Chapter 1228: The Banquet
"Chairman, are you really going to let Little Bao take over the company?" Xia Mi asked suddenly after taking a sip of wine.
She felt that Little Bao was too young, only eleven years old—a child. How could he take over a company? Besides, legally, he can't be recognized. Minors can't become the legal representatives of a company.
"Well, let him control a portion of the shares first, mainly to familiarize him with the various aspects of the company's business, and lay the groundwork for taking over in the future," Wang Xiaoqiang said.
Xia Mi realized that this Little Bao would be the future heir of Wang Xiaoqiang's domestic assets, so she said, "Chairman, I think we should let Little Bao get some exposure to high society, to understand the etiquette of the upper class and meet some business partners."
"Hmm, do you have any plans?" Wang Xiaoqiang asked.
"There's a banquet tonight, and quite a few celebrities from both political and business circles in River City, as well as developers from other regions, will be attending. There are also some star performers and radio hosts... Why not take this opportunity for Little Bao to meet these people?" Xia Mi suggested.
In truth, Wang Xiaoqiang was quite annoyed by these high society gatherings. First of all, these gatherings had many rules. For instance, men had to dress formally, in suits and ties. Even with air conditioning, being wrapped up tightly in this hot weather was uncomfortable. Women had to wear evening dresses and other constricting attire, and many of the upper-class etiquettes were too binding. These gatherings often involved networking and sometimes involved shady deals, which were utterly disgusting.
It was like a masquerade—everyone seemed to wear a mask, being insincere, and the interactions between men and women were just playing pretend, with feigned affection, overly superficial, too fake, and unreal.
However, considering that Little Bao would have to go through these in the future, it would be good for him to experience it. Moreover, just because he didn't like it didn't mean Little Bao wouldn't like it. He couldn't impose his likes and dislikes on his son; the son had his own freedom.
So he asked, "Little Bao, do you want to experience it?"
"Sure!" Little Bao said calmly, neither too eager nor averse, just indifferent. After all, this would be his first such experience, filled with curiosity.
"Get an outfit for Little Bao, and also, Chairman, you should get a suit. You would look handsome in a suit," Little Mi said.
"OK, no problem. You arrange it," Wang Xiaoqiang snapped his fingers.
...
In the afternoon.
Xia Mi accompanied Wang Xiaoqiang and Little Bao shopping at the mall. The pair each bought two suits from Xinu'er. Once Wang Xiaoqiang put on the suit, he looked refreshed and dapper. Little Bao, wearing a suit for the first time, transformed from looking like a student to a mature appearance, quite impressive.
That evening.
Under Xia Mi's guidance, the pair arrived at the Red Maple Mountain Villa, where the grand banquet was being held.
The villa had an enormous hall, extremely large, luxuriously and elaborately decorated, with dazzling lights and a magnificent crystal chandelier casting enchanting colors.
Inside, there were many self-service Western dishes and fruit trays, all adorned with flowers, with rows of red wine glasses, likely numbering in the hundreds,
and various foreign brands of beers, with low and gentle Western classical music playing in the background...
The luxurious arrangement was mesmerizing, with the ambiance elegant, making people feel comfortable and joyful.
Indeed, many people attended tonight. Apart from some staff and attendants from the host side present, everyone else was a successful person or a celebrity from various sectors, as well as some stars and female radio reporters, all dressed gorgeously.
Xia Mi was wearing a beige long dress, lightly made up, looking noble and elegant, sensually alluring. Her career over the years had brought about significant changes,
transforming from a hotel lobby manager and a female sales executive to a general manager of a sales company. These transitions substantially altered her mindset and temperament.
Little Bao found himself excited upon first entering such a setting, especially seeing so many beautiful women presenting as either sensual and alluring, gracious and poised, or cold and noble, stirred his youthful curiosity and yearning to get close. However, his nature was somewhat like his father's; no matter what he felt inside, he would not show it on the surface.
After introducing Little Bao to a few acquaintances, Wang Xiaoqiang noticed Little Bao was a bit reserved by his side. He said, "Feel free to wander around by yourself, don't be afraid. While this isn't our place, just think of it as our backyard... haha..."
Wang Xiaoqiang chuckled playfully.
Little Bao immediately understood, gaining some courage and confidence. He wandered off with a glass of red wine in hand and found many TV personalities he recognized there, including some film stars. This excited him greatly, thinking to himself that this was a great place where he could see those famous figures he usually couldn't.
Moreover, there were even foreigners present. Just as he moved away from his father and Xia Mi, a little blonde girl with blue eyes waved at him. This little girl was very pretty, like a character from a fairy tale, so Little Bao walked towards her...
As Little Bao walked towards the little girl, a woman dressed sensually also approached her.
"Chairman, is Little Bao alright by himself?" Xia Mi asked, somewhat worried about him.
Wang Xiaoqiang shrugged. "I actually hope he gets into a little trouble; otherwise, life would be too dull, haha..."
"Hmph, what kind of father wishes that for his son?!" Xia Mi gave Wang Xiaoqiang a playful scolding, then seeing Little Bao out of sight, she naturally linked her arm with Wang Xiaoqiang's, the two appearing like an intimate couple.
"Oh, Manager Xia, long time no see, you're dressed so beautifully today, tsk tsk..." A slick-looking man approached, sweeping his eyes over Xia Mi with a lecherous gaze, though well-disguised.
"Uh, Young Master Wu, hello," Xia Mi's face slightly changed upon seeing the man and greeted him coldly and indifferently.
Young Master Wu noticed Xia Mi had not let go of Wang Xiaoqiang's arm, realizing their relationship was more than just casual. He glanced at Wang Xiaoqiang with some hostility and disdain, pointing at him and asking Xia Mi, "Who is this?"
Wang Xiaoqiang had been relatively low-profile domestically and spent several years in the Immortal Realm, so many people didn't recognize him. This Young Master Wu seemed barely in his early twenties. Wang Xiaoqiang was already famous in River City when he was still in school. Thus, it made sense he didn't recognize Wang Xiaoqiang, and even if he did, he wouldn't regard him seriously.
"This is our chairman, Wang Xiaoqiang," Xia Mi introduced, then pointed at Young Master Wu, telling Wang Xiaoqiang, "This is Wu Yi, the son of Wu Fangyuan, chairman of the Tianwu Group."
Originally, Wu Yi wasn't called Wu Yi. He changed it himself, believing he was the only one under heaven, self-proclaiming to be the number one in the world.
His father, Wu Fangyuan, thought the name was grand enough, so he acknowledged it, leaving Wu Yi as Wu Yi, who carried an arrogant sense of supremacy wherever he went.
Wu Yi had a preference for women, especially those older and of high status, and the more they ignored him, the more he wanted to possess them. On several occasions, he had hinted for Xia Mi to be his woman, but Xia Mi paid him no mind.
This only fueled his anger and desire to conquer.
Now, seeing Xia Mi close with Wang Xiaoqiang, jealousy surged within. He thought of using this opportunity to humiliate Wang Xiaoqiang and in turn, curb Xia Mi's pride and make her come to him willingly.
He glanced mischievously at Wang Xiaoqiang, mocking, "Oh, the president of a countryside food company, no wonder you look so down-to-earth, uh, I heard you're from a farming background, right...?"
...
The past couple of days, I've been having stomach aches and not feeling well, so the updates have been sparse—sorry, I'll try to keep it at 6000+ words. Also, I hope everyone continues to support me; the story is about to get exciting. (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
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