Chapter 133: Who the Hell Do You Think You Are
Chapter 133: Who the Hell Do You Think You Are
Zhang Yang hadn’t even finished his damn sleep before being woken up!
He had just returned to the villa early in the morning to catch up on some sleep, but within three hours, he’d already gotten a bunch of strange calls—some threatening, some begging—all of them about the Bai family.
He could only turn off his phone, but still didn’t manage to sleep! He was about ready to kneel to all those people trying to find him—these bastards even contacted Zhou Wei and Li Jindong.
Those two bros couldn’t reach Zhang Yang by phone, so they came straight to the villa.
“Fifty million, as long as you let the Bai family go!” When Li Jindong said that number, even he didn’t seem to believe it himself.
Zhang Yang rubbed his eyes and looked at Li Jindong. This guy had fought others for his sake, even offended Bai Liangfeng for him—he considered him a true brother. Now that even this brother came to him, it showed how terrifying the opponent’s influence was.
“So what’s your take on this?” Zhang Yang asked, since Li Jindong also knew about Gao Qi, and now he was He Shan’s boyfriend—He Mei was technically his sister-in-law.
“As long as you say the word, I’ll follow your lead,” Li Jindong said angrily.
“Is that so?” Zhang Yang glanced at him and smiled faintly. “If that were true, you wouldn’t be here at the villa. I bet your father’s already under a lot of pressure, huh?”
Li Jindong gave an awkward smile. “You guessed it. Many markets have said they won’t take my father’s seafood anymore. The higher-ups claim there are problems with his fishing boats and say they need inspections. All of this suddenly came up this morning, and it’s clearly just to get me to talk to you. Shows how powerful your enemies are.”
“Yeah, my father’s dealing with the same thing. Several construction projects are suddenly ‘canceled,’ and even the bank loans seem to be getting frozen. All this just to get me, as your classmate, to talk you down,” Zhou Wei added awkwardly.
“Got it!” Zhang Yang stretched and yawned again. Looking at them, he said, “I can’t drag you two into this. Tell them they can call me—but after I wake up. I’m too damn tired right now.”
“Alright!” Li Jindong stood up. As they reached the door, he turned back to Zhang Yang and said, “Yangzi, no matter what you decide, I’ll back you. Those bastards—so what if my family’s fishery goes under? We’ll still live!”
“Yeah, Yangzi, I’m with you too. Our Dingxin company just took a contract from your Nuwa Company anyway. Forget the other projects! Go for it without worry!”
Warmth rose in Zhang Yang’s heart, though he kept a faint smile on his face and nodded. “Alright, got it. I’ll handle everything.”
After they left, Zhang Yang fell into thought. Sure enough, the other side had started moving. It definitely wasn’t the Bai family—they didn’t have that kind of reach. These people were just afraid of getting dragged down with them. Of course, some idiots probably just wanted to show off.
But right now—fuck it, I’m sleeping first! Way too damn tired!
In the afternoon, after waking up, Zhang Yang turned his phone back on. Not long after, an unfamiliar number called.
Zhang Yang glanced at it and picked up.
“Mr. Zhang?” The voice was deep, with the tone of someone long steeped in the underworld.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Who I am doesn’t matter.” The man spoke with that smug, self-important tone, deliberately dragging out the suspense.
“Damn it, then I’m hanging up!” Zhang Yang barked. Only a handful of close acquaintances knew his number, so whoever was calling clearly got it through Li Jindong or Zhou Wei. Meaning this guy wanted to play games with him—but Zhang Yang hated posers, especially ones pointing their guns at him.
The caller was obviously caught off guard by Zhang Yang’s attitude. After a short, awkward pause, he hurriedly said, “I’m just a middleman. I wonder if you got the message Mr. Li Jindong brought you this morning?”
“What bullshit message?”
“Well…” The man’s tone showed he wanted to get angry, but he held it in. “It’s about reconciling with the Bai family. They’re willing to pay fifty million to settle all grievances between you and them.”
“Fifty million?” Zhang Yang glanced at the number. “If they want to talk, tell them to come themselves.”
“Uh…”
“Can’t do that? Then I’m hanging up.”
“Wait—please hold on, someone else wants to speak with you.” The man clearly handed the phone to another person.
After a moment, a slightly aged voice came through the receiver. “Young man, how about we meet later? Pick a time.”
Zhang Yang thought for a moment. Maybe it was time to talk to the people behind the Bai family. “Alright, where?”
“Kangjing Hotel.”
On the other end, a gray-haired man nearing sixty hung up the phone. He looked at a middle-aged man in his forties beside him, said nothing, sat slowly on the sofa, rubbed his temples, and said flatly, “That Bai Wensheng really is a handful. If not for old Master Du, I, Peng Huai, wouldn’t bother calling some young punk myself. If word of this gets out, I’ll lose all face as the Vice President of the Southeast Province Business Alliance.”
“Elder Peng, do you really need to deal personally with a nobody like Zhang Yang? That kid has no manners at all—talking to you like that.”
“Hmph, a young man getting lucky early—he’s bound to think the world belongs to him.” The old man picked up his teacup, took a sip, and smacked his lips. “Kids like that won’t know their place until they’re taught a lesson.”
“Elder Peng is right. Then shall I go arrange the meeting for this afternoon?”
“Go ahead. Since Bai Wensheng is no longer under surveillance, have him come too. After all, he’s part of this. We’ll let him see the unity of our alliance. Some backwater brat thinks he can do whatever he wants just because he got lucky? If he wants into our circle, he’ll have to learn the rules.”
*****
When Zhang Yang arrived at Kangjing Hotel that afternoon, he expected to see two or three people. Instead, he found a whole crowd waiting—it looked more like some ancient court tribunal.
But he didn’t think too much of it. Following the waiter, he walked straight into the banquet hall they’d prepared.
The faces there weren’t unfamiliar. Any one of them was a business elite, often appearing in major media outlets.
In the past, Zhang Yang would’ve been nervous as hell—after all, back then, any one of these people could’ve been his future boss.
A well-dressed waiter respectfully led Zhang Yang to a seat at the far end of the table.
Zhang Yang glanced around. It was a luxury VIP room with a bar, a coffee area, a long snack table, and even a handsome bartender.
The room was heated, the huge fireplace crackling warmly. Before he entered, everyone inside had been chatting and laughing, drinking, exchanging business talk. These were successful people, confident and sociable.
But once Zhang Yang showed up, all their smiles froze. His arrival was like a rat dropping into a pot of soup—they all looked at him like he was the damn rat.
Zhang Yang spotted Bai Wensheng, sitting just below the main seat, apparently quite favored.
Zhang Yang gave him a look. Logically, that guy should still be under police surveillance, yet here he was. Clearly, his backers were already pulling strings.
A cold smile flickered across Zhang Yang’s face.
After he sat down, the gray-haired old man at the head cleared his throat and said, “Gentlemen, everyone’s here. Let’s begin.”
Zhang Yang glanced at him. No one greeted him, and he couldn’t care less. He just picked up some snacks and started eating.
Peng Huai, seated at the head, coughed a few times, trying to signal him. “Today, we’ve gathered everyone to introduce a new rising business elite.”
He looked toward Zhang Yang, who was still eating without raising his head, and reluctantly continued, “This man is Zhang Yang, President of the Nuwa Group. Cough… of course, he’s still a bit short of our alliance standards, but after discussion with several directors, we’ve decided to make an exception and welcome him as one of us…”
“Elder Peng, I don’t quite get this. Isn’t our alliance membership limited to companies with assets over a billion? Nuwa’s only been around for less than a month, with registered capital of just twenty million. How does he qualify?” Before Peng Huai could finish, a middle-aged man in a Zhongshan suit stood up, fanning himself and eyeing Zhang Yang disdainfully as he spoke.