章節 594: Chapter 594: The Craze for Video Games
Since December last year, Xia Yu had been running around nonstop, caught up in a whirlwind of meetings, business deals, and strategic planning sessions. As a result, he hadn't had the chance to sit down and have a proper conversation with his two younger brothers for a long time. Tonight's late-night snack provided a rare opportunity for them to relax, reconnect, and enjoy each other's company. For Xia Yu, this was a much-needed break.
The three brothers savored their food, laughing and reminiscing over two bottles of beer. It wasn't until around 10 PM that they finally decided to call it a night.
Kowloon City was a relatively underdeveloped area of Hong Kong, and by this hour, most of the shops had already closed. Only a few late-night food stalls and entertainment venues like KTVs remained open. The streets were nearly deserted, with just a few stray pedestrians making their way home.
As they stepped out of the Four Seasons Fresh food stall, Xia Yu paused for a moment. He could feel a sense of quiet and peacefulness enveloping the street. However, his thoughts were interrupted by a loud noise coming from a shop across the street. The door was wide open, and the curtain was only half drawn. From inside came the unmistakable sounds of electronic beeping and slamming boards, mixed with excited shouts and cheers.
The noise struck a familiar chord in Xia Yu's memory. He instinctively stopped in his tracks, turning his head to look across the street.
Noticing his brother's sudden interest, Xia Lei and Xia Jun also halted. Xia Lei asked, "Yu, what's wrong?"
Xia Yu didn't immediately respond. His gaze was fixed on the red sign hanging above the entrance of the shop. It read: "Game Hall."
"When did this game hall appear here?" Xia Yu asked, his voice curious, and his expression thoughtful. He seemed lost in his thoughts, as if piecing together a puzzle only he could see.
Xia Lei glanced at the game hall and shrugged, "Oh, this place? It belongs to my gang. We opened it just a couple of months ago. We got these game machines imported from Japan. Business has been quite good so far. I've opened seven of these across different areas—they've become a decent, steady source of income for us."
Xia Lei's tone was casual; he didn't seem to think much of the business. After all, while the arcades were profitable, the income was relatively small compared to the other ventures of the Tiger Gang. With seven game halls of varying sizes, they collectively housed 35 game consoles. At one Hong Kong dollar per four game tokens, even on a good day, the arcades barely made a few thousand Hong Kong dollars, totaling less than a hundred thousand a month. This was nothing compared to the Tiger Gang's total revenue of over eight million per month.
Moreover, the costs of the arcade machines were high, and they hadn't even recouped the initial investment after two months. However, since the game halls provided a legitimate income source and gave his subordinates a place to unwind, Xia Lei saw them as a useful distraction to keep his men from causing trouble when idle.
Though Xia Lei considered it a minor venture, Xia Yu's interest was piqued. Knowing that it was one of Xia Lei's establishments, he suddenly felt the urge to take a closer look.
"Let's go check it out," Xia Yu said with a spark of enthusiasm, already making his way across the street.
Xia Lei was a bit surprised at his brother's curiosity but didn't question it. He quickly followed, with Xia Jun trailing close behind.
As they pushed aside the door curtain, they were immediately hit by a wave of noise and flashing lights. The hall was filled with excitement, a chaotic mix of sounds from electronic games and the shouts of players. For a moment, a sense of nostalgia washed over Xia Yu—a feeling that transcended time and space.
Their entry caught the attention of a few employees overseeing the place. A couple of them seemed ready to intervene until they recognized Xia Lei. One of the young men, a security guard, quickly straightened up, clearly nervous, and greeted him respectfully, "Boss."
Xia Lei nodded curtly and instructed, "Clear the place out. Give everyone ten game tokens and tell them to come back tomorrow."
The guard hesitated for a split second, surprised by the sudden order, but quickly complied. In no time, the room was bustling with activity as the staff started ushering the players out. The patrons were visibly unhappy about being interrupted, but they knew better than to complain—it was the Tiger Gang's turf, after all.
Within minutes, the game hall was nearly empty. The scattered tokens and the mess on the floor indicated the bustling scene that had been there moments before.
Xia Yu stepped further into the hall, his eyes scanning the electronic screens that were still on, displaying simple pixelated graphics. He quickly recognized the type of game: a shooting game set in space, with a small spaceship dodging asteroids and shooting at incoming invaders. The title screen read: "Space Invaders."
Xia Yu felt a rush of familiarity. The game's crude graphics and mechanics reminded him of a similar arcade game he had seen—and played—during his later years, though it had been an updated version from the 1990s. This was clearly an earlier edition.
Curious, he turned to Xia Lei and asked, "Lei, what's this game called?"
Xia Lei, not particularly interested in the specifics, called over one of his men, "Hey, what's the name of this game?"
The young man quickly replied, "Boss, it's called Space Invaders. You fly a spaceship and shoot meteors and invaders."
Xia Lei nodded, looking back at Xia Yu.
"Ah, Space Invaders," Xia Yu murmured, a smile forming on his lips. No wonder it felt so familiar. It was a classic game, one he remembered playing a more advanced version of in his previous life, alongside other hits like "King of Fighters" and "Dino Crisis."
Lost in the nostalgia, Xia Yu felt an unexpected urge to experience the game again, to recapture a bit of the joy he had felt as a child. Without hesitation, he moved over to one of the machines, grabbed the joystick, and settled into a seat.
Xia Lei, catching on, quickly slipped a game token into the slot.
The game rebooted, and the familiar beeping sound filled the air. Xia Yu moved the joystick around, testing the controls, and tapped the red buttons, feeling the tactile response beneath his fingers.
Xia Lei and Xia Jun watched from behind, intrigued and a bit amused. The younger men standing around remained quiet, clearly aware of their boss's high-profile guest. They stood at a respectful distance, watching their every move.
Soon, the arcade filled with the sounds of the game:
"Clang, clang…"
"Pop, pop…"
"Biiu, biiu, biiu…"
"Puff, puff…"
As the familiar sounds played, Xia Yu found himself smiling. He was surprised at how quickly he became absorbed in the game. Though this was his first time playing this specific version, his experience with arcade games from the future had prepared him well. The basic mechanics were easy for him to grasp.
Moreover, Xia Yu's years of martial arts training had refined his reflexes, and his fingers danced across the buttons with speed and precision. The spaceship darted across the screen, dodging obstacles and shooting down meteors and space invaders with deadly accuracy.
Xia Lei and Xia Jun watched with growing excitement, their own fingers itching to play.
"Jun, let's join in," Xia Lei said eagerly, waving over one of his younger men. "Get us some tokens!"
Moments later, Xia Lei and Xia Jun were seated beside Xia Yu, ready to play on the adjacent machines. Their men stood by, prepared to feed more tokens into the slots as needed.
However, within seconds, Xia Lei's game was over. He stared at the screen, baffled. "I died? That was fast!" he muttered.
Almost immediately, Xia Jun's game ended too. "What? I'm out already?" he exclaimed in frustration.
They turned to look at Xia Yu, who was still playing smoothly, navigating through the obstacles with ease.
"Ah Yu, how are you so good at this?" Xia Jun asked, laughing at his own poor performance.
Xia Yu glanced over with a smirk. "Find your own rhythm. Games are about fun, not strategies."
Then, he turned back to his game, fully immersed again.
Unconvinced and determined, Xia Lei and Xia Jun restarted their games. Meanwhile, their subordinates quietly watched, occasionally dropping in more tokens whenever the bosses lost.
It didn't take long for the other men in the hall to recognize Xia Yu. Whispers spread among the group—this was the stock god of Xiangjiang, the man who had conquered the financial world. Yet here he was, playing an old arcade game with as much focus and passion as any other young man.
The scene was surreal. If anyone had captured it on film, it would surely cause a sensation across Hong Kong. But it was late, and no reporters were around. Even if there were, they would likely hesitate to publish such a peculiar moment.
Xia Yu continued to play, lost in the simple joy of the game. In that brief moment, he wasn't the shrewd businessman, the powerful figure, or the stock god everyone knew. He was just a man, reconnecting with a long-forgotten piece of his past, savoring a fleeting moment of youthful innocence.
Tonight, in a dimly lit game hall in Kowloon City, he found a small slice of happiness that transcended time and circumstance.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票