Chapter 402: Chapter 360: A Big Gamble

The post blew up.

Deviant was just about to take a screenshot when the screen went black.

By the time the interface lit up again, his account had been kicked offline.

Deviant quickly entered his account info to log back in. As expected, there was a long queue on the login screen. The number of people in line had surged from over 600,000 to more than 3,000,000, and it was still climbing.

"..."

After waiting for two minutes and seeing the queue barely move, Deviant opened his contact list and called that red fox, Gu Li.

But the moment his finger tapped the screen, he immediately hung up.

’No, I can’t call them right now.’

’They just posted the video. If I come running to them all eager and desperate, that red fox—who’s every bit as cunning as I am—will immediately start making demands.’

’He already snatched the title of Yuanbao’s number one agent from me. If I lose the upper hand on this too, I’ll be at his mercy from now on, completely under his thumb.’

’I’ll go find my nephew.’

Deviant snatched his jacket from the chair and strode out, putting it on as he went, intending to head to Idelos’s place.

As he left his office and passed the lounge, he glanced inside and saw the very nephew he was about to look for, asleep on the sofa.

Deviant knocked on the glass window. Idelos turned to look at him, then covered his eyes with his hand, pretending to be asleep.

"What are you doing sleeping here?"

Deviant pushed open the lounge door, walked over to Idelos, and said, "Don’t tell me you didn’t go home last night."

Idelos had claimed he was taking a break after terminating his contract with Feixing, but Deviant hadn’t seen him resting much. He still came to the company from time to time, and recently, Deviant noticed he was spending even more time here, though he had no idea what for.

With his Feixing contract terminated, he didn’t have much work to do, and with it being winter, there was even less.

The only thing going on right now was the Yuanbao business.

But even though they’d previously secured the rights for Yuanbao, Gu Demiao Ning and his detestable agent kept giving them the runaround, delaying all the partnership proposals. Idelos was all geared up with nowhere to go, yet he didn’t seem particularly concerned about it.

As for the investment in the Zone 5 Wolf Pack, he wouldn’t drag Idelos into that.

Deviant thought for a moment, then said to Idelos, "You know about the Zone 5 situation, don’t you?"

He glanced at the messy pile of documents on the coffee table. ’My nephew’s been holed up at the company for days; he’s probably been auditing the books,’ he thought. ’Might as well come clean. The company shares are in my name anyway, so it doesn’t matter if he knows. Telling him will save him the trouble of digging around.’

Idelos moved his hand and opened his eyes to look at him.

Deviant walked to the water cooler and poured himself a glass of water. "Spring is almost here. That guy Alihot wants to secure jurisdiction over Zone 5 as soon as possible, which takes manpower and resources. I can’t provide the men, so I can only invest more money. Up the ante a bit for him."

Idelos frowned at his words and sat up. He sat with his head bowed for a moment, rubbing his throbbing temples, then said, "Pull your investment."

Deviant: "What?"

Idelos: "This deal isn’t worth it. Even if you don’t pull out completely, you should stop now. You can still cut your losses."

"You don’t get it." Deviant took a sip of water, composing himself. "After everything I’ve poured in, I’ve got a firm grip on half his lifeline. See? He even sent someone to negotiate with me personally, full of sincerity. But I’m not just going to hand over the money that easily. I’ll string him along for a while first."

Idelos’s brow furrowed even deeper. "Exactly how much have you invested?"

’Half a lifeline... this was no longer a simple matter of investing money.’

Deviant paused, the glass halfway to his lips. "You don’t know?"

He’d assumed Idelos had found out after discovering the people Alihot had sent over.

Idelos said, "I don’t want to meddle in your business, but if you end up losing your shirt, don’t come crying to me."

’For that wolf to be asking him to up the ante at this critical juncture... whether his appetite has grown or there’s some internal problem with their Wolf Pack, it’s not a good thing for Deviant.’

’The more he invests, the more easily Alihot will be able to control him. Deviant’s lifeline is just as much in Alihot’s hands.’

"I’m trying to make a big gamble here." Deviant set down his glass and casually picked up a document from the table. "If you’re not here for my business, then what are you doing at the compa..."

His words caught in his throat as he saw the contents of the document. He stared, wide-eyed. "You want to divide the company shares with me?"

Idelos said, "I’m transferring a portion to you. The company is mine. You’ve worked hard managing this little company for me as my guardian all these years. Thank you, Uncle."

Although he wasn’t entirely clear on his unscrupulous uncle’s shady dealings in Zone 5, the recent business with Yuanbao had piqued his interest enough to audit the company’s books. He wished he hadn’t. One look was enough to see that the liquid capital in the account was practically nonexistent—next to zero.

On the surface, their company primarily dealt with film and television investments, and it held numerous copyrights. The royalties from the shows he’d filmed since he was a child alone were enough to support half of Feixing. And that didn’t even count the income from the company’s other signed actors, various small-scale industries linked to the company, or its most profitable—and legally dubious—gray market enterprise that skirted the very edge of Beast Alliance law: Crystal Stone mining.

This was also one of the main reasons why Deviant had built Idelos up as the public face of the Fox Clan and why he was investing in Alihot, hoping to gain influence in Zone 5.

Crystal Stones were the lifeline of all Beastmen. Whether for currency circulation, Inhibitors, or weapons to combat Mutant Species, Crystal Stones were an indispensable raw material.

Idelos had spent all night auditing the accounts. Staring at the infuriating numbers, he decided it would be much less trouble to just kick Deviant out.

Deviant threw the document down. "You little fox cub! I’m the one who opened this company for you!"

"Which is why the company is mine," Idelos said. "I’m an adult now. You no longer have guardianship."

"I’ll cash out your shares. You will withdraw and leave the company."

Deviant’s face went pale. He pointed a trembling finger at him. "You brat, what do you think you’re doing? Don’t joke with your uncle like this, not at a time like this!"

Idelos picked up the share transfer document and another one for Deviant’s dismissal, pointing to the spot for the official seal. "Sign here, Uncle. Leave yourself a little something for retirement."

"You’ve practically emptied the company’s accounts. The money to cash out your shares is coming from my personal account. I’m being more than fair to you."

Deviant snatched the two documents from him. "Dismiss me? You think you can get anything done without me? I’m the one who secured the rights for Yuanbao!"

At that, Deviant finally remembered why he’d come in the first place. "I’m not arguing with you about this right now. I came to talk to you about something important."

Idelos said, "Don’t worry, Uncle. You’re still my agent. I’ll pay you a salary."

Deviant: "..."

He laughed in frustration, running a hand through his hair. He paced back and forth a couple of times and was about to curse Idelos out when he noticed several familiar photos scattered on the table. He picked one up, his eyes narrowing. With a slight smile, he asked his heartless nephew, "Since when did you become so interested in Yuanbao?"

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