Shang Kaiwen watched as Jiang Shaoqing was festooned in reds and greens during the awards ceremony on TV, receiving kind condolences and recognition from provincial and city leaders.
She felt a mix of complex emotions.
How could she, a well-informed person, not understand the insider information behind this?
The Jiang family’s luck was truly good.
If they had discovered it a bit later, the outcome of this matter would not have been so glorious; if a mine shaft collapse had happened with casualties, it would have affected countless people. In such a case, the Jiang Family would have been suppressed, and they would have suffered substantial losses at the very least.
Especially in such an accident, the primary person of responsibility would surely be investigated, and Jiang Family’s eldest, Jiang Shaoqing’s own father, would probably end up in jail.
That would have been a difficult time for the Jiang Family, and if their Shang Family proposed a marriage alliance or even offered financial support, they could climb up using the Jiang Family.
She was confident that if she married into the Jiang Family, within a few years, she could make it part of the Shang Family’s assets. She always remembered her grandfather’s words: she was indeed the last heir of the Shang Family of her generation—Bai Xiao didn’t count at all.
She intended to expand and strengthen the Shang Family.
But such a golden opportunity was unexpectedly turned around by the Jiang Family. And because of that, the Jiang Family now appeared splendid and powerful. Reviewing the Jiang Family’s recent growth, it wasn’t hard to see that just from this one opportunity, they expanded their business and influence more than tenfold compared to the past.
Alas, time does not wait for me.
Shang Kaiwen felt frustrated; recently, many things had not been going well. Ever since her brother had an accident, it seemed that from that moment on, their family started heading down an unlucky path.
Her brother died unexpectedly from a cerebral hemorrhage. They had suspected whether the Jiang Family had played a foul hand then, but no matter which medical experts they consulted, the diagnosis was consistent: all his bodily functions were completely normal, confirming a cerebral hemorrhage without doubt.
Brother’s death didn’t cause her much grief; after all, Shang Kaijie was nothing but a burden to the Shang Family. Besides causing trouble, he brought them endless enemies.
They had not spared any expense for the sake of this sole heir of the Shang Family over the years.
What good would her brother have done even if he were alive?
With his death, at least they were spared the trouble of constantly cleaning up the messes he left behind.
They could redirect those energies into developing the family business and enterprises. Seeing that a collaboration with Jiang Shaoqing was impossible, Shang Kaiwen glanced at the reports in her hand.
They had already planned to focus their family business on the jade trade.
In recent years, with economic development and an improvement in living standards, people’s demands in this area had gradually increased.
They had dispatched experienced personnel for market research, and from the borders of Yun Province, the processed jade could sell in major cities for more than a tenfold increase in price. Reportedly, with good luck, they could contact the mine owners of jade directly and buy raw stones from the mines themselves.
The prices were not only low; with some luck, a single stone could be worth tens of millions of times its purchasing price.
This sort of rags-to-riches story had become a legend there.
She dared to venture into this business precisely because she had the confidence; one of her admirers, Liu Chuanfeng, was an expert in this field. She had already spent a substantial sum to hire him as her company’s technical consultant.
This man had grown up with her, and although not from the same courtyard and of humble beginnings – his family was so poor that the coin would rattle in their pockets – it was because Shang Kaiwen once casually saw the ragged Liu Chuanfeng, starving and lingering at a street corner, and gave him her breakfast bun.
Unexpectedly, this person remembered her kindness ever since.
And what mattered most was that he actually turned out to be quite capable; it was said that out of ten raw stones handled by him, eight were valued attractively.
A natural expert in jade stones.