Chapter 1011: Investing in the Expressway!

Guangzhou. Provincial Government Compound!

In the study of the small two-story house, Li Yi, Jiang Shiying, and Jiang Longyin sat around a small round table, sipping tea and chatting.

Before returning today, Li Yi had specifically sent a telegram to Zhou Rui, first to have him go to the Shekou Port in Pengcheng to collect the money.

Second, Li Yi had asked Zhou Rui to pass along a message to his father-in-law and to tell his second older brother, Jiang Longyin, to come to Yangcheng for a visit—which is why they were meeting today.

Jiang Shiying took a gentle sip of the hot tea in her cup, then looked at Li Yi and asked, “Xiao Yi, the situation in Hong Kong has been very tense lately—it’s even affected Guangzhou. Are things still going smoothly for you over there?”

“It’s been okay. Things were indeed a bit turbulent a while back, but thankfully, we’ve defeated the enemy!” Li Yi replied with a smile.

“By the way, Old Chen called me out of the blue last night and had nothing but praise for you, saying you’d pulled off another major feat. What exactly happened?” Jiang Shiying asked again.

“Nothing much—I just managed to bring in another chunk of foreign exchange for the State Administration of Foreign Exchange!” Li Yi replied.

“How much did you bring in this time?”

Li Yi chuckled. “Over a billion dollars!”

“Wow, wow, wow… over a billion again? No wonder Old Chen praised you so highly!” Jiang Shiying said happily.

Li Yi just smiled and said, “Old Chen is too kind. It was just a small favor—nothing to make such a big deal out of!”

He wasn’t being modest. To him, earning foreign exchange for the country was truly just a side benefit—a bonus he picked up along the way.

After all, herding one sheep is the same as herding a whole flock.

“Come on, you don’t need to be so modest in your own home!”

Jiang Shiying continued, “By the way, are you planning to stay home for the long term this time, or are you just back for a few days?”

“I’m staying for the long haul. At the very least, I won’t be heading out again before the New Year!”

Li Yi had returned not only because his third older sister was about to give birth, but more importantly, because he missed his wife, his child, and his parents.

He decided that after his third sister gave birth, he would take his wife, Yunrui, and Yunjin back to their hometown for a while, and attend the little one’s wedding while they were there.

By the time all that was settled, the Lunar New Year would likely be just around the corner.

So, he definitely wouldn’t have time to come back to Hong Kong before the New Year.

Hearing this, Jiang Shiying immediately asked, “Things have just settled down over there. Won’t there be problems if you’re not at the company to hold the fort?”

“It’ll be fine. We’ve still got Old Huang and Old Li, plus Lan Xinming, Pang Feiyan, Yang Qian, and others—they’re all experienced professionals. It shouldn’t be a problem!” Li Yi replied.

“That’s good to hear!”

At that moment, Jiang Longyin, who had been standing nearby, picked up the thread of the conversation and said, “Brother-in-law, did you call me over here for a reason?”

“Yeah!”

Li Yi continued, “Second Brother, do you remember that matter I mentioned to you in Pengcheng back in September?”

“What thing… the highway construction project?” Jiang Longyin asked.

“Right, that should be finalized very soon!” Li Yi said, making a startling announcement.

Before leaving Hong Kong Island, Li Yi had already discussed the plan with Lan Xinming, Liao Yingxiang, and others: first, they would establish all the company’s departments, and then head to the mainland to make investments.

The first project Li Yi had selected was the expressway connecting Yangcheng to Pengcheng. In addition, he planned to build several five-star hotels in Pengcheng.

Jiang Longyin’s eyes lit up instantly, and he hurriedly asked, “Really? Which company is investing in this project?”

“Starlight Investment!”

“Starlight… I’ve never heard of that company. You know that this highway from Pengcheng to Yangcheng will cost at least two or three billion yuan. Do they have the financial strength for that?” Jiang Longyin asked.

“Starlight is a new company I funded and established. Its main business is investing in infrastructure, hotels, real estate, and more. As for financial strength, you needn’t worry—the company’s registered capital alone exceeds 50 billion Hong Kong dollars, and current committed capital has surpassed 120 billion Hong Kong dollars!” Li Yi said.

Whoa!

Hearing this, both Jiang Shiying and Jiang Longyin couldn’t help but gasp in astonishment.

50 billion… 120 billion…

To them, these figures were truly astronomical.

Even though the country had been working to raise national wage levels over the past year or two, wages for ordinary workers in many provinces had only risen to a little over fifty yuan a month.

As for the salaries of high-ranking officials like Jiang Shiying and Jiang Longyin, they had reached nearly 200 yuan a month—but compared to Li Yi’s figures in the hundreds of millions, they were simply incomparable.

After the initial shock wore off, Jiang Longyin asked curiously, “Brother-in-law, didn’t you say before that you didn’t want to get involved in this mess? How come you’ve changed your mind now?”

Li Yi shook his head and said, “It’s not that I’ve changed my mind; it’s that I have no choice but to get involved.”

“What’s going on?” Jiang Longyin asked immediately.

Li Yi sighed, then proceeded to explain in detail the investment terms proposed by Li Futiao and the others to Jiang Longyin.

After listening to Li Yi’s account, Jiang Shiying said with admiration, “That Chairman Li is truly a shrewd man. The company is all yours, so if you don’t want to lose money, you have to put your heart into this. That way, their investment is guaranteed. Impressive!”

Jiang Longyin looked at Li Yi and said gratefully, “Brother-in-law, I’ve put you in a difficult position!”

Li Yi smiled and said, “I wouldn’t call it a burden. I didn’t want to get involved in this before mainly to avoid any appearance of impropriety—so people wouldn’t accuse me of engaging in a conflict of interest with you, my second brother.”

“Since they need me to step in now, it doesn’t matter. After all, national interests always come before personal ones. I just hope people won’t say I’m using you, my second brother, to line my own pockets.”

Before Jiang Longyin could speak, Jiang Shiying spoke up loudly: “Rest assured. The general public may not know your situation, but how could those leaders at the top not be aware? If anyone dares to spread baseless rumors, there’s no need for me or your second brother to step in and explain—there will be those who will stand up for you!”

“That’s right. If you were really the kind of person who used your connections to undermine the state, why would you keep bringing money back to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange? You’ve brought back at least tens of billions over the past two years, haven’t you?” Jiang Longyin chimed in.

“Hmm, hearing that from you guys puts my mind at ease!”

Li Yi continued, “Second Brother, the new company has just been established and is currently recruiting staff. As soon as they’re ready, Deputy General Manager Liao Yingxiang will bring his team over to negotiate with the Pengcheng City government…”

Before he could finish, Jiang Longyin cut in: “I understand. I’ll handle the negotiations personally. As long as their terms aren’t too unreasonable, I’ll agree to them.”

However, Li Yi shook his head and said, “Second Brother, you don’t need to go out of your way to accommodate Star Glory. I’m telling you this because I’m afraid that if you do, it’ll be too easy for people to find fault with you. We don’t need to ruin our reputation over a little money!”

Jiang Shiying added, “Longyin, don’t you see? Yi started this company to help boost the domestic economy, not to make money. Just listen to him!”

“I understand, but no matter what, I can’t let your company lose out. After all, if you lose money in Pengcheng, who would dare to invest here in the future?” Jiang Longyin said.

“Haha, Second Brother, no need to worry. While infrastructure projects require large investments and have long cycles, the return on investment is quite good—there’s no way we’ll lose money!” Li Yi said with a smile.

Infrastructure projects are all capital-intensive ventures. While they may not generate profits as quickly as financial investments, the likelihood of losing money is very low.

Besides, they were investing in the nation’s busiest highway, backed by Pengcheng—a city poised for takeoff. It would be nearly impossible to lose money!

“That’s good to hear!”

Jiang Longyin then turned his gaze to Jiang Longyin beside him and asked, “Third Uncle, I’ve heard rumors lately that your position might be adjusted. Is that true?”

Hearing this, Li Yi also became curious and immediately looked at his father-in-law…

………