VBNWDW - Chapter 47

Chapter 47

The first snow of the season, which had fallen the night before, was brief and light. It left a thin layer on the ground, now trampled into dirty, messy footprints.

A crowd of people carrying cameras, microphones, and other equipment stood before the iconic Xi Group building, staring intently ahead as if waiting for a juicy prize to fall from the sky.

Someone shouted, "He's coming out!"

The group pounced like a pack of hungry wolves. Flashes popped incessantly, and black microphones were thrust toward the man's face.

"Mr. Xi, hello. Regarding the rumors currently circulating, are they true? Did you really anger Old Master Xi so badly he collapsed in the hospital, and then lock up your own father?"

"Mr. Xi, was President Xi's car accident truly orchestrated by you and your son?"

"Mr. Xi, how is President Xi's condition? Why has she stopped appearing in public? Is it because she fears your threats?"

"Mr. Xi, what are your thoughts on the sharp drop in Xi Group's stock price and the plummeting investor confidence that has led to a mass sell-off? Will you let President Xi return?"

The man in the gray suit wore a dark expression, walking outward without a word.

Security guards tried to hold the reporters back but were overwhelmed by the surging crowd.

A car parked at the entrance suddenly let out a series of sharp, continuous honks. The questioning paused for a moment, and Xi Yunting seized the opportunity, yanking open the car door and diving inside as if escaping.

He had just sat down when he heard a voice.

"Dad! These people are going too far!"

The speaker was none other than Xi Zhoukang. Seeing the situation was bad, Xi Yunting, afraid his precious son would be surrounded, had him pose as the driver while he drew the reporters' fire.

Hearing this, Xi Yunting's expression grew even uglier. He cursed angrily for a few moments before asking, "Did you contact those people? Didn't I tell them to publicize that the Xi Group is in great shape and announce a few major partnerships? Why is it still like this?"

He was furious. Just a few days ago, none of these people would have dared to approach him, let alone report on a Xi family scandal!

He had been so angry he'd wanted to smash their cameras!

He took several deep breaths, telling himself he couldn't act yet. He had to endure it a little longer. Once the Xi Group weathered this storm, he would make these people pay.

As Xi Yunting was thinking, he heard Xi Zhoukang in the front seat say hesitantly, "Dad… I had someone ask, but… but they refused…"

"Didn't you say you had friends on the inside?!" Xi Yunting couldn't help but get angry. He took the towel handed to him by his newly hired secretary and wiped himself down forcefully, his suit covered in gray marks from where the microphones had been pressed against him.

"How was I supposed to know they were so useless? They couldn't even get it done with money."

Xi Yunting threw the towel aside and scolded, "Stay away from people like that in the future."

Seeing his father's temper, Xi Zhoukang quickly said, "Yes, yes, I'll ignore them from now on."

He hesitated, then added, "Dad, what do we do now…?"

"Tan Xunwen somehow bought up fifteen percent of the Xi Group's shares and has publicly stated he no longer has confidence in the company. He's planning to sell them at a low price."

This move was like adding frost to snow. Even the Xi family's in-law and major shareholder was acting this way. The investors who already distrusted the Xi Group grew even more anxious to sell, and the stock price fell lower and lower.

"Mad dog!"

"He's a mad dog! A venomous snake!" Xi Yunting couldn't help but curse out loud.

He couldn't understand why the other man would do this. Other shareholders, at worst, would transfer their shares secretly to avoid affecting the stock price, but Tan Xunwen seemed to want everyone to know.

It never occurred to him that Tan Xunwen was seeking revenge. The death of his former wife wasn't his fault. If anyone was to blame, it was Xi Zhoulu. She was the one who caused her mother's death, making her bleed out. Because of that, he and Tan Xunwen were on the same side. He, too, deeply resented the child who had destroyed his family, which was why he hadn't shown her a kind face in so many years.

But when his former wife died, Tan Xunwen had shown no sadness or grief. He had even taken the opportunity to demand numerous resources from the Xi Group, which was how he had managed to squeeze into the Imperial Star's top circles in just a few short years.

In his eyes, Tan Xunwen was a ruthless egoist. How could he possibly do something so mutually destructive?

Unable to understand, he could only resort to curses.

"You mad dog, do you think you can completely break into the top circles by taking down the Xi Group? You've been expanding your company like crazy these past few years. You haven't stepped on a few toes, have you?"

"Once the Xi Group is gone, do you think you'll have it easy? The only reason you've survived this long is because you were under the great banner of the Xi Group."

Xi Yunting took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, then said through gritted teeth, "What about the banks? The loans? Several plots of land are about to start development. We need to raise the funds quickly. Once the projects are halfway done, we'll be fine."

Xi Zhoukang's expression worsened. He spoke with great difficulty, "We can't borrow. Not a single bank is willing to lend to us."

"What? How is that possible!" Xi Yunting was aghast.

"I asked around. It's the Qin Family." Xi Zhoukang suddenly pulled the car over to the side of an empty road and turned to look at his father.

He said, "The Qin Family is holding a grudge from last time. They've joined forces with the Xu family and others to put the word out, forbidding any company or bank from lending to us."

The Qin Family was in mining and industry, with extremely abundant liquid cash. They were always courted by the major banks. And with the other families involved…

Xi Yunting looked at his son and noticed his face was ashen. He swallowed hard, then looked at the secretary beside him and the driver in the passenger seat. In a hoarse voice, he said, "You two get out. Walk a little further away."

The car doors slammed shut. Xi Yunting watched coldly as the two walked away before turning back to his son. "What should we do?"

Xi Zhoukang bit his lip, his eyes bloodshot. His once-handsome face had become pale and haggard from days of debauchery, making him look somewhat terrifying.

He opened his mouth several times before finally saying, "Why don't we… why don't we sell the Xi Group, then hide abroad? After a couple of years, when things have blown over, we can buy a house…"

The rest of his words went unsaid.

He looked at his father nervously, even trembling slightly.

"Sell the Xi Group!" Xi Yunting was both shocked and furious. Even at this point, the thought had never crossed his mind. He croaked, "How is that possible? The shares are still in the old man's name. We only have proxy rights."

He suddenly trailed off, his eyes widening as if he'd realized something.

"You mean…"

Cold sweat broke out instantly, trickling down his spine and soaking his shirt. A fear accumulated since childhood rose from his bones, and he remembered the shadow he could never escape.

Old Master Xi sitting in his study, looking down on him with contempt.

It was as if he was constantly being reminded that he was a low-grade waste.

He looked at the son before him, thinking of his childhood—neglected and abandoned by the old man, just like his own. That was why he had tried so hard to compensate, giving him whatever he wanted, even if it meant sacrificing the interests of his other daughter. For him, he had stood up to the father he had feared his entire life.

He clenched his fists. His palms were slick with sweat. He wiped them forcefully on his pants, but more sweat immediately beaded up.

"Dad, we have no other choice," Xi Zhoukang said, his lips pale.

They had already pushed Xi Zhoulu to the point where she wouldn't leave her home. How could she possibly help them?

The old man had been angered into a coma, and they had even burned his will. If he were to wake up, the first thing he would do is send people to hunt down their entire family.

With the Xi Group in its current state, if they didn't jump ship in time, they would eventually be dragged down with it. At that point, forget about saving themselves; they'd be lucky to only be tens of millions in debt.

Xi Yunting's throat felt parched, and his heart pounded heavier with each beat.

He had never considered patricide. At most, he had thought they would temporarily control the Xi Group and prove that under their leadership, it could develop just as well, if not better, than when Xi Zhoulu was in charge. Then, when the old man woke up and saw how things were, he wouldn't be so biased toward Xi Zhoulu and give her all the shares.

But now…

His eyes were frantic and unfocused, ferocity and fear warring on his face.

What should he do?

"Dad! If not for me, you have to think about Mom! She's been with you for so many years, suffering in the Xi family, enduring so much scorn and ridicule. You can't let her spend the rest of her life working to pay off debts, can you?!"

Right, he still had his wife.

Xi Yunting thought of his second wife. Because he had been married and marked before, she had been with him for so many years without ever being fully marked like a normal Omega. She had to endure the contempt of their social circle and had suffered a great deal.

His eyes reddened instantly. It was his fault, his uselessness, that had caused his family to be looked down upon by everyone.

Xi Yunting finally made up his mind. He gritted his teeth and said, "Call them back. We'll pretend to go home first."

"Okay," Xi Zhoukang immediately replied.

---

After last night's snow, few people lingered outside this evening, especially at a hospital, a place people usually avoided. It was just past nine o'clock, but the place was nearly deserted.

Cold, white light illuminated the empty corridor, where even the sound of sleeping breaths was clearly audible. A nurse propped her head on her hand, pretending to look down while catching up on sleep.

Just then, someone climbed up a cold pipe to the outside of a window, gripping the ledge tightly. Through gritted teeth, they muttered in a deliberately low voice, "President Xi doesn't usually ask for much, but when she does, it's never easy. Last time it was searching for someone in a mountain ravine, now it's climbing an icy wall."

Yu Xing took a heavy breath and glanced down. The fifth-floor height concealed her from most lines of sight. Dressed in black in the dead of night, she would be extremely difficult to spot unless someone specifically looked up and searched carefully.

She placed her foot on the icy pipe, a safety rope tied around her waist just in case. One hand gripped the pipe, the other the window ledge. For others, it would have been an extremely dangerous maneuver, but for her, it felt strangely easy.

After all, she was a talent that even Xu Qingxi was reluctant to part with. During her service, she had led her squad on numerous high-difficulty missions. A mere wall climb was a gross waste of her skills.

She felt for the recording device strapped to her waist, pondering the best place to put it, when she suddenly heard a door open.

Yu Xing's body tensed. After hiding herself, she peered cautiously inside.

Xi Yunting?

She immediately realized that what Xi Zhoulu wanted was about to happen. She pulled out her phone and aimed the camera at the hospital bed.

She saw Xi Yunting carefully close the door and hurry toward the old man's bed. He was in such a rush that he even stumbled, glancing back at the door in a panic, terrified of being discovered.

Her eyes narrowed as she focused her gaze inside.

Xi Yunting sat by the bed, standing up and sitting down several times before looking back at the door again, his expression tense and his forehead beaded with sweat.

He lowered his head and mumbled something, chattering on for a long time as if giving himself a pep talk. His left hand gripped an empty pillow and slowly lifted it.

"Dad, I have no choice. I really have no choice…"

"If you have to blame someone, blame yourself. All these years, you never cared about us. If you had paid more attention, if you had nurtured me and Xiao Kang, things wouldn't have come to this."

"If it were just me, I could live my life in a daze, but I have my family. I have to think of them. I must, I must…" he stammered, unable to speak clearly.

Lying on the bed, Old Master Xi looked exceptionally old. His hair was mostly white, and his face was a web of wrinkles. In just a short time, it seemed all his vitality had vanished.

Xi Yunting's tears and sweat dripped down together, landing in the deep furrows of the old man's face and slowly sliding away.

He seemed to stir, his twitching fingers clutching at the fabric.

Xi Yunting was still trying to build up his courage, muttering, "You wronged us. You were always busy with work. To inherit the company, you even let others kill Mom."

"How old was I then? I was only eight when I lost my mother, and you were working all the time, gone for weeks on end."

"You wronged me. This is what you owe me."

Hearing this from outside the room, Yu Xing couldn't help but roll her eyes. But just then, the old man, who had been unconscious all this time, suddenly let out a hoarse sound.

"I…"

Xi Yunting was terrified. Almost instinctively, he slammed the pillow down.

The old man, having just woken up, had no strength. His eyes widened with shock, fear, and disbelief. Muffled sounds escaped him as his withered, branch-like hands gripped the pillow tightly.

"Why did you have to wake up! Why did you have to wake up!" Xi Yunting roared in a low, broken voice, his entire body trembling.

The old man grabbed his sleeve, struggling desperately to create a gap to speak. "Son… the will…"

"I know, I know, you want to give the group to Xi Zhoulu," he responded frantically, his eyes red and nearly bulging from their sockets.

"Shares… yours… for…"

Xi Yunting couldn't hear a thing, pressing down on the pillow with all his might. "Impossible. I will never let that happen. The company is mine. It's all for Xiao Kang."

The hospital bed creaked. Old Master Xi's face turned crimson from suffocation, his eyes rolling back in his head as he continued to struggle and say, "Yours… yours…"

Xi Yunting pressed down harder, the veins on the back of his hands bulging grotesquely. His suit jacket was strained, and a button popped off, falling to the floor.

The seemingly soft pillow blocked all air. Blood rushed to the old man's temples, and his eyes were completely bloodshot.

Xi Yunting shouted vengefully, "Impossible! I'm telling you, I've already negotiated a price for the company. It's about to be sold."

"Don't you care about it? You worked your whole life for it! Now, as soon as you die, it will be destroyed." He suddenly began to laugh, a crazed and savage sound.

Old Master Xi seemed to freeze for a moment. The pillow pressed down again, completely covering his face. His struggles ceased. The leg he had raised kicked out once, hard, and then he went completely still.

The monitor beside the bed suddenly let out a piercing alarm.

Xi Yunting didn't even dare to look. He tossed the pillow aside and immediately turned and ran.

Seconds later, doctors in white coats rushed in, filling the entire room.

Outside, the person turned off the camera and silently climbed back down the pipe.

The night grew darker. The bright, round moon watched it all in silence.

---

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