Qi Dengxian hadn't expected that none of the Qiao Family listened to what he said yesterday, but Li Yunwan did, and she even went ahead to investigate it seriously.
He nodded slightly and then said, "Since you've investigated, why not hand over the results to Qiao Qiumeng and have them withdraw their investment."
The Qiao Family, under Zhang Shaojie's persuasion, had invested at least thirty million, with Qiao Qiumeng herself putting in twenty million.
Qiao Qiumeng's position was already unstable, and if the Zhang Group ran off with the money, she would be subjected to public criticism once again.
"What I found is just some clues, nothing that can convince anyone," Li Yunwan shook her head.
She hadn't really investigated anything; she simply believed Qi Dengxian because she saw him being escorted out by Huang Wenlang and others.
After all, even Qi Dengxian said it was something Huang Wenlang mentioned personally.
Mayor Huang, who oversees the vast Zhonghai, surely wouldn't speak carelessly...
Qi Dengxian was helpless and could only look for another opportunity to persuade Qiao Guotao, as the losses would be significant if things went wrong.
Li Yunwan led Qi Dengxian into a pre-booked restaurant, a private dining place that only served ten tables a day.
It's said that reservations for this place were booked a month in advance.
"Is it really just bad luck?"
Qi Dengxian caught a glimpse of a figure from the corner of his eye—it was Long Yanan.
Long Yanan was Yu Xiaolong's assistant, and if she was here, Yu Xiaolong was likely around too.
Yu Xiaolong had been injured while capturing the Terror King and was recuperating in Zhonghai, frequently running into Qi Dengxian, which annoyed him.
Qi Dengxian didn't like Yu Xiaolong, mainly because of her arrogance and superiority. If she had been willing to sit down for a cup of tea and talk things over when they first met, and then cancel the engagement, he wouldn't have minded, and they might even have become friends.
But Yu Xiaolong acted as if he owed her family something, with such a domineering attitude that Qi Dengxian wanted to throw her in jail for a few days to teach her a lesson.
After sitting down, Qi Dengxian's ears perked up slightly as he heard Yu Xiaolong talking to another woman.
"Aoxue, why did you suddenly come to Zhonghai? Weren't you doing well in the capital?" Yu Xiaolong asked.
Just from the voice and name, Qi Dengxian could tell that this woman was probably as arrogant as Yu Xiaolong, the kind who was particularly full of herself.
He was about to ignore their conversation when he heard the words "Xiang Corporation," which made his eyebrows twitch slightly.
"Xiang Corporation, you're targeting it? I've heard of this corporation; it's not easy to deal with. Its owner, Xiang Dongqing, seems to be a tough character..." Yu Xiaolong's voice carried a hint of contemplation.
"Now that Xiang Corporation is being suppressed by the Humen Group, and with Xiang Dongqing's unyielding nature, it's the perfect time to swallow it up," Xu Aoxue said confidently.
"Humen Group? Their assets don't seem to surpass Xiang Corporation's, so how are they managing to suppress it?" Yu Xiaolong asked, puzzled.
Xu Aoxue explained, "Humen Group grew big because it has Longmen as its backing. Do you think they can't suppress Xiang Corporation?"
Yu Xiaolong replied calmly, "Then it's no surprise. You want to take advantage of the situation; it's a good strategy."
Listening to this, Qi Dengxian couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Xiang Corporation was Old Xiang's family business.
Old Xiang was a wealthy heir who, instead of running a legitimate business, dabbled in arms dealing, with audacity as vast as the sky.
Old Xiang probably got carried away, and after his business grew, he embezzled a batch of arms worth over a hundred million from a major warlord. Naturally, the warlord wouldn't take it lying down and soon sent people to wipe out Old Xiang's entire family, leaving only Old Xiang and his sister, Xiang Dongqing.
After such a major incident with Xiang Corporation, all sorts of relatives came to fight for the inheritance.
Xiang Dongqing showed up at the board meeting holding her parents' ashes, driving away these relatives and taking control.
Old Xiang ended up in prison due to the incident and has yet to receive Xiang Dongqing's forgiveness.
When Qi Dengxian was released from prison, the gravely ill Old Xiang, suffering from various setbacks, begged Qi Dengxian to help look after Xiang Dongqing if he had the chance.
"What are you thinking about?" Li Yunwan asked, lightly tapping Qi Dengxian's wrist with her chopsticks when she saw him lost in thought.
"Nothing," Qi Dengxian snapped back to reality, realizing that Li Yunwan was sitting very close to him, their thighs almost touching.
However, Qi Dengxian didn't mind too much, his thoughts drifting back to Old Xiang, imagining what Xiang Dongqing might be like.
Old Xiang was an honest person in prison, and he had a good relationship with Qi Dengxian, often helping him handle some prison affairs, so Qi Dengxian agreed to help him with this favor.
"Xiang Dongqing! You know Xiang Dongqing?" Li Yunwan looked at Qi Dengxian with some surprise.
Qi Dengxian nodded, "Why? Is it strange to know her?"
Li Yunwan's expression turned peculiar, and she slowly said, "She's quite a formidable person. I'm not friends with her, but I barely know her..."
"Formidable?" Qi Dengxian chuckled and asked.
"Xiang Dongqing's family had an accident, her parents died tragically, and then various relatives took the opportunity to seize power. As a result, Xiang Dongqing appeared at the board meeting holding her parents' ashes and said something that everyone found cold to the bone... To this day, her words are still widely circulated in Zhonghai's business circles," Li Yunwan explained.
Qi Dengxian listened, gesturing for her to continue.
Li Yunwan continued, "The relatives accused her of being unfilial for thinking about seizing power while her parents' bodies were still warm. Xiang Dongqing replied with..."
"My parents were cremated; their bodies won't be cold!"
Hearing this, Qi Dengxian couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
The coldness conveyed in that short sentence left him with an overwhelming sense of shock!
"You want to get in touch with Xiang Dongqing? Are you planning to be a scoundrel? But she's not easy to get along with; someone with her personality doesn't even have friends," Li Yunwan said.
"Scoundrel? There's nothing between Qiumeng and me right now, just a title," Qi Dengxian frowned and sighed helplessly.
Seeing his troubled expression, Li Yunwan couldn't help but ask, "Are you planning to hang yourself on one tree?"
Qi Dengxian replied, "I said yesterday, everything depends on fate. When fate ends, I will naturally leave."
"Then it seems you are a scoundrel!" Li Yunwan laughed, baring her neat little white teeth.
Qi Dengxian remained calm.
Suddenly, Li Yunwan's leg touched Qi Dengxian's, the warm sensation spreading. She smiled brightly, her face tinged with a hint of blush.
"Can you be a scoundrel to me first?" Li Yunwan's tone was quite suggestive.
Qi Dengxian was taken aback, but then Yu Xiaolong's voice caught his attention as she said, "If there's anything tricky, feel free to ask me."
Qi Dengxian sneered, realizing that Yu Xiaolong was planning to intervene in dealing with Xiang Corporation. Well, that was perfect; he would take this opportunity to curb her arrogance in this confrontation!