Hong Kong Film Intelligence King

Chapter 363 Striving to Live
"Wang Sheng, Kun Ge and I have discussed it and made a decision."

Commissioner Smith came to Wang Dao's office again, beaming.

"We're prepared to take a million!"

Wang Dao looked at him speechlessly:
"Wake up, it's not dark yet, what sweet dreams are you having?"

"You haven't even done a trial run, yet you dare to ask for a million pills?"

Smith quickly said:

“We conducted research.”

“Siam is such a big place, and the pre-orders have already reached a million grains, not to mention Okamoto, which is several times larger.”

Wang Dao was taken aback and said:
"No, the experiments back home haven't even been finished yet, and you've already launched a million pills?"

Smith sighed:

"Kun is a genius!"

"Anyway, according to him, Hong Kong can easily consume a million pills a year."

Wang Dao sneered:
"Why is there no problem?"

"Does such a tiny place like Hong Kong really need to consume a million blue pills every year?"

"Isn't this probably smuggling and reselling?"

Smith argued:

"As long as they sell it, we don't care where they sell it."

Wang Dao sighed:

"That's true."

"However, we must avoid cutthroat competition."

"The Hong Kong market is only so big, so products sold in Hong Kong must not engage in vicious competition."

"Otherwise, once a conflict arises, we won't be able to handle it in the future."

"Besides, things are valued for their scarcity."

"Our profits are high now because this drug is not actually on the market."

"The goods you sell are all sold as health supplements."

Smith's mouth dropped open:

"Health products?"

Wang Dao countered with a question:
"if not?"

"Could it be medicine?"

"Where are the approvals? Where is the production license?"

Smith argued:

"But the production permit from my hometown is not valid in the United States."

The Way of Kings is straightforward:
"This is discrimination, and it's also a manipulative tactic."

"I didn't intend to send this thing to the Ugly Country first."

Smith's mouth dropped open:

"what?"

"Such a good product, why isn't it exported to the Ugly Country?"

Wang Dao said calmly:
"It is true that the United States is the world's largest market, but its control is too strong."

"If we had exported to the U.S. from the beginning, you would not have received any of the profits in the future."

"Are you willing to accept this?"

Smith shook his head vigorously:
"Not reconciled!"

Why is he running around so busily?
Make money!
Once the pharmaceutical company receives investment, its profits will decrease or even disappear.

He would absolutely not allow such a thing to happen.

"I will not consider going to the Ugly Country until we become strong."

"You must know that when you're in the game, you have to consider your background."

"Your background isn't strong, so others can swallow you whole without any discomfort."

"Your background is strong enough that others can only treat you like a Bodhisattva."

"Forget about a million grains!"

"I will not approve it."

Smith looked bitter.
"Brother Dao, at least approve some of them, right?"

Wang Dao thought for a moment and said:

"Hey, don't say I didn't give you a chance to make a fortune."

"I'll approve 10,000 pills for you in the first month."

"Take this thing and take it for a trip to Okamoto and South Korea."

Smith's face grew increasingly bitter:

"Only 10,000 pills?"

Wang Dao smiled and said:
"Ten thousand pills is already a lot."

"Even if a person uses it continuously, they can only use a maximum of twenty pills a month."

"An event that lasted a month, involving five hundred people."

"This efficiency is already very high."

Smith said dejectedly:

“That’s too little.”

Wang Dao coldly snorted:
"I haven't added any conditions yet."

Smith was taken aback:
"Do we need to add conditions?"

Wang Dao smiled and said:
"For these 10,000 pills, I want 10 million Hong Kong dollars."

"If you can't do it, then don't keep talking about a million grains."

Unexpectedly, Smith said confidently:
"So that's what it is, Brother Dao, just you wait and see!"

Wang Dao gave a thumbs up:

"You rock!"

"By the way, if you feel you can't handle it alone, you can bring James along."

"The power of Chongqing is not comparable to that of the United States, but to be honest, it can only give you some prestige."

Smith shook his head with a wry smile:
"James is feeling down; he probably won't be able to go."

The Way of the King does not understand the Way:
"Is James frustrated?"

"what happened?"

Smith shrugged:

"James noticed that there was something wrong with the American blood plasma products that Chongqing bought, so he wrote a report, which Mr. M also submitted."

Wang Dao immediately understood:
"Could this report have been thrown away as trash?"

Smith mocked:

“It’s much more serious than that.”

"After James submitted his report, Mr. M was criticized by his superiors."

"He said he shouldn't waste his energy on irrelevant things."

"He said he wasted taxpayers' money."

Wang Dao was speechless, and finally commented:

"City of Fog is truly shameless."

"This is clearly cleaning up their mess, and this is the kind of feedback we get."

"Who will dare to speak the truth in the future?"

Smith disagreed:
"I had anticipated this outcome."

"So I advised James early on, but unfortunately he wouldn't listen."

"This is also something that can't be helped."

"James' family is all in Chongqing. Who can guarantee that his family members won't get sick from now on?"

"Who can guarantee that they won't use plasma imported from the U.S. after they get sick?"

"Who can guarantee that imported blood plasma from men won't carry other contaminants?"

Wang Dao nodded slowly.

"That's right."

"This is a dead end, there's no solution!"

Smith takes it all in stride:

“I told him that it was simply because his position wasn’t high enough to change the reality.”

"If his position were high enough, as high as Mrs. Therese's..."

Wang Dao chuckled coldly.

"Would that really change the situation?"

Smith shrugged:

"That's pretty tough."

"Who in capitalism cares about the consumables at the bottom level?"

Wang Dao suddenly asked:

"You went to university, right?"

Smith nodded:

"I've been there!"

Wang Dao pressed on, asking:
"Was your tuition paid in full or through a loan?"

Smith's lips twitched slightly:
"loan!"

Wang Dao sympathized with the way:
"So you haven't finished paying it off yet, have you?"

Smith smiled wryly:

"I still owe the bank $100,000."

Wang Dao secretly calculated:
"Then you're in trouble. At a compound interest rate of 14%, it will take you 20 years to pay it off."

Smith remained silent for a long time before speaking:
"That's why I have to come out and earn extra money."

"Living in the Ugly Country, as long as you don't lose your job, everything is fine."

"But once you lose your job, you'll lose your house, your family, and all your wealth."

"so……"

"I want to be rich."

Wang Dao frowned and said:
"You're the head of the US military intelligence agency in Asia, and you're worried about this too?"

Smith sighed:
"I'm more worried than anyone else."

Wang Dao shrugged:

"Alright, don't worry. As long as you can open up the markets in Okamoto and South Korea, you'll always get a share of the profits from those markets."

Smith sincerely thanks:
"Don't worry, Mr. Wang, I will do my best."

Wang Dao waved his hand:
"Perhaps you'll find a senior management position at Jinghu Pharmaceuticals in the future."

Smith chuckled:
“I’ve already talked to Brother Kun. If I really leave the Military Intelligence Bureau in the future, I will seek a senior management position at Energy Pharmaceuticals.”

"At that time, I will be working with the current Governor of Hong Kong."

Wang Dao laughed heartily:

"That would be very interesting."

Smith laughed too:

"It's really fun."

"However, that's a matter for the future."

"Right now, all I want to do is make money and earn more for my family."

Wang Daoqi said:

"It's truly unbelievable that such a famous playboy would say something like that."

Smith's face darkened.
"Who is ruining my reputation?"

Wang Dao understood:
"You're just pretending to be a playboy?"

Smith chuckled dryly:

"It's not exactly a disguise."

"However, as you know, ever since the incident involving the second Director of the Bureau of Military Intelligence, the President has not been very fond of us intelligence personnel."

"A flawless intelligence officer is terrifying, and will arouse the fear of everyone."

"Therefore, it is important to appropriately expose weaknesses."

"I also enjoy hanging out with beautiful women, so being a playboy is like killing two birds with one stone."

Wang Dao waved his hand:
"Okay, I understand, Mr. Playboy. You can go to work now, Mr. Playboy."

Smith was somewhat unwilling to give up:

"I really can sell a million pills."

Wang Dao pointed to the gate and said:
"Please leave and close the door for me, thank you."

Smith then left dejectedly. Wang Dao turned to Xu Zhengyang and asked:

How do you feel?

Xu Zhengyang frowned and said:

Why do I feel that people in Western countries don't live as well as we imagine?

"They are a developed country."

Wang Dao scoffed at this:

"Their wealth distribution is problematic."

"Don't be fooled by the reputation of being a developed country."

"It's just a packaged sales pitch."

"In a way, people in Western countries should thank the red bear."

Xu Zhengyang didn't understand:

"Thank you, Red Bear?"

Wang Dao sighed:

"Yes, if it weren't for the existence of the Red Bear, which restrains big capitalists and gives them some bottom line, do you believe that the lives of ordinary people in the West would be ten times more difficult than they are now?"

Xu Zhengyang really couldn't understand it.

Wang Dao sighed:

"It seems I need to tell you something else to help you demystify the West."

"To understand what a country is like, just look at the lives of its people at the bottom."

"Do you know how to eliminate someone in the Ugly Country?"

Xu Zhengyang shook his head:

"do not know!"

After thinking for a moment, he asked,
"Physical elimination?"

Wang Dao shook his head:
"That's illegal."

“Those big capitalists wouldn’t plunder like this.”

Xu Zhengyang became interested:
"What to do?"

Wang Dao raised his palm and slowly extended his fingers:

"Actually, it only takes two steps."

"The first step is to make someone unemployed."

"The second step is to make him lose his house."

"Then he will die within three years."

Xu Zhengyang was even more confused:

"The first and second steps must be difficult to do, right?"

Wang Dao shrugged:

"It's very easy to do."

"It's just layoffs; any excuse will do."

“Once a person loses their job, they will be unable to make ends meet, and may even be unable to pay property taxes. The house will then be repossessed.”

"Then, it's even less likely that he'll find a job."

"Soon, they will become homeless, and then die."

Xu Zhengyang asked in bewilderment:

"Brother Dao, how come I still don't understand your words?"

Wang Dao explained:
"That's because you don't have enough information."

“Taking the United States as an example, the income of ordinary workers is indeed much higher than that of their hometowns.”

"However, they have all sorts of bad lifestyle habits."

"For example, not saving money, or consuming in advance."

"In addition, the US's math is not good, and they can't distinguish the differences between early loans."

"For example, a color TV that costs a thousand US dollars might be considered expensive by the other party."

"But the monthly payment is ninety-nine dollars, and it will be paid off in two years."

"They'll feel like they got it for free."

Xu Zhengyang's mouth dropped open:

"This……"

"Didn't this cost an extra 1,400 US dollars?"

Wang Dao chuckled lightly:
"Yes, that's it."

"Ordinary American people don't understand."

"Not to mention ordinary American citizens, even many elites can get lost in the convoluted terms and conditions of businesses."

"You could get infected if you're not careful."

"Then all the wealth will vanish overnight."

"So what does the Ugly Country have the most of?"

"lawyer!"

"All kinds of lawyers, only lawyers can prevent them from getting into all sorts of troubles woven by businesses."

"Big capitalists would love to empty every penny out of your pocket."

"In order to make the people of the Ugly Country willingly spend money, they will use rhetoric to weave all kinds of consumption concepts, and even engage in activities that flaunt wealth."

"In this kind of atmosphere, it's impossible to save money without a great deal of rationality."

"Let me tell you something that seems absurd to Easterners."

"Executives of large corporations may not be able to come up with $10,000 in cash."

Xu Zhengyang was stunned; he didn't believe Wang Dao would lie to him.

That's why he felt it was so magical.

"Brother Dao, what exactly is property tax?"

Wang Dao laughed and said:

"Property tax?"

"If you buy a house, you will need to pay a certain percentage of tax based on its market value every year."

Xu Zhengyang opened his mouth wide:
"what?"

"Didn't I buy that house?"

"Do I still need to pay taxes?"

Wang Dao shrugged:

"Yes, we need it!"

This matter completely shattered Xu Zhengyang's worldview:

"This is worse than renting a place!"

Wang Dao shook his finger:

"No, no, no, if you're renting, the other party will add the property tax to the rent."

Xu Zhengyang was completely numb. He gritted his teeth and said:

"The Ugly Country is vast and sparsely populated. Surely I can find a place to live in seclusion?"

Wang Dao looked at him with amusement:
"Leaving aside the various inconveniences of being separated from civilized life, there is just one reason why it is not feasible."

Xu Zhengyang frowned and said:

"what?"

The Way of Kings is straightforward:
"Most of the land in the Ugly Country is privately owned. It's simply impossible for you to live on someone else's land."

"Unless you pay the rental fee!"

Xu Zhengyang was speechless.

Wang Daoyi shrugged:

"You see, because of the various bad lifestyle habits of the American people, once they lose their jobs, they will be overwhelmed by bills and can easily lose their houses."

"In order to collect taxes, the Ugly Kingdom has stipulated that in order to obtain a stable job, one must find a stable place to live."

"This logically blocks the path for homeless people to reintegrate into society."

"Therefore, the average lifespan of a homeless person in the Ugly country is only three years."

"Three years later, no one knows where he will die."

Why do you think Commissioner Smith is so eager to earn extra money?

"That's all caused by the pressures of life."

"If he doesn't find a way to make money while he's in office, he might become a pauper overnight after he retires."

Xu Zhengyang was very confused:
"Aren't there many middle-class people in the Ugly Country?"

Wang Dao mocked:
"Middle class?"

"That thing is a false concept; in essence, it's just the proletariat."

“The house isn’t his, but he has to pay property tax every year.”

"The factory doesn't belong to him; he's just a worker."

“The land isn’t his either, and if it were, he wouldn’t be a middle-class person.”

"Alright, what else is his?"

"debt!"

"Only the debt is his."

"This is the truth about the middle class!"

Isn't that amazing?

Xu Zhengyang's lips twitched as he said:

"This isn't just surprising, it's terrifying."

He suddenly reacted.
"Brother Dao, are you worried that I'll be brainwashed?"

Wang Dao also did not hide this point:
“You are the assistant that Haili sent me.”

"I don't want you to lose your way."

"Western societies are more developed than ours now, but you need to know how they developed."

Xu Zhengyang remained silent for a long time before speaking:
“I have read ‘The Rise of Great Powers’.”

The Way of the King:

"So, how does it feel?"

Xu Zhengyang said earnestly:

"These countries rose to power either through education, commerce, or colonies, but in essence, they were all plundering."

It's just about harming others to enrich oneself.

Wang Dao smiled slightly:
"Not bad, you see things very clearly."

"Hong Kong is developing quite well, isn't it?"

Xu Zhengyang spoke the truth:
"Some places have indeed developed quite well, but slums still exist here."

"I don't understand at all."

"They're all the same people, so why is there such a big difference?"

Wang Dao said calmly:
"why?"

"It's actually quite easy to understand."

"Capitalists are just in it for the money."

"As long as it makes money, they'll do even the most heinous things; workers are just expendable resources."

Xu Zhengyang couldn't help but say:
"But everyone's gone, so who's going to work for them?"

Wang Dao sighed:

"do you know?"

“The birth rate in the Ugly country has been 2 percent over the past decade, but their population has not increased at all.”

"The same amount ten years ago remains the same ten years later."

Xu Zhengyang opened his mouth wide:
"How can this be?"

Wang Dao said expressionlessly:
"The United States is a country of immigrants, and the one thing it has in abundance is people."

"It's okay that this person is gone; we can just replace him with someone else."

"When some people disappear, others can take their place."

"It's just consumables anyway, so I won't feel bad if it dies."

Xu Zhengyang felt a chill run through his body, as if a coldness had penetrated straight to the top of his head.

This is terrifying.

Wang Dao sighed:

"Zhengyang, this is the truth about the development of Western countries."

Xu Zhengyang gritted his teeth and nodded.

Even if he had been misled, let alone the fact that Brother Dao said that, he should have come to his senses!

(End of this chapter)