Zhou Yi was clearly worth more than Reyes.
The term "billionaire" could describe someone worth one hundred million dollars, one billion dollars, or even tens of billions. As for Zhou Yi's assets, even he had never carefully calculated them. In any case, he had more than enough to spend however he pleased.
Moreover, although Reyes had one hundred million dollars in cash on hand, not all of that money belonged to him.
"So how should we begin?" Gisele asked.
"Isn't that simple?" Zhou Yi asked. "When will Reyes come to the beach?"
"He's already here, at a beach hotel not far away, discussing business with his clients," Gisele replied.
"Mm." Zhou Yi nodded, then waved in a certain direction. One of his subordinates, who had stayed far away under his orders while keeping an eye on him, walked over.
As a billionaire of status traveling abroad, Zhou Yi could hardly handle everything personally. Naturally, he had hired people to work for him, arrange matters, and handle handoffs. That was unavoidable and genuinely necessary.
"Do you have any orders, sir?" the subordinate asked as he approached.
"There's a 'businessman' here named Hernan Reyes," Zhou Yi instructed. "Find him, give him one of my business cards, and tell him I have business to discuss with him."
"Yes, sir." The subordinate did not ask any questions. After answering, he quickly went to make the arrangements.
"This..." Gisele was somewhat confused. "Will that really be enough?"
"What else? Have you seduce him?" Zhou Yi smiled and shook his head. "When you have enough power, many things can be resolved directly."
"Then... can your people really find him that quickly?" Gisele was still doubtful. "You never told them where Reyes was. How could they contact him immediately?"
"My people aren't freeloaders waiting around to die," Zhou Yi said. "They've been in Rio for so many days. If they still can't figure out the most basic information about this place, that can only mean I have poor judgment when it comes to hiring people..."
"And so far, my judgment has never been wrong."
A wealthy man with such a fortune would have been targeted before long if he had no subordinates to ensure his safety while traveling. Zhou Yi had not hired them merely to handle miscellaneous matters for him, but also to avoid unnecessary trouble—such as being targeted by criminals.
He could not possibly swat flies personally every single time, could he?
Zhou Yi did enjoy putting on a show and slapping faces, but only when dealing with specific people. For insignificant extras whose names were not even worth remembering... was there any need? That would be a complete waste of effort.
Therefore, the duty of a qualified subordinate was to handle matters for Zhou Yi, understand the surroundings of wherever he was and the dangers he might encounter, and keep the flies away.
That was why Zhou Yi had said that if his subordinates had been in Rio for quite some time yet still knew nothing about Hernan Reyes, Rio's local kingpin, then they truly deserved to be fired.
Although his people could not track Reyes's location at all times, they would certainly have his contact information and basic details. Once they got in touch with him, this matter would naturally no longer be a problem.
Before long, Zhou Yi's subordinate returned.
"Sir," the subordinate said, "we've contacted Mr. Reyes. Surprisingly, he's at the beach hotel not far away. Should we ask him to come over? Mr. Reyes said that if possible, he can begin discussing business now."
Gisele nearly lost control and widened her eyes.
They had actually contacted him so quickly, and he was even this eager?
Was this really Reyes, Rio's local kingpin whom no one dared provoke?
Gisele did not know that although there was a saying that a powerful dragon could not suppress a local snake, nothing in this world was absolute. Everything depended on relative circumstances.
And now, Zhou Yi, this dragon crossing the river, was far stronger than Reyes, the local snake. Or rather, the two sides' positions and needs were far too unequal.
To begin with, Reyes had been extremely annoyed by the trouble caused by Toretto and his group over the past few days.
As Rio's local kingpin, a major drug lord who treated the police station like his own backyard, when had Reyes ever needed to worry about a mere gang of robbers?
Yet he had been forced to gather all his money and lock it away in a safe?
It was certainly secure enough, but this was about his reputation!
What would people say—that the mighty Reyes had been forced by a bunch of lowlife robbers to hide all his money, and still could not find them even now?
That was what angered Reyes the most!
First, a group had appeared that actually dared to make a move against him, and the matter had become known to everyone. Worst of all, his men still had not found any trace of them!
The Wanted notices he had put out were practically a joke. They had produced no useful results whatsoever, and Reyes felt as if his face were being slapped in front of the public over and over again!
Under such circumstances, Reyes could only suppress the fury in his heart and explain things to the clients working with him... Though he was Rio's local kingpin, that was only because people bought from him and sold to him. He profited enormously from the middle, then spent money greasing palms and hiring people, gradually developing his power to its current level!
Without those clients, he would not instantly become abandoned by everyone, but he would certainly suffer a devastating blow. Reyes knew that what had pushed him to his current position was called "profit." If the profit disappeared, then he would truly be finished.
Thus, while he was explaining matters to his clients, one of his subordinates suddenly reported that a client looking to "discuss business" had come calling. Reyes had not cared much at first, but after looking over Zhou Yi's business card and learning about Zhou Yi's financial strength, he understood that this client absolutely could not be missed.
How much of the one hundred million dollars in that safe actually belonged to him?
Although Reyes considered it his money, he knew perfectly well that very little of it was truly his. It was money pooled together by many different forces.
But the person who had come to him now was a genuine billionaire!
If he could close a major deal with this man, then even if something really happened to that money... Though Reyes believed that nothing would happen to it, it was always better to prepare for the worst!
If he could secure a major deal with Zhou Yi, not only could he reassure those timid clients, but he could also leave himself a way out... Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Thus, Reyes gave that response.
Flop Writer's Diary ↓
Padding? How could this be called padding? This was called properly polishing the story to prevent nitpickers from showing up, so I could drown them... Did I just let something slip?
Before you continue