Chapter 486: 482. Confirming Identity (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Votes!)

"Brother Zhang, the Gambling License has disappeared. It was taken by someone back in '92, using a key and a password." He Yong's voice was somewhat agitated.

Zhang Ran's eyes also flickered; it seemed everything lined up. The only thing difficult to explain was Qiu Qianyang's appearance, but that wasn't hard to account for either—plastic surgery was possible back then.

Moreover, Xiao Long was still in his developmental stage at the time; with a little bit of surgery and the passage of so many years, the change should be night and day.

"Brother Zhang, if nothing goes wrong, Qiu Qianyang is Xiao Long," He Yong said.

Zhang Ran nodded and said, "That should be right. But if it really is Xiao Long, what is he trying to do?"

He Yong hesitated for a moment before saying, "Brother Zhang, why don't I go see him?"

He was somewhat emotional. He Yong's feelings toward Xiao Long were actually very complex; Xiao Long was someone both he and Zhang Ran had thought highly of back then.

However, unlike Zhang Ran, what He Yong had wanted was for Xiao Long to take over his own position, because Xiao Long was very clever and could perfectly complete many tasks Zhang Ran assigned.

But he, He Yong, could not; most of the time, he would only rigidly execute orders, and in terms of handling matters, he was far inferior to Xiao Long.

Furthermore, Xiao Long's loyalty to Zhang Ran at the time was also beyond doubt. Xiao Long worshipped Zhang Ran, and it was Zhang Ran who had brought him back from the brink of death.

It could be said that the bodyguards around Zhang Ran back then all had their own backgrounds, and Zhang Ran had essentially done favors for all of them; this was also the reason they served as Zhang Ran's bodyguards.

But the final outcome was also the reason for the anger and coldness in He Yong's heart. After Zhang Ran "died," everyone except for him had betrayed him.

Xiao Long was even the first one. Although He Yong had always been unwilling to believe this, it was the truth.

Zhang Ran thought for a moment and said, "Don't make contact yet; it's still not certain for the time being."

Although there were so many clues indicating that this Qiu Qianyang was Xiao Long, there was no way to confirm it.

And what would it matter if they recognized each other now?

Just at this moment, Wang Chen came looking for him again.

"Old Mr. Wang, is there something you need?" Zhang Ran was somewhat surprised.

Wang Chen hesitated for a moment before saying, "There is one thing I think it's better to tell you."

"Please speak," Zhang Ran said politely.

Wang Chen said, "If my old eyes aren't failing me, Qiu Qianyang should have swapped the cards once at that time, but the final result was that you won, so I don't know if I saw it wrong."

"Of course, it's very likely because I'm old and my eyes are failing. Since Mr. Zhang has already won, there's no need to care about this; I only came over this time to ramble about it."

Wang Chen had come to tell Zhang Ran only after careful consideration, because doing so seemed a bit improper, as if he were specifically trying to stir up trouble for Qiu Qianyang with Zhang Ran.

And when it came down to it, Wang Chen had no evidence.

Zhang Ran's eyes, however, sharpened. He certainly wouldn't doubt Wang Chen's vision; Wang Chen's energy was indeed not what it used to be, but his eyesight was absolutely getting better and better.

"Thank you, Old Wang, I understand," Zhang Ran thanked him.

This news seemed to dispel the last bit of doubt; Qiu Qianyang was Xiao Long.

After Wang Chen finished speaking, he left without disturbing Zhang Ran further.

Zhang Ran, meanwhile, fell into deep thought. Could it be that his cards in the final round weren't the strongest?

But what about that strong premonition?

Or was it that Qiu Qianyang had actually swapped the cards twice, but Wang Chen had only seen it once?

These were all inferences based on Qiu Qianyang being Xiao Long, and now it could basically be confirmed that Qiu Qianyang's identity was established.

As for what Qiu Qianyang wanted to do, Zhang Ran could actually infer it through the current situation.

Qiu Qianyang was now a shareholder of Galaxy Capital and had never revealed his identity. Added to today's events, his goal seemed to be helping Zhang Ran infiltrate the current interior of Galaxy Capital.

At this moment, connecting this to the last words Xiao Long said to Zhu San, it seemed Xiao Long had been prepared many years ago to destroy Galaxy Capital and take it down to the underground to see Zhang Ran.

This could also be mutually corroborated by the fact that Xiao Long had never married or had children, and had not notified anyone when he did.

And upon learning that Zhang Ran hadn't died and had returned, Xiao Long changed his plan, choosing to infiltrate the interior of Galaxy Capital and wait for the moment Zhang Ran needed him.

This was also the result of Xiao Long not acknowledging Zhang Ran.

Thinking this through, a smile that wasn't quite a smile suddenly appeared on Zhang Ran's face. If that were the case, Mu Jinyuan had actually been tricked by the two of them working together, and one of them was someone he considered his own person.

He Yong hadn't thought of so much, but Wang Chen's words seemed to make him realize it as well.

"Brother Zhang, now it can be confirmed that Qiu Qianyang is Xiao Long. I'll go find him right now," He Yong said, somewhat agitated.

Zhang Ran waved his hand and said, "No need. I know what he's thinking. Since it's already reached this point, there's no rush for this moment. Haha, the little guy's ability is truly strong; a genius is a genius indeed."

As he spoke, Zhang Ran sighed with emotion once more.

He had known long ago that Xiao Long was a genius, but he hadn't expected him to be able to reach this point.

"Look, my eye for talent is still much better than yours," Zhang Ran said to He Yong with a smile.

Back then, he had intended for Xiao Long to enter the business world and become his right-hand man, while He Yong had wanted Xiao Long to take over his position.

Judging from the current situation, it was clearly Zhang Ran whose eye for talent was better.

He Yong said, "My eye for talent certainly can't compare to Brother Zhang's, but this guy was also taught by you, Brother Zhang, and the money he used as well as the initial Gambling License were all yours, Brother Zhang."

Xiao Long's initial capital was actually not hard to guess; it must have been the price for betraying Zhang Ran back then.

Zhang Ran laughed and shook his head. "Alright, even so, if I gave you ten times the initial capital, could you achieve what he has now?"

He Yong stopped talking. Actually, he didn't want to belittle Xiao Long; it was just something he said subconsciously.

After chatting with He Yong for a while, Zhang Ran went to rest, as he was quite exhausted.

In the evening, Zhang Ran attended the banquet, but he only chatted briefly with those people, leaving the rest of the time to Zhang Siyan and Qian Li, which counted as helping them get to know the people there.

These people were extremely polite to both Zhang Siyan and Qian Li. There was no need to mention Zhang Siyan—as Zhang Ran's own daughter, everyone would certainly treat her seriously.

As for Qian Li?

Zhang Ran's attitude earlier had been very clear, so no one had the slightest intention of looking down on her, and their attitudes were also very good.

Zhang Siyan and Qian Li also reached several collaborations at this banquet; although they weren't large, it was a good start.