Chapter 571: An Old Friend Visits

Zheng Qian was quite happy about the visit from these two old friends.

They could be considered witnesses to his own "starting from scratch."

"President Liu, that's a bit too serious, but I have indeed been very busy lately. Yebai is my hometown, so of course I won't forget my roots. Look, I'm still smoking our hard-box yebei. President Chen, have one."

Zheng Qian gestured for the two of them to sit down.

"Thank you."

At some point, Chen Weiqiang began to feel increasingly reserved in front of Zheng Qian.

He used to think this young man was just very capable, but the energy Zheng Qian was displaying now was simply astonishing. It even made him feel genuinely uneasy, and given the recent situation, he felt it was necessary to talk in person.

Zheng Qian's move this time was too big; shipping for $1 was simply unheard of.

Shipping was his trade, and even though his shares in Qianhe Group had been diluted to just 5%, he still felt it was his lifeline. He also knew Zheng Qian was capable, and that keeping this setup for them without kicking them out was a favor to old friends.

But now, things were getting more and more wrong.

"The thing is, President Zheng..."

As soon as Chen Weiqiang spoke, Zheng Qian waved his hand to interrupt, smiling as he said, "Just call me Zheng Qian."

"Right, right... Zheng Qian, I know you're very busy, and I didn't mean to bother you, nor am I here for money! It's just that the company's accounts seem like a huge problem. Huge sums are being transferred in every day, and now it's all $1 income..."

With just a few words, Zheng Qian knew the purpose of his visit.

He nodded slightly and turned to look at Liu Shiqi. "President Liu, did you come to see me for the same reason?"

Liu Shiqi nodded, frowning as she hesitated. "Zheng Qian, you know I have the Zhongguang Fund, and I've invested quite a bit of money in our shipyard company. Now the shareholders of the fund have heard the news about us, and the stock price has been fluctuating recently, so everyone has some complaints... Of course, I trust you! It's just... um..."

Liu Shiqi was wearing a professional skirt today, which left nothing to the imagination regarding her great figure.

Sitting in front of Zheng Qian, she happened to reveal a section of fair thigh just above her knees. Her legs were tightly pressed together, and she looked incredibly dignified. Clearly, she was very confident in the texture of her skin, as she wasn't even wearing stockings.

It was only then that Zheng Qian realized he had never really taken a good look at what Liu Shiqi was wearing before.

She and Professor Ji Muxi were both 28 this year.

She looked like a pure 24-year-old college student, while Professor Ji Muxi had a very mature, older-sister vibe.

"I understand." Zheng Qian smiled and nodded. After they finished speaking, he answered, "It's my fault for not explaining things clearly. Um... the thing is, I plan to unify the shipping industry..."

Zheng Qian didn't explain the full background, skipping over some personal grudges.

But he still conveyed his goal to the two people in front of him so they could be mentally prepared.

It was true that he intended to unify the shipping sector, but not by letting Qianhe Group, Asia Shipping, or even Changsong Shipping dominate alone. Currently, the policy didn't really encourage industry monopolies, so he planned to "divide the state among three families."

With Qianhe Group, Asia Shipping, and something like the Five Shipping Alliance, they would eventually carve up the national shipping market.

All the current losses of The Group would be borne entirely by Zheng Qian, so neither of them needed to invest.

They just needed to collect regular dividends in the future.

This battle could be considered a way to wrap up his many previous industries and bring Qianhe Group to a complete close. Once this battle was over, he would set about building the [Qianlu Group] and begin gradually stripping away the former's business.

The final Qianhe Group would likely be a relatively pure shipyard, shipping, and trading company.

Of course, he wasn't just doing this to guard against Chen Weiqiang and Liu Shiqi.

If all went well, he might be staying in Shanghu for the long term in the future.

It would be more convenient to establish The Group's headquarters here.

At that time, he would bring Xia Xixi and the others over. Zheng Qian had always greatly appreciated his number one secretary. Once this period of training was over, he could arrange for her to be in charge of a company after she arrived.

Hearing Zheng Qian's explanation, Chen Weiqiang and Liu Shiqi had different expressions.

The former breathed a slight sigh of relief, knowing at least that Zheng Qian did not intend to use Qianhe Group as cannon fodder. Not only that, but he also proposed that he would only hold 60% in the future, with Chen Weiqiang and Liu Shiqi each holding 15%, and the remaining 10% going to Manager Li Tao.

Liu Shiqi's mindset was more complex, thinking that if that were the case...

Would she be drifting further and further away from Zheng Qian?

It wasn't that she was in love with Zheng Qian; even a fool could see that as long as you followed Zheng Qian, you would definitely make money—and big money at that. It was obvious that Zheng Qian planned to focus on developing in Shanghu in the future, so wouldn't she be unable to follow him to make money?

Although the shipping business would definitely make a lot of money in the future, it wouldn't be the same!

"Zheng Qian, since you've said that, we're relieved! Um... you have many ways to make money now. Shall we chat later to see if there's any room for cooperation with our Zhongguang Fund? We're also looking to invest in entertainment now..."

Before Liu Shiqi could finish speaking coyly, the office door knocked again.

"Come in."

"Zheng Qian, Xingtu Group is already struggling a bit. Their Shanghai Americas Club raised tens of billions to fight a price war with us, and they've spent most of that money. They're holding a meeting to discuss whether to keep throwing money at it, and Tang Chuanyan wants to send someone to communicate with us first..."

President Jiang Yanran pushed the door open excitedly, eager to tell Zheng Qian this good news.

But she suddenly noticed two other people on the sofa and stopped talking.

"Hello, President Jiang!"

Chen Weiqiang subconsciously stood up and greeted her with a smile.

Liu Shiqi, on the other hand, looked vigilant. It looked like... her relationship with Zheng Qian was not ordinary?

"You are..." President Jiang Yanran gave him a suspicious look. After hearing Chen Weiqiang's introduction, she suddenly realized. "Oh, hello. You're President Chen from Zhengxin Shipyard, right? Hello."

Although President Jiang Yanran spoke politely, she was still full of distance.

She couldn't help it; she was the queen of this field to begin with.

As soon as Chen Weiqiang saw President Jiang Yanran, he was reminded of the scene when they met in Yebai.

She was incredibly imposing, and back then, Zheng Qian seemed like a small fry in front of her, but now it felt like their positions had swapped; he couldn't help but sigh.

"Who does Tang Chuanyan think he is? Can he see us just because he wants to send someone?"

Zheng Qian waved his hand and took a calm drag of his cigarette. "Just say I'm not in Shanghu, that I went to Mars for a trip. Tell him I'll be back when the route back to Earth isn't congested; I'm busy for now. Besides, the spaceship doesn't have any 95-octane gasoline right now, and I'm borrowing some from people on other planets. Gas prices on other planets are cheap right now, so tell him to wait a bit longer."