The Favored Heiress
Chapter 715: This is a Personal Attack

Chapter 715: Chapter 715: This is a Personal Attack

As she finished speaking, Li Qiao just happened to walk up to Shang Yu.

She let out another "Ah," and very considerately reminded Hu Ying, "I’ve also handed over to the crime investigation department the recording of you instructing the Honorary Major General to flee to Myanmar with a guilty conscience. As the saying goes, courtesy demands reciprocity, no need to thank me."

Hu Ying had never expected that their long-planned scheme would not only be effortlessly resolved but also bring disaster upon themselves in the end.

The Second Elder and the Third Elder stood up in panic, both of them simultaneously biting back, "Master, this was all the Great Elder’s idea, we had no choice."

"Master, it has nothing to do with us, the Great Elder made us do it..."

The three of them argued in a commotion, regardless of their prior unity; when disaster struck, each fled on his own.

At this moment, Shang Zonghai sat with the calm demeanor of someone securely positioned at the Diaoyutai Islands, murmuring with apparent heartache, "You’ve committed so many crimes, you’ve really become senile."

Seeing his look of regret, Hu Ying was about to plead for help when Shang Zonghai already turned to Qin Song with a smile, "Xiao Qin, let’s stick to official business. Take the people away."

Qin Song felt amused inside, and without mincing his words blurted out, "Master Shang is wise."

Indeed, whenever he saw Shang Zonghai, he would usually call him Master Shang.

Shang Zonghai waved his hand dismissively, "We are all family here, no need for formalities."

The three Elders: "???"

Collateral Branch Family Head: "..."

In an instant, as the police personnel moved to apprehend them, Hu Ying finally sluggishly realized what was happening. He looked towards Shang Zonghai and Shang Yu, muttering in defeat, "You both knew all along..."

Shang Zonghai took off his glasses and gently wiped them with a tissue, looking warmly at Hu Ying, "Old Hu, over the years, the Elders’ Hall has put in some hard work for the Shang’s, if not merit. Go in and reform properly, and in twenty or thirty years, you’ll be out. By that time, my Shang’s will take care of your retirement."

Hu Ying’s voice became shrill as he collapsed onto the chair.

The other two Elders turned even paler, overwhelmed with trepidation.

Twenty to thirty years?

They were both older than Shang Zonghai, would they even live to be released?

Hu Ying shook his head to himself, repeating over and over that it couldn’t be possible, it couldn’t be so.

Receiving a glance from Shang Zonghai, Qin Song waved his hand to have the three Elders taken away.

As they were about to leave, they heard Shang Zonghai’s voice, "Old Hu, you can’t even investigate clearly who wrote the girl’s name into the family registry, how dare you frame my son?"

Hu Ying’s ankles went weak, and he turned stiffly around. There was only a table’s distance between them, yet it felt like a vast chasm.

Shang Zonghai sat at the head of the table, gazing at him, the reflection from his glasses piercing deep into Hu Ying’s eyes. He smiled slightly, delivering the final verdict, "Old Xiao, please invite the three new Elders in, and while you’re at it, issue an expulsion notice. My Shang’s can’t afford to keep these ill-intentioned Elders."

Hu Ying, Qiu Xianzhi, and Huang Zhaochun finally understood the meaning behind today’s impromptu Clan Assembly.

It was a stratagem within a stratagem, a scheme within a scheme.

They had always been played like pawns in the palm of a hand, and even the successors had been pre-determined.

Only they believed they held the winning ticket, oblivious to the truth.

The Elders’ Hall led by Hu Ying would henceforth be thoroughly expelled from the Shang’s.

And the evidence of their crimes, vast and innumerable, are all gifts in return from Li Qiao to the Elders’ Hall.

Regardless of the authenticity, with the pressure from both the Military Department and the Myanmar Embassy alone, those two factors were enough to ensure that the three Elders would not see the outside of a prison cell in their lifetime.

...

As evening fell, Li Qiao and Shang Yu left the old residence.

The candidates for the new Elders’ Hall had been promoted from the Secret Hall by Shang Yu’s personal confidantes.

The heads of the Collateral Branches dared not object, as it was clear to all that this father-son duo, along with Li Qiao, could not be matched even if all ten branches of the Collateral Branches joined forces.

At this moment, Shang Zonghai paced into the teahouse, his brows and eyes exuding a sense of joy, appearing in great spirits.

"Old Xiao," he suddenly stood still, calling out softly.

Housekeeper Xiao hurried forward, bowing as he responded, "Master, what may I do for you?"

With his hands clasped behind his back, Shang Zonghai fidgeted with the Buddha Beads and, gazing ahead, ordered in a deep voice, "Find some time to pass a message to Xiao Qin, I don’t want to see the three of them walk out of that police station alive."

Housekeeper Xiao nodded in understanding, "I’ll take care of it right away."

A shadow lay dense in the depths of Shang Zonghai’s eyes, a chill invisible to outsiders interweaving within.

The King of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shang Zonghai, was never known for his tenderness or weakness.

...

As the sunset deepened, amidst the city’s luxury apartment blocks,

Mo Jue was squatting on the window ledge, resting her cheek in her hand as she watched the bustling streets below, craning her neck now and then at any slight halt.

Li Yan lay on the sofa, his forearm resting on his forehead, shielding his eyes from the piercing slanting rays of the sunset through the window.

He squinted, looking over at Mo Jue involuntarily.

He never realized how adorable his little sidekick could be.

A tiny figure perched on the window ledge, poking her head out towards the street below from time to time, restless as if suffering from ADHD.

Li Yan was so captivated that he propped up the back of his head with his palm and shifted positions, continuing to watch Mo Jue.

"Here she comes, the ancestor is coming."

Mo Jue suddenly exclaimed, leaning half her body out of the window to wave and call out, "Sis, I’m here, hurry up and come on in."

A jolt went through Li Yan’s heart, and he almost cursed out loud.

This was the eighth floor, damn it, wouldn’t she die if she fell?

With this thought, Li Yan had already leapt from the sofa, his concern for Mo Jue naturally causing him to overlook the ’sis’ she had yelled out.

Mo Jue wasn’t sure if Li Qiao had seen her, and was about to call out again when she felt a tight grip around her neck, and Li Yan had yanked her back in by the back of her collar.

Stumbling and unsteady on her feet, she was about to fall off the window ledge when Li Yan instinctively opened his arms and caught her in his embrace from behind.

Out of inertia, as he caught Mo Jue, his arms wrapped around her and she clung tightly to his arms, still exclaiming in shock, "Boss, what the hell, you scared me to death."

Their pose could hardly be considered intimate; after Mo Jue struggled a bit, Li Yan just took the opportunity to lower her from the window ledge, his voice carrying a touch of sardonic humor, "You even have pecs, when did you start working out?"

In that instant, Mo Jue stiffened entirely.

She looked down at her flat chest, pursing her lips, her mood plummeting to rock bottom.

Pecs?

This was a personal attack from the boss.

Mo Jue hung her head dejectedly, grabbing her own chest which was virtually non-existent.

Li Yan, unaware of the convoluted thoughts in her head, patted the back of her head gently and said with a warm smile, "You don’t even know you have pecs?"

Mo Jue looked up at him with round eyes filled with disappointment, grievance, and desolation, a mix of emotions on her face.

Because she suddenly realized, not having her gender identified over the years wasn’t because she hid it well, but because... she lacked gender features.

Mo Jue didn’t wait for Li Qiao to enter the door and darted into the bathroom.

She pulled out her phone from her pocket, rubbed her own chest muscles, logged onto an online shopping site, and rapidly typed in a few words: breast enhancement products.