“Kang, why don’t you go to the Northwest to find her?”

Shao Guangrong suggested seriously.

Dignity was important, but clinging to it was painful.

If he loved a woman but couldn’t have her, he’d rather tie her to his side by force. If she didn’t love him now, maybe she would later? Or even if she never did, at least he could still see her.

But Kang Wei had chosen to let go.

This kind of letting go was useless—it would be better if he could forget Xiao Dan, enjoy life, and not care how many years she spent teaching in remote areas.

But Kang Wei clearly couldn’t.

He couldn’t move on, hadn’t dated anyone else, making himself into some kind of ascetic. This kind of letting go wasn’t free-spirited at all, so why let Shan Yujun be comfortable and carefree alone?

Shao Guangrong offered his advice:

“Going to the Northwest is troublesome, but you’re not working now. Surely you can spare a few days each month! Let me tell you, no woman can resist a man’s persistence. In the place where Shan Yujun is staying, surrounded by village men, could she find someone better than you? As long as she eventually wants to marry, you have a chance—unless she plans to dedicate her entire life to the Great Northwest. She definitely won’t find a more suitable marriage partner than you. You have the material foundation, and you two have an emotional foundation—”

The more he spoke, the clearer Shao Guangrong’s logic became.

“Little Shan isn’t that kind of person.”

Kang Wei interrupted Shao Guangrong.

“I don’t know when or if Little Shan wants to marry. Either way, she won’t marry just anyone. She has her life plans. It’s not that she doesn’t like me at all, it’s just… forget it, I won’t go to the Northwest. We were talking about your situation, why bring up mine?”

This was something Kang Wei understood later.

It was impossible that Shan Yujun didn’t like him at all.

If she didn’t like him, why date him for so long? Wouldn’t that be wasting her own time?

She liked him but hadn’t included him in her life plans.

What Kang Wei couldn’t understand was why Shan Yujun had decided he couldn’t understand her level, wouldn’t support her decisions, and wasn’t qualified to be part of her life plans.

After his first love setback, Kang Wei felt dating was too exhausting and meaningless—making money was better.

Shao Guangrong thought about himself—he hadn’t even won Little You yet. He had no right to teach Kang Wei.

Better to focus on making money. Without money or power, a man lacks confidence in his words and actions. Shao Guangrong talked with Kang Wei at length about his goals for the year: not just establishing the Beijing branch, but also Jinshi. If possible, he’d open another branch in Shangdu, a crucial railway hub connecting north and south that needed to be part of their strategic layout.

After their talk, the brothers went their separate ways to raise money.

Kang Wei had it easier—his furniture factory was profitable, and his share in the building materials store was larger than Shao Guangrong’s, making it easier to gather 2.6 million.

Shao Guangrong’s 400,000 was more problematic.

If he weren’t the only son of the Shao family, his family would have broken his legs for taking so much money.

Over 100,000—he’d emptied several families’ savings. If he lost it all, his parents wouldn’t know how to repay the relatives. Finally, his uncle Shao Limin made the decision:

“Give it to him. He’s not young anymore, less reckless than before. He must have some use for the hundred thousand… Even if he’s wronged some girl, it wouldn’t cost this much. If we don’t give him money when we have it, aren’t we forcing him to seek it through improper means?”

Shao Limin guessed the money was related to Xia Xiaolan.

Xia Xiaolan’s business was big now, and she wouldn’t care whether Shao Guangrong contributed a hundred thousand or even several hundred thousand.

Including him in whatever she did showed she valued their relationship.

This was good—having some money would keep Shao Guangrong from being tempted to embezzle public funds.

Shao Limin’s words carried weight in the family. With his approval, others didn’t object, and together they raised 200,000 for Shao Guangrong!

For the remaining 100,000, Shao Guangrong found his solution.

His 400,000 was almost the last to arrive.

While Qihang was registered in Pengcheng, Xia Xiaolan had someone specifically register in Hong Kong this time. With enough money, many people in Hong Kong could handle the legwork, including converting RMB to Hong Kong dollars… If Xia Xiaolan had to handle all these details herself, she’d be overwhelmed.

To bait Xia Ziyu and Du Zhaoji, the company name wasn’t subtle at all—”Qihang Capital.”

Hearing this name, who wouldn’t connect it to Qihang Real Estate?

By the time Xia Xiaolan had everything arranged, it was July.

Her lovely roommates were finally on summer break, all buying tickets to flock to Pengcheng. Ji Jiangyuan, the Huaqing student, was also on break, and Xia Xiaolan directly stated her request.

“…You want me to manage 100 million in funds?”

Had he misheard, or had Xia Xiaolan misspoken?

It hadn’t been that long, had Xia Xiaolan’s wealth had grown to this extent.

Ji Jiangyuan thought the world was too surreal.

“You won’t be managing alone. You’ll mainly be monitoring for me. This money will enter Hong Kong through HSBC, and they’ve assigned financial advisors who must be familiar with stock market operations. This isn’t charity or a part-time job—I can’t completely rely on HSBC’s people… I need someone trustworthy who understands finance to monitor for me. To be honest, of this 100 million RMB, 50 million is borrowed, and I need to repay 100 million next year!”

Though both were students, Ji Jiangyuan was much more reliable than Chen Qing.

Chen Qing was too much of a gambler; Ji Jiangyuan was more cautious.

Xia Xiaolan needed someone to watch how this money was handled. If she encountered some overconfident fool who delayed when she ordered shorting or gave theoretical lectures when she called for closing positions, missing the timing, she’d burst a blood vessel from anger!

At least Ji Jiangyuan would listen to her.

After three years of friendship, Xia Xiaolan knew his character well.

With her act of vulnerability, Ji Jiangyuan indeed found it hard to refuse.

Though he felt incapable of managing 100 million RMB, hearing that Xia Xiaolan had borrowed 50 million and needed to repay 100 million next year, he drew in a sharp breath.

“Does your family know?”

Would her father not stop her?

Xia Xiaolan was nonchalant, “Uncle Tang never interferes with my business affairs. Whether I profit or lose, I bear it myself. As long as it’s legal, all my investments are reasonable in Uncle Tang’s eyes. Brother Ji, Brother Jiangyuan, you’re like my real brother—please help me!”

Ji Jiangyuan suddenly felt a weight of ten thousand jin on his shoulders.

Could he refuse?

If he didn’t help, where would Xiaolan find another trustworthy assistant? Ji Jiangyuan had to steel himself and accept—this was a unique opportunity. Think about his classmates in Economics and Management; their understanding of the “stock market” was limited to textbooks, yet he was about to handle hundreds of millions in capital!