Chapter 11

"Brother Qiang, hello, I'm Li Ke's younger brother, Li Xuan. I'm really sorry to have troubled you to come all the way here!" Li Xuan politely stood up and greeted him.

"You're the younger brother who just got into university, right? You do have a scholarly air about you, much more promising than your big brother, the punk!" Dao Ba Qiang sized up Li Xuan a few times before laughing heartily.

Dao Ba Qiang's real name was Shao Yongqiang. The scar above his eye wasn't very noticeable and was mostly covered by his eyebrow, so it wouldn't catch your attention unless you looked closely. Brother Qiang didn't seem hard to get along with. If it weren't for his well-known reputation for fighting with machetes, you might think he was just a neighbor's big brother.

"Your brother said you, a student, want to talk about a big business deal with me?" Brother Qiang sat down on the only stool in the room without hesitation.

"Yes, I want to start a factory to produce these electronic game machines, copying the ones on the market, and I want Brother Qiang to handle the distribution!" Li Xuan nodded and said.

"Starting your own factory, that's ambitious! But how can I believe you're not just talking big and actually have the ability to make game machines?" Shao Yongqiang took out a Marlboro cigarette, and Li Ke, standing behind him, promptly lit it for him.

"Brother Qiang, look!" Li Xuan pointed to the game machine that had been taken apart next to him and explained, "An electronic game machine is mainly divided into three parts: the display, the cabinet, and this computer motherboard. The most important part is this computer motherboard."

Li Xuan picked up the computer board he had previously removed from the game machine and walked to Shao Yongqiang, "These black squares embedded in rows on the computer board are chips. Among them, these rows are memory chips, which store the image and sound data for the game machines outside.

This is an 8080 CPU made by Intel in the United States. The data in those memory chips needs to be processed by it before being output to the display to form the images we see.

This small chip is the BIOS chip. You can think of it as a controller; all other chips operate according to its commands. If you modify the BIOS data in this chip, you can change a game that originally had only three lives to one with unlimited lives, allowing you to play until you complete it!"

Li Xuan pointed to the chips and explained in detail to the big boss in front of him. He didn't expect the other person to understand everything, but mainly wanted to elevate his own image and establish himself as a technical expert in the other person's mind, which would be advantageous for the subsequent negotiations.

"Xuan, I'm a punk like your brother, didn't even finish junior high. What you're saying is too deep for me to understand!"

"Alright, Brother Qiang, I'm wrong!" Li Xuan saw that his goal had been largely achieved and changed his approach, "Brother Qiang, do you know how much Boss Cao pays for each of these game machines?"

"Xuan, are you going to test me first?" Dao Ba Qiang smiled, holding the cigarette at the corner of his mouth, "I do know, the price in Hong Kong is 13,000 HKD each!"

"Nothing can escape Brother Qiang!" Li Xuan flattered him a little but quickly continued, "I guess Brother Qiang doesn't know the actual manufacturing cost of this game machine!"

"Oh?"

"Here, Brother Qiang! This is the Intel 8080 processor I mentioned earlier. It's the most expensive part of the entire computer board, retailing for about 150 HKD!" Li Xuan deliberately paused to draw everyone's attention before continuing, "And the total cost of all the parts for the entire game machine won't exceed 2,000 HKD!"

"Is what you're saying true, Xuan?" A glint of interest flashed in Dao Ba Qiang's eyes.

"It's true, and that's the retail price. The wholesale price for large-scale production by game machine factories would be even lower. Even with the R&D costs, selling game machines is a highly profitable business!" Li Xuan nodded seriously.

"If I say I have the technology to crack the game data in these chips, then we can buy new computer boards, copy the games onto them, and make our own game machines to sell! We can set the price at 6,000 HKD per machine, which is more than half the price of imported ones. I'll handle production, and Brother Qiang, you'll handle sales. The remaining 4,000 HKD profit, we'll split it 50-50. Do you think this business has potential?" Li Xuan asked with a smile.

Shao Yongqiang didn't rush to speak, just smoked in silence, carefully considering. Suddenly, he raised his head, staring intently at Li Xuan and asked in a deep voice, "Xuan, are you sure you can make this game machine?"

"I'm sure!" Li Xuan nodded firmly again.

"Alright! I, Dao Ba Qiang, will do this business! This time, I owe you and your brother a favor!" Shao Yongqiang threw the cigarette butt to the ground, stomped it out, stood up, and patted Li Xuan on the shoulder.

The others in the room were a bit taken aback. They thought Li Xuan was seeking cooperation with Brother Qiang, who was giving his little brother a face because of Li Ke's past loyalty. How did it turn into owing a favor?

"Brother Qiang, you know I have to go back to school in September, so I want my brother to quit his job at the video hall and help me manage the factory! My father has always wanted my brother to have a proper job, to find him a wife and have a nephew!" Li Xuan added.

Shao Yongqiang turned his head and looked at Li Xuan with a meaningful glance, "You're a good kid, thinking about your brother's future! This time, Ke has done a great service to the gang. I'll recommend him to the boss. Being a red pole might not be well-received, but being a white paper fan is enough!"

Li Xuan met Brother Qiang's sharp gaze and was startled. He understood the implications of the other's words: it's easy to enter the gang but hard to leave. He originally wanted to get his brother out of the gang, but now it seemed he was getting more deeply involved.

Being a small leader is better than being a foot soldier. Li Xuan consoled himself that the benefits he would bring to the gang would ensure his brother wouldn't have to do any more violent work.

With the deal settled, Li Xuan bid farewell and left. He had a dinner date with Chung Chuhong.

After Li Xuan left, Dao Ba Qiang's right-hand man, nicknamed Fish Ball, couldn't help but ask, "Boss, is the game machine business really that profitable, and you have to owe Ke a favor?"

In the gang, how many people could make the famous Dao Ba Qiang of the Soda Hall owe them a favor? Even Li Ke himself looked puzzled. Only the two main characters in the room understood each other.

"Money? You fool, this isn't about money!" Dao Ba Qiang shook his head and chuckled. He was in a good mood, "I can make over a million HKD a month from a nightclub in Tsim Sha Tsui. Do you think selling game machines can make that much? But how many foot soldiers can I arrange in one nightclub? To take over more places, I need to cut into others' territory!

Look at how booming the business of game halls is outside! If I can control the sales of electronic game machines in Hong Kong at a low price, wouldn't the owners of those game halls have to cooperate with us, the Hele Hall, to buy game machines? Then we can collect more protection money and arrange more foot soldiers!"

Shao Yongqiang wasn't a brute who only knew how to fight. On the contrary, he was very shrewd. This wasn't just about making money! As the gang grew, it needed to solve the problem of feeding the new foot soldiers.

Hong Kong is so small, yet there are dozens of gangs, almost all the profitable areas have been taken. If you want to take over someone else's territory, they will fight you to the death. However, game halls are a new profitable industry. If the Hele Hall can control the market first, the gang's strength will grow significantly, and his position in the gang will be elevated. Then, competing for the next boss position won't be a pipe dream!