Chapter 764 - 338: I Don’t Think It Should Be Played Like This

Xu Yun had nothing to lose; the worst that could happen was losing some money.

He didn’t have much of anything else, but he had plenty of money.

But for Zhang Heping, this matter was different.

The moment the other side started applying pressure, he caught wind of it.

When it came to his political future, there was no room for retreat on certain matters.

If this had been any other matter, as long as it didn’t involve him, he could have turned a blind eye. But not now.

This was all happening in secret and had not yet affected the normal construction at Xu Yun’s real estate company in the slightest.

To put it bluntly, as long as Zhang Heping could hold on, Xu Yun would be fine.

If Zhang Heping couldn’t hold on, the relevant documents would be sent to the construction site, and there would always be some reason or another to halt progress.

In the end, he’d be forced to cooperate with them.

Xu Yun hadn’t heard anything for several days, which meant the leader was someone who could handle the pressure.

He was happy about this.

Even if Zhang Heping lost in the end, Xu Yun wouldn’t blame him. At least the man had tried his best; his stance was clear.

Meanwhile, the disaster relief work out west was still ongoing.

The three girls were at a high altitude, and after several days of roughing it, their cheeks had become chapped and red.

The biggest problem was the altitude sickness; they were practically living on oxygen.

He heard that Xino had even been hospitalized once. The other two urged her to return, but she stubbornly refused.

If Jiang Peiyao and Yu Xuan could do it, so could she. She insisted on staying at her post.

The arrogant princess had a stubborn streak all her own.

Xi Wei had called Xu Yun once, worried sick about his sister, hoping Xu Yun could persuade her to come back.

Xu Yun refused.

’She’s doing a good deed and she’s happy doing it. What’s your problem with that!’

’Maybe you think it’s a hardship, but maybe she finds it fulfilling.’

Besides that, his future father-in-law, Xi Huai’an, had someone invite Xu Yun to their home for a meal.

The New Year was approaching, so they wanted to meet up a bit earlier, lest they run out of time later.

The moment Xu Yun heard, he knew something was up.

Otherwise, why would Xi Huaimin be the one inviting him to dinner?

Naturally, Xu Yun agreed. He had no reason to refuse.

When he drove to Xino’s house, Cheng Yuelan had already prepared a family dinner and was just waiting for him.

At the warm invitation of Xino’s mother, he sat down.

Another round of pleasantries followed.

The only thing missing was their lively princess, Xino.

During the meal, no one talked about work. They just made small talk about everyday matters.

Cheng Yuelan casually brought up the topic of New Year visits, the implication between the lines being that it was time for the two families to meet.

Xu Yun didn’t give a clear answer, responding rather vaguely.

Of course, this was a statement in itself, as anyone could tell. He just didn’t want to make the situation awkward.

Cheng Yuelan realized she was being too hasty and changed her approach.

She asked about his mother’s likes and interests, so they could buy something for the New Year and have Xu Yun take it back to her as a small token of their goodwill.

Xu Yun declined this as well, saying that his mother didn’t care for such formalities. Rather than sending a gift, it would be more meaningful for him to bring Xino home for the New Year.

These words made Cheng Yuelan quite happy.

"As long as it’s a good time, you can have Xino go home with you for the New Year. We don’t mind at all."

Xu Yun smiled. "I’m relieved to hear you say that."

Even Xi Huaimin, who had remained silent until now, gave Xu Yun a surprised look.

Watching his mom eagerly trying to curry favor with Xu Yun, Xi Wei, who was sitting nearby, felt a sense of unease.

’It’s not like my little sister is undesirable. Do we really have to stoop to this!’

After dinner, the two of them didn’t follow their usual routine of going up to the study. Instead, they started chatting right there in the living room.

’Finally,’ Xi Wei thought, ’I can listen in this time.’

’Ever since Xu Yun started visiting, he’d barely had a chance to set foot in that second-floor study.’

’He had no idea what his father and Xu Yun talked about whenever they went in there.’

’But he did know one thing: Xu Yun seemed to have taken over the old city district’s renovation project by acquiring a real estate company to develop it.’

’It was a money-losing deal.’

’The government’s initial funds had already been given to the previous company that went belly-up, and they certainly weren’t going to pay out a second time.’

’So, even with government incentives or favorable policies, Xu Yun was essentially paying for the reconstruction out of his own pocket.’

’Losing money in the initial phase was a certainty; it was just a question of how much.’

"Xu Yun, you can’t just do nothing about this and be a mere spectator. You need to put in some effort."

Xi Huaimin said meaningfully, "Old Zhang is under a lot of pressure this time, from all sides. He’s about at his breaking point."

"Is the other side too strong, or are we too weak here locally?"

Xu Yun said calmly, "If that’s really the case, I can just give up the project."

"That’s not the way to put it."

Xi Huaimin said, "If the others can’t withstand the pressure and compromise first, there’s nothing Old Zhang can do on his own."

"Did he ask you to pass on this message, Uncle?"

"No, I’ve seen it all with my own eyes. I’m just speaking up for an old friend."

Xi Huaimin said, "Regardless, if you just hand over the project like this, Old Zhang will lose face, and it won’t look good for you either."

After saying this, he saw Xu Yun remain silent, not answering the question but just continuing to watch TV. He assumed Xu Yun was hesitating and didn’t press the matter further.

It wasn’t that Xu Yun didn’t want to answer; it was mainly that he didn’t know what to say.

’He could play any game that was about money.’

’But this wasn’t about money anymore.’

’Who did he know?’

’He didn’t know anyone!’

Xi Huaimin waited until Xu Yun was leaving but still hadn’t gotten an answer, and he couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.