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

Early August, Hong Kong Island, Victoria Peak.

Hong Kong Island in the height of summer is unbearably hot and humid. The air is filled with the salty smell of the sea and the dampness of the vegetation. Even the mountain breeze carries a sticky heat.

At 10 a.m., Lu Chen, unusually, did not go to Jiahe Building, but instead stood at the entrance of Lu's Manor with Ruan Mei and Xiao Lu Qian, waiting for someone to arrive.

Today, Lu Qian wore a little shirt with navy blue overalls, and his hair was neatly combed, which was clearly thanks to Ruan Mei.

He looked up curiously at the winding mountain road in the distance and asked, "Dad, who are we waiting for?"

"We're waiting for a new friend," Lu Chen said with a smile, patting his son's head. "He's from a very far place."

"How far?"

"Crossing the Atlantic Ocean, passing through the Indian Ocean, and flying more than 10,000 kilometers."

Xiao Luqian thought about it seriously: "Then he must be very tired."

"Maybe, so you'd better be polite later."

"Okay," Xiao Luqian nodded, then added, "When have I ever been impolite?"

Lu Chen glanced down at him and chuckled. This kid's getting sharper and sharper.

Just then, the sound of car engines could be heard in the distance. The iconic Rolls-Royce convoy of the Lu family drove along the winding mountain road and slowly came to a stop at the entrance of the manor.

Then, the car door opened, and Victor Morgan got out.

He wore a light gray linen suit today, without a tie, and looked much more approachable than he did in New York.

In fact, it wasn't just the scenery that attracted him, but the sheer awe he felt from the miracle Lu Chen had created in the Soviet Union—the Eurasian Prosperity Bank had swallowed up a full two billion US dollars of the Soviet Union's foreign exchange reserves in a whirlwind just one month after its official opening!

Even for the Morgan family, whose wealth rivals that of a nation, this was a heart-pounding figure. Victor could no longer contain his excitement, so he canceled all his business schedule and flew all the way here, wanting to witness this miracle firsthand and discuss the next steps.

"Autumn in New York is nice too," Lu Chen said with a smile, patting him on the back, "but summer in Hong Kong Island has a unique charm."

"Haha, of course," Victor released him, his gaze falling on Ruan Mei beside him. He then suppressed his exaggerated laughter, bowing slightly. "This must be Mrs. Lu. I've heard so much about you. Lu mentioned you to me in New York, saying you are the pillar of the Lu family."

"Mr. Victor, you flatter me," Ruan Mei said with an elegant bow. "Welcome to Hong Kong Island."

Victor was about to exchange a few polite words when his gaze was drawn to the small figure.

Standing next to Ruan Mei, Xiao Luqian tilted his head slightly, sizing up the tall and robust foreign man in front of him.

Noticing Victor looking at him, he wasn't shy at all. Instead, he stepped forward and, like a little adult, extended his right hand: "Hello, I'm Lu Qian."

Victor was taken aback.

In his life, he had seen countless people reach out to him—politicians from various countries, Wall Street bankers, oil tycoons, arms dealers. But not a single one was a five-year-old child.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, young gentleman," Victor said with another hearty smile. He bent down, extended his hand, and firmly grasped Lu Qian's small hand. "I am Victor Morgan. You can call me Uncle Victor."

"Uncle Victor," said Lu Qian earnestly, "welcome to my home. My dad said you've come from a very far place and must be very tired."

Victor's laughter grew louder. He straightened up and looked at Lu Chen: "Lu, your son is remarkable."

Lu Chen smiled and said, "It's all thanks to my wife."

……

In the top-of-the-line cigar room on the second floor, the Five Constants system is quietly maintaining the coolest temperature.

Following Lu Chen's instructions, Ba Wanghua delivered two documents, poured each of them a glass of whiskey, and then quietly slipped out with the waiter, closing the door behind them.

Victor skillfully trimmed and lit his cigar, leaned back deeply into the large leather sofa, and slowly exhaled a thick cloud of blue smoke: "Lu, to be honest, I'm even more excited than when I first independently led a merger and acquisition deal."

"Just because of those numbers?"

"Oh my God, how can you be so calm? That's two billion in net profit!" Victor picked up the documents on the table, his expression exaggerated. "I've been in finance for decades, and I've never seen such a rapid profit-making process. Those Soviets are lining up to deposit rubles into our banks."

He couldn't help but laugh as he said this: "To be honest, inviting you to my estate was definitely the greatest investment I've ever made!"

"This is just the beginning," Lu Chen flicked his cigarette ash, "The real harvest will come when the ruble truly collapses."

"Yes, this is just the beginning!"

Victor took a deep drag on his cigar, the smoke rising slowly in the dim light. Perhaps only this high-stakes gamble of plundering the Soviet Empire could elicit such a fanatical and greedy expression from the head of the prestigious Morgan family.

"By the way, how's the joint venture going?"

The division of labor between the two was clear from the beginning: Lu Chen was mainly responsible for banking business, while the joint venture was handed over to the Morgan family to manage.

"Everything is going well," Victor put down his cigar, leaned forward, and clasped his hands together. "The timber company has officially started operations in Siberia. Our people are processing Siberian larch and Scots pine into lumber in a steady stream. As long as we label it 'Joint Venture Export Product,' the profits will increase twentyfold."

"What about the foreign trade company?"

“Then there’s no problem at all,” Victor said, a hint of smugness in his voice. “Through the Morgan family’s old connections, I’ve gotten in touch with some departments in the military region. You know, the military hasn’t had much money these days, but they still hold a lot of the Soviet Union’s most valuable assets—high technology and industrial equipment, which the West desperately wants.”

Victor picked up his whiskey and took a sip: "I've reached an agreement with several military regions. We can purchase large quantities of food and daily necessities from Malaysia, Thailand, and other places at low prices, and then transport them to Vladivostok port via ships from Jiahe Shipping and Global Shipping. In return, we'll exchange them for high-tech equipment and industrial equipment from the military regions."

"Bartering?"

"There's no other way. The ruble has depreciated drastically, and it's difficult to spend large amounts of US dollars," Victor nodded. "This most primitive method is still the most effective."

Lu Chen nodded, silently calculating in his mind—exchanging cheap grain for Soviet industrial equipment and technology, and then reselling it, the profit margin would probably be higher than that of timber.

"Very good. Now only the last major event remains—energy."

It's important to understand that the Soviet Union possessed abundant resources such as oil and natural gas, which could even be considered the absolute lifeline for the operation of this vast empire. The Soviet Union's ability to dominate the world and engage in aggressive military expansion in the 1970s was largely due to the enormous energy profits generated by the two oil crises.

"The Soviet Union had some of the world's largest oil and natural gas reserves. By investing now, we can reap decades of benefits from the oil fields and pipelines alone when the situation changes."

However, upon hearing this question, Victor shrugged helplessly, revealing an expression of resignation: "The energy sector... to be honest, is not within the Morgan family's sphere of influence."

"Oh? There are actually things in this world that your Morgan family isn't good at." Lu Chen raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, we're not God after all," Viktor frankly admitted. "And the Soviet Union has always maintained very strict control over energy, from exploration rights to extraction rights, from pipelines to export quotas. Every link is tightly controlled by the KGB and the Ministry of Energy. It's not that my connections in Moscow can't be used, but it would be much less effective."

"In that case," Lu Chen said thoughtfully, "I happen to know someone who is extremely skilled in this area, and he might be our most powerful ally."

Victor's eyes lit up: "Who?"

"Sir Robert King of the Empire."