Chapter 40 Self-Entertainment

ent look in Wei Mei Li's eyes; she doesn’t intervene. During her stay in school, Li Luomei was a strong card player among female roommates due to parental influence, becoming proficient in all kinds o...Chapter 40 Self-Entertainment

Tang Wu said she would have him over to her house for dinner on the weekend, and both her grandparents would be there.

During this period, he and Tang Wu hadn't returned to Snow Sea Retreat in Pen Bay. On one hand, it was nearing the end of his first semester at university, with many subjects requiring serious attention—Su Cen had several courses that were giving him headaches, even needing to start memorizing key points for introductory classes like Political Economics which weren't much different from high school politics and ideology. At the beginning of each term, the various subjects acted like untethered wild horses; no one needed to worry or bother with them—they could all just go about their business freely. But as the semester drew to a close, these subjects suddenly turned into invading Japanese troops, laying siege and tightening the noose around everyone’s necks. Under such circumstances, each person was fighting to ensure they wouldn’t fail courses and have to retake exams next term—Su Cen and Tang Wu were both too busy to indulge in idle romanticism like when they first started school.

On another note, Su Cen wasn't just dealing with the pressure of his studies; he also had matters related to the company. In the second half of the semester, Facebook Chinese had established a foundation, and during this period, Su Cen wished he could split his time into two halves, but naturally, that was impossible.

But this time was different. Su Cen knew that Tang Wu's grandmother Mu Qin came to Shanghai mainly to handle matters related to the Pudong Cadres College, so her schedule would be even tighter. One day in the cafeteria, while watching local news, Su Cen saw an image of Elder Mu on a local TV station. If Elders Mu and Qian were free enough to let Tang Wu return to her new home in Shanghai now, it must mean they had most of their work under control—it was likely also near the time when both elders would be leaving Shanghai.

If one were to strictly analyze it, from the many incidents surrounding the establishment of Facebook Chinese to its current calm state, Tang Wu's grandmother played a significant role. Considering her special status, even in this direct-administered city of Shanghai, she had an intangible influence. Her stay at the interview location for Facebook Chinese and her meetings with people there無形中盤活了很多的人脈。 (unofficial translation: "activated many connections") effectively helped to mobilize numerous resources.

The concept of盤活 (activating resources) is sometimes interlinked with political reshuffling, where high-profile figures can influence many situations with just one significant vote or gesture that expresses their stance. This often leads to the elimination of some people or organizations while giving new life to others previously in a deadlock.

For example, regarding Jiahua and his conflict with Liu Zhensheng and Su Cen, there was never any open hostility or public legal battles between them, yet pressure from their sides would often find its way through various channels.

Jiahua's loss in the Facebook battle in America has prompted those backing him, who are influential figures themselves, to seek a comeback for that defeat.

Among these players, Liu Zhensheng is perhaps most directly affected.

Liu Zhensheng hails from Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces; his family was reportedly labeled as landlords during the Cultural Revolution and persecuted. It wasn't easy for him to establish himself, especially in the late eighties when he could have been a struggling youth unsure of what lay ahead.

Later on, after several twists and turns, Liu Zhensheng built his fortune in Shenzhen during the nineties, taking up capital operations. Though considered a junior figure compared to Jiahua, Liu has become an influential player with stakes in a renowned investment bank, holding shares of an automobile company, owning a chain restaurant brand in Shanghai, along with several subsidiaries, showing significant influence.

The local media did not give him much coverage; in fact, as early as 2002 and even before that, there was little fanfare or extensive reporting on financial and economic matters by both local and national media. However, his name is generally not unfamiliar within industry circles. Energy lies hidden beneath deeper waters.

Su Cen also experienced for the first time the collaborative capabilities of these people, as evidenced by the various bottlenecks encountered when establishing Facebook Chinese. Had it not been for the appearance of Mu Qin's parents back then, there likely would have been even more troubles following subsequently. Although Su Cen was not afraid of such issues, having too many obstacles at this point certainly wasn't a good thing.

The actions of Tang Wu’s grandparents might have been unintentional, but from the perspective of outsiders, they wouldn’t distinguish between intentional or unintentional support. The deputy mayor and several high-ranking officials came to chat with the founder during the recruitment process of Facebook Chinese when the executive president of the Central Party School was also present. Spread through this angle, it could create quite a stir. Consequently stirring up and activating some networks, possibly even alarming Liu Zhensheng and Jian Hua’s nerves.

Considering Mu Qin's unintentional assistance, Su Cen should visit them.

On the weekend, he went with Tang Wu to the Snow Sea Retreat residential complex. After getting off the elevator and entering through the foyer where they took off their shoes, he saw Tang Wu’s grandmother Mu Qin, who was wearing a dark floral blouse and an apron as she rolled up her sleeves walking from the living room towards the kitchen. Smiling upon seeing them enter, she said, "You're here already Dinner isn't ready yet, you'll have to wait for a while; Tang Wu, you and Xiao Can can watch TV."

Completely devoid of the solemn demeanor seen at Nan Da Holiday Hotel previously or during her conversation with the city secretary. She appeared just like an ordinary elderly woman in a typical household, except that she spoke Mandarin exceptionally standardly, clearly having a rich and refined voice that had been honed to perfection.

Tang Wu nodded and first poured a glass of water for Su Can, then went to the kitchen to help. Su Can noticed that Tang Wu's grandfather was on the balcony with a kettle fussing over flowers. After thinking for a moment, he walked over and smiled, saying, "Hello, Grandpa."

The Old Master Qian grunted but did not continue talking to Su Can. Instead, he lowered his head and continued fiddling with the flowers and plants on the spacious balcony.

Su Can noticed that there were many more potted plants on the balcony than before; they weren't here when he last visited, so he guessed that they must have been brought over recently by Tang Wu's grandfather from a flower and bird market. Su Can wasn’t an expert in this field, so he didn’t pretend to be one. It seemed that this old man enjoyed his time with the plants.

Su Can walked over to a nearby table and sat down, holding the hot water as he stared absentmindedly at a set of chess pieces on the tabletop. He knew that Old Master Qian had an odd temper, but no matter if he paid attention to Su Can or not, it was likely that he was sizing him up. Therefore, Su Can remained composed and didn’t need to pretend to be naive and cute anymore; after all, they had seen his Bentley and witnessed the recruitment at Renren's Chinese office. In their eyes, Su Can was no longer just an ordinary twenty-year-old youth.

"There’s still some time before dinner. Let's play a game of chess," Old Master Qian said after finishing with the flowers and placing down the kettle. He turned around to face Su Can.

Not only did this old man enjoy his time among the plants, but he also had a set of chess pieces here, seemingly for self-entertainment by playing against himself. Overall, it seemed that he was extremely bored. guests called home. That's when something interesting happened: those who did investment-related work headed for well-known upscale residential areas in Shanghai, clustering together in these neighbo...