Xiao Xiao's father was named Xiao Guowei. It was a name that sounded both patriotic and distinguished, yet he himself was a corpulent middle-aged uncle bordering on greasy. With his eyes narrowed into slits, Han Lie found it hard to imagine how Xiao Guowei's son could have turned out so handsome.

"Mr. Han, my wife's younger sister is married to Guan Tong—haha, I've admired your reputation for so long! And that's no empty praise; these are all objective facts, aren't they? I just never imagined you and my son would be classmates... hehe, what a stroke of fate!" Xiao Guowei started trying to build rapport right from the get-go.

Guan Tong? Han Lie paused for a moment before it clicked. Ah, Fei Yangbing!

Panzi had introduced four "fat sheep" to Han Lie back then, and they had later established a corporate private equity firm together. Among them, Fat Sheep A was Jin Meilun, the youngest of the Jin Family, and Fat Sheep B was Old Huang, a relative of Director Huang. Fat Sheep C and D each held a 5% share and had always kept a low profile.

It wasn't that these two were incompetent. On the contrary, the individuals Panzi had chosen for his first batch of introductions were all the type to have plenty of money, few troubles, and considerable ability. Han Lie didn't interact much with Guan Tong, but if the need arose, he certainly had enough sway to get this "big brother" to act on his behalf. Conversely, Guan Tong had never troubled Han Lie for anything. This included today's visit from Xiao Guowei; Guan Tong hadn't given any advance notice or asked Han Lie for any special consideration. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

So, it was obvious that the connection to this "uncle by marriage," as Xiao Guowei put it, was likely quite inflated. Han Lie deliberately furrowed his brow, feigning deep thought to test him.

"Oh? Brother Guan has never mentioned it... He has relatives here?"

Xiao Guowei quickly laughed awkwardly and rubbed his hands. "Distant relatives, distant relatives!"

Just one sentence and a few micro-expressions were enough for Han Lie to determine that Old Xiao was nowhere near Pan Dajun's level. At the very least, his overall strategic thinking was flawed. Dropping Guan Tong's name so ambiguously as a trump card was far less effective than simply offering a substantial gift and trying to rekindle the friendship through Xiao Xiao.

Xiao Guowei clearly didn't understand one thing: Han Lie never needed to give Guan Tong face; on the contrary, it was Guan Tong who had to be mindful of Han Lie's disposition. Or perhaps he did know but was simply banking on Han Lie being young and easy to fool. In short, his thinking was quite petty.

Pan Dajun, on the other hand, was a truly sophisticated individual—unassuming yet confident, warm and sincere, giving off an entirely different impression. Of course, Han Lie had to admit that businessmen of Pan Dajun's caliber were indeed rare. The average refinement of Huaxia's wealthy elite wasn't particularly high. The country was developing at breakneck speed, opportunities were plentiful, and among the various factors that led to wealth, luck often played a far greater role than ability.

Therefore, Han Lie neither blindly trusted so-called experts nor idolized the wealthy. A person's true mettle could be gauged in a direct encounter; that would reveal everything. Realizing Old Xiao was nothing remarkable, Han Lie relaxed considerably and began to subtly lead him on.

"Uncle Xiao, there's no need to be so formal, nor to specially bring up Brother Guan as an intermediary. Xiao Xiao and I were classmates for three years in high school; we have that natural foundation. Let's just chat about whatever comes up!"

"Ah, yes, yes, you're right!" Xiao Guowei was overjoyed. He glanced back at his son, signaling with his eyes, "Xiao Xiao, let's keep our generational courtesies separate. You and Mr. Han are classmates. You should learn more from Mr. Han and spend more time interacting with him when you can..."

"Dad, I know."

Xiao Xiao nodded obediently, then adopted a very humble demeanor as he spoke to Han Lie. "Brother Lie, it's been less than half a year since high school ended, and you're already soaring to new heights. I truly admire your achievements. If you think I'm decent enough, I hope you'll give me a chance to learn from you in the future..."

Oh? Not bad at all! Han Lie was genuinely surprised. After just half a year of college in the Imperial Capital, Xiao Xiao's temperament had been considerably toned down. Not only had his previous arrogance vanished, but he could now also humble himself and swallow his pride. That was truly no small feat.

What on earth had this kid been through? Thinking of the complex environment of the Imperial Capital, Han Lie had a few suspicions. But those details weren't important, because he was certain he and Xiao Xiao could never truly get along. The guy was fundamentally selfish, and being able to humble himself didn't mean he'd make a good friend. So Han Lie put all his enthusiasm into his outward demeanor.

"Hey, what are you talking about? It's only natural for classmates to help each other. Besides, I'm still figuring things out myself. What could I possibly teach you? Let's strive for progress together!"

What followed was another round of amiable small talk. As they chatted on, Xiao Guowei's true agenda finally surfaced—unsurprisingly, he was after advice on financing. It wasn't that he wanted to secure a large sum of money from Han Lie; his main purpose was to consult on the various complexities of securitizing real estate projects. It was evident that Xiao Guowei had done his homework before coming.

Han Lie didn't hold back either, but during their discussion, he intentionally steered the conversation towards understanding the overall real estate environment in Dream City. And it had to be said, despite Xiao Guowei's various minor flaws, with over twenty years in local business, he knew Dream City like the back of his hand. He could speak insightfully about any sector and definitely wasn't just spouting hot air; his observations were quite astute.

By the end of their conversation, it had been a mutually beneficial exchange. Xiao Guowei gained a better understanding of the various challenges in securitizing real estate projects, while Han Lie obtained a clear picture of Dream City's current situation.

To describe it simply, four words sufficed—

A complete mess.

When Han Lie had first made his fortune and returned to buy property, he had already grumbled about the absurd housing prices. Theoretically, Dream City's current average income levels simply couldn't sustain the prevailing housing prices.