By V Hu
During 2006 Christmas holiday week, my younger sister visited me. One afternoon, we went together to H-Mart, a Korean grocery store selling Asian food located at route 40. There was one Chinese lady named Min Fang approached us and asked if we were interested in learning personal financial management. She told us that they had been educating Asian Americans about financial management and giving out training lessons every couple weeks. Min had her high education in one of HongKong universities. Min’s husband taught in University of Maryland. They came originally from Shandong and had 1 daughter. We exchanged phone numbers.
2006年圣诞节期间，我妹妹到我这里小住几天。我们俩去韩亚龙，一家位于40号路的韩国超市，买菜。一个中国妇女走上来跟我们攀谈起来。她叫房敏。她说他们组织一些聚会给中国人提供学习金融知识的机会，看我们想不想参加。我和她交换了联系电话。
Couple weeks later, Min called me and asked me if I wanted to attend the meeting/training lesson hosted that week. I drove to her home and attended meeting with her in their office in Gaithersburg. Min’s recruiter/leader, Lucy Luo, made a speech, then couple other people reported what they’d done. I learned that their company was named as World Financial Group (WFG) Multi-Level Marketing insurance products. Its sales scheme was similar to the one employed by Avon or Amway. After I told her I was from Nanjing, Jiangsu China, Lucy Luo told me that she was born in Shandong, but lived in Nanjing military family residential complex most of her life. She used to a physician back in China. In the USA, she specializing in marketing/selling insurance products for WFG. Her husband taught in a University. They had 2 sons.
两三个星期后，房敏告诉我那个星期有讲座。我开车到了她家，然后跟她一起去了他们在Gaithersburg的办公室。她的上级一个叫Lucy发表了演讲。还有一些人汇报了他们最近的销售或吸收成员的业绩。我了解到他们公司叫World Financial Group (WFG)，传销保险产品，跟雅芳和安利的销售模式一样。她们说他们做的不是传销。
After that, Min visited me and my neighbor to persuade us to become member of their marking team. I attended couple similar meetings in their office and Min’s home. Lucy Luo invited her recruiters/leaders or friends, Vietnamese-American, African-American, and Chinese-Americans to make speeches in the meetings as well. There were several people did extremely well in the field, i.e. a Vietnamese-American accountant named Andy Nguyen, an African-American veteran named Carl Logan. They bought big houses, personal jets, or went dream vacations. In one meeting, Mr. Carl Logan told us he’s from Philadelphia famous for Phili cheese steak. He asked me to sit at the front roll. I told him that I was fine sitting back beside Min Fang and Janell Lu, a mom with 2 kids who was originally from Suzhou. Janell was extremely excited about the speech.
这以后，方敏拜访了我和我的中国邻居，说服我们加入她们的组织。我去方敏家或公司办公室参加了几个讲座。Lucy邀请了她的上级或朋友来演讲，有几个业绩特别突出。比如，一个越南会计叫Andy Nguyen 的，一个海军退役黑人军人叫Carl Logan的。他们买了大洋房，购了私人飞机，以及度了梦寐以求得假期。那个叫Carl Logan的告诉我们他出生于费城，那里的奶酪牛肉碎片很有名。叫我坐到前排，我说我还是跟陆萍，一个来自苏州的两个孩子的母亲和房敏坐后排。
I attended their nation-wide meeting hosted in Ohio once. It was a long drive. 4 people shared one hotel room. Each of us paid the share of trip expenses. Min Fang, Lucy Luo, Janelle Lu and I shared one hotel room. During the group chat, Janelle complained about her husband and burst in tear for her poor relation with her husband. One day, end of a meeting, I saw Lucy was talking loudly and forcefully with one middle age man to push him to become a member. That guy was standing there quietly most time with his head down.
我参加了一次他们全国性的在Buffalo, Ohio 举行的年会。很长的车程，四人住一个房间，我们房间安排了陆萍，房敏，Lucy，和我。我跟陆萍一张床，房敏和Lucy 一张床。每个人承担各自吃住和交通费用。陆萍不满她和她丈夫的关系在酒店房内对着我们哭了出来。一天会后看到Lucy跟一个中年男人大声说话，要他赶快加入他们。那个男人低着头，大多数时间不滋声。
I attended a gathering in Lucy’s home located in Boyds MD. Couldn’t resist Min Fang’s persuasion and I paid $100.00 to register for the membership. But I realized that there was not much financial stuff to learn except their insurance products. Most of that has been learned in College. Also I didn’t want to give out my friends’ contacting information which was required. So I quit attending their meetings.
我还去Lucy 位于 Boyds, MD 的家参加了聚会。实在推托不了房敏的请求，我交了$100 美元入会费。但是我知道从他们那里没有多少金融知识可学，而且我也不想把朋友的联系信息交给他们。我就没再参与他们的任何活动了。
Nothing was expected when I first time heard about this financial training from Min in the grocery store. But I did meet some Chinese-Amricans living around me. By driving back and forth the meeting places, I got to know the places around me. That was my 1st and half year in Baltimore County.
所有的都不是我在韩亚龙第一次从房敏那里听说后所期望的。但是我确实遇到了一些住在我附近的中国人。开车去演讲地后我对我周边的地区也增加了了解。这是我在此郡居住工作的第一个半年头。
Later, I acquainted with Kaiyin Duh. She told me that she had deposited her savings with WFG through Ya Men. In 2009, being laid off, Kaiyin tried to get the fund out, but encountered problems.
后来遇到Kaiyin, 她跟我说经过WFG的梦雅把钱存在了WFG. 2009 年下岗后，想要把钱拿出来很难。
Not contacting for a while, Min Fang called me and wanted to introduce an African-American guy to be my boy friend. I told her I’m not interested in.
好久没联系了，房敏打电话给我要给我介绍黑人男朋友。我跟她说我不感兴趣因为在生活的目的，习惯，和风俗等等区别太大了。大部分中国女人不会随便找男人只为性需求，而是长期稳地的关系通常最后会结婚的。说实话我对她都不是很了解。
In 2010 AAI Corp annual meeting at a big manufacturing workshop, while standing and listening to Ellen Lord, the general manager making speech, there was a skinny short old white man started pacing around me and staring at me. I ignored him. Then an African-American guy looked similar to Carl Logan approached him. They chatted a little and left together.
This old man looked similar to Steven, a mechanical engineer once invited Kassandra, my supervisor and I to watch an aircraft launching demonstration in the military base.
One Friday evening Kaiyin and I went to movie in AMC Theater at Owings Mill. At the lobby, we encountered many strange people likely following us. Among them, there was an African-American guy looked similar to Carl Logan. http://mindcontrol.altervista.org/kaiying-duh-and-weird-people/
Once window shopping in Towson Town Center by myself, there was one Chinese woman with the rounded rectangular face, looked similar to Lucy Luo wearing black cloth followed me around.