The news that the uncle by Su Ning's side might actually be a highly accurate fortune-telling half-immortal spread rapidly within a certain small circle, with a tendency to spread even further.
Yet even so, it could not suppress an even more shocking and sensational piece of news—
Su Ning had actually won?
When most people received the news, their first reaction was to ask if it was true. It was truly unbelievable; everyone had thought it was set in stone that Su Ning would suffer a massive loss this time.
Who could have expected this outcome?
Prompted by those with ulterior motives, the events that transpired were spread with absolute clarity.
For instance, Young Master Kong's repeated setbacks, and the two "witnesses" who seemed to have loose screws in their heads. The plot was full of twists and turns, and the characters were bizarrely distinct, making it even more interesting than the serialized novels in the newspapers.
Of course, those who heard this story.
While sighing in amazement, they also felt that Young Master Kong was too frivolous and impatient to be entrusted with any major responsibilities.
But these were secondary.
What drew the most attention was why the American ambassador had suddenly changed his mind and stood Mr. Kong and his group up. Thinking back to the two sentences spoken by his assistant, everyone had a pretty good guess in their hearts.
Digging deeper.
They discovered that Su Ning was actually a shareholder in Taikoo Shipping! And her stake was not small either... Tsk, tsk, tsk. Before this, she could only collect dividends, but now things were different.
The head of Taikoo Shipping was growing old and frail.
The children he had fathered were young, strong, and highly ambitious. The battle for succession was becoming increasingly white-hot, making the importance of the shares in Su Ning's hands self-evident.
That was a matter for the future. The news that truly made the American ambassador leave in righteous indignation was this—
Su Ning possessed massive properties in both the United States and the United Kingdom!
Not only did they have a long history and immeasurable value, but they were even connected to a noble family name.
After the initial shock of the crowd.
Their first reaction was that Young Master Kong was indeed a piece of trash. He dared to strike without even investigating the other party's background clearly, dragging a whole group of people down with him.
He could be called the trash of all trash.
Secondly, Su Ning's scheming and shrewdness were simply too deep. Careful observers studied it and realized that ever since she appeared in Beiping, she had been incredibly mysterious. Aside from knowing that she made her fortune abroad, the outside world knew absolutely nothing and could only rely on speculation.
Maintaining a sense of mystery was useful.
Look, didn't this result in Mr. Kong and his group suffering a crushing defeat without even being able to voice their grievances?
Someone else raised a point:
"I think this might just be the tip of the iceberg. Su Ning probably has even more properties hidden away!"
"How is that possible?"
"Exactly, I also think it's impossible. You must have been scared by her. Everyone has to admit that Su Ning is rich, but no matter how rich she is, it's only been through one generation of accumulation. How wealthy could she possibly be? This should be about it."
"Hmph, if you don't believe it, just wait and see."
"Wait and see then. To put it bluntly, her father Su Huaishan might have made his fortune by leeching off a foreign noble family with no heirs. I look down on that kind of person. Besides, you can strike it rich once, but can you do it twice or three times?"
Leeching off a family with no heirs? Exactly.
Just as Su Ning had previously guessed, the public's thoughts had gone astray.
They experienced a sudden, collective epiphany.
Why was Su Huaishan able to become a man above others in a foreign land in just a few short decades?
What, saying he was brilliantly smart, started from scratch, had extraordinary talent, plus the luck of heaven's blessing, sailing smoothly all the way... The probability of that was a bit too low.
It was much more realistic to assume he had leeched off a wealthy heirless family.
"Slander, this is all slander!"
Hearing the rumors, Half-Immortal Su stomped his feet in anger. These malicious bastards, simply experiencing sour grapes! How could his younger cousin Huaishan be the kind of person to leech off a family with no heirs?
He had proof—
His eldest niece's surname was Su, and her name was Su Ning.
"Hehe, doesn't Half-Immortal Su know the character of the Su family? So what if her surname is Su? It's entirely possible that the ruthless Su Huaishan ruthlessly squeezed them dry and then changed the surname of this only daughter back to his own..."
"System."
"Hmm?"
"No wonder you are called 'Heartless Rich'," Su Ning sighed. "You live up to your name. You are too bad. My uncle only said that out of his natural instinct to care for and protect his family, but you always assume the worst of people."
She lowered her eyes worriedly:
"What should I do? Being in this Republican era environment, and having someone like you by my side... System, how can I remain unstained by the mud? Sigh, I don't know how much of my beautiful soul and kind nature I can preserve in the end."
System: "..."
What was wrong with a system like it?
Also, unstained by the mud, a beautiful soul, and a kind nature?
Did a single one of those words have anything to do with Su Ning?
Su Ning turned hostile and refused to acknowledge the system.
Right now, no one was allowed to say a single bad word about Half-Immortal Su. In her heart, he was her closest and best uncle... because the prize she had drawn from the lottery was simply too good. It was beyond expectations, so good that she could wake up laughing from her dreams.
"Eldest niece, don't you worry. Your uncle will help you clear up these rumors."
Half-Immortal Su said confidently, patting his chest.
Gold shines everywhere.
Look, quite a few people in Nanjing had actually recognized his true colors as a divine fortune-teller. The stream of people booking appointments for fortune-telling was endless, and his words now carried some weight.
"There's no need."
Su Ning's eyes were soft as she had someone serve tea and handed it to Half-Immortal Su to moisten his throat. Seeing him drink more than half the cup in one breath, she casually said:
"These kinds of rumors can never be fully cleared up. As long as people are jealous of me, they will keep spreading them. The more we pay attention to them, the more energetic they will become, playing right into their hands. It's better to just ignore them."
"My eldest niece is simply too broad-minded."
Half-Immortal Su sighed with emotion.
He couldn't even compare.
Just like before, his eldest niece hadn't cared about her reputation at all, and had even sacrificed it to elevate him, Zhenzhu, and the others. What did this prove?
It proved that his eldest niece had a high level of enlightenment and a strong inner heart. Whether outsiders slandered or praised her, it couldn't affect her in the slightest.
The illustrious figures in the history books.
They were probably just like this.
Thinking of this, he thought of his good younger cousin Su Huaishan again, becoming even more furious—dragons beget dragons, and phoenixes beget phoenixes. Just by looking at his eldest niece, one should know how stunningly brilliant his cousin had been when he was alive.
Were these people blind?
Taking a step back.
Even if his cousin Huaishan really had married into a wealthy family, so what? Why was it him and not someone else? Wasn't it because his cousin was outstanding in every way?
Su Ning didn't know what Half-Immortal Su was thinking.
Of course, the rumors couldn't be cleared up.
They were good for her persona... Su Ning thought calculatingly. The last leg of a journey marks the halfway point. She had to constantly solidify her persona, ideally reaching the level of leaving a stench for ten thousand years. She was only just getting started.
She hadn't expected that even the most meticulous plans would have a loophole.
Someone was inspired by this—Su Ning was also an only daughter! Furthermore, she had lost her parents and had no elders to obstruct things. This meant that as long as they won her favor, everything would be smooth sailing.
That massive family fortune would belong to them!
As a result, countless invitations flooded toward Su Ning. Even the highest lady sent one, but unexpectedly, it was also rejected.
Yet no one could say she was unappreciative.
Because Su Ning was attending the American ambassador's apology banquet.
She was very much looking forward to it.
Not only because of the American ambassador's status, but also because of her former "enemy," Charles.
For this occasion, Su Ning brought Half-Immortal Su along.
