Chapter 361 Qi Meishao's Determination
Long Aotian walked in, impeccably dressed in a suit, and felt delighted when he saw his three top-tier female bodyguards.
"Dress up a bit. Tonight, we're attending a banquet."
Zhuge Xiaohua was taken aback. "Whose banquet?"
Long Aotian smiled. "Lu Chengwen's."
…
The noble banquet was lavish and grand.
Countless big shots mingled, exchanging connections and introductions.
Each of them was dressed to the nines, looking respectable on the surface but harboring their own agendas.
Lu Chengwen wasn't particularly interested in the banquet, but as the host, he had to attend.
At this level, anyone who could get in was no ordinary person.
Either they were rich, famous, or crucial connectors of important networks…
In short, the average person had little chance of sneaking in.
Long Aotian, of course, had an invitation. So did Huo Wendong.
Especially Huo Wendong—he stepped out of a luxury car wearing a distinguished suit, with two stunning women in revealing evening gowns on each arm. Cameras went wild, capturing his grand entrance.
"Huo Sir!" Tang Yiyi excitedly held up a microphone. "It's rumored that your recent investments have been rather minor, and your profits aren't even enough to sustain your antique collection. Did you come to Xuecheng just to stay home and play with antiques?"
Huo Wendong had been basking in the attention, but upon hearing that, his mood soured instantly.
"Collecting antiques is just a personal hobby of mine. Even if it doesn't make money, I enjoy it."
"But your investment company hasn't been profitable lately. It's said that you've turned down multiple big projects. Are you saving up money to compete with Lu Chengwen for the Chengwen District projects? Now that the district is developing so well and the public is full of praise, are you planning to swoop in and reap the rewards?"
Huo Wendong's face darkened with embarrassment. "I have no comment on your question. Sorry, I'd like to go in and enjoy the banquet."
Yet Tang Yiyi, thin as she was, was surprisingly good at squeezing through the crowd.
She pressed the microphone right against Huo Wendong's face.
"People say your personal life is highly indulgent and that you're a complete scoundrel. Are these two ladies your new lovers? As the eldest son of the Huo family, you haven't achieved anything noteworthy in the past few years. Do you think your father is disappointed in you?"
Huo Wendong looked at the swarm of reporters, his lungs about to burst with rage.
He wanted nothing more than to drag Tang Yiyi out and give her a good kicking.
But facing the media, he had to maintain his gentlemanly image.
Forcing a smile, he said, "First of all, your microphone is pressed against my face!"
"Sorry."
"Secondly, I want to clarify that it's not that I haven't achieved anything to be proud of. I'm just in the process of preparing. Soon, I'll be launching a series of major projects. Thank you."
The crowd surged again, and Tang Yiyi's microphone once more jammed against Huo Wendong's cheekbone.
"Huo Sir! It's said that the Huo family's inheritance system follows an elimination process. Your sister is far more outstanding than you, drawing all of Huo Zhenting's attention and leaving you neglected. Do you feel sad about this? Do you cry secretly at night?"
Huo Wendong gritted his teeth and held back his frustration. "My father loves me very much! He loves me very, very much! He even treats me like his own son, okay?! Also, as a journalist, I think you should focus less on high-society gossip. I have never seen my sister as a threat! And I repeat, your microphone is pressed against my face!"
The crowd surged again, and chaos erupted. Even ten-plus bodyguards couldn't maintain order.
Tang Yiyi's hat got knocked off, but she still gripped the microphone tightly and pushed forward with all her strength. "Huo Sir! Will you and Lu Chengwen have a business showdown? It's rumored that you had conflicts back in university. Will you battle it out again in Xuecheng's business world?"
Huo Wendong: "Mmmph… Mmmph mmmph… Mmmph mmmph mmmph…"
Tang Yiyi: "Huo Sir, please open your mouth. Don't just hold onto my microphone. Dodging the question like this will only fuel speculation…"
Huo Wendong was about to explode. "Mmmph… Mmmph mmmph… Mmmph mmmph mmmph!"
Tang Yiyi was helpless. "Is there a doctor here? He's stuck with the microphone in his mouth and can't get it out!"
Because the microphone head was round—about the size of a light bulb—so…
It was really stuck.
And everyone was thrilled!
The great Huo family's eldest son, Huo Wendong, had a microphone jammed in his mouth at a grand banquet!
And he couldn't get it out! The scene was once-in-a-lifetime!
Cameras flashed like crazy.
Huo Wendong covered his face, humiliated beyond words.
Bang Daomang squeezed through the chaos but couldn't regain control of the situation.
Tang Yiyi excitedly pulled out a spare microphone. "Huo Sir, why did you eat our microphone? Is this a special fetish of yours, or was it just an accident?"
Huo Wendong wanted to lunge at her and strangle her.
Bang Daomang raised both hands. "Everyone! Everyone! Our Huo Young Master… uh… eating the microphone… is a form of performance art. His message is… a microphone is like… a microphone! The microphone he consumes will, in the end, become… his microphone!"
Huo Wendong wanted to murder Bang Daomang.
At first, the microphone had only been pressed against his face. But in the chaos, Bang Daomang had accidentally bumped into him from behind, causing him to swallow it completely.
Huo Wendong angrily smacked Bang Daomang across the face, "Mmmph mmmph mmmph mmmph!"
Which meant: Stop talking nonsense and get this thing out!
Bang Daomang understood immediately and reached out with both hands to pull.
But this thing couldn't just be yanked out! If he pulled too hard… it still wouldn't come out!
And it hurts so much!
Huo Wendong whimpered, his face twisted in agony. Bang Daomang gritted his teeth, steeled himself, and kicked Huo Wendong down.
"Young Master, just endure it, just endure it for a moment!"
Tears streamed down Huo Wendong's face. The pain made him want to kill Bang Daomang.
Bang Daomang panicked. He stepped on Huo Wendong's face with one foot, and with both hands, he yanked like a little rabbit pulling out a carrot.
Huo Wendong was in so much pain that he nearly passed out.
Tang Yiyi got excited. "Quick, film this! This scene has to go online!"
All the media were filming.
At this moment, Long Aotian squeezed through the crowd, pushed Bang Daomang aside, and forcibly dislocated Huo Wendong's jaw to widen the space inside his mouth. Finally, he managed to pull out the microphone.
Huo Wendong rubbed his mouth, and with Long Aotian and the others shielding him, he quickly entered the venue's main entrance.
As soon as they got inside, Huo Wendong kicked Bang Daomang. "Are you f***ing blind? Why the hell were you pushing me?"
"Young Master, it wasn't me pushing you! Others were pushing me too!"
"F***! Idiot! Useless! Moron! That microphone head was so big—could it be yanked out just like that? It hurt like hell!"
Long Aotian chuckled. "Young Master Huo, please calm down, it's over now."
"Over!?" Huo Wendong was furious. "The entire press corps of the Northern Nation was filming this! F***, I just embarrassed myself big time!"
While they were arguing, Lu Chengwen had already slipped in discreetly through the side entrance.
Tonight, he had brought Xu Xuejiao as his companion.
Leng Qingqiu had to oversee everything as the host, and Chen Mengyun was the organizer of the banquet, so both were busy.
Xu Xuejiao, however, was free to wear an evening gown and accompany Lu Chengwen into the grand hall.
Jiang Xiaohou stood in a corner on the third floor, smiling. "These idiots, so amusing."
His subordinate lowered his head. "Your Highness, there are many ancient martial artists moving around here."
"Of course," Jiang Xiaohou smirked. "Anywhere Lu Chengwen and Long Aotian go, ancient martial artists are bound to appear. Do you see? Hua Xuening has put on a professional outfit, pretending to be Lu Chengwen's assistant."
"Not just her—there are many others."
Jiang Xiaohou noticed something and waved his hand. His subordinate vanished.
Jiang Xiaohou agilely flipped himself up, leaping to a secluded corner on the fourth floor.
Somewhere where no one was around.
Qi Meishao was negotiating with Zhuge Xiaohua.
"Xiaohua, you know about Sister Shiyin and Lu Chengwen, right?"
Zhuge Xiaohua looked troubled. "At this point, probably only the Young Master doesn't know yet, right?"
Qi Meishao said, "Kill Lu Chengwen! This is something we must do!"
"Huh? K-kill him?"
"Yes. Xuening is utterly loyal to him, and Sister Shiyin is madly in love with him, to the point of complete obsession. Now, whenever they see each other, they immediately—battle fiercely, without shame."
Zhuge Xiaohua was shocked. "Did I miss that much?"
Qi Meishao was so frustrated that her brain felt deprived of oxygen. "No, that's not the point right now! I just need to ask you one thing—are you still loyal to the Young Master?"
"Of course!"
"Then join me! We have to kill Lu Chengwen!"
"Here!?"
"There are so many people, so much chaos—it's the perfect opportunity!"
"But..."
"But what?"
"The Young Master said Lu Chengwen is still useful."
"Does the Young Master know that Sister Shiyin has already betrayed us?"
Zhuge Xiaohua pouted and lowered her head. "It's not exactly betrayal... it's just detoxification..."
"It's far beyond detoxification now! Luo Shiyin has already fallen in love with Lu Chengwen! She's madly in love, completely crazy for him! She's not the same Sister Shiyin we knew!"
"If we kill Lu Chengwen, won't Sister Shiyin hate us forever?"
"You just help me hold back Hua Xuening, and I'll do the deed! If anyone has to be hated in the future, let it be me! In any case, the Young Master's grand ambition cannot be disrupted by Lu Chengwen!"
Zhuge Xiaohua hesitated for a long time. "How about this? We go to Lu Chengwen and tell him that this is wrong... that this is... not okay..."
Qi Meishao looked at Zhuge Xiaohua, momentarily at a loss for words.
Zhuge Xiaohua continued, "We'll reason with him. We'll tell him, 'If Sister Shiyin wasn't poisoned, you wouldn't be allowed to treat her that way. Sister Shiyin belongs to us! You already have Hua Xuening, so you should do that to Hua Xuening instead!'"
"And then we scare him a little, make him admit his mistake. He'll say he was wrong, that he won't dare anymore. And then we'll just go back. How about that?"
Qi Meishao thought, 'What kind of ridiculous nonsense is this!?'
How could the dignified Zhuge Xiaohua be so naive!?
Did she think Lu Chengwen was an eight-year-old child? That scaring him a little would make him cry and beg for forgiveness!?
"Xiaohua!" Qi Meishao was firm. "Tonight, between Lu Chengwen and me, it's either he dies or I die. If you help me, I will do it. If you don't, I'll still do it!"
"Is it really that serious? Actually... Lu Chengwen is quite nice..."
"Xiaohua, what are you even saying!? Fine! If you won't help me, I'll do it myself! At worst, I'll die in their hands!"
"Hey, hey, hey..." Zhuge Xiaohua was torn. At this point, she could only nod. "Alright then... I'll help you hold off Xuening. You... be careful."
"Mm."
"...You're wearing underwear, right?"
Qi Meishao furiously waved her hand. "None of your business!"
Jiang Xiaohou stood nearby, watching them conspire to assassinate Lu Chengwen, a delighted smile spreading across his face.