novelraw Chapter 481 - 398: Standing Up Against Injustice
Chapter 481 - 398: Standing Up Against Injustice
Chapter 481: Chapter 398: Standing Up Against Injustice
Leng Mochen was handling business affairs abroad, rushing through tasks and canceling several events, except for one cocktail party he couldn’t avoid attending. The host of this party was George, the chairman of the company with whom he had just signed a contract—an astute little old man in his fifties.
At the party, glasses were exchanged, and everyone’s faces carried polite yet insincere smiles. Acquainted attendees managed to engage in somewhat substantive conversations, while complete strangers merely exchanged polite nods and a few brief pleasantries before moving on to pursue their next networking target.
Leng Mochen stood by himself near the window, holding a champagne glass and gazing outside. He drank alone, lost in his thoughts. Even though Long Wu had handled all the matters back home, his mind lingered on Li Si—worried whether the young woman might be feeling suffocated by everything that had happened.
Recalling their earlier phone call, he came to know about the incident involving his father and Jin Yichen’s father, as well as Mrs. Leng’s outburst that led her to move into his place in frustration.
Could that young woman possibly manage the complex relationships involved?
As these thoughts consumed him, a low gasp suddenly came from behind him: "Ouch!"
Leng Mochen instinctively turned around. A Chinese woman in a red evening gown had seemingly stumbled—likely either accidentally or due to excessively high heels.
At this moment, she was sitting on the floor in a rather unseemly manner. Struggling to get up, she tried twice but failed both times, her face reflecting intense pain. Noticing him turn to look, her eyes revealed a touch of pleading.
The implication was clear—she hoped he’d perform the gentlemanly act of lending a hand.
But Leng Mochen glanced around and remained unmoved. A spark of suspicion flashed through his eyes.
Where he was standing was at the window—a somewhat secluded spot in the venue. How had this woman happened to stumble right next to him?
Furthermore, in a foreign land, Chinese faces were rare enough, let alone such an attractive, graceful woman.
Was someone orchestrating something behind the scenes? And what was their aim?
Back home, rumors about him were far from scarce. And Li Si had recently faced a scandal, with a leaked video exposing her as an illegitimate child.
If any new gossip emerged about him now, even if it were entirely unfounded, who would believe otherwise?
So he wasn’t interested in playing the hero—especially at a time like this!
The woman’s earlier cry had already attracted two men nearby. One of them, a fellow Chinese man in a suit, gallantly stepped forward to help the woman up.
"Miss, are you alright?"
The woman shook her head. "Thank you! I’m fine!" Her voice was crisp and pleasant, with impeccably standard Mandarin tinged with a hint of Beijing accent.
After responding, she glanced briefly at Leng Mochen. The two men also turned their gaze toward him.
A tall foreign man among them looked notably displeased. Using English, he said to Leng Mochen in a reproachful tone, "Sir! You are truly ungentlemanly! How can you be so indifferent when a lady falls? Aren’t you compatriots?"
A trace of mockery flickered at the corner of Leng Mochen’s lips. Such clumsy theatrics—it was obvious someone had arranged this. Both the woman who fell and the men rushing to defend her must be working together!
They were undoubtedly connected. In face-to-face scenarios, interpersonal distance often inadvertently betrays the nature of relationships: intimate acquaintances close to 0.5 meters; friends with personal ties between 0.5 and 1.25 meters; and for strangers in a public setting, the distance rarely shrinks below three meters.
The proximity of these three individuals violated norms of personal space and interpersonal distance.
Strangers! Especially females, who instinctively maintain a cautious barrier with unfamiliar men—who would stand so close to someone they’d just met?
Leng Mochen responded fluently in English, "Aren’t you all friends?"
The foreign man froze awkwardly, while the woman and the Chinese man in the suit showed no notable reaction.
Their standoff had already drawn quite a few onlookers. People in the crowd, hearing Leng Mochen’s remark and observing their expressions, began speculating quietly that there might be something shady going on.
Whispers filled the room, but Leng Mochen had no interest in being a spectacle. Turning around, he walked away, ignoring whatever unfolded behind him.
The tall foreign man tried to follow but was lightly restrained by the man in the suit, who shook his head subtly.
The woman who had fallen continued to watch Leng Mochen’s departing figure in silence, her gaze tinged with an inexplicable intensity!
Just then, George, the host of the party, found Leng Mochen and greeted him warmly. George also caught sight of the trio behind him and couldn’t help furrowing his brows slightly.
George admired Leng Mochen, a young and promising man, and hoped to maintain a long-term working relationship with him.
He knew that if not for his earnest invitation, Leng Mochen wouldn’t have attended this cocktail party. Now seeing such unpleasantness unfold, George felt deeply dissatisfied.
In this circle, everyone more or less knew each other’s reputation.
The trio from earlier—though their families were somewhat affluent—had a poor reputation and questionable character!
Most of the well-connected people here avoided associating with them because rumors had previously circulated about the three swindling Bill, who was widely recognized as an industry "stock god."
"Leng! I must apologize to you. It’s truly unfortunate that tonight’s event troubled you," George apologized sincerely. He felt embarrassed that such an incident had happened at his party.
"It’s alright, George! This wasn’t your fault. Unfortunately, I’ll need to leave early as there are matters at home that require my attention. Let’s meet again when there’s an opportunity!" Leng Mochen spoke succinctly, sharing his intent.
George could sense his urgency to return home and didn’t insist on convincing him otherwise. Instead, he mentioned introducing him to his son and daughter next time.
The moment Leng Mochen left, the trio also made their departure.
Seated in the speeding car, Leng Mochen made a call to Li Si, informing her that he’d be returning to China soon.
From their conversation, it seemed everything at home was fine, apart from the continued cold war between the Leng family parents.
Feeling somewhat relieved, Leng Mochen’s driver suddenly spoke up: "Mr. Leng, there’s a car trailing us closely from behind!"
Glancing back, Leng Mochen indeed noticed a large SUV pursuing their car relentlessly.
He immediately recognized the driver as the man in the suit!
"Skip the hotel. Go straight to the airport." After issuing the instruction, his assistant, seated as co-pilot, promptly used his phone to notify the colleagues still at the hotel to pack up and head to the airport immediately—their boss’s belongings included.
Critical items like his laptop and essential business documents were in his possession, while others simply needed to gather clothing and the gifts Mr. Leng had purchased to bring back home.
"Tell the security car to block them off!" Leng Mochen sensed their aggressive intent and didn’t need to speculate further—they were undoubtedly targeting him.
Fortunately, the security vehicle trailing them could at least stall the pursuer briefly.
Speeding ahead, they finally reached the airport, which was already part of the evening plan following the cocktail party.
His flight tickets had been booked in advance, and after shaking off the tailing vehicle, he quickly entered the boarding lounge.
His subordinates arrived half an hour later, and until boarding the flight back to China, security informed him that the trailing vehicle had eventually changed direction and stopped following them.
(To be continued. If you enjoy this novel, please visit Qidian.com to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)