Upon arriving at the company, Chen Fan instructed Gu Weidong to prepare the company seal and various documents.
He then led Gu Weidong and several senior executives from the Longteng branch to the Xingyue Lake project department.
Upon meeting Xu Yuntian again, he was met with great enthusiasm.
The signing procedures were somewhat tedious, but everything proceeded smoothly.
By 3 PM, the contract was signed, and the first installment of fifty million yuan was transferred to the project department’s account.
"Mr. Chen, congratulations!" Xu Yuntian clasped Chen Fan’s hand and said, "From today onwards, you are an investor in the Xingyue Lake project, with the same status as Young Master Shen and Young Master Wu."
"Haha, indeed. With so many resources and connections, there’s no reason for this project to fail."
"Precisely. Mr. Chen, to celebrate your joining, I'll host tonight and invite Young Master Wu as well?"
The Young Master Wu referred to by Xu Yuntian was Wu Chaoyang, the eldest son of the Wu family.
This individual was renowned in the top circles of the capital, hailed as the Wu family's rising star.
Shen Tinghao and Du Fumin’s names paled in comparison to his.
At less than thirty years of age, Wu Chaoyang was already a decision-maker for the Wu family. It was said that the previous generation of the Wu family only offered him support without interfering with or opposing his decisions.
Furthermore, he owned an e-commerce conglomerate company valued in the hundreds of billions, which he had built purely through his own vision and strategy, without heavily relying on the Wu family's resources.
"That would be wonderful!"
Chen Fan readily agreed.
He had met Du Fumin and Shen Tinghao the previous day. Today, he would meet Wu Chaoyang, the major shareholder of the Xingyue Lake project. This would allow him to make a move to determine who was the true boss among the top second-generation elites in the Brotherhood.
Du Fumin's status and position were quite high, but Chen Fan felt he hadn't reached the pinnacle. It was likely one of Shen Tinghao or Wu Chaoyang who was a high-ranking member of the Brotherhood.
This judgment was based on events three years prior.
The incident in Qingyan Town three years ago had been covered up, with the involvement of seven top aristocratic families.
Du Fumin likely lacked such influence three years ago.
This was because the Du family had only recently experienced rapid growth, posing a threat to the Chen family's position.
"Mr. Chen, please have a seat and enjoy some tea. I'll make the call right away."
Chen Fan nodded.
A short while later, Xu Yuntian returned to Chen Fan's side and said, "Young Master Wu is available tonight. Besides him, Young Master Du, Young Master Li, and Young Master Li also have time. Only Young Master Shen and Young Master Yu have other arrangements tonight!"
Chen Fan smiled, "Mr. Xu, cooperating with you all makes me feel my status has risen significantly."
"Haha, Mr. Chen is too kind," Xu Yuntian replied. "While everyone in our circle has an extraordinary background, not all of us solely rely on our family fortunes."
"Frankly, those who only rely on their family background don't have the qualifications to enter our circle."
"Besides Mr. Chen, there are a few other capable friends in the circle. Once you're more familiar, you'll naturally get to know them!"
"Family background merely provides us with a starting point. It is those with ability who are truly valued. I hope Mr. Chen will not disappoint us."
Chen Fan responded, "With Mr. Xu saying so, my remaining reservations have vanished. In this regard, to put it bluntly, who else but me?"
Xu Yuntian gave him a thumbs-up.
Afterward, the two chatted casually in the office.
Around 5 PM, they departed and arrived outside a large restaurant.
Upon seeing the signboard, it turned out to be a Mongolian barbecue restaurant.
It wasn't exceptionally high-end, but the long queue of customers outside indicated the food was quite good.
Entering the restaurant, they proceeded to a private room to await the others.
"This place might not look as fancy, but it's the most authentic Mongolian barbecue restaurant," Xu Yuntian explained. "I love it here. I have to come and try it every so often. Eating heartily and drinking heartily, the feeling of exhilaration is truly incomparable to ordinary restaurants."
Chen Fan chuckled, "Then I must try it properly."
As they spoke, others began to arrive.
Du Fumin, Li Qian, and Li Xinhai, whom Chen Fan had met the previous day, greeted him as they entered.
"Mr. Chen, you're quite quick. We met and dined yesterday, and today we're celebrating with a contract signing."
Li Qian remarked, "Mr. Chen is decisive and acts with great speed. We definitely need to celebrate. It's been a while since our circle has welcomed a new member like you!"
"Welcome to our circle, Mr. Chen. Have a few more drinks tonight."
"Is it Qingke wine again today? Tsk tsk, the flavor is quite strong, but it's exhilarating!"
As the assembled guests chatted, Xu Yuntian answered his phone, excused himself, and went out to receive Wu Chaoyang.
Shortly after, Xu Yuntian returned, followed by a burly man with a beard, wearing a gray jacket.
"Young Master Wu!"
"Young Master Wu!"
Everyone stood up to greet him.
Wu Chaoyang nodded in acknowledgment, glanced at Chen Fan without any particular reaction, and then took his seat. He said rather unceremoniously, "I'm starving, Old Xu. Hurry up and order the food."
Xu Yuntian agreed, urged the waiter to bring the dishes, and then said, "Young Master Wu, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Chen, the General Manager of the Longteng branch."
Chen Fan gestured and said, "Young Master Wu!"
"I see."
Wu Chaoyang merely nodded faintly and then remained silent.
His attitude was decidedly cold.
This left Li Qian and the others momentarily stunned.
Chen Fan felt a twinge of surprise.
Wu Chaoyang's attitude was not what he had anticipated.
Du Fumin intervened to ease the tension, chuckling, "Haha, we're all friends here, so let's be relaxed. Mr. Chen, please don't take offense. Young Master Wu is just a direct person. Tonight, let's eat heartily and drink deeply, and not return until we're drunk!"
"Right, right. Young Master Wu's presence is a favor to me, Old Xu. We rarely see him even once in a while," Xu Yuntian added. "Come, let's fill our glasses first!"
Just then, a waiter brought in two golden roasted lambs and placed them on a roasting rack in a corner of the private room.
The lambs were already roasted; they were merely being kept warm in the room.
Once the lambs were set up, other waiters brought in various dishes and drinks.
"Come, everyone, fill your glasses. This toast is to Mr. Chen, welcoming him to our group!"
Xu Yuntian raised his glass and said.
The others also raised their glasses.
Chen Fan expressed his thanks and drained his glass.
This first drink was small, and everyone else drank it, but Wu Chaoyang only took a small sip, appearing indifferent.
Chen Fan observed this without any reaction.
The waiter sliced off pieces of the roasted lamb and placed them on the table.
Chen Fan tasted it; the flavor was indeed authentic and excellent.
He chatted enthusiastically with Du Fumin and Xu Yuntian, raising his glass to toast them and drinking with them. When he reached Wu Chaoyang, the latter again took only a perfunctory sip.
Chen Fan smiled and asked, "It seems Young Master Wu doesn't think highly of me?"
Wu Chaoyang glanced at Chen Fan and replied, "If Mr. Chen wants to interpret it that way, it's not wrong."
"If it were Mr. Long, the owner of your Longteng, I would gladly drink three cups in his honor. As for you, a manager of the Longteng Beijing branch who climbed up through connections, I don't see anything worthy of my attention!"
The others stopped their actions, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.
Chen Fan chuckled and said, "Young Master Wu, what you say is indeed accurate. Earlier, when I was chatting with Mr. Xu, he mentioned that we all value ability the most. I believe it won't be long before Young Master Wu retracts his words."
Wu Chaoyang spoke indifferently, "I came to this dinner as a favor to Old Xu, it has nothing to do with you. My agreement for you to join the Xingyue Lake project is based on the Longteng brand, and it also has nothing to do with you."
"For me to retract what I just said, it's not impossible. But I think it would be too difficult for you!"
"Come, come, let's drink!"
Du Fumin once again stepped in to smooth things over.
The others also raised their glasses, making small talk to ease the tension.
Chen Fan smiled, of course, he wouldn't lose his temper, and raised his glass in a gesture of acknowledgment.
At this very moment, he felt a sense and turned his head to look.
He saw the waiter who had been carving the lamb, holding a plate of lamb and a carving knife, approach Wu Chaoyang's side and place the lamb on the table.
The next instant, the waiter, having set down the plate, lunged for Wu Chaoyang’s collar. The carving knife in his right hand was raised and violently plunged towards Wu Chaoyang's neck.
The sudden turn of events was shocking and left no time for reaction.