Chapter 32
Guo Jiadong heard Jin Yuyan’s voice, and his body suddenly became rigid and straight. The fierce expression he had just worn now turned somewhat flustered. Didn’t she go to take care of some business? Why did she come back so quickly and at such an inopportune moment? Guo Jiadong was inwardly frustrated, but his face quickly adjusted its expression.
“Yanyan, you misunderstood me. How could I do such a thing? I was just joking with him, right?” Guo Jiadong turned around, smiling as he spoke to Jin Yuyan, and at the end, he extended his foot, intending to kick Xu Ke, expecting him to cooperate.
According to his thinking, he had already explained everything clearly. As long as Xu Ke wanted to continue mixing in the Xu Family, he wouldn’t dare offend him. So, although he had a smile on his face, the kick to Xu Ke’s leg carried enough force. He figured Xu Ke didn’t dare avoid it, so he kicked without reservation, never imagining that Xu Ke would dodge, and the area behind Xu Ke’s leg was the sofa leg.
As a result, it was as expected. Guo Jiadong’s expression changed almost instantly, yet he couldn’t cry out in pain, nor could he comment openly. He had to eat this loss in silence, especially since he had just expressed his goodwill towards Xu Ke in front of Jin Yuyan.
“Guo Jiadong, are you treating my Jin family as fools?” Jin Yuyan stared at him, though he was trying hard to endure, traces of pain still leaked through his expression, her face full of anger.
“How could you think that of me? We grew up together, you know what kind of person I am, don’t you? Now, you say such things about me for this pretty boy, you are stabbing me in the heart.” Guo Jiadong said painfully, placing a hand over his heart.
“It’s precisely because I know too well what kind of person you are that I say this. Out of regard for our families’ many years of friendship, I won’t hold your past actions against you, but you mustn’t touch Mr. Xu. Apologize to Mr. Xu immediately.” Jin Yuyan’s face bore a firmness that Guo Jiadong had never seen before.
“Forget it, it’s not a big deal, let him go. Does your house have any other empty rooms? Find one for me, the hall is too noisy.” Xu Ke tidied up his clothes and said lazily.
“Stop playing benevolent here. I don’t need you to play the good guy here. I won’t apologize because I didn’t do anything wrong.” The first half of Guo Jiadong’s words were directed at Xu Ke, while the latter half was meant for Jin Yuyan to hear.
“Yanyan, sentimentally, we grew up together as childhood sweethearts. In terms of status, our two families have been friends for generations. The Guo family is also a prominent family in Luocheng. And him? He’s just a kept pretty boy, a glorified plaything for the night. Why should I apologize to such a person? And such people getting close to you have impure intentions. Wasn’t I right to tell him to stay away from you? I’m just trying to protect you. I don’t want you to be deceived by such people.” Guo Jiadong said loudly, appearing genuinely concerned.
Opposite him, Jin Yuyan was nearly boiling over, her exposed skin turning crimson, not from embarrassment, but from anger at Guo Jiadong’s words. This person was as presumptuous and self-imposing as ever. Didn’t he realize that this was her Jin family’s territory, not the Guo family’s? Saying such things at her grandfather’s birthday banquet not only embarrassed Xu Ke, but also slapped her Jin family’s face.
Jin Yuyan trembled with anger, her teeth grinding loudly. If it weren’t for the long-standing friendship between their two families, she would definitely have kicked him out of this banquet, definitely!
Guo Jiadong’s voice was so loud that it almost passed through half the hall and reached their ears. Xu Ke was their chairman, and insulting Xu Ke was akin to insulting them. Therefore, Tian Li and others who accompanied them also wore unpleasant expressions. In an instant, the number of people in the scene went from three to nine.
“Mr. Xu.” Xu Jie stopped a step away from Xu Ke and bowed, while Tian Li and the others behind Xu Jie made the same gesture. Those in the hall, widening their eyes at this sudden turn of events, covered their own mouths with their hands to ensure their voices didn’t disturb the nine people in the scene.
When did these few companies get acquired? There hadn’t been any news prior! As everyone took a big bite out of this juicy gossip, they were puzzled while also shifting their gazes towards Xu Ke. If they had initially thought Xu Ke was someone being kept by Xu Jie, regarding him with contempt, now, upon learning he owned these six companies, they gazed at Xu Ke with awe.
Moreover, while these companies were under the Xu family’s umbrella, the leaders of these companies rarely interacted, so few realized they were branches of the same parent company, which led to today’s confusion.
“Mr. Guo, please apologize for your behavior just now. Otherwise, despite Guo Family being a top-tier family in Luocheng, we will not back down. Even if we can’t bring down Guo Family, we’ll go down fighting with them.” Xu Jie said coldly, standing in front of six people behind Xu Ke, confronting Guo Jiadong with such determination and fierceness that even a man like Guo Jiadong couldn’t help but shudder. Tian Li and others remained silent but stood firm behind Xu Ke, their expressions as fierce as Xu Jie’s, clearly indicating their resolve was the same as Xu Jie’s.
Six companies holding top positions in Luocheng, if they decided to fight the Guo Family to the death, it was a lineup that even the Guo Family at its peak wouldn’t dare face head-on, let alone now when their strength had significantly waned. Cold sweat unwittingly trickled down Guo Jiadong’s forehead.
If the Guo Family learned that not only did he fail to secure the Jin family’s support, but also offended six powerful companies, no matter how outstanding he was among the Guo family descendants, he couldn’t escape severe punishment, or worse, being disowned and losing everything.
He couldn’t bear the consequence of being expelled from the Guo Family. However, it was also impossible for him to apologize to Xu Ke in front of everyone. Just as Guo Jiadong was caught in a dilemma, Xu Ke spoke.
He patted Xu Jie’s shoulder, and the crowd saw Xu Jie, who had been exuding an imposing aura, suddenly become docile, as if she had retracted all her claws like a big cat.
“You are a descendant of the Jin Elder. In honor of the Jin Elder, let’s just put this matter to rest. But if you commit the same error again, it won’t be brushed off so easily.” Xu Ke said leisurely, appearing as if he hadn’t taken the earlier incident to heart. Although there wasn’t much age difference between them, in Xu Ke’s eyes, Guo Jiadong still was just a child.
“Mr. Xu certainly has a lot of grace.” The star of this birthday banquet, slowly arriving with a cane, broke the silence at the birthday feast with a booming voice.