Seeing the father and son walk in together, Li Yi immediately waved his hand, signaling Lan Xinyi to leave first.
Li Yi then stood up from his chair and said with a smile, “Chairman Li, Assistant Zhou, what brings you here?”
Before Li Fuzhao could speak, Li Yunbao frowned and said, “I’m your employee, after all. Why didn’t you ask me?”
“Yunbao, how dare you speak to Mr. Li like that?” Li Fuzhao hurriedly interjected.
However, Li Yi simply gestured briefly to Li Fuzhao, then turned to Li Yunbao and said, “You know you’re my employee, right?”
“You said the company’s opening would last three days, yet you’ve been absent for two days and late for one. When you finally showed up, you didn’t even apologize to me, your boss—instead, you expected me to ask you first. Is there such a brazen employee as you?”
Li Yunbao was taken aback at first, then lowered his head and said, “I’m sorry, boss!”
Li Futao was deeply surprised to see his son actually apologize to Li Yi—and with such sincerity.
Considering how his son’s attitude toward him had changed dramatically today—and how he’d shared so many things he’d never said before—Li Futiao suddenly felt as though his son had grown up overnight.
Suddenly, he felt that this kidnapping might not have been all bad after all!
Of course, that didn’t diminish his hatred for those kidnappers!
Li Yi hadn’t expected Li Yunbao to change so drastically—he’d actually backed down so easily.
He walked over, patted him on the shoulder, and said, “Not bad, you’ve made progress. Looks like you’ve really learned your lesson this time. It wasn’t for nothing that your old man dxmbang shelled out a billion in ransom to save you!”
“Boss, thanks a lot this time. If it weren’t for you, I’m afraid I would’ve…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi laughed and said, “You’d have been fine even without me. You might have had to suffer a bit, though. And as for that 1 billion yuan ransom—it’s a write-off!”
Seeing that Li Yunbao was about to say something else, Li Yi added, “Alright, it’s all in the past. Don’t dwell on it.”
“Alright!”
“Oh, by the way, there’s been quite a backlog of work at the company these past few days that needs your attention as the legal affairs director. Go see Zhao Xinlan in Finance—she needs you to come with her!” Li Yi said.
“Alright, I’ll go right away!”
With that, Li Yunbao turned and left Li Yi’s office.
Seeing that his son had come with so many questions, only to be dismissed by Li Yi with a few brief words, Li Futao couldn’t help but marvel: It really was like brine curdling tofu—everything has its natural counter!
“Chairman Li…”
“Brother Li Yi, please don’t call me Chairman Li anymore. Just like Old Huang, you can call me Old Li—it sounds more friendly that way!” Li Futiao said.
“Hahaha, okay, then I’ll take the liberty of calling you Old Li!”
Then Li Yi asked again, “Old Li, have you recovered the ransom and everything else?”
“It’s been recovered. All the kidnappers, along with their families, have been arrested—not a single one got away!” Li Futiao said.
“That’s good. Well, then this matter is settled. Just be careful from now on!” Li Yi said.
“Mm-hmm. I mainly came over today to discuss a few things with Brother Li Yi. First, I want to thank Brother Li Yi and Old Huang for stepping in to help—otherwise, Yunbao would have been in real danger. So, I’ve prepared a small token of appreciation for both of you. Please accept them!”
As he spoke, Li Fu gestured to Zhou Xinghua behind him, who placed an elegant gift box on Li Yi’s desk.
“Old Li, why go to all this trouble?” Li Yi said.
“Brother Li Yi, although this gift is for you, it’s not for your use—it’s for your wife. So you’d better accept it!”
Hearing this, Li Yi hesitated briefly, then nodded and said, “All right, I’ll take it. Thanks, Old Li!”
“As for the second matter—how to deal with those kidnappers—I’d like to hear your opinion, Brother Li Yi!” Li Futao said again.
The reason Li Futiao sought Li Yi’s opinion was mainly because he had heard from Huang Lixing that, although Li Yi possessed extraordinary abilities, he had a kind heart and was unwilling to engage in violence or take human lives.
Last year, precisely because he feared Li Yi might take revenge on A-Long and those delinquent girls’ families, he had hesitated repeatedly over whether to rescue them.
That was precisely why Li Fuzhao thought to ask Li Yi; otherwise, given his own temperament, he would have long since tossed that bunch into the open sea to feed the fish.
Li Yi paused to think for a moment, then finally said, “Old Li, I’m not getting involved in this. You decide what to do!”
He knew how these wealthy families on Hong Kong Island operated—they might not repay a favor, but if they held a grudge, they would absolutely wipe out the enemy root and branch.
If he were to play the role of a do-gooder, it would inevitably rub people the wrong way. Better to stay silent than risk that!
“Got it!”
Li Futao then turned to his assistant and said, “Xinghua, hand those thugs over to the police. Let the women go!”
“Yes, sir!”
Hearing Li Futao’s decision, Li Yi was utterly shocked.
But he quickly realized what had happened: his hesitation must have been obvious, and Li Fuzhao had deliberately saved face for him.
After all, given the crimes committed by the Zhangs, they were bound to rot in prison for the rest of their lives.
As for their families, what good would it do to release them? With the massive debts they owed to the triad, their fate wouldn’t be much better anyway.
But there was no denying that, compared to their usual style, Li Futiao had made a significant concession.
With that in mind, Li Yi spoke again: “By the way, Old Li, there’s something I’d like to ask for your help with!”
“What is it, Brother Li Yi? Just tell me—whatever the Li family can do to help, we’ll definitely do it!” Li Futiao replied.
“It’s really nothing much. It’s just that my business here is wrapped up, and I plan to head back to the mainland in a day or two…”
Before he could finish, Li Futiao exclaimed in surprise, “Brother Li Yi, you’re leaving? But what about the company…”
“Hehe, I’ve already taken care of the investment arrangements. You can rest assured, Old Li!” Li Yi said with a smile.
“That’s tens of billions of dollars—and you’ve already arranged it all?”
Li Fuzhao was genuinely baffled by Li Yi’s words. After all, Starry Sky Company had only been established three days ago, yet they had already finalized the investment arrangements for tens of billions of dollars—the speed was simply astonishing.
Suddenly, he recalled the report he’d received the previous afternoon and blurted out, “Brother Li Yi, surely your investment strategy isn’t just exchanging Hong Kong dollars for US dollars and depositing them in the bank to earn interest?”
“Something like that. Of course, I’m not after that measly interest!”
Since the company’s money was already in the bank, Li Yi wasn’t worried about his investment plan being revealed. Besides, this was the perfect opportunity to show off a bit in front of Li Futiao.
Putting on a show has its benefits—every time you pull it off, others’ trust in you, or even their admiration, goes up a notch.
Otherwise, why would so many people love to put on a show, even at the risk of getting struck by lightning!
Li Futao was a veteran of the financial world himself. With just a quick mental analysis, he grasped the crux of the matter and immediately whispered, “Could it be a significant fluctuation in the exchange rate?”
“Old Li, you’ve got the gist of it!”
“Hahaha, got it, got it!”
Li Futiao then asked, “So, Brother Li Yi, what kind of help do you need from me?”
“After I leave, Starry Sky will rely on Old Huang to hold the fort. But his influence in Hong Kong is limited. If anything comes up that he can’t handle, I’d appreciate it if you could lend a hand, Old Li!” Li Yi said.
“I thought it was something major, but it’s just this? Don’t worry. As long as the Li family is here, even the British Hong Kong government would think twice before causing trouble for Old Huang and Star Company!” Li Futiao said with a smile.
“That puts my mind at ease…”
……….