Chapter 449 448: The Deep Waters of the Pharmaceutical Industry

Jiang Long considered this for a moment. "Not necessarily. There could be a conspiracy behind this. Give me some time, and I'll give you an answer."

"I'll have to trouble you then, Team Leader Jiang," Mu Lin said politely.

Lin Tian found it strange. 'How can Mu Lin and Jiang Long be so familiar? Jiang Long is no ordinary person—he's the type to be arrogant about his talents, someone who doesn't get close to others.'

'So how did he end up on such good terms with Mu Lin?'

It was all very strange.

Downright bizarre, in fact.

Mu Lin then asked, "Grandmaster Lin, has there been any movement from the Xu Family recently?"

Lin Tian thought for a moment. "They've been very quiet. If you hadn't brought them up, I would've almost forgotten about them."

"After the Xu father and son returned, they've kept a very low profile, never stepping into the spotlight."

Jiang Long said, "The Xu Family is probably fine. I've been keeping an eye on them and even sent someone in to question the old man."

Mu Lin nodded. 'They've all handled this much better than I could have, haven't they?'

'All I need to do is focus on the Li Group's affairs.'

'That project must fall into the hands of the Li Group, no matter what.'

Mu Lin asked, "Grandmaster Lin, do you know the provincial governor?"

Lin Tian was startled. He couldn't figure out why Mu Lin would ask such a question.

"We have a passing acquaintance, I suppose. I've met him a few times, but we've never worked together."

Mu Lin said, "If I have him mediate and make certain interested parties give up the project, you can still make your move."

Mu Lin's words were enough to shock Lin Tian. "Alright! I'll follow your lead!"

"But wait, Mr. Mu, you know Tai Weiguo?"

Mu Lin slowly nodded. "Yes."

Lin Tian opened his mouth to speak but still couldn't quite grasp what was happening.

Mu Lin had already dialed a number.

"Elder Tai!" Mu Lin said. "There's a matter here I need you to weigh in on!"

The moment Tai Weiguo saw who was calling, his expression turned serious. "Mu Lin, go ahead and speak! What's wrong?"

Mu Lin explained the situation.

Tai Weiguo immediately said, "Don't you worry about this. I'll make some inquiries."

A moment later, he said, "It's the Li Group from Anhua, and the chairman is Li Yinhe, is that right?"

"That's right!"

"Good. I'll have a word with the people below. You can rest easy."

After Mu Lin hung up, both Jiang Long and Lin Tian had looks of resigned helplessness on their faces.

"Mu Lin, if you even know Tai Weiguo, what do you need us for when it comes to connections in Di Yang?"

Mu Lin said, "You two jest. You will always be my elders! I'm not the type to forget the pain once the wound is healed, so of course I would tell you everything."

"Right now, I want to start a company in Di Yang, and I'll need the help of you two."

Everyone was taken aback by Mu Lin's words.

"Start a company? What kind? Is there any way I can help?" Lin Tian asked hurriedly.

"A pharmaceutical company," Mu Lin said.

At this, the expressions of everyone present changed drastically. "Mu Lin, I'm not trying to throw cold water on your plans, but this really isn't a good idea..."

"The waters of the pharmaceutical industry run too deep... one careless mistake, and you could be completely wiped out."

Mu Lin said, "You don't need to worry. I have my own ways! I just need to be able to link up the contacts I have on hand."

This had been his plan from the start.

Either way, things were about to get very exciting.

After hanging up, Elder Tai made the arrangements for Mu Lin, then turned to Wen Jinsong and said, "I was wondering what grand plan Mu Lin had. Turns out he just wanted a project. What a letdown!"

Wen Jinsong laughed. "Elder Tai, you're really something else."

Just as Elder Tai was about to say more, another call came in.

"Elder Tai, this is Marquis Jia."

Tai Weiguo quickly racked his brain, trying his best to place the name Marquis Jia.

"Ah, Chairman Jia of the Heyang Commerce Association. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Marquis Jia said, "Elder Tai, about that Wansheng International project, you..."

'This is rather strange,' Tai Weiguo thought. 'The project isn't actually that large. Why is Marquis Jia so fixated on it?'

"Chairman Jia, what are you proposing?"

Marquis Jia said very politely, "Elder Tai, it's like this. I don't have any strong feelings about it myself, but there's someone at a company under me who wants this project very badly. I think it would be fine to give it to him!"

Tai Weiguo said, "No. I'm sorry, but absolutely not. I won't allow it."

Marquis Jia was grinding his teeth in frustration. He hadn't expected Tai Weiguo to be so completely unyielding.

"Elder Tai, look, this is clearly something you could settle with a single word. Why must you make things difficult for everyone? What's the point?"

Tai Weiguo said, "This isn't just a matter of a single word. The Wansheng International project was given to the Li Group from the start. You're the latecomer here."

"It must be returned to the Li Group, do you understand?"

Marquis Jia was silent for a moment before replying, "Elder Tai, the project isn't that large. There's no need for you to be so concerned with it. A project worth just over a billion yuan won't have any real impact."

Elder Tai chuckled coldly. "Heh, fine. If you want it that badly, you can have it! I'll just compensate the Li Group with a ten-billion-yuan project later."

Before Marquis Jia could respond, he realized something was very wrong. "Elder Tai, you're putting me in a very difficult position."

Tai Weiguo roared with laughter. "Chairman Jia, you're really something else. What do you mean you're in a difficult position? What's so difficult for you? You're the one who stole from someone else!"

Marquis Jia was so angry he wanted to smash something, but he forced himself to remain calm and said with great seriousness, "Elder Tai, how about this? We'll just settle it with an open bidding process."

But Tai Weiguo simply said, "No. The Wansheng International project absolutely must belong to the Li Group."

Marquis Jia paused for a long time, then finally said in a cold voice, "Since Elder Tai insists, I won't say any more. I hope Elder Tai lives to be a hundred."

The call ended. Tai Weiguo narrowed his eyes and said, "Wen Xian, this Li Group seems to be quite interesting, doesn't it?"

Wen Jinsong said, "Mu Lin did me a huge favor. It's only natural to help him out now."

"As for the Heyang Commerce Association, if they get too out of line, we'll just eliminate them. It'd be no great loss."

After treating Lin Jin, Mu Lin left a prescription and departed.

He wasn't ready to return to Anhua yet.

He wasn't needed there at the moment.

For his enemies to cause trouble for the Li Group in Anhua would take time and planning. These things were complex and couldn't be done on a whim.

Before that happened, the most crucial thing was to get more things done.

Right now, his relationship with Tai Weiguo was quite good. Tai Weiguo didn't seem to mind being used by him, but a honeymoon period like this was bound to end eventually.

Mu Lin felt he had to consider how he would manage after the honeymoon period was over.

'For small matters, Tai Weiguo would gladly lend a hand to earn goodwill.'

'But once core interests are involved, will Tai Weiguo still be so accommodating?'

Mu Lin had his doubts.

'What I know now is that someone in Di Yang is constantly targeting the Li Group, targeting Li Xue and her family.'

'But I still don't know who these people are.'

'And once I find out who my opponent is, what will happen then?'

'The consequences were unimaginable.'

'If I show any more reliance on Tai Weiguo, he's very likely to make an even bigger move.'

'Then there's Wen Jinsong. He's a Land Immortal, undeniably powerful. I saved his cultivation, and all he's willing to offer in return is three sword strikes.'

'It's almost laughable.'

'Sigh. An ordinary person would probably be overjoyed to hear that a Land Immortal was willing to unleash three sword strikes on their behalf.'

'But to me, the offer holds very little appeal. I can fight my own battles anyway, so why should I have to rely on you?'

'As if you're all that.'

Mu Lin's own strength was already enough to challenge a Land Immortal; he had no fear of any attack.

Mu Lin mused aloud, lost in thought, "I'm only a hair's breadth away from the Martial Arts Celestial Being realm. I can even feel the threshold, but I just lack the catalyst... It's so frustrating..."

He looked up at the sky. 'The cultivation of the Martial Dao and True Qi really are worlds apart in some respects.'

'It all comes down to comprehension. Grasp it, and it's smooth sailing. Fail to grasp it, and your cultivation could collapse entirely.'

'Many people spend their entire lives without achieving that spark of insight, and their level gets stuck forever. There's just nothing to be done about it!'

'Though I doubt I'll end up in such a miserable state,' Mu Lin thought.

While Mu Lin was still lost in his thoughts, he suddenly heard a pleasant voice call out to him as someone approached: "Mu Lin!"

Mu Lin looked up to see Zhou Ying running toward him, her steps light and carefree.

She looked as if she didn't have a single care in the world.

Mu Lin guessed that Zhou Qishan hadn't yet told her that Qianfan had been taken away.