Chapter 101: A Grand Strategy

The hot air balloon circled once over the city, carrying Ren Xiaodong and Tian Yun, who clung to each other in midair as they pledged themselves to one another, whispered sweet nothings, and kissed without the slightest regard for Liu Sheng, who was riding with them.

“I can’t take it anymore. This is way too nauseatingly sweet. Does anyone have a parachute? I’m jumping!” Liu Sheng had had his fill of their lovey-dovey display and deeply regretted coming along.

Besides the three of them, there was also a staff member operating the balloon. When Liu Sheng asked, the staffer replied, “No parachute. I do have an umbrella on me, though. Do you need that?”

Liu Sheng was utterly speechless. He only wanted the ride to end quickly so they could land, because right then he felt almost sick to his stomach, and the cause was Ren Xiaodong and Tian Yun’s declarations of love.

In the end, because the balloon was running low on power, they had no choice but to land. Otherwise Ren Xiaodong would have kept Tian Yun aloft for another circuit. Once on the ground, Liu Sheng immediately kept his distance from the pair, because he really could not bear to endure any more of that sugary affection.

Ren Xiaodong then took Tian Yun to a candlelit dinner, while Liu Sheng returned to the dormitory to rest.

On the way back, Liu Sheng was suddenly blocked by two men. They were both powerfully built, and the thick calluses on their hands showed they were trained fighters.

“What can I do for you, gentlemen?” Liu Sheng asked. He asked this because he knew these two were not ordinary men. Even if he used all his abilities, fleeing would be the only option.

“Someone wants to see you. Stop talking and come with us,” one of them said. They took hold of Liu Sheng and brought him to a jeep. After opening the door, they tossed him straight inside.

One of the men drove, while the other sat beside Liu Sheng. Neither spoke along the way. Liu Sheng remained ready to use the power in his eyes at any moment, so that he could run if danger appeared.

“Big brothers, I can tell you’re both martial men. Which school or faction do you come from?” Liu Sheng asked when he found the silence a little too heavy.

Neither man answered. That irritated Liu Sheng, and he kept firing off question after question, but they were like two blocks of wood, refusing to say a word. In his heart, Liu Sheng thought, “So cold-blooded... could they be assassins?”

At that thought, Liu Sheng quickly put on a pitiful expression and said, “Please, brothers, where are you taking me? I’m just a student. I haven’t offended anyone, and my parents are still at home waiting for me to take care of them.”

“Shut up. You’ll know when we get there. Say another word and I’ll shoot you dead!” The man beside Liu Sheng in the back seat pulled out a gun and pointed it at him.

Liu Sheng sighed inwardly. “You drag me off without even saying a word, don’t tell me where we’re going, and call that polite?” Just then he used the power in his eyes to freeze time and was about to open the door and leave. But he suddenly thought, “No, disappearing out of nowhere in front of them would be inappropriate. If they’re under some major faction and learn that I have such an unnatural power, wouldn’t they capture me for study? Fine. I do want to see who’s sent for me. If it really turns dangerous later, it won’t be too late to use my power then.”

So Liu Sheng shut the door again, relaxed his eyes, and time resumed. With that, he also closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

No one knew how long they traveled before the car stopped at a household on the mountain.

“Wake up. We’re here.” The man beside Liu Sheng woke him. Liu Sheng got out and looked around. Mountains stretched in every direction, with only a few scattered homes dotting the slopes.

“Stop looking. Mountain villages are like this. Every household is far apart. Someone is waiting for you inside. Go in.”

After hearing that, Liu Sheng quickly said, “You don’t talk much, and I thought you were a stutterer. Didn’t expect you could speak so fluently!”

The man did not bother with him any longer and simply pushed Liu Sheng into the house. Before entering, Liu Sheng had already prepared himself for battle at any moment. In case there was an ambush inside.

Yet after he stepped into the inner room, he found nothing unusual. Sitting there was a very fashionable woman, clearly the young lady of a wealthy family. Behind her stood a man in a suit, about Liu Sheng’s build, motionless as a statue. Liu Sheng understood at once that the man was her bodyguard.

The woman looked at Liu Sheng and said without the slightest expression, “Liu Sheng, you’re different from what I imagined.”

Although she was a woman, there was an unmistakable air of authority about her. Liu Sheng did not dare underestimate her, because he could tell at a glance that she was no ordinary person, someone who might even decide his fate.

He also put away his roguish grin and asked with equal seriousness, “Who are you? What do you want with me?”

The woman did not speak, but the man behind her said, “This is Hu Yingqi, deputy general manager of Horizon United Group, and the only granddaughter of Old Master Hu.”

Upon hearing that she was Old Master Hu’s granddaughter, Liu Sheng immediately returned to his earlier easygoing manner. He stepped closer to Hu Yingqi, and just as he was about to move in almost too near, the bodyguard behind her hurriedly stopped him and would not let him approach any further.

Liu Sheng was sensible enough to step back two paces and said from the side, “So someone from the family has come. Is there some errand you need me to run?”

“That face changes quickly enough,” Hu Yingqi said casually, her voice low.

Still smiling, Liu Sheng replied, “Everyone says that about me. They even say I’ve got a dog’s face, changing whenever I like.”

“When he first came in, I didn’t think there was anything remarkable about him. But since Grandfather values him so highly, it seems he really is different from the others. He can demean himself without hesitation. People who can endure are the ones who can achieve great things.”

That was what Hu Yingqi thought to herself. Then she said aloud, “Every local manager has climbed up step by step, but you were personally promoted by my grandfather, and you weren’t even one of our people before. In that case, Mr. Liu must have some exceptional qualities.”

“Not really. I just got lucky and happened to catch Old Master Hu’s eye. I’m guessing you didn’t come all this way just to see me. You must need something from me, right?” Liu Sheng asked directly.

“Then I won’t beat around the bush,” Hu Yingqi said. “Yesterday my grandfather announced that on his eightieth birthday he will step down and pass the torch to the next successor.”

Liu Sheng cut in. “Old Master Hu is already eighty?”

Seeing how shocked he looked, Hu Yingqi smiled and said, “What, did you think otherwise? Next year, on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, my grandfather will turn eighty. That day he will announce the heir, chosen from among our generation.”

Hu Yingqi noticed Liu Sheng still staring at her. Her smile faded, and she asked, “Are you listening to me?”

“You look beautiful when you smile,” Liu Sheng said, his gaze still fixed on her face, reluctant to move away even for a moment.

“You’re slick with words. Listen properly,” Hu Yingqi said, though a smile returned to her face.

At that moment, the bodyguard behind her gave a light cough. Hu Yingqi’s smile vanished again. Liu Sheng glanced at the bodyguard and suddenly thought, “Could these two have some special relationship?”

Then, from Hu Yingqi’s mouth, he learned the whole story.

Old Master Hu planned to step down on his eightieth birthday. The candidate to replace him would be chosen from among his grandchildren.

Old Master Hu had three children. The eldest was a daughter, and the second and third were both sons. The eldest daughter had two sons: the elder named Hu Ying, and the younger named Hu Jie.

Old Master Hu’s second child was a son, and also Hu Yingqi’s father. Hu Yingqi also had an elder brother named Hu Yinghe.

Old Master Hu’s youngest son died in an accident several years ago, leaving behind one child named Hu Sheng. Because Hu Sheng was still very young, and because he was Old Master Hu’s favorite grandson, the old man had instructed everyone that no matter who ended up in charge of Horizon United, they must ensure Hu Sheng would never want for food or clothing for the rest of his life.

Leaving Hu Sheng aside, the people involved in this struggle for power were Hu Ying, Hu Jie, Hu Yingqi, and Hu Yinghe.

After Old Master Hu announced the news, the four contenders all began gathering support. Hu Yingqi had come here to find Liu Sheng precisely because she wanted another chance to win in this battle.

“Oh, I get it. You want me to help you seize the throne, is that it? History had Wu Zetian taking power, and now we have Hu Yingqi usurping the seat!”

After Liu Sheng said that, Hu Yingqi’s bodyguard could not help but speak. “Watch your mouth. What do you mean, usurp the throne? Yingqi may be a woman, but she is absolutely within the range of candidates!”

“Oh, oh, so intimate, calling her Yingqi. Do you even know your place?” Liu Sheng smiled and went on, “Hu Yingqi came to me today, and tomorrow her opponents can come to me too. The one who needs to watch his words is you.”

Hu Yingqi shook her head at her bodyguard, signaling him not to speak, then continued to Liu Sheng, “I need your help because I’m a woman and have had very little contact with Horizon United’s affairs. The other three have long since begun courting the managers in other cities and even in other countries, but you were personally promoted by my grandfather, with no background at all, and you don’t belong to any other camp.”

“So all of you want to win me over?” Liu Sheng asked suddenly, his tone turning cold.

Hu Yingqi looked at him with pleading eyes and said slowly, “I don’t have any faction behind me right now. In other cities, either the power there isn’t very great, or the managers have already been won over by others. At this point, I can only come to you.”

“What if I’m unwilling?” Liu Sheng asked in a low voice.

“Then I won’t give up,” Hu Yingqi said. “Since I came today, I will make sure you come over to my side. Besides winning you over, I have no other way.”

“What do I get out of it?” Liu Sheng asked directly.

“Power. If you help me succeed, I’ll give you power second only to me,” Hu Yingqi said. As she spoke, the pleading look in her eyes turned firm and resolute.

“Very tempting power. But even if you have me, that only means things will go smoothly within the country. What about abroad?” Liu Sheng asked again.

The bodyguard suddenly spoke up. “Ten percent of the world’s economy is in Horizon United’s hands. Because of that, Horizon United controls half the corporations in the world. I’ve been stationed overseas for many years, and many of the overseas managers are my people. Overseas won’t be of much help in this competition, and it can be left to me entirely. What matters most is the domestic front. If we can take control of the city of Chong, our chances of victory will be fifty percent.”

After he finished, Hu Yingqi added, “Grandfather is afraid that we siblings will slaughter one another, so he is making us compete under his own watch. Within one year, whoever can control all the cities in the country where Horizon United has managers, and manage them stably, will receive the position from Grandfather.”

Hu Yingqi paused, took the bodyguard’s hand, and continued, “He is the person I love most, and also the person closest to my grandfather. He has long been managing most of Horizon United’s companies overseas. As long as we can control Horizon United’s companies at home, overseas will be no problem either. By then, all of Horizon United will belong to us.”

Liu Sheng thought for a long while. During that time, he kept looking at Hu Yingqi’s beautiful face. Her figure was like Xiaoya’s, and her beauty even surpassed Liu Meng’s. Then Liu Sheng suddenly said, “You remind me of two people who should once have belonged to me. I don’t know why, but from the bottom of my heart, I want to help you.”

Hu Yingqi’s worried expression instantly brightened. “So you agree?”

“Besides me, who else could help you? You mean they’ll come looking for me too, right?” Liu Sheng asked slowly.

Hu Yingqi nodded. Liu Sheng considered it for a moment, then said, “Remember this: from this moment on, I will help you. No matter when.”

Before Hu Yingqi could say anything, Liu Sheng added, “Pretend you never met me. Wherever you see me in the future, act as though you don’t know me. I’m going to make a grand game of it, to prove myself.”

The reason Liu Sheng wanted to make such a move was to make the whole of Horizon United know him, so that he could stand even more firmly within its ranks.