shifts, keeping the machines running non-stop! I guarantee the task will be completed!"

The structure of arcade machines in this era was quite simple: a wooden cabinet, a CRT monitor, joysticks, buttons, and a power supply. The most crucial element was the game motherboard (PCB). Once the motherboard was installed, it was a money-printing machine.

"Very good, but assembly alone is not enough." Lu Chen turned around, his eyes becoming serious.

"Director Liu, I heard you graduated from the Department of Electronic Engineering at the University of Hong Kong, and that you also worked as a technical supervisor at a radio station in your early years?"

"Yes...yes." Factory Director Liu said somewhat embarrassedly, "These are all old stories."

"Since you understand technology, I'll give you a task," Lu Chen pointed to the technical specifications of "Donkey Kong" on the table, "You have one more thing to do when the motherboard arrives tomorrow."

"Without the anti-theft measures of arcade machines, these motherboards shouldn't be difficult to crack. I only have one request: even if you have to dismantle and scrap this batch of motherboards, you must figure out their principles. What is their architecture? How are their individual chips allocated, and what models are used? How is their anti-piracy encryption mechanism written?"

"I want you to thoroughly understand this board!" Lu Chen's voice was resolute. "While Nintendo is currently cooperating with us, it's only because of money. In the future, we can't just be an assembly plant forever; we need to do our own research and development."

Factory Director Liu listened with great enthusiasm. Who in the tech field wouldn't want to do research and development? Who wants to spend their whole life tightening screws?

"Don't worry, boss! I'll organize the factory's best experienced workers into a task force to tackle this problem! If we still can't figure it out, I'll resign!"

"Okay." Lu Chen nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Cheng Yiyan.

"Old Cheng, contact the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Polytechnic University immediately," Lu Chen instructed. "Recruit a large number of people for me, whether they are computer science majors, electronic engineering majors, fine arts majors, or novelists. As long as they have real skills, recruit them all."

"I want to build Golden Harvest's own 'video game R&D department,' and when recruiting college students, I'll tell them, 'Come to Golden Harvest, and I'll lead them to create a new world.'"

"Understood!" Cheng Yiyan frantically jotted down notes in her notebook. "I'll get right on it! I guarantee I'll seduce all those bookworms... oh no, those high achievers!"

A week later, 600 copies of "King Kong" will be displayed in every corner of Mong Kok.

The big-nosed carpenter (Mario) wearing red overalls will make a catchy jumping sound effect in the area protected by "Hero Security".

Countless coins will flow into Golden Harvest Entertainment's pockets like a waterfall.

This is just the beginning. In his plan, these machines will not only occupy arcades, but also be placed in convenience stores, grocery stores, and even small shops near schools.

He wanted to make the name "Golden Harvest Entertainment" a collective memory for all young people in Hong Kong Island in the 80s.

"Go ahead." Lu Chen stood up, walked to the window, and looked down at the bustling factory area.

"Get moving."

"I want to make all the young people on Hong Kong Island go crazy for a gorilla next week."