Chapter 377: Extremely Ugly Face

Xiao Peng's plan for returning to La Ciotat was very good, which was to let Fabian work himself up so he could have a good rest. However, the plan didn't change quickly. After less than three days of rest at home, he received a call and went to Paris with Walter and Kasin.

The call was from his cheap apprentice Felix, who was going to hold a charity piano concert in Paris and invited Xiao Peng to go and see it.

Xiao Peng could skip other matters, but he had to go to Felix's because he owed Felix a big favor.

At first, Xiao Peng had no money and knew nothing. Felix gave him a watch as a gift, and he wore it all the time. At the time, he thought the watch was only worth 20,000 yuan.

Later he discovered that the watch on his hand was one of the ten numbered watches jointly launched by Hublot and the Monaco Oceanographic Museum. The current market price is about 200,000 euros.

Although Felix was a promising young pianist, he didn't make much money. He was able to get a watch like this for Xiao Peng, so he had to do this favor.

Moreover, Felix is a distant relative of Pascal and Felix. Pascal and his family are actually Felix's cousins.

Look at how messed up the generations are.

The person waiting to pick him up at Charles de Gaulle Airport wasn't Felix, but two other old acquaintances. One was Jacques with the "goatee," Felix's uncle. Their first meeting wasn't a pleasant one; the other was Boco. Although Xiao Peng had also dealt with him before, Boco had later accompanied Xiao Peng on several overseas voyages, and they had become close friends.

Upon seeing Xiao Peng and the others, Jacques hurried over to greet them. "Mr. Xiao, welcome to Paris. Felix and Marlene are busy with a charity concert there. So they can't come to pick you up, so let us do it."

Xiao Peng said "hmm" but hugged Bo Ke. He didn't like Jacques.

Many people use their children as cash cows, but Xiao Peng couldn't accept such a thing happening to him. This charity concert was probably Felix's mother's idea!

Xiao Peng looked at Jacques: "Jacques, are you going to use my apprentice as a cash cow again?"

When he said this, his eyes widened, startling Jacques. He instantly recalled the fear he felt when he was dominated by Xiao Peng. He quickly waved his hands and said, "Mr. Xiao, this is a misunderstanding! This charity gala was Felix's own idea!"

"Huh? What's going on?" Xiao Peng turned to look at Bo Ke: "Bo Ke, is what he said true?"

Bo Ke nodded and said, "Mr. Xiao, Jacques didn't lie. This charity gala was indeed Felix's own idea."

Xiao Peng frowned slightly: "Doesn't Felix hate these things the most? Why did he do this?"

Boco smiled wryly and said, "Mr. Xiao, I know you just came back from the sea and don't understand, but Paris is not peaceful right now. France is at a crossroads, and the riots are getting worse. A while ago, protesters burned down a store, and the fire got bigger and bigger, and a firefighter died. Felix is holding this charity concert, and all the money raised will be given to the Paris Fire Department and the firefighter's widow and children."

After hearing this, Xiao Peng sighed, "Firefighters from all countries are worthy of respect. Dying in a fire to save others' lives... Felix did the right thing."

Boko shook his head after hearing this: "What?! That firefighter committed suicide!"

"Pfft!" Xiao Peng snorted, "This is not fundraising at all."

Bo Ke said: "Mr. Xiao, you don't know the whole story. This firefighter committed suicide because he saved people!"

Xiao Peng was completely stunned after hearing this: "You committed suicide to save someone? What on earth did you say?"

At this time, Jacques hurriedly said: "Mr. Xiao, this is not the place to talk. The car is outside. Let's talk on the way, okay?"

Xiao Peng said "hmm", and several people got into the car together. While driving, Bo Ke told Xiao Peng the whole story. After listening to it, Xiao Peng just wanted to curse.

It all started just as Boko had described: protesters set a store on fire during the riot, and the fire quickly spread, soon setting fire to the apartments above the store.

The fire department arrived quickly, and a brave firefighter rushed into the blaze twice to rescue two young girls trapped there. Such positive deeds were naturally worthy of praise, and the firefighter became a role model, repeatedly praised by local Parisian newspapers. For a while, the firefighter's photo was the front page of every newspaper.

The most famous photo was taken by a reporter who rushed to the scene. The photo was taken from a bottom-up angle, with a burning apartment building in the background and the firefighter in the middle carrying the girl out of the fire in a "princess hug", which gave the impression of a Hollywood blockbuster poster.

The problem lies with these two unfortunate photos.

Some people were jealous of the fire brigade's sudden popularity, and all kinds of comments were made on the Internet.

"He's a firefighter, that's what he's supposed to do."

"What's the point of studying hard? You can't even catch up with someone taking a stroll in the fire."

"I know this firefighter. He became a firefighter because he was a poor student and couldn't get along well."

"He also has experience with smoking sutra!"

“Blah blah blah…”

The funniest thing is: someone questioned the photo of him saving people!

They said the girl was naked when he rescued her. He also used a "princess hold" to hold her, showing no regard for her privacy, and even suspected of taking advantage of the opportunity to molest her: his hands were placed in the wrong place!

This claim sparked a heated online debate, which ultimately proved fruitless when a surprising twist occurred: the two women who had been rescued filed a complaint against the firefighter, claiming they were a lesbian couple and that their relationship had been exposed to the public, and that the firefighter's lack of consideration for their privacy had caused them immense psychological harm. Both women are now depressed, and they're suing the firefighter for compensation.

This nonsensical plot unfolded, yet it garnered widespread support. The firefighter faced online bullying, his home address and family list being publicly disclosed, and some even marched to his home with banners verbally abusing his family. Even more surprising: the firefighter actually lost the lawsuit, citing "serious workplace errors."

The firefighter, overcome by the consequences, left his widow and child orphaned, and committed suicide. After his suicide, those who had initially blamed the firefighters turned their attention to the lesbian couple and the judicial officials involved in the case, acting like saints. How ugly could that be!

But who has ever thought about the orphans and widows left behind by the firefighters?