"I noticed you booked a very luxurious hotel, but it turns out you're just putting on a show and using fake materials in the meantime."

"Do you know that everyone here today is a prominent figure in Luzhou? If anything happens to any of them, the Zhou family will have no way to explain it."

The director walked step by step toward Xu Yan. As soon as he finished speaking, he stood in front of Xu Yan, grabbed Xu Yan's tie, and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"I know you're short of money. I'll give you some money later."

The meaning was clear: Xu Yan should be sensible and not try to argue.

Otherwise, he has plenty of ways to leave Xu Yan speechless.

Of course, if Xu Yan were smart, he would take the blame himself, and the director might mercifully give him some money.

No need to wait for Xu Yan's response!

The director grabbed his tie and punched Xu Yan in the face.

"Bang--"

"hiss!!"

The director's face turned sinister and twisted at that moment, like that of a vicious criminal who wanted to kill someone to silence them.

Seeing this scene, Su Qingjiao, who was watching from a distance, frowned slightly behind her cat mask.

She was all too familiar with the director's sinister expression and his warning look; only those who had wronged you knew how wronged you were.

Su Qingjiao had been wronged in the same way before, so she could empathize with her.

She instinctively wanted to stand up and seek justice for Xu Yan, as if she wanted to help her past self.

But just as she was about to stand up, her reason suddenly returned.

She's just a fake heiress relying on the old shareholders to maintain appearances; apart from them, no one here would acknowledge her true identity.

By stepping forward like this, she'll only expose her identity... It's not worth it for a complete stranger!

Thinking of this, Su Qingjiao sat back down: "Blame your bad luck."

Seeing that someone had stepped forward to take the blame, the other department heads breathed a sigh of relief.

Whether this person is truly embezzling or pretending to be embezzling, as long as someone can bear the wrath of the old shareholders, that's enough!

At this moment, everyone pointed the finger at Xu Yan.

The top officials from various departments, who had never been united before, were now so united that they were determined to crush Xu Yan.

"I approved two hundred million!" the CFO slammed his fist on the table in a rage. "The prizes listed here don't even add up to five million!"

"Look, in the past, the prizes in our raffles included luxury cars worth millions and apartments in the three districts of Luzhou. And look at this!"

"I hadn't noticed before, but the prizes here are so different from usual! You were in charge of this year-end party, you were the one who got things done!"

"Tell me the truth, what exactly happened? If you really dared to embezzle so much, two hundred million is enough to put you in jail for life."

"Stop wasting words, call the police and arrest him immediately. People like him should be sent to prison for reform."

"I think the media should report this. Parents who can raise a son like this must not be good people either."

"Yes, this family is no good."

Xu Yan swallowed a mouthful of blood. He originally wanted to explain and resist, but after hearing the accusations from the high-ranking officials, he finally understood the rules of conduct in the Zhou family.

No wonder the director was so brazen despite all the chaos.

It turns out that everyone is part of a community of shared interests, and they will push him out to take the blame.

No matter how he tries to explain, it's useless. Not only will the higher-ups stand by and watch, but even his colleagues will probably side with the director immediately.

All the vicious words around him felt like knives stabbing into Xu Yan's heart. He silently lowered his head, his tongue pressed tightly against his palate, despair filling his entire being.

He saw someone take out their phone, seemingly wanting to call the police.

"Hello, I need to call the police..."

Xu Yan curled up on the ground in despair, like a dying snake.

He died because of the concerted efforts of the higher-ups. His life was over. Countless people embezzled money from the annual meeting, and countless people wanted to pin the blame on him.

Suddenly—

A voice, like that of a god, appeared in the venue. A familiar voice said, "It is time to call the police, but the one to be arrested is not Xu Yan, but the director of the R&D department."

Only then did everyone realize that the banquet hall doors, which had been closed long ago, had been reopened.

A young man with an imposing presence was striding towards them.

He was all alone, yet he wasn't nervous at all under the gaze of so many people. He walked with firmness and composure, and his noble demeanor was unmatched.

Who is this?

"If even people in your marketing department don't know, how would I know?"

"This person doesn't seem simple..." In the banquet hall, the executives whispered among themselves, all wanting to know information about the person who had appeared before them.

None of the high-ranking officials present recognized him; they could only guess in secret that he was probably one of the big boss's illegitimate sons who couldn't be brought into the open.

However--

The moment Su Qingjiao saw Zhou Yi appear, she was shocked and quickly stood up from the corner, her face turning deathly pale. She looked at Zhou Yi with a mixture of suspicion, anger, and fear.

It could be him!

Why is he here?

He clearly said... he wouldn't show up today.

Why! Why did Zhou Yi come here?

"Zhou Yi? What brings him here?"

"I have to say, Zhou Yi looks quite handsome in this outfit. How come I never noticed how handsome he is before? But what's the use of a good-looking man? Tsk tsk, he's still just a nanny's son."

"How did someone of his status get in? And he deliberately came so late; is he trying to show off?"

Zhou Yi's classmates looked on with a mixture of surprise and disgust, thinking that Zhou Yi's late arrival was just a clever attempt to show off, and even disgustingly speculated that Zhou Yi had sneaked in.

Upon hearing the name 'Zhou Yi,' most of the senior executives exchanged bewildered glances.

This name is completely unfamiliar. After all, Old Mrs. Zhou protected him too well because of the death of her son and daughter-in-law. Fortunately, very few people know of his existence.

However, is the Zhou in Zhou Yi the same as the Zhou in Zhou's Group?

No one dared to ask at that moment.

The R&D director's face was so gloomy it could drip water; he didn't care which Zhou Yi's "Zhou" was.

The only thing he was certain of was that this guy was there to support Xu Yan! Everyone knew perfectly well who had embezzled the money, and if the truth came out, that... absolutely not!

This guy wants to take him to the police station; that's his enemy!

Therefore, the director preemptively rebuked him: "Who do you think you are, spouting nonsense right from the start! And you dare to interfere in the internal affairs of the Zhou family?"

"Zhou Yi? I don't remember your name being on the invitation. Whose invitation did you steal to sneak in!"

The director's eyes darted around, as if he had thought of something.

Turning to look at Xu Yan, he suddenly sneered, "Alright, I understand!"