Chapter 44: A-Goods Business

"I've set up a garment factory in Kwun Tong and it's already running. I plan to take these clothes to Tongcai Street and Garden Street to sell."

Jing Kun shook his head upon hearing this and said, "A Jun, how much money can you make making clothes? Do we look like the kind of people who do business?"

He had been expecting Chen Jiajun to introduce some kind of business to him, but he never imagined it would be the garment business. There were plenty of garment businesses all over Hong Kong; as a few Hong Kong-style gangsters, how could they compete with those who actually did business?

Chen Jiajun smiled, pointed to his own clothes, and said, "This Louis Vuitton outfit of mine—the suit cost 29,800, the pants 9,888, and the shirt 8,888. Take a guess at what the cost is."

Before the others could react, Chen Jiajun gave the answer: "The total cost is no more than eight hundred! If we use similar fabric, make the exact same style, slap a Louis Vuitton label on it, and take it out to sell—telling customers these are authentic, foreign trade goods—and we sell the suits cheaper at 1,000 dollars, Bin Ge, do you want in?"

"Damn, such a sharp suit; if you can make it look exactly the same, forget 1,000 dollars, I'd pay 3,000 for it," Han Bin replied after thinking for a moment.

Jing Kun's eyes lit up instantly.

Shisimei realized what was happening and pointed at Chen Jiajun, saying, "A Jun, you mean you want to make A-Goods?"

"That's right. I've taken two streets from A Kun—Garden Street and Tongcai Street—both of which have huge foot traffic. I want to open a few shops on these two streets to sell A-Goods. I have the factory, the equipment, and the workers; we produce them ourselves and sell them ourselves."

"I can compress the costs even further. Once they're finished and hung in the shop to sell, the price will be at least 1,000 dollars. A 500% profit margin—it's even more exaggerated than dealing in Laundry Powder. And the Anti-Triad Unit won't be keeping an eye on us."

"Nowadays, if you walk around dressed like a gangster, who is going to look up to you?"

"But if you wear a suit and tie, everyone will think you're someone who can get things done."

"The opportunity to get rich is right in front of you. How you choose depends on what you think."

After speaking, Chen Jiajun raised his teacup.

Both Shisimei and Han Bin were somewhat moved.

Jing Kun went straight to the core of the issue: "A Jun, it sounds simple when you say it, but the problem is, how do we do it?"

"I will naturally teach you how to do it. The four of us will go to these two streets to lease shops, get them renovated, and from now on, our four shops will engage in a price war every day, fighting from morning till night until we're at each other's throats. If you sell for 1,000 dollars, I'll undercut you by 50!"

"These two streets have high foot traffic. As long as we do it slowly, we won't have to worry about the source of goods, and we'll eventually make a name for them! The specific plan is all in my head."

Chen Jiajun said this while pointing to his head, then he said in a deep voice: "However, if you want to join my game, you must follow my rules. A Kun, stop your Laundry Powder business; I'm afraid that one day I'll be dragged in for questioning by the Anti-Triad Unit too."

After five minutes of silence, Jing Kun raised his teacup and said, "I'll trust you once. I can't give up the Laundry Powder just yet, but as long as the A-Goods business can make big money, I'll naturally stop."

"Happy to cooperate!" Chen Jiajun raised his teacup again.

Han Bin also raised his teacup: "If there's money to be made, bring me along. It doesn't matter how much."

After hesitating for a moment, Shisimei also raised her teacup: "Count me in!"

While everyone was plotting their grand plan to go legitimate here, they were completely unaware that a conspiracy was slowly brewing!

Thirty years ago, the parents of the two brothers Lian Haolong and Lian Haodong died from an overdose of Laundry Powder, leaving the two brothers to rely on each other for survival, even having to split a single steamed bun in half to eat.

At a young age, they relied on manual labor at the Pier to make a living.

Because they were clever and observant, they were taken in as disciples by the Dragon Head of the Zhongxinyi triad at the time.

Lian Haolong became famous after a single battle where he fought off nearly a hundred blade-wielders alone, becoming a "myth" in the Hong Kong underworld and being hailed as the number one fighter in the world!

After making a name for himself, the Dragon Head of Zhongxinyi passed the Dragon Head throne to Lian Haolong.

Zhongxinyi's strength grew very rapidly over these twenty or thirty years; apart from the Four Heavenly Kings, they led the pack in the second tier!

At this moment, inside a building in Wanchai near Central.

The core members of Zhongxinyi, the Four Heavenly Kings under Lian Haolong, were sitting upright in the conference room with solemn expressions.

Ahong, Luo Tianhong—if Lian Haolong was the number one fighter in the world, then Luo Tianhong was his sharpest blade!

Afa, Luo Dingfa, was mainly responsible for the trade of No. 4 in Zhongxinyi and usually ran a coffin shop.

Aheng, A Wu... and other fierce generals sat on both sides of the table; they were loyal to Brother Long.

The main seat was naturally occupied by the Zhongxinyi Dragon Head—Lian Haolong.

Lian Haodong and his wife, "Sister A Lian" Liang Yuelian, sat on either side of him.

Lian Haodong smoked a White Marlboro and said: "I've met Liangzai Jun; he looks unremarkable."

"He has two capable assistants, one is Dumu and the other is Lao E, and recently he's added a rather mysterious Ya Qi. He seems to hold a high position, though I don't know what's so special about him. He now has two territories: Hennessy Road and Wang Bao's former territory. His subordinates are all capable fighters, and his underlings are relatively loyal to him; there are about a thousand of them."

"For the ribbon-cutting this afternoon, Jing Kun, Shisimei, and Han Bin from Hongxing came. Dalao B didn't show up; it seems the two of them have truly had a falling out."

"I don't know what Jiang Tiansheng of Hongxing is thinking right now, but I feel that if we concentrate our efforts, we can definitely take this territory."

Although Lian Haodong was the third-ranking figure in Zhongxinyi after Lian Haolong and A Lian, he usually acted more like a playboy, spending his days in debauchery and gambling.

Nowadays, Chen Jiajun's territory was seen as a piece of fat meat in the eyes of all the triads on Hong Kong Island; anyone with a bit of strength wanted to come over and take a bite.

As a large-scale second-tier triad that also dealt in drugs, Zhongxinyi was similarly salivating over this piece of fat meat.

After Bao Ye died, Lian Haolong entrusted the big financier behind Zhongxinyi, Si Shu Chen Liyu, to make an offer for Wang Bao's office building, even resorting to coercion and bribery, but it ultimately fell into Chen Jiajun's hands.

Lian Haolong took a sip of tea, puffed on his Cigar, and said slowly:

"We need to wait and see about Jiang Tiansheng's attitude. Jiang Tiansheng also wanted to buy Guojun Building, but it was taken by Liangzai Jun; he must be unhappy about it. Jiang Tiansheng is the type to seek revenge for the slightest grievance and is very petty."

"The Hongxing assembly is about to be held, and whether Chen Jiajun can be promoted depends on Jiang Tiansheng's nod. At that time, we will be able to see Jiang Tiansheng's attitude clearly."

"During this period, the Wanchai territory seems peaceful, but if Jiang Tiansheng really doesn't support Liangzai Jun, other triads will attack in a swarm."

"Jing Kun, Shisimei, and Han Bin are all from Kowloon Peninsula; if a real fight breaks out, their reinforcements won't make it in time."

What didn't match his appearance was Lian Haolong's brain.

Don't let Lian Haolong's burly appearance fool you; to be able to sit in the position of a second-tier triad's Dragon Head, without some brains, he would have been played to death by others long ago.

After a pause, Lian Haolong looked at his wife Liang Yuelian and asked: "Have you checked clearly if Liangzai Jun has any financiers supporting him behind the scenes?"

Lian Haolong was also quite curious about how Liangzai Jun had risen so rapidly in such a short time.

(End of chapter)