Chapter Thirty: Does Anyone Else Object?

"How could you not recognize me? Did I suddenly grow another nose?" Lan Tian looked at Wang Ling and said with a mischievous smile.

"You didn’t just grow another nose, you’ve practically turned into a monster!" Seeing Lan Tian’s familiar grin, Wang Ling inexplicably felt a wave of relief, returning to her usual self.

"Wrong, I’m clearly Ultraman, here to beat up little monsters like you," Lan Tian laughed heartily.

"Ugh! You’re the monster! It’s you, it’s you!" Wang Ling retorted with a glare.

How dare he call her, a vibrant and beautiful girl, a monster! This guy was as dense as a block of wood.

"Alright, enough fooling around. Next up is the shareholders’ meeting—are you coming with me?" After their playful banter, Lan Tian’s tone turned serious.

"Of course I am. That Zou Tao actually called me a cheap woman. I haven’t forgotten! Just wait, his expression is going to be priceless—I can’t miss the show," Wang Ling replied with a wicked grin.

"Who would have thought you were this kind of Wang Ling!" Lan Tian feigned a look of fear.

"Oh, please. Compared to you, I’m just a little lamb—you’re the real big bad wolf!" Wang Ling shot back with a laugh.

...

In stark contrast to Lan Tian’s lighthearted mood, Zou Linsen and his son were wracked with anxiety and despair.

Despite pouring in huge sums and mobilizing countless resources, they still couldn’t get the news story taken down...

Zou Tao had rushed back to Ning City last night. Despite his efforts, every media outlet complied with his requests, even allowing him to watch as staff deleted the content.

Yet, bizarrely, though everything else could be deleted without issue, this particular news story remained visible on both the website and the app, even though the backend claimed it was gone—completely unaffected!

In desperation, Zou Tao even spent over three million to hire a top-tier hacker. Despite thoroughly deleting not just the post but its backend source code, the problem persisted.

Public outrage continued to escalate, and word had it the central authorities were now paying attention—Ning City police were reaching their limit.

"Dad, what do we do? Are we really finished?" Zou Tao asked, his face ashen.

Zou Linsen was silent for a long time before replying, "We don’t have much time left. I just got a call—the shareholders are demanding an emergency meeting..."

Before he could finish, Zou Tao interrupted anxiously, "Dad, how can you worry about the company right now? If you don’t figure something out, you’re going to jail! The higher-ups are already involved. Once you’re in, getting out will be almost impossible!"

"Shut up! What do you know? The murder-for-hire is my personal matter—the company is our family’s business! Even if the worst happens and I go to jail, as long as you and your mother can hold the company together, we haven’t truly lost!" Zou Linsen, exasperated, slapped him hard and barked, "The shareholders are getting restless. Right now, we have to keep the company stable as our base!"

"In fact, I even suspect that some of those plotting shareholders in our own company are behind all of this!"

"Uh... So you mean, we go to the company and put the shareholders in their place?" Zou Tao, rubbing his reddened cheek, asked quickly.

"Exactly! Not only do we go—we go in style! I am still the chairman. No clown has the right to touch this position!" Zou Linsen snorted, then paused before saying, "Get ready. Before the meeting, I’ll transfer all my shares to you. By then, you’ll own 40% of the company—the largest single shareholder. No one can shake your position as chairman!"

"Dad..." Zou Tao trembled. He’d longed to become chairman, but now, hearing the resignation in his father’s voice, he felt no excitement—only the weight of a legacy being handed down in desperation.

"You’re grown now. I hope this ordeal will finally make you mature." For a moment, Zou Linsen’s eyes softened; he was no longer the ruthless mastermind or the business tycoon, but simply a father hoping for his son’s growth.

...

An hour later, in the grand boardroom at Forest Real Estate’s headquarters, Zou Linsen sat at the head of the table, his gaze ice-cold as he regarded the assembled shareholders.

"So... you’ve called this meeting to elect a new chairman?" His voice was frigid.

"Mr. Zou, you can’t really blame us. Ever since this incident, the company’s been in chaos, the stock price keeps dropping, and if this goes on, we’ll all be out in the cold soon..." one shareholder stood up and said.

What Zou Linsen didn’t know was that, in a small conference room next door, Lan Tian and Wang Ling were listening to the proceedings in real time through a shareholder’s phone.

When the shareholder finished, others quickly voiced their agreement. The room filled with accusations against Zou Linsen, but he remained silent, his face unreadable, glaring fiercely at each speaker.

"What’s wrong with you people?! Without my father, would any of you even be here enjoying these privileges? Now that there’s a small problem, you’re all ready to turn your backs on him? Don’t you have any conscience?!" Zou Tao, unable to hold his temper, jumped to his feet and shouted.

"Heh, Young Master Zou, this is no small problem your father’s facing," another shareholder sneered. As a man past fifty, he wasn’t about to let a spoiled heir lecture him.

"Enough! This is a shareholders’ meeting—everyone will have their say. I understand your intentions. You want to elect a new chairman, is that it? Fine. Pick someone, let me see," Zou Linsen thundered. Though his power was waning, his authority still lingered, and the room fell silent at his outburst.

"What’s this? You want to elect a new chairman, but you can’t even put forth a candidate? What kind of game are you playing now?" Zou Linsen sneered, then slowly stood and swept his gaze around the room. "Since that’s the case, I admit I’m getting old. I’m willing to step down as chairman. But I propose that Zou Tao succeed me as the next chairman!"

His words instantly reignited the commotion. Shareholders exchanged glances, whispering among themselves.

"I object! Not only is Zou Tao too young, but he only holds five percent of the shares, and that’s jointly with your wife. I can’t agree to him becoming chairman!" one shareholder stood to protest.

"Agreed! What makes him qualified to be chairman?!"

"Exactly! A callow youth—what merit or ability does he have?!"

Amidst the chorus of objections, Zou Linsen remained unmoved. He raised his hand for silence, and once the room was quiet, he spoke slowly, "In fact, ten minutes ago, I transferred thirty-five percent of Forest Real Estate’s shares to Zou Tao. He now holds forty percent—making him the single largest shareholder. No one else even comes close."

He paused, his gaze suddenly sharp, a domineering aura radiating from him.

"Now... does anyone still object to my proposal?"