The next moment, Li Kerou walked over gracefully, holding a champagne glass, and said softly, "Boss."
Qing Chen frowned: "Miss Li, we should have made it very clear before that we will not have any further contact."
Li Kerou smiled and said, "Well, don't overthink it. I'm just going to be working at Qing's soon."
With that, the ambitious man turned and left as if nothing had happened.
Chapter 776, Siege and Doubt!
In the banquet hall, countless burning gazes quietly swept towards Qing Chen, only to be caught by the sixth sense of an A-level expert.
Qing Chen, seemingly oblivious to everyone else, sent messages to Luo Wanya and the others, assigning tasks.
Qing Ji calmly said to him, "Playing on your phone at a banquet is not a sign of maturity."
Qing Chen said without looking up, "Do I need to care about what others think?"
Qing Ji thought for a moment and said, "It seems that we really don't need to."
If it were any other member of the Qing family, arriving at the banquet at the age of eighteen, the most important thing to be mindful of was their behavior, lest they leave a bad impression on others.
If you leave a bad impression on your elders, your future may be affected.
But Qing Chen is different. He doesn't need anyone's approval. Now that he controls the Parents' Association and the Shadow Army, as the city lord, he is one of the most powerful figures within each faction.
Even if he is not the son of the family head, he will definitely join the board of directors this year and become the youngest director of the Qing family, sitting on equal footing with Qing Kun, Qing Yu and others.
He could only put up with others' bad impressions of him.
In this noisy environment, Qing Chen felt increasingly uncomfortable. It was as if he was born unsuited to this place, and also unsuited to this atmosphere where everyone had to put on a fake act.
He put his phone back in his pocket, loosened his tie, and went to the buffet table to get some snacks.
It was at this moment that everyone in the Qing clan received a mass message: an expanded board meeting would be held at 10 a.m. the next day to vote on the proposal to "elect Qing Chen as chairman of the board".
At first, no one checked the message immediately. It wasn't until the first person took out their phone that everyone gradually pulled out their phones and began to look at Qingchen with strange eyes.
The position of Chairman of the Board is far too sensitive. The struggle for the Shadows is not even over yet, and the Patriarch is already nominating Qing Chen to be elected directly?
The banquet hall was quiet for a moment, then it became lively again, and everyone was talking about only one thing... Qing Chen.
Qing Ji, as if watching a spectacle, said, "Apart from the military, almost all the powerful figures of the Qing family are here. In the political arena, there are important members of parliament from various constituencies, who are the representatives in charge of legislation. In the business world, there are presidents of various subsidiaries under the Qing family, who control coal, oil, electricity, aviation, and military industry. In fact, these are the cornerstones that make up the Qing family. They are like parts that mesh together to provide power for this huge machine."
Qing Ji continued, "However, the parts in this machine have started to fight their own battles. They no longer serve a supreme will, but rather their own. The wheels have their own ideas, the engine has its own ideas, and Qing Ji has therefore become somewhat clumsy."
"Why doesn't the patriarch care? Isn't this the patriarch's responsibility?" Qingchen said. "What the patriarch should do is to maintain these parts regularly so that they can be more obedient and easier to use."
Qing Ji shook his head: "No, the old man thinks some parts are rotten, so he wants to replace some parts, even the engine. The most crucial part in this process is the engine. Before, a new engine had not appeared, and if we rashly replaced the parts, there might be problems with incompatibility with the new engine, which would be even more troublesome. So, it only makes sense to replace the parts when a new engine appears."
Qing Chen understood: "Am I that engine?"
“No, you’ve misjudged yourself,” Qingji shook his head. “The parent-teacher conference is the new engine, and you are the one driving this machine.”
"So, who are the people in this banquet hall who are going to be replaced?" Qing Chen asked.
Qing Ji replied with a smile, "Those who don't obey will all be replaced. Of course, they themselves haven't realized how cruel this process will be."
Inside the banquet hall, everyone was talking amongst themselves, each with their own thoughts. The real bigwigs, such as Qingkun, Qingyu, and Qingyun, were not present. Their representatives kept sending messages, trying to find out how their bosses should respond.
At this point, most people actually want to be fence-sitters.
Although all the benefits don't go to the fence-sitter, the fence-sitter in the power struggle is the least likely to die.
Many veteran politicians are not so capable, but rather too good at protecting themselves.
But if they don't express their stance tonight, Qingchen will naturally become the chairman of the board tomorrow, and then there will be no room for other factions.
Just as he was pondering how to respond, a hearty laugh came from outside the banquet hall: "It's so lively here! Everyone is being so enthusiastic in welcoming us!"
As soon as she finished speaking, the banquet hall door was pushed open again by the mute servant, and Shindai Yunluo, dressed in a white hunting robe, walked in first. Her loud praise gave the impression of overshadowing the host.
A noble young man from the north stood out more than everyone else present.
Shindai Yunluo looked at Qingchen and said with a smile, "My friend, why didn't you invite me to your birthday party?"
Qingchen laughed as well: "I just found out today too. I've never had the habit of celebrating my birthday before."
“Wow, you’re really unlucky,” said Kamishiro Yunra with a smile. “You should see the grandeur of my birthday celebration. It was a huge affair with drums, firecrackers, red flags, and a sea of people.”
The arrival of Kamishiro Unra disrupted the rhythm of many people's thoughts, and they looked over in confusion: "These three... seem to be from the Kamishiro Group, right?"
Someone quickly picked up their phone to search, and after they verified the identities of Shendai Yunluo and the other two, they were astonished to find that these three were core members of Shendai, each of whom was an A-level.
Among them, Kumohiro Kamishiro is in charge of the Mysterious Business Department of the Surface World and is a powerful figure.
How did these three people suddenly end up in the southwest?
During the banquet, several people exchanged glances, and a middle-aged man stepped forward and asked, "You say you are Qing Chen's friends?"
Shindai Yunluo smiled and looked over: "At least that's what I think. As for what Qingchen thinks, I haven't asked him yet."
The middle-aged man shouted, "Our troops are still fighting against the Gods in the north. If I remember correctly, we lost as many as 21,000 soldiers in last month's battle. Now, Qingchen, you want to be friends with the people of the Gods? Have you forgotten the grudge against Qingmu?"
In the crowd, someone took two steps forward: "Qing Chen, do you want to be friends with the people of the Divine Era? If so, then you are not qualified to be the chairman of the board of directors of the Qing Group."
Kamishiro Yunluo frowned and looked at Qingchen: "I think I came at a bad time. Maybe we should leave."
All eyes turned to Qingchen, who was still picking out pastries at the table.
He picked up a piece of tiramisu and placed it on his plate, then picked up a glass of champagne and handed it to Kamishiro Yunluo: "I haven't been able to properly entertain you since you've come all this way, and now you've been dragged into this conflict. I'm really ashamed. Kamishiro Yunxiu, Kamishiro Kongyu, please don't be shy. Take whatever you want to eat, don't be too polite."
The people in the banquet hall were stunned. They hadn't expected that Qing Chen would completely disregard their words.
"Don't you need to explain your relationship with Shindai Unra?" someone asked.
"Explanation?" Qing Chen looked over in confusion. "Shindai Yunluo and I are indeed friends. What's there to explain?"
A slight smile played on Kamishiro Yunra's lips. In truth, for a moment just now, he too had felt a pang of worry...
He even thought that it didn't matter if Qingchen drew a line between them; he could understand it.
However, he did not expect Qing Chen to stand on his side.
Kamishiro Unra laughed and said, "Actually, you could have denied it first."
Qing Chen shook his head seriously: "When someone asks if we're friends, if there's even the slightest hesitation, then we're not friends. There shouldn't be any compromises on this path. A friend is a friend, and an enemy is an enemy. Besides, I'm thinking, you have so few friends. If I also deny it, wouldn't you be in a terrible situation?"
Kamishiro Yunlu laughed and scolded, "You're too presumptuous. I have friends all over the world."
“Those are all fair-weather friends; there are very few who can fight alongside you,” Qing Chen said.
In the banquet hall, many people were delighted. As long as Qing Chen was willing to acknowledge Shen Daiyunluo as a friend, they could force Qing Chen to give up his candidacy for the position of chairman of the board.
After all, the Age of Gods is now the real enemy.
Before they could even speak, Li Kerou, dressed in a black evening gown, stepped forward and said coldly, "When Qing Chen was the director of the PCA's Intelligence Division 1, he arrested a total of 314 members of the Shindai Group. Later, in order to exchange for Qing Mu, he was captured by Shindai and taken to the A02 secret base in the north. He fought his way out of there and received the Ginkgo Medal, the highest honor of the Qing family, and was awarded the rank of Major General. You people who have never even been on the battlefield are questioning his collusion with the Shindai Group. Aren't you a bit too presumptuous? Who here has ever fought on the battlefield and killed Shindai soldiers? Raise your hand so I can see."
Qing Chen stared at the girl, dumbfounded. He truly hadn't expected Li Kerou to dare to step forward at this moment.
When the other party said that he would treat assisting him as his own career, Qingchen took it as just a way of saying it during the "interview". After all, who doesn't say something nice during an interview?
However, Li Kerou really did what she said she would do.
A message came in: Qingchen, this girl is someone you can get along with; she'll really step up if something happens.
The next moment, another person stepped forward and said, "I'm very curious, Qingchen, when did you become friends with Shendai Yunluo and the others? Did you ever live in the North? I was wondering about this before: after Qingmu was captured, he was repeatedly tried to possess someone using neuronal reconnection, which eventually led to him becoming a vegetable. However, you were captured for a month and returned unharmed. Didn't Shendai try to possess you? Or have you already been possessed?"
These people acted simultaneously, aiming to eradicate Qing Chen's past achievements from the very beginning.
The other party directly intended to falsely accuse Qing Chen of being possessed, a smear that Qing Chen himself could not even prove his innocence. He knew he could not be possessed, the head of the Qing family knew, his brother Qing Zhun knew, but others did not.
Regardless of whether Qing Chen has been possessed or not, even if it is only a question, he is not qualified to take over as chairman of the board.
But Li Kerou continued, "If you think that's not enough, then what about his killing of thousands of Timewalkers in Osaka in the real world, and even killing the expert Kamishiro Yunhe in the north, and capturing Kamishiro Yasusuke, the son of the Kamishiro family head? Kamishiro Yasusuke is still locked up in a pigsty. Do you want to go and see how miserable he is?"
Shen Dai Yunluo gave a soft sigh of admiration. He discovered that this girl knew Qing Chen's public deeds like the back of her hand, and even had investigated what had happened in the real world.
This homework is really meticulous.
The banquet hall quieted down. Just as Li Kerou had said, Shen Dai Jingcheng was indeed fighting with the pigs for food. Surely that couldn't be wrong.
Someone sneered, "If sacrificing Shen Dai Jingcheng, Shen Dai Yunhe, and a few thousand soldiers can bring back the position of Qing Clan Head, then this deal is worthwhile. Anyone can act, right? If Qing Chen can prove he wasn't possessed, I'm willing to fully support him becoming the new Chairman of the Board. But the question is, how will he prove it?"
Chapter 777, Celebrating Qingchen's Birthday
Faced with the questions, Qingchen pulled off his tie and continued to calmly eat his cake.
On the contrary, Li Kerou's face turned ashen: "If so many achievements can be erased by a single slander, then I can now say that some of you have been possessed by the Divine Era Consortium."
The middle-aged man calmly replied, "We were not taken to the A02 secret military base. Considering the timing and circumstances, it is indeed possible that he was possessed. Otherwise, how do you explain that Qing Mu went mad, but he was fine? And how do you explain that three experts from the Divine Era suddenly appeared here the day before he was nominated to become the chairman of the board?"
"If Qing Chen can prove that he has not been possessed, he is qualified to become the chairman of the board. Otherwise, we will be handing the Qing family over to the Gods!"
"Qingchen, are you just going to keep eating like this without saying a word?" someone asked loudly.
Qing Chen glanced over: "How do you want me to prove it?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than footsteps were heard outside the banquet hall.
The banquet guests had all arrived, but uninvited guests began to arrive one after another.
The mute servant pushed open the door, only to see Qing walk in with a beaming smile: "How could I not be there for my master's birthday? Master, master, why didn't you inform me? I only received the news yesterday and rushed over from City 10 by airship. I'm late!"
Everyone looked at this troublemaker. Qingyi's identity was actually very sensitive. Behind him was his father, Qingkun, who not only controlled 40% of the Qing family's energy and 21% of its military production, but also commanded a field division.
Therefore, Qingkun's only son, Qingyi, is considered a top-tier core member within the conglomerate, quite different from those spoiled brats.
Qingyi walked into the banquet hall, followed by eight people, each carrying one of the eight boxes.
The boy came to the edge of the crowd, and everyone made way for him.
Several young people, either disliking Qingyi or acting on someone's instructions, blocked Qingyi's path.
But Qingyi stood in front of them and said with a cold smile, "Get lost, or I'll leave you to rot in the wilderness tonight."
Everyone's expression changed. At a family banquet, a junior was actually exuding such murderous intent?!
Qingyi looked around: "Have you forgotten who my father is?"
Everyone remembered that scoundrel Qing Kun and suddenly realized that if Qing Yi really threatened to kill someone, Qing Kun's Faceless Men army might actually make a move.