46: The Chu family needs to curry favor with a powerful figure.

Harbin urban area, Nangang Dazhi Street, Chu family villa.

This European-style small villa was quite eye-catching in the Harbin of '92.

At this moment, in the second-floor study, the atmosphere was oppressively frightening.

Chu Xiong sat in that mahogany executive chair, the two Iron balls in his hand spinning rapidly, clanking loudly.

He had just changed out of the suit he wore back from Hong Kong Island and into a silk Tang suit, but the exhaustion on his face couldn't hide the sharp glint in his eyes.

"Tianbiao!"

Chu Xiong slammed the table suddenly, the Iron balls knocking against the surface with a dull thud.

Chu Tianbiao, who was lying sprawled out on the leather sofa and just about to take a nap, was startled and nearly rolled off.

"Wha... what's wrong, Dad?"

Chu Tianbiao rubbed his bleary eyes, looking completely dazed.

This trip to Hong Kong Island had exhausted him both mentally and physically; he had just been dreaming about being kicked away by Long Wu.

"Sleep, sleep, sleep, all you know is sleep. How can you even fall asleep at your age?"

Chu Xiong pointed at him, disappointed that he failed to live up to expectations, spit flying everywhere.

"Get up right now! Clean yourself up, change into some decent clothes, and head to Red Mangrove Village!"

"Huh?!"

Hearing this, Chu Tianbiao's face immediately crumpled like a bitter melon, as if he had eaten two pounds of bitter herbs.

"Dad, didn't we just send them back? My butt hasn't even warmed the seat yet!"

"Besides, that broken village road will probably bounce my stomach acid out."

"I just got off the plane and I'm exhausted. Just let me rest for two days. Can't I go in a couple of days when I've recovered?"

Before he could finish speaking...

*Slap!!*

A crisp slapping sound echoed through the study.

Chu Xiong's slap was a solid one, landing directly on Chu Tianbiao's forehead.

It turned out that the sound of slapping a forehead was about as loud as slapping a cheek.

"Rest your damn head! All you know is resting!"

"In a couple of days? In a couple of days, the opportunity will be long gone!"

Chu Xiong stood up, pacing back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, his tone urgent and stern.

"You little brat, you don't know shit!"

"Haven't you realized yet? That Lin Chuan is no ordinary person!"

"The Hong Kong Island matter was just him testing the waters!"

"Think about it, he pulls out thirty million in promissory notes like it's nothing, the boss of Deloitte bows to him, and even that god of slaughter Long Wu follows his every word!"

"What is this? This is a hidden dragon in the depths, about to soar into the heavens!"

Chu Xiong walked up to Chu Tianbiao and poked his forehead while lecturing him:

"Now, while he's just returned to Harbin and his foundation isn't yet firm, is the best time for us to provide timely help and build a relationship!"

"Once he truly takes off, he'll be surrounded by high-ranking officials from the province or even the capital."

"By then, you won't even be worthy of carrying his shoes!"

"Dad, yeah, I admit Lin Chuan has some gambling skills, but is he really as incredible as you say?" Chu Tianbiao rubbed his head, and although he was stubborn, he was actually feeling uncertain.

"Even more incredible than I imagined!"

Chu Xiong sighed, his eyes deep.

"Your father is getting old. The underworld of Harbin will have to be handed over to you sooner or later."

"But look at your behavior. You can't even maintain what we have, let alone expand."

"Whether our Chu family can thrive for another twenty years depends entirely on whether we can cling to this powerful ally!"

"Go now! Take those two bottles of special-supply moutai from my bookshelf, and that box of Changbai Mountain wild ginseng!"

"When you get there, keep your head down! Don't act like a big shot all day!"

"Remember, being able to run errands for him now is your blessing; it means you still have utility!"

"If the day comes when he won't even let you run errands, then our Chu family is finished!"

Under this barrage of scolding and slaps, Chu Tianbiao didn't have a shred of temper left.

He was arrogant, but he wasn't stupid, and he knew the old man was an extremely good judge of character.

"Fine, fine, fine, I'll go, alright..."

Chu Tianbiao rubbed his swollen forehead and sullenly carried the gifts out the door... Red Mangrove Village, the Lin family courtyard.

The afternoon sun was warm, shining comfortably on the body.

Second brother Lin He had already changed into a clean Zhongshan suit. Although it was a bit old, he had specially ironed the collar flat.

His weather-beaten face was now filled with excitement and anticipation, like a soldier about to go to war.

Lin Chuan stood under the old locust tree in the courtyard, holding a thick kraft paper envelope, and handed it to Lin He.

"Second Brother, there's a hundred thousand yuan in here."

Lin Chuan's tone was steady, but this one sentence made Lin He's hand sink immediately.

"A... a hundred thousand?!"

Lin He almost dropped the envelope in fright, as if he were holding a hot potato.

"Third Brother, this is too much! I'm just taking over a shop, do I really need this much?"

In '92, a hundred thousand yuan was a fortune; an ordinary worker couldn't save that much even if they worked their whole life without eating or drinking.

"Take it."

Lin Chuan smiled and helped him tuck the envelope into his inner pocket, pressing it firmly.

"Second Brother, if we're going to do this, we're going to do it like a regular army."

"This money is just the seed capital."

"Listen carefully, our target this time is Daoli District."

Lin Chuan began to give instructions, his eyes shining with the wisdom of a future business tycoon.

"Go to places near the family quarters of old factory areas, or those densely populated old residential communities."

"Look for those state-owned grocery stores, or supply and marketing cooperatives that haven't quite figured out their restructuring yet."

"Those shops are usually in excellent locations—prime real estate!"

"But because of rigid management, poor service, and a limited variety of goods, they must be losing money now and performing poorly."

"You go and take over those kinds of shops!"

"The starting scale must be at least four hundred square meters!"

Lin He listened in a daze. Although he was nervous, seeing his brother's certain gaze, he could only nod reluctantly.

"Alright, four hundred square meters... that's going to be huge, right?"

"Only when it's big can we truly show what we can do."

Lin Chuan patted Lin He's shoulder.

"After you take it over, don't rush to open."

"Get rid of all those glass counters inside! Don't treat the products like treasures on display as if they're untouchable; you must let the customers be able to touch them."

"We're going to use open shelves!!"

"Call me anytime if you don't have enough money. Eldest Brother's renovation team is on standby."

"Go, Second Brother. Whether this first shot is a success depends on you!"

Lin He took a deep breath, clutched the money at his chest tightly, and nodded heavily.

"Don't worry, Third Brother! If I can't even handle this, I'll come back and bash my head against this locust tree!"

Just then.

The roar of a car engine came from the courtyard entrance.

Immediately after, a large green jeep parked domineeringly at the gate.

The car door opened, and Chu Tianbiao walked in with two gift boxes, a wide smile on his face.

"Oh! Everyone's here!"

"Young Master Lin—no, Brother Chuan!"

Although Chu Tianbiao's address of "Brother Chuan" was still a bit awkward, he had indeed lowered his posture.

"My dad told me to come and see you. He said you just got back and might be lacking something."

"So, I brought two bottles of wine for the old man to try."

Lin Chuan looked at the red mark still on Chu Tianbiao's forehead and understood perfectly.

This was definitely forced by that old fox Chu Xiong.

However, he arrived just at the right time.