My Virtual Girlfriend-Chapter 324: Qin Ming of Dihua

Thinking about this, Qin Ming couldn’t help but compare his own accomplishments with those of Chen Yan, who seemed to be on another level entirely.

While he himself had managed to save up ten million, half of which he earned thanks to Chen Yan, Chen Yan’s net worth was genuinely in the billions.

Then he thought about the "Sunrise Project" that Chenlu Film Company had announced this morning, investing ten billion into the film industry. Qin Ming was somewhat in awe of Chen Yan’s boldness and generosity.

He had no doubt that Chen Yan could come up with such a sum.

Ten billion over five years was merely two billion a year.

With the several high-quality companies in Chen Yan’s hands, he could simply get a mortgage loan from the bank and loan a large sum of money, not to mention the funds Chen Yan already had. Ten billion? It was manageable.

Qin Ming even thought further ahead.

If this ten billion could yield a handsome return, thanks to Chen Yan’s vision, then Chen Yan’s development would truly be unstoppable.

Perhaps...

Monopolize the film industry and then influence the entire cultural and entertainment market?

This thought made Qin Ming involuntarily gasp for air.

He felt like he suddenly understood Chen Yan’s entire industrial layout.

With this in mind, he couldn’t help but steal a glance at Chen Yan.

He was a bit shocked by Chen Yan’s vision and ambition...

Chen Yan, however, had no clue what Qin Ming was fantasizing about.

But seeing Qin Ming’s increasingly strange and shocked gazes, he cleared his throat and steered the conversation back on track.

He said, "What’s with that dazed look?"

"After talking about the new company, let’s talk about the charity organization. Is it settled?"

The Charity Organization was Chen Yan’s next focus and Yu Qiao Qiao’s dream, so Chen Yan had always taken it very seriously.

After they reached an agreement last time, Chen Yan had assigned Qin Ming to set up the Charity Organization.

Hearing Chen Yan inquire about it, Qin Ming snapped back to reality, coughed, and said, "Brother Chen, there’s been some progress with the Charity Organization issue, but it isn’t as smooth as the company’s."

"Although I have some connections and contacted the bigwig in charge, that person hopes the Charity Organization isn’t a tax evasion or avoidance scheme but genuinely doing good deeds."

"They expect the foundation to be subject to some regulation and to have funds invested for operations from the get-go."

As he spoke, perhaps worried that Chen Yan would misunderstand, Qin Ming quickly added, "Of course, when they mentioned scrutiny, they mean routine inspections every few years, not official staff permanently stationed within the organization."

Hearing Qin Ming, Chen Yan chuckled and said, "And here I thought you encountered some big issue."

"Is that all?"

"Just reply to them. Tell them I have no plans to evade taxes and have paid taxes honorably through my companies."

"It’s my duty to contribute to the country’s development, and that’s what I ought to do."

"As for the Charity Organization, I truly intend to help those in need."

"Regarding supervision, not only can we allow them to inspect routinely, we could even disclose publicly every expenditure and the remaining funds."

"Ensure that every transaction, every penny, is wholly disclosed and transparent."

Hearing Chen Yan, Qin Ming’s eyes widened, and his mouth hung open.

Growing up among the wealthy, he was all too familiar with the use of charity for tax avoidance.

Too many wealthy individuals in the country had evaded enormous income taxes under the guise of charity.

The government also thought about rectifying the matter, but without any gray area, the rich would simply find other ways to avoid taxes.

At least charity, however tainted, would still benefit some good causes, better than other methods of tax evasion. So the government turned a blind eye as long as it wasn’t excessive.

It was a well-understood unspoken rule.

Hence, when Chen Yan asked him to set up a charitable foundation, Qin Ming had assumed that Chen Yan wanted to avoid taxes due to earning too much recently!

Who would have thought... Chen Yan was serious about charity??

For a moment, Qin Ming didn’t know how to describe his feelings.

Patriotic sentiments? A moral exemplar...?

Such gloriously upright terms seemed to fit Chen Yan.

Suddenly, he felt his own filthy thoughts were utterly repulsive before Chen Yan...

And at this point, Chen Yan...

Seeing Qin Ming becoming more and more erratic was completely befuddled...

’What’s gotten into Qin Ming today?’

’Why does he keep gazing at me with such ’watery’ eyes?’

’Could it be he’s bored with women and wants to try men?’

Sheesh...

Chen Yan had no desire to stir up trouble.

He coughed again and said, "Alright. That settles it. You go handle it. If anything else comes up, report back to me."

"In a few days, once the negotiation with Fenghua Group is settled, we can officially start operations."

After regaining his composure, Qin Ming looked up to Chen Yan in admiration and said, "Got it, Brother Chen!"

After sending Qin Ming off, Chen Yan shuddered, feeling the world outside was too dangerous for a man.

One had to guard against not only the opposite sex but the same sex as well...

...

The day passed by quickly.

Nothing much happened, except for the news about the "Sunrise Project" spreading farther and wider.

However, someone seemed to be maliciously manipulating public opinion, for as it spread, the reviews of the "Sunrise Project" became polarized.

Online and within industry circles, groups of people with differing opinions were arguing and spouting at each other.

Proponents believed it was a significant boost for the domestic film industry, which could raise salaries within the sector and provide opportunities for talented people.

Opponents, however, speculated that Chenlu Film Company was attempting to monopolize the film industry, suggesting unfair competition. They pointed to various cases from internet giants to prove that monopolies inevitably lead to the exploitation and squeezing of industry professionals.

It could spell disaster for the film sector.

Yet these debates didn’t affect the "Sunrise Project." If anything, the contention helped spread the word even further.

Strangely enough, Chen Yan watched someone slander the "Sunrise Project" just an hour before, only to receive that person’s resume submitted to his company an hour later.

In the resume and introduction, that person kept praising the "Sunrise Project," heaping adulation upon it, and expressed a desire to join.

Seeing his resume, Chen Yan propped his head on his hand, wondering if the person was a "schizophrenic," a "mole," a "false critic," or perhaps a "shrewd player" who genuinely wanted to join but also sought to eliminate the competition.

Chen Yan couldn’t figure out the person’s true intentions, so he gave him the OUT option...

...

After a busy day, Chen Yan returned home.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to find everything tidily arranged, a breath of fresh air.

There was also a note on the table left by Lu Man.

[Hmmph. Consider this your overnight fee from last night.]

Chen Yan smiled at the note.

Lu Man had stayed in his arms that morning, and he couldn’t resist; ultimately, he gave her a spare key, expecting she just wanted an excuse to visit anytime. He didn’t expect she would actually have someone clean the house.

He took the note down to his study, placed it in his notebook, and texted Lu Man back,

[One cleaning counts as an overnight fee?]

[Miss Lu Man, did you forget my price is 800?]

The 800 reference was from the first time he met Lu Man and had been used ever since...

After replying to the text, Chen Yan took out his notebook and planned the following steps.

Now that the venture capital firm was registered, he could start operations after cashing in some fixed assets in a couple of days.

His third Virtual Girlfriend money-making scheme could also be put on the agenda.

As for entrusting Zhao Xuan’s legacy, he had given it closure...

He just needed to figure out a way to coax Zhao Ying into working—after all, it was her business.

And the Charity Foundation, after his explanation today, should also be operable. Boss Qiao Qiao’s venture was on the right track.

In two weeks, the first batch of names for "Big Star Detective" and the "Sunrise Project" would be released. He was confident his counterattack against the Xu brothers would heat up by then.

Lastly, there was the goal of becoming the wealthiest man on Qin Island...

Chen Yan felt he was getting closer to that target...

After recording this information, Chen Yan washed up, chatted with Lu Man and Yu Qiao Qiao a bit more on WeChat, then went to bed.

This time, he remembered to draw the curtains to sleep in the next day...

Then...

The following day, Chen Yan was awakened by a series of knocks on the door.

"Chen Yan! Open up! I know you’re home!"

"It’s time to work out! Chen Yan!"

Awakened from his slumber, Chen Yan opened his groggy eyes, utterly bemused.

Exercise...?

Why workout again?