Returning wealthy individuals develop their hometowns and become rich in the 1980s

When Huang Bingkun drove back to Lianzhai from the county town, it was already dusk. As soon as he drove to the gate of the Chen family's old house, he saw Chen Dong's Maybach parked in the parking space, and Chen Zaixing's "Dilu" had also driven back from the airport. Huang Bingkun knew that Chen Dong and Chen Zaixing had returned from Shanghai.

Sure enough, when Huang Bingkun locked the car and walked to the front gate, he heard Chen Zaixing's signature loud laughter from inside, accompanied by Xiao Rongguo's indignant shouts, "Dad, I don't want to wear these clothes, they don't look good at all, hmph!"

Huang Bingkun pushed open the courtyard gate and walked in. He saw his boss, Chen Zaixing, the CEO of Huaxing Real Estate, holding a military green coat and trying to put it on Xiao Rongguo. Xiao Rongguo looked resistant.

He had already been influenced by his aunt Zhang Yi's aesthetic sense by following his older brother Chen Hui, and now he dressed like a little America. He would never have looked at the military green coat that Chen Zaixing bought for him from Ningcheng.

Even if I, Xiao Rongguo, freeze to death, I would rather not wear this tacky old coat.

Chen Zaixing, who was still playing with his son, saw Huang Bingkun walk in and asked with a smile, "Brother Bingkun, what brings you here? Is something the matter?"

Huang Bingkun politely nodded and greeted Chen Dong, and after exchanging greetings with the rest of the Chen family, he recounted to Chen Zaixing what Chen Zaiguang had instructed him to do the day before yesterday. Upon hearing this, the smile on Chen Zaixing's face vanished, and he shook his head with a stern expression. "Even Ming-ge was fooled by this kind of trick. That Pepper is really audacious, daring to try and deceive my brother, Chen Zaixing."

"Bingkun, sit down first," Chen Zaiguang ignored Chen Zaixing's words and gestured for Huang Bingkun to sit down. "How's the investigation going?"

As soon as Huang Bingkun sat down, Chen Zailong, who was brewing tea, placed a teacup in front of him. Huang Bingkun politely bowed with a tea-tapping gesture, but before he could even drink it, he told Chen Zaiguang all the information that Wang Wenxi had inquired about.

"Uncle Xiangui, Brother Guang, Brother Dong, I think this is most likely a scam. That guy called Brother Kun promised to return 1200 yuan for every 800 yuan invested. This isn't business; it's clearly a scam to swindle money from idiots!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Dong frowned slightly and tapped the armrest with his fingers, making a rhythmic sound. Although he had never met Brother Kun directly, as someone who had lived through this era, he was all too familiar with this kind of tactic.

Especially since it involves Chen Dong's old business of finance, this kind of tactic could only be used in the early days of China's reform and opening up when private capital was growing wildly. Once communication becomes more advanced and information gaps are eliminated, these tactics will disappear.

"This is a typical Ponzi scheme," Chen Dong said in a deep voice. "It uses money from new investors to pay interest to early investors, creating the illusion of making money and luring more people into the scheme. It can only keep bringing in new investors, like people fleeing an avalanche. It can't stop. Once the funding chain breaks or the scammers run away with the money, all that's left is a mess."

"A Ponzi scheme?" Chen Zaiguang asked, puzzled.

"This is a trick that foreigners have already used," Chen Dong explained, his gaze becoming profound. "But in our country, with reform and opening up, private funds have begun to flow, and this kind of scam will soon emerge, and there will be more and more of them."

"This kind of method has long been classified as financial fraud abroad. It's crude but very effective. They take advantage of people's desire to get rich overnight and use high returns as bait. Although Brother Ming suffered a loss this time, it can be considered a reminder to us."

Chen Xiangui, who had been listening intently, was stunned for a moment, then asked Chen Dong with lingering fear, "Is it possible to get that 50,000 yuan back?"

"Uncle, don't worry, we can definitely catch them," Chen Dong said with a faint smile, reassuring Chen Xiangui. "Now that Bingkun has found the hideout, the people definitely can't escape."

"However, Bingkun, don't rush into action on this matter. Since that Brother Kun dared to set up such a big scheme in our Jiping, there might be some big fish behind him. Have someone keep an eye on things and don't alert him. I'll go to the city to see Secretary Zhou in the next few days, and then we'll discuss a foolproof plan when I get back."

When Chen Zaixing heard that Chen Dong was going to the city to see Zhou Haimin, the municipal party secretary, he assumed that Chen Dong wanted Zhou Haimin to order the district bureaus to arrest people. So he smiled and said, "A Dong, that's exactly what Secretary Zhou needs to do to make arrests. I'll make a call to Director Wang, and with the help of our village's joint defense team, I can get a whole militia company for you in no time."

"I'm not going to talk to Secretary Zhou about these things. These are just trivial matters," Chen Dong replied, shaking his head. "Our country is currently in a critical period of economic transformation. People have more money in their hands, but there are very few investment channels. At this time, financial fraud is most likely to occur."

"Arresting all those people is easy, and recovering the money is simple too, but that only treats the symptoms, not the root cause!"

Chen Zaixing looked at Chen Dong, puzzled. "So, what do you mean, Dong?"

Chen Dong sat up straight, looking intently at everyone. "We have to take action ourselves and establish the rules. Since there is money in the private sector, there needs to be a proper pool to store it, instead of letting this money flow into the pockets of swindlers."

"These money have been swindled by fraudsters, who will only use it to indulge in debauchery and bring no benefit to society. In the end, it will also cause many families to be ruined and destroyed," he paused, and dropped a bombshell, "I plan to form a joint venture with the People's Bank of Tuocheng to establish a 'Tuocheng Trust Investment Company'."

"A trust investment company?!"

Everyone in the main room was stunned. The word Chen Dong used was too professional and unfamiliar to them.

"Simply put, it's about managing money for the wealthy and finding funding for those who want to get things done," Chen Dong patiently explained. "Our Tuocheng is a hometown of overseas Chinese, and overseas Chinese, Tuocheng natives in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia hold a lot of capital."

"They want to come back and invest, but they can't find a way, or they don't dare to invest. We established this company in partnership with the People's Bank of China in Tuocheng to build a legal, compliant, and transparent financial platform."

Chen Dong pointed at Chen Zaixing and said, "Just like your Huaxing Real Estate, Fifth Brother, if you want to grow and expand, you have to go through various financing methods. If you just rely on slowly building communities and buying them, no matter how long you develop, you can only struggle in the small circle of Tuocheng and it will be difficult for you to get on the big stage."

"Do you remember the Li Ka-shing I asked you to meet in Hong Kong? He's a master of finance. With a few moves, his company's assets can double immediately, and the funds for the company's development will come in."

"Third Brother, your KFC company is the same. Our country is currently undergoing reform and opening up, and foreign capital wants to come in, but without a guide, they are afraid of policy changes," Chen Dong pointed to himself.

"And I can directly take out billions of US dollars in liquid funds to jointly establish this trust investment company with the People's Bank of China in Tuocheng."

"It's to tell those overseas Chinese and capitalists that China is now a land of untapped wealth and capital, and if they don't come now, when will they?"