65: Chapter 65 A Gathering in the Investment Circle

At the hair salon, hair clippings lay scattered on the floor; Lin Ning's reflection in the mirror had been completely transformed.

A clean and sharp buzz cut made his already sharp features appear even more chiseled. With his slightly tanned skin, piercing gaze, broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs, he looked like someone not to be trifled with at first glance.

Wang Qiao felt a bit of envy. He slapped Lin Ning on the back and said sourly, "You dog, you actually look quite decent!"

Lin Ning raised an eyebrow, glanced at him, and his lips curled slightly. *You're just realizing this now?!*

Two handsome men, both over 1.8 meters tall, walked side-by-side through the mall, attracting countless gazes. Lin Ning was feeling a bit smug until his superhuman hearing caught an excited whisper: "Ah! Look, a dominant top and a beautiful bottom!"

Instantly, Lin Ning's face darkened. Fuck! The world has gone mad!

He quickened his pace to distance himself from Wang Qiao, his retreating figure looking a bit like he was fleeing in panic.

Wang Qiao only caught up to Lin Ning at the mall entrance. "Why are you walking so fast?" he asked, puzzled.

Lin Ning gave him a look of disgust and moved two steps away. *You have no idea how sinister people's minds are.*

"Stay away from me!"

"...Aren't you the one who was just begging me for help?"

Upon arriving at the Zhoushang International Hotel, while they were waiting for Tao Shuyu in the lobby lounge, Lin Ning dropped a hint to Wang Qiao.

"I've set up a studio now, mainly focusing on investment business. Do you want to come and help me?"

"Huh? What kind of investment? What's the scale of the capital? And where did you get the money?" Wang Qiao was truly surprised by his old friend's recent behavior. If he hadn't seen the record of incoming funds earlier, he would have thought Lin Ning was involved in something shady.

"Not much money at first, about a million or so. I'll follow Brother Tao to do some secondary market investments, or look for other opportunities. Once I have more money, I'll see if I can do some venture capital." Although his account was basically empty after paying off his debts, Chen Zhi had told him that the money from the two previous cases would be coming soon, so he should be able to scrape together another million or so.

Wang Qiao pointed at Lin Ning, speechless for a moment. After a while, he asked, "Where did you get so much money?"

Lin Ning didn't bother explaining. Following his usual routine, he opened his bank account and showed it to him. "The state gave it to me. See?"

"You... you... you! What kind of decent person gets money from the state every single day?"

Lin Ning rolled his eyes. "The Motherland loves me, and I love the Motherland! An unfilial son like you wouldn't understand!"

Having processed the information, Wang Qiao was a bit excited. "Alright then. Brother Tao has plenty of investment leads. If we do proper risk assessment and hedging, at the very least, we can guarantee the principal."

Watching Wang Qiao already starting to calculate the resources at his disposal, Lin Ning smiled silently.

He hadn't asked about salary or shares, as if joining Lin Ning's Studio to help him was the most natural thing in the world.

This was brotherhood—a passion that hadn't yet been worn down into something unrecognizable by the world.

Lin Ning, of course, wouldn't mistreat his brother; they would discuss everything when drafting the contract later. For now—he looked up and fixed his gaze precisely on the refined gentleman who had just entered the hotel.

He stood up while buttoning his jacket. "Brother Tao is here!"

Tao Shuyu was also wearing a casual, light-colored suit. Seeing Wang Qiao wave, he walked straight over.

Lin Ning's current image was a far cry from his previous one. Tao Shuyu couldn't help but steal a few more glances. Seeing his vibrant and confident aura, he smiled and said, "Oh, Xiao Lin, you look very sharp!"

Even though he hadn't mingled in high-class circles before, Lin Ning had heard plenty from Wang Qiao. People like Tao Shuyu were well-traveled and knowledgeable; the best way to interact with them was to be honest and natural, which happened to suit his original personality perfectly. "Hahaha, thank you for the compliment, Brother Tao!"

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Tao Shuyu checked his watch and led the two of them straight to the banquet hall.

The doors opened to reveal a magnificent interior. Men and women in various styles of elaborate dress held wine glasses, chatting in small groups with light smiles.

Lin Ning's pace faltered for a moment. *Wait, is the finance circle really this messy?*

Gold, red, yellow, green—it was as dazzling as a disco ball.

A moment later, Lin Ning regained his composure and followed along naturally.

"Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you..."

"You flatter me..."

"We're just beginners. We're here to learn from our seniors and try to avoid any detours..."

"Hahaha, I'll take that as a good omen then..."

Having clarified his and Wang Qiao's roles, Lin Ning automatically took a step back. He let Wang Qiao handle eighty percent of the socializing while he played the part of a polite, smiling cool guy.

At the same time, he constantly made mental notes of information, such as—

That "President Wang" with the gold-red aura; Tao Shuyu had mentioned a short-term prediction for XX stock while chatting with him.

This "President Li" with a mix of gold and yellow colors had discussed increasing positions in XX digital currency with Brother Tao, believing it could rise at least another five points.

Wang Qiao was like a fish in water at the front. Lin Ning took a sip of champagne. *Mmm, being a 'salted fish' feels quite comfortable.*

Tao Shuyu naturally noticed this and whispered to him, "Not used to this environment?"

Lin Ning gave a feigned shy smile. "Wang Qiao is better suited for this."

Tao Shuyu looked at him thoughtfully and nodded.

Just then, they finally reached the host of the banquet. Tao Shuyu greeted him with a hearty laugh. "Chairman Huang, I heard the scootred wave was your doing. Shouldn't this champagne be swapped for Juglar?"

Huang Zhixing laughed loudly. "You really aren't greedy at all! If I swapped it all for Juglar, I'd have worked for five years for nothing! President Tao, let me introduce you. This is General Manager Zheng Siyu, a partner at the Malaysia Ausvpen Private Equity Fund."

Lin Ning's brow furrowed sharply. The middle-aged man claiming to be Zheng Siyu looked ordinary and was of medium build, but he possessed a very approachable aura and spoke eloquently. After a few exchanges, everyone around him was laughing heartily.

Lin Ning lowered his eyelids to hide the flicker in his eyes. Deep red—[Duan Pingheng, Private Enterprise Manager].

Heh, the name is wrong, the position is wrong, and even the company is likely wrong, isn't it?!

The display showed "private enterprise," not "foreign enterprise."

Now this is interesting.