Chapter 0426: Network of Connections

Zhao Fusheng was by no means a saint. Despite putting on a smiling face in front of his father and acting as if he didn't care, in reality, from the moment he left the Industry and Commerce Bureau, he was already plotting how to screw that bastard Zhou Wei over.

“I do know a few reporters from TV stations and newspapers, but what are you planning to do?” Zheng Yao asked curiously.

She was a bit confused. Zhao Fusheng wasn't the type to stir up trouble.

Zhao Fusheng calmly explained the situation and finally said, “Do this: contact a few people as soon as possible, tell them the whole story, and ask if they're willing to help.”

He paused, then added, “After it's done, I'll reward you handsomely.”

Regardless, he had to pay the necessary travel expenses.

“Bastard!” Zheng Yao's tone changed. She hadn't expected anyone to be so shameless as to bully a group of orphanage children and veterans.

“Leave it to me. I'll find someone to expose that bastard!” Zheng Yao said fiercely, her tone darker than Zhao Fusheng had ever heard, even making him shiver.

It wasn't until he hung up that Zhao Fusheng realized the woman was really furious.

He didn't quite understand women's minds. If it were just ordinary extortion or bribery, Zheng Yao probably wouldn't have been so angry. After all, she was in business herself and had encountered such things often enough not to get this worked up.

But the problem was that this involved the orphanage children. When Zhao Fusheng had first told her about them, Zheng Yao had been deeply moved.

Women are emotionally fragile creatures, especially someone like Zheng Yao, who came from a scholarly family and was easily touched.

Now Zhao Fusheng told her that someone—an official, no less—was trying to take food out of those children's mouths, and in a particularly ugly manner.

That ignited the fire in Zheng Yao's heart.

An angry woman is often the most terrifying thing!

Even Zhao Fusheng probably didn't expect Zheng Yao to get angry over this.

After hanging up, Zheng Yao stood there with her phone, pondering for a long time, then dialed a number.

“Oh, CEO Zheng, you're a busy person. What makes you think of calling me, a little reporter?” A man's cynical voice came through the phone, seemingly joking, but everyone could tell he was just teasing Zheng Yao.

Zheng Yao said irritably, “Qiu Ming, cut the sarcasm. I'm treating you to dinner tonight. Will you do me the honor?”

“If CEO Zheng is treating, I'd cancel even the most important thing. Don't worry, I'll be there.” Qiu Ming laughed.

“Fine. If you don't show up, I'll go to the provincial TV station tomorrow and smash your office.” Zheng Yao snorted, then hung up with a click.

Qiu Ming stood there dumbfounded, completely clueless about what had gotten into Zheng Yao to make her so furious.

For the record, the two had been classmates since elementary school through college. Qiu Ming was assigned to the provincial TV station, while Zheng Yao continued with graduate studies.

“Interesting.” Qiu Ming rubbed his chin and muttered to himself.

But when he showed up at the restaurant that evening and saw the other two people at the table, he was even more surprised.

“What's this? Zheng Yao, why did you call all of us?” Qiu Ming asked the other two.

They were Jiang Xueqi and Jiang Xuerui, twin sisters. One worked at the provincial daily newspaper, the other was a host at the provincial radio station. Jiang Xueqi was even known as the leading lady of the provincial radio station.

The four had grown up together and were childhood friends.

More importantly, Jiang Xuerui was Qiu Ming's fiancée; they were already engaged and planned to marry next year.

“No idea. She sounded really scary on the phone, said if we didn't come today, we'd never see each other again.” Jiang Xuerui smiled and said to her sister and brother-in-law, “Do you think Yaoyao's been bullied?”

“How could that be? She's riding high right now. Who would dare bully her?” Qiu Ming sat down next to his fiancée, shook his head, and said to his sister-in-law, “If you ask me, she probably needs our help with something.”

“Exactly!”

At that moment, Zheng Yao walked in wearing high heels. Hearing Qiu Ming's words, she said directly, “You have to help me with this, and you must. Otherwise, I guarantee your wedding will be especially lively…”

She glanced at Qiu Ming and said to Jiang Xueqi with a smile, “Qiqi, remember that girl Qiu Ming had a crush on in junior high? The love letter he wrote to her—I wrote it for him. The content, ah…”

Before she could finish, Qiu Ming's face turned pale, and he clasped his hands together: “Big sister, big sister, you're my real sister. Let's not throw dirt when we're joking around.”

Jiang Xueqi covered her mouth and giggled: “Yaoyao, are you sure you still remember?”

Zheng Yao nodded: “Of course. You know my memory.”

“Alright, alright, enough joking. What's really going on?” Jiang Xuerui frowned and asked Zheng Yao.

Having been best friends with Zheng Yao for so many years, she knew that Zheng Yao wouldn't get so angry for no reason, and calling everyone together clearly meant something was wrong.

After all, even when she was starting a business in Ninghai or opening a company in Binzhou and faced difficulties, Zheng Yao had never asked them for help.

Despite Jiang Xueqi's status at the radio station, she had the authority to decide on a few program ads.

But even so, Zheng Yao had never spoken up.

Even when her company was set up last time, she didn't ask her friends for help. That was Zheng Yao's nature—she preferred to bear everything alone.

So this time, when she actually asked for help, it really surprised them.

Zheng Yao didn't waste words. She recounted everything Zhao Fusheng had told her from start to finish, finally saying, “I transferred five hundred thousand yuan and asked the parents of my students to help find a place to set up an arcade to sustain the orphanage. But then someone came knocking—a section chief from the Industry and Commerce Bureau…”

After a long silence, Jiang Xueqi and her sister said nothing. Qiu Ming, however, sneered: “Impressive. A section chief from the Industry and Commerce Bureau can be so arrogant. Amazing, amazing!”

Zheng Yao nodded: “Yeah, that's how grassroots officials are these days. Once they have power, they go all out to grab money.”

She wasn't stupid. Since Zhao Fusheng didn't want to appear personally, he must have his reasons. So when recounting the story, Zheng Yao deliberately omitted Zhao Fusheng's role.

For instance, how Zhao Fusheng met Zhang Qian—Zheng Yao said he accidentally learned about the orphanage and Zhang Qian's grandfather being in the hospital, called her to report it, and she, feeling soft-hearted, asked him to cover the surgery costs. The subsequent investment was also something she had him do.

After all, given her current status, such things seemed trivial to outsiders.

Sometimes that's how it works—not because someone has a plan, but because an action fits into someone else's scheme, and they get dragged in.

Now, Zheng Yao had been dragged in by Zhao Fusheng.

But she was willing, because in her view, if Zhou Wei had extorted her, she might have just paid to avoid trouble, tossing a few bones to a stray dog.

But he had to extort Zhang Qian and the others—a group of poor people with nothing.

The logic was simple. After working in society for years, people like Zheng Yao and Qiu Ming were no longer as naive as they were in school.

Everyone knew this was a realistic era. If the 1990s could be called an innocent age, then from the late 1990s onward, an increasingly materialistic social climate made everyone realize the importance of money.

Simply put, the more money you could make, the more successful you were seen to be.

The saying 'laugh at the poor, not the prostitute' was no longer a derogatory term but a true reflection of society.

As a business owner herself, Zheng Yao was well aware of the government's bribery and extortion practices. In her eyes, such things were normal and nothing special.

But the problem was, if they couldn't even spare a group of orphanage children, that was going too far.

So this time, Zheng Yao fully agreed with Zhao Fusheng's idea: no matter what, they had to teach certain people a harsh lesson—not just Zhou Wei, but everyone who shared his mindset.

Only by hurting them badly would they learn that sometimes they couldn't just reach out.

“So, you want us to do an interview?” Jiang Xuerui asked Zheng Yao.

As a close friend, she naturally understood Zheng Yao's intention, and since it was a good cause, she didn't mind.

Zheng Yao nodded: “Not just you. Qiu Ming and Xueqi, you all need to go. TV, radio, and newspapers will cover this together. I don't believe anyone in Ninghai will still dare to reach out.”

The three of them looked at each other, stunned by Zheng Yao's words. They hadn't expected their old classmate to be so furious.

At the same time, they silently mourned for the guy named Zhou Wei.

The most terrifying creatures in the world are undoubtedly angry women. Those who offend a woman never come to a good end.

But Zhou Wei knew nothing of this. He was smugly drinking with a few friends, saying in his words, he would teach those surnamed Zhao a lesson about how many eyes the god Ma Wang had!