Chapter 88

Gao Yang walked out of the fitting room directly in his shirt, threw the sweater to Stock, and said lightly, "Let's go." Then he turned and walked towards the door.

Stock quickly moved forward to clear the way for Gao Yang, with the bodyguards following behind and the personal assistant paying at the counter. As they were about to leave through the VIP passage, they were blocked by a few people.

The path forward was obstructed, and Gao Yang frowned slightly as he looked at the group in front of him. Among them was a young man in his twenties, with fair skin, short neat hair, and a handsome face with slightly narrow eyes. He was a dashing young man, sizing up Gao Yang from head to toe.

The young man was holding a woman with a very delicate face, wearing a light pink short dress that accentuated her curvaceous figure. A few bodyguards stood behind them.

"Hmm?" Gao Yang was slightly surprised when his gaze swept over the woman. He had seen her on Korean variety shows and advertisements when he was bored in Korea. She was a somewhat famous actress.

At this moment, a few bodyguards behind the young man saw that Gao Yang and his group were blocking the way and grunted, preparing to take action. Suddenly, the young man released the woman in his arms, straightened his clothes, and bowed slightly to Gao Yang, saying, "Mr. Gao, hello!"

"Hmm?" Gao Yang was genuinely surprised, "Do we know each other?"

The young man smiled gracefully and said, "Mr. Gao, my name is Cui Ruzhe. My father is Cui Junxi, the director of Hyundai Steel. At the welcome party held for you a while ago, I had the honor of meeting you." His gentle words gave a refreshing feeling.

"Oh." Gao Yang thought for a moment, remembering Cui Junxi. As for Cui Ruzhe, he had no idea! "Do you have something?" Gao Yang asked indifferently.

"Sorry to bother you, please go ahead!" Cui Ruzhe pulled the woman to the side, making way for Gao Yang. His bodyguards quickly moved to stand against the wall, not daring to look at Gao Yang.

"Sure, please give my regards to your father," Gao Yang smiled slightly and said softly. "Yes, thank you for your concern!" Cui Ruzhe bowed in response.

After Gao Yang and his group left, Cui Ruzhe looked at the woman who was still staring at Gao Yang's back and said with a smile, "Stop looking, you have no chance. He won't be interested in you!"

The woman turned and pouted, throwing herself into Cui Ruzhe's arms, shouting, "OPPA!"

Cui Ruzhe laughed and hugged the woman, but his gaze turned to Gao Yang's back.

He had been present at the welcome party that day, and he was a good friend of Jin Xinyang, who had been beaten up by Gao Yang. They were all part of the same circle of young men.

At the time, Cui Ruzhe, who had witnessed the entire process, was not impressed by Gao Yang's terrifying skills in taking on dozens of security guards alone. What truly caught his attention was that Jin Xinyang's father, President Jin, had personally apologized to Gao Yang in public afterward!

President Jin, who was on the same level as his own father, apologizing in public made Cui Ruzhe realize immediately that Gao Yang was a person who could not be provoked!

As a seasoned young man, Cui Ruzhe quickly severed his friendship with Jin Xinyang. He had also heard that Jin Xinyang had been sent to the military by his father!

Cui Ruzhe had also inquired about Gao Yang's identity from his father, but Cui Junxi only gave him a simple piece of advice: "Don't provoke him!"

Understanding the rule of the big fish eating the small fish in this circle, Cui Ruzhe immediately placed himself in a low position when he saw Gao Yang, bowing respectfully. He had no intention of ingratiating himself with Gao Yang; he just didn't want to cause trouble for himself!

Looking at Gao Yang's departing back, Cui Ruzhe touched his hair and thought to himself, "Zheng Xiuzhen has really caught a big fish this time!"

On the way to the villa chosen by Stock, Gao Yang sat quietly in the car, looking out the window. "What are you thinking about?" Origin asked in his mind.

Gao Yang rubbed his forehead and responded indifferently, "Thinking about money!"

Origin asked in surprise, "You still need money? You earn at least a few hundred million dollars a month, isn't that enough?"

"The military's expenses are never enough. My strength is still not enough, and I need to continue recruiting soldiers. Paying salaries to over a hundred thousand troops every month is a huge expense! Not to mention the costs of weapons, equipment, and daily training. The production of the Jinling Arsenal is too low! I have to spend a lot of money to buy more!" Gao Yang complained.

He paused and continued, "The army's expenses are relatively low, but we are about to have a large fleet. The navy is a real bottomless pit!"

"Buying a ton of silver from the modern era costs at least 4 million RMB! Making a silver coin with 89% silver content requires at least 24 grams, so one ton can only produce 41,666 coins! This doesn't even include the cost of copper, machinery, labor, and other expenses. I have to pay the army a million silver coins a month! Most importantly, I can't produce silver coins indefinitely."

"You have taxes, right? And you have a lot of savings in the Citibank, can't you use them?" Origin asked curiously.

"Originally, there was no significant industry, and I have always encouraged the development of the national economy with low taxes and subsidies. Fortunately, we captured the city, and the commercial taxes collected from the city barely cover the government's daily expenses. As for the agricultural tax..."

Gao Yang raised his head and sighed slightly, "I never thought of taking food from the farmers' bowls! Although I don't have the power to completely abolish the agricultural tax, the revenue from it must not be too high! The remaining shortfall can only be covered by me."

"When you bought the warships, didn't many people donate to you? If you need more money, can't you ask them to donate again?" Origin asked.

"Cough!" Gao Yang suddenly coughed.

"Sir, are you okay?" Stock quickly turned and asked with concern.

"I'm fine! How much longer until we arrive?"

Stock said softly, "We will arrive at the villa you selected in about ten minutes. Please wait a moment."

"Okay," Gao Yang responded lightly.

He took out a cigarette, lit it, and said to Origin in his mind, "Don't you often go online? Haven't you seen what donations are? Buying warships was something everyone wanted to do but couldn't. People donated to express their excitement and support. If I asked for donations to pay the army's salaries, what would that make me? Besides, people are not that wealthy."

"Okay," Origin responded softly.

Gao Yang turned to look out the window, thinking to himself, "I need to find a way to earn more money."

He took out his phone and called Fang Nanyu. The call was quickly answered, "Boss!" Fang Nanyu greeted respectfully.

"Okay, I have something for you to do," Gao Yang said softly, "Help me buy 120 tons of silver."

Fang Nanyu paused and thought for a moment, "Boss, buying so much silver at once..."

"I know! I didn't ask you to buy it domestically. Go to the international market! Buy in small amounts, multiple times, and in different places. Understand? Test the waters first, and we will buy more in the future. Keep it discreet!" Gao Yang said, slightly impatient.

"Yes, boss!" Fang Nanyu responded quickly.

After hanging up, Gao Yang said with a headache, "The total amount of silver coins in 1925 was not high, and I dare not invest too much silver at once. Controlling prices is very important! Ultimately, the industrial foundation is not strong enough, and there are not enough industrial products!"

Gao Yang crossed his legs, his hand tapping meaninglessly on his thigh, looking out the window, lost in thought.

"Hisss!" After a while, Gao Yang suddenly flung his hand, throwing the cigarette butt that had burned his fingers. "Damn!" Gao Yang cursed, shaking his hand.

"Sir!" Stock asked with concern.

"I'm fine!" Gao Yang said, feeling annoyed and a bit impatient.

"What's wrong? What are you thinking about?" Origin asked curiously.

Gao Yang picked up the cigarette butt and put it in the ashtray, responding irritably, "Before I met you, I always thought about making a lot of money and living a luxurious life. I didn't expect..."

He laughed slightly, somewhat self-mockingly, "After meeting you, I did live a rich person's life. But the pressure has been increasing day by day. To make money, I had to smuggle oil from 1925 to the modern era. But the source of the oil was unknown, and to keep the secret and protect my family, I needed energy points. To get energy points, I had to expand my influence in 1925!"

He sighed lightly, with a complex emotion, "After expanding my influence and territory, I found that many people's fates were tied to mine! I needed their help to get energy points, and I had to fulfill their wishes, from daily needs to warships and cannons! I found myself having more and more to do! It's like a cycle, the more I want, the more I have to give! Damn! All I wanted was a comfortable life!"

He rubbed his forehead and continued, "Do you know? When I saw in the newspaper that they called me the savior of the country and the hope of the nation, I was scared, really scared. I'm just an ordinary person! I'm not a Namekian who can transform! Can you understand the feeling of having countless people place their hopes on your shoulders?"

He turned to look at the太平山 (Taiping Mountain) outside the window and muttered, "It's a mountain of pressure!"

Origin was silent for a moment, then said lightly, "Do you need a sedative?"

"..." Gao Yang's face stiffened, "I was wrong, let's end this topic!"

At this moment, the car stopped, and they had arrived at the villa chosen by Stock!

Stock opened the car door for Gao Yang. After getting out, Gao Yang looked up at the villa's sign, "Shi Xun Dao Yi Luan No. 8."

(PS: I took a leave to go home for May Day, and I spent the whole day on the train. I'm sending this chapter to all my friends. I hope everyone has a pleasant May Day holiday! Also, due to some irresistible reasons, I will temporarily not write the title. Please understand, thank you for your support all along, thank you everyone!)

Page break AD starts

Page break AD ends