Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

"Go to the U.S. to buy some companies at bargain prices?!"

Wang Ai was stunned. He originally wanted to buy some companies in Britain at a bargain price.

After all, many of the Sassoon family's businesses that were taken over were in Britain, and the relationship between the Tiantong Church and the Royal Anglican Knights was good, which made things easier.

The most important thing is that Britain is now the world's number one power, and the companies here undoubtedly have more potential. However, Brother Zhang must have his own reasons for saying this.

Wang Ai is not the kind of person who likes to get to the bottom of things. Since Senior Brother Zhang asked him to go to the United States to buy at a low price, then he would go to the United States. After all, the United States has grown very fast in recent years, and going there is also a good choice.

"I understand. I will investigate it carefully." Wang Ai said.

Zhang Zhiwei nodded and said, "If you have done your research and want to set up a plan there, don't use the name of our church or Yongxin Company, and don't use people from China. Just find someone abroad to do it, and we can control it secretly."

Wang Ai understood instantly: "When doing good things, use the name of the church. When going out to make money, use other names. I understand. However, those who are not of our race must have different hearts. If we use some foreigners, will we be cheated?"

Zhang Zhiwei did not explain this consideration in detail, and nodded and said:
"Then use some trustworthy foreigners. You can ask Isaac for help. You don't need him to do anything, just put his name on the list. If he has anyone to recommend, you can trust him with all your heart."

Wang Ai said: "I also believe in Isaac's character. He also has enough reputation. I will contact him and hope he can help."

"By the way, Senior Brother Zhang, there have been some recent developments in the Magic City, and I have to report to you."

"You say!" said Zhang Zhiwei.

Wang Ai said: "Affected by the economy, the land and housing prices in Shanghai have also collapsed. However, last year, I saw that the situation was not good, so I sold a lot of land in advance. Basically, except for a few factories and the church of Tiantong Church, I sold everything that should be sold."

"I wanted to discuss this with you, but you've been in seclusion so often in recent years that I couldn't give you any advice, so I just made my own decision."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded: "Well done, just sell it, it's not a pity, and the situation has been getting more and more chaotic recently, so there's no need to touch that piece for the time being."

Wang Ai said, "I understand. Let's wait until everything starts to warm up before we touch on this. Oh, there's one more thing that's not going well. I hope Senior Brother Zhang can give me some advice."

"you say!"

Wang Ai said: "Most of our industries in Shanghai are textiles, and our main export destinations are the West."

"But with the economic recession and the impact of the tariff war, many products in the world can't go to the United States, so they choose to dump cheap cotton products here."

"Now, the price of our finished products is not even enough to cover the cost of the materials. I think many factories will have a hard time continuing."

"But the employees in those factories are all believers of our church. They are the core of our faith. If we want to just run away like other factories, that's not a good idea. I've been struggling with what to do."

Zhang Zhiwei listened but said nothing. This was a dimensionality reduction attack. If you fall behind, you will be beaten. There was really no way to deal with it.

It's just like the various sodas in later generations, which can't compete with the two giants of cola. Their exported finished products are cheaper than your production costs. What can you do? !
After thinking for a while, Zhang Zhiwei said, "Those factories will continue to operate for the time being, even if they have to make a profit. The excess products will not be sold at a high price, but will be donated directly to the disaster area."

"Should we continue to operate for the time being?" Wang Ai asked, "How long will we operate it? The main reason is that we don't see any hope of economic recovery right now. If we continue to operate it, it will be a huge drag. Should we try to upgrade the industry or change industries?"

Zhang Zhiwei shook his head and said, "Industrial upgrading can only bring us to parity with the West at best. Even if the prices are the same, people today think that if they can buy imported products, they generally won't buy domestic products. It's not cost-effective and not competitive."

"As for changing industries, that is one way, and I support it, but not in Shanghai. In recent years, I don't want to invest too much there."

"Why?" Wang Ai asked, "Is there any place in the country more suitable than the Magic City?"

"The Magic City is indeed very suitable!" Zhang Zhiwei said, "But Marshal Zhang has built so many arsenals and manufactured so many guns and ammunition. Won't they all belong to the Japanese pirates in one day?"

"I understand!" Wang Ai said, "Brother Zhang, do you mean to place the transformed industries in Yucheng?"

"We can get some of it, but it's too far inland, so it will be slow to develop," Zhang Zhiwei said. "I suggest moving it to Hong Kong Island, which is connected to the West and more convenient for many things. We can use our connections in Britain to build a base there, and then wait until the right time to move the technology and equipment back."

"It sounds good, but will Helsing cooperate with us?" Wang Ai said worriedly.

Zhang Zhiwei said: "Yes, they will think this is a signal that we are actively approaching them, and they have no reason to refuse."

"Also, although we are friends, this kind of friendship is never reliable. The deeper the interests are tied together, the more reliable the relationship is. No matter what happens in the future, at least in the next few years, we will be fellow travelers."

Wang Ai nodded: "I will arrange it, but which industries should be involved, does Senior Brother Zhang have any recommendations?"

Zhang Zhiwei thought for a moment and said, "Since we want to use chickens to lay eggs, we must not do something dispensable. We can focus on the following industries, such as shipbuilding and metal processing, chemical industry..."

For these things, Zhang Zhiwei could only provide a general direction of action. As for the specific implementation and how to solve the various difficulties in the process, it would have to be completed by his subordinates.

However, he also promised to back Wang Aicheng up. If they encountered a guy who was really hard to deal with, he would step in and use his blue hand to deal with him directly.

The two chatted for a while and finalized some details of the first five-year plan for the future of Tiantong Church.

At the same time, the alien alliances that were fighting floods and disaster relief in various places arrived in Yucheng one after another, and gathered in a factory building of Tiantong Steel Plant.

Wang Ai had ordered people to empty the factory building and carefully decorate it as the meeting place.

Zhang Zhiwei went to greet everyone and thanked them for their contributions during the flood.

Everyone was flattered and said:
"No, no, you are too polite, Little Heavenly Master. We have no choice but to do this kind of thing. Why should we thank you?"

"That's right. Even if the Little Heavenly Master didn't call us together, we would still do this. But without a leader, we would be scattered and unable to play any role. In the end, we should thank the Little Heavenly Master."

"Indeed, the little celestial master has great abilities, but he is also kind-hearted and righteous. He is truly a blessing to our world of extraordinary people, and even to the entire world!"

"That's right..."

……

……

After some pleasantries, everyone started to take their seats. The various delicacies that had been prepared in advance were served on the table one after another. In the middle of the factory, there was a barbecued whole lamb. The aroma of barbecue and strong wine wafted in from afar... In a year of disaster, this kind of banquet was really a bit excessive. If seen by outsiders, it would definitely be criticized.

Even many heroes who had just returned from the disaster areas felt heartbroken when they saw it. The victims were on the verge of life and death, but they were eating delicious food. It was really hard to swallow!

Zhang Zhiwei naturally knew all this. Even before the banquet, Lu Jin had asked him if this was not a good idea and whether they should keep things simple.

But Zhang Zhiwei felt that everyone had already made their own efforts in flood control and disaster relief, so there was no need to do such superficial work.

Moreover, everyone followed him and worked in various disaster environments for several months. Now that the flood is over, can't they enjoy themselves? !

Having said that, everyone was not in high spirits at the banquet and they drank more wine than meat.

Of course, the one who drank the most was Zhang Zhiwei.

Because everyone came to him to toast him and he never refused anyone, people were unconvinced and wanted to get him drunk, but in the end many people who toasted him ended up getting drunk.

Only at this point did the atmosphere of the banquet come alive, and everyone began to clink glasses and talk about their true feelings.

It is worth mentioning that every failure makes one wiser. Lu Jin and Lu Ci knew that Zhang Zhiwei could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk, so they did not try to get him drunk this time, and they escaped the disaster.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, everyone began to talk about what they saw and heard during the flood prevention and disaster relief.

Some people talked about the rescue work on the Huaiyin Canal embankment in northern Jiangsu. The embankment was in danger of water seepage. An old man in his 60s led a group of people to risk their lives to stop the leak using a homemade trapezoidal wooden frame and copper basin putty.

Faced with the fast-flowing water, the old man resolutely jumped into the water himself and blocked the gap with his body. Then a group of young and middle-aged people followed him and worked together to repair the dam, thus preventing it from collapsing.

Some people also entered the Hunan and Hubei regions which were in the midst of war during the disaster relief work, and saw the mental state of the soldiers there. Even though they had to face an encirclement and suppression campaign by an enemy that was ten times their size, they did not give up on disaster relief.

In the Tianguan blocking project, a general took the lead in directing the soldiers and the masses to build the embankment with their shoulders and hands, and creatively adopted the "rebuilding the embankment in place" plan, thus avoiding the loss of 400 acres of farmland.

Not only that, they were even willing to use 30% of their fiscal revenue to repair the dike, and the people provided their own meals to participate in the construction. In just less than two months, the 200-mile dike project was completed, allowing them to see what the close relationship between the military and the people is like.

There were even a few young men who, out of excitement, joined in directly and did not even attend the celebration party.

……

…………

The banquet lasted from the evening until noon of the next day, until those who were drunk last night sobered up. Instead of going back to rest, they pestered Zhang Zhiwei.

After all, Zhang Zhiwei is nicknamed "Human-shaped Opportunity" in the martial arts world. As long as you get his guidance, you can make great progress in your cultivation.

As practitioners, how could they miss this good opportunity? They all asked Zhang Zhiwei for advice.

They had just followed him through wind and rain for several months, and now they asked for advice, so Zhang Zhiwei naturally did not refuse.

Besides, guiding others, in a sense, is also using the practice of others to guide yourself, so he asked everyone to do it one by one.

The first person to come forward to ask for advice was Zhang Dong from Liuyun Sword.

When he was at Yinghe Tower, he and Zhang Zhiwei had met once.

During that meeting, he was deeply impressed by Zhang Zhiwei's strength and was amazed by him, so when Zhang Zhiwei called on everyone to fight the flood and rescue people, he came without saying a word.

"It's Brother Zhang. I remember that you and Lin Zifeng were always together and inseparable. Why aren't you together this time?" Zhang Zhiwei said.

He did not have a deep impression of Zhang Dong. The reason he remembered him was because he was with Lin Zifeng at that time, and Lin Zifeng was one of the thirty-six thieves.

Zhang Dong said, "In fact, Junior Brother Lin was supposed to come with us, but something urgent happened when we were leaving, so he didn't come with us."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded, "So, what do you want to ask, Brother Zhang?"

"I heard that the young master is also an expert in swordsmanship. That's what I want to learn," said Zhang Dong.

"Try to practice a set of sword skills first." Zhang Zhiwei said.

Zhang Dong held the sword with his hands clasped, bowed deeply to Zhang Zhiwei, and then began to practice on the field. In an instant, white escape light protected his body and black sword light filled the room, looking extremely impressive.

While practicing, Zhang Dong recited the formula:

"The black clouds are like ink but have not covered the mountains. The white raindrops dance like pearls into the boat. The wind blows away all of them. The water under the Wanghu Tower is like the sky..."

This is the general outline of practicing Liuyun Sword. Legend has it that the founder of Liuyun Sword is Su Shi. The highlight of their swordsmanship is their elegance. When practicing, the series of movements are dazzling. The exquisite coordination of body movements and swordsmanship makes people marvel again and again.

Zhang Zhiwei also nodded. Although Zhang Dong's swordsmanship lacked spirituality, the sophistication in his moves showed that he had put in a lot of hard work.

After practicing a set of sword techniques, Zhang Dong put away his sword, stood still, and bowed deeply to Zhang Zhiwei again.

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Although I don't know much about your Liuyun Sword, I can see that your sword technique emphasizes casual use, like a drunkard wielding a brush, but it fuses nature and the soul into one, like a chemical brush. Your sword moves are too rigid, and there is no spirituality in them. This is not good."

Zhang Dong was shocked and said quickly, "Please give me some advice, Senior Brother Zhang, on how to make the sword moves have their own spirituality?"

Zhang Zhiwei paused and said, "I can see that the sword in your hand is a magical weapon that you have cultivated with your life and soul. You can also call it your life outside of your body."

"As long as the sword survives, the man survives. As long as the sword dies, the man dies. Logically speaking, your method should easily lead to the state of unity between man and sword, but you are a little short of it."

"That's because you take your sword and the sword moves in your hand too seriously. You've been so deliberate that you've ended up falling behind."

"No matter how important the sword is, it is not as important as the person. You have been staring at the sword and ignoring yourself. Naturally, you lack spirituality. Cultivation is to seek within, not to seek outside, and certainly not to seek from the sword in your hand..." (End of this chapter)