Rebirth of the Godly Prodigal

“No way! Just like that?” After hearing what Hong Weiguo said, Tang Ruisi was shocked. “Dali just picked a piece of land randomly and found something good? Underground?”

Having said that, Tang Ruisi had a sudden surge of emotion. He suddenly felt like he had overlooked something.

Hong Weiguo smiled and said, “Yes, right. Speaking of which, there aren’t any ancient ruins or mines of any sort there. However, the commercial value of that piece of land is undeniable.” Hong Weiguo took a sip of his tea and laughed. “Below that mountain is a huge karst cave. Do you remember there was a stream there? The cave where the stream originates from is an enormous karst cave. We’re not sure of the condition, but workers who entered were sure of one thing—the cave is very, very big.”

Tang Ruisi choked on his saliva. “My god!” He was really shocked this time. “Karst cave? You just need to explore it slightly and it could become a tourist attraction. How much would that be worth?!”

It was no wonder he was so shocked.

All they had to do was fix up the huge underground karst cave a little, and it could be a super money-making tourist attraction. Just the entrance fees for one year would earn at least tens of millions.

After the brief shock, Tang Ruisi wondered. “How was it that no one discovered the place before? By rights, if there were such a good place, it should have been found by the land surveyors long ago?”

Hong Weiguo said laughingly, “Why else would we say our Dali has good luck? It was raining in the first two days, and that caused a small landslide. It was fated. The entrance to the caves was smashed open by the falling rocks from the landslide.”

Hearing that, Tang Ruisi was stunned. That much luck… wasn’t it like cheating!?

Having said that much, the two heard a sudden chorus of congratulations from the entrance of the hall. Hong Weiguo turned his head to look and saw a group of people rowdily walk in. The happily smiling leader of the group was his son, Hong Dali.

Hong Dali quickly made his way toward Hong Weiguo. “Dad, I’m back. I’m late, I’m late. Hehe. Hello Uncle Tang!”

Tang Muxin, who was with Hong Dali, quickly greeted as well. “Hello, Uncle Hong.”

“Hello, Xinxin. Haha. You little brat, you’ve got some leadership skills. You know how to protect your followers.” Hong Weiguo’s eyes twinkled in happiness whenever he looked at Hong Dali. Even as he looked around at Hong Dali’s lackeys, his gaze was approving. Hong Dali may have spent quite a big sum on today’s matter, but the rewards were significant. His lackeys were looking at him like pious believers looking upon their God. It was pure idolatry. In today’s slang, it was loyalty to the max.

Hong Weiguo then stood up and pulled Hong Dali and Tang Muxin into the crowd. Hong Weiguo made introductions. “Dali, let me introduce you to someone. This is the Head of Police, Police Chief Dong. Say hello to Uncle Dong.”

Hong Dali greeted him. “Hello, Uncle Dong. Uncle Dong, you’ll have to take care of me if I need help in the future. Hehe.”

Dong Huarong knew Hong Dali’s importance in Hong Weiguo’s heart and quickly replied. “Haha. Sure. No problem. It’s unexpected that you would take such good care of your followers, Dali. That’s good. Haha.”

Hong Weiguo pointed at Boss Jin next. “This is Boss Jin. He is very influential in the triads. Uncle Jin and Uncle Dong were the ones who helped you when you said you wanted to get rid of the Cabinet’s Society.”

Hong Dali didn’t dare to disrespect him. “Hello, Uncle Jin! Uncle Jin, please take care of me in the future.”

Boss Jin had been around for many years and was good at judging people. “Well said. With a great father like you, your son is sure to be great himself. Dali is indeed not bad. You are decisive and brutal enough, willing to go all out. That bunch of fools said you are a prodigal son. The way I see it, you are not just an ordinary prodigal son! Haha! Aiya, to be honest, I don’t dare accept money for such a small favor, but I’m aware CEO Hong doesn’t like to be indebted to people, so I accepted a token sum. Don’t mind me.”

Everyone laughed.

Li Nianwei saw Dali coming in but hesitated. She wanted to go over but didn’t dare to. It was Hong Weiguo who finally waved her over. “Nianwei, come over. We’re one family, after all.”

Having gotten Hong Weiguo’s permission, Li Nianwei finally put her mind at ease and went over to Hong Dali. She asked gently, “Young Master, is everything all right over there?”

Hong Dali smiled and held Li Nianwei’s hand. “It’s ok. It’s just a small matter. Sister Nianwei, you look beautiful tonight.”

Li Nianwei sighed. “Too bad I couldn’t be of any help to Young Master. But I feel better now that Young Master has arrived.”

Hong Dali already saw an attendant pushing in a three-meter high gigantic birthday cake. He said, “All right, all right. Let’s not talk about that anymore. The ceremony is starting, right?”

Hong Weiguo said, smiling, “Of course. Since our little wastrel is here. Quick go get changed, you’re not appropriately dressed. Everything has been prepared for you. Quick go.”

A butler had already approached and led the way for Hong Dali.

They arrived at the place quickly. Two female servants approached. Obviously very professional in undressing people, Hong Dali was down to his underpants in less than twenty seconds…

Looking at his naked body in the mirror, Hong Dali felt slightly uneasy. “Er… Erm, Butler, it doesn’t have to be too formal, right?” He had never actually seen or attended anything like a coming of age ceremony.

Butler Hao clapped his hands and said, “Don’t worry, Young Master. Everything has been prepared for you. We will be done soon. Let’s begin.”

Soon, a few servants approached holding plates. The two female servants who were skilled at removing clothes started dressing Hong Dali quickly. It seems the skill of undressing and dressing someone came as a set. They were fast and efficient.

While Hong Dali was getting dressed, the old butler gave a running introduction.

“Old Master has specially prepared this Golden Edition Mariusz Calibrea 66 for you. It costs 5.12 million Swiss Francs and has twenty-five amazing and complicated functions. One of them is a built-in ten thousand year calendar which enables it to work for 28 centuries without needing any adjustments. As one of the watches with the most complicated functions in the world, it has a limited edition. Only four were produced—Gold, white gold, rose gold, and platinum.”

Hong Dali: “…”

“This pair of Tonys men’s leather shoes cost thirty-eight thousand USD. It uses top quality crocodile leather from around the world and was carefully handmade using traditional Norwegian shoe-making techniques. The thread used to sew the shoes is specially made linen thread. The lining is made of the softest sheepskin. The buckles are diamond encrusted gold. The top of the shoe is perfectly formed and attaches to the sole accurately. The shoe-making technique consists of more than two hundred steps, making the shoe light yet comfortable. It maintains a standard of comfort regardless of hot, cold, or wet weather.”

Hong Dali: “…”

“The champagne that we will be having at the coming of age ceremony is Lafitte. It’s one hundred and sixty thousand USD per bottle. Old Master spent a lot of time and effort obtaining it. There are only six bottles in the world. Soon, there will only be five left.”

Hong Dali: “…”

Five minutes later, dressed in blinding top grade luxury products from head to toe, Hong Dali stood in front of the microphone. He felt like he was in a dream, which resulted in him only blurting out one sentence after clutching on the microphone for a long time.

“Everyone, please eat and drink to your heart’s content!”

Everyone laughed as Hong Dali said this.

“Poosh!” “Hahaha!” “That’s funny!” “Young Master Dali is great!” The voices cried out in unison.

Lan Ruoxi, who was mingling with the other guests, walked over slowly and tapped lightly on Hong Dali and chided. “You little rascal.” Although she had called him “little rascal,” her eyes were full of adoration with no trace of anger. She said laughingly, “How is it that you did not prepare a few more words to say at such an important event? Quick, say a few more words.”

Hong Dali blushed and scratched his head. “Erm…” After trying for a long time, he blurted out, “Well then, everyone, eat and drink to your heart’s content!”

Everyone burst out laughing this time. Hong Weiguo’s face reddened and chided Dali laughingly. “That’s enough, little brat. Go along and play with your classmates. This is really…”

It was no wonder he was blushing. It was really something for a coming of age ceremony to be this grand…

Hearing that, Hong Dali let out a long sigh. It was finally over. In the past, he was most afraid of speaking publicly at occasions like this. He could chit-chat, but having to speak publicly was like asking him to die.

It was good that everyone knew Hong Dali was much doted on. All the guests just smiled kindly and did not say much.

It was still a huge mess.

After Hong Weiguo and Lan Ruoxi made a long and magnificent speech, the coming of age ceremony was almost at an end.

Hong Weiguo heaved a quiet sigh of relief. It was really tough managing situations like this. “Hur, this little brat. I told him to prepare himself well before coming.”

Just as he was going to take a break, a man who was dressed like a country bumpkin walked tentatively toward him. He asked quietly, “Are, are you CEO Hong?” The man was dusty and muddy all over, and his face was as dirty as a beggar’s, streaked with dirt. He was quite stocky and looked fierce. The two differing traits mixed together had a strange effect that was hard to describe.

The only person who could still appear here even though he was in such a state of disarray was the boss of the Cabinet Society that Hong Dali had just taken over, Yao Tianhao.

Speaking of which, Yao Tianhao had been to hell today and then dragged to heaven.

He had been completely humiliated by Lin Chuyin previously and thought he was at the bottom of the pit, but things had worked out and he became Hong Dali’s henchman. The benefits were unexpectedly good—he had a dedicated vehicle to use and had an allowance of ten thousand dollars a month. The best part was that he had unlimited freedom to do as he wished. This was the most amazing thing ever.

He became the boss of the newly formed “Axe gang.” The three to four hundred little hooligans that Hong Dali had previously bought over were all brought into the ranks, and his might was greater than before.

Although his influence had grown exponentially, he was still shell shocked when he realized that the young master before him was the great prodigal son, Young Master Hong Dali, who had helped Li Nianwei rise to fame. Yao Tianhao hugged Hong Dali’s leg and refused to let go. He cried out loudly, “It’s you, it’s you! You’re my idol!” He was then violently kicked away by Hong Dali…

Today turned out to be a blessing in disguise for him.