Chapter Seventy-One: Dining and Conversation

The expected doubts and interrogations did not materialize; instead, time passed in the midst of Lu Yingying’s boisterous laughter. Fortunately, the hotpot restaurant served dishes swiftly. Several waiters brought out the soup base and specialty plates, finally prompting Lu Yingying to rein in her exaggerated grin.

“Is it really that funny? I haven’t even finished my sentence yet!”

Lu Yingying donned her plastic gloves, grabbed a giant bone, and bit into it heartily. Chewing, she lifted her chin, signaling to Gao Ning to continue.

Gao Ning said, “The company is a research-focused enterprise, more or less a high-tech firm. I’m not very familiar with the process of starting a company, but you’ve spent years in this industry—you know all the rumors and the ins and outs. So I thought I’d have you handle the funding issues first, then help me find a few reliable shell companies. I’ll just buy them outright—saves me the hassle of registering and waiting for approval.”

Lu Yingying nodded, mouth full, and mumbled, “That’s a good plan. If money isn’t an issue, buying is better than building from scratch. Leave it to me. I already have information on hand, and I’ll give you a definite answer by noon tomorrow. As for the funding, that’s even simpler. Just a heads-up and converting foreign currency to renminbi is easy. By the way, how much are we talking about?”

Gao Ning thought briefly. “The first batch will be a hundred million US dollars, expected within two weeks…”

“How much?”

With a bang, Lu Yingying abruptly stood up, not even noticing her collision with the table.

“One hundred million!”

Lu Yingying slapped the table with force. “Excellent, just as I thought! Remember when we went fortune-telling as kids? You drew ‘blossoming wealth,’ and I got ‘help from benefactors.’ Turns out my benefactor is you!”

Gao Ning, unimpressed, said, “Enough with the nonsense. Let’s talk business.”

“You’ve got a hundred million dollars, what business could possibly matter now? Any bank would treat you like royalty. Just wait—tomorrow I’ll give the bank manager a call. I guarantee he’ll be dying to buy you lunch by noon, you believe me?” Lu Yingying stared at him.

“Is it really that exaggerated?”

“This isn’t exaggerated at all! You’re the one who’s exaggerating, Fatty Gao! You have no idea how fierce the competition is in banking now. The deposit quotas are so strict, staff are banging their heads against walls. Even the postal savings bank has started sending out flyers door-to-door. Think privately-owned banks are any better? A hundred million dollars, or even just a pile of renminbi, would have the whole bank throwing a party for you!”

All the while she spoke, Lu Yingying didn’t stop eating, demolishing a massive braised bone until it was picked clean.

Gao Ning watched her slurp the marrow noisily. “Alright, since you’re the expert, I’ll leave it to you!”

“No problem. Come over at ten tomorrow morning. I’ll have everything ready for you—guaranteed you won’t lose out!”

Gao Ning raised his glass. “Alright, that’s what I wanted to hear!”

They clinked glasses; the formal conversation ended, and they moved on to idle chatter—talking about their lives, the places they’d been, the intrigue among colleagues. The slight awkwardness of long separation gradually dissolved into easy conversation, and the atmosphere grew more convivial.

“With your conditions now, haven’t you thought about settling down and getting married?” Lu Yingying suddenly asked.

Gao Ning shook his head. “I used to be too lazy to look. Now I’m just not interested. One person is enough trouble—finding a ‘forebear’ to worship would be too much. If I were still drifting along, I’d accept it, find a wife, forget about love, just get married and have kids, give the family an explanation. But now, I don’t want just an ordinary life anymore.”

“What, you don’t want a quiet life? You want to soar?”

Gao Ning laughed. “Who knows? Maybe I will. But enough about me—such a beautiful woman, all these years and still no decent boyfriend. Isn’t that embarrassing? Don’t be stubborn—if someone introduces you, just go. Working in a bank is impressive, you know!”

“Please! If I’d felt anything for you, I’d have dragged you to bed ages ago. Wouldn’t be sitting here letting you talk nonsense.” Lu Yingying shot him a glare, emptied her third plate, and stacked it beside her.

Gao Ning chuckled, “I know you’re tough. I’ve admired you since the day I witnessed your true appetite.”

Lu Yingying’s stomach was legendary—born a glutton, she’d devour ten buns as a snack in middle school. Even with noodles, she ate ten times what a normal person would. What man could handle that? Few could in a big city, let alone in Gao Ning’s small hometown.

After the meal, Gao Ning dropped Lu Yingying off and took his car for a spin along the coastal road. The fresh sea breeze flowed in through the window, soothing his mind. The private car was nice, but after two years, even luxury grew monotonous.

The first few months had been orderly—swimming, reading, sleeping, physical training. But as his studies accelerated, all those leisurely pursuits were abandoned. Now, all he did was study and sleep. His mind was becoming numb.

Back in the real world, he finally felt relaxed.

He parked in the lot downstairs, called the rental company, and went home. His parents weren’t back yet—perhaps lost in a TV drama, or maybe dragged off for mahjong by old friends after closing up. Either way, they were playful at heart, nothing to worry about.

With a brand new, top-spec laptop in hand, Gao Ning entered his room and began typing a forty-page foreign language thesis.

The thesis concerned a molecular formula. Through laboratory synthesis, it could yield a viscous organic compound—the precursor to a cellular repair device.

Gao Ning planned to use this thesis as a cornerstone, establish a laboratory, produce the compound, package it, and promote it as a high-polymer beauty product. That would establish the company’s research focus.

Moreover, the compound would serve only as a foundation, spawning a series of organic cell-repair products. It wasn’t too advanced—current technology could synthesize it easily.

He’d finished a third of the thesis when Lu Yingying called.

She’d found a shell company with clean books and all the necessary licenses. The company operated normally, could issue VAT invoices, and held general taxpayer status. It was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, but had registered capital of ten million.

Gao Ning asked about the price—just one hundred thousand.

He agreed immediately.

So in just a couple of days, Gao Ning would transform from a nobody to the owner of a business with ten million in capital!

The world truly was full of wonders.