Chapter 144: Chapter 127: Boiling and Bustling

The online uproar lasted half a month.

Although there were quite a few people telling Zhao Liying to get out of the entertainment industry, Hua Qiangu had become well-known to everyone.

Suddenly, a large group of people emerged from nowhere to bash her.

All sorts of entertainment scandals were rampant.

The subsequent editing of Hua Qiangu hadn’t been completed yet, and it would be finished by mid-September.

The date for the Hua Qiangu business auction was also set for the last day of September.

Early September.

Chen Pingsheng dropped off his son, Chen An’an, to the second semester of first grade.

The Little Fart Kid was reluctant to ride in his Black King Kong, wanting to ride in mom’s LaFerrari for a stylish and charming first day back at school.

Chen Pingsheng bribed her with a big forehead flick, and Chen An’an grumpily sat in the passenger seat without a word.

“I heard from your aunt that you’ve been practicing Praying Mantis Fist for a month and you dropped a pound and a half?”

“Nonsense, it was actually one pound and eight ounces.”

Chen An’an was quite proud.

Chen Pingsheng couldn’t see where she had slimmed down; she still looked chubby and naive.

“Even if you lost two pounds, that’s not much of a noticeable effect, isn’t it?”

“What do you mean not noticeable? I used to eat three bowls of rice, now I can eat three and a half.”

Fine, an increase in food intake with a weight loss is good too.

Upon arrival at the school gate, the school was holding a parent-child event on the first day as usual.

Last year, Chen An’an had made a fool of herself here, but this year she insisted on making a comeback in the talent show.

She performed a set of Fatty Mantis Fist brilliantly.

Chen Pingsheng didn’t laugh, but everyone else did.

Chen An’an came down and asked, “Dad, what are they all laughing at?”

“Of course, they’re laughing because you did so well.”

“Nonsense.” Chen An’an didn’t believe it herself.

Chen Pingsheng stood in front of her, straightening her crumpled school uniform: “Alright, what others laugh at is their business, you don’t have to care about it, just do what you enjoy.”

Chen An’an looked disheartened and doubtfully asked, “Dad, did I really do well with my punches?”

“Yes, my daughter’s punches couldn’t possibly be bad.”

Chen Pingsheng patted her head, and Chen An’an giggled, “Dad, I’ll work hard.”

“Remember what you just said.”

“Of course.” Chen An’an pumped herself up, “This year I definitely want to rank in the bottom three by my own effort.”

Chen Pingsheng: “…”

She hadn’t needed to say that, looking all earnest in her vow to try hard.

He had thought she meant the top three in the class.

Turns out it was still the bottom?

“Chen An’an, study hard and keep up with your martial arts practice. For every pound you lose, dad will reward you with two hundred thousand.”

“Thanks, dad.”

Chen An’an reluctantly waved goodbye to him.

After her dad left, a group of kids surrounded her, calling out, “An’an!”

Chen An’an decisively held up her backpack, which was almost as big as hers, and unzipped it.

It was full of snacks.

“Wow, An’an, didn’t you say you were going to lose weight?”

“Lose weight? Being able to eat is a blessing; don’t even think about sharing my snacks.”

Chen An’an handed out a small packet to each of them.

There was everything—spicy strips, chocolate, little cookies, and her daily essential, a box of cherries and big cherries.

Chen Pingsheng himself was also heading to the CEO class; it was a three-day course this month from the 2nd to the 4th.

He Bijing and others arrived in Capital City on the 1st, including the northern real estate businessman Liu Hai, as well as Huang Bin, who was also involved in the shared economy.

Unexpectedly, Tong Zelan posted a gathering notice in the class group.

If anyone could gather the whole class spontaneously, she was definitely the first in line, followed by Wang Yanfeng.

The gathering was set in her private club in Capital City, a very secretive place hardly accessible to the average person.

Besides a top-level private dining restaurant, it also featured an anciently styled large tea room, as well as a gym and a swimming pool among other facilities.

“Zelan.”

Huang Pujun was the first to rush up and greet her; Tong Zelan responded very indifferently, merely as a matter of basic manners.

“You have such a good place in Capital City, not bad at all.”

Chen Pingsheng looked around, and it was indeed quite nice.

“You like it? I’ll sell it to you then.”

Although Tong Zelan wouldn’t invest in the industries Chen Pingsheng was involved in, they were more or less on the same level.

Conversations between them were notably more casual.

“Taking advantage of people’s likes, that’s not my style.”

Chen Pingsheng found a spot to sit down, the view outside the floor-to-ceiling windows featured a little bridge over flowing water, and there were even cheongsam-clad waitresses quaintly making tea.

It was really a place of refined pleasure.

“Fellow classmates, it’s been a month since we last met, does anyone have any good news to share?”

“Actually, I do,”

Wang Yanfeng said with ill-intent, “A few days ago, I saw online that some people valued their company at three billion. I went home and fiddled with my abacus, but no matter how I calculated it, I couldn’t figure out how they came up with three billion. I thought it was my mistake, but then I asked around and realized no one could figure it out either. They said it’s like a frog wanting to eat a swan, just sitting in a well and looking at the sky. Isn’t that hilarious?”

In the class, apart from himself, only Huang Pujun laughed a bit, because everyone knew he was talking about Chen Pingsheng.

The class knew these two were famously at odds, so if they wanted to bicker, just let them be.

“Haha, let me also share a joke with you,”

Chen Pingsheng said indifferently, “Last year, I invested in a drama, which just finished shooting last month. I was planning to spend millions on promotion, but some people, acting like Monk Tang crossing the river, trying to pull everyone in, actually saved me a fortune in promotion costs.”

“Such kind-hearted people really deserve a ‘fool’s award.’

Then Tong Zelan laughed; she wasn’t a news follower, but she knew these two were all over the internet hitting the trend lists.

“If you two keep fighting like this, I’m afraid the spectators will get bored.”

Wang Yanfeng just snorted without speaking, and Tong Zelan looked at Chen Pingsheng and said,

“You really are bold, disbursing twenty million to your artists even without selling the rights yet, and even giving out bonuses to the whole company.”

“I must say, that’s a clever move, but do you really have so much confidence in ‘Hua Qiangu’?”

Chen Pingsheng: “No competitors, it’ll hit the mark whenever it airs.”

Tong Zelan nodded, confidence was good, but too much of it could be harmful. She didn’t dwell too much on this topic.

She switched subjects, “The shared economy is booming this year, have you guys seen it?”

Old Yang, who owned a hotel, said, “Shared bicycles, shared umbrellas, and I even saw something more bizarre, ‘shared girlfriends’ have emerged. If that could really work, I’d be the first to invest in it.”

“Give it a rest, with such a golden opportunity, it wouldn’t even be your turn to invest.”

Lust is the primary consumer force for men.

Whoever can get such projects approved will definitely make a killing.

What is a ‘shared girlfriend’? Isn’t it just that I can share your girlfriend for some money?

Jokes aside, the shared economy really has exploded.

Who knows who brought this concept to the forefront.

“Last month, I did invest in a shared bicycle project, still in the early angel round.”

Tong Zelan said, “If you guys are interested in investing too, it’s valued at three hundred million in the Series A round, diluting 35% of the equity to raise about one hundred million.”

Old Yang said, “One hundred million is too little, that amount is hardly enough if we all chip in.”

In the class of over twenty people, aside from Huang Pujun, who found it difficult to even gather a few million as she sought a wealthy patron, the rest could easily come up with the money.

Tong Zelan’s influence was indeed strong; she had put five million in the angel round, acquiring 49% of the shares.

Now, just by mentioning it in the reunion, the valuation had skyrocketed thirty times.

This is the power of networking.

Seeing that Chen Pingsheng was the only one not speaking, Tong Zelan asked, “Old Chen, aren’t you investing a bit?”

Chen Pingsheng shook his head, “I’d better not, last month, my wife’s cousin also sold a few apartments to fund this project and ended up jumping off a building.”

The death of Han Fei really wasn’t worth it.

The cause of the failure still hadn’t been figured out.

How could his relative, who sold a few apartments, compete with someone backed by a top-tier investor like Tong Zelan?

Of course, the one who managed to get Tong Zelan’s investment also had an extraordinary background.

Peking University student union president, who was brought to meet Tong Zelan by someone equally prestigious in the financial circle.

That’s how they secured Tong Zelan’s five million angel investment.

With her status, she obviously didn’t just invest money but also would provide significant support for the project’s future development.

Tong Zelan looked at him curiously, not because she sympathized with the death of his wife’s cousin.

In their circle, it was common for someone to experience heaven one night and hell the next.

She was just puzzled that Chen Pingsheng, whose fortune might not be described as top-tier billionaire level, could still easily gather a few billion.

Did his wife’s cousin not secure his support before venturing into shared bicycles?

If that’s true, then it’s quite audacious indeed.