Chapter 135: The Second Meeting

Standing on his new yacht, Wei Hua gazed at the salvaged merchant vessel "Geldermalsen" with a deep sense of satisfaction. He mused that Michael Hatcher, that bastard, was likely scurrying around the globe, desperately gathering information on the ship. But as of today, that research would be rendered useless. He wondered how Hatcher would feel upon realizing his painstaking efforts were in vain; would he be so enraged as to vomit blood? Without the lure of the "Geldermalsen," perhaps Hatcher would abandon his plans to salvage the "Tek Sing." If the man remained persistent, Wei Hua considered whether he should find an opportunity to go to Australia and eliminate him once and for all. As for the "Tek Sing," he wondered if he should seize the moment and salvage it as well, especially since he knew its exact location, which was not far from where the "Geldermalsen" had rested.

Archaeological experts began moving the porcelain-filled crates from the hold, and before long, they were stacked like a small mountain on the deck. Seeing this, Wei Hua decided to put off the "Tek Sing" salvage operation. It was better to wait until the porcelain museum was built. This time, there were only 230,000 pieces, but the "Tek Sing" held over a million. Salvaging it wouldn't be difficult, but where would he put all that? A million pieces required significant space; it was better to let them sleep on the seabed for now. Once the salvage was complete, Wei Hua, Ding Peng, and He Xiaoya returned to Hong Kong, while the fleet headed back to Shenzhen. Wei Hua didn't need to worry about the museum's construction; the mainland had dedicated personnel for that, and he only needed to provide the funding.

By the time Wei Hua returned to Hong Kong, it was late in the first ten days of December. With Christmas only half a month away, his butler, David, had already begun preparations. On Christmas Eve, Sakurako Kinoshita arrived from Japan, Mary came from New York, and Jessie returned from Dalian, China. As the five of them gathered, Wei Hua listened to reports from his four wives. In Japan, thanks to the guidance of Wei Hua's "cheat device," his investments had yielded an annual return of over 60%, bringing his total Japanese assets to an astonishing 9 trillion yen by the end of 1983. In the United States, his investments reached 80 billion dollars, with an average annual return exceeding 40%. In Hong Kong and the mainland, his total investment reached 6 billion dollars, including 4.6 billion in Iridium Communications, 1 billion in the wafer and chip production lines overseen by Professor Yu, and the Hong Kong technology laboratory. His remaining investments in mainland solar energy, foreign trade, and other sectors totaled 400 million dollars.

Wei Hua’s net worth now exceeded 100 billion dollars, making him arguably the richest man in the world. However, he knew he was still far behind the world’s true financial giants, like the Morgan or Rockefeller families. The gap was not just in wealth, but in potential influence. Influence was something that required time to cultivate; Wei Hua’s rise had been too rapid, and his network of connections was not yet established. Those great consortiums had existed for decades, even centuries, with perfectly mature networks. After Christmas, the four women returned to their work, and Wei Hua began to study the changes in his own body. While searching for the "Geldermalsen" in the South China Sea, he had discovered that he no longer needed to breathe through his nose—he had achieved the "fetal breath" state found in martial arts novels—and his body could fully withstand three to four atmospheres of pressure. Because he had promised Sophia that he would absorb an extra four hours of electricity daily, he spent his mornings practicing his cultivation and absorbing power, leaving his afternoons free to wander about.

Time quickly passed to January 1984. One day, just as Wei Hua finished his morning session, David came to his bedroom to announce that Bai Jianjun was there. Knowing Bai Jianjun wouldn't visit without cause, Wei Hua hurried to meet him. After David left, Bai Jianjun said, "The Chief wants to see you!"

Wei Hua was stunned. "Which chief?"

"The Supreme Leader!" Wei Hua suddenly remembered: the second-generation leader’s first southern tour of 1984 took place in January, during which he inspected special economic zones like Shenzhen and offered his inscriptions. From that point on, reform and opening up truly became the guiding principle for governments at all levels. It was not strange that the leader wanted to see him while in Shenzhen, just across the river from Hong Kong. Besides, there were things Wei Hua wanted to ask of the leader himself.

"Very well! Shall we go now?" Wei Hua asked.

"Right now!" Wei Hua and Ding Peng followed Bai Jianjun. Soon, Wei Hua met the leader at the Wuzhou Guesthouse in Shenzhen. The leader smiled upon seeing him and said, "Young man, you’ve done well. You’ve contributed a great deal to our national development these past few years. We owe you our thanks, especially regarding the situation in Indonesia—you showed greater foresight than we did. I called you here simply to meet you and hear your thoughts on our policy toward Hong Kong. You know the negotiations with the British haven't been smooth, and the people of Hong Kong don't seem very welcoming toward us."

"I fully support your 'One Country, Two Systems' proposal," Wei Hua replied. "It is natural for the people of Hong Kong to be apprehensive, as they do not understand the situation on the mainland; their impressions are still stuck in the past, in the seventies. They lack channels to understand the real mainland. We need to strengthen the promotion of our actual situation and our policies. You could invite the prominent tycoons of Hong Kong to visit the mainland and invest; if they do, the common people of Hong Kong will be much more receptive to our message."