Chapter 445: Young Model Xu Shaochen

Lin Kai was busy filming in Hong Kong.

Although Lin Kai wasn’t very bright, he was a natural when it came to acting.

How can I put it? Let’s just say that while others are 80% water, Lin Kai is 80% acting.

Let’s leave Lin Kai for now. Xu Shaochen, on the other hand, was holding a press conference.

To be precise, it was a press conference he had been forced to hold.

As soon as he stepped out of the company building, he was surrounded by reporters from various websites, TV stations, and newspapers.

“Chairman Xu, there are online reports claiming that the Lotus Charity Foundation, which was recently praised by CCTV, is actually your company. Is this true?”

“What do you think about the earlier online criticism that accused Chen Yu Company of only chasing profits and ignoring charity?”

“Chairman Xu, I’m a reporter from Morning Post. I’d like to ask about Lotus Charity and Chen Yu…”

Lotus Charity had become quite popular, leading to increasing criticism that Chen Yu wasn’t fulfilling its social responsibilities and had never done any charity work.

Of course, it all started with a PR campaign hired by Xu Shaochen to stir up this heated discussion intentionally.

Then, suddenly, news broke out that the boss behind Lotus Charity was Xu Shaochen, and Chen Yu had been wrongfully accused all along.

It wasn’t that Chen Yu hadn’t been doing charity, but that they’d been quietly contributing all along.

The public opinion online took a sharp turn, flooding the internet with praise for Xu Shaochen and Chen Yu. Xu Shaochen’s personal reputation skyrocketed.

Upon hearing that Xu Shaochen had returned to Jiangzhou, the journalists flocked like sharks smelling blood in the water.

“Alright, everyone, please calm down and quiet down a bit. Let’s avoid any stampede incidents. I will answer all your questions, one by one.”

Xu Shaochen raised his hand and called out to the crowd, his voice rising above the noise. Finally, the chaotic scene settled down.

“You, over there. You go ahead with your question.”

Xu Shaochen pointed to a reporter from Jiangzhou Evening News.

The reporter aimed the camera at Xu Shaochen: “Chairman Xu, I’d like to know, when Chen Yu was being misunderstood, why didn’t you step forward to clarify that Lotus Charity was your company?”

Xu Shaochen nodded to himself, thinking, ‘This guy knows what to ask. Worth every penny of the 2,000 yuan bribe I gave him.’

Step aside, everyone, I’m about to act all high and mighty. Watch out or you might just get blinded by the brilliance of my act.

“Well, my answer to that question is actually very simple. I do charity work to contribute to society. My original intention was to help those poor children. That’s it.”

“The reason I didn’t come forward earlier is that I believe that justice lives in people’s hearts. I’ve done what I needed to do, and as long as I don’t feel guilty, that’s enough.”

In an instant, an image of a glorified, towering figure was created. Please address me as Bodhisattva Shaochen.

“Clap, clap, clap…”

Suddenly, there was thunderous applause. Half of the reporters had received bribes and were obliged to clap as hard as they could.

They had to live up to the money Xu Shaochen had given them.

“Mr. Xu, what’s your view on the issue of charity?” asked another reporter. This one was a conscientious journalist, who hadn’t taken Xu Shaochen’s bribe.

He only accepted a platinum necklace.

“Charity is a broad concept. In fact, even before establishing Lotus Charity Foundation, I had been doing charitable work. Many other companies are doing the same.”

“We provide many jobs for society, solving unemployment and livelihood issues for ordinary people. That’s charity. At Chen Yu, our restaurant division is dedicated to creating healthy and sanitary dining environments. That’s also charity. Paying taxes on time and legally, contributing to the nation’s development, is another form of charity.”

“Charitable work isn’t defined by size. We’re doing it today, we’ll keep doing it tomorrow, and as long as Chen Yu doesn’t go bankrupt, our charity work will not stop.”

It’s all just empty words, but unfortunately, nowadays, people love hearing grandiose nonsense like this.

As soon as this part of the interview was posted online, the comment section exploded with activity. Most people expressed their support for Chairman Xu, for Chen Yu, and for Lotus Charity.

“Come on, he’s obviously just putting on a show. What kind of selfless entrepreneur is there?”

“You idiot upstairs, think you’re unbeatable just because you have a keyboard? Go try building a school in a poor mountainous region if you’re so great.”

“Exactly, it’s easy to talk when you don’t have to act. Whether or not he’s putting on a show, at least he’s really doing charity and helping people. Just for that, I support him.”

A few people saw through the act, and some were just purely envious of the rich. However, these comments were quickly drowned out by more words of praise for Xu Shaochen.

Xu Shaochen quickly became a towering and respected figure in Jiangzhou, lauded as the youngest entrepreneur and philanthropist, a model of kindness and excellence.

The city council even awarded Xu Shaochen with a banner of honor, and all the cities and counties that received help from Lotus Charity also sent banners in gratitude.

In the scorching summer, Xu Shaochen was the coolest kid in town, becoming a role model. Parents even began using him as an example when teaching their children.

Of course, some people were so furious they smashed their computers.

They spat out curses, ‘How can someone as lawless and reckless as Xu Shaochen become a role model? A top ten young entrepreneur?’ These were the people who had suffered losses at Xu Shaochen’s hands; they knew his true face very well.

He’s nothing but a phony, putting on a show.

But as soon as these posts were published, they were quickly drowned in ridicule from online users and hastily deleted.

In short, while there were some insults, the praise was far more overwhelming. The result Xu Shaochen wanted was already achieved.

For now, it was just an online sensation.

When the headlines of major news outlets hit tomorrow, that’s when the real social impact will unfold.

After all, even in this day and age, while the internet is more popular than newspapers, it’s still the newspapers and TV news that carry more weight.

And behind all of this, was the mastermind—Great Philanthropist Xu.

At this moment, he was having dinner with that temptress Zhang Mingrong.

Why call her a temptress? Because she kept teasing him, brushing her foot against Xu Shaochen’s leg, then giving him a shy and apologetic smile.

Yuck—

Watching this coy act, Xu Shaochen felt like throwing up, barely resisting the urge to smash a tray into her face.

From innocence to maturity, how many beds have you destroyed?

Yet now, you pretend to be a pure flower. Do you really think I, with my experience, can’t see through it? Maybe it’s just because I’ve got class.

In the end, Xu Shaochen held back the urge to smash her face, knowing he needed to play along and keep this woman who thought she could control him in check.