Chapter 143 Is She… Is She My Daughter? (1/2)

The representatives from Jiang He said a lot, but generally, those words were what they meant. When the reporter uploaded the recording online, there was an immediate backlash from netizens.

They immediately connected to the video uploaded yesterday by other netizens, which someone had listed out all products under Jiang He to be boycotted. Aside from their property business, the most profitable of Jiang He's assets was Jia Ye Movie Studio.

Jia Ye Movie Studio is considered well known in the country. They were ranked in several famous cinema theatres and even though they ranked last, they were still part of the top list of movie studios. The business is also somewhat related to the Lu Family.

Most of Xing Chuang's big-budget movies were distributed exclusively by Jia Ye.

If they angered the public, more than half of the country's population would boycott Jiang He and not patronize Jia Ye. That would be enough for them to suffer major losses.

If there was a boycott, movie producers would not distribute their films to Jia Ye to lower their costs and cut their losses.

Jia Ye would not be able to get any distribution rights even if they had money to buy it.

Even though an immediate effect would not be seen from boycotting Jia Ye, but it was enough to damage Jiang He and make them suffer.

…

Lawyer Zhou knocked on the door and entered Yan Beicheng's office.

”Master Yan, everything has been taken care of. Jiang He might have arranged to buy that piece of land, but they have not signed the contract. It was just a verbal agreement that still needed a signature. Miss Jiang had acted too rashly and approached the orphanage before signing the contract. We offered a slightly higher price, and leveraging on the Yan family's standing, we were able to send someone to sign the contract and formalize the land purchase. The land has nothing to do with the Jiang family already,” Lawyer Zhou reported.

Yan Beicheng nodded. He did not immediately inform Lin Chu and the old Principal about the situation. He wanted to wait until everything was a done deal.

Even though he believed there would not be any changes, it would still be better for things to be confirmed officially before telling them about it and making them feel more secure.

Evening came and Yan Beicheng picked up Lin Chu from Lin Yi and informed her about the situation. They were concerned about the old Principal still worrying so he drove Lin Chu to the orphanage.

The situation had gone on for three days. The old principal did not have the heart to push Yan Beicheng as she was aware that it was not a small matter. He would not be able to settle it with just a word, but it still could not stop her from being flustered over the matter.

She felt uneasy seeing them approach.

However, the old Principal felt a glimmer of hope upon seeing the relaxed expression on Lin Chu's face.

”Don't worry, everything has been settled. The orphanage won't be demolished, and the children would not need to leave,” Lin Chu did not waste any time and told the old Principal immediately as she held her hands.

The old Principal looked at Yan Beicheng in surprise. How did he settle it so quickly?

It was just two days ago and now everything has been resolved?

Yan Beicheng nodded. He did not act too gentle or enthusiastic but only said matter-of-factly, ”Miss Jiang had acted too rashly. Even though they had an agreement to buy the land, but no official contract was signed. They may have rapport and understanding between them, and if it was before, there was nothing to worry about as no one would dare to offend the Jiang family and grab this land from them. To get the land, it would be necessary to raise the asking price. No one would be willing to go against their promise if the price was not high enough. In this case, the profit would be low, and they'd be forced to offend someone, it would be a lot of unnecessary work.”

”But Miss Jiang was too eager to show off. This time, the situation is different than usual, which was why it was not difficult for me to purchase this land as soon as I took action. It did not take much, it was just a matter of paying a little more money.”

”This afternoon, Yan Hui had already sent someone to sign the contract. We already have it in black and white, so you don't need to worry anymore,” Yan Beicheng explained.

Even though she felt embarrassed to have troubled Yan Beicheng, the old Principal still felt a weight lifted off her and heaved a deep breath of relief.

”I have not been able to sleep a wink at night because of this. I can't sleep at all. The moment I close my eyes, I could see the children being dragged away while crying. I keep seeing them crying to me that they did not want to leave, and I couldn't stop my tears from falling. But it's all good now, I don't need to worry anymore,” the old Principal sighed, then smiled in relieve.

The land was in Yan Beicheng's hands, there was nothing to worry about now.

Even though it was a little thick-skinned of her to think this way, but the old Principal could not help but feel that leaving the land in Yan Beicheng's hands was the same as having it in her hands. It would be a long time before anyone had to worry about the orphanage.

”You just said that you had to raise the price before obtaining the land, doesn't that mean…” The old Principal could not help but feel concerned.

Yan Beicheng did not mention how much more he had to pay, she did not even dare imagine how much could that be.

”Yan Hui did gain over this matter, you don't need to worry about it,” assured Yan Beicheng.

Lin Chu helped the old Principal to sit down and Yan Beicheng continued, ”The little district next to the orphanage would definitely be demolished for new building development. When that is done, Yan Hui will profit from it and won't make any losses. Besides, due to your protest against Jiang He yesterday, that company's reputation has suffered a big hit. Even though their property business is not big but since there are many choices for the consumers now, many would choose not to purchase Jiang He's properties. As far as I know, the movie studio under Jiang He this week has suffered a big loss in terms of box office numbers.”

”This is the moment when the general public is most enraged as Jiang He has suffered the most. With Yan Hui taking a stand at this time, many would be applauding us. It will indirectly profit Yan Hui's products and brands, so you don't need to worry about this,” Yan Beicheng explained.

The old Principal did not understand much but since Yan Beicheng insisted that they stood to gain, she felt much better.

She got Lin Chu and Yan Beicheng to stay for dinner. The children had limited knowledge of the matter. Even though they had tried their best to keep it under wraps, some of the children still got wind of the situation.

Mo Jingxi had just finished his homework when he walked out and spotted Lin Chu. He quickly ran over and called out, ”Chu Chu!”

Lin Chu felt glad that Jiang He did not sign the contract as she watched the pretty little boy ran over clumsily. It was lucky that Jiang Changdai came looking for them before making sure everything was a done deal, which created an opportunity for them.

Otherwise, all these little children would be forced to leave. Lin Chu felt relief and heartache for them at the same time.

Mo Jingxi climbed up the chair next to Lin Chu and tugged her sleeve in a pitiable fashion as he asked her worriedly, ”Chu Chu, are we going to leave this place?”

She watched as the children looked like they were about to cry. Tian Tian held on tight to Shi Tou's arms. They watched her with big, teary eyes. Lin Chu thought it looked exactly like how Chu Xi always looked at her.

”Don't worry, everything's been taken care of. None of you should worry about this. No one will chase you away,” Lin Chu said as she rubbed Mo Jingxi's soft hair.

”Is that true?” Tian Tian sniffled as the tears were still brimming in her eyes, but her big, bright eyes were filled with a pleasant surprise.

Lin Chu nodded enthusiastically, ”It's true.”

She did not expect Tian Tian to suddenly burst out in tears. ”That's good, that's really good, I don't need to leave, I won't be separated from Shi Tou and Jingxi. Wahhh….”

Shi Tou coughed embarrassedly upon noticing Lin Chu and Yan Beicheng looking at him, and said maturely, ”Tian Tian is… is an emotional little girl!”

”She'll be okay after crying out loud for a while,” Mo Jingxi whispered understandingly.

Lin Chu listened and before she could console her, Tian Tian suddenly stopped crying. All was left was her little red nose and she looked especially adorable.

…

While Yan Beicheng was sending someone over to sign the contract, Jiang He was hard at work salvaging their reputation. Jiang Changdai's older brother, Jiang Changzai, was in Ning City. After all, the Jiang family had started in Ning City and their roots were there.

When this situation exploded, the news had not yet reached Ning City. By the time he got wind of it, the matter was already out of control.

Jiang Changzai was so mad, he nearly broke his phone into pieces.

When Jiang Changdai approached him to ask for his help, he did not think it was anything serious. Jiang He had already developed a few commercial-residential areas in B City. While the land where the orphanage was and its surrounding lands were not considered large areas, purchasing them was still considered expensive given its strategic location.

Jiang Changzai had specially held a meeting to draw out a plan to build a high-end residential area there. He wanted it to be top-notch as B City had a lot of well-to-do people.

Jiang He may be in the property business, but they were still far behind compared to the much more established Yan Hui as Jiang He was not capable to build hotels and theme parks.

Jiang Changzai had planned to expand its presence and property business to B City. When Jiang Changdai came asking for his help, he had agreed but not entirely for the sake of Jiang Changdai being his sister. It was more of a business decision.

As for the orphanage, he planned to give them proper compensation. He understood no matter business or celebrities, they would be fighting to do charity work. It did not matter if it was sincere or not, the point was to gain brownie points for their reputation.

The orphanage creating a ruckus over the purchase of the surrounding lands was the biggest potential problem. They had already reached an agreement with the residential owners of the areas around the orphanage. They would be compensated with demolishment fees and their old houses will be exchanged for newer, bigger houses. Everyone was willing, especially when properties in B City was so expensive that would be difficult for them to purchase.

Jiang Changzai had also thought that the orphanage would be filled with the old and the weak, women and children. Even if they decided to create trouble, there was not much they could achieve as they were perceived to not know their rights. They would not know where and how to make their complaints anyway.

But who knew that Jiang Changdai, that stupid woman, could be so direct as to say those infuriating words? Even if she thought so, she should not have been so straightforward about it!

Everyone was busy fishing for fame and building a good image for themselves, yet here she was doing the exact opposite!

Even if Jiang Changzai looked down on these incapable poor people, he would never say so in front of them!

Now that the situation has gone out of hand and has affected the whole of Jiang He, Jiang Changzai was busy cleaning up the mess made by Jiang Changdai that he had yet to find time to call her and give her a good scolding.

He spent the whole night trying to get a public relations company to help resolve the crisis and prepare a statement to announce that whatever was said did not represent the thoughts of Jiang He, and was a personal opinion.

Unfortunately, Jiang Changdai was his younger sister. Everyone looked at him and Jiang Changdai as one. Who would believe the statement that was written for publicity purposes?

Jiang He's reputation was damaged overnight thanks to those few words from Jiang Changdai.

Their stock value continued to drop while cinemas which showed their movies by their movie studio was empty in every city that they were in.

Even then, Jiang Changzai had not given another thought to the contract. As the details were already agreed upon and they have already decided on the dates to sign the contract, it did not seem right to make last-minute changes.

Who knew that after three days, the land now belonged to Yan Hui. They had even signed the contract!

Jiang Changzai made the call to ask what happened, but all the other side said was, ”President Jiang, we really couldn't do much about it. This matter has escalated to such a terrible situation. If we proceed to sell the land to Jiang He, we would be criticized badly by the public. Even if you don't touch the orphanage, the negative image has already been planted. Many do not look to the future, only the current results. Things ended up like this because Jiang He handled this badly. If this had been done more smartly, none of this would have happened.”

As soon as he ended the call, his assistant forwarded a press statement from the land seller to Jiang Changzai. In the statement, they had clarified that both sides had not come to terms with the negotiation and it was never confirmed that the land would be sold to Jiang He. It was all a misunderstanding and the land had now been sold to Yan Hui.

He closed the document and his assistant sent another one to Jiang Changzai. This time, it was from Yan Hui.

The press statement announced that 'Yan Hui could not stand by while Jiang He conducts such acts for profit. We would rather make some losses and purchase the land at a higher price. The contract has already been signed between us'.

The statement also made a solemn promise to demolish only the houses around the orphanage and the orphanage will continue to operate as usual. They had also donated 30 million Yuan to the orphanage.

Jiang Changzai nearly threw up blood in anger upon reading it.

Jiang Changdai suddenly called at this moment.

Jiang Changzai was annoyed at seeing Jiang Changdai's name on the screen. He had been too busy to be bothered with her for the past few days. Otherwise, he would have given her a good scolding on the phone. He did not expect Jiang Changdai to have the gall to call him instead.

It must have been because of the news online.

Jiang Changzai had no idea that Jiang Changdai had insisted on demolishing the orphanage because she wanted to threaten Lin Chu. He only thought of her as being stupid.

If Jiang Changzai knew that Jiang Changdai was doing all these stupid acts for her personal gain, he would have beaten her to death.

Jiang Changzai sent his assistant out of the office. He made sure he was alone before picking up the call. Before he could say anything, he heard Jiang Changdai said, ”Brother, what happened? Why did Yan Hui manage to buy the land instead?”

Jiang Changzai could not hold in his temper the moment he heard her voice. ”You dare to ask me this question? It was all because of your stupidity of saying all those words to the orphanage that they managed to get hold of something against you. After creating a huge backlash in public opinion, you are now questioning me about what happened? If you were thinking about prancing around it, you should've waited for the contract to be signed and the orphanage to be demolished before heading there. The contract hasn't even been signed yet and there you are, rushing over to say all those things. What exactly was in your head?”

Jiang Changdai was not happy with those words. She was feeling flustered about what Jiang Changzai had just said.

She had wanted to use the orphanage to threaten Lin Chu, but Yan Hui had bought it in the end!

”How would I know that the honest-looking old lady could be so cunning?!” Jiang Changdai clenched her teeth at the thought of the old Principal.

The old Principal from the orphanage had such a kindly, benevolent look. She looked so fragile that one could have kicked the life out of her on the spot. Who knew that she was capable of something so despicable?

”How would you know? With that stupid brain of yours, there's so much that you don't know! Do you think people are so easily bullied? The really stupid person here is you. You've been stupid since young, never once contributing to the family and always creating a mess for us to clean up!” Jiang Changzai was so mad, he began thrashing anything he could get his hands on. He threw his pens and holder viciously on the ground.

”You still dare to question why are you so stupid and how did you create a mess?” Jiang Changzai said ferociously. All these years looking at this stupid thing moving around in front of him had brought him nothing but anger.

Now that Jiang Changdai dared to ask this question, Jiang Changzai decided to be frank with her. He had finally understood that there was no need to beat around the bush when it came to people as dumb as she was. He might as well be blunt and direct. There was no hoping she would understand anything through hinting.

”You're asking me? Right, let me explain clearly to you. If it wasn't for you, we'd still be in-laws with the Yan family. The Jiang family's development would have gone further from what it is now. But what happened? Marrying you there turned them into our enemies instead of family. How could Yan Huaiyuan not match up to Lu Zhengting? What is Lu Zhenting compared to Yan Huaiyuan? You had an affair with Lu Zhengting behind Yan Huaiyuan's back and caused his death. The Yan family may not have done anything drastic to us, but do you think the Yan family had let us off the hook? It's been 18 years and the Jiang family is still stagnant at the same spot. We have not moved forward at all in these 18 years. We've never been able to expand any of the industries we're involved inDo you know why? It's because the Yan family did not allow us to!”

”They did not allow the Jiang family to develop and has always been suppressing us, yet, they did not let us die easily. They want to see us work hard for an opportunity, only to end up empty-handed. Countless times, countless times! It has always been this way! They gave us hope then destroyed it! It's like a rope being tied on our backs, we can see mountains of gold and silver right in front of us, just a few steps more but the rope pulls us back to where we started. It's so near, yet we can never reach it.”

”If it wasn't for you, the Jiang family would have been much more than we are right now! And yet you dare look down on others? What right do you have? You're nothing but trouble to the family!” Jiang Changzai said angrily.