Days in Hong Kong variety shows

11 p.m., Kowloon Daily News office, Cheung Sha Wan Road, Kowloon.

The daily newspaper office normally closes at 6 p.m., with only a few people on duty at night.

But tonight, the entire newspaper office building was brightly lit and bustling with activity. This was because around 9 p.m., the office had issued an urgent notice that everyone would be working overtime, so by 10 p.m., most of the staff had arrived.

The current economic climate isn't great, but the newspaper's salaries are above the industry average and paid on time. Therefore, employees aren't too opposed to overtime, especially since the boss does pay overtime.

"Xiaoweng, take a look first." Cao Tai placed a stack of photos in front of Liang Shi, the editor-in-chief of the Eight Newspapers Alliance.

Liang Shi, who was urgently summoned back to the newspaper office, put on his reading glasses and picked up the stack of photos to examine them one by one.

"Is there going to be another war on Hong Kong Island? Why are there so many armed personnel?" These photos are all copies of footage from Lok Wai-ching's video camera.

Although the clarity is less than satisfactory, you can still see the fully armed and menacing appearance of the "doctor" team.

After taking a sip of the tea his assistant brought him, Cao Tai finally spoke up: "Tonight I was invited to the opening ceremony of the 'Jundu Hotel,' and coincidentally, the hotel is also exhibiting three of the Tsar's most prized possessions."

These three treasures then attracted the attention of a group of international thugs.

After pausing for two seconds, he continued, "You just came from your house on Victoria Road. Didn't you notice the unusually loud police sirens in Central tonight?"

"Indeed, it's already quite chilly at night, but it seems unusually hot tonight," Liang Shi joked.

"An international gang of ruthless criminals came tonight to steal three Tsarist treasures, but they were unexpectedly discovered by a guest's bodyguard. The police were able to arrive at the scene quickly and prevent a crime from taking place."

However, more than 20 security guards responsible for tonight's security were killed or injured, and more than 20 of the robbers also died. Such a large number of casualties is second only to the May 1998 attacks.

As a newspaper with a conscience, we have a responsibility to let the people of Hong Kong know the truth about this incident.

As soon as Cao Tai finished speaking, Asia Television urgently broadcast a news report on the television in the editor-in-chief's office:

Tonight, the opening ceremony of the Cointreau Hotel on Hong Kong Island was attacked by a gang of thugs. It is understood that the gang's target was three treasures belonging to Tsar Nicholas II...

"Bold! Come in here for a moment," Cao Tai called out to the door.

Liang Shi looked up at the strong, muscular man in his thirties who had entered through the door. He was about 1.7 meters tall, but his sharp and capable aura was undeniable.

Cao Tai stood up, put his arm around Li Jie's shoulder, and introduced him to Liang Shi: "Xiao Weng, let me introduce you. This is Li Jie, former captain and commander of the Star Island Special Anti-Terrorism Force."

The robbers who attacked the Cointreau Hotel were actually people Lee Jie had dealt with two years ago. In Hong Kong, I believe no one knows them better than Lee Jie.

"Ah Jie, this is Mr. Leung Sik, editor-in-chief of Kowloon Daily."

"Hello, Mr. Liang!" Li Jie quickly extended his hands.

"Hello, Mr. Li." Liang Shi reached out and shook hands firmly with Li Jie, then looked at Cao Tai with a questioning look in his eyes.

"Xiaoweng, this is what I think. Although the combined daily sales of the eight newspapers have recently reached nearly 120,000 copies, it seems that if we want to continue to increase sales, we need to see the quality of Pengcheng's novel manuscripts improve again."

I'm thinking of leveraging the buzz surrounding the Cointreau Hotel to create a series of reports on the robbery gang, analyzing their background and history. I wonder if this is a good idea?

Cao Tai shared his thoughts.

"This is very promising! Let's discuss it further." Liang Shi was very interested.

"How about we publish an article tomorrow titled 'A Ruthless Bandit Raids the Exhibition, and a Team of Heroes Vows to Combat Crime' to introduce this robbery?"

"Then what is 'Dragon and Tiger Heroes'...?" Editor-in-Chief Liang asked.

"Oh, actually, before the police received the report tonight, a small team of elite police officers had already discovered the situation and stormed into the hotel before the main force arrived, killing more than ten thugs and entering the venue in advance to protect the hotel's VIPs tonight."

The VIPs who came to the Jundu Hotel tonight all knew that Li Jie had rushed in and saved them, but when Li Jie introduced himself, he said that he was Mr. Cao Tai's employee.

Then everyone's gratitude will be directed towards Mr. Cao, who happens to be a wealthy man of moderate means.

That would be even better; we could get to know each other and see if there are any areas for business cooperation.

Mr. Cao has basically gotten all the practical benefits. So, sharing the reputation and other benefits with the Hong Kong police will not only help him build a good relationship with the police, but also earn him a great favor.

"Later, we can write a few articles reporting on this international criminal gang that transformed from an outlaw mercenary group."

"You mean these robbers tonight all have military backgrounds?" Liang Shi asked with interest.

"That's right! A group of former outlaw mercenaries, after retiring, transformed into an internationally notorious criminal gang, committing numerous large-scale robberies and causing hundreds of casualties abroad. They're infamous!"

Cao Tai spoke eloquently.

Li Jie looked at Cao Tai with a bit of a puzzled look. Wasn't I supposed to explain the "doctor" gang? Mr. Cao, why are you talking about it all by yourself?

"Then we could turn their cases into a crime series, and then write a criminal biography for each of their key members. We could do at least a month of continuous reporting before the Cointreau scandal cools down."

With some effort and the addition of compelling novels, the Kowloon Daily should be able to reach the ranks of major newspapers with a daily circulation of 100,000 copies. The other newspapers should also have no problem maintaining their mid-range circulation of 20,000 to 30,000 copies per day.

As one of the top professionals in the Hong Kong newspaper industry, Leung Siu could easily analyze the prospects of his exclusive report on the "doctor" gang.

"However, can you be sure that only we can get firsthand information? And that it's real information and not just hearsay?" Editor-in-Chief Liang still had doubts.

Cao Tai turned his head and exchanged a glance with Li Jie, the corners of his mouth turning up, both unconsciously carrying a mysterious smile.

With the "Doctor" and Feifei, this important leader, in his hands, and under Miki's command, obtaining the information would be a piece of cake. Cao Tai simply didn't believe that mercenaries who had no faith and only believed in money could withstand torture.

Looking at the enigmatic smiles on the faces of the two people in front of him, Liang Shi simply said, "I don't care about anything else. Just send me the message, and I'll handle the arrangements for its release."

"Alright, Li Jie, you can now have a good chat with Xiao Weng about what you know about the international notorious criminal gang 'Doctor'. I have some things to take care of, just call my cell phone if you need anything."

After giving his instructions, Cao Tai left first.

Lok Wai-ching has rushed back to the television station to give an emergency report on tonight's robbery at the 'Grand Prix Hotel'.

However, another person who is currently grieving, Jesse's bespectacled boyfriend before Cao Tai left, also arrived at the scene with his arm in a sling.

Of course, he wasn't injured while fighting alongside Li Jie at the hotel. I heard it was because he tracked down information about the robbers in the North Point King's Road robbery and went to investigate on his own.

The outcome is unknown, but he was shot in the arm, so when he heard about the incident at the Grand Hotel, he could only come to the scene with his arm in a sling.

Of course, it ended in another argument, and the two parted on bad terms.

So Mr. Cao's so-called "being busy" is just what he told Jesse before: "Let's talk after I'm done with this."