Chapter 598: Capital and Politics

"Xia Yu, it's almost time, aren't we ready to go?'

Just as Xia Yu was intently browsing business information, Li Qian, who had kept Xia Yu's reminder in mind, looked at the time and found that it was already 5:30 pm. She whispered in Xia Yu's ear.

Xia Yu blinked his dry eyes, smiled slightly at Li Qian, stood up and said, 'Well, let's get changed.'

'Okay!'

Then, the two successively entered the rest room at the back of the office and changed into a relatively casual outfit.

'Let's go, let's go buy some fruit first.'

After a while of getting ready, it was already past six o'clock. Xia Yu arrived at the door of Gerard Part's house on time at half past six.

'Ding dong!'

The family of four, Gerard Part, his wife Mary, son Lyle and daughter Camilla, were at home. Lyle, the son, was already at university and was not at home. Camilla, the 12-year-old daughter, was watching TV in the living room when she heard the doorbell ring. She immediately jumped off the sofa and ran over to open the door.

Looking at Xia Yu and Li Qian standing in the doorway, Camilla felt that they looked familiar. Blinking her beautiful big eyes, she asked sweetly, 'Excuse me, are you Uncle Xia?'

'Yes, it's me, sweet Camilla. Good evening!'

'This is a gift for you!'

Xia Yu said with a smile, while handing the little girl Camilla a Barbie doll gift set.

American and European girls have almost zero resistance to Barbie dolls. Looking at the Barbie doll in the transparent bag, Camilla was extremely surprised. She took the gift box with both hands and said sweetly, 'Thank you, uncle. Uncle and auntie, please come in!'

Xia Yu had just come in when he saw Gerard Part smiling and walking quickly over. Looking at the large gift that Xia Yu and Li Qian were carrying, he quickly took it over, saying non-stop, 'Mr Xia, you're too kind, you even bought so many gifts.'

'Haha, it's our Chinese etiquette, you can't visit empty-handed,'

Xia Yu said with a smile.

Gerard Part laughed and warmly invited Xia Yu and Li Qian to sit down: 'Please sit!'

'Camilla, did you thank your aunt and uncle?'

'Yes, Dad!'

'Put the presents away in your room first, then come and help me make tea. Next time Uncle Xia comes, you'll have to make the tea.'

'Okay, I'll be right back,'

Camilla said reluctantly, but she was well-behaved and obedient and put the presents away in her room.

Xia Yu smiled and praised, 'Camila is still so obedient and cute. Mr. Gerard, you have done a great job teaching her.'

'Thank you!'

'Mr. and Mrs. Xia, welcome!'

At that moment, Mary, wearing an apron, brought a tray of dishes to the table and set it down, then warmly greeted Xia Yu and Li Qian.

'Thank you!'

Xia Yu stood up to thank her, then glanced at Li Qian, who, with a sweet smile, walked up to Mary and said, 'Ms Mary, is there anything I can do?'

'Oh, you are the guest, rest in the living room, I can do it alone...'

'...'

As Li Qian entered the kitchen with Mary half-leading and half-pushing her, Xia Yu and Gerard Pat smiled at each other. At this time, Camila also walked out of the room again, watching her father make tea.

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was already around 8 pm. Dinner was over, and Li Qian and Mary were tidying up the table while Xia Yu and Gerard Pat returned to the sofa in the living room to make tea.

After eating and drinking, it was time to get down to business.

After all, the British custom of dining privately is different from the Chinese custom, and work is not discussed during meals. During the meal, they only occasionally chatted about a variety of topics, and both tacitly left the serious matters for later, during their time of relaxation.

'Mr. Gerard, congratulations on becoming the Mayor of London. I believe that in the next five years, London will become even more prosperous under your governance,'

Xia Yu congratulated.

'Thank you!'

'Mr Xia, I could not have won the election without your important help, and I have always kept this in mind. In the future, if there is anything I can do to help, I will do my best as long as it does not go against my principles!'

Now that he was in his own home, facing Xia Yu, his major financial backer, Gerard Palt did not mince his words. After thanking Xia Yu, he solemnly promised.

He was not complacent about becoming the Mayor of London. As a qualified politician, he was able to clearly position himself at all times.

Yes, he is the Mayor of London and considered a high-ranking official in the UK, but he is well aware that Xia Yu, who has the most capital in the UK, can help him get the position of Mayor of London, and is also capable of pulling him down.

After all, although the position of Mayor of London is high-ranking and powerful, it is just a job. If he offends Xia Yu, it is almost impossible for him to be re-elected in five years' time. When he loses power, he will be nothing, and Xia Yu will easily be able to get rid of him.

He had inquired about Xia Yu, who was a strong supporter of his, and naturally knew that Xia Yu was the controller of a regional consortium and had already extended his tentacles into the UK. He had a close relationship with the Duke of Howard, one of the Conservative Party's important allies. All signs indicated that Xia Yu was a golden thigh.

This golden thigh took the initiative to throw him an olive branch, and of course he grasped it tightly and would not let go. This would be one of the strong foundations of his future political path.

In the UK, capital cannot do without the support of politics, and politics also relies heavily on capital. With the support of capital, he will be able to implement his policy proposals and go higher and further on the political path.

Hearing Gerard Pat's frank words, Xia Yu was momentarily stunned, and looked straight at him. The latter looked back at him frankly.

After a few seconds, Xia Yu laughed heartily and said with satisfaction, 'Mr. Gerard, there is indeed a reason why you can hold such a high position at such a young age.'

Gerard Pat heard the implied meaning in Xia Yu's words and smiled slightly modestly.

'My company is developing very well, and I don't lack funds, so I can develop rapidly now.'

'By the way, have you started building your team in the city hall?'

Xia Yu first said lightly that he didn't need his help at the moment, but was instead concerned about his control of the London city government.

Gerard Pat was taken aback and didn't know why Xia Yu was asking this question. After hesitating for a moment, he said honestly, 'I have already started building my team. Since the previous mayor was from the Labour Party, I want to better implement my policy proposals, so I need to build a team that is united with me. It will take some time, but I don't think it will be a problem.'

Xia Yu smiled, nodded, and said softly, 'If that's the case, that's great.'

'By the way, Mr. Gerard, I've just set up a private equity fund and I'm looking for investors. You can ask the London City Government to see who's interested in investing, and you can recommend them to me.'

'I'm sure you know my abilities in finance. This fund has no risk at all, and the guaranteed annual return is over 50%. If you're interested, you might as well invest.'

Hearing this, Gerard Pat's eyes lit up, and he looked straight at Xia Yu. Seeing the latter smiling with a deep meaning and nodding at him, he was overjoyed and nodded heavily, saying, 'Of course I'm interested. You are known as the stock god. I heard that when your company set up a fund, investors simply couldn't get a place to invest. I certainly won't miss out.'

'I believe that after those colleagues in the city government learn about your private fund, they will also scramble to invest.'

Although he said so, Gerard Part shouted in his heart that he had indeed chosen the right person to rely on. Not only was he giving him benefits, but he was also helping him control the city government.

Politicians in Europe and the United States are just a profession, and their power is far less than that in mainland China. On the contrary, the risks are considerable, and a stable and reasonable source of income is extremely important.

In the political systems of Europe and the United States, politicians serve the capitalists more, and the capitalists will ensure that they have food and clothing and will become rich and powerful.

The private equity fund mentioned by Xia Yu is a common form.

Politicians invest in private equity funds and receive reasonable dividends, which will definitely be much higher than their salary income. All the politician needs to do is to protect the interests of capitalists within a reasonable range and speak for them.

However, not all politicians are qualified to be supported by capitalists. While Gerald Patten has this qualification, and some people in the London City Government also have this qualification, most people do not. This means that if these people do not engage in corruption, they will not be able to support their families well on low salaries.

Now that Gerald Pratt has Xia Yu's guaranteed private equity fund quota, it is extremely attractive to those people, and it will be an important bargaining chip for him to quickly take control of the London City Council.

It can be said that Xia Yu's private equity fund will give him an important boost in personal wealth and his career. How could he not be happy?

"Mr. Xia, thank you!'

Gerald Pratt solemnly thanked him.

Xia Yu laughed indifferently and said, 'You're welcome. I'm never reluctant to help someone who is one of my own.'

'By the way, in the future, I will increase my investment in the UK, at least 500 million pounds. I haven't decided where to invest yet, but if there is a suitable opportunity in London, I can invest there as well.'

Five hundred million pounds!

This figure shook Gerard Pat for a moment. He was breathless and immediately reacted, knowing that Xia Yu was reminding him. He had no more reservations at this time and hurriedly said, 'Mr. Xia, please be assured, I am a grateful person.'

'The economic rise of the city of London requires a large amount of capital. There must be suitable opportunities. I will let you know as soon as I find them. If you have an investment target, please feel free to let me know, and I will do my best to serve you.'

Five hundred million pounds! Gerard Pat did not doubt Xia Yu's strength.

If this five hundred million pounds were invested in the City of London, it would be a strong addition to his political achievements.

Now that the Conservative Party was in power, party leader Margaret would implement a series of policies to stimulate economic development and make the UK rise again. This would require a large amount of capital, especially foreign investment.

If he can attract 500 million pounds of investment soon after taking office as London Mayor, his name will definitely resound throughout the UK, and the position of London Mayor will instantly become as secure as Mount Tai.

At this moment, Gerard Pat felt greatly moved in his heart. He was so lucky as to have embraced a super golden thigh. He secretly strengthened his belief that he must not offend Xia Yu under any circumstances.

Xia Yu saw Gerard Pat's expression and probably guessed what he was thinking. This was exactly what he wanted.

As the saying goes, ten birds in the forest are not as good as one in the hand. Although there are many people in the UK who are higher in status than Gerard Pat, the higher those people's positions, the easier it is to deal with the big British families and conglomerates, and his help is not as important.

That's why he seized the opportunity to invest in the rising political star Gerard Part at the beginning, so that he could firmly bind him.

Now is not the time, and he will not make any demands, lowering Gerard Part's guard. When the time is ripe later, he will definitely not be embarrassed to ask for more benefits.

In this way, Gerald Part, whose mindset had once again changed, became more enthusiastic and friendly towards Xia Yu. The two men, each with their own plans, once again engaged in a lively conversation.