The Rich Man's Life Begins with a Comeback

Chapter 121 Paper Gold (5k)

It was the weekend, and the China Overseas International Financial Center shopping mall was bustling with people.

The vast majority of visitors are tourists who come to browse and broaden their horizons; only a small number are customers who actually have the means to spend money.

Upon entering the mall, rows of 10-meter-high duplex luxury shops stretch out, their opulent grandeur making one feel inexplicably small.

The giant egg-shaped crystal chandelier hanging in the center shines with dazzling light. The entire interior of the mall is mainly decorated in champagne and off-white tones, combined with the wave-shaped hollow design of a European opera house, making it look fashionable, elegant, noble and exquisite.

Such a luxurious shopping mall was truly the first time Gu Heng had ever seen anything like it in his life.

Gu Heng remained outwardly calm, but as his gaze slowly shifted, a strong desire to consume arose within him.

That feeling was just like the feeling he had when he first arrived at the Beichun Zhuozhan Shopping Center after unlocking the first level of the [Golden Tower of Wealth] and receiving a cash reward of 100 million yuan from his father, the "Successor."

Consumption!

Spend big!

At this moment, Gu Heng looked at the extremely luxurious shopping mall in front of him, his heart filled with a strong desire to conquer it.

Compared to Gu Heng's burning passion, Wang Yan felt as if he had come home. He didn't even need a professional shopping companion to guide him; he knew the way well and led Gu Heng and the others briskly in a certain direction.

After walking about 300 meters, the group took the elevator to the second floor, and then turned several corners before the cigar room that Wang Yan had mentioned finally appeared before them.

If the interior design of the world's top luxury stores is high-profile luxury, then this cigar room is understated luxury. It uses a lot of high-end pine wood in its interior design, paired with a lot of high-transparency glass.

The overall main color is brown, giving it a distinctly North American feel.

Wang Yan pushed open the door and led Gu Heng and the other two inside. Of the six professional personal shoppers who followed, only one quietly went inside, while the other five stood guard at the entrance of the cigar room.

"Oscar!"

"Brother Yan has brought you a big client!"

Wang Yan stepped into the cigar room as if he were back home.

Not far away, the young man who was sitting on the sofa swinging an eggplant, Oscar, whom Wang Yan mentioned, stood up from the sofa upon hearing the sound.

Besides, several people sitting around Oscar also looked over when they heard the noise.

"President Yan?"

"Damn it, Yanzi!"

"Brother Yan!"

"Pharaoh!"

In an instant, all sorts of titles appeared.

At the same time, everyone stood up along with Oscar.

"Ouch?"

What a coincidence!

As Oscar and the others stood up, Wang Yan noticed them. He looked slightly surprised and walked towards the sofa.

"Old Wang, I asked you to go to the track this weekend, but you told me you had something important to do. Turns out your so-called important thing was to come to Oscar and throw eggplants?"

A man who looked to be about the same age as Wang Yan looked at Wang Yan with a somewhat unfriendly expression. Although his tone was questioning, anyone could tell that the two were very good friends.

"hold head high!"

"I have important business to attend to!"

"I'm not lying to you!"

Wang Yan was very confident and didn't back down at all.

As he spoke, Wang Yan nodded to the others, who were clearly acquaintances.

"Keep making things up!"

The man sneered, "If you're afraid of losing to me on the track, you can just say so. I'll give you a half-lap handicap!"

"Losing to you?"

"He is defeated."

"With your vegetable basket, my little sister will be able to beat you in a couple of years."

Wang Yan gave a wicked smile, appearing exceptionally arrogant.

The two bickered as soon as they met, a feeling that Gu Heng found strangely familiar, just like when he was with his best friend Wan Kaijia.

Thinking about this, Gu Heng really did miss Wan Kaijia a little.

'That sassy gun...'

'Looks like he's having a great time in college. If I don't contact him, he really doesn't contact me either.'

While Gu Heng was lost in thought, Wang Yan and the other party chatted for a few more minutes.

"Go, go, go."

"I'm not going to argue with you anymore."

Wang Yan waved his hand: "Let me give you a formal introduction."

As he spoke, Wang Yan adopted a serious expression and took a half step back to stand next to Gu Heng.

"Gu Heng, the newly appointed director of Junyao Group and the newly appointed independent director of Ruyi Airlines."

As Wang Yan finished speaking, the scene fell silent.

Everyone stared at the incredibly young Gu Heng, their eyes filled with shock.

Actually, they had all noticed Gu Heng just now, but looking at Gu Heng's youthful appearance, they all subconsciously thought that Gu Heng was a new younger brother that Wang Yan had met. No one expected that Gu Heng would have such an amazing identity.

Director of Junyao Group!

Independent Director of Ruyi Airlines!

It's worth noting that Wang Yan, as the heir apparent of Junyao Group, has only reached the position of Executive Vice President of Ruyi Aviation, while this young man in front of him has already squeezed into the core decision-making level of Junyao Group at such a young age.

Simply incredible!

Looking at the slightly dazed expressions of his friends, Wang Yan chuckled inwardly, but he didn't show it. On the surface, he maintained a serious demeanor and began to introduce them to Gu Heng.

"Chairman Gu, this is Gao Zihang."

"We were classmates in junior and senior high school, and our families are in the finance industry."

"I suggest you stay away from him; those people in finance are all corrupt."

Wang Yan seemed to be whispering his last sentence, but his voice was so loud that no one was trying to hide it from him; everyone could hear it clearly.

"Get lost!"

"Your heart is dirty!"

Gao Zihang chuckled and cursed, then his expression became slightly more formal as he extended his right hand to Gu Heng: "Chairman Gu, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hello, Mr. Gao."

Gu Heng shook hands with the other person, his expression natural and easygoing.

Those who can be on friendly terms with Wang Yan must be of extraordinary status.

When you're out and about, it's always good to be humble and low-key.

"This is Oscar, the owner of this cigar lounge."

"He's from Gangcheng; his family is in the shipbuilding business."

"Now that I've started my own business, with a little help from my family, I've set up a cigar room here, and now the inventory alone is close to 200 million yuan."

At this point, Wang Yan clicked his tongue: "Originally, his scale wasn't this big, but this kid had incredible luck. When he first started getting into eggplants in 18, the price of eggplants was quite normal."

"Who would have thought that starting in 20, the price of those imported Cuban eggplants would skyrocket as if they were on mad cow drugs. Gold has already risen ridiculously high, but who would have thought that the price increase of these eggplants would be even more outrageous than that of gold."

Oscar appears to be younger than Wang Yan and Gao Zihang, looking to be around thirty years old. He wore a business white shirt with a light brown plaid vest, giving him a very elegant appearance.

He maintained a smile throughout Wang Yan's criticisms.

"Mr. Gu, welcome to my shop."

"Since you are Wang Yan's friend, then you are my honored guest."

"If you have any needs regarding cigars in the future, please feel free to contact me at any time."

Oscar took out a gold-embossed business card from his pocket: "Mr. Gu, this is my business card. Welcome back again."

"must."

Gu Heng accepted the business card and responded with a smile.

After introducing Gao Zihang and Oscar, Wang Yan then briefly introduced two other people.

One is Zhao Yongtao, who is about the same age as Wang Yan. He is a friend of Gao Zihang and knows Wang Yan as well. His family owns a design firm.

Judging from various aspects, his family's wealth is quite different from that of Wang Yan and Gao Zihang, and he seems rather cautious in his conversations with Wang Yan.

The other is Gao Zihao, 21 years old this year, Gao Zihang's younger brother.

Ever since Wang Wanning walked in from outside the cigar room, the other person's gaze has barely left her.

However, Wang Wanning's attention was always on Gu Heng, and she didn't pay much attention to Gao Zihao at all, which made Gao Zihao look at Gu Heng with a hint of displeasure.

"Oscar, Mr. Gu wants to buy some eggplants to grow at home."

After a brief introduction, Wang Yan didn't forget the purpose of his trip and said to Oscar, "I just bragged to you about everything, so hurry up and bring out some good stuff, or I'll lose face in front of Chairman Gu."

"That's for sure."

Oscar smiled, then looked at Gu Heng: "Mr. Gu, why don't we sit down and have an eggplant?"

"can."

Gu Heng nodded, completely unfazed.

With his expertise in cigar appreciation cards, he is an expert among experts in the cigar industry. Even Oscar, the owner of a cigar lounge, may not know as much as he does.

Everyone returned to the sofa and sat down, with Gu Heng still in the center, Jiang Ruan and Wang Wanning on either side, and Wang Yan sitting on the other side of Wang Wanning.

Soon, at Oscar's signal...

Two waitresses dressed in women's suits and black stockings approached Gu Heng and Wang Yan. They slowly knelt down in front of them, one of them holding a long, black, lacquered box. The box was opened, revealing a cedar wood panel protecting the top.

Meanwhile, a black card with gold lettering was affixed to the cedar wood chip.

After removing the cedar wood chips, a row of neatly arranged cigars lay inside.

"Cohiba is limited to 5,000 boxes, Cohiba Gran Reserva."

Seeing the long box in front of him, Gu Heng looked at Oscar and smiled, "Mr. Oscar, isn't it a bit extravagant to serve this as hospitality?"

Oscar's eyes lit up slightly when he saw Gu Heng glance at him and immediately identify his background. He looked a little surprised and said, "Chairman Gu, it seems you are an expert."

Gu Heng smiled, but did not deny it.

"Since it's our first meeting, and it was Brother Yan who introduced us, we definitely have to show some sincerity."

Oscar gestured for Gu Heng to proceed.

"Brother Yan, that's impressive!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Heng gave Wang Yan a thumbs up.

"We must save face."

Wang Yan chuckled and said, "But Oscar isn't usually like this. He'd give us old guys a couple of Crowns at most. I guess I'm just basking in your glory today."

"Depend on!"

"loss!"

"You're early!"

Looking at the row of exquisite cigars in front of him, and then at the Robusto in his hand, Gao Zihang suddenly felt that it didn't smell so good anymore. But since the cigar was already lit, he couldn't just stop halfway through.

"Sir, would you like a flat or V-shaped cut?"

The waiter, who was squatting in front of Gu Heng, looked up at Gu Heng and asked.

"Flat-sided".

Gu Heng smiled and replied.

"Ok."

Upon receiving the signal, the cigar cutter immediately took out his cigar cutter and began to work with elegant and skillful movements, quickly trimming the cigar neatly.

"Sir, would you like to test the suction resistance?"

The eggplant server looked intently at Gu Heng and asked him a question.

"No need."

Gu Heng reached out and took the cigar from the cigar server, politely declining the offer.

Trial suction resistance?
Jiang Ruan sat next to Gu Heng, watching the men exhale smoke, her horizons broadened once again, and she was filled with curiosity about the various terms that Gu Heng and the others mentioned in their conversation.

However, Jiang Ruan's doubts were soon answered by Wang Yan.

The cigar server in front of Wang Yan took a lit cigar, took two puffs backwards, and then handed it to Wang Yan.

'turn out to be……'

This is the test suction resistance.

A look of realization flashed across Jiang Ruan's eyes, and she silently memorized all the actions of the two eggplant server chefs.

"Mr. Gu, Oscar has all the Cuban cigars from various brands, as well as most non-Cuban cigars from other brands. They have regular models from major brands, as well as limited edition models, and even auction models."

Wang Yan, acting as the middleman, gave Oscar a brief introduction, then asked Gu Heng, "What would you like to see? I'll have Oscar get it for you."

"Everyone has just sat down, so let's not make any more noise."

"We'll talk about the regular models later. Let's see what good stuff Mr. Ka has here first."

Gu Heng added, "The premise is that it's a really good deal that Boss Ka is willing to sell. If Boss Ka isn't willing to sell it, then don't take it, lest you just look at it with envy."

"Row."

"Please have a seat, I'll go to the storeroom."

Oscar gestured to the crowd, then stood up from the sofa and walked deeper into the cigar room.

"Old Wang, what are your plans with Chairman Gu later?"

Gao Zihang glanced at Wang Yan and then at Gu Heng: "This is my first time meeting Chairman Gu. If you're not busy, how about we have dinner together later?"

"We just finished eating and drove here."

"I'll stay at Oscar for a while, then I'll go check out other stores later."

Wang Yan explained briefly, then declined, saying, "It might take a while. If it's time to eat, you can go by yourselves."

"Then let's get together for drinks."

Gao Zihang and Wang Yan have known each other for over twenty years. There are very few people who have earned Wang Yan's respect since childhood, and he has never seen anyone like this, with both Wang siblings accompanying him.

That's why he shamelessly tried to create more social opportunities with Gu Heng through Wang Yan, in order to achieve his goal of befriending him.

"This matter will be discussed later."

Wang Yan understood what Gao Zihang meant, but he couldn't make the decision for Gu Heng, so he could only temporarily brush off the other party's suggestion.

During the conversation, Oscar, who had just left, returned soon after leaving the depths of the cigar room with two staff members.

Behind him, two staff members were carrying two black boxes, their contents obscured, while Oscar himself was carrying a cigar humidor with a long, curved surface, also finished in black piano lacquer.

After Oscar returned with two staff members, he placed the cigar humidor he was holding directly in front of Gu Heng.

"Mr. Gu, this is the Cohiba 50th Anniversary Moisturizing Box."

"Limited to 1966 sets worldwide, each containing 20 Cohiba Majestic 1966 cigars of a special size. The box I have is number 1069."

Oscar sat back down in his original spot and introduced the Cohiba 50th Anniversary Hydration Box to Gu Heng with a smile. At the same time, the two chefs who had just served Gu Heng and Wang Yan, wearing white gloves, slowly opened the box in front of Gu Heng.

Inside the humidifier box, at the top was a custom-made sponge cloth. After removing the sponge cloth, a row of Cohiba Majestic 1966s was placed in the center, with thermometers and hygrometers on both sides.

The wrapper is perfect, and the size is enormous.

"Cohiba Majestic 1966, length 150, ring diameter 58."

"The smoke is smooth and creamy, with a sweet and rich flavor."

Looking at the row of magnificent Cohiba 1966 in front of him, Gu Heng immediately recalled its data and taste, and subconsciously began to evaluate it.

If Oscar was only slightly surprised that Gu Heng had immediately identified the origin of Cohiba GR, he was now somewhat shocked.

Because the Cohiba GR has been a popular model in the last two years, many seasoned cigar aficionados are familiar with the Cohiba GR. However, the Cohiba Majestic 1966 is undoubtedly much rarer than the Cohiba GR.

However, Gu Heng immediately described its data and taste.

What does this mean?
This shows that Gu Heng not only tasted Cohiba's Majestic 1966, but also many other brands; otherwise, he wouldn't have known the taste so clearly.

"Chairman Gu!"

"Cattle!"

Oscar was inexplicably excited, and the way he looked at Gu Heng subtly changed, as if he had met a kindred spirit.

"Mr. Ka, name your price."

"Since you've already taken it out, there's no reason for me to let you take it back."

With his background in cigar appreciation cards, Gu Heng knows cigars inside and out. He knows exactly what's worth collecting and what's not.

This Cohiba 50th Anniversary edition is definitely worth collecting.

Every cigarette you smoke is one less you have left.

The workmanship, taste, and feel are all impeccable.

"Chairman Gu, 109 million."

Oscar smiled and said, "The lowest price, you can take it if you want."

As Oscar finished speaking, Jiang Ruan, who was sitting next to Gu Heng, felt her heart, which had been as calm as a still lake, stirred up ripples once again.

20 cigars, priced at 109 million.

That's equivalent to an average price of about 5.5 yuan per cigar, which is more expensive than gold and can be considered paper gold.

First came private jets, then million-dollar cigars.

Sometimes Jiang Ruan really felt that Gu Heng was like a violent breakthrough man, not only brutally expanding her body, but also brutally expanding her horizons.

"make a deal."

Oscar's offer is within the normal range.

All imported cigars must pay very high taxes to be sold in China, so the price in China is significantly higher than in Hong Kong and Macau.

If your personal needs are small and you don't mind the hassle, you can purchase them yourself by traveling to Hong Kong, Macau, or overseas.

Gu Heng was clearly not among them; he was here today to go on a shopping spree. With his father's mission rewards backing him up, why would he care about a little extra cost?

Do whatever you want!
Just spend lavishly!
Oscar was a little puzzled when he saw Gu Heng being so straightforward, without even a moment's hesitation. He wondered if Gu Heng was simply too rich to care, or if he knew the market price well and didn't bother to haggle.

After a little analysis, Oscar thinks both possibilities exist.

"Mr. Gu, does this Cohiba 50th Anniversary set still meet your standards?"

Oscar gave the two eggplant masters a look, and the two immediately began sealing the Cohiba 50th Anniversary set on the spot. At the same time, Oscar smiled and asked Gu Heng a question.

"It's pleasing to the eye."

Gu Heng smiled and said, "But if this is the 'tough stuff' that Boss Ka was talking about, then I might be a little disappointed."

"it is good!"

"Since Chairman Gu is not satisfied, let's continue!"

After Oscar finished speaking, he raised his hand to indicate something without turning around.

Two meters away, two staff members who had been waiting all along, one of them immediately brought a black box to the group and, under the curious gazes of the crowd, slowly took out the contents of the black box...

(End of this chapter)