Chapter 279: Family Divides and High-Stakes Investments

Third Brother, what do you mean by that?

At this, Xu Hui and Su Jie shot a displeased look at Xu Chen.

“It doesn’t mean much. I simply believe that if you’re going to spend the New Year with us, you should really commit to celebrating. But if you have any other ideas, then just stay away. We can’t risk spoiling everyone’s festive spirit.”

Xu Chen cast a cool glance at his eldest sister and her husband once more – it was obvious he wasn’t particularly fond of them.

“Third Brother, if Grandfather hadn’t shown favoritism by handing you the contract for that New Country garment factory and even buying Old Six a plot in the Desert, do you think you and Old Six could be as carefree as you are today?

Moreover, your brother-in-law didn’t just waltz over there to ask Old Six for a top executive position – things simply wouldn’t work out in Mingsha City without him spearheading a strategic investment!

Xu Hui glared at Xu Chen while never taking her eyes off her husband.

“Third Brother, I know you’ve misunderstood me before, but this time I really can’t do without my help!”

Sternly, Su Jie also shot Xu Chen a look of disapproval.

He knew exactly why Xu Chen held a grudge against him – wasn’t it because when the Xu Family hit hard times, the two of them in Country M didn’t lend a hand? Then again, he was merely a company executive, not the boss – what could he really do?

And besides,

Grandfather didn’t even mention this matter, so why does Xu Chen keep harping on it?

“Without you, it’s no big deal – aren’t you afraid you’ll end up biting your tongue in the wind?”

At these words, Xu Chen furrowed his brow.

“Third Brother, do you know which consortium I represent this time? It’s the Ross Consortium! And you know how ruthless the Ross Consortium is!”

At the mention of the Ross Consortium, Su Jie couldn’t help but beam with pride.

His arrogance made him feel invincible – as if he had already become someone the Xu Family could no longer afford to cross.

“The Ross Consortium? They’ve approached you?”

Xu Chen’s face darkened.

“Don’t believe it?”

Immediately, Su Jie bent down, pulled a recruitment letter from his briefcase, and handed it to Xu Chen.

“Here.”

Xu Chen examined the letter for a long moment before handing it back.

Late at night,

in Wudi City at the Ancient Building Courtyard,

Xu Hao sat at his desk. After quickly reviewing a document, he signed it with swift strokes.

This document outlined the reward plan for outstanding employees at the Mingsha City annual party as well as the year-end benefits for all staff.

“The River-to-Xianxia Zone Project?”

After a brief pause, Xu Hao picked up another document.

Ring, ring. Just as Xu Hao intended to study the plan carefully, his phone suddenly rang.

He answered immediately after glancing at the screen.

“Third Brother!”

“Old Six, have you had any rest?”

Xu Chen’s voice was low and serious.

“Not yet! What’s up, Third Brother?”

Xu Hao’s expression shifted – he could tell something was off with Xu Chen.

According to the previous plan, Grandfather was scheduled to return around December 25, meet some friends in Haishi, and then head to Mingsha City.

Checking the time,

they would soon be ready to depart.

“Today, I ran into our eldest sister and her husband while they were packing, and I overheard something interesting.”

“What did you hear?”

Xu Hao’s face grew more serious.

He wasn’t particularly fond of his eldest sister and her husband, either.

“That renowned international Ross Consortium has approached our brother-in-law, offering him a position as Investment Manager for the Long Kingdom regional office – they plan to invest in Mingsha City!”

“Invest in Mingsha City?”

“Yes!”

“Mingsha City, which doesn’t even need domestic capital, now seeks overseas investment?”

Xu Hao raised an eyebrow.

Currently, Mingsha City’s cash flow and other finances were booming. Their own funds were steadily rising, and not long ago, Mingsha Tourism’s subsidiary had covertly funneled a billion into Grandfather’s chip processing project!

One could say Mingsha City had the strength to invest in others – they didn’t actually need any outside capital.

“It seems the Ross Consortium has spotted something promising in Mingsha City and aims to take control. That’s exactly how domestic industry oligarchs get manipulated by these conglomerates.”

After a moment of silence,

Xu Chen’s voice came through again.

“Take control? A foreign company controlling Mingsha City? Mingsha City isn’t one of those scale-driven oligarchs that need their money.”

Coming back to his senses,

Xu Hao’s tone turned cold.

Mingsha City was like his child – after nurturing it with so much care, how could he ever let it share a surname with anyone else?

“That’s why I wanted to call and warn you. The Ross Consortium is notorious internationally – they are ruthless. If they can’t have what they want, they will find a way to destroy it!

I suspect that even before the Cultural Expo, the Ross Consortium had already set its sights on Mingsha City.

It’s laughable that our brother-in-law believed it was the Ross Group that chose him. Does he ever wonder why the Ross Group would approach a professional manager who was laid off half a year ago?

“Third Brother, rest assured – Mingsha City isn’t something that anyone can just destroy!”

Xu Hao’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“I know, but we still have to be cautious! In a few days, our brother-in-law will surely update you about the Ross Consortium’s investment. Keep your lips sealed – under no circumstances should you spill the beans just because of family ties.”

“Understood!”

“Alright then. We’ll discuss the rest when we meet.”

“Okay!”

“The Ross Consortium? A foreign consortium investing in Mingsha City, a place famed for its Long Kingdom traditional architecture and culture? And they purposely chose a family member as an investor? If you think it’s merely for profit, I find that hard to believe!”

The call ended.

Xu Hao frowned and muttered to himself before opening his computer to search for information on the Ross Consortium.

One minute, two minutes – an hour later, Xu Hao checked the time and called Zhu Qiang.

“Qiangzi, have you had any rest yet?”

“Brother Hao, not yet!”

“If possible, come to Mingsha City. I have something to discuss with you.”

“Alright, Brother Hao!”

Time passed by quickly. In what felt like the blink of an eye, it was December 25 – January 15 by the Gregorian calendar – with just five days remaining until the New Year.

In Yun Province at the TV station,

In the evening, after a long day’s work, He Ruozhou arrived at Cui Fangshan’s office. As always at year’s end, every major TV station hosted their own Spring Festival gala – and Yun Province TV was no exception.

However, most provincial TV stations preferred pre-recorded shows – just this afternoon, Yun Province TV had wrapped up its recordings.

Once everyone was settled,

He Ruozhou spoke up.

“Alright, you’ve all worked hard these past few days!”

“Well, if a little hard work produced some results, it’d be fine. Truth be told, it’s just a self-indulgent show that hardly gets any attention.”

At this comment,

He Ruozhou couldn’t help but smile wryly.

For years, Long Kingdom TV’s Spring Festival gala was considered the big brother – all other galas were mere warm-ups that rarely caught the public’s eye. With the rise of short videos in recent years, the gala had become almost superfluous.

If it weren’t for the insistence on having some noise on TV during the New Year, even Long Kingdom TV’s ratings would be unimpressive.

“There’s no other way – not holding one isn’t an option.”

Cui Fangshan sighed in agreement.

Organizing a Spring Festival gala is an underappreciated effort – and, as expected, after airing, Long Kingdom’s gala would again be met with a barrage of complaints online.

As for Yun Province TV’s gala? It might not even attract any critiques!

Simply because hardly anyone watches it.

“Sigh!”

“By the way, has there been any news with Haofang Culture lately? Have you had any more discussions with Mr. Fang? I heard that Mingsha City has just received another project! Don’t let it affect our cooperation schedule again.”

After a moment’s thought, Cui Fangshan replied,

“A project? What project? Just yesterday, I spoke with Mr. Fang – he said the set construction for that ancient costume light-hearted drama will be completed before the holidays, and they plan to start shooting by the seventh or eighth day of the New Year! The entire filming is expected to last just over a month, with a planned premiere at the end of March.”

He Ruozhou was taken aback.

If there were any other issues, Mr. Fang would have mentioned them.

“End of March? As long as it doesn’t delay our show’s launch, it’s fine. I even heard that Mingsha City is set to host an International Magic Competition at the end of April – I thought that might cause conflicts.”

Cui Fangshan finally exhaled in relief.

“An International Magic Competition? That four-year event?”

“Yes! Rumor has it that the prize money is as high as 5 million M gold, attracting many of the world’s top magicians. Even more, those magicians who usually belittle our traditional magic on social forums are now brazenly claiming they’ll overshadow Long Kingdom’s traditional magic – which has sparked quite a controversy!”

Cui Fangshan continued,

“To think they’d dare to trample on our traditional magic! And do they realize where this competition is being held? With Mingsha City’s way of doing things, how could those Western magicians possibly succeed?”

He Ruozhou raised an eyebrow.

After witnessing Mingsha City’s prowess at the Cultural Expo, he was convinced that any venture tied to Long Kingdom’s traditional culture was bound to be formidable.

Frankly speaking,

even the ethereal aura of Jixia Academy and the Zhu You Technique at Taiyi Hospital were on par with a magic show.

“The problem is, rumors say that Mingsha City is only hosting and isn’t even eligible to send contestants! They’ve even let the Iron and Coal Arts Troupe handle the opening ceremony.”

Cui Fangshan shook his head.

He couldn’t understand how the host city could lose the right to select contestants – while Yun Province TV holds three slots, from which three contestants compete in an internal contest before the top five are chosen for the competition.

If Mingsha City’s candidate loses in the internal contest, then there’s nothing to say – but still, if this were to reach the higher-ups, they’d surely complain.

“What? Mingsha City isn’t even allowed to select contestants? After all, as the host city, they should at least have that privilege. Even if their strength is weak, they shouldn’t have to undergo any preliminaries – they should automatically qualify for the main event!”

He Ruozhou furrowed his brow, feeling indignant on behalf of Mingsha City.

“I have no idea what the officials were thinking! If the selected contestants end up being suppressed by Western magicians, it’s our Long Kingdom’s face at stake!”