Introduce themselves?
Everyone looked at each other in dismay. For a moment, no one spoke. Doubt, anger, unease, and various other emotions filled their faces. If it weren't for Su Ning's subordinates standing all around, some of them would have already gotten up and left.
Finally.
Someone broke the silence.
"Hello, Miss Su." A tall and thin young man stood up and introduced his name with a smile.
His surname was Kong, and that surname alone was enough.
In her heart, Su Ning played the victim to her system:
"Look how dangerous my situation is. I am surrounded by jackals and wolves. Even the Southern Government, which could be considered my backer, pounced at the first opportunity to take my fertilizer plant."
"In this world where the strong prey on the weak, a weak woman like me is like a willow catkin in the wind, drifting uneasily..."
The system was not moved to pity in the slightest.
"The strong preying on the weak is correct, but Host, do you think this system is blind? Here, you are clearly the man-eater, and they are the fish on the chopping block, at your mercy!"
Not to mention anything else.
From just now, the reward notification sounds hadn't stopped, making it feel a bit of pity for this batch of plot characters. After saying this, it thought Su Ning would feel guilty or something.
And then—
"Oh, thanks for the compliment."
It was normal for the person and the system to bicker like this. In reality, the tall and thin young man finished his low-key introduction, smiling as warmly and amiably as the spring breeze. Coupled with his scholarly aura of having read extensively, he gave off a rather pleasant and gentle feeling.
Making people forget their worldly worries upon seeing him.
Su Ning appreciated beautiful things, but not people who posed a threat to her. So, when he finished speaking and stood there, obviously waiting for her to reply...
She carelessly raised her cup to drink tea.
She even waved her hand, tilted her head, and ordered in a light voice that everyone could hear: "The tea is a bit weak, the heat wasn't enough. Change the person brewing it next time."
"Yes."
Lin Sen nodded.
The tall and thin young man was left awkwardly standing there. He sat down silently, taking a deep look at the arrogant Su Ning and remembering her. He had never been embarrassed like this before.
The smile on his face faded a bit.
Seeing this, the others had different thoughts. Boss Duan also drank his tea slowly, feeling that the taste was indeed a bit weak just as Miss Su said, and he was in a very good mood.
He was happy to see this Young Master Kong get deflated.
He seemed easygoing and gentle.
But in his bones, he was arrogant.
He didn't mention his status verbally, but everywhere he showed that he was superior to others. When he visited him before, he hadn't said a few words before using the Southern Government to pressure him.
Saying how important the fertilizer plant was.
Trying to get something for nothing and demanding he give up his shares. Boss Duan refused, but could only politely see the person out. This time, Su Ning had managed to help him vent his anger as well.
It's really good that Miss Su is still alive.
He thought sincerely.
The others didn't think this way. They stood up one by one to introduce themselves. The bald middle-aged man backed by Marshal Yan was the last to introduce himself. After finishing, he sneered and said directly to Su Ning:
"Now that the introductions are over, Miss Su, with your brilliant intelligence, should know everyone by now. What are we going to do next? Since I am much older than you, let me teach you a phrase: do not get carried away with your success.
Thirty years on the east bank of the river, thirty years on the west bank.
Who knows what the future holds?"
There was a hidden threat.
It reminded people of the current stalemate between the two factions. If Marshal Yan could fight his way into Beiping, Su Ning would naturally no longer have the capital to be arrogant.
"What to do next?"
Su Ning remained as steady as a mountain. She merely lifted her eyelids, gave him an indifferent look, spread her hands, and sneered, "Shouldn't I be asking you guys? This shareholders' meeting is exactly what some people here have been desperately longing to hold."
"Pity my uncle and younger siblings, who were forced to convene this meeting despite their utmost reluctance."
Who was she calling pitiful?
Everyone almost thought there was something wrong with their ears. The ugly behavior of Half-Immortal Su and the other two during this period had disgusted them more than enough—
Some people couldn't even stand hearing the word Su anymore.
Beside her, Su Zhenzhu was moved. Yes, it was indeed very hard work. She couldn't go accompany her cousin to relieve her boredom and chat, and could only leave her all alone in the house.
She suffered every day.
She got angry just seeing those guys who annoyed her cousin, yet she still had to patiently deal with them... She didn't expect her cousin to see all of this.
"Miss Su, please just speak plainly."
In the end, it was Boss Duan who stepped forward to offer a way out. Before speaking, he gave Su Ning a friendly look, indicating that he was on her side.
"Since Boss Duan has spoken, I won't keep you in suspense anymore."
Su Ning tapped on the table:
"It was written on the invitation letters given to everyone. The shareholders' meeting is to confirm the ownership of the fertilizer plant... We will vote by a show of hands. Whoever has the most shares wins."
Everyone: What's the point?
Your shares alone are much more than all of theirs combined.
After waiting for a few seconds.
"Since no one is speaking, I will throw out a brick to attract jade." Su Ning gave a perfunctory twitch of her lips, took the lead in nominating herself as the boss, and then asked the others to vote.
Beside her, Lin Sen was taking notes as if it were a proper affair.
As expected.
Very few people raised their hands.
Finally.
Su Ning raised her hand and put it down a second later. Her merely going through the motions made the onlookers want to vomit blood. For the sake of the fertilizer plant, they had racked their brains and formed alliances these past few days... In the end, all their efforts were so lightly dismissed.
"There's no need to count any votes. Who else could it be but Miss Su."
Someone stood up.
"This time you were one step ahead, and we concede defeat... Miss Su must have had enough fun by now. I'll take my leave." After speaking, he walked towards the door, and the others also took the opportunity to stand up.
"Wait."
Su Ning raised her eyebrows disdainfully. "Why are you leaving? Who said the matter is over? The fertilizer plant was originally mine anyway. Just now was merely an appetizer to give everyone a demonstration.
As for the main course, it hasn't even been served yet."
What did she mean?
At this time, quite a few people already had a bad feeling. However, an arm cannot twist a thigh, so they were forced to return to their respective seats.
That's why one must be cautious in life.
Su Ning thought, without bringing seventeen or eighteen subordinates, how could one dare to casually go to someone else's territory? It's too easy to be threatened... You guys should remember this lesson in the future, you're welcome.
"I believe that as the fertilizer plant gets on the right track, some shareholders are no longer suited for the plant's development, such as..." She listed many names without hesitation.
Those who were named suddenly looked up.
Unbelievable.
Su Ning was burning her bridges after crossing the river. How dare she? What right did she have to do this!
On the contrary, those who were not named breathed a sigh of relief, either openly or secretly. It was one thing to not be able to get the fertilizer plant, but if they lost their shares too, that would be like giving away a bride and losing one's army on top of it.
A massive loss!
"Ding, ding, ding, ding..."
"Turn off the sound effects for now, I have a headache." Su Ning urged the system. Soon, the rapid dinging sounds in her head stopped. Having no mind to look at the rewards she had squeezed out, she stood up, revealing the deepest and brightest smile she had shown since the shareholders' meeting began.
"It's similar to just now. Let's all vote by a show of hands, one by one."
"Of course, those who are nominated can speak." She paused and said slowly, "If you can move the people sitting here, maybe you won't have to be kicked out of the fertilizer plant."
Lin Sen acted as the host, while Shang Wenyun took notes. He called out the first person's name and then said:
"You may begin."
"Miss Su, you can't do this," the man pleaded urgently, looking at Su Ning with anxious sincerity. "Heaven knows how much effort I've poured into the fertilizer plant. Everyone here has seen it. Doing this will just chill everyone's hearts..."
These words failed to move Su Ning.
She felt a bit bored.
Effort? Who in this room hadn't put effort into the fertilizer plant? The man standing before her had contributed very little, yet he relied on his position to greedily line his pockets and haphazardly promise out orders.
He even wanted to meddle in the plant's core operations.
Hah, it would be a miracle if Su Ning kept him around.
"Time is up," Lin Sen interrupted the man's incessant rambling. The young lady was clearly growing impatient, so there was no need to listen any further.
"Let's vote by a show of hands."
Time seemed to stand still at that moment. Not a single person raised their hand. A glimmer of hope sparked in the nominee's eyes, but in the very next second...
A slender hand slowly went up.
Hope shattered.
Then came the second nominee, the third, the fourth... Each person pleaded their case differently. Some played for sympathy, some laid their cards on the table to prove what they could do for the factory, and some, driven into a corner, even tried to drag others down with them.
But it was completely useless.
It had absolutely no effect.
Su Ning's heart seemed to be forged from steel and ice. She maintained only one consistent action: raising her hand in agreement. However, she was no longer the only one raising a hand.
More and more people silently followed her lead.
It was like a psychological test.
Those who raised their hands breathed a sigh of relief, while those who held back felt like alienated outliers. Eventually, anxiety would grip their hearts, and unable to bear the suffocating pressure, they would silently raise their hands in the next round of voting.
Finally, the voting for all the nominees came to an end.
A complete wipeout.
Clap, clap, clap.
Su Ning stood up and applauded. The applause grew from sparse clapping to a thunderous ovation. Carried through the windows, the sound reached the ears of the anxious onlookers and journalists waiting outside, leading them to mistakenly believe that the new boss of the fertilizer plant had finally been elected.
They immediately surged toward the door.
Desperate to snatch the first-hand scoop.
