Return to the City: The Strongest King
Chapter 927 - 928: The Strong Dragon of the Territory

Chapter 927: Chapter 928: The Strong Dragon of the Territory

After hanging up the phone, Sun Dongxiang asked, "What did Little Song say?" She felt that addressing him this way sounded more endearing. Besides, her husband’s current status was largely thanks to Song Xiaodong. Even if she couldn’t make Song Xiaodong and her daughter end up together, she still wanted to maintain close ties between the two families.

"Little Song is truly extraordinary; his level of thinking is on another plane." Shen Dongyang praised.

Sun Dongxiang immediately responded, "Of course, he’s the Family Head of a large and powerful family. Naturally, his outlook would surpass that of a mere mayor like you."

Shen Dongyang nodded and said, "Even though I’ve always considered myself someone who serves the people and aspires to accomplish great things as an official, I can’t deny that there’s still a part of me focused on securing my own position. This lack of responsibility is unacceptable. As for the Lingtian Group? What about attracting foreign investment? I will not, for the sake of my political achievements, allow a Japanese man to walk all over us!"

Sun Dongxiang hesitated for a moment before saying, "That may be so, but this matter is quite significant. If not handled properly, it could easily escalate into a foreign affairs dispute."

"It’s precisely because we always fear foreign affairs disputes that they dare to act so recklessly. If they’re in our country, they should abide by our country’s laws. As long as we handle this according to the law, and they’ve violated our country’s laws, what ground do they have to lodge foreign affairs complaints? Why should we fear such disputes?"

"Still, you’d better discuss this with the Party Secretary to ensure you’re not acting solely on impulse."

Shen Dongyang nodded and called the Party Secretary, explaining the matter in detail. The Secretary seemed quite stressed, preferring to play the role of a mediator and trying to reconcile Song Xiaodong with Matsumoto Koji. However, Shen Dongyang explained that Song Xiaodong’s attitude was steadfast—there was no way the Su Family would compromise on this matter.

Additionally, Shen Dongyang analyzed the risks and benefits with the Secretary. The Secretary understood that while the political achievement from this could be significant, it would be impossible to succeed in Minghe without the support of prominent families like the Su Family and Sun Family. Without it, any success would be an illusion, and he might even be forced out of his position.

Matsumoto Koji initially believed that applying pressure would compel the city officials to force the Su Corporation to apologize. But after waiting all night, the phone didn’t ring once—almost as if the city’s leaders were entirely oblivious to the situation.

When he woke up the next day, he still hadn’t received a single call from the city, but the major companies coming to visit him kept arriving in waves, giving him another sense of accomplishment.

"By the way, that Su Corporation isn’t so great. If you want to work with us, you shouldn’t cooperate with Su Corporation anymore."

After hosting two groups of visitors, Matsumoto Koji felt it was time to apply pressure on Su Corporation from his side. Since people from Su Corporation dared to hit him, he wanted to make sure none of Minghe’s companies dared to collaborate with Su Corporation, as they’d risk losing him as their best business partner.

This time, it was a Ji Family representative visiting. When they heard his comment, their face immediately darkened—they hadn’t expected Matsumoto Koji to fall out with the Su Family.

The Ji Family representative cautiously asked, "Mr. Matsumoto, did you have a conflict with the Su Family?"

With an air of dominance, Matsumoto Koji replied, "That’s correct. Their moral character is disgraceful. In short, they rub me the wrong way. You can make your choice in this matter."

"Well, I’m truly sorry. If that’s the case, we’ll have to abandon plans to work with Mr. Matsumoto. Goodbye." With that, the Ji Family representative left promptly and unusually quickly.

Matsumoto Koji stared in shock, but he quickly rationalized it, thinking the Ji Family likely had significant cooperation with the Su Corporation and found little promise in working with him. Thus, they made the logical decision.

However, what happened next began to irritate Matsumoto Koji. Whenever he mentioned that statement, those who came with sincerity and hope to discuss cooperation turned away almost immediately.

The polite ones at least apologized; the impolite ones left with a cold expression without saying a word.

By afternoon, his office became eerily quiet—no one came to visit, and no one sought to collaborate anymore.

"Damn it!" Matsumoto Koji was practically fuming in rage.

What he didn’t understand was that even though the Lingtian Group’s investment project was substantial—with potential funding exceeding ten billion US Dollars—it was still incomparable to the influence of the Su Family within Minghe.

For the Su Family, it wasn’t just about money—they wielded immense power across countless aspects. The Lingtian Group merely brought capital, and how could that ever compete with the Su Family’s far-reaching influence?

Now that Matsumoto Koji had fallen out with the Su Family, the other families and major corporations naturally understood who to back. It was better to avoid a risky collaboration and maintain ties with the Su Family. Otherwise, not only would the cooperation fail, but they might also end up getting themselves caught in trouble, making it impossible to survive in Minghe’s business world.

The saying goes, "Even a mighty dragon cannot dominate a local serpent," but the Su Family wasn’t just a serpent—they were already a dragon. Even if the Lingtian Group had more assets than the Su Family, they couldn’t possibly move their entire group to Minghe to try to compete with Song Xiaodong’s Su Family.

Matsumoto Koji wasn’t alone in Minghe—he had a team. Naturally, those sent abroad for investment projects were elites. It was just that Matsumoto Koji happened to rise to power mainly due to his background.

"Mr. Matsumoto, I think you’ve underestimated Su Corporation’s capabilities."

"Indeed! Based on the current situation, if you force Minghe’s business circles to choose between you and the Su Family, they will definitely choose the Su Family over us Lingtian Group."

Even Matsumoto Koji, no matter how foolish, clearly realized this point and said, "So what now? I can’t just go to the Su Family to apologize, can I?"

"If we still want to invest in Minghe, then an apology is absolutely necessary. Only if Su Corporation stops pursuing this matter can we stay here. Otherwise, no one else will dare to collaborate with us. Moreover, I believe that since Su Corporation has such strength, it might be better for us to work with them—it could be more beneficial for our development here in Minghe."

"Work with them?" Matsumoto Koji’s face twitched as he said, "That’s impossible!"

"Mr. Matsumoto, based on the current scenario, if we don’t cooperate with Su Corporation, no one else will dare to collaborate with us. Please, reconsider."

Matsumoto Koji’s face continued to twitch uncontrollably. If he could simply pack his bags and leave, he’d really want to do that now. However, he had vowed to build his legacy in Minghe. If he returned to Japan now, he’d definitely face criticism within the group, and his position within the organization would become entirely untenable in the future.