Chapter 40: Master Lin, My Apologies

Xu Fugui hurriedly snatched her phone and scrolled through the news.

"Bold move! Fugui Real Estate acquires the Jiangbei shantytown in Pearl City at a sky-high price, creating hundreds of multimillionaires overnight!"

It had shot straight to the top of the trending searches!

Crack!

It was as if a bolt of lightning had exploded in Xu Fugui’s mind!

He stood there, stunned for a long moment, and when he finally came to his senses, cold sweat had soaked his back. Panicked, he scrambled to the corner of the room to pick up his phone and called his assistant...

"Why wasn’t I informed about something this big sooner?!"

On the other end, his assistant replied aggrievedly, "Young Master Xu, I called you this morning to tell you about it, but you said President Su would handle everything."

Xu Fugui paused. It seemed vaguely familiar.

"Damn it! Send me yesterday’s financial report right now!"

"Yes, yes!"

Staring at the report his assistant sent, Xu Fugui felt as if he’d been dealt a blow worth 9.99 million points of damage!

"All our liquid assets have been emptied, and we even took out a bank loan of 28.8 billion?"

"Land compensation averages 88,888 per square meter, construction costs... damn it all!"

Looking closer, the details were even more outrageous—cement was listed at 1,166 per unit, but what was truly absurd was the unit of measurement...

"Are you kidding me?! One bag of cement is 1,166, and rebar is 2,800 per piece?"

With no time for a lingering farewell with the little starlet, Xu Fugui threw on his clothes in a daze and rushed to Yiren Group!

The same receptionist greeted him, barely suppressing a smile. "Sorry, Young Master Xu, President Su is personally directing the construction at the Jiangbei site today!"

Without another word, Xu Fugui told his driver to take him straight to Jiangbei.

When his Maybach finally came to a halt on the fertile soil of Jiangbei, Xu Fugui had lost count of how many times he’d been left dumbstruck that day.

"They’ve already finished building the sales office?!"

According to the development plan, Jiangbei was to have five high-rise residential areas, two riverside villa districts, a commercial street, and a large shopping mall.

The foundations for all these structures had already been laid, and there was even a completed sales office near the bridge!

No wonder they called them infrastructure demons—this efficiency...

Bah! This was just money being burned!

Word on the street was that Su Qianqian was in the sales office. Xu Fugui headed straight there.

He hadn’t expected to find the entrance blocked by a long, snaking line of people.

He grabbed a man from the crowd and asked, "Brother, what are you all lining up for?"

The man grinned. "What do you think? We’re here to pay deposits and buy homes!"

"President Su said we should take advantage of a presale event before the buildings are finished—prices are up to fifty percent off!"

"President Su is a real saint, thinking of us poor folks. Hey, are you here to buy too? Get in line at the back, don’t push!"

"Yeah, yeah, get in the back!"

Everyone in line was desperate to snatch up their favorite unit—no one would tolerate being cut. Xu Fugui couldn’t even get in to see Su Qianqian; the scene was pure chaos!

With no other choice, he stepped outside and called Qianqian, ready to demand an explanation.

"Qianqian, what kind of game are you playing? If you keep this up, I’ll be ruined!"

But a man’s voice answered, sly and unctuous: "Young Master Xu, you really shouldn’t have made this call!"

Xu Fugui was dazed for a moment before he recognized Lu Ye’s voice.

"Lu Ye, you bastard! Was this your idea?"

Lu Ye replied in a tone of feigned innocence, "Young Master Xu, why not calm down and think? My wife is actually saving you a fortune in future publicity and PR costs!"

"Did you see our sales office? Have you counted how many people are queuing up to buy new properties in the district?"

"Sure, my wife’s tactics with the sky-high land acquisition make her look reckless, but think about the relocated residents. After they get their money, where will they spend it? Won’t they come right back to buy land and homes in the new district?"

"That money just goes for a spin and ends up back in our pockets."

Lu Ye’s spiel left Xu Fugui speechless. "When you put it that way, it does sound reasonable."

Lu Ye chuckled and continued, "Young Master Xu, the saying goes, if you employ someone, trust them completely. Since you’ve entrusted my wife with all authority, you should give her your full confidence. If I were you, I wouldn’t call now to question her!"

"You’ve only just become partners; do you really want to destroy the little goodwill she has for you in an instant?"

At the mention of Su Qianqian’s name, Xu Fugui’s reasoning went straight out the window. He declared, "Understood! From now on, I won’t meddle in the Jiangbei development. Tell Qianqian to do as she sees fit!"

"Haha, Young Master Xu, you’re a wise man!"

Hanging up, Lu Ye turned and gave Su Qianqian a high five, grinning from ear to ear. "Yes!"

...

For the next few days, peace reigned. Su Shiming took Li Shuqin on vacation abroad, leaving only Lu Ye and Su Qianqian at home.

That evening, Su Qianqian suddenly barged into Lu Ye’s room and shoved something into his hand.

Lu Ye frowned. "This thing is uncomfortable to wear. I don’t like it."

Gazing at Lu Ye’s perfectly sculpted torso, Su Qianqian blushed. "It’s a little uncomfortable, but it’s not safe to go out without it!"

"Then I’d better wear it!"

So Lu Ye changed into sportswear and put on the mask Su Qianqian handed him.

It was the end of the year, and with so many migrant workers returning home for the holidays, Pearl City was packed with people. Wearing a mask was simply prudent.

That same night, Xu Fugui and Lin Zhongze were set to face off atop the Forbidden City.

The venue: a cruise ship on the Pearl River.

Xu Fugui was convinced of his victory. Not only had he poached Lin Zhongze’s top fighters, he’d even hired the world-class boxing champion Billson as a foreign ringer, sparing no expense.

He anticipated that Lin Zhongze would seek help from Lu Ye—perhaps the masters of Meng Meiren and Tang Qianyan would step in—but this was a ring bout, not a street brawl.

And in the ring, no one could beat Billson, a heavyweight champion and gold belt winner.

It was 9:58 p.m.—the match would start in two minutes.

Seeing only Lin Zhongze and Xu Sanlong present, and no sign of Lu Ye or his group, Xu Fugui was all the more certain he’d have Lin Zhongze in the bag tonight!

Once he gained control of Pearl City’s entertainment industry, he would immediately open all the ports for illegal dealings, letting black money flow endlessly into his pockets.

Compared to the astronomical wealth from such shady operations, Su Qianqian’s so-called grand gestures in the Jiangbei project were mere trifles. That was why he hadn’t cared about the losses there.

"Lin Zhongze, you might as well concede now!"

"With just the two of you, if I send Billson into the ring, he could knock you both out with one punch!"

As Xu Fugui finished, Xu Sanlong grew anxious. "Boss Lin, that foreigner is a world-class champion. How can we possibly win?"

Lin Zhongze replied calmly, "Don’t worry. I only brought you to make up the numbers. Meng Meiren and Brother Lu are our true mainstays."

Xu Sanlong thought to himself, Easy for you to say when you’re not the one stepping into the ring!

But Xu Fugui still felt it wasn’t enough to humiliate Lin Zhongze. He decided to poach his men right in front of him.

"Brother Sanlong, it’s almost ten o’clock and it looks like Lu Ye and Meng Meiren aren’t coming. Facing my formidable lineup, do you really think you can take on all three of us?"

"Lin Zhongze is all rules and no fun—no gambling, no drugs, no vices. How do you expect to get rich? Are you going to work security for him your whole life?"

"Why not join me? I guarantee you’ll never go hungry!"

Xu Sanlong hesitated, glancing at Lin Zhongze, then at the imposing force on the other side...

Gritting his teeth, he said harshly, "Boss Lin, everyone wants to climb higher. Sorry!"