Rebirth 07: Start adding points from elementary school students

Chapter 489: Being prostituted for nothing
Furious.

This was Hou Xiaofeng’s first reaction after learning the relevant information.

Who does it concern?

Of course it’s Li Yan.

During the call with Shi Lei, Hou Xiaofeng was totally unable to maintain his usual calm demeanor.

"Lao Shi, why don't you tell me? Anyway, I treat you well, right?"

Shi Lei's voice on the phone was relaxed. "How can I communicate? When Huang Guohui contacted me, I didn't even know I was going to have dinner with Li Yan."

"You really don't know?"

"It's no fun to say that, Mr. Hou."

Hou Xiaofeng realized that he had lost his composure and took a deep breath.

"I don't know what kind of deal you have with Li Yan. You also know that I, Shi Lei, am not interested in these things." Shi Lei said, "I am telling you the content of our conversation because I consider you as a friend. Don't let it disappoint you."

"Don't get me wrong, Lao Shi, I don't mean any extra things." Hou Xiaofeng is a person who relies on personal connections. His biggest taboo is to offend those who have resources but few leverage. Naturally, he knows how to give in quickly. "Then you can help me and answer two more questions for me, okay?"

Shi Lei was silent for two seconds, "Of course."

Without Hou Xiaofeng's operation, Shi Lei might have been able to keep his position as vice president of HUST, but there was no chance that he would concurrently serve as the president of the Linjiang branch.

"Did Secretary Huang take the initiative to find Li Yan?"

"At least from what I understand, yes."

"Did Tang Bu come here on his own initiative?"

"I don't even have the conditions to understand this. This is also the first time I've met him."

It was Hou Xiaofeng's turn to remain silent.

"Why bother, Mr. Hou? Do you care so much about whether Li Yan is behind this?"

"If he doesn't work, it means that even God is on his side. How can I accept that? If he works, it means that I underestimated him and learned a lesson."

"You still can't get over it, right?"

"I have to swallow it even if I can't..." Hou Xiaofeng sighed twice, "I was tricked."

"If you walk by the river often, how can you not get your shoes wet?"

"Let's go out for a drink, are you free?"

"Just a drink. I can't talk to you too much. If you were in Linjiang..."

“I’m in New Taipei.”

After hanging up the phone with Shi Lei, Hou Xiaofeng sat in the hotel in a depressed mood.

He rarely sent away the woman who had just arrived in the room, packed his clothes, and asked the waiter to bring a bottle of wine.

"It won't take long for me to get here. You're drinking now? It looks like you're really hurt."

Hou Xiaofeng sat on the sofa, looking a little listless and old. "What a sarcastic remark, you old man."

"I've come here to chat with you, can't I make a few jokes?" Shi Lei sat on the sofa on the other side and picked up the wine. "Since I met you, you have never shown such a depressed look in front of me."

"I've been immersed in the human world for so many years, I know how to not show weakness in front of others."

"Our relationship isn't that good, is it?" Shi Lei smiled.

"I can't find a more suitable person, so it's okay to get closer unilaterally."

"So, why is it so hard?"

Opening up the topic, Hou Xiaofeng picked up his glass and stood up, "Thinking about me, Hou Xiaofeng, I have been in society since I was a teenager, and now I know my destiny. I have been struggling in the human world for more than 30 years... I am not a good person.

"I came from a poor family, and I have done everything I could to get close to the rich and powerful. I know the weaknesses of human nature, which may be a kind of talent. I have been devoted to studying the human relationship for more than 30 years. In the eyes of others, I am always unwilling to take the right path.

"But I have walked out my own path. This society is ultimately ruled by people. Even though I, Hou Xiaofeng, have little knowledge, hold no official position, and cannot stand in the center of the stage, I can still become a thread behind the scenes, manipulating everything on the stage."

Shi Lei said nothing.

Hou Xiaofeng is a genius at manipulating human relationships. During his barbaric upbringing, he suffered a lot of hardships that ordinary people would not endure. After he got through it, he became a madman in the human relations field, and he is an expert at putting pressure on and flattering anyone.

He persevered like this for more than ten years, and managed to gain control of a large number of resources and hold a lot of leverage.

As he himself said, he is not a good person. He wanders in the gray area and has been stained with gray for a long time, but he manages not to touch any black.

It's not white, so everyone is happy to play with him, and is willing to trade leverage with each other and be in the same boat.

He is not evil, so when other people have problems, it is really difficult to drag him into the explosion as well.

The larger the network of relationships, the safer he is.

Moreover, Hou Xiaofeng is very smart. He knows that he is not suitable for being in the spotlight, so even though he has terrifying resources, he still keeps a low profile.

People holding so many chips cannot go on stage. If they really go on stage, there will inevitably be a wave of people who will overthrow them with the mentality of destroying themselves along with them.

There have always been many people who play with human relationships, but it is rare to find those who know how to play with human relationships.

Those who rely on flattery to get to the top are not even qualified to join the discussion circle.

There are very few people who can play as successfully as Hou Xiaofeng.

But there are very few people who can calm down and be willing to hide behind the scenes after success.

This is the reason why Hou Xiaofeng is still able to maintain his influence until now.

His influence in Linjiang is so exaggerated that it is no exaggeration to call him the "underground emperor".

There used to be a joke in the Linjiang circle that the value of the companies they brought in at the economic conference might not be as large as the total amount brought in at the dinner party organized by Hou Xiaofeng.

However, in the past two years, Hou Xiaofeng has become increasingly hidden behind the scenes.

Perhaps he was finally tired of human relationships, or perhaps he had reached the limit of this path - it couldn't go all the way to the sky, right? Anyway, he was tired and devoted himself more to enjoying himself.

He lacks normal interpersonal relationships and doesn't even have a family.

So the "friends" he met recently do have some true friendship in Hou Xiaofeng's heart.

For example, Shi Lei.

Shi Lei has a straightforward personality. Although he is capable, he often offends people, so he is always a little short of promotion.

By chance, Hou Xiaofeng helped him make up for this little bit.

It's not really a handle, let alone something that binds them together.

Therefore, Shi Lei was not particularly wary of Hou Xiaofeng and could treat him as a friend.

Shi Lei knew that Hou Xiaofeng had some rather morbid hobbies. He understood that this man had spent more than thirty years of his hard work on something unspeakable.

Apart from this, Mr. Hou, who had no leverage in his hand, was just a "pleasure-seeking" person.

"...In the past two years, I have seldom taken any action, Lao Shi, because I have no interest, do you understand?" "You usually look very energetic, how can there be a day when you have no interest?"

"Tired of it." Hou Xiaofeng drank a glass of wine, and the rosy color on his face returned a little. "Time changes, people come and go, and over the years, I have seen so many people rise and fall. How does the saying go?"

"Seeing him building a tall building, watching him entertaining guests, watching his building collapse."

"That's right. People with knowledge are different." Hou Xiaofeng squinted his eyes and smiled. He seemed to be drunk. "Too much. I've seen too much. I suddenly felt a great emptiness. I have seen the end of my road...

"I am alone with nothing but treasures. I have lived my whole life with nothing but money and women. I want to say that I am free and easy, but there is nothing free and easy about it."

No matter what level of person you are, you will eventually be trapped in the ultimate question of "the meaning of life".

"Until I saw Li Yan."

This sentence actually resonated strongly with Shi Lei.

"To be honest," Hou Xiaofeng smiled, "I think this kid has some metaphysics."

Shi Lei actually nodded, "Maybe you're not the only one who thinks so."

"I've seen many geniuses, but I've never seen one who can create such a business empire at this age." Hou Xiaofeng pondered, "I feel like he knows something we don't know."

"So, what did you do?"

"I took the initiative and thought that I could use my current resources to suppress him and bring him into my camp."

Shi Lei smiled, "You still want to bind him."

"Yes. With his growth rate, if I show my goodwill and take things slowly, I'm afraid that before we even become allies, we will have already lost our value to him."

"Based on what I know about you... the phrase 'suppress him' means that what you did was probably not as rational as what you are saying now."

"Well," Hou Xiaofeng smiled strangely, "I must have done something to make people unhappy. It's a pity that he wasn't scared by me, and now it seems to have had the opposite effect."

Hou Xiaofeng didn't say anything, and Shi Lei didn't ask any more questions.

"In short, I helped him clear the obstacles on his way to dominating the super life circle... It wasn't easy, and it wasn't simple. I also put in a lot of effort. I also offended the big boss behind the band because of this. I had to treat him to a few meals in Beijing, apologize, and lose face."

"What do you want in return?"

"I originally planned it quite carefully, but now it's all in vain." Hou Xiaofeng's face showed a very unhappy expression again, "The core is the threat, I believe he can't escape from my palm. Even if Huang Guohui supports him, it's useless. He has used my resources, and it is always wishful thinking to want to retreat unscathed..."

"Did he quit, then?"

Hou Xiaofeng stood up with a red face. "He has the country behind him now. What else can I say?"

"Don't be impatient." Shi Lei waved his hand. "You are in this mood now. You have been drinking alcohol. You know that Li Yan has tricked you, but you can still clearly recognize the current situation. It's amazing."

"You're teasing me again. You said he tricked me? Does that mean that when Li Yan asked me to help, he had already thought about how far he could reach today? He knew that the country would be willing to support him?"

"I can't guarantee that." Shi Lei shook his head. "But I think that judging from his recent arrangements to promote the international market, Li Yan knows exactly when to surrender and when to put pressure on you. You are just a part of his plan."

Hou Xiaofeng frowned, as if smiling, "After all this trouble, I'm a good man? I got fucking taken advantage of?"

"It's a pity. If you really acted like a good person at the beginning, he might be grateful."

"I can't be a good person." Hou Xiaofeng's eyes showed a hint of murderous intent.

Shi Lei saw through it, put down his wine glass, and said in a deep voice, "Xiao Feng, you should stay calm. As the saying goes, if you walk by the river often, you will get your feet wet. It is also common for people to be too clever and make mistakes."

"I'm not thinking of anything extreme." Hou Xiaofeng said coldly, "But I can't just swallow my anger like this."

"You have to swallow it whether you want to or not."

The scene suddenly became very quiet.

Hou Xiaofeng looked at Shi Lei in shock. He never expected Shi Lei to say such harsh words.

"Do you think Tang Bu came here on his own initiative?"

Hou Xiaofeng wanted to say something, but was blocked by Shi Lei's words:

"During the meal, Tang Bu said something... 'When the boss was in the meeting today, he mentioned Li Yan and the first thing he mentioned was our Li family.' Think about it for yourself."

Mr. Hou’s face was full of disbelief.

The boss mentioned by Tang Bu is surnamed Li, who else could this be?

(Note: The parallel world has been changed. There is no drama later to avoid getting stuck. You can just watch it as a parallel world)
"I didn't tell you before. But if you have some extra ideas, it is necessary to tell you." Shi Lei patted Hou Xiaofeng on the back, "Li Yan's level is higher than you and I thought. We saw his potential, and the country saw his unlimited possibilities."

"Ugh……"

"Why bother? It was just a one-time mistake."

"He can reach the sky." Hou Xiaofeng lowered his head and said, "This kind of luck has never been seen in more than 30 years. Lao Shi, I really can't catch up. My road can't reach the sky. It has reached the end. Even if I am lucky enough to get a chance, I can't catch it after all."

"I helped him after all. I'll set up a plan later..."

"Let's talk about it later." Hou Xiaofeng lay on the sofa and closed his eyes.

"He threatened me at the beginning." Li Yan answered while flipping through the book in his hand.

This was the first time that Shi Lei sat in Li Yan's office. He looked at the information scattered in every corner, and was shocked again and again.

Li Yan was actually watching, and was watching very quickly!
"Mr. Shi, you rarely come to visit me, but you came just for Hou Xiaofeng's matter? You two have a close relationship, right?"

"That's not the case. I don't care whether you agree or not. I'm just curious about what you think and I'm taking this opportunity to ask. If you're willing to set up a party, it wouldn't be bad to have more friends. Hou Xiaofeng still has a lot of energy."

"Friend?" Li Yan smiled. "I am a grudge holder. I cannot be friends with him."

"Okay, okay, it's all up to you."

"It's the 'garden' again trying to trap a good seedling like me, and it's the 'wolf' that bites people rather than the obedient dog." Li Yan shook her head, "Keep going, I was counting on him to water me more and feed me more meat, can't you bear it after just two bites of him?"

Shi Lei was embarrassed. It seemed that this was what they called "unhappy" things.

"Ignore him, just pretend I didn't say anything." Shi Lei chuckled, "By the way, how do you think you read these materials?"

"How is the lithography machine?" Li Yan did not answer, but asked a question instead.

"...You are angry!" Shi Lei said bitterly, "I am sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it. The lithography machine has given a time, and the communication and negotiation have basically been finalized. It will take about another half a month to deliver it to you. But Li Yan, are you sure..."

"It's time to cook." Li Yan put down the book in her hand, and Shi Lei saw that it was a fucking recipe.

When I took a closer look, I couldn't hold back my excitement anymore. The author of this cookbook was Li Yan.

"How did you find time to do this? When did you do it?"

"It's nothing. It won't take much time. Just treat it as fun."

Shi Lei withstood this wave of pretense.

After all, he heard Li Yan say with his own ears that buying a lithography machine was like "buying him a toy."

……and many more.

Not really, just a toy, right?
(End of this chapter)