Li Yi, who was busy with the opening of his new company, had no idea that his high-profile behavior in Hong Kong had actually put his father-in-law in a bind.
At that moment, he was busy signing contracts with these Chinese business tycoons in Hong Kong!
Just moments ago, at the opening ceremony, Li Yi had officially announced the company’s first investment project—the Dahai Private Equity Fund!
After the ceremony, Li Futao formally proposed a partnership with Star City International Investment Company!
He announced with great fanfare that the Li family would contribute 500 million Hong Kong dollars to be managed by Star City International’s private equity fund, and formally signed Star City International Investment Company’s first VIP contract.
Immediately afterward, other Chinese business tycoons—including Li Mingji, Guo Desheng, and He Guangdong—also stepped forward, each committing substantial funds to be managed by Star City International, thereby publicly demonstrating their support for Li Yi’s company.
In less than two hours, Star International’s first project had attracted a massive 3.8 billion Hong Kong dollars in funding.
Combined with the over 2.5 billion Hong Kong dollars from Li Yi and Huang Lixing’s personal funds, Star International became the investment firm with the largest cash reserves on Hong Kong Island right from its launch.
The speed of this rise was truly staggering!
However, more than these figures, what the bigwigs in Hong Kong’s upper echelons were truly concerned about was how Li Yi would manage this massive sum of money moving forward.
After all, according to the contract they signed with Li Yi, not only were losses guaranteed to be covered, but more importantly, the funds were required to deliver a minimum annual return of 10%.
In other words, the 3.8 billion Hong Kong dollars raised by Dahai Private Equity Fund must generate 380 million Hong Kong dollars in returns for them after one year—regardless of whether the fund makes a profit or not.
For an investment firm, this is no small pressure!
Moreover, Li Yi had previously mentioned that he would be making his second investment very soon.
Suddenly, all eyes were on him; everyone wanted to see if this investment genius from the mainland would deliver another stunning performance with his second investment, just like the last time.
However, unexpectedly, the first news to emerge wasn’t about Li Yi making a move, but rather that the eldest son of the Li family had been kidnapped.
……..
Li Mansion. Study!
“Speak up. What exactly happened?”
When he learned of his son’s kidnapping, Li Futao had just returned from Yuanhua Tower. He had been in a good mood, but the moment he walked in, he was met with a shocking revelation—his son was missing.
Zhou Xinghua hurriedly replied, “When our men went to the young master’s residence, they found it empty. After questioning the security guards at the complex, we learned that shortly after returning home last night, the young master drove away alone and has not returned all night!”
“Our men immediately launched a citywide search for the young master, but we only found his car in a parking lot near Kowloon Walled City—we still haven’t found him…”
Before he could finish, Li Futiao frowned and asked, “Why would Yunbao go to Kowloon Walled City?”
It must be noted that Kowloon Walled City is currently the most chaotic place on the entire island of Hong Kong. Due to its unique administrative status, an increasing number of people have been flocking to the city, creating a mixed crowd of all sorts. Gradually, Kowloon Walled City has become a breeding ground for crime.
With no authority to govern and no legal constraints, opium dens, casinos, and other such establishments operated openly on the streets.
Many criminals even fled here to evade the police, and the entire Kowloon Walled City was filled with an atmosphere that was chaotic, dangerous, yet strangely alluring. With so many outlaws gathered here, the police dared not come to make arrests.
And that is precisely why the wealthy residents of Hong Kong Island generally never set foot there!
“I’m not entirely sure about that…”
Just as he spoke, the frantic voice of Old Feng, the butler, came from outside the study: “Sir, someone called the house saying they have the young master…”
Before he could finish, Li Futao and Zhou Xinghua rushed out the door!
“When did the call come in? What did the caller say?”
“It was just a moment ago. They said the young master is in their custody and demanded we prepare 1 billion Hong Kong dollars immediately, then wait for their call…”
“Smash!”
Li Fuzhao slammed the exquisite porcelain teacup in his hand violently onto the floor, shattering it into a thousand pieces.
“Find out who has the audacity to lay a hand on my son!”
His assistant, Zhou Xinghua, replied immediately, “We’ve already sent people to investigate, but the leads we have so far are very limited. It’ll likely be difficult to track down the kidnappers’ information in the short term. We should focus on figuring out what their demands are!”
Li Futiao furrowed his brow, then asked, “Xinghua, how much cash can we free up right now?”
“We were originally able to set aside 1.3 billion, but we just signed a contract with Mr. Li’s company. According to the terms, we have to transfer 500 million into their account within three days, so…”
Li Futiao paused briefly, then said, “Yunbao’s safety comes first. Get the money ready. I’ll speak to Li Yi personally about this!”
“Got it!”
“Also, contact the 14K and Sun Yee On. Have them help track down the people involved. We must ensure Yunbao’s safety at all costs!”
“Yes…”
After watching Zhou Xinghua leave, Li Futiao returned to his study, looking exhausted.
The kidnapping of his son had truly caught him off guard. He never would have imagined that, in this small corner of Hong Kong, there were people so reckless as to dare lay a hand on his son.
At the same time, he thought of Li Yi!
The man had warned him time and again, and each time he had spoken with absolute certainty, as if he knew something.
With that thought, Li Futiao immediately picked up the phone, intending to call Li Yi to ask about the situation.
But after picking up the receiver and dialing just three digits, he paused.
After a moment’s hesitation, Li Futiao hung up and immediately dialed a different number!
“Ring… ring… ring…”
The call was answered almost immediately: “Qinglong Society, who is this?”
“Mr. Huang, this is Li Futao!”
Upon hearing him identify himself, the person on the other end paused noticeably, then replied respectfully, “Mr. Li, this is Huang Lixing. Did you need me?”
“Mr. Huang, may I ask you a few questions?”
“Go ahead! I’ll tell you whatever I can!”
“Mr. Li Yi… does he… does he really know how to tell fortunes?”
“Mr. Li, has something happened to Young Master Li?” Huang Lixing asked cautiously.
Li Futao paused briefly, then gave a soft “Mm-hmm,” effectively acknowledging the matter.
Huang Lixing, on the other end of the line, fell silent as well.
After a long while, he finally said, “Mr. Li, to be honest, Brother Li Yi really can tell fortunes. He doesn’t speak lightly, but every time he does, it comes true!”
“Is that true?”
“Mm-hmm!”
Immediately, Huang Lixing began telling Li Futao the story of how Li Yi had saved their entire family last year.
After hearing what Huang Lixing had to say, Li Futiao was utterly shocked.
He didn’t doubt Huang Lixing’s words. On the one hand, Huang Lixing was already someone who didn’t quite measure up in Hong Kong Island; in the circles of the wealthy elite, he was practically invisible, so he likely wouldn’t dare to deceive him.
On the other hand, he had no reason to fabricate such a far-fetched story to deceive him, unless he wanted to ruin his standing in Hong Kong.
But that was clearly impossible!
After all, with Li Yi’s help, Huang Lixing’s net worth had skyrocketed, and his social standing had risen significantly. There was no reason for him to give up such a promising future at this very moment!
“Mr. Huang, do you think if I go to Mr. Li Yi now, he’ll be able to help Yunbao get through this crisis?” Li Fu asked.
“He can!” Huang Lixing replied with absolute certainty.
“Can he really do it?”
“Yeah, Brother Li Yi has actually been preparing for this all along. As long as he steps in, I don’t think there’ll be much of a problem!” Huang Lixing said.
“Alright, I understand. If Yunbao comes back safely this time, you’ll be a friend of the Li family from now on!”
With that, Li Futao hung up the phone immediately!
……….