After Divorce, I Can Hear the Future

At night, Lu Liang returned to the Roppongi apartment.

The lights inside were bright, and the voice of Sakurada Miyuki came from the kitchen, speaking in incomprehensible Japanese.

Lu Liang followed the sound to the kitchen, saw the situation inside, and a smile appeared on his lips.

At this moment, Miyuki resembled a gourmet blogger, with a phone set up beside her, video chatting with her mother.

"?" She was engrossed in cooking, completely unaware that Erii in front of the camera had already seen Lu Liang standing behind her.

"Madam, are you getting used to living back home?" Lu Liang smiled and waved at the camera.

Erii gave a gentle smile, barely having time to reply when Miyuki was startled by the sudden voice and cried out in pain.

She instinctively sucked on her bleeding forefinger, blankly staring at Lu Liang: "Sir, why are you back?"

"The conversation wasn't going well, so I came back early."

Erii, though not present and unable to see this scene due to the camera angle, also guessed what had happened upon hearing her daughter's cry and Lu Liang's sudden approach.

She hurriedly said: "Sir, is she okay? The first aid kit is in the second drawer to the left under the LCD screen."

Upon hearing this, Lu Liang swiftly went to the living room, found the first aid kit, disinfected the finger, and applied a band-aid.

He looked displeased and flicked Miyuki's forehead: "You should be more careful."

"You walk without making a sound." Sakurada Miyuki pouted, looking aggrieved, but suddenly started giggling.

"How can you still laugh at this?" Lu Liang said with a straight face.

Sakurada Miyuki held onto Lu Liang's arm and looked at the screen at her mother, grinning: "Sir, don't you think this moment feels like our family is together again?"

If she could turn back time, she wished to return to six months ago.

Back then, her mother was still in Tokyo, Lu Liang would visit every other day, and she was still in school, attending classes without worries.

That period was probably the happiest time after her father's passing.

Lu Liang remained silent, and Erii, with her chin slightly raised, forced a smile: "Meixue, sir is also back. Mom needs to rest early; tomorrow I have to go to the field with your grandmother to collect honey, I'll send some to you then."

With that, she hurriedly ended the call.

She was afraid that if the conversation continued, tears would fall uncontrollably.

After all, in the past twenty years, the longest separation between the mother and daughter hadn't exceeded 24 hours, but for her daughter's future, she could only bear the pain of leaving.

Staring at the darkened screen, the light in Sakurada Miyuki's eyes also dimmed.

"What should we make for late-night snacks tonight?"

Lu Liang smiled, deliberately changing the topic. .

"Seafood clay pot porridge, I was just preparing the side dishes."

Sakurada Miyuki put away her disappointment and enthusiastically introduced the night's dishes.

For this, she had specifically gone to Chinatown to buy a clay pot meant for cooking porridge.

"It's not too difficult, I can make it. You should go take a shower first, be careful not to soak your finger."

Lu Liang put on an apron, rolled up his sleeves, and prepared to finish the late-night snack.

Sakurada Miyuki blinked, dazed for a moment, believing she misheard and quickly stopped him: "Sir, no need, I can just wear a glove."

In Neon, male dominance is extremely prevalent, and truly capable men never enter the kitchen.

Not only do men think this way, but women also view it as a denial if the head of the household cooks, seeing it as a disgrace.

"Where do all these rules come from?"

Lu Liang glared, saying annoyedly: "Now leave the kitchen, go shower, and wait to eat the late-night snack."

Sakurada Miyuki remained still, and Lu Liang with a stern face coldly scolded: "Can't you be obedient?"

"I can~" Sakurada Miyuki pouted, feeling aggrieved, headed to the bathroom step by step, looking back reluctantly.

As the night deepened, after finishing their late-night snack, the two lay cuddled in the semi-circular hammock on the balcony, feeling the touch of the night breeze.

Sakurada Miyuki leaned in Lu Liang's arms, squinting with a face full of enjoyment: "Sir, you mentioned the conversation wasn't going well earlier? Was it with Mr. Ota?"

Lu Liang thought for a moment, and replied: "It was not smooth."

He didn't hide anything, starting from the agreement with Old Ma half a year ago, to the shattered dream of Ant Group's IPO, then to Tianxing Finance planning to accept Alipay's overseas business.

Miyuki would soon be promoted from basic to middle management, and then into higher ranks, eventually leading the company; she was now eligible to be exposed to some matters.

Sakurada Miyuki showed a thoughtful expression: "Who controls PayPal, can control Alipay's business in East Asia?"

"PayPal's influence isn't limited to Tokyo; it can play a crucial role in exploring Europe and America's market in the future."

PayPal, also known as PayPal, was established in 1998, headquartered in San Jose, California, United States.

The founder, also Lu Liang's old friend, concurrently serves as Tesla's chairman, Elon Musk.

It's a global technology and digital mobile payment company, providing services in 200 countries and regions, supporting over 100 currencies.

In 2015, it reached a global purchasing cooperation with Ali, and in the same year collaborated with Ant, both parties planning to attack the global payment market hand in hand.

However, Ant Group's ability to develop its payment business domestically mainly stemmed from an absolutely authoritative Central Bank above suppressing everything.

No matter how rapidly companies grew, the "Central Mom" could rectify things at critical times, just like the recent halt to Ant's IPO.

Corresponding to what Lu Liang often said, the domestic business environment is actually far more free than abroad.

In a country with a highly centralized regime, regulation always holds the idea that all the meat stays in the pot, allowing the private sector to develop freely, since they guard the final barrier.

Unlike Europe and America, where numerous parties and factions exist.

Even among various institutions on Wall Street or the major financial groups of the Squid Clan, they aren't monolithic.

Hence, when facing new things and industries, each has a thought: if I can't have it, what if someone else does?

The cooperation between Ant Group and PayPal Group, aimed at capturing the payment markets in various countries worldwide, emerged from this context.

At that time, the domestic payment market's growth was accelerating, but abroad it was a formidable task.

After all, the credit card business dates back to the late 19th century, and after over a hundred years, it's become a vast, intertwined interest structure that is hard to shake.

Online payment services may make people's lives more convenient, eliminate counterfeit currency circulation, and provide easier fund source tracing.

But the European and American conglomerates' mentality was akin to the nobility of the late Qing Dynasty; even though they knew the benefits of industrial development, they refused to overhaul their own system.

Because none of them could guarantee that after overturning an old industry, they would maintain their superior position in the new one.

If they don't do it, they won't make mistakes.

Not only do they refrain from doing it, but they also prevent others from doing it.

There's a rumor that when faced with overbearing European and American corporations, Musk demonstrated a 'lightspeed knee-slide.'

Although the message wasn't confirmed, after that, PayPal Group got fragmented.

The shares of European and American markets were cross-held by over a dozen institutions, big and small, including BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street Fund, and Blackstone Group.

Ota Ling seized the moment and, representing Mitsui Sumitomo, decisively acquired all PayPal Group's shares in Neon and chose to continue cooperation with Ant Group.

To this day, PayPal is like the ancient Western Zhou; although the lords carry the Zhou Dynasty's name, they heed the orders but not the implementations.

"The grand forces of the world, unite after long division; divide after long union."

Lu Liang squinted his eyes, his tone gentle but with a determined momentum: "This online payment market may yet achieve unification."

The development of the domestic financial industry is slow; even fewer institutions venture abroad, so Tianxing Finance can only rely on itself.

To compete with those long-established powers in Europe and America, it must emulate the domestic development of new energy industries, taking another path for industry upgrade.

The path of online payment may be difficult, but it's currently the only somewhat viable route.

"Mua~"

As Lu Liang was speaking, Miyuki suddenly cupped his cheeks and kissed him hard.

"What are you doing?" Lu Liang asked in confusion.

"Sir, you're so domineering, I like it," Sakurada Miyuki laughed, her eyes full of admiration.

At this moment, the Light Giant from her childhood seemed to appear in reality, Lu Liang was her Ultraman Tiga, radiating dazzling light.

Such an excellent person, even cooking for her, just the thought almost made her faint from happiness.