Hong Kong Island, Wan Chai Pier!
In the office, Huang Lixing immediately began explaining the Li family’s predicament to Li Yi.
Things had been tough for Huang Lixing and the Green Dragon Society lately; they’d been bullied into a corner by the British Hong Kong government and British-owned conglomerates, left feeling humiliated and powerless.
But compared to the Lai family, their hardships were nothing.
At the very least, the Green Dragon Society could still hold on, while for the Lai family, even maintaining their current state had become a luxury—they were on the verge of falling apart at any moment.
And the culprit behind the Lai family’s plight was none other than the British-owned conglomerates.
Lately, they’ve launched a frenzied campaign of retaliation against the Lai family, aiming to make an example of them to intimidate others.
Not long ago, when the Li family was utterly defeated by Li Yi’s counterattack, the Yingzi Group not only refused to lend a helping hand but instead kicked them while they were down, preparing to swallow up all of the Li family’s assets on Hong Kong Island in one fell swoop.
Li Jiuying was a man of resolve. Naturally, he was outraged by the British Capital Group’s shameless actions, and in order to survive, he immediately mounted a counterattack.
After Li Yi hinted at a willingness to reach a conditional settlement, Li Jiuying responded decisively. Not only did he eliminate Ma Biao—the foot soldier who had defected to the British Capital Group—but he also sold off the majority of the Li family’s assets at a bargain price to Starry Sky Company and Li Futiao.
To the British-backed group, this move was undoubtedly a blatant act of betrayal.
Everywhere in the world—whether among nations, organizations, or other interest groups—the treatment of traitors is much the same: eliminate them without hesitation.
Of course, the British Capital Group’s retaliation against the Li family wasn’t merely because they had betrayed them; more importantly, they had been thoroughly disgusted by Li Jiuying.
After betraying the British Capital Group and reaching a preliminary reconciliation with the Chinese Capital Group, Li Jiuying had thoroughly seen through the British Capital Group’s true colors.
Filled with indignation, he repeatedly exposed the British-funded group’s shameless conduct to the media, recounting time and again how the Li family had worked tirelessly for them only to be cruelly abandoned, and denouncing the group for cutting the bridge after crossing it and kicking them while they were down.
After media coverage and public outcry, the incident caused a massive sensation on the island, severely damaging the British-backed group’s reputation.
This not only made many people realize the British-funded group’s shamelessness, but also made some fence-sitters who had been considering siding with them hesitate to do so, and even caused wavering members within the group to start having second thoughts.
This was something the British-backed group’s foreign masters could not tolerate under any circumstances. It was no longer a matter of whether they could profit from the situation; it was a direct attack on their very foundations—how could they possibly accept that?
Consequently, the British-owned conglomerate issued a ban against Lai Jiuying and the Lai family.
First, they pressured the Lai family to repay their debts, while simultaneously launching a frenzied attack on the family’s last remaining asset on Hong Kong Island—their gold shops.
To bring down the Lai family, the British-owned conglomerate brought in the Lam family, Hong Kong Island’s second-largest gold retailer, and spent a fortune helping them take over the Lai family’s gold shops.
With the British-backed conglomerate’s backing, the Lam family not only opened more than 20 new stores in one go right around the Lai family’s gold shops but also cut off the Lai family’s gold supply channels, forcing them to buy at inflated prices.
Faced with the relentless pressure from the Lam family and the British-backed conglomerate behind them, Lai Jiuying was completely helpless.
To keep the shop running, he had no choice but to buy gold at inflated prices and sell it with only a small markup.
After covering labor, utilities, and other operating costs, the Li family’s gold shop was often operating at a loss—and the more they sold, the greater the loss.
Compounded by the recent surge in gold prices, the Lai family’s procurement costs had skyrocketed to the point where they could no longer sustain the business.
More importantly, the jewelry shop was the Li family’s last remaining business on Hong Kong Island. If it collapsed, the Li family would be finished for good, with no chance of recovery.
Upon realizing this, Li Yi’s mind immediately began to race.
The reason the British-owned conglomerate could so easily manipulate the Li family was simply that they had used their vast resources and substantial financial strength to control the gold supply.
They then used this monopoly to drive down retail gold prices, employing this strategy to bleed the Lai family dry.
After all, the Li family had been severely weakened and simply couldn’t afford to engage in a protracted battle of attrition; in the end, they would have no choice but to shut down for good.
But now the situation was different. The Li family alone was no match for the British-owned conglomerate, but with him in the picture, things would be a different story.
Not to mention, he has over ten tons of gold just waiting to be sold!
With that in mind, Li Yi immediately asked Huang Lixing to arrange a meeting with Li Jiuying.
Upon hearing Li Yi’s proposal, Old Huang immediately furrowed his brow.
“Brother Li Yi, are you planning to help that good-for-nothing Li guy?”
“That’s exactly what I have in mind!” Li Yi replied.
“Why? Sure, we’ve shown magnanimity by letting that good-for-nothing off the hook, but there’s no need to actually help him!”
Huang Lixing continued, “Besides, who can guarantee that once Li gets through this crisis, he won’t turn on us? We have to be on our guard!”
Old Huang had never gotten over the fact that Li Jiuying had instigated that traitor Ma Biao to scheme against him.
Although he’d managed to snag seven of the Li family’s real estate projects at a bargain price—which had certainly given him some satisfaction—he simply couldn’t bring himself to help Li Jiuying.
Mainly, he just couldn’t get past that mental hurdle—at least not right now!
Li Yi didn’t answer his question, but smiled and said, “Old Huang, between Li Jiuying and those foreign devils at the British-funded Group, which one do you hate more?”
“Those foreigners, of course!” Old Huang replied without hesitation.
“Well, let me tell you this: helping Li Jiuying will not only give those foreigners a taste of their own medicine, but it’ll also let us fleece them for a hefty sum. Are you in?” Li Yi said.
Hearing this, Huang Lixing’s eyes lit up instantly, and he asked right away, “How much can we make off them?”
“Five or six hundred million Hong Kong dollars!”
“Let’s do it! When do you want to meet Li Jiuying? I’ll set it up right away!” Huang Lixing said eagerly.
To him, Li Jiuying was certainly despicable, but he was nothing more than a vicious dog kept on a leash by the British-funded conglomerate. The truly heinous criminals were those foreign bastards.
If there was even the slightest chance, Huang Lixing wanted to teach those bastards a lesson.
Unfortunately, he lacked the strength, and his opponents were far too powerful; he was genuinely powerless against those bastards.
But he trusted Li Yi’s abilities. Since Li Yi said he could take down those bastards, it was bound to work.
Li Yi glanced at his watch and saw that it was already 2:00 a.m.
“Old Huang, call Old Li right now and tell him to bring Li Jiuying over!”
“Right now?”
“Yes. Revenge must be swift!” Li Yi said coldly.
“Got it!”
“Remember, when you call, just say you need to talk to them about something. Don’t mention that I’m back!” Li Yi said.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Li Futao and Li Jiuying; it was that he didn’t trust the people around them.
Once those foreigners at the British-owned conglomerate found out he was back, they would inevitably step up their defenses.
Once people are on guard, it becomes much harder to outmaneuver them.
Huang Lixing nodded, then picked up the phone on his desk and dialed the Li family estate.
After a few rings, the call was answered, and the voice of Uncle Fu, the Li family’s longtime butler, came through the receiver: “Who’s this? Who are you looking for?”
“Old Fu, it’s Huang Lixing from the Qinglong Society. Is Old Li at the estate?”
“He is, but the master has already gone to bed…”
“I have an urgent matter to discuss with him. Old Fu, could you please wake him up for me?”
Uncle Fu knew that Old Huang had a close relationship with his master, and he understood that calling so late at night meant it must be something important.
After a moment’s hesitation, he made up his mind and said, “Then please hang up for now. I’ll go up and wake him right away. If I can wake him, I’ll have him call you back!”
“Alright…”
About ten minutes later, the phone on Old Huang’s desk rang.
Huang Lixing didn’t hesitate; he picked up the phone right away…
………..