Chapter 050: Shameless Beyond Compare

Chapter 50: This Is No Ordinary Shamelessness!

"President Wu?"
The effeminate man picked up his phone, his expression changing instantly. He hurriedly put it to his ear, his voice oozing with obsequiousness.
"Zhong Baisong, you damned freak, do you have shit for brains? I warned you so many times yesterday, and now you pull this crap? Do you want me to send you to Thailand for surgery to wake you up? Damn it!"
A furious man's voice burst from the phone, laced with expletives, as if a lion had lost its mind...
"President Wu, I—"
The effeminate man's face turned deathly pale, drained of all color. It wasn't that he hadn't seen President Wu angry before, but never had he seen him this furious…
"Shut the hell up! Do whatever it takes to appease the people from Feilu! Even if you have to beg on your knees, make sure they're not angry! I'm flying to Kun City right now... Damn it, you bastard, why didn’t your father just shoot you against the wall instead of bringing this disaster into the world."
President Wu's tirade ended with another bout of roaring rage, and without waiting for a reply, he hung up.

The effeminate man was completely stunned. It took him a while to realize the call had ended. He put away his phone and couldn’t help glancing back at the group from Feilu, feeling as if he could die on the spot. He had utterly misunderstood President Wu’s instructions.

President Wu had rambled on at length yesterday, but his meaning was vague. It turned out he was too embarrassed to say outright that he wanted him to play the lackey and grovel before Feilu. Instead, he hoped he'd understand the hint. But he'd gotten it completely backwards.

It was too late for regrets.

He recalled his arrogant demeanor upon entering earlier, then thought of President Wu's crazy outburst on the phone. His heart felt like it was wailing. Most crucially, President Wu had just said he was flying straight to Kun City.

That was the key point.

Before President Wu arrived, he had to do whatever it took—kneel, beg, whatever—to make sure Feilu’s people didn’t get angry.

Those were President Wu’s exact words.

The effeminate man’s face went through a series of contortions, but as a seasoned schemer, he quickly composed himself. The next moment, he walked towards Zhang Qing with a beaming smile: "Miss Zhang Qing, there was a misunderstanding just now, I’m terribly sorry. Actually, our Qingyan Studio is very sincere about this collaboration. Very, very sincere."

"Huh?" Zhang Qing looked at the effeminate man, whose face changed as rapidly as a Sichuan opera performer, and was momentarily taken aback. Instinctively, she glanced at Chu Fei.

The effeminate man cursed inwardly. The person he feared most now was that young man. He no longer doubted that the Xu Mei Chu Fei had mentioned on the phone was the one he knew. Outwardly, Qingyan Studio was managed by President Wu, but in reality, Xu Mei was the true power behind the scenes, though she rarely appeared. He’d only discovered this by chance.

If you knew Xu Mei, why didn’t you say so earlier? Aren’t you just setting me up?

He was stifled with frustration but dared not show it, only hoping to salvage the situation with as much dignity as possible.

"Sorry, but I truly don’t understand what sincerity you’re offering," Zhang Qing retorted. She wasn’t stupid. The effeminate man’s sudden change in attitude was obviously because of Chu Fei’s phone call. She had no reason to humble herself now—she’d bowed and scraped before and been ignored, and now they wanted to curry favor? Too late.

Women are known for their pettiness, and the prettier they are, the more so. Zhang Qing just happened to be a very beautiful woman.

"Deputy Leader Zhang, it was really just a misunderstanding earlier. Fine, I admit we were in the wrong. Please, be magnanimous and don’t hold it against us. Can we proceed to the next stage of negotiations?" The effeminate man humbled himself, convinced that such an attitude would win them over and everything would proceed smoothly.

But he underestimated a woman’s temperament.

"Sorry, today’s negotiations have already fallen apart. There’s nothing more to discuss. We at Feilu cannot accept your terms," Zhang Qing answered calmly. She was a shrewd woman, and while speaking, her eyes kept darting to Chu Fei. Seeing him unmoved, she knew her instincts were correct.

Before the effeminate man could say more, Zhang Qing added, "Besides, I’m just the deputy leader. If you have anything further to discuss, you should speak to our team leader." She glanced at Chu Fei, signaling that if he wanted to negotiate, he’d have to deal with Chu Fei, not her.

The effeminate man nearly stumbled and fell. Now he understood the meaning of reaping what one sows.

This astute woman clearly was giving him no chance to make amends. He had no choice but to steel himself and walk towards Chu Fei, dread gnawing at him—this guy’s slaps were no joke.

"Sir—"
Standing before Chu Fei, the effeminate man immediately put on an even brighter smile than before Zhang Qing. He had no choice; circumstances forced his hand. As long as this man wasn’t angry, anything could be negotiated.

"What is it?"
Chu Fei glanced up.

"About the misunderstanding earlier, it was entirely our fault. I sincerely apologize to you," the effeminate man said, hoping that admitting fault would win sympathy.

But Chu Fei wasn’t buying it. He looked at the man coolly: "If apologies could solve everything, what need would there be for the police?"

"I—" The effeminate man nearly choked, staring at Chu Fei’s impassive face in dismay. Only now did he realize that this young man was the hardest to deal with. Remembering President Wu’s fit of rage, the effeminate man suddenly gritted his teeth, fell to his knees with a thud before Chu Fei, and pleaded, "Sir, I was wrong. I beg you, please let me go."

His expression and tone were utterly sincere, almost confessional. He thought, let myself be humiliated—so what? As long as it calmed President Wu’s fury, he’d accept any disgrace. Who told him to be too clever for his own good and misinterpret Wu’s intentions?

Everyone was stunned by this scene.

He actually knelt?

Especially the people with him, who looked thunderstruck, completely bewildered, staring at each other in disbelief.

Chu Fei, however, only sneered, stood up, and walked right past the effeminate man without a glance. As he left, he threw out a cold remark: "If you want to negotiate, let Wu Gang come to Feilu himself."

His voice was icy, leaving no room for negotiation.

Without another word, he walked out of the meeting room.

The effeminate man's face turned ashen. Even after kneeling, he was ignored—this was humiliation beyond words, especially in front of his own people. But he had no time for shame; he was shaken by Chu Fei's last words. That young man had called President Wu by name, and so casually...

What the hell is going on? Who exactly is this young man?

This thought was all that filled the effeminate man's mind now.

"Brother Zhong." Li Duo’er hurried over to help him up, her face full of worry. Though she didn’t fully understand what had happened, she could tell things had gone terribly wrong.

Smack—

As soon as he stood, the effeminate man slapped Li Duo’er hard across the face, gritting his teeth: "This is all your fault, you wretch. You made me lose face here…"

"I—" Li Duo’er opened her mouth to protest but didn’t dare make a sound. This effeminate man was her main backer now. Even if he slapped her a few more times, she wouldn’t dare resist.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, the effeminate man looked at the others. His face had lost all its flamboyant airs and was now dark and grim. In a heavy tone, he said, "Everyone, go back to your rooms and rest. We’ll wait for President Wu to arrive."

"President Wu is coming in person?" Li Duo’er and the others gaped in astonishment.

But the effeminate man couldn’t be bothered to explain.

Soon, their frustration deepened. Feilu had arranged their hotel stay in advance, so they should have just checked in. But when they went to the front desk, they found that Feilu had just canceled their reservation. If they wanted to stay, they’d have to pay themselves.

Damn it!

The effeminate man was truly exasperated. He thought Feilu was being completely ruthless—canceling their hotel reservation without mercy.

Let’s not dwell on the effeminate man and his group, who reluctantly paid for their own rooms.

Meanwhile—

Zhang Qing, having just returned to the company, eyed Chu Fei curiously: "Chu Fei, wasn’t it a bit too much to cancel their hotel reservation? Isn’t that a bit shameless?"

"Shameless?" Chu Fei replied nonchalantly. "With the kind of people Qingyan Studio sent, why should we pay for them?"

"But our collaboration…" Zhang Qing hesitated. She’d been furious too, but even she felt Chu Fei had gone too far. Even if he was impressive, ignoring someone after they knelt was one thing, but canceling their hotel reservation before leaving—it was just too much.

Zhang Qing was at a loss for words.

"Don’t worry. If they’re sincere, they’ll still want to work with us. If not, we don’t need to chase after them," Chu Fei said indifferently. In his heart, he was certain that Wu Gang would show up by tomorrow at the latest, because he’d overheard the effeminate man’s phone conversation.

"Fine. But with negotiations ending like this, how are we supposed to report to Sister Lu?" Zhang Qing forced a smile. This was her main concern.

"Just tell the truth. Isn’t that simple?" Chu Fei grinned, flashing her a dazzling smile. "You’re the person in charge. You do it."

Zhang Qing rolled her eyes in exasperation, nearly throwing her teacup at Chu Fei’s face. He was bold when it came to showing off, but when it came to difficult reports, he left it to her—how shameless.

But she had no grounds to complain. After all, he was the team leader.

So, gritting her teeth, Zhang Qing braced herself and walked into Ximen Lu’s office under the sympathetic gaze of her colleagues. She came out just a few minutes later, leaving Xiao Yu and another girl puzzled. They couldn’t help but ask, "Sister Qing, what did Sister Lu say? She didn’t get angry, did she?" Xiao Yu asked in a low voice.

"No, she said to let things take their course," Zhang Qing shook her head, then looked complicatedly at Chu Fei, who was idly browsing the web. She couldn’t figure it out—she’d gone in, heart pounding, to report, but Ximen Lu hadn’t been angry in the slightest. She hadn’t even asked about the details or reasons. In the end, she’d comforted Zhang Qing and told her to just do her job, saying that even without Qingyan Studio, there would be plenty of new projects…

Zhang Qing had been left bewildered by Ximen Lu’s words. A considerate boss was touching, but this was just too unconcerned.

Something wasn’t right.

Zhang Qing looked at the computer across from her, ideas racing through her mind. Her instincts told her that Ximen Lu’s attitude wasn’t just simple magnanimity—it had everything to do with Chu Fei…