be no rivers or seas. Although it’s simple logic, few can persist in its application.Su Cen loved this gradual process of transforming effort into results; it gave him an exhilarating sense of progre...Chapter 25 Questioning

The high-rise building next to Huaihai Park houses the Shanghai branch of Pineapple Media. Starting from Rongcheng, where they distributed direct investment magazines in various colleges and universities, a group of inexperienced but passionate recent graduates led by Ling Guangdong (who was somewhat an outsider) managed to build a fashion media company with multiple subsidiaries, several magazines, and over two hundred employees, featuring top-notch industry talents. Its reputation is now gaining recognition both inland and along the coast.

The Pineapple Media's Shanghai branch occupies the entire 21st floor of Kaidan Building. The entrance lobby features an open design with a large LG (LG Corporation) sign representing Pineapple Media right at the front desk. Ling Guangdong personally supervised the decoration, using high-quality soundproof mineral board for the ceiling and overall decor in yellow and white tones, creating a vibrant yet professional atmosphere.

Ren Ying, Vice President of Pineapple Media, is responsible for running the headquarters in Rongcheng, while Ling Guangdong himself oversees the Shanghai branch during this crucial period in expanding into the Yangtze River Delta region.

Ling Guangdong currently ranks as a third-tier celebrity in Shanghai and is gradually moving towards second tier status. His intelligence sources are quite accurate due to his activities here.

Today, large patches of fish-scale clouds could be seen in the distance, but Ling Guangdong was not interested in cloud-watching at this moment. After flipping through a magazine page for information, he picked up the phone and called Su Can.

The call took some time to connect. Su Can's voice then came through the receiver: "I'm currently attending class. What is it Have you made any progress"

"Isn't it true that you've always addressed me as Mr. Ling If I don’t have real talent and knowledge, I will likely lose my footing in front of someone like you." As Ling Guangdong reclined comfortably on the leather sofa, his tone was sincere and earnest. He thought to himself: It’s now nine o'clock in the morning, and this kid could be enjoying a comfortable life, but he chooses to endure sleeping on a hard mattress and braving cold weather just to attend classes every day. This is likely what makes him different from others. How many people can truly do that

"Compared to other investment groups in Shanghai, SeFu Investment should be considered veterans. This year alone, it’s been hailed as a star in the city's investment scene due to raising a new fund of $15 million and making significant progress across various sectors. I’ve heard from some acquaintances that Liu Jiesheng enjoys high prestige, even being rated among China’s top fifty venture capitalists last year at the Annual Venture Capital Forum." As Ling Guangdong spoke, his brows furrowed. Liu Zhensheng is not only well-known in financial circles but also a person who never works alone; he must have strong backing from influential figures and interest groups to achieve such success.

"I have another interesting report here, indicating that Liu Zhensheng's Sufu invested in no fewer than twenty growing enterprises back in the year 2000. Most of them were high-tech companies and were quite impressive at the time. However, this year, many of these businesses are struggling or even failing, with only one or two surviving. Of course, there are deeper reasons behind this situation, such as the failure to timely launch a Growth Enterprise Market (GEM), leaving most of these firms unable to list on it and thus lacking sufficient funds. As a result, they couldn't recover from their setbacks. Therefore, no matter who it is, under the previous circumstances, nobody would have dared to make such bold moves. "Regarding your statement that Liu Zhensheng invested in three companies at once...

Liu Zhensheng swallowed up all the 'Guangxun Communications', 'China ScholarNet', and 'Mobile Game Platform' projects, which Su Can had initially agreed upon with Yang Qidong, Sun Zhiyi, and others during the summit. This was clearly not driven by investment needs but sheer competition.

This is akin to snatching several of Su Can's pies right under his nose. Even if Su Can felt relatively calm at first, he couldn't help but feel furious now.

Thinking back to how Tsinghua University had been acting covertly with Liu Zhensheng after the summit ended, Su Can realized that he had miscalculated.

Initially, he thought it was just because there were good relations between the Tsinghua Entrepreneurs Association and Liu Zhensheng's fund managers and investors. Moreover, aside from Su Can himself, no one else knew about the value and potential of Yang Qidong, Sun Zhiyi, and others, who had not been chosen by Liu Zhensheng.

Therefore, Su Can didn't worry about them being poached. Even if Liu Zhensheng regretted his decision, he wouldn’t have time to change his attitude during the brief meeting period. After that, Su Can had already begun negotiations with the four companies for investment, leaving no room for others to interfere.

The only weak point was on the night the summit ended.

"It seems we've been targeted," Su Can said coolly.

Lin Guangdong got up from his seat and felt a surge of combativeness, but remained fearless. Although Liu Zhensheng had some fame in the financial investment community and came from a solid background, compared to them, Su Can also possessed formidable resources.

The Great榕Construction Group, as the carrier, reorganized Chuan South Airlines and began to leverage its momentum to move into JL Sea. Wang Bo, the Standing Committee Member of the West Chuan Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of Rong City, quietly took charge from behind. Most importantly, it was the enormous faction backing Wang Bo who wasn't just Suen Chan's patron but also Lin Guangdong’s.

Lin Guangdong knew that the Wang family's faction had a broad influence. During winter break, he heard about the land reserve war in Rong City. The first vice mayor of Great榕Construction Group, Tao Changping, was reportedly pressured by many powerful calls and remained speechless for a long time in his office before finally collapsing due to problems. No one dared to underestimate the power behind Suen Chan or the rise of Wang Bo.

In light of this situation, Suen Chan immediately recalled a striking figure beside Liu Zhensheng—Ye Huishang.

However, when Suen Chan thought back now, that striking figure could be compared to the devil depicted in paintings with an enviable physique but carrying arrow-tailed symbolism. Back then, she disappeared into the dark, pretending not to see him and got into a sports car, mingling with her circle of luxury vehicles. She should have known what was happening.

Lightning flashed through Suen Chan's mind about how Ye Huishang introduced Liu Zhensheng to him step by step. If this wasn't coincidental, then what did it mean

No need for more circumlocution. Although Suen Chan knew that girls like Ye Huishang had true thoughts different from their outward behavior, she was still Weiwei Wang's crush and known to have many connections, being a young lady of some importance.

At least, they shouldn't be on opposing sides. From another perspective, Suen Chan already regarded her as a friend. He could leverage his rebirth to fight forward by stepping over enemies' corpses, but it wouldn't do for friends to stab him in the back; that would hurt the most.

Frankly speaking, Liu Zhensheng's action was underhanded and hostile toward Suen Chan, yet it didn’t have much impact on him. However, when he thought he could enjoy a full mouthful of cake, someone snatched it away to eat greedily; Suen Chan wasn't three years old but this frustration lingered nonetheless. After hanging up with Lin Guangdong, Suen Chan picked up his phone and directly called Weiwei Wang.

Today in the China Youth Academy, Weiwei Wang was probably not at school, having gone somewhere to play. Anyway, there were many people around him, and the place was quite lively—nothing unusual since Beijing was his turf. His mother worked at the Ministry of Public Security, and his maternal grandfather was a figure that even Wang Bo would shudder mentioning; he was a bigwig in Beijing, and as Wang Weiwei’s influence grew, so did his entourage and their connections.

"Suen Chan, when's the last time you called Do you still have any special accounts for Laceb You know, those from the earliest batch. A friend wants me to get one for them; I should be able to meet this request. Oh, how are you doing lately Is Tang Xiaowu being strict with you Have you managed to 'eat' that arrogant girl Lin Luoran

Su Can was both amused and exasperated by Wang Weiwei's bizarre logic, but now clearly wasn't the time for jokes. "We can handle these matters gradually, Weiwei. I need Ye Huishang’s phone number."

"Damn it, so that's why you called I thought I was being honored with a long-overdue call from my brother," Wang Weiwei said, and immediately some girls nearby giggled. "Wang QiQi, can’t you be less like a crystal vase Who’s calling" Su Can spoke sternly, "This isn't a joke. I need Ye Huishang's phone number because I have something important to ask her."

Wang QiQi, who seemed very familiar with Su Can, immediately sensed the unusual situation from his tone and stopped teasing. He made a gesture for everyone else to quiet down and spoke softly as Wang Weiwei’s voice grew serious too. "Su Can, what happened Is there something wrong with Ye Huishang" "Nothing serious. I just need to talk to her personally. Don’t worry." "Su Can, you definitely have something going on. Others might not know you well, but I do. Alright, I’ll hang up and send the number over immediately."

In a rally car training ground in Shanghai, it was 2002 when China’s automotive sports were just starting out. For Formula 1 (F1) to be held in Shanghai seemed like an uncharted territory back then; the construction of the Shanghai International Circuit would begin soon but wouldn't officially open until 2004 for F1 races.

However, since cars had been invented, racing has always been a part of human nature. On this suburban rally training ground, luxury sports cars from brands such as Ferrari, BMW Series 7, Aston Martin, and Cadillac could be seen zipping around the tracks. A red BMW Z4 sped along the corners then slowed down by the roadside, its door opening to reveal Ye Huishang with her flowing hair.

This rally car training ground was located on the outskirts of Shanghai where it was still quite remote at this hour and close to an airport, only occasionally interrupted by flights overhead and a rather open wind.

Ye Huishang leaned against the side of the BMW coupe, glanced at her incoming call then answered. "Hello Who’s this"

A car was speeding past nearby but slowed down after rounding the track's end before gradually approaching.

The corner of Ye Huishang’s mouth suddenly curled up. "Oh, it’s Su Can, huh." Hehe, I thought you were too high and mighty to allow anyone else to initiate contact with you, didn’t expect that there would be a day when I receive your call… Should I feel honored or just consider myself a failure" Su Can sighed, "Your acting skills are indeed impressive." The previously playful expression on Ye Huishang’s face gradually froze. "What do you mean by thatorm contradictory feelings towards her: on one hand, seeing Tang Wu as an opponent; on the other, yearning to be closer to this brilliant girl. A single-winged butterfly is inevitably incomplete; two...