Free Web NovelChapter 713: Chapter 683: Returning in Defeat
A considerable number of the Zhou Family members arrived, making quite the scene, initially planning to cause a big commotion, but in the end, it was much ado about nothing.
The Zhou Family members were actually unclear about what truly happened. Their information came from the Zhou Brothers, who claimed that the old man was confused and fell into Xu Chunliang’s trap, handing all his assets to Xu Chunliang, an outsider.
Although who Zhou Renhe left his estate to had little to do with the Zhou Family and wouldn’t be passed to them anyway, Elder Zhou had made significant contributions to his hometown during his lifetime, helping many villagers. From a traditional perspective, it would be ideal for Renhe Hall to continue in the hands of the Zhou Family, prompting them to present a united front, further fueled by Zhou Yisheng’s instigation.
Now Zhou Yisheng was the first to back down, leading the others to have the intention of quieting the matter. Causing trouble at Elder Zhou’s memorial was disrespectful to the deceased; matters of Renhe Hall’s inheritance should be handled by the Zhou Brothers.
Moreover, internally, they had already been undermined by the other side’s money, turning them into a disorganized group with no fighting power, leading to an inevitable disbandment.
Li Yushan and Xiao Dong arrived at the scene back to back, and their meeting was inevitably awkward, but such occurrences are common in the system; knowing the ways of the world makes one a hero, said the bald to the old monk.
Fu Guomin, seeing them both arrive, immediately understood that they certainly weren’t here for him, nor for Xu Chunliang, but because Secretary Zhou appeared. Seeing through but not speaking out, they all maintained a friendly facade.
Fu Guomin briefed a bit about work, planning to stay in Jizhou for a few more days. He and Xu Chunliang were friends, and friends should appear when the other has matters to attend to, not necessarily to help, but to at least support their friend.
Not long after resigning from Da Heng, Zhang Hengyang also arrived, accompanied by Ge Hongjiang, the head of Jizhou Civil Affairs Bureau. Zhang Hengyang introduced Ge Hongjiang to Xu Chunliang.
Ge Hongjiang, an old classmate of Zhang Hengyang, wasn’t here just for old times’ sake. Shaking hands with Xu Chunliang, he said, "Town Mayor Xu, if you need anything, just let me know."
With Ge Hongjiang’s words, it’s as if the civil affairs department had given a green light to the funeral. Xu Chunliang said, "Thank you very much, Director Ge. We have no special requests, just to follow all procedures, planning to hold a three-day vigil before cremation and then return to Dongzhou for burial."
Ge Hongjiang said, "I see, I’ll inform them to reserve the largest memorial hall and organize it according to the highest standard." Originally, he planned to find a prized plot for Elder Zhou for reasons already thought out, as a non-material cultural heritage inheritor and a reputable figure in society, Zhou Renhe had significant influence locally in Jizhou.
Xu Chunliang thanked him repeatedly, puzzled, since it wasn’t on account of Zhang Hengyang; then why did Ge Hongjiang come? Could Secretary Zhou have notified Jizhou? It seemed overly grand.
Ge Hongjiang said, "No need for formalities, Town Mayor Xu. Secretary Liu instructed me, and I will ensure its proper execution, more so considering I’m old classmates with Hengyang."
Secretary Liu was the head of Jizhou. Xu Chunliang had never met him before. After Ge Hongjiang left, Zhang Hengyang remarked, "Town Mayor Xu, your influence is vast. If it were me, Ge Hongjiang might not even bother."
Xu Chunliang said, "I still don’t understand the situation." He had no dealings with Ge Hongjiang.
Zhang Hengyang thought he was playing dumb, as Ge Hongjiang had made it clear that Secretary Liu had reached out. It was previously thought Xu Chunliang had great influence in Dongzhou, but it turns out he was just as welcomed in Jizhou.
Xu Chunliang didn’t believe Secretary Zhou would contact the local head for this matter; he was a person who kept business separated from personal affairs. It might be possible in Dongzhou, but doing so in Jizhou was nearly impossible unless Secretary Zhou didn’t notify them, and Secretary Liu acted on his own accord.
Xu Chunliang couldn’t recall any past interactions with Secretary Liu, but his confusion was soon resolved.
Around eight in the evening, a Coaster quietly arrived on the scene, with Ye Changyuan personally visiting with Jizhou’s Secretary Liu accompanying him.
This time, it turned out that the deepened economic cooperation meeting of three provinces and seven cities was led by the National Development and Reform Commission. Ye Changyuan came from the Capital City specifically for the meeting. He learned about the Xu Family’s situation from his daughter, Ye Qingya, who informed him that Qiao Rulong was already there, hoping her father could go on behalf of the Ye Family.
Knowing the matter, Ye Changyuan decided to visit, regardless of Xu Chunliang being the future son-in-law of the Qiao Family; after all, Xu Chunliang had previously helped the Ye Family. Secretary Liu treated his distinguished guest with utmost care, having arranged activities for the evening, but upon consulting Ye Changyuan and learning he had matters to attend to, he changed plans promptly.
Ye Changyuan didn’t hide the matter from Secretary Liu, who immediately made arrangements and personally accompanied Ye Changyuan to pay respects.
Ye Changyuan explained that this was deliberate, not accidental. Knowing Secretary Liu was the key figure locally, and to him, Ye Changyuan was the heavyweight. He wanted to repay Xu Chunliang’s favor discreetly in a way Xu Chunliang would accept.
Just as Ye Changyuan and Secretary Liu stepped out of the car, a bus arrived, and Zhou Yiwen and Zhou Yi Wu personally led dozens, intending to cause trouble.
These two brothers were quite unfortunate, running right into the firing line.
The two brothers were well-prepared and came with courage, even ready to make a scene at the funeral hall, but before they could set up their stance, they saw Zheng Wenhai, a person in charge at the Municipal Bureau, approaching.
Zhou Yiwen knew Zheng Wenhai, and was startled to see him at the scene. Could it be that the police were already aware of their movements and were waiting for them here? On second thought, it was impossible; someone as high-ranking as Zheng Wenhai wouldn’t personally direct an operation.
Zhou Yiwen hurriedly plastered a smile and ran over: "Director Zheng, what brings you here?"
Zheng Wenhai said in a low voice, "What do you plan to do?" His professional vigilance immediately sensed this group’s ill intentions, and Zheng Wenhai would not allow any accidents to happen at this moment.
Zhou Yiwen was about to explain about their family assets being seized and express his desire for justice.
Zheng Wenhai didn’t give him the chance, sternly reminded, "Whoever dares to cause trouble here, I will definitely deal with them severely."
Zhou Yiwen was taken aback; at this time, he saw Secretary Liu accompanying Ye Changyuan towards the funeral hall, and Zhou Yiwen was completely dumbstruck. He knew Xu Chunliang had some connections in Dongzhou, but he never thought this guy’s influence was so great that it reached both Jizhou and Secretary Liu.
With Secretary Liu present, he had to reassess his plan to stir up trouble.
Xu Changshan noticed the two brothers and walked over, greeting, "You’re here?"
Zhou Yiwen and Zhou Yiwu exchanged a glance and ignored him. In their hearts, the Xu Family was the culprit who took away their family’s assets, and they even hated Xu Changshan.
Xu Changshan said, "As the saying goes, raising is greater than giving birth. My elder brother raised you for so many years; even if not meritorious, there’s hard work. In his heart, he always treated you as his own sons..."
Zhou Yiwu rudely interrupted before he could finish, "Stop it, did he consider us his own sons by giving the inheritance to your grandson? What kind of spell did you and your father cast on him?"
Xu Changshan said, "Is money all that matters to you? He painstakingly raised you to adulthood, and do you have not a trace of gratitude?"
Zhou Yiwen said, "Although Renhe Hall was founded by the old man, its success today is due to the hard work of us two brothers. What right does he have to give Renhe Hall’s brand to you?" That was exactly what the two brothers resented. The explosive growth of Renhe Hall’s performance was due to their initiative to sell online and continuously expand franchises and agents across the country.
Now, although they have control over most of the group’s shares, the trademark was passed on to Xu Chunliang by Zhou Renhe. If Xu Chunliang withdraws the right to use the Renhe Hall trademark, they will face an unprecedented crisis.
Elder Xu never intended to take over Renhe Hall, but how to distribute the elder brother’s inheritance was up to him. The elder brother decided to give the inheritance to his grandson, and Xu Chunliang didn’t refuse it. No matter how angry the Zhou Brothers were, they couldn’t change this reality.
Xu Changshan sincerely said, "A bond between father and son is not one you can sever just like that. We can discuss other matters later; let’s first send him off grandly." If it weren’t for his elder brother, Xu Changshan wouldn’t choose to compromise. He still didn’t want family matters to become public, and after all, Zhou Yiwen and Zhou Yiwu were his elder brother’s adopted sons. Their absence at the funeral would be gossiped about.
Xu Changshan also knew that his elder brother hadn’t been too harsh. He said he wanted to sever ties with them, but deep down, he was still unwilling.
Zhou Yiwu sneered, "Stop pretending to be a good person. Father-son bond? Ask him if we didn’t treat him just like our own father, did he see us as his sons? So ruthless!"
Xu Changshan said, "If he was ruthless, how could you both be standing here talking to me? You know full well what you’ve done to him!"
At this moment, Xu Chunliang had just sent off Ye Changyuan and Secretary Liu and happened to hear his grandfather’s words, which shook him internally, but he didn’t show it. He smiled as he saw Ye Changyuan and Secretary Liu off in their car.
Turning back to his grandfather’s side, he stared at the Zhou Brothers and said, "So? Are you here to honor filial piety or cause trouble? Draw the line; whether it’s a fight or peace, I’m ready to accompany to the end!"
Zhou Yiwu puffed up his chest and charged fiercely at Xu Chunliang, "Do you think I’m afraid of you!"
Zhou Yiwen quickly stopped him. From what he saw just now, he was very clear that if they dared to make trouble here, it wouldn’t end well for them. Zhou Yiwen said, "Xu Chunliang, I’ll see how long you can act arrogantly."
The Zhou Brothers, having gathered so many people, eventually left in defeat. They weren’t stupid; they knew they had no stand legally or morally.
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