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“Li Guohua? Who is that?” Nie Zhenbang knitted his brow and immediately questioned.

In Nie Zhenbang’s memory, among all the people he knew who survived within the system, he never came across a person named Li Guohua. Could it be that his own presence stirred up such changes, just like the flutter of a butterfly’s wings does?

Indeed, what Nie Zhenbang didn’t know was that he was no butterfly. After the Soviet Union incident, through his influence, Huaxia managed to acquire hundreds of billions of US dollars in foreign exchange reserves from the Soviet Union. This dramatically improved the foundations of the heavy industry and advanced the development of defense military technology by about 15 years.

Currently, within the Foreign Expert Bureau of the Huaxia Military Science Academy, at least five hundred former Soviet Union experts have been registered. There are at least some thirty experts from the Sukhoi Design Bureau alone. Moreover, no fewer than ten individuals have been awarded the honorary title “Soviet Union Meritorious Scientist”. This massive force has already propelled Huaxia’s military strength to an immense level.

Consequently, Huaxia’s situation seems far better than it did in his previous life. Strength, after all, is always the crucial standard by which a country’s international status is measured, and military strength is representative of a nation’s status on the global stage.

Nie Zhenbang hadn’t expected that these changes would lead numerous aristocratic descendants, who initially had no intention of entering politics, to change their minds and dive headfirst into the political scene.

“Third brother, speaking of this Li Guohua, he was quite ruthless back in the day. Li Guohua should be thirty this year. At the age of fifteen, he almost crippled a disciple from a small family in Jingcheng who offended him. Afterward, Li family’s patriarch was furious and sent Li Guohua to the United States. He graduated from the Kennedy School of Government and returned to Huaxia during the years you disappeared. Nowadays, it’s said that he’s already the executive deputy mayor of a coastal city,” replied Liu Kun as he heard Nie Zhenbang.

Listening to Liu Kun, Nie Zhenbang recalled Li Wenge’s words; Li Guohua actually associated with Zhou Chen. This suggested that after the Zhou family was marginalized, they had allied themselves with the Li family. In the past, Nie Zhenbang had been contemplating Zhou Chen’s change in dealing with affairs. It now appeared that the real mastermind behind the scenes was likely Li Guohua.

Thinking of this, Nie Zhenbang’s expression turned serious. Li Guohua’s method of handling affairs, which he had witnessed before, was indeed worthy of being seen as that of an expert. His political skill was extremely mature, making him a fierce competitor on his future political path.

Although the two were now far apart, one in the east and the other in the west, competition was everywhere. Unless Nie Zhenbang set his sights on a different position, the two of them would be in constant competition, competing at every instant.

“Let’s go and see what’s going on,” Nie Zhenbang, having now stood up, pondered before heading out. At this moment, he had already guessed roughly what was happening. The Dynasty Club’s network of connections was something any ambitious political aspirant would envy and covet. It seemed Li Guohua had come well prepared for this.

When their group reached the lobby on the first floor of the Dynasty Club via the elevator, a large crowd had already gathered in the middle of the spacious room.

Upon closer inspection, they saw that Zhou Chen was in the center, vigorously leading the show. Standing next to Zhou Chen was a young man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, his face adorned with a slight smile as he watched the scene unfold.

“So this is the standard of the Dynasty Club? Serving fake Lafite, do they take us for idiots?” Zhou Chen was significantly outspoken, likely due to some backstage support.

The Dynasty Club, established by Nie Zhenbang himself, would not possibly serve counterfeit wine. Although Li Lixue had been managing the place, there was no chance that counterfeit alcohol would be supplied. There was something fishy about all of this.

Zhang Xu had also appeared at the scene. It seemed like the New Year was indeed a grand gathering for the younger generation of the influential families in Jingcheng.

“Zhou Stutter, isn’t it making you sound foolish accusing the club of serving fake Lafite wine? I’ve drunk no less than a hundred bottles of Lafite in the Dynasty Club and never encountered a counterfeit. This bottle of wine, could it be something you brought in yourself to frame the club?” Zhang Xu sarcastically retorted.

Among the younger generation of elite families, there were rules and ways of playing. During ordinary days and at work, their backgrounds were merely auxiliary, and everything had to comply with the system’s rules. But now? Position and image counted for nothing here. This place was a pure gathering spot for aristocratic descendants, because here, all other identities were stripped away—what remained was only the identity of being a member of an influential family.

Nie Zhenbang, Liu Kun, Li Hua, and others had also stepped in from outside at this moment. Looking at Zhou Chen, a hint of a smile appeared on Nie Zhenbang’s face, his voice deep, “Zhou Chen, I was wondering why you’ve become more and more unruly lately. Turns out, you’ve become a lapdog.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Guohua began to laugh. This marked the first time he had stood up since entering the room. His eyes were fixed directly on Nie Zhenbang, and he said with a smile, “Young Nie, unmistakably from the common folk. Sharp-tongued. I admit I’m no match for you.”

Continuing, Li Guohua stated, “Young Nie, I admire this club you’ve started. So much so, in fact, that I’ve grown jealous. Today, I’ve come with a single aim in mind — to make trouble.”

Li Guohua’s declaration sent murmurs through the room. Such unabashed and righteous disruption, as if he were on a quest for justice, was something of a first in Jingcheng, if not the entire country.

Certainly, Li Guohua’s remarks were sharp, but nobody could criticize his manners. Firstly, he did not mention official positions or obligations when speaking, communicating purely as one would between peers of influential families. This gave his words a degree of insulation from critique. Disputes among the young ones of Jingcheng’s elite families were common, often leading to open conflict. However, such conflicts usually started subtly, with secretive skirmishes before being exposed. But Li Guohua was different; he went public from the start.

Li Guohua had an impressive network of contacts and reputation within the government structure, provided by the Li family. Many were naturally drawn to him. Despite the straightforward nature of his statement, it was nonetheless effective. If there were just minor disturbances and a couple of backhanded moves in place, Nie Zhenbang wouldn’t even blink an eye. Those would be too low for him. However, the current situation had put all the pressure squarely on Nie Zhenbang’s shoulders. Numerous eyes were watching, anticipating his response. An improper handling of the situation would directly affect his respect among these young elites and might even risk the Dynasty Club’s position as a leading social organization in Jingcheng.

After a moment’s contemplation, Nie Zhenbang slowly replied, “It seems you’ve been living abroad for too long, Guohua, drinking too much American milk. You’ve forgotten how things work here. Since this wine came from my club, naturally, I will give you a satisfactory answer.”

Then, Nie Zhenbang cryptically commanded, “Kun, have your sister Li Xue investigate who brought in this fake wine.”

At the Dynasty Club, wine control was extremely strict. Its wine was all directly imported from Bordeaux’s wineries in France, leaving no opportunity for any outsider to tamper. The origin of this bottle of wine was indeed suspicious. To put it bluntly, it wasn’t out of the question that Li Guohua bribed some of the staff here, deliberately introducing a fake bottle into the mix.

Soon, a young waitress in her twenties was brought over by Li Lixue. Li Lixue’s expression was cold and stern, she said, “According to today’s records, Xiao Wang is responsible for this table. This fake bottle was smuggled in by her.”

At this moment, Xiao Wang appeared somewhat shiveringly. Her eyes were dodging, her head was low, and she kept casting glances at Zhou Chen standing nearby.

Nie Zhenbang’s brow was furrowed now. He had not expected Zhou Chen and others to plan to discredit the Dynasty Club in such a way, to tarnish his reputation. Their goal, he suspected, went beyond merely tarnishing his personal reputation. They were also attempting to destroy the network of connections that the Dynasty Club had amassed.

At this moment, it would seem petty to continue investigating the fake wine. He quickly said, “Li Xue, bring me three bottles of vodka.”

Three bottles of vodka were placed in front of Nie Zhenbang, who opened them without a word. He drank from one bottle after another, with no pause, gulping down all three. With nine pounds of spirits consumed in such rapid succession, even Nie Zhenbang, known for his tolerance, was feeling some discomfort. His face was slightly flushed as he looked at Li Guohua and said with a deep voice, “Mr. Li, this incident is the failure of my management. The person responsible will be dismissed immediately. These three bottles are my apology. From now on, all your expenses at my establishment will be taken care of, whether you come alone or in company, and regardless of how many visits you make. Li Xue, provide Mr. Li with a card that exempts him from all charges when he visits.”

Having said that, Nie Zhenbang’s tone quickly shifted as he looked at Li Guohua, “Mr. Li, are you satisfied with this arrangement? If you still have any complaints, feel free to vent. As Nie Zhenbang, I will bear it all, without wishy-washiness.”

Nie Zhenbang’s approach won admiration from many of the bystanders. The Young Nie was decisive. His apology, coupled with a lifetime of free admittance to the Dynasty Club, demonstrated the Club’s sincerity. The last part showed his determination and a tough attitude. If Li Guohua was still not satisfied, then they can go to war. Nie Zhenbang was always ready for a fight. In handling it this way, Nie Zhenbang had maintained his inside and outside influences.

At this point, Li Guohua couldn’t complain further. There was a flicker of approval in his eyes, Nie Zhenbang was a formidable opponent indeed. Their first scuffle seemed to be tipping in his favor; however, this success had been built upon Nie Zhenbang being caught off guard. Given Nie Zhenbang’s rapid response, he realized that this opponent was not to be underestimated.