119: Chapter 118: Stay Where It’s Cool 119: Chapter 118: Stay Where It’s Cool “You little piece of work, three days without a beating and you start to strip the roof tiles,” Song Yun slapped Li Tang on the head and said, “Tell me straight, if you don’t cough up a good explanation today, you can forget about eating.”
“My dream is to build a harem,” Li Tang said mysteriously, “then I won’t have to pay for Yangzhou’s courtesans anymore.”
“You little shit,” Song Yun thundered and threw his cup at Li Tang, fuming as he spoke, “are you trying to piss me off?
When will you ever change that attitude of yours?
You’re a Taoist!
A grand Taoist!
Do you really think building a harem is all about not having to call on prostitutes?
Do you have any idea how much money it would take?
Your big bro here is already throwing money around like water, and if you want to sustain your harem, what do you need?”
Seeing Song Yun getting anxious, Li Tang also got serious.
What did he need to set up a harem?
He had to think this through or else the boss would beat him up again if he answered incorrectly.
Song Yun finished his cigarette while Li Tang didn’t dare make a sound.
Song Yun exhaled and said, “Today we’re speaking freely, no one man calls the shots.
Speak your mind.”
“Well, boss, I think building a harem requires a strong kidney…” Li Tang hadn’t even finished before Song Yun gave him a knuckle sandwich on the head, and Li Tang looked up with widened eyes, grievously saying, “Didn’t you say it’s free speech today?
You still hit me even after I spoke.”
Song Yun tried to calm the fury in his chest and said, “Go sit on the sofa in the corner and think about what you’ve done.”
Li Tang stood up, sniffled, and as he was leaving, he even nabbed the last pack of cigarettes.
Song Yun could only offer a resigned smile at Li Tang’s childishly vengeful act.
“Alright, forget about that clown, let’s continue.
Wang Hu, what’s your dream?” Song Yun asked.
“My dream is to become someone who can manipulate others’ fates,” Wang Hu said very seriously.
“I think such people are awesome, really cool.”
“…” Song Yun thought to himself, what kind of people has he ended up with, aspired to dictate others’ fates, just because it’s cool?
Talk about bad luck.
But Wang Hu’s dream was the biggest and most serious one presented at the scene, so he couldn’t dampen his enthusiasm.
Song Yun took a sip of water from Li Tang’s cup and asked, “Do you think you can become that kind of person?”
“Yes, as long as I work hard, I definitely can,” Wang Hu nodded and said.
Song Yun held his forehead and sighed, “To become someone at the top of society’s pyramid is not just about hard work, you also need strength and luck.
Just like Xiang Yu’s banquet for Liu Bang, if Xiang Yu had been a bit more ruthless, a bit more unscrupulous, history would have been rewritten.
We can’t fully articulate the stakes involved, but one thing is certain, Liu Bang was damn lucky.
Without it, he would’ve been killed, would not have taken Xianyang early, and would never have uttered those grandiose words claiming ‘the world as his domain’.”
“Good luck is one thing, but more importantly, you need strength.
Without strength, you have no right to talk to people, let alone a chance to become a player.
You must understand that society is like a chess game; those without a strong hand have no right to demand anything.”
“Wang Hu’s had his say; now onto Zhao Yan,” Song Yun said.
Zhao Yan, playing with a pen in her hands, said with a wolf-like gleam in her eyes, “I want to arm wrestle with the big fish in finance.
I want to make a stir like Soros did once, sweeping away billions from Thailand.”
“Cough cough, I can’t help you with that dream for now, next,” Song Yun coughed twice to cover the awkwardness on his face.
Soros, who stirred up the Southeast Asian economy, had only money left to play with, burning through it just like that.
They were different; his assets were not even billions yet.
If he hands over all his money to Zhao Yan to play in finance, he might as well be whistling in the northwest wind.
Ignoring Zhao Yan’s plaintive look, Song Yun knocked on the table and said, “Meng Ku, what’s your dream?”
“My dream was to avenge the person I loved, and I did it.
But now, my dream is to carve out a great big world with the boss,” Meng Ku said.
Song Yun patted his shoulder, implying that he spoke constructively, and indeed, that flattery hit right in the sweet spot.
The flatterer, Meng Ku, shyly scratched his head, indicating his sincerity, with not a shred of falsehood in his words.
The two men exchanged a long and knowing look.
Then, from the sofa, Li Tang suddenly jumped up and said, “Boss, I’ve got it, I finally know what’s needed.”
Song Yun got a bad feeling and asked tentatively, “What’ve you come up with?”
“Humph, after pondering long and hard, I’ve finally figured out what a harem needs,” Li Tang boasted.
“Not only a strong kidney but also a variety of astounding skills…ow ow ow, boss, stop hitting me, stop!
It was just a joke.”
Song Yun dropped the trinket in his hand, clenched his fist, and gritted his teeth, “If I hear another peep of nonsense from you, I’ll make you a real Taoist.”
Li Tang chuckled awkwardly and said, “To set up a harem, I need money, hehe, isn’t that right, boss?”
“Yep, what’s next?”
“Next…
Well, next comes the enjoyment, doesn’t it?
I’ve got money, Yu here will provide, I’ve got power, with you backing me up…” Li Tang murmured.
“Li Tang, oh Li Tang, better keep your mouth shut.
Your silence is golden, but the moment you talk, I just can’t help but want to smack you,” Song Yun sighed.
“Besides fortune-telling, what else do you have going or you?”
“I can also recite scriptures and cultivate my path,” Li Tang blurted out after much thought.
“You make sense,” Song Yun had this thought—maybe he should have advised his father not to send Li Tang to those Taoists.
Look what they turned his brother into—a third-level invalid who can’t fend for himself.
“I’ve said so much, just to let you know, only by having strength can one truly defeat their enemies and elevate their own capabilities.
Only when you hold strength in your hands will you realize how wonderful life is.
Wang Hu and Wang Hu, only when you both possess power can you drive cars every day, smoke good cigarettes, shoot the breeze when you’ve got nothing on, and give orders to others when there’s work to be done.”
“Zhao Yan, I will fulfill your wish someday, no matter what it takes, I’ll let you taste what it’s like to be a king on Wall Street.
Meng Ku, as long as you follow me, I will never let you down, at least until I die, I will not give up forging my own path.”
“As for Li Tang…” Song Yun saw him looking up with a hopeful expression.
“You better just stay where it’s cool.”