Chapter 122 - 121: The Godly Life Script

Chapter 122: Chapter 121: The Godly Life Script

President Liang’s assistant took the flash drive, opened a laptop he had with him, and projected the video onto the large screen.

All eyes turned to the screen. The video was incredibly clear and the audio was loud. The conversation, mixed with a slightly noisy background, echoed throughout the entire banquet hall.

The expressions on the guests’ faces gradually shifted from shock to contempt. This was especially true when they saw Shen Zhiyi lose her composure and lunge forward to hit someone, only to fail to stop in time and end up sprawled across a table. More than half the crowd let out laughs, some subtle, others brazen.

Shen Zhiyi kept her head down, wishing she could find a hole to crawl into and hide.

Mr. Shen and Mrs. Shen also felt utterly mortified. With how things had played out today, they had lost all face and dignity.

Since things had come to this, Mr. Shen gritted his teeth and said, "President Huo, it was wrong of us to accuse someone without a proper investigation. But Zhiyi was just too smitten with you and couldn’t control her emotions for a moment, which led her to make a mistake. I hope President Huo can find it in him to be lenient."

"Is that so?" Huo Xingye glanced subtly at Gu Qingyin, a questioning look in his eyes.

Gu Qingyin nodded with a smile. She had come to vet potential candidates for her future daughter-in-law. Although she hadn’t found the one, she had at least weeded a few out.

Huo Xingye chuckled. "Smitten with me, so she accosts my mother? Miss Shen certainly has a unique way of showing her admiration."

At his words, everyone froze.

Mother?! All heads snapped toward Gu Qingyin. ’This woman is Huo Xingye’s mother?! How is that possible!’

A moment later, a gasp came from the crowd. "I remember now! That’s Gu Qingyin! She was on a show with the Huo Family’s second young master, Huo Xinghai!"

A flash of regret crossed the speaker’s eyes. ’Why didn’t I recognize her sooner? I missed a golden opportunity to get on her good side!’

To be fair, Gu Qingyin’s appearance was quite different today. On the show, she had dressed for comfort and was almost always makeup-free. Today, however, she was in an evening gown with full makeup. Besides, there’s always a difference between seeing someone on screen and in person.

’So, I didn’t recognize her at all. If I had known, I would have taken a closer look. I just missed a heaven-sent fortune!’

After a brief daze, the guests all broke into "sincere" smiles.

"President Huo’s mother is so young! She must take wonderful care of herself."

"And her poise is incredible. She’s even more beautiful than a movie star."

"I’ve been wanting to say it—the way Mrs. Huo sits there, she looks like a painting."

An endless stream of praise and flattery flowed forth, with no one bothering to lower their voice.

For once, Gu Qingyin felt like she was on pins and needles. ’This is so awkward.’ She could only distract herself by looking at the three members of the Shen family, who looked as if they’d lost the will to live. Oh, and those four young ladies, cowering like quails.

Before long, the parents of the four young ladies also arrived.

A line of eight people, all dressed to the nines, stood with pale faces, cold sweat trickling down their foreheads, yet still forcing careful smiles.

"Our apologies, President Huo. Our children are insensible and easily misled into acting rashly. They’ve offended the Old Madam. We are willing to offer compensation. Please, don’t hold it against them."

Hearing this, Gu Qingyin’s mouth twitched. ’Old Madam, my ass! Where do I look old?’

This lot had no idea they had stepped on a landmine and just kept nodding in agreement.

"Yes, yes, we beg President Huo and the Old Madam to be magnanimous."

"One look at the Old Madam and you can tell she’s as beautiful as she is kind-hearted. She certainly wouldn’t hold a grudge against a few children."

Gu Qingyin was so annoyed she laughed. They kept calling her "Old Madam" and were trying to guilt-trip her. ’In their dreams!’

"Xingye, what do you think is the best way to handle this?"

In fact, the reason Huo Xingye had been silent was because he was having Xue Ning investigate the families to see what kind of compensation would be best. Simple money was too boring; he had to demand something that would make them feel the sting.

"Chairman Li," Huo Xingye said calmly. "The Huo Corporation is interested in acquiring the mountain in the eastern suburbs for three hundred million. I hope you’ll be willing to part with it."

Chairman Li froze, his face a picture of distress. "But... that mountain is valued at six hundred million..." And he had been planning to develop it into a tourist resort. Once it opened, it would be a cash cow. Selling it now meant losing much more than just three hundred million.

Of course, Huo Xingye knew the mountain’s value. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked for it.

"Is Chairman Li unwilling?" Huo Xingye nodded nonchalantly. "It seems Chairman Li has no intention of reconciling."

"We are very eager to reconcile!" Chairman Li’s expression shifted multiple times. After weighing the pros and cons, he gritted his teeth and nodded. "I’ll sell!"

Huo Xingye’s lips curved into a slight smile. "A pleasure doing business with you."

Hearing the word "business," Chairman Li’s expression eased slightly. Others would kill for a chance to work with the Huo Corporation. Besides, he still had the resort development project. When it was time to sign the contract, if he played his cards right, he might be able to retain the development rights. That would be a true partnership!

Huo Xingye then turned to another man. "President Wang, I hear you’ve recently acquired a private island."

President Wang’s hand trembled, and the cold sweat on his face began to flow faster. He gave a bitter smile. "President Huo is certainly well-informed. I paid two and a half billion at auction for that island. It’s much more valuable than Chairman Li’s mountain."

Huo Xingye nodded. "I’m not an unreasonable person. I don’t want the island, just the rights to use it for the next fifteen years."

President Wang frowned in thought. He had bought the island, but it was undeveloped, still just a barren rock. He had intended to turn it into a resort destination, but developing an island would undoubtedly take a long time.

’Fifteen years... By the time the island is developed, it will need marketing, then you have to wait for tourist feedback and for it to slowly gain popularity. Huo Xingye won’t actually be able to profit from it for long before he has to return it to me. And when I get it back, it’ll be an island ready to make money right away.’

President Wang decided he wasn’t getting the short end of the stick. His brow unfurrowed and he said with a smile, "Deal. Consider it a way of making friends with President Huo. Perhaps we’ll have opportunities to work together again in the future."

Huo Xingye gave a noncommittal response and turned to the next person.

It was more of the same. The remaining two families each offered up their current prize possessions to resolve the conflict. But after the initial sting of the loss, they felt relieved. The fact that Huo Xingye was willing to accept their compensation meant he wouldn’t secretly target their companies later. The matter was considered settled.

The four families apologized to Gu Qingyin once more, then left immediately.

They assumed all these assets were compensation for the Huo Corporation. It wasn’t until the next day, when people from the Huo Corporation came to have them sign the contracts, that they learned everything Huo Xingye had demanded was being given to Gu Qingyin.

They couldn’t help but marvel. ’Gaining assets worth billions with just a few words... What kind of blessed, storybook life is Gu Qingyin living?’

Back in the present, of the five families that had caused trouble, four had already left. Only the three members of the Shen family remained.

Mr. Shen waited nervously for Huo Xingye to speak, mentally reviewing his assets and trying to guess what he would demand... But when he looked up, Huo Xingye was leaning down slightly to speak to Gu Qingyin. "Mom, let’s go home."

Gu Qingyin readily stood up. "Let’s go. This has gotten rather boring."

After bidding farewell to President Liang, the mother and son turned and walked out.

Mr. Shen was stunned. He wanted to step forward and stop them, but he didn’t dare.

Huo Xingye’s attitude made it clear: there was no possibility of reconciliation with the Shen family. In the future, the Huo Corporation wouldn’t even need to lift a finger; the Shen family was doomed to suffer.

Everyone present was sharp and perceptive. They would never miss such a perfect opportunity to curry favor with the Huo Family.