Inside a conference room.
Several old men had gathered together.
The eldest man at the head of the table looked grim. "Public opinion has turned completely against us."
Another said furiously, "Those goddamn country bumpkins from Xue City are real pieces of work! We wanted to give him a show of force and use public opinion to pressure him, so we could squeeze him hard when it came time to negotiate the price. But after he pulled this stunt, the public is cursing us instead!"
Another said, "This Lu Chengwen may be young, but he's damn hard to deal with. Trying to get a handle on him will take some effort."
Zhao Minzhi sat at the far end of the table, keeping his head down and saying nothing, as though he were pondering something.
"Minzhi, you're usually such a smooth talker. How did he manage to seize the initiative from you?"
Zhao Minzhi raised his head. "Lu Chengwen is an expert. He successfully redirected the conflict between outsiders and locals into resentment among the local workers toward our poor management and operations. I guarantee that he has no intention of obediently returning to Xue City!"
"Of course." The elder at the head of the table smiled. "He hasn't even gotten a bite of the meat yet. How could he be willing to leave just like that?"
"But the public doesn't know Lu Chengwen is using tactics. They really think we drove away an investor, and now... public resentment is running high."
"That bastard Lu Chengwen keeps talking about investing and helping everyone make money. He's fooled all the employees into thinking he's some kind of savior, while we've become the villains."
The elder at the head of the table asked, "Where is he now?"
"He's staying at the Xiangyun Grand