Hong Kong Island: From a small stall to a global supplier

Victory Building parking lot.

As soon as Morris got out of the car, he saw a large group of people in front of him. About ten bodyguards in black suits were escorting someone toward the elevator. Morris didn't pay much attention to it. This was Wang Yaotang's headquarters, and many of his company's employees were surrounded by people for protection.

Besides, Morris himself had four security guards with him.

Hong Kong today is not like it was a few years ago, when the wealthy and company executives traveled light and casually. After all, it was quite troublesome to travel in a large group. In the Chinese world, it is still important to keep a low profile.

I don't know when it started, but Hong Kong's wealthy and famous people have been getting more and more security...

The world is going to the dogs, and people's hearts are no longer what they used to be. How did Hong Kong's atmosphere become so bad?

Thinking to himself, Morris, escorted by four security guards, headed towards the elevator. However, before they could get close, two security guards jumped out and blocked the elevator door, raising their hands to stop them. "Sir, please wait a moment."

Morris frowned, feeling quite annoyed. It was always others who waited for him; when did he become someone who was stopped outside and made to wait for others? What did they take him for?

Is it broken?!
"Back off! Back off!"

Morris's two security guards strode forward to meet him. It wasn't that they were willing to die for their master, but they were embarrassed to be blocked like this.

They were supposed to protect the boss, but they were stopped outside and didn't dare to say a word. They might as well give up their security job.

Li Xiangjiao was in no mood to deal with the conflict. His mind was full of frustration. He was the one who had been threatened and bullied by Wang Yaotang, and now he had to go to visit him. It would be strange if he was in a good mood.

But this was the Victory Building, Wang Yaotang's territory, and he really didn't want to cause any trouble, so he whispered an order.

The security supervisor immediately went over and frowned when he saw Morris through the crowd. He recognized him, took a few steps forward, stood on tiptoe to take a closer look, cursed under his breath, and hurried back to tell Li Xiangjiao. Only then did the security guards clear the way.

"Oh, it's Mr. Li." Morris couldn't help but smile.

He knew perfectly well that Li Xiangjiao had been threatened by Wang Yaotang, and now that he was eagerly coming forward, it was truly laughable.

"Mr. Morris, you've come too," Li Xiangjiao said with a smile.

Morris's expression froze, and he suddenly remembered that he had also eagerly come up to her, so he immediately stopped laughing.

“Yes, it’s infuriating that our business partner was assassinated. We came to visit Mr. Wang and hope he’s alright,” Morris said with a smile, quickly regaining his composure.

I care about my partners, what about you?
Li Xiangjiao gritted his teeth. Without the cooperation with Hong Kong Electric, he and Jardine Matheson were now just competitors, since Jardine Matheson's main business was now Hongkong Land Group, which was also in the real estate business.

“A fellow Chinese was assassinated by Westerners, so I came to see him,” Li Xiangjiao said calmly, then he remembered that he was Chinese.

Their eyes met briefly, then they both silently looked away. Damn it, that damned Wang Yaotang!

Just as the elevator was about to descend, another commotion arose outside. The two men looked out at the same time and saw that it was the general manager of HSBC.

They exchanged a glance and instantly understood; it seemed there were rumors about HSBC circulating outside as well…

The atmosphere immediately eased when the HSBC general manager arrived. After all, it's Hong Kong's largest bank and a major client for all parties, so everyone had to give it face.

It is precisely because of its extensive network of connections throughout Hong Kong that HSBC has achieved its current status.

After a few jokes, everyone stopped rushing upstairs and waited to see who else Wang Yaotang's enemies were.

After all, who would come forward to prove their innocence at this time when they have no grudge against each other?

"Oh, everyone's here," Yan Fusheng of Sun Hung Kai said with a smile.

Irving Walker of BP Hong Kong smiled and waved to everyone, saying, "I'm here representing Rio Tinto, this has nothing to do with me."

The group rolled their eyes in unison. Who said it had anything to do with you? What are you so smug about?

In just ten minutes, more than a dozen people gathered here. All the bodyguards left, and those remaining in the elevator were Wang Yaotang's enemies.

After some polite exchanges, they entered the elevator one after another. Taking advantage of Wang Yaotang's assassination attempt, they gathered together, and Li Xiangjiao immediately suggested that they go out for a meal to celebrate after everything was over.

They were all Wang Yaotang's enemies, so how could they miss such a good opportunity to form an Avengers alliance? This statement was immediately echoed by everyone.

This is what they mean by "those who follow the Way receive much help, while those who stray from the Way receive little help." The ancients were right. Li Xiangjiao was in a great mood, and even the frustration he felt from coming to express his loyalty dissipated.

"So, everyone, aren't you disappointed to see I'm still alive?" Wang Yaotang said with a smug grin as soon as he arrived.

"How could that be?" Li Xiangjiao quickly waved her hand.

"We're here because we care about you."

"Yes, yes, assassination is a despicable method. It goes beyond the means of business competition and must be severely cracked down on."

Everyone offered their own explanations.

Wang Yaotang chuckled and pointed at Li Xiangjiao, "She's been shelled and bombed; she's holding a grudge."

Li Xiangjiao's face darkened. "You fucking know that?"

"They disrupted HSBC's plans to control the power industry, and we want to eliminate them as soon as possible."

The HSBC general manager twitched the corner of his mouth.

“It has nothing to do with me. The Jardine Matheson board has decided not to get involved in any livelihood-related industries in Hong Kong. Our main business is real estate, and there will be no conflict in the future,” Morris said hurriedly when he saw Wang Yaotang pointing at him.

Li Xiangjiao turned her head and looked over. "You're just surrendering like that?"
Pooh!
Wang Yaotang paused for a moment, then pointed at Yan Fusheng without saying a word.

“Thanks to Mr. Wang, we’ve made a lot of money with Hong Kong Electric. Chairman Feng instructed us to make sure to thank Mr. Wang properly. This trip to Kulai is to express our gratitude. If Mr. Wang needs any help from Sun Hung Kai in the future, please feel free to ask. As long as we can do it, we will definitely not refuse,” Yan Fusheng said with a smile.

Everyone else looked over. It's perfectly normal for financial companies to make money by speculating on stocks. When has money earned through one's own abilities ever been expected to come from giving favors to others?

How shameless!
Do they have no backbone left in the financial industry?!
Ugh, disgusting!

Wang Yaotang's expression softened considerably, and he looked at the other financial companies.

"I've come to ask Mr. Wang what the commission ratio should be, and whether it should be done according to the rules of the underworld," Luo Yao of Baling Asset Management said with a very obsequious smile.

The crowd's eyes were full of contempt. You're supposed to be bullying Asia, so why don't you bully him instead!

Surrendering so quickly, are you even French?!

You've completely disgraced Little Britain.

Luo Yao glanced disdainfully at the others, then at the people from HSBC and Jardine Matheson, saying, "You bunch of Anglo-French bastards, mixed-race savages, I'm a proud Chinese!"

What's wrong with Chinese people paying each other's bills? It's only natural!

"You're making money off our turf without even a word. If this happens again, don't blame me for being ruthless," Wang Yaotang sneered.

Luo Yao nodded quickly. Being scolded was a thing of the past, and he even got in touch with Wang Yaotang. It was only 30%, so it wasn't a loss!
Consider it a public relations expense.

Luo Yao's statement sent sweat down the spines of the people at First Pacific.

Everyone's eyes turned to look at him, especially Wang Yaotang's, who looked at him as if he were already dead. This topic hadn't been included in the company's internal meetings before they came, and now that Luo Yao had suddenly done this, it was like putting him on the hot seat.

Given the atmosphere at the scene, if he wanted to get away with it so easily, Wang Yaotang would definitely teach him a lesson, otherwise what would others think?

Swallowing hard, and glaring fiercely at Luo Yao, the First Pacific employee forced a smile. "Of course we're following the rules. Thanks to Mr. Wang for providing this platform."

Seeing this, Zhan Peizhong was quite straightforward. Since they didn't have a company, they were considered private equity investors and he could make the decisions. He patted his chest and said loudly, "Hong Kong has its own rules. You can make money in Hong Kong without paying taxes to the British Hong Kong government, but you can't break the rules of the underworld. Thank you for taking care of me this time, Brother Yao. I'll arrange for someone to transfer the money right away."

Kyrie Irving of BP stood aside, watching with a smile. They were all so high and mighty in the elevator, but now they've fallen so quickly.

These things have nothing to do with him. He was just representing Rio Tinto to express his concern for the partners. There is no conflict between BP and Wang Yaotang. Besides, he is just a Hong Kong representative, so it is not his place to take responsibility.

Wang Yaotang finally managed a slight smile. Just as he was about to say something, Sha Ze walked over and whispered, "The heads of Xinji, Tiaolin, and Shenghe have arrived, along with people from several factions from Japan, Taiwan, and Siam."

"Let's find a place to entertain them first." Wang Yaotang waved his hand. It couldn't be these people. It wasn't that he trusted their character, but that they didn't have the ability.

"We're still investigating who it is, but I've already caught the survivors." Wang Yaotang stood up, put his hands behind his back, and glanced at Li Xiangjiao and the others.

Lu Shaotao took out a videotape and started playing it; it showed footage of the two assassins' previous surgeries.

Due to the camera angle, there was no close-up of the bullet being removed, but the killer's piercing scream, amplified by millions of audio and video recordings, sent chills down the spine. Despite their seemingly powerful and resolute demeanor in the business world, they're just as terrified in a different setting. They're simply using years of experience in the cutthroat world to hon their facial expressions and maintain composure.

“Even the toughest man would open his mouth in front of Miki, let alone two Frenchmen.” Wang Yaotang’s murderous gaze swept across the faces of the group. “I’ve already arranged for people to follow the leads. Whoever did this should pray they haven’t given themselves away, otherwise…”

The videotape cut to a scene where the assassin was kicked from behind into a shredder. His scream was cut short, and Li Xiangjiao and the others turned pale as death, turning their heads away and closing their eyes.

The internal details of the shredder are not visible, but...

The image has already been automatically generated in my mind.

"The fully automated feed production line mainly uses various low-value marine fish and livestock blood and bones as raw materials. After being crushed, they are sterilized at high temperatures, resulting in high protein and balanced nutrition, which are used to feed various fish and poultry and livestock." Wang Yaotang said in a low voice, "Of course, because the smell is too unpleasant, the production lines are all built in uninhabited areas or at sea."

"Ugh..." Zhan Peizhong was the first to turn his head and start gagging. He couldn't stand the thought that the poultry and livestock he had eaten had been fed this kind of feed with a high human content...

After he started it, several other people couldn't help but vomit as well.

The occasion was inappropriate, so the group covered their mouths tightly with their hands. Some forced themselves to swallow, while others couldn't control themselves and sprayed the contents out through the gaps, making a mess everywhere.

Li Xiangjiao's cheeks puffed out as she silently screamed in her heart that she absolutely could not lose face in front of Wang Yaotang. She forced back the vomit that was rising in her throat, and then forced herself to think about women...

Ugh, still disgusting!

After turning off the recording, Wang Yaotang tilted his head and glanced at the group of people. "I will investigate this matter thoroughly. Since some friends are coming to see me, I won't entertain you all any longer."

"Okay, okay, okay." The group got up and left in a rather disheveled state.

A deathly silence fell over the elevator. Suddenly, the HSBC general manager spoke up, "I... I have something to do in a bit. Let's have dinner another time."

"Okay." Li Xiangjiao didn't mention the Avengers again; who was in the mood to eat right now?

“Wang, about Wang Yaotang… well, he just survived an assassination attempt, so it’s understandable that he’s in a bad mood.” Morris raised his hand and wiped his face.

“Yes, yes, Mr. Wang is very proper.” Yan Fusheng quickly echoed.

"People who follow the rules are not bad people..."

The group of people took turns trying to cover for Wang Yaotang, otherwise they would have looked too cowardly.

Once outside the elevator, no one wanted to talk much; they simply nodded to each other and hurried away.

We changed rooms to receive this group of people from the martial arts world. As soon as we met, everyone started asking us if we had anything to do.

Wang Yaotang smiled and gestured, "PKM light machine gun, 7.62 full-power round. Bullets that long won't even scratch you, let alone hit you. Either you'll be completely fine, or you won't be able to see me at all."

"Brother Yao, that's awesome!"

"Good people are always blessed by Heaven; Guan Yu is protecting them."

"That's not just Guan Yu protecting you, it's a bulletproof car worth tens of millions! It's like being protected by money, impervious to all evil."

"Damn, it makes me want to buy it now."

"Forget about you, you're not even worth tens of millions."

After a round of banter, Wang Yaotang suddenly asked, "Brothers, does anyone still have military supplies business?"

The crowd looked at each other. Those who were qualified to come and see Wang Yaotang were all powerful figures who did all kinds of underground business, and they certainly had military connections.

Seeing that no one spoke, Wang Yaotang continued, "The military supply market in Hong Kong is very small, and you can't make much money from it. At most, it's just a transit business. On the contrary, selling this stuff makes everyone unsafe. This isn't the first time I've been assassinated."

"What does Brother Yao mean..." Boss Xiang asked in a deep voice.

"If you're willing to give me, Wang Yaotang, some face, then let's change the location. Manila, Pattaya, or Phuket are all fine, how about it?"

“Alright, we definitely have to give you face, little God of Wealth,” Prince Rong was the first to say loudly.

“I’m fine with it too,” Mo Shi replied, even though he had already stopped doing that business.

Shinki, Tiao Lin, and Shenghe silently calculated that with such a large group, the actual amount that would end up in their hands was very small.

"Haha, then thank you all for your kind words," Wang Yaotang said with a smile.

Actually, this business is impossible to stop. If everyone stopped doing it, the price of guns in Hong Kong would definitely skyrocket. Those thugs down there are all greedy and willing to risk their lives for money, so with such a large profit margin, they would definitely sneak around buying and selling them.

Fortunately, these are all small fry. With so many underlings, Sheng Yi can catch them sooner or later if there's any trouble. Then we can just sweep them up a few more times.

Wang Yaotang got ashore, so of course he wanted to kick everyone else down...

After a busy afternoon, Wang Yaotang was constantly receiving visitors. He didn't get a break until he finished get off work. When he got home, he couldn't help but complain, "I've never had such a lively scene in front of my house before. It's like I'm so popular. Even when Kadoorie died, I didn't see so many people attending his funeral."

"Is it possible that more people came because you didn't die?" A-Jie said, suppressing a laugh.

“Uh…” Wang Yaotang blinked, “It’s actually quite possible.”

After all, with the whole family dead, nobody would even give a gift in return for attending the funeral...

On the other side, Hai Dazhao led his men to Marseille immediately, where Oliveira picked them up and helped arrange their food and lodging.

The next morning, they took their weapons and waited near the mercenary bar. As soon as it opened in the afternoon, Hai Dazhao and his group pushed open the door and went in.

The bartender looked up and froze. Several MP5 players were pointed at him, and the one at the back thoughtfully lowered the roller shutter.

"Yellow-skinned monkey, you'd better put down your gun. This is Steel Helmet Bar!" the bartender shouted, tilting his head and looking cold.

"Da da"

"OK, OK, OK!" The bartender instantly raised his hands above his head. "Buddy, friend, brother, don't be like this. Let's talk things out. There's nothing we can't discuss."

Seeing that the group of Asians didn't react at all, the bartender quickly switched to English and repeated himself.

Hai Dazhao moved the muzzle of his gun slightly, "Bang!"

A burst of blood erupted from the bartender's right shoulder. He screamed in agony, and half of his shoulder slumped down, but he dared not move. "I'll tell you everything."

"I ask, you answer: A few days ago, three mercenaries took a job with you to go to Hong Kong. Who was the employer?"

The bartender's face was covered in tears and snot. "There are rules; I can't disclose the employer's information..."

"I'll talk, I'll talk." Seeing the guy's gun barrel move slightly again, the bartender immediately shouted, "The order isn't taken here, it's in another bar. I can only dispatch orders here. I really don't know. Killing me won't do any good. I only make a few thousand dollars a month. If I die, someone will take my place immediately."

Hai Dazhao tilted his head. Before coming, Wang Yaotang had told him some information he had learned from Oliveira. The mercenary business in Marseille has a history of more than 200 years. Merchants have been hiring soldiers from here to develop Africa for a long time. There is already a very complete process. It is almost impossible to find out the employer.

Oliveira stated that it wasn't that he didn't want to help, but rather that he lacked the ability.

After putting down his gun and taking a picture of the bartender with his camera, Hai Dazhao asked, "Name, age, address, and family members."

"I……"

Hai Dazhao glared at him, and the bartender immediately spilled the beans.

"Who is your boss? Where does he live? When will he be coming?"

“We are employed by the organization, and I have never met any of its higher-ups.”

Hai Dazhao pursed his lips, "I hate this kind of tightly organized system the most."

Tilting his head, the other person opened the package on his back and dumped it on the ground, pulling out dozens of videotapes.

"Play it every day for a week. Distribute the videotapes and tell those mercenaries that anyone who dares to enter Hong Kong without permission will be turned into animal feed!"

"OK, OK, OK," the bartender said hastily.

The roller shutter opened, and Hai Dazhao and his entourage walked out leisurely, even carefully helping to lower the shutter. (End of Chapter)