Over here.
Inside the study, Elder Huo had yet to speak.
Beside him, a woman dressed plainly, her face marked by sorrow, furrowed her brows.
In a soft, gentle voice, she said:
“What kind of serious matter has you so flustered? What if it frightens the Elder? Oh, right, hasn’t Xiang just returned? He’s steady and reliable; you should tell him first. That way, the Elder won’t be disturbed by every little trivial matter.”
As she spoke, she glanced at Elder Huo, her tone both probing and pleading:
“Don’t you think so?”
Hearing her words, Elder Huo’s expression, which had been gloomy, softened at her look.
Sigh.
She was his daughter-in-law—young and widowed, having lost their only son. Her heart was broken, and she had no thoughts of remarrying. So, for whatever she wished, Elder Huo had mostly granted her.
Previously, when Huo Xiang had made a mistake and angered him, Elder Huo wanted to clean house.
It was only after she came to plead and even went on a hunger strike.
Thinking of this, Elder Huo felt a bit puzzled. His temperament was resolute; ordinarily, something like that would only shake him slightly. Yet, when he saw Huo Xiang come to apologize, the anger in his heart inexplicably vanished…
Perhaps it was because he was getting old.
“Hmm.”
Though it was just a simple sound, Madam Huo felt a weight lift from her heart.
She hurriedly said to the head butler:
“Did you hear that? Why aren’t you going to find Xiang? If you ask me, this boy is too straightforward. When the Elder told him to come back quickly, he didn’t waste a moment, rushing back in the middle of the night. Seeing him come and go like this, he’s clearly lost a lot of weight.”
“Hmph, it’s all his own fault.”
Elder Huo snorted coldly:
“Arrogant and careless, he actually offended someone like Su Ning. If the culprit doesn’t come to apologize, do you think I’ll swallow my pride and beg?”
His displeasure was plain to see.
Madam Huo’s heart sank.
She knew she had spoken wrongly earlier, but she felt the Elder was deliberately reprimanding Xiang.
Su Ning.
She had heard the name a few times; indeed, a formidable person.
But wasn’t he being a bit too relentless? There was no real loss here. For the sake of the Huo family’s reputation, they shouldn’t be so harsh on Qiao. Didn’t they understand the principle of “Harmony brings wealth”?
“Father, Xiang knows he was wrong. He’s already hurrying back, and when he and Miss Su sincerely apologize, they’re both young. Maybe they can even become friends.”
Madam Huo’s heart stirred…
As she pondered this, she suddenly noticed the head butler still standing there, motionless.
Her expression darkened slightly:
“What are you still standing there for? Do you think Xiang can’t handle this?”
“Well…” The head butler looked troubled, unsure what to say. After hesitation, he said—
“Maybe he really can’t.”
“?”
Closing his eyes, he recounted what had happened. The atmosphere around them instantly chilled. When he opened his eyes, Elder Huo’s face was ashen.
He suddenly stood up, staggering a few steps.
The room spun.
Today was the day Su Ning was organizing his family’s assets in Nanyang. Of course, Elder Huo knew about it and had even marveled at the sheer scale, making him all the more eager to establish connections.
Because no matter what…
They were all Chinese. Here in the Nanyang region, although there were many Chinese and quite a few were wealthy, it was still the local people's territory. Conflicts and tensions between the two sides had been escalating over the past couple of years.
Be vigilant in times of peace.
Suddenly having Su Ning as a potential ally made the old Master Huo very pleased. He even entertained the thought that if Su Ning ran into any trouble with her business ventures, they could lend a hand and build a reciprocal relationship—it would make things much easier for everyone.
But who would have guessed!
Su Ning did indeed encounter trouble, but the one causing it was from the Huo family.
And it was none other than Huo Xiang!
“This—maybe there’s some misunderstanding...” Madam Huo stammered nervously.
“Silence.”
The old Master Huo snapped, casting a cold glare at his daughter-in-law.
“Misunderstanding? Then tell me, doesn’t he have a concubine surnamed Zhuo? Didn’t he go to the Zhuo family today to pay respects for a birthday?”
He naturally didn’t care how many women Huo Xiang had behind the scenes or whom he favored.
But Madam Huo knew the truth.
At this, she opened her mouth but could say nothing.
“H-He might have been kept in the dark, unaware of the full story.”
“That just means he’s stupid—utterly foolish to be used by a concubine and her family,” the old Master Huo said mercilessly. “If he wasn’t deceived, then he’s deliberately defying my decisions, trying to drag the Huo family into conflict with Su Ning.”
Then he turned to the old butler:
“Go immediately. Arrange a car. I’m going to see Miss Su.”
“I’ll get right on it.”
The old butler nodded vigorously.
Before leaving, the old Master Huo cast a cold glance at his daughter-in-law:
“You better pray that this visit can make Miss Su reconsider and not take it out on us. Otherwise, even if you want to hang yourself, that good-for-nothing Huo Xiang won’t be allowed to stay in our family any longer!”
Madam Huo felt as if she’d been struck by lightning.
…………
Over at Su Ning’s place, after sending the Zhuo family members away, surprisingly, the atmosphere wasn’t as tense as expected.
After watching a little “kill the chicken to scare the monkeys” show, anyone with ulterior motives had settled down. Nobody dared to cause trouble.
Settling accounts, reporting debts.
Whatever was asked, whatever was ordered, no one dared to argue. Those who truly couldn’t cover their losses bit the bullet and came clean. Depending on the severity, competence, and development status, everyone was dealt with accordingly.
Even those who were demoted felt grateful rather than resentful.
At least no one got hurt.
Su Ning looked on with satisfaction and sighed to the system, “See? Hard work pays off. My efforts weren’t in vain.”
System: …
Glancing at Lin Sen’s increasingly sharp profile, the system was nearly speechless.
She actually had the nerve to say that.
Investigating the details, formulating plans, and even preparing contingency measures—all of that was done by Lin Sen. What a great leader, stealing all the credit!
That hit Su Ning’s sore spot.
She resisted fiercely and quickly protested her innocence, “When did I ever steal credit? I know Lin Sen did a lot. You misunderstood. What I meant was the effort I put into dealing with the Zhuo family and Huo Xiang!”
That’s right.
In this world, things rarely turn out so coincidentally.
From the moment she became aware of Zhuo Yun’s existence, the entire scheme was laid out around her—urgent lotteries, blind selections in the mall, even buying the plantation where the Zhuo family lived... and flattering Aunt Zhuo to convince the Zhuo family that the Huo family would be their strongest backing.
And then, ensuring certain people missed out on crucial information, leading them to make misjudgments.
Just timing all these moves was incredibly difficult.
One wrong step, and everything would collapse.
There’s a saying: the more intricate the plot, the easier it is for mistakes to happen.
So, Su Ning was taking a gamble.
Fortunately, she won.
Though it wasn’t yet time to reap the rewards, the fact that these people were behaving so obediently now was proof enough that they’d been intimidated.
The system fell silent.
Too lazy to argue further, it smoothly changed the subject:
“But this will only make Old Master Huo hate Huo Xiang even more. It won’t be a fatal blow. Dragging it out like this is pointless. You should listen to me—just send someone to take him out with a single shot...”
“No way. That’s a human life we’re talking about. Tong, you’re too cruel,” Su Ning sighed.
The system stiffened.
“Speak plainly.”
“I’m speaking plainly—as a human, that’s human talk. It’s you, Tong, who’s not speaking human words... Fine, I’ll be merciful and explain. Have you ever heard the story of the baby elephant? Like the elephant that grows up but can’t break free from the wooden stake, Huo Xiang is the same.”
Su Ning’s tone turned light:
“He’ll always seek Old Master Huo’s approval, desperate to become the rightful heir of the Huo family. That’s his weakness. A weakness he can never shake off.”
“So, as long as we hold onto that, we can keep Huo Xiang’s energy, time, and luck focused on this obsession. He won’t be able to grow strong, and he won’t pose a threat to me.”
The system fell silent for a few seconds.
Then it said:
“Poor Huo Xiang.”
What’s there to pity? It’s a dog-eat-dog world. Even when a golden opportunity lands in your lap, if you can’t overcome your own weaknesses, then maybe you should learn from me.
Even if what I obtained was a ruthless system.
Even if it deeply betrayed my pure and kind nature, I still gritted my teeth and carried on.
Thinking this, Su Ning felt a twinge of regret.
Taking him out with a single bullet—that would be satisfying.
But the key was binding the outsider core to Huo Xiang. At best, Huo Xiang was just the outer shell.
Who could guarantee that, once the shell was torn away, the inside wouldn’t be replaced by another?
At that moment, someone came in to report—
Old Master Huo had arrived.
The voices in the room abruptly fell silent. The people from Nanyang exchanged uneasy glances, unsure whether he was here to cause trouble or to make peace...
“He even brought several carts of gifts. There’s so much stuff it’s blocking the doorway. What should we do?”
The tension in their chests eased.
All eyes turned in unison to the person in charge.
Su Ning frowned slightly and snorted coldly:
“As if anyone’s that desperate for gifts. Don’t bother with them. Just bring him in first and listen to what he has to say.”
