Chapter 128: The Meeting

In the capital, at a concert venue with a capacity of 100,000, Gao Ning and Xia Luo sat in the backstage dressing room, bored, waiting for their turn to warm up the stage for the superstar Wakin Chau.

The power of capital is terrifying. When it reaches a certain level, it can accomplish things ordinary people cannot even imagine. To be honest, even Gao Ning was somewhat surprised. Recently, due to the global expansion of his mining operations, the total amount of his capital had been increasing almost every second. Combined with the demonstration of his power plants, the visible cash flow had already exceeded hundreds of millions. Since this money seemed to have no other destination besides being used for Gao Ning’s publicity, the vast majority of it was deposited in banks.

A stable and massive cash flow is treated as a VIP by banks—especially mid-sized private banks, as well as Western multinational banks, Swiss banks, and established international financial institutions. Leveraging these banking relationships, Gao Ning simply hired a professional public relations team and, by waving around wads of cash, conquered one media company after another.

They easily squeezed the "White and Black" duo into the superstar's concert venue. In the promotional materials, Gao Ning and Xia Luo were even presented as invited guests. With newspaper hype, internet water armies stirring up trouble, and a fan club assembled by Gao Ning’s professional team to fuel the trend, the "White and Black" duo had, within just two months, exploded in influence like a depth charge.

Gao Ning’s mission completion rate had already surpassed 15%. 1.5 million fans were easily secured. Gao Ning didn't care much for the money; more than half of it flowed into Xia Luo’s accounts. In the original trajectory of the story, Xia Luo would have been blinded by greed by now, thinking of nothing but eating, drinking, and having fun. However, with Gao Ning by his side this time, all of Xia Luo’s money was managed by professional accountants. Aside from daily expenses and improving his standard of living, all remaining funds were placed into a trust, with strict provisions that they could only be withdrawn in stages over the next ten years. Although Xia Luo was not entirely satisfied, he dared not voice his complaints to Gao Ning. He had truly witnessed the power of the "suit-clad thug" and had no desire to provoke such a dangerous individual.

The second uncle rushed in, waving his arms and shouting, "You two brats, are you ready yet? Hurry up, hurry up! It’s almost time for you to go on stage. This is Wakin Chau’s concert—if you perform well, you’ll be stepping up to the big leagues!"

Before he could even finish his sentence, he impatiently pulled the two toward the exit. The second uncle’s leg had long since healed, and he had become the manager of the "White and Black" duo. He hadn't originally been part of this circle, but years of struggling to survive had gifted him with the instinct to read people and the skills of sycophancy and bargaining. Had he entered the bureaucracy, he would have undoubtedly thrived. Gao Ning had hired an veteran manager to teach him the ropes, and with the support of a professional team, he had been pushed into the role of manager. Gao Ning had expected him to face some setbacks, but it turned out he was like a fish in water.

Although 90% of the rapid development in Gao Ning’s channels had been driven by the power of capital, about 10% was truly the result of the second uncle’s smooth-talking. Of course, most of those he swindled didn't know much about the entertainment industry. Combined with the fact that Gao Ning and Xia Luo were currently scorching hot—their photos plastered everywhere—he had managed to trick several wealthy local bosses into paying high prices.

The performance went off without a hitch. As expected, they didn't debut any new songs, but their old ones were catchy enough, the audience was receptive, and the atmosphere was electric. As the song ended, amid the cheers of the crowd, the two walked slowly backstage. The rest of the time belonged to Wakin Chau; it had nothing to do with them, so there was no need to wait around. They followed their team directly out of the venue.

In the plaza, a signing event for their debut album was being held. The advance promotion had already been launched, and quite a few people were already lining up outside. Xia Luo had never seen such a scene. Initially, he was quite excited while signing, but after signing for a hundred people, his hands and feet grew numb and his pen-holding hand began to tremble, making him want to cry. Gao Ning, however, had been prepared, and his body had been enhanced, making him much sturdier than the lethargic high schooler Xia Luo. Though slightly tired, he was not trembling.

Fans lined up to get autographs and handshakes—a simple process. The two responded mechanically. Suddenly, a handsome, fresh-faced young man entered Gao Ning’s field of vision. Gao Ning paused slightly, then glanced at the map on his Red Alert interface. A red dot was flickering. The individual behaved no differently from an ordinary fan; he kept a forced calm on his face, though his eyes betrayed a hint of excitement. As he waited in line, he couldn't help but point at the album and chat animatedly with the person behind him.

He looked exactly like a crazy fan, showing not a single trace of abnormality from the outside. Gao Ning thought to himself, "Impressive. So this is a true master. If not for the Red Alert interface, there would be no way for me to find anything suspicious!"

The line moved quickly, and soon it was the young man’s turn. Xia Luo, head bowed, signed the album mechanically, shook hands, and passed the poster to Gao Ning. Following standard procedure, Gao Ning should have done the same—signing with a flourish in the other corner and shaking the fan’s hand. Gao Ning did exactly that; he wanted to see what the other party was planning. This world strictly prohibited mutual attacks, and such attacks were completely ineffective. Since that was the case, what was his intention in taking the risk to appear before him?

Gao Ning signed quickly and shook hands calmly. He appeared composed, no different from how he treated any other fan. Xu sneered inwardly: *Just as I expected, he still hasn't realized the danger of exposing himself so rashly? Then let me show you—this isn't how you play this kind of mission!*

While shaking hands, Xu suddenly acted excited, gripping Gao Ning’s hand with both of his own. He said, "Gao Ning, you sing so well! I especially love that song 'The Me of the Past' you sang. I hope you can write even better songs in the future. I’ll support you forever!"

As he spoke, he shook hands vigorously, and Gao Ning acutely sensed that the man was collecting fingerprints from his right hand with lightning speed. At the same time, he also plucked a few stray hairs. Having achieved his goal, Xu didn't linger and turned to leave, his actions no different from any ordinary fan.

Holding the signed poster in his arms as if it were a treasure, he was actually carefully peeling a thin film off his hand and placing it into a small box he carried. Gao Ning’s mouth curled into a smirk, and he issued an order through the Red Alert interface.

"Send a few people to follow him! Find an opportunity to track him to my residence!"

At the edge of the plaza, two inconspicuous-looking geeks suddenly stood up and walked in the same direction.