After they saw what Hong Weiguo did, every single person in the International Conference Center was immediately stunned. The room went silent in an instant!
What kind of place was this? This was the International Conference Center, the site of the Resource Chamber of Commerce Meeting! Everyone there was a principal player in their respective fields, the head of the herd. The minimum assets of an inner circle member were at least ten billion yuan. To qualify as an outer circle member, a person had to have a company with total assets worth at least two billion yuan.
Hong Weiguo actually dared to point his middle finger at Qian Guangzhao in such a place!
Although it was normal for people to slam tables and direct curses at other people’s families at the Resource Chamber of Commerce Meeting, it was necessary to have the five magnates present to preside over the meeting, and everyone else around to watch over them and ensure that no fights ensued as a result. Making such a provocative move against another before the meeting started, such behavior was…
Qian Guangzhao’s jaw clenched tight and his eyes looked as if they might sprout flames any second. Unfortunately, he did not have Hong Weiguo’s courage and did not dare to throw his temper around here. He knew that the five magnates were not far behind. If he started a fight, it would be disastrous.
If he did not tolerate the minor infractions, he might mess up the big plan. Qian Guangzhao huffed loudly, turned around and stormed away.
Hehe, it seemed that this gesture Hong Dali used was quite effective. Hong Weiguo had not forgotten how Hong Dali had used it to provoke Hong Jinbao…
Unexpectedly, Qian Guangzhao had barely taken two steps away when he suddenly smiled. He then stopped next to Liu Yihui and greeted him. “Old Liu, can we change seats? I want to talk to Weiguo properly.”
“Oh? Sure.” Liu Yihui took a long look at Qian Guangzhao before letting him have the seat. Qian Guangzhao did not stand on ceremony either and plonked himself down on the seat.
When Qian Guangzhao and Liu Yihui changed seats, the entire International Conference Center erupted.
“Qian Guangzhao is sitting with Hong Weiguo? Hong Weiguo pointed his middle finger right at him and he didn’t even dare say anything? This… is the sun rising from the west?”
“Yes, today’s events are really strange. Qian Guangzhao is a person who will definitely take revenge if he feels slighted. Why is he sitting with Hong Weiguo? Am I seeing things?”
“Impossible, there are so many people in the audience. How can all of us be seeing things? Look, they are talking. I wonder what they are saying!”
“It’s true. Today’s events are a little hard to believe!”
Everyone attending the Chamber of Commerce was talking to each other in a flurry of speculative whispers. However, Hong Weiguo and Qian Guangzhao were talking to each other and laughing. Qian Guangzhao said, “To be honest, you were quite brave just now. You actually dared to point your middle finger at me. That’s very unlike the usually calm and collected you.”
Hong Weiguo smiled and said, “There’s no need for empty words between us. This time, only one of us can stay on in the Chamber of Commerce. Everyone knows that. There’s no need to worry about pride here.”
“That’s true.” Qian Guangzhao nodded. When he spoke again, his tone was sincere. “Weiguo, when we both started developing search engines, I invested three billion yuan. You invested 1.5 billion, which was half of what I invested.”
“You failed and I succeeded.” Hong Weiguo said calmly, “You can’t figure out why?”
“No.” Qian Guangzhao did not try to hide it. “Money is everything in this world. If you have money, you will get people, things, and resources. I had twice the amount of funds, but I still lost to you. As a result, I was unable to hold my head high in my family for many years.”
“That’s normal.” Hong Weiguo said slowly, “There are many times when it’s not enough to just have money. You need to have empathy, too.”
“Empathy? Is that useful?” Qian Guangzhao said in disdain, “I only believe in money on this earth. Money will not lie. It’s the most honest. As long as you are able to control it, it will never betray you.”
“You are sure?”
“Very sure.”
“That’s why you lost.” Hong Weiguo smiled and said, “You know, people have two different types of attitude when working. One is where they work just to get paid, and the other is where they put all their passion into developing the business. When I started Sangle, the engineer and I were best friends. His wage was minimal, but do you think his work attitude was the same as that of your subordinates?”
“That’s true.” Qian Guangzhao thought about it carefully. “In all honesty, your people are indeed exemplary. I can’t win there. Unfortunately, I’ll take away everything that belongs to you. Remember, everything. I will not leave you even a tiny bit.”
Hong Weiguo was not the least bit surprised to hear what Qian Guangzhao said.
Qian Guangzhao was a man who held grudges. When Hong Weiguo’s search engine made Qian Guangzhao lose three billion years ago, Hong Weiguo knew that there was no way they could ever reconcile.
It was either you or me. There was no other way. Between the two of them, only one could walk out of the Chamber of Commerce unscathed.
“You talk too much.” Hong Weiguo smiled. “Your target has been me right from the beginning of this meeting. I knew that all along. You don’t have to remind me.”
“No, no, no.” Qian Guangzhao started laughing again. “You are very strong. To be honest, nothing in this world is fixed, everything is messy and complicated. Naturally, I will not be careless when it comes to a competition.”
“Tell me about your plan?” Hong Weiguo asked.
“There is no harm in telling you.” Qian Guangzhao immediately perked up when the plan was mentioned. “I want to attack you, disrupt you, affect you. The Resource Chamber of Commerce is a rare opportunity. I have waited 14 years for this day. I’m going to use every possible way to weaken your strength, break you mentally, and wear down your fighting spirit. I want you to have absolutely no hope of making a comeback.”
Hong Weiguo asked, “You think it will succeed?”
“If I say it will succeed, it will definitely succeed!” Qian Guangzhao pointed at the entire group of inner circle members as he spoke. He said, “Look there. Inner circle members, a total of 94 people from all industries, they are all on my side.” When the members of the inner circle saw Qian Guangzhao pointing at them, they either nodded or inclined their heads as a confirmation of their relationship with Qian Guangzhao.
As he spoke, Qian Guangzhao pointed at a large group of people from the outer circle. “Now look over there. Three hundred and fifteen of them are also on my side. They may be outer circle members and unable to act directly, but they are still able to take sides and cheer.” Three hundred over members of the outer circle, a turbulent sea of heads, all turned their gazes on them.
“Quite a lot of support.” Hong Weiguo nodded. “So what?”
“There are so many going up against you, you should feel honored.” Qian Guangzhao chuckled and said, “To be honest, it’s not the first time an inner circle member has been impeached, but never one where so many people were involved.”
“I am indeed honored so many people had to get involved to deal with me.” Hong Weiguo laughed.
“To face your enemy directly is to face yourself directly.” Qian Guangzhao said slowly, “Although I hated you for many years, I have to say you are an opponent worthy of respect. After all, sometimes, when your opponent is too weak, it’s no fun.”
“Good luck to you, then.” Hong Weiguo shrugged.
“You better keep the luck for yourself.” Qian Guangzhao looked at the time. “The five magnates will arrive soon, I will go back first.” Before he left, he turned back and looked at Hong Weiguo, then said in a low voice, “It’s time for an end to the grudge between us.”
No sooner had Qian Guangzhao returned to his seat that he heard a buzzing sound. The master of ceremonies announced, “It’s time. The five arbitrators have arrived.”
When they heard the announcement, everyone stood up in a flurry of movement. Hong Weiguo looked over. Wen Jianan, Sun Yuanzhou, and the other three magnates walked in front, followed by a group of nearly fifty people. The impressive group walked into the International Conference Center.
All of the Chamber of Commerce members applauded loudly.
“Everyone is here?” The head of the five magnates, the richest man in the Heavenly State, Wen Jianan raised his hand to quieten the crowd. “Everyone, sit.”
Everyone sat down.
After everyone had sat down, the master of ceremonies, shouted, “The 24th Chamber of Commerce Meeting on Resource Allocation begins now!”
With this loud announcement, the meeting that would affect the entire business circle of the Heavenly State began.
Next up was Wen Jianan, the richest man in Heavenly State, the head of the five arbitrations. His speech was no less long than the one at the Hong Family meeting. Wen Jianan talked for a full hour and a half before it was finally over.
When Wen Jianan’s speech was over, it was the turn of the major officials from Tianhai City and leaders from the Tianhai Garrison District’s speech. Their speech was mainly focused on maintaining the normal operation of the Chamber of Commerce and ensuring the order of the entire Chamber of Commerce while avoiding the forming of personal enemies which might lead to casualties.
When all the key people had finished speaking, the main show started.
According to the usual rundown of the Resource Chamber of Commerce Meeting, the first step was to mediate the relationship between the members of the audience.
After all, if a person was able to be there, they must be a leader, a major player in their field. It was common to have some friction, but if there was excessive hatred, it was definitely not conducive to the normal development of business.
Therefore, at the beginning of the Chamber of Commerce Meeting, a mediation of the problems between members would be conducted. If the mediation was successful, everyone would be happy.
As the chief arbitrator of the meeting, Wen Jianan was naturally responsible for this portion. Wen Jianan looked at the materials in his hand and said, “The first item on the Chamber of Commerce, the mediation of internal relationships, now begins.
“The first pair of mediation applicants: Li Weiqi, He Boming. Mediation content: Misunderstandings in the process of resource transportation.
“Li Weiqi, CEO of Heavenly State North Industry Corporation, the largest industrial company in Heavenly State. It was formed in 1970 by the merger of Heavenly State North Petroleum Company and Heavenly State Industry Manufacturing Company. In 2011, the company completed the integration of all assets. The group company has fourteen branches. They deal in chemical products, non-ferrous metals, coal, etc. The production and sales of their non-ferrous metals and coal ranks twenty-second in the world. By the end of 2013, the total assets reached a little over 17 billion yuan. In 2013, the net sales were 79.1 billion yuan and the net income was 2.71 billion yuan.
“He Boming, CEO of Fei Li Electronics Company. Founded in 1928, Fei Li Electronics Company ranks 358th among the world’s 500 largest companies, ranking 29th in the world’s electronics industry, and has operations in more than 20 countries. It has 85,100 employees and its shares are listed on seven exchanges in four countries. It mainly produces audio-visual products, lighting, electronic components, semiconductors, medical systems, small household appliances, industrial electronics, and commercial electronics. Their lighting equipment, color picture tubes, and audio equipment are in the leading position in the international market. In 2013, the total assets were 14.4 billion yuan, sales were 25.8 billion yuan, and profits were 2.3 billion yuan.
“Mediation starts now.”
