Chapter Seventy-Eight: The Wang Family's Schemes

The four men and women in black suits, including the man with the centipede-patterned shirt, abruptly halted in their tracks. Hong Chen glanced at them, put away the silver needle between his fingers, and turned to look back into the villa, a cold, sardonic smile flickering at his lips.

The voice belonged to that woman. Just as Hong Chen had surmised, these people had come because of her. For them to find this place, the problem likely lay with that set of keys—almost certainly, one of them was equipped with a tracking device. It must have been switched off before, and the woman had just activated it.

She approached with measured steps, her heels clicking elegantly against the ground. Her face was as cold and distant as the moon, exuding an air of unapproachable aloofness—or perhaps, an aura of unassailable authority.

Stepping out the front door, the woman fixed Hong Chen with a deep, lingering look. Then her gaze shifted, and she spoke in a calm, detached voice: “Uncle Zhou, give him five million as compensation for your trespass.”

The man in the centipede-patterned shirt merely flickered his gaze and complied, pulling out a checkbook and swiftly filling it in before handing it to Hong Chen.

Hong Chen couldn’t help but laugh wryly. Five million, just like that—she was nothing if not generous.

He certainly wasn’t naive enough to believe this was true compensation for a few people climbing over the wall. Clearly, it was payment for sheltering the woman last night, though she had no wish to state it outright.

“Take it, and let this be the end of the matter. If you don’t, then we’ll have to sit down and talk,” the woman said when Hong Chen hesitated to accept the check, her gaze carrying a hint of threat. Her meaning was clear enough: let bygones be bygones, including last night’s misunderstanding—which was exactly what Hong Chen wanted.

He didn’t hesitate any longer and accepted the check.

The woman gave no further reaction, but after two steps suddenly paused and turned to ask him, “You really don’t know who I am?”

Hong Chen shook his head, bewildered.

She frowned ever so slightly, her eyes roaming over his face before her lips curled into a faintly mocking smile. With a small shake of her head, she turned and left. The man in the centipede-patterned shirt and the four others in black suits departed swiftly after.

Scratching his head, Hong Chen felt utterly perplexed. Certainly, the woman was attractive, with a remarkable figure and an air of sophistication—and her family was evidently extraordinary—but was that any reason he was supposed to know her? How conceited could she be? Who did she think she was—an international superstar, the aged queen of some Western nation, or the daughter of a president across the ocean?

After she left, Hong Chen returned to the third floor. The moment he entered the room, an unpleasant odor hit him. He glanced into the bathroom—and nearly cursed aloud. The bloodied bedsheet had been stuffed into the toilet, while the massage tub was a complete mess, covered in vomit, and dirty towels were strewn everywhere.

It wasn’t hard to imagine: this woman had clearly been pampered from childhood, to the point she couldn’t even manage basic self-care.

“Damn it, for five million, I suppose I can endure this,” he muttered. After a few changes of expression, he shook his head with a wry smile, pinched his nose, and began to clean up the mess.

...

The Wang Family, in the study.

Patriarch Wang Chenglong flipped through a dossier, his brow deeply furrowed, his expression grim. After a long pause, he looked up at his younger brother Wang Chenghu and his son Wang Shaokun. “The Paradise Club has only just opened and already has 257 members—eleven more than King’s Club at its peak of 246.”

Wang Shaokun protested, “That’s only because Paradise gave every member a hundred thousand in bonus credit.”

Wang Chenglong’s gaze sharpened. “Then how do you explain the fact that, in the past few days, our King’s Club and all our night venues have seen customer traffic drop by more than twenty percent, while Paradise’s numbers keep climbing?”

Wang Shaokun was momentarily silenced. Wang Chenghu spoke solemnly, “Since its founding, Hongcheng Group has cut a swath through the city. They won the championship at the ring tournament and poached King’s Club from under our noses. Now, in the eyes of most major families in the city, Hongcheng Group is already on par with our own Wang Family.”

He paused, then continued, “Big Brother, I don’t think we should continue to confront Hongcheng Group alone. We need to drag the other major families into this. Right now, it may appear that Hongcheng is only harming our interests, but in reality, they threaten all four first-tier families. The others can’t be blind to this; if Hongcheng is allowed to keep growing, it won’t be long before they become a fifth first-tier family—and the size of the pie isn’t going to increase.”

Wang Chenglong didn’t rush to reply. He lit a cigarette and smoked half of it in silence before speaking slowly, “The Jiang family is involved in too many industries and never tries to dominate any one of them, so convincing them will be difficult. What are your suggestions for the Liu and Lu families?”

The four first-tier families in the city were Jiang, Lu, Liu, and Wang. Excluding the leading Jiang family, it was clear Wang Chenglong was considering an alliance with Liu and Lu. Wang Chenghu caught on immediately and said, “The Liu family has always wanted a share of the entertainment business, but they don’t want to start from scratch. Why not grant their wish? We take sixty percent of Paradise, and Liu gets forty. That way, they become a solid number two in the industry without threatening our dominance.”

Wang Shaokun was surprised. “Uncle, wouldn’t that anger the other families, especially the Qiao and Huang families...?”

A cold glint flashed in Wang Chenghu’s eyes. “We lost King’s Club, so naturally we’ll recoup our losses from other families. Qiao and Huang are perfect—disunited, and what’s a little anger to us?”

Wang Shaokun drew in a sharp breath. His uncle’s intentions were all too clear—they were preparing to make an example of the Qiao and Huang families.

He turned to his father, who was watching him with a gaze that seemed to pierce his thoughts. Wang Chenglong said coldly, “Huang and Qiao may be obedient, but they’ll never truly serve our family. What use are such sheep? I know you have a good relationship with some of their younger generation, but remember, business is war. Beneath the surface harmony, it’s kill or be killed. Sentiment and mercy are fatal weaknesses.”

Wang Shaokun absorbed this lesson, his expression gradually hardening as he nodded in silent understanding.

Wang Chenglong turned to Wang Chenghu. “Do as you suggested with the Liu family. As for the Lu family, Hongcheng Group hasn’t entered the pharmaceutical industry yet, so there’s no direct conflict. To bring Lu in, we’ll have to offer them something extra. The Sage of Medicine Tournament is next week—the Lu family is determined to win the city’s top spot. Let our chosen dark horse represent Zhongbaotang.”

Wang Chenghu’s expression changed. “Big Brother, we’ve invested in that candidate for years...”

Wang Chenglong raised a hand, cutting him off. “Hongcheng Group’s greatest asset is the masked man. I don’t want our own fighters to take any more risks, and I doubt the Liu family does either. To leave nothing to chance, I want the Lu family to bring out their trump card.”

Wang Chenghu seemed to recall something, a trace of genuine fear flickering in his eyes as he took a deep breath. “That’s certainly the safest route. If we can deal with the masked man, swallowing the entire Paradise brand will be no challenge. Giving Lu the city’s championship is a fair trade.”

Wang Chenglong smiled coldly, a glint of ambition flashing in his eyes. “Not just the Paradise brand. We aim to take over all of Hongcheng Group. That way, our family will be second to none—and, in time, the Jiang family will have to give up the throne.”

Wang Chenghu and Wang Shaokun were stunned. They exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in the other’s eyes, which quickly turned into excitement and anticipation.

...

The Lin family’s ancestral house, in the main hall.

The old matriarch sat rigidly in the place of honor. Aside from Hong Chen, the entire Lin family was present.

The air was thick with tension.

Lin Yuxin stood tall, her eyes blazing with anger as she glared at the matriarch. “Lin Huihuang and Lin Meimei colluded with outsiders to frame Yufei, nearly causing our family’s ruin. Grandma, it’s bad enough you won’t seek justice for us, but now Hongcheng Group is demanding they pay for their actions. Why should our family bear the consequences too?”

The day after Paradise Club changed hands, Hongcheng Group had sent representatives to the Lin family, demanding accountability for Lin Huihuang and Lin Meimei’s scheme that damaged the club’s reputation.

Hongcheng Group had offered two options: hand over the culprits for them to deal with, or the Lin family could pay five times the amount the pair had gained from the scam—two million in total—or else surrender Lin Feng Trading to settle the debt.

The old matriarch had now decided to give up Lin Feng Trading, along with Lin Yuxin’s thirty-five percent share, which would be handed over without compensation.

The matriarch’s face was dark with rage as she slapped the armrest. “Are you not a member of this family? The Lin family is in trouble—shouldn’t you bear your share of responsibility? Don’t forget, Lin Feng Trading isn’t yours alone. You have thirty-five percent; sixty-five percent belongs to the Lin Family Group. Everyone must carry the burden.”

Lin Yufei jumped up, sneering, “Lin Huihuang and Lin Meimei plotted against me; we’re the victims. Now Hongcheng Group is holding them accountable, but our family has to pay the highest price. Grandma, this isn’t favoritism anymore—it’s a betrayal of your conscience!”

Never before in the history of the Lin family had a junior rebuked the matriarch so openly. She trembled with fury, nearly losing her breath.