At that moment.
In another private room.
After the investment promotion officials left to check on the situation in the Emperor's private room, the others gradually became more animated.
With the police here, no matter how fiercely those people outside were fighting, they'd have to behave themselves in front of the officers. Their personal safety was more or less guaranteed.
Although they were also curious about what exactly was happening over there, none of them followed the officials out.
After all, that was police work, none of their business, and it really wasn't appropriate to go gawk.
Even though no one went over, they instinctively started talking about the incident.
"Who would have thought Bright Pearl City could be this chaotic."
"You can say that again. It really scared me just now."
"What do you think will happen to those men in black?"
"At the very least, they'll get time behind bars. Storming in with so many people in broad daylight, fighting and smashing things—do they think there's no law in Bright Pearl City? Especially with Chief Liu himself handling it, none of them will get away."
"That 'Big Miss' Liu Yutong you mentioned earlier, no matter how tough she acts, is just a gangster at the end of the day. She was too impulsive. Causing such a scene is like cutting off her own escape route."
"More than that, it's downright foolish. Didn't you see how grim the officials' faces were? The Wanlong Society wasn't just slapping those local thugs in the face; they were slapping the officials' faces too."
"These gangsters nowadays really think that with sheer ruthlessness and numbers they can run wild like they did in Hong Kong over a decade ago. Too bad for them they miscalculated this time. This is the mainland."
"Exactly. The Wanlong Society is finished. I reckon before tonight's over, all their establishments will be raided. That 'Big Miss' Liu Yutong is probably done for."
"........."
The first-time investors in Bright Pearl City chatted back and forth about the Wanlong Society's impending doom, completely missing the increasingly strange expressions on Ji Zhe and Chu Hai's faces.
Could the police really take down the Wanlong Society?
Hard to believe.
Right then, one of the investors, Zhang Zhaoyuan, suddenly remembered something and turned to ask, "By the way, Mr. Chu, Mr. Ji, what's the relationship between that Wanlong Group-Buy project you're leading the investment in and this Wanlong Society?"
The other two, Li Hanming from Zhaosheng Capital and Chen Baiyuan from Changxing United Holdings, were startled upon hearing this.
"It couldn't really be..."
Ji Zhe and Chu Hai nodded helplessly. "It is."
They had originally intended to give these three a little shock, but they never expected it to come so suddenly and so violently.
Have you ever seen a brawl involving over five hundred people?
Haven't, right?
They were seeing it for the first time too.
Zhang Zhaoyuan frowned. "Mr. Chu, Mr. Ji, this is no small matter. If the internet project you're promoting is connected to such gangsters, it will be very difficult for our risk control and investment committee to approve."
"The Wanlong Group-Buy project is indeed a good one, but investing ultimately means investing in people. Getting involved with them is too risky."
The other two also nodded in agreement. "Right, who would dare follow an investment when they resort to this kind of gangster violence and large-scale brawls?"
"Mr. Chu, Mr. Ji, to be honest, were you threatened into this initially?"
Ji Zhe and Chu Hai: "...."
"Well... not exactly threatened."
"We fully understand your concerns. Risk control is indeed a consideration, but often, what the eyes see isn't necessarily the whole truth."
"You're essentially worried that the Wanlong Society is shady. And are they shady? Absolutely!"
"But that doesn't stop us from making money. As long as there's profit to be made, who cares if they're shady or not? We're not the ones running this project."
"We're financial investors, not responsible for operations. The project is managed by their team. We only need to care about how much money we can make. As long as we can hold out until the next round of financing or a successful IPO, or at the very least, arrange for a major company to acquire the project, there will be plenty of opportunities to cash out and exit."
"By that time, even if the Wanlong Society gets into trouble for its underworld connections, it won't implicate us."
"We can't just stop making money because we're afraid of gangsters, can we?"
"Don't you agree, gentlemen?"
Ji Zhe and Chu Hai never imagined they would one day be speaking in defense of an organization with underworld ties.
Businessmen are profit-driven by nature, especially venture capitalists like them. As long as there's sufficient profit, what does it matter if it's shady or not?
They just need to isolate the risks in advance and have an exit strategy ready.
Moreover, the Wanlong Group-Buy project itself is a legitimate venture, not some gray-area business.
Hearing Ji Zhe and Chu Hai's words, the three investors lowered their heads in thought, clearly somewhat persuaded.
As long as they could make money, and do so legally, whether the founding team was black or white didn't matter much to them.
They were investors, not legal representatives. Investors don't need to be responsible for them.
They had all conducted due diligence on the Wanlong Group-Buy project recently. It had a novel model, good data, and rapid growth—truly a rare, excellent project.
Missing out would indeed be a loss.
Just then, Zhao Weixiang, who had been mostly silent in the room, suddenly chuckled and stood up.
Even at this point, these people still held illusions about the Wanlong Society?
Then he would be the one to shatter those illusions.
"Gentlemen, since you all have reservations about the Wanlong Society's background, I have a proposal that satisfies both sides."
As soon as he spoke, everyone looked at this young boss in the white suit.
Zhao Weixiang straightened his suit and tie, continuing, "The Wanlong Society caused such a huge scene today—illegal assembly, vandalizing the hotel, assault... the evidence is solid. Plus, with Chief Liu handling it personally, there's absolutely no way they can recover."
"I know you all came to Bright Pearl City for Wanlong Group-Buy. It is a good project. Your only hang-up is whether a project run by such a shady organization as the Wanlong Society can survive."
"In my opinion, if the butcher is gone, we don't have to eat hairy pork. Why not let me, Zhao Weixiang, take over the Wanlong Group-Buy project? I've been operating in Bright Pearl City for many years, familiar with all the connections up and down, and I have people who can put in a word with those above."
"I guarantee I can get the project running smoothly and ensure all your investments yield substantial profits. What do you say?"
Everyone seemed tempted upon hearing this. If they could switch to someone less shady, that seemed like a good thing too.
Just as they were about to ask him how he could take over the project, the door to the private room was suddenly pushed open from the outside.
Two young men wearing the Wanlong Society's signature black suits appeared at the doorway, their eyes sweeping across the room.
"Gentlemen, our Big Miss has specifically instructed us to invite you over for a chat."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire room fell deathly silent.
Liu Yutong was inviting them?
Shouldn't she have been arrested by now?
This...
Zhao Weixiang, who just moments ago had been holding forth about taking over the project and declaring the Wanlong Society's certain doom, now looked as if an invisible hand had grabbed his throat, his smile instantly frozen on his face.
