At the ice-cream parlor, Chyou finally got her well-deserved ice cream. An Guoting frowned, seeing nothing on Zizi's side. "You are not eating?"
Zizi said, "I am dieting."
"Aish. What dieting? Aren't you already slim enough? Don't torture your body like this. You should enjoy it as much as you can."
He ordered a cup of butter-scotch ice cream for her against her protests. Zizi gulped.
How many calories are there?
"Don't think about the calories. Just eat," he sternly said.
Zizi coughed.
She scrolled through the phone as she took a bite when she coughed hard.
An Guoting widened his eyes. "What happened? Are you alright?"
"What the hell is this!?" She read a news article on her phone. "It says here about bro's new company. Someone leaked some evidence that the hotel construction bro is undertaking is not safe and is violating safety and environmental laws!"
An Guoting checked on his phone and was shocked to read the news.
It was published that an accident occurred today at the construction site where one worker was seriously injured. On investigation, it was found that the land hadn't passed safety inspection checks. It was alleged that Han Zhiyuan didn't care about the laws and only focussed on completing the project as soon as possible.
Then the whole topic of Keung becoming the CEO cropped up, and it was leaked that there was a competition between the cousins about who would make the most profit. Thus, Zhiyuan was accused that since he didn't have much time until the two quarters would get over, he was ignoring the proper laws in haste and compromising on the quality of the construction.
Mu Constructions and Zhiyuan were jointly accused of this terrible accident. There was no statement from the injured worker yet as he was still recovering.
"This is nonsense! Bro always puts quality and safety over anything!"
"Zizi, don't worry. These accusations won't hold any water."
She gritted her teeth. "Damn it! Is that Keung pulling all this stuff? I am so gonna-"
She saw Chyou startled at the sudden conversation, and she toned down. "I mean, I will slap him real hard…"
An Guoting said, "Let's quickly go back. I hope Zhiyuan will be okay."
—
The Han villa was not at all okay. The reporters swarmed outside, barraging questions and demanding to be led inside.
"Han Zhiyuan, please answer our questions! What do you have to say about the injured worker?"
"Did you really ignore safety laws to win this competition?"
"Is there strife going on between you and Han Keung?"
Inside the villa was a tense atmosphere. Han Guang and Han Mingli were enjoying the scene that was taking place.
"I cannot believe this, Zhiyuan. You would go this far to win," Han Mingli sighed.
"Don't blame him, Mingli. Keung won the first round, after all. Of course, he would win the second one. No matter how much he tries, it's all useless."
Xinyi coldly said, "You are enjoying this very much, Aunt. I wonder if you have something to do with this."
Han Guang sneered. "Now that you are in trouble, you want to shift the blame to me? We don't have to do anything because Keung will win. Your puny company isn't gonna make the cut."
Zizi glared at Keung. "Keung! You are definitely behind this, aren't you? You feel threatened and pull such a cheap trick. I cannot believe you would put an innocent worker's life in danger!"
Keung narrowed his eyes. "I don't want to explain myself."
"Heh. You are so good in keeping mouths shut. Whether it be yours or Aunt Yueqin's."
Han Huizhong ignored the arguments and looked at Zhiyuan. "Why are you so quiet?"
Zhiyuan squinted his eyes. "These are all just allegations in the end. Nobody has evidence that I compromised anywhere. I can show all the proof that we did all the quality tests and only started construction when everything had passed."
"Then how did the worker get injured?"
"It might be an accident."
Han Guang smiled. "Don't try to avoid responsibility, Zhiyuan. We will only know once the worker is conscious again. And…if he testifies that there was some problem with the construction, then be ready to face criminal charges. You might have to spend your life in jail."
Xinyi replied. "You don't have to think that far ahead, Aunt. Everything will be fine."
Zhiyuan got up and adjusted his coat. "I am going to visit the hospital. He is injured. It's still my responsibility to be present."
"I will come too-"
"No, Xinyi. It's all a mess outside. It's dangerous so be at home."
She pursed her lips.
Han Tian said, "I will come with you too."
—
The reporters followed Zhiyuan to the hospital, which he didn't care about. They went up to the floor where the worker, He Jing, was admitted.
His wife was outside, crying and in distress with her daughter by her side.
Zhiyuan asked, "Is he awake?"
The doctor shook his head. "It will be a little while more."
He nodded.
His wife He Xing confronted him. "You! You are the one who is the owner of that hotel, right? I am telling you, if-if anything happens to my husband, then I will sue you!" She sobbed. "Without him….how will I live if anything happens to him? What about my daughter? How will I raise her without him?"
Zhiyuan was solemn. "Mam. He Jing will be alright. The investigation is going on for the cause of the accident. I, Han Zhiyuan, will never put anybody's life in danger."
Yunru had just entered the hospital too when He Jing was finally awake. They met him in his ward and after doctor's go-ahead for questioning, Yunru asked, "I am Chief Soo Yunru. I would like to ask you some questions about your accident."
He painfully nodded.
"How did this happen?"
"I was…working as usual…Suddenly, a p-part of the building collapsed…I ran in time but still hit my shoulder and neck," he gasped.
"How did the part fall off?"
He took a breath.. "I don't know…B-But I heard some rumors a-among other workers that…they were afraid of working here because…the ma-materials used in construction…were of poor quality."
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