[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-romantic-path-to-success":3,"chapter-the-romantic-path-to-success-the-romantic-path-to-success-chapter-510":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Romantic Road to the Top",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},2146701,3567,"Chapter 510","the-romantic-path-to-success-chapter-510",510,"\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi said, “As the saying goes, if someone is overly polite, they must want something. What are they doing this for?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui shook his head. “You’re laughing at me, Old Mr. Hou!”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi looked at Su Xinghui with some confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui knew that although Hou Guangbi was a business giant overseas, he didn’t quite understand the current situation in China. How could he know that there were places in the country that would even fight over investors?\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui didn’t know if he should tell Hou Guangbi about this; it was truly embarrassing.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Seeing Su Xinghui’s hesitation, Hou Guangbi smiled. “Mr. Su, feel free to say whatever is on your mind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui then said, “Mr. Hou, you might not be clear about the situation in China now. The situation is different from a few years ago. Now, it’s GDP above all, with the economy in command. Therefore, local governments attach great importance to investors. You should be able to understand this, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi was no fool; on the contrary, he was a wise old man. Once Su Xinghui said this, he naturally understood what was going on. He nodded and smiled. “So your county government also hopes we will invest in the county?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui nodded embarrassedly. “That is the intention.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi nodded noncommittally. “Let me go back to Shangjun County and take a look first. I don’t know what Shangjun County has become now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Dali asked, “Then are we going back today?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui said, “No need, no rush for today. It’s almost five o’clock. Let’s rest here for the night and go back to Shangjun tomorrow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi nodded. “That’s a good arrangement. Then we’ll return to Shangjun County tomorrow morning. Tonight, you and Miss Lu should stay at the White Rose Hotel.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui smiled. “Old Mr. Hou, Xiaoya’s home is in Jiangcheng. It wouldn’t be very good if she didn’t go home at night, so I’ll send her back later tonight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi had thought Lu Xiaoya was also from Shangjun. Hearing she was from Jiangcheng, he nodded in relief. “That’s fine. After you send Miss Lu back tonight, come back here to stay. This old man still wants to have a candlelit talk with you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui nodded happily. “Alright.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi stood up. “Then let’s go down to the restaurant for dinner.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui also stood up. “Alright, let’s go down.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Everyone stood up to go downstairs. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Hou Dali was stunned for a moment and opened the door. Standing outside was a middle-aged man around fifty, surrounded by a group of people behind him, including Cheng Han and Zhang Chenxi.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>A man who looked under forty next to Cheng Han said, “Mr. Hou, hello. This is Deputy Mayor Ge Honglin of the Jiangcheng Municipal Government. He has taken time out of his busy schedule to visit you, and he will accompany you for dinner this afternoon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Dali said, “Mayor Ge is too kind. Everyone, please come in.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Dali let the group in. Hou Guangbi stood up to welcome the guests, and his two sons, Su Xinghui, and Lu Xiaoya naturally stood up as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin was short and fat, bald, with a red nose and a flushed face, clearly having drunk alcohol at noon. As soon as he entered the room, he saw the white-haired Hou Guangbi and quickly walked toward him. “This must be Old Mr. Hou, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Guangbi said, “I am Hou Guangbi. Hello, Mayor Ge!”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin shook hands with Hou Guangbi, bowing slightly and shaking his hands up and down, appearing very respectful. After shaking hands with Hou Guangbi, he met Hou Guangbi’s two sons under Hou Dali’s introduction.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Only then did Ge Honglin look at Su Xinghui and Lu Xiaoya. He had already heard from Cheng Han that a young man from Shangjun County had come to try to pull the Hou family back to Shangjun County. Since the only young man in the room was Su Xinghui, he naturally wouldn’t give him a good look. He looked at Su Xinghui with an arrogant expression. “You are Su Xinghui from Shangjun County?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Although Ge Honglin was arrogant and his tone was unkind, Su Xinghui didn’t get angry; his expression didn’t even change. He nodded with a smile. “Yes, I am Su Xinghui.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin said sternly, “Then what are you here for? This floor was booked by our Jiangcheng Municipal Government. You, a cadre from a county, don’t you think it’s inappropriate to be here? Please leave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Hou Dali’s face changed, and he was about to speak, but Hou Guangbi grabbed his hand and stopped him. Hou Guangbi looked at Su Xinghui with a smile, clearly wanting to see how he would deal with Ge Honglin.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The Hou family was indeed wealthy. Since the country attached such importance to investors and was so thirsty for foreign investment, it wouldn’t be impossible for him to invest in the country. However, the essence of capital was profit-seeking; it was impossible to invest funds in Shangjun County solely based on Su Xinghui’s favor to the Hou family.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Shangjun County was the Hou family’s hometown. Now, Hou Guangbi wanted to use Su Xinghui’s level to see the level of the officials in Shangjun County. Whether a place had development prospects had a lot to do with the level of its officials.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Now, the status and position of Ge Honglin and Su Xinghui could be called heaven and earth. This was the best test of a person’s talent and character. Hou Guangbi naturally wanted to see how Su Xinghui would deal with Ge Honglin.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>If Su Xinghui couldn’t handle it, Hou Guangbi would naturally step in to resolve the situation for him, but he wouldn’t think much of Su Xinghui in the future. He could repay the favor, but the investment would be another matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui said, “Mayor Ge, isn’t what you’re saying a bit inappropriate? Old Mr. Hou is a guest I invited, and he is also a person from our Shangjun County. Our Shangjun County people have been waiting for Old Mr. Hou all noon, so how did he end up being picked up here by your Jiangcheng Municipal Government?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>When Su Xinghui spoke, he was neither humble nor arrogant, and he kept a smile on his face, as if the person he was talking to wasn’t a Jiangcheng Deputy Mayor with a status and position far higher than his, but someone of equal status. It was this smile that angered Ge Honglin.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Although Ge Honglin was angry, the Hou family was in the room, so he couldn’t lose his temper. He suppressed his temper and said, “Comrade Su Xinghui, please mind your status and don’t lose face in front of Old Mr. Hou.”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Su Xinghui said, “Comrade Ge Honglin, I think the ones who are truly losing face are the people from your Jiangcheng Investment Promotion Office, right? Isn’t their style of investment promotion always like this? Are they used to snatching investors from cities and counties below? That is truly losing face in front of Old Mr. Hou. Let me ask you: you invited Old Mr. Hou here, did Old Mr. Hou agree?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin was so angry he was practically foaming at the mouth. He pointed at Su Xinghui. “You, you, you…”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin “you-ed” for a long time without saying anything. Su Xinghui said with a grin, “Comrade Ge Honglin, you weren’t stuttering when you were scolding people just now. Why are you stuttering suddenly? Do you need to drink some water?”\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Lu Xiaoya next to him let out a “pfft” of laughter. Ge Honglin felt the world go black, and his feet swayed. Cheng Han next to him quickly supported him.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Everyone was shocked, looking at Su Xinghui. Even Zhang Chenxi was no exception. He knew Su Xinghui was bold, but he didn’t expect his boldness to reach such a level. A section-level cadre was actually pointing at a department-level cadre and speaking to him like this, practically calling him out for his mistakes.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>In Chinese officialdom, the hierarchy was strict. Not to mention such a large gap in rank, even the difference between a secretary and a town head of the same section level was huge. No one expected Su Xinghui to dare to speak to Ge Honglin like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Precisely because no one expected it, the group of people behind Ge Honglin collectively lost their voices. They didn’t know what to say. Just as Ge Honglin was so angry that his vision went black, everyone rushed up and helped Ge Honglin sit on a sofa.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Ge Honglin took a long time to catch his breath. He knew his blood pressure was a bit high and he couldn’t get angry. He warned himself, “Control your anger, control your anger.” But as soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Su Xinghui standing in front of him with a glass of water, grinning. “Mayor Ge, drink some water!”\u003C\u002Fp>",1521,"2026-06-16T17:50:43.208Z","2026-06-17T08:56:06.694Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","a8e35bbe4264991aad9cc9e919f47a5649505012f15e87ae1a7cbf8cc333a4aa","the-romantic-path-to-success-chapter-511","the-romantic-path-to-success-chapter-509",572,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-romantic-path-to-success-cover.jpg"]