Chapter 505

Driving to the restaurant, Wang Yan found Jiang Pengfei, who was already drinking in a corner, looking somewhat lonely and desolate.

After ordering a few more dishes from the waiter, he walked over and sat down opposite Jiang Pengfei: "Uncle Jiang, why are you drinking alone?"

Hearing this, Jiang Pengfei raised his head and smiled embarrassedly: "It's just that I was a bit hungry, and this place is a bit far from your company, and we aren't outsiders, so I just started eating. Waiter..."

"No need to look, I've already ordered everything just now." Wang Yan waved his hand, picked up the wine on the table, filled Jiang Pengfei's glass, and poured one for himself: "Come, Uncle Jiang, it's been half a month since we last met, right? Let's have a drink."

Jiang Pengfei sighed, clinked his glass with Wang Yan's, took a big gulp, grimaced, and kept using his chopsticks to pick up food to go with the drink. The old guy looked like he had "I have something to tell you, hurry up and ask me, hurry up and ask me" written all over his face.

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled, picked up a piece of food, and asked considerately: "Uncle Jiang, seeing you looking so troubled, has something happened?"

"Sigh, Wang Yan, I don't even have the face to tell you, really." Jiang Pengfei grinned with a bitter smile, took another big gulp of wine, and slapped himself in the face: "If I had known it would come to this, I should have listened to you back then. I regret it so much..."

"The stock market has indeed been quite volatile recently. Those few stocks you used to talk to me about haven't been performing too well lately. Uncle Jiang, did you not manage to clear your positions in time and get trapped?"

"Yes, I'm trapped..."

Wang Yan took out his phone and swiped for a while, then said: "Uncle Jiang, to be honest, I still don't see a future for these stocks. No matter how much you lose, what you have in your hand at the end is what's truly yours. I still suggest you clear your positions immediately. The longer you drag it out, the lower the stock price will go, and the greater your losses will be."

"It's already too late. It's been falling continuously for the past few days, and there was even a limit-down day. Even if I get that money back, I'll still be bankrupt." Jiang Pengfei sighed: "I saw Ye Ye Jin Yan a few days ago because I wanted to know if there were any good stocks that could help me quickly earn back my previous capital, but he didn't tell me. Wang Yan, only you can help me now. Your fund's performance is so good, you must know a few powerful stocks. Help me, please help me, okay?"

Wang Yan shook his head and said: "Uncle Jiang, I really can't help with this. You see my performance is good, that's because the base is large. Even if it's just a one-point profit, with my capital of over three billion, that's over thirty million. It's different. Not to mention that I don't know of any powerful stocks, even if I did, your current capital should only be around eight to ten million. Even if you hit three limit-ups in a row, that's only three million or so. It's useless."

Jiang Pengfei drank and ate in silence. After a long while, he raised his head: "Wang Yan, let me tell you the truth. This time, all the money I used for stock trading was borrowed. The money I can get back from clearing my positions is just as you said, about eight million. But I still owe tens of millions; this little bit of money isn't enough at all. My house has already been mortgaged to the bank by me. Recently, those creditors have been calling me every day to urge me to pay back the money, and the stocks aren't making any money. I really don't know what to do."

"You want to take the five million you have with me? And then have me lend you another thirty or fifty million?" Under Jiang Pengfei's burning gaze, Wang Yan shook his head: "Uncle Jiang, I'll be honest, don't blame me. I don't suggest, nor do I agree to you taking out the five million you have with me. For one, this five million is a drop in the bucket and won't be enough to fill the hole; for another, this is also the guarantee for your family's future life. You've seen the weekly reports every week; if nothing goes wrong, earning over a million a year is absolutely no problem.

I also have some understanding of your family's situation. You and Aunt Dai have never worked, and at your age, having lived in luxury for half your lives, you can't do manual labor. You can't do heavy work, and Aunt Dai can't do it either. And as for the old lady in your family, she has enjoyed life for her whole life and has very high requirements for the quality of life. Uncle Jiang, you are a filial person; the old lady is so old, I suppose you can't bear to see her suffer. With a million, your family's life, although worse than before, won't be too bad, and you can still live a wealthy life.

Think about it another way: if I hadn't strongly encouraged you to invest with me back then, your five million would have already vanished into thin air along with the stock market. Thinking about it this way, you've actually gained. In the current situation, unless it's a last resort, this five million absolutely cannot be touched.

As for asking me to lend you money, Uncle Jiang, I do feel a connection with you, but at the end of the day, we've only known each other for a little over a month, and a loan of tens of millions isn't realistic. You know, Uncle Jiang, the investment threshold for my fund is now starting at twenty million. Being able to let you invest five million is already special treatment. The most valuable thing in your family is that house, but you've already mortgaged it to the bank. What else can you use as collateral? I believe if I lend you tens of millions, what will you use to pay it back?"

Jiang Pengfei was just at the end of his rope, struggling in his death throes; it wasn't that he didn't understand the situation. "I'm sorry, Wang Yan, I really just didn't know what else to do." He let out another long sigh and drank his wine in silence.

"How much do you owe exactly?"

"The bank lent me money at 65% of the value. At the time, the valuation was 37 million, and they lent me 25 million. Other loans from companies and individuals, all added up, are about 20 million or so. I don't know how much the interest is; it should be a few million more. Added together, it's over 50 million."

"Your house, at the normal market price, should be able to sell for over 40 million. If sold urgently, it should be able to sell for 40 million. After deducting the bank loan and calculating the money you have left in your hand, it should be enough to settle this matter."

Wang Yan calculated the accounts and pondered: "Uncle Jiang, give it up; you can't win your capital back. If you stop now, you can still keep the five million you have with me, which will guarantee you a life without worry for the rest of your days. But if you still think about getting rich overnight and earning back the money you lost, then that would be the point of no return. By then, the huge gap between wealth and poverty—I think, Uncle Jiang, having lived in luxury for half your life, you probably won't be able to bear it. The result would just be finding a tall building, closing your eyes, hardening your heart, and jumping down, ending it all. You should still think about the old lady in your family, think about Aunt Dai, and Nansun."

Jiang Pengfei shook his head: "But I don't have the money to pay back the bank to release the mortgage on the house, and the remaining money isn't enough to pay back the loans from those companies and individuals either."

"Since I've brought it up, how could I just watch you jump off a building?" Wang Yan shook his head: "Wait a while, let's sign a contract first. In the next few days, I'll pull out a sum of money to first release the mortgage on your house, and then talk to the old lady living upstairs in your building to sell the whole thing as a package.

Then we'll see about finding a buyer. Your house is being sold at a significant discount; the location is good and it's scarce, so it's a deal that's guaranteed to make a profit and won't be hard to sell. If there's still no one to buy it in the end, then I'll take over the house. In addition, we'll have our company's legal department come over to help you negotiate with those companies and individuals you owe money to, trying to waive the interest and late fees as much as possible. This is the best I can do, Uncle Jiang. You should think about it carefully."

"Is our house really unsaveable?"

"I've reminded you more than once, Uncle Jiang; you should have thought of this day long ago." Wang Yan drank his wine: "The fact that you can settle those accounts now and still have a way out is already very good."

"Okay, then let's do that. I'll listen to your arrangements. I have to trouble you again; I'm really sorry, Wang Yan. We are just casual acquaintances, and for you to help me this much, it's really not easy. Thank you." Jiang Pengfei let out a long sigh and took another big gulp of wine: "I should have listened to you earlier, really..."

"It's already come to this, what's the point of saying those things? Uncle Jiang, does your family know?"

"No, I'm such a spendthrift, how could I have the face to tell them."

"Find an opportunity to tell them in the next few days. If you don't tell them, those debt collectors will be coming, right?" Seeing Jiang Pengfei nod, Wang Yan said: "I think it's because you can't hold on anymore; otherwise, you wouldn't have told me these things. You're in a bad mood today, so I'll keep you company for a drink. Tomorrow, come to my company to sign a contract, writing down clearly the matter of me helping you advance the funds to release the mortgage. It will take a few days for me to pull out 30 million here. In these few days, you stabilize those debt collectors first. Let's release the mortgage on the house first, hang it out for sale, and see what happens.

You also ask your friends if any of them want to buy a house. They won't lend you money, but they should be quite proactive about making money. Also, during this time, you go and rent a suitable house, prepare in advance, so you won't be in a rush when the time comes."

Jiang Pengfei had already lost his composure and nodded blankly, and as he nodded, tears streamed down his face. He had spent half his life eating, drinking, and having fun; previously, he had lived by selling the antiques and surplus properties in his home, but this time he was directly bankrupt and homeless. The panic in his heart can be imagined. Because in his life, he had never experienced such a big event. A large family business had fallen into ruin in his hands, and his family had fallen from the upper class to the bottom; this was something he could not bear.

Of course, he knew that he had caused all of this. But it was precisely because he knew that he felt he couldn't bear it.

Whether a person is mature or not is not determined by age, but by insight, knowledge, experience, supplemented by corresponding realization—that is what is called maturity. Jiang Pengfei was spoiled from childhood; his family was rich, and when he went out, he mostly saw smiling faces and heard flattery. If he didn't have money, he would ask the old lady for it; if he still didn't have money, he would sell something. He had lived like this for half his life. His insight was the so-called exquisite life of the upper class; his knowledge was the so-called "be calm when others are crazy, be crazy when others are calm"; his experience was spending money, losing money, and asking for money.

So strictly speaking, he was just a fifty-something-year-old child, a giant baby who couldn't handle things. This is also why this old guy would originally have thought about jumping off a building; because bankruptcy negated the value of his half-life, and he discovered that he was just a piece of trash who only knew how to cause trouble and drag his family down, so it would be better to die.

Now it is probably the same state of mind, but there is still a little light in his dark world. Because he knew Wang Yan, trusted Wang Yan, and invested five million in the private equity fund, leaving himself a way out, so he wasn't completely useless.

The world is so beautiful, yet the old guy is so depressed; this, of course, is not right. Wang Yan drank with him and comforted him, not letting this old guy think about doing something stupid.

It wasn't until late at night that Wang Yan ordered some new dishes and had dinner, and then he called a designated driver to drive, and he sent Jiang Pengfei back to the Jiang family.

Only the old lady was eating a table full of dishes by herself, saying that Dai Yin was playing mahjong outside and wouldn't be back for dinner. Wang Yan didn't say anything to the old lady, and after settling Jiang Pengfei, he went home...

Summoned, Zhu Suosuo got off work and went straight to the house, familiar with the path. Seeing Wang Yan drinking tea in the living room, she closed the door, changed into slippers, and walked over to sit beside Wang Yan. In her impression, when at home, Wang Yan seemed to always be drinking tea in this posture.

"What's so good about tea? I see you drinking it in the morning, drinking it in the evening, never getting enough of it?"

"What I'm drinking now is the Lu'an Gua Pian I bought last month, 500,000 per jin." Speak to people according to who they are; Zhu Suosuo is a person who couldn't be more vulgar, so just saying how much money it costs is simple and direct.

Silently estimating the amount used for a pot of tea, Zhu Suosuo widened her eyes: "Doesn't that mean the pot you're brewing now costs thousands or tens of thousands? Give me a cup?"

A pot of tea costs tens of thousands, and he drinks it every day, damn it. And her? Although he doesn't sleep with her every day, it's been quite a few times, and every time he tosses and turns until the second half of the night. Is she only worth 50,000? Or is that for a month?

This, of course, was something she wouldn't say out loud...

Zhu Suosuo's cultivation was too shallow; Wang Yan could see what she was thinking with a casual glance, and he didn't expose it. Both could make him comfortable, but that's just the price; one is a living person, the other is a creation of the market economy—there's no need for comparison.

Pouring some water into the teapot and pouring a cup for Zhu Suosuo, watching her carefully savoring the taste, Wang Yan shook his head and smiled: "If you can't taste it, just gulp it down like a cow; no need to force it."

After she finished drinking, he poured her tea again, and Wang Yan asked: "Did Uncle Jiang find you to see Ye Ye Jin Yan before?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"He came to me today and told me about the matter of looking for Ye Ye Jin Yan before. I think you're doing well in Jingyan, and with Jiang Nansun's aunt having put in a good word, he should have come to you because he knows you. Uncle Jiang's situation isn't very good. Have you told Jiang Nansun?"

"I told her a long time ago, but saying it doesn't do any good; Nansun can't make the decisions anyway. If he would listen when told, Uncle Jiang wouldn't have lost the antiques Grandma had before, nor the several houses their family had. I didn't tell you, but before Uncle Jiang asked me to see Ye Ye Jin Yan, he drove away the car Aunt bought for Nansun, saying he was borrowing it for a friend for a few days, but I guess it was either mortgaged or used to pay back money. Because even earlier, I had heard Uncle Jiang on the phone with others, saying something about the stock market being bad and asking for a grace period. I also saw him kneeling in front of Grandma asking for money, and asking Aunt for money; he should owe a lot outside."

Wang Yan nodded, poured tea again, swiped on the tablet beside him, and didn't speak again.

Zhu Suosuo savored the taste as much as possible, looking at Wang Yan's leisurely and contented appearance. In her mind, she recalled the scene of Ye Ye Jin Yan queuing up to buy coffee every day, and then she thought of Xie Hongzu's devil-may-care attitude on the yacht...

She shook her head and sighed: "Brother Yan, Dongli opens for sale in three days. Are you really not going to buy one?"

"How much commission do you get for selling one?"

"For the largest 420-square-meter house, the commission is a little over 100,000."

"I'll give you 100,000 next month, just consider it as me buying a house from you. Don't nag me about buying a house from you again."

"Oh..." Zhu Suosuo pouted and agreed. At this moment, she felt that Wang Yan, even without the halo of being rich, was still very handsome—it was that kind of decisive, overbearing feeling, very stimulating.

She drank two more cups of tea and then asked: "Brother Yan, you mentioned Ye Ye Jin Yan just now. I want to ask, which of you is richer?"

"Of course it's Ye Ye Jin Yan. Jingyan Group is a listed company with a market value of over 70 billion. If I remember correctly, he personally holds 12% of the shares, which is over 8 billion. This is on paper; in addition, there should be some real estate and other securities investments, etc. Added together, it shouldn't be far from 10 billion. My personal assets are mostly cash and marketable securities. Although I haven't calculated it carefully, it's about 600 or 700 million."

Of course, don't look at Ye Ye Jin Yan's 10 billion wealth as being so impressive; after all, the vast majority is not real money. Let's put it this way: as long as you find someone to get some dirt on Jingyan Group, whether it's engineering quality problems or corruption problems among the group's senior management, post it on the internet to hype it up, and then find someone to make a scene. Within three days, his 8 billion could become 7 billion.

If someone with ulterior motives takes the opportunity to snipe it from the stock market, forcing Jingyan Group to withdraw funds to stabilize the stock price, causing their capital chain to have problems, Jingyan Group will start to fall into a bankruptcy crisis in three or four months. If not handled well, in half a year, you will see the news of Jingyan Group being sold as a package. By then, his shares will be worthless. Of course, you don't have to be so surprised; generally, no one does that, because it costs too much money, and my 600 or 700 million would just be a drop in the bucket. Otherwise, how do you think Jingyan Group grew to where it is now?"

Zhu Suosuo had never studied, nor did she pay attention to those things; she only studied how to dress herself and how to play with rich people. So, listening to this now, she still felt it was very impressive. She captured two keys: one is that Ye Ye Jin Yan has a net worth of 10 billion, and the other is that this money, although virtual, is also real.

After she digested and absorbed it, she remembered the second-generation rich on the yacht, and she asked again: "Brother Yan, I have a client who is the Xie family that sells air conditioners in our Shanghai; they are quite famous. Do you know them?"

"Yeah."

"Then how is their family's strength?"

"It's just so-so, quite a bit worse than Ye Ye Jin Yan. That woman Xie Jiayin has poor management ability and a small vision. They have been going downhill in recent years, and I estimate they won't be able to hold on for much longer."

Wang Yan wasn't talking nonsense based on the plot; he had done some research on the Xie family. The facts were just as he said: their management ability was indeed not good, and their marketing wasn't great either; they were just relying on their previous foundation to hold on. Later, Xie Jiayin wanted Xie Hongzu to marry Zhao Malin, which was also to use money and partner to open up other fields. Sometimes, money can get things done. Sometimes, it can't. It mainly depends on who the person spending the money is and how they spend it. Undoubtedly, Xie Jiayin is not up to it.

Zhu Suosuo said "Ah" and asked nervously: "Then does that second-generation rich still have money to buy a house?"

"A company is a company, and an individual is an individual. A lean camel is bigger than a horse. Even if their company goes bankrupt tomorrow, it won't delay their high consumption. That Dongli of yours is 50 million a set, right? They still have that kind of money."

"Then I'm relieved. The one you introduced to me before doesn't count; this time it's my first order, and I'm counting on that second-generation rich. When the order is placed, I'll treat you to a big meal. I still owe you one from before, and this time I guarantee I'll let you eat and drink to your heart's content."

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled; she had made progress. He drank the tea in his cup in one gulp, stood up, and said: "Go wash up."

"Got it." Zhu Suosuo gave a silly smile, swung her little bag, and walked toward the bedroom.

She was increasingly figuring out how to get along with Wang Yan. To sum it up, it was seven words: if he doesn't give, she cannot ask. As long as she achieved this point, then in many cases, Wang Yan was truly a peerless good man, the kind who is good in every way.

Wang Yan tidied up the tea set and wandered into the bathroom in the bedroom. Before long, the seductive sounds of "hmm, ah, ha" penetrated out, echoing and swirling in the spacious bedroom...

Although Jiang Pengfei was drunk, he still remembered the important business they had discussed before. The next day, enduring his headache and discomfort, he went to Wang Yan's company and signed the contract drafted by the legal department.

He was a spendthrift, but he was actually okay as a person and understood things. He knew that Wang Yan could help him this much, even though they were just casual acquaintances, and it was truly going above and beyond. So, he had no resistance to signing the contract; after all, it was tens of millions.

Wang Yan also asked when he planned to tell his family. Jiang Pengfei said he would wait until his mother's birthday, have a good birthday, and tell them the next day. And the old lady's birthday was the same day as the opening of Dongli, which was a Saturday.

This was his choice, and Wang Yan, of course, didn't care. Afterward, he had Jiang Pengfei list exactly how much money he owed and discussed with the legal department whether those late fees and interest could be waived. This kind of economic dispute was almost professionally aligned with their company's business, and it saved the trouble of finding another lawyer.

After discussing it, they agreed that on Sunday, Jiang Pengfei would bring the people he owed money to his home, and Wang Yan would bring a lawyer to help handle it.

Of course, in the process, there was still no lack of cheering up Jiang Pengfei, this old guy. He had no spirit left at all and was very depressed. Unless it was a last resort, Wang Yan didn't want to break this old guy's limbs; he still respected people relatively well.

Leaving Wang Yan's company dejectedly, Jiang Pengfei went out and called the debt collection companies and individuals one by one, making appointments for them to come to his home together. He also went to the agency to look at houses with them, and at the same time, he got to know the housing prices, calculating when he could buy another one, having a beautiful expectation.

Running around all day, outside his home, he looked up at the old Western-style house that had carried half his life, slapped his face hard, opened his mouth, and squinted his eyes to make his facial muscles active, and finally pulled out a happy smile, opened the door, went inside, and called out "Mom"...