Chapter 235 - Tight Spot (II)

The assistant hurriedly left. 

Xiong De leaned back to his seat. His phone rang. It was from the Xiong Ci Mansion. He answered immediately. It was most likely about his daughter.

As soon as he answered, the panicked voice of the head butler rang inside his office.

"Master! Young Miss is having a terrible fit right now! One maid is critically injured and is delivered to the ICU. Young Miss is also hurting herself. She broke all the furniture in the mansion and refused medication..."

Xiong De massaged his forehead. It was aching terribly. 

"How come she was out? I told you not to let her go and to guard her room."

Clang. Bang. Crash.

"I'm gonna kill her! Bitch! Let me out! I will kill her right now!" Xiong Wuye's manic voice echoed loudly in the background.

"Where is she?" Xiong De frowned.

"We are in the living room. Young Miss had lost her mind," the head butler said in terror as sounds of destruction continued.

Xiong De furrowed his brows. He expected her to throw tantrums and vent her anger for what happened yesterday night. But it appeared like it was worse than he thought. 

For Xiong Wuyue to almost kill a maid, something must have truly irked her.

"What happened?" Xiong De was suspicious.

"According to the other maid, Xiong Wuyue called for them and borrowed their phone for a moment. She had learned the news of Young Miss Xiong Zhi becoming the official heir and also got favor from the other two families. T-then she also learned the news about her. She finally blew up when she saw a picture of her." 

The head butler knew that they were keeping the news about the heiress from Young Miss Wuyue, because this would surely happen. But for it to escalate to this...

Xiong De felt tired all of a sudden. It was early morning yet he wanted to call it a day already and just rest. But there were still many matters at hand. 

"Alright. Keep hold of the mouths of everyone there. We should not let out anything that happened today. Put someone to know the situation in the ICU. Don't let anyone else know. If the maid lives, give her money and get her out of the country. The farther, the better. And tell Wuyue that I will be coming home soon."

Xiong De put down his phone. He knew why his daughter was blown this much. 

She had learned the news that Xiong Zhi had become such a powerful and vital person in the Xiong family. 

It meant that they could not put the blame on her for what happened in the party, unless they were prepared to be exiled as outcasts by the main branch. His daughter clearly understood the situation and erupted in fury, recklessly venting out. 

How could his proud daughter let it pass peacefully when she suffered such a great humiliation? 

Xiong De sighed. For now, he could not go directly against the main branch just yet. He still needed two years to consolidate his power and influence so he would be fully confident that he could go against the first branch. 

It looked like he needed to find a way to make his daughter feel better.

He swung on his chair back and forth in deep meditation, his legs tapping on the floor. After planning a bit, he took another deep breath and dialed a number. It was a person he knew in the underworld.

After two rings, the other answered.

"Mr. Xiong De! You have extra cash to throw at me?" 

"I know you have heard the news. I want you throw dirt on someone. But be discreet about it. I'll send the details. Once you are done, I will give you twice of the price. Don't mess this up." 

Xiong De put down his phone after discussing with the other person. His cold eyes were particularly chillier today.

*****

With Xiong De's efforts of bribing the media agencies, they erased their article and put another article instead. It was about the heiress of Xiong Empire giving the Golden Time dress as a gift. 

This news gave another strong boost to Xiong Zhi's popularity. 

Despite this, Xiong De had no choice but to let it pass. How could he say to the public that it was Xiong Zhi who had bullied his daughter, when she had given such a generous gift to the celebrant? No one would believe, and it would also do him harm, driving away the main branch. The father and daughter pair had no choice but to swallow this humiliation.

There was also the Shi Hua Media who refused Xiong De's money and pressing. The picture of the drenched and beaten up Xiong Wuyue became a famous meme. Netizens put different captions on it and it circulated in all media platforms, whether it was Weibo, WeChat, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Xiong Wuyue's reputation got worse, and people began to strongly doubt her previously established image. 

No way, that face of Xiong Wuyue on the picture was too malevolent that it spoke volumes. 

The subject herself was trapped in the Xiong Ci mansion as her father could only let her vent there.

****

While all of this was happening, Linfeng flew to the United States. He was about to meet the five big bosses that he needed to collaborate with in his big project. This project was what would make SC reach the highest point. 

He remembered what his father had asked him before. 

'Can you raise the Zhou family to the pedestal alone with that puny business of yours?' 

Linfeng knew his father's worries. 

At that time, he answered confidently, 'The Zhou family can live without the Xiong family'. 

At that time, he was not speaking nonsense. He knew well what things he needed to prepare in order to take off the shackles that had long bound the Zhou family to the Xiong family.

Today was the start of a big step. He needed to secure this deal.

Linfeng was led to the highest floor. This office was very luxurious. The walls were made of slick stones, the floor was covered with a one of a kind carpet of the rarest furs. The ceiling was made of meteor glass, with an advanced open roof system over it that could freely cover the ceiling during the day, or open to unveil the sky on sunsets or starry nights.

Inside the big office that spanned a whole floor, five cozy couches in different colors and materials, obviously fashioned to each of their owner's taste, were situated right in the center. 

There were already five men sitting on them. Their suits matched the colors of their couches. Linfeng felt amused that these men, who were known as the 'kings', would actually pay attention to details like this. 

For him, he found it childish. Actually, even the 'king' title was childish to him. But he did not comment on it, since he was the one who needed their approval for this big project.

After the assistant announced his presence, all five men looked at him simultaneously.

They studied him for briefly before they greeted him.

Linfeng bowed and smiled at them with his usual polite smile. He did not show any shock or confusion as there were more people here present other than the man he was supposed to meet.

"I'm Zhou Linfeng, at your service. It's a pleasure to meet you." 

The five men also introduced themselves.

The half-Chinese and half-American man who introduced himself as Erich spoke first after the introduction.

"I believe you are the man behind SC." Erich was actually the first man to take notice of Linfeng. He was the person who contacted Linfeng and wanted to meet him in person.

(a/n: refer chap 204, when Linfeng had said to Jang Shin that he would answer the person who wanted to meet him personally )

Erich's company was only a few years older than Linfeng, but it already had a stable standing in the industry. He had a certain influence in China, which was why he had heard of Linfeng's company. He was the one who scouted Linfeng.

Linfeng looked at the men beside Erich. He knew that part of the reason as to why Erich's company stood stably even when his company was relatively new was because of the big four behind him. With the help the other big four 'kings', Erich's company rose smoothly. 

"Yes, I am." Linfeng answered. He did not bother hiding it since these people have many ways to know it.

The tall, dark, and brown-haired man who was called Johan, the successor of a big empire in South America and had great dealings with the black market, asked him in wonder.

"You're not surprised to see us. I bet you knew?"

Linfeng nodded politely. 

"I did my homework while you did yours." 

The men laughed at his answer. 

The more they looked at this young guy, the more they come to like him. 

This youngster was full of potential.

Coming here to the United States from their respective sites and meeting him was all worth it, for these men who had their schedules full to the brim.