Not long after Cao Chuan left, at the Cao Family Estate, inside Cao Hai’s villa, Lin Wanrong—who had been discussing countermeasures with Cao Hai—quickly received a call from Shen Mengying.
Upon hearing Shen Mengying report that Cao Chuan had openly declared himself the Cao Family Heir at Cao Corporation and had even assaulted Director Qian, forcing her to divert 1 billion yuan in corporate liquidity to his account, Lin Wanrong’s expression turned grim.
Across from her, Cao Hai—who had already been repeatedly suppressed by Cao Chuan—could no longer contain himself and smashed the teacup in his hand to the floor.
“Cao Chuan, that bastard! Is there no one in this world he fears?!”
“First, he treated Keran that way at home, then he trampled me, slapped Steward Hong in the face, and now he’s gone to Cao Corporation and still has no restraint!”
“He kicked Director Qian! —Does he even have the slightest respect for law or authority?”
Lin Wanrong quickly covered the phone’s speaker to prevent Shen Mengying from hearing the outburst. Then she stepped outside the villa to offer a few words of comfort to Shen Mengying before hanging up and returning to the living room.
“Damn it! He truly deserves to die!” In the living room, Cao Hai had clearly lost control, cursing loudly as he smashed everything in sight.
“He dared touch the woman I fancy, stole the position of Cao Family Heir that should’ve been mine, and now he even took away the 1 billion yuan of liquidity you arranged for me in advance, Aunt!”
“Why won’t the heavens strike him dead with lightning already?!”
“That bastard keeps ruining everything for me!”
Seeing this, Lin Wanrong couldn’t help but feel a flash of disappointment in her eyes.
A real man, especially someone young, shouldn’t fall apart at the first setback. With a weak will like this, how could he ever accomplish anything great in life?
But then again, it was precisely because he was this kind of easily manipulated waste that he was easier to control. That had been a key reason she chose him over Cao Chuan in her plan to take over the Cao Family.
So Lin Wanrong quickly tucked away her disappointment and calmly sat across from him, her tone steady, “That’s all it takes to make you angry?”
“He took everything that should’ve belonged to me, and now he even took the 1 billion you arranged for me ahead of time. How could I not be angry?!” Cao Hai growled like a furious little puppy.
“Aunt, why don’t we take this opportunity to make some noise? Let the entire Cao Corporation and my father know about Cao Chuan’s outrageous behavior.”
“My father sees Cao Corporation as his lifeblood and won’t tolerate even a speck of sand in it. If he hears that Cao Chuan kicked Director Qian today, he’s bound to react.”
“And if everyone at Cao Corporation learns of Cao Chuan’s violent actions, his image will definitely take a hit too.”
“Did you even think before speaking?” Lin Wanrong’s gaze turned unreadable.
“Your father personally instructed Director Qian to transfer the money and explicitly requested that the 1 billion be sent to both you and Cao Chuan today.”
“Now that Director Qian tampered with the process and caused a delay in the funds, if this incident reaches your father, who do you think he’ll punish first?”
Only then did Cao Hai seem to realize the flaw, his expression darkening with reluctant frustration.
He muttered in defense, “I was just speaking out of anger… I know what Director Qian did today can’t be exposed, but I just can’t swallow the fact that Cao Chuan keeps humiliating me.”
Cao Hai pressed on, “Aunt, how about you send that elite bodyguard of yours—the one from the special forces—and just have him take that bastard out quietly?”
“With Shadow’s ability, he could easily take him out without a trace.”
Lin Wanrong calmly poured out her now-cold tea and replied slowly, “And then?”
“What do you mean ‘and then’?” Cao Hai blinked in confusion.
Lin Wanrong didn’t respond. Instead, she gently tapped her fingers on the table and glanced meaningfully at her empty teacup.
Cao Hai immediately filled it with fresh tea.
After taking a small sip of the fragrant tea, Lin Wanrong finally said, “Have you thought about what would happen if we really did that? We’d end up buried alongside him.”
“Buried alongside him?” Cao Hai was startled. He instinctively refuted, “That’s impossible. What power does Cao Chuan have?”
Lin Wanrong glanced at her empty teacup again.
Cao Hai quickly refilled it with new tea.
She continued, “He doesn’t have that power, but what about your father?”
“Do you really think that if my bodyguard Shadow were to assassinate Cao Chuan, your father wouldn’t find out? And even if he did find out, you think he’d just let it slide?”
“That… well, that’s true.” Cao Hai looked dejected.
Even though Cao Chuanzhi’s health had deteriorated and he’d mostly stepped into the background, rarely interfering in family or corporate matters, his influence—built over decades of running both the Cao Family and Cao Corporation—was enormous.
If he wanted to, there was nothing that could slip past him in Cao Corporation or even in all of Zhonghai.
If Cao Hai really lost control and tried something extreme against Cao Chuan, there was no doubt that Cao Chuanzhi would hear of it before anything even happened.
Once he understood all this, Cao Hai’s face turned ugly, but he gradually calmed down.
Seeing Lin Wanrong drink another cup of tea, he eagerly poured her a fresh one and asked obsequiously, “Then if we can’t use force, Aunt, what should we do?”
“Things are clearly not looking good for us right now.”
Lin Wanrong was very satisfied with his current attitude and reaction.
Now that he’d finally cooled down, she didn’t bother to keep him guessing anymore and said plainly, “Things may look bad, but that’s just on the surface.”
Crossing her legs, Lin Wanrong’s tight-fitting qipao stretched taut, accentuating her already peach-like curves.
Even though he knew she was his aunt—his mother’s younger sister—Cao Hai couldn’t help but feel his throat go dry at the sight.
“Please enlighten me, Aunt.”
Lin Wanrong noticed the heat in his gaze, but she was long used to it. She simply shot him a warning look, which made him avert his eyes quickly. Only then did she say, “It’s not hard to understand.”
“I’ll give you a few hints, and you’ll see it clearly.”
“Please go ahead,” Cao Hai nodded eagerly.
“First, your father already said that today’s announcement of Cao Chuan as the Cao Family Heir was just a preliminary decision. The real successor will be determined by the results of the investment competition.”
Lin Wanrong’s tone remained calm.
“Second, although Cao Chuan took the opportunity to grab the 1 billion in liquidity before you, it doesn’t actually mean much.”
“In any investment project, the most time-consuming part is selection and research. Even if he got the funds first, he still needs time to research and filter options before he can invest.”
“As long as we start our project selection and research now, by the time our funds arrive, we’ll be ready to invest. In terms of actual progress, we won’t fall far behind him.”
Thanks to her explanation, Cao Hai quickly grasped it.
“That’s right!”
“The true contest for the Cao Family and Cao Corporation’s inheritance lies in real investment performance.”
“And when it comes to investment, that’s our strength—and Cao Chuan’s weakness.”
“Even if he’s gone around declaring himself the Cao Family Heir, boosting his own image while undermining mine, once the investment results come out and I officially claim the position, all that talk will vanish.”
“In fact, because he jumped the gun and made such a show of himself, the higher he climbs now, the harder he’ll fall later. When he loses everything, it’ll be that much more devastating!”
Lin Wanrong nodded slightly. “Exactly.”
“These small wins and losses don’t matter.”
“What we need to do now is focus on identifying strong projects to invest in. In the end, we will be the ones who win.”
“I understand now, Aunt.” Cao Hai’s eyes lit up with fiery determination. “Next, it’s our home turf!”
“When it comes to investment, I’m not targeting anyone in particular. I’m just saying that in front of us, that Cao Chuan is straight-up trash!”
“…”