American variety show: The Godfather, the Peace Ambassador, what the heck?

Chapter 175 The Head of the Hongmen
The transaction took place on the afternoon of the same day.

Manhattan's Chinatown.

Luca hadn't been here for several years, probably back when Mariggio was still involved in drug trafficking, and his family had some connections with the Chinatown triads. Back then, the Bonano family dominated the New York drug trade, practically controlling all drug imports and exports.

Later, the rise of drug lord Frank disrupted the balance, completely destabilizing the New York drug market, which has now become a situation where everyone is fighting for drugs. Looking at the major New York Mafia families, apart from the Bonanno family, which is too powerful to shake off, the others have all tacitly chosen to control and reduce their drug trade.

The Mafia is intentionally reducing its share of the drug trade, or rather, becoming a higher, more deeply hidden upstream supplier. Over the past two years, drug dealers in Chinatown have risen to prominence.

When Luca stepped into Chinatown, many drug dealers and lords felt a deep sense of unease, as if they were being watched by some unknown and terrifying entity.

But the streets haven't changed much on the surface; they're still bustling and peaceful.

Ah-Qiang, who came with Luca, said with a smile, "It doesn't feel much different from Hong Kong, except there are more foreigners. When I first came to Chinatown at the beginning of the year, I thought I hadn't been abroad."

Ah-Qiang's green card was already issued a long time ago. He assisted the New York authorities in the gold heist and was of great help. In return, the government happily helped him get his green card.

“Uncle Biao and my dad used to hang out in Chinatown. After my dad died, Uncle Biao left Chinatown and went to the Bronx.” Ah Qiang’s expression was somewhat forlorn.

Luca also knew some inside information. Ah Qiang's father was one of the earliest Hong Kongers to come to New York to make a living, and he also had considerable martial arts skills. How could he make money? What was the fastest way to make money?

As for how A-Qiang's father died, Luca didn't know, nor did he ask Uncle Biao too much.

They've already moved out of Chinatown; they're clearly avoiding certain issues.

But according to Ah-Qiang's description, those Chinatown triad members seemed to value Ah-Qiang quite a bit, probably because of Ah-Qiang's deceased father.

"Uncle Huang asked me to come to Chinatown and work for him," Ah Qiang muttered. "But when I told him I was about to open a furniture store, he was a little surprised. He probably didn't expect me to be doing so well now."

Luca chuckled inwardly, "Ha, trying to steal my man?"
This Uncle Huang is the leader of the Chinatown Triads. Luca had seen him before, but didn't have any character cards for him.

An old man who gets killed as soon as he appears is really lacking in prestige; you can't even get him as a character card.

The person who secretly killed Uncle Huang.
Luca stopped and looked up at the "Chinese Chamber of Commerce" in front of him—the kind of power grab that exists in any gang.

Today, Luca came here to talk to them about smuggling via the Hong Kong route.

Stepping through the gate, Luca soon found himself in an office upstairs with several elderly men in white suits, including Mr. Huang. The other men were all leaders of their respective branches.

Several old men were sitting, and behind them stood a young man in a white suit.

[Character Card: Joey Ty]

[Joey: S]

[Source: Year of the Dragon]

[Skills: Elegant Mask; Hongmen Leader]

[Bond: Strangers]

Lucado glanced at the guy. Handsome as he was, he was also a ruthless man, with a wolf's ambition hidden beneath his elegant mask.

The future is that Joey arranges for his father-in-law, Mr. Huang, to be killed, then ousts the successor and becomes the boss himself, expanding and strengthening the drug business.

But he was eventually killed by the police. However, Luca thought it was an extremely illogical plot device. Given Joey's methods and cunning, he shouldn't have been killed so easily.

The other party is just a newbie who got there through connections. There are so many senior figures in the gang who are still alive and well, so it's not his place to speak.

While Luca was observing the crowd, Joey was also observing the young man in front of him, who was about the same age as him, and a hint of wariness flashed in his eyes.

He had only reached his current position by using connections and climbing the social ladder, while the other party was of a higher status. Although the other party was just a gang leader, the power of the other party's family was too great, far beyond what a Chinatown could match.

At least, he can stand on equal footing with the gang's top leaders and face the entire Triads alone.

Joey stood silently behind his father-in-law, watching a group of gang leaders politely discuss business with the other party.

Luca spoke in detail about car smuggling, saying, "We have cars from major groups like Ford and General Motors."

Ford has sub-brands such as Ford and Lincoln, while GM has even more brands, including Buick, Cadillac, and Chevrolet.

These cars were, of course, obtained through irregular channels from within those Detroit groups. To be precise, it was a gray market partnership, essentially a shady dealership. There were also used cars, refurbished cars, and so on.

Selling directly to other countries is too expensive due to tariffs, but smuggling is a different story.
Luca didn't need to explain how the car got there; he only needed to communicate with the Triads about how to safely smuggle it to Hong Kong. "We can all make money together. Whether you want tolls or a split, we can discuss it." Mr. Huang showed some interest, but his expression was troubled. "Pigeon, the smuggling business isn't doing well lately. Hong Kong customs has been very strict these past few years, scrutinizing foreign ships, especially transport ships from the Americas. Those customs officers not only check your documents, but they also inspect the ship inside and out."
Even if you unload the cargo, who will take over all these cars? Japanese cars are much cheaper than American cars, and Hong Kong triads prefer to smuggle cars from Japan.

This is because the money isn't in place. Luca remained unfazed. "You can sell cheap paper cars to the mainland, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and Japan, but the cheaper the price, the less profit you make. American cars have much higher profit margins, and you should be well aware of that."

In China, the current comprehensive tariff on imported cars is as high as 200%, making the profit margin on imported cars quite substantial; even used cars can fetch a considerable amount of money. Moreover, there are countless car factories in Hong Kong and Guangdong. After new cars arrive at the coastal areas, they are cut, welded, and refurbished overnight before being sold to the mainland and other places.

Hong Kong, as a major transit hub, is a serious smuggling center, handling everything from spare parts and complete vehicles to pirated CDs and other similar items.

This business is definitely going to make a lot of money, but how should the profits be distributed?
The two sides argued endlessly over the distribution of the profits. The triad elders were unwilling to budge and demanded a higher price, wanting both the bridge toll and their share.

But Luca remained adamant, acting as if to say, "Take it or leave it, I'll find someone else."

This caused several old men to grumble under their breath, muttering complaints in Cantonese, taking advantage of the fact that Luca, the foreigner, couldn't understand.

"These guys are so stingy! We work like crazy selling parallel goods, we barely make enough to cover our transportation costs!"

"They clearly want to freeload off our smuggling channel!"

"Those Jewish devils who die by the hand of the devil, they deserve to die!"

"We agreed on a 30/70 split, but you're playing word games. It's 70% for them and 30% for us! Do you think we're running a charity?"

"Do the Italians think we're free porters? They dump our goods as soon as they arrive, not even offering a cigar!"

Luca listened to their complaints and said with a smile, "If you have any opinions, feel free to speak them."

Everyone was stunned. This Italian guy had such sharp ears? He could understand them? And he could even speak Cantonese?
Joey was also stunned for a moment, and everyone subconsciously looked at Ah Qiang behind Luca. Could it be that Ah Qiang taught him?
The atmosphere became inexplicably awkward. Mr. Huang explained, "Pigeon, we just feel that the risks of smuggling are too great right now. We need to discuss it more carefully. We also need to talk to the triads in Hong Kong. Why don't we discuss it first and then visit the SSR Club in person once we have a result?"

Luca curled the corners of his mouth into a meaningful smile. Without lingering, he called out to Ah Qiang and left.

[Bond: Follow]

After the two left, Mr. Huang said quietly, "I don't think this Luca the pigeon is very sincere about cooperating with us."

Mr. Wei, who was standing nearby, asked in confusion, "When did the Lucchese family get involved in car smuggling again? Weren't they always delivering garbage in New York?"

Joey added, "Luca the Pigeon has a huge business. He's the president of the truck drivers' union and runs a gas station business. He's the richest gangster in the Lucchese family now. He also seems to have deep connections in Detroit. But he doesn't deal drugs."

This left everyone present somewhat disappointed, as Luca not only didn't deal drugs, but he also forbade others to deal drugs on his turf.
When the topic of drugs came up, Mr. Huang thought of the deal with the Winter Mountain Gang that night. "Joey, you go to Boston tonight and keep an eye on things. That batch of chips is very important to us. Be careful not to let anything happen to the Chinese officials!"

Joey nodded: "Okay."

into the night.

Inside a factory near Boston Harbor, cars pulled up at the entrance, and members of the Winter Mountain Gang, including Costello and Billy, got out.

Moreover, everything was clearly captured by the police cameras.

Using Billy's intelligence, the police installed cameras inside and around the factory in advance to monitor everything. Once the transaction was completed and both parties had handed over the "goods," they would have concrete evidence of the crime to arrest Costello.

However, through Colin, the mole, Costello also gained insight into the police's movements and knew everything they were up to.

He wasn't afraid of being caught at all, because all the chips he provided were counterfeit.

Even if it were genuine, he would still find ways to distance himself from the police and avoid their surveillance and arrest.

All of this was just a show for the police.

The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole lurking behind the scenes—certain FBI officials.

Therefore, when the transaction began, the police discovered large blind spots, and all the gang members had turned off their phones, so no signal could be detected.

This infuriated the group of police officers.

Just then, the cars at the factory gate suddenly started moving, clearly indicating that the gangsters had not yet come out.

"Fuck!" Dickman, who was monitoring the whole thing, cursed. "Those bastards! They escaped via another route!"

(End of this chapter)