Chapter 26 - Only the land endures with the sun and the moon

At half past nine, Lu Liang drove to Tomson Golf Club. Developed by the Tomson Group as well, it was a luxury villa complex integrating commerce, entertainment and residential functions. The complex was dotted with detached courtyard villas, yet few people lived in them permanently; they were usually rented out for corporate team-building events or friends' gatherings. After passing through the villa area, they arrived at the sports center next to the golf course, where there were separate enclosed courts for basketball, tennis, and a driving range for golf beginners. Lu Liang spotted Old Meng sweating it out on the tennis court. His big belly jiggled with every move, making him a surprisingly agile middle-aged man. Across the net stood Zhou Xiaoqi, dressed in a women's professional tennis outfit, her long, shapely legs stretched straight beneath her short skirt. "Let's go over," Lu Liang said. He parked the car and led Li Manli into the enclosed tennis court. The two were dressed in matching sportswear—one in blue, the other in pink—and wore identical white flat caps. Li Manli kept glancing at Zhou Xiaoqi, sighing enviously. "That sister has such long, straight legs." It wasn't just men who loved looking at nice legs; women admired them too. At 164 centimeters tall, Li Manli wasn't actually short, but next to the 170-plus-centimeter Zhou Xiaoqi, she couldn't help but feel a little inferior. "You have a better proportion than her, and you're prettier too," Lu Liang comforted her with a smile before walking over to greet Meng Changkun. "Hey buddy, you're here! Come on, let's play a set," Meng Changkun called out. He shot a glance at Li Manli. Even though he'd seen countless beautiful women in his time, he couldn't help but be stunned by the young girl's stunning looks. Her delicate face was practically flawless, and her big, innocent eyes made her look so endearing that anyone would feel the urge to protect her. But he only looked for a moment. Stunning beauties, though rare, were not irreplaceable. Especially when she was a friend's girl—there was a basic code of morality in friendships: you don't covet your friend's woman. At his level, he had no shortage of women in his life, so there was no need to harbor such inappropriate thoughts about a friend's companion. "Sure thing. But I'm not really good at this, Brother Kun—go easy on me," Lu Liang replied. He took the tennis racket from Zhou Xiaoqi's hand. He'd never played tennis before, but he figured it was probably similar to badminton. However, he was way too naive. The amount of strength required for tennis was on an entirely different level compared to badminton. Fortunately, Old Meng could tell Lu Liang was a complete novice, so he deliberately slowed down his serves and fed him easy balls. They rallied back and forth, and gradually, Lu Liang got the hang of it and began to enjoy the sport. That satisfying, dull thud when the racket hit the ball was absolutely exhilarating. But it wasn't long before Old Meng was worn out. He waved his hand repeatedly, gasping for breath. "I can't go on anymore!" He turned to Li Manli, who was playing with her phone on the sidelines. "Little sister, come on over and play a set with your Brother Lu." Li Manli blinked her big, innocent eyes and shook her head hastily. "Sorry, I don't know how to play tennis." "It's just for fun. I didn't know how to play either a minute ago—you'll pick it up quickly," Lu Liang waved her over. Meng Changkun sipped his tea, watching the two amateurs fumble around on the court, and couldn't help but chuckle. Zhou Xiaoqi, who was brewing tea, said quietly, "She seems clueless about everything, but there's one thing that's really strange. Just a few months ago, Mr. Lu was still living in a talent apartment." Though young, she'd started her career as a model early on and had fought tooth and nail for years to get where she was by Meng Changkun's side. Compared to her, Li Manli was like a pure, innocent white flower. After chatting with her for just half an hour, Zhou Xiaoqi had coaxed every bit of information she knew right out of her. Meng Changkun's eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly hissed under his breath. "Stop talking—he's coming over." "Let's call it a day. The sun's getting hotter and hotter," Lu Liang said, wiping the sweat from his forehead with an ice-cold towel from the cooler box, and handed another one to Li Manli. "Have some tea and take a break," Meng Changkun said, telling Zhou Xiaoqi to give up her seat and go fetch some snacks. Lu Liang added, "Manli, go with Ms. Zhou too—see if she needs any help." He wasn't worried about Li Manli being coaxed into spilling any secrets; she didn't know much of anything, and what little she did know was trivial and unimportant. The past didn't matter. What mattered was the present—and the future. Once the two women had left, Lu Liang asked Meng Changkun for advice on the steps to set up a company, and also told him about his investment in a movie. "What movie?" Meng Changkun feigned surprise. If he hadn't known about Lu Liang's film investment, he wouldn't have invited him out to play tennis today. From now on, Lu Liang was his friend—someone who had temporarily shaken off the suspicion of being a fraud, worthy of further association. "It's a film adapted from a stage play," Lu Liang said, giving him a brief synopsis of the story but not going into details, knowing Meng Changkun wouldn't be interested. "Investing through a business entity is definitely better than investing as an individual," Meng Changkun mused after a moment. He really had no interest in the film industry. Over the years, he'd never made a profit from any film project he'd invested in; he'd only done it for fun. Meng Changkun called over an assistant standing in the distance—a young man named Liu Jun. "Assistant Liu, I need you to go the extra mile these next few days and help Mr. Lu with the paperwork." He'd been living and working in Shanghai for nearly twenty years, and in the Xupu District in particular, he had connections in every government department. With his assistant handling things, the paperwork would be approved in no time, and no one would dare to deliberately create obstacles. "Brother Kun, just have Assistant Liu walk me through the process—I can take care of the rest myself," Lu Liang said. Hearing this, Meng Changkun chuckled. "You don't have any experience in this sort of thing; it'll be a huge hassle if you go alone. Friends help each other out—that's what friends are for. Who knows? We might even have opportunities to collaborate in the future." Lu Liang hesitated for a moment, then clasped his hands in a gesture of thanks and didn't refuse any further. Human relationships were all about give and take—mutual favors that gradually deepen bonds over time. Meng Changkun asked, "Have you decided on a location for your company yet?" "Not yet. I was planning to go look this afternoon." "No need to bother. I happen to have a few office spaces available for rent. I'll take you to see them later." "Brother Kun, your business interests are really diverse," Lu Liang said in surprise. He'd only come to ask for advice; he hadn't expected Meng Changkun to offer him a one-stop solution for everything. Meng Changkun laughed. "Nowadays, no matter what industry you're in, if you have money in your pocket, you want a piece of the real estate pie. How does that saying go again? Only the land endures with the sun and the moon." "And look at someone like Bill Gates—running such a high-end tech company, yet he's still out there snapping up land left and right like a landlord." "Absolutely. Real estate is the only irreplaceable pillar industry," Lu Liang said, nodding in deep agreement. With nine years of experience in the real estate sector, he knew this all too well. Especially in recent years, the market had gone absolutely crazy—it reminded him of the stories he'd read about Tokyo in the late 1980s. Countless Japanese people were boasting that they could sell off Tokyo and buy the entire United States. Today's Shanghai was no less insane. If he had more money at his disposal, he would also buy a few properties as a last-resort safety net. After lunch, Meng Changkun took Lu Liang to Yongfeng Building in Xupu District. The entire 33-story building covered an area of 4,800 square meters, with floors 15 to 17 owned by Kunqian Trading. Meng Changkun's company occupied the entire 17th floor, while floors 15 and 16 were divided into office spaces ranging from 220 to 480 square meters. These spaces were rented out to young entrepreneurs; several of the tenants were companies he was supporting, mainly operating in emerging industries such as e-commerce, live streaming, and new media. "I don't pretend to understand these industries, but these emerging sectors that have popped up in recent years are quite interesting," Meng Changkun said, chatting and laughing with Lu Liang as they walked, like a king inspecting his domain. "Little Brother Lu, don't be fooled by their small size—some of these companies only have a dozen employees, but they're targeting the entire national market." "With the rise of mobile internet, countless new industries have indeed emerged. Among these sectors, there might just be a unicorn in the making," Lu Liang agreed wholeheartedly. At the same time, he realized just how big the gap was between him and Meng Changkun. The rumors that pegged Meng's wealth at one billion yuan were clearly a massive understatement. Meng Changkun threw his head back and laughed. "I'll take that as a good omen, little brother." A unicorn startup had a minimum valuation threshold of one billion US dollars before going public. If he managed to back even one such company, his family would be set for generations to come. The group of them went on to tour several available office spaces on the 15th and 16th floors. Meng Changkun asked, "Little Brother Lu, have you taken a fancy to any of these? Or do you have any specific requirements for the space?" Business people tended to be quite superstitious about feng shui. For example, he personally preferred offices that faced due south and had their backs to the north. A fortune teller had once told him that he was born with a "Gui Water" destiny, which required him to absorb positive yang energy to balance his yin, allowing him to gather wealth from all four corners of the earth.