Chapter 618: You Might Make a Small Profit, But I’ll Never Lose

Upon hearing the news of Kong Biao and Kong Tianjing’s deaths,

Chen Ju’s first reaction was that it must have been Xu Shaochen.

But immediately after, he thought it couldn’t be.

If it were Xu Shaochen, there’s no way the news would’ve reached Jingcheng this quickly.

“Stop overthinking it. It was Zhao Li and Liang Huan. They spread the news themselves.”

Hearing this, Chen Ju became even more confused.

Zhao Li and Liang Huan? They killed Kong Biao and Kong Tianjing, and then spread the news?

What… What were they after?

Then, his thoughts turned to Xu Shaochen. This definitely can’t be unrelated to him.

Thinking back to the night at the bar when Liang Huan and Zhao Li almost turned against each other, only to come to him the next day, eager to cooperate,

This must be Xu Shaochen’s doing.

Now, could Liang Huan and Zhao Li’s actions today be under his orders too?

The thought sent a chill down Chen Ju’s spine.

How exactly is Xu Shaochen pulling all this off?

“What’s the matter? Why are you so quiet?”

Hearing the voice on the other end of the Phone, Chen Ju snapped back to reality. After taking a deep breath, he said, “Dad, I understand. The gold mine issue will be resolved soon.”

“Okay, that’s it then.”

“Beep… Beep…”

Staring at the Phone, Chen Ju stood motionless, his mind racing as he analyzed the web connecting Xu Shaochen, Zhao Li, and Liang Huan.

The ‘right opportunity’ Xu Tian’ci mentioned was probably referring to this very situation.

If nothing goes wrong, next, the Zhao and Liang families will completely sever ties with the Kong family. If I step in at that moment, the Kong family will be obliterated.

And all of this… is orchestrated by Xu Shaochen.

The power balance in Jingcheng, which took decades to stabilize, is being overturned by him alone.

From his perspective, offending Xu Shaochen was the most foolish mistake the Kong family could make.

………………

Hua’e Mountain Villa.

Inside the study.

In front of Xu Shaochen sat a camera and a contract.

The footage in the camera captured the entire process of Liang Huan and Zhao Li killing Kong Biao and Kong Tianjing, filmed by Long San.

This was Xu Shaochen’s insurance. The more backup plans, the better. That ensures he never hits a dead end.

As for the contract, it was for 20% of the shares in the special AIDS medicine.

Long Si had found it in Kong Biao’s room at the Jiangzhou Grand Hotel.

Xu Shaochen smiled slightly, retrieved a lighter, and burned the contract to ashes.

The Tan Family still had a copy of the contract, but Xu Shaochen had just called Ye Changfei, asking for his help in handling it.

Next to him, two fresh contracts were laid out, intended for Liang Huan and Zhao Li.

“Knock, knock…”

At this moment, the study door was knocked upon.

“Come in.”

Liu Rushuang opened the door. “Shaochen, two people are here to see you. One is named Liang Huan, the other Zhao Li.”

“Let them in. I asked them to come.”

After hearing this, Liu Rushuang turned and left. A few minutes later, Zhao Li and Liang Huan entered the study.

“Kong Biao and Kong Tianjing are dead, and we’ve spread the news to Jingcheng, just as you instructed. The entire city is in upheaval.”

“Just now, both Liang Huan and I received calls from our families, demanding we return immediately. Once we get back, we’ll definitely be labeled as family traitors.”

As soon as they entered, Zhao Li started talking rapidly, almost like a machine gun.

Xu Shaochen shook his head and corrected Zhao Li: “No, you’re only temporary traitors. In the future, you’ll be celebrated as heroes.”

“You promised us a great reward—where is it? Xu Shaochen, are you still trying to fool us at a time like this?”

Zhao Li gritted his teeth as he stared at Xu Shaochen, and Liang Huan was also glaring at him.

Both of them were extremely tense, their fists clenched so tightly that sweat was dripping from their palms.

The ‘reward’ Xu Shaochen had promised, something that would restore their reputation, was their last hope.

If Xu Shaochen was bluffing and had no reward, they would fall to the bottom rung of their families.

Forget about becoming the family heads—they wouldn’t even make it into the core circle.

“Take a look.”

Xu Shaochen tossed the two new contracts in front of them.

The two exchanged a suspicious glance at him, then carefully picked up the contracts. After reading a few lines, their faces instantly changed.

“Once the Kong family is wiped out, I’ll sign my name on each. What do you think? Is this not an enormous reward, allowing your families to earn a huge income every year?”

“Of course, the shares are only for the two of you—not for your families. This way, your status within your families will continue to rise.”

“Is this not an enormous benefit for you two?”

Xu Shaochen’s tone was calm as he spoke. In this world, there was no problem money couldn’t solve. If there was, it just meant you didn’t have enough money.

Liang Huan and Zhao Li were both utterly shocked. With the number of people living with AIDS increasing each year, the special AIDS medicine was essentially a goldmine that could be endlessly exploited.

Having 10% of the shares each would mean a huge annual dividend—possibly even more than their entire family’s annual income.

With that 10% of shares, they’d have a shield. How could their status in their families remain low?

As for being blamed for inciting a struggle between the three families?

To hell with blame.

With enough money, their uncles and elders would forget everything. The only thing they’d remember is the massive benefits they secured for the family.

For a moment, their breathing became heavier.

“So, this is the real root of your grudge against the Kong family, isn’t it?”

Liang Huan glanced at Xu Shaochen as he spoke.

“Smart man.” Xu Shaochen didn’t hesitate to praise him. Then, standing up, he poured drinks into three glasses: “To our long-lasting future cooperation, let’s drink.”

Even though Liang Huan and Zhao Li were fully aware they had been used by Xu Shaochen and would likely continue to be used in the future, they couldn’t resist the massive temptation in front of them.

They both stepped forward, picked up their glasses, and clinked them with Xu Shaochen’s.

Sipping his drink, Xu Shaochen said, “For now, both of you just need to keep a low profile. When the Kong family vanishes, it will be your time to rise.”

He paused for a moment before casually adding, “Of course, if you can’t wait, there are ways you could speed up the three-family conflict.”

Hearing this, the two rolled their eyes. Wasn’t this just his way of encouraging them to stir things up once they returned?

Even though they were being manipulated, they still felt like they were profiting.

Xu Shaochen merely chuckled. ‘You might make a small profit, but I’ll never lose.’