Chapter 295: Four Hundred Million Yuan Arrives!

Chapter 295: Four Hundred Million Yuan Arrives!

Asking directly how much money there was was a rather vulgar thing to do.

Wu Chen considered himself a vulgar man.

Though seriously speaking, he personally did not care much about money.

Of course, no one thought money burned their hands.

Wu Chen certainly did not.

More importantly, by directly asking Li Maoren “how much,” Wu Chen was actually trying to reassure him.

He could tell that Li Maoren was especially worried Wu Chen might suddenly kill Ding Ruilong.

So showing a little concern for the money would keep Li Maoren from imagining the worst.

“The Ding family’s compensation and apology to Bingbing… it includes shares in some companies and bonds…” Li Maoren said as he thought. “Altogether… the estimated value is around four hundred million yuan.”

Wu Chen raised an eyebrow.

The Ding family had certainly gone all out.

Four hundred million yuan was, strictly speaking, pocket change to the Ding family. It was not much to them.

But to hand over that much at once as compensation and an apology to Li Ruobing?

That was a lot.

After all, the earlier incident had not been aimed at Li Ruobing. It had been aimed at Wu Chen.

Li Ruobing had merely come close to being harmed. She had not actually been injured.

And there had been an element of misunderstanding in the incident between the two major families. Ultimately, the Ding family had never intended to hurt Li Ruobing.

Under those circumstances, the attitude behind the apology and the matter of face were what truly mattered.

The exact amount of compensation was not actually important.

Yet the Ding family had still put up stocks and bonds worth four hundred million yuan as compensation.

Their sincerity was almost excessive.

From this, Wu Chen could infer that the Ding family currently knew nothing about everything he had been plotting.

They still wanted to deepen their alliance with the Li family and wanted to calm the Li family’s anger as much as possible.

That was why they had made such a gesture.

And besides that, the Ding family placed extraordinary importance on Li Ruobing.

Li Ruobing truly was a woman… worth valuing that highly.

“The Ding family really is sincere,” Wu Chen said with a subtle laugh.

“How about this… I’ve already arranged to liquidate the shares and bonds. I’ll transfer the cash to you. Which account do you want it sent to? Do you want to open an overseas account?” Li Maoren was truly decisive.

However, judging from Li Maoren’s tone, his state of mind, and the practical circumstances, Wu Chen inferred that the stocks and bonds the Ding family had provided probably had not been liquidated yet.

There had not been enough time.

Yet Li Maoren claimed they had been.

It was a “well-intentioned” lie.

He simply wanted to get the money to Wu Chen immediately and soothe his mood.

The cash could come from the Li family’s liquid funds first, then be replenished after the assets were sold.

“My usual account is fine,” Wu Chen said with a smile.

He did not stand on ceremony at all.

If they were giving it to him, he would take it.

If he refused, Li Maoren would be even less happy.

Only once Wu Chen accepted the money without fuss could Li Maoren feel at ease.

“All right. I’ll arrange it now. It may come in several transfers. I’ll have someone raise your account level. Let’s leave it there for now. I’ll call you again in a bit,” Li Maoren said.

“All right, Uncle.” Wu Chen smiled.

They hung up.

Wu Chen had not even said which account he meant.

There was no need.

Li Maoren had investigated Wu Chen before. Naturally, he knew all of it.

After ending the call with Li Maoren, Wu Chen stood, went to a cabinet at the side, pulled out his laptop bag, and took his USB drive from inside.

He returned to the desk and sat down.

Wu Chen plugged the USB drive into the computer, sorted through what was already on it, cleared some space, and began transferring data onto it.

Another compressed archive.

What Wu Chen had sent Li Maoren consisted of dirt on Ding Ruilong and material that could be used against him.

All of it would be useful when Li Maoren moved against the Ding family.

What Wu Chen was now copying to the USB drive, however, was Ding Ruilong’s business data.

There was no need to give that to Li Maoren.

Wu Chen did not even use the internet to transfer it.

That would leave behind a potential vulnerability.

Because the way Wu Chen had obtained these business materials was, in essence, theft.

Corporate espionage.

So a USB drive was safer.

There would be no possibility of the transfer being traced.

Six minutes later.

Ring-ring-ring…

Wu Chen’s phone rang.

Li Maoren was calling.

“Hello, Uncle,” Wu Chen answered.

“It’s arranged. You’ll receive the transfer notifications shortly,” Li Maoren said, then immediately changed the subject. “Little Wu, what are you planning to do next?”

“It’s complicated.” Wu Chen laughed.

The same answer again.

“All right…” Li Maoren could not be bothered to keep asking.

But he still urged, “Little Wu, I know what you’re capable of, but you absolutely, absolutely must not act impulsively.”

“Don’t worry, Uncle. I’ve made this many preparations. It wouldn’t make sense for me to destroy my own plan now, would it?” Wu Chen smiled.

“Mm! All right!”

“One more thing, Uncle.”

“What?”

“Don’t let A-Tai know Ding Ruilong came to Donghai today. It might interfere with things,” Wu Chen said.

“Don’t worry about that. What you and I discuss stays between the two of us. Until the time comes, there’s no need for Bingbing or A-Tai to know,” Li Maoren said directly, with the unmistakable air of speaking to one of his own.

“…Let’s leave it there. I’ll keep looking through these materials.”

“All right, Uncle.”

They exchanged another couple of words and hung up.

Wu Chen looked at the computer screen, clicked the mouse a few times, then pulled out the USB drive.

Time to go out again.

Before leaving, Wu Chen returned to the bedroom.

When he had come upstairs earlier, he had brought up the bag containing his suit and leather shoes.

Now he changed back into the suit, returning to his usual look.

Then he went downstairs and left.

A few minutes later.

The blue Lamborghini drove out of the Zunrong Donghai Huafu residential complex.

Not long after the car reached the main road and headed south—

Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

His phone chimed repeatedly.

Text messages.

Driving with one hand, Wu Chen picked up the phone and glanced at it.

Ninety million yuan received.

One hundred million yuan received.

Thirty million yuan received.

Sixty million yuan received.

One hundred and twenty million yuan received.

Five separate accounts had transferred money to Wu Chen, for an exact total of four hundred million yuan.

Handling it this way was obviously intended to avoid being traced.

And the funds were certain to be clean.

Wu Chen looked at the balance shown in the final message.

More than four hundred million yuan.

He smiled.

He was not actually excited.

He was not short of money.

But… it was impossible not to feel something about it.

Wu Chen drove fast.

A little over twenty minutes later.

East District, Wanlong Road.

The headquarters of Donghai Senlan Fashion Group.

Senlan Building.

Wu Chen had called Wu Yurong shortly before arriving.

So by the time he parked and walked toward the building, Wu Yurong’s female bodyguard Chu Yan had already come downstairs.

She stepped outside to meet him, then led him in and upstairs.

She had simply come down to receive him.

Otherwise, he could not have gone up. The elevator required a key card.

Soon.

Sixteenth floor of Senlan Building.

CEO’s office.

Wu Yurong sat behind her desk signing documents while an assistant stood nearby waiting.

The office door suddenly opened.

Wu Chen and Chu Yan walked in.

Wu Yurong looked up, gave Wu Chen a gentle smile, then lowered her head and continued signing.

She quickly signed several pages, closed the folder, handed it over, and said to the assistant beside her, “Go ahead.”

The assistant took the folder and hurried out.

As Wu Yurong stood, she also gave Chu Yan a slight signal.

Chu Yan followed the assistant out.

Click.

The office door closed.

Only Wu Yurong and Wu Chen remained.

“Why did you suddenly come over? Did you finish what you were doing? Did you miss me?” Wu Yurong asked in her soft, sweet voice as she walked up to him.

She wrapped her arms around Wu Chen’s waist, then tilted her head up and kissed him.

“I came to give you something. I’m leaving right away.” Wu Chen smiled.

“What? A gift?” Surprise entered Wu Yurong’s gentle smile.

She really was a little surprised.

Wu Chen did not appear to be carrying anything conspicuous, so…

A small gift?

Wu Yurong did not think Wu Chen was the sort of man who would surprise a woman with little presents just to make her happy.

That was something “young boys” did.

And Wu Yurong herself was not the kind of woman who would be moved by some little gift.

At her age, she no longer had that sort of girlish anticipation.

But!

As long as it came from Wu Chen, Wu Yurong would be happy.

Because he was Wu Chen.

Come to think of it, she found herself looking forward just a little to whatever small gift he had brought her.