Chapter 161 Shameless

"Mr. Hong, we know we were wrong. Please save our lives."

"Right now, you are the only one in the entire world who can save us. Heaven has a supreme virtue of cherishing all life; we beg you to have mercy on the common people of Hannan and save everyone."

"That man Huang Tian is notoriously tyrannical and cruel. If he takes control of Hannan, there's no telling how many miserable things will happen. Mr. Hong, you are a kind person, please step in and help us."

"Oh, that's right! Isn't today the birthday banquet of Madam Hong's grandfather? We have all brought generous birthday gifts, and we hope the elder of the Chen family will graciously accept them!" Someone suddenly brought up the birthday gifts, and the crowd immediately shouted for their bodyguards to carry the presents into the Chen residence.

Shen Chong sneered on the side.

He had arrived the earliest today and already knew exactly how the Chen family felt about Hong Yu.

Now, these tycoons were sending birthday gifts to Elder Chen—wasn't that outright slapping Hong Yu in the face?

Under normal circumstances, Shen Chong would certainly keep his mouth shut and watch the spectacle from the sidelines.

However, after giving it some thought, he decided to warn these tycoons.

After all, they were all in the same boat now. If someone angered Hong Yu, who knew what kind of actions his temperament would drive him to take?

His greatest fear was that Hong Yu would simply turn around and leave them to their fate.

When that time came, the moment Huang Tian arrived...

The more Shen Chong thought about it, the more panicked he became. He directly rebuked, "Hey, hey, hey! What are you all doing?"

Liang Zhanpeng frowned and said, "Delivering gifts, isn't it obvious? Did you really expect us to spell it out?"

The other tycoons also snapped impatiently, "Shen Chong, what's your problem? If you dare to get in our way, do you really think we won't team up to crush you?"

"Hmph! Don't assume that arriving early gives you any special privileges. Our gifts are every bit as good as yours, if not better."

"Damn it! I know why this bastard spoke up to stop us—he delivered his gift first and doesn't want us to give ours!"

"What the hell! You treacherous dog, is that how you act?"

"Didn't we agree to weather the storm together? Shen Chong, you really make me so disappointed!"

Shen Chong was stunned speechless by the barrage of abuse. A moment later, his face flushed red and he cursed back, "You're the treacherous dogs!"

"Goddamn it! If we hadn't agreed to stick together through thick and thin, do you think I'd give a damn about you lot?!"

Having said that, Shen Chong immediately glanced at Hong Yu, whose expression looked quite unpleasant, and chided, "If you want to give gifts, did you even stop to consider Mr. Hong's feelings?"

"How could you possibly know whether Mr. Hong wanted you here to offer birthday wishes? Making decisions on your own like this—aren't you afraid of provoking Mr. Hong's wrath?"

As he spoke, Shen Chong blinked frantically, hoping these tycoons would catch on.

Yet, how could these wealthy moguls possess that kind of insight? In their eyes, Hong Yu was a member of the prestigious Hong family, possessing such terrifying martial prowess that he ought to be respected wherever he went.

It was only because these arrogant tycoons looked down from their high horses that they had offended Hong Yu in the first place; it never crossed their minds that anyone else in this world could be as foolish as they had been.

Liang Zhanpeng, however, was somewhat sharper. Noticing Shen Chong's frantic winks and recalling the situation with his own butler, he managed to guess a thing or two.

"Everyone, put the birthday gifts down... No! Just put the presents down," Liang Zhanpeng ordered. After all, his social standing was considerably higher than Shen Chong's, and the moment he spoke, the surrounding tycoons fell silent.

Meanwhile, not far away, Elder Chen was anxiously having his family members wipe the blood from the corners of his mouth. Originally, he had wanted to leave the bloodstains as undeniable evidence to condemn both Hong Yu and Shen Chong.

Yet now, Hong Yu had become the object of flattery for all these Hannan tycoons. How could he possibly dare to step forward and denounce Hong Yu at a time like this?

He might be the patriarch of the highest standing in the Chen family, but in the eyes of these Hannan tycoons, his face wasn't even worth a fart.

Having cleaned up the blood, Elder Chen had intended to step forward with a smile to accept the birthday gifts, but upon hearing Liang Zhanpeng's command, his expression darkened instantly as he retreated.

No matter how deeply he loathed Hong Yu, Elder Chen desperately wanted to collect those lavish gifts.

Just moments earlier, Shen Chong had presented a pair of imperial green jade bracelets once worn by an empress—treasures worth at least tens of millions. If Liang Zhanpeng and the others were also offering gifts, just how astronomical must those presents be?

It was safe to say that all the birthday gifts Elder Chen had received today combined probably didn't amount to a fraction of any single casual item brought by the Hannan tycoons over there. Naturally, his heart burned with longing.

What agonizing hatred!

If I hadn't come into conflict with Hong Yu earlier, all of these birthday gifts would belong to me!

Shen Chong had slapped Elder Chen fiercely across the face just moments ago, and back then, the old man had only cried out in pain to win sympathy. But now, as his thoughts spiraled, a pang of intense heartbreak actually moved him to tears.

More than twenty precious treasures—that added up to at least one billion! Handing them over was equivalent to giving away a publicly traded company for free.

Having struggled and strived for so many years, the Chen family had only managed to become a moderately wealthy household. With one fatal misstep, he had truly committed a blunder that would last through the ages.

Liang Zhanpeng walked over to Shen Chong's side and asked in a low voice, "Shen Chong, what on earth is going on here? Could it be that the Chen family also offended Mr. Hong?"

Shen Chong replied with a helpless shrug, "Haven't you figured it out just by looking at your butler running away in a panic?"

"Earlier, your butler was the Chen family's patron. Since he fled for his life, it obviously means they offended Mr. Hong beyond any hope of redemption."

"That damned dog, running away so fast, huh? When I get back, I'm going to break both his legs!" Liang Zhanpeng cursed viciously before asking in a hushed tone, "Is there any way to remedy this? By the way, what about your gift? Did you give it already, only to be scolded by Mr. Hong?"

Shen Chong chuckled. "Do you take me for a fool like the rest of you?"

"The moment I arrived, I sensed the atmosphere in the Chen family was all wrong. After observing for a bit, I knew instantly that this gift could never be handed over to that old bastard of the Chen family."

"Didn't you notice that old Chen ghost trying to step out just now to collect the gifts? It's so damn hilarious. I honestly wonder what kind of skin his face is made of to be so shameless."

"Never mind these irrelevant people," Liang Zhanpeng said impatiently. "I asked you if your gift was delivered, and how you handled it. Could it be that you've been here this whole time and haven't even taken your present out?"

"Well, about that..." Shen Chong hesitated, stumbling over his words.

Although they had agreed to share hardships, this brilliant strategy was something he had personally devised. He really didn't want these tycoons to get a free ride and acquire his intellectual property without putting in any effort.

Liang Zhanpeng's companion, Li Tian, had also overheard the exchange between Shen Chong and Liang Zhanpeng. After a moment of silent rumination, he spoke up, "This concerns the life-and-death survival of the entire Hannan. If you have a good solution, stop keeping it to yourself."

"I know you're feeling a bit reluctant right now. How about this—each of us tycoons will give you fifty million. How does that sound?"

Fifty million per person, and with around twenty tycoons pooling together, that came out to nearly one billion.

Shen Chong pondered the offer and finally nodded.

The pair of imperial green jade bracelets he had brought today commanded a market value of roughly one billion. While demanding the full billion in cash from Shen Chong would likely earn them a swift kick out the door, at least this offered some form of compensation.

A round of whispers ensued, and the ears of the Hannan tycoons perked up.

Upon hearing Shen Chong's brilliant scheme, they felt an intense urge to curse out loud.

A single devious trick like that had just netted him a billion—it was no different from outright robbery.