“Now we can only see if the cooperation between Lao Qiu and the Xue family can break the ice.” Huo Peixue looked much more haggard than before. His once black hair was sporadically stained with gray. He shoved the cigarette into the ashtray heavily and said, “If there is some progress, the Qiu family might be able to give us some support.”
“Didn’t you say that the talks are almost over?” Huo Lin’s tone was a little dissatisfied “Isn’t it unfair for the Xue family to back out after all our investments? If they had decided earlier, the Qiu family wouldn’t be in such dire straits.”
“You’re still saying that!” Huo Peixue shot Huo Lin a fierce glance.
“Can you blame me?” Huo Lin’s emotions surged. “Don’t act like you’re unaware of Qiu Qi’s temper. It’s because you’re so keen on other people’s money that you insisted on pressuring me into marrying into the Qiu family. What if I was still with Xia Wan, maybe I’d have gained favor with the Xue family by now”
“Who do you think you’re shouting at? If you had half the capability of Huo Yu, would I need to go to such lengths to arrange your marriage?” Huo Peixue shouted coldly. He continued, “And as for Xia Wan, do you honestly believe that the Xue family refused to cooperate with the Qiu family because of him? Use your pig brain and you’ll realize it’s just an excuse.”
“Since you like Huo Yu so much, let him be your son!” Huo Peixue’s words touched Huo Lin’s nerves, and he said angrily, “If so, Why did you want to kill him in the first place? ”
“Huo Lin!” Huo Peixue was also furious, “Pay attention to what you are saying.”
Huo Lin held back for a moment, then turned away in anger, choosing silence.
The room fell silent, enveloped in a heavy and stifling atmosphere.
“Even though the current project is on hold, our family still has opportunities elsewhere,” Huo Peixue sighed, softening his tone. “There are several projects in other locations that will be less affected. Like your project, since the existing one can’t proceed for now, let’s explore options with a new project.”
Huo Lin’s heart skipped a beat, the anger just now disappeared, and all turned into guilt. His project was now even more messy. Despite utilizing every available resource around him, even the little money from the Xia family was used, even so, it was still a drop in the bucket.
Until the land ownership issue was resolved, progressing with the project remained an impossible task. Whether the land was sold or taken over, the losses caused are beyond what the Huo family can bear now.
Huo Lin lowered his head and said, “How about we look for Huo Yu?”
Huo Peixue glanced at him but remained silent.
“In any case, the success of the Huo family is a result of Huo Yu’s father’s efforts. He can’t just stand by and watch his father’s hard work vanish, can he?” Huo Lin stated.
“What you’re suggesting should only be considered as a last resort,” Huo Peixue frowned. “Now, concentrate on your project. Besides, there might be a turning point for the Qiu family.”
Huo Lin felt nervous. He opened his mouth, then ultimately swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
…..
In the dim corner of the bar, Li Yue leaned back in the booth, casually swirling the wine glass in his hand. He observed the person he had been waiting for, who finally arrived after turning down the third person trying to hit on him.
“Why pick a spot like this?” Huo Yu, with a cold expression, took a seat across from him, frowning slightly.
“What else, it is a great place, with so many handsome guys and beautiful women,” Li Yue joked, “it’s so popular.”
Huo Yu ignored him and ordered an avocado milkshake for himself: “How is the arrangement going at the exhibition?”
“It’s all set.” Li Yue said, “Have you seen the works that are going to be displayed?”
“I’ve seen it in general.” Huo Yu paused, “That being Spring Mountain” is good.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Li Yue smiled upon hearing the words. “That painting is the trump card. I also suggested that it could make ‘W’ a sensation at the exhibition.”
Coafg rajalcu atlr, tf jvvfv, “Tbe mjc’a gfpfma la atlr alwf.”
“Q?” Lfjglcu atlr, Leb Te abbx j wbwfca ab gfmjii. Snfcaejiis, tf gfwfwyfgfv atf qjlcalcu tf tjv jmdelgfv bc atf mbnfgfv yglvuf, ktlmt lcvffv tjv j ibkfgmjrf “k” lcrmglyfv bc la. Pa kjr ecmbwwbc ab mbwf jmgbrr jcbatfg qlfmf, jcv la tjqqfcfv ab yf ogbw atf rjwf jgalra. Pa rffwfv atja tf jcv atlr qjlcafg ageis rtjgfv rbwf xlcv bo vfralcs.
“It turned out to be him,” Huo Yu said.
“Don’t tell me you didn’t read the artist’s name,” Li Yue’s eyes took on a slightly menacing tone. “Your homework is too perfunctory.”
Huo Yu took a sip of the milkshake: “How is the recent contact with Huo’s shareholders?”
“The situation at the Huo family hasn’t been great lately. Some shareholders who have been steadfast before are showing interest in selling their shares. However, given Huo’s longstanding stability, most people are currently adopting a wait-and-see approach,” Li Yue explained.
Huo Yu lightly tapped his knuckles on the edge of the table. He was well aware that shareholders were still holding onto the hope that the Qiu family’s project might turn things around. Whether it was due to a soft spot for his father’s efforts or a desire to return to the Huo family, there were potential ways out for the Huo family.
Having Yan Rui behind him served as his significant backup – the biggest retreat.
However, these fallback options had also become obstacles in his attempt to acquire Huo’s.
“At present, the share of shares we have acquired is far from enough,” Li Yue said, “Even if all the shareholders who have expressed interest in selling release half of their shares, it’s still a bit short.”
“Wei Qian mentioned the same thing two days ago,” Huo Yu said, turning the cup in his hand in silence. “However, Shenzhou and Langqiao have been performing well in the past two years, and the Jiangnan project has been yielding high returns recently. So, I’ve come up with a new idea.”
As he spoke, a faint smile appeared in his eyes. The smile had a touch of darkness and a hint of ambiguity. In the slightly dim lighting, it gave him a mysterious and attractive appearance, creating a perplexing atmosphere.
“Who are you showing evil intentions to again?” Li Yue became inexplicably excited.
“Isn’t it true that the Qiu family’s project can’t be completed?” Huo Yu smiled casually.
“Didn’t you say that the old man of the Qiu family hasn’t given up yet?” Li Yue asked doubtfully, “I heard that he has been running to the Xue family recently. He has some friendship with the old man of the Xue family, and maybe things may change again.”
Huo Yu hooked the corner of his mouth playfully: “It’s unlikely.”
Last weekend, he and Xia Wan treated the Xue family to dinner as a gesture of appreciation. They chose the same restaurant where he had dined with Yan Rui previously.
Seeing the entire Xue family, including Xue Zhen, arriving at the restaurant, Huo Yu’s suspicions were subtly confirmed. The dinner-only made his suspicions more evident.
Although each of them was very restrained and tried to maintain their emotions, their enthusiasm and love for Xia Wan were still too obvious.
Especially Wen Yunzhi and Xue Zhen.
Huo Yu was not sure at what the Xue family’s current position at. Huo Yu wasn’t certain about the Xue family’s current stance. Were they merely suspicious, or did they already possess concrete evidence? However, given that Su Tang and Xia Wan shared the same dormitory, he prefers that the Xue family already has definite evidence.
Once this thought crossed his mind and observed Xia Wan and Wen Yunzhi sitting together, a subtle sense of similarity between the two became apparent. Therefore, Huo Yu completely abandoned the idea of cooperating with the Xue family.
Given his past experiences, especially the issues between Shen Yan and Su Tang, Huo Yu was cautious. The problem between Shen Yan and Su Tang originated from a similar situation.
Shen Yan and Su Tang first met each other on set.
At the time, Su Tang was mingling with a group of young individuals, looking inside. Shen Yan mistakenly assumed that, like those people, he was a fan of Sun Baijiang who had come to visit the set.
In fact, Su Tang did come to visit the Sun Baijiang, but it was his mother Wen Hengzhi.
Later, at a business exchange meeting, Shen Yan met Su Tang again.
Coincidentally, Sun Baijiang was also invited to that exchange meeting.
Su Tang was beautiful and cute, and Shen Yan became attracted to him every time he came and went.
After the two had been dating for a few months, Shen Yan had a very important project and wanted to win the opportunity to cooperate with the Xue family. He also personally visited Wen Yunzhi several times, but it was a pity that Wen Yunzhi rejected his proposal.
Soon after, Su Tang took him to see his family, and he didn’t know the relationship between Su Tang and the Xue family until the car stopped in front of Xue’s house.
Of course, he didn’t dare to mention a word about the project, but after Wen Yunzhi knew about his relationship with Su Tang, he opened up to him and planned to inject capital into his project.
This matter completely angered Su Tang, thinking that Shen Yan was just using him to achieve his own goals, no matter how Shen Yan swears, Su Tang never met with Shen Yan alone again.
Huo Yu didn’t want to make the same mistake.
Hence, despite Xia Wan attempting to bring up the topic of a new line of sunglasses, shoes, bags, and other accessories multiple times during dinner to create opportunities for cooperation, Huo Yu quietly avoided it without mentioning a word.
On the way back, Xia Wan stomped his feet in frustration.
The person Huo Yu had put so much effort into trying to find was right in front of him.
It was apparent that he had long planned to exploit this individual for his own advantage, swiftly reclaiming what rightfully belonged to him. However, when the moment arrived, Huo Yu hesitated.
At this moment, with just a few strategic tricks, he could easily gain control of everything. However, he willingly discarded the possibility of collaborating with the Xue family that he had been contemplating.
Because he likes Xia Wan.
The love he has for Xia Wan is pure, without any other superficial thoughts.
It has nothing to do with who Xia Wan’s parents are or what his family background is.
Huo Yu also desires that regardless of whether they can be together in the future. If Xia Wan ever thinks about this relationship in the future, he wants Xia Wan to only remember that he was genuinely liked and cared for by him with sincerity and care.
Nothing else.
“Why is it impossible?” Li Yue asked doubtfully, “Where did the news come from? Is it accurate?”
“Accurate.” Huo Yu said.
“Even if it’s accurate, what relevance does it have to us?” Li Yue failed to grasp Huo Yu’s intention. “If you aim to replace the Xue family, financially it’s not feasible.”
“I’m not looking to replace the Xue family,” Huo Yu smiled. “I want to replace the Qiu family.”
“Are you out of your mind?” Li Yue shook the hand holding the wine glass, and a few drops of cold wine splashed on the back of his hand. “You don’t want the funds invested by the Qiu family, but the Qiu family itself. Even if you can’t budge the Xue family, can you manage the Qiu family? In my opinion, this project would only be reliable if the Xue family gets involved.”
“I’ve never been so awake,” Huo Yu smiled meaningfully at him, “If the Xue family is determined not to cooperate with the Qiu family, the Qiu family will only be able to survive for two months at most, and then they will face huge compensation. When that time comes, do you think even if we extend an olive branch to them at half price, they’ll be equally grateful?”
Li Yue was stunned upon hearing this. Taking over at half price presented a tremendous profit opportunity, but without a reliable partner, the risk could be substantial.
Huo Yu seemed to know what Li Yue was thinking, he smiled confidently and said: “As for the Xue family, rest assured, I’ve got it covered.”
The Xue family will no longer pursue this project, not because it’s a bad project, but because Qiu Qi offended Xia Wan.
In reality, the Xue family invested considerable time and effort into it, rejecting many other projects. Prior to the incident in the hot pot restaurant, they were genuinely interested in this project. It’s not that the project is flawed, but the involvement of the Qiu family.
If the project’s partner isn’t the Qiu family, Huo Yu is confident that the Xue family will certainly come back.
On the way back, Huo Yu put on headphones and listened to Xia Wan’s live broadcast while driving.
After Xia Chengzhang was discharged from the hospital, Xia Wan broadcasted several times and gradually found a more suitable sales method.
Xia Wan no longer exclusively promotes a single product but chooses to optimize the combination of different products under the same brand, or combine different types of products and promote them.
Like today.
The items he showcased weren’t limited to prunes and spiced beans; they also included the clothing he wore, the ornaments on the table, and even the ring he put on before the live broadcast.
And recently, his performance has become more and more stable, and his sales have been growing steadily.
In the last live broadcast, he surpassed 20 million in sales within just one and a half hours.
Now, Xia Wan is no longer the one choosing brands and products; instead, brands and products choose him.
As usual, Xia Wan remained mostly silent. Most of the time, the sound in Huo Yu’s earphones was the noise of him eating.
Sometimes fast and sometimes slow, making Huo Yu unconsciously imagine Xia Wan’s expressions. When it’s fast, he is more relaxed, and when it’s slow, most likely he would be watching the bullet screen carefully, and his eyes would remain wide open, which looks very cute.
Huo Yu tapped lightly with his hand on the steering wheel.
Unconsciously the corner of his mouth raised into a smile.
TN
Huo Yu is too nice!!!
Thank You for the new chapter ( ∩ˇωˇ∩)♡
On the one hand, I’m really glad that Huo Yu really wants to make sure Xia Wan knows that he doesn’t want to use their relationship for profit. On the other hand, I worry a little that he’s going to try and keep Xia Wan from finding out the truth.
This 👆Once Xia Wan learns the truth, Huo Yu would do the best thing to listen to him when he wants to talk about it and discuss it. Maybe less strategizing in the shadows would convince Xia Wan of the purity of his love better than anythin. just sayin’ 🤷🏻♀️🤗
Feel bad for Shen Yan but I understand why Su Tang would think that. It was really bad timing and luck, hopefully they’ll be okay. Huo Yu you sweet guy
HY i love you man