29: These days, you absolutely need to have a Hong Kong businessman identity.

Before that black Santana had even started, Lin Chuan had already strode over.

With a toothpick in the corner of his mouth and his hands in his pockets, he looked as if he had anticipated everything.

"Knock, knock."

His slender fingers lightly tapped twice on the tinted car window.

The window rolled down slowly, revealing Chu Yueli's exquisite yet somewhat cold and elegant face.

The car's air conditioning and a faint scent of jasmine cigarette smoke wafted out.

"Eldest Miss Chu, you've been watching the show for so long without buying a ticket. That doesn't quite follow the rules of our world!"

Lin Chuan looked at her with a smile, his eyes clear, without the slightest embarrassment from being watched.

Chu Yueli stubbed out her cigarette, her red lips parting slightly, her voice carrying a trace of imperceptible admiration.

"Mr. Lin has a sharp eye to be able to see me through such thick smoke from so far away."

"For such a brilliant battle, how much of a ticket price does Mr. Lin want?"

"Hehe, Miss Chu, you flatter me."

Lin Chuan didn't beat around the bush; he leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice.

"Miss Chu, you didn't come all this way to this backwater just to inspect rural construction, did you?

Let's not mince words. If there's something on your mind, just say it."

He was as clear as a mirror in his heart.

The Chu family was a renowned name in Harbin.

In the underground kingdom of Harbin, there were Three Kings and One Emperor, and the Chu family was one of those three kings.

They were masters who had connections in both the underworld and the legitimate world.

In an era where one had to compete not only with money but also with fists and connections, being able to link up with the Chu family meant his real estate business in Harbin would definitely have a green light all the way.

Chu Yueli looked at the man before her.

There was no fawning, no fear, only a kind of equal confidence.

"Straightforward."

Chu Yueli didn't waste time either. "I indeed have something to discuss with you.

Three days from now, in Hong Kong City, there's a private banquet within our circle.

The stakes are quite high, and I'd like to invite Mr. Lin to be a consultant."

The so-called consultant was actually a card sharp expert brought in to hold down the fort or break a losing streak.

Lin Chuan was the God of Gamblers; such a small matter was like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut for him.

"Miss Chu, you're going to Hong Kong Island?"

"Yes."

Lin Chuan raised an eyebrow. "That's easy to arrange; I happen to be heading there myself.

Since Miss Chu has asked, I'll help with this."

He agreed so readily that it actually made Chu Yueli pause for a moment.

She had thought Lin Chuan would negotiate terms or hesitate.

"Aren't you going to ask about the reward? Or who the opponent is?"

"No need."

Lin Chuan waved his hand with a nonchalant expression.

"As long as it's a game I, Lin Chuan, want to win, even the gods would lose money.

As for the reward..."

He smiled. "I think a favor from Miss Chu is worth more than money."

This was said beautifully.

The admiration in Chu Yueli's eyes deepened.

"Good, then it's settled. I'll send someone to pick you up tomorrow."

"Wait."

Seeing Chu Yueli about to roll up the window, Lin Chuan suddenly reached out to stop her.

"Qiang Zi! Bring the bag over!"

A moment later, Qiang Zi came running over, carrying a black plastic bag.

Lin Chuan took it and handed it directly through the car window.

"Miss Chu, since it's our first meeting, I didn't have much to give.

This is the snowflake beef we were just eating; there are still two pounds raw.

You can't buy that stuff outside; it's a special supply.

Take it back and sear a steak to try; consider it a little something to nourish your body."

Chu Yueli looked at the black plastic bag in her hand, which even had a few oil stains on it, and her expression froze for a moment.

Giving raw meat as a gift?

This move was truly unique.

But she soon laughed, her laughter trembling like flowers in the wind.

The marbling of this snowflake beef was indeed top-tier; she had only eaten something of this grade once before at a high-end restaurant in Magic City.

She hadn't expected Lin Chuan to casually produce two pounds of beef of this caliber.

This man was not simple!

"Interesting."

"Then I'll thank Boss Lin for the local specialty."

The Santana sped away, leaving a trail of dust behind.

Lin Chuan looked at the taillights, a proud smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

This first move was considered steady... Back in the courtyard.

The workers had already eaten and drunk their fill, each with a glowing face and letting out satisfied burps.

Lin Chuan didn't make them stay long, simply waving his hand.

"Alright! You've all worked hard today!

Take the afternoon off!

Collect your rewards and go home to get some good rest!

Tomorrow morning, I'll see you at the Canned Food Factory!"

"Thank you, Boss!"

"Long live the Boss!"

Lin Chuan waved them off. "What's with the 'long live' stuff? The fight was won by all of you. Let's not do that personality cult thing; our country doesn't go for that."

The workers left joyfully with their three hundred yuan.

The courtyard instantly became much quieter.

Only Lin Chuan's family and the dozen or so people Lin Jiang had brought remained.

These people looked a bit more restrained.

They weren't as rugged as the workers; each wore a clean Dacron shirt, some wore glasses, and some held the artificial leather briefcases characteristic of that era.

These were the treasures Lin Jiang had poached from the Construction Bureau.

They were also the scarcest resource of this era—technical talent.

"Brother."

Lin Jiang threw his cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out, then pulled Lin Chuan aside with a solemn expression.

"So, look, these are all old colleagues who submitted their resignation letters along with me."

"This is Old Zhang. He's an expert in water supply and drainage; he designed the plumbing for our county hospital back in the day."

"That one with the glasses is Old Zhao, a proper university graduate specializing in structures."

"And that's Old Li, an electrical guy who can draw blueprints with his eyes closed."

As Lin Jiang introduced them, he secretly observed Lin Chuan's expression, his heart pounding.

"I saw you were busy today and didn't want to add to the chaos.

But everyone is currently unemployed at home and feeling uncertain.

My resignation letter has been handed in, and my rice bowl is broken.

Tell me, what exactly is our next step?"

The dozen or so engineers also looked at Lin Chuan expectantly.

Although they had just seen Lin Chuan's financial power and ruthlessness, this was business after all, which was a different matter from fighting.

Technical types like them feared instability most of all.

Lin Chuan scanned the group.

Civil engineering, structures, electrical, HVAC, water supply and drainage, fire safety, machinery, materials... this was practically a fully-fledged small architectural design institute!

In the future, assembling such a mature team would cost millions in headhunter fees alone!

And now, they had all come to his door voluntarily after being laid off!

"Brothers!"

Lin Chuan stepped forward quickly, his smile warmer than if he were seeing his own relatives.

He shook hands with each of them, gripping tightly and shaking firmly.

"Welcome! You are most welcome!

You're like a timely rain!

I'm so short on people right now that my hair's practically on fire!"

"Say no more!"

"Qiang Zi, bring the suitcase from my room!"

The suitcase was opened.

Inside were stacks of unopened hundred-yuan bills.

The visual impact made these honest technicians' breath hitch.

"Since you trust my big brother and you trust me, Lin Chuan, and are willing to give up your iron rice bowls to follow us...

Then I, Lin Chuan, absolutely cannot let you down!"

Lin Chuan picked up a stack of money and shoved it directly into the hands of Engineer Zhao, the structural expert.

"This thousand yuan is a settling-in fee!

Everyone gets one!

Consider it for buying some fruit for your families and as an apology, since we've made them worry."

"In addition, salaries start counting from today!"

"Regardless of whether there's work to do, every month, the base salary is..."

Lin Chuan held up five fingers.

"Five hundred!"

"If a project starts, there will be bonuses, and at the end of the year, there will be dividends!"

"This treatment is more than double what you were making with your fixed salaries at the Bureau, right?"

"A thousand?! Settling-in fee?"

"Base salary of five hundred?!"

The engineers were completely stunned.

At the Bureau, even as a senior engineer, if there was no work, you'd make a hundred and fifty or sixty yuan a month at most.

And they hadn't even started working yet, but were being given a thousand first?

Was this Boss Lin the God of Wealth reincarnated?

"Bo-Boss Lin, this isn't right, is it? We haven't even done any work yet," Engineer Zhao's hand was shaking as he held the money.

"Take it!" Lin Chuan's tone was beyond dispute.

I have hundreds of billions in my bag; would I care about a few hundred from you?

"Technology is money! Knowledge is money!

In the past, our country was poor, so that wasn't reflected.

From now on, with me, intellectuals must be given proper treatment!"

These words made the hearts of these middle-aged men burn with passion, making them want to draw a couple of blueprints on the spot to add to the fun.

"As for the next step."

Lin Chuan signaled everyone to sit down, his eyes bright.

"Big Brother."

"Pack your things. Tomorrow morning, you're coming with me to Hong Kong City."

"We're going to register a company called Longteng Construction Group!"

"Group?" Lin Jiang grimaced. "Brother, we only have a few dozen people. Isn't calling it a group a bit much? And why are we going so far just to register a company?"

Why!

For the government's investment promotion, of course!

These days, having the status of a Hong Kong Businessman was a protective talisman, a direct dimensional reduction strike on administrative levels.

The land market had just opened in '92, and everyone wanted the good plots.

Local companies had to wait in line and beg for land approval.

But if it was Hong Kong capital, the government would prioritize the approval to retain foreign exchange, sometimes even practically giving away the best prime locations.

Furthermore, there was the famous "two exemptions and three reductions by half" policy for foreign enterprises.

This meant tax exemption for the first two years and a 50% reduction for the following three.

This meant that the massive profits earned in the first two years required almost no tax, allowing it all to be used to snowball and expand production.

Of course, Lin Chuan didn't lack this bit of money.

The main thing was that people from the Northeast were a very unique group.

In the 90s, Hong Kong films were incredibly popular!

Even children in the Northeast could belt out a few lines of "Lang ben, lang liu, wan li tao tao jiang shui yong bu xiu!"

These people had a near-obsession with Cantonese songs.

In these years, Hong Kong Island represented fashion, progress, and luxury in their eyes.

And in that era, it truly was.

With the status of a Hong Kong Businessman, one naturally possessed a marketing advantage!

And most importantly, it would truly legalize the protagonist's money.

The money in Lin Chuan's system could be manifested as any kind of cash—Hong Kong dollars or US dollars.

All the money could be explained as capital injection from the Hong Kong headquarters. In this era, information wasn't networked yet, so Lin Chuan's money would truly become easy to use.

Besides, since the country lacked foreign exchange, he might as well make some contributions.

It was killing several birds with one stone!

"Oh, the name isn't important; what matters is the momentum!"

Lin Chuan waved his hand.

"Let's set up the company framework first."

"As for the issue of qualifications, let's not rush to test for them ourselves; it's too slow.

Big Brother, don't you have acquaintances in Second Construction?

We'll first be affiliated under Second Construction and set up a branch or project department.

We'll pay them some management fees every year and use their qualifications to take on work."

Lin Chuan was very familiar with this routine.

"Then what will our first business be?" Lin Jiang asked the most crucial question. "No one is looking for us to build houses right now."

"No one's looking? Then we'll find them ourselves!"

Lin Chuan pointed to the surrounding circle of dilapidated mud houses.

"I think our Red Mangrove Village is quite good."

"Don't be in a hurry to squeeze into the city."

"Let's practice with our own home and the surrounding land first."

"Masters."

"Your task for the next few days is to produce a set of blueprints for me."

"I'm going to tear down our Lin family's old house."

"Build one for me right on the same spot."

Lin Chuan narrowed his eyes and gestured.

"A three-story Western-style building!

A modern villa with a garden, a garage, and complete heating and drainage!"

"In addition, fix the roads in the village for me."

"This order will be my first investment in Longteng Construction!"

"As long as this villa is built, it will be our best billboard!"