Chapter 16: A New Beginning

Lu Chen walked out of Wei Er's office with some fatigue, took a deep breath, and tightened his grip on the leather suitcase in his hand.

The game with Wei Er was far from over; now, he had to pick up the pace!

After stepping out, he turned back to take one last look at the Crown building.

However, he likely wouldn't be coming back for a short while!

As for the outcome of the negotiations... it's better left unsaid.

The hurried pedestrians on Huanghou Dadao and the busy, prosperous scene at the docks not far away.

Gave Lu Chen a sense of extreme detachment; this feeling was truly unbearable.

Everything had changed!

After returning to Banshan Jiudian, Lu Chen sat on the familiar sofa as before, merely asking the waiter to prepare afternoon tea.

Closing the room door, Lu Chen then began to toast the Cigar with slightly trembling hands.

Not until he took a puff did he recover from that atmosphere where even the air seemed stiflingly hot.

Sitting on the sofa, he rubbed his brow, letting the Cigar burn in the ashtray.

He silently calculated his next moves in his mind.

He was in no rush to find Li Xuanhua; instead, he took a short nap, after which he felt his mental state improve somewhat.

Hah, Crown!

"Knock, knock, knock."

The sound of knocking echoed, and after tidying his appearance, Lu Chen opened the door.

"BOSS."

Li Xuanhua looked a bit weary, yet a sharp glint shone in his eyes, though he couldn't help but yawn.

Although he was still neat and clean, there was a hint of agitation about him.

Compared to his previous greenness, he was certainly much more composed.

"Come, sit."

Lu Chen sat back on the sofa, sipped his coffee, and crossed his legs.

He only spoke after Li Xuanhua had closed the door and walked to the center of the room.

"I communicated with my teacher, and through his connections, he found us an agent who can handle about 40 of them."

Li Xuanhua rubbed his brow, nodded, and sat up straight, his back stiff and his face serious.

Yet, he couldn't hide his exhaustion; even dark circles were starting to appear under his eyes.

This caused a slight stir in Lu Chen's heart.

"No rush, smoke a Cigar first."

Lu Chen slowly toasted his Cigar and gestured toward the cigar box, signaling Li Xuanhua to help himself.

Not until Li Xuanhua took a puff and his expression visibly relaxed—seeming more energetic than before—did Lu Chen speak again.

"How is the situation with the funds?"

"The funds are safe, but... if Miss Luosha wants to know, they cannot be hidden from her."

A hint of guilt appeared on Li Xuanhua's weary face, and the Cigar in his hand trembled slightly.

However, a look of determination quickly surfaced on his face.

"Through them, the fee is a bit high; it requires 20%."

"Then what about the risk of depositing them into the United Neutral Bank afterward?"

Lu Chen showed no reaction, instead asking directly about the core issue.

He shifted his crossed legs, took a slow puff of his Cigar, and the smoke obscured his expressionless face.

The air still seemed to hold that lingering, stifling heat.

"No problem. Miss Luosha can only know that I exchanged a Crown Cheque for 8.5 million dollars."

A sharp glint flashed in Li Xuanhua's eyes as he said this decisively.

Even the Cigar in his hand seemed to deform slightly from the pressure of his fingers.

His body sat straight, though his legs seemed to tremble a little.

"You did well. This 200,000 in Hong Kong currency is the reward for your teacher, and the remaining 800,000 is the bridging fee."

Lu Chen placed a smaller leather suitcase on the coffee table and pushed it toward Li Xuanhua.

He then continued: "Pick a secretary from among your teacher's students; I want to see them tomorrow."

Lu Chen paused, took a puff of his smoke, and did not wait for Li Xuanhua to answer.

"Oh, and find a real estate agent—hmm, one who has luxury properties on hand. I want to see them by tomorrow afternoon at the latest. Once you find them, call the hotel directly... you can come with the secretary you recommend."

"Right, find a real estate agent, hmm, one who has luxury properties on hand; I want to see them by tomorrow afternoon at the latest. Once you've found one, call the hotel directly... you can come with the secretary you recommended."

Li Xuanhua immediately took out the fountain pen Lu Chen had gifted him from his bag and began recording in a worn-out notebook.

After a long while, he looked up at Lu Chen.

The confusion in his eyes had vanished.

"My teacher asked me to send you his regards."

"I have received his sentiments. Hmm, by the way, help me bring a gift to your teacher."

Lu Chen thought for a moment, returned to his desk, and pulled a pocket watch from his personal space.

It was not a product of his personal space, but something he had commissioned Banshan Jiudian to purchase as soon as he obtained his first sum of capital.

He placed it solemnly into a brocade box, tied a beautiful ribbon into a bow, and carefully sealed it with wax.

Only then did he hand it to Li Xuanhua.

Only then did he hand it over to Li Xuanhua.

"If there is an opportunity, I will definitely pay a visit."

"My teacher looks forward to your arrival."

Li Xuanhua solemnly put away the gift and carefully placed it into his bag.

"Right, remember to pick a car for me, and get one for yourself too; don't get anything too low-end, you represent my face. Also... have Xiao Huangmao come to the hotel tomorrow morning."

After thinking about it, Lu Chen still felt it was better to arrange it directly for Li Xuanhua.

After all, he is the most useful one right now.

"Understood, BOSS."

He took out his small notebook again and wrote it down.

Only then did he pick up the briefcase, tighten his grip on it, and walk out of the hotel.

Lu Chen finally breathed a sigh of relief!

There are simply too few people.

There are simply too few people who can be trusted!

Otherwise, he wouldn't have to instruct Li Xuanhua to do everything.

However, once he has a secretary tomorrow, Li Xuanhua can focus on setting up the company structure and transferring the funds.

And as for the secretary, they can help him share some of the trivial matters.

But having only these two people is still not enough!

It is time to find a way to get some people to help him handle things.

Things cannot go on like this.

Lu Chen really feels he cannot handle the high-intensity negotiations anymore.

His body is fine, but his mind is exhausted!

Every time he negotiates with Wei Er, it is like running a marathon!

He originally thought he could firmly hold the upper hand, but in reality?

The shadow of the Crown is always hanging over his head, it is simply...

The Crown does not treat people like human beings!

It is simply too detestable!

Lu Chen stood by the window, looking at the still-busy scenery of Victoria Harbour, which seemed even busier than before!

A glint of light shone in his eyes.

Cast aside all the complaints from just now!

From today on, everything is different!

He returned to his personal space.

He looked at the wooden box with a complex expression, unconsciously toying with the Small Box in his hand.

Several times he wanted to reach out, but he didn't touch it again; after staring at the wooden box for a long time, he finally sighed.

He knew that once the envelope was opened, there would be no turning back.

And right now, what he actually wants most is to obtain the contact information for Luosha.

But the gears of fate have already begun to turn, and even if Lu Chen wanted to stop them, I'm afraid...

Forget it, this is not something he can control.

All he can do now is to keep making himself stronger!

In order to cope with...

After changing into his pajamas, Lu Chen slowly drifted off to sleep.