Joking aside.

The serious matters are what's important.

Upon entering the house.

Chen Fang handed Yang Xi a glass of water.

She gulped it down in one go, let out a long sigh, and said, "The Zuo Jiadong you mentioned, I've heard of him a long time ago. In Licheng City, he's also a prominent figure. After I received your call, I made some inquiries through my connections, and sure enough, I found quite a few inside stories."

She didn't pass the information to Chen Fang by phone or fax because the matter was also related to another person, a well-known figure, Cai Xiaodong of Shendong Group.

Let's talk about Zuo Jiadong first.

His outrageousness wasn't something that developed over time, but something he had since he was young.

Zuo Jiadong's father is Zuo Wei'an, who once served as the director of the Department of Commerce in Yong'an Province.

He was a department-level official.

In other words, Zuo Jiadong is a second-generation official.

Zuo Jiadong, relying on the backing of his father, the director, has been reckless from a young age, causing lots of trouble, but every time, Zuo Wei'an would step in to smooth things over for him.

This fostered his arrogant and domineering character.

He doesn't take anyone seriously.

Of course, such a person is doomed to be insignificant.

Next, let's talk about Cai Xiaodong.

Cai Xiaodong was born in an ordinary worker's family, with little education to speak of.

He didn't finish elementary school and was mixed up on the streets before he followed his father into a small factory to work at the age of 16.

His life seemed set to continue this way.

But just then, his childhood friend made a glorious return to the village.

This person was Dai Xingquan, nicknamed "Short Tiger," who later became the guide for Cai Xiaodong's rise to success.

The nickname "Short Tiger" wasn't due to being short, but because of his disproportionately built body, with a long upper body and short lower body. This nickname was given to him by Cai Xiaodong, who grew up with him.

Also at 16.

Short Tiger felt that this was no way to live and, after spending all his savings, bribed a snakehead to smuggle him abroad.

After three years.

He came back.

This time he returned, driving a sedan and wearing a neat suit, which made Cai Xiaodong extremely envious.

When the brothers met again and drank a few drinks, Short Tiger shared everything he knew, holding nothing back.

It turned out that after arriving in a foreign land where he couldn't speak the language and had no survival skills, and when he was almost at his wit's end, he astutely noticed that some foreign luxury watches that cost several hundred or thousand yuan could be sold for ten thousand yuan each if brought back to his home country.

So.

He got into the smuggling business.

His main business was watches.

And it was through smuggling watches that he became so extravagant.

Hearing this.

Cai Xiaodong was tempted.

It was the time of economic reform and opening up when a massive influx of new things from abroad crazily enticed the domestic market, triggering public consumption desires.

Besides watches.

There was also a large market demand for communication equipment and high-end home appliances.

The two figured there was good potential in this, and feeling this could be big, Cai Xiaodong, against his parents' wishes, sold the only house they had and even borrowed a lot of money without their knowledge to accumulate ten thousand yuan as startup capital. He officially joined forces with Short Tiger in the smuggling business.

This thing really made money.

In just one year's time.

The ten thousand yuan in Cai Xiaodong's hands had turned into two million.

In that era, two million was more than a huge sum, it was an immense fortune.

Despite not having much education, Cai Xiaodong was very shrewd. He was incredibly lascivious and would spend a fortune just to woo women. It was during this time that Cai Xiaodong encountered Zuo Jiadong, who would become the second-in-command of Shendong Group, in a place of pleasure.

Zuo Jiadong was that kind of person.

Cai Xiaodong should have looked down on him.

But the thing is, Zuo Jiadong had a powerful father.

After some time, Cai Xiaodong took a liking to Zuo Jiadong, thinking that if he could pull him into the gang, with the connection of being the son of the head of the business department, wouldn't smuggling operations go even smoother?

With this thought, Cai Xiaodong deliberately got close to Zuo Jiadong.

At that time, Zuo Jiadong was short of money. A rich boss came out of the blue, willing to foot the bill for his womanizing. Wasn't that a stroke of incredible luck?

Soon, the two hit it off and in no time, they established the future illustrious Shendong Group.

Thanks to the connection of Zuo Wei'an.

The business of Shendong Group started to expand further.

From initially trading items like watches, communication equipment, and home appliances, to computer chips, industrial materials, and vegetable oils, the variety was quite frequent.

And because of this.

Shendong Group expanded rapidly, within a very short period.

Gathering a huge amount of wealth.

Hearing this.

Chen Fang drew a sharp breath.

He asked, "According to what you're saying, Shendong Group, in fact, was founded on smuggling, right?"

Yang Xi nodded her head and said, "In Licheng City, it's actually an open secret. It's not surprising. Cai Xiaodong's story is almost legendary and is a favorite topic of conversation among the common folk."

"If that's the case, why hasn't anyone investigated?"

Chen Fang asked curiously.

Yang Xi laughed and said, "That's not surprising. First of all, these are just rumors among the people. Whether it's true or not, nobody knows, and even if they did, there's no evidence. After all, Shendong Group now has legitimate businesses involving real estate, import and export trade, the entertainment industry, the tourism industry, and so forth."

Indeed.

Once a person becomes famous, there are bound to be all sorts of rumors.

Positive and negative, they're not worth mentioning. Although everyone says that Cai Xiaodong started from smuggling, or he did indeed start from smuggling, as long as it's not caught, it's considered skill.

Chen Fang nodded and asked, "Since Zuo Jiadong is the second-in-command of Shendong Group, why isn't he staying with Shendong Group? Why did he come to Wen'an City and set up Tiandong Group?"

Yang Xi smiled slightly and said, "This involves a rumor that has been spreading widely among the people recently."

Cai Xiaodong's acquaintance with Zuo Jiadong was because of a woman.

They had met in a place of pleasure.

After collaborating for many years.

Zuo Wei'an stepped down due to reaching the retirement age.

Zuo Jiadong, this person, other than having a good father, was useless for anything else. Despite being the second-in-command at Shendong Group for many years, in reality, apart from eating, drinking, and pleasure-seeking, he was incapable of and did nothing else.

Short Tiger was quite dissatisfied with Zuo Jiadong and had thought about kicking him out for a long time.

But Cai Xiaodong was still a man of his word.

He believed that Shendong Group's success today couldn't be achieved without Zuo Jiadong's contribution, so he went against others' opinions and kept supporting him.

This relationship could have continued without any problems.

But who would have thought, just like how a woman can make a man's success, she can also be his downfall. The split between the two also came about because of a woman.

And the woman who caused the rift between the brothers was named Lin Yiqi.

Hearing this.

Chen Fang shuddered again.

He asked, "Lin Yiqi? You mean the big-star singer Lin Yiqi?"

Yang Xi nodded and said, "That's the rumor going around outside."

Chen Fang drew a sharp breath and lamented, "Money really is a good thing, huh? Even someone like Lin Yiqi succumbed. I've always thought of her as a pure and untainted idol. Back when I was studying, she was my favorite female singer."

Speaking of Lin Yiqi, her name really resonated like thunder.

Qi Kexin had been a popular star in recent years.

But compared to Lin Yiqi, it was a difference between heaven and earth.

Lin Yiqi debuted at 16, and now in her thirties, she had been popular for seventeen or eighteen years already.

When she first debuted, Lin Yiqi became an overnight sensation with her goddess-like looks and moving voice. Her first song topped that year's music chart.

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