New York 2006

Chapter 6 New York
Not even a taxi could pass by this remote and dilapidated RV campground, so Luo Ji had to walk more than 1000 meters to a nearby business district before getting a taxi.The driver was a Latino. Taxi drivers from any country seemed to be very talkative. As soon as Luo Ji got in the car, the driver started talking to him about the Amish people after asking about the destination.

In the United States recently, the Amish have become the focus of attention.

This is because a few days ago, a man named Charlie Carl Roberts broke into an Amish community school in Pennsylvania with a gun and kidnapped 10 girls aged 6 to 13. During the confrontation with the police, He was shot, eventually killing five people, and the man also shot himself at the same time.

This has also led the media to pay attention to this group of Amish people who live on the margins of society and live an alternative life.

The Amish are not a special ethnic group, they are a branch of Christianity, and they are all white.Because they refuse to use modern facilities such as cars and electricity, they only travel by horse-drawn carriages every day, and live a simple and low-desire life, as if they were living in the feudal period, so they are collectively called the Amish.

"I heard that the Amish farm their own land, pick and eat their own food, and live a self-sufficient life. Isn't it very similar to commune life during the hippie movement? And I heard that they think cars are evil, hahaha." The driver spoke.

Luo Ji was idle, so he started chatting: "They don't see cars as evil. The reason they reject modernization is because they think new things will affect family reunions and complicate life, so they can't be religious. They are just a group of religious people who live a life similar to the feudal era. They are indeed similar to the hippies in that they are opposed to the alienation of people by capitalism."

The Latino driver asked: "Then they don't make money? Don't they go to work? Are they really isolated from the world?"

"That's not true. They are taking advantage of modern society and living like a group of pets. They have their own land, engage in agriculture, and live a life close to the feudal era. This makes many people feel uncomfortable with their lives. Interest, their tourism industry is very developed. Maybe they make more money than you working hard to drive a taxi."

The Latino driver was not happy when he heard this: "How can they be richer than me? Don't think I'm just a taxi driver. I own three properties in New York."

Luo Ji was confused: "The three properties are worth at least 500 million. Is it so profitable to drive a taxi?"

The Latino driver chuckled: "You don't understand this, right? The real estate market is very good now. Real estate prices keep rising, but the interest rates on home loans are very cheap. All three of my properties were loaned several years ago. I bought it, and the house price has increased a lot in the past few years. I only need to pay the monthly payment, and after a few years, I will sell the house, and after deducting the loan interest and other expenses, I will earn at least 300 million from the extra house price."

Luo Ji thought about it carefully and realized that this was really the case. Ever since Rudy Giuliani took office as mayor of New York in 1994, he began to strictly investigate police corruption and crack down on crime. Housing prices in New York have been soaring.

Although 2001/911 occurred in New York in [-], after taking office as the new mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, who was born into a rich man, on the one hand continued the security strategy of his predecessor, and on the other hand, as a businessman mayor, he He has been improving the image of New York. He has built New York beautifully and vigorously developed tourism. In recent years, New York housing prices have soared.

Countless New Yorkers are very satisfied with Bloomberg's performance over the years, and they have all benefited from this rising real estate wave.

Could it be that the plain-looking Latino uncle in front of him was really a millionaire? But Luo Ji immediately thought of something wrong: "Why did you tell me your secret to making money?"

The Latino driver was sincere: "Of course it's because of the benefits. I know a real estate manager. As long as you take people to him to get a loan to buy a house, he will give you benefits. I am an intermediary, so are you interested in finding out?"

Luo Ji was dressed formally today and looked more mature.But he didn't like the sales pitch, so he told the Latino driver, "I'm still a minor."

"How old are you?" the Latino driver asked in surprise.

"I am 16 years old!"

"You look like you are of mixed Asian and European descent, right? It's always hard to guess the age of people with Asian genes."

"My mixed race characteristics are obvious, aren't they?"

The Latino driver said: "Yes, you are very handsome, but you look a little more mature than the average Asian of the same age!"

"Maybe it's my mother's white genes that play a role!"

"Why are we talking about real estate? We are talking about genes and age." The Latino driver brought back the topic, then lowered his voice and said mysteriously: "Do you think I, a taxi driver, can get three loans at the same time?" The payment for the house?”

Luo Ji relied on experience and answered: "No, banks are not stupid!"

"Yes, ordinary people can't get a loan. But this real estate manager I know has great magical powers, and he can get a loan even if he is a minor. In the first five years of the loan, you don't need to repay the principal, as long as you repay the loan every month Interest is enough. For a house worth 100 million dollars, you only need to pay a few hundred dollars in interest every month. When the house price rises in a few years, and then you sell the house, the extra money will be earned. Money?" Is he so crazy?Even minors are not spared when promoting real estate.

Luo Ji didn't know yet, and he wasn't interested in whether the real estate manager the driver mentioned was as powerful as he said.He is now thinking about how to become a singer, so he finds excuses: "What if the house prices don't rise? What if the house can't be sold? Do you want me to really buy the house? I don't have the money. Pay the loan.”

"How is that possible! You don't know how hot real estate has been in recent years. House prices have been rising for decades and they will definitely continue to rise. You have to believe me and follow me and I guarantee that you will make a lot of money. Just follow me Go meet that real estate manager. He knows a lot more than me. You will definitely not regret it. He lives in Queens. Leave a phone number and I will pick you up when you finish your business. "

After chatting like this all the way, Luo Ji finally rejected the enthusiastic Latino uncle's request to waive the fare and go with him to meet the real estate manager.Arrive at Brooklyn, the destination of this trip.

When people think of Brooklyn, their first impression is of a place of chaos, filth, and sin.

This is because David Dinkins, the first black New York mayor, came to power in January 1990. He proposed the "gorgeous mosaic" concept of racial diversity. When his black compatriots saw that one of their own came to power and advocated diversity and relaxed public security, they Singing and dancing, zero-dollar shopping began in New York.

The first black mayor of New York has attracted much media attention, and his every move will be magnified and observed.During Dinkins' first year in office, homicide rates reached an all-time high.The media immediately got excited and began to report it. After a lot of adding fuel and jealousy, the reputation of Brooklyn, which has a large number of black people, became known to everyone, even abroad.

In fact, Brooklyn's reputation has only been dragged down by the media. Now Brooklyn is doing very well.

As housing prices in New York have soared in the past decade, especially in Manhattan, the housing prices have risen even more outrageously.The cost of living there has increased significantly for companies and individuals, and in order to cut expenses, countless companies and individuals in Manhattan have begun to relocate.Low-cost Brooklyn is one of the beneficiaries.

It was against this background that Jamie came to Brooklyn. He was originally a lawyer at the famous Skadden Law Firm. When he saw the development of Brooklyn, he quit his job to start a business and came to Brooklyn to open his own small law firm.His law office is on the second floor of a two-story building in a commercial district. The first floor is a copy shop.

Luo Ji walked to the second floor and entered the law firm. There were not many people in the entire law firm. There were only four people inside, and they all looked busy.

There was a fat white girl at the front desk. Luo Ji explained the purpose of his visit to the front desk. The front desk checked the appointment record and took him to a separate office in the back. The name on the door was Jamie Dutton, a practicing attorney. It seemed that this was Jamie Dutton. Where to meet clients.

Luo Ji knocked on the door and went in. When Jamie saw it, he immediately stood up and walked around the desk to greet him. He looked Luo Ji up and down, and then gave him a hug: "It looks like you are really fine. You don’t know that the scene when you were knocked unconscious was really scary. I’ve been worried about you these days.”

Luo Ji was even more reassured that Jamie didn't seem to be faking it. He showed off his muscles with his arms: "I'm fine these days. There's no problem at all. Just look at it if you don't believe me."

"Haha."

After some pleasantries, he found a seat on the sofa and got to the point: "Jamie, how is the investigation I commissioned you to investigate a few days ago?"

Jamie walked to the filing cabinet next to him, took out more than ten pages of A4 printed documents and put them on the table: "I have never dealt with entertainment industry matters before. This is what I asked a lawyer friend who is familiar with the entertainment industry. documents, but these are legal issues such as copyright.”

"Hum..." Luo Ji picked up the document and read it.

Jimmy asked, "Do you want to be a singer?"

"Yes." Luo Ji took out the Ipod he carried with him and handed it to Jamie: "Here are some demos I recorded myself. You can listen to them. I'll leave you a review by the way."

Jamie spent more than ten minutes listening to the songs Luo Ji sang, and then he commented: "The songs you sang are all lyrical songs, which are not difficult to sing, but you are very emotionally involved in singing, and your singing skills are also better than The average person is good, the tone is good, and the high notes are beautiful, which is very important for a male singer, but the production is too rough, there is a lot of noise, and the accompaniment is only a guitar."

It seems that Jamie is really interested. A beautiful mezzo-soprano tenor is very important to a singer. Most people don't know this: "I recorded this in school, and the conditions are limited. What do you think? What about, can I become a singer?"

Jamie looked at Luo Ji and said, "Before I answer this question, I want to ask you a question first!"

"what is the problem?"

(End of this chapter)