The King of Shanghai Read Online Free PDF

asked.
    “Three hundred million renminbi.”
    “Fifty million dollars?”
    “More or less.”
    “We don’t have that kind of cash,” Ava said.
    “Suki thinks she can find a bank that might give it to us if we pledged the Shanghai assets.”
    “We agreed when we set up our business that we would avoid highly leveraged situations. None of us likes debt, right?”
    “I agree. Expanding in Shanghai and also adding a Beijing location would amount to close to a hundred million dollars. We have thirty million available, and the girls are looking at some other investments that are attractive. I don’t want to put too much into one basket.”
    “Then we won’t.”
    “Fine. I wanted to discuss it with you before telling Suki she’ll have to make do with the cold storage.”
    “Will she be upset?”
    “No, she knows she’s pushing the envelope. She just can’t help it. She sees the potential and wants to grab it.”
    May’s cellphone rang. The noise sounded especially shrill in the quiet bar. “ Wei ,” May said, then smiled and passed the phone to Ava.
    “How was your flight?” Amanda asked.
    “Just fine.”
    “Sorry I couldn’t make it back for a drink. I’m still at my meeting, and it doesn’t look like I’m getting back to the hotel anytime soon.”
    “Is there a problem?”
    “No, just some details that have to be worked out. Let’s meet for breakfast in the morning.”
    Ava turned to May. “Amanda won’t be back till late. She wants to meet for breakfast.”
    “Tell her eight o’clock.”
    “I heard that, and eight is fine,” Amanda said. “Now I have to get back to the people here. See you tomorrow.”
    Ava handed the phone back to May. “She sounds excited.”
    “I’ve had enough excited conversation for one day,” May said. “Let’s hope that dinner with Xu is calmer.”
    The phone rang again. May looked concerned as she answered, and Ava wondered if Changxing was on the line. Instead, May once again passed the phone to Ava.
    “Ava, welcome to Shanghai,” Xu said.
    “You could have told me that when we meet.”
    “That’s why I’m calling. Something has come up that needs my urgent attention. Can we possibly do dinner tomorrow night? I’m sorry to ask at the last minute, but I have a crisis of sorts.”
    Ava covered the microphone with her hand. “He wants to postpone dinner until tomorrow night. Are you okay with that?”
    May nodded.
    “Yes, that’s fine. And truthfully it will probably be better for me to have a good night’s sleep behind me,” Ava said to Xu.
    “It will be the same place and the same time.”
    “I’ll tell May.”
    “Thank you for being understanding. I’m anxious to speak with the two of you.”

( 5 )
    It turned into a short evening for Ava. After her second glass of Prosecco, jet lag began to take its effect. Her mind was clouded, and despite the bak mei workout her limbs felt heavy. May wanted her to come to the Yi Long Court restaurant across the hallway for dinner, but Ava had started to yawn and knew there was no way she could last. She excused herself just after seven o’clock and headed upstairs to her room.
    She began to take her clothes off the second she had closed the door behind her, and slid into bed in only her underwear. Sleep took her instantly. She woke twice, the first time to pee and drink a glass of water. It took her a while to get back to sleep, her body clock insisting that it was mid-afternoon.
    When she finally nodded off, she found herself immersed in a recurring dream. She and her father were in a hotel trying to check out and get to the airport to catch a plane. As always, hotel rooms disappeared, bags were nowhere to be found, and transportation to the airport proved to be unreliable. They reached the airport with only minutes to spare. She left her father at the curb as she rushed inside to the check-in counter. When she looked back, he was gone. She was at the back of a long, snaking check-in line. Her frustration