Chapter 1 The Beginning

Li Ziqing gracefully walked forward, a serene smile on her face, showing no sign of anything amiss.

Zhou Yuanyuan breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worried that Ziqing would cause trouble at the banquet, which had made her anxious.

She hadn't expected the girl to be so thoughtful, not only preparing a birthday gift but three of them, perhaps wanting to repair her relationship with her grandfather.

Zhou Zhishan's old eyes narrowed slightly as he sized up his granddaughter.

It had been a few years, and the girl had blossomed even more beautifully, but unfortunately, she had offended the five great families of the Imperial City and could no longer be used for marriage.

As such, she was nothing more than a discarded pawn to the Zhou family.

No matter how beautiful or talented she was, it was useless.

Li Ziqing's position in Zhou Zhishan's heart was far inferior to even Zhou Fan.

However, as the saying goes, one doesn't strike a smiling face.

Since she had come to the birthday banquet and prepared gifts, Zhou Zhishan decided to put on a show for the sake of appearances in front of the others.

With that thought, a kind smile appeared on his face, and he asked, "Ziqing, I wonder what birthday gift you've brought for your grandfather?"

Li Ziqing raised an eyebrow and smiled, saying casually, "It's a coincidence, but I prepared the same gift as my cousin Zhou Wen, except he presented the Zhou Corporation's financial report from the last quarter, while mine is from this quarter. I invite you to take a look!"

As she spoke, Li Ziqing took out a document from her bag and handed it to Zhou Zhishan.

Zhou Zhishan frowned slightly and took it with a puzzled expression.

But Zhou Wen's face suddenly changed drastically, and he became flustered.

He uncharacteristically lost his composure and shouted, "Nonsense! The financial report for this quarter hasn't even been released yet. How could you have it?"

Li Ziqing calmly said, "I have my ways, of course."

However, when Zhou Zhishan saw the financial report, his face instantly darkened.

"Wen'er, what's going on?"

According to the figures displayed on the financial report, the Zhou family had suffered considerable losses, with total assets shrinking by nearly a quarter.

"Grandfather, please listen to my explanation. Everything I've done has been for the sake of the Zhou family..."

Seeing his grandfather's displeased expression, Zhou Wen hastily tried to explain.

At that moment, Li Ziqing suddenly interjected, "Grandfather, this matter can't entirely be blamed on my cousin Zhou Wen, because recently, the Zhou Corporation has been facing a hostile takeover. A financial behemoth is frantically acquiring shares of the Zhou Corporation on the secondary market, and in order to protect the Zhou family's stock, my cousin Zhou Wen has had to continuously inject funds to fight this financial war!"

"Yes, yes, yes, what Ziqing said is right, that's exactly what's happening!"

Zhou Wen quickly nodded in agreement.

The Zhou Corporation was facing an extremely powerful opponent, and Zhou Wen was currently overwhelmed with worry.

The reason he was so eager to become the heir was to gain control of the finances and fully commit to dealing with this crisis.

If they lost this financial war, the Zhou family would be severely weakened and might even be reduced to a third-rate family.

And at that time, he, Zhou Wen, would be the sinner of the entire Zhou family.

But after a moment, he came to his senses and suspiciously asked Li Ziqing, "That's not right, how could you know about this so clearly?"

Li Ziqing shrugged and said with a lively expression, "Cousin Zhou Wen, aren't you known as the most outstanding talent of the Zhou family's younger generation? Can't you even figure this out?"

"You... you've planted a spy in the Zhou Corporation?"

Zhou Wen asked in disbelief.

Li Ziqing sighed and said helplessly, "Alas, you're so slow-witted, can't you even see this? The reason I know so clearly is because I am that financial behemoth!"

As soon as these words came out, the whole place erupted in an uproar.

"What's going on? Are the Zhou family members fighting among themselves?"

"What do you mean, 'among themselves'? Didn't you hear? That woman is called Li Ziqing, not Zhou!"

"Li Ziqing? Why does that name sound so familiar?"

"I remember now, she's that venomous snake, the bamboo pit viper!"

"This is getting interesting..."

The guests whispered to each other, and a buzz of discussion arose.

And the anger in Zhou Zhishan's eyes was like a volcano about to erupt. He glared angrily at Li Ziqing. This vicious girl really had ill intentions.

Zhou Wen was even more shocked. He had always known that Li Ziqing was very capable, and he had never dared to underestimate her.

But he still couldn't believe that the opponent who had been causing him so much trouble and sleepless nights was actually her!

Zhou Yuanyuan tugged at Li Ziqing's sleeve and asked in a low voice, "Ziqing, what are you doing?"

Li Ziqing chuckled and said slowly, "Aunt, I'm just doing something that you've always wanted to do but didn't dare to do... My revenge is now officially beginning!"

Zhou Yuanyuan was taken aback, suddenly at a loss for words.

Zhou Fan burst out cursing, "Li Ziqing, are you even human? You ungrateful wretch, how has the Zhou family wronged you? Why are you seeking revenge?"

"You're just a beast! Li Ziqing, explain yourself, what exactly do you want to do?"

Zhou Tai rolled up his sleeves, looking like he was about to hit Li Ziqing.

Li Ziqing glanced at the two of them with contempt. "Neither of you is qualified to talk to me!"

"I'm not qualified? Fine, today I'll show you whether I'm qualified or not!"

Zhou Tai raised his fist to strike, but just then, a figure suddenly stood in front of him, scaring Zhou Tai so much that he almost fell on his butt.

And this figure was naturally Chen Xiao.

Chen Xiao raised an eyebrow and said casually, "Do you need another beating?"

Zhou Tai's eyes flashed with fear. He had been beaten by Chen Xiao before, and now he trembled at the sight of him.

But he immediately complained to Zhou Zhishan, "Grandfather, he's Li Ziqing's gigolo! He was the one who beat me up before, you have to help me get revenge!"

"Shut your mouth!"

Zhou Zhishan rebuked him angrily.

Li Ziqing had clearly come prepared, and now was not the time to act rashly.

He feigned composure and looked at Li Ziqing, asking, "Ziqing, you've been rebellious since you were a child. I wonder what game you're planning to play with your grandfather this time?"

Li Ziqing smiled playfully and followed Zhou Zhishan's line of thought, saying, "I'm playing a game that will bankrupt the Zhou family, and judging from the current situation, I'm destined to win. When that time comes, Grandfather, you'll be living on the streets!"

"Based on you?"

Zhou Zhishan revealed a look of disdain and asked in a strong voice, "Wen'er, if I give you full authority and allow you to use all of the Zhou family's assets, how confident are you in winning this financial war?"

Zhou Wen trembled upon hearing this. Wasn't this what he had always wanted?

As long as he was given free rein, he would definitely be able to easily resolve this crisis!

He was overjoyed and said, "Grandfather, I am one hundred percent confident in winning! Li Ziqing, I'd like to see how much money you can bring to fight me!"

"Not much, really."

Li Ziqing said casually, "Only about three or four hundred billion..."

"What? Three or four hundred billion? Stop bragging, where would you get that much money?"

Zhou Wen naturally didn't believe Li Ziqing's words.

"Then just don't worry about it. Anyway, the game has already begun. If I, Li Ziqing, don't play until your Zhou family is bankrupt, wouldn't I be letting down the name 'Bamboo Pit Viper'?"

Behind Li Ziqing was the entire Jiangbei underworld. Let alone three or four hundred billion, even seven or eight hundred billion wouldn't be difficult for her.

After all, this was a financial game, and it was all about snowballing.

Using money to make money, the snowball would only get bigger and bigger.

Then, she looked at Zhou Zhishan with a light and airy expression, "Grandfather, I wonder if you like this first birthday gift that I prepared?"

"Very good, very good."

Zhou Zhishan had experienced many storms after all, and he didn't lose his composure because of this. He even asked, "Didn't you say you prepared three birthday gifts for me? What are the remaining two?"

"Don't worry, let's take it one at a time."

Li Ziqing said calmly, "Now, I will present you with the second birthday gift..."