Chapter 1033: Why Are You Helping Her

On the way home, He Yuzhu thought for a moment and then gave Hu Bayi a call.

It turned out that the other end was quite lively—Xu Damao, Wang Pangzi, and Dajinya were huddled together playing Fight the Landlord.

"Come to my place tomorrow; I have something important to tell you all," He Yuzhu said, getting straight to the point.

"Got it, see you tomorrow!" Hu Bayi agreed readily.

The next noon, Hu Bayi, Wang Pangzi, Xu Damao, and Dajinya bustled into He Yuzhu's living room, and the room was instantly packed.

As soon as Xu Damao entered, his mouth didn't stop, grumbling, "Zhuzi! You haven't seen us for almost a year, have you? You run all over the world, why don't you go to Pudong to see us!"

He Yuzhu leaned back on the sofa and retorted with a laugh, "I've only been home for two days, where would I find the time to visit you? Unless it's just because you've grown a few age spots."

Hearing this, Wang Pangzi immediately slapped his thigh and laughed until he doubled over, "Exactly! Damao, you should go pee and look at your reflection; don't you have any idea what you look like now? You're younger than Master He, but standing next to him, you look like you're a generation older."

Xu Damao curled his lip, "Other than being two pounds lighter than me now, I really don't see how you're any younger."

Just as the group was making a ruckus, Hu Bayi spoke up, straightforwardly, "Master He, you called us over this time, it's probably not for something trivial, right?"

He Yuzhu stopped smiling and explained the matter of building the pharmaceutical factory from beginning to end.

Upon hearing this, the group looked at each other—they had never touched the pharmaceutical industry before.

Dajinya was a bit troubled, "Master He, right now real estate has just started to recover, and it's a great time to make money. Suddenly pulling out capital to start a pharmaceutical factory... isn't that a bit..."

Before he could finish, Hu Bayi interrupted him, "If Master He has set his sights on something, it can't be wrong. That must be the next big opportunity."

He Yuzhu continued, "There are two possibilities for this. One, we could develop a vaccine very quickly, and everyone will get rich overnight; the other is that we might not develop it for eight or ten years, and then this factory will just be an empty shell. The reason I want to entrust this to you is because you aren't busy right now..."

Dajinya became curious after hearing this and asked, "Master He, what exactly is this project?"

"A vaccine!"

He Yuzhu then described the epidemic currently spreading in East Europe and North Europe, and also revealed his investment in a private Laboratory.

Xu Damao slapped his thigh, "Zhuzi, I understand now. This job of yours is essentially still a real estate project."

The group burst into laughter after hearing this.

He Yuzhu nodded, "Well said. I was thinking that while building the pharmaceutical factory, we could cooperate with some construction material companies to create integrated bathrooms, integrated housing..."

Xu Damao was energized as soon as he heard this, "Zhuzi, this is a big deal. The project is no smaller than the urban complex in Pudong."

He Yuzhu nodded, "I've earned some spare money recently and plan to invest it all into this project."

Hu Bayi said, "Master He, how about this—the work in Pudong is basically wrapping up. Next is sales and investment attraction; Damao and Dajinya can keep an eye on that. Pangzi and I can transfer to this project."

He Yuzhu nodded, "This project is over in Qinghe, so you'll have to return to Si Jiu Cheng. I'll basically be there for the start as well."

Xu Damao felt a bit regretful, "I want to return to Jiu Cheng too. I've been in Pudong for almost ten years; it's time to return to my roots."

Wang Pangzi chimed in, "Once you finish handling the matters over there, two years at most, it won't be too late. Besides, you can always come back often."

After the group finished discussing business, they started drinking.

In the end, they all got drunk and simply slept at He Yuzhu's place.

Nowadays, in this No. 95 Siheyuan, only the He Family and Yi Zhonghai live here.

There are plenty of guest rooms, so the four of them just picked one and fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Ma Rui ran over excitedly, "Uncle, Yang Jing is out of danger, and the baby is also fine, no problems."

He Yuzhu laughed, "The fortune I told for you, not bad, right?"

Ma Rui grinned, "Of course! You don't know, I've always considered you a prophet."

"Get lost! Stop buttering me up!" He Yuzhu scolded with a laugh.

Ma Rui chuckled and asked again, "Uncle, in the end, how much money did Doctor Liu ask you for?"

He Yuzhu exhaled a puff of smoke, "500 million US dollars."

"What? She's too greedy!" Ma Rui's eyes nearly popped out.

He Yuzhu pulled out a cigarette, and Ma Rui hurriedly leaned in to light it for him.

"She isn't asking for money for herself; she wants me to sponsor a Laboratory. The total cost will exceed that amount."

"Is there a return?"

"If we're lucky and Doctor Liu can develop the vaccine, it will be a vault of gold," He Yuzhu said.

Ma Rui's eyes lit up, "Uncle, can I buy a stake?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment, "I've handed this matter over to Hu Bayi and Xu Damao to operate, but the project is huge, and they probably can't swallow 49% of the shares. I'll show you the specific details when the time comes; you can decide whether you want to invest or not."

Ma Rui became worried again, "Uncle, for something like a vaccine, shouldn't the government be involved? Otherwise, I'm afraid there will be difficulties in promoting it."

He Yuzhu laughed, "Do you think I'm stupid? It's possible to transfer it once it's developed. Right now it's still a pipe dream, and nobody wants to get involved..."

Ma Rui gave a thumbs up, "Uncle is amazing!"

He Yuzhu took a sip of tea and said seriously, "You shouldn't let Yang Jing have any more children in the future; that was practically a brush with death."

Ma Rui nodded vigorously, "I understand."

Six months later, the epidemic broke out in Hong Kong first.

Once infected, the new virus would cause lung failure, and there was no specific cure.

For a time, major hospitals were overcrowded, and the number of deaths increased sharply.

In Si Jiu Cheng, under the supervision of He Yuzhu and Hu Bayi, the pharmaceutical factory had been completed, and all equipment was in place.

The designs for the detachable mobile housing and integrated bathroom projects were also finished and ready for mass production.

Just as He Yuzhu was discussing matters with the newly hired Factory Director at the pharmaceutical factory, Doctor Liu's phone suddenly rang.

On the other end of the line, her tone was urgent, "He Yuzhu, we must meet at noon today; I have something important to tell you."

"Where shall we meet?" He Yuzhu asked.

"I'm at the Beijing Hotel now; is it convenient for you to come over?"

"Alright, I'll set off now. Let's meet at Hongbin Building, room six," He Yuzhu said.

At twelve noon, He Yuzhu pushed open the door to room six.

Doctor Liu sat by the table with a pale face, drinking tea while rapidly calculating something on her laptop.

"Liu Aihong, your mother is Lv Hong," He Yuzhu said with a grin.

"You actually investigated me, you old guy," Doctor Liu pretended to be angry.

"I spent so much money, I had to know who you were, right?" He Yuzhu said.

Doctor Liu sighed: "My mother told me to contact you a long time ago, but I always felt there was something ambiguous between you and my mother, and I didn't want to stir up any issues regarding blood relations."

He Yuzhu glared and cursed: "You brat, do you distrust your mother that much?"

Doctor Liu laughed: "The main thing is that once when my mother was drunk, she said she married my father because he looked like someone. Later, when I saw photos of you and her, I realized you look a lot like my dad—though my dad seems a bit older than you."

"How exactly is your brain wired?" He Yuzhu shook his head incessantly.

"A good friend of my mother's told me that my mother was just a Cadre in the Ministry of Water Resources at the time, and when she was swept away by a flood during an inspection, you saved her. Later, you took her to look for oil... and later still, she even became a major official over there... If there's no connection, why did you help her?" Doctor Liu looked at him with a burning gaze.