Chapter 177: No Longer What It Used To Be
Today, among the crowd that came to pick her up at the airport, there were not only the South Island Country President and other high officials, but also Jin Zhiyong, who was sitting in a wheelchair at the very front of the crowd, looking frail with old age.
Jin Qiaoying seemed as young and beautiful as she was back then.
Watching her confidently step down the escalator and stand tall to shake hands and talk with the slightly bowing South Island Country President, Jin Zhiyong remained speechless for a long time.
San Xin Group had long ago, during the financial turmoil several years ago, had all its assets taken over as South Island Country General Headquarters assets. Now, San Xin Group was barely surviving with a few metallurgy subsidiaries under it and had become a micro-small enterprise.
This scene at the airport was also being live broadcast to all the people of South Island Country.
Perhaps the identity of the former San Xin eldest princess alone was now just a joke in South Island Country.
At this moment, the twisted mentality of the South Island Country people was evident.
On one hand, given Great Xia’s absolute number one strength in the world today, they felt proud because of Jin Qiaoying.
On the other hand, going back 20 years, Great Xia was just a poor and backward nation in their eyes.
That superior mentality had now been thoroughly shattered by reality.
But turning around to look at Jin Qiaoying again, they felt that the situation wasn’t so bad after all.
The viewers sitting in front of the live broadcast screen all had faces full of conflict.
But the South Island Country President was different.
“Welcome, Ms. Jin, to visit South Island Country. This is the highest ceremony we use to receive distinguished guests.”
This President surnamed Li was slightly taller than Jin Qiaoying. At this moment, standing beside her, he subconsciously hunched his waist, trying to make himself a head shorter than her.
Jin Qiaoying very officially and formally finished liaising with the other party, then looked in the direction indicated by President Li’s finger.
Over there, the honor guard, each one carefully selected and tall and sturdy, were striving to stand straight to show their best posture.
The band in the back was also playing the familiar welcome tune she knew with great effort.
Seeing this scene, Jin Qiaoying couldn’t help but feel a touch of warmth in her heart.
The purpose of her return this time was to send her mother’s ashes to the Jin Family Ancestral Tomb to be buried with her father, thereby fulfilling her mother’s only wish in life.
Originally, she wanted to come low-key, handle this matter, and immediately return to Great Xia to throw herself into work.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. With someone fanning the flames, what she saw as a small matter had now been elevated to a certain height.
Standing here, looking at the scene before her, she even felt it was like a joke, with no one raising any objections.
To say she wasn’t moved would be false. Jin Qiaoying knew this was the magnanimity shown by Great Xia in spending a fortune to buy horse bones.
“President Li, my visit this time is mainly private business. It’s too grand.”
Clearly, she hadn’t yet gotten used to her current identity.
“Not grand at all, not grand at all. Ms. Jin is joking. South Island Country and Great Xia are neighboring nations with good relations since ancient times. These simple formal ceremonies can’t even show the fervent welcome from all the people of South Island Country.”
Hearing this, Jin Qiaoying couldn’t help but feel an indescribable emotion rise in her heart.
“Hello, Ms. Jin. I am Finance Minister Cui Mingxian. We warmly welcome your visit.”
Stepping forward, a middle-aged man with a fawning smile on his face bowed and extended his hand to her.
Jin Qiaoying put away her complex emotions, put on an official smile on her face again, reached out to lightly shake the other’s hand, and then let go.
“Hello, Ms. Jin.”
She knew all the high officials behind, but at this moment, they seemed very strange to her.
Their faces all had the same fawning expressions, each one seeming unable to stand straight. This was worlds apart from when she was in South Island Country before.
Finally, one person no longer acted like those high officials.
“Grandfather.”
This time, Jin Qiaoying didn’t act superior. She bent her knees and squatted halfway down, but with her tall figure and wearing high heels, she still wouldn’t be shorter than Jin Zhiyong, who was now shrunk into a ball.
Jin Zhiyong stared blankly at his granddaughter, whom he hadn’t seen in thirteen years.
Thirteen years had passed, and he was now frail with old age, but the granddaughter before him was still as young and beautiful as she was thirteen years ago.
Jin Zhiyong knew this was the effect shown by the anti-aging treatment newly developed by Xinghai Technology.
Now, the elderly people in Great Xia all seemed to have regained their youth, their states unanimously returning to how they were 20 years ago.
Logically speaking, as an enterprise, Xinghai should sell this technology for money.
But instead,
Not a single cent!
Based solely on this point, no enterprise in the world today can achieve it.
Of course, no nation can achieve that either.
Only Xinghai, only Great Xia.
Jin Qiaoying inwardly sighed. In her impression, that elderly person with a pair of hawk-like eyes, who had always been extremely wise, was now beginning to show some signs of dementia.
“Ms. Jin, we have prepared a state banquet for you, and Mr. Jin Zhiyong will also attend.”
At this moment, the President surnamed Li, who was following at the side, said in a low voice.
Waiting here too long will affect the subsequent itinerary arrangement.
South Island Country’s economy is currently in a total mess.
The United States is overwhelmed with its own problems, Great Xia has comprehensively curtailed trade and no longer imports their products in large quantities.
This situation is not only in South Island Country, Little Japan is the same.
Nowadays, this God of Wealth from Great Xia has unexpectedly come to visit, and he even has an identity originating from South Island Country.
He has no reason not to cherish this rare opportunity, trying to strive for a lifeline for South Island Country, reconnect with Great Xia, and engage in certain trade cooperation.
Jin Qiaoying stood up, smiled kindly at the president, then moved behind Jin Zhiyong’s wheelchair and proactively reached out to grip the handle.
“Thank you for your country’s warm hospitality, I’ll push Grandfather myself.”
Her words also felt similarly awkward.
On one hand, she revealed her own identity, and on the other hand, she stated that she is currently a Jin Family woman.
The Li-surnamed president twitched at the corner of his mouth, also feeling a bit embarrassed.
However, he reacted quickly; at least the other party did not directly object, which was a good start.
“Alright, this way please.”
With that, he also proactively came to the back of the wheelchair, aligning with Jin Qiaoying at the same position, the entire process flowing smoothly without any awkwardness.
Soon, the grand welcome ceremony here came to an end.
With various mounted police flashing lights ahead to lead the way, Jin Qiaoying’s group soon arrived at the South Island Country General Headquarters Receptionist.
