"You actually believe in feng shui?" Jiang Ye asked in surprise.
A strange feeling surfaced again. As an ancient person, Isabel, this white girl, gave Jiang Ye the direct impression of a foreigner. Yet, she believed in feng shui.
"Besides the feng shui master, that person is also a landscape architect," Isabel smiled, revealing a set of white teeth. "There's no harm in believing a little, right? Many things in the world can't be explained."
Isabel crossed her legs and sat on the long bench. The sunlight on the rooftop was brilliant, and her long legs were dazzlingly white. She placed a fruit platter on her lap, using her knees as a coffee table.
"Here, have some fruit. I'll tell you about the distinguished guests who are coming today," Isabel unfolded the paper in her hand.
The paper was filled with names and identities, along with many marks drawn in red pen.
Jiang Ye gnawed on a peach and took the paper to look.
As expected, the lineup today was quite formidable.
More than sixty people were expected to attend.
There were thirty heads of state from other planets.
Ten children of these heads of state.
And some magnates and chairmen of major interstellar conglomerates.
In short, they were all either rich or noble!
"Your birthday party is quite the high-class affair," Jiang Ye commented.
"Oh, I'm so old, why celebrate birthdays? The birthday party is just a pretense; today is an occasion to connect networks," Isabel explained. "The people I've marked with an 'X,' you don't need to bother with. The ones marked with a circle, you can have a brief chat with. The ones marked with a triangle, I think will be useful to you."
"No need to bother with the ones marked with an 'X'?" Jiang Ye frowned, pointing to a spot on the paper. "This person, General Cen Canxing and the only son of the planetary governor couple, Cen Kailang, he's likely to inherit Cen Canxing in the future, right? Why shouldn't I bother with him?"
"Hmph." Upon seeing this name, Isabel's expression turned cold, and she snorted dismissively through her nostrils. "This brat wants to hit on me, he's madly in love with me, he blushes every time he sees me, like a dog. Last time, he pinned me on the bed and groped my legs. I slapped him, but he wasn't angry, and he harasses me with messages and calls every day."
"Then why did you invite him?" Jiang Ye was shocked.
"If he comes, then this person will come," Isabel said, pointing to the name at the very top of the list.
[Huan Yunhe, ▲▲▲]
"Who is this Mr. Huan?" Jiang Ye's tone became serious. "Everyone else has an identity description, but this person only has a name. Others have at most one triangle, but he has three. His surname is uncommon, and his name sounds like it was chosen by a cultured family."
"This person has a significant background. The first person I introduced to you who could make you successful and provide you with immense resources is Li Nannan," Isabel said. "This Huan Yunhe is very likely to be the second, allowing your strength to leap forward again."
"Is... a big shot from the military?" Jiang Ye was shocked and involuntarily lowered his voice.
"Yes and no," Isabel said. "I don't know his background."
"Then why three triangles?"
"I don't know his background, but I know what he can do," Isabel said. "This person only does one kind of business: reselling planets."
Jiang Ye's mind buzzed.
A planet merchant, that's too damn impressive!
Even Li Nannan wouldn't dare to treat planets as commodities to be resold!
Forget three triangles, even thirty triangles wouldn't be an exaggeration!
"Tell me more about this person," Jiang Ye's expression became extremely serious.
"All his information is a mystery to me," Isabel said. "I don't dare to inquire about him either, for fear of being detected and causing some uncontrollable events."
"I don't know his real age. On the surface, he looks like a handsome guy in his thirties, with a great physique, like a middle-class person who frequents the gym. He's very amiable, always wearing a kind smile. His usual attire and food choices are completely ordinary," Isabel said. "He gives off a very strange feeling. On one hand, you find him visually appealing, but on the other hand, his presence is very weak."
"You'll know when the party starts this afternoon," Isabel said. "I bet that by the end of the party, many people won't even realize he was here, or they'll think he was a waiter or something."
Jiang Ye nodded silently.
He had seen people whose power and wealth reached a certain scale, and they all exhibited these commonizing traits.
External changes and the attitudes of ordinary people no longer caused significant ripples in their hearts.
They observed the world with a detached, condescending attitude, as if playing a highly immersive open-world game. The events within the game had little impact on their emotions.
If there were enemies, they would just crush them.
If they wanted something, they would just buy it.
Everything in the game was simple, so simple it was a bit boring, unable to stimulate their hormones, so they maintained their kind smiles.
There was another reason: these people had weathered immense storms and witnessed human malevolence, so they automatically concealed their sharpness, minimizing their presence to avoid trouble.
Moreover, they enjoyed the state of being hidden while the enemy was exposed, like a beast lurking in the grass observing unsuspecting prey.
Jiang Ye understood this feeling very well because he was also gradually becoming such a person.
"But it's strange, he can somehow acquire planets for resale, and he does so without leaving a trace," Isabel said. "The governor of Noris Star talked to me. At that time, the governor of Noris Star spent 480 trillion to buy a planet from him. Do you know how that planet was delivered?"
"How was it delivered?" Jiang Ye asked curiously.
"The Galactic Empire announced its expansion outwards, and the governor of the original planet announced his abandonment of that planet, moving to a larger planet outside the system," Isabel said. "Then, the governors of several planets simultaneously applied to administer that planet. After evaluating and eliminating unqualified competitors, they drew lots, and the governor of Noris Star drew the winning lot."
"Everything was coincidental and official, and the planet ended up with the client, right?" Jiang Ye said.
"Yes."
"How should I communicate with Huan Yunhe?" Jiang Ye asked. "What kind of communication does he prefer?"
"Just talk directly," Isabel said. "Don't be too aggressive. He's very polite, so you should be polite to him too."
"Understood," Jiang Ye nodded.
The morning passed quickly.
After lunch, guests began to arrive one after another.
Cen Yemeng also arrived. She waited in the living room with Jiang Ye. As each guest arrived, they would stand up to greet them, exchange pleasantries, and laugh heartily.
Finally, Huan Yunhe arrived.
He wore a white tennis shirt, work pants, and sneakers. He came alone in a civilian model hovercar.
The guests who had already arrived paid him little attention. Many didn't even stand up, just smiled as a greeting, or ignored him completely.
Jiang Ye, however, was exceptionally enthusiastic towards him, pouring him tea and offering fruit.
Once all the guests had arrived, Isabel served a table full of low-alcohol cocktails and fruit juices. The guests began to chat in small groups and disperse to mingle. This was the time for individual communication and networking, which everyone understood implicitly.
Huan Yunhe didn't chat with anyone. He sat in a corner of the living room, quietly cracking and eating walnuts.
It was as if his sole purpose for coming was to eat.
Jiang Ye walked over and sat beside him. "Mr. Huan, I've heard a lot about you. Could we go upstairs to a room to talk?"
"Certainly!" Huan Yunhe smiled. "It's my honor! Please!"