Chapter 78

Thank you to "Jin Fen Shen Rou Hua" for the generous tip!!! I'm asking for recommendations and favorites!!!

As Ji Feng was the first to sprint past the finish line, breaking the 10,000-meter record to under 25 minutes, the entire sports field instantly turned into a sea of joy. All the spectators, guests, and athletes who witnessed this achievement were extremely excited. Previously, almost everyone believed that even if Ji Feng managed to complete the 10,000-meter run, it would be with great effort, more symbolic than anything.

However, in front of the 24 minutes and 57 seconds, everyone knew that this achievement was almost insignificant for Ji Feng. Just by seeing him wave to the audience with a calm face, without even breaking a sweat, it was clear.

Even the foreign diplomats invited to attend the opening ceremony of this National Sports Meet were stunned. They had also thought that Ji Feng was merely symbolically encouraging everyone to participate in sports, which was why he joined the 10,000-meter run. But in the face of this result, and seeing Ji Feng's relaxed demeanor after the run, the diplomats congratulated Ji Feng on his achievement while feeling relieved in their hearts. Ji Feng is the island lord of Jeju Island and did not sign up for the Olympics or other competitions; otherwise, no one in the world would be able to run faster than him.

It seemed as if he had become addicted to it. After lunch with Jin Bingli, Yan Shujun, and the foreign diplomats and judges from several countries, Ji Feng participated in the men's 100-meter and 200-meter sprints in the afternoon.

The world records in front of Ji Feng were like paper, one after another being broken, stunning countless people. Especially after seeing the news at noon, more tourists and islanders rushed to the sports field at Jeju University, surrounding it layer upon layer.

In the evening news broadcast by Jeju TV, Ji Feng and Xu Xian's appearance together, as well as Ji Feng's breaking of three world records in one day, were prominently reported. This instantly made the islanders of Jeju Island extremely happy. Under Ji Feng's initiative and leadership, more people joined in physical exercise. As Ji Feng said, whether or not they participated in competitions, a good body is a responsibility to oneself and one's family, a matter of attitude.

Ji Feng's first appearance with his wife Xu Xian in front of the media and the public provided such a lively topic that many countries that followed Jeju Island and Ji Feng made related reports. Ji Feng's advocacy for a healthy lifestyle received widespread support and response. Especially after seeing Ji Feng break three world records in one day, his not-so-standard starting posture and dizzying results made all the world's athletes break out in cold sweat. Fortunately, this island lord did not intend to develop in the sports world; otherwise, would anyone even be able to live?

In the news broadcast, China dedicated nearly 5 minutes to introduce Ji Feng's background, his birthplace, the school he attended, the environment he grew up in, and even the university president and classmates, as if they had collected all this information in just one day.

In the subsequent Focus Interview program, the topic was unexpectedly changed to Jeju Island and Ji Feng, discussing the relationship between China and Jeju Island, future development, policies, scenery, tourism, and the newly discovered Feiyang oil field with a reserve of 1.55 billion tons. It seemed as if Jeju Island had suddenly become part of China, and for a time, the topic of Jeju Island received the attention of the majority of the country due to Ji Feng being a Chinese citizen.

However, there were also brain-dead experts who proposed online that night that the state should levy an inheritance tax on Ji Feng, arguing that since Ji Feng is a Chinese citizen, he must comply with the inheritance tax and cannot change his Chinese identity just because he became an island lord.

As soon as this proposal was made, it was immediately met with a barrage of criticism from netizens. Levying an inheritance tax on Ji Feng? Can you even collect the inheritance tax on his overseas assets? It's not as simple as saying he is a Chinese citizen. Even if you could collect it, he is now a citizen of Jeju Island, an independent region not belonging to any country, and he also has Swiss citizenship. According to your logic, Switzerland should also levy an inheritance tax on Ji Feng?

Regardless, the fact that Ji Feng is from China made countless Chinese people feel proud and honored. Look, Jeju Island is almost becoming part of China. You guys in Korea are always causing trouble, but we won't argue with you. We'll just send someone to take your largest island. Haha, it's really satisfying. Especially with the discovery of a huge oil field near your waters, just thinking about it makes me want to celebrate for three days.

Regardless of the online debates and how other countries evaluated Ji Feng, the islanders of Jeju Island immediately showed a strong interest and support for Ji Feng after his high-profile breaking of three world records.

The most direct manifestation was that the next day, the number of people registering for the National Sports Meet increased sixfold. Twelve companies and institutions, including the Jeju Energy Group, Jeju University, Jeju Hotel and Catering Group (managing Ji Feng's related industries, including hundreds of hotels and thousands of restaurants on the island), Jeju Maritime Group, Jeju Aviation Group, and Jeju Bank, announced that they would collectively participate in the National Sports Meet. The Energy Group, Maritime Group, Jeju Bank, and Aviation Group, along with the Jeju government and Jeju Communications, all announced that they would establish their own football clubs, further driving the islanders into a frenzy.

Everyone knew that these five groups and government departments were Ji Feng's industries or management institutions, essentially like his left hand competing with his right. However, precisely because of this, people believed that there would be no foul play, and the results would be genuine. After all, there is only one boss, and the four groups are in a competitive relationship, each wanting to perform well in front of the boss, regardless of how the managers manage.

At the same time, the Jeju government announced that it would vigorously develop the fitness industry, allocating $500 million to add corresponding fitness and recreational facilities to all residential areas on the island. Two large recreational squares would be added in Jeju and Seogwipo, with all investments to be made by the island lord, and they would be free for all islanders to use after completion.

This made the entire island even more lively, with almost all topics revolving around fitness, sports, and entertainment. The launch of Jeju TV meant that the islanders had their own TV programs. Although the programs were limited and mostly purchased from outside, everyone believed that with the fresh, young, and energetic island lord Ji Feng, their lives would become even better, and the island's various industries would see significant development and improvement.

While the islanders were enthusiastically participating in the National Sports Meet, on the evening of the 9th, which was the morning in the United States, Forbes finally released the world's billionaire rankings. To everyone's surprise, Ji Feng, who was previously unknown, jumped directly to the top of the list, but a question mark was placed after his name, with his industry listed as "Island Lord."

According to Forbes, no one in the world could calculate the value of Ji Feng's assets. The value of just Jeju Island alone would be in the trillions of dollars, not to mention the $100 billion in bonds that the Japanese government had yet to pay Ji Feng, and the hundreds of billions of dollars in bonds he had previously exchanged from Europe and the United States. The newly discovered Feiyang oil field with 1.55 billion tons of reserves alone was worth trillions of dollars. Therefore, except for a country, no private wealth could match Ji Feng's, and his total private wealth would exceed the combined total of all the people on the world's wealth list.

The public could understand this, as Ji Feng's assets were truly impossible to calculate. Even professional teams, let alone Ji Feng himself, could not figure out how much money he had. Forbes also mentioned in the article that just by calculating Ji Feng's cash flow and accounts receivable, it was clear that in less than a year, he had accumulated $150 billion in available capital. Although the Japanese government still owed him $100 billion, according to the payment contract with the Bank of Japan, he would receive over $28 billion annually for the next five years starting from next year.

This did not even include the value of Ji Feng's various industries. Taking the Jeju Bank as an example, which is 100% owned by Ji Feng (with 1% unknown to the public), it announced a gold reserve of 1,870 tons.

Therefore, Ji Feng's assets were impossible to calculate clearly. After several months of headaches, Forbes finally gave up and decided not to include Ji Feng in future rankings, as this lucky man from heaven would make the other billionaires on the list feel ashamed.

The new Forbes ranking caused a huge stir worldwide and gave the islanders of Jeju Island a strong boost. Previously, all the islanders had doubts about whether Ji Feng could support the future of Jeju Island, especially economically.

However, after seeing the new Forbes ranking, almost no one had any doubts. Not to mention Ji Feng's cash flow and accounts receivable, or his privately owned bank, just the Feiyang oil field alone could ensure that the quality of life for the 300,000+ islanders would continue to improve.

The islanders were reassured, but those who had moved away before the handover were not happy, especially those in South Korea. After the Forbes ranking was announced, they immediately regretted it, and under the organization of some individuals, they held a demonstration with tens of thousands of participants in Seoul, demanding that South Korea communicate with Jeju Island to allow them to return, claiming that they were originally islanders and were misled by the South Korean government. This movement, orchestrated by some individuals, was growing, causing the South Korean government to be in a difficult situation.

(While eating at a Jin Deli fast food restaurant, a girl next to me was on the phone, saying, "We're still young, just 20, so we can play with peace of mind. In seven years, it will be our good time, and we can choose from 30 million bachelors..." Gentlemen, if you're a girl, you should hurry up and find a partner, or you might be left with no choice...)

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