One sentence pierced every layer of their false pretense.
Tô Kiến Thành froze, then awkwardly rubbed his hands together. He forced a fawning smile onto his face. “Tình Tình, that’s not what I meant… I just think that President Lý is a man of terrible character who’s done all kinds of bad things. If he gets what’s coming to him, that would be doing the people a favor…”
“Fine.” I cut him off.
The three members of the Tô family all lit up at once.
I held up two fingers and laid out my terms. “First, build me a traditional Chinese courtyard estate with the best feng shui on that plot in the eastern part of the city. It will belong to me. Second, transfer 10 percent of Tô Group’s shares into my name immediately.”
Talk about asking for the moon.
Tô Kiến Thành’s smile froze. His eyes filled with shock and heartache. That plot was worth billions, and 10 percent of the company’s shares was an astronomical sum.
But he looked into my eyes, still as an ancient well, as if they could see through everything. He remembered the chandelier shattering in the house, his eldest son crawling along with blood streaming from his head and his back badly injured, and that bizarre kidnapping…
A bone-chilling cold swept over him, and he didn’t dare refuse.
He gritted his teeth and finally made a momentous decision. “All right! I agree!”
I nodded and stood. “I’ll go to Li Group’s celebratory banquet next week.”
With that, I went straight upstairs.
In the living room, Tô Minh Triết’s heart pounded as he watched me head upstairs, then glanced at his father’s expression, equal parts relieved and heartsick. He secretly took out his phone and quickly texted his investment manager: “Sell every share we hold in Li Group, no matter what! Immediately! Right now!”
Li Group’s celebratory banquet was held at the most luxurious hotel in the city. The place was packed with guests, and the event was exceptionally grand.
I wore the short black dress Tô Minh Triết had carefully picked out for me and sat quietly in a corner, keeping a low profile.
Tô Kiến Thành sat beside me, uneasy and on edge, both hopeful and afraid.
The stars of the banquet, Li Group Chairman Lý Vạn Hào and his arrogant, overbearing son Lý Thiên, stood onstage in high spirits, basking in everyone’s adulation.
When it was time to make the rounds with drinks, they picked up their glasses and deliberately came over to our table.
“Well, if it isn’t President Tô! What brings you to Li Group’s celebratory banquet? Lost a project and feeling down, so you came looking for inspiration?”
Lý Vạn Hào sneered mockingly, drawing a burst of laughter from those around us.
Tô Kiến Thành’s face flushed red with anger, but he didn’t dare say a word.
Lý Thiên, Lý Vạn Hào’s son, let his lecherous gaze fall on me and reached out to touch my face. “President Tô, is this the daughter you brought back from the countryside? She looks unlucky already. But she’s pretty, too. Don’t be afraid, little sister. Come with me, and I’ll make sure you eat well and dress well…”
I picked up a glass of juice and leaned back just before his greasy hand could touch me, dodging it.
He missed, and for some reason his foot suddenly slipped.
The mirror-smooth marble tile beneath him suddenly cracked with a sharp snap.
“Ah!”
Lý Thiên lost his balance and let out a scream as he fell backward. Behind him, a section of the floor had been temporarily removed to make the banquet hall look more attractive. Beneath it was the hotel’s ornamental pond.
With a tremendous splash, Lý Thiên plunged into the water and thrashed wildly in the icy cold.
The entire hall erupted into an uproar.
Lý Vạn Hào flew into a rage. He didn’t even bother to pull his son out; he just pointed at me and cursed, “You! You demoness! You did this!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the huge LED screen behind him, which had been showing a celebratory video, flickered several times. The images changed. Instead of Li Group’s impressive achievements, it began cycling through crystal-clear shots of its ledgers, all solid proof that Li Group had evaded taxes, dodged taxes, and falsified its books!
These materials were Tô Minh Triết’s “last resort.” He’d hacked into the system and prepared them in advance. He’d thought he might never get the chance to use them, but he hadn’t expected…
The hall erupted into an uproar once more. Every guest stared in shock, and countless phones immediately turned toward the screen to take pictures.
Lý Vạn Hào went deathly pale and hurriedly turned around to pull the plug.
But the moment he touched the power cord, it seemed to age all at once. Its outer casing split open, exposing the wires inside.
“Bzzzt—” A powerful current shot through his body. Lý Vạn Hào convulsed violently, his hair standing on end and foam spilling from his mouth. He looked like a ridiculous frog hopping around.
Amid the chaos, every guest’s phone began vibrating wildly at the same time.
“Hello? What? The dirt on Li Group has all been exposed?”
“Oh my God, check the financial news! Li Group’s stock just crashed!”
“The securities bureau and the tax bureau have formed a joint investigation team!”
In just a few short minutes, a grand celebratory banquet had become a live broadcast of judgment and disaster.
I lifted that glass of juice and, amid everyone’s horrified, reverent, disbelieving stares, took an elegant sip.
Standing behind me, Tô Kiến Thành watched the scene of human catastrophe unfolding before his eyes—worse than anything in a Hollywood disaster movie. His legs trembled, but his eyes were alight with wild, irrepressible joy and excitement.
He knew the Tô family was about to rise again.
And all of this was because of me.
The Lý family collapsed.
In a single night, they fell from the clouds into the mire.
The Tô family seized the opportunity to acquire the market share and remaining projects left behind when the Lý family fell apart. Not only did they make up for their earlier losses, but their status and wealth skyrocketed, propelling them to become the city’s true top-tier elite.
Construction began on my traditional Chinese courtyard estate, and the company shares were successfully transferred into my name.
My family’s attitude toward me could no longer be described as mere respect or fear. They were humble and careful around me, almost as if they were worshiping a god.
Tô Noãn Noãn’s last hope crumbled, too. She couldn’t accept defeat—she still had one final ally: her wealthy fiancé, Trương Dương.
The Trương family was a colossal machine, even more powerful than the Tô family at the height of its glory.
Tô Noãn Noãn tearfully begged Trương Dương for help, embellishing her story until I sounded like some witch who practiced sorcery.
Young and hotheaded, Trương Dương didn’t believe in ghosts or gods at all. He thought it was all just coincidence, and that I’d used some underhanded trick.
To stand up for his fiancée, he brought a group of black-clad bodyguards and drove several top-of-the-line supercars straight to the Tô family villa, full of swagger.
“Get Tô Tình out here!”
Trương Dương kicked open the half-closed door and stood arrogantly in the middle of the living room.
Tô Kiến Thành, Lâm Huệ, and Tô Minh Hiên were so frightened their faces turned deathly pale. They might not have feared the Lý family, but they absolutely couldn’t afford to offend Trương Dương.
“Young Master Trương, Young Master Trương, we can talk this out. It’s all a misunderstanding...” Tô Kiến Thành bent low, bowing and scraping as he welcomed him.
“Get out of my way!”