Page 29

Cheng Lang raised an eyebrow. "How fast I leave depends on you."

Shen Chengan took a deep breath, no longer patient enough to trade barbs with Cheng Lang. "Come inside with me."

Cheng Lang glanced at the art gallery and narrowed his eyes. "Don't even think about trying some illegal detention stunt. I still have to go to work tonight. I'm sure President Shen knows where I work. If the money I make every night gets delayed because you illegally detain me, I'll sue you for compensation."

As he spoke, Cheng Lang looked over the security guards around them. "You'd better think this through too. Is going to prison for this little bit of pay really worth it?"

The security guards Cheng Lang's gaze swept over exchanged glances and instinctively retreated several steps.

Shen Chengan took a deep breath. "This young student is overthinking things."

"It's better to be cautious and lay the ugly truth out upfront. Good for both of us." Cheng Lang suddenly seemed to remember something. He pulled a professional recorder that was still recording from his pocket, pressed pause, and saved the earlier audio. Before Shen Chengan noticed, he pressed record again.

"Recordings made in public places carry legal weight. I'm sure President Shen understands that." Cheng Lang curled his lips in a faintly mocking smile. "President Shen just said that you voluntarily transferred the difference from the house sale to Shen Huaiyu. We were simply too hasty and misunderstood you for a moment. Right?"

Shen Chengan had no idea what Cheng Lang was up to and looked over impatiently. "What are you trying to say?"

"Nothing, just confirming." Cheng Lang said, "After all, this house was transferred into your name back when you gave Shen Huaiyu the 2.8 million down payment. Now that we've come to ask for the difference, I'm afraid you'll come to your senses and feel like you got the short end of the stick, then come sue us."

"Not that we're afraid of being sued." Cheng Lang paused slightly, then added with apparent concern, "...Mostly, I'm worried you care about your reputation."

The onlookers could not help smiling at that. What he was really worried about was probably Shen Chengan having no shame.

Shen Chengan felt as though his head was splitting apart. But he was, after all, a man of standing. If he wanted to continue making a name for himself in the city's calligraphy and painting circles, he really did need to care about his reputation.

"I already said it was all a misunderstanding. I never intended to buy Huaiyu's family home for half price. The situation was urgent at the time, and I was worried the house wouldn't sell, so I resorted to that measure. Afterward, I kept raising money, intending to make up the remaining payment to Huaiyu... You simply refused to believe me. What could I do?"

"I believe you now." Cheng Lang pressed save and said with a grin, "It really was a misunderstanding. President Shen is upright and honorable. I was immature, judging a gentleman's heart with a petty man's mind. President Shen is magnanimous, so please don't take it to heart."

What was he trying to do now? Shen Chengan stared at Cheng Lang suspiciously, unable to tell what trick this brat was planning.

Cheng Lang turned to Shen Huaiyu and instructed him, "Stay here and keep track of the time. Half an hour. If I'm not out by then, call the police."

Then he turned back to President Shen, his expression changing again. "Let's go! What are you dawdling for? Do you not want to hold this calligraphy and painting exhibition anymore, or does that LED recording sound pleasant to you?"

With a livid face, Shen Chengan turned and entered the art gallery.

Cheng Lang followed Shen Chengan into the office. Shen Chengan said with an ugly expression, "You're still so young, yet you strike far too ruthlessly."

Cheng Lang replied casually, "One of us is a true villain and the other a hypocrite. Neither of us should criticize the other."

Shen Chengan signed a cash check for 5.6 million and handed it to Cheng Lang, unable to resist asking, "What exactly did you mean by what you said at the entrance?"

Though their confrontation had been brief, Shen Chengan had already gained a deep understanding of what kind of person Cheng Lang was. He did not believe Cheng Lang would do anything meaningless. That long speech just now could not possibly have been a spur-of-the-moment urge to mock him out of boredom.

Cheng Lang scoffed. "I was just afraid you'd be reluctant to part with the money, regret it later, and leave yourself a way out."

Shen Chengan was a cultured man, and cultured men cared about their reputations. As long as Shen Chengan wanted to remain in this city, he would not demand this money back from Shen Huaiyu. Cheng Lang's words just now had also, in a way, given Shen Chengan an out. As long as Shen Chengan was shameless enough, he could insist that he had never intended to covet his nephew's house-sale money or funeral expenses. It had all been a misunderstanding.

Most of the time, what people cared about was not the truth, but an excuse that allowed them to justify themselves.

Cheng Lang knew people like Shen Chengan well: greedy for money yet hungry for a good reputation. As long as there was even a sliver of possibility, Shen Chengan would not take things to the point of mutual destruction. And what Cheng Lang wanted was for Shen Chengan to hesitate and hold back. By then, Cheng Lang would not need to do anything. For the sake of his own reputation, Shen Chengan would stop those people who wanted to go cause trouble for Shen Huaiyu and try to get the money back.

Trading a harmless concession for a collar to restrain mad dogs—of course Cheng Lang would take such a profitable deal.

Shen Chengan understood as well. He looked at Cheng Lang and suddenly said, "Wait."

Shen Chengan wrote out another cash check, this one for 6 million, and handed it to Cheng Lang. "I said back then that I would cover my elder brother and sister-in-law's funeral expenses, but Huaiyu insisted on refusing. No one wanted things to turn out like this. You're right. Wo Jin is still lying unconscious in the hospital. It's only natural that Huaiyu, desperate to raise money for his younger brother's treatment, would lose his head for a moment. As his elder, of course I can't hold it against him."

Cheng Lang gave a soft laugh. "It's good that President Shen understands how to conduct himself. A misunderstanding is easily resolved once it's talked through. I won't accept this money. But from now on, you and your family should watch what you say and do. If you can understand your nephew's difficulties, then don't speak ill of him behind his back. Otherwise, it won't look good if everyone sees that President Shen and his family say one thing to someone's face and another behind their backs."

Cheng Lang still remembered that in the original novel, after Shen Huaiyu was kept by Lu Chengxuan, rumors outside never ceased. Shen Huaiyu's male and female cousins had contributed greatly to that.

"Your twin son and daughter are taking the college entrance exams this year, aren't they? I heard they're applying to our school too." Cheng Lang said with a smiling expression, "Then next year, we'll be upperclassman and underclassmen. I'll be sure to take good care of them."