Hidden identities of the AI Heiress
Chapter 684 - Chapter 684 Chapter 684 Qiao Yun Theoretically This is

Chapter 684: Chapter 684: Qiao Yun: Theoretically, This is Impossible Chapter 684: Chapter 684: Qiao Yun: Theoretically, This is Impossible “Now that my dad is gone, he was the pillar of this family, and he was so young. If he were still alive, he would definitely be able to make even more money.”

The secretary almost laughed out of anger, a look of disgust spreading across her face.

The injured worker was already in his fifties–who would let their father, of such advanced age, go to a construction site to move bricks?

Lu Jingzhi asked sternly, “What exactly are you trying to say?”

“Seeing as you are a straightforward person, I will just speak bluntly.”

The man said breezily, “Take a look at the compensation for emotional distress, condolence money, family maintenance fees, death compensation… all these bits and pieces added up, and considering how wealthy the Lu Group is, compensating a few hundred million or even a billion should be no big deal for you, right? I’m not greedy, just, just five million would be fine.”

“Why don’t you just go rob someone?” The secretary was taken aback, his appetite too large.

The woman quietly pulled her son’s arm, also feeling that her son had demanded too much and worrying about scaring away the God of Wealth.

The man ignored his own mother, threatening, “I’ve laid down my words here today. If you don’t compensate, that’s fine, I’ll just go to the news media and expose everything. I won’t bury my dad, and I’ll definitely seek justice for him from you, a bunch of unscrupulous profiteers who just know how to bully us ignorant commoners.”

Secretary: Seems like you are quite versed in extortion and blackmail.

The secretary reminded Lu Jingzhi, “Young Master Lu, he’s just trying to extort us.”

Lu Jingzhi was not intimidated by the threat, reasoning calmly, “Out of humanity, I can decide on behalf of the group to compensate you one million five hundred thousand.”

The Lu family didn’t lack money, but they were not willing to be taken advantage of.

“What?” The man was dissatisfied, “Just one million five hundred thousand? Do you think you’re giving alms to a beggar?”

Lu Jingzhi said sternly, “If you’re unwilling, you can sue us. According to the labor contract, the compensation will not exceed one million.”

Lu Jingzhi’s firm attitude immediately deflated the man’s boldness. On one hand, he felt that one million five hundred thousand was too little, but on the other hand, he feared that if the situation got ugly, he might end up with nothing, which would be a massive loss for him.

“When you’ve thought it through, contact us again.” Having said that, Lu Jingzhi turned and left.

“How can you just leave? Let’s talk this out nicely.”

“If not five million, then four million should be okay…”

…

After leaving the hospital, Lu Jingzhi took a deep breath to calm his emotions before calling Lu Rui to explain everything that had just happened.

“Dad, this family is very unreasonable. I’m worried they will blow this up into a big deal.”

Lu Rui didn’t blame Lu Jingzhi; instead, he agreed, “It’s best if things don’t get blown out of proportion. We don’t want any trouble or lawsuits, but we can’t be threatened either.”

Hearing this, Lu Jingzhi breathed a sigh of relief. This family was the ultimate example of selfishness, only caring about using the situation to get money when a person had died.

Lu Rui continued, “Moreover, according to your description, he won’t go to the media. They just want money. As long as we stand firm, they won’t have a choice. Let’s ignore them for now and wait for them to come to us. Nevertheless, we should keep an eye on this group of relatives and check their family background.”

After a pause, Lu Rui added, “Even though we are businessmen, we are also conscientious people. If the family won’t look after their own, we can’t just ignore it. Assign someone to handle any further matters.”

Lu Jingzhi said, “I understand.”

Once the call ended, he arranged for someone to investigate the family situation of the worker’s relatives, just in case.

At that moment, the victim’s wife was asking her son anxiously.

“You’re not really going to the media, are you? That’s the Lu Group. Can we really fight them?”

The man waved his hand dismissively, “I’m not stupid. What’s the use of going to the media? If we provoke them and they don’t give us a cent, I’d be at a total loss. I was just bluffing to scare them a bit–big corporations like them are most afraid of reckless media reports.”

The woman then said, “If they don’t pay, won’t we have lost out big time? Why did you ask for so much, couldn’t you have asked for less?”

The man said disdainfully, “Now they’re the ones at fault, what’s wrong with asking for more? Besides, if dad were still alive, he would definitely agree with what I’m doing. This useless dead old man is finally good for something.”

“How can you speak like that? He was your dad.”

The man sneered, “Who told him to want to cut ties with me and to divorce you? Now his karma has caught up with him.”

The woman listened and grew quite angry as she said, “He still wanted a divorce, and now that he’s gone, isn’t it just us, mother and son, seeking justice for him? But I suppose he’s of some use after all.”

The man said sleazily, “Mom, once the compensation comes in, let’s buy a big house, and then find me a wife. I won’t gamble anymore, I’ll use the compensation money to do business and become a big boss.”

“Alright, alright,” the woman had already started to fantasize about how to spend the money after receiving it.

A nurse passed by and, without making a sound, rolled her eyes at them. What kind of people are these, so heartless.

At that moment, the man’s phone rang.

He answered and shouted, “Hello, who is this?”

The person on the other end said something, and his eyes lit up: “What, you’re willing to help us? Who are you, and why are you so kind-hearted?”

“Never mind who I am, you just need to know that I can help you get a lot of compensation money.”

“Really? Or are you just scamming me?” the man suspected that this person was a fraudster.

“If you don’t believe it, then forget it.”

The person on the other end seemed about to hang up.

The man quickly said, “Don’t hang up, just tell me what we need to do.”

After hearing what the person on the other end said, the man slapped his thigh and exclaimed angrily, “So it turns out they’re in the wrong, and here they are, pretending to be good people in front of me! Well then, let’s see if they dare not pay me! I won’t just make them compensate, but I will also seek justice for my dad.”

…

Lu Jingzhi and Lu Rui only returned the next day. The investigation results of the accident’s cause had not been released yet, and the family of the deceased was not cooperating. Due to these factors, both were not in good spirits.

After a whole night of busyness, they finally had time to go home and rest for a while.

Seeing their complexions, Su Mian expressed her concern, “As busy as work gets, you still need to take care of your health. I’ll go make you something to eat.”

Qiao Yun was sitting on the sofa reading a book. She lifted her gaze from the book to look at the father and son, glanced at them, and then looked away again.

Yet, Lu Jingzhi stared intently at Qiao Yun for quite a while.

His gaze was so intense that it was hard for Qiao Yun to pretend she didn’t notice. She raised her eyes and asked him, “What’s the matter?”

Lu Jingzhi shook his head with a smile, his eyes tender and apologetic, “I just suddenly realized that my little sister, you’re pretty decent to me.”

Qiao Yun: ???

She had no idea what he was talking about.

Lu Jingzhi was just thinking about the family he had seen at the hospital and comparing them to his own–it was instantly clear who was better.

Although his sister’s attitude towards him wasn’t as warm as towards Lu Zhanxing, she wouldn’t take pleasure in his misfortune if something happened to him.

Where else could he find such a caring little sister?

Feeling a bit uncomfortable under Lu Jingzhi’s strange and curious stare, Qiao Yun put down the book and thought about going to the kitchen to help.

Just then her phone rang. Qiao Yun took out her phone and saw that it was from Li Hanzhou.

Under Lu Jingzhi’s odd scrutiny, Qiao Yun walked to the balcony with an unchanged expression and answered the call.

“Is something up?”

Her voice was soft and slightly nasal, with a trace of tenderness.

Li Hanzhou’s heart melted, his lips curving slightly, “Can’t I contact you if there’s no reason?”

Qiao Yun’s voice was very small: “That’s not what I meant.”

Li Hanzhou chuckled lowly: “It’s been almost a week since we’ve seen each other, have you missed me?”

He paused for a moment, not at all embarrassed as he said, “I’ve missed you a lot.”

The man’s voice seemed like it was whispered right into her ear, husky and enticing.

Qiao Yun scratched her somewhat itchy ear and spoke the truth, “I did think about it.”

Li Hanzhou did not expect to get this answer. Although Qiao Yun had agreed to date him, her attitude towards him was the same as usual, making him sometimes doubt whether they were really dating.

Now hearing this answer, Li Hanzhou’s voice was pleased as he asked, “When do you think about it?”

Qiao Yun said, “When doing experiments.”

Li Hanzhou: “…”

Qiao Yun waited for a moment without hearing Li Hanzhou speak and asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”

“…Nothing.” Li Hanzhou’s voice was somewhat helpless as he changed the subject, “What are you doing?”

“I was just about to help Mom in the kitchen.”

Li Hanzhou sighed, “Qiaoqiao, when will you cook just for me?”

“Theoretically, that’s impossible.” Qiao Yun was very decisive in her answer.

Li Hanzhou: I can’t charm her, I just can’t.

He chuckled and brought up another matter, “There’s something I want to tell you.”

“Hmm?”

“There’s a high-ranking officer in the city bureau who’s been brought down recently. A lot of people have been discovered bribing him, and now they’re all under investigation.”

“So what?” Qiao Yun wondered, why he was telling her this.

Li Hanzhou spoke with deep meaning, “Someone has reported that the Lu Group is also on the list of bribers and accused the Lu Group of tax evasion.”

“That’s not true.” Qiao Yun had already thoroughly investigated what the Lu Group was like before she returned to the Lu Family.

If the Lu family’s character was not up to par, she would not have come back.

“I’ve already dealt with it, you don’t have to worry.”

Undeniably, Li Hanzhou mentioned this in the hope of receiving praise from Qiao Yun.

Qiao Yun asked, “Do you know who reported it?”

“The complainer was anonymous.”

Li Hanzhou heard about this today while attending a dinner party.

One person at the dinner, who worked in the inspection department, supposedly heard he had a good relationship with the Lu family, and wanted to please him with this information.

The anonymous report had no solid evidence, and although people from the inspection department needed to routinely inquire with the Lu family, if word got out it could affect the reputation of the Lu family to some extent.

Now that Li Hanzhou had intervened, the matter simply fizzled out.

Qiao Yun responded with an “oh,” her tone sincere, “Thank you.”

Li Hanzhou candidly said, “You are going to be my wife; your family’s business is my business. No need to thank me.”

“…” Qiao Yun found that Li Hanzhou was more shameless than before.

Li Hanzhou shamelessly expressed that without thick skin, how could one chase his future wife?

To show her gratitude, Qiao Yun invited him, “When you’re free, I’ll cook for you, just for you alone.”

Li Hanzhou’s gaze softened, “Alright.”

“Qiaoqiao, dinner’s ready.”

Su Mian carrying a dish from the small kitchen saw Qiao Yun on the phone and called out to her.

Qiao Yun then said to Li Hanzhou, “I have to hang up now.”

“Mm.”

Li Hanzhou’s tone was reluctant.

Qiao Yun cleared her throat and mimicked, “I’ll try to think of you outside of experiments.”

Then she quickly hung up.

Li Hanzhou looked at his phone, resting his chin on his hand, smiling like a fool.

…

Qiao Yun walked back to the living room, and Su Mian casually asked, “Who were you on the phone with? You seemed so happy.”

“With Li Hanzhou.”

Qiao Yun touched her face, wondering where Su Mian saw that she was happy.

Lu Jingzhi paused with his hand on the back of a chair and then sat down pretending not to care, although his expression seemed unhappy.

Qiao Yun, oblivious to Lu Jingzhi’s mood, turned to Lu Rui and said, “He told me that someone reported the Lu Group.”

At those words, Lu Rui and Lu Jingzhi both snapped their heads to look at Qiao Yun, even Su Mian’s face showed disbelief.

Lu Rui’s brows furrowed deeply, “What happened?”

Qiao Yun carefully chose her words and relayed exactly what Li Hanzhou had told her.

Before Lu Rui could comment, Su Mian, unable to contain her anger, said, “Nonsense! Who is that person? We don’t even know him; how could we bribe him? And the tax evasion is even more impossible, if anyone dares to evade taxes, your grandfather would be the first to disagree. Our family donates so much money every year; why would we need to evade taxes?”

Qiao Yun nodded, “I believe you.”

Su Mian huffed, “Wonder who has nothing better to do to report us.”

Qiao Yun pondered for a while and shook her head.

“Don’t be angry now, isn’t it all right?” Lu Rui tried to calm Su Mian down before saying, “It might be a competitor.”

Su Mian sighed to Qiao Yun, “Mr. Li really helped us a lot; even though we know we are innocent, being investigated would still cause outsiders to spread rumors about our family.”

Qiao Yun agreed with this statement.

Even though Lu Jingzhi was angry at Li Hanzhou for taking away his sister, he was clear about gratitude and grudges, and truly owed Li Hanzhou thanks in this matter.

Su Mian was already planning in her mind the best way to thank Li Hanzhou.

Meanwhile, Lu Rui was wondering if the Lu Group was entering a particularly troublesome time. The construction site accident had not yet been settled, and now they were being reported?

Was it coincidence, or someone’s deliberate doing?

…

The next day.

While Qiao Yun was on her way to school, something happened online.

Qiao Yun didn’t pay much attention to online affairs, so she was unaware of what had happened.

However, when she arrived at school and got out of the car, she noticed her classmates looking at her strangely.

Qiao Yun didn’t understand why, but she didn’t think much of it; she was someone who usually didn’t care about others’ opinions.

Before she entered the classroom, Li Miao’s voice rang out, “Qiaoqiao, something bad has happened, something serious has happened to Qiaoqiao!”

Qiao Yun with a serious face said, “I’m fine.”

“It’s not you who’s in trouble,” Li Miao panted, hurrying to take out her phone. “Your family is in trouble.”

Qiao Yun’s expression paused, and she asked calmly, “What happened?”

“Someone gave an interview online, claiming the Lu Group is ruthless, not caring about workers’ lives, using substandard safety helmets, leading to the death of a worker from a head injury caused by a falling stone. Now the deceased’s family is condemning the Lu family on the internet.”