Chapter 871: 865. Treating an Old Friend to a Meal (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets)

Zhang Ran called for the entire industry to boycott Hanjing Express, which immediately brought immense pressure upon the Hanjing Group.

Perhaps it was their habitual confidence that made them feel Zhang Ran wouldn't truly strike a fatal blow; at most, he was just trying to scare them into making concessions regarding Nanfaxing.

Call it confidence or call it blindness, either way, the Hanjing Group only chose to resist to a certain degree and did not go all out.

This was also because their operations in Australia and Europe had already left them exhausted, leaving them with little energy or time to attend to this matter.

Moreover, the most critical point was that this was not something that could be resolved overnight; after all, there is much to be done to completely bring down a company.

Regardless, Hanjing Express was capable of holding on for a period of time, and that amount of time was enough to make Zhang Ran compromise.

By then, even if Zhang Ran were to fly into a rage out of shame, trading a Hanjing Express for all this would be enough to compensate for the Hanjing Group's losses.

These were the most critical factors.

It was not just as simple as making up for losses; some business issues in Australia, Europe, and America would also be resolved in the process.

The Hanjing Group naturally knew how to make such a choice.

At this moment, the Hanjing Group was harboring such an idea: Zhang Ran could not drag things out at Nanfaxing for too long.

The Rhode Family had already begun preparing funds; once time continued to drag on and the Rhode Family's funds were in place, Zhang Ran doing this would be of absolutely no benefit.

Therefore, in a few weeks at most, Zhang Ran would need to make a choice.

Judging from the reports studied previously, the probability of Zhang Ran choosing to compromise with them and continue to go head-to-head with the Rhode Family was very high.

This was analyzed based on a combination of Zhang Ran's personality and his strength.

Zhang Ran was very famous now, so he would naturally be studied by many people—his personality, assets, and various connections, among other things.

This was all normal.

Just like Zhang Ran, who also had talent specifically dedicated to researching these things; when Zhang Ran sought to cooperate with someone or do something, he needed to choose the best plan from these analyses.

But clearly, the Hanjing Group had underestimated Zhang Ran; Zhang Ran did not just want to use Hanjing Express to apply pressure.

Hanjing Express had indeed cost the Hanjing Group a significant amount of capital, and it was a relatively important link in their industrial chain.

But relatively speaking, it still paled in comparison to their operations in Australia, Europe, and America.

Wanting to make a choice was actually very simple.

Only when the losses here far exceeded those over there would the Hanjing Group compromise.

Not only that, Zhang Ran also needed to let the Hanjing Group know what pain was—that is, he needed to tell these people that if they did not compromise now, their future losses would be even greater.

On the second day after the Fengli Group and those courier companies announced the boycott of Hanjing Express, Zhang Ran invited someone to dinner.

Beijing.

At a restaurant with elegant decor, Zhang Ran arrived early; the person he was treating this time was a big shot.

Although their personal friendship was good and the person had come after Zhang Ran just mentioned it, he could not be too presumptuous, nor was there any need to be.

However, not long after Zhang Ran arrived, the person arrived as well; clearly, the person did not stand on ceremony regarding their status.

"Tsk tsk tsk, you fellow still have the nerve to call me." As soon as the person arrived, they began to mock and ridicule, not giving him a pleasant look.

Zhang Ran said with a grin: "Brother Li, saying that is a bit unfair; I was just afraid of causing you trouble."

"Heh, not afraid now?" Leader Li's face remained very tight.

Although he knew that Zhang Ran did not want to get involved, it did not mean he truly wanted to sever ties with them, but he was still somewhat unhappy in his heart.

Whether in the past or now, there were fewer and fewer people he could confide in, especially as his status gradually increased.

It was not to say he was a lonely man, but it was actually much the same; many things could not be said to others, even to his wife and children.

At times like this, the importance of a true friend became apparent; there were too few people he could trust, who he didn't fear would go out and gossip, and who could provide some advice.

Clearly, Zhang Ran was such a person, which was why Leader Li had agreed so readily this time.

Even though they hadn't seen each other in nearly thirty years, seeing this familiar face now, the feeling from before returned immediately, and the sense of estrangement faded rapidly.

Especially since he had actually been observing Zhang Ran over these past few years and found that Zhang Ran had not changed, which put his mind at ease.

"Sit, sit, sit, what would you like to eat, Brother?" Zhang Ran did not answer Leader Li's question at all and said with a smile.

This Brother Li had helped Zhang Ran quite a bit in the past, and Zhang Ran had also offered him strategies and even put in quite a bit of effort.

The key was that Zhang Ran had never used their relationship to gain benefits for himself, so their personal friendship had always been quite good.

"Hmph hmph, then I'm going to fleece you properly; you, the Richest Person in China, are not short on money." Leader Li's expression gradually relaxed.

Zhang Ran complained: "Brother, you don't know, business is hard to do now; I'm being troubled to death by others."

"Heh, you think I don't know about your affairs? Isn't it just you looking for trouble yourself." Leader Li was not easily fooled.

Zhang Ran sighed and said: "But if I don't vent this frustration, I won't feel comfortable inside. Brother, you know me; I actually don't have much ambition.

Being able to eat and sleep well, and having peace of mind, is actually quite good; I don't pursue anything else."

Leader Li nodded silently; in this regard, Zhang Ran was truly beyond reproach.

Whether in his personal lifestyle or consumption, Zhang Ran was not the type to indulge; even many officials could not achieve this, let alone the wealthy.

However, this did not mean Zhang Ran was easy to deal with; on the contrary, it made him harder, because having peace of mind meant no one provoked him and no one brought him unhappiness.

But in reality, as long as one lives in this society, how many people can always have things go their way?

Basically none; everyone has their own troubles.

The two chatted like this, and Zhang Ran was in no rush to talk about his own affairs; besides, he hadn't come this time to truly use personal connections to handle business—all in all, it was still official business.

It was just that he needed to catch up with Leader Li; if he had truly gone straight to official business, Leader Li would have been unhappy in his heart.

This is the complexity of human nature; Leader Li never liked using personal connections to handle official business, but like Zhang Ran, if he were truly treated as a stranger, he would be even more unhappy.