Chapter 855
This is the Opportunity
Yangcheng.
In an office, the sun shines through the window, the fan whirs, two of the three packs of Daqianmen cigarettes on the table are already open, and the ashtray is overflowing.
Old Ye, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, slammed his hand on the table. "We're Black Eyes! This morning, Su Lizhen sent a secret letter saying that the Dongyang Trading Company is willing to leave us a gap: raincoats, military trousers, canned fish—a special order for the US military! Old Fang, what do you say, will you do it or not?"
Old Fang threw his cigarette butt on the ground: "Do it! Do it, you bastard! These Japanese devils eat meat, and we can't even get a sip of soup? Now they're willing to share a little with us, and Su Lizhen is one of our own. Do it, do it, do it a hundred thousand times."
"Wait a minute." Old Ye squinted and exhaled a smoke ring, lowering his voice: "The June embargo clearly states that no Chinese raw materials will be accepted. Japanese trading companies may be willing to change the country of origin, but if they are exposed, who will bear the political responsibility? I can bear it, and so can you, Old Fang?"
Old Fang's eyes were red. "What's there to be afraid of! The goods left from Tsuen Wan in Kowloon at night, were transferred to a small Japanese steamship off the coast of Shantou, and were declared as 'transshipment goods to Japan' by customs. By the time they arrived at Busan Port, they had already become 'Made in Japan'."
The US military is freezing cold, why would they bother checking the production site? They only care about speed; if they're faster than the Japanese, they win!
Old Fang tapped his fingers on the table. "I've agreed with Su Lizhen that Dongyang Trading Company will take 35% and we'll take 15%, leaving 50% as pure profit. We'll earn back a year's worth of revenue here in just six months."
Old Ye was silent for a few seconds, then took a deep drag on his cigarette. "It's done! But it has to be watertight. The cargo ship leaves at night, and the handover takes place off the coast of Shantou. No one is allowed to go ashore."
Old Fang grabbed the tea mug and poured in Moutai, grinning from ear to ear. "Alright, let's do it! Come on, Old Ye, down this mug! Down it until the Americans are scared out of their wits, down it until the Japanese know that we Hakka and Chaoshan people are most afraid of losing!"
Old Ye raised his jar and slammed it against the glass, not even caring that cigarette ash fell into the liquor. "Cheers! We'll make money off the ruined American imperialists to support our revolutionary guns! We'll make imperialists kneel down and call us grandpa!"
Seoul.
Kong Lingxian stood at the second-floor window, a cigarette dangling from her lips, looking down at the courtyard.
A row of meticulously dressed women stood in the courtyard, each with a beautiful face.
These women were all bought from bars and brothels in Itaewon. They were not the final batch of women to officially start working. The virginity rate was 99.99%, and they were bought at a high price.
Kong Lingxian took a few deep drags on his cigarette and muttered, "I guess I've done you guys a favor."
Under the system of comfort stations and military camps, the US military kept its facade intact, refusing direct operation by the South Korean government and insisting on a "private" model, which provided many people with a golden opportunity to make money during the war.
Once a woman enters the world of prostitution, she is burdened with an endless debt. The costs of rent, food, cosmetics, condoms, interest, and all sorts of other expenses will be borne by her, and the debt will only keep piling up, never to be paid off.
The East Asian Chamber of Commerce bought them out, requiring only that they serve the US military officers for a week, then be given severance pay and dismissed on the spot. Whether they could be noticed by the officers and have someone to protect them from then on depended on their own fate; otherwise, their pretty faces would still be a death warrant.
In chaotic times, a beautiful woman is only worth a bowl of soybean paste soup.
What did they eat for lunch?
"A big pot of bone broth."
"Add another dish of grilled meat, and bring as much as you can eat."
"Yes."
"Before setting off, give everyone a piece of tofu."
"Yes, President."
After throwing away her cigarette butt, Kong Lingxian went up to the third floor and had someone send a telegram to Tokyo—the gifts were on their way.
Tokyo.
After reading the telegram, Keiko Nagumo picked up the receiver and made a phone call.
Then, I went down to the first floor to the store's main sales hall, entered the teller area, sat down at a table with a sign that read "President of the House," and started my shift.
Uyato Shinkansen has launched a "one-stop" service concept, aiming to resolve the issue of borrowing money for customers in one visit. Even if the issue cannot be resolved in one visit, customers will be made aware of why they are not being lent money, and customers will not be kept hanging and made to come back multiple times.
This requires someone who can make decisions to be on duty here, and to decide on the spot whether something is feasible or not.
The Korean Armistice negotiations entered a phase of fighting while negotiating, and the model of using fighting to promote negotiations made the war increasingly brutal. The consumption of US troops on the front lines increased dramatically, and the Yokohama procurement team directly issued an emergency order: "Regardless of cost or quality, just the fastest speed."
Orders poured down like a torrential rain on this tiny island of Japan:
280 million cotton military shirts were produced, at a price of $1.65 each.
95 military blankets, each priced at $4.80;
4.2 canvas military tents (12-person size), priced at $38.00 each;
320 million cans of tuna (48 cans/box), at a unit price of $6.80;
Jeep/truck overhaul + tire retreading: 1.18 units, unit price: $145.00-$280.00;
8200 tons of barbed wire, at $118.00 per ton;
68 military raincoats (rubber-coated), each priced at $3.90;
1200 million sandbags (made of linen), each priced at $0.09.
150 million pairs of military boot heel studs and sole repair kits, priced at $0.75 each;
85 cases of canned beef and vegetables (C-Ration) were sold at a price of $5.50 per unit.
These orders originated from James Van Fleet, the U.S. frontline commander, who issued instructions to the U.S. military procurement group in Japan. The U.S. military procurement group then made a phone call to the Allied Economic Section, which forwarded the list to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Finance, who then notified the ten major trading companies to pick up the orders.
The top ten trading companies are: Mitsui & Co., Mitsubishi Corporation, Sumitomo Corporation, Itochu Corporation, Marubeni, Matsunaga Corporation, Nissho Iwai, Kanematsue Corporation, Kanebo, and Toyo Cotton.
Does Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd. qualify for a place in the top ten?
The answer was no, yet no one questioned it. From the front lines in South Korea to the Allied headquarters, it was implied that Matsunaga Trading Company must receive enough orders, all the way to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Finance.
The ten major trading companies did not process the orders themselves, but rather broke them down and subcontracted them to manufacturers across the country.
In this process, the top ten trading companies act as trading firms, charging a commission of 18% to 35% on each order, depending on the profit margin. This commission is clearly stated in the contract.
However, the US military did not provide any deposit for the orders. In 1951, it was difficult for manufacturing companies to obtain bank loans. Otherwise, Matsunaga Nobuhiro's business would not have been able to get off the ground. As a result, the ten major trading companies had to advance raw materials, workers' wages, and insurance premiums, port fees, and so on for the manufacturing companies, each paying according to their own ability.
The advance payment is naturally not free; a monthly interest rate of 15% to 30% is charged depending on the profit of the order. At first glance, this interest rate seems very high, with an annual interest rate of 360%, but once you do the math, you will understand that the interest rate is not high.
The offshore purchase price of a cotton military shirt is $1.65. After the trading company takes a 35% commission, $1.07 remains. Under normal circumstances, the unit cost for the manufacturing company is $0.70 ±. However, the US military does not require quality, which allows for greater room for maneuver.
Raw cotton, using US military aid cotton (PL480 program surplus + special quota), costs only $0.24 per pound (market price $0.38), with a unit cost of $0.065.
Spinning and weaving: Kurashiki Boku and Toyobo shut down all civilian production lines and worked 24 hours a day in three shifts, without even considering machine depreciation; they used all waste yarn and recycled silk, with a unit cost of $0.042.
Cutting: Completely eliminate matching of checks and stripes; cut a maximum of 16 pieces from a single piece of fabric (normally only 12 pieces are cut); discard scraps directly; cost per piece: $0.008.
Sewing: Osaka/Tokyo family workshops employ child laborers aged 12 to 15, plus female workers recruited from rural areas. Each piece is paid only 1.8 yen, and the stitch count is reduced from 12 stitches per inch to 8 stitches per inch, with a cost of $0.005 per piece.
Buttons + thread + packaging. The buttons were pre-war stock of plastic buttons (almost free), the thread was the thickest and cheapest 6-ply thread, and the packaging was simply packed into burlap sacks. The cost per piece was $0.012.
Factory building + electricity + management fees: the factory stopped paying rent for residential properties, had the trading company advance the electricity costs, and reduced the management fees to 0, resulting in a unit cost of 0.
The trading company/factory secretly subsidized the costs, resulting in a surface cost of $0.48. However, the trading company used a combination of raw material price difference refunds and a 6-month delay in final payment to artificially reduce the book cost to $0.28.
The trading company's actuarial staff had already done the math for the manufacturing company. After deducting all expenses, the manufacturing company could get a profit of $0.34 per unit, which is 120% profit. What's there to be dissatisfied about?
Matsunaga Trading Company takes a more aggressive commission from Chunghwa Garment than outsiders because it cannot profit from the advance payment. For every $1.65, $0.68 is directly taken, leaving Chunghwa Garment with only $0.97.
Don't complain about the low price. This price is enough for Chung Hwa Garment to produce "normal" shirts. Chung Hwa Garment has two workshops that specialize in producing "1 dollar shirts" for the United States. They say it costs 1 dollar, the normal selling price is 1.09 dollars, and it's 0.89 dollars during promotions. Even at this price, they still make a profit. You can imagine that Chung Hwa Garment's cost must be lower than this amount.
The offer of $0.97 and the lack of quality requirements made it an ideal order. Unfortunately, time was of the essence, and the US military needed it urgently. There was simply no time to produce it themselves, so they had to outsource the order.
Upon receiving the fax, Lin Xingliang immediately went to Beihe Street to find Su Lizhen. The two discussed it and decided that Zhonghua Garment would take a 20% commission and subcontract 50 pieces to Jinzhao Group.
Thus, China Garment Manufacturing retained $9.7 in profit, and with the Group's current price per piece at $0.776, the total was $38.80.
Su Lizhen then forwarded the order to Shekou, quoting $0.50 per piece, with a total order amount of $25.00. Jinzhao Group retained $13.80 in profit, and the only cost was that it "might" need to advance the payment for the goods.
Once the deal was finalized, Lin Xingliang took the order for 50 pieces to Shanjinlou and used Shanjinlou's phone to issue a "call to arms" to garment industry professionals—if you have an order, come quickly.
It would be foolish not to come when there's an order; everyone showed up in less than an hour.
$0.50 per piece, delivery time is 11:59:59 PM on September 14th. Please inform us of the quantity you can produce. No deposit required, payment will be made within one month after delivery.
In just five minutes, all the orders were snapped up.
From then on, Chung Hsing Garment's book profit reached US$33.20. When he had some free time, Lin Hsing-liang faxed Lin Pao-cheng back—a budget of 1200 yen, instructing Lin Pao-cheng to treat the Matsunaga Trading Company personnel to a good meal.
With the shirt order settled, Lin Xingliang began to work on the order for 205 million pairs of military trousers.
The price was quoted at $2.60 per shirt. After Matsunaga Trading Co.'s 40% commission, the remaining $1.56 per shirt was calculated in the most ruthless way, and it was found that the production cost in Hong Kong could be reduced to $0.168 per shirt, which was lower than the $0.22 per shirt.
再找苏丽珍，以0.776美元/条转包给今朝集团105万条，截留利润0.784×105万=82.32万美元。
Su Lizhen continued to contact the Guangdong trading company in Guangzhou directly at a unit price of $0.50, retaining a profit of $0.276 × 105 million = $28.98.
Lin Xingliang issued a second call to action, gathering garment manufacturers who mainly produce trousers. The 1 million pairs of trousers were divided up in 15 minutes, and another half hour was spent discussing production processes and raw material procurement.
Everyone has a few acquaintances, and everyone knows how to seek personal gain. Lin Xingliang owns shares in a button factory, which supplies half of the shirt buttons for Zhonghua Garment.
Not only did Xian Yaowen know about this, but he was also the one who came up with the idea. He didn't spend any money on the shares; he only made Shen work hard. Lin Xingliang accepted the invitation to dinner from the button factory and also cuddled the dancers that the button factory had prepared.
(1.56-0.50)×100 million + 82.32 US dollars = 188.32 US dollars. This is the final book profit that China Garment Manufacturing Co., Ltd. obtained from the military trouser order. Adding the profit from the shirts, the total is 221.52 US dollars, which is equal to 1262.66 Hong Kong dollars.
Despite the booming business of Zhonghua Garment, it might not be able to earn this profit in two years without expanding production.
To put it bluntly, China Garment Factory mainly made its profits from the difference in the number of female workers. In Marx's words, it was about exploiting the surplus value of workers, and its profits were directly linked to the number of female workers.
Incidentally, Quan Xu introduced a member of his clan to the factory as a bookkeeper. This man's surname was Quan, and his given name was Minyou. Everyone in the factory jokingly called him "All the People's Property".
The factory's original cashier was incorporated into the "Nine-Nine Song" (a traditional Chinese folk song), and the new cashier was a relative of Lin Xingliang, surnamed Lin, named Renjun. The factory had to go to him to get money whenever it needed it, so a joke spread: "Renjun is hoarding millions of dollars; go to Renjun to get money."
Xiao Jingyue of Jinji Trading sat imposingly in a private room at Deyun Teahouse, surrounded by the owners of Nanfeng Textile Factory, Dahua Raincoat Factory, Yongnan Rubber Factory, Xiexinglong Raincoat Factory, and Shengji Raincoat, all eagerly waiting for him to speak.
Among them, Li Sheng, the owner of Shengji Raincoat, had the most eager eyes.
There's no need to doubt the businessman's keen eye. As soon as news of the US military order came out, Li Sheng immediately sent people to Yokohama, offering a price of $0.85 per piece, but they couldn't get any orders at all.
After finishing half a cigarette and taking a sip of tea to moisten his throat, Xiao Jingyue stopped teasing the business owners and said, "Our company currently has an order for 650,000 military raincoats, at 95 cents each, to be delivered before midnight on September 20th. There is no deposit required; payment will be settled within one and a half months after delivery. Please inform us of the quantity you can produce."
The US military quoted $3.90 for the military raincoat, Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd. paid a commission of $2.00, and Kinki Trading Co., Ltd. got the price of $1.90.
At 95 cents per piece, there's not much to say about the price; it's 10 cents more than what Li Sheng charges for his pole climbing. But the value is more than just 10 cents, because the samples Li Sheng sent to Yokohama were of "normal" quality.
Hong Kong is not a big city, and there are not many secrets in the industry. Everyone in the industry can calculate the cost of a raincoat. With a price of 95 US cents and no quality requirements, the cost can be reduced to around 0.60 US dollars, and the average profit can be 35 US cents, or HK$2, which is quite a lot.
There was no need to act superior or fight over orders. Everyone negotiated amicably based on their own production capacity, divided the orders, and went home to arrange their production plans. In the evening, everyone at Lichi Garden treated Xiao Jingyue to a meal at their own expense.
Thus, for this order, Jinji Trading's book profit is (1.90-0.95)×65 = US$61.75.
As soon as the event ended, Xiao Jingyue immediately contacted Rolls-Royce and ordered a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost at the highest trim level, costing $1.42.
Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd. received only this much of the orders for August and September. The rest were divided among the nine major trading companies. In order to compensate Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd., the nine major trading companies gave up a portion of their advance payment business.
Tokyo.
The office of Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd. in Toranomon, Minato Ward.
Yoshiko Matsuda swung her baseball bat at a baseball suspended by a string, while next to her, Chohei Katsuma and Kazuo Wada were counting US dollars, stack after stack.
Despite Matsunaga Trading Company's rapid growth, it was impossible for it to rank among the top ten and reap the benefits of special orders. Naturally, it had to pay a price. In reality, Matsunaga Trading Company could only keep half of the commission, and the rest had to be distributed to those who "contributed".
Matsunaga Trading Co., Ltd.'s real profits come from its financing business.
Takei Yasuo climbed the stairs and bowed at the entrance, saying, "Chairman."
Upon hearing this, Yoshiko Matsuda swung her baseball bat, sending the ball flying, only to have it pulled back by the string. She tossed the bat into the bat box and walked straight to Yasuo Takei.
"Takei-kun."
"Hai~"
"The US military's orders cannot last. The trading company's loan period cannot exceed December 1st. All loans must be recovered before December 5th, and then the business must be resold to Dark Finance."
"Hai~"
"Once the business is completed, I will consider including you in the shortlist of candidates for vice president of Matsunaga Shinhan."
"Hai~"
Takei Yasuo bowed deeply, a look of joy on his face.
"Go down."
"Hai~"
Not long after Takei Yasuo left, Ijiri Kazuo stood behind Matsuda Yoshiko.
"Ijiri-kun, once the US military's orders stop, the garment factories will lose their orders and will be unable to repay their debts. Everyone knows the tricks of the dark finance industry. The sewing machines in the garment factories will be taken away or pledged to pawnshops."
"With the list in hand, we went to each store to check them out in person, tallied up how many sewing machines they would need, and sent the numbers to the Jinji distributor to ask if they could handle the workload."
"Hay."
"If I get the chance, I'll catch a glimpse of the garment factory owner's daughter and remember how beautiful she is."
Dark finance, or black market finance, is pure usury. The main players are various groups. If they can't repay their debts, it's common practice for them to sell their wives and daughters. Matsuda Yoshiko wanted to find two for Xian Yaowen to keep in reserve.
"Hay."
After Kazuo Ijiri left, Yoshiko Matsuda sat down in her executive chair, picked up the Yomiuri Shimbun, and began reading articles to understand the spirit of the alliance and the cabinet.
Busan.
Kong Lingxian climbed out of the plane, walked to a corner, lit a cigarette, and watched as the women were helped onto the truck. After the truck drove away, she took off the silk scarf covering her head, removed her sunglasses, and got into the jeep that was waiting on the side.
Less than half an hour later, she got off the bus on Texas Street in Busan Port and entered the Yankee Club, which was directly operated by the U.S. Eighth Army.
The 8th Army is a rather special army. Leaving aside the military duties that every army has, like other armies, its staff is divided into G-1 to G-4. G-1 is in charge of personnel, G-2 is in charge of intelligence, G-3 is in charge of operations, and G-4 is in charge of logistics.
In addition to deciding which unit would receive bullets, gasoline, and canned goods first, the G-4 of the 8th Army was also responsible for all PX, Class VI (alcohol), ice factories, laundries, all directly-operated/semi-operated clubs, R&R centers, comfort facilities, and dollar cash flow, including special order rebates and black market profits.
Major General Walter Hickel, the G-4 chief of the 8th Army, sat at a table. Kong Lingxian greeted him and went straight to the band on the small stage. "Mixed Vegetables, thank you."
Then, she went to the microphone, lit a cigarette, and swayed her hips gently to the music.
A captain poured her a glass of wine, and she thanked him, humming along to the rhythm, "Little rascal, what are you doing, acting like a fool? I ask you questions, why don't you answer? You said you loved me, was it true or false? Tell me clearly, explain it all, don't play dumb."
As the song began and whistles rang out, the soldiers under the command of G-3 went into a frenzy.
In her frenzy, Kong Lingxian gracefully stepped off the stage, sat opposite Hicker, took out a pack of Soviet Betzel cigarettes, and offered one to Hicker.
Hickel took it and examined it closely. "Is this the Hickel that the North Korean soldiers said 'one sip is like inhaling tank exhaust fumes'?"
"uh-huh."
What do you want this time?
"The 7th Rear Service Battalion has a large-scale syphilis infection and needs penicillin. I don't have enough on hand, so I'd like to borrow some from you."
Hikel laughed loudly and said, "Kong, the People's Army doesn't have comfort women squads."
Kong Lingxian shrugged. "I've never heard of that."
"Ha, how much do you want?"
"Five hundred thousand."
"enough?"
"I only received payment for 1 units."
"Whiskey? Condoms?"
"Condoms...2."
"OK."
Kong Lingxian took a document out of her pocket and handed it to Hickel, "Boeing stock, 1500 shares, the certificate has been given to Mrs. Ling."
Hickel took the document, glanced at it, and then lit it with a lighter. Watching it burn to ashes, he picked up his glass. "There's a performance tonight."
Kong Lingxian raised her glass and clinked it against Hickel's. "I'll come over."
Hong Kong.
Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po.
Lu Yansu leaned against the car, a cigarette dangling from her lips, her gaze fixed on the pig cage truck not far away.
Xian Yaowu jumped from the truck bed to the ground, helped two brothers off the truck, and then those two brothers helped the others off the truck. After everyone was off the truck, Xian Yaowu waved his hand, and the brothers in military uniforms surrounded a tenement building.
Seeing that everyone was in position, Xian Yaowu walked up to Han Sen, who was dressed in civilian clothes, and stamped his foot, "Han Sir, the brothers are in position."
"Alright." Han Sen threw away his cigarette. "Everyone, follow me upstairs and take down this tea smuggling operation."
Watching the police officers disappear down the stairs, Lu Yansu waved her hand and said, "Book two tables."
"Ok."
In 1951, the Hong Kong police were very proactive in cracking down on small-scale smuggling, investigating and releasing people as they pleased, which was both flexible and lucrative. However, they usually turned a blind eye to the real "large-scale smuggling," as it was not their business.
Singapore.
Sin Yiu-man and Wong Yau-ka strolled to the Cathay Building. Sin Yiu-man bought two bowls of Man Tou Xue from a street stall, handed one bowl to Wong Yau-ka, and then picked up a sour orange that was placed on the side of the bowl, squeezed it hard, and sprinkled a little juice on the jelly.
They made their own bowl in the same way, then leaned against the wall of the Cathay Building, enjoying the cool breeze.
Wang Youjia took a couple of bites to cool off, then turned to Xian Yaowen and asked, "Should I go up with you?"
“Ask yourself, Loke Wan To has deep ties with Hong Kong.”
Wang Youjia thought for a moment, "I am a free man, and I am not afraid of people knowing."
"Hmm." (End of Chapter)