Chapter 788: You Have Three Days!
Capital City. Airport!
As soon as Li Yi and his group stepped out of the terminal, they saw Zhou Rui walking toward them with two young men—clearly, they had been waiting for quite some time.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they got into the car.
Li Yi then asked, with a hint of surprise, “What’s so urgent that you, a high-ranking bureau chief, had to come to the airport to pick me up yourself? I’m truly flattered.”
“Good news!”
Zhou Rui continued, “This morning, a delegation of Chinese business leaders from Hong Kong arrived in Beijing. They’re here to negotiate investment opportunities on the mainland with us!”
“Since the delegation consists entirely of prominent wealthy Chinese businessmen from there—including Mr. Li Futiao, ‘Ship King’ Bao, and He Dongying—the higher-ups are taking this very seriously. In addition to designating high-ranking representatives from the Beijing municipal government to host them, they specifically requested that you also come out to greet them.”
Li Yi immediately smiled and said, “When did this happen? How come I didn’t get any heads-up beforehand?”
“Hmm, didn’t the Chinese Chamber of Commerce tell you?”
“No, but that’s not necessarily surprising. After all, I’ve been out of town lately, so they couldn’t reach me!” Li Yi replied.
“I was wondering why you hadn’t reacted at all to such an important matter—so you really didn’t know these people were coming!” Zhou Rui said.
“Yeah, I really didn’t know. Otherwise, I would’ve gone to the airport to pick up Old Li and Old He myself!”
“Alright, they’ve already been picked up and taken to the State Guest House. I’ll take you there right now!” Zhou Rui said.
“Alright!”
Li Yi then smiled and said, “You know, I’m practically one of them over there. Don’t forget I’m the vice president of the Chinese Business Association!”
“Having you host them means we naturally consider you one of our own!”
Zhou Rui continued, “The main reason we decided to have you host these guests is because of your standing within the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.”
“If any disagreements arise during the negotiations, you can help mediate. The instructions from above are clear: no matter what, we must ensure the success of these talks!”
Li Yi nodded and said, “Understood. I’ll do my very best!”
He was well aware of the importance of these wealthy Chinese businessmen. As the saying goes, “A pole was erected at the city gate, and a horse’s bones were bought for a thousand pieces of gold.” In the eyes of the higher-ups, people like Li Futao and He Dongying were that very pole—those horse bones worth a thousand pieces of gold.
As long as we can keep this group here, we’ll have set an example, and in the future, there will be a steady stream of people coming here to invest.
It was the same in my previous life: we practically recruited a group of Hong Kong businessmen with the determination to “feed the eagles with our own flesh,” and only then did the many onlookers let down their guard and dare to invest here.
Once more and more people started making money, even without as many preferential terms, a massive influx of investors would still pour in.
“Hmm, and by the way, those 240 million US dollars in foreign exchange have already been successfully transferred to Hong Kong Island. Whenever you need it, just go straight to Mr. Huang!” Zhou Rui said.
“Got it. After I finish hosting the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, I’ll be heading to Hong Kong Island. Just letting you know in advance!” Li Yi replied.
“Alright…”
The two chatted as they walked, and by around three o’clock, the group finally arrived at the State Guest House!
By then, the first round of talks between the Beijing municipal government and the delegation was nearly over, so Li Yi didn’t go in to disturb them.
Li Yi first had a room reserved for him there and asked Zhou Rui to invite Li Futiao over.
He planned to meet with Li Futiao first to get a sense of the situation before meeting with the others.
……..
“Knock, knock, knock!”
Hearing the knock on the door, Li Yi immediately got up and opened it.
Sure enough, standing at the door alongside Zhou Rui was the familiar figure of Li Futiao.
“Hahaha, Old Li, welcome to the capital!”
Li Futiao said cheerfully, “I heard you were out of town and thought I wouldn’t see you for a few days, but I didn’t expect to see you so soon!”
“The higher-ups specifically called me back from out of town to host you guys. As soon as I got the call, I rushed right back!” Li Yi explained.
“Did I interrupt anything?”
“Not at all… Come on in!”
Once inside, Zhou Rui exchanged a few brief words with Li Futao before leading Zhang Ziqiang and Zhou Wen out of the room, leaving Li Yi and Li Futao alone.
After Zhou Rui and the others had left, Li Yi poured Li Futiao a glass of water and asked, “When did you set off? How come I didn’t hear a thing about it?”
“Hehe, I arrived in Guangzhou yesterday and took a private jet from here to Beijing this morning.”
Li Futao continued, “Banbanhaobang had originally planned to let you know in advance, but Old He and the others all said they wanted to surprise you, so we didn’t say anything. We didn’t expect you wouldn’t be in Beijing when we arrived.”
“That explains it. I was wondering why you all showed up out of the blue!”
Li Yi then changed the subject and asked, “By the way, Old Li, have you guys decided to invest here for sure?”
“It’s a done deal. When we were here last time, they promised us some very favorable terms. Plus, since Starry Sky Company has already started operations here, we didn’t have any reservations, so we came,” Li Futiao replied.
“There must be more to it than that, right?”
Li Yi knew Li Futiao very well. Although he had indeed agreed to invest here before, he was a very cautious man.
Unless there was something special, he wouldn’t have come over this quickly—and certainly not in person.
Li Futiao smiled and said, “Nothing gets past you. The reason we made the decision to invest so quickly is not only to fulfill our promise to you, but more importantly, we also want to see if we can make some breakthroughs here.”
“Brother Li Yi, you may not know this, but things are in a complete mess over on Hong Kong Island right now. The situation is very unfavorable for our Chinese Chamber of Commerce.”
“Oh, are those Westerners stirring up trouble again, or has the British Hong Kong government gotten involved as well?” Li Yi asked in a low voice.
Li Fu Tiao nodded, then sighed and said, “It’s those foreigners. The British Hong Kong government was scared out of its wits after what you guys did to them last time—they’ve been keeping a very low profile lately!”
“What’s going on with those foreigners? You look like you’ve taken a hit,” Li Yi asked immediately.
“Ever since you returned here, those bastards had been quiet for just over a month. Then, in February, Dowson suddenly announced a restructuring of the British-owned conglomerate.”
Li Futao continued, “They first took decisive action, swiftly eliminating a few fence-sitters within the British-owned conglomerate. Then they allocated substantial funds to provide low-interest loans to companies within the group facing operational difficulties, thereby winning over support and quickly stabilizing a situation that was already teetering on the brink.”
“Once the internal situation was stabilized, those foreigners started pulling strings against us. They first began courting some of our wavering members and actively reached out to families and companies that were on the fence, trying to pull them over to their side…”
“So, how many members of our Chamber of Commerce were actually lured over?” Li Yi asked calmly.
Li Futao paused briefly before replying, “None of our chamber’s official members have wavered—at least, no one has publicly declared allegiance to either side.”
“However, several families that were planning to join this year have already explicitly stated they’re joining the British Capital Group, and some companies that were on the fence have also…”
Seeing the look of regret mixed with worry on Li Futiao’s face, Li Yi shook his head and said, “Old Li, there’s nothing to regret. It’s their loss if they don’t join us.”
Li Futiao sighed and said, “But it’s also a loss for us. Ever since those people joined the other side, the British-funded Group has gained tremendous momentum. Under Dowson’s manipulation, their internal cooperation has become more frequent, and their business dealings with us are clearly dwindling. It’s obvious they’re preparing to completely isolate us in the business world!”
“At the same time, under Dolsen’s leadership, they’re launching a frenzied assault on the Chinese financial sector. Several small banks have already been affected, and things aren’t looking good for Longheng Bank, which we control. So, given the situation, we’ve decided to come over to the mainland to see if we can find a new breakthrough!”
“Old Li, coming here to invest was the right choice, but you shouldn’t have waited until those bastards pushed you to the breaking point before making the move!”
Li Yi then said with a cold glare, “I’m giving you three days. Complete all negotiations within three days, then follow me back to Hong Kong Island!”
Li Fu’s eyes lit up instantly, and he exclaimed excitedly, “Alright, in three days we’ll storm back to Hong Kong!”
“Hmm, I’ll be waiting for your good news!”
“Alright…”
…………