Chapter 79: Chapter 79: National Heartthrob
(Chapters before 77 were reported and blocked, a modified and censored version has been released, it does not affect reading.)
Just under the Weibo post forwarded by Principal Wang.
In an instant, the comments exceeded ten thousand within an hour.
Apart from nearly half of the "Hubby X me," most were asking who Gu Bai is.
As everyone knows, before 2019, Principal Wang’s Weibo was mainly used as the entertainment industry’s discipline inspection committee’s official account, rarely posting daily life stuff. Even friends or celebrities he had good relationships with were only revealed by gossip media.
And this time, the photo with Gu Bai, from the picture to the caption, proved their good relationship, instantly sparking a deep dive by some idle netizens.
In just a moment, keen netizens discovered that a month ago, there was a Weibo post titled "Shangxi’s Wildest Student" forwarded by Principal Wang, featuring the same Gu Bai in the photo with him.
For a time, all major gossip-driven self-media started digging into it.
By the next day, a self-media named "Entertainment Morning Gossip" directly revealed Gu Bai’s identity.
"Gu Bai, enrolled in Hu Shang Drama Academy’s directing department with full marks in the entrance exam, currently a sophomore. Additionally, we found some of his asset information on a query software.
On September 3, 2017, he became a shareholder of Hu Shang Xingnai Media Company; on September 20, 2017, he registered and became an independent shareholder of Shanghai Black Swan Investment Co., Ltd. (Black Swan Capital).
Below are the detailed profiles of these two companies."
The Weibo below also included a few images.
They are the share structure and basic information of Xingnai Media and Black Swan Capital.
Xingnai Media, with a paid-up capital of 200 million, holds 50% of the shares.
Black Swan Capital, with a paid-up capital of 500 million, independently held.
Many onlookers started commenting below.
"Units, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, dad, grandpa, ancestor..."
"The blogger means that this Gu Bai currently has 600 million in assets on the surface? I’ll call him Godfather first out of respect!"
"Others in sophomore year have billions in hand, while my sophomore year is spent holding a phone playing King of Glory... I couldn’t help but cry under the covers."
"Girls, are you only paying attention to superficial things like money? Be mature, like me, focus on deeper meanings, okay? Like his face? From today, the Principal is no longer my husband. I unilaterally announce the end of my marital relationship with him and personally declare becoming a couple with Gu Bai, not that the Principal isn’t excellent, but my husband is more handsome, hubby X me!"
"Don’t call him hubby; even your national hubby calls him a god. Call him the National Heartthrob!"
Never underestimate the power of idle netizens; the hashtag #NationalHeartthrob# skyrocketed from 19th to 10th on the trending list, and as time went on, the heat only increased.
However, Gu Bai, far away in Italy and not playing on Weibo, did not know he was already being called the "National Heartthrob" in his home country. They had already disembarked from the flight from Rome to Bologna City airport, nearing Sant’Agata Bolognese Town.
Modena City lies in the northern Emilia-Romagna Region of northern Italy, with a population of 180,000 but is known as the "World’s Car City" because the headquarters of world-famous luxury car companies like "Maserati," "Ferrari," "Lamborghini," "De Tomaso" and the famous high-end motorcycle company "Ducati" are all located in the suburbs of Modena City.
And Gu Bai and others arrived at the Lamborghini headquarters in the Sant’Agata Bolognese Town, located in Modena City.
Upon arriving at Sant’Agata, the Lamborghini headquarters had already sent someone waiting in advance.
Seeing Qin Fen and his companions, they quickly greeted them.
"Welcome, esteemed guests, to Sant’Agata. My name is Rolando Yadao, the public relations manager of Lamborghini Company, specially here to await your arrival."
Rolando gave a standard Italian gentleman’s smile to the three of them.
Among the four present, except for Dasha Talan, who was not a Lamborghini member, Qin Fen, Principal Wang, and Gu Bai were all recorded VIP members, and sending a manager-level person to receive them was quite an honor, considering Lamborghini members are all over the world.
The three of them nodded at Rolando.
"We have arranged a special resting place for our esteemed guests. Do you plan to visit our car factory first or go directly to the resting place?"
The three exchanged glances, and ultimately Qin Fen said, "I’ve long wanted to see what the factory of the world’s top supercar brand looks like. Now that there’s a chance, of course, I want to visit first."
"Mr. Qin, trust me, after visiting our factory, you will feel proud to be a Lamborghini member!"
Saying this, he motioned for them to follow with a welcoming gesture.
They all smiled nonchalantly, getting into the Lamborghini courtesy car.
The courtesy car slowly drove into Sant’Agata Bolognese Town, heading towards the vast factory area.
"I will first guide you through the non-core area of the plant, and then at 6 PM, we’ll have a banquet especially prepared to welcome esteemed guests like you who have come all the way to Italy, and the auction for ownership of ’Poison’ will also be conducted at the banquet."
The specially customized courtesy car looked spacious enough to seat over ten people without feeling crowded, Rolando said with a face full of smiles to them.
"How many people did you invite this time?"
Gu Bai asked, knowing that everyone here came because of the "Poison." The more people, the fiercer the competition would be.
Hearing this, Rolando replied, "We invited a total of 276 members, but so far, only 17 have arrived in Sant’Agata."
Upon hearing the answer, Gu Bai finally nodded.
After all, not everyone would be interested in the "Poison," and some may be interested but not have the time or money for various reasons. Having 17 people come was already quite good.
"Old Gu, are you worried that if too many people come, the bidding price will be too high, and you won’t afford it? Don’t worry, the principal and I are here for you, and we’ll back you up when the time comes."
Qin Fen winked at Gu Bai with a smile.
Gu Bai gently shook his head.
"I can definitely afford it. I still have 170 million. Buying a car is more than manageable, but I’m just worried that if there are too many competitors, the price might inflate too much, and I’ll be taken as a fool."
"Do you think you’re the only one considering that? Those people aren’t fools either. If it exceeds the actual value too much, no one will follow. As long as your pockets are deep, you can rest assured."
Hearing this, Gu Bai agreed since rich people aren’t fools either. Spending an extra few bucks for something you like is no big deal, but spending dozens more unnecessarily isn’t worth it.
As they spoke, the limousine had driven into the factory area.
After getting out of the car, Rolando began introducing the site to them.
"Since the founding of the Lamborghini Company, the factory in Sant’Agata has always been its sole production base. We have never outsourced to any company."
At this point, Rolando began to take pride.
"With the company’s development and the addition of new car models, the factory area has continuously expanded, and the facilities have become more advanced. In recent years, under the guidance of the company’s continuous strategic investment plan and to support the launch of the super SUV model Urus, the Lamborghini Headquarters factory has added many new facilities and technologies, doubling the size of the entire production base from 80,000 square meters to 160,000 square meters."
....
In the next two hours, Gu Bai and his companions toured the major factory areas, satisfying their curiosity.
After the tour, Rolando personally escorted them back to their accommodations, reminding them of the dinner at 6 o’clock.
The resting place was individual spacious suites with complete amenities. While not as lavish as a hotel, it was decent, as the Lamborghini Company knew these wealthy guests weren’t used to simple places.
Although Dasha Talan wasn’t a Lamborghini member, they still prepared a separate room for her since she was there. However, she chose to go with Gu Bai to his room instead.
The three agreed on a time to meet later and then went back to their respective rooms.
"Why not go to your own room? Don’t you like it?"
Having already experienced the world, Dasha Talan was gradually transitioning away from a young girl’s mindset, giving Gu Bai a smile with an unclear meaning.
"There’s still a few hours, and I’m afraid you’ll be lonely by yourself..."
Gu Bai couldn’t help but laugh at her words: "Really? Or is it you who’s thinking of bad things?"
"Bah, of course not!"
The two laughed and chatted as they walked into the room.
With more than three hours until the evening gala, it was enough time for a battle.
(The next hundred characters have been censored.)
After resting for a while and seeing it was about time, the two took a shower together, changed into appropriate dinner attire, and then Lamborghini staff knocked to remind them to attend the dinner.
Following the Lamborghini staff out of the room, Principal Wang and Qin Fen were already waiting for them not far away.
Seeing a radiant Dasha Talan and the somewhat listless Gu Bai made the duo instantly understand what had happened.
Instantly, a lemon tree grew in their hearts, lamenting that they hadn’t brought those young models along back then.
"Brother Qin, Principal."
Gu Bai greeted them with a smile.
Hearing Gu Bai’s voice, the two felt somewhat better, and Qin Fen joked teasingly, "Gu Bai, let me give you a piece of advice. You’re still young; you must take care of your health and not let minor indulgences lead to major setbacks. Be a bit restrained. When we get back home, I’ll introduce you to an old Chinese medicine doctor to make a prescription to boost your strength."
Normally, Gu Bai would have retorted, but seeing his recent decline in physical fitness, he couldn’t help showing some interest.
"Really?"
Seeing Gu Bai’s reaction, Principal Wang and Qin Fen exchanged glances and burst into laughter.