CHAPTER 396: CHAPTER 327 QIANSHI MANOR

After Li Jing got out of the taxi, the driver turned around the car while not forgetting to take a few extra glances at the manor, marveling:

"This is incredible, today I actually discovered such a place, I have to call Old Zhu.

Before, he was always bragging to me, but the boss I picked up today is much more impressive than the ones he encountered."

Saying that, he couldn’t wait to dial his old friend’s number: "Hey, Old Zhu, guess what kind of client I picked up today?"

"What kind of client?" A lazy voice came through the phone, accompanied by the faint sound of a car horn, indicating that the other party was also driving.

"I originally thought the boss was some dubious character, as I kept driving towards the South Suburbs.

But when we reached the destination, guess what, an enormous manor!

It clearly has historical elegance, I’ve never seen such an extravagant private estate, this person is definitely not simple!"

"Really? A client I picked up before had a house just like an Imperial Palace!"

The voice on the phone sounded full of disbelief and teasing.

"Stop talking nonsense, we don’t even have an Imperial Palace!" Seeing the other party exaggerate, the driver glared.

"You mentioned there’s a grand manor in the wilderness of the South Suburbs, why can’t I have an Imperial Palace?"

"You’re definitely bragging, I’m for real!"

"Well, I’m real too, my client got off and rode a Long Fei into the Imperial Palace."

"Get out of here, can your story be any more outrageous!"

"It’s true, I wouldn’t earn money by lying to you."

"You just can’t stop bragging, if it were a crime, you’d have been shot a long time ago!"

...

Already at the gate of the manor, Li Jing had no idea that the taxi still lingered on their discussion about him.

"Are you President Li?"

Before Li Jing could think about how to go inside, a respectful middle-aged man quickly approached from the manor.

Seeing Li Jing nod, the middle-aged man became even more courteous, smiling: "President Li, I’m the steward here, Elder Shi asked me to escort you into the manor."

Li Jing nodded and followed the man into the vast manor.

...

Meanwhile, in the grand hall of Qianshi Manor, two men and one woman sat on a soft sandalwood sofa.

The elderly man with gray hair and a weathered face was precisely Elder Shi, whom Li Jing had saved that day; he looked noticeably healthier than before.

Beside him was a young woman with a graceful silhouette and slender waist, his granddaughter Shi Yang.

On the other side of the sofa sat a plump middle-aged man in his fifties, wearing a sharp suit but with a troubled expression.

The middle-aged man leaned forward slightly, speaking urgently: "Elder Shi, for this international fitness competition in Hai City, you must help us figure something out.

Our Liu family has collaborated with the Shi Family quite a lot over the years, hoping you would consider this rapport and lend us a hand."

Upon hearing this, Elder Shi sighed helplessly, shook his head slightly, and said with difficulty:

"Dazhi, it’s not that I don’t want to help, but the international fitness competition is of too high standard, and I don’t have much connection in this circle, I’m really powerless."

Hearing the middle-aged man’s urgent words, Elder Shi also felt touched.

This middle-aged man is Liu Dazhi, the head of the Liu Family.

At this moment, he looked anxious, almost pleading as he spoke again:

"Elder, this time the international professional fitness competition must be applied to be held in Hai City. It’s not just about the Liu Family; it has major significance for the development of Hai City.

Recently, Hai City is keen to promote economic and tourism development, urgently needing this kind of international event to boost city traffic and visibility, this is the best opportunity at hand."

Pausing, Liu Dazhi appeared troubled, continued frowning: "Elder, you also know our Liu Family’s current predicament.

Previously, our cooperation with the government was good, taking on quite a few projects. But due to mishandling the last two projects, the government lost trust in us, drastically reducing our business.

Although it’s not yet at the point of being unsustainable, we’ve run into significant trouble.

This time the government brought up the challenge of applying to host the fitness competition in Hai City, no one dared guarantee success, we the Liu Family took on this task willingly, hoping to use it for a comeback.

But unexpectedly, the matter proved far more difficult than imagined, leaving us no choice but to seek assistance from your Shi Family."

Elder Shi sighed again, he knew well the truth in Liu Family’s words.

The Liu Family was indeed in a bind, and although his Shi Family had extensive connections in Hai City, they genuinely felt powerless regarding the international fitness competition.

As he pondered, Elder Shi’s eyes suddenly lit up, quickly speaking: "The last international professional fitness competition was held in Tianhai, and President Li seems to be a boss from that area. Maybe we could ask him if he knows anyone relevant?"

Speaking, Elder Shi turned to look at his granddaughter Shi Yang.

Shi Yang heard Li Jing’s name, her eyebrows involuntarily furrowing, her tone carrying some disapproval:

"Grandpa, such high-standard international competitions, he’s just a business boss from Tianhai, probably doesn’t know those key figures."

Actually, Shi Yang was unaware of Li Jing’s connections within the fitness sector.

She merely harbored some dislike for Li Jing, held a bias against him, so she didn’t want any ties with him nor desired future collaboration between their families.