Volume 4: Hidden Struggles, Chapter 123: Unrestrained Vigor

When Chu Tianyu and Ouyang Ziyi heard this voice, their bodies trembled instantly, and they turned to look at Qin Nianran, who was slowly emerging from the crowd.
Chu Tianyu and Ouyang Ziyi were surprised because they never expected Qin Nianran to appear at such a time. Their elder brother, Chu Tiancheng, had already sent an invitation to Qin Muyun, the elderly Qin family head, who happened to be in the capital. However, given the awkward relationship between the two families, they hadn’t held much hope. Sure enough, the elderly Qin head immediately declined on the grounds of illness. With him not even showing up, they hadn’t expected Qin Nianran to suddenly appear and offer such decisive support at this critical moment!
Today, Qin Nianran wore light makeup—her cheeks slightly rosy, her lips vividly red. With a solemn expression and dressed in a silver-white gown complemented by crystal-high heels, she resembled a proud and delicate snow lotus, exuding an air of nobility and elegance that seemed to invite only distant admiration rather than closeness.
As the situation escalated, a sense of tension grew. Even before the CEO of Huahuang stepped forward, those in Zhou Tianxing’s group who knew more about Huahuang gradually stepped back.
When Bai Lei’s parents appeared, several corporate executives with close supply relationships with them also stepped forward without hesitation, standing in the middle to declare their stance.
Especially when several subsidiaries of Qianfeng appeared one after another, the situation reached a new climax. Several major companies withdrew and clearly sided with the Chu family. This made Zhou Tianxing’s face even more ugly!
His earlier confident demeanor vanished, sweat beaded on his forehead, and his body trembled slightly. Clearly losing control of the sudden change in the situation, he stared at the less than half remaining executives, his mind in chaos…
To be honest, even among those remaining executives, aside from a few of Zhou Tianxing’s close allies, the others also looked troubled, torn between loyalty and hesitation. If not for their intricate ties to Tianxing Group, facing so many powerful forces, they would have long stepped out of the crowd—either to join the other side or to protect themselves.

But the moment Qin Nianran appeared, Zhou Tianxing seemed to grasp at a life raft; his face immediately turned rosy, and he straightened his already not-so-erect back. With a wave of his arm, he drew everyone’s attention, while saying in an exaggeratedly contemptuous tone, “Heh, I was wondering who it could be— isn’t it little Nianran? How’s your grandfather? Aren’t you still in school? You’ve been away these days, so you probably don’t know the actual situation in Fudu. Hasn’t your grandfather told you?”

To all these questions, Qin Nianran remained calm, with no expression at all and giving no reply.

Zhou Tianxing narrowed his eyes but didn’t mind her coldness and continued, “Now Fudu is almost going to be under the Zhou surname rather than the Qin surname!” He then grew stern and said harshly, “To be honest, Fudu is already just an empty shell. All your top executives have signed new contracts with our Tianxing Group. As for the entire valuation of Fudu’s industries, our Tianxing Group already owns 60% of all your assets! Fudu is now a holding company of our Tianxing Group. And you, little girl, still come out here foolishly supporting your idiot husband and using my subsidiaries against me. It’s simply ridiculous, lamentable, and sad!”

After delivering this long speech, Zhou Tianxing finally felt as if he had let out a huge sigh of relief, feeling as though he had regained some face.

Qin Nianran stared at the still-proud Zhou Tianxing with a cold gaze, shook her head, and said, “As the old saying goes, those who calculate others will also be calculated. It seems you’ve wasted your years! Indeed, Fudu is just an empty shell, but only those 60% under your control are empty shells! I guess I’ll ruin your false joy by telling you this!”

By this point, Zhou Tianxing, relying on his years of experience, already sensed something was wrong. Then he heard Qin Nianran continue, “The day before yesterday, Fudu completed the restructuring and division of its companies. Those companies you held through heavy debts and project partnerships have all been taken over by Fudu. You can call those subsidiaries whatever you want, but they can no longer be called Fudu Industrial!”

“Heh, I thought you had some clever plan. Turns out it’s just sacrificing the whole to save the part— giving up everything to save one’s own head! As for whether that lone head can still be called Fudu, what does it matter?” Zhou Tianxing felt relieved.

Qin Nianran didn’t even blink and continued in a steady voice, “But the projects and resources in that ‘body’ were all acquired by the ‘brain’ in the form of debts. That’s why what you call a ‘body’ is actually just an empty shell with skin but no flesh or blood!”
Zhou Tianxing’s expression changed, his voice rising as he said absentmindedly, “Impossible! Absolutely impossible! If such a huge deal had taken place these past few days, I would have known about it!”
It was Qin Nianran’s turn to smile scornfully. “It’s impossible these past few days. These days are just the harvest season. The seeds were sown long ago, when Fudu Industrial suddenly had so many favorable projects! Don’t you know? It’s simply laughable, pitiful, and tragic!”
“That’s still impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could you have so much capital? Even if there are debts, how much money is that? At most a few hundred million—what’s the big deal! You surely wouldn’t give away hundreds of millions for free to invest in others!” Zhou Tianxing shook his head in disbelief.
Qin Nianran’s expression turned cold. “Nothing is impossible. Although the initial investment wasn’t as much as you say, combined with continuous huge profits, it adds up to roughly the same amount!”
“What investment? What huge profits?” Zhou Tianxing asked excitedly.
Qin Nianran calmly pointed at Chu Tianyu and said, “There it is—the Binjiang New City development project of their Chuye Group!”
Hearing this, Zhou Tianxing’s face changed drastically, and he almost lost his balance. Zhou Kunwei, who was by his side, quickly supported his father and kept asking how he was.
After finally managing to stand steady, Zhou Tianxing’s face was ashen. They had swallowed up Fudu Industrial, using almost a quarter of their capital. Moreover, Fudu Industrial was like a link in a chain, connected to many more smaller companies and manufacturing plants. Their original plan was to squeeze Fudu Industrial until it ran out of funds and couldn’t operate smoothly, after which their Tianxing Group would take over. The several major suppliers and distribution channels connected to it had already been fully acquired in advance. In this way, the entire Fudu Industrial would be revitalized. Aside from some projects being delayed, they would gain control of the entire Fudu Industrial at almost zero cost, revitalizing the entire industrial chain!
If what Qin Nianran said was true, then the entire production line would come to a halt, and the several factories and chain stores they owned would instantly become a useless burden!

At this moment, Qin Nianran’s calm voice rang out again: “Besides these, I also have to thank Tianxing Group for actually signing off those treacherous uncles, aunts, and uncles-in-law of mine—those so-called high-ranking members who were like vermin. Congratulations! Apart from knowing how to spend money and embezzle, they can’t do anything else!”
At this point, Qin Nianran paused, as if finally releasing all the pent-up frustration from these days, and said cheerfully in conclusion, “Well, Tianxing Group has now no connection whatsoever with our Fudu Industrial Group. As for those large orders that were previously placed at your factory, we’ll take them all back. As for the penalty fee, it’s just a few million. Don’t worry, Fudu Industrial will definitely not default! Oh, by the way, let me remind you—from now on, you’re the creditors of Chuyie Group! But seeing how unpleasant things are between you and Chuyie today, to the point where you can’t coexist, well, how, when, or even if you’ll repay that money is no longer our concern! If you want to find someone, go straight to the Chu family…”
By the end of her speech, Qin Nianran casually glanced in Chu Tianyu’s direction, as if speaking to him as well, implying that Fudu was finally free from the control of Chuyie Group!
“Great job! Achieving two goals at once! Qin Nianran’s plan is truly unexpected!” Chu Tianyu and Ouyang Ziyi thought almost the same thing. At the same time, Ouyang Ziyi looked at Chu Tianyu, shrugged innocently, and said softly, “Don’t look at me so surprised. I only said her emotional intelligence isn’t 320 before, but I never doubted her IQ was below 320!”
Just then, a figure squeezed in from outside the hall and called out to Zhou Tianxing, “Oh, Mr. Zhou, I’m sorry! I rushed here to attend the Chu family’s dinner and forgot to arrange the birthday party you booked…”
Everyone saw that it was the chairman of the “Glory” Hotel.
Zhou Tianxing’s nerves completely collapsed. His sallow face turned red instantly, as if all the blood in his body had rushed to his face. He suddenly shook off his son’s support, his eyes red, and screamed hysterically, “Don’t get too proud! Don’t get too proud! I’ll make you pay for this! I’ll make you pay!”
As Zhou Tianxing was forcibly led out by his son and a group of loyalists, his screams continued, but aside from becoming a laughingstock, it achieved nothing!

The duel at the dinner party finally ended with a complete victory for the Chu family. When the eldest brother, Chu Tiancheng, finished his social obligations and tried to find Chu Tianyu, Ouyang Ziyi said he might have eaten too many bananas and had gone to the bathroom…
At that moment, Chu Tianyu, who was supposedly in the bathroom according to Ouyang Ziyi, was enveloped in a layer of dark black energy that covered his entire body. He instantly caught up with Zhou Tianxing’s convoy. After passing by the first car driven by Zhou Tianxing himself, he conjured the Sword of Ink Flame out of thin air and, without any hesitation, swung it down with tremendous force. The pent-up anger and fierce fighting spirit accumulated throughout the night seemed to burst forth with this single strike, crushing the scum on the four following cars along with their vehicles into pieces…
After unleashing this strike, Chu Tianyu couldn’t help but roar to the sky in fury: “What an exhilarating feeling! So satisfying…”