booktalesy 78. 1 million US dollars
78. 1 million US dollars
"An entire wall is covered in US dollars. Could these be counterfeit bills?" Galina's eyes widened in disbelief.
Li Xiang randomly pulled out a stack of books from the shelf and looked at them. "They should be genuine."
"Your dad started out in the late 1980s. His generation experienced the collapse of the Soviet Union firsthand. The purchasing power of the currency depreciated by tens of thousands of times. It's normal that they trusted the dollar more than the ruble."
"What goes around comes around."
"If I get arrested and sentenced to twenty years in prison one day, all the wealth I've hidden will be worthless when it comes out. Who can I complain to then?"
"Will we be able to get it out?" Galina asked expectantly.
Li Xiang: "Difficult."
"Difficult is possible," Galina said with a smile.
Li Xiang explained in detail: "These $100 bills are very difficult to handle within the United States. Even drug dealers won't accept them. Their main currency is $20 bills."
"But it's different in the offshore dollar market; large denominations are the hard currency."
"The main problem is how do you explain so many US dollars? Where did they come from? If it doesn't make sense, you can't deposit them in the bank. Spending them in smaller amounts is even harder. Only tourists spend this kind of money. How many people would you have to find to pretend to be tourists and distribute them for you?"
"The more people know about it, the more uncontrollable factors there are, and the greater the risk becomes."
"There's another crucial question: among these US dollars, are there any marked contraband bills, or were they stolen from some vault? If even the serial numbers have been traced, it will be even more difficult to handle."
"If that's the case, then there's no other way," Galina suggested. "Why don't we find an underground money lender and pay them tolls?"
"This isn't just a million or two. Which underground bank could handle that much? Besides, things are so tense right now, and you're trying to escape. How dare you openly go and exchange money?"
"Money can be a powerful motivator. I'd like to kill you right now so all this money can be mine."
"There are basically two methods: one is to find an insider at the bank to help deposit the money little by little; the other is to smuggle it out of the airport by carrying it out in suitcases, both of which are risky."
Li Xiang looked around and came across a storage room filled with oil paintings.
Galina suggested whimsically, "We have so much money, how about we buy a small bank?"
"You really dare to dream." Li Xiang flipped through the oil paintings one by one, then suddenly froze on the spot.
"Is there anything valuable?" Galina asked as she walked over.
"I don't understand, I can't tell if it's true or false, but you just mentioned buying a bank, it might not be entirely impossible." Li Xiang suddenly turned to Galina, grinned, and said, "Let's talk about how to split the money?"
"Didn't we already agree on the percentage you gave Khodorkovsky?"
"Do you know how much I beat him?" Li Xiang retorted.
Galina said, "I know the market price, it's definitely cheaper than the market price."
After thinking for a moment, Li Xiang said, "This money belongs to your brother. You've taken such a big risk, you can't help him for nothing. I'll give you 10% of the revenue, and I won't take it."
"Ninety percent of the one million will be returned, forty-five hundred thousand will be paid in cash, and the other half will be held for one year."
"Don't be too unfair to me. Let's split my share equally. I'll give you five points." Galina hadn't really thought about taking a share herself.
Li Xiang: "I haven't finished speaking yet. You'll have to figure out how to keep this money safe and move it away as soon as possible, and don't let me find out where you're hiding it."
"I can't take responsibility if something really goes wrong."
"Give me a million each time, in batches."
Galina: "I'm about to immigrate to the Caribbean, what am I supposed to do?"
Li Xiang asked, "Do you still want the ten points?"
Galina immediately replied, "Yes!"
"If you want to, then figure it out," Li Xiang said, holding up two fingers. "I have two additional conditions."
"First, lend me these oil paintings for a while. I'll help you ship them out of Russia to the country you specify, and I'll return them to you in two years."
"Okay," Galina said with a laugh, "but don't you dare switch them out."
"Speak, what's your next condition?"
Li Xiang looked up at Galina and said seriously, "Find Pavel for me."
"The person is dead, where am I supposed to find them? Besides, this has nothing to do with money laundering."
"Whether it's related or not is my business; you just need to get it done," Li Xiang emphasized. "I only care about the results."
Galina pouted and muttered, "You're quite nice to Sister Wuyun."
"She washes my underwear, so what's wrong with me being nice to her?"
"I'll wash it for you from now on."
Li Xiang couldn't help but laugh and said, "Okay, I'll mail it to Grenada for you."
Getting back to the main point, Li Xiang reminded Galina, "These US dollars and oil paintings are out in the open, but your brother may have hidden more than just these things here."
"Search thoroughly behind the cabinets and under the floor."
Li Xiang opened [Deep Scan] and wandered around aimlessly, occasionally reaching out to tap on things.
"What's wrong?" Galina asked as she saw Li Xiang stop standing next to the TV.
"Listen carefully, there's nothing behind this." Li Xiang tapped on the TV wall.
"Your hearing is working perfectly."
It was too late, and the neighbors were worried about the noise disturbing them and calling the police, so they didn't break through the wall on the spot.
They didn't even count how much cash they had.
Li Xiang roughly estimated that the visual impression was similar to that of Director Zhao Dehan in "In the Name of the People," and it should exceed one hundred million US dollars!
This is just the tip of the iceberg of the wealth that the Tambov gang has amassed over the years.
There is a faction within the Tambov gang that specializes in money laundering.
In Spain!
-
Although the Kumarin family was targeted and eliminated, the Tambov gang was not destroyed. The old king was imprisoned, and a new king rose.
Gennady Petrov was the head of the Spanish branch of the Tambov Gang.
The top brass of the Russian headquarters was wiped out in this operation; some died, some fled, and some went to prison.
His status within the gang immediately became apparent.
Gennady was sent to Spain by Kumarin Sr. as early as 96 to establish a "European headquarters" for the gang to launder money.
To this day, his publicly known legal assets alone exceed 5000 million euros.
They drive luxury cars, live in mansions, and lead a life of extravagance and debauchery.
All of Spain knows he's a mafia boss, but there's no evidence against him, and even if they know, there's nothing they can do.
Gennady held financial power over the Tambov gang in Europe, while the top brass in Russia were eliminated, and a large amount of the gang's assets were frozen.
Those in prison need resettlement allowances, while those outside need food.
In times like these, whoever can come up with the money is the boss.
Li Xiang asked Galina to find Pavel's body.
Where can I find it?
The man died at Sasha's hands, and only Sasha knows where the body is buried.
Sasha was brought into the Tambov gang by Galina.
Because he followed the wrong leader, he had a very low profile within the gang. Ironically, this misfortune turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as he was not implicated in this investigation.
Gennady, in Europe, rallied his forces, wanting to replace Kumarin Jr. and change the Tambov clique from a family bloodline system to one ruled by the most capable.
Sasha seized the opportunity, sided with the European faction, and actually made a name for himself.
"Galina, even if you don't come looking for me, I was planning to come looking for you anyway."
Sasha pulled out a pistol and slammed it on the table, grinning as he said, "I kindly introduced Li Xiang to you, hoping to help you make a lot of money, but just because I didn't check his background, you're making me pay to save my life."
"One million US dollars! I emptied my pockets to scrape together that for you. Now look what's happened, it's my turn to settle accounts with you!"