Yi Anguo wasn't trying to show off or seek public adulation. He simply had a sincere hope to contribute to society and reduce the number of left-behind children. Although he had never been a left-behind child himself, his daughter had been. He was acutely aware of how difficult their lives could be.

It wasn't just hard for the children; it was also difficult for their parents and even harder for their grandparents. With many parents away from home, left-behind children often live with their grandparents. Some of these grandparents are elderly and sick, barely able to care for themselves, let alone their grandchildren. Even if they could provide care, they often couldn't educate them properly and didn't even dare to discipline them. Parents can discipline their own children, but grandparents generally won't. After all, a grandchild isn't their own child, and they worry their son and daughter-in-law might object.

Furthermore, child-rearing in rural areas tended to be quite hands-off. In the past, when families had many children, it wasn't considered abnormal if one or two died in an accident. But nowadays, many couples only have one or two children, so any accident becomes a monumental tragedy. Some grandparents have to work the fields while looking after their grandchildren. How can they possibly watch them 24 hours a day? Kids love to play, especially near water. What if one accidentally falls into a pond and drowns?

The result is that the son and daughter-in-law blame the grandparents. Some couples even divorce over such incidents. With the grandchild gone and the daughter-in-law leaving, the son resents his parents. A once-harmonious family descends into chaos and falls apart.

Yi Anguo's daughter had been fostered at his eldest sister's home and was, in fact, mostly raised by her. However, his sister never dared to discipline the girl—no spanking, no scolding. That sort of environment could easily lead a child astray.

Take my daughter, Yi Xinyi, for example. She always acted as if everyone owed her something, that any kindness shown to her was her due. She had no respect for me, her father. In her eyes, no matter how well I treated her, it could never make up for the years I let her stay in the countryside, feeling neglected and deserted. Sometimes, she would even say rebellious things, like, "You neglected me in the past, and now you're being so nice. Is it because you want me to take care of you in your old age?" Such words were painful to hear. It felt wrong to be nice to her, and just as wrong to be harsh; she wouldn't listen to anything I said anyway.

She would normally ignore me, never getting in touch on her own. When she did contact me, it was always for money. She wouldn't even call, just send a terse message on WeChat. When she was in a good mood, it would be: "Dad, can you send me some money?"

When she was in a bad mood, it was just: "I'm out of money."

If her mood was good, she'd reply after receiving the money: "Thanks, Dad!"

If her mood was bad, there would be complete silence after she got the money.

No matter how upset or miserable I felt, what could I do? Could I really get into a fight with my own daughter and refuse her when she asked for money?

Blue Coast Real Estate Company and Chen Shi Real Estate Company were emerging forces, making frequent high-profile appearances. At land auctions across the country, they acquired a good number of commercial plots at the starting bid. At the time, selling land at the starting price was considered a success, as many auctions were failing altogether. All the other real estate developers were taking a wait-and-see approach.

After all, the starting prices for land were not low. If they developed the plots based on the current housing market, they wouldn't just fail to make a profit; they would likely incur losses. Anyone willing to buy land at this time was betting that current prices were a bargain compared to a future surge in housing prices. If that surge didn't happen, even land bought at the starting bid would yield little to no profit after development. Not losing money would be considered a good outcome.

Given the market price of four to five thousand yuan per square meter in the areas outside Shenzhen, buying land even at the starting price guaranteed a loss upon development. There was simply no chance of making money. Under these circumstances, how many developers dared to acquire land?

But whether it was Blue Coast Real Estate Development Company or Chen Shi Real Estate Development Company, they both had Yi Anguo's backing. How could he possibly worry that housing prices wouldn't soar?

If people think this price for land is expensive, they should just wait until next year. They won't even be able to dream of buying land at such a low price then. If they think housing is too expensive now, they definitely won't be able to afford it later.

Today, Wang Chuanfu received a distinguished guest in his office: Chen Xuejiao, the Vice President of Hong Kong Hualong Investment Company. She was a very young and beautiful woman.

"President Wang, we are very sincere about supporting domestic private technology companies. I believe you've seen the performance of Huaxing smartphones since their IPO," Chen Xuejiao said to Wang Chuanfu. "Currently, Huaxing's production capacity is severely insufficient, which hinders our efforts to capture overseas markets. We urgently need to find partners for contract manufacturing."

"I know," Wang Chuanfu said with a smile. "I'm also very happy to see the rise of our national enterprises, and I'm willing to support Huaxing in expanding its production capacity to compete for a share of the high-end overseas mobile phone market."

"So, wouldn't it be a good thing for us to invest in BYD to help you expand?" Chen Xuejiao asked.

"It's certainly a good thing when someone wants to invest in BYD," Wang Chuanfu replied. "However, we can't lose control of the company in the process."

"Then how much of an investment are you willing to accept from us?" Chen Xuejiao pressed.

"We need to hold a meeting to discuss that before making a decision. The company isn't mine alone; I can't make this decision by myself," Wang Chuanfu said with a smile. "However, your request for a forty percent stake is too much. It's unrealistic. I personally feel we can offer at most twenty percent, and no more."

"Only twenty percent? That's less than four billion yuan! Isn't that a bit too little?" Chen Xuejiao said, looking somewhat disappointed. "If you think forty percent is too much, then thirty percent could also work."

"As I said, this needs to be discussed in a meeting before a final decision can be made," Wang Chuanfu stated, unwavering.

"Alright, alright. You're the boss, you call the shots," Chen Xuejiao said as she stood up. "Please hurry and hold your meeting. I won't disturb you any longer; I have to go talk investment cooperation with other companies."

"Which other companies are you visiting?" Wang Chuanfu asked.

"Oh, there are quite a few. It wouldn't be convenient for me to disclose that," Chen Xuejiao replied with a smile.

Yi Anguo had sent both of his personal assistants away. Now he was thirsty and had to make his own tea.

There's no other choice. Ding Jing is pregnant again. I had originally planned to take her with me to the United States for an important investment deal I wanted to handle personally. But it's obviously not suitable for her to travel now, so I have to find someone else. Maybe I should take my young assistant, Zhou Mengdie? Didn't she say her English is very good?

Yi Anguo couldn't speak English, so he had to find someone who could. That person needed to be trustworthy and able to stay by his side at all times, which had made Ding Jing the perfect candidate. But with her pregnant and unable to go, the young assistant Zhou Mengdie was undoubtedly the next best choice.

Speak of the devil. Zhou Mengdie walked into the office with a cheerful stride.

"Boss! I'm back!" she announced, beaming.

"Now that you're back, get to work. First, make me a cup of tea," Yi Anguo immediately ordered.

"Oh! Okay! Right away!" Zhou Mengdie said quickly. She took the teacup from his hand and hurried off to make tea for her boss.

After bringing the freshly brewed tea over, Zhou Mengdie pulled up a swivel chair and sat down next to Yi Anguo.

"So, is there anything else?" he asked.

"Yes! Didn't you ask me to go to Penguin Company and talk to President Ma about an investment?" Zhou Mengdie said.

"Oh, that's right," Yi Anguo nodded, sipping his tea. "How did it go? Did you meet with him?"

"Of course, I met with President Ma," Zhou Mengdie confirmed. "He said Penguin Company is developing very well with promising prospects, so he doubts the South African company would be willing to sell its shares."

"Is that the entire result of your trip? Nothing else?" Yi Anguo asked.

"President Ma said he would help ask the South African company about their willingness to sell, but he said not to get my hopes up," she continued.

"Anything else?"

"Also, Penguin Company agreed to our investment of 2.5 billion US dollars for a twenty percent stake," Zhou Mengdie quickly added.

"Really?" Yi Anguo asked, surprised. "Did you sign a draft agreement?"

"No, I came back to discuss it with you first," she explained. "You haven't agreed yet, so how could I dare sign anything?"

"A draft agreement isn't a formal contract, what's there to be afraid of? Even if it were a formal contract, for a deal like 2.5 billion US dollars for a twenty percent stake, you could have signed it directly! There's nothing to even think about."

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