Chapter 145: Chapter 144: Finding His Core Advantage

Lin Chu said with a smile, his tone light and his eyes teasing.

However, his words carried some weight.

Yang Guangrong quickly said, "Don’t worry about him. I’ve got him under control; he can’t stir up any real trouble. He’s just a scoundrel."

He was furious too. ’That Old Fifth is a real son of a bitch. He just had to pick this critical moment to make things awkward. Couldn’t even wait for things to be settled before coming to stir up trouble.’

’What an idiot!’

’And he thinks he’s so clever!’

Yang Huixian was about to get up and go deal with "Fifth Uncle" herself. ’What a piece of trash. We were having a nice meal, and he just had to come and ruin it.’

"Dad, I’m cutting ties with him!"

"I don’t care! I’m going to find Uncle Nine and have him arrested!"

She stood up and was about to rush out the door, worried that Lin Chu might be having second thoughts.

Lin Chu just smiled. He decided to play the good guy for a change, grabbing her arm and pulling her back into her seat. "Forget it, forget it. It’s fine. Just ignore him," he coaxed.

’This works out pretty well. A solid way to save face.’

After dinner, they sat and drank tea for a while, chatting. Two more waves of relatives arrived one after another. After exchanging some pleasantries, Lin Chu took his leave.

...

They got in the car.

"My Fifth Uncle..."

Yang Huixian wanted to bring it up again.

She had just started when Lin Chu waved his hand. "Don’t talk about it. Policewoman."

Yang Huixian was left speechless.

Seeing Lin Chu’s beaming smile, she shot him a bashful glare, then reluctantly agreed. "Fine, fine!"

’An image already formed in her mind.’

’He really knows how to have fun.’

’Seriously.’

’It felt like he was molding her, step by step, into a shape that was exclusively his.’

"Maybe we shouldn’t buy this land. It suddenly feels like too much trouble. With our money, we can buy land anywhere. Once business gets tangled up with this kind of family drama, it’s just endless annoyance."

A moment later, Yang Huixian calmed down. Pushing aside those messy thoughts, her mind returned to the matter at hand, and she took the initiative to speak.

She was a little worried that after Lin Chu opened the nursing home there, all sorts of troublesome relatives would come looking for handouts. Especially people like "Fifth Uncle"—a scoundrel involved in every vice, from womanizing to gambling. There was no telling what he might do. That sort of thing could really affect their relationship. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Lin Chu nodded thoughtfully. "That’s not a bad idea. Let’s put it on hold for now. I’ll look at some other plots of land."

...

That afternoon, Lin Chu went to the gym. After his workout, he headed to the office to continue his ’seclusion,’ pondering the big questions about his future.

This wasn’t something he could figure out in a short time. It required the right opportunity and a more resolute conviction.

The MBA program he had signed up for was about to start. He could use it to recharge, meet people on a higher level, and maybe draw inspiration from different fields.

"President Lin, are you in the office? I’m back."

Gu Jiayan sent a message. She had spent the day talking to an agency in Xiangjiang about the island and had just finished.

"Come on in."

Lin Chu replied. A moment later, she walked in briskly.

"We’re done talking. They can handle all the procedures for a 3% fee. I haven’t signed the contract yet."

"They’re quite professional. They have quotes for all sorts of services, like constructing buildings, freshwater purification projects, power generation projects, pier construction services, and they also have channels for buying planes and yachts."

"Oh, right. I also got the contact information for that alliance of Chinese Island Lords. I’ve organized it all here."

Gu Jiayan reported in detail.

Lin Chu glanced at it and said casually, "Sign it. You can keep following up on this."

She nodded lightly, giving Lin Chu a deep look. "Then... I’ll be going now."

Hm?

Lin Chu smiled. "What, a little reluctant to leave?"

Gu Jiayan’s face instantly turned red. "N-No... I’ll head out now."

Head down, she turned and hurried out the door.

When she was talking with that group of elites from Xiangjiang this morning, she kept remembering what Lin Chu had said yesterday afternoon—"You’re representing me"—and projected a state of very high energy.

In that state, Gu Jiayan felt like a completely different person.

This feeling, like having a mystical buff cast on her, was truly exhilarating. Even if it was just ’a fox borrowing a tiger’s might,’ it was still incredibly satisfying.

...

Later, when Lin Chu came out to use the restroom, he saw Zhang Peng in the front desk reception area, talking to two people in uniforms, a man and a woman. He walked over to take a look.

Zhang Peng smiled. "President Lin, they’re going door-to-door promoting credit cards. I happen to have one, and I wanted to ask if I could get my credit limit increased."

Lin Chu nodded and was instantly reminded of the fear of being dominated by credit card payment deadlines. Back then, if it hadn’t been for Brother Fei, his credit score would have been ruined several times over!

For a moment, Lin Chu felt the urge to kick them out.

’Accomplices to excessive consumerism!’

However, since Zhang Peng wanted to increase his limit, it wasn’t appropriate to just send them away.

Just then, another thought occurred to Lin Chu, so he asked casually, "Which bank are you from?"

"Hello, President Lin. We’re from China Merchants Bank."

"Do you offer private banking services? What are the requirements?"

Lin Chu asked offhandedly. Buying the island required payment in US Dollars, and he didn’t even have a US Dollar account. He would have to go to the bank eventually, so since he’d run into them, he might as well ask.

Private banking?

The two credit card agents were dumbfounded. ’Uh, boss, we just push credit cards. We really don’t know about that stuff. We’re not even official employees; we’re outsourced staff. How would we have access to something so high-level?’

"How about I ask my supervisor for you?"

she asked cautiously. She was sharp enough to realize that when a client proactively inquired, you’d be a fool to let the opportunity slip by.

"Sure, go ahead and ask."

"Find me when you have an answer."

Lin Chu nodded and turned to leave. Suddenly, a train of thought began to form in his mind—’Private banking... that’s a kind of organization with "certain privileges," isn’t it?’

’Similarly, there are members’ clubs at golf courses.’

’And things like chambers of commerce, private boards of directors, and so on.’

’My core advantage and my main path forward have always been my network and my social circles.’

With that, Lin Chu felt like his mind had suddenly opened up.

’There are even people on Douyin creating these private boards, using a streamer as a hub to connect various entrepreneurs and bosses of all sizes, sharing resources to some extent and exchanging benefits.’

’This model is a natural fit for my own attributes.’

’Of course, I wouldn’t be running the projects myself, but rather "aggregating people." Once you bring people together, you can do any project.’

’Where people gather, wealth gathers.’

’And it would be quite simple to get started now.’

’It’s just a matter of finding a streamer who can talk a big game—spouting buzzwords like big-picture thinking, mindsets, business models, market tracks, empowerment... and so on—to gather people and build a following online.’

’As for the offline matters, I would handle those myself, of course.’

’Once the organization is set up and my position as the top dog is established, spending money will be a simple matter. Then I’ll truly have friends from all corners of the world—friends bound by mutual interests.’

’Forget just doing projects together; there’d be no problem just going somewhere to have fun.’

’At the same time, this could also serve as a business model.’

’It’s a private board, after all. Of course it would have membership fees.’

With the idea solidified, Lin Chu moved on to the execution phase and continued his analysis. ’Who would be suitable for this?’

’Definitely not me.’

’I don’t have the time.’

’Besides, streaming is exhausting.’

’Hou Chengjin could actually do it, but he’s not one of my people, and he has his own business to run.’

Lin Chu continued to search his mind, and two figures quietly emerged—He Meng and Liu Junfeng.

’He Meng is a philosophy major. She’s quick-witted, a good speaker, and has a strong presence.’

’And she’s beautiful.’

’Brother Feng is an old hand. He’s currently unemployed and struggling, not sure what his next move should be. Plus, he comes from the finance industry and specialized in investments.’

’They’re capable!’

...

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