Old Mr. Xiao fainted on receiving news that Xiao Chengyu died in a car crash. While receiving emergency treatment, Old Mr. Xiao suffered a stroke and was paralyzed from the waist down. His speech was also affected.
“Cheng… yu’s car accident. Have you investigated it fully?”
Old Mr. Xiao laid on his bed. In just a few days’ time, the pain of losing his grandson turned the sprightly old man into a withered, haggard shell. Even the act of speaking exhausted him.
Xiao Zhiyuan said with much pain in his voice, “Ning Yuya is also dead, and there is no other evidence at all. The police have no leads. Even if the Xiao Family decides to pursue it, I am afraid it will all lead to nothing.”
He was long overwhelmed by rage and agony.
There was no way his father would believe it was just an accident. Not only did they have the police investigate the matter, but the Xiao Family also carried out their own investigations, but to no avail.
The thought of that bitch Ning Yuya dragging Chengyu down into her grave with her filled his heart with pain. He had a desperate urge to tear her to bits.
Old Mr. Xiao’s body gave a shudder as he mumbled. “I just feel that Chengyu’s death is not an accident. Someone was targeting the Xiao Family. You… cannot give up investigating into Chengyu’s death.”
Chengyu’s importance to the Xiao Family had Old Mr. Xiao turning the matter over and over again in his mind.
At his advanced age, what had he not experienced before? He had gone through so much in his life and had extensive knowledge of the way the world worked. Coupled with his inborn craftiness, there was no stone he would leave unturned, and no detail he would miss.
Xiao Zhiyuan reluctantly agreed. “Dad, don’t worry! Even with Chengyu gone, the Xiao Family still has me.”
Even as he spoke those words, he couldn’t help feeling a sense of despair at the Xiao Family’s current state.
He was useless. He would probably end up destroying the Xiao Family’s longstanding family business.
Old Mr. Xiao looked deflated after they finished discussing Xiao Chengyu’s incident. He asked in a limp tone, “How are things with the Xiao Corporation?”
His legs were paralyzed and his speech impaired. He was temporarily unable to step in to oversee the Xiao Corporation. As a result, the Xiao Family had no choice but to rely on Xiao Zhiyuan to look after the company.
Xiao Zhiyuan’s heart gave a lurch. “Dad, just concentrate on getting better! Things at the Xiao Corporation are… are still quite stable!”
He was well aware that his father was the only person left in the Xiao Family that could be relied on. Nothing must happen to Old Mr. Xiao. That was why Xiao Zhiyuan purposely kept the reality of the situation at the Xiao Corporation a secret from his father, in the hopes that his health would quickly recover. Only then would the Xiao Family stand a chance of fighting back.
Old Mr. Xiao’s eyelids fluttered. He appeared short of breath.
Xiao Zhiyuan’s heart nearly stopped. He called out anxiously, “Dad, are you alright!”
Old Mr. Xiao replied with much difficulty, “I… I won’t die yet!”
Xiao Zhiyuan stammered in his shock.
Old Mr. Xiao then widened his eyes and fiercely glared at Xiao Zhiyuan. “You are still trying to keep things from me? Do you think I won’t know how things are with the Xiao Corporation and the family? The shareholders are a bunch of bloodsuckers. They have spent so many years leeching off our family. Now that the Xiao Family’s fortunes have changed, how is it possible they wouldn’t take advantage of the situation to try and take a big bite out of us!”
He started gasping for breath after his long speech, sounding as if he might just stop breathing anytime.
Xiao Zhiyuan was desolate. “Dad, I am useless. I am unable to handle this whole situation.”
After his scandal, he no longer had any authority or sway over the Xiao Corporation’s board of directors and shareholders.
Old Mr. Xiao took a moment longer to catch his breath. “Nothing… nothing to do with you. It’s just that there is no limit to the greed of humans.”
All these years, the Xiao Family had indirectly cultivated the greed of those shareholders by allowing them to leech off them. It was not anyone’s fault.
He recalled Chengyu had said before that there were so many internal problems within the Xiao Corporation and Xiao Family that something would blow up sooner or later.
At that time, he had steadfastly opposed to Chengyu carrying out an internal reorganization. He thought that Chengyu was too anxious to see results and would end up damaging the Xiao Corporation’s foundations. He felt that the matter should be resolved slowly and discreetly.
In the end, Chengyu had been right.
They wouldn’t have ended up losing control over the current situation if he had been more bold and daring.
He was an old man, after all. Old-fashioned and conservative. He was not as far-sighted as young people were.
Xiao Zhiyuan knew he couldn’t hide things from his father any longer, and so came clean with how things were at the Xiao Corporation. “After Chengyu’s death, all the shares he had which once belonged to Yuechan went back to her. The Lin Family blames and hates us, and so has just stood by the sidelines while the shareholders fussed. I am afraid that the Xiao Family will soon lose our leadership position within the Xiao Corporation.”
At the end of the day, Lin Yuechan’s shares still belonged to the Lin Family. Although they had been transferred to Xiao Chengyu, the agreement stated that the shares were to be returned to Lin Yuechan in the event of his death.
Lin Yuechan had done this to guard against the Xiao Family and safeguard her son’s future. After all, the Xiao Family had an illegitimate male descendant.
Old Mr. Xiao’s face turned grim. “The Lin Family is already being very civil by not kicking us when we are down. Yuechan… I guess she still harbors some good feelings toward you.”
His greatest regret in life was his failure to take his son in hand and allowing Xiao Zhiyuan to destroy his own marriage.
Xiao Zhiyuan was beside himself with self-hate and regret at the mention of Lin Yuechan.
He recalled how she had rushed to the hospital and fainted in his arms. His heart had ached terribly as he blamed himself for not taking good care of their son.
Old Mr. Xiao said coldly, “It will probably be some time before the Xiao Corporation’s share price stabilizes. The ones who will suffer the most are the minority shareholders. You don’t have to bother about the internal strife in the company for now. I want to see who targeted our Chengyu. Further, I want you to buy up as many of the available shares out there as you can. The Xiao Family has suffered in silence for decades, and now even Chengyu has been sacrificed. What else do we have to fear?”
He still felt that someone had plotted Chengyu’s death to target the Xiao Family.
If he didn’t guess wrongly, the same person was eyeing the Xiao Corporation. If that was the case, this person would surface sooner or later.
Xiao Zhiyuan felt a jolt of energy run through him. He finally felt a sense of purpose. “Dad, I will do as you say.”
Old Mr. Xiao changed the topic. “How are things with the Wen Family?”
The Xiao and Wen families had a longstanding grudge. The Wen Family was probably already scheming how to take advantage of the Xiao Family’s weakened state.
Xiao Zhiyuan shook his head. “Wen Xinya personally attended Chengyu’s funeral. She asked me to convey her well wishes to you. The past few days, the Wen Family has not made any moves against us.”
Chengyu had said before that Wen Xinya was not someone they could afford to make enemies with. Even if they could not be allies, they should just stay in their own lane and not get in each other’s way.
It looked like Chengyu had much better foresight than the two of them.
Slightly shocked, Old Mr. Xiao was momentarily at a loss for words.
Xiao Zhiyuan understood how he felt. He himself found it difficult to express his own complex feelings.
After a second, Old Mr. Xiao sighed. “I have lived for 80 years, but my mind remains narrow and my heart petty. I call myself a man, but Wen Xinya, as a woman, has shown more magnanimity than me. She truly holds the qualities of the Mo Family. Her current achievements are indeed well-deserved. In the future, the Xiao Family will no longer wrangle with them. Old Mr. Mo truly deserves his reputation as an honorable man.”
