Chapter 43: Friendship Forged Through Conflict

Li Fengyu also said, "Seventy million is nothing. Give me three days, and I will give you eighty million. Just agree to one condition of mine: take the money and withdraw your capital immediately."

At this moment, Liu Xinyang's mind was racing. Even with the highest possible profits from Li Fengyu's market manipulation, it would only amount to a few tens of millions, and that was before deducting costs. By giving him eighty million out of nowhere, Li Fengyu would be taking a loss no matter how the math was done. Why on earth would he do such a thing? Although Liu Xinyang could not figure it out at the moment, he knew he must absolutely not ask, otherwise Li Fengyu would realize he was bluffing and easily lead him by the nose. Even so, Liu Xinyang agreed to Li Fengyu's condition.

Liu Xinyang asked, "What is your condition?"

With a wicked smirk, Li Fengyu walked right up to Liu Xinyang and punched him hard in the stomach. The blow left Liu Xinyang stunned as he staggered backward. Gu Yumin and Li Sen hurriedly called out, "What are you doing?"

To everyone's surprise, Liu Xinyang waved his hand and said, "I'm fine."

Li Fengyu walked over, crouched down in front of Liu Xinyang, and said with a stern expression, "This punch was for Chen Yuxuan. Don't you ever dare touch my people again. Do you understand?"

Liu Xinyang rubbed his stomach, let out a hearty laugh, and said, "As expected of a young president, you are a man of true passion and bold spirit. This punch was well worth taking."

Seeing this, Li Sen quickly helped Li Fengyu up and apologized to Liu Xinyang, "Please excuse us, Young President Liu."

Liu Xinyang waved dismissively and said, "It's no matter. I gave my word to President Li's condition just now."

Hearing this, Li Fengyu reached out his hand and pulled Liu Xinyang to his feet. "Young President Liu, this punch was thrown on behalf of Chen Yuxuan. Since you aren't holding it against me, I won't say any more about it. However, the matter concerning Chen Yuxuan is not over yet. I will get the money to you very soon, and I trust you will keep your promise as well."

Liu Xinyang nodded to signal there was no problem.

Gu Yumin watched everything unfolding before her. Although she had remained silent throughout, she observed the subtle shift in the dynamic between Liu Xinyang and Li Fengyu. Liu Xinyang's initial disdain upon Li Fengyu's arrival had transformed into admiration, while Li Fengyu's initial polite formality had turned into forgiveness. This quiet evolution in their relationship meant that the two men had truly come to know and understand each other through conflict, forging a bond that resembled friendship.

Seeing through it all, Gu Yumin smiled faintly and said, "Now that the business is concluded, please feel free to do as you wish."

Liu Xinyang offered to take Li Fengyu and Li Sen out for some entertainment, but Li Fengyu politely declined under the pretext of company matters. That very afternoon, the two of them boarded the high-speed train back.

On the train, Li Sen asked, "Fengyu, you mentioned eighty million—where are we going to get that kind of money? Even after liquidating the silver trading position, we won't have nearly that much."

Li Fengyu smiled faintly and replied, "The secret cannot be revealed just yet. Once we get back, you'll understand."

Li Sen remained completely baffled. Meanwhile, during their trip to Shanghai, Lin Chu still remained entirely unaware of their absence.

Upon returning home, Li Fengyu said, "I'll go back to work tomorrow, and you go back the day after. Make sure Lin Chu doesn't suspect anything."

Li Sen nodded in agreement.

The next day, when Li Fengyu returned to the company, he decided to test the waters with Lin Chu first. "Oh dear, my back has been so sore these past couple of days. It seems I really need a good rest."

Lin Chu said expressionlessly, "That's probably because you've been working too much lately. The silver market has certainly given you plenty to stress over."

Li Fengyu thought to himself with relief, "It seems Lin Chu hasn't found out. That's a relief."