Hong Kong films: From street thugs to Hong Kong financial tycoons

At Victoria Peak, Yiu Shing Estate.

The morning sunlight streamed through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, falling on the custom-made bed in the bedroom, which was a full three meters wide.

With messy hair and sleepy eyes, Lin Yao sat up from the covers. He yawned widely and picked up the glass of warm water that the maid had prepared earlier from the bedside table, taking a sip.

"The lives of the rich are truly simple, unpretentious, and boring."

Lin Yao stretched and walked to the spacious terrace. As soon as he pushed open the door, the 500-pound pure gold Guan Gong statue, inlaid with South African diamonds, burst forth with a light that could blind even a titanium alloy dog's eyes under the morning light, directly piercing Lin Yao's retina.

Holy crap!

Lin Yao instinctively covered his eyes, tears almost welling up from the slap.

He gritted his teeth and yelled downstairs, "Cui Xiaoxiao, you damn well better get someone to get a black cloth and cover that damn Guan Gong statue up! I'll get cataracts from that thing one day!"

Downstairs in the lobby, Thirteen Sister, who was lounging with her legs crossed eating crystal shrimp dumplings, rolled her eyes and yelled back, "What's with the covering? This is called overflowing wealth! What do you know about art?!"

Lin Yao was too lazy to argue with this nouveau riche woman's taste. After washing up, he changed into a loose silk loungewear set and slowly strolled downstairs.

The dining table was already laden with a dazzling array of Cantonese dim sum, including top-quality bird's nest porridge, braised chicken feet in abalone sauce, and black truffle siu mai—you name it.

Lin Yao pulled out a chair and sat down. Just as he picked up his chopsticks, Thirteen Sister casually tossed a black invitation card with gold lettering in front of him.

"Look, this is what the doorman received this morning. It's an invitation to some kind of charity gala for celebrities in Victoria Harbour, specifically inviting the owner of the manor at 8 Barker Road."

Thirteen Sister took a bite of the shrimp dumpling and mumbled, "I heard that the organizers are a few old-money families in Hong Kong with deep roots, the kind of pretentious bastards whose ancestors have been hanging around Central for generations."

Lin Yao raised an eyebrow, picked up the invitation, and glanced at it.

"The Old Money family?"

Lin Yao sneered.

"During the stock market crash a few days ago, these old money families probably lost everything, right? Now they're holding a charity gala, just to test each other's finances and find some suckers to raise some cash flow to recoup their losses."

"Shall we go or not?"

Thirteen Sister's eyes lit up; clearly, her DNA, eager to join in the fun, had been activated.

"We're now Hong Kong's top-tier tycoons. If we don't show our faces, these bumpkins will think we're scared!"

Lin Yao put down his chopsticks and stroked his chin.

Indeed, they've been busy stirring up trouble behind the scenes and buying up factories lately.

Although the financial circles in Central are trembling with fear at the name Yaosheng Capital, the self-proclaimed upper-class elites in Hong Kong probably haven't truly witnessed the power and influence of Lin Yao.

Spending a little money at a banquet, putting on a show of being ordinary, and incidentally beating up a few barking dogs—this is considered an essential pastime for the wealthy.

"Go, why wouldn't you go?"

Lin Yao pulled out a tissue and wiped his mouth.

"It would be such a shame to miss out on such a high-end opportunity that's practically delivered to my doorstep, where I can just throw money at it and see the results."

"But sis, you shouldn't go today. With your temper, I'm afraid after a few glasses of red wine, you'll just grab a watermelon knife and chop up the organizers."

Lin Yao gave Thirteen Sister a disdainful look.

"Damn it, I'm the security director at Yaosheng now, and I'm a civilized person, okay?!"

Thirteen Sister glared angrily.

"Alright, gentleman, stop pretending. For an occasion like tonight, you need to bring a female companion who can hold her own and make a good impression."

Lin Yao snapped his fingers and instructed the maid standing to the side, "Call Fatty Wang from the film crew and tell him to stop filming whatever the crew is shooting today. Have Qiu Shuyi get cleaned up immediately, get the best styling in Hong Kong, and report to the manor at three o'clock this afternoon."

……

At 3:30 p.m., at Yaosheng Manor, a Mercedes-Benz slowly pulled up in front of the main building. The door opened, and Chingmy Yau stepped out somewhat awkwardly.

Today, following Lin Yao's instructions, she canceled all her filming engagements and was fussed over by the most expensive styling team in Hong Kong for a full four hours.

At this moment, she was wearing a wine-red, deep-V haute couture evening gown. The gown perfectly accentuated her enviable S-curve, with her fair collarbone and deep cleavage subtly visible.

Her long, jet-black hair was styled into loose, wavy curls, cascading over her fair, white shoulders.

Coupled with that pure and beautiful face, this extreme contrast of innocent and seductive style can easily steal the soul of any normal man.

Chingmy Yau nervously clutched her skirt as she walked into the hall. This was the first time she had attended an event as Lin Yao's date, and her heart was pounding like a deer.

"Boss, is it okay for me to dress like this?"

Qiu Shuyi walked up to Lin Yao, who was sitting on the sofa reading a newspaper, her voice so soft and sweet it was almost dripping with water.

Lin Yao put down his newspaper, looked up and sized her up. To be honest, even Lin Yao, who had seen a lot, couldn't help but secretly give her a thumbs up at this moment.

She truly deserves to be called a stunning beauty who will sweep across an era in the future. With just a little dressing up, she's practically a walking power generator!

"It's alright, I guess. I can barely take it out in public."

Lin Yao stood up and straightened his Armani haute couture pure black suit. He was just a stubborn guy, and he had a great grasp of the pretentious attitude.

"Let's go, tonight I'll show you what the hypocrisy of high society is all about."

Lin Yao naturally bent his right arm, and Qiu Shuyi was overjoyed. She obediently stepped forward and took Lin Yao's arm. At that moment, she felt like the happiest woman in all of Hong Kong.

……

8 PM.

Victoria Harbour, the Peninsula Hotel's rooftop luxury ballroom.

This place can be described as Hong Kong's most prestigious social and entertainment venue, where huge crystal chandeliers cast a dazzling golden light, and melodious classical symphonies flow through the air.

The hall was filled with gentlemen in tuxedos and socialites in glamorous evening gowns, all holding champagne and exchanging insincere compliments.

"Young Master Xu, I heard that your Xu's Shipping also suffered significant losses in the stock index futures market this time?"

A fat man holding a glass of red wine smiled and spoke to a young, wealthy man with a slicked-back hairstyle.

This wealthy young man is named Xu Shijie. He is the sole heir of a long-established shipping family in Hong Kong and a true core member of the old money family.

Xu Shijie snorted coldly and swirled his wine glass dismissively: "Losing a little pocket money is nothing, it won't hurt the foundation of our Xu family. Our Xu family has hundreds of billions of real assets right there, unlike those nouveau riche who speculated in stocks, who all lined up to jump off buildings after a stock market crash."

Several rich kids around immediately started frantically echoing his sentiments and showering him with flattery.

Just as these young men were praising each other, the two heavy doors of the banquet hall were slowly pushed open by the waiters at the door.

The conversation in the room paused for a very brief moment.

At the main entrance, Lin Yao stood, dressed in a perfectly tailored haute couture suit, one hand in his pocket, his posture upright like a javelin, a lazy, half-smiling smile on his lips, his aura so powerful it was suffocating.

And Chingmy Yau, who was holding his arm, looked like a burning flame in her wine-red evening gown, instantly igniting the eyes of all the men in the room.

She was so beautiful. The perfect combination of innocence and allure made all the so-called socialites and heiresses present pale in comparison, looking like a group of ugly ducklings that hadn't fully grown up.

"Gulp."

Xu Shijie stared intently at Qiu Shuyi's prominent cleavage, swallowed hard, and his eyes almost popped out.

"Who is that woman? I've never seen her in the industry before?"

Xu Shijie quickly asked the fat man next to him.

"Young Master Xu, that's a newly debuted female celebrity named Chingmy Yau. I heard she was poached from Xiang Tianqiang by a mysterious tycoon for 20 million."

The fat man wiped away his cold sweat.

"As for the man next to her... he seems to be that nouveau riche who recently bought the estate at 8 Barker Road on Victoria Peak!"

"upstart?"

Upon hearing those three words, Xu Shijie's eyes instantly shifted from amazement to intense jealousy and disdain.

In the eyes of these old-money families, no matter how many billions you have in your account, if it's not the wealth accumulated over generations, then you're just a nouveau riche reeking of money.

What's more, this bumpkin is actually arm in arm with the hottest girl in the room, how can anyone stand that?

Xu Shijie straightened his suit and tie, picked up two glasses of champagne, and walked straight through the crowd, his face full of arrogance, to greet Lin Yao.

"Is this Mr. Lin, the owner of the Barker Road Estate?"

Xu Shijie stood in front of Lin Yao, pretending to offer him a glass of champagne, but his eyes were openly scanning Qiu Shuyi.

"Nice to meet you. I am Xu Shijie from Xu's Shipping. Mr. Lin, you look unfamiliar. What were you involved in before? How come I've never seen you at any tea parties in Central?"

Lin Yao didn't even glance at the glass of champagne. He chewed on his bubble gum, turned his head slightly, and sized up the idiot in front of him who exuded the aura of a rich second-generation.

"Who do you think you are? Do I even know you?"

Lin Yao's voice wasn't loud, but it was clearly heard by the people around him in the quiet banquet hall.

A single, swift strike, showing no mercy!

Xu Shijie's fake smile froze instantly. His hand holding the champagne glass stopped in mid-air, unsure whether to go forward or backward. He was so embarrassed that he wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

He, the eldest son of the prestigious Xu family, took the initiative to greet them, only to be publicly insulted by the other party, who called him who he was.

"Boss Lin, aren't you being a bit too arrogant?"

Xu Shijie was enraged and said, "This is a charity dinner hosted by the Lao Qian family. Everyone here is a respectable person."

"You think you've gotten lucky, made a fortune in the stock market, and bought a luxury house so you can truly integrate into our circle? A nouveau riche is a nouveau riche; they don't even understand the most basic etiquette!"

"Circles, etiquette?"

Lin Yao seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world and couldn't help but chuckle.

He released Qiu Shuyi's arm and took half a step forward. The overwhelming pressure from holding billions of dollars instantly enveloped Xu Shijie like Mount Tai pressing down on him.

"Do you have some misunderstanding about the term 'nouveau riche'?"

Lin Yao looked down at Xu Shijie, who was half a head shorter than him, with a terrifyingly deep gaze.

"I'm not here to fit in with your bunch of losers, I'm here to buy you all."

Lin Yao stretched out a finger and poked Xu Shijie in the chest without any hesitation, causing him to stumble back two steps.

"You'd better bring some extra spending money for today's charity auction."

Lin Yao's lips curled into a devilish, cold smile.

"Otherwise, I'm afraid your Xu family won't even have the chance to raise a sign, which would be a huge disgrace to your Qian family."

After saying that, Lin Yao didn't even glance at Xu Shijie again, and very naturally took Qiu Shuyi's arm again, swaggering towards the VIP seats at the front of the banquet hall.

The entire room fell silent. All the wealthy people, heiresses, and tycoons stared at Lin Yao's retreating figure as if he were a monster.

This guy is a complete madman. In the old Qian family's home turf, in front of everyone, he pointed at the Xu family's young master and cursed him, even threatening to buy up the entire industry. Who does he think he is, the chairman of the Federal Reserve?

Xu Shijie stood there, trembling with rage, his face ashen. The champagne glass in his hand creaked as he gripped it.

"Fine, fine, you damned nouveau riche who doesn't know what's good for you!"

Xu Shijie gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with venom.

"At the charity auction later, I'll see just how much money you can scrape together with that lousy bank card to compete with my financial resources, Xu Shijie! I'm going to bury you in money today!"

A dramatic showdown of money power, saturated with the stench of money and the smell of gunpowder, officially began with the crisp sound of the auctioneer's gavel.