Strong Dragon and Local Snake

"By 2022, our Jiangnan New City is expected to become an intelligent super-city complex, with three five-star luxury hotels, including a super-five-star White Sail Hotel. It will become Hang City's new landmark!"

As the capable woman delivered her passionate presentation, the images on the projection screen kept changing. A high-definition satellite map shifted into a three-dimensional aerial view. The original villages and towns were swiftly leveled, and one towering building after another rose from the ground.

The most eye-catching of all was undoubtedly the hundred-story Sail Hotel standing west of Linjiang, enough to make one's blood boil at the sight of it.

She concluded, "They say a hidden dragon lies dormant in Linjiang on the South Bank of the Qian River. What we need to do is make this hidden dragon soar into the sky!"

The room fell silent for a moment before the handsome man seated to Yuan Bin's left was the first to applaud.

The next moment, everyone joined in, including the bodyguards standing by the door and Guan Zhishang, who was waiting to be summoned.

The capable woman secretly breathed a sigh of relief, bowed, and smiled. "Thank you."

Yuan Bin turned to the handsome man and asked smugly, "Brother Mingzhe, what do you think of our proposal?"

The Jiangnan New City planning and construction proposal had been revised several times. Yuan Bin had personally contributed ideas and strategies to it. He considered this final version flawless and perfect, so naturally he wanted to show it off in front of the other man.

This soft-featured man came from the capital. He was a direct descendant of the Chen family, one of the Seven Great Families of the capital. He had come south to Hang City as the Chen family's representative to oversee the Jiangnan New City project on the South Bank of the Qian River.

A powerful dragon.

Yet as the saying went, a powerful dragon could not crush a local snake. No matter how great the Chen family's appetite was, it was impossible for them to swallow a venture as vast as Jiangnan New City alone. Thus, they had chosen the Jiangdong Yuan Family as one of their partners to develop the project together.

In terms of family strength, influence, and power, the Jiangdong Yuan Family was certainly inferior to the Chen family of the capital. But Yuan Bin, who considered himself the local snake, had no intention of bowing his head to Chen Mingzhe. He had to compete with him somehow.

As he questioned Chen Mingzhe, Yuan Bin's peripheral vision drifted toward the woman seated on the other side.

The elegant woman in the white dress was Ye Yingxue, Chen Mingzhe's cousin. According to Chen Mingzhe, he had brought her along to broaden her horizons.

The first time Yuan Bin saw Ye Yingxue, at least half his soul had been stolen away.

Ye Yingxue was not the flirtatious type. Though her looks and figure were exceptional, her temperament was cold and detached. She had not spoken a single word since sitting down, giving people the feeling that she was impossible to approach.

But Yuan Bin, a veteran among women, knew very well that once such an icy beauty was won over, she was often passionate as fire. In bed, she could make a man lose his soul. She was truly top-tier!

Yuan Bin had tried to court her several times before without even earning a smile from the beauty. Instead, it had only stirred up his desire to conquer her.

In response to Yuan Bin's display, Chen Mingzhe smiled faintly. "Excellent. I have no objections to this project proposal."

He spoke softly, his voice somewhat weak and gentle.

"However..."

Just as Yuan Bin began to look pleased with himself, Chen Mingzhe suddenly changed direction. "Delaying the demolition and relocation of Riverside Town until the first half of next year is too late. I hope the first phase of Jiangnan New City can begin at the start of next year!"

Yuan Bin was immediately stunned. After hesitating, he said, "Riverside Town has over thirty thousand residents, with more than a thousand buildings of all sizes in the town alone. Including the surrounding factories and workshops, relocation will be extremely difficult. We are currently conducting surveys for demolition and resettlement. Besides, the Jiangnan New City project proposal still needs approval from the provincial council, so..."

"The project approval will pass next month!"

Chen Mingzhe cut him off directly. "What you need to do is complete the relocation of Riverside Town as soon as possible!"

Yuan Bin was left speechless.

The momentum he had just built up was slapped down by Chen Mingzhe in one blow.

If anyone else claimed that Jiangnan New City's project approval could pass next month, Yuan Bin would have treated it as a joke. Every one of those provincial council members was an old fox. Wanting their votes before the benefits had been divided was simply wishful thinking.

But Chen Mingzhe—or rather, the Chen family of the capital that Chen Mingzhe represented—truly had the confidence to say such a thing.

Yet Yuan Bin himself could not slap his chest and guarantee that Riverside Town's demolition and relocation would be completed by the second half of the year. He had little decision-making authority in such a massive project, so he immediately lost a great deal of momentum.

Seeing Yuan Bin's embarrassment, Chen Mingzhe did not press the matter. He smiled and said, "Young Master Bin, I know demolition and relocation work is difficult. We can discuss this matter over time. There's no need to rush it. As long as we all cooperate sincerely, I believe we can achieve a win-win outcome."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Given a way out, Yuan Bin quickly took it. "A win-win partnership."

He turned to the maid beside him and ordered, "Serve tea!"

Only then did Yuan Bin notice Guan Zhishang standing in the corner again. Frowning, he beckoned him over.

Guan Zhishang immediately walked over, bowing and scraping. "Young Master Yuan."

Yuan Bin said sternly, "Old Guan, you said you brought a treasure for me to inspect. Let me tell you, everyone sitting here has a discerning eye. Don't try to fool me with some worthless junk and make me lose face."

The day before yesterday, Yuan Bin had received a call from Guan Zhishang saying that he had acquired a rare item and wanted Yuan Bin to take a look.

Yuan Bin had not paid much attention at the time and casually brushed him off. Unexpectedly, Guan Zhishang called again today to ask for instructions, so Yuan Bin simply told him to bring the item here.

Having just been put in his place by Chen Mingzhe, Yuan Bin was not in a good mood, so his tone was rather harsh.

Guan Zhishang's legs trembled as he listened. He knew exactly what the consequences of making Young Master Yuan lose face would be. He wished he could slap himself hard. Why did I have to meddle?

Guan Zhishang had mainly wanted to flatter him, which was not wrong in principle. The problem was that Young Master Yuan was not broad-minded.

If the item failed to satisfy him, Guan Zhishang's flattery would land on the horse's leg. Wouldn't that be asking for trouble?

But Guan Zhishang had no way out now. He hurriedly presented the item he had prepared long ago with great respect.

He had brought a square ebony box, only about three inches in length, width, and height. The box was exquisitely made, though it was not some antique.

"Please examine it."

After placing the ebony box before Yuan Bin, Guan Zhishang withdrew his hands and took a step back. His bowed waist did not straighten again.

Yuan Bin glanced at Guan Zhishang and reached out to open the lid.

Perhaps out of curiosity, Chen Mingzhe and the icy Ye Yingxue both turned their gazes toward it.

The lid lifted, revealing a gold coin resting on dark purple velvet. The light it emitted instantly shone across everyone's faces. It was bright and striking, yet exceptionally soft, not dazzling in the slightest.

"Eh?"

A flash of surprise crossed Chen Mingzhe's eyes, and he could not help looking at Ye Yingxue.

Ye Yingxue's expression became somewhat grave.

Yuan Bin froze for a moment and asked, "Old Guan, this is the treasure you were talking about?"

Other than being very new, very shiny, and quite pretty, he could not see anything remarkable about the gold coin.

As the young master of the Golden Jade Fortune Group, Yuan Bin had seen more gold than he could count.

He had not noticed the expressions on Chen Mingzhe's and Ye Yingxue's faces.

"Young Master Yuan..."

With his fortune and life at stake, Guan Zhishang hurriedly explained, "This gold coin is extremely special. I tested it repeatedly with instruments. Its purity is 100%, without a single impurity."

"Pure gold at one hundred percent?"

Yuan Bin laughed. "Are you joking?"

How could there be 100% pure gold in the world? Though technology was highly advanced now, it still could not refine gold to absolute purity.

Usually, gold products sold on the market were considered pure gold at 24K.

"That's what the tests showed. It could also be that the instruments in the shop weren't precise enough..."

Guan Zhishang swallowed, leaving himself some room to retreat, then continued, "Also, its hardness is extraordinarily high. I tried using a diamond blade on it, but I could not leave a single mark."

"You can try it."

To avoid being questioned by Yuan Bin again, Guan Zhishang hurriedly offered up a diamond blade he had prepared in advance.

Yuan Bin accepted it skeptically.

If the test result of 100% pure gold could perhaps be an issue with the equipment, then being unable to scratch it even with a diamond blade was completely unscientific. Pure gold was very soft; even a fingernail could easily leave marks on it.

He did not test the blade on the gold coin immediately. Instead, he first scraped it hard across the tea tray.

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