"Two days ago, I offended Sheng Lei, the president of Baihua Bank, at a dinner banquet. He went to people from the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce and joined forces with two other banks to completely blacklist the Xiashi Group."
"This time, I'm afraid the Xiashi Group really won't survive."
Xia Bingyu gave a helpless, bitter laugh, truly feeling the grip of despair.
The Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce was an absolute behemoth throughout Longxia, controlling staggering wealth.
And now that people from the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce had stepped forward to blacklist the Xiashi Group, it didn't take a genius to realize that tomorrow, not a single person would dare cooperate with them anymore.
At that moment, Su Lin suddenly stood up. "Wife, leave this matter to me. I'll help you solve it!"
Xia Bingyu was already in a foul mood, and hearing Su Lin say this, she couldn't help letting out a cold snort. "The Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce is no ordinary family. Just how do you plan to solve this?"
Hearing this, Su Lin was just about to say that the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce actually belonged to his sixth master, when Xia Bingyu's phone rang once again!
Seeing that the caller was Sheng Lei, Xia Bingyu's expression instantly turned icy. She answered the call and demanded, "Sheng Lei, what is the meaning of this call?"
"Miss Xia, I'm sure you already know that the Xiashi Group has been jointly blacklisted by the three major banks!"
"However, this matter is not without room for negotiation. As long as you arrive promptly at the top floor of the Golden Dragon Hotel at nine o'clock tonight, we can discuss this further."
"Remember, you only get one chance. Whether you can grasp it depends entirely on your own abilities!"
With a playful tone, Sheng Lei hung up the phone directly.
Xia Bingyu glanced at the time and stood up without a moment's hesitation!
Lin Feixuan couldn't help asking, "Sister Bingyu, where are you going?"
"Sheng Lei asked me to go to the Golden Dragon Hotel to discuss the blacklisting of the company. I'm going to check it out." Xia Bingyu replied truthfully.
Lin Feixuan hurriedly advised, "Sister Bingyu, this smells like a trap. You must stay calm!"
Xia Bingyu shook her head. "The Xiashi Group was built by my grandfather with his own hands; I cannot let it be ruined in my hands. So trap or no trap, I have to make this trip!"
Lin Feixuan furrowed her brow, a strange look flashing through her eyes as she seemed to want to say something.
Right at that moment, Su Lin stood up as well and grabbed Xia Bingyu's hand. "Wife, I'll go with you!"
"A mere Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce actually dares to bully you. I'll make sure they all kneel down and apologize to you!"
Xia Bingyu frowned, not believing Su Lin's wild talk at all!
"Sister Bingyu, just let Su Lin tag along. He's got some decent combat skills. If there's any real danger, he can protect you," Lin Feixuan persuaded.
After thinking about it for a moment, Xia Bingyu didn't refuse and left the house with Su Lin in tow.
Watching their retreating figures, Lin Feixuan's eyes flashed with a hint of resolve.
She decided to wait and see how things turned out when Xia Bingyu returned. If the problem couldn't be resolved, then reluctant as she might be, she would have no choice but to use her family's influence to help!
Meanwhile, after getting into the car with Su Lin, Xia Bingyu drove straight toward the Golden Dragon Hotel.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Xia Bingyu kept her face icy throughout the ride, with no intention of speaking at all.
Noticing this, Su Lin didn't try to provoke her either; instead, he closed his eyes in the front passenger seat to rest and recuperate.
Suddenly!
Bang!
A black van smashed fiercely into the side of the front of Xia Bingyu's car!
Instantly, the entire vehicle spun out of control, careening to the side and slamming right into the roadside green belt!
"Wife, watch out!"
Su Lin reacted instantly, pulling Xia Bingyu into his arms to shield her from any harm!
Afterwards, Su Lin frowned as he assessed the situation outside. A large crowd was pouring out of the black van, every single one of them wielding thick, long steel pipes!
"Get the hell out of the car, you people inside!"
A shirtless man kept bashing the body of the car with a steel pipe.
"What kind of people are you?" Xia Bingyu forced herself to calm down and asked as steadily as possible.
"Surely you've heard of the Black Tiger Gate, right? If you know what's good for you, get down here right now and obey us honestly, and you might spare yourselves some physical suffering!"
The shirtless man spoke with an arrogant swagger.
The Black Tiger Gate!
Hearing those three words, Xia Bingyu's face instantly turned as white as a sheet!
This was a notoriously ruthless faction in Jiang City. It was said that Lin Heihu, the master of the Black Tiger Gate, employed methods of extreme cruelty. Just hearing his name sent chills down people's spines!
"Damn it! I just taught that Lin Heisou a lesson during the day, and now he's back to bother me again tonight. Looks like he's really tired of living!"
Hearing that these people were from the Black Tiger Gate, Su Lin's patience finally ran out. He pushed the car door open and stepped right out!
"Su Lin!"
Xia Bingyu's expression changed drastically, as she hadn't expected Su Lin to just walk straight out like that.
These men from the Black Tiger Gate had blood on their hands, and there were many of them. Even with Su Lin's extraordinary fighting skills, there was a strong chance he would fall into their trap.
Xia Bingyu had originally planned to step on the gas and force her way through, but now she had to abandon that plan.
Sighing helplessly, Xia Bingyu still followed Su Lin out of the car.
"Hmph, you two know what's good for you!"
"Kid, you can get lost now. As for this pretty lady..."
The shirtless man sneered, shifting his gaze to Xia Bingyu with a leering, obscene smile. "You're coming with us. As long as you follow me obediently, I promise..."
Slap!
Before the shirtless man could finish speaking, Su Lin sent him flying with a single slap. Impatiently, he said, "I don't have time to waste babbling with small fry like you. Where is your boss, Lin Heisou? Tell him to crawl over here and see me!"
"You punk, how dare you curse our master? You're asking for a death wish! Brothers, let's all go together and take him down first!"
Seeing that Su Lin completely disregarded their master, the rest of the subordinates shouted and prepared to attack him.
Seeing this scene, Xia Bingyu's face turned faintly pale. Su Lin actually had the nerve to curse the master of the Black Tiger Gate as "Lin Heisou"—now truly no one could save them!
"Damn it, all of you stop right there!"
At that exact moment, an angry shout rang out.
Following that, everyone watched as a figure leaped down from the black van and hurried toward Su Lin.
"Oh, it's you."
"What? You and your father Lin Heisou still harbor resentment against me, so you came back to exact your revenge?"
Seeing who it was, Su Lin asked indifferently.
That person was none other than Lin Tianba. Upon hearing Su Lin's question, he dropped straight to his knees, crying as he explained, "Esteemed Young Master, you've got it all wrong! Even if we were given ten guts, we wouldn't dare seek revenge on you!"
"This whole thing... the Zhang family approached the Black Tiger Gate and asked us to abduct a woman named Xia Bingyu, so I brought my men out to handle it."
"I just never expected that you, Young Master, would actually be in the car! If I had known, how could I ever have dared to do such a thing?"
"Is that really the way it is?" Su Lin stared at Lin Tianba, pressing for confirmation.
"Young Master, I can swear to it! I'm not lying to you at all, or else my entire family will die a horrible death!"
Lin Tianba hurriedly raised his hand to swear an oath, looking as though he were on the verge of tears.
Originally, he had thought tonight's mission would be a walk in the park, so he hadn't planned on showing his face. He had simply ordered his subordinates to handle it while he stayed in the vehicle watching online videos of pretty girls.
Who could have guessed that right as he was enjoying himself, he would hear Su Lin's voice?
At first, he thought he was hallucinating, but when he peeked through the window, the soul nearly scared right out of his body. He never dreamed he would run into Su Lin again.
This was the same god of death who had killed Elder Hou with a single punch! And he had gone and offended him yet again—talk about having the worst bloody luck in existence!
Seeing that Lin Tianba didn't seem to be lying, Su Lin thought for a moment and said, "Considering that you didn't deliberately come looking for trouble with me, I can let you off. But there is a condition."
"Right now, you are to call your father Lin Heisou, take your men, and head straight to the Zhang family. Cripple everyone in the Zhang family."
"I'll give you only one night. If you fail to do it, I'll personally come and collect the heads of both father and son!"
Not daring to make the decision on his own, Lin Tianba forced a flattering smile. "Don't worry, Young Master, I will relay this message to my father right away!"
"Good. And one more thing: this woman is my wife. If your Black Tiger Gate ever dares to target her again, I won't give you a second chance!"
Su Lin wrapped his arm around Xia Bingyu's waist as he issued the warning.
"Don't worry, Young Master, we wouldn't dare!" Lin Tianba nodded profusely in eager agreement.
"Oh, right, almost forgot the most important thing!"
Su Lin suddenly thought of something and pointed at Xia Bingyu's car. "You smashed my wife's car up like this—don't you plan on paying compensation?"
"Compensation? Of course! Absolutely!"
Lin Tianba hastily fished a card from his pocket and presented it respectfully. "Young Master, there is over a million in this card. Consider it my compensation. The PIN is the last six digits of the card number."
Su Lin accepted the card, then waved his hand with satisfaction. "You guys can leave now."
Feeling as though he had received a grand pardon, Lin Tianba scrambled to his feet and quickly fled the scene with his horde of subordinates.
"Wife, you take this card!"
With a grin, Su Lin handed the bank card over to Xia Bingyu.
Xia Bingyu looked at Su Lin with a furrowed brow. "What just happened? Why are the people from the Black Tiger Gate so afraid of you?"
"It's simple. Their boss offended me during the day and got a sound beating from me, so naturally these underlings of his are terrified of me!" Su Lin explained casually!
"Even so, there's no reason the Black Tiger Gate would be so obedient as to go and deal with the Zhang family for you, is there?"
Xia Bingyu remained somewhat skeptical.
"Alright, wife, stop overthinking it. Weren't you heading to the Golden Dragon Hotel? Let's get moving!"
Su Lin took Xia Bingyu by the hand and walked her back toward the car.
Xia Bingyu didn't press the matter further; after all, the top priority right now was dealing with the three major banks and the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce blacklisting the Xiashi Group.
Meanwhile, inside the black van, Lin Tianba dialed his father's phone and recounted everything that had just transpired!
Hearing the report, Lin Heihu flew into a furious rage, cursing loudly, "You unfilial bastard! You went and offended Young Master Su again? Do you have any idea that with his strength, he could wipe out the entire Black Tiger Gate?!"
"Dad, you can't blame me for this!"
"Who could have known that the woman the Zhang family asked us to target was actually Young Master Su's wife?" Lin Tianba felt deeply aggrieved.
Lin Heihu managed to calm himself down. "Fine, there's no use complaining now. The most important thing is to make amends."
"Didn't Young Master Su tell us to deal with the Zhang family? I'm taking men over right now. You hurry up and head straight to the Zhang family as well!"
Lin Tianba's expression shifted slightly. "Dad, the Zhang family isn't weak in Jiang City. Are you sure you want to completely break ties with them?"
Lin Heihu let out an impatient snort and scolded, "You idiot! No matter how powerful the Zhang family is, how can they compare to Young Master Su? Young Master Su is a genuine advanced Martial Artist, and it's very likely he has ties to Fengyue Pavilion!"
"For someone like that, we must fulfill whatever demand he makes. If we can get into his good graces, who knows, perhaps the standing of our father-son duo in Jiang City can rise to an even higher level!"
Lin Tianba never imagined his father would hold such deep reverence for Su Lin. His expression instantly turned serious. "Dad, I understand!"
On the other side, Xia Bingyu pushed her car to its maximum speed, finally arriving at the entrance of the Golden Dragon Hotel just before nine o'clock!
Stepping out of the vehicle, Xia Bingyu was filled with tension at the thought of what lay ahead.
Looking up at the luxurious hotel, Su Lin suddenly thought of something. "Oh, right, wife. Is this Golden Dragon Hotel also part of the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce?"
Xia Bingyu nodded. "That's right. The Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce is the largest chamber of commerce in Longxia. It has countless members and countless assets. A luxurious place like the Golden Dragon Hotel is just one small link in their vast empire."
"Well? Do you finally realize how formidable the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce is?"
Hearing this, Su Lin chuckled indifferently. "Listening to you, wife, the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce really is impressive. But after tonight, all of this will belong to me!"
Xia Bingyu rolled her eyes at Su Lin, figuring he was just talking nonsense again.
As the largest chamber of commerce in Longxia—capable of going toe-to-toe with certain financial conglomerates—how could it ever become his property?
Without saying anything further, Xia Bingyu stepped directly into the Golden Dragon Hotel!
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the Golden Dragon Hotel.
In front of a massive floor-to-ceiling window, a young man was lounging comfortably in an executive chair, enjoying the night view. He held a photograph in his hand, attended on both sides by two stunning women.
Standing nearby were three middle-aged men, one of whom was none other than Sheng Lei.
As for the other two, they were Hong Chang, the president of Tianxia Bank, and Lin Feng, the president of Sihai Group!
Aside from these individuals, a withered, gaunt elder stood silently in the corner, completely motionless and highly inconspicuous.
"Sheng Lei, is that woman you mentioned really as pretty as the picture?"
The young man sitting in the executive chair suddenly asked.
"Young Master Zhou, I can stake my life on it—that woman is an absolute top-tier beauty. The moment you lay eyes on her, you'll never forget her!" Sheng Lei patted his chest to reassure him.
Hearing Sheng Lei speak with such confidence, the young man licked his lips as he looked at the photo of Xia Bingyu, already growing impatient!
This young man was Zhou Ang, the son of Zhou Wanhao, the head of the Jiang City branch of the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce.
Because Zhou Wanhao had fathered him late in life, he doted on this son tremendously, satisfying his every whim and request!
And Zhou Ang had no other real hobbies aside from a weakness for women—whether they were married women, young matrons, or college students. Any woman who caught his eye never escaped his clutches.
To enlist Zhou Ang's help in dealing with the Xiashi Group, Sheng Lei had specifically recommended Xia Bingyu to him and engineered today's plan to lure her here.
"It's almost nine o'clock. Why hasn't this Xia Bingyu arrived yet?"
Gazing at Xia Bingyu's celestial features in the photograph, Zhou Ang's body was beginning to heat up. He spun his chair around and asked impatiently.
"Young Master Zhou, don't worry. With the three major banks jointly blacklisting the Xiashi Group, she wouldn't dare not come!" Sheng Lei flattered him with a ingratiating smile.
Zhou Ang frowned, and just as he was about to speak, a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in!"
Sheng Lei's eyes lit up as he spat out the two words indifferently.
Shortly after, the door pushed open, and Xia Bingyu and Su Lin walked in one after the other.
Upon seeing Su Lin, a flash of resentment crossed Sheng Lei's eyes, quickly replaced by a cold sneer.
Last time, Su Lin had humiliated him. But today, with Zhou Ang right here, he was going to pay him back tenfold!
At the same time, Zhou Ang's gaze locked onto Xia Bingyu.
In his eyes burned...
Intense heat!
Greed!
And undisguised lust!
To be honest, for all the women Zhou Ang had played with, this was the first time he had ever laid eyes on one of such exceptional quality.
Her features were ethereal, and the aura she carried was particularly striking—like a snow lotus blooming on a high mountain peak.
Any man would surely yearn to witness a woman like this being completely conquered by him!
Feeling the weight of Zhou Ang's invasive gaze, Xia Bingyu felt a wave of discomfort and instinctively retreated behind Su Lin.
"Miss Xia, you've finally arrived. I was starting to think you were going to stand us up!" Sheng Lei let out a sarcastic, sneering laugh.
Ignoring him, Xia Bingyu looked instead at Hong Chang and Lin Feng. "Two bank presidents, it seems my Xiashi Group has done nothing to offend you. Why would you join Baihua Bank in blacklisting us?"
"Miss Xia, you should be asking Young Master Zhou that question." Hong Chang offered a playful smile, his eyes shifting toward Zhou Ang.
Xia Bingyu frowned; Zhou Ang's gaze filled her with intense aversion.
"Miss Xia, allow me to introduce you. This is Young Master Zhou, the son of the president of the Jiang City Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce. Tonight, the fate of your Xiashi Group rests entirely in his hands!" Sheng Lei introduced with a mocking smirk.
Xia Bingyu's expression changed instantly!
The son of the president of the Golden Dragon Chamber of Commerce—with just that identity alone, a single word from Zhou Ang could plunge the Xiashi Group into eternal damnation!
Ultimately, Xia Bingyu took a deep breath, summoned her courage, and stepped forward to ask, "Young Master Zhou, I am the president of the Xiashi Group, and I've come here with complete sincerity. I'd like to know your reason for blacklining the Xiashi Group, and what it will take for you to let us go?"
Staring at Xia Bingyu, Zhou Ang said playfully, "Making me let go of the Xiashi Group is very simple. All you have to do is become my woman!"
"Young Master Zhou, you must be joking. Surely you know I'm already a married woman!" Xia Bingyu paused, forcing a smile.
"So what if you're married? Women like that have even more flavor, plus it saves this young master the trouble of slowly teaching you things!" Zhou Ang licked his lips.
"I'm sorry, Young Master Zhou, I can't do that."
Flatly refusing, Xia Bingyu turned around, intending to leave.
Seeing this, Sheng Lei let out a mocking chuckle. "Miss Xia, you'd better think carefully. If you walk out just like that, the Xiashi Group will go bankrupt tomorrow!"
Xia Bingyu's steps came to an abrupt halt, her hands clenched into tight fists.
"Miss Xia, Young Master Zhou taking a fancy to you is your honor. Don't be so ungrateful!" Hong Chang threatened with a sinister undertone.
"Miss Xia, you need to weigh this carefully. If you become Young Master Zhou's woman, what is a mere Xiashi Group? That's a lifetime of unimaginable wealth and glory!" Lin Feng chimed in with enticement.
As for Zhou Ang, he remained comfortably seated, as if he had already won Xia Bingyu over.
After all, with his status out in the open, whenever he approached women, the mere mention of who he was usually caused them to throw themselves into his arms willingly!
After waiting a moment, Zhou Ang spoke up indifferently: "Woman, that's enough playing hard to get. I know your heart has already submitted to me, and you're just putting on a show right now. You want to use this act to show others your loyalty and perseverance, so you can pretend you were forced into becoming my woman against your will."
"Well, your objective has pretty much been achieved. Now your primary task is to serve this young master well. Once I'm pleased, whatever you want, you shall have."
"Oh, right, let me remind you of one thing first: this young master doesn't like to do all the work, so you'll need to move yourself when the time comes."
As soon as those words left his mouth—
Sheng Lei, Hong Chang, and Lin Feng all looked at Xia Bingyu with mocking grins, as if gazing at a plaything.
Shortly after, Sheng Lei strode right up to Su Lin and demanded arrogantly, "Kid, weren't you acting all high and mighty the other day? How come you're shrinking away like a dog in front of Young Master Zhou, too cowardly to stand up for her now?"