HPDBC Chapter 87 The £5 oil painting
Chapter 87 The £5 oil painting
Chapter 87 The £50 Million Oil Painting
"What's the matter that requires me to ask my cousin to leave? Is she in debt from gambling again?" Li Xiang frowned slightly.
"Bai is pregnant," Yong said softly.
"That's great news! They're getting married because she's pregnant, and you're going to be a grandfather again."
Yong swallowed hard and stammered, "Yours."
"This joke has gone way too far." Li Xiang was a little confused.
"It's really yours. You can tell when I lie, and lying won't help anyway. Once the child is born, a DNA test will tell you everything." Yong Ge used all the micro-expression knowledge he had learned on his own during this period on Li Xiang, staring at Li Xiang intently.
"What does she mean?" Li Xiang asked.
Yong Ge immediately replied, "Yes!"
"Brother Yong, is it appropriate for me to call you Brother Yong?"
"Each side has its own perspective."
Li Xiang pondered for a few seconds and said, "If she decides to have the baby, I have no objection. I can acknowledge the child, but there's nothing else I can do."
"I see." Yong Ge scratched his head and said, "Xiang Ge, you're a father now, so you should understand how it feels. Some things are hard to say, but I still need to ask clearly."
"If you only care about the children, to what extent can you be so devoted?"
Li Xiang promised, "I can pay a lump sum for child support. Once the child grows up, he will be an adult and will have his own ideas."
"My parents only had me because of the one-child policy. They always told me that if they were gone, I wouldn't have any brothers or sisters in this world."
"If I had the means, I'd have as many children as I want. I'm not afraid of having many kids; it's just that I couldn't control myself. Once I have them, I'll accept it."
0
"If you don't want to raise the child, you can give it to me."
Yong Ge immediately stated, "We are willing to raise them."
"Since we've already come this far, I'm not afraid to say a few more words. I can overlook the past, but since you've decided to be the mother of my child, you can't let me hear any rumors or gossip. Don't blame me for turning against you if things get out of hand."
Brother Yong chimed in, "As soon as I get back to Hong Kong, I'll have her talk things over with Nicholas Tse. Since she's already made a decision, let's settle things quickly and not hold her back."
"Brother Yong, don't always make decisions for her. She doesn't want to have the baby. If you force her to, it will only cause more trouble in the future."
"You're just thinking about opening a casino in Russia. Let's keep things separate. We're friends, and even without the kids, the casino will still open."
"You want to open a casino to make money, and I want to use your casino to launder money; it's a mutually beneficial arrangement."
Li Xiang patted Yong Ge on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, call my cousin back and let her order."
"I'm not in the mood for food anymore. I'm going back to Hong Kong." Yong Ge got up and was about to leave, but suddenly turned back. "If Bai Zhi really decides to have a child, we'll be relatives. Can you take care of my two sons? I want to open a casino, but I don't want them to do this business with me."
We'll talk about it later.
"Okay, I'm really leaving. I'll let you know as soon as I hear anything."
Yong Ge opened the door and left, calling Han Jiayin back as he did so.
"Were you eavesdropping at the door?"
Han Jiayin picked up the menu to order, "I'm not that bored."
"When are you getting married? I'm about to have my third child."
Natasha is still pregnant with her second child, so where did the third one come from?
Han Jiayin pointed at Li Xiang and said, "Just wait to get a beating when you get home."
"7
"I had someone calculate it, and it turns out she's destined to have sons; every child she has will be a son."
Han Jiayin looked speechless and didn't bother to reply.
Li Xiang took out his phone and called Galina. Although Galina's immigration procedures in Granada were not yet completed, she had already gone there.
He spoke in Russian on the phone, not worried that Han Jiayin would hear him.
"Calling so early."
"It's nighttime here."
"I forgot, there's a time difference," Galina said proactively. "Don't worry about me, it's a big villa on a sunny beach, everything's fine except for the language barrier."
"Who's worried about you? Just giving you an update. I've already dealt with Sun Zhengyi. Once Moneybookers completes the transaction, we'll start helping you transfer your assets. At most, within a year, we'll be able to get all your money out of the country."
"So fast!" Galina exclaimed in shock.
"While you have some free time, think about how to launder all this money."
"Just get it done together with me."
Li Xiang helped the Ivanov family transfer assets and launder money. The laundered funds can be spent openly and legitimately. After the money goes through a process, 15% of the costs are deducted. The standard fee is generally 30% to 40%.
The fees Li Xiang collected couldn't even cover his costs; he had to put in the money himself.
This is also the core reason why Andrei and Peter were able to recognize Li Xiang.
The two men simply had slightly different opinions.
Andrei believed that his son-in-law, Li Xiang, was not only capable but also patient, willing to exchange short-term losses for long-term benefits, making him much better than his foolish son.
In Peter's eyes, Li Xiang was loyal and willing to step forward in times of crisis.
The situation was completely different when Li Xiang helped Kumarin's family transfer money.
It's simply a matter of helping to transfer the money out.
Fees vary greatly depending on the level of risk associated with the funds.
However, high-risk funds such as illicit money, gambling funds, and stolen money generally have a margin of around 5%. The Kumarin family's situation is more complicated and more serious.
A 10% charge is within a reasonable range.
Li Xiang simply didn't want to make that kind of money, so he gave the opportunity to Galina to take a cut. If Galina hadn't gone out of her way to help him invest in VK, his assets wouldn't have grown so quickly.
"Haven't you been secretly learning all this time? Now you've been doing it yourself after all this time."
Li Xiang suddenly remembered something and continued, "I looked into your brother's collection of oil paintings, and one of them is quite troublesome."
"Is it the one hanging on the wall?" Galina asked.
"You know?"
Galina explained, "I don't know. The others are all in the storeroom. That one is hanging on the wall, so it must be special."
Li Xiang explained in detail: "That painting is called 'Tarquin and Lucreza'."
"These are war booty that the Soviet Union brought back from Germany during World War II. According to Russia's 'Law on Displaced Cultural Property of World War II' introduced in 98, these war booty can be legally circulated within Russia and do not need to be returned. However, they become somewhat controversial when exported."
0
"But that's not the biggest problem. There are news articles about it online; you can search for them yourself."
"Back in 2003, Russian gangs contacted a German gallery and offered £50 million to sell the painting."
"Whose painting is this? It's worth so much money!" Galina exclaimed.
"You wouldn't recognize him even if I told you. Rubens, on par with Van Gogh. When the German government found out about this, the deal fell through, and Germany later specifically requested Russia to return the painting to its rightful owner."
"Do you realize how serious the problem is?"
"If the painting your brother has is the one in the news, and he acquired it before 03, then even the Kremlin knows that your brother has it. As soon as the painting is exposed, it will be confiscated as stolen goods."
"I can't make the decision about something this expensive. You should think about what to do with it yourself. Do you want to take the risk and smuggle it out, or do you want to sell as much as you can and find an opportunity to cash it out in Russia?"
After a long pause, Galina sighed, "It would really hurt to lose those fifty million pounds."
Li Xiang changed the subject, saying, "Now that you've finished telling me your business, I have a personal matter I'd like to ask you for help with. It's quite embarrassing, and I'm a little ashamed to say it out loud."
Galina immediately became interested. "I love hearing embarrassing stories."