“Ms. Gu, whether you believe it or not, that’s not the truth, and I’m quite surprised myself.”
Neither the downfall of the Gu family nor the awakening of Gu Zhong's original soul were within Ling Yan's control or expectations. Ling Yan answered this question with a clear conscience.
However, what was originally intended to ensure her smooth life and allow her remnant soul to return to its rightful place ultimately went against its original purpose and became something that could not be helped.
"I understand. At least, let me fulfill my bet with Miss Ling."
If I succeed, I'll have no regrets knowing I'll see the Gu family rise to prominence; if I fail, I'll consider it a loss of my soul.
After a moment of silence, Gu Zhong turned his gaze back to Ling Yan's face, chuckled softly, but it was unclear who he was speaking to.
At first glance, the smile seemed as bright as ever, but upon closer inspection, it was utterly empty and desolate.
Anyone who knew this inevitable and futile end would become numb; Gu Zhong's resilience has surpassed that of many.
Looking at Gu Zhong's forced smile, Ling Yan felt a lump in her throat. At this moment, both comforting and reassuring would seem hypocritical, so it was better to remain silent.
It's been less than five years, maybe even less...
Author's Note:
I'm so sorry, I haven't updated for so long. One reason is that I fell into a hole I dug myself, and I'm really stuck on writer's block—and another reason is that my laziness got the better of me! This time, I promise I won't stop updating and I'll finish it all in one go! Waaaaah, thank you all my little angels who have been waiting and supporting me! I love you all!
Let's do a giveaway to show our gratitude! We'll randomly select the angels who left comments 108 and 109 to receive a small red envelope (this is all the poor author can afford). Thank you for your unwavering support!
Thank you so much for the landmine from the angel "Wind Passes Without a Trace"! Mwah! Hugs!
//Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2021-12-23 23:34:36 and 2022-02-09 11:32:39!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Wind Without a Trace (1);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Twelve (50 bottles); Pastor (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 110 The Newly Rich CEO and the Fallen Heiress (Sixteen)
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From that day on, Gu Zhong moved out of Ling Yan's residence. Out of guilt and respect, Ling Yan did not try to find him, but she would often receive a complaining phone call from someone in the middle of the night.
Despite his complaints, he did not actually do anything to address the concerns of the world.
Life, which had been slightly turbulent, returned to its orderly yet dull state, like a pond that had been calmed after a pebble was thrown in. Lingyan also had more time to reflect on the various events that had happened to Gu Zhong in this life.
She couldn't rest easy until Xia Xiange showed up, fearing that one day she might be tripped up by someone unexpectedly.
After all, even if Gu Zhong completes the fusion and fully awakens in this life, it is not the end of the journey. They still have to spend decades in this small world. They can't just put a time bomb in an unknown place.
The most urgent task is to find Xia Xiange's whereabouts.
Recalling the conversation between Gu Zhong and Fang Yu that she had been told about, Ling Yan felt increasingly strange.
As a prominent and influential gentry in the inland region, Fang Yu should have no shortage of vision and judgment. How could he not see that the so-called "digital finance" blue ocean is not a good opportunity now?
Besides, even if he was truly kind-hearted, and even if he had a past with the Gu family, why would he travel all the way to Hong Kong Island and hand over this excellent opportunity for no reason?
Thinking about it this way, his motives are quite suspicious.
And the perpetrator who is still in the police station—Ling Yan had a premonition that the person behind him was inextricably linked to Xia Xiange.
The question is simply how to catch this cunning fox by the tail.
As for Gu Zhong, perhaps knowing that her days were numbered, she abandoned all distractions and focused solely on restoring the Gu family's glory, becoming a workaholic who spent all her time at the company working overtime.
The projects we had previously discussed are gradually getting on track, and some of them have even become trendsetting hits.
In addition, new projects continue to emerge from her hands, and in terms of prospects, one has to admire Gu Zhong's keen insight into industry trends.
If this trend continues, there is no doubt that Guzhong will win the bet, and Yaozhong's listing date could even be brought forward a bit more.
This is naturally not a bad thing for Lingyan, but it is something that some other people would not want to see.
For example, those wealthy families that once stood shoulder to shoulder with the Gu family, or those who once fawned over them, were more or less involved in bringing down the Gu family's foundation.
There are always people who are happy to kick Gu Zhong when he is down on his luck, and they don't want to see any signs of the Gu family's revival.
For example, the Yan family and the Yang family.
When the Yang family was mentioned, a small incident occurred unexpectedly.
It's unclear whether Yang Ruo underestimates Gu Zhong, looks down on all women, or is simply overconfident in herself.
He could still act as arrogantly as he had in court, shamelessly declaring that Gu Zhong had regained her right to be the young mistress of the Yang family.
Seeing his behavior, Gu Zhong couldn't even muster a trace of anger. He only mourned his past blindness and then mercilessly ordered the security guard to throw the man out—literally throw him out, with his feet up in the air.
Yang Ruo, looking disheveled and lying outside the Yaochong Building, was once again photographed by the ever-present gossip tabloids, successfully becoming the subject of gossip and amusement for Hong Kong residents for the past month.
If we're talking about who else doesn't want Gu Zhong to succeed, it's Li Lin.
Because of his previous misjudgment of the situation, and his fear of losing Lingyan's favor, he became increasingly hesitant and timid in his actions. Under Gu Zhong's assertive performance, the dignified general manager seemed dispensable and was almost sidelined.
Although it was meant to be a whetstone specially set up by Lingyan for Gu Zhong, it was still quite disappointing to see it go this far.
If Gu Zhong continues to develop in this way, Li Lin may really be kicked out.
Upon closer reflection, Gu Zhong's surroundings truly resembled a den of wolves and tigers, all waiting for the right opportunity to swarm in and devour this lucky prey who had managed to escape.
The timing was perfect; just right, one of Gu Zhong's most important projects, which was about to be released, was prematurely announced.
The one who rushed to issue the order was none other than the Yang family, perhaps hoping to avenge their previous humiliation.
As for how the source code was leaked, it could be due to betrayal, theft, or bribery; ultimately, it indicates a problem within the company.
As if things weren't going to go wrong, the success or failure of this project was directly related to the smooth recovery of funds. If the cash flow broke down and could not be replenished in a short period of time, then all subsequent project plans would be scrapped, and the huge initial investment would be wasted.
Just then, Lingyan secured a real estate development project in the inland region, precisely when it required a huge initial investment.
If Yaozhong really gets into trouble, she won't be able to mobilize much money to save the situation in a short time.
It seems that Yaozhong is in a predicament for the time being. Affected by the rumors and gossip, the company is shrouded in gloom and morale is low.
However, Gu Zhong seemed completely unaffected, sticking to his previous release plan and appearing to be in complete control.
The day before the press conference, Gu Zhong was still in her office late at night. The brightly lit building fell silent, leaving her all alone.
Just as Gu Zhong was carefully checking the materials to be released the next day, the red landline on the table rang with a piercing sound.
Who would call in the middle of the night?
Distracted from his train of thought, Gu Zhong frowned in annoyance, but worried that something important must have happened. After the phone rang four times, he finally answered it.
"Chongchong, are you still at the company?"
What came through the receiver, however, was an extremely unpleasant sound.
"What brings you here, Young Master Yang?"
Putting down his pen, Gu Zhong picked up the handset of the landline, spun his chair half a circle, got up, and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window where the curtains were not yet drawn. He saw a figure vaguely visible in the darkness below, leaning against a red Ferrari.
"Given the situation, is tomorrow's press conference even necessary? You really don't need to push yourself so hard; it breaks my heart to see you like this."
Yang Ruo spoke words she thought were caring, but they were filled with the contempt and smugness of a victor.
"How does Young Master Yang know it's unnecessary?"
Raising an eyebrow, Gu Zhong noticed the small recorder in his hand was flashing red. When someone is eager to show off, they are most likely to leave behind some unfavorable evidence in court.
"…Chongchong, you know what I mean. I hope you can reconsider what I said before."
Yang Ruo was not foolish after all; at this critical juncture, no amount of caution was excessive.
"If you're calling just to spout these two pieces of nonsense, then I'm not going to waste my time."
Seeing that he couldn't get any more information, Gu Zhong felt deeply bored.
She scoffed, hung up the phone decisively, and then pulled the heavy curtains shut, ensuring no light leaked out.
Just as he put the receiver back in its place, the piercing ringtone started again, relentlessly calling out. Annoyed beyond measure, Gu Zhong simply hung up the receiver, blocking all incoming calls.
The return to the quiet of the office allowed Gu Zhong to refocus her attention on the papers that exuded the strong smell of black ink. She kept thinking about all the possible scenarios that might occur tomorrow and devising countermeasures.
Tomorrow's press conference is extremely important, both for her and for Ling Yan.
On the other side of the small Hong Kong Island, in a quiet mansion surrounded by mountains and forests, Ling Yan had the same proposal spread out in front of her. As she brought her coffee cup to her lips, she drew a striking mark on the paper with a red pen.
"I've checked everything here, there shouldn't be any problems tomorrow."
A short message popped up on the pager screen. Ling Yan turned her head to look at it, picked up the pager, and replied to the message.
"There are a few more things to note, I'll send them to you."
After inputting and sending in the points highlighted in red, Lingyan sighed and leaned back in the soft chair, feeling a wave of fatigue wash over her. The □□ had clearly lost its intended function.
From any perspective, Lingyan hoped that Gu Zhong could lead Yao Zhong through this difficult situation.
Whether it was to help Gu Zhong integrate smoothly, to consider the future of his business empire, or to further track down Xia Xiange's whereabouts.
However, the business world is like a battlefield. Only by calculating every step and anticipating the enemy's moves can one have the right to win. Victory or defeat is always unpredictable.
Now, they have done everything they could, and the outcome will depend on their all-out effort tomorrow.
——
Perhaps due to Yaozhong's recent rapid growth, or perhaps due to the launch of Yangjia's related products a few days ago, today's scene is exceptionally lively.
The fact that all the prominent figures in Hong Kong's political and business circles gathered here made an uninformed person think that something extraordinary was about to happen.
"Miss Ling."
As soon as Ling Yan handed the invitation to the security guard for inspection, someone came up to her and started a conversation.
She turned her head and saw Yang Ruo, dressed in a white suit, looking quite respectable.
He was looking at her with a cunning and despicable smile.
"Young Master Yang."
Maintaining the politeness and formality, Ling Yan nodded slightly to him and prepared to ignore this insignificant person and walk into the room.
"Miss Ling, please wait a moment."