"Bai Heng, I need an explanation from you!"
The voice on the other end of the line was aged and deep. The Proud Dragon Emperor could clearly feel the suppressed anger in his father's tone—Bai Junshan, chairman of the Bai Group.
"Dad, this is a misunderstanding!"
The Proud Dragon Emperor's voice trembled as he spoke cautiously.
"A misunderstanding? The person in that photo is Yiran's younger brother, isn't it?"
Bai Junshan was referring to the man in the suit with a crew cut in the post's photo, who was swinging a bat at Heng Yuwei.
"Speak! Is it or isn't it?"
Seeing no response from the Proud Dragon Emperor for a long time, Bai Junshan roared into the phone, startling the Proud Dragon Emperor into a full-body shudder.
"It... it is."
As the Proud Dragon Emperor's girlfriend, Xu Yiran often brought Xu Yi to the family banquets of the Proud Dragon Emperor. By currying favor with Bai Junshan, she managed to get Xu Yi a position in the Bai Group.
"Bai Heng, I'm giving you one day to resolve this, or else you know the consequences! Click, click, click!"
"Hey! Dad..."
The Proud Dragon Emperor tried to explain further, but Bai Junshan dropped that line and hung up directly.
"Damn it!"
The Proud Dragon Emperor grabbed his phone and smashed it hard against the wall, then kicked over the coffee table beside him, worth tens of thousands of Dragon Kingdom dollars, sending glass shards scattering everywhere.
...
At 8 p.m., the meeting hall of the Songjiang City Public Security Bureau was brightly lit. A special meeting on the "Jinsongling May 9th Incident" had been running since the afternoon.
"Director Zhao, the chairman of Hengyun Group is furious that his daughter was attacked. With such a heinous case happening right under your nose, the National Leader is taking this very seriously!"
Li Hongbing, the Chief of the Dragonping Public Security Headquarters, fixed his sharp gaze on Zhao Xuejun, the Director of the Songjiang City Public Security Bureau, and spoke with a grim expression.
"Chief, rest assured. We will rigorously interrogate those suspects and set up a task force to thoroughly investigate this matter. We guarantee a satisfactory report to you!"
Zhao Xuejun snapped to attention, saluted Chief Li Hongbing, and declared loudly.
"Director Zhao, I think you've misunderstood. What do you mean by giving me, Li Hongbing, a report? You need to give a report to the National Leader and to the people of the Dragon Kingdom!"
Li Hongbing slammed his palm on the conference table and spoke to Zhao Xuejun with righteous indignation.
"Yes, sir!"
Startled by Li Hongbing's slap, Zhao Xuejun stood ramrod straight, stomped his right foot hard, and saluted.
"Alright, that's enough for today's meeting. Everyone, get to work!"
Li Hongbing glanced at all the bureau officers in the room, waved his hand, and everyone immediately stood up in unison, pushed their chairs under the table, and swiftly got moving!
Unnoticed, time slipped into the dead of night.
On Changning Mountain in the northern suburbs of Songjiang City, a villa estate spanning several hundred acres housed a lavishly decorated bedroom glowing with harsh white light.
On a soft, large bed, a completely naked Xu Yiran knelt at the edge, her graceful curves enough to make any man's blood boil.
"You filthy woman, you worthless slut! Your brother dragged me into this!"
Standing by the bed, the Proud Dragon Emperor yanked Xu Yiran's hair while cursing viciously.
"Ahhh! Spare me, husband, spare me!"
Xu Yiran let out distorted wails, her face an unreadable mix of pain and something else.
After over a minute, the Proud Dragon Emperor stepped forward, pulled Xu Yiran up by her hair with a jerk of his arm, and then slapped her hard across the face.
"Husband, I'm so sorry!"
Xu Yiran covered her swollen cheek, not daring to show any displeasure, and crawled on her knees to the Proud Dragon Emperor's side, her face full of apology.
After a long while, perhaps having vented his anger, the Proud Dragon Emperor lay on the bed, a cigar lit by Xu Yiran dangling from his lips, as he began to ponder a way out of the crisis.
His mind replayed the content of the day's post. Suddenly, he realized that aside from Xu Yi, all the people in those photos were from Heng Yuwei's side!
"Damn it! That bitch Heng Yuwei must have done this!"
Having figured out the key point, the Proud Dragon Emperor slapped Xu Yiran's smooth, rounded butt beside him. Her body shuddered violently, but she didn't dare make a sound.
The next morning, before the Proud Dragon Emperor was fully awake, he received a call from Director Zhao of the Public Security Bureau.
"President Bai, one of those men is your subordinate, isn't he?"
Director Zhao's first words jolted the groggy Proud Dragon Emperor wide awake.
"Director Zhao, what do you mean? I don't understand. Haha!"
The Proud Dragon Emperor feigned ignorance as he spoke to Zhao Xuejun on the other end.
"President Bai, we're old friends. I'll let you in on something: after last night's interrogation, though those suspects won't crack, I recognized one of them has a special connection with you! That's not the main point, though. The key is that all the suspects pointed to that person close to you as the ringleader of this incident! Do you get my drift now?"
Cold sweat poured down the Proud Dragon Emperor's body. He knew all too well that the person Zhao Xuejun referred to as having a special connection with him was Xu Yi.
"Haha, Director Zhao, don't scare me! You know I've always been a law-abiding businessman. How could I be involved with those thugs? You must be too tired from last night and saw wrong!"
The Proud Dragon Emperor had no choice but to insist he had no ties to Xu Yi. Otherwise, if the investigation's focus shifted to him, it would be a catastrophic disaster for the Bai Group.
"Oh? Is that so? I hope my eyes were playing tricks on me, because otherwise, this old friend won't be able to help you this time, little brother!"
Zhao Xuejun spoke to the Proud Dragon Emperor with a heavy heart, then hung up, leaving the Proud Dragon Emperor stunned on the other end.
After hastily finishing the breakfast prepared by the housekeeper, the Proud Dragon Emperor drove his Lamborghini to the company. But as soon as he got out of the car, he was surrounded by a swarm of reporters holding cameras and phones!
"Mr. Bai, what are your thoughts on yesterday's assassination attempt at Jinsongling Grand Hotel?"
"Mr. Bai, netizens have found online that the assassin's identity is linked to your Bai Group. Is that true?"
In an instant, the reporters crowded around the Proud Dragon Emperor, firing questions from all sides. One blunt reporter even shoved a microphone to his lips and asked, "Mr. Bai, there are rumors that you ordered the assassination of Miss Heng Yuwei, the general manager of Hengyun Group. Is that true?"
Staring at the hundreds of reporters surrounding him, the Proud Dragon Emperor said nothing, pulled his collar up to cover his face, and, under the escort of his bodyguards, charged through the entrance of the group building!
The Jinsongling incident, after a night of public outcry, had become a massive event drawing attention from all over Songjiang and even the entire Dragon Kingdom. Nearly every major and minor power in the Dragon Kingdom had their eyes fixed on the Bai Group and the Proud Dragon Emperor!