Hong Kong: Black Gold Tycoons

At dawn, before all the newsstands in Hong Kong had fully opened, long queues of citizens had already formed.

Some of them came for the hype, some were there for the early shift, and many were paid shills hired by Black Gold Media.

There's no way around it; no matter what year it is, you need connections to do business.

At the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR station entrance, a newsstand had just opened its roller shutter when a dozen people crowded around it.

"Boss, one copy of 'YES!' and one copy of 'Black Gold'!"

"I want 'Black Gold,' give it to me first!"

"Does 'YES!' have Alan Tam's autograph?"

The newsstand owner frantically collected money and gave change, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Take your time! Take your time! 'YES!' is two yuan a copy, celebrity cards are one yuan each! 'Black Gold' is five yuan a copy!"

A girl in a school uniform handed over two yuan, grabbed a copy of "YES!" magazine and hugged it to her chest, then pulled a coin from her pocket: "Boss, give me another celebrity card, Zhao Yazhi's!"

The shopkeeper rummaged through the pile of cards: "Zhao Yazhi's are sold out. What's left are cards for Deborah, Jenny Tseng, Michelle Yim, and Liza Wang. Do you want them?"

"Give me a picture of Liza Wang!" The girl nodded eagerly.

A middle-aged man next to him handed over a five-yuan bill: "Boss, a copy of 'Black Gold'."

The shopkeeper took the money and handed over the magazine.

The man weighed the magazine in his hand and muttered, "Five dollars? That's twice as expensive as Ming Pao Weekly."

The shopkeeper chuckled, "Uncle, take a look. It's full of juicy gossip. Five dollars to see how politicians take bribes and police officers accept bribes—is it worth it?"

The man flipped through two pages, his eyes widened instantly, and without another word, he pocketed the magazine and left.

In front of a newsstand in Causeway Bay, several students huddled together, chattering away.

"YES!" magazine is only two yuan a copy, what a bargain!

"Celebrity cards are only one yuan each. I can save the money I would have for breakfast and buy two!"

"Five yuan a copy of 'Black Gold' is so expensive."

"You're not buying it anyway; it's for adults. My uncle just bought a copy and said it was worth it."

At the checkout counter of a convenience store in Mong Kok, three young men in work clothes each held a copy of "Black Gold" and flipped through it while waiting in line.

One of them pulled out a ten-yuan bill: "Two copies of 'Black Gold,' ten yuan."

After the cashier gave him his change, he said, "Give me four more 'YES!' celebrity cards, anyone will do."

"Bought this for your younger sister?"

"Yeah, she insisted on collecting the whole set. The magazine was two yuan and the card was one yuan, which is cheaper than my five-yuan set."

A large bookstore in Central has set up a "YES! Recommendation Desk" at the entrance, which is filled with magazines and boxes of celebrity cards.

Several female students squatted in front of the recommendation table, flipping through the cards one by one, like they were opening blind boxes.

"I drew Danny Chan! It's an autographed copy!" a girl screamed, and her friends quickly rushed over to see.

"I'm so lucky! I bought three tickets, all of them are the regular edition."

"I'll buy two more magazines! They're only two dollars each, cheaper than a plate of fried rice!"

The bookstore clerk smiled and said, "We restocked three times this morning, and each time it sold out in less than half an hour. Magazines are two yuan, and gift cards are one yuan. Many students buy a whole set at once."

A young white-collar worker in a suit walked over, picked up a copy of "YES!" magazine, looked at it, and asked the clerk, "A celebrity card is one yuan?"

"Yes, they are randomly packaged, or you can buy them in boxes. A box contains fifty sheets and costs fifty yuan."

"Give me two boxes, and ten magazines too." He pulled out his wallet. "My sister asked me to buy these for her."

Another young man next to him picked up a copy of "Black Gold," glanced at the price, and exclaimed, "Five yuan? That's so expensive?"

The shop assistant smiled and said, "Sir, please open it and take a look at the contents."

The young man flipped through a few pages, his expression changed, and he no longer cared about the price. He took out five yuan and bought a book.

The atmosphere was completely different at a newsstand in Wan Chai.

There were no screams, no laughter.

Most of the people in line were adult men with serious expressions, as if they were waiting for something important.

A middle-aged man wearing glasses handed over five yuan, picked up "Black Gold," tore open the plastic cover on the spot, and turned to the first page.

The title is: "The 'Envelope' Life of Legislative Council Member Li Moumou".

He read a few lines, frowned, and turned to the next page:

"Police Black Sheep—Who's Collecting Protection Money?"

His expression changed from shock to anger.

"Five dollars, worth it," he muttered under his breath, "these bastards."

Someone nearby also bought a copy, turned to the page titled "Billionaire Zhang's 'Private Party'", and whistled.

"Five dollars to see the private lives of the rich, not expensive at all."

An elderly woman behind him in line asked, "Young man, what magazine is this? It's so expensive, five dollars!"

The young man turned around and laughed, "Grandma, you don't understand. What's written here is worth fifty dollars."

The old woman shook her head, turned to the side and bought a two-yuan copy of "YES!", "I bought it for my grandson."

……

A TVB reporter stood in front of a newsstand in Causeway Bay and said to the camera:

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is now eight o'clock in the morning. Behind me is the sales site for 'YES!' and 'Black Gold'. As you can see, the line of people stretches from the newsstand to the end of the street. 'YES!' is priced at two yuan a copy, and the celebrity card is one yuan a piece, making it very affordable. 'Black Gold' is priced at five yuan, which is higher than most magazines on the market, but it still can't stop readers' enthusiasm for buying it."

They also randomly interviewed a middle-aged man who had just bought a copy of "Black Gold".

"Sir, five dollars a book, don't you think that's expensive?"

The middle-aged man waved the magazine in his hand: "Five dollars to read about politicians taking bribes and police officers accepting bribes? Expensive? I think it's cheap. In the past, you couldn't even read this kind of content if you had money."

The reporter then interviewed a girl who bought "YES!".

Why don't you buy "Black Gold"?

The girl stuck out her tongue: "Five yuan is too expensive. I don't have enough pocket money, and I'm not interested in content like 'Black Gold.' Two yuan for 'YES!' is just right."

Finally, in an interview with the newsstand owner: "Boss, how are sales of 'Black Gold' today?"

The shop owner wiped his sweat: "It's better than I expected. At first, many people thought five dollars was too expensive and picked it up but then put it down. But after flipping through the contents, most of them still bought it. We sold almost three hundred copies, more than Ming Pao Weekly."

"What about 'YES!'?"

"They're selling like hotcakes. They're only two dollars a book, and students are buying stacks at a time. We've restocked four times and it still's not enough."

Half a morning later, "YES!" and "Black Gold" had been restocked several times at major sales outlets across Hong Kong.

The newsstand owners were all smiles, but the number of people in line didn't seem to decrease at all.

At this moment, those exposed by "Black Gold" are also reading this magazine.

Mid-Levels, the residence of Hong Kong government legislator Lee.

Representative Lee sat in his study, with a copy of "Black Gold" spread out on the coffee table in front of him.

His face was ashen, and he was completely unaware that the ash from his cigar had fallen onto the expensive Persian carpet.

Turn to page seventeen of the magazine.

The above photo shows him meeting privately with a real estate developer. It was taken from a tricky angle, capturing the moment he received a manila envelope.

The accompanying text reads: "The envelope contains HK$4 in cash. Date: April 20, 1979. Location: A private club in Wan Chai."

His hands trembled with rage as he slammed the magazine onto the coffee table, yelling, "Who gave them the guts? Where did they get this information?"

The assistant stood aside, not daring to utter a sound.

"Investigate! Investigate this Black Gold Media company! Find out who's backing them! How did those photos get leaked!" Councilor Li's voice grew louder and louder. "I'm going to sue them! Sue them until they go bankrupt! Sue them until they're in jail!"

The assistant said cautiously, "Boss, if the amount, time, and location written in the magazine are true, these things will need to be presented in court when we go to court. I'm afraid..."

Representative Li suddenly turned his head and glared at him fiercely.

The assistant didn't dare to say anything more.

The study fell silent for a few seconds.

Representative Lee sat down again and lit another cigar.

"Call a lawyer, send them a letter of complaint for defamation, buy time, and then we'll figure out a way to suppress the public opinion."

"Yes."

"Furthermore, have the PR team prepare a statement saying that I have never received any illegal benefits and that this magazine is maliciously slandering and defaming me."

The assistant nodded and left.

Representative Lee leaned back in his chair, his eyes filled with malice. In his more than ten years as a representative, he had never been put on the spot like this before.

Meanwhile, inside the Yau Ma Tei Police Station.

A police officer who was exposed was reading a magazine in the duty room.

His name is Liu Zhiqiang, he is 36 years old, and he is a uniformed police officer at the Yau Ma Tei Police Station.

His photo was clearly printed in the magazine, showing him accepting a red envelope from a stall owner in front of a stall in Temple Street.

The text next to it reads: "This police officer has been collecting 500 yuan in protection money from the stall owner every month for the past three years."

Liu Zhiqiang's face was deathly pale, and his forehead was covered in sweat.

A colleague leaned over for a look and exclaimed, "Qiang, isn't that you?"

"Shut up!" Liu Zhiqiang slammed the magazine shut and stuffed it into the drawer.

"Is it true that you're collecting protection money?"

"It's all fake! It's all a frame-up!" Liu Zhiqiang stood up, his voice loud, but clearly lacking in confidence.

He had only one thought in his mind: It's over. Whether it's true or not, once it's been exposed, the police will definitely investigate.

Suddenly, the internal phone rang.

He was startled and hurriedly took the call, but after listening for only a few seconds, his face turned even paler.

"You want me to come up? Yes, sir!"

His hands were still trembling after he hung up the phone.

His colleague next to him looked at him with a complicated expression.

The same scene also occurred in Repulse Bay, at the villa of Mr. Cheung, a real estate developer.

Mr. Zhang had just stepped off the yacht, dressed casually, and was in a good mood.

He had a great time at the party a few days ago and is still reminiscing about it.

His subordinate came forward, holding a magazine in his hand.

"Boss, there's something I need to report to you."

"What is it?"

The butler handed over the book, "Black Gold".

Mr. Zhang took it and glanced at the cover: "Is this the new magazine that came out today?"

"Turn to page 25."

When Boss Zhang turned to page 25, the smile on his face instantly froze.

The photo shows a scene from his party a few days ago.

The camera was taken from a tricky angle, capturing him walking into the bedroom with two female companions.

Even though he was dressed, the scene would make anyone think too much.

Not to mention that his two female companions were his business partner's wives!

The title is: "Billionaire Zhang's 'Private Party' - Another Side of Extravagance and Debauchery".

"This is fucking..." He slammed the magazine on the ground. "Who took this picture? Who took this picture?!"

The butler lowered his head and said, "I don't know. The magazine claims to have an exclusive source and refuses to disclose it."

"What's the background of this Black Gold Media? Investigate it immediately!"

"I've already sent someone to investigate, boss. Should we send a lawyer's letter?"

After a moment of silence, Boss Zhang picked up the magazine again and read it carefully.

"Don't send it yet. Call their boss and arrange to meet to talk. If it can be resolved with money, don't make a scene."

"Yes."

……

The phone at the Black Gold magazine office hasn't stopped ringing since morning.

Some people called to place additional orders, some called to question, some called to beg for mercy, some called to discuss cooperation, and some called to threaten.

Newspaper stands across Hong Kong are still printing more copies to distribute, and the queues are getting longer and longer.

Those who were exposed were either angry, afraid, or trying to come up with a solution.

On this day, Hong Kong's magazine market was completely disrupted by two new publications.

And "YES!" and "Black Gold" also became hits.

Chen Fei entered Le Huizhen's office and saw her constantly busy.

He then asked, "How are sales going right now?"

Lok Wai-ching said, "The first batch of 50,000 copies of 'YES!' has sold out, and another 20,000 have been printed. The 30,000 copies of 'Black Gold' are almost gone, and the distributors are still urging us to order more. At five dollars a copy, it's selling faster than I expected."

"But there's some trouble too." She shrugged. "Congressman Lee's lawyer's letter has arrived, accusing us of defamation and demanding an immediate halt to sales and a public apology."

Chen Fei chuckled: "A lawyer's letter? Let him sue."

"Aren't you afraid?"

"What are you afraid of?" Chen Fei picked up the magazine on the table, turned to the page of Councilor Li, and said, "We have plenty of evidence. If he dares to sue, we dare to lay everything out in court. Then it won't be us who loses, it will be him who doesn't want to live."

Lok Wai-ching looked at him and laughed, "That's a good idea. It'll be perfect for giving our magazine a good beating."

As they were talking, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The office door opened with a click, and employee Xiao He walked in. "Mr. Chen, there's a Miss Yang Ning outside looking for you..."