Zhuang Luo watched helplessly as Xu Su seized the initiative.
Only Cheng Nan could tell that Huo Yuchen was absolutely, unconditionally on Xu Su's side, so he shot Xu Su a meaningful look: if you can talk, keep talking.
"Who wants to steal your endorsement?"
Huo Yuchen frowned slightly, his bewildered expression making it seem as though he genuinely knew nothing and had simply happened to pass by.
Xu Su extended both index fingers and crossed them, pointing one at Zhuang Luo and the other at Fang Han. "He's helping him..."
Fang Han immediately interrupted, "Xu Su, what nonsense are you talking about?"
He was smiling, but his eyes were full of veiled threats.
"How am I talking nonsense?"
Xu Su once again trotted out his third-rate acting skills to play dumb:
"You clearly just demanded that I give half my endorsement to Zhuang Luo, and you also demanded that I step aside and give him the center spot. Didn't you?"
"..."
Your twenties were prime tattling years.
At this point, calling Fang Han's expression ugly no longer did it justice.
To put it bluntly, if murder weren't illegal, he would have inflicted all ten great tortures of the Qing dynasty on Xu Su.
Zhuang Luo hadn't expected Xu Su to be so straight to the point either, without the slightest detour. It stood in stark, complete contrast to his sexual orientation.
Huo Yuchen caught Xu Su by the wrist and drew him a small step closer, then switched to an icy gaze, silently shifting it between Fang Han and Zhuang Luo.
"Is that so?"
He hadn't specified whom he was asking, but Zhuang Luo felt an invisible, irresistible pressure surrounding him, making him break into a sweat.
He anxiously clenched his fingers and smiled awkwardly. "Xu Su has misunderstood a little. That isn't what happened."
He shot Fang Han another look, signaling for him to back him up.
Strangely, however, Fang Han didn't take the cue.
As though struck by sudden inspiration, the latter abruptly remembered that this was his own fucking endorsement deal, and this place was his own fucking turf-
Contractually speaking, he was the fucking client calling the shots.
So what the hell was he afraid of?
Granted, Huo Yuchen far surpassed him in influence, strength, ability, and wealth, and those two seemed to have a pretty good relationship from appearing on a variety show together.
But!
What the hell did that have to do with his own business?!
Why couldn't he change his own contract however he liked?!
Then again, if he wanted to go further in business and grow bigger and stronger, he really ought to flatter Huo Yuchen, lest Huo Yuchen turn around and start putting obstacles and snares in his path.
But...
Fine, there was no "but." Whoever had the money called the shots.
Having figured that out, he abruptly changed his expression again, looking as earnest in his explanation as if he were discussing a business deal worth hundreds of millions.
"Yes, exactly, that's right. This really is a misunderstanding. I must not have explained myself clearly enough just now, causing Xu Su to get the wrong idea. It's all a misunderstanding."
Huo Yuchen narrowed his eyes slightly and asked skeptically, "Is that so?"
Fang Han nodded solemnly. "Yes!"
Huo Yuchen remained silent, as though weighing whether those words were credible. Then, seemingly recalling something as he thought, he pressed on:
"Then who were you referring to when you said 'the people under you don't know their place'?"
"When I came in, you were shouting that someone had to kowtow ten times with their head hitting the floor. Who were you demanding that from?"
"The person you planned to teach a good lesson wouldn't happen to be Xu Su, would it?"
"..."
The three relentless questions turned Fang Han's expression ugly again, his face alternating between ashen and pale like a Sichuan opera face-changing performance.
Honestly, he had no idea when exactly Huo Yuchen had been standing in the doorway, so he couldn't tell whether lying or coming clean would be better now.
Just as he stood at a loss, his mind in turmoil, Zhuang Luo, for reasons unknown, actually stepped forward like a soldier leading the charge and bailed him out.
"It was me. Mr. Fang was talking about me."
Looking straight at Huo Yuchen, Zhuang Luo explained nervously and with a hint of awkwardness:
"I misunderstood the contract requirements at first, which led to some unnecessary misunderstandings with Xu Su during the shoot. That's why Mr. Fang was so angry just now."
The benefit of this self-sacrifice was that it would certainly earn him a considerable favor from Fang Han.
But as for whether it would win him a good impression with Huo Yuchen...
Zhuang Luo silently said an amen, praying for God's blessing.
Huo Yuchen repeated his performance, narrowing his eyes again and asking skeptically, "Is that so?"
Zhuang Luo was perfectly composed. "Yes, it is."
Behind Huo Yuchen, Han Liu, who had been watching wide-eyed the whole time, couldn't hold back anymore. "Like hell it is."
"You mother-"
Fang Han hadn't noticed who was speaking and was about to let a classic curse fly, but after tilting his head and seeing who it was, he forcibly swallowed the "fucker."
There were actually plenty of witnesses present. Huo Yuchen only needed to apply a little pressure, and forget the facts-he could dig up "the facts' mother" in exhaustive detail.
But he didn't do that.
It wasn't because he couldn't be bothered to ask, or because he didn't trust the facts Han Liu had spent an hour investigating early that morning, much less because he was no longer biased toward Xu Su.
It was because uncovering the truth wasn't the only way to get revenge.
Huo Yuchen swept an unreadable glance over everyone and coldly ordered all uninvolved people to leave.
Then he looked at Xu Su and asked gently, "Is there anything you'd like to add?"
Xu Su shook his head. "No."
Actually, there was.
But he had already roughly guessed what Huo Yuchen intended to do next, so there was no need to add anything.
As long as he got to vent his anger, that was enough.
Hearing this, however, Fang Han and Zhuang Luo suddenly very much wanted to add something.
After all, Huo Yuchen's preferential treatment had reached the point where he made no effort to hide it. Even if they were idiots, they could tell that he would definitely do something to vent Xu Su's anger shortly.
Having just been through a round of "the beauty saving the hero," Fang Han sincerely felt he owed Zhuang Luo a favor,
And with those little ambiguous intentions between them burning in his heart, Fang Han stepped forward of his own accord, intending to be "a man who could shoulder things"!
"Mr. Huo."
He walked forward with a smile and spoke smoothly yet sincerely:
"Mr. Huo, I know you and Xu Su are acquainted, and my side really did handle things poorly today and spoil your mood. How about this? Tonight I'll reserve a table at Heaven on Earth... no, the best private room, and properly apologize to you and Xu Su. What do you think?"
After speaking, he even blinked those unattractive dog eyes of his.
"Certainly."
Huo Yuchen uttered the word with unreadable intent, then abruptly changed tack:
"But since that's for tonight, let's discuss it tonight. Let's discuss the present first."
"...The p-present?"
The corner of Fang Han's mouth twitched. "Aren't we leaving the present matter to discuss tonight...?"
The uncertainty beyond his control made his voice grow quieter and quieter, his tone turning somewhat hesitant.
Huo Yuchen said nothing, merely regarding him coldly.
The highly perceptive Han Liu spoke at just the right moment:
"Mr. Fang, you may have misunderstood. When Mr. Huo said we would discuss it tonight, he meant the apology you just mentioned. When he said we would discuss things now, he meant Mr. Xu being falsely accused, bullied, and wronged just now."
He smiled politely. "Those are two separate matters."
"...???"
This was no longer some little matter of hiring a lawyer. Fang Han practically wanted to petition the United Nations on the spot and ask its secretary-general to judge the matter for him-
They were clearly the same fucking thing!!!
He suppressed his heart, which was about to explode, and signaled for Zhuang Luo and his assistant to hurry up and say something, or he really would be going to heaven and never making it back to earth.
Before you continue