s, which was undoubtedly a resounding slap delivered by NATO military alliance to all citizens.Su Can tried his best to recall these memories in his mind at home, contemplating everything he had exper...Chapter 93: Abruptly

Su Cen found the joint venture with the six-day collaboration to be quite fruitful, but he was also aware of the gap between himself and Tang Yi... As Jia Hua had once said, they were not on the same level. Yet, both of them could sit face-to-face and talk, which in itself was an incredible feat for Su Cen, who managed to present his financing proposal to Jia Hua.

Unexpectedly, Xu Zheng's grandfather and his own father, Su Richen, had unknowingly introduced the concept of auctioning off a dinner during their discussions at the Chengdu business conference, subtly planting the idea in Jia Hua’s mind.

If anyone else were involved, there would be no need for such an approach since it was uncertain whether they would do something like this. Furthermore, under pressure from media and public opinion, very few well-known Shanghai entrepreneurs might even consider it.

However, Jia Hua himself was in the investment industry with influence reaching overseas. What he did north of China differed fundamentally from what Warren Buffett invested in; the former focused on small investments for large returns, akin to earning ten dollars from an initial one-dollar investment. This model dictated that making money through innovation and risk-taking was essential.

Regarding this aspect, Jia Hua had a venture capital personality as he was someone who enjoyed taking innovative risks. Therefore, what others might not do, he would. Hence, Su Cen believed there was a certain likelihood that Jia Hua would draw inspiration from the Buffett lunch concept. The missing piece was merely finding an avenue to introduce this idea to him.

Su Cen's current plan carried uncertainty and speculative elements; naturally, failure was also highly probable. If Jia Hua didn't consider auctioning off a dinner after that, everything leading up to them sitting together would fall through. Thus, the occurrence was something one could only hope for and carried a significant element of luck. Nevertheless, successfully achieving this goal brought Su Cen a considerable sense of accomplishment.

Having made their way down from the internal escalator in the Shangri-La hotel, they felt refreshed and at ease, as if having solved a hundred complex high-level math problems over one night.

As they reached the door, Wang Yue finally voiced her curiosity: "Compared to investing, which is more profitable Su Cen, have you considered buying stocks"

Now that everyone knew about Su Cen’s plan to gather funds for innovative investments, there was a collective wonder in their minds. With his unique insight, if Su Cen were to enter the stock market, what would it be like After all, he could grasp the overall situation of various industries, so wouldn't making money from this seem rather easy

Furthermore, after today's interaction with Jia Hua’s investment team, Wang Yue suddenly had such a fanciful question.

"Can these two be compared directly Which path is more profitable Who can give a definitive answer on that It’s too broad a generalization," Chen Kaier was amused by Wang Yue's question and replied.

“When talking about which one makes more money, I remember an anecdote. Just take it as an interesting story,” Su Cen thought for a moment before saying: “There once was a gathering in the investment industry where famous fund managers from both the investment and stock circles participated. Due to alcohol consumption being planned, everyone was asked not to drive. At the end of the event, guests called home. That's when something interesting happened: those who did investment-related work headed for well-known upscale residential areas in Shanghai, clustering together in these neighborhoods. On the other hand, people involved with stocks had similar destinations but were only medium-tier housing estates. We can see it as investors being high-profile and stock traders being low-key, but looking at their living conditions, clearly those in investment earn more than those in stocks.”

Su Cen then jokingly said to everyone, "So now that I'm doing investments, the stock market is just a second choice for making money."

Everyone was enlightened and thought to themselves: No wonder our boss acts like an angel investor; he must be secretly greedy behind his facade.

Once they left the hotel, Zhao Mingnong proposed going out for drinks and setting up a celebratory banquet.

Su Cen then switched to another restaurant with the group. Business meals outside were often like this; sometimes, banquets costing tens of thousands of yuan per table would leave everyone unsatisfied, followed by grabbing a five-yuan bowl of noodles on the street.

They had been engaged in business exchanges at dinner and had drunk quite a bit of wine earlier. Now they were truly hungry and decided to go for hot pot. Upon sitting down, everyone started eating heartily as a way to慰勞千裡迢迢相聚於此的彼此。

It was just before Winter Solstice in the twelfth lunar month, and pedestrians on the street were wearing more clothes, with some resting on wooden benches under the roadside trees.

The steam from the hot pot created a layer of mist inside the windows, giving it a lively and warm atmosphere. Only now did the earlier stiffness that had been present in the Shangri-La hotel start to ease into a harmonious mood. Everyone began sharing interesting stories, each one showing great interest in Su Cen.

As their boss, although Su Cen was much younger and less experienced compared to them, everyone was quite convinced by him. They felt that they were elevating their understanding of things, looking beyond the surface at Su Cen's young appearance with a discerning eye. Sometimes, there was even a slight sense of awe towards this young boss.

Perhaps only Su Cen still being a student at Nan University could make them feel slightly more balanced in their thoughts.

After drinking too much wine, Wang Yue's cheeks were flushed red as she recounted the process of establishing Dunhuang to everyone. Of course, there was a deep secret between Wang Yue and Su Cen, a secret that would likely remain forever etched in her heart.

Later on, Wang Yue had told Su Cen that he was incredibly skilled at persuasion and very cunning because he used a nearly impossible-to-reveal secret—the entrepreneur’s “original sin”—to elevate her life dramatically.

Everyone sighed in amazement at how far Su Cen had come from just running his family's stationery store, calling it an unimaginable miracle.

Miracles are born every day in this world, and there always seem to be a few shining individuals. For example, a child who picked up trash or scavenged in the city could avoid the fate of becoming a beggar forever bowing under bridges or on streets, instead steadily building their wealth and securing a future at the top of society.

Such legendary lives are rare but there are many examples to draw from.

Su Cen was exactly such an individual. A student in a small city who struggled with institutional education and societal systems had used his extraordinary mind and unrelenting spirit of innovation to break free from the constraints of his age and identity, achieving certain heights. He also inspired these individuals, who would otherwise be seen as failures, to gradually pursue their own paths.

They once had no faith in life.

Not knowing what to believe, they chose to trust this young decision-maker when he appeared before them. They felt a deep sense of closeness and admiration for the young man at hand, as if their destinies were intertwined with Su Cen’s. If Su Cen ever fell like a shooting star, they would regress too. Their families, those who trusted in them, and those living off the capital from Su Cen's enterprises, all looked forward to seeing this leader of Chutuo Group rise higher still, gazing out at the winter world outside—the dazzling lights and grand city.

As he stood before these people now, Wang Yue felt as if she were back in her youth with two braids, inviting Su Cen for a drink of newly opened Taiwanese milk tea near their home shop after class.

Ren Ying's spirited writing on the blackboard during marketing management discussions in the meeting room was also reminiscent to Wang Yue.

Lin Guangdong had been leading a gloomy and monotonous life at that school day after day, year after year.

Zhao Mingnong was struggling to make ends meet for over a hundred employees who relied on him for their livelihood.

All of this belonged to the past. Now, under Shanghai's winter sky, everything seemed different and people had changed.

Su Cun suddenly compared his present situation with how things were three years ago, wondering what it would look like in another three years.

He didn't have an answer, but he could imagine that the changes might be unimaginable.

Zhao Mingnong wanted to go to another place for some drinks after dinner. Su Cun shook his head and said, "I won’t join you today as I need to return to school. You guys have fun. I'll borrow Lin Guangdong for a while."

Lin Guangdong knew he had the task of driving, so he hadn't drunk much alcohol at the beginning. He stood up and took the car keys, "I’ll drive Su Cun back first. Everyone else can continue to enjoy yourselves."

The ladies like Wang Yue and Jiang Ming also bid farewell to take a rest in their hotel room since organizing tonight’s dinner had been quite exhausting for them. They wouldn’t participate further in any activities.

Lin Guangdong drove Su Cun back to Nan University. He didn't drive fast, allowing Su Cun to enjoy the night scenery fully. Upon entering the streets near South University, they passed through the bar district of Guang Road where students from nearby universities usually spent their nights.

Su Cun’s sharp eyesight spotted several familiar figures: Tang Xiaofu's roommates in Nan University—Tong Tong and Cheng Congcong. They seemed to be being bothered by some foreigners inside an open-air European bar's fence.

Today, Tong Tong was convinced by Cheng Congcong to come here. Cheng had said that the bars on Guang Road were mostly frequented by students from the university area. Groups of handsome men would appear there, and it was rumored to be a gathering place for romantic encounters among bachelors, especially popular with lonely young people seeking escapades.

No matter how many college students there are—male or female—they all feel lonely at times and have some romantic ideals. In the dormitory, Tang Xiaofu had set an example, which everyone secretly envied even if they spoke of her in disdain or admiration.

Tong Tong was greatly intrigued by Cheng Congcong's words. She changed into a pleated skirt, black stockings, and wore her favorite bag before running off with the equally glamorous Cheng Congcong to experience a taste of the bourgeoisie life on Guang Road.

During their time out, they indeed encountered some men who tried to chat them up, but either looked too sleazy or spoke in poor taste. This made Tong Tong and Cheng Congcong feel less interested and were about to leave when several drunk foreigners approached the table with a thousand yuan note on it, saying "Have a cup of tea with your master" while reaching out for Tong Tong's wrist.

No one knew where these Russian exchange students learned such fluent Beijing dialect; they must have been well-versed in Chinese customs.

"Keep your stinky money!" Reacting quickly, Tong Tong snatched the money from the table and threw it back at them.

A flurry of banknotes below made Cheng Congcong realize something was amiss. She said, "Sorry. My friend and I need to rush back to school; we’re waiting for us there. We can hang out together another time." As she spoke, she pulled Tong Tong and tried to leave.

However, the Russian youths didn’t get angry. Instead, they smiled and said, "No hurry, Major. Can you give me a call Is this not enough money How much do you want"

At the same time, they used their bodies to block Cheng Congcong and Tong Tong’s exit, clearly showing that they weren’t letting them leave. The Russian youths were tall and strong; even the shop owner didn’t dare approach them to mediate, as it wasn’t quite necessary to call the police yet.

Although Cheng Congcong tried to deal with these youths while smiling, her hand holding Tong Tong’s was clenched tightly. Tong Tong pursed her lips and said nothing; she trembled slightly under the pressure from the Russian youths’ towering bodies and unpleasant body odor.

In winter, they were sweating profusely, their chests heaving rapidly. Even though Cheng Congcong had a smile on her face, in her heart, she cursed these youths countless times, thinking that something might go wrong today.

The customers around the open-air beer bar could only be angry but dared not speak out. They recognized this group of Russian youths as regulars at the street bars who often mixed with some students from nearby universities and rich kids driving fancy cars. The youths would also often be seen sitting next to good-looking girls from university towns, making some young people sigh at how these tender females had to endure these tall, hairy Russians’ violent advances.

With a rumble, the engine of a car started; it drove onto the sidewalk and stopped abruptly in front of the entrance of the open-air beer bar!

The sound was caused by the tires of a Bentley crashing against the curb as it sped up the sidewalk. The car’s sudden start-up and abrupt stop showed its powerful performance, moving from motion to stillness in just an instant.

The fog lights at the front end of the car lit up brightly through the beer bar gate, instantly enveloping Cong Tong, Cheng Congcong, and those Russian youths. The blinding light made it hard for them to see clearly; they could only make out a sleek sedan with its aggressive grille design and two glaring headlights that seemed like predatory eyes staring at them.

This sudden appearance exuded an indomitable spirit, causing the beer bar to fall silent momentarily as people on the second floor looked down frequently due to the commotion below.

Su Can opened the door and walked out. Facing Cong Tong and Cheng Congcong, who almost gasped upon recognizing him, he said, "What’s going on You took the money but didn’t do anything. Get in the car."

The Russian youths in front of Su Can were truly stunned; his sedan had arrived with such intense headlights that it was a clear provocation. They froze in their tracks at this unexpected turn of events, unsure of how to react due to the intimidating luxury car.

Cheng Congcong wasn’t stupid. She pulled Tong Tong along and gave an evil grin to those youths before pointing at Su Can, saying, "Sorry, he offered a higher price." Then she hurriedly got into the car with Tong Tong.

The Russian youths didn’t try to stop them; instead, they nervously sized up Su Can and his car.

Su Can grinned. Who said foreigners couldn’t read the situation These people were a testament to that fact; after mingling in China for some time, they knew what they needed to fear.

Su Can turned around and went back to the sedan. Lin Guangdong started the engine, and the Bentley smoothly reversed with a hum before accelerating rapidly at an extremely high speed, quickly disappearing.gentlemanly senior prince charming at the university, found herself disillusioned. Dealing with these easily attracted seniors forced upon her by their initial interest in her had become increasingly...