Gu Xiaoqi stared at her phone, anxiously waiting for a reply.
A moment later, Li Chuan's message came through.
— Li Chuan: [She didn't mention that. Your most important task right now is to rest well. These matters are not for you to worry about.]
— Gu Xiaoqi: [It concerns Fanxing and Yinyin, how can I not worry? (hits, curses.)]
— Li Chuan: [That's not what I meant. Reread my previous message. You are ill, you really don't need to manage so much. I still have things to handle here, so I won't chat further.]
Gu Xiaoqi watched as Li Chuan's status changed from 'typing' to sending a message.
Seeing this, Gu Xiaoqi felt a surge of frustration.
These people, one after another, were keeping things from her.
But what angered her more was her current state. Even if she were to die, she wanted to die with purpose!
With that thought, Gu Xiaoqi’s grip on her phone tightened, her gaze becoming incredibly resolute.
However, as she reached the door, a servant stopped her.
"Miss Gu, the old master and Miss Mu have both instructed that you are not to go out without permission."
Gu Xiaoqi: "!"
Her emotions flared. "I'm not a prisoner. Besides, if you don't say anything and I don't say anything, who will know?"
The servant didn't say anything, but pointed to the ceiling.
Gu Xiaoqi saw it clearly. The surveillance camera overhead was exceptionally bright.
Damn it, let it kill her.
Gu Xiaoqi shot a resentful and furious glance at the camera, then stomped back to her room.
Meanwhile, Nan Shiqing was as restless as an ant on a hot pan.
She finally broke down and called her uncle, He Chengkui, for help.
Upon hearing the situation, He Chengkui immediately berated the mother and daughter. "You two only have this much courage! Fanxing could release a video to point the finger at you and Luo Gang, can't you release a video to bite back at them?"
His words were like a wake-up call.
Nan Shiqing and He Xia immediately contacted the media and held a press conference.
Facing the cameras, He Xia tearfully explained, "The video has been exposed, and I know the netizens have been scolding me severely. Standing here today, I will even be considered shameless by netizens. However, if there wasn't a hidden truth to this matter, I wouldn't have the nerve to stand here."
"Then please, what is the hidden truth of this matter? The video shows you and Fanxing's top management, and you were discussing the new product. Are you saying someone deliberately synthesized and dubbed it?"
As soon as He Xia finished speaking, reporters immediately surged forward with their microphones, their cameras like a barrage of guns.
He Xia and Nan Shiqing had already rehearsed for such a scenario. Nan Shiqing stepped forward to take over, "You have doubts, so raise your doubts. That is the very purpose of holding this press conference. But what you just said is too much, isn't it? How is that different from accusing us of lying with our eyes open?"
The reporter immediately retorted, "Miss Nan, the video does indeed show your mother. A large company like Fanxing wouldn't provide a fake video to spread rumors about you, would they?"
"Exactly. We reporters are just asking normal questions. If you can't answer them properly, why didn't you just broadcast live on your phones instead of calling us here?"
"Luo Gang sought out my mother, and they did talk. This was just captured by chance by the video. You aren't inside their minds, so how could you possibly know what truly happened? We are standing here now to present the truth to the friends who are following us," Nan Shiqing said, restraining her temper, refuting them word by word.
She stood before the cameras, her head held high, looking straight ahead, proud and composed.
He Xia stood beside her, equally poised.
The press conference was broadcast live. When Jiang Ling brought over the tablet, Mu Yinyin merely glanced at it coolly.
Clowns, ridiculous and laughable.
She scoffed, "If they like exposing themselves in press conferences for attention so much, then let's indulge them."
With that, Mu Yinyin opened her computer.
She had been very busy lately, dealing with the restless shareholders within Fanxing, the newly launched products, and her latest collaboration with Fu Siye.
As if summoned, Fu Siye sent her a WeChat message just as she thought of him.
— Fu Siye: [Are you free tonight? We need to discuss the collaboration, and you also need to visit Grandma.]
— Mu Yinyin: [We can discuss the collaboration, and I can visit Grandma. Other personal matters are off the table.]
This collaboration with the Mu Corporation was, frankly, a confrontation with He Xia, He Chengkui, and Nan Shiqing. Fu Siye's stance in this was anyone's guess.
Fu Siye, on the other end, frowned.
He typed out a message, then deleted it before it was complete.
Texting back and forth was not as effective as asking the person directly.
"Mr. Fu, Miss Nan and her mother are currently holding a press conference. Should you... wish to watch?" Mu Teng entered with a tablet and a stack of documents, pausing mid-sentence because Fu Siye's dark eyes had lifted and fallen upon him.
Their eyes met. His dark eyes were as deep as a well.
Fu Siye casually raised his hand, and Mu Teng understood his intention. Just as he was about to say something about the files, Fu Siye coldly interjected, "Cancel all my appointments for tonight and tomorrow."
"Ah? Mr. Fu, isn't that a bit inconvenient? Besides the project with Miss Mu, our cooperation with partners in Port B is also critical..."
Before the words "critical importance" could even be uttered, Fu Siye interrupted him again, "I don't want to repeat myself."
His tone was cold. With that, he stood up and left the CEO's office without looking back.
Mu Teng watched his resolute back, falling into a moment of silence.
For Mr. Fu to choose to cancel those collaborations at this juncture, without watching Nan Shiqing's press conference, but only refusing to cancel the collaboration with Mu Yinyin, everything was already self-evident.
Mu Teng sighed inwardly.
When would they, the bystanders, cease to be caught in the crossfire?
...
The press conference.
Nan Shiqing's counterattack and her and He Xia's explanations were all captured on camera, with the facial angles in the video crystal clear.
As soon as the press conference began broadcasting, those who understood the situation took a stand for justice. Of course, with Mu Yinyin's arrangement, the internet trolls that Jiang Ling had hired were now flooding the internet with negative news about the mother and daughter:
— xx: [God, I've seen people put on an act, but I've never seen anyone act this well. They truly are mother and daughter. As the saying goes, like father, like son, like mother, like daughter!]
— :xx [You were too lenient with your words upstairs. How about another saying, the child of a rat knows how to dig holes? Why didn't you use that?]