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

Chapter 29 SSR Club

The next day.

Luca dropped Matilda off at school on the way, then headed straight for the Bronx, calling Jimmy to come see him.

The two agreed to meet at the club that was about to go bankrupt.

"I have already spoken with the owner of this club."

After the meeting, Luca briefly explained his arrangements to Jimmy: "I'll give you 600 million first. You'll be responsible for following up on the acquisition process. I'll transfer the remaining funds gradually."

This is roughly 80% of Luca's cash flow.

Jimmy said it was no problem, even if Luca wanted to use his name and identity to make the acquisition, since he already had more than one culpable debt to carry for the family.

When family members start companies and get involved in real estate, they always appoint others as legal representatives; they would never show their faces in public.

The big boss is very low-key; apart from advisors and the second boss, very few people can see him directly.

These are all buffer layers; catching one won't implicate the others.

Jimmy had even heard that some families had puppet bosses who were actually the real masterminds, whose names were unknown to others.

It can be seen that the Mafia's internal structure is much more rigorous than that of other gangs.

"Luca, what are your plans for this club going forward?" Jimmy, being a businessman, offered, "I can introduce some members to you."

"Prepare a list for me first, and I'll take a look later," Luca said with a smile. "Of course, you'll definitely be a permanent member of the club and enjoy all the services here."

They've already come out to take the blame, so they should still be given a permanent VIP membership.

It's at least a C-grade card.

Luca's words brought a knowing smile to Jimmy's face.

He didn't care about the members; what he cared about was Luca's attention. Luca was so young, yet he was already a formal member of the family, with a brilliant record, generous spending, and formidable strength. He had a very high probability of becoming a high-ranking member of the family in the future.

Once Luca rises to prominence, Jimmy joining the family will be a simple matter of Luca's word—the big boss has the right to invite anyone into the family, and Sicilian blood? It won't be an obstacle then.

Jimmy felt that his judgment was probably correct.

So he listened to everything Luca had said.

“The club will be opening an underground casino,” Luca instructed. “You need to find a few poker players for me beforehand. They need to be exceptionally skilled and able to keep the place in check.”

The most popular card game in the United States right now is Texas Hold'em, without a doubt. There are many variations of Texas Hold'em alone, followed by other games such as Blackjack, Baccarat, slot machines, and roulette.

Las Vegas also hosts the World Series of Poker, with very generous prize money.

However, the federal government will pass legislation in the future, which will consider luck to be more important than skill in Texas Hold'em, severely impacting online poker websites. Texas may even ban commercial casinos from playing this game.

Competition is fine, but gambling is not.

In New York, playing cards privately is allowed, but gambling in groups is not, and New York has not issued casino operating licenses.

Therefore, all of this is illegal.

We can't do it openly.

Jimmy naturally understood the rules. There were dozens, even hundreds, of underground gambling dens in New York, each backed by the Mafia or Russian gangs. Some well-connected police officers could even gamble there.

“Leave it to me, I know some good professional poker players.” Jimmy immediately thought of those guys he could never beat no matter what he did.

That's not just a matter of luck, it's also a matter of skill; he even suspected the other party was cheating.

"Also, hire some staff for the club," Luca instructed.

There's not much to say about ordinary waiters, chefs, bartenders, cleaners, security guards, drivers, etc. Just hire them normally, if they have a legitimate background, and they are reliable and capable.

However, the head of each small department must be one of their own.

Luca: "It has to be someone trustworthy, someone you know well! Either a brother from the family, or someone with a clean background. Don't bring in anyone with ulterior motives, understand?"

Jimmy: "Okay."

Just before parting, Jimmy suddenly remembered something.
Jimmy: "I still don't know what the club's name is."

Luca: "SSR Club"

In the afternoon, Luca arrived at Wall Street—he was there to make money and, incidentally, to meet that wolf.

There is a stock brokerage firm on Wall Street called Stratton Oakmont. The name may sound unfamiliar, but its owner is Jordan Balfour.

Everyone on Wall Street knows him.

Forbes magazine nicknamed him: The Wolf of Wall Street.

Michael Jordan once helped a company called "Steve Shoes" with its IPO, earning $2200 million in just 3 hours.

Is this legal?

Jordan: It has to be fucking illegal!!

It was because of this incident that Jordan was investigated by the FBI. But what no one expected was that Jordan did something that stunned the entire Wall Street community.

He was under investigation and surveillance by the FBI, and he could have avoided the harassment from the SEC and the FBI by simply paying a fine of several million dollars and then leaving the company and the stock brokerage industry.

But this man brazenly broke his agreement with the China Securities Regulatory Commission and chose to stay with the company to continue his fraudulent activities.

The FBI had no choice but to continue the investigation, vowing to put the guy in jail.

The federal government is eyeing the money that Jordan swindled away.

Luca was also envious.

He was also eyeing Jordan's skills; this guy was at least an A-rank card, right? Or maybe an S-rank card? He wondered what kind of weird skills Jordan might have.
At this very moment, inside this company with its wolf-like culture.

A fat man stood on a desk in the lobby, holding a document in his right hand and a trash can in his left, shouting at the employees watching below.

"The US government sent us a subpoena? This is how Stratton Corporation deals with subpoenas!"

After saying that, he threw the summons into the trash can, and then, in front of everyone, amidst the cheers of all the male and female employees, he urinated into the trash can.

"Fuck America! Fuck you!"

The fat man raised his middle finger and cursed, then suddenly remembered the news from before and added, "Fuck America!"

"Fuck America!"

"Fuck America!"

"Fuck America!"

Dozens, even hundreds, of employees in the hall cheered and shouted, their middle fingers almost piercing the ceiling, creating a scene of madness and chaos.

Even though Luca had prepared himself mentally, he couldn't help but feel very gratified to see such a raw and abstract company culture.

America needs these passionate and rebellious individuals.

"Fuck America!"

Luca joined in the jeering, raising his middle finger high as he walked past the crowd.

The company's corporate culture was evident everywhere along the way.

Some employees were making work calls; some were taking drugs; and some male and female employees were having fun together.
Luca walked past and went to the innermost office.

Looking through the glass window, unsurprisingly, Jordan Balfour and his female secretary were also engaged in unspeakable acts.

[Character Card Discovered: Jordan Balfour (Unlocked)]

[Jordan: SR]

[Source: The Wolf of Wall Street]

[Skills: Bewitching; Nerve Paralysis; The Wolf of Wall Street]

[Bond: Strangers]

Luca politely waited 10 seconds until Jordan finished before knocking on the door.

"Come in!" Jordan shouted.

Luca pushed open the door, and the female secretary stood up from the pile of summonses on the floor. She hadn't even put on her clothes yet, but when she saw the handsome Luca, she gave him a flirtatious wink.

As Jordan pulled up his pants, he sized up Luka, a man who was damn handsome than himself, and asked with a puzzled look, "Who are you looking for?"

Luca reached into his coat.

Seeing the familiar gesture of pulling out identification, Jordan assumed the other person was an FBI agent and angrily cursed, "Damn it! Are you ever going to stop?! Didn't I say I was cooperating with the investigation? You want a statement, right? You want to see my financial documents, right? Here you go!"

He crouched down to pick up the documents from the ground, and was about to throw them at Luca when his movements suddenly froze.

A gold coin appeared between Luca's fingers.

This is the currency used by mainland hotels, and people of Jordan's level and status recognize it.

He immediately thought of the two company executives who had been murdered earlier.

Is it my turn this time?
"Get out!" Jordan's face darkened.

The female secretary also urged Luca, "Sir, please leave here."

Jordan yelled, "Bitch! I'm talking about you! Get out!"

The female secretary gave an awkward smile.

After the female secretary left, Jordan said with a serious expression, "Are you the assassin from the Continental Hotel? What do you want with me?"

"When a hitman from a mainland hotel comes knocking, there's usually only one reason: to kill."

The coin in his hand flicked and flew into the air. Luca smiled slightly: "But this time it's the opposite; I'm here to help you."

(End of this chapter)