"What did you say…" Zhao Le's pretty face trembled with anger. She couldn't believe the other party could be so outrageous. Not only were their demands shamelessly forceful, but they also hurled insults.

However, before she could say another word, her husband, Zhang Long, reached out and stopped her. With an incredibly dark expression, he spoke slowly, "Young Master Gou, I know you have connections and capabilities, but right now, you're representing someone else, aren't you? I want to know who that person is, what kind of background they have, and exactly who has taken an interest in our Green Bamboo Medicinal Cuisine."

"You want to know?" The arrogant young man, Gou Qiang, sneered. He exhaled a ring of smoke, acting as if he were about to reveal some profound secret. "Fine. Since it has come to this, there's not much point in keeping you in the dark, especially since I already let it slip. Let me put it this way: you've heard of Yang Yuancheng, Young Master Yang, haven't you?"

"Yang Yuancheng… Young Master Yang?" Zhao Le and Zhang Long gasped, their expressions changing dramatically.

This Young Master Yang was infamous in their circles.

Yang Yuancheng was the city's most notorious profligate young master.

No wonder, they thought. No wonder he spoke with such arrogance, brazenly claiming that no one would dare process our paperwork or buy our shop. Even the health and fire departments were so accommodating. So that's the reason…

"Now you know. Satisfied?" Seeing the shock on their faces, the arrogant Gou Qiang smirked disdainfully and tossed two contracts onto the table. "The contracts are right here. Pick one, and do it quickly. You should know my patience is running out. Dragging this out won't do you any good."

Zhang Long's body trembled fiercely at those words. Despair washed over him, and he was about to give in, but Zhao Le suddenly stopped him. "Could you give us half an hour to consider?"

"Half an hour?" The arrogant young man's face turned gloomy as he stared at Zhao Le. After a long silence, he finally spoke. "It seems you haven't given up yet. Good. I'd like to see what backing you have that could possibly stand up to Young Master Yang. Half an hour. I'll give you one last half-hour. If you haven't chosen and signed one of these contracts by then, the consequences will be yours to bear!"

His words struck Zhao Le and Zhang Long like a physical blow, so completely unrestrained that their faces paled.

"Little Le…" Zhang Long said hesitantly, grabbing Zhao Le as she was about to stand up. Their opponent's background was simply too terrifying. He was the son of the head of the city's Organization Department. Such a status crushed any thought of resistance. He didn't want to cause any more trouble; pressing on could lead to a far worse outcome.

"Come with me." However, she forcefully pulled Zhang Long to his feet, led him out of the private room, and took out her phone to dial a number. "Don't panic. Remember what Chen Fei said."

"But, this is…" Zhang Long froze. He remembered Chen Fei's words, but the problem was he still had absolutely no confidence in him. In fact, he never had.

He was sure he knew Chen Fei through and through from their high school days; he knew his family wasn't well-off. So even if Chen Fei seemed to have made something of himself, there was no way he could compete with the son of the head of the city's Organization Department.

"Let's see what he says after the call. We still have half an hour, anyway," Zhao Le said, dismissing his concerns. Even though she wasn't very confident either, they had to at least try.

"Hello, Art Commissioner Zhao. Did the negotiations not go well?" Meanwhile, Chen Fei had answered Zhao Le's call. Hearing the anxiety in her voice, he frowned.

"No! They're being completely unreasonable and have given us only two options. First, five hundred thousand yuan in exchange for our shop and medicinal cuisine recipes. Second, one hundred thousand yuan for seventy percent of Green Bamboo Medicinal Cuisine's shares. It's nothing short of daylight robbery," Zhao Le blurted out, her voice filled with grievance the moment she heard Chen Fei.

"How outrageous!" Chen Fei snapped, his voice turning icy. His sudden outburst made Huang Feng and Yang Cailing, who were sitting beside him, shudder and pale.

What's going on? Why did Brother Fei get so angry all of a sudden? they wondered.

"Where are you now? I'm coming over immediately. Don't worry, with me here tonight, I guarantee that whatever they're planning to take, I'll make them spit it back out, doubled. I keep my word," Chen Fei said, getting to his feet.

"Really? We're in Room XXX on the sixth floor. But Chen Fei, you need to be prepared. The person we're dealing with seems to be extremely influential—he's the son of the head of the city's Organization Department. Are you sure you can handle this?" Zhao Le's voice was a mixture of surprise and joy, but she quickly calmed down, a note of worry creeping in.

That kind of status was too sensitive, too powerful. It left them feeling completely incapable of putting up a fight.

"The son of the head of the city's Organization Department?" Chen Fei paused, his gaze involuntarily shifting to Yang Cailing, who was looking at him with a puzzled, awestruck expression. He remembered her father was the Director of the Northern Mountain City Organization Department, wasn't he? Could it be…

"Don't worry, it's fine. I'm on my way. Just wait for me there," Chen Fei said before hanging up.

"Brother Fei, did something happen? Is there anything we can do to help?" Seeing the situation, Huang Feng immediately read the room and spoke up without hesitation. If Brother Fei was in trouble, they had to help. There was no question about it.

"A small matter has come up. How about this, Young Master Feng, Cailing, you two come with me," Chen Fei replied. He had initially intended to refuse, but the phone call made him reconsider.

"Me? Alright, I understand, Brother Fei," Yang Cailing said, clearly taken aback. Without overthinking it, she grabbed her coat and followed Chen Fei out.

Meanwhile, at the main table in the hall, the distinguished guests had noticed the movement. Mayor Huang Tao stood up worriedly. "Mr. Chen… has something happened?" If so, he needed to be ready for a call at a moment's notice.

"Old Huang, sit down, sit down. Since Mr. Chen didn't call on us, it means we're not needed just yet. Don't overthink it. If he does call, we'll all go over together," Secretary Zhuo Qun said, waving him down.

It was clear that Zhuo Qun's reverence for Chen Fei was much less than Huang Tao's, so it didn't cloud his judgment. Since Chen Fei hadn't asked for their help, he must have felt it wasn't necessary. There was no need to worry needlessly. Patiently waiting for a call was enough; there was no need for such a fuss.

"Right, right. I lost my composure," Huang Tao said, calming down.

「A few moments later」

Chen Fei and the other two had left the main hall. He hesitated briefly before suddenly asking, "Cailing, forgive me for asking, but besides you, do you have any other siblings? A brother, for instance?"

"Brother Fei, what do you mean by that…" Yang Cailing was stunned, not expecting such a question the moment they stepped out.

Huang Feng reacted quickly. He tugged on his girlfriend's arm and then whispered to Chen Fei, "Brother Fei, besides Cailing, her family has a younger brother. Why do you ask?" He didn't understand why Chen Fei would suddenly ask such a thing, but a sense of foreboding crept into his heart. He wasn't stupid; in fact, he was very sharp. Seeing Chen Fei's hesitant question and connecting it to the phone call from moments before... wait... could it be? His expression changed drastically.

"I have two close friends who own a medicinal cuisine shop," Chen Fei began slowly. "The storefront alone is worth five million yuan, to say nothing of the priceless recipes. But now, someone has gotten greedy. They're using their background and status to force my friends into a sale…"

He paused, then continued, "They've given my friends two options. One: five hundred thousand yuan for the shop and the recipes. Two: one hundred thousand yuan for seventy percent of the shop's shares. They must choose one."

"What? That's despicable! We have such a cancer in Northern Mountain City? Who is it, Brother Fei? Who would be so audacious?" Huang Feng exclaimed, his anger flaring.

Yang Cailing, however, froze upon hearing this. Her mouth fell open, and her delicate hands began to tremble. "Bro… Brother Fei," she stammered, "could it be… Yuancheng?"

Yuancheng. Yang Yuancheng. Her half-brother.

She had always known her brother was a good-for-nothing, steeped in profligacy. To put it bluntly, he was utter scum. But with her mother's early death and her father's remarriage, her own position in the family was low, almost marginal. She had tried to reason with her blood-related half-brother, but her efforts were futile, leaving her powerless.

Still, she had never imagined he could be this vile, using his status to strong-arm people into a forced sale. This was practically daylight robbery! It was absolutely outrageous.

And that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was that her brother had targeted friends of a major figure like Brother Fei—a man to whom even Mayor Huang and Secretary Zhuo showed the utmost respect. If they truly angered him, the consequences would be unimaginable. It could be a disaster for their entire family!

"It probably is… In any case, let's go over and see for ourselves," Chen Fei said calmly, stepping into the elevator.

In fact, if not for his connection to Huang Tao, he would never have revealed all this so early. Now, it all depended on what she was thinking and what choice she would make. He had already gone above and beyond. His conscience was clear.

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