Chapter 2684: Chapter 2684: Demand The Money
Everyone watched the black vehicle disappear into the distance until someone finally shattered the heavy, suffocating silence with a scream filled with raw, unadulterated rage.
"Chen Meili! You are a complete and total jinx! You have single-handedly ruined all of us!" One of the male relatives shouted, his face turning a dark, dangerous shade of purple as he stepped toward her.
A female relative suddenly lunged forward with a snarl of animalistic fury and slapped Chen Meili hard across the face. The sharp, stinging sound of the impact echoed through the quiet street like a gunshot. Xue Jinghua instantly snapped out of her paralysed daze and shoved the woman away with surprising strength, shielding her sobbing daughter protectively behind her back.
"What do you think you are doing!? How dare you lay a hand on her!" Xue Jinghua shouted, her long-suppressed maternal instincts finally erupting in a desperate protective flare. "Meili, talk to me, are you alright?"
She hurriedly examined her daughter’s trembling cheek and saw a bright, angry red handprint rapidly forming against the pale, tear-stained skin.
"Your daughter deserved that slap and even worse!" The woman shouted back, her own eyes red with a mixture of tears and venomous fury. "She played with our lives just to satisfy her own ego!"
"You!!!" Xue Jinghua trembled violently, her body shaking with a volatile mixture of rage, deep humiliation, and cold fear.
"I do not care about your feelings or your excuses anymore! Today, I am not leaving this doorstep without my compensation money in my hand. Otherwise, I will drag your precious daughter outside and beat her up myself!" The woman threatened loudly, her voice rising to a feverish, hysterical pitch.
"That’s right! Give us our money! We would not leave until we’re paid!"
The other relatives immediately joined in, shouting aggressively and demanding financial compensation from Chen Guoliang’s family with renewed, predatory hostility. Seeing how dangerous and emotionally charged the situation had become, and noticing the neighbours beginning to peek through their curtains, Chen Guoliang no longer dared to refuse them outright or argue back.
"Everyone, please, just calm down first! We really do not have that much liquid cash available in the house right now. We will find a way to compensate all of you later, I promise on my name!" Chen Guoliang hurriedly said, raising both hands in a gesture of total surrender.
The relatives exchanged cold, calculating glances with one another, silently measuring his desperation.
"Fine. We will leave for now and come back at dawn tomorrow morning. You had better prepare every cent of that money by then. Otherwise, do not blame us for whatever happens next. We have nothing left to lose, but you still have a house." One of the relatives deliberately dragged out his words, leaving a heavy, violent threat hanging in the morning air.
"We understand... we understand perfectly. We will prepare it." Chen Guoliang nodded repeatedly, his pride now completely shattered into dust.
Only then did the furious crowd finally disperse, muttering threats as they left the property. The house felt unnervingly empty once the door was finally locked.
"Are we... are we really going to give them our entire life savings? That was for our retirement." Xue Jinghua asked nervously, her voice barely a whisper as she looked toward her husband.
"Do you think we even have another choice at this point? If we refuse, they might actually tear this house down with us still trapped inside it. They are desperate, Jinghua, and desperate people are capable of anything." Chen Guoliang replied bitterly, his voice sounding hollow, aged, and utterly exhausted.
Xue Jinghua immediately fell silent, the crushing, physical weight of their ruined future finally settling over her heart like a lead weight.
"Mom... Dad... Am I really going to jail?" Chen Meili asked in a trembling and tearful voice, her cheek still burning painfully from the slap.
"Stop your crying. It is incredibly annoying, and it would not fix a thing. All of this... every single bit of this disaster happened because of your insatiable pride and your utter stupidity." Chen Guoliang snapped coldly, his eyes no longer holding love, but only resentment and deep disappointment.
"Husband! How can you say that to her at a time like this? She is terrified!" Xue Jinghua shouted in disbelief.
Chen Guoliang merely snorted in disgust before turning his back on them and walking toward his study without another word. Meanwhile, Chen Meili continued sobbing helplessly in her mother’s arms, while the thick, ominous stack of legal documents remained scattered and forgotten across the floor, a testament to her downfall.
...
Yu Qi had accepted the formal dinner invitation from the Heavenly Crane Pavilion. Lei Yingtai had informed her earlier that a high-ranking delegation had specifically travelled to FINN City just to meet her in person. To show their sincerity, they had reserved an exclusive private room at one of the most famous and expensive restaurants in the city.
Tonight was the arranged meeting.
Yu Qi drove calmly toward the restaurant, her mind focused and her demeanour composed. Upon arriving at the grand entrance, she informed the attentive waiter that she was there for a reservation made under someone else’s name. The waiter politely bowed and asked for the reservation name so he could verify it against their guest list.
Unfortunately, Yu Qi realised she did not know which exact name or title they had used for the booking. Just as she was about to mention the surname Lou, a clear, familiar voice suddenly called out to her from behind.
"Miss Tang."
Yu Qi turned around and saw Chang Shuchun approaching, flanked by two men who radiated a distinct martial presence.
***This novel is a contracted work with w e b n o v e l. c o m. If you do not read this novel on w e b n o v e l. c o m, that means it has been stolen. Thank you, from your shameless author, ZerahNeko***
