The Billionaire's Multiplier System
Chapter 71 - 74 – Echoes of Influence

Chapter 71: Chapter 74 – Echoes of Influence

(Part 1 – The Headlines Bite)

The morning after the rooftop reckoning, the city woke to a storm. Not of rain — but of names.

Lin Feng’s name.

News apps buzzed. Influencer reels spun up commentary. Real estate groups whispered. Gossip forums combusted.

> "The Phantom Buyer Reshaping Jinghua — Real Face Finally Exposed?"

"Startup Savior or Silent Vulture? Inside Lin Feng’s Rapid Rise"

"From Unknown to Untouchable – Who Really Backs Chengwei Holdings?"

He hadn’t left his apartment yet.

Didn’t need to.

The world was already coming to him.

Phones vibrated. Emails pinged. Notifications rolled in like waves — no space to breathe between each one.

But Lin Feng?

He just sat by the window, sipping hot black coffee, dressed like he was going nowhere.

> "System," he said, not looking up, "how bad is it?"

System Notification:

> Analysis underway. Scanning 17 media platforms, 29 forums, and 114 comment threads...

Result: You’re trending. Again.

Primary tone: 38% curiosity, 27% admiration, 22% jealousy, 13% smear attempts

Flagged origin: Lantai Media – affiliate of Yuan Group.

> Would you like me to auto-send them a digital middle finger in binary?

> "Later," Lin said flatly. "Who else?"

> Secondary campaign brewing from Xu Shanyue’s PR team. It’s more subtle. Framing, not flames.

> *Tone: Elegant warning. Looks like she’s playing ’make you famous, then freeze you out’."

Lin smiled, just faintly.

> "Classic Shanyue."

---

Downstairs, in a car parked across from his building, a luxury van sat idle with tinted windows.

Inside: Guo Yuwei, scrolling on two phones at once.

One was her social account. The other — a silent thread of group chats. Crimson Circle chatter.

She didn’t look up when her assistant spoke.

> "You want us to release a statement defending Mr. Lin?"

> "No."

> "But the smear—"

> "Let them talk," she said. "Everyone’s watching him. That’s the point."

> "So we wait?"

> "No," she said, finally lowering her phone.

> "We prepare to choose sides. At the last moment. When the game is neck-and-neck — that’s when our voice matters."

Her lips curved.

> "Besides. Lin Feng doesn’t need protection. He needs room."

---

System Alert (Passive):

> Guo Yuwei Interest Level: Holding at 62% – Strategy Mode Active

Observation: She’s waiting to see who bleeds first.

P.S. Host, congrats. You’re officially the main character of someone else’s group chat.

---

Elsewhere, in a glass-walled office of Yuan Holdings’ downtown tower, Chen Yuan was practically vibrating with caffeine and vengeance.

A PR consultant sat opposite him, too calm for comfort.

> "You don’t get it," Chen said, pointing at the screen. "He stole my building. He made me look weak."

> "You defaulted on a contractor," the consultant said. "He just acted faster."

> "He’s a fucking mosquito with a black card!"

> "And he’s already four moves ahead."

Chen leaned back in his leather chair.

> "So I make the next move."

> "No. You bait the next move. Let him show his hand."

Chen narrowed his eyes.

> "And then?"

> "Then you cut off the oxygen."

---

System Prompt (Private):

> Chen Yuan plotting is detected.

Estimated move: Legal trap + media spin targeting Chengwei’s license renewal.

Countermeasure suggestion: Leak a soft success story. Quietly showcase community benefit of your holdings. Control the emotion — pride, not profit.

Lin Feng didn’t blink.

> "Schedule a meeting," he said aloud.

> "With whom?" the system asked.

> "Not who," he said.

"Where."

He stood up, adjusting his collar. The coffee was gone.

> "We’re going to the old city."

---

Scene – Old City District, Two Hours Later

The sun had climbed past noon, dragging with it the heat and the eyes of the city.

Lin Feng’s matte-black Range Rover coasted into the old district, a far cry from the rooftop skylines and penthouse glass of last night. Here, the roads were cracked, the air sticky, and the buildings — the real buildings — looked tired.

But under the surface?

Gold.

He stepped out in casual slacks, a slim black T-shirt, no entourage. Just a folder in hand and his shadow long behind him.

A teenager on a scooter did a double take.

"Is that—?"

"The guy from the video? Bro, he just walked past Auntie Mei’s noodle stall!"

From windows, shopkeepers stared.

From a laundromat, someone whispered, "He bought this block."

From a barber’s chair, someone else muttered, "And he fixed the drainage."

Not a speech. Not a stunt.

Just presence.

And it echoed louder than press.

System Notification:

Host has entered "Real World Domain." Public sentiment tracking active.

Live feed: Social buzz rising. Keywords: ’Low-key landlord,’ ’He walks the block,’ ’No security?’

PR Score: +17% authenticity boost. Lantai smear effectiveness: down 38%.

P.S. The street remembers, even when the towers don’t.

Outside an old tea shop with a rusted awning, Mr. Zhang — balding, apron-stained — stepped out wiping his hands.

"Mr. Lin," he greeted. Not formally. Respectfully.

"Zhang laoban," Lin Feng said, shaking his hand. "How’s the tenant issue?"

Zhang blinked.

"Resolved. Since you bought the building, no one’s raised rent."

"Good," Lin said. "Let’s keep it that way."

They entered the back courtyard. Two older residents looked up — chess game paused, one piece mid-air.

"Is that him?" one asked.

"The boy from the Jinming deal?" the other added.

"He’s taller now."

Lin bowed slightly.

"I promised to return. So I did."

He sat with them, asked about local complaints, listened. Actually listened.

No camera crew.

No PR consultant in sunglasses.

Just him and the people whose rent he held.

And somewhere in the distance, a drone whirred.

Someone was recording. From a rooftop maybe. A smartphone on livestream. Not his team. Just... the neighborhood.

"He really came back," a comment said.

"Not just another suit."

"This is what they call roots, huh?"

System Update:

Street-Loyalty Affinity Increased. Local Reputation Unlocked: "The Shadow Patron."

Passive: 20% resistance to urban smear campaigns in owned zones.

Emotion resonance: Trust + Value + Distance from elite manipulation.

Scene Shift – Crimson Circle Lounge

Xu Shanyue watched the livestream on mute.

No words. Just Lin Feng sitting on a plastic stool in cracked tile, pouring tea for a woman who once ran the corner dumpling stand.

"He’s handling it smart," Tang Rou said beside her.

"No counter-statement. No drama. Just walked into the fire barefoot and told them it’s warm."

Shanyue didn’t answer. Her eyes narrowed.

Tang continued.

"If you keep pressuring him from above while he climbs from below... you might just make him untouchable."

"That’s the point," Shanyue said finally.

Tang tilted her head.

"You want him to be untouchable?"

Shanyue set her phone down.

"I want to see what he becomes when no one’s holding his leash."

System Prompt (Private):

Subject: Xu Shanyue – Emotional State: 46% conflicted, 32% impressed, 22% agitated.

Observation: She’s testing you. But part of her doesn’t want you to fail.

Side bet: If you keep doing this your way, she’ll fold — not fight.

Scene – Rooftop, Again. That Evening.

Lin Feng stood alone.

Same glass railing.

Different silence.

This time, no rivals. No fireworks.

Just the hum of Jinghua stretching below, a city constantly reshaping itself.

His phone buzzed.

Guo Yuwei: "You won. Without a headline."

He didn’t reply.

Tang Rou: "You should know Shanyue pulled back two of the media strings. Not all. But enough."

Still, no reply.

He closed the phone.

Then looked out over the skyline and spoke softly.

"System."

"Here, boss," it chirped.

"Next target?"

"There are two," it said.

"One is obvious. One is fun."

"List them."

"Option 1: Reacquire Lantai Media’s shell partners. Quietly."

"Option 2: Buy out the penthouse Chen Yuan’s staying in. Lease it back to him. Triple."

Lin smiled.

"Start both."

System Reward Unlocked:

"Influence Avalanche"

Effect: Each 3x compounding event now triggers ripple in elite stock movement. You now affect real-time decision trees of mid-tier conglomerates.

Perk: New name added to Crimson Circle internal board list — "Unverified Asset Entity: LF Capital."

Final Scene – Unseen Message

Back in her private office, Xu Shanyue opened a folder.

It contained a new report.

Title: "The Ghost Network Beneath Chengwei – A Risk or a Revolution?"

At the bottom, a note in red pen:

"Do not move against this man without full board clearance."

She stared at it for a while.

Then flipped the page.

There, clipped carefully, was a photo — not from paparazzi.

From a drone.

Lin Feng pouring tea in the old city.

Caption: "He came back."

She set the folder down, leaned back, and closed her eyes.

And finally whispered:

"So you really weren’t bluffing..."

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