bioinnovel Chapter 56 Terrifying!
Chapter 56 Terrifying!
On the basketball court, the air felt like solidified lead, so heavy it was hard to breathe.
The shattered backboard, the scattered shards of glass, and the figure hanging on the rim like a demon descending to earth—together they created a powerful and impactful image that was deeply etched into the minds of everyone present.
Linda's appearance was like adding a calm yet deadly touch to this turbulent picture.
"Mr. Zhang."
She bowed slightly and handed the exquisite silver thermos to Zhang Yan with both hands, her face displaying a professional and impeccably respectful smile.
"Mr. Nie was worried that you were training too hard and expending too much energy, so he specially instructed the kitchen to stew bird's nest and snow pear and asked me to bring it to you to replenish your strength."
These words, spoken clearly and gently, struck everyone's heart like an invisible hammer.
train?
Need to replenish energy?
This was clearly a way of telling everyone in the most elegant way that the shocking performance just now was nothing more than a trivial warm-up exercise for Mr. Zhang.
And the identity of the person who could have the president's special assistant of the Qingcheng Group drive five Maybachs just to deliver a bowl of sweet soup, need I say more?
Li Zifeng's henchmen, who had just been so aggressive and ready to charge forward, were now frozen in place as if under a spell, their faces even more ashen than the cement on the ground.
Li Zifeng himself trembled all over. The resentment and unwillingness he felt when he got up from the ground were instantly replaced by a bone-chilling cold.
He is not a fool.
He recognized Linda, the woman known as the "Queen's Hand" in the Jinghai business world, whom even his father would bow and scrape before.
He also recognized the five Maybachs with consecutive license plate numbers; they were Nie Qingcheng's personal vehicles.
He just never expected that Zhang Yan was actually being kept by Nie Qingcheng!
You bastard!
What incredible luck!
"You...you all..."
Li Zifeng's lips trembled as he pointed at Linda and Zhang Yan, his voice laced with bravado, "Don't push your luck! You want me to smash your car? Dream on!"
He was still making a last-ditch effort, trying to salvage some face by using his family background.
Linda didn't even look at him directly.
She simply took a tablet out of her pocket, slender fingers lightly swiped across the screen a few times, and then turned the screen towards Li Zifeng.
"Li Zifeng is the only son of Li Jianguo, chairman of Fengda Real Estate."
Linda's voice remained calm, as if she were reporting the weather forecast.
"Fengda Real Estate is a second-tier supplier in the downstream industrial chain of our Qingcheng Group. It is mainly responsible for undertaking the greening projects of three properties under the group, with an annual contract amount of 130 million yuan."
"Last quarter, due to project delays and quality issues, we were placed on the group's risk watch list."
"Young Master Li."
Linda raised her eyes, and a sharp glint finally flashed in her eyes, which had been hidden behind her gold-rimmed glasses. "Should I continue?"
Li Zifeng's face drained of all color in an instant.
He felt as if he had been stripped naked and thrown into the snow. All his trump cards and all his reliance had become a laughable and insignificant joke in front of his opponent.
The students around him, though they didn't quite understand what suppliers or risk lists meant, could see the sudden paleness on Li Zifeng's face.
Everyone realized that today's show was far more exciting, and... more terrifying than they had imagined.
"You brought up the bet yourself."
Zhang Yan took the insulated container from Linda and put it in his hand.
He didn't even open it; he just looked at Li Zifeng calmly, as if stating a given fact.
"Now, it's your turn to fulfill your duty."
"I...I..."
Li Zifeng was incoherent, and large beads of cold sweat dripped down his forehead.
Did he personally smash his own SF90, which he had only picked up less than a month ago?
That's worse than killing him!
But I won't smash it...
He couldn't imagine the consequences.
Just as he was struggling with his inner turmoil and on the verge of collapse, Linda's phone rang.
She glanced at the caller ID and then pressed the speakerphone button.
A lazy, magnetic female voice, tinged with a hint of annoyance at being disturbed, resonated clearly throughout the basketball court via the loudspeaker.
"Linda, what's up? I'm putting on a face mask right now, and I told you not to bother me."
It's Nie Qingcheng!
Everyone's heart skipped a beat.
Linda remained bowed, speaking respectfully to both the phone and Zhang Yan, reporting, "President Nie, it seems that Young Master Li is reluctant to fulfill his bet with Mr. Zhang."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.
Those two seconds felt like an eternity.
The entire basketball court was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Then, Nie Qingcheng's voice, tinged with coldness, rang out again. Each word was like a block of ice that had never melted, striking Li Zifeng's nerves.
Let him smash it.
"Don't smash it. Notify the legal department and the finance department."
"Tomorrow, I don't want to see the name 'Fengda' on the supplier list in Jinghai City again."
The phone was abruptly disconnected as soon as the words were spoken.
beep...beep...beep...
The busy tone was like a death knell.
Li Zifeng's body swayed violently, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground again.
He's finished.
His father is finished too.
The entire Li family is finished.
"Buzzing—"
Almost at the same moment Nie Qingcheng hung up the phone, Li Zifeng's cell phone in his pocket started vibrating wildly.
With trembling hands, he pulled out his phone, and on the screen flashed his father's name.
He pressed the answer button, looking utterly lost.
"You unfilial son! You rebellious son! Who did you offend outside?!"
On the other end of the phone came his father's furious, fearful, and desperate roar.
"Qingcheng Group just unilaterally terminated all our contracts! And they're demanding we pay ten times the amount in liquidated damages!"
"The company is finished, the Li family is finished!"
"You! Right now! Immediately! Kneel down for me! Do whatever they want you to do!"
"Did you hear me?!"
The phone slipped from Li Zifeng's weak hand, fell to the ground, and shattered.
He raised his head, and his handsome face was now streaked with tears. Gone was the arrogance and domineering attitude he had shown before; only endless fear and regret remained.
He looked at Zhang Yan, at the boy who remained calm throughout.
He finally understood what kind of deity he had provoked.
Amidst thousands of gazes mixed with sympathy, schadenfreude, and awe, Li Zifeng struggled to his feet.
He didn't look at anyone else, but like a walking corpse, he staggered step by step toward the Ferrari parked by the roadside, still gleaming with its bright red light.
He picked up the broken steel pipe that was used to secure the backboard from the ground.
"ah--!!!"
With a shrill, inhuman roar, he raised the steel pipe and, with all his might, smashed it against the smooth, mirror-like windshield!
"Bang!"
"Splash—!"
The crisp cracking sound, intertwined with the man's suppressed, desperate cries, became the most magnificent finale to this multi-million dollar gamble.
Zhang Yan didn't look at him even once from beginning to end.
He simply walked to the bench next to him, sat down, and unscrewed the lid of the thermos. A sweet and mellow fragrance instantly filled the air.
He used the matching silver spoon to scoop up a spoonful of crystal-clear bird's nest, and slowly and deliberately put it into his mouth.
Sweet but not cloying, it melts in your mouth.
Just then, his old cell phone, which he used specifically for stock trading, vibrated slightly in his pocket.
He took out his phone and swiped the screen.
A notification popped up from the stock trading software.
[Major positive news! Huano Bio (300836) announced after trading hours that its independently developed novel targeted anti-cancer drug "HX-01" has achieved great success in Phase III clinical trials, with an efficacy rate far exceeding market expectations!]
Immediately afterwards, another push notification popped up.
Major securities firms upgraded Huano Bio's rating to "Strong Buy" overnight, predicting at least four consecutive limit-up days after trading resumes!
A barely perceptible smile curved the corners of Zhang Yan's lips.
He turned off the push notifications and opened his portfolio account.
The numbers that were still green at the close of trading that afternoon, showing a floating loss of nearly 500,000, have now turned into a dazzling bright red, representing profits.
[Floating profit/loss: +1,028,343.00 yuan]
Today's profit/loss ratio: +10.18%
A single after-hours announcement allowed him to instantly recoup his losses and even make a profit of over a million!
And this is just the beginning.
Zhang Yan put down his phone, scooped up another spoonful of bird's nest, and looked up at the magnificent sunset on the horizon.
He suddenly felt that he could give Nie Qingcheng an even bigger surprise on her birthday.
For example... buying an island?