Chapter 857: Two Hundred Million More

"I want to follow you and learn how to trade stocks," Li Xiangxiu said, half-jokingly.

He Yuzhu laughed: "You're clever, after all—you don't want to work, you just want to make money."

Li Xiangxiu said: "That's because Tian Dan complains to me every day that since she retired, she's busier than when she was working."

Heping Nightclub, the lights were dim and ambiguous, the singing lingering.

Zhang Ting sat with He Zheng in a private room, a row of wine bottles arranged on the table.

Tonight, He Zheng was in a bad mood, drinking the wine quickly and fiercely.

Zhang Ting kept urging him: "Boss He, drink a little less, it's bad for your health."

Yet every time she poured the wine, she filled his glass to the brim.

He Zheng suddenly put down his wine glass and turned to stare straight at her: "Do you know why I brought you here?"

Zhang Ting's heart skipped a beat; it almost jumped out of her throat.

What did he mean? Had the undercover matter been exposed? Or...

She quickly forced a smile: "To relax a bit, I suppose." After saying this, her eyes shifted, intentionally carrying a hint of allure.

He Zheng did not pick up on that, his voice low and direct: "Your younger brother was framed. Does your family have a grudge against anyone?"

Zhang Ting was stunned.

He Zheng continued: "At the company, I was afraid you would collapse if you heard this news. If that happened, others would think I was bullying you. Here, you can vent as you please! Even if you smash up this private room, I can afford to pay for it."

As the words fell, Zhang Ting let out a "Wah!" and began to cry, tears streaming down uncontrollably.

All these years, it wasn't that she hadn't suspected. But there were some things she still dared not believe—that the human heart could be evil to such a degree.

She felt like a fool all these years, actually harboring the delusion that Cheng Shao would get her brother out... But was this true?

She could not be a fool anymore.

She had to go see her brother, ask him clearly, and see if what He Zheng said was right.

Right now, she could not expose her identity. If He Zheng found out she was an undercover agent and hated her in a fit of anger, then her brother would truly have no hope.

Zhang Ting abruptly stopped her tears, took a deep breath, and suddenly made up a lie: "Boss He, I understand. It must have been Ma Bingchao who framed him. They were brothers who grew up playing together; later, after graduating from high school, neither got into college, so they went to vocational school together. Later, they followed the same Boss, and my brother and Ma Bingchao even met a girl together. That girl chose my brother, and Ma Bingchao turned against him..."

Zhang Ting spoke as if it were true. He Zheng secretly observed her, seeing not a single flaw. If this were really the case, his efforts this time had been in vain. It was also unlikely that Zhang Ting would turn against Cheng Shao.

He waved his hand, his tone softening: "I just wanted to tell you about this today. You go now; I have a few friends coming over later."

Zhang Ting couldn't gauge He Zheng's meaning for a moment, so she stood up, grabbed her bag, and walked out of the private room.

Xindadu Hotel Nightclub.

Cheng Shao sat in a private room, looking at Pan Laoban, Feng Laoban, and Wang Laoban opposite him, his tone already a bit impatient: "Are you going to do this or not? Give me a straight answer. We've been drinking all night, why are you all stalling? Do you think I'm trying to harm you? I had someone evaluate it; even if those lands of the He Family are bought for 2.3 billion, one can make a 50% profit upon reselling them."

Pan Laoban kept rubbing his wrinkled face and said: "To be honest with Cheng Shao, our company's capital is too tight; we can scrape together at most 50 million... I'm a bit embarrassed to say it, it's not that I'm not giving you face."

Wang Laoban repeatedly flipped through the list in his hand and praised: "The He Family is truly formidable; these lands are all prime property."

"How much can you put up?" Cheng Shao asked.

"600 million. However, you must give me half a month; I need to take out an asset-backed loan."

"Old Feng, what about you?"

"I can't scrape together much on my own. But I can unite a dozen or so fellow townsmen; they are all doing business in Si Jiu Cheng now."

"You Chaoshan people always stick together; how much can you scrape together this time?" Cheng Shao was a bit impatient.

"About 900 million," Feng Laoban said.

"Not even 1.6 billion..." Cheng Shao calculated, "Still a long way from 2.3 billion."

Even by his own best estimates, he could only scrape together 200 million.

No, that would still leave a gap of 500 million.

Feng Laoban saw his difficulty and reminded him: "Cheng Shao, many big bosses in Hong Kong have plenty of money; why don't you borrow some from them?"

Cheng Shao shook his head: "Those cowards won't act until they see the prey. If I pull them in, those prime lands won't end up in your hands."

Feng Laoban's eyes rolled: "I think you could apply for a bank loan. We can first deposit the 1.6 billion into our joint venture's bank account, then you apply for a loan from the bank, saying you've already signed a contract with the He Family. With your connections, who would check whether you actually bought the He Family's land plots or not? Even if the deal doesn't go through, you can just return the money, can't you?"

Cheng Shao felt a bit uneasy after hearing this.

He had long known this trick could work, but he was afraid of being caught and causing trouble for his father.

However, for this big project, he was desperate and wanted to take a gamble.

He had already had someone calculate it; even if these land plots were bought back for 2.3 billion, selling them in parts would yield at least a 30% to 50% profit.

"Fine, it's settled. You all hurry up and scrape the money together; it must be enough within half a month."

Several bosses nodded one after another.

East Suburb Prison.

Zhang Biao cried and said: "Sister, hurry and save me, get me out of here; I can't stay here for another day."

"What exactly happened? Tell me!" Zhang Ting said.

He suddenly lowered his voice: "Sister, someone brought me a message, telling you to handle the matter Cheng Shao entrusted you with well, and not to have any other ideas. Otherwise... I'll be dead."

Zhang Ting's heart skipped a beat.

She suddenly felt that the one who had framed her brother in the first place was Cheng Shao. Now, he was finally showing his true colors.

But what was she to do?

If she told He Yuzhu that she was an undercover agent, would he still help her?

She was struggling intensely within, her mind wandering for a moment.

"Sister, what's wrong with you?" Zhang Biao was anxious, "Do you really want to betray Cheng Shao? His power is too great; if you really betray him, neither of us will survive."

"What are you thinking?" Zhang Ting pretended to be nonchalant, "How could I possibly betray Cheng Shao? I'm still waiting for him to get you out!"

After comforting him for a long time, Zhang Biao's emotions finally stabilized.

Walking out of the prison, Zhang Ting felt conflicted, not knowing what to do for a moment.

The next day, as soon as work started, Zhang Ting attended the second internal high-level meeting of the He Group.

He Zheng got straight to the point: "I called everyone here today for one thing—to discuss the reserve price for this land sale."

Qin Tianzhen took over: "He Zheng, why don't you have a good talk with the old man? Let the Xu family come in to bid; they don't care about the money... Among these domestic enterprises, how many can come up with over a billion?"

He Zheng glared, his temper flaring: "Our dad is just an old stubborn! He told me absolutely not to sell to his friends... This is clearly just to punish me!"

Bang Geng advised from the side: "A Zheng, you are blaming Siqiang wrongly. He doesn't want to drag his friends into this because of his own connections; if things go wrong, he would feel sorry for them."

Yi Xiaotian said: "He Zheng, I consulted an Expert in real estate yesterday. Because we are in a hurry to sell, domestic companies will offer at most 1.9 billion, that's the ceiling."

He Zheng made the final decision: "Then let's set the reserve price at 1.9 billion."

Zhang Ting sat on the side, her heart jolting violently. 1.9 billion?

If she told Cheng Shao... wouldn't that help him save a huge sum? Cheng Shao had prepared for 2.3 billion.

A thought suddenly popped into her mind.

Why?

Why should she let him save money?

She gritted her teeth and secretly made up her mind—to tell Cheng Shao the reserve price was 2.1 billion.

Let him pay two hundred million more.

This was the price for him bullying her.

Thinking this, Zhang Ting's mood improved inexplicably.