Chapter 1919 Persuasion

Watching Zhao Fusheng leave, Ge Meng and Li Qingshan looked at each other in bewilderment.

They truly hadn't expected that Zhao Fusheng wouldn't even be willing to talk to them.

What exactly did this man want?

Teacher Li, Teacher Ge, forgive me for speaking bluntly.

At that moment, Yu Feihong spoke up: "I know Fusheng well. There's no way he'll cooperate with you in concealing the truth, especially when it comes to matters involving his reputation."

She paused, then continued: "But he won't kick you when you're down either."

After saying a few more words to her teacher, she stood up and left as well.

Ge Meng sat there, stunned.

What was going on?

Li Qingshan, on the other hand, furrowed his brow, lost in thought.

"Old Li, say something! What do we do?"

Ge Meng, seeing Li Qingshan remain silent, asked anxiously.

Yu Feihong's teacher, when she took her leave, also excused himself and left. He had come as a favor to someone, and now that the matter was settled, he had nothing more to discuss with the Li couple.

To be honest, given what Li Tiantian had done, few people were willing to talk to them.

A father is responsible for his son's misdeeds, especially among intellectuals, who take this very seriously.

"Let's apologize."

After a long silence, Li Qingshan finally looked up and said to Ge Meng.

"What?"

Ge Meng was taken aback, looking at her husband in confusion, clearly not understanding what he meant.

Apologize? To whom?

Zhao Fusheng?

Or someone else?

Seeing his wife's expression, Li Qingshan gave a bitter smile and said slowly: "Apologize to the victim, issue a public apology to Future Group."

"(°Д°)(°Д°)"

Ge Meng was astonished, never expecting her husband to say such a thing.

She had thought Li Qingshan would try every means to oppose Zhao Fusheng, but instead, he chose to yield.

"Old Li, aren't you harming Tiantian by doing this?"

Ge Meng looked at Li Qingshan, her voice hoarse.

She wasn't stupid. If they did as Li Qingshan suggested, wouldn't it mean their precious son would face prison?

"I'm saving him."

Li Qingshan said word by word: "Think carefully. If the media keeps focusing on our son's actions, what will be the outcome?"

"Well..."

Ge Meng was startled, then immediately understood.

Given Li Tiantian's mistakes, if the media continued to pay attention, even if she wanted to manipulate the court, it would be impossible because countless eyes would be watching. Even those willing to help would have to back off under media pressure.

But if she and Li Qingshan sincerely apologized and minimized the impact, they would have a chance to change everything.

Even the incident previously caught by Zhao Fusheng and Zhang Qian, since the victim didn't pursue it and Li Tiantian and his group hadn't actually committed a crime, could be treated as either serious or minor.

"Understand?"

Seeing his wife silent, Li Qingshan looked at her and asked solemnly.

"I understand." Ge Meng nodded. If she still didn't grasp her husband's intention by now, she would truly be foolish.

In essence, her husband's calculation had likely begun from the moment he requested a meeting with Zhao Fusheng.

Sacrificing his own pride to save their son.

That was Li Qingshan's heartfelt intention.

And the next steps would follow the same path.

"I'm old. This is all I can do for him," Li Qingshan murmured to his wife.

Hearing this, Ge Meng's heart ached, and tears nearly fell.

...

...

While the couple was lost in their mutual affection, Zhao Fusheng, Zhang Qian, and Yu Feihong had already left by car.

"Just letting it go?"

Zhang Qian sat in the car without speaking, but Yu Feihong asked Zhao Fusheng in confusion.

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "What else can I do? They didn't commit murder or arson. I have no evidence that they actually did anything. I'm not a judge. What can I do?"

Yu Feihong was stunned but had to admit he was right.

In fact, under the current circumstances, not even the court could do much to Li Tiantian and his group.

The law follows the principle of presumption of innocence.

That is, until a criminal's guilt is clearly established, they cannot be treated as a convict.

For example, if Li Tiantian's group had taken the girl into a hotel and done something—like taking turns having sex—and were caught in the act, then their crime could be confirmed.

But they hadn't completed the act; they were interrupted by Zhao Fusheng and Zhang Qian at the restaurant halfway. So the matter couldn't be defined as a crime.

That's why Zhao Fusheng chose to let it go. He knew that two such incidents should have made Li Qingshan and Ge Meng realize what kind of person their precious son really was.

Whether they would urge Li Tiantian to change was up to them.

If he continued like this, Li Tiantian would eventually ruin himself.

"I can have someone keep an eye on him."

At that moment, Zhang Qian suddenly spoke.

Zhao Fusheng frowned, glanced at Zhang Qian, and said sternly: "Don't act recklessly. You're the head of Future Group's Supervision Department, not the Public Security Bureau. Understand?"

Zhang Qian was taken aback, then saw Zhao Fusheng's serious expression and quickly nodded: "I understand."

Looking deeply at Zhang Qian, Zhao Fusheng said earnestly: "I know you look down on people like that, but there are many unfair things in this world. You have family and loved ones. It's not worth risking your future for someone irrelevant. Especially when they took money and made you out to be a brawler."

Zhang Qian remained silent.

He naturally understood what Zhao Fusheng meant.

Sacrifice must have value.

If the girl taken by Li Tiantian's group had spoken a word of justice for Zhao Fusheng and himself, Zhao Fusheng wouldn't have been so cold as to ignore the matter.

But she not only took the money but also chose to tacitly agree that Zhao Fusheng and Zhang Qian were the ones fighting with Li Tiantian's group. Such behavior made Zhao Fusheng unwilling to help her at all.

Being a good person really depends on who you sacrifice for.

If you save someone and they walk away without even a thank you, why save them?

Some might say that good deeds shouldn't seek reward, but even if you don't expect a reward, shouldn't you at least say thank you?

For instance, on a bus, if an elderly person gets on and you give up your seat, it's a kindness; not giving it is also your right. But if you give up your seat and don't even get a thank you, and the other person sits down as if it's their due, who would feel comfortable?

Zhang Qian naturally understood Zhao Fusheng's meaning.

Even Yu Feihong agreed with Zhao Fusheng's words.

Respecting the elderly, loving the young, punishing the strong, and helping the weak are indeed traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, but it depends on who you're dealing with.

"By the way, how's the TV series going?"

Zhao Fusheng remembered something and asked Yu Feihong.

Yu Feihong nodded: "It should be completely finished in about a month. But are you really sure this drama will be a hit?"

She was somewhat doubtful. A low-budget costume drama, neither fish nor fowl—how popular could it get? The current TV drama market was mostly dominated by war dramas or family melodramas about in-laws and marital strife. There was no market for costume dramas.

"Wait and see."

Zhao Fusheng smiled but didn't answer her question.

Better to let the facts speak for themselves.

"Should we donate to that charity gala?"

Yu Feihong asked Zhao Fusheng casually.

Zhao Fusheng was taken aback, then shook his head: "No need. This is my private event, so I'll fund it myself."

"Are you planning to turn this gala into something like Bazaar's?"

Yu Feihong recalled the annual Bazaar charity gala Zhao Fusheng had organized and asked.

Zhao Fusheng nodded: "Yes, but this one is personal; that one was corporate."

"..."

Hearing this, Yu Feihong was speechless.

She had to admit, the thoughts of the wealthy were truly unfathomable. They spent money just to make themselves happy.

After all, they were rich.

"By the way, tell our foundation staff to avoid Sichuan recently," Zhao Fusheng suddenly said to Yu Feihong.

"Why?"

Yu Feihong asked in confusion.

"I saw a post online the day before yesterday. It said the geological conditions there aren't good recently, with signs of an earthquake..." Zhao Fusheng gritted his teeth and said to Yu Feihong.

Yu Feihong suddenly laughed: "Oh, stop talking nonsense. How can you believe those random posts online? How old are you?"

Clearly, she didn't believe a word Zhao Fusheng said.

In Yu Feihong's view, those online posts were all nonsense, utterly baseless.

In her understanding, some people often post self-righteous information without knowing the truth, since the internet is free.

"Forget it."

Zhao Fusheng waved his hand helplessly, too lazy to say more.

Clearly, she didn't believe him at all.

In fact, not just Yu Feihong—even Zhao Fusheng himself, if not for his past-life memories, wouldn't have believed that the online information was accurate.

Many things often have omens, but most people simply ignore them.

"Do what one can and leave the rest to fate."

Zhao Fusheng muttered to himself. This was all he could do.