Chapter 34 34

I don't have many memories of Hong Kong.Just remember the last time I saw Marcy Binningdale was in Hong Kong. We left New York on Tuesday morning with only one stop in Fairbanks for a refueling.I'd love to have a taste of "Baked Alaska" in Alaska.Marcie, on the other hand, is determined to get out of the airport and have a snowball fight.Before the two had time to discuss it properly, the loudspeaker was already calling us to board the plane. ①In Alaska. ②A kind of sweet food, also called baked ice cream, that is, baked protein is covered on the ice cream cake. The two of us occupied three seats, and we could sleep as comfortably as we could.Unable to hold back the excitement of a festival, we actually joined what those unscrupulous men and women called the "high-altitude club".Which is to say, while our passengers enjoy watching Clint Eastwood shoot down hordes of bad guys for a gold dollar on the screen, we're there sneaking a taste of our love.

①A famous American film actor. It was Wednesday (!) evening when the plane landed in Tokyo.There is a gap of four hours between changing the machine here.After 20 hours of flying, I was exhausted, so I found a couch in the transit lounge of Pan American Airlines, and fell asleep unceremoniously.Marcie is still full of energy, she has already made an appointment with a few people from the city to meet her here, and she is negotiating with them at the moment. (This is not against our pre-agreement. We agreed that she would have four days of business and we would do nothing for the remaining two weeks and enjoy our vacation.) Wait until she wakes me up By the time she boarded the plane to Hong Kong, she had negotiated every detail of a fashion jewelry deal with the Japanese businessman Takashima Ya, who specialized in small and exquisite goods.

I will never sleep again.I was so excited, just waiting to see the lights around the harbor in Hong Kong.It wasn't until almost midnight, when the plane landed slowly, that a flash of lights finally caught my eye.That scene was ten times more beautiful than the pictures I had seen before. A man named John Alexander Xiang came to pick us up at the airport.Apparently he was the number one supervisor who took care of Marcy's business in Hong Kong.He was in his thirties, dressed in British goods, but spoke with an American accent. ("I went to business school in the US," he says.) He's always fond of saying "it's all right," and the arrangements he's put in place for us deserve an "it's all right."

Because, less than twenty minutes after the plane landed, we had already left the airport, crossed the harbor, and headed for Victoria, where we stayed.We took a helicopter.The view from the plane is truly spectacular.The whole city is like a diamond embedded in the dark sea of ​​China. "The local saying goes well," says John Xiang. "'Thousands of lights are red for one day' heh." "It's so late, why haven't they slept yet?" I asked. "Let's celebrate our New Year." Look at you fool, Barrett!What did you come here for? I completely forgot about it!Fortunately, you have also studied that this year is the year of the dog!

"Then when are you going to sleep?" "Ah, it won't be a surprise after two or three days." Mr. Xiang said with a smile. "I can only last half a minute at most," Marcie said with a sigh. "You must be tired, right?" This strange girl with dragon-horse spirit would say such words, which really surprised me. "I'm so tired, I don't want to play tennis tomorrow morning," she said, and kissed me on the ear. I can't see the villa's appearance in the dark.But the luxurious decoration and furnishings in that room are almost the same as those seen in Hollywood movies.The villa is located high on the mountainside.That said, it's nearly a mile above the harbor below (none of our helicopters flew that high), so the view from the backyard is stunning.

"It's a pity that it's winter now. It's too cold, otherwise we could go for a few laps in the swimming pool," John said.I didn't pay attention, but there was a swimming pool in the garden. "My head's spinning right now, John," I said. "Why don't they have fashion shows here in the summer?" Marcy asked.The servants in this villa are only one "grandmother", two male servants, they are busy bringing our luggage in, unpacking our bags, hanging up our clothes, so we have to chat . "Summer in Hong Kong is not easy," John replied. "It's hard to feel such high humidity."

"That's right, the humidity has reached more than 85 percent," said Barrett. He had read the information thoroughly beforehand. Although he was sleepy now, he still remembered this article, so he quoted it. . "Yes," Mr. Xiang said. "Just like New York in August." Obviously he is not willing to admit that Hong Kong is not "everything is OK". "See you tomorrow. I hope you enjoy our city." "Ah, that's for sure," I replied with perfect tact. "Your land is really radiant and full of flowers." he's gone.My polite remark undoubtedly made him listen very well.

Marcy and I were too tired to sleep, so we just sat for a while.The first of the boys brought wine and orange juice. "Whose comfort zone is it?" I asked. "It's owned by a big real estate boss. We just rent it, and it's calculated every year. We have a lot of people coming in and out, so it's more convenient to set up our own portal." "What are we doing tomorrow?" I asked. "Oh, I'm only about five hours away before a car picks me up and takes me to our offices. Next I'm throwing a luncheon for some of the biggest names in the financial world, and there's going to be a lot of talking and laughing. You can come too... ..."

"Thank you, I'll let it go." "Then I'll ask John to be at your beck and call. Let him accompany you on a tour. Take a look at Hu Wenhu's Garden① and go shopping in the market. You can go to a small island in the afternoon." ① That is Haw Par Villa. "Just me and John?" she smiled. "I also want him to accompany you to Sha Tin." "By the way, it's the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple. Isn't it?" "Yes," she said. "However, we should go to Lantau Island another day, just the two of us. We can spend the night at Po Lin Monastery there."

"Oh, you are quite familiar with the local area." "I've been here many times," she said. "Just alone?" I couldn't hide the jealousy in my heart.This time I come to Hong Kong with her to play, I will not allow outsiders to intervene from the beginning to the end. "It's not just being alone," she said, "it's about being terribly lonely. Just seeing the sunset brings that feeling of loneliness." great.She has also joined the sunset watching team, but she is still a novice, so I will teach her. Just tomorrow. Of course I had to buy a camera.

The next morning John took me to Kowloon, where I bought a lot of photographic equipment at the majestic Ocean Terminal. "What's going on, John?" I asked. "Photography equipment made in Japan is cheaper than in Japan. French perfume is cheaper than Paris!" (I bought some perfume for Marcy.) "This is the mystery of Hong Kong." He said with a slight smile. "This city is amazing." First of all, I have to go to see the flower market in the Spring Festival. There are all kinds of chrysanthemums, fruits, and scrolls of gods painted in gold in "Rainbow Village", which are too many to fit.My newly bought camera is naturally very open, and I took enough pictures of this colorful scene with color film. (I also bought Marcie a huge bouquet of flowers.) Then back to Victoria.When I came to one place, I saw that the streets were all on the hillside.It is simply a San Francisco, but the roads are very narrow, and the streets are dense like cobwebs.We went to "Cat Street" ①, and the stalls on the street were all hung with bright red silk balls, and they were selling everything--there were all kinds of things, and there were so many things that I couldn't imagine it even if I tried my best! ①Among the attractions introduced to tourists by some guidebooks in Hong Kong is a place called "Cat Street". "Cat Street" is not an official street name, the locals call this street Upper Moro Street.This is an "antique street". I ate a "hundred-year-old egg" ①. (After chewing, I felt a strange taste, so I quickly swallowed it.) ①It is preserved egg. John honestly told me that it actually takes a couple of weeks at most to make these eggs. "Arsenic is added to make it, and a layer of mud is applied to the shell of the egg." (When he said this, my egg was already in my stomach!) We also passed some herbal remedies.But I'm not interested in selling those grass seeds, fungi, and dried seahorses to me. There is a hotel in the past, and the shop sells... but snake wine! "No, John," I said, "I can't stand the snake wine." "Oh, this wine is so good," I was shocked when I saw such a strange custom, and he thought it was very interesting. "Drinking snake venom and wine is a very commonly used medicine. The effect is amazing." "How about an example?" "It is effective in treating rheumatism. It also has the function of strengthening yang." I wish I didn't have to use them all right now. "That's on my mind," I said, "but I've lost all interest in seeing it today." So he drove me back to the villa. "If you get up early in the morning," said John, as soon as the car stopped, "I can take you to see something interesting tomorrow. It's about sports." "Ah, I like sports the most." "Then I'll pick you up at seven o'clock, okay? There are Tai Chi practitioners in the botanical garden①. It's interesting." ① refers to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens. "OK," I said. "Have a nice evening, Oliver," he said as he went away. "thanks." "Honestly, Hong Kong nights are enjoyable every day," he added. "Marcie, I really just thought I was dreaming," I said. After half an hour, we have come to the sea.By this time the sun had already set in the west.We took a small boat to "Aberdeen", where there are many "water restaurants" ①, and there are endless lights. ①The locals call it "seafood boat". "There must be a thousand lights, as the saying goes," said Miss Binningdale, "so it's not in the best shape yet, Oliver." We ate under the glowing lanterns, and the fish on our plates were still swimming in the water just now. It's very happy, we ordered it now.I also tasted a few sips of wine.This wine is—there should be no CIA eyeliner next to it, right? ——Red China, the taste is quite good. This situation is really like a mythical world, but it's a pity that when we talk about it, it's all the old ways.For example, what has she done this day. (I'm pretty much the only one who can say "Wow!" or "Holy shit!") She hosted a banquet for the group of dignitaries in the financial world. "They're too British," Marcy said. "It's a British colony." "That being said, the dreams of this group of gentlemen are too beautiful. They still expect the Queen to come and cut the ribbon for the opening of their new cricket ground." "It's not surprising! That's enough flavor. I think Her Majesty the Queen will really visit." On to dessert.So we talked about our "sneak in" this time, as long as two days, we can have a lot of fun. "John Xiang is very clever," I said, "and he's good at motivating you as a tour guide. But I don't want to climb Victoria Peak first, but let me hold your hand and walk with you one day." Standing on top of the mountain." ① That is to pull the flag mountain.The main peak of Hong Kong Island. "How about it. I'll meet you on the top of the mountain tomorrow, and we'll just watch the sunset." "Great." "We have an appointment to meet at five o'clock," she added, "on the highest peak of the mountain." "Give us a drink of this size wine," I said. We kissed and were all blissfully happy. Waiting for the twilight to fall on the top of Victoria Peak, how to pass the day? Well, let's go to Tai Chi first.John is proficient in this way, and he can speak well of every move.It all depends on internal strength, and it can be controlled freely, which is really amazing.After watching the boxing, he proposed to go to Hu Wenhu Garden to see the jade exhibition, and eat some "snacks" there for lunch.I said yes, as long as I don't let me eat snakes. After fifty-seven Kodak color photographs were taken, we sat down to tea. "What business is Marcy doing today?" I asked.I mean to comfort John, but after all, he is an important member of Marcy's subordinates, not an ordinary tour guide. "She has a meeting with the factory director today," he said. "Binningdale also has a factory?" "Strictly speaking, these factories are not owned by the company. We just signed an exclusive sales contract with them. This is also the most critical move in our business operation. It is to take advantage of our so-called Hong Kong." "What kind of advantage?" "The advantage of manpower. In the words of you Americans, it is the labor force. The money earned by Hong Kong people for a week is not as good as the wages of American workers for a day. Some even can't earn such a little..." "Who are they?" "You can't compare the wages of child labor with that of adult labor. If you can get half of it, you will be satisfied. As a result, the delivery price of a beautiful dress in New York is only a fraction of the price in the US or European market. " "Got it. Interesting!" John seemed pleased to see that I had solved the mystery of this Hong Kong "advantage".To be honest, labor issues don't appear in travel agency guidebooks, so I'd love to hear from him. "For another example," John went on, "if two people want a job, there is a solution that one person's meal can be divided between the two. In this way, neither of them will be unemployed." "It's true," I said. "It's true." He smiled, admiring my American saying. "But then you're both doing the full job and getting half the wages," I said. "They're still willing," Mr Xiang said, picking up the bill. "Shall we take the car out into the country?" "Well, John, I'd love to see a factory. Can it be done?" "There are 30,000 factories in Hong Kong. Isn't that easy? There are all kinds of factories, from big factories to small family workshops. What do you want to see?" "Well, I'd like to go to Marcie's factory and take a look around, okay?" "Of course I'm fine," he said. We first went to an area in Kowloon that you don't see on Hong Kong postcards.Crowded, dirty, barely a ray of sunlight.The street was crowded with people chaotically, and we kept honking the horn all the way before we passed. After the car parked in a yard, John said, "The first stop. This is the shirt manufacturer." We went in. I suddenly felt like I had stepped back into the 19th century.To Fall River City, Massachusetts. This is a sweatshop. Can't change half a word, it's a sweatshop. It was narrow, dark, and stuffy. Dozens of female workers were seen throwing themselves on the sewing machines as if they were risking their lives. There was no sound other than the click and hum of a machine that indicated high productivity. How is it different from Amos Barrett's factory back then! An overseer hurried over to greet John and me, the foreign guests from the West.Now we will be taken by him to visit.That was an eye-opener for me.The factory couldn't be smaller, but the scene in front of it couldn't be more miserable. The supervisor card card quack chatted endlessly, all in Chinese.John told me that he was boasting about how proficient the production skills of his group of women were. "The quality of the shirts produced here is top notch," says John. As he spoke, he stopped and pointed at a female worker, who was feeding the sleeves of the shirt into the mouth of the machine with rapid movements. "Look! Absolutely, it is sewn with double needles! This quality is second to none in the world! There is no such product in the United States right now." I take a closer look. It's a pity to say that John was looking for a random example for me to look at, but he just picked the wrong person.The problem is not the skill of the woman worker, but the woman worker herself. "How old is this little girl?" I asked. The little girl just buried her head in sewing her skillfully, and ignored us.It seems to have sped up the speed a little bit. "She's fourteen," said the overseer. He obviously knew a little English. "That's open-eyed nonsense, John," I whispered. "This girl is obviously only ten years old at most." "It's fourteen," the overseer insisted.John also listened to him. "Oliver, that meets the legal minimum age." "I'm not saying whether the law is higher or lower. I'm just saying that this little girl is only ten years old." "She has an ID card," said the overseer.He can still handle a few sentences of English that are necessary for work. "Let's see," I said politely, without adding a "please."There was no expression on John's face, so the supervisor asked the little girl to show her ID card.The little girl hurriedly looked for it.God, I can't tell her I'm not going to break her job. "Here, look here, sir." The head pointed a piece of ID at me.There is no photo on the certificate. "John," I said, "there's no picture on it." "If you are under the age of 17, you don't need to have a photo on your ID card," he said. "That's right," I said. They looked like they were blaming me for not moving forward. "That is to say," I continued, "this little girl borrowed an ID card from a big sister." "It's fourteen years old!" the overseer said to me again, amplifying his voice.He returned the ID card to the little girl.Relieved, the little girl turned around and set to work again, faster than before.It's just that I still secretly look at me from time to time.Oops, won't this cause her to have a work accident? "Tell her not to be nervous," I said to John. John said a few words to her in Chinese, and the little girl just went about her business and stopped glancing at me. "Please, go drink tea," the supervisor said, nodding and bowing all the way, and let us all into a small room, which was his office. John knew it: I don't believe the little girl is fourteen at all. He said to me, "Look, she's doing a fourteen-year-old's job anyway." "But how much money can she earn? Didn't you say that the wages of child laborers are only half of those of adults." "Oliver," said John, still so calmly, "she'll take home ten dollars a day." "That's great," I said, but then I added, "It's just Hong Kong dollars. It's only one yuan and eighty cents in US dollars, isn't it?" The overseer handed me a shirt. "He showed you how well-crafted it is," John said. "Not bad," I said. "The 'double-needle' thing is really novel (I can't tell how much it means). I actually have two of these shirts myself." You know, the shirts produced here are all marked with the trademark of "Bing's World of Celebrities".It seems that men who like to wear shirts and sweaters "two-piece suit" this year are fashionable to wear this kind of shirts. I bowed my head and drank my tea, but I wondered in my heart: Does our Mrs. Elvie Nash in my hometown of New York, thousands of miles away, know how to make the fashionable fashion clothes that she promotes so much? What about? ①As mentioned earlier, Elvie Nash is a saleswoman in the trendy men's clothing department of "Celebrity World" in Binningdale, New York (see Chapter 17). "Let's go," I said to John. I was almost out of breath. I turned to the weather. "It must be a rough time here in the height of summer," I said. "Very damp," John replied. We have talked about this topic a long time ago, so my answer is also ready-made. "Just like New York in August, isn't it?" "On par," he said. "Did that...affect the work efficiency of female workers?" "You mean..." "I see that there is no air conditioner installed in the workshop," I said. He glanced at me. "This is Asia, Oliver," he said, "not California." The car is still driving forward. "Does your apartment have air conditioning?" I asked. John Xiang gave me another look. "Oliver," he said nonchalantly, "workers don't have such high expectations of life in our East." "yes?" "that is." "But John, don't ordinary workers in your Asia want to have a full stomach?" He didn't answer. "Then," I went on, "you admit that you can't live on this one dollar and eighty cents?" I know that in his heart he longed for a "Thousand Jun Palm" to kill me. "People here are not afraid of hardship," he said in a confident tone. "The ladies here don't entertain themselves with a magazine in the beauty salon." I knew it must be my mother that came to his mind. In his mind, my mother was sitting under the hair dryer to pass the time. "Like that little girl you saw," he went on. "Her family works in that factory. Her mother does some sewing for us at night." "Do it at home?" "Yes," John replied. "Gee, isn't that what labor law calls 'working from home'?" I said. "good." I hesitated for a moment. "Dude John, you're a decent grad student out of business school," I said. "You should always remember how it's illegal to 'work from home' in America." He smiled. "You don't understand Hong Kong's laws." "Forget it, you ugly hypocrite!" He slammed on the brakes, and the car came to a screeching stop. "I don't need to come and get yelled at by you," he said. "You're right," I said, opening the car door.But no, I can't just walk away angrily, I have to explain this truth to him again. I put it in a very gentle tone and said to him: "Working at home is illegal because it is not subject to the minimum wage stipulated by the union. The boss is happy with those who have to do this kind of work." They can only take as much as they give. Usually it is pathetic, almost equal to zero." John Xiang glared at me. "Have you finished your speech, Mr. Liberal?" he asked. "It's over." "Then please listen to me. You also understand the actual situation in the local area. The reason why the workers here do not join the union is because everyone is willing to have one person's wages shared among several people, and everyone is willing to let their children go to the union. Work, everybody'd rather get some work and take it home. You see?" I don't want to talk to him anymore. "And I can tell you a stinky lawyer," John concluded, "that there's no minimum wage in Hong Kong. You bastard!" As soon as he stepped on the gas pedal, he drove away, so I didn't have time to tell him: Am I already in hell?