These past couple of days, something happened that’s genuinely worth talking about.
The story itself is simple: Zhou Hongyi, the boss of 360, wanted to auction off his Maybach and replace it with a high-quality domestically-produced electric vehicle. During the auction, a used car dealer going by the name “Chairman Zhu” placed a sky-high bid of 9.9 million yuan — then couldn’t actually pay for it.
And that wasn’t the end of the farce. Chairman Zhu also arranged a dinner gathering, deliberately inviting Zhou Hongyi and a crowd of people dripping with “street boss” energy to dine together.
On the subject of financial freedom, I have hard-won insights and experience — lessons accumulated through repeated failures, confusion, and learning. I have also closely observed those who have achieved true wealth. They realized early on that a salary alone can never make you rich. The shift must happen: from trading time for money, to letting assets generate money.
Let me first define what it means to be wealthy. In my view, wealth means that when you don’t want to work, you don’t have to — and even when you’re not working, your income still exceeds your desires.
Over the years, I’ve arrived at one profound realization: the reason people struggle is almost always because they’ve made their lives too complicated.
If you don’t believe me, take a close look at the people around you who are stuck in poverty, chaos, and constant drama.
Their lives are invariably packed with people and situations that consume enormous amounts of their energy — while producing absolutely nothing useful in return.
Student Question: After reading your articles, I realize that as someone in the tech field, I tend to be a wallflower in social situations. How do I develop my own social tree? How do I find and connect with the “hidden small wealthy people in the city” or the “hidden local money in smaller towns”?
Master Chi’s Response: What you’re describing comes down to a fundamental question of sequence. The four steps are: Step One — do things; Step Two — establish your name; Step Three — enter circles; Step Four — build your network.
Sharing a little-known approach to becoming stronger: find your true noble benefactors, and let good people change the course of your fate.
Look back on your own experiences. When good things happened to you, wasn’t it always one or two key people who made the difference — giving you the opportunity, giving you the help? The various people in your network, at certain moments, combine their influence to determine the direction of your life and the level of your fortune. This is why we must learn to build good relationships, and learn to rely on them.
Just last Sunday evening, I was invited to an old European-style villa in the Wutong district, where I gave a down-to-earth talk on classical Chinese wisdom to a gathering of traditionally defined “high-net-worth” individuals. We discussed Feng Shui, Chinese metaphysics, Chi fortune (气运), and more — and I had the pleasure of meeting many new faces.
But none of that is what compelled me to write this article.
What truly moved me to share was a spontaneous speech I gave that evening.
Last weekend, I had dinner with a group of brothers from Jiangsu, along the banks of the Huangpu River.
This has been a time-honored ritual among our small circle — most of them are old connections from the years when my family was in real estate.
Though we’ve all since moved into different fields — some forging excellent local ties and making a fortune in those earlier years, others pivoting to industry and riding the wave to grow their companies — the bond between us has never wavered.
From where things stand, the broader environment still needs some time to warm up. But that leaves us — those living within it — feeling a bit suffocated, with something quietly pressing down on the chest.
That’s what mental exhaustion feels like.
Because I feel it too, just like you.
So what should we do? Act like those who’ve given up — spending their days in a rage, lashing out and insulting others? Or simply abandon all effort and ambition altogether?
It’s been a while since I’ve talked about “the big picture.” But lately, a great many things have taken on the unmistakable scent of a storm about to break — so let me just speak freely, stream-of-consciousness style.
1 — The real force driving gold’s wild surge is this: the world’s chaos risk is growing at an explosive rate. Whenever gold experiences a short-term spike, it’s essentially because the world’s most powerful shadow capital is demanding extreme security. In their eyes, at this particular moment, no other asset class is as stable and reassuring as gold — this ancient, traditional precious metal.
These past couple of days, I’ve had many brothers and sisters leaving messages in my comments section, hoping I’d speak to this topic. Most of us are feeling some version of “off” right now — and I feel it too.
I thought it over, and I want to casually work through a few points, moving from the small to the big. Let’s see where the conversation goes. How much meaning you draw from it — well, that depends on your own insight.