“Miss Su, be careful!”
As they were about to exit the stairwell with Su Banxia, Xiang Lei looked down and saw that the man’s muscles were tense as if he wanted to rush out. Without thinking, he reached out and pressed his hand on Shang Lu’s shoulder.
A stone was hurled towards Su Banxia at high speed. In the chaos, Su Banxia couldn’t dodge in time.
While Xiong Da was busy blocking people trying to get close to Su Banxia and couldn’t react, Xiong Er was quick to grab Su Banxia’s arm and pull her aside.
The sound of the stone hitting the ground was like a signal, and the crowd erupted into chaos. Security personnel began to clash with the troublemakers. It had been a while since Xiong Da had been in a fight, but seeing Su Banxia almost get hurt, he ignored her orders and delivered a punch to the bald man’s face.
Xiong Er was also provoked, and the two brothers each dealt with a man, instantly knocking down more than a dozen people.
Li Qiang had never expected the two bodyguards to be so skilled. Even if he paid them, was it really necessary for them to fight so fiercely?
Su Banxia remained unscathed, and all the hooligans brought by Li Qiang were beaten up and lying on the ground, groaning in pain.
Li Qiang rubbed his face, got up with a sinister expression, and shouted at the media reporters he had paid for, “Did you all capture it? The Shang Corporation is bullying people with power. Not only are they refusing to compensate, but they are also resorting to violence, oppressing ordinary people.”
Su Banxia, protected by the two bodyguards like two mountains, felt safe and looked towards the media reporters holding cameras.
The last thing she wanted to happen had finally occurred, bringing trouble to Shang Lu.
“Guard the door!” A cold and sharp voice rang out.
Everyone turned to look.
Not far away, a tall and stern man was slowly pushing a wheelchair towards them.
Sitting in the wheelchair was a handsome man with refined features. His cold and intense eyebrows and deep black eyes radiated an intimidating aura.
Shang Lu rarely attended social events, and people could only occasionally catch a glimpse of his half-figure in the news. They had only heard about his legendary business exploits but had never seen him in person.
After all the commotion that had gone on for days, they finally saw him in the flesh. The hooligans who had been causing trouble suddenly felt a chill, and a sense of fear crept over them.
After all, there were rumors about Shang Lu being ruthless, and those who offended him met a miserable fate, living worse than stray dogs.
Li Qiang began to sweat profusely, as the ringleader of the troublemakers. He tried to muster his courage and shouted loudly, “Mr. Shang, what are you planning to do? Do you want to commit murder in broad daylight?”
The media reporters suddenly regretted taking money to cover this event. Shang Corporation’s position in Haicheng was such that making certain individuals disappear was not impossible.
Shang Lu had the power to cover the sky with one hand in Haicheng. Offending him was practically suicidal.
The foolish man in front of them was deliberately provoking Shang Lu. That wasn’t how you went about it if you wanted to die.
The company’s main entrance was closed, and everyone was trapped in the center of the lobby.
Su Banxia quickly ran to Shang Lu’s side. She had just noticed that he hadn’t come out of the elevator but had emerged from the stairwell.
She glanced at Xiang Lei, who had a face that seemed like it had been washed with water, and his clothes were wet.
Did Xiang Lei carry Shang Lu down from over thirty floors of stairs?
Su Banxia took out a tissue from her bag and reached out to wipe the fine sweat from Shang Lu’s face. She asked in a low voice, “How did you come down?”
Shang Lu held her hand and asked her, “Are you injured?”
Su Banxia shook her head and replied, “I have Xiong Da and Xiong Er protecting me. Why did you come down? These people are waiting to confront you.”
“You go sit on the couch first. I’ll handle this here,” Shang Lu said calmly.
In the center of the lobby, Li Qiang and his group were still causing a commotion, and the two media reporters were becoming anxious, shouting that they had no right to detain people and threatening to call the police if they weren’t released.
Shang Lu looked at them expressionlessly, his voice icy, “You are suspected of committing violent acts causing injury. The police will be here shortly to deal with you.”
This group of people, including Li Qiang, had been detained by the police for a few days before and were released, only to return and cause trouble again.
Inciting a riot and causing bodily harm were two different things. The latter was a serious offense that could lead to several years in prison.
“Stop your nonsense! It’s clearly you who committed acts of violence and injured my brothers!”
“Shang Lu, you’re using your power and influence to slander us. Let me tell you, it won’t work! You want to frame us for violence and get us locked up. Brothers, quickly record videos and upload them to the public platform!”
They took out their phones, recorded videos, and spread false information online.
In the rapidly developing world of the internet, there were both advantages and disadvantages. Many people only saw what was on the surface.
During this period, Shang Industries had been in turmoil, with media outlets publishing articles daily that sparked strong public reactions. If the situation wasn’t resolved soon, Shang Industries would be greatly affected, with plummeting stock prices, evaporating market value, and many business partners canceling contracts.
That’s why Mr. Shang insisted that Shang Lu apologize regardless of the damage to his dignity. Shang Industries was the top player in Hai Cheng, and there were countless wealthy families trying to surpass their status. In the face of such an incident, most of them stood by as spectators, not intervening, which was a good thing for Shang Industries.
Su Banxia tightly held her phone; this matter needed to be resolved quickly.
The police arrived promptly, and as one of the parties involved, Su Banxia had to go to the police station to give her statement.
When she received her statement from last night, she noticed a man in a suit and glasses standing beside Shang Lu in the corridor, slightly bowing as he listened to him speak.
Su Banxia noticed that he was carrying a briefcase and had the image of a social elite. It was highly likely that he was a lawyer.
As she approached, she overheard the man asking, “Considering the worst-case scenario, the other party may face three to five years in prison. Mr. Shang, are you sure about this?”
Shang Lu’s voice was cold as he replied, “I’m sure.”
As they heard footsteps approaching, the man pushed up his glasses and said, “Miss Su.”
Su Banxia greeted him, “Hello.”
The man turned to Shang Lu and said, “Mr. Shang, if there’s nothing else, I’ll go and handle things.”
Shang Lu nodded slightly.
After leaving the police station, Shang Lu had the driver take her home first and then went to the company with Xiang Lei.
In the evening, Shang Lu worked late at the company. Shang Father wasn’t at home, so only she and the mother-son pair were at the dinner table. Currently, Shang Jingyao was interning at the company, and his job was relatively easy compared to Shang Lu’s workload.
The senior members of Shang Industries were quite discerning, and Shang Father had shown little affection for Shang Lu since she was young. It was clear to perceptive individuals that Shang Father favored his younger son. Shang Jingyao’s mother was Shang Father’s current wife, and the shareholders had higher hopes for Shang Jingyao.
As a result, Shang Jingyao had hardly encountered any setbacks since joining the company. He had the support of his father’s subordinates in his work, and everything went smoothly for him. He hardly needed to work overtime.
Thinking about this, Su Banxia lost her appetite.
Is it really so difficult to share a bit with Shang Lu? Why treat him like this?
Su Banxia put down her chopsticks and was about to go to her room.
However, Lu Yurou called out to her, “Banxia, wait a moment, I have something to talk to you about.”
Su Banxia paused, and she didn’t have much fondness for her stepmother, but she still needed to maintain appearances.
Lu Yurou lifted a water glass and took a sip before saying, “Banxia, you might have some misunderstandings. Jiaming actually likes Shang Lu very much. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have entrusted the company to him.”
“The issue with the nanny hasn’t been resolved, and the company’s stock price has plummeted, with billions of market value evaporating every day. Shang Industries has to support hundreds of thousands of employees every day. Even if you don’t consider Shang Industries, you should at least think about those employees who are about to lose their jobs. Aren’t they pitiful?”
Su Banxia nearly saw a heavenly goddess or a living Buddha from the Western Paradise.
Even if the company was losing money, she hadn’t seen Lu Yurou reduce her shopping habits. Just yesterday, she had bought several million-dollar bags at a luxury store. How come she hadn’t thought of donating some of that money to charity?
As long as I lack morality, morality can’t hold me hostage.
Su Banxia chuckled lightly and said, “So, are you suggesting that I should help them find jobs?”
Lu Yurou: “…”
Su Banxia turned to leave after speaking.
“You stop right there!” Lu Yurou shouted in frustration.
“Su Banxia, whether you genuinely don’t understand or are pretending not to, Old Master will be back soon. If he sees news about Shang Industries’ serious losses, then it will still be Shang Lu who gets blamed when he returns.”
“Smart people all know to apologize and compensate quickly. If this situation doesn’t get resolved satisfactorily, Shang Lu’s position might be in jeopardy. Aren’t you worried?” Lu Yurou scrutinized Su Banxia. Her words made it seem like she genuinely cared about Shang Lu’s well-being.
“I’m not worried about anything,” she replied indifferently. “Whether Shang Lu remains the CEO is his business. If he becomes poor, I’ll support him.”
Lu Yurou was on the verge of getting angry when she saw Su Banxia’s nonchalant attitude.
“You…”
“Mom!” Silent Shang Jingyao spoke up.
Lu Yurou slammed the water glass on the table heavily. “It’s infuriating! No manners, no upbringing. How did her mother raise her?”
She looked at Shang Jingyao and said, “Fortunately, you didn’t choose her in the end. The Su family is really funny. They thought my son could have anyone he wanted. One has no brains, and the other is physically disabled, a perfect match…”
“Mom!” Shang Jingyao’s expression turned unpleasant as he interrupted. “Please stop.”
Lu Yurou’s mocking tone ceased, and her face darkened. She said, “Come with me.”
The two of them entered the bedroom.
Lu Yurou sat on the sofa, studying Shang Jingyao in front of her.
When Shang Jingyao was young, he admired Shang Lu a lot. Even if Shang Lu disliked him and wanted nothing to do with him, he still followed Shang Lu like a shadow.
She secretly instructed him, anticipating that in the future, Shang Lu would compete with him for the family inheritance. She knew Shang Lu detested his biological mother and was trying to prevent him from getting close to her, using both physical abuse and verbal insults, but he wouldn’t listen.
If it hadn’t been for Shang Lu’s accident, which left him with a disability and made him even more reclusive and eccentric, Shang Jingyao would probably still see Shang Lu as his older brother.
Lu Yurou was quite relieved. The grown-up Shang Jingyao finally understood the importance of standing by his mother’s side.
However, recently, Shang Jingyao had been acting strangely. She observed him closely and noticed that he seemed to have some peculiar feelings towards Su Banxia.
In the past, when Su Banxia pursued her son, she had flaunted in high society that a wealthy heiress was passionately in love with her son. Unfortunately, her son wasn’t interested in her.
Lu Yurou wanted her son to find a girl who was better than Su Banxia in every way, matching her son in both family background and appearance. She completely disregarded the adopted daughter from the Su family.
Since Su Banxia married Shang Lu, Shang Jingyao, perhaps even to himself, had unknowingly started to look at Su Banxia with a different gaze.
This raised alarm bells in Lu Yurou’s mind. Her son must not pick up the castoff shoes that Shang Lu had rejected. She needed to dispel his thoughts.
“Jingyao, tell Mom, do you have any feelings for Su Banxia?” Lu Yurou tried to control her expression as best as she could.
Shang Jingyao’s face changed rapidly, and he angrily retorted, “Mom, you’re talking nonsense. How could I have any feelings for Su Banxia…”
“You’re being so foolish, Mom. She is Big Brother’s woman. How could I possibly have any feelings for her?”
Lu Yurou’s face briefly contorted, so quickly that it was almost imperceptible. The more infuriated she became, the more it revealed that she was embarrassed and angry after being exposed.
Her sharp nails dug into her palm, and a surge of hatred welled up in Lu Yurou’s heart. She absolutely wouldn’t allow her talented son to be ruined for a woman.
“Why are you getting angry? Mom was just asking.” She spoke softly, “You also know that your older brother is useless, and Su Banxia married him just to be a widow.”
“Jingyao, Mom is giving you some heartfelt advice. If you really like her, Mom will help you.”
Shang Jingyao felt restless in his heart. He thought he had hidden his subtle feelings well, but he didn’t expect to be found out. He just felt unwilling to accept it. How could a person’s feelings change so quickly? Those sweet words of love and the deep infatuation she once had for him now seemed fake.
“Mom, don’t meddle in my affairs,” he left with these words.
Lu Yurou’s hands were bleeding from the pressure she exerted, and her eyes were filled with resentment.
Shang Lu couldn’t stay, and Su Banxia was even more unacceptable.
…
Su Banxia lay on the sofa after taking a shower, not interested in checking her emotional value. She was thinking about the nanny incident.
The original story didn’t provide a detailed description of the situation. It only mentioned that the nanny accidentally bumped into Shang Lu’s legs and was fired and expelled.
Given the situation, it’s unlikely that Shang Lu would go to the extent of firing and expelling the nanny just for accidentally bumping into his legs. There’s definitely more to this story. Moreover, everyone in the Shang family knows that Shang Lu’s legs are a sensitive topic, so the nanny’s behavior is indeed questionable.
At 10 PM, Shang Lu returned home. Su Banxia woke up from a hazy dream and saw the man’s back as he wheeled himself into the bathroom. She had some questions to ask Shang Lu, so she got up and sat at the edge of the bed, playing with her phone.
After a while, the sound of water in the bathroom stopped abruptly, followed by a loud thud.
Su Banxia was startled, and she left her phone on the bed, running to the bathroom door in a hurry. She anxiously asked, “Shang Lu, are you okay? Did you fall?”
There was no response from the bathroom, and she turned the doorknob.
“Don’t come in!” came the cold voice of the man.
Su Banxia was still very concerned. “Do you need help?”
Perhaps due to Shang Lu’s strong presence in their daily life, where he could handle dressing and grooming himself, she had overlooked the fact that his legs made many tasks extremely challenging for him.
Inside the bathroom, Shang Lu sat on the floor, leaning against the cold wall. His wet pajamas clung to his body, his disheveled black hair covering his brows and eyes. He looked disheveled and vulnerable, with his wheelchair lying nearby, as if it was mocking his disability.
Su Banxia knocked on the door. “Shang Lu, what’s going on with you? Please say something!”
Suddenly, a cold and stern voice came from the bathroom, “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me!”
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