Chapter 57

(Third update! ~~~~~~~~~~)

"Sorry, I was wrong. Please be magnanimous and don't hold a grudge against me."

The bald man clearly realized he had picked the wrong fight today, so he apologized to Du Peng. However, Du Peng had no intention of letting him off so easily. He slapped the bald man hard, but the pain in his hand made him take off his shoe and use it to beat the bald man's face repeatedly.

This scene left everyone stunned. No one could have imagined that Du Peng would act this way. However, Zhou Ming understood Du Peng's feelings. After all, he was not an ordinary person. As a descendant of a revolutionary family, he had never experienced such humiliation. Moreover, he was somewhat impulsive by nature, so it was not surprising that he would act this way.

After beating the bald man for a while, Du Peng finally stopped when his hand was sore. By then, the bald man's face was already a mess, with a tooth knocked out and blood all over the ground. He was unconscious.

Du Peng spat at him and waved to Director Liu, who then had his subordinates take the man away. Du Peng threw away his shoe and found a new pair of leather shoes in the store to wear. He took out ten thousand yuan from the drawer, walked back to Zhou Ming, and handed him the money: "Here's your money back."

"I don't want it. Your money is dirty!" Tang Ran said, hiding behind Zhou Ming.

Du Peng was taken aback. Zhou Ming explained, "You scared my girlfriend just now."

Du Peng scratched his head awkwardly and said, "I was really angry. I've never experienced such humiliation in my life. Moreover, this guy has been extorting people here, and who knows how many have been affected. I was just doing what was right!"

"Indeed, from the way he acted, he must have done this many times," Zhou Ming said to Du Peng. "Let's not talk about him anymore. Let's find a place to sit down. I have something to discuss with you."

Du Peng nodded in agreement. Zhou Ming then led Tang Ran and Du Peng out of the mall. On the way, they encountered the woman who had accompanied Du Peng. Du Peng, still angry that she had abandoned him, told her to get lost. They found a quiet spot in a coffee shop across from the mall and sat down. Du Peng said awkwardly, "Sorry for the spectacle. That woman is really useless!"

Zhou Ming knew Du Peng was referring to the woman who had run away. He shook his head and said, "You can't blame her. Women are generally more timid, and she probably hasn't experienced such a situation before. It's natural for her to run away out of fear."

Du Peng pouted and said, "I told you, I'm not an ordinary person. Unless that bald guy really kills me, I'll make him pay!"

Zhou Ming nodded seriously, "Of course, because you're Du Peng, and your grandfather is Du Zhongyuan."

"Didn't you see what happened just now? Isn't that true?" Du Peng asked.

"I didn't say it wasn't," Zhou Ming replied.

Du Peng was speechless, but then he suddenly thought of something and asked Zhou Ming, "You didn't help me just because of that, did you?"

"Or what? Do you think I would casually spend ten thousand yuan to help a stranger? That's ten thousand yuan, not ten yuan," Zhou Ming said.

Zhou Ming's response surprised Du Peng. He stared at Zhou Ming, somewhat disbelieving, and asked, "You actually admitted it so directly? You didn't even try to find a noble reason?"

"I could come up with a bunch of reasons, but would you believe them?" Zhou Ming asked. Du Peng shook his head, saying he definitely wouldn't. Zhou Ming shrugged, "There you go. If I gave you a reason, you wouldn't believe it anyway, and it would leave a bad impression of me as a hypocrite. It's better to be straightforward. Besides, there's nothing shameful about this."

Zhou Ming was speaking from the heart. In his previous life, he was just an ordinary person, the lowest of the low. He had only seen the likes of rich second-generation and influential families in the news, never in real life. Therefore, he didn't know how to deal with them. However, seeing Du Peng's impulsive nature, he decided to be straightforward as well.

Du Peng laughed, "You're a straightforward and unique person. I like it! By the way, seeing how you can easily take out ten thousand yuan and recognize me, it seems your family is also quite well-off."

Du Peng's condescending tone annoyed Tang Ran, "My Ming brother is a big boss in Hongcheng!"

"A big boss in Hongcheng?" Du Peng looked Zhou Ming up and down, "You're from Hongcheng? Which family's young master are you?"

"Not at all! My Ming brother is an entrepreneur who can earn twenty million in two months!" Tang Ran emphasized.

"Twenty million in two months?" Du Peng gasped, looking incredulous, "My God, even the printing press can't make money that fast!"

Zhou Ming didn't say anything but introduced himself and Tang Ran, "Let's get acquainted. I'm Zhou Ming, and this is my girlfriend, Tang Ran. I recognized you in the store, so I helped you. I also have a business proposal for you."

"Business? Do you think I, as a descendant of revolutionaries, would do business with a capitalist from Hongcheng?" Du Peng asked Zhou Ming, his initial shock at Zhou Ming's wealth gradually subsiding, allowing him to speak rationally.

Du Peng's attitude annoyed Tang Ran, "Hey! What kind of attitude is that? My Ming brother isn't a capitalist from Hongcheng. He's from the mainland, and he's making money from foreigners in Hongcheng!"

"What? Zhou Ming, you're from the mainland? You're making money from foreigners in Hongcheng? How did you do it?"

Du Peng was very surprised. If Zhou Ming was a young master from a prominent family in Hongcheng, earning twenty million in two months, while impressive, was not impossible. However, if Zhou Ming was from the mainland and had earned twenty million in two months in Hongcheng, it was hard for Du Peng to believe.

"It was a stroke of luck. I went to Hongcheng just as a stock market crash was happening. I used futures to short the Hong Kong stock index and quickly made over twenty million," Zhou Ming said.

Du Peng looked at Zhou Ming blankly, not understanding terms like stock market crash, futures, and shorting the stock index, but he was impressed by the fact that Zhou Ming had made twenty million.

"Then... then why are you looking for me?" Du Peng asked, still stunned.

"Of course, to do business! I already mentioned that, didn't I?" Zhou Ming said, "You came to Nanjiang to do business, right? You used your family connections to get a batch of cotton from Hebei to sell to a textile boss in Nanjiang."

Du Peng's eyes widened in disbelief, "How did you know that?"

How could I not know? Twenty years later, when you became a major internet tycoon, your rags-to-riches story was everywhere. Just a little attention would reveal it.

However, Zhou Ming couldn't say that. He told Du Peng, "It's not hard to guess. The biggest group of speculators in the country are you, the descendants of revolutionaries. If you came to Nanjiang, it wouldn't be for tourism, right? As for the cotton, the textile industry is booming in Nanjiang, and your family has strong connections in Hebei. I don't believe you wouldn't use your family's connections to get the cotton."

Zhou Ming's words left Du Peng speechless. He looked at Zhou Ming and said, "Are you the reincarnation of Zhuge Liang? How did you guess that?"

Zhou Ming smiled, "From your reaction, I guess I was right. Let me guess one more thing. The woman who was with you earlier, did you meet her in Nanjiang, not in Beijing?"

Du Peng nodded vigorously, "Go on, what else can you guess?"

"If I guess further, it might not be good news," Zhou Ming said.

"It's fine, go on," Du Peng said.

Zhou Ming said, "Do you think the woman you met in Nanjiang really likes you, or does she have ulterior motives? If she has ulterior motives, what are they?"

"Ulterior motives?" Du Peng was taken aback, then frowned, "Do you think they're after the cotton I brought?"

Zhou Ming nodded, "Yes, that's the case. I remember reading in my previous life that you were cheated in your first business deal in Nanjiang in 1987. You were inexperienced, and they used some tricks, so you handed over the cotton but didn't receive any payment."

Du Peng thought about it and said angrily, "No wonder that woman kept talking about business. She was setting a trap for me!"

After saying that, Du Peng seemed to realize something was off. He looked at Zhou Ming with a complex expression and asked, "You're too amazing. How do you know all this?"

Tang Ran rolled her eyes at Du Peng, "Do you think my Ming brother is like you? You couldn't see such an obvious problem. How could you possibly see these things?"

Zhou Ming also said, "Actually, a lot of things are out in the open. For example, your relationship with that woman, your purpose in coming to Nanjiang, your identity, and your connections. If you can connect these pieces of information and use some reasoning, it's not hard to figure out."

Looking at Zhou Ming, who was speaking confidently, Du Peng felt a soul-shaking awe. Indeed, as Zhou Ming said, if you know the information and can connect the dots, it's not hard to guess. But how many people have the awareness and the ability to think about it?

Is he human or a demon?

Du Peng evaluated Zhou Ming in his heart and said admiringly, "When your girlfriend said you made twenty million in two months, I thought it was a bit exaggerated. But now, I think it would be unjust if you didn't make that much money."