However, that was years later. Just like how the musician Gao Xiaosong, who had switched careers to directing, was sentenced to six months for drunk driving, Wu Hongyi ended up vividly describing his time in jail as a baptism for life and a period of creative refinement. His brainless fans even cheered for him, claiming that "Little Yi" had deliberately gone to prison to gather creative material, just as it was an honor for Siren to plagiarize your novel—it was called character!

By the time Wu Hongyi became a massive star, Wang Zhuo was already a legend. Consequently, Wu Hongyi’s favorite topic of conversation was that the man who sent him to prison back then was Wang Zhuo of Jiangzhou. They were, in a way, friends made through conflict. Now, Wang Zhuo was one of his die-hard fans, and so on.

Wang Zhuo, too, found it quite amusing that he had inadvertently nurtured a famous writer. He even played along, sending two flower baskets to the book signing events and making a large online donation when the new book was released.

Putting Wu Hongyi aside and handing him over to the police, Wang Zhuo quickly forgot the matter. The arrival of the Chief Leader was imminent, and he had many pressing matters to attend to.

The Jewelry Division of Shengshi Dynasty was raking in vast sums of money daily, and the copper mining industry was generating profits like flowing water. Nevertheless, Wang Zhuo placed greater emphasis on the earnings from Dynasty Wuliang because that was something he had created with his own two hands, rather than cutting existing gems from stones or digging existing ore from the mountains.

Even without his X-ray vision, what Shengshi Dynasty could achieve, others could too, perhaps only a matter of time or slight differences in added value. But Dynasty Wuliang was different; its value and significance lay in intellectual property, in invention and creation. It was an entirely new field, free from the repetition of analogous or homogenized competition, possessing true innovative meaning.

It was like running a shop. Restaurants on the street would close and new ones would open, the street remaining the same while the eateries cycled. If you didn't do it, someone else would; regardless of who ran them, people would still have places to eat. Even if these restaurants generated immense profits, they couldn't fully utilize Wang Zhuo's talent. Choosing an industry that others simply couldn't replicate was the path truly suited to him.

As his experience grew, Wang Zhuo gradually realized this. He hadn't been involved in stone gambling for a long time now. Good rough stones were inherently rare, and even if he managed to gamble out a sky-high priced stone like a Jade Watermelon or the Aurora Nine Dragon Jade, it was still a one-off windfall. Compared to Dynasty Wuliang, even Xinsheng held more promise.

And this newly launched weight-loss product had an incalculable market value. According to surveys, nearly one-third of the US population suffers from obesity. Imagine that—at least one hundred million people in the world's most developed country needed this product, and they needed it consistently, long-term. What a massive market!

It wasn't just the US. Years ago, China had relaxed its military recruitment standards to allow slightly overweight young men to join the army. This demonstrated that China's rising obesity rate had already had a profound impact, reaching a point where even major affairs like conscription required relaxed criteria. In developed countries like the UK and Japan, the greater the development, the greater the obesity, and they certainly didn't lack the money for treatment—it was like gold mines everywhere!

...

"I really don't know what's going on inside that head of yours."

A research report lay on the desk. Wang Zhengdao, having just finished reading it, stretched and asked his son, "You really didn't mean for this to happen?"

"I really didn't," Wang Zhuo replied seriously. "This is the result after the formula was successfully developed. We did try to find a once-and-for-all solution, but the difficulty was too high; we just don't have that capability."

"Feigning innocence, even with your old man," Wang Zhengdao chuckled, pointing at his son. "You intended this from the start, didn't you? Make the fat people eat your product's candy, every day, so you can keep earning their money, right?"

"Your analogy is wrong. I think comparing it to toothpaste is more apt," Wang Zhuo offered a dry chuckle. "Brush once in the morning and once at night, to maintain oral hygiene."

Wang Zhengdao was completely speechless. "Twice a day, even? Are you that greedy...?"

Wang Zhuo shrugged. "I'm not running a charity."

"Let me calculate," Wang Zhengdao said, flipping through the report. "There are a billion obese people worldwide, over three hundred million in China alone. Seventeen percent of the urban population is obese, and this ratio is higher in wealthier cities. Half of all children nationwide are obese..."

"The children's product will be slightly more expensive," Wang Zhuo stated in a businesslike tone.

Wang Zhengdao shot his son a sidelong glance. Everyone knew that children's money was the easiest to earn. Parents who hoped their children would surpass them would rather tighten their own belts and go hungry than skimp on expenses for their kids.

"Obese and clinically obese are not the same concept," Wang Zhuo explained. "In the US, half the population is overweight, but most of that number are just 'overweight' individuals. The ones who truly need treatment are the clinically obese patients; they are my primary customers."

"Don't be so modest," Wang Zhengdao sneered. "Why don't you mention all those beauty-conscious women who are perfectly normal weight but still desperately dieting? These people worry about their weight even more than many truly fat individuals, and they'll pay you money even though they fall outside your obese demographic."

"Fine, I admit I've struck gold. Are you satisfied now?" Wang Zhuo scratched his head. "Let's drop this unproductive conversation. You know as well as I do, money is meaningless to me now."

"It's not meaningless to me!" Wang Zhengdao immediately jumped up. "Besides, to think you have this much money and still say it's meaningless—that's awfully unambitious!"

"This much money?" Wang Zhuo gave his father an exasperated look. "Come on, Old Wang, I'm worth tens of billions already. With this new weight-loss project, breaking a hundred billion is just a matter of minutes. You call that 'this much money'?"

"You can't spend money fast enough!" Wang Zhengdao gestured emphatically. "Son, if I were you, I'd immediately order an Airbus from France, convert it into an aerial garden villa complete with a swimming pool and a cinema, and a bar with a dance floor! Then, I'd charter an entire private beach in California, USA, and rent a small island in Hawaii. As for the Maldives or Bali—I hear they're archipelagos with lots of undeveloped land—we’d throw a stack of cash over and secure fifty years of usage rights, then play however we want!"

This guy... has been reading too many web novels! He's fantasizing too much! Just as Wang Zhuo was about to speak, Wang Zhengdao, caught up in his excitement, interrupted him with a wave of his hand.

"It's just spending money, who can't do that! If you have too much money to spend, Dad can help you! Russia offers trips to the moon, and it's only a hundred million US dollars—the two of us going would burn through billions of RMB! You have all those young women, right? Let's make a few of them stars! It doesn't matter if they have talent; we can just throw money at it!"

This jerk... he's really getting into it! Wang Zhuo scratched his head, half-tempted to suggest his father drop the vertical stroke from his name and change it to Wang Xia Dao (Wang Downward/Realistic).

"Oh, right!" Wang Xia Dao suddenly changed the subject, asking with a suggestive tone, "I hear you've been involved in rumors with Ning Yao lately?"

Wang Zhuo snorted. "If there are rumors, they started with you."

"I just heard some whispers, people from within the industry. The media doesn't know yet," Wang Zhengdao teased with a grin. "Son, she’s more than ten years older than you. Take it easy, okay?"

"Are you really my father?" Wang Zhuo asked irritably. "I only see a hooligan sitting across from me."

"Tsk, big brother shouldn't laugh at second brother... wait, son shouldn't laugh at Dad!" Wang Zhengdao glared at him. He thought to himself, this brat who surpassed his own master dares to call his old man a hooligan, yet he should look at his own character!

Wang Zhuo tossed the report into the paper shredder and pressed the switch. The entire document quickly turned into strands of paper as thick as instant noodles, which were then ground into confetti by the subsequent mechanism.

"By the way," Wang Zhengdao sobered his expression and asked, "I heard you gave your mother ten million?"

Wang Zhuo blinked. "Who told you that?"

Seeing his son's reaction, Wang Zhengdao also paused. "There was no such thing?"

"That's not quite right," Wang Zhuo shook his head. "I did give her money, but how did you know?"

"Oh! I thought..." Wang Zhengdao stopped himself, saying, "It was her who told me on the phone, just the day before yesterday."

Wang Zhuo appraised him. "You're still in contact with her?"

"Heh heh," Wang Zhengdao chuckled dryly. "We reconnected recently. You know, I was always indebted to her before. Now that I have money, I thought about compensating her, so I found a way to get in touch."

"So that's how it is..." Wang Zhuo was genuinely surprised, examining his father from head to toe, and asked with astonishment, "Are you telling me that because you were spending my money, you felt too ashamed to contact her before? Now that you have some money from being a successful screenwriter, you think about repaying my mother?"

"Yes, I am a man, after all..." Wang Zhengdao said somewhat sheepishly. "You are my son, so spending your money sits easy with me. Even though I, your father, haven't been very promising, if you want to show filial piety, I shouldn't refuse, right? But your mother is between her and me. What you do for her is your business. When I was poor and down, that was one thing. Now that I have a little money, of course, I have to give her an explanation."

So the old man had principles too! Wang Zhuo felt like he was meeting his father anew. Amidst his complex gaze, a degree of approval surfaced. Although his father’s candid admission that spending his son’s money was easy for him was unpromising, his not forgetting his former wife—even though she was an ex-wife—once he had money, displayed a manliness worth appreciating!

After a moment of silence, Wang Zhuo asked quietly, "How is she doing with that man?"

"You don't know?" Wang Zhengdao was stunned for a moment before replying with a wry smile, "She said they are very happy, that the man treats her sincerely and is very devoted, unlike me, who is so fickle."