The Favored Heiress
Chapter 695: Mineral Deed of Ownership

Chapter 695: Chapter 695: Mineral Deed of Ownership

Shang Zonghai paused for a moment, "Girl, Dad has given you time to think, you can choose to take back the Mu Family, or you can do nothing at all. Everything... is up to you to decide."

Li Qiao was silent for several seconds, her words deliberate, "Do you want me to take revenge for the Mu Family?"

Shang Zonghai shook his head very slowly, his gaze deeply fixed on Li Qiao, "Revenge is the lowest option, Ao Fan and Yi Lan wouldn’t want you to do that either. But the Mu Family’s century-old foundation, now with half of its enormous wealth confiscated and the rest unaccounted for, and the truth behind those nearly hundred lives, we ought to seek clarity."

So that was it.

Li Qiao suddenly understood; she had always thought Shang Zonghai was plotting slowly, intent on making her take revenge for the Mu Family.

But now it seemed that he truly only wanted her to take back the Mu Family.

To reclaim what rightfully belonged to them, but had now changed hands.

And this process was actually even more difficult than taking revenge.

At this moment, Shang Zonghai looked at the silent Li Qiao, his eyes and brows revealing a trace of fatigue, "Girl, think carefully, and when you have your answer, tell me..."

"I agree."

Before he could finish, Li Qiao immediately gave her answer.

Shang Zonghai took a deep breath, his eyes full of satisfaction, "Are you sure?"

Li Qiao turned her head to look at the well-behaved Mo Jue, when all reasons were invalid, the tragic life Mo Jue was forced to endure was the reason for her to take action, "Yes, there’s no need to think, even if I want to disengage now, those people might not let me go."

Shang Zonghai glanced at the stern-faced Shang Yu, then put his glasses back on, his smile growing even warmer, "Girl, do you want to know why some people still won’t let the Mu Family go even after twenty years?"

"You know?" Li Qiao subtly narrowed her eyes.

Shang Zonghai’s eyes were as dark as ink, then he suddenly called out, "Old Xiao, bring the item here."

Soon, Housekeeper Xiao entered, holding a dark golden briefcase in his hand that wasn’t there before.

He handed the case to Shang Zonghai, barely stopping before turning to leave the room.

Shang Zonghai moved the water cup from the tea table aside, fiddled with the combination lock, and the briefcase sprang open.

Mo Jue curiously leaned forward to peer inside, the combination briefcase looking quite expensive and wondering whether it contained any famous paintings.

The combination briefcase snapped shut, and Shang Zonghai now held a file folder that appeared quite hefty.

Li Qiao seemed calm, but ripples stirred in her eyes nonetheless.

Instinctively, this was something belonging to the Mu Family.

Shang Zonghai placed the black file folder on the table, its thud indeed heavy.

He set the combination briefcase aside, opened the file folder, and extracted a piece of A4-sized paper first.

More precisely, it wasn’t paper – it was a card crafted from special rare gold.

It was made of the same material as the Rare Gold Diamond Card Shang Zonghai had given her before, with a unique pattern throughout. It felt like metal to the touch but was exceptionally light.

Shang Zonghai handed the sturdy thin card to Li Qiao, indicating that she should look at the content on it.

Li Qiao only realized when she got it in her hands that there were characters etched into it and it had been laminated to prevent wear.

The first line at the top, the deed of ownership for the indium mine.

At the very bottom is the steel seal of the Parma Land and Resources Bureau, with a date from seventy years ago.

Li Qiao didn’t closely examine the contents; looking up, her expression could hardly conceal her surprise, "Is this the deed of ownership for the Mu Family’s mines?"

Shang Zonghai pushed the black file folder towards Li Qiao and Mo Jue, "There are twenty-three mines owned by the Mu Family, this is all the deeds of ownership."

Not only did Li Qiao find it unbelievable, but even Shang Yu, who was silently smoking, narrowed his eyes.

The Mu Family had been annihilated for over twenty years, yet the deeds for these mines were actually all in the Shang Family Old House.

Li Qiao looked at the twenty or so Rare Gold Thin Cards inside the folder, feeling more complex emotions than ever before.

Shang Zonghai stood up from in front of the tea table and slowly paced along the tea shelf, "These deeds of ownership were given to me by Ao Fan. My reason for asking you to pay attention to the Ho Family is because the tribal chief, He Bonan, once initiated a discussion at the Tribal Chief’s Council, hoping that the Land and Resources Bureau would reclaim all the private mines in Parma.

The Mu Family had the highest ownership rate of rare mines in Parma. Although Parma is rich in mine resources, most of them are controlled by influential families. Don’t underestimate the value of these mines; just the Rare Gold Card in your hand is worth nearly ten thousand yuan per gram."

Li Qiao had once deeply pondered why exactly the Mu Family had attracted such catastrophe.

There are other century-old family businesses in the country; it’s only the Mu Family that met with such a tragic end.

And these twenty-three mine deeds of ownership were probably the start of the dispute.

Li Qiao put down the Rare Gold Thin Card in her hand, her gaze shifting, "Have these mines changed hands?"

Shang Zonghai paused in his steps, turned to look at her, and nodded in approval, "Correct. After the Mu Family was destroyed, naturally, someone had to take over the mines."

"The entire Mu Family was annihilated, rendering the deeds just a formality, and it’s very likely that the new owner of the mines was involved in the Mu Family’s tragedy," Li Qiao added her analysis.

The smile on Shang Zonghai’s face grew more intense, "Maybe you’re right, maybe not. The mines may not be the real reason for the annihilation, but certainly, someone profited from it. Now that you’ve returned to Parma, as long as you reveal these deeds of ownership in the name of the Mu Family, all the mines could revert to your name overnight."

Could it be that simple?

Li Qiao furrowed her brows in thought for a moment, then looked at Shang Zonghai with an almost-smiling expression, "If I really did that, I’d be bringing disaster upon myself."

Laughter erupted from Shang Zonghai’s throat, he pointed in the air and his demeanor became even more pleased, "Very smart indeed."

"Do you want me to investigate the current holders of these mines, to see if I can make any discoveries?"

"Yes, indeed that’s the case," Shang Zonghai no longer hedged, caressing the Buddha Beads in his hand, he spoke somberly: "The old site of the Mu Family has been confiscated and turned into today’s Cultural Garden, not for memorial purposes."

Li Qiao glanced at the deeds of ownership, many previously incomprehensible matters were gradually linking together, "They are extensively renovating the old Mu Family site, actually looking for this?"

Shang Zonghai stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze briefly sweeping over the deeds, "No matter whose hands these mines are in now, without the deeds, it’s still illegitimate."

"The land of the old Mu Family site is said to be in the hands of the Ming family."

Shang Zonghai pursed his lips, his words deep, "Back then, He Bonan allocated the land of the old site to the Ming family, banking on the notion that I wouldn’t fight to take it."

After all, in those years, his life had stabilized with Ming Dailan after marriage, and even though his relationship with the Ming family wasn’t close, with Ming Dailan mediating, it was inconvenient for him to fight his father-in-law for possessions.

Besides, he had long known what their occupation of the Mu Family’s old site was for.

After a while, Li Qiao settled her emotions, looking at the Rare Gold Thin Card with a sense of history, she spoke in a measured tone, "Keep these deeds here for now; I’ll come to get them when necessary."

Some things, since they have been ’lost’ for so long, it’s best they don’t reappear for the time being.