Tycoon: From Rags to Riches

Chapter 171: Chapter 156: Privilege and Clash

As Gu Heng’s gaze shifted to the other two groups of people, a middle-aged man in an expensive business suit, accompanied by a secretary and an assistant, immediately hurried over to him.

"Mr. Gu, apologies for the intrusion."

"Please allow me to introduce myself."

The middle-aged man was very polite. As he spoke, he handed a business card to Gu Heng. "I am Han Lixin, Vice President of the ByteDance Douyin Business Group, in charge of TikTok’s live-streaming operations."

"President Han, a pleasure to meet you."

After hearing Han Lixin’s introduction, Gu Heng couldn’t help but look slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected someone from TikTok’s official team to show up.

As for Bingbing and the others behind Gu Heng, when they heard Han Lixin’s title, they were so shocked their eyes went wide in disbelief.

Vice President of the ByteDance Douyin Business Group!

In charge of TikTok’s live-streaming operations!

To a group of influencers like them, who relied on their looks, he was practically a god!

They had already been stunned to see the president of the China Merchants Bank Zhonghai Branch show up in person. Now, seeing another "big shot" like this, who had flown all the way from Yanjing to meet Gu Heng, left them utterly dumbfounded.

"Mr. Gu, this morning, my subordinates reported to me that your massive spending on TikTok Live last night might be at risk of triggering an anti-money laundering review. After receiving their report, I immediately flew over from Yanjing. I didn’t expect to arrive just in time for this."

At this, Han Lixin glanced at the last group of people. "Rest assured, we will fully assist you in clearing up this misunderstanding later. Also, I wanted to express my gratitude to you in person. Thank you very much for your incredible support of TikTok Live."

"We just decided in a video conference that, to show our appreciation for your tremendous support, we will create a custom, exclusive, privileged gift for you. It will be equivalent in value to a Carnival and will be a one-of-a-kind, platform-wide exclusive."

Last night, Gu Heng’s total spending on TikTok was nearly sixty million.

He not only broke the record for the highest single-night spending on TikTok Live but also shattered the record for the entire live-streaming industry.

For a whale of this magnitude, only a massive company like TikTok could handle it. On any other platform, the CEO would probably have to come in person to build a relationship, terrified of him being poached by a competitor.

The reason Han Lixin gave earlier was just a pretext he’d come up with to meet Gu Heng. Even if there hadn’t been any risk, he would have found another excuse to come. He just hadn’t expected to stumble into the real thing by chance.

"I see."

"President Han, you’re truly considerate. My trust in the TikTok platform has not been misplaced."

The man had come all this way, offering assistance and an exclusive gift. Naturally, Gu Heng wouldn’t give him the cold shoulder. He responded with equal warmth and exchanged a few pleasantries.

Seeing this, the way Bingbing and the others looked at Gu Heng changed once again.

An exclusive, privileged gift!

A platform-wide exclusive, the only one of its kind!

An exclusive privilege belonging only to the top-tier whales, one that had vanished from TikTok’s history, was now, after several years, making a comeback!

Ever since TikTok Live was restructured and the exorbitant gifts were removed, those exclusive, privileged gifts had also disappeared.

Until now, they had never heard of any account that still had an exclusive, privileged gift. But what had they just heard?

The Vice President of the ByteDance Douyin Business Group had personally said he was going to create a one-of-a-kind, platform-exclusive, privileged gift for Gu Heng.

For them, this news was nothing short of explosive.

Gu Heng and Han Lixin exchanged pleasantries for a moment before all three parties turned to look at the last group of people.

At this point, even Xinxin and the others could see how awkward their big boss was.

Of course...

It wasn’t just their boss who was awkward. The people who had come with him were also visibly uncomfortable under the gazes of Gu Heng and his group.

"Mr. Gu, hello."

Seeing that Lei Yibin, the Chairman of Wuyou Media, remained silent, a square-faced man in a white short-sleeved shirt took the initiative to speak. "I am Lu Ning, Deputy Head of the Hang City Economic Crime Investigation Division. There is a matter that may require your cooperation with our investigation."

"Here are my credentials. Please take a look."

With that, Lu Ning handed his credentials to Gu Heng.

"Officer Lu, I am Yang Wenjie, a senior partner at Jun Cheng Law Firm. Mr. Gu is a key client of our firm. From this point forward, you can direct any matters requiring Mr. Gu’s cooperation to me."

Gu Heng smiled at Lu Ning, his attitude appearing gentle and polite, but he showed no intention of speaking, letting Yang Wenjie handle the situation for him.

Lu Ning looked at the imposing Yang Wenjie before him, a flash of helplessness crossing the depths of his eyes.

First, the president of the China Merchants Bank Zhonghai Branch, then the Vice President of the ByteDance Douyin Business Group, and now a senior partner from Jun Cheng Law Firm.

He couldn’t easily handle any single person in this group.

’Damn it...’

’No wonder none of the others came. Those old foxes are real bastards!’

Lu Ning cursed inwardly, while also feeling that his decision to approach Gu Heng through Lei Yibin was a very wise one.

"Chairman Gu, Lawyer Yang, we’re just following procedure."

Lu Ning added with a smile, "It’s just a simple process. It won’t take up too much of your time."

"Cooperating with the police is every citizen’s duty."

Gu Heng maintained his smile and asked Lu Ning, "Officer Lu, do you need me to come down to the station with you?"

As Gu Heng asked this question, the gazes of Liu Sheng, Han Lixin, Yang Wenjie, and Yuri Freck all instantly fell upon Lu Ning’s face.

"No, no!"

"There are no requirements for the location!"

Lu Ning waved his hands frantically. "Mr. Gu can choose anywhere he likes!"

"Oh..."

"In that case, let’s find a teahouse."

"We can have some tea and clear up this misunderstanding at the same time."

Gu Heng’s gaze swept over everyone. "What does everyone think?"

"Whatever Chairman Gu decides is fine."

Naturally, no one had any objections.

Then, everyone turned their gaze to the middle-aged man in a polo shirt and glasses standing next to Lu Ning.

"Chairman Gu, I am Lei Yibin."

"I’ve caused you much trouble today. I hope Chairman Gu can forgive me."

The moment Gu Heng’s gaze landed on him, the man immediately extended both hands and came forward with a rather deferential posture.

"Chairman Lei, I’ve heard so much about you. A pleasure to finally meet."

Gu Heng extended one hand and shook the man’s.

"Oh, no, no!"

"I don’t deserve such praise!"

"Chairman Gu is the one who’s truly young and accomplished!"

Hearing Gu Heng’s words, Lei Yibin quickly waved his hands in dismissal.

Although the Wuyou Media he founded was very famous online, and appeared to be a massive company with numerous branches, its actual market valuation was only a little over a billion—and that was a generous estimate.

If Wuyou Media could actually go public, the shares he held might just allow him to squeeze into the A10 Club and speak with these people as an equal. But as it stood, he was still a long way off.

In front of people like Liu Sheng and Han Lixin, he truly felt he couldn’t bear the weight of those words.

"I understand the situation today."

"I suppose I’ve troubled Chairman Lei, making you come all this way."

Gu Heng couldn’t pretend to be ignorant when he wasn’t; there was simply no need. So, he brought it up himself, essentially doing the man a favor.

In the unlockable rewards for the second level of the [Golden Tower of Wealth], Xingchuan International was a conglomerate primarily focused on the entertainment industry. Although Xingchuan International’s foundation was currently all in physical industries, there was no guarantee it wouldn’t expand into the online sector in the future.

Coincidentally, Wuyou Media was a leader in the online entertainment sector.

On one hand, more friends meant more opportunities. On the other, since this was a chance encounter, it was best to leave everyone in a good mood. After all, as the old saying goes, harmony brings wealth.

"Chairman Gu, you’re too kind."

Lei Yibin hadn’t expected Gu Heng to be so magnanimous and straightforward, nor for his personality to be so modest and friendly. His impression of Gu Heng improved immensely. "Xinxin and the girls can be reckless sometimes. If they offended you in any way last night, Chairman Gu, I apologize on their behalf."

"Offended me?"

"Did you?"

Hearing this, Gu Heng feigned surprise and turned to look at Xinxin and the others.

But even as he said it, the slight arch of his eyebrows and the curl of his lips hinted at something more.

After teasing them a bit, Gu Heng turned back to Lei Yibin and replied with a smile, "They’re all very sensible girls. We got along just fine."

"That’s good, that’s good."

Lei Yibin acted as if he hadn’t seen the exchanged glances between Gu Heng and Xinxin’s group. He never interfered with the private lives of his influencers—he couldn’t, and he had no way to.

He could only manage his company’s leadership team and ensure a healthy internal work environment. As for external temptations and interference, he was truly powerless.

Interfering would only displease both sides.

Of course...

Not interfering had its advantages, too.

Since he didn’t interfere, if problems arose, if their public images collapsed, it had nothing to do with him.

The massive breach-of-contract penalties they’d have to pay after a collapse would be more than enough for the company to recoup all its prior investments.

After Gu Heng finished exchanging pleasantries with Liu Sheng and the others, the group prepared to leave Sixteen Piers Wharf to find a high-end teahouse nearby to talk things over.

At this point, Bingbing and the other girls naturally couldn’t follow along anymore.

They waved a reluctant farewell to Gu Heng, looking back every few steps.

"Tsk, tsk..."

"Looks like you took good care of them last night, little bro."

"Based on my years of experience, this is the classic sign of a woman who’s been thoroughly satisfied in bed."

Wang Yan teased Gu Heng, "In the future, no matter who holds the keys to their car, you’ll definitely have a spare."

"It was a booking."

Gu Heng smiled. "Brother Yan, are you coming to the teahouse with us?"

"I’ll pass."

"You’ve got the branch president and the TikTok VP with you."

"Making a couple of calls and summoning all these big shots... you’re really something else."

Wang Yan shook his head. "There’s no point in me staying. I’ve got some things to deal with back at our company, and I need to catch up on sleep. You kept me up too late last night; I barely got a few hours."

"Hey, hey, hey!"

"Brother Yan, watch your words!"

"If someone overheard you, they’d get the wrong idea!"

Gu Heng beat a comical tactical retreat, earnestly correcting Wang Yan.

Seeing this, Wang Yan said, slightly annoyed, "Alright, alright, I’m leaving. Didn’t you make plans with Deng Zhihong last night to visit the SSTP Super Car Club today?"

"He just messaged me. He’s already at the SSTP Super Car Club waiting for you. But I told him about your situation here, so there’s no rush. You can go find him after you’re done with this."

As he walked towards a business van parked by the road, Wang Yan explained to Gu Heng, "I’ll have my sister pick you up later. She’s also a member of the SSTP Super Car Club, so she can drive you there."

"Alright."

"I’ll contact Wan Ning later then."

"You should get some rest today."

"Partying like this for two days straight can really take a toll on your body."

"We’ll rest up and recharge. Tomorrow, the music and dancing continue."

Gu Heng waved at Wang Yan and replied with a smile.

Hearing this, Wang Yan gave him an "OK" gesture, then got into the business van and sped off. Meanwhile, at Liu Sheng’s invitation, Gu Heng got into his executive Audi A8, and they drove off towards a nearby teahouse...

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