Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

79 Deep Water Bay, the Li family mansion, the luxurious European-style living room on the first floor.

"Beep...beep..."

The dial tone coming from the mobile phone speaker was like a heavy hammer, slamming into Li Chengjia's heart.

Li Zeju's desperate, fearful, and even tearful cries for help shattered the last shred of hope in the tycoon's heart. That was his eldest son, whom he had carefully nurtured for over twenty years; the future hope of the entire Cheung Kong Holdings!

Now, that hope is being held in the hands of a group of madmen strapped with explosives.

The living room was deathly silent. A dozen bodyguards, their foreheads covered in cold sweat, stood with their submachine guns raised, staring intently at Dai Fuqiang, who sat on the sofa with C4 explosives strapped to his chest. They didn't dare to even breathe loudly.

"Call the police... sir, let's call the police!" The butler beside him trembled, suggesting in a low voice, "The Flying Tigers can definitely..."

"Shut up!"

Li Chengjia suddenly turned his head, his eyes like those of an enraged lion, which frightened the butler into immediately shutting his mouth.

Call the police?

Having spent so many years in Hong Kong, Li Chengjia knew the Royal Hong Kong Police all too well. Against ordinary petty thieves, the police might be somewhat useful. But against a notorious criminal like this, who dared to break into a house with a bomb strapped to his body, those paid police officers were utterly unreliable!

The recent "Jun Du Hotel incident" and the Harbour City bombing extortion case were both extremely dangerous, resulting in heavy casualties. Even Jardine Matheson's patriarch, Newt B. Kin, lost his life in the chaos! The police were slow to react and their command was chaotic. In the end, it was only thanks to Lu Chen's "Jiahe Security" that the situation was forcibly quelled.

Li Chengjia is a traditional Chaoshan person. In the Chaoshan people's mindset, family bloodline is of paramount importance.

He was confident he could earn the money back; but if the police's reckless raid drove the robbers to desperation and kill his son, his life would be ruined. He couldn't afford to gamble, and he absolutely dared not entrust his son's life to those incompetent cops!

"call--"

Li Chengjia took a deep drag on his cigar, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart. When he looked up at Dai Fuqiang again, the panic and anger on his face had miraculously disappeared, replaced by the calmness and composure of a top businessman.

"Put down your guns. Everyone back out."

Li Chengjia waved his hand, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable authority.

"Sir! This is too dangerous! He has a bomb on him..." the security supervisor exclaimed anxiously.

"I said, get out!" Li Chengjia shouted sternly. "Since Mr. Dai has the audacity to walk into the Li family's gate alone, it represents his sincerity. How can the Li family be rude to its guests?"

The bodyguards looked at each other, and finally had no choice but to put down their guns and slowly retreat from the living room, but they remained on high alert outside the door.

In the large living room, only Li Chengjia and Dai Fuqiang remained.

"Smack."

Li Chengjia took out a checkbook and a Parker gold pen from the drawer under the coffee table. Without saying a word, he quickly wrote down a string of numbers, tore off a check, and gently pushed it in front of Dai Fuqiang.

Dai Fuqiang raised an eyebrow and glanced down.

Swiss bank draft, amount: HK$38 million.

"Mr. Dai, my brothers are out there braving the wind and sun, it's not easy doing this job," Li Chengjia said, leaning back on the sofa with his hands crossed on his knees, his tone as calm as if he were discussing a normal real estate transaction. "This 38 million is a bearer check, which can be cashed at any time. Consider it 'tea money' from me, Li, to treat my brothers outside to tea."

"We Chaoshan people believe in making money through harmony. I only ask that you brothers please don't make things difficult for my son, Zeju."

That was undeniably a brilliant move.

Even the usually arrogant Dai Fuqiang was stunned when he saw the 38 million that was given away so casually.

"Clap clap clap..."

Dai Fuqiang suddenly clapped his hands, his wariness turning into an undisguised greed and excitement.

"Excellent! Mr. Li is indeed a man of great things! Decisive and magnanimous!"

Without any hesitation, Dai Fuqiang folded the check, stuffed it into his trench coat pocket, and laughed loudly, "Since Mr. Li is being so kind, I, Dai, can't be lazy."

"I'm making this clear today: if this deal goes through, my brothers and I guarantee we'll only extort the Li family this once! From now on, if it's a Li family car or someone from the Li family, my brothers and I will absolutely avoid them! We will never lay a finger on the Li family!"

Dai Fuqiang patted his chest and solemnly made his utterly unreliable underworld promise.

"With Mr. Dai's words, I'm relieved." Li Chengjia nodded and got straight to the point, "I wonder how much Mr. Dai wants this time?"

Dai Fuqiang leaned forward, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Li Chengjia, like a venomous snake eyeing its fattest prey.

"Mr. Li, your net worth must be at least 10 billion now, right? I originally discussed with my brothers that we were planning to ask you for 2 billion."

Upon hearing "two billion," Li Chengjia's eyes twitched violently, and his heart felt like it was bleeding.

"However..." Dai Fuqiang changed the subject, grinning, "For the sake of Mr. Li's 'tea' just now, I'll give you a discount."

"One price. 1.68 billion."

Dai Fuqiang held up his fingers and gestured, "Mr. Li is a businessman, he values ​​auspiciousness. 168, it sounds like 'all the way to prosperity'! I also wish Mr. Li's business will flourish and prosper in the future. How about that, isn't that generous enough?"

1.68 billion!

And you want me to wish you wealth?!

Li Chengjia's hands, hidden in his sleeves, were clenched into tight fists, his nails almost digging into his flesh. If looks could kill, Dai Fuqiang would already be torn to pieces.

"Mr. Dai, you overestimate me," Li Chengjia took a deep breath, his tone tinged with bitterness and helplessness. "Everyone says that I, Li, am richer than a country. But you should know that Cheung Kong Holdings is a listed company, and the vast majority of my assets are in stocks, land, and buildings under construction."

"That's dead money, not cash." Li Chengjia looked at Dai Fuqiang and said frankly, "Although I have money, it's impossible for me to come up with more than 1.6 billion in cash in one day. Even if I robbed a bank, I couldn't get that much."

This is indeed the case. Although Cheung Kong Holdings was large in 1983, it was not yet the behemoth that it would become in later years, dominating Hong Kong Island and monopolizing half of Europe.

"So how much can you take? Just a friendly reminder, you only have one chance to bargain!" Dai Fuqiang's face turned cold, and his hand unconsciously reached for the "dead-end switch".

Li Chengjia gritted his teeth.

In the past few days, in order to acquire the shares of "Hong Kong Telephone Company" from Hongkong Land Group, he has urgently drawn and stockpiled a huge amount of cash flow from the accounts of major banks and his own industries.

Unexpectedly, before the telephone company even had a chance to buy it, this money was going to be fed into the mouth of this hungry wolf!

"One billion," Li Chengjia held up one finger, "plus the loose cash the bank can withdraw today, to make it a lucky number. One billion sixty-eight million. This is truly the limit of all the cash I can raise in a short period of time."

One billion six hundred and eight million.

Upon hearing this number, Dai Fuqiang's heart skipped a beat.

That mysterious "director" was indeed a genius! He said Li Chengjia could come up with 1 billion, and the old guy really could only come up with 1 billion! Moreover, not only did he get the 1 billion main course, but he also got an extra 68 million. This deal has far exceeded his expectations.

Dai Fuqiang pretended to be deep in thought, took two puffs of his cigar, and then suddenly slapped his thigh.

"Okay! Deal!"

Dai Fuqiang stood up, the C4 explosives on his body swaying with his movements, startling the bodyguards outside the door into another tense moment.

"One billion sixty-eight million! Not a penny less! I want this money in old bills, not consecutive serial numbers! I want to see the money laid out in this living room tomorrow morning!"

"No problem, I'll have all the major banks prepare overnight." Li Chengjia, sweating profusely, agreed, looking at the bomb vest that swayed with each movement.

"To show my sincerity," Dai Fuqiang sat down again, took off his oversized trench coat, leaving only the horrifying bomb vest underneath, and then arrogantly put his legs up on the expensive coffee table.

"I'll stay at your Li family's house tonight. I'll wait for the money here myself."

"Rest assured, Mr. Li, once I receive the money tomorrow, I guarantee your son will return here unharmed. The fact that I, Dai, dare to appear before you today in my true form demonstrates my sincerity. After all, your Li family has such immense power. If I take the money and you don't see your son, or if your son is missing a single hair, you are free to mobilize the entire Hong Kong underworld and legitimate society, spending a hundred million or a billion dollars to hunt me down! I, the wealthy tycoon, will have no complaints!"

This extremely confident, even somewhat gangster-like, logic left Li Chengjia speechless, but also slightly relieved. He could only instruct the butler to prepare the best guest room and drinks for this "god of wealth".

……

Night falls.

79 Deep Water Bay has become a completely isolated island. The gates are locked, and all telephone lines are under close surveillance by bodyguards.

In the living room.

Dai Fuqiang sat on an expensive leather sofa, holding a glass of French Louis XIII cognac worth hundreds of thousands of yuan in his hand, and a Cohiba Cuban cigar from Li Chengjia's private collection in his mouth.

Across from him sat Li Chengjia, expressionless, with only a glass of water in front of him.

"call--"

Dai Fuqiang exhaled a thick puff of cigar smoke, surveying the extremely luxurious mansion. A complex emotion flashed in his eyes—jealousy, disdain, and the extreme arrogance that comes with a comeback.

"Mr. Li, look," Dai Fuqiang said, swirling the crystal glass in his hand, "I'm drinking your Louis XIII and smoking your Cuban cigar right now."

"Look at me, then look at yourself. We're sitting here drinking and chatting. How am I any different from you so-called real tycoons and members of high society?"

Dai Fuqiang scoffed and replied to himself, "Actually, there's no difference at all. The only difference is that I come from a humble background, while you come from a noble one. If I had been born into a wealthy family, I, Dai Fuqiang, could still be sitting in an office in Central, giving orders!"

Faced with these nouveau riche remarks filled with class resentment, Li Chengjia did not get angry. Instead, he gently put down his water glass, looked at Dai Fuqiang, and his eyes revealed a profound look that was unique to those in power and had seen the vicissitudes of life.

“Mr. Dai, you’re wrong. We’re not the same,” Li Chengjia said calmly, but every word was firm and resolute. “When I was young, I was also very poor. I fled to Hong Kong to escape the war. I dropped out of school at fourteen to become an apprentice in a watch shop. I swept the floor and emptied the spittoon every day, working more than ten hours a day, and I couldn’t even get a full meal.”

"I even had a serious lung disease and almost died in that damp attic."

Li Chengjia pointed to his hands, which, although well-maintained, still had large knuckles.

"But I didn't steal, nor did I rob. I certainly didn't hold a knife to someone's neck and demand money."

"What I rely on is my own hands, the sweat I shed every day from dawn till dusk, my business integrity and my ability to seize opportunities, which has allowed me to build up the Cheung Kong Holdings business I am today."

"Wealth is accumulated through wisdom and hard work. But you..." Li Chengjia shook his head, making no attempt to hide the contempt in his eyes, "are just a robber who gets rich through violence and without working. You will never become a real tycoon."

These words were spoken with righteous indignation, as if a true business guru were reprimanding a lost lamb.

however.

After hearing this, Dai Fuqiang was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter that was even more frenzied and shrill than during the day.

"Hahahaha!!"

Dai Fuqiang laughed so hard he almost fell over, spilling the Louis XIII he was holding.

"My goodness! Mr. Li, have you been giving so many speeches to college students that you've even started believing this nonsense yourself?"

Dai Fuqiang abruptly stopped smiling, leaned forward, and stared intently at Li Chengjia with his fierce eyes, mercilessly tearing off the tycoon's most hypocritical mask.

"Build your success through sheer hard work? Don't you dare pretend to be a saint! Everyone in Hong Kong knows your background, Li Chengjia!"

Dai Fuqiang pointed at Li Chengjia's nose, his words piercingly incisive:

"Back then, you were just a poor, struggling salesman selling plastic flowers! If you had relied solely on hard work, you'd be at best the manager of a plastic factory in Mong Kok now!"

"Your biggest and most successful 'investment' in this life wasn't any business acumen at all. It was that you shamelessly married your incredibly wealthy cousin, Zhuang Yueming!"

"You found a good father-in-law, Zhuang Jing'an! If it weren't for your father-in-law providing the money, connections, and land to help you build factories and start businesses, what would you, Li Chengjia, be?! Would you have had the start-up capital to speculate on land?! Would you have this multi-billion dollar empire you have today?!"

"Stop pretending to be a self-made entrepreneurial hero in front of me! You're just a kept man!"

Dai Fuqiang took a deep drag on his cigar and blew the smoke onto Li Chengjia's face, which instantly stiffened and his veins bulged.

"I, Dai Fuqiang, am a robber. But I'm a robber who risks his life!"

"And you, Li Chengjia, are nothing but a hypocrite who climbed to power through women and then tries to portray yourself as virtuous!"

"So don't put on that high and mighty attitude in front of me. Neither of us is superior to the other!"

Dead silence.

Absolute silence.

The air in the living room seemed to freeze. Li Chengjia's face turned pale and then flushed, his chest heaving violently.

This dark history of "making his fortune through his cousin and father-in-law" is Li Chengjia's biggest taboo in his life. Normally, the media and businessmen, even British tycoons, dare not mention a single word about it in front of him.

Today, however, a ruthless bandit strapped with explosives smashed his face in such a brutal and humiliating manner.

But he couldn't refute it, nor did he dare to lash out.

Because his son's life is still in the hands of this madman.

The two remained locked in a silent standoff in an extremely awkward and oppressive atmosphere.

……

the next day.

January 23, 1983, early morning.

One billion Hong Kong dollars. This is a real mountain of money.

Dozens of large black canvas travel bags filled the spacious living room of the Li family home. Li Chengjia used all his connections to retrieve this astronomical sum of old banknotes from the vaults of major banks across Hong Kong overnight.

Dai Fuqiang unzipped one of the zippers, looked inside at the thousand-yuan bills, and nodded in satisfaction.

The money laundering convoy arranged by the "director" has already stopped outside Deep Water Bay Road. The money will soon be transported to the pier, loaded onto smuggling speedboats, and completely disappear from the police's sight.

"The money is here, but where is my son?" Li Chengjia's eyes were bloodshot; he hadn't slept all night.

Dai Fuqiang picked up his mobile phone and dialed a number.

Release them.

Half an hour later.

A dilapidated bread cart screeched to a halt outside the iron gate of the Li family mansion.

The car door was kicked open from the inside.

A young man, with his head covered and hands tied behind his back, stumbled and rolled out of the car, landing in the mud.

It was Li Zeju, who had been missing for a full twenty-four hours.

"Zeju!!" Li Chengjia looked at the monitor, tears streaming down his face, and immediately ordered his bodyguards to rush out to rescue him.

At this moment, Dai Fuqiang had changed back into his large black trench coat.

He turned to look at Li Chengjia, a satisfied and arrogant smile playing on his lips.

"Mr. Li, it's a pleasure doing business with you."

"Don't forget what I said yesterday. This billion is a buyout, and from now on, no wealthy person will ever set foot in the Li family's territory again."

Dai Fuqiang pushed open the door and, under the fiery gaze of the Li family bodyguards, got into a car that had been waiting for him.

The car sped away.

What remains is the Li family mansion, its working capital completely drained and its reputation shattered, and a legendary tale about to unleash a storm in this era.