Volume Three: The Tenfold Way Chapter 78: The Starsea Finds a New Master

For three whole days, the stock market surged and roiled. Gong Hai’s eyes were bloodshot; he had searched for Qin Yang for three days, but to no avail. His trillion-yuan conglomerate was now nothing more than a pile of worthless paper.

Bankrupt.

He gazed at the bankruptcy application, tears streaming down his face. This was the fruit of half a lifetime’s toil.

Especially his disappointing second son, whom he had shipped off abroad. Whether he lived or died, it was left to fate.

It was only later that Qin Yang learned of these events. Wu Yaoyao told him, and then Ma Bo came to see him, making it clear that he had given up on that woman. He wanted to start anew. Later, Qin Yang called Ye Meier and learned that Gong Hai was quite capable. If he seized the moment to take over Xinghai Investment Group and had Gong Hai manage operations, this stock market upheaval could yield a handsome profit, rather than mere internal strife.

He wasn’t well-versed in these matters, so he simply let her handle everything.

Downstairs, Gong Hai had already prepared his exit strategy: sell this property and a few other villas to pay off debts. What to do with the remaining money?

It was still several billion. He even contemplated ending it all by jumping from a building, but things had yet to be resolved.

From this ordeal, he came to a conclusion: this world is vast, and one should never offend those who ought not be offended; otherwise, you won’t even know how you died.

The car engine was already running, ready to depart.

Suddenly, the phone rang. He looked at the missed call. He meant to decline, but then thought it might be a creditor, so he pressed accept.

“Hello, this is Gong Hai from Xinghai Investment.”

“I’m Qin Yang. Come to Alley 293, Yokohama Street. I’m waiting for you here.”

Gong Hai heard the brief message and the call was already ended.

Qin Yang?

The name was all too familiar, etched into his memory. His body trembled, tears flowed again. His grand conglomerate had, thanks to this man, become a pariah overnight.

“Hurry, to Alley 293, Yokohama Street.”

He was filled with excitement. He’d been searching for this man for three days, to no avail; now, as he was about to file for bankruptcy, the other party appeared again. Though he had no idea what Qin Yang wanted, he knew he had to go.

When he arrived, the door was opened by a classical beauty. He paused, then quickly regained composure. He had seen all manner of women over the years.

The courtyard inside was warm, a hidden world compared to outside.

His eyes brimmed with doubt and amazement, wondering how this place was fashioned.

In the courtyard, he saw Ye Meier chatting and laughing with the young man before her—clearly Qin Yang.

“Mr. Qin, Miss Ye.”

He spoke neither humbly nor arrogantly. Even if he was penniless, what did it matter? He merely wanted to see, at last, the man who had never shown his face, yet orchestrated the defeat of Xinghai Investment from behind the scenes.

Now he had seen him, and his final wish was granted.

Qin Yang was indeed extraordinary, not only in bearing but in the unique charisma he exuded, drawing people in. Most striking were his eyes, seemingly bottomless.

A truly terrifying young man.

“Please, Mr. Gong, take a seat.”

Ye Meier poured a cup of tea and set it before Gong Hai.

It was a small detail that ordinary people might miss, but Gong Hai was shrewd. From the simple act of pouring tea, he discerned the unusual relationship between Qin Yang and Ye Meier. In typical households, it’s the host who pours tea, not a guest handing tea to another guest.

“Mr. Gong, Ma Bo spoke to me. To be frank, I hadn’t intended to let you off. But since you’ve already exiled Gong Yun, I suppose we can write off past grievances. Here’s a contract—review it, and if you have no objections, sign it.”

Gong Hai had no clue what the contract entailed. Upon seeing it, his body trembled, his face alight with excitement.

His despondency vanished in an instant. He exclaimed, “Mr. Qin, President Ye, is this real?”

This contract was nothing short of a lifeline. Xinghai Investment was now all but defunct; its stock price had hit rock bottom.

“Of course it’s real,” Ye Meier replied. She was a figure in the business world and commanded trust.

“Good, good! Thank you, Mr. Qin, thank you, President Ye.”

He decisively signed his name, bid them farewell, and walked out.

The driver, surprised to see his boss return so soon, asked, “Boss, are we going to submit the application?”

“No, back to the company. There are important matters to attend to.”

The driver was puzzled—what important matters, when the company was bankrupt? Was the boss joking? But the boss had spoken, and Gong Hai had treated him well. Even though the company was collapsing, his severance pay was a hundred thousand. At heart, he respected him.

Back at the company.

He immediately switched on his other phone, and soon a call came through.

“Gong Hai, what good is this pile of waste paper? I want cash.”

“President Wang, listen, I’m planning to file for bankruptcy now. There’s no money left.”

“What? No money? Are you messing with me? I don’t care, that’s ten million in stocks. How about I sell them to you for eight million?”

“Eight million? President Wang, do you take me for a fool? Eight million for a pile of waste paper?”

The other party was silent for a moment. “Three million—no lower. That’s what I invested, I’m not asking for profit, just my money back.”

“Deal. Bring the stock certificates and I’ll settle up.”

President Wang was stunned. With things at a dead end, could Gong Hai still turn things around?

Impossible. He’d investigated his opponent’s capital—twenty billion. If you could turn the tables against such enormous funds, I’d write my surname backwards.

Qin Yang knew nothing of this, instead studying Ye Meier intently, making her face flush.

“What’s wrong?”

“With such harsh terms, why would Gong Hai agree?”

“Businessmen are like gamblers. Especially successful ones—never willing to let go of any opportunity.”

“Xinghai Investment Group now holds a trillion in stocks. If handled well, it could net at least five hundred billion.”

It was all client money. Xinghai Investment’s own funds amounted to little—just over five billion. And in the final clause, I specified that if, by year’s end, he earned the company a huge sum, he’d be rewarded with an eight percent rebate.

It’s a way of returning his money to him.

That would make him even more devoted to the company.

If he could earn five hundred billion in these last few days, his rebate would be forty billion. Such a profitable deal isn’t common.

He’ll likely be busy these few days before the New Year.

Once the holiday is over, you’ll be the youngest billionaire around—and a billionaire among billionaires.

Hearing Ye Meier tease him, truth be told, once he might have cared about money, but now, it was just a string of numbers. As long as it was enough, he didn’t care for more.

And now, his goal was to focus on cultivation.