Chapter 541: Chapter 524: Old Master Nie Retires

Lu Jiaxin stayed in Peng City for two days and told Su Heming that if Lu Jiajie sought him out for goods in the future, he should ignore him. However, over the past few years, Lu Jiajie had accumulated some connections, and if used well, he could make a comeback.

Back in Hong Kong, Lu Jiaxin heard from the housekeeper that Old Master Nie had been discharged. Last time, she visited the hospital when the Old Master was asleep, so she should pay a visit now that he was home.

When Nie Zhan returned home, Lu Jiaxin asked for his opinion. Some patients needed rest and weren’t suitable for visitors, so she had to ask him first.

Nie Zhan said, “My Grandpa isn’t at the old house; he was discharged yesterday and went back to the hospital today.”

Lu Jiaxin frowned and asked, “Is there still someone trying to antagonize him at this time? Have they no sense?”

Nie Zhan hurriedly explained that no one was antagonizing the Old Master. His mother had returned, and the Old Master, not wanting to see his upsetting daughter, simply went back to the hospital to continue his stay.

Nie Zhan said, “Actually, my Grandpa’s health didn’t allow for discharge, but he kept saying staying in the hospital made him uncomfortable, and that if we didn’t process the discharge, he wouldn’t eat. We had no choice but to let him leave the hospital.”

“Your mom returning at this time, was it a coincidence or planned?”

Nie Zhan laughed, “It wasn’t planned; her husband wanted to expand his business in Hong Kong, so she came along. But my Grandpa said if she wants to stay in Hong Kong, he’ll cut off her allowance and told her to work to support herself, or let that man provide for her.”

Lu Jiaxin thought it impossible and said with a laugh, “That man is a dentist; no matter how much money he makes, he can’t afford to keep up with your mom’s expenses.”

An annual allowance of two million is a lot, even in Hong Kong Dollars. That’s a lot even thirty years later, where only a few people in Hong Kong earn two million a year.

Nie Zhan hummed and said, “So they bought plane tickets back to Switzerland for tomorrow. I told her if she stays in Switzerland and behaves, I’ll give her an additional one million a year. But if she wants to settle in Hong Kong, not only will I give her no money, the family fund’s allowance will also be cut off.”

One million isn’t much for Nie Zhan, so Lu Jiaxin didn’t say much, “Did your grandpa rush to the hospital because you said something?”

Nie Zhan said, “He always thought the bank issue was minor and I could solve it with my help. The hole is so big, even if I wanted to fill it with Wansheng Real Estate, it wouldn’t be enough.”

“When I left, Grandpa was fine. It must have been my eldest brother who told him the truth. He couldn’t handle the shock and fainted. But after this stroke, he suddenly saw things differently and said from now on, the company is up to us; he wouldn’t interfere and wanted to enjoy his retirement.”

Lu Jiaxin was skeptical, “Has he really let go?”

Nie Zhan said with certainty, “My Grandpa is a man of his word. If he says he wants to enjoy his retirement and won’t meddle with company affairs, he will do it.”

Whatever the reason, the Old Master willingly stepping back was a good thing. It would spare everyone from his constant demands for Nie Zhan to help Nie Jingwen. Even when Nie Zhan fed him, he wouldn’t swallow, resulting in a heavy loss. Helping him could risk oneself being dragged down too.

Nie Zhan said, “My Grandpa has given me all his shares in Wansheng Construction and the container business, worth over seven hundred million.”

“All to you, nothing for Nie Jingwen and the others?”

Nie Zhan shook his head, “Over the years, my Grandpa made many investments, which he divided among my elder and second brothers. He also has a lot of collectibles, and told me I could pick a few I liked and leave the rest for them, the three brothers.”

He had no objections to this; not to mention that he had already taken the lion’s share of the wealth, even if nothing had belonged to Grandpa, it was still his right to decide how it should be distributed.

The next day, Lu Jiaxin went to the hospital with Nie Zhan to visit Old Master Nie.

As soon as Old Master Nie saw her, he warmly invited her to sit beside the bed and struck up a conversation with Lu Jiaxin.

Lu Jiaxin started off very cautious, but when the Old Master talked about clothing, jewelry, and real estate–topics that interested her–she gradually let her guard down. Eventually, the Old Master’s topics shifted to Hong Kong’s economy and policies, and then expanded to America and other Western countries. Fortunately, she read the newspapers daily and studied finance, or else she really wouldn’t have been able to keep up with him.

After chatting for more than an hour, a nurse came with medication. Old Master Nie took his pills and then, leaning on her, went to the toilet before saying to Nie Zhan that patients need more rest.

Old Master Nie wanted to continue chatting with Lu Jiaxin, but due to the medication, he kept yawning and soon fell asleep.

Lu Jiaxin and Nie Zhan waited until he was sound asleep before heading home. On the way back, she suddenly said with emotion, “Getting old is truly frightening.”

No matter how commanding you are in your youth, it’s pitiful when you’re old and plagued with illnesses. Thinking about Madam Gu’s current situation, Lu Jiaxin’s heart softened, “When you have time, visit Old Master Nie more often. At his age, he’s actually very afraid of loneliness.”

She had no feelings for Old Master Nie; whether he lived or died made no difference to her. But Nie Zhan was raised by him, and they had a deep bond. If one day he suddenly passed away, Nie Zhan would definitely regret not visiting more often. People are like this; once someone is gone, friends and relatives always remember the good about the person (except for those who are extremely wicked).

“I think Grandpa likes you a lot; next time, come with me,” Nie Zhan said.

Lu Jiaxin was not interested and replied, “Your grandpa talked so much with me because he’s trying to test how much I actually know, whether I’m truly managing my companies, or if I’m completely reliant on you.”

Nie Zhan did not argue that she was overthinking: “Well, if you don’t want to go, so be it. By the way, the news about you acquiring Emperor Yongzheng’s seal has somehow leaked out.”

Lu Jiaxin said, “There’s no wall in this world that can block all winds. Let the word spread! I bought it with a great deal of money, so there’s nothing to fear by people knowing about it.”

The items given by Lu Hongjun needed to be hidden carefully. The Jadeite cabbage and Child-delivering Guanyin are national treasures; if they were ever revealed, surely others would covet them. Even if Lu Hongjun claimed that they were all legally acquired, it would be hard to clear things up if someone made false accusations, as ten mouths would not be enough to argue the case.

Nie Zhan said, “Today, Third Uncle Guo called to ask if we intend to keep the seal for ourselves or sell it. He offered to pay one hundred million Hong Kong Dollars.”

This was truly a display of wealth, but unfortunately, she had no intention to sell. Lu Jiaxin inquired, “Selling it won’t affect our business, will it?”

Nie Zhan chuckled, “What are you thinking? If we went by your logic, then we couldn’t do business with anyone we had a disagreement with.”

Business is business, and personal matters are separate; they were very clear on that. Thus, it was often that on one hand, they would be fiercely competing in the marketplace, while on the other hand, they would come together for big projects worth collaborating on. After all, one party alone couldn’t handle massive projects, and partnering with others to share the risk was the best option.

“I was being shallow.”

Nie Zhan smiled and said, “You can’t be blamed for that. You grew up in the Mainland during the years of the planned economy, without any exposure to these things. How could you know? I’ve been raised in this environment since I was little.”