Chapter 123: He Makes Money by the Ton!

Tang Wanxin’s attitude was extremely cold. If Liu Yiqian were here, he would have undoubtedly lashed back at him on Chai Jin’s behalf without hesitation. But Chai Jin did not take it to heart; he knew that was simply Tang Wanxin’s nature.

He was a founding father of capital operations, a ruthless executioner. The capital maneuvers that would become common in the future were all tricks this titan had already perfected in this era. He had every right to be arrogant.

However, as the group approached the entrance, the "Dragon Head" Chai Jin had hired emerged with dozens of men wearing red armbands. These men were pushing their way through, showing no regard for Tang Wanxin and his entourage. Just as the Dragon Head approached them, one of Tang’s bodyguards instinctively moved to block their path.

Who was this Dragon Head? He was a veteran of the streets under "Dragon Master." He didn't care about who was a big boss or a small boss. Before the bodyguard could even speak, the man shoved him aside. "Get lost. Don't try to pull rank on me; that doesn't work in Shenzhen!"

The bodyguards tensed, ready to strike, but when they looked up and saw dozens of men standing behind the Dragon Head, they faltered. Tang Wanxin, not wanting trouble, simply barked, "Move aside!" The bodyguards quickly stepped back, and Tang himself cleared a path. The Dragon Head shot Tang an icy glare before brushing past him.

Tang Wanxin’s expression darkened. He watched as the men in red armbands passed his group and stopped directly in front of Chai Jin. Led by the Dragon Head, they treated Chai Jin with immense respect. After a brief exchange, Chai Jin headed over to Old Huang’s side.

This scene left Tang Wanxin filled with confusion. He turned to one of his associates and asked, "Does anyone know the background of that young man?"

A man carrying a briefcase replied, "No one knows. We only know he has a very good relationship with Mr. Liu."

"Should we investigate him?"

Just as Tang Wanxin was about to respond, a roar erupted from the lobby ahead: "I got it! I finally got it!" Several people burst out of the hall, waving their application forms and shouting in triumph. It drew everyone's attention, filling the crowd with overwhelming envy. A stir began to ripple through the masses.

Tang Wanxin lost interest in Chai Jin. "Forget it," he said. "Whatever his background, as long as he doesn't cross us, let’s not invite unnecessary trouble. Let’s go check on how our people are doing in the queue."

There were fifty people in line, and they had managed to secure 500 subscription application forms. Old Huang had them fill out the paperwork using the ID cards they had been provided, then headed to another counter to submit the forms and get them stamped.

Fortunately, there was no need to wait in line to submit the forms. After over an hour, the five hundred certificates were collected. Old Huang had them bundled up and tossed into the burlap sacks inside a van. According to the plan, the money was to be distributed centrally, so Old Huang instructed the Dragon Head to have his men return to the guesthouse to rest for the day, counting it as paid time.

Once that was settled, he noticed Chai Jin staring at men carrying bags in and out of the back exit of the sales point. He asked, "Chai Jin, that’s all handled. We should get going. Is there something wrong with those people?"

Chai Jin flicked his cigarette butt away. "How could they not be hated? Others have been standing out here in the wind and rain for two days and two nights, while you guys can just walk out the back door, carrying bags full of them."

Old Huang, a veteran of the world, understood immediately. He stared at a few men with slicked-back hair who were boarding motorcycles with their bags. "Backdoor deals?"

Chai Jin smiled without confirming. "Forget it. It has nothing to do with us. Let's go."

The two got into the car and began traveling from point to point to coordinate. With over ten thousand people scattered across one or two hundred locations, collecting all the certificates was a massive undertaking.

By twelve o'clock noon, Chai Jin arrived at the private club with a van full of subscription certificates. The club was in an uproar. The wealthy speculators from Zhonghai were in a frenzy. Chai Jin stayed in the background, letting Old Huang act as his frontman. And this was only the first load! There were still several more vanloads to come—nearly one hundred and ten thousand certificates in total.

Liu Yiqian’s men moved the certificates into the club one by one, while the vehicles returned to wait at the back entrance. Then, sack after sack of cash was carried out and loaded directly into the vehicles. During the loading, Chai Jin used his connection with Liu Yiqian to contact a bank, and all the money was hauled directly there.

When the first truckload of cash arrived, the bank staff were stunned. They knew where the money came from—the recent frenzy over the subscription certificates had made the sight of burlap sacks in the bank common—but they had never seen it transported by the truckload.

Especially when Chai Jin stood at the entrance, lighting a cigarette and gazing at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, cool and collected, as he remarked, "There should be a few more truckloads coming," he became a figure of reverence for everyone in the bank, from the manager down to the cleaning lady, who offered him the warmest of smiles.

Throughout the entire day, this mania played out in every corner of the city. It seemed as if every other major event in Shenzhen had been pushed aside, leaving only the topic of subscription certificates. Drivers were busy transporting speculators; restaurant owners and fruit vendors dragged carts of supplies to the sales points to sell; factories even halted production as bosses dragged their workers off to join the queues.

Tang Wanxin emerged a big winner. He was a ruthless strategist like Chai Jin, having quietly arranged everything in advance. However, he did not trade his certificates for cash, choosing instead to hold onto them all. Even the second-generation heir, He Kai, had managed to snag quite a few certificates, cheering wildly, walking with such a swagger he felt like he owned the world.

At midnight, Chai Jin’s one hundred thousand certificates had been completely swallowed up by the "Zhonghai Cultural Square Gang." At a purchase price of five hundred yuan each, he had traded them for 1.8 tons of cash—a total of 130 million yuan across five truckloads! While the media of his past life had written extensively about people making money with burlap sacks, in this life, a titan was calculating his wealth by the ton. His name was Chai Jin.

By the end of the day, the group was exhausted. They kept one truckload of cash aside and did not take it to the bank. Tomorrow, when the Dragon Head brought his men to the courtyard, he would pay them out. He had boasted that the courtyard would be filled with cash, so he would make sure they saw it.

In the words of Liu Qingwen: "When it comes to showing off, we must handle the details. The details determine the height, depth, purity, and underlying substance of the display."

That night, they all stayed at Liu Yiqian’s place. The secretive club was filled with music and dancing every day. Tonight, having celebrated their fortune, the revelry continued long into the night.