"Isn't that amazing? That bastard just said one sentence and made me waste more than a month in several major United States cities. And you can't even blame him, because he didn't persuade me to go. He said he was going to find United States distributors. I just wanted to follow him to save some effort, and now look what happened." Tang Boqi told Tang Jingyuan how Song Tianyao had tricked him, and said to Tang Jingyuan with a smile.
To be honest, Tang Jingyuan had no idea what his cousin was talking about. He hadn't gone to university and knew nothing about economics or finance. All he knew was that if wigs were profitable, he would use the money to open a factory to produce wigs. As for how to sell them, that would naturally be decided by Tang Boqi, who was in the United States.
"But this incident also has its advantages. It made me realize that it's not so easy to just follow someone around and reap benefits for free. He could fool me for a month with a single sentence, and he can set up another trap. Originally, I didn't want to come to Hong Kong, but thinking about it, if I relied on you alone, I felt it would be difficult for you not to be led by the nose. Plus, my dad has been pressuring me, so I came to Hong Kong to see that Song Tianyao again." Tang Boqi took out Marlboro from his pocket, lit one, and said with some admiration, "I can sense that that guy won't just bury himself in making money, but I still can't guess what he really wants."
"What he thinks is none of our business. We're not planning to fall out with him. We'll just keep to our wig factory, won't we?" Tang Jingyuan asked, puzzled, after hearing Tang Boqi's words. "Everyone should mind their own business. He can't possibly forbid us from opening a factory, can he?"
Tang Boqi leisurely gazed out the car window and exhaled a smoke ring. "You don't understand. If he gains a head start, the larger the industry, the greater his power and influence. The biggest profits don't come from how much he sells, but from how much blood and flesh he harvests from his competitors. There's a line in the Rubaiyat that goes, 'Where the emperor sheds blood, roses bloom.' But the emperor doesn't kill people. He doesn't have to do anything; he can just sit high on his throne and watch everyone in the industry kill each other. Besides, in business, you have to be the biggest. The bigger you are, the more opportunities you have to devour others, not be devoured by them."
"I just want to start a small business, do you have to exaggerate like that?" Tang Jingyuan frowned, feeling that his cousin seemed to be exaggerating and didn't seem like the kind of person who could partner with him to start a factory and do business.
Tang Boqi noticed the suspicion in Tang Jingyuan's eyes, but he didn't care. Instead, he put his arm around the other's neck to show affection. "I was just bragging. Don't say too much. After we meet Uncle, you can show me around Hong Kong."
"I'll take you to a nightclub for drinks tonight, so you can see the difference between Hong Kong nightclubs and United States nightclubs," Tang Jingyuan said to Tang Boqi with a smile.
Tang Boqi put his arm around his cousin's shoulder, looking out the car window. He could understand that Tang Jingyuan didn't believe him, and Tang Boqi himself didn't really want to believe it either.
But does someone who spent two months reading and understanding the global business landscape specifically for their fake hair business really just want to run a quiet, stable small business?
If that guy didn't want to gamble everything, why bother leaving the Chu Family? Wouldn't it have been better to continue being his trusted secretary, a Justice of the Justice of the Peace second only to the emperor?
For some reason, gazing at the scenery outside the window, Tang Boqi couldn't help but recall that short line from the Rubaiyat: "Where emperors shed their blood, roses bloom in abundance."
If Song Tianyao truly wanted people to flood into this industry and steal his share, it couldn't be out of compassion and a desire to share the good fortune with everyone; it must be because he planned to rise above others by stepping on their heads.
But the moves he makes are so hard to predict.
Chapter 228 Family Marriage
When Chu Xiaoxin was seen again, the Second Young Master Chu family was no longer the rich young master who was jealous and aggressive at drinking parties. His hair was carefully combed with hair wax, his clothes were smart, and his leather shoes were shiny. The place where he and Song Tianyao had their evening gatherings was no longer the magnificent Lichi Nightclub or Golden Phoenix Pool Dance Hall, but the Silver Moon Dance Hall on Central Avenue.
Compared to dance halls like Lichi and Jin Feng Chi, Silver Moon Dance Hall now seems somewhat outdated. Its decorations and lighting are far less vibrant than those of the newly opened dance halls. A dance hall, a main hall with a dozen or so private rooms—that's all Silver Moon Dance Hall has. Compared to nightclubs that now offer a full range of services including Mahjong Parlors, tea houses, and restaurants, it's incredibly shabby.
Normally, Chu Xiaoxin would never have come to a place like this, but now he's a regular here, rarely visiting brothels like Lichi and Jin Feng Chi anymore.
The youngest patrons of the Silver Moon Dance Hall are almost all around forty years old. These patrons were among the earliest wealthy and lavish guests at the Silver Moon Dance Hall it opened in 1930, indulging in extravagant spending and frivolous pursuits. Now, twenty years later, these patrons are all Big Brother figures in the new generation of Hong Kong's Chinese business community. Even Chu Xiaoxin's father, Chu Yaozong, would only choose the Silver Moon Dance Hall if occasionally invited by his peers to listen to music. In their youth, the Silver Moon Dance Hall was a novelty, allowing them to experience the glitz and glamour of the night. Now, in their old age, they still enjoy visiting the now-outdated Silver Moon Dance Hall to dance. However, while the Silver Moon Dance Hall remains unchanged, they themselves have changed. From ambitious young men who first stepped into the Silver Moon Dance Hall and started their own businesses, or wealthy young men who inherited their family businesses and expanded their ventures, they have now become leaders in their respective industries, holding at least the titles of Po Leung Kuk director, Tung Wah Group of Hospitals of Po Leung Kuk member, Justice of the Peace, and so on.
Over time, an unwritten rule even emerged at the Silver Moon Dance Hall: without Justice of the Peace, Po Leung Kuk, Tung Wah Group of Hospitals of Po Leung Kuk, or other socially recognized honors, one should not embarrass oneself at Silver Moon.
Of course, this rule wasn't mandatory and was initially just a joke, but it gradually became widespread. If someone like Second Young Master Chu, with his previous playboy status, came to the Silver Moon Dance Hall, forget about becoming the leader of the Young Masters' Club —even if he spent all his pocket money, the most popular dancers wouldn't have time to dance with him. Therefore, many wealthy young men deliberately avoided the Silver Moon Dance Hall. After all, jealousy and rivalry often involved older business Big Brother with Justices of the Justice of the Peace titles, possessing the privilege of distorting facts. Even if things escalated, they'd only end up being scolded by their parents and forced to reflect on their actions. Fighting with those people over women? It would be easier to castrate yourself.