The Birth of Shanghai's First Conglomerate

A highway in a southern province.

An endless stream of cars is simultaneously heading in one direction.

And there are countless other flying machines in the sky, all flying in the same direction.

One person's departure accompanies the decline of a great era.

"Father, there's a huge traffic jam ahead! Are we going to miss Jingyan Island?"

"That's right. Judging from the current situation, it's probably impossible to drive even a thousand kilometers in several days, let alone reach Jingyan Island!"

The man they called father stepped forward; his hair was already white, and he wanted to see the founder of the Chen family off on his final journey.

But they discovered that they no longer even had the qualifications to go to the Economic Research Island.

The father stepped out of the car, looked towards Jingyan Island, and suddenly shouted:
"Mr. Chen, may you have a safe journey!"

The remaining people also stepped forward, creating a peculiar scene on the highway. Everyone was wearing the same suits and ties, and each had a white handkerchief wrapped around their hand.

"Mr. Chen, may you rest in peace!"

The influence of a legendary figure has finally become tangible in the days since his passing.

Whether or not they knew him, they had heard the name Chen Pingsheng countless times in the past few days.

And his story.

A symbol of the times, the number one entrepreneur in Shanghai who stands for the people.

Even in his later years, he was still giving away his entire fortune, just so that ordinary families could live a little better life.

His life has always been kept low-key and he has never allowed any publicity or media coverage.

After he left, countless biographies of Chen Pingsheng sprang up like mushrooms after rain.

They are displayed in airports, libraries, and included on major internet platforms.

Many women say they would marry Chen Pingsheng.

And many men are saying that if they're going to marry someone, they should marry Song Yanxi.

Decades later, the couple were finally able to reunite in another place.

……

Economic Research Island.

White blankets filled the sky, snow drifted for miles.

An'an created a romantic scene for her father, a snowy landscape under the bright sun, just to send him off on his final journey.

The hundreds of thousands of people on the island bid a sorrowful farewell to their spiritual guide.

An'an stood at the very front and said in a loud voice, "Bury..."

A simple character for "burial" is displayed, and eight elderly, white-haired figures carry Chen Pingsheng's coffin at the same time.

As the saying goes, fame is judged after death, and Chen Pingsheng didn't write much of a self-evaluation in the end.

Instead, he summed up his not-so-short but magnificent life with just one sentence: "Hero or not?"

As for his reputation, why should outsiders comment on it?

The simultaneous sounding of horns by thousands of cruise ships at sea, and the alteration of traffic in surrounding cities and even domestically, is enough to demonstrate the immense stature of his posthumous fame.

Whether he was a hero or not... The Eighth Elder wrote his assessment when he was changing the coffin.

Who can speak of the master's name, yet he shelters the poor scholars of the world?

For seven consecutive days, Jingyan Island held a funeral for Chen Pingsheng, and all activities, including work, were suspended.

The outside world is singing Chen Pingsheng's praises.

Among the father's last wishes, there was actually another one: that the Chen family must return to their original aspirations and follow in their father's footsteps.

We must not forget our original aspirations, and even more so, we must not forget the mission and responsibility of the Chen family.

After the funeral, An'an gathered all the Chen family members on the island, preparing to retrace their father's steps. Following his last wishes, they would revisit his past and, more importantly, the story of how he and his mother met.

Chen Lu, including Chen Wuyou, Chen Jiye, and the four generations of the Chen family who have now grown up, all have to follow the path their fathers took and walk it all again.

In fact, An'an also wanted to know. In his later years, her father would often go away for several years at a time, and when he came back, he would not say anything.

But his father must have been doing something outside, he just didn't tell the family anymore.

The Chen family's wealth is now so great that it can be described as being comparable to that of a country, but the original aspirations of the Chen family that the father always cared about have been forgotten and are getting further and further away.

In his later years, my father spent only a small portion of his time at the Chen family home in Shanghai; he spent most of his time away from home.

After An An announced her decision to the family, she quickly led all the Chen family members on a journey to find her father.

Their first stop was their hometown, Wangcai Village.

My father earned his own living expenses from a very young age, and he rarely caused his family any worry.

Over the past fifty or sixty years, Wangcai Village has undergone many changes, and those who were my father's contemporaries have long since left.

Those who are younger are at least in their seventies or eighties.

Everyone who mentions Chen Pingsheng's name is filled with pride.

“Mr. Chen, he is the pride of our Wangcai Village. He hasn’t been back for many years.”

Two elderly people in the village said:

“My father once said that Old Chen made great contributions to the village. She said that after the reform and opening up, most people in the city benefited from the era’s dividends through demolition and relocation.”

"And the children of these elderly people in the countryside are leaving their homes to go to big cities one by one. This has made the once bustling countryside suddenly empty. Everyone is tightening their belts to buy houses in the city, and the living pressure of people in the countryside is getting bigger and bigger."

"Back then, Old Chen stood at the village entrance and said this to everyone. Later, he also said, 'Is there a kind of hope called the new countryside, where young people no longer yearn for the city, but instead spend more time with their parents and can develop well in their hometown?'"

When everyone heard this, they all said, "How is that possible? If that were the case, it would be wonderful!"

"No one expected that this was not just a joke by Mr. Chen, but that he was really going to do it, and that he would do it for fifty or sixty years."

The village elders became more and more excited as they spoke, explaining that their father had been paying attention to rural development for the past sixty years.

He even proposed the idea of ​​developing new rural areas, and insisted on correspondingly improving the consumer and entertainment sector.

This is the only way to ensure that young people stay and develop their careers locally, and are also willing to spend their money there.

Earning money through work and spending money on entertainment must complement each other.

The village elders then took An'an and the others to see the new school in their rural hometown, as well as the rural health clinic and the five-story entertainment and consumption center in the town.

These are all things her father dedicated his life to.

He simply disdained to deliberately promote this aspect; otherwise, his fame would have been even greater.

It could even become an unprecedented and unparalleled legend in the business world.

After becoming wealthy in his early years, Chen Pingsheng did indeed keep thinking about his responsibilities and what he could do.

His assistance to ordinary people in society, including the development direction of new rural areas, has played an indelible role.

In his later years, he always hoped that the Chen family could continue this social responsibility.

It's not just about being a wealthy family and enjoying the current affluent life.

To him, the Chen family was completely dispensable.

They don't even really have much reason to exist.

This is the main reason why Chen Pingsheng, in his later years, kept considering whether or not to disband the Chen family.

Ultimately, it was An'an's presence that made him give up on the idea.

The future of the Chen family was completely handed over to the next generation the moment he closed his eyes.

One generation plants the trees, another enjoys the shade; all is well then.

(End of this chapter)