Long Aotian glared at the visibly annoyed Tie Tuo Wang. I'm practically spoon-feeding you, and you still don't get it? Why are you the one getting mad?
Gritting his teeth, Long Aotian spat, "You've got the wrong guy!"
Lu Chengwen jumped in. "Mr. Tie, I don't like wasting words. Let's cut to the chase—can we sign today or not? Give me an answer."
"Absolutely!" Tie Tuo Wang replied eagerly. "Sign and transfer, all in one go. I'm all about efficiency."
Long Aotian was on the verge of exploding. "What do you mean 'absolutely'? Do you even understand what's going on?"
Tie Tuo Wang's temper flared. "Get lost! I've put up with you long enough!"
Long Aotian's eyes widened in disbelief. A mere Northern Branch lackey like Tie Tuo Wang dared speak to him like this? "What did you say? Say it again."
Tie Tuo Wang, barely containing his rage, grabbed Long Aotian by the collar and growled, "Listen, you little punk. I'm here on a mission. If I didn't have to play nice and act like a civilized businessman to help my Young Master shine, I'd have dragged you outside and beaten you for thirty minutes straight!"
"You—"
"I'm warning you, my Young Master is a peerless genius, a legendary hero. Look at him!" Tie Tuo Wang yanked Long Aotian's chin toward Lu Chengwen. "Charming, suave, surrounded by beauties, basking in their affection. Now look at you!" He sneered. "You're a scruffy, lowlife nobody, reeking of failure. Vice president of Qianfeng Group? The real president's over there, cozying up to my Young Master. You've got some nerve crossing him!"
"I—"
"If you're smart, you'll shine his shoes and play errand boy. Maybe you'll be useful. Keep mouthing off, and I'll kick you to death!"
Long Aotian trembled with rage. "You—"
"Get out!" Tie Tuo Wang roared.
Long Aotian couldn't hold back. "Open your damn eyes and look at me! I'm your Young Master!"
Tie Tuo Wang froze, glancing at Lu Chengwen, who lounged in his chair, eyes closed, seemingly unbothered. Leng Qingqiu massaged his leg, while Xu Xuejiao fed him a grape from the fruit platter. He didn't even bother to open his eyes.
Tie Tuo Wang laughed. "Kid, if you're going to impersonate someone, at least check a mirror first. You, my Young Master?" He pointed at Lu Chengwen. "That's a Young Master. Flanked by beauties, effortlessly commanding, that's the real deal. You? Go eat dirt."
Long Aotian clutched his chest. "You… he can't even fight!"
"That's his strategy! Playing weak. If he wanted, he'd crush you to dust in seconds. Dust, got it?"
"He's just a spoiled rich kid, a useless playboy—"
"That's his disguise! You wouldn't understand. Charisma is an art, a profound skill. The greater the man, the more unconventional, carefree, and unpredictable he appears. Look at you, panicking over nothing like you're holding back a ton of piss. You think you can pass as my Young Master?"
They were laying their cards on the table now, openly clashing over identities. Leng Qingqiu saw through Long Aotian's true colors. He's gone all out to swallow the Leng family, tricking my dad with promises of a consortium and a five-billion loan at one percent interest. Anyone in investments knows that's a losing deal—handing over billions to let someone else profit while you sip the scraps. Who'd be that stupid? Dad's so desperate he's lost all sense, believing this guy. If not for Chengwen, I'd never have seen Long Aotian's scheming.
Xu Xuejiao thought, This guy's sinister. Pretending to be a big-shot investor, acting like he's here for Tie Tuo Wang's sake. It's a ploy to gain the Leng family's trust. Invest five billion, seize control of Qianfeng Group, then slowly—or swiftly—devour their trillion-yuan empire. He's cunning with a powerful backing. Chengwen's caution makes sense. We need to be careful.
Lu Chengwen didn't want to drag this out. "Mr. Tie, are we done here? How long are you going to chat with this idiot? Did I call you here to waste time?"
Tie Tuo Wang hurried, "Sorry, President Lu. Let's sign now."
Lu Chengwen stood. "Tomorrow morning, go to Dasheng Group and sign with my general manager. Stop wasting my time."
Tie Tuo Wang nodded eagerly. "Of course, sorry for the delay, President Lu. Take your time, take your time…"
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Long Aotian thought, Good thing they don't have a contract ready, or that five billion would've been gone. Pointing at Tie Tuo Wang, he said, "You're something else!"
Tie Tuo Wang glared back. "Long, you're on my list. I guarantee you won't survive this month. Just wait."
Lu Chengwen leapt into the car, urging the driver, "Go, go, go, drive!"
The car sped off. He exhaled, glancing back to check if they were followed. Xu Xuejiao grinned. "Chengwen-ge, wasn't that a blast? Two gorgeous girls fawning over you—bet you loved it."
He shot her a look. "Have you no sense? Didn't you see how dangerous that was? Long Aotian's a walking hazard, and Tie Tuo Wang and his four goons are cold-blooded killers. Enjoyed it? I was terrified!"
Leng Qingqiu, serious, said, "Lu Chengwen, even if it was an act, you and Xu Xuejiao went too far. Was that really necessary? Be honest—were you secretly enjoying it?"
He stared, incredulous. "That's what you're focused on?"
Xu Xuejiao crawled to the front seat, plugging a USB-like device into the console. Still in her JK uniform, her short skirt rode up, revealing her curves and a glimpse of white underwear. Lu Chengwen stared, entranced, muttering mechanically, "I was handling business. No time for that. It was all an act—I wasn't into it…"
Leng Qingqiu yanked his chin toward her. "What are you looking at?!"
"Huh?!" He snapped out of it. "Nothing! I didn't see Xu Xuejiao's white panties."
Xu Xuejiao, back in her seat, told the driver, "Turn on the multimedia system." Blushing, she glared at Lu Chengwen. He stammered, "I didn't see anything… maybe a little. It wasn't on purpose, just the angle…"
"Whatever, listen."
The audio system played a conversation between Long Aotian and Hua Xuening. "That idiot!" Long Aotian's voice seethed. "Can't even tell who his master is and dares to curse me!"
Hua Xuening, calm, said, "I can take him out to vent your anger, Young Master."
"What's the point? I need his money—those five billion!"
"I'll steal it back for you."
Long Aotian groaned. "If stealing worked, would I bother with this? I need him to cooperate willingly so I can impress Leng Tianhao, replace Leng Qingqiu as Qianfeng's president, and take over their entire empire!"
Hua Xuening replied, "Why go through all this for one family? A few moves, and we could—"
Long Aotian laughed bitterly. "Xuening, you're a swordsmanship genius, but this isn't about brute force. I want a thriving Qianfeng Group, a Leng family devoted to me, willingly funding my empire. I can't run it myself later—should you? Hard stealing works, but then who manages it? And Leng Qingqiu is mine. She must be mine. A beauty like her can't fall into anyone else's hands. If she's mine, utterly devoted, controlling her means controlling Qianfeng."
Hua Xuening sighed. "I don't understand this. Just tell me what to do, Young Master."
"I have a plan to turn this around!"
A loud screech interrupted, followed by static. Xu Xuejiao frowned. "They found it."
Lu Chengwen stared. "You're bugging people now?"
"Yup," she said proudly. "I heard you and Zhao Gang in the car, talking about suppressing the fake medicine news."
Lu Chengwen realized. "So that's why you knew I'd destroy it and pretended to support selling it?"
She grinned. He and Zhao Gang hadn't discussed destroying it, but he let it slide. He couldn't admit he knew her certainty came from hearing his thoughts—that'd scare him off. "Yeah, yeah," she said. "You act sleazy, frivolous, and perverted, but on big issues, you're upright."
Leng Qingqiu smiled. "I saw your press conference. You did the right thing."
This is a disaster, Lu Chengwen thought. They heard that conversation. They'll never fall for Long Aotian now. How's this supposed to end? And they think I'm some saint—I'm not that good! "This'll blow up soon," he said. "When it does, Long Aotian won't let me off, and neither will Tie Tuo Wang. You two, get out."
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Leng Qingqiu said, "We can team up against Long Aotian and Tie Tuo Wang."
Xu Xuejiao glanced at her, setting aside their rivalry. "Yeah. From this, it's clear his target isn't just the Leng family. The Xu and Chen families are in his sights too. Once the Lengs fall, he'll move on us or the Chens."
Lu Chengwen's heart sank. Whatever his targets or order, I'm dead either way. Sticking with me will only drag you down. Sighing, he said, "Just stay away from me. It's better for me. Get out, go do your thing."
Leng Qingqiu tried to speak, but he snapped, "Out!"
"But we—"
"No 'we'!" he shouted. "I'm me, you're you. You jinx, haven't you caused enough trouble?"
Even knowing he was pushing her away on purpose, Leng Qingqiu couldn't take being scolded. She flung open the door and got out. "Lu Chengwen, you just don't trust me!"
The door slammed. Xu Xuejiao smirked. "About time she left. Thought Chengwen-ge would keep chasing her? Dumb woman."
"You too. Out."
"What?"
"I said get out! Stop hanging around me!"
"Why are you yelling at me?!"
"Because I feel like it! Not happy about it?"
Tears welled in Xu Xuejiao's eyes. "You're lying! You like me!"
"Seeing you annoys me! Go!"
Sobbing, Xu Xuejiao flung open the door and left. Lu Chengwen sighed, rubbing his temples, dejected. I'm so dead.
_
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