Chapter 83 Starlight City Donovan
"I'm preparing to open a bank," Troy said casually.
"You’re going to open a bank?!" As soon as these words were spoken, it was as if a thunderstorm had struck, and the entire private room erupted with excitement.
"Is this... is this for real? He’s opening a bank?"
Some of the classmates were so amazed that their voices trembled and their eyes widened.
"You're so amazing, Troy!"
"You’ve only graduated for over a year, and you’re already able to open a bank?"
"Oh my god, we’re the same age, but we’re so different!"
"Comparison is the thief of joy! In my factory, I earn only three to four thousand a month, but my classmate is already opening a bank!"
The classmates were shocked, feeling a sense of powerlessness. The gap between them was just too large.
Even if they worked hard for several lifetimes, they could never close the gap between them and Troy.
A few female classmates' eyes lit up. Their legs turned weak, their hearts raced, and they gathered around Troy.
"Troy, do you... do you have a girlfriend?"
"What do you think? Will you be my girlfriend?"
"I can do laundry, cooking, and all household chores!"
"Tsk, forget it. Anyone can do laundry and cooking?"
Someone sneered, "Troy's girlfriend must be capable, she should at least be able to help him manage his business. Like Lisa, she’s an accountant! I think she'll be the best woman Troy since she’ll be able to handle the accounts for him!"
Troy smiled helplessly. "Actually, opening a bank is not as impressive as you guys think. And this bank is a joint venture. There are three shareholders in total.
"One is a state-owned bank, one is Noah Capital, and the other is our family. The state-owned bank has the largest share, followed by Noah Capital, and our family holds about 20% of the shares."
Troy continued, "The bank's name has been decided, it'll be called Oceanbridge City Development Bank, and it’ll be under the ownership of the state-owned bank. I'll serve as the president. Of course, all major decisions will still need to be approved by the board of directors."
"It’s impressive that you’ll be the president of a bank!"
"Yeah, among our peers in Oceanbridge City, how many can become bank president at your age?"
"So amazing!"
Everyone praised Troy with envy in their eyes.
"Tell us about your family's success story, Troy. It'll motivate us."
"There's nothing much to say. My dad started from scratch and got help from an influential man, which is how we became so successful," Troy vaguely replied.
"Who was that influential man?" a classmate couldn't help but ask.
"Donovan," Troy said.
"Donovan from Starlight City?"
"Donovan, who was tenth on the Forbes list of richest people ten years ago?"
The crowd erupted in astonishment.
Most of them were studying finance and working in finance-related fields, so they were familiar with those rankings.
When they heard that name, their mouths opened wide and their eyes widened. They never expected Troy's father to have a connection with Donovan.
"Who is Donovan?" one classmate asked curiously. She had never heard that name before.
After graduation, she had returned home and became a clerk, so she wasn’t familiar with all these things.
"Donovan was a manufacturing tycoon in the federal eastern region ten years ago," someone explained, "His industries include mines, steel, coal, processing transportation, and many, many more. Any manufacturing-related businesses in Starlight City have the name Donovan behind them."
"Ten years ago, Donovan made it to the top ten of the list of richest people with assets of $50 billion. Just think about it, he had $50 billion back then. With such severe inflation now, his assets are probably at least $100 billion!"
"$100 billion?"
The classmate was shocked and nearly fell to the ground. That number was terrifying.
"However, ten years ago, the global financial crisis broke out, especially in the manufacturing industry, which suffered great blows. Factories went bankrupt, workers were laid off, and the manufacturing industry in Eagleland was in a slump. It was desolate." A classmate rubbed his chin, very puzzled. "In that year, manufacturing giants had to withdraw from the list of richest people due to insufficient assets. A few were under a lot of pressure and committed suicide by jumping off buildings. Only Donovan withstood the pressure and remained on the list. Although he dropped to outside the top fifty, he's still on the list! That was strange!"
"Oh? I didn't expect you to know about that."
Troy looked at the classmate in surprise and said, "I heard from my dad that Donovan somehow obtained a large amount of capital and managed to revitalize his industries. Otherwise, he would have gone bankrupt and wouldn’t have been able to stay on that list. No one knows where he sourced the capital..."
"It seems that Donovan also had a benefactor who assisted him!"
"Exactly, but as for who the benefactor is, we will never know."
Troy shook his head and continued, "Donovan now lives in Golden Summit Peak, and every now and then, my dad prepares gifts to visit him and express our gratitude to him for the help he offered back then."
"Golden Summit Peak? Didn’t a mysterious billionaire buy a villa in the Summit Retreat Oasis area for a sky-high price of 87 million dollars recently?"
"Yes," Troy nodded.
"87 million dollars. How many lifetimes would I need to earn that?"
"I’m so jealous. I wonder how it feels to live in a place like that!"
The students were discussing it fervently.
"Oh, what are you all talking about?"
A voice came from behind.
Evelyn and Joshua walked in, followed by Noah and Lisa.
"Evelyn, you're here!"
"Come and take a seat!"
Everyone greeted them, and someone noticed Lisa behind them, and their eyes lit up.
"Lisa is here too!"
"My college goddess has finally arrived!"
"One year has passed and she still looks so beautiful! Oh, my heart is beating so fast!"
"Wait..."
Someone's gaze shifted toward Noah.
"So, that’s Lisa's husband?"
Suddenly, Noah felt multiple eyes locked on him, filled with hostility and wariness, most of them belonging to men.
Troy also fixed his gaze on Noah with a cold expression, but he didn't speak immediately.
These people all looked down on Noah when they saw that Noah was dressed casually in a t-shirt, jeans, and canvas shoes.
"What a shame! A trashy person married such a good wife."
"Why did my college goddess marry a loser like him?"
"I wish she had married me instead. I have a stable job in a factory and earn three to four thousand per month!"
Whispers could be heard.
Since it was their first meeting, everyone did not fully express their true thoughts.
Noah remained calm and sat down in a vacant seat. Lisa sat next to him.
Once the dishes were served, Noah immediately picked up his knife and fork and started eating without even looking up.
"Tsk tsk tsk, this guy, has he never eaten such good food before? He starts eating as soon as the food is on the table!"
"Yeah, where did this bumpkin come from?"
"This is the Golden Luxe Hotel, each dish starts at a minimum of three hundred dollars. I guess he’s never eaten such good food before!"
"Look at him devouring it like a wolf, he’s such a disgrace!"
"Troy hasn't even spoken yet, but he's already eating so rudely!"
"Why did Lisa marry someone like him?"
"Has he never eaten before?"
Everyone looked at Noah in disdain and began discussing him.
