Like Liu Qiang, Lai Xiaoming was also terrified; he was almost scared out of his wits. Thinking back to when he thought Lin Fan was a delivery guy and how arrogantly he treated him, he couldnāt help but feel a sense of dread.
As the billionaire Lin Fan, if he were to hold a grudge, Lai Xiaoming would be utterly defenseless.
At this moment, Mayor Long was already on stage, having a conversation with Lin Fan.
"Mr. Lin, I originally didnāt plan to attend the school anniversary, but upon hearing you were my fellow alumnus and might attend, I decided to come. Itās truly an honor to meet you," Mayor Long said with a smile.
Lin Fan smiled back, "The Mayor is too kind, I donāt deserve such praise."
Mayor Long continued, "Mr. Lin, if I may ask boldly, is there any plan on your part to develop in Tianhai City?"
Lin Fan knew that Mayor Long was approaching him mostly because of investment. As Yun Cityās wealthiest man and a billionaire, it was no surprise that Mayor Long would covet such a prize.
Currently, Secretary Ma and Mayor Long are racking their brains to develop Tianhai Cityās economy, but the results havenāt been very promising. Many investors havenāt shown interest in developing in Tianhai City.
If Lin Fan, Yun Cityās wealthiest person, would take the lead, it would be different. It could create an effect where investors would flock to invest. With the influx of capital, Tianhaiās situation would improve, and it would create a better investment environment, attracting more investment in a virtuous cycle.
The key to this is Lin Fan!
How could Mayor Long not value Lin Fan!
He even considered visiting Lin Fan personally in the countryside. Learning that Lin Fan was an alumnus and might attend the school celebration, he dropped everything and came over.
If he could secure Lin Fan, it would be a monumental achievement.
Lin Fan smiled and said, "Iām back because of family matters in my hometown. As for developing in Tianhai, I currently donāt have such plans."
Mayor Longās heart skipped a beat, no plans!
This was like a bucket of cold water over his head.
However...
Lin Fan continued, "However, Tianhai is my hometown, and I hope my hometown gets better and better. I will look into it later, and if suitable, I will return to invest. My company also plans to build a factory, and we are looking for a suitable location, with an investment scale of about a billion."
Hearing this, Mayor Long instantly perked up, oh my, a billion-scale investment!
If Lin Fanās project really fell into Tianhai, it would be a tremendous contribution, boosting local employment, economy, and attracting more investment, opening a whole new perspective for Tianhai Cityās development.
"Mr. Lin, please consider Tianhai City. Tianhaiās development needs you. If there is anything you need to know, donāt hesitate to ask me, Iām available 24/7," Mayor Long hurriedly said.
Lin Fan nodded, "Okay."
Mayor Long was in a great mood. While it might be difficult for other places to win over Lin Fan, Tianhai had a considerable chance due to it being his hometown. As long as they didnāt offend Lin Fan, investment was just a matter of time.
Yun Cityās wealthiest coming to Tianhai to invest would be an effective living advertisement, more potent than any promotional campaign. He and Secretary Ma have been in a flurry to attract investment, yet all their hard work might not compare to Lin Fan just taking the lead.
"Mr. Lin..."
At this point, Meng Xiaoming approached nervously, smiling awkwardly, "Iāve long heard of Mr. Linās name. Mr. Lin is a legend in aviation, Iāve admired you for a long time and only today got to meet you in person..."
Lin Fan said, "Iāve also heard of President Meng; I just didnāt expect we were schoolmates."
Meng Xiaoming immediately laughed, "Yes, I also didnāt expect to be schoolmates with Mr. Lin. Itās such an honor, truly an honor."
Pausing, Meng Xiaoming showed an apologetic expression, "Mr. Lin, what I said earlier was wrong, Iām truly sorry..."
He had no choice but to apologize; the psychological pressure was immense. Thinking back to using Lin Fan as a negative example, he regretted it deeply and wanted to slap himself.
Lin Fan smiled slightly, "Itās quite okay for President Meng to use me as a negative example to encourage students to study hard."
Meng Xiaoming was in a cold sweat; Lin Fanās words sounded ironic no matter how he listened.
"Mr. Lin, I didnāt recognize a great man when I saw one; I was short-sighted. Mr. Lin is not a negative example, I truly misunderstood," Meng Xiaoming laughed nervously, displaying a strong will to survive.
Lin Fan said, "President Meng, donāt be nervous. Actually, what you told the students was mostly right. Indeed, during studies, one should focus on improving their professional knowledge and not just idly pass the time. But thereās one thing I want to add."
Meng Xiaoming hurriedly said, "Please, Mr. Lin, go ahead."
Lin Fan said, "Effort is certainly important, but something more important than effort is choice. Choose right, and you get twice the result with half the effort; choose wrong, and your efforts might be in vain."
Meng Xiaoming nodded vigorously, "What Mr. Lin says is truly insightful, so correct, practically an eternal truth! I was too superficial. Classmates, you should listen to Mr. Lin."
He led the applause.
The classmates responded one after another, and soon applause erupted.
Lin Fan found it amusing. As expected, losers didnāt have a voice. If he were still a penniless delivery guy, would Meng Xiaoming care about his words?
Now, Meng Xiaoming was practically eager to sing his praises.
It was too realistic.
He suspected that even if he let out a fart, Meng Xiaoming would say it smelled sweet; thatās the halo of a billionaire, and with that halo, Meng Xiaoming could only grovel.
Lin Fan smiled slightly and said, "I also think what I said makes sense. To give a simple example, many people, even after working hard all their lives, canāt become a deputy general manager of a group because they lack resources and connections. Itās hard to climb up, but President Meng, you became the son-in-law of a company executive, gained connections, and quickly rose through the ranks to become the deputy general manager of the group, even though your performance at the company was among the lowest back then. Am I right?"
Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.
Meng Xiaoming blushed, but with Lin Fan teasing him, he didnāt dare to protest, only to laugh it off awkwardly, "Yes, yes, Mr. Lin is absolutely right."
All the while selling motivational platitudes, telling people to strive and improve, but hadnāt revealed the true reason for his success. Now being exposed by Lin Fan on the spot, he could only laugh along, too afraid to retort.
The billionaire is just that impressive.
"Clap clap clap..."
Suddenly, Principal Zhao began to applaud from the side.
"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. Mr. Lin, your words are simply superb, immensely insightful. This is what truly high-level speech looks like!" Principal Zhao laughed heartily.
Everyone looked at Principal Zhao amusingly.
Principal Zhao was also using Lin Fan as a negative example earlier, and now he was praising Lin Fan. It seems, after all, money is a universal truth!