"But didn't he end up helping you take control of the Ren Family's real estate projects?" Ou Xiaolong asked.

"Yi Anguo did help me, but he also used me to deal with the Ren Family," Zhuo Weidong said with a bitter smile. "He leveraged his investment to acquire over 4,500 properties at a low price, making a massive profit."

"He invested 1.6 billion and got a return of over 70 billion in just one year. And me?"

"By the time I could start selling the properties, the prices had already plummeted, and sales were slow. I still have a large number of them left on my hands."

"If I hadn't been so greedy and tried to swallow the Ren Family's entire portfolio back then, my life would be much easier now."

"And yet, Yi Anguo still claims I used him. I'm caught in the middle, blamed by everyone. Who can I even turn to for justice?"

"He's clearly blaming me for stepping in on the Ren Family's behalf and asking for his help in the first place!"

"So, when it all boils down to it, wasn't I just screwed over by Ren Xingsheng's old man?"

"If I hadn't gotten involved back then, Yi Anguo might still be willing to help me now. He'd still give me some face."

"I truly regret stepping in for the Ren Family and begging Yi Anguo to help me and give me face!"

Ou Xiaolong nodded in sympathy. "I'm in the same boat. I regret telling Ren Xingsheng that it was Yi Anguo who bankrolled me."

"Now I'm in a tough spot whenever I run into trouble. I'm too embarrassed to ask him for help."

"So what's your plan? Can you manage? You should at least talk to Yi Anguo. Maybe he's cooled down by now and will be willing to give you some face and help you out."

Zhuo Weidong nodded. "I've already gone to see him. He's willing to help, but he has his eyes on my two major Blue Coast projects in the city center: Blue Coast Plaza and Blue Coast Century Center."

"Ah, those two projects. They certainly have huge potential for future development."

Ou Xiaolong knew all about those two projects. Back then, they were two pieces of prime real estate that everyone was drooling over.

"Still, if he wants them, why not just let him have them? At worst, you'll just make a little less profit. He wouldn't actually force you to sell at a loss, would he?"

"It wouldn't be a loss, but making any significant profit would be very difficult," Zhuo Weidong said.

"But I was planning to hold onto those two projects to develop and operate them myself. The annual rental income alone would generate substantial profits.

"Then there's the property management income, which is also significant. The management fees from the more than 560,000 square meters of saleable area would come to over 10 million a month. Add in parking fees, and the monthly revenue would be as high as 15 million! That's not even counting other income streams. With everything included, it could be 20 million a month. That's over two hundred million a year.

"And that doesn't even touch on the rental income after it's all leased out. That's an even bigger figure. Based on an average of 100 yuan per square meter, the monthly rent could easily exceed 50 million.

"All told, the estimated annual revenue could top one billion yuan. This thing is a goose that lays golden eggs!

"But now Yi Anguo wants it, and I can't even ask for a high price. What am I supposed to do?"

After hearing Zhuo Weidong's explanation, Ou Xiaolong understood his reluctance. If it were me, I'd be just as unwilling to let it go!

"Do you have any other choice? If you're not willing to part with it, he definitely won't invest and help you. But if you can survive without his investment, that's an option too, isn't it?" Ou Xiaolong asked.

"If I hadn't been greedy and taken on the Ren Family's mess, I wouldn't be in this situation at all," Zhuo Weidong explained.

"But as you know, taking over the Ren Family's company was a case of a snake swallowing an elephant. Their operations were much larger than mine. I hadn't even had time to digest it all before this year's market downturn hit. Without someone helping me out, how could I possibly survive?"

"What about you? Are you really not going to ask Yi Anguo for help?" Zhuo Weidong countered.

"I haven't asked him... but, well..." Ou Xiaolong trailed off with a sigh, looking like he found the topic difficult to discuss.

"What is it? There's nothing you can't tell me. I've already told you everything," Zhuo Weidong said with a frown.

"I was too embarrassed to ask Yi Anguo for help, especially after what happened last time. It's true I caused him trouble," Ou Xiaolong explained.

"Then, my younger daughter found out about the situation and took it upon herself to go find Yi Anguo for help. But guess what happened?"

"What? Did he refuse to see your daughter, or did he refuse to help?" Zhuo Weidong asked curiously.

"I have no idea what my daughter and Yi Anguo talked about. But he hired her to be the vice president of one of his investment companies and also his personal assistant. Then, she came to me to discuss investment and cooperation, representing Yi Anguo and his company," Ou Xiaolong explained.

"What on earth is Yi Anguo thinking? I really can't figure it out. What game is he playing?"

"Are you serious? Yi Anguo hired your daughter to be his personal assistant *and* the vice president of his investment company?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.