Chapter 57 Zhu Qingzhi is the most eloquent Mrs. Wen, daughter of the Zhu family. ...

When Civic manager Song Cheng arrived, the reception room wasn't as crowded as he had imagined; a round table wasn't even full. He held his breath, tucked his shirt back into his trousers, and walked in with a smile.

"This was a dereliction of duty on Civic's part, and we sincerely apologize for the trouble caused to the crew and Ms. Zhu."

He had intended to shake hands with the executive producer first, but Producer Li didn't give him the time of day, so he awkwardly withdrew his hand, his gaze sweeping over everyone's faces. There weren't many people, only five including him, and there was only one he didn't recognize.

But for some reason, he felt a suffocating sense of impending doom, like dark clouds looming over the city. He had only been the manager of Datang for less than three months, and this was the first time he had dealt with such a sudden incident. In this situation, he became even more nervous.

Song Cheng subconsciously loosened his collar and placed the compensation plan he had just finished on the table: "We immediately launched an investigation and found that it was put in by the newly hired cleaning staff this afternoon when they were cleaning the rooms. We have already dismissed the employee involved."

After speaking, Song Cheng swallowed and found that everyone present was unmoved, except for Zhu Qingzhi, who was leaning lazily against the back of her chair, casually playing with her fingers.

She seems easy to talk to, and if we approach the situation from the person's perspective, things should get better.

So he focused his attention on Zhu Qingzhi. “On behalf of Civic, I apologize to Ms. Zhu once again. We have drafted a compensation plan. Please take a look. If there are any issues, we can discuss them further. We will definitely make you satisfied.”

Zhu Qingzhi was indeed very cooperative, and actually read through the compensation plan. Song Cheng just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard her say something uncooperative: "The employee involved, are you in such a hurry to fire him?"

“If needed, we can have her apologize to you in person.” Song Cheng paused for a moment, then decided to grant her request.

"Manager Song, there's no need to downplay the issue. What I mean is that we haven't even figured out the whole story yet." Zhu Qingzhi placed the compensation plan on the table and leaned back lazily.

Finding out the whole story isn't difficult; the challenge lies in protecting the people behind it. You can't afford to offend both sides completely. Generally speaking, celebrity teams are reluctant to escalate things; as long as the compensation offer is substantial enough, most will choose to let it go.

This is not only why Civic's top management only sent him to negotiate, but also the main reason why he wanted to discuss compensation directly upon arrival. However, Zhu Qingzhi's side seemed to have a different perspective.

Song Cheng frowned, preparing to try and negotiate again: "This..."

At this moment, the unfamiliar man leaned forward slightly and pushed the compensation plan towards them: "Our demand is for the investigation process to be made public; we'll leave everything else aside for now."

Song Cheng prepared to make one last attempt: "This is an internal procedure, it might not be convenient, I..."

Before he could finish speaking, Producer Li interrupted him again: "The crew's demand is that your hotel investigate everything thoroughly, otherwise there's nothing more to discuss, and we will report this to the police."

It seemed there was no room for negotiation, and Song Cheng's anxiety finally died down: "Wait a moment, I need to report to the higher-ups again."

He took out his phone, intending to leave the reception room first and then make a call, but as soon as his hand touched the doorknob, he was pushed open from the outside, and when he looked up, he met the eyes of the person who had come in.

Song Cheng's eyes widened suddenly.

What's going on? Why did the general manager come in person? Wasn't he just dangling a rosy picture in the office? Now he wants to take it all himself?

"Xiao Song," Manager Zhou said awkwardly, patting Song Cheng's shoulder and pushing him inside, "This matter is due to mismanagement of Civic. It would be more prudent for me to handle it."

Song Cheng was pushed against the wall and couldn't help but think to himself: Why didn't you come earlier? Why are you saying all these nice things now?

At this moment, the man sitting next to Zhu Qingzhi finally stood up: "Hello, President Zhou, I am Qu Feng from Wen's Group."

The Wen family? What does this have to do with the Wen family? But since the Wen family is involved, the reason why President Zhou came here becomes very clear.

Mr. Zhou laughed a few times to cover his embarrassment, then greeted everyone one by one before they took their seats.

He glanced around and then chose Zhu Qingzhi, who seemed the most approachable, to attack: "Miss Zhu, were you frightened?"

Zhu Qingzhi nodded calmly: "Yes, I feel like I'm about to be put online for everyone to see."

Dani, sitting next to her: "..."

Dani really wanted to give Zhu Qingzhi a disgusted look, but she also chimed in, "This matter is extremely serious. My artist has stayed in so many hotels, and this is the first time something like this has happened. We are both scared and shocked."

"The compensation plan your hotel has proposed shows neither sincerity in handling the matter nor determination in resolving the issue. We do not accept it." She pushed the plan back to General Manager Zhou, her attitude firm and clear.

Qu Feng also spoke up: "We hope that you can provide a reasonable explanation. The motive and method of the employee involved, the purchase and installation of the eavesdropping device, and the actual person in charge behind it all."

Mr. Zhou was shocked. He hadn't expected the Wen family to be so straightforward. Their words had practically laid everything bare, but there was really no way to explain it.

The cleaning staff insisted that Shen Rou had ordered the installation of the listening device, but the Shen family had considerable influence in Haicheng, and the brokerage firm Mingyuan was owned by the Zhao family in Beijing. Under pressure from all sides, Siyu initially wanted to downplay the incident and avoid bringing Shen Rou into the public eye.

Who would have thought that the Wen family would suddenly appear out of nowhere?

The Wen family's strength should not be underestimated, and their CEO, Mr. Wen, is a decisive and ruthless man who rarely leaves room for maneuver. If they were truly offended, the Zhou family's future attempts to expand into the market might simply be out of the question.

Mr. Zhou hesitated, "We have already investigated all of these. As for the specifics... could we talk in private?"

Qu Feng remained unyielding: "Given such a serious matter concerning the hotel's reputation, I cannot agree with your attitude."

"President Qu has misunderstood. We will definitely cooperate fully." President Zhou glanced at Song Cheng, who was standing against the wall with a standard posture and a standard eight-tooth smile, and decided to let him speak. "Song, you report on the specifics." At the same time, he handed over the documents in his hand.

Song Cheng's smile froze, his heart filled with the fragrance of birdsong and his mouth with the sweet aroma of spring. Following the contents of the document, he recounted the cause and course of the incident in great detail.

After everyone listened to the whole thing, they remained silent for a while. Only Zhu Qingzhi asked a question: "Miss Shen didn't admit it, so how can that be considered her problem?"

Song Cheng realized that Zhu Qingzhi, who seemed the easiest to talk to, was actually the hardest to talk to. And rightly so, since she was the direct victim; if he were in her shoes, he wouldn't have been able to tolerate it either.

Qu Feng reached out and took the document from Song Cheng's hand, flipping through it: "The two sides conspired in Shen Rou's room, but there were no surveillance cameras in the room, so this cannot be verified. However, the code of the bugging device should be traceable to the manufacturer and the person who placed the order."

He turned the page. "There was no money transfer between the two parties. It was a cash transaction? The cash code can be traced back to the bank account and time and place of the withdrawal, but this needs to be reported to the police."

Producer Li frowned slightly: "If we call the police, it will have some impact on the filming schedule, but not too much, so there's no need to worry about it."

“I think so too.” Qu Feng handed the document to Zhu Qingzhi. “Madam, please consider it.”

? ? ?Mrs?

Upon hearing this, Song Cheng and President Zhou were both stunned and looked at Zhu Qingzhi in unison.

Zhu Qingzhi, Madam. Whose wife? Even Mr. Qu of the Wen family calls her Madam, so whose wife could she be?

It can only be Wen Qi's.

Mrs. Wen was the daughter of the Lu family and was raised by the Zhu family.

If they had known earlier that the Wen, Lu, and Zhu families were all involved, they would have already slid down and apologized!

Qu Feng continued, "Since Civic cannot guarantee your safety, Mr. Wen has already arranged for you to stay in a hotel a little further away, and all your belongings have been moved there."

"I understand. Please handle the rest." Zhu Qingzhi glanced through the documents and already had a good grasp of the situation. She waved the documents in her hand and smiled at President Zhou, saying, "President Zhou, you don't mind if I take them with me, do you?"

President Zhou shook his head vigorously, saying, "I don't mind, I don't mind."

"Thank you, you've worked hard."

She stood up, not knowing who she was thanking, but perhaps he was being sarcastic. However, she could only endure it. He also flashed a standard eight-tooth smile, hoping for leniency.

*

When Zhu Qingzhi passed by Chen Rou's room, the door was wide open, and messy things were scattered all over the floor. She was throwing a tantrum inside.

"What does this have to do with me? I don't even know that cleaning lady! Why should she say it's me just because she says so?!"

Agent Susan's hands were trembling in front of her chest, each finger trying to soothe her: "Don't worry, as long as Zhu Qingzhi doesn't call the police, everything is fine."

"Not call the police? Why shouldn't I call the police? I'd call them even if she didn't!"

Shen Rou's mood worsened. Not only did her voice rise an octave, but she also pulled out her phone and started dialing. "Mingyuan still wants me to put up with this? How can I put up with it? I can't! Why can't it be that Zhu Qingzhi orchestrated this herself, trying to frame me and kick me out of the crew?!"

Susan felt a chill run down her spine and for a moment forgot everything else. She rushed forward, snatched the phone, and whispered, "It's not that we don't believe you, it's just that the bugging device is indeed yours. I even opened the package for you. There's no way to deny it."

"So what if it's on my side?! I didn't put it there!" Shen Rou calmed down a bit, smoothed her messy hair, but she was still unwilling to admit defeat. "Give me back my phone! I'm going to call the police to prove my innocence."

“What kind of good person would buy a bugging device? Is it just for fun or to harm people? Everyone knows the answer.” Susan quickly hid her phone behind her back and didn’t stop until she was back against the wall. “What will you do if netizens say you have impure intentions? Not only can you not call the police, but you will also have to beg Zhu Qingzhi for forgiveness and ask her not to call the police either.”

Shen Rou was furious: "Why should I apologize?! I'll say it again, this has nothing to do with me!"

She strode over and desperately tried to pry Susan's shoulders open with both hands. The two of them struggled and fought back and forth.

The situation has finally reached a critical point.

Zhu Qingzhi leaned against the door, tilted her head, and knocked on the door symbolically as a sign of politeness: "Excuse me, may I bother you?"

Shen Rou looked in the direction of the sound and saw her eyes filled with anger. She raised her leg as if to rush over and fight her, but fortunately Susan was quick-witted and stopped her.

Zhu Qingzhi didn't mind at all. Instead, she waved the documents in her hand and said with a smile, "Shall we talk?"

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Author's note: Qingzhi [Let me see]: Watching the excitement.

Shen Rou [bursts into tears]: I feel wronged.

Civic [cracked]: Who understands?

Ah-me [sunglasses]: Exciting.