The Qing Clan Group wielded tremendous influence in Rongcheng. The Ji Family, the Song Family, and the Qing family had once formed a three-legged balance of power in Rongcheng's business world.
And what made them even more formidable than the Ji Family and the Song Family was their affiliated group, the Bai Clan Group, which ranked just below the three families. Weighing it that way, the Qing family could even be called Rongcheng's number one family, without equal!
Even the slightest chance to become a familiar face to him and show off was enough to send a third-rate young wastrel like Meng Zhe flocking over.
At that thought, Meng Zhe immediately strode forward, as though afraid someone else would steal his chance.
Facing such an important figure, Meng Zhe could not help feeling nervous. He unconsciously bent at the waist and said with an ingratiating smile, "Chairman Qing, you're just in time. The thief is on the sofa over there! Luckily, I spotted him in time. Otherwise, he would definitely have stolen something and..."
Meng Zhe could not go on, and his smile froze on his face.
Qing Fen had not so much as glanced at him. Instead, he strode toward Lin Fei, paying him no mind at all.
Meng Zhe felt utterly embarrassed and forced a smile. Yet no one present paid him any attention, so they never saw his awkward expression.
Meng Zhe dropped the smile, a cold, sinister grin appearing at the corner of his mouth as he waited to see how severely Lin Fei would be dealt with.
The Qing family was a top-tier wealthy family in Rongcheng. With Lin Fei caught stealing here, a mere Ji Yaoguang could not possibly protect him!
He was not alone. Many of those present were watching as spectators, looking forward to the spectacle.
"Immor..." Qing Fen suddenly felt that calling him "Immortal Master" would make others take him for a swindling charlatan, so he corrected himself. "Mr. Lin, I am deeply ashamed."
He gritted his teeth, his face filled with guilt and self-reproach, and bowed deeply.
Every member of the Qing and Bai families owed their existence in this world to Lin Fei's great kindness during the Xia Qi era. In Qing Fen's eyes, even a debt as weighty as a mountain could not describe what the Qing family owed Lin Fei. All their generations of ancestors combined could not repay even a tenth or two of it!
Yet now, Lin Fei had actually been taken for a thief at his own family's banquet?
As Qing Fen thought this, he failed entirely to notice the shock that had struck everyone present, their astonishment plain on their faces.
The man at the helm of one of Rongcheng's top-tier groups was actually bowing to this young man?!
Everyone present had to treat Chairman Qing with the utmost respect. Being able to politely call him "Uncle Qing," as Song Hao did, was already enough to show that a person held extremely high status.
Yet now, Qing Fen had turned around and bowed to a young man dressed so casually and simply?
At the sight, Meng Zhe's scalp instantly prickled. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, and the unease in his heart spread and coiled like vines.
Seeing Qing Fen's attitude toward Lin Fei, Meng Zhe finally realized that he had probably courted death yet again...
Han Enci, who was hiding off to the side, was also utterly horrified at the sight. From the incident with Jiang Tianling, he already knew that Lin Fei's identity was far from ordinary.
But the scene before him still exceeded his imagination!
Han Enci could not help feeling relieved. Thank fuck I was smart enough to read the situation early and stop opposing this great demon king.
Qing Fen straightened, his expression turning stern. "Mr. Lin, how should we deal with the person who maliciously spread rumors and slandered you earlier?"
Hearing this, Meng Zhe instantly shuddered with fear.
Lin Fei merely waved a hand casually and said indifferently, "Handle it as you see fit."
He was only an ant. It made no difference what happened to him.
Meng Zhe immediately wanted to slip away, but it was already too late-two security guards blocked his path, their expressions full of warning.
Meng Zhe gritted his teeth, turned around, and said with a shameless smile, "Chairman Qing, please let me explain. This is a misunderstanding. Earlier, I saw him standing in front of the antique shelves..."
Before he could finish, Qing Fen cut him off coldly. "I don't want to hear your explanation. Now tell me, who are you?"
In his desperation, Meng Zhe's mind raced, and he quickly said, "Chairman Qing, I'm a department manager at Tiancheng Industrial. My father is Meng Tiancheng, Tiancheng's chairman."
Qing Fen frowned slightly. "Tiancheng Industrial... That sounds somewhat familiar. I remember now. Isn't that a company my son Qing Mingyu invested in and holds a controlling stake in?"
Seeing a glimmer of hope, Meng Zhe was overjoyed. "Yes, yes, yes! Chairman Qing, have you forgotten? As the head of Tiancheng Industrial, my father even had dinner with you!"
But to his despair, Qing Fen's answer was blunt. "I don't remember."
"I only want to know-even if Qing Lixue invited her brother's subordinate, your father should have been the one attending. How did a mere department manager like you get an invitation?!"
Earlier, Meng Zhe had questioned whether Lin Fei's invitation was genuine. Now Qing Fen was sternly questioning him instead. The reversal nearly made him collapse on the spot, and he could barely speak coherently. "It... it was my father who gave it to me."
Qing Fen sneered. "Very well. I'd like to see just who this Meng Tiancheng is, handing his invitation to someone else so casually. Sending his son in his place would have been one thing, but you even slandered an honored guest of the Qing family as a thief and caused trouble at my daughter's birthday banquet-just what are you and your father playing at?"
Qing Fen already had a powerful presence. With him flying into a rage like this, a petty wastrel like Meng Zhe was so frightened that his legs went weak.
"What are you standing there for? Apologize to Mr. Lin at once!" Qing Fen snapped.
Meng Zhe hurriedly agreed and hastened over to Lin Fei.
Looking at Lin Fei's calm, unruffled appearance, he felt a surge of humiliation, but he still braced himself and bowed. "Mr. Lin, I'm sorry. I was blind and offended you. Please forgive me..."
Everyone in the hall watched the scene in unison. Apart from Meng Zhe's apology, not another sound could be heard. Precisely because of that, his words rang out with exceptional clarity.
Some felt sympathy for Meng Zhe's plight, but more watched the scene with mocking amusement.
A clown capering about-what a fine show.
Watching from the side, Han Enci felt a pang of shared distress.
Fuck, doesn't this whole apology scene look familiar?
Lin Fei sighed softly and waved a hand dismissively. "Noisy. Get lost."
Even that little demon princess who had cultivated the music of the zither back then had not been as noisy as Meng Zhe.
Meng Zhe looked worse than if he had swallowed a dead fly, but he was quick to react. Knowing that staying here would only invite further humiliation, he hurriedly murmured his assent and tried to escape this killing field.
Just as he was about to leave, however, Qing Fen stopped him. "Wait."
Like a bird startled by a bowstring, Meng Zhe felt his heart lurch and asked anxiously, "Chairman Qing, is there anything else?"
Qing Fen said coldly, "Go back and tell your father that the two of you had best submit your resignations to the shareholders' meeting of your own accord."
What reached Meng Zhe's ears was not a sentence.
It was a thunderbolt out of a clear sky.
In an instant, his face went pale and his legs gave way. He nearly fell to his knees...
Quite a few people cast curious, searching looks at Lin Fei.
Just who was he, to matter so much to Qing Fen?