Who would still be a social slave when they are so rich?

"Sir, Raymond just called and said he has something important to discuss with you!" Chen Fei saw Su Chen come out of the bedroom looking somewhat confused and immediately went to greet him.

"Raymond called me?" Upon hearing Chen Fei's words, the confusion on Su Chen's face, which had been showing after waking up from a nap, vanished instantly.

He knew that Raymond usually wouldn't call him; if he did, it was always about a major issue that Raymond couldn't decide on the spot.

It's a little past three in the afternoon. If we count the time, it should be around six or seven in the morning for Raymond. It seems he called as soon as he got up.

"Could something have happened to that resource island in Venezuela? Or perhaps the treasure that the scoundrels hid down the mountain has been found in the deep sea?"

Two thoughts flashed through Su Chen's mind. He immediately took the phone Chen Fei handed him, found Raymond's number, and stopped just as he was about to press the call button.

After thinking for a moment, Su Chen turned to Chen Fei and said, "Go to the bedside in the bedroom and get the encrypted communicator that Brother Yao gave me before."

"Ah~" Chen Fei was taken aback when he heard this, but he immediately realized that he had been a bit out of line and quickly replied, "Okay, sir!"

He then jogged towards the bedroom and quickly retrieved the encrypted communicator.

The reason Su Chen didn't use his own phone to contact Raymond was because he was worried that their conversation might be overheard. If there was any good news, it might trigger some pre-set mechanisms and attract the attention of certain people.

However, if an encrypted communicator is used for communication, given the high level of the encrypted communicator itself and Su Chen's own level of security, it would require at least someone like Old Master Xiao to speak personally in order to eavesdrop.

After all, this thing was personally given to him by Old Master Xiao, so its internal level goes without saying. Who would dare to do anything underhanded?
After receiving the encrypted communicator, Su Chen sat down on the sofa in the living room. He then checked the communicator, entered Raymond's number, and dialed the number.

The phone rang for three or four seconds before Raymond answered. The first thing he said was, "Are you the boss?"

Raymond, on the other end of the phone, was also puzzled. An unknown encrypted communication had suddenly contacted him. If he didn't know that there were only a handful of people who knew his encrypted number, he probably would have hung up the phone immediately.

Su Chen wasn't surprised by Raymond's reaction and replied with a smile, "It's me. This is my new encrypted contact information. If you need to contact me urgently in the future, just call this. I heard from Chen Fei that you called me about something?"

Raymond had been a little curious about what kind of satellite communication his boss had switched to, but when his boss asked him about it, he immediately suppressed that thought and said seriously, "Boss, there might be a big change in Venezuela!"

"A major change? What's going on? Could it be that there's been another rebellion within their ranks?" Su Chen subconsciously thought of this reason.

It's not that Su Chen has such thoughts; rather, he has seen many such situations.

From Mozambique at the beginning to the Democratic Republic of Congo later, both instances were due to internal rebellions that affected the investments and interests of various local forces.

For his resource island in Venezuela, Su Chen built a dock and a fleet in the city closest to the mainland. If internal strife were to break out, it would definitely affect the construction of the dock.

However, Raymond's answer quickly refuted Su Chen's guess: "No, Venezuela doesn't have much of a problem internally; it's coming from outside!"

"External?" Su Chen frowned slightly, and an unbelievable thought immediately popped into his mind. He immediately asked, "Raymond, the external you're talking about isn't the Bald Eagle, is it?"

After all, Venezuela has the world's richest oil resources, with proven oil reserves exceeding 300 billion barrels, far surpassing Saudi Arabia's 260 billion barrels, making it the world's largest oil producer.

Yet this oil-rich nation is now living in abject poverty, though it once had a glorious history.

As the former richest country in Latin America, Venezuela enjoyed a life of wealth thanks to its oil reserves, with welfare benefits that even the best-off countries in Europe today could not match.

Yet this once wealthy nation, which was among the world's leading countries, has declined into a country struggling to even feed itself in just over a decade. One country that cannot be overlooked in this decline is the contribution of the United States.

As the world's superpower at the time, the United States claimed that it would be present wherever there was oil. However, Venezuela did not buy into this and directly confronted the United States.

However, the combination of blows from the US, along with economic sanctions and fluctuations in the international oil market, dragged Venezuela, a country heavily reliant on oil and with a single industry, into an abyss.

Inflation can be said to change every year. From the initial inflation rate of 69%, it soared to 10 million percent in just four or five years, which is simply breaking the record in human history!
This has made it difficult for Venezuela, despite its abundant oil reserves, to escape the abyss of poverty.

This is why Venezuela has become a coveted prize for many. However, thanks to the decisive actions of its leaders, many predatory companies have been kept out, otherwise it would have been divided up by those unscrupulous conglomerates or countries long ago.

However, due to certain special reasons, Venezuela has close ties with its domestic population and Russia, and they have considerable cooperation in foreign trade and economy. This makes Venezuela an even bigger thorn in the side of the United States.

“That’s right, it’s the bald eagle!” Raymond was slightly taken aback. He didn’t expect his boss to have figured out the key point so quickly, but he didn’t think too much about it and continued to report: “According to some special channels of our IPS, the bald eagle is already planning to take action against Venezuela. As for the reason… it’s to fight crime.”

Hearing Raymond's reason, Su Chen's lips twitched slightly. It wasn't that the reason was so ridiculous, but rather that it was so bald eagle-like. After all, they had come up with countless bizarre reasons for oil in the past.

Composing himself, Su Chen unconsciously tapped the sofa armrest with his fingers, making a dull sound, wondering whether the bald eagle would actually take action, or simply want to use military threats to open the door to Venezuelan investment.

"Raymond, keep an eye on this matter. Call me immediately if there are any new developments. Also..."

Su Chen paused, thought carefully for a moment, and then continued, "We've increased manpower at all our subsidiaries, just in case anything unexpected happens. By the way, what stage is the construction on the resource island at? When can we officially start extracting oil?" Raymond perked up at this, his tone losing its previous seriousness and even becoming somewhat excited. "Boss, the construction speed in your country is extraordinary! The oil extraction platform has been successfully erected, and we expect it to be officially operational by the end of this month!"

Upon hearing this good news, Su Chen couldn't help but smile. "Well done. Be careful during the mining process and avoid any mistakes."

"Don't worry, boss. Leave the professional work to the professionals. All we need to do is protect the resource island!" Raymond said confidently.

After giving Raymond a few more instructions, Su Chen hung up the phone.

Putting down the encrypted communicator, Su Chen leaned back on the sofa, his fingers still unconsciously tapping the armrest, his brows furrowed as he pondered how far the Bald Eagle matter would progress.

Chen Fei stood to the side and, seeing Su Chen's serious expression after ending the call, asked softly, "Sir, has something troublesome happened in Venezuela?"

Su Chen slowly exhaled, his gaze turning to the bright afternoon sunlight outside the window, his eyes sharpening. "Troublesome? Perhaps. That vulture, Bald Eagle, has set its sights on Venezuelan oil. This time, it's using the guise of 'fighting crime,' I wonder if it really wants to get involved or is just putting on airs!"

"Sigh~ Our oil-producing island and port in Venezuela have just been built and are about to go into production. This timing is too sensitive. If the bald eagle really makes any moves, even if it's just border friction or supporting the opposition to destabilize the situation, it won't be good for us. It might even threaten the safety of our personnel and assets."

There was nothing to hide from Chen Fei and Su Chen. As his bodyguard, it was normal for him to know these things. Occasionally, he could change his mind and perhaps find another way.

Upon hearing this, Chen Fei's expression turned serious. It was common knowledge that wherever there was oil, there were bald eagles.

“Sir, why don’t you call Mr. Xiao and ask? If I remember correctly, there are quite a few investments from China over there, especially in oil, where they are major buyers,” Chen Fei said, bowing slightly and looking very cautious.

"Huh?" Su Chen's eyes lit up instantly, and he looked at Chen Fei with surprise. He didn't expect this guy to actually come up with a solution.

“What you said makes some sense. Let’s call Grandpa Xiao and ask if they received any advance notice and how they plan to resolve this matter!” Su Chen said, picking up the encrypted communicator, finding Grandpa Xiao’s phone number, pausing slightly, and then dialing the number.

Su Chen initially thought it would take a while for Grandpa Xiao to answer, given that he was a very busy man with his own affairs. However, to his surprise, Grandpa Xiao's voice came through the phone less than three seconds after Su Chen dialed...

"Little Su, why are you calling this old man? Don't tell me you're testing the encrypted communication device?" Old Master Xiao's voice carried a hint of amusement and... teasing!
Hearing this, Su Chen couldn't help but give a wry smile, and replied with feigned grievance, "Grandpa, do you really think of me, Su Chen, as such a boring person?"

Immediately, Old Master Xiao's laughter came from the other end of the phone, lasting for three or four seconds before stopping. "You little fox, you're getting slyer and slyer. Everyone knows you, Su boy, don't come here unless you need something. So, tell me, what's the matter that you called? If it's a small matter, this old man will take care of it for you!"

"Hehe~ You said it yourself, old man!" Su Chen chuckled, but then his expression turned serious. "Old man, Raymond, the head of IPS, just called me and said that he learned through special channels that the United States has designs on Venezuela. I wonder if you know about this?"

Grandpa Xiao, who was smiling on the other end of the phone, frowned immediately after hearing Su Chen's words. "Young Su, you're saying the bald eagle is planning to attack Venezuela? This is no joke. Are you serious?"

“Raymond reported it to me personally, so it can’t be fake!” Now it was Su Chen’s turn to be surprised. He raised an eyebrow and asked tentatively, “Grandpa, could it be… that you didn’t receive the news?”

Grandpa Xiao on the other end of the phone was so angry at Su Chen's words that he laughed. He retorted irritably, "Do you really think we are omnipotent and can plant people in other people's core departments?"

Upon hearing this, Su Chen couldn't help but chuckle, realizing he had oversimplified the situation.

Raymond was able to get the news so quickly because IPS has been working in the industry for many years and has already woven a large information network. Any slight movement from above, especially the use of force, will definitely be reported immediately. Otherwise, as a security company, IPS would probably not even get a hot bite.

Before Su Chen could speak, Old Master Xiao's voice rang out again, "You called this old man because you're worried your businesses in Venezuela will be affected?"

Su Chen smacked his lips, thinking to himself that the old man was indeed wiser than the old man. He had only mentioned the bald eagle, but the old man had already guessed the purpose of his call.

"Ahem~" He coughed tactically and said with a smile, "What are my few businesses? I'm just worried that my domestic plans will be affected!"

Grandpa Xiao on the other end of the phone rolled his eyes. What he said sounded so high-sounding.

"With IPS watching over things, what do you have to worry about!" Old Master Xiao pursed his lips. "Alright, I'm not going to waste time arguing with you. I still need to get this matter settled. From my initial analysis, this matter isn't as simple as you think."

Grandpa Xiao paused for a moment before continuing, "Young Su, if there are any new developments on your end, remember to call me anytime. I have to get back to work now!"

Without giving Su Chen a chance to react, Old Master Xiao hung up the phone. Su Chen looked at the encrypted communicator in his hand that had been disconnected and frowned slightly. He recalled what Old Master Xiao had just said, and it seemed that there was some secret hidden behind this matter.

However… Su Chen quickly put the matter out of his mind; if the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up.

However… he realized that even if the bald eagle really intended to take action, it wouldn’t have any impact on IPS, given its considerable influence within the bald eagle.

"I really let my concern cloud my judgment!" Su Chen muttered to himself as he placed the encrypted communicator on the coffee table, all his previous worries vanishing in an instant.

Just then... the doorbell of the suite suddenly rang. Su Chen turned his head to look at the door and saw that Chen Fei had already opened the door and Su Yan walked in excitedly, followed by Bai Xiangwen.

Seeing their posture, Su Chen knew that the two had hit it off immediately and were "hooking up" together. (End of Chapter)