The man looked like the leader of the group. He was fairly handsome, but at a glance he was obviously the arrogant, rebellious type of rich young master. Beside him sat a baby-faced woman. She was cute and sweet, the kind of woman who could stir up a protective instinct in someone at first sight.
“So this is the ex-girlfriend you dated for several years, who eventually dumped you for money and hooked up with a rich second-generation heir?” Wang Cheng asked.
Cheng Cheng froze, then nodded. “That’s her.”
“Did you sleep with her while you two were dating?”
Hearing that, Cheng Cheng reacted a few beats too slowly. He saw both the man and woman look stunned, and a strange thrill rose in his chest. After thinking for a moment, he nodded. “We were already sleeping together in college. After graduation, we lived together.”
In other words, this woman was, in his crude view, a “worn-out shoe” he had already used. Even if another man snatched her away from him, all he had done was take a woman Cheng Cheng had already been with.
The woman’s expression turned extremely ugly.
The man’s face did not look much better. He had slept with plenty of women who were not virgins, but having the matter stated so bluntly to his face still made him uncomfortable.
“Cheng Cheng, what nonsense are you talking about? When did I ever live with you?” Tao Jing caught sight of the man’s twisted expression and panicked. She immediately stood up and scolded Cheng Cheng.
Cheng Cheng looked at her coldly. Whatever feelings he had still harbored before tonight had vanished because of what had just happened. He had loved her, but he would never throw away his dignity for that love.
At that moment, Manager Zhao from the bar hurried over. The sight of people sprawled all over the private room shocked him. He quickly stepped inside, passed Wang Cheng and Cheng Cheng, and addressed the man. “Young Master Sun, what happened here?”
A bar as large as New New World could not have opened without backing. If even the manager addressed this man respectfully as “Young Master Sun,” then his background was probably anything but ordinary.
Young Master Sun snorted. His gaze swept over Wang Cheng and Cheng Cheng before he gave a contemptuous smile. “These two came into my private room looking for trouble. You deal with it.”
“Yes, yes. I’ll handle it properly and give you a satisfactory answer.” Manager Zhao patted his chest in assurance. When he turned toward Wang Cheng and Cheng Cheng, however, his face immediately hardened. “You two have quite some nerve. This bar may be newly opened, but it isn’t a place where just anyone can come cause trouble. If you can’t give me an explanation today, don’t blame me for being rude.”
“An explanation?” Wang Cheng sneered and pointed at Cheng Cheng’s face. “These people beat my friend up like this first. Am I not allowed to hit back? Or is this the kind of bar that ignores right and wrong and specializes in bullying the weak?”
Manager Zhao’s expression shifted, then he gave a cold laugh. “I only saw you hit people. I didn’t see them hit your friend.”
“When exactly did you see me hit anyone?” Wang Cheng found that hilarious. By the time Manager Zhao arrived, everyone had already been lying on the floor. Yet he could still stand there with his eyes open and tell such an obvious lie? Apparently he thought his backing made him untouchable.
“Anyone who goes against Young Master Sun will come to a bad end.” The implication could not have been clearer. Right or wrong did not matter. If Wang Cheng opposed Sun Jian, then Wang Cheng was automatically at fault.
Cheng Cheng tugged at Wang Cheng anxiously. “Brother Cheng, what do we do now?” The bar was openly siding with Sun Jian. It seemed unlikely they would be allowed to walk out easily tonight.
Wang Cheng gave him an utterly untroubled smile. “Relax. Since your Brother Cheng dared come in, of course I can get you out. It’s just some newly opened lousy bar. They think a bit of backing means they can abuse their power and bully people. As far as I’m concerned, New New World doesn’t need to stay open anymore.”
“This bar really doesn’t need to stay open.”
No one knew when Chu Yifeng had appeared in the doorway. Standing there with a cigarette between his lips, he somehow gave off the imposing air of one man holding an entire pass. Since getting together with Wang Cheng, he rarely smoked anymore. Zhang Yiheng, Fang Tian, and the others stood behind him, partly obscured from view. When Wang Cheng and Cheng Cheng failed to return, everyone had gotten worried and come looking for them.
Manager Zhao and Young Master Sun did not recognize Chu Yifeng, but presence had nothing to do with recognition. Both instinctively felt that this man was no ordinary person.
Manager Zhao was different from Sun Jian. He was only an ordinary man. He had assumed Wang Cheng and Cheng Cheng had no backing, but unexpectedly so many companions had appeared. Shanhai City certainly did not belong to the Sun family alone. Seeing how confident this group seemed, unease started to creep into his heart. Yet just as he was about to ask who they were, they left. The look they gave him before departing felt distinctly dangerous.
“Young Master Sun, what do you think about this?”
Sun Jian’s face darkened. “If anything happens, I’ll take responsibility. What are you afraid of?”
“Yes, yes, of course!” With that assurance, Manager Zhao finally relaxed.
Sun Jian was still furious. After Manager Zhao left, he made a phone call. Tao Jing, standing beside him, widened her eyes when she heard what he said. He actually…
After everything that had happened, Zhang Yiheng and the others were no longer in the mood to keep having fun. They paid the bill and left New New World together. Cheng Cheng was injured, so Fang Tian took him to the hospital to check whether any bones had been hurt. His superior, Xu Siyu, simply gave him two days off. Everyone else headed home.
Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng retrieved their car and prepared to return to the apartment. They had barely turned onto a street away from the bar when two cars began following them.
At first Wang Cheng thought they were simply going the same way. Chu Yifeng had to point it out before he noticed. One of the cars seemed to speed up in an attempt to ram them. Chu Yifeng accelerated before Wang Cheng even needed to warn him and avoided the other car’s front end. Once the pursuers realized they had been discovered, both cars stopped bothering to conceal their intentions.
There was little traffic at night. Chu Yifeng deliberately drove toward a sparsely populated area. His driving skills were excellent. The two cars seemed intent on forcing them to stop, yet could not even touch the tail of their vehicle. Eventually they reached an open area and finally stopped, just as their pursuers had wanted. The people in the cars did not know why they had stopped, but they saw it as an opportunity. Ten thugs climbed out carrying knives and clubs.
Chu Yifeng and Wang Cheng got out as well. The former tugged loose his tie and said casually, “Five each.”
“Fine. If you’re too slow, I don’t mind helping you finish yours.” Wang Cheng simply took off his jacket and loosened up his muscles.
Chu Yifeng smiled faintly. “Then you’d better be quick too.”
Five minutes later, the thugs were sprawled all over the ground, groaning. Wang Cheng planted a foot on one thug’s chest. The man had been beaten into terror and trembled at the sight of him. “Let me ask you something. Did that guy Sun Jian send you? Besides your group, did he send anyone else after my friends?” The thug’s eyes widened as if asking how Wang Cheng knew.
Wang Cheng pressed down harder.
The thug’s face twisted in pain. He hurriedly confessed. “Young Master Sun ordered it. He told our boss to intercept you and teach you a lesson. It’s just us. Nobody else went after your friends.”
“One more question. What’s Sun Jian’s background?”
“He’s the young heir of Dongwang Group.”
When they returned to the villa, Chu Yifeng went upstairs to run a hot bath, then came back down to tell Wang Cheng to bathe.
Wang Cheng was on the phone. Fang Tian had called. They had already reached the hospital. There happened to be few patients there, so the doctor on duty examined Cheng Cheng immediately. One of his bones had been slightly injured, and the doctor told him to rest properly for a while. Fortunately, it was not serious. After a few more reminders, Wang Cheng ended the call.
After Wang Cheng finished bathing and came downstairs, Chu Yifeng was using his computer. Wang Cheng urged him to go wash up. A change of clothes had already been prepared and placed beside the bed. Then Wang Cheng took his place at the computer.
The windows on the screen had not been closed. Wang Cheng glanced over them and minimized everything to the lower-right corner, then opened a browser and searched for Sun Jian and Dongwang Group. Unexpectedly, Sun Jian had even more gossip stories than some celebrities. After skimming through them, Wang Cheng gained a rough understanding of Young Master Sun’s background. No wonder he dared act so arrogantly. Dongwang Group really could be considered a local powerhouse in Shanhai City. But Wang Cheng soon discovered something even more interesting.
“What are you smiling about?”
Chu Yifeng had already finished bathing. Water still dripped from his hair, and his footsteps made almost no sound.
Wang Cheng shifted aside and returned the seat to him. As Chu Yifeng sat down, Wang Cheng took the towel from his hand, half-knelt behind him, and began drying his hair. “This Sun Jian is a textbook playboy.”
“What’s interesting about a playboy?” Chu Yifeng narrowed his eyes comfortably, enjoying the service.
Wang Cheng’s hands paused. His smile turned meaningful. “Of course it’s interesting. You could say I know almost every woman he’s fooled around with. Tell me that isn’t interesting.”
Chu Yifeng looked surprised. “Go on.”
Wang Cheng reopened the webpage he had minimized. It documented Sun Jian’s romantic history. Rich young ladies, celebrities, and other women all appeared on the list, complete with photographs. Wang Cheng pointed at one picture. It showed a radiant woman smiling brightly.
“Know who she is? Her name is Lin Qing. She used to be my eldest brother’s girlfriend. I’m not completely clear on why they broke up, but it seems she found someone richer and dumped my brother.”
Lin Qing had looked haggard when Wang Cheng saw her back then, but he still recognized her as the woman in the photograph. Judging from the date of the report, it had been published shortly after she broke up with his eldest brother. The wealthy man she had latched onto was most likely Sun Jian. If she later fell on hard times, there was an excellent chance Sun Jian had dumped her.
Wang Cheng then pointed to Sun Jian’s newest girlfriend. “This woman is Cheng Cheng’s ex. While she was still dating Cheng Cheng, she climbed into Sun Jian’s bed behind his back. The moment she and Sun Jian made their relationship official, she couldn’t wait to break up with Cheng Cheng. Judging by how quickly Sun Jian changes women, she’ll probably end up following Lin Qing’s path soon.”
Some women saw nothing but money. The moment they saw Sun Jian, all they thought about was wealth. They never stopped to consider that, given Sun Jian’s personality and his degree of promiscuity, he would never seriously date any woman. Becoming Madam Sun was impossible. Of course, if a woman only approached him hoping to squeeze out a breakup settlement, that was a different matter.
“There are even more playboys like this in the capital,” Chu Yifeng said.
Wang Cheng nodded and opened another webpage. The photograph showed Sun Jian attending a banquet with a wealthy young woman.
“This woman is Song Yuanyuan. She was my high school classmate. She’s also from a wealthy family, though I doubt her family is as powerful as Sun Jian’s.”
Reports about the two said that the Sun and Song families were preparing a business marriage. Even their engagement date had been published. Wang Cheng had happened to be away from Shanhai City at the time. The report was already old, so the engagement had taken place. Even if it was only a business arrangement, Sun Jian was engaged to Song Yuanyuan and still openly appeared with Cheng Cheng’s ex-girlfriend. With Song Yuanyuan’s temperament, she probably would not tolerate that.
“Right. Her previous boyfriend was Zhang Wu from Jinding Hotel.”
Wang Cheng thought Zhang Wu was a smart man. It did not surprise him that Zhang Wu had eventually chosen to break up with Song Yuanyuan. What he had not expected was that there were so many tangled relationships behind the matter.
Dongwang Group operated hotels and real estate. Real estate had only become a rapidly rising industry in Shanhai City in recent years and had excellent prospects. Before that, Dongwang Group’s main business had been hotels. It could be called the dominant force in Shanhai City’s hotel industry. It did not quite have a monopoly, but at one point it controlled at least sixty to seventy percent of the market.
That situation had not lasted. The arrival of Jinding Hotel cost Dongwang Group at least twenty percent of its market share, and the two sides had been bitter enemies ever since. Even now, Dongwang Group had no five-star hotels, though it did have three four-star hotels. Four stars were still inferior to five, however. After years of competition, the two sides were now almost evenly matched.
Chu Yifeng suddenly smiled. “Speaking of Jinding Hotel, there’s something you apparently still haven’t remembered.”
“What?”
“Remember the information I showed you about the Zhou Group? Jinding Hotel is the five-star hotel chain owned by the Zhou Group.”
“What a coincidence?” Wang Cheng really had not thought of that. Back then, he had focused almost entirely on the family relationships in the information and had not paid much attention to the industries under the Zhou Group.
Chu Yifeng said, “Shanhai City is only a medium-sized city. The hotel industry has already developed to this level, so advancing further is difficult. If Jinding Hotel wants to take another step forward, it really has only one option.”
Inspiration flashed through Wang Cheng’s mind. “Take down Dongwang Group?”
“Acquisition or merger would also work.” Chu Yifeng gave him an approving look that practically said he was teachable. “Jinding Hotel’s biggest obstacle is that the city itself isn’t large enough and the economy isn’t developed enough. Waiting for the city to grow would take at least another decade. Since they can’t solve the problem from that direction, they can only attack their competitor. The Zhou Group certainly has deep pockets, but there’s an old saying: even a powerful dragon may struggle against a local snake. Shanhai City is Dongwang Group’s home ground. Bringing it down would take some work.”
Wang Cheng thought for a moment and felt something was off. “But doesn’t the Zhou Group have powerful backing?”
“Smart.” Chu Yifeng smiled. The question went straight to the heart of the matter. “The Zhou Group does have the ability. The problem is whether the decision-makers consider it worth their attention.”
“You mean the Zhou Group previously thought Shanhai City didn’t have enough future value, so they gave up pushing harder here?”
“Exactly. But that was five or six years ago. Things are different now.” The fact that Wang Cheng understood after only a hint put Chu Yifeng in an increasingly good mood.
This time Chu Yifeng did not need to explain further. Wang Cheng already understood. The government intended to support Shanhai City’s development and had introduced quite a few new policies over the past few years. The rapid growth of the real estate industry was the clearest proof. He had also heard that the city’s population had increased this year. Didn’t that mean its prospects now looked excellent?
Ideas immediately began churning in Wang Cheng’s mind.
The next morning, Wang Cheng called Mama Wang and told her he might need to stay in the city for a few more days. Mama Wang did not know Chu Yifeng had also returned to Shanhai City. She assumed he was handling matters related to the new shop and told him not to overwork himself, saying everything at home was fine with her there. Wang Cheng reminded his parents to look after their health as well.
That afternoon, Guan Jiahe called him. They had finished packing their belongings at the apartment. Business was slow that afternoon, so Wang Cheng told them to close the shop temporarily and move. Since they had only been renting, they did not have much to move, so Wang Cheng drove over personally to pick them up.
The newly rented place was about half the size of the old apartment, but it was still large enough for three or four people. Wang Cheng told them to choose their own rooms.
Liang Youshan chose the largest room. Besides a mattress, it contained a bunk bed. The mattress was near the window, with a view of the street below. Guan Jiahe’s room was much worse. The balcony lay directly outside it, and the room had a sliding glass door. The space inside was small enough to fit only a mattress and a little wardrobe. It was the smallest of the three rooms.
Wang Cheng gave each man a set of keys. There were two keys on each ring, one for the security door and one for the inner door. Only after confirming there were no problems did he leave.
“Moving into such a simple place all of a sudden really takes some getting used to.” Liang Youshan sat on the sofa and turned on the television as he spoke.
Guan Jiahe glanced at him. As far as he knew, Liang Youshan’s own home was nothing special either. How long had he even lived in the nicer apartment? “I think the environment and conditions are perfectly fine. Given our circumstances, we never should have been living in that place in the first place. Now that we’ve moved out, I actually feel more at ease.”
Liang Youshan’s face darkened. He had the feeling the other man was mocking him. Unable to hold back, he said, “If better conditions are available and we have the chance to enjoy them, why shouldn’t we? Just because we weren’t born into wealth, are we supposed to belittle ourselves? Thinking like that insults not only yourself but me too.”
“Things that truly belong to you are a different matter. If they don’t belong to you, then acting entitled to them is simply thinking too highly of yourself.” Guan Jiahe was not about to lose in an argument.
Liang Youshan was certain the remark was aimed at him, but he had no way to refute it. He could only nurse his resentment silently.
Wang Cheng had no idea the two men had clashed. After leaving, he stopped at the new shop first, then went to find Chu Yifeng.
Chu Yifeng had already ordered Zhang Yiheng to investigate New New World and Dongwang Group. The information arrived quickly, and Wang Cheng happened to show up just as it was placed in front of him.
The file explained why Manager Zhao treated Sun Jian so respectfully and sided with him even when Sun Jian was clearly in the wrong.
There was only one reason. Sun Jian was actually New New World’s largest owner.
Manager Zhao might be the person in charge of New New World, but he did not know that Sun Jian was effectively his boss’s boss. Sun Jian did not yet want his ownership of the bar exposed, so he had placed someone he trusted out front as the visible owner. Manager Zhao protected Sun Jian because his own superior had specifically instructed him that whenever Young Master Sun came to the bar, every request Sun Jian made was to be obeyed unconditionally.
After learning the truth, Wang Cheng reconsidered. Originally he had only wanted to teach New New World a lesson. Now he felt the matter required a different approach.
“Sun Jian owns sixty percent of New New World. The friend he pushed forward as a shield owns five percent. What about the remaining thirty-five percent?” Chu Yifeng flipped the information to the second page.
Wang Cheng picked it up and skimmed it. The owner of that thirty-five percent stake had quite a background. He was the son of one of Shanhai City’s highest-ranking local officials. In a place like Shanhai City, that made him a very powerful official’s son. With someone like that as backing, it was no wonder New New World had opened so smoothly.
“A rich heir and an official’s son working together. That makes New New World harder to bring down, doesn’t it?”
“Not necessarily,” Chu Yifeng said.
Wang Cheng raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
Chu Yifeng said pointedly, “Does Sun Jian strike you as an upright person?”
“Of course not.” Wang Cheng rejected the idea immediately. He had learned a little physiognomy from the old monk. He was no expert, but he understood enough to make rough judgments. From that perspective, Sun Jian’s face did carry signs of great wealth and status. But when it came to character, the pronounced brow ridge and eyes suggested a domineering, combative nature and difficulty achieving lasting success. In other words, the wealth shown in his face was very likely temporary.
“If he isn’t upright, then he’s easy to deal with.” Wang Cheng wanted to say that Chu Yifeng did not look particularly upright either, yet somehow his own face suggested enduring wealth and status.
The fact that Sun Jian had secretly opened a bar proved he was not merely a rich heir who knew how to spend family money. He was probably ambitious as well. A second set of investigative materials confirmed it. Sun Jian, already no longer particularly young, had begun taking over Dongwang Group’s operations three years ago. Half a year ago, Chairman Sun finally handed him full control of the group.
Once he gained real authority, Sun Jian moved aggressively into real estate. The expansion had brought profits, but sixty percent of Dongwang Group’s earnings still came from the hotel business. Clearly, even after Jinding Hotel took away part of the market, hotels remained extremely profitable.
Last year, rumors had circulated that Sun Jian intended to move against Jinding Hotel. Nothing happened for the first two or three months. Then, half a month ago, negative reports about Jinding Hotel suddenly began appearing in newspapers. They grew like a rolling snowball. Someone was obviously manipulating things from behind the scenes. Since the attack targeted Jinding Hotel, Dongwang Group was the most obvious suspect.
Sun Jian’s move was clearly premeditated. Over the years, besides fooling around with women, he had also cultivated relationships with numerous sons of officials in Shanhai City. The high-ranking official’s son was the most powerful among them. Whether or not that man had directly participated in the campaign against Jinding Hotel, it was certain that someone among Sun Jian’s connections was helping him.
Because of the negative news, Jinding Hotel had suffered a noticeable blow. Revenue over the past few days had fallen significantly.
At the same time, two of Dongwang Group’s four-star Dongwang Hotels were finally upgraded to five-star status. The news was heavily promoted that very day, while nearly all the business Jinding Hotel had lost seemed to flow toward Dongwang Hotel. Jinding Hotel’s situation was becoming serious. Its senior management was now searching for a way through the crisis.
Zhang Wu’s father, Zhang Zhongming, had been troubled by the matter for days. If he reported it to headquarters, he might instead receive a scolding, so for now he could only try to solve it himself. Yet after several meetings, no one had come up with a useful plan.
“Dad.” Zhang Wu suddenly burst through the door without knocking, his face full of excitement. Zhang Zhongming was just about to scold him for being so impetuous when his son spread a newspaper open in front of him. “Dad, look at this!”
Zhang Zhongming lowered his eyes to the glaring headline and immediately looked shocked. “What happened?”
“I’m not completely sure either. I saw it this morning. The news has already spread.”
Zhang Wu said excitedly, “Dad, this is good for us. Whether Jinding Hotel can recover depends on whether we seize this opportunity.”
The headline reported that a person holding an important position in Shanhai City had been taken away for investigation. This person happened to have frequent dealings with Sun Jian. With him falling from power, Sun Jian was bound to be implicated as well. Dongwang Group had been acting aggressively lately. It was about time it took a hard fall.
Zhang Zhongming immediately ordered his subordinate to notify all of the hotel’s senior managers. He hurriedly dressed and went out. The executives had already heard the explosive news. Before anyone could even notify them, they began calling him to ask what was happening.
This was only the first wave. Soon afterward, someone began targeting Dongwang Group directly.
A company that had climbed as high as Dongwang Group could hardly have a completely clean foundation. This was especially true after Sun Jian took over. His methods were even darker and more covert than his father’s, which also meant there were more handles that could be seized. Tax evasion was one example.
Dongwang Group had already engaged in tax evasion while Sun Jian’s father controlled it. Under Sun Jian, the practice became more thorough and more blatant. In recent years, he had also expanded aggressively into real estate, and profits from that sector now accounted for thirty to forty percent of Dongwang Group’s annual total.
If everything were calculated properly, the amount of tax Dongwang Group had evaded was enormous. The complaint had been filed under a real name, Sun Jian had received absolutely no advance warning, and his own arrogance made him careless. He was caught completely off guard. The relevant authorities had now begun auditing exactly how much tax Dongwang Group had evaded.