With Liu Yutong's arrival, the previously noisy room instantly fell silent as all eyes turned to her.
Those who had been sitting in their chairs quickly stood up and stepped forward to greet her.
"Miss Liu, you're here!"
"Miss Liu, we've long admired you!"
"Miss Liu, truly accomplished at such a young age!"
"..."
Though this was their first time meeting Liu Yutong in person, and they were inwardly astonished by her youth, none dared to show it.
After all, with Niu Ben's fate as a cautionary tale, who would dare show even the slightest disrespect or negligence?
Liu Yutong gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
"Everyone, apologies for the wait."
The group hastily waved their hands. "No, no, it's our honor that Miss Liu could join us!"
Liu Yutong walked to the head seat and sat down, cutting straight to the point. "Since you’ve all come to see me today, let’s not waste time—state your business plainly."
Without the slightest hesitation, she made it clear she had no patience for pointless pleasantries.
The atmosphere in the private room immediately grew tense. Everyone exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to begin.
Just then, Master Jin was the first to rise. From his pocket, he produced an exquisitely crafted small box and gently opened it.
"Miss Liu, a small token of respect for our first meeting."
When the others saw Master Jin's gift, their hearts skipped a beat—it was a Mercedes car key.
Though they couldn’t tell the exact model, it was undoubtedly worth at least a million.
Those who had initially thought their own gifts were decent now cursed inwardly.
You old fox, are you trying to roast us alive?
At once, they hurriedly presented their own gifts, placing them on the table.
Most were luxury handbags or jewelry, valued between twenty thousand to a hundred thousand—far inferior to Master Jin’s offering.
Liu Yutong merely glanced at the gifts on the table before pointing at three of the seven men present.
"You, you, and you—please leave."
The three froze, their smiles stiffening instantly.
"Miss Liu, why?"
"Yeah, why?!"
"Why are you sending us away...?"
"..."
Liu Yutong had no intention of explaining. She simply said to the subordinate behind her, "Escort them out."
No sooner had she spoken than several men in black suits stepped forward from behind her, positioning themselves behind the three men and gesturing for them to leave.
With no choice, the three stood up and left resentfully.
From start to finish, they had no idea what they had done wrong.
They had never offended Liu Yutong—today was even their first meeting.
Only when they reached the hotel entrance did one of them suddenly smack his forehead, as if struck by realization. "It must be because our gifts were too cheap!"
The other two immediately mirrored his expression.
Among the seven, aside from Master Jin’s Mercedes, their gifts had been the least valuable, hovering around twenty thousand.
The remaining three had given gifts worth over fifty thousand.
No wonder they seemed stingy in comparison.
What a mistake! They never should’ve skimped on the money!
At the same time, they felt they had underestimated Liu Yutong’s appetite—if she wouldn’t even spare a glance at a twenty-thousand-dollar bag, she must be insatiably greedy.
In truth, they had completely misunderstood Liu Yutong.
She hadn’t dismissed them because of the gifts’ value—she had already confirmed their identities.
How? Simple—she knew which of them were destined for prison.
She would never associate with people doomed to end up behind bars.
As for the remaining four, including Master Jin, while they might not be entirely clean, as long as they hadn’t been imprisoned in her past life, it meant they were relatively safe—or at least, their past misdeeds had gone undetected.
Take Master Jin, for example. This old fox had navigated the underworld for years without incident—either he was careful enough to leave no evidence, or he had long since gone legitimate.
After all, his youthful exploits were ancient history, impossible to trace now.
As long as he behaved himself from now on, that was enough.
In short, Liu Yutong adhered to one principle: never deal with those destined for prison.
That the three men’s gifts happened to be the cheapest was pure coincidence.
Of course, they didn’t see it that way.
The remaining four, including Master Jin, had now witnessed Liu Yutong’s "tyranny" firsthand.
She dismissed people at a whim, showing not the slightest regard for face.
Moreover, her appetite was far greater than they had imagined.
In this day and age, gifts worth twenty or thirty thousand were hardly insignificant.
They weren’t here to apologize—they had come to establish connections. Regardless of the gift’s value, she should’ve at least shown some courtesy.
Yet she hadn’t spared them even that—what else could this be but greed?
They even began to worry: if Niu Ben fell completely, would there be any room left for them in Wushui County?
Anyone could see now that either Liu Yutong or Niu Ben would fall, and judging by the current situation, the latter was far more likely.
That was why they had rushed to ingratiate themselves, bringing lavish gifts.
Unaware of their thoughts, Liu Yutong simply motioned for Yun Cheng to collect the gifts before getting down to business.
"What are your thoughts on Niu Ben’s businesses?"
Her words struck like a thunderbolt.
They hadn’t expected Liu Yutong to dive straight into discussing how to carve up Niu Ben’s empire, leaving them stunned.
Niu Ben’s holdings in Wushui County were extensive, many of them monopolies—his nightclubs, demolition companies, and more.
To say these men had no interest in Niu Ben’s assets would be a lie.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sought out Liu Yutong.
But the problem was, Niu Ben wasn’t finished yet. As long as he remained standing, none of them dared make a move.
And now, with someone even more domineering than Niu Ben—Liu Yutong—emerging, how could they entertain any reckless ideas?
When no one responded, Liu Yutong’s gaze settled on Master Jin. "Master Jin, care to share your thoughts?"
Master Jin was clearly more composed than the others.
After all, his gift was a luxury car worth millions—naturally, he had more confidence.
"I have no objections. I defer entirely to Miss Liu’s judgment. So long as Miss Liu leaves me a scrap to survive on, I’ll be content."
The others inwardly cursed the old fox for his cunning.
But then again, even if they had known what Master Jin planned to give, they might not have been willing to match it.
A million was no small sum in these times.
Liu Yutong nodded before turning to the others. "And you?"
They hurriedly replied:
"I also defer to Miss Liu."
"Same here."
"We’ll follow Miss Liu’s arrangements."
"..."
Just then, one of them—a shrewd-looking man in black-framed glasses—suddenly spoke up.
Perhaps to prove his loyalty or flaunt his intelligence, he declared confidently, "Miss Liu, if I may, Niu Ben’s businesses are indeed a lucrative prize—but swallowing them won’t be easy."
"However, if Miss Liu Yutong is willing to take the lead, I can certainly help you clean up the accounts—guaranteed without a single error."
His meaning was simple: let Liu Yutong take charge while he exposed Niu Ben’s shady dealings, including all his gray-market operations. In the end, she’d take the lion’s share, and he’d settle for the scraps.
But he did have the confidence to make such an offer. After all, he controlled half of Wushui County’s underground banking network, and his skills in laundering dirty money were even more professional than Niu Ben’s.
Hearing this, Liu Yutong picked up her teacup, took a slow sip, and set it down before turning to him. "What’s your name?"
She hadn’t expected that after dismissing three people already, there was still one left—and this one had the audacity to try dragging her into his schemes. Talk about walking straight into the line of fire.
Unaware of the danger he was in, the man brightened at her question and eagerly replied, "Miss Liu, my name is Zhuang Xingyan."
Liu Yutong gave a slight nod, then signaled to Yun Cheng behind her.
Yun Cheng understood immediately. With a wave of his hand, several men in black swiftly moved in and restrained Zhuang Xingyan.
Panic and confusion flashed across Zhuang Xingyan’s face. "Miss Liu, what’s the meaning of this? Did I—did I say something wrong?"
Liu Yutong offered no explanation, watching indifferently as her men dragged the struggling Zhuang Xingyan out the door.
The remaining three men in the room didn’t dare so much as breathe.
They hadn’t expected Liu Yutong to dispose of Zhuang Xingyan so decisively—without even giving a reason.
Was she planning to monopolize Niu Ben’s empire, leaving them with nothing?
How ruthless. How greedy.
