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

"I have to go to the main hall later, so I won't be going with you."

"Alright, then you go ahead with your work," Chen Xiangui nodded, then turned to Huang Lanzhi, "Old woman, let's go see Qingsheng's parents, don't keep them waiting."

Huang Lanzhi nodded upon hearing this. This time, Chen Xiangui and she would visit Lin Qingsheng's house first. The daughters-in-law and Chen Zaiguang would not go with them. Zhang Yi would take them to explore the city of New York later. Since they had come all the way to America, they should visit all the famous attractions and take photos.

After Lin Qingsheng and Chen Lianxiang drove Chen Xiangui and Huang Lanzhi out of the manor, Chen Dong smiled and said to Zhang Yi, "Honey, you can take your elder brother and sister-in-law out to play. I think things will be a bit busy at the main hall, so we won't be back for lunch."

"Okay, then be careful on the road," Zhang Yi said, carrying Xiao Huiyi over and kissing Chen Dong. Chen Dong cupped his daughter's chubby face and used his stubble to scratch the little one's nose, making her giggle until she stopped.

After finishing his meal and tidying up his documents, Chen Dong got into the "Dilu" that Bill had driven. Qu Cai, in the passenger seat, turned around and greeted Chen Dong. Chen Dong smiled and replied, "Little Qu, how was your rest, first time in America?"

"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Chen. I'm not a light sleeper and slept very well last night," Qu Cai replied, turning to the side.

"If there's anything inconvenient, just tell Bill," Chen Dong said, fastening his seatbelt. Bill then slowly started the car, turned around the fountain, and drove out of the manor gate.

The black car, named "Dilu," drove towards Chinatown. After passing the Chinatown archway, the flow of people and vehicles began to increase, and the car slowed down. Some teenagers dressed in a thuggish style, with various designs tattooed on their arms and even necks, saw the black "Dilu" drive into their neighborhood and came over with ill intent.

The deeper the car went into Chinatown, the more Chinese faces there were, and their accents came from all over the country. Bill parked the car in an empty parking space under the Hung Mun headquarters building. A burly man sitting by the door saw that someone was so ignorant as to park in the Hung Mun's exclusive parking space, and immediately stood up, his hand reaching for his lower back, ready to draw his gun at any moment.

Bill opened the driver's door, nodded to the burly man walking towards him, and the man immediately pulled his hand back from his waist, nodded to Bill, and called out, "Bill, you're back from Hong Kong."

Chen Dong and Qu Cai also got out of the car. When the burly man saw Chen Dong, his originally fierce face turned into a serious smile. "Mr. Chen, you're back too."

Chen Dong smiled and nodded in response to the burly man, "Yes, Ah Hu, has Uncle Fang arrived yet?"

The man called Ah Hu glanced at Qu Cai next to Chen Dong and replied, "Uncle Fang is upstairs, you can just go up directly."

Chen Dong, along with Qu Cai and Bill, walked into the main hall of the Hongmen. A dozen men in black were sitting on the sofas on the left and right sides of the hall. When they saw Chen Dong and the others come in, they all looked over warily. When they found that it was Chen Dong and Bill with an unfamiliar man, they all stood up and greeted Chen Dong.

Good morning, Mr. Chen!

Chen Dong casually waved to them and walked straight to the statue of Guan Yu enshrined in the center of the hall. He took out three incense sticks from the box next to the shrine, lit them at the oil lamp, and respectfully knelt on the prayer mat to offer three sticks of incense to Guan Yu.

The statue of Lord Guan enshrined in the main hall of the Hongmen headquarters is different from the statues enshrined by others. This is a statue of Lord Guan with his eyes wide open, looking down upon the world. Incense is offered to him all year round.

After offering incense to Guan Yu, Chen Dong went upstairs. In the reception room on the second floor, Fang Zhenfan was talking to an old man in his fifties with his legs crossed. He saw Chen Dong coming upstairs through the glass and waved to him with a smile.

"Uncle Fang," Chen Dong waved as he entered the reception room. Upon seeing the old man, he recognized him as Chen Yili, the president of the San Francisco branch. Chen Dong immediately greeted him with a smile, "Uncle Chen, what brings you here from San Francisco today?"

Chen Yili, dressed in a long robe and wearing old-fashioned round-framed glasses, looked at Chen Dong with a smile, "I heard from the boss that you, the God of Wealth, would be coming to the main hall today, so I came here to collect my debt from you."

"Hahaha! Uncle Chen, you really don't hold back. You've only said a few words before asking me for money," Chen Dong pulled up a chair and sat down.

Fang Zhenfan waited until Chen Dong sat down before asking, "Dong, how did your talks with the people in Singapore go?"

"It's settled," Chen Dong recounted the details of his conversation with Li Guangdong and Zhou Muliang to Fang Zhenfan and Chen Yili.

Chen Yili said, "It wasn't easy. If it weren't for you, Ah Dong, setting up an offshore financial center in Tuocheng on the mainland, which made that old man Li Guangliang restless, we might not have been able to get the money back in Singapore anytime soon."

"Ah Dong, when it comes to trade settlements with Singapore, it's best to restrict their share. We can get a little over 4% to 5% interest every year. We need to make the business a steady stream for them. We can't let Singapore drag us down for so many years."

Faced with Chen Yili's words, Fang Zhenfan did not express any opinion. He wanted to hear Chen Dong's opinion. Chen Dong shook his head and said, "Uncle Chen, since Singapore is willing to open this door to repay the money, we should hurry up and get all the principal and interest back to him. After all, trade is risky and rewarding. Who knows when there will be a financial fluctuation and the settlement volume will drop, making it difficult to recover the interest."

"Ah Dong is right, we can't delay any longer in Singapore," Fang Zhenfan said. "This $2.2 billion debt has been dragging on for almost two generations, and we're at a huge disadvantage. Getting this money back, whether we use it to buy government bonds or invest it, is much better than leaving it in Singapore."

Chen Yili nodded solemnly, agreeing with Fang Zhenfan's words, "Then I'll go and inform the creditors in San Francisco and get a heads-up with them first."

"I'll call the branch offices in Los Angeles and Honolulu and have them communicate with the creditors first," Fang Zhenfan said. "The Nanyang branch probably already knows about this, so there's no rush."

"At that time, Uncle Fang, you'll have to step in and negotiate with the Singaporean authorities regarding the specific principal amount and subsequent interest," Chen Dong said with a smile. "I reckon Li Guangliang won't be looking too happy then, hahaha!"

"Damn it, he dares to give me attitude," Fang Zhenfan said with a laugh. "If I hadn't stood up for Li Guangliang back then and gotten the Chinese in Singapore to vote for him, Li Guangliang wouldn't have become a prime minister."

"Hahaha!"

"Let's not talk about that trivial matter in that county anymore, Adong. I heard that Qingsheng is planning to marry your cousin," Fang Zhenfan changed the subject.

"Yes, that's right. The engagement banquet has already been held in Tuocheng. My uncle and aunt also came to New York. Today they even visited Uncle Lin and his family at the Qingsheng family home."