Chapter 792 The Grandson's Ambition
"Nothing. I just didn't expect that there are so many Korean chaebols on such a small, broken island." Chen Xi laughed it off.
"It's nothing. At that time, the Koreans wanted to build this island into the second Australia, or even an existence that surpasses Australia. However, they didn't expect that the current situation is not very optimistic." Yi Zhihui exhaled a puff of smoke.
What he said is not without basis. The original intention of Jeju Island to develop entertainment venues was to emulate the Macau area to a certain extent, but due to multiple factors, it ultimately failed to become the second Macau area.
In 2006, the Korean government approved Jeju Island as an international free city, granting it privileges such as legalized gambling, visa-free entry (for Chinese tourists), and tax exemption, which is similar to its positioning in Australia.
The casino is only open to foreigners, and its main target is Chinese high rollers, who account for more than 70% of the visitors.
For example, Hongding, which was developed by Yi Zhihui, and other projects, combine hotels, shopping and entertainment, imitating complexes such as the Venetian and Galaxy in Macau.
In recent years, it has been widely rumored on the Internet that Jeju Island casinos specialize in ripping off Chinese tourists, and their reputation has been damaged by scandals such as loan sharking and violent debt collection. Coupled with the impact of online gambling and the diversion of customers by online casinos in the Philippines and Cambodia, fewer and fewer tourists are coming to Jeju Island now.
Speaking of service, the service provided by local employees in Korea is not that good. This is a bit similar to the Chinese people. They like to greet white people with a smile, but they keep a stern face all day long towards Asians with the same skin color. In short, they are worshipping foreigners and fawning on foreigners.
"I've been here for two days and I've noticed that there are hardly any customers in any of the major venues. I guess the annual revenue is probably not even 10 billion U.S. dollars." Chen Xi asked after calculating.
"Indeed, the total casino revenue of the entire island last year did not even reach 10 billion, but these are just figures on the books, and the actual figures are not very good either," Yi Zhihui said with a wry smile.
He, like those Korean chaebols, invested countless amounts of money here, but reality slapped them in the face.
You know, this income is just a fraction of what it is in Australia, and it would be even more disastrous if it were placed in Australian casinos.
"I think the current role of Jeju Island has become a transit point for capital outflow from the mainland, that is, buying real estate in exchange for casino points."
"That's right, but this has been suppressed by the supervision of both countries, and we have to correct its direction again!"
Yi Zhihui showed admiration on his face. He felt that Chen Xi was very knowledgeable about certain gray industries.
Yi Zhihui put out his cigarette and continued, "The chaebols in Kimchi Country invest in the gaming industry here for the triple drive of policy dividends, geo-economics, and expansion needs. This is also their overseas funding channel. Foreign high-rollers are a gray channel for chaebols to launder overseas assets and absorb capital. However, in order to maintain their image in Kimchi Country, these chaebols use subsidiaries to control their holdings and even advertise that they are opening tourist resorts here, hahaha!"
"Aren't there always infighting among the chaebols? There are so many entertainment venues here, and I guess they are already fighting over customers." Chen Xi spread his hands.
"That's true. The safety of the island has become a problem. The money changers and junket operators from the Australian region have already taken root here. And the non-entertainment lending business has already caused tourists to be kidnapped..."
"I heard that the stackers here get paid XX% of the customer's losses, while in Australia they get around 1.5% of the customer's turnover. Moreover, Korean law does not recognize gambling debts, which means that the stackers will provide illegal lending services in order to make customers lose more money. It's not surprising that kidnappings occur..." Chen Xi shook his head.
These people from all walks of life have secret cooperation with the chaebols, which is the way of playing in the early days of Australia. The collection methods are also relatively brutal, directly resorting to kidnapping, confiscating passports, and restricting departure.
Since Parker wants to invest here and cheat the Chinese people, Chen Xi should just help him. Jeju Island will be ruined in the future anyway.
After his rebirth, he clearly remembered that the so-called SAD missile incident would break out in three years, causing the number of customers on Jeju Island to plummet and the casino's revenue to be greatly reduced, not as good as it is now.
In order to gain some benefits for himself, Chen Xi added: "I came here to investigate. Whether Crown invests here or not will also be affected by my report when I return."
"What do you want?" Yi Zhihui knew that there was no free lunch in the world, so he chose to speak frankly.
Crown’s investment is crucial. The various forces on the island are fighting fiercely, and Yi Zhihui urgently needs to win over a powerful helper.
He actually has plenty of money, and Crown's joining can provide him with other help.
“I made the live broadcast machine for the Australian area.”
"That's no problem. From now on, our casino's live broadcast machine business will be yours."
"Haha, this place is so small! All the casinos on the entire island combined are less than half the size of the Macau area!"
Chen Xi smiled.
"Yeah, it doesn't seem like there's much money, and you definitely wouldn't think highly of it. How about I discuss it with the shareholders and give you some commission from the live broadcast machine." Yi Zhihui thought about it.
However, Chen Xi still shook his head when he heard this.
The live broadcast machines in Jeju Island are different from those in other countries. The live broadcast machines in other countries are dealt by real people, but the machines in Jeju Island are computer-controlled, which is a device similar to a slot machine.
Who dares to play with this kind of thing?
Most of the customers who come here are old gamblers who cannot enter the Macau area. They grew up playing slot machines and know the program settings inside.
The machine profit sharing proposed by Yi Zhihui seemed a joke to Chen Xi.
"Then what do you want?" Yi Zhihui frowned.
"I want the linen and drinking water business in hotels, casinos, etc., and it's not just yours."
"How can I possibly do this?"
You know, the amount of mineral water consumed in casinos every day is countless.
The total cost of linen washing and mineral water in a venue is more than tens of millions, with a gross profit of about 50%. Businesses like those in the Australian area are monopolized by local suppliers and foreign-funded enterprises. Chen Xi can't get involved at all. These businesses are controlled by high-level contacts in the entertainment venue.
But Jeju Island...
“What if I said I could help increase revenue for casinos across Jeju Island?”
"Oh? I thought you didn't want to cheat the Chinese."
Yi Zhihui looked at him in surprise.
"You won't cheat Chinese people, but you can cheat Japanese people." Chen Xi raised his eyebrows.
"Huh? I just said it, the Japanese don't like playing Jiale at all."
"Islanders do not like to play this kind of brainless game, but they like to play games like marbles that require technical operations. You can totally imitate them and make something new! For example, craps..." Chen Xi began to talk about his ideas.
He had read a comic from an island country before, called "Gambling Apocalypse", which was later adapted into a movie.
There are many interesting games in this comic. Japanese people like themes like "Liar Game" very much. If the games in it are moved into reality, it is not impossible.
A few hours later, in the casino lobby.
A young man with dyed yellow hair was sitting on the sofa holding a mobile phone and shouting at the screen: "If you have money, don't go to the Macao River. If you are in trouble, you must go to the North Bank. I didn't know the Australian currency when I first came here, and I was a red and blue person when I saw it again. Australia is just a transition, Jeju is the final destination. The cost here is less than half of that in Australia. Friends who want to move here can come here and try. Don't worry about time limits. You can enjoy it for 30 days after landing..."
Seeing this energetic young man live streaming on his phone, Chen Xi's mouth twitched and he had to hold back from laughing out loud.
What the man just said is a jingle that gamblers in the Macau area often say. The first half of this sentence is actually a common saying in Guangdong Province. Haojiang refers to the Macau area, which symbolizes wealth and adventure. If you have money, don't go to Haojiang, which is a warning not to go to the Macau area to squander or take risks easily even if you have money. If you are in trouble, you must go to Gongbei'an, which means that those who lose money in gambling, go bankrupt or have nowhere to go in the Macau area can only return to the mainland through Gongbei Port in disgrace. As for the second half of the sentence... that was made up by those people who play Jiale in the Macau area.
There are many similar proverbs, such as making money in Australia and spending it in Australia, and wanting to take it home when you leave. It is easy to cross the sea, but difficult to return to the shore. There is no winner at the gambling table, and there is no rich man in the north, etc.
As for what the young man called "ant moving", it refers to a way of playing among gamblers. After losing all their money, gamblers always reflect on themselves and summarize how they lost. Some people invented the free fighting (quick fight and quick decision) fighting method. The opposite is called ant moving, which means going to the casino every day to win a little money and leave. The main point is not to be greedy. But 99% of people will get addicted, which is like chopping wood for a thousand days and burning it in one day. The results of your 30-day moving will often be lost all at once on the 31st day.
People outside joked that their ant-moving behavior was like moving their homes to Australia, meaning they were moving their houses, cars, and money here and giving them away.
However, although what this guy said seems outrageous to people who don't gamble, it is very attractive to gamblers, especially those who think that ant moving is right.
Because the cost of living in Jeju Island is very low, although it is still much higher than in the mainland, it is not comparable to Australia. In addition, the 30-day visa-free period can attract many customers.
The young man's hard work also won the support of many people in the live broadcast room, and they all began to ask about the specific operations. Because more than 9% of people in China have never been abroad in their lives, they don't know anything about passports, visas, customs clearance, hotels, taxis, deposits, and withdrawals.
The most frequently asked question is how to take the money back home, which is also what many gamblers want to know most.
The energetic young man sneered in his heart after seeing the barrage in the live broadcast room.
How can you take the winnings home when you haven’t even arrived yet?
it's so funny.
However, he still answered seriously: "Brother, don't worry about how to bring the money back to China. As long as you win money, we have a hundred ways to help you get the money back. Brother, don't worry about taking a taxi, accommodation, etc. Our casino will have a public relations staff to arrange free pick-up and free hotel experience for you..."
Chen Xi heard the young man's words and silently turned to look at Yi Zhihui next to him. The man shrugged, pointed ahead, and said as he walked: "Now it's the Internet age, everything depends on traffic! The company asked those code-stackers to go out to solicit business, and some smart people thought of using live broadcasting to attract traffic. I think it is still quite effective..."
“Don’t live streaming platforms care?”
"Of course I do, but you can change the wording. For example, coming to the casino to play games can be said to be like coming to the vegetable market to buy vegetables, and the chips can be said to be apples, pears, etc. You can also say that this is a fish pond, and you catch a few pounds of fish every day..." Yi Zhihui explained with a smile.
Chen Xi is quite familiar with this. In order to avoid the live broadcast room being closed, these anchors usually say they are going fishing or picking apples. One thousand yuan is one tael, and ten thousand yuan is one jin. The chips are called bait.
Some anchors will pretend to be players and report their results every day. For example, they caught three kilograms of fish today, and the total score is ten kilograms above water.
If you do this, people in the live broadcast room will always feel itchy when they see the anchor's good results. The next step is to contact the anchor and ask how to go to Jeju Island.
Then the anchor will send him a private message, teach him how to fly over, and arrange a hotel, a taxi, etc. When these people have lost almost all their money, they will provide loan services.
Of course, if some customers win money, they will also provide them with remittances and beautiful women services.
The casino will also give some money to these traffickers, which is about XX% of the players’ losses.
"It's a bit troublesome what you're doing. According to current statistics, the commissions that casinos give to junket operators are taken from the turnover, but Jeju Island takes the money from the losses. This will cause customers to distrust them, and it will also cause the junket operators to do bad things and make customers lose money..." Chen Xi thought about it and said what was in his mind.
"We can't help it. Business is bad right now, and those Koreans are just thinking about making as much money as they can..." Yi Zhihui naturally understood the problem here, but all the casinos on the island were run this way, and it would definitely not be good if he tried to get special treatment.
Besides, everyone else has done it this way, so who would believe that he did it differently?
"Oh? It seems that you have different ideas. Some of you want to make slow money, while others want to make quick money."
"There's nothing we can do. The main business of those Korean chaebols is a money-making machine, and the industries here are just for fun..." Yi Zhihui sighed.
His idea is similar to that of the island tycoons and Americans, which is to make steady money.
However, the Koreans don’t think so. They are either engaged in semiconductors, military industry or finance. Jeju Island is just a capital transit station.
"First, if you want good business on the island, you have to unify everyone's thoughts and convince them. Second, you foreign companies must unite and put pressure on the Koreans. Third, as I said before, make the Japanese the main consumers here. What did the Koreans do when the economy was bad in the past? Of course, it was beautiful women serving, isn't that what the Japanese like..."
"Hehe, what you just said has aroused my interest. There is everything in short supply here except money and beauties. Besides playing poker, the guests who come here like to repair their cars the most." Yi Zhihui is a man after all, and he rubbed his hands with a wicked smile.
Getting a car repaired means finding a beautiful woman. Many of the people who come here are guests from Australia. What they like most is to go to the Korean car repair shop at night.
In Australia, the price of Korean beauties is second only to that of women from the island countries. However, in this local area, the consumption is much cheaper. So many men come here under the guise of tourism, but in fact they come here to repair their cars.
Chen Xi still remembered a piece of news he had read in his previous life, saying that Koreans liked to go to Menggu to get their cars repaired. It wasn't a big problem to get Japanese people to come to the island to repair Korean cars, after all, they were close. After repairing their cars, they would naturally go to the casino to play a few games, and the economy would be boosted all of a sudden.
Most women in island countries are short and have long legs, while most women in Korean countries have long legs. There is no need to discuss what types men prefer.
However, there was a saying on the Internet in the past that the Japanese people like petite women, and tall women are not very popular there. Chen Xi thinks this is wrong.
The type of women men like will change as they age and their conditions change. In island countries, women are shorter on average (around 158cm), and their petite figures are more suitable for the relationship of protection and being protected in their social culture. In Kimchi, the average height of women is close to that of men (around 164cm), and long legs have become a symbol of class, which is influenced by the aesthetics of the chaebol.
The survey shows that men in the island country with an annual income of more than 1000 million Sakura coins are 165% more likely to choose tall women (over 47cm tall) as their spouses, confirming the law that financial resources determine the freedom of aesthetics.
東京模特经纪公司170cm+女性签约量10年增长320%，证明市场存在。但主流AV产业仍偏好150-160cm女优，实为影视工业的标准化生产需求。
Therefore, the idea that Japanese men like short girls is purely because they have watched too many porn movies and cartoons. Besides, when men look for women, their standards for girlfriends and wives are different.
"Aren't you planning to change the points system here?" After arriving at the casino, Chen Xi pointed at the few players in the distance and said.
"Change the points system? Oh, that's right. I heard that Crown and the new rich in the Australian region have adopted a new points system, which seems to be invented by a Chinese!" Yi Zhihui patted the back of his head.
“I invented that!”
"you?"
“However, it needs to be calculated by some professionals before it can be used, and each casino has different playing methods and odds, so it cannot be used directly.”
"That's no problem. We can pay a fee. I heard that the new points system can greatly increase the casino's revenue." Yi Zhihui is not a stingy guy. Chen Xi had already discovered that after chatting with him for so long.
To be precise, gamblers are very generous in some aspects, except that they are stingy when buying clothes for themselves, because they think there is no need to save money if it is spent on the right things.
Hearing that Yi Zhihui directly chose to pay, Chen Xi nodded with satisfaction.
This is the kind of partner that Chen Xi is looking for. If he meets someone who wants to play a tug-of-war with him for a little money, he will most likely turn around and leave.
Two days later, Lotte Hotel, Jeju Island.
The afterglow of the setting sun shines through the glass curtain wall into the grand banquet hall, and the crystal chandelier reflects the fragmented golden light. Although the Lotte Hotel in Jeju Island is the top hotel on the island, it is still far from the real luxury of the world. Fortunately, the price is affordable, and you can stay for a night for a few hundred yuan in the off-season, which has attracted many tourists.
At this time, Lotte Casino was brightly lit.
"Welcome everyone to Rakuten Casino."
A warm and clear voice sounded.
The young man standing on the main stage was in his twenties, with an upright posture, a well-tailored suit, an elegant face, and a hint of humility between his brows.
Xin Yourong is the son of Xin Dongbing, the prince of Lotte Group.
Although he was still young, his speech and behavior showed the accumulation of aristocratic family. He bowed slightly and greeted the people in the room, his posture was elegant but not arrogant.
“I invited you here today not to command you in the name of Lotte, but to gather your wisdom and discuss the future of Jeju Island together.”
His words seemed gentle, yet they revealed a powerful aura, which was the innate foundation of the third generation of a chaebol.
Actually, Chen Xi called Choi Jong-sang the crown prince of SK Group, which was a bit wrong. Because the successors of the Korean country are often much older than those of the Chinese group, it would be more accurate to call him the crown prince.
"Jeju Island's tourism industry should not just be positioned as a cheap alternative to Australia. Although the number of tourists on the island has increased in the past three years, their per capita consumption has decreased. This shows that we have attracted a group of tourists pursuing low prices, but lost the wealthy customers who are really willing to spend money," Xin Yourong added.
Several casino owners in the venue raised their eyebrows and looked at each other with a smile. This was said tactfully, but everyone could hear that Jeju Island's people-friendly positioning was lowering its overall revenue.
Xin Yourong was neither anxious nor impatient, and continued: "Perhaps, we can learn from the tiered management model of the Macao region, retaining the mass entertainment venues while opening up real high-end VIP areas."
He slowly swept his eyes over the people present, with a faint smile on his lips: "Of course, this requires the joint efforts of everyone. After all, a prosperous Jeju Island is beneficial to everyone."
Looking at the third generation of the chaebol talking in front of him, many Korean movies and TV dramas about chaebols flashed through Chen Xi's mind.
In movies and TV dramas, the children of chaebol families are usually portrayed as dandies or even bullies. But in reality, the young people from the Korean and island countries that Chen Xi has met are all polite, and the better the family, the more elegant their manners and conversation. They are not the kind of people who nag at others when doing things, which is completely the opposite of what they see in the movies.
Although the class status of Koreans is at the bottom in Chen Xi's mind, it must be said that in terms of quality and conversation, Koreans and Japanese are still far ahead in Asia.
Chen Xi also knew the information about Lotte Group. Xin Yourong and his father Xin Dongbing both went to school in the island country. In fact, many children of chaebol families in Korea have attended private schools in the island country.
Not only did this father and son study abroad in the island country, they also went to the United States for further studies.
Xin Yourong first worked in the island country of Lotte a long time after graduation, and was later transferred back to the headquarters. It can be said that he knows the island country very well.
This is why Chen Xi asked Yi Zhihui to persuade Xin Yourong first, and then asked him to organize a meeting and invite all the casino owners on the island to gather together.
"A tiered business model? Isn't that just the VIP room and the regular hall? Don't we already have that?" a shareholder of an entertainment venue said.
"No, no, no. This tiered business model is completely different from the previous ones. This question needs to be answered by professionals." Xin Yourong shook his head and pointed to someone in the crowd.
Then, everyone present looked at Chen Xi.
Ps: Because I have the habit of revising previous articles while writing, I have no more drafts now, so I will post all the articles together, so each chapter will have more words than before, and I may not update every day. When I have more drafts, I will post more. (End of this chapter)