There was too much ice.
It was a bit cold.
Numerous surprised, questioning, and disgusted gazes fell upon her, but Su Ning seemed oblivious, even zoning out for a few seconds. To the onlookers, it looked like she had a guilty conscience.
Then—
"Ding, detecting the host's heartless behavior as a wealthy person, level-one plot character Antonio (Andre) is experiencing emotional fluctuations, rewarding..."
Su Ning was stunned.
She felt as though her opponent had collapsed before she even exerted any effort. What did oil extraction have to do with him anyway? For some reason, she had an inexplicable premonition that this second male lead's vibe might perfectly match Guan Jixing and Mu Wan...
Amidst the crowd.
The handsome mixed-race young man looked away, his hidden fiery passion nearly extinguished.
He was very disappointed.
Because of his naturally romantic disposition, he could always perceive the beauty in women. Gorgeous faces were beautiful, those of merely delicate appearance might have gentle and sweet personalities, the aloof ones possessed their own unique charm, and even the dull bookworms criticized by the world had a distinctive scholarly aura.
But there was one type of person he exclusively disliked.
—That was the ambitious woman who aggressively sought fame and fortune, stopping at nothing to achieve her goals!
This reminded him of his legitimate mother, cold, aloof, and condescending. During their few meetings, she had always looked at him and his mother with disdainful eyes.
She even treated his father the same way.
It seemed only natural to her.
How could such a woman ever win a man's love? His father had suffered in his marriage until he met his mother, which finally brought the light back into his life. This was the magic of true love.
He had always longed for that kind of love.
However... Antonio's expression turned melancholic. To survive, it seemed he would have to follow in his father's footsteps, marrying a woman he didn't love and torturing each other.
Even if he later met a beloved woman.
And they shared a mutual affection.
He could only let her suffer the grievance of being the other woman!
...
No one paid attention to Antonio's pain and struggles; everyone was looking at Su Ning. More and more people remembered the reality that the country was oil-poor, perhaps even oil-less.
Waking up from their fanaticism.
Their hopes were shattered.
Naturally, they couldn't help but take their anger out on Su Ning, and quiet discussions began to spread through the crowd.
"Could it really be a scam? I also recall that no oil has ever been discovered domestically. The kerosene sold on the streets is all imported."
"It's highly likely. Foreign oil, foreign oil, it only has the word foreign because it's imported!"
"Don't be so absolute. Miss Su only said the oil field isn't in the northern coastal area. Maybe it's somewhere else. No one would tell a lie that's so easily exposed."
"You're the naive one. If it's completely fake, of course it's easy to spot, but what if it's half-true and half-false? There might be an oil field, but who knows how big it is, where it is, or if it's even in the country?
Once she tricks us into buying shares and boarding her ship, she'll have the final say on everything."
This speculation was logical and brilliant.
Even Su Ning took mental note of it—
Not bad, it was a good method for a heartless rich person, and it drew a lot of hatred. She could give it a try.
The others believed it even more.
The one who had initiated the attack, a person with the pen name Yu Tai, sighed and shook his head upon hearing this:
"Miss Su, what else do you have to say? While it's still early, do not stubbornly stick to the wrong path; turn back now. Apologize properly to everyone and you can still salvage this."
As soon as these words came out.
Some in the crowd nodded silently, some sneered disdainfully, and others stared coldly at Su Ning.
"Why should I apologize?" Unexpectedly, Su Ning's expression grew even colder.
"In this world, no one can make me apologize." At this point, another ding sounded in her mind. Her voice paused imperceptibly before she continued with a sneer:
"Besides, what gives you the right to question me?"
"Because you are faking it! The Japanese academic community has already concluded through research that it's impossible for this country to have oil fields, unless it's in the northeast coastal region..."
"You keep bringing up Japan. Are you Japanese?"
Hearing this, Yu Tai flushed red:
"Of course I am Chinese, but it is a fact that Japan is more advanced in this field. Miss Su, stop changing the subject. Anyway, no oil field has ever been discovered domestically; you are just lying."
After speaking, he straightened his back even more.
His momentum surging.
"Oh, Japan, a tiny insignificant country. They've scoured their narrow strip of land and never found an oil field, so what good research could they possibly produce? For them to dare claim our country has no oil fields is utterly ridiculous."
Su Ning retorted unhurriedly.
Without a hint of emotion.
But these words struck a chord with the crowd. Someone whispered in the gathering:
"Hey, does Japan have oil fields?"
"I don't know."
"Never heard of any."
People were too busy worrying about their own country's affairs; who would pay attention to a neighboring country?
"Japan has no oil fields," Antonio couldn't help but speak up.
Swire Shipping was a behemoth that occupied a significant market share in Japan, transporting a large amount of petroleum products there every year.
His father had even taken him to Japan for business.
It had left a good impression on him.
The people there were humble and polite. The women he met, regardless of their appearance, were as gentle and yielding as water. He had almost fallen in love with a maiko, but alas, it just wasn't quite meant to be... Melancholy blossomed in Antonio's heart.
Therefore, his previous attraction to Su Ning decreased even further—
She spoke too harshly.
His companion explained his identity, and the others found him highly credible... If that was the case, maybe Miss Su hadn't lied to them after all.
"So what if Japan has no oil fields?"
Yu Tai's face turned pale and green.
He gritted his teeth and said:
"You can't deny that the international community agrees our country is oil-poor, making it almost impossible to have oil fields. Moreover, you grew up abroad and have never returned to the country before. How could you possibly control an undiscovered oil field!"
If earlier he had simply been unable to stand Su Ning's lies and stepped forward righteously to expose her.
By this point.
He stood completely in opposition to her, wholly immersed in the conflict.
He had to refute Su Ning and save his own face!
"Is everything everyone says right?" Su Ning sneered.
From beginning to end, the emotions she displayed were calm, or rather, indifferent.
It was like an adult facing a child.
Possessing a dismissive attitude born of looking down from above.
"As for why I control an oil field... Frog in the well, you do not know the immensity of heaven and earth. My father lived abroad but always paid attention to his homeland. He discovered the oil field but unexpectedly passed away early, which is why the extraction plan was shelved."
These words were reasonable and logical.
Thinking of the legendary Su Huaishan, the crowd leaned a bit more toward Su Ning.
This included Madame Kong and the others outside the door.
"I still don't believe it."
Yu Tai forced himself to maintain his momentum. "To overturn the judgments of so many international experts based solely on a few of your words is simply too ridiculous."
"Does it matter whether you believe it or not?"
Su Ning waved her hand and looked at the others with understanding. "It seems I shouldn't have entertained the thought of making friends. Never mind, I will just extract it myself. It won't be much trouble anyway."
What, giving up just like that?
The others were dumbfounded.
Wait, shouldn't you retort, list all sorts of evidence to prove the oil field really exists, convince us, and then we all happily do business together?
Who wants to do business with so many people.
Su Ning thought to herself.
Even without this little interlude, she had been planning to stir up some trouble anyway. She needed to filter out the truly capable players who deserved a piece of the pie, rather than turning the oil business into some communal charity pot!
"You are scared..."
"Tsk."
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Su Ning clicked her tongue in impatience. "You are so annoying. I have the exact locations of the oil fields, so the exploration won't take long at all. Tell you what, let's make a bet."
"One month."
"If I actually find an oil field within a month, you will publish an apology to me in the newspaper for six consecutive months. You will admit to your own shallow ignorance and confess that the so-called consensus of the Japanese academic community is nothing but pure bullshit."
"How about it?"
Yu Tai, however, hesitated.
Apologizing for half a year... he knew without a doubt that he would become a colossal joke. It might not completely destroy his reputation, but it would come dangerously close. Yet, as he processed the second half of Su Ning's words, he suddenly calmed down.
He believed he had figured out Su Ning's true intention. She was trying to bluff and scare him off so that the public would naturally assume she was telling the truth. How ridiculous. How could there possibly be oil fields in China?
"I'll take that bet."
Now it was the rest of the crowd's turn to nurse a headache. What should they do? Both sides seemed incredibly confident. Which side should they choose? Actually, there was no need to choose at all, because Su Ning had already declared that she wouldn't invite them to join the venture anymore.
At this realization, a complicated mix of emotions swelled in everyone's hearts.
Outside the door.
The two distinguished guests were also growing incredibly anxious. Unable to wait any longer, they realized they needed to speak with Su Ning immediately to try and change her mind.
