Chapter 1318 - The Hall Was Robbed
The story starts in Chapter 1318 of "Super Soldier in the City": Chapter 1318: Chapter 1368: The Hall Was RobbedAs Xu Yingying and Su Mengxin analyzed, although... Donât miss it!
Chapter 1318: Chapter 1368: The Hall Was RobbedAs Xu Yingying and Su Mengxin analyzed, although the Song Family and the Sun Family are two formidable entities with countless assets, due to being family businesses, almost every enterprise is managed by important family members.
Furthermore, even within a single family, various factions and smaller family units exist. Aside from the clan chiefâs generation, the Song family spans three generations. With this continuation, the blood ties of the younger generation arenât as deep, and everyone focuses more on their own affairs. Many fight for their personal family interests, making the family far less united than it appears from the outside.
Moreover, the family members managing these enterprises vary widely in competence. Coupled with personal selfishness, the problems within are even more pervasive.
With Su Mengxin as the master strategist, Xu Yingying as the business elite, and assistance from others, in the realm of corporate rivalry, the Li family might not be able to immediately take any action against the other two families. However, as time goes by, the Song Family and the Sun Family are bound to lose to the Li family.
Such business competition is never something that shows results overnight. Therefore, the struggle between these families appears relatively calm at the moment, even leading many to believe that the rivalry between the three families is merely talk and not really that serious.
For now, things have settled down a bit, but Xu Yingyingâs mother called to say that everything was ready on her end, and the wedding would happen on May Day.
Xu Yingying was caught off guard by this call. It was already mid-April, just two weeks from the wedding date, which felt incredibly rushed. Her parents were determined to prevent Yingying and Li Yifei from making any excuses, so they didnât consult them beforehand. They had directly finalized everything, including booking the hotel and arranging all the wedding preparations.
Though Xu Yingying felt the timing for the wedding wasnât ideal, others didnât seem to think much of it. In fact, many were thrilled, especially since this wedding had been long-awaited. The ongoing rivalry with the Song and Sun Families had delayed things, but otherwise, everyoneâs favorite evening pastime would have been brainstorming about the wedding details.
Xu Yingying frowned and said, "But at this moment, if I rush into getting married, itâs sure to delay matters here."
Su Mengxin chuckled and said, "No worries. There wonât be any major developments for nowâat most, minor skirmishes or interactions. Large-scale business wars take extensive preparation. Just go ahead and enjoy your wedding. This is the first wedding in our familyâitâs extraordinarily meaningful."
"Exactly! Although Uncle and Aunt have already taken care of most things, we should still refine the arrangements and make them even better," another chimed in.
This suggestion thrilled everyone. Recently, Chu Xiaoyao, Meng Xiaofei, Ye Yunzhu, and Lin Qiong had been relatively free, so they went to Xu Yingyingâs house the next day to help organize the wedding. Xu Yingyingâs parents had met them long ago and were heartened that these young women were not only unbothered but also enthusiastically pitching in for Yingyingâs wedding.
Half a month passed quickly, and by April 28th, Li Yifei and the rest had all gathered at Xu Yingyingâs house to finalize the preparations. The emcee was already arranged; there was no need to hire anyone else, given that there were Li Xinyue and Ning Xinâerâit was more than sufficient. This left Song Lianyao anxious, but she was about to give birth soon and wasnât in a suitable condition to take up hosting duties.
The wedding followed the customs of Xu Yingyingâs family. The arrangements werenât particularly elaborate. On the wedding day, Li Yifei and the others held a simple ceremony at the hotel without any extravagance, which was a decision Xu Yingying insisted upon and her parents readily agreed with. Only Yingyingâs close relatives and friends, along with Li Yifeiâs aunts, were invited.
Once everyone arrived, Xu Yingyingâs parents began receiving numerous calls from the relatives of other women in the family, complaining that they hadnât been invited.
While it was somewhat manageable dealing with Lin Qiongâs parents, even larger families like the Ning Family, Xiao Family, and Zheng Family called. Xu Yingyingâs parents were both surprised and flattered. Despite being connected as in-laws through Li Yifei, the discrepancy in status and prominence led them to hesitate in treating them as true close relatives.
Now that these families were reaching out personally, they realized theyâd indeed made an oversight. They repeatedly apologized, and these relatives all said they would arrive the next morning, making Yingyingâs parents feel even more embarrassed.
By the next morning, relatives began arriving one after another, with major families including important representatives. This naturally included the parents of Ning Xinâer and the others, who, as in-laws, wouldnât miss the occasion for anything. The gathering instantly became much more lively.
Given the crowd, Xu Yingyingâs parents booked an additional hotel. This wasnât the same hotel where the wedding ceremony would take place. It was part of tradition that Li Yifei would come to pick up his bride on that morning. Holding everything at one hotel would reduce the fun and festivity of the process.
While Xu Zhenguoâs parents were busy welcoming guests, Xu Zhenguo received a phone call that made him yell in frustration, "What?! Are you kidding me? I donât care who they areâthis hotel was booked by us first! My daughter is getting married tomorrow and now youâre telling me thereâs no room? What kind of joke is that?"
Xu Zhenguoâs words made everyone frown. To be informed a day before the wedding that the hotel wasnât available was outrageous.
Seeing Xu Zhenguoâs furious demeanor as he hung up the call, Xu Yingyingâs mother asked anxiously, "Whatâs wrong?"
Xu Zhenguo was so angry his hands were shaking as he retorted, "The hotel called to say we need to look for another venue. They claim thereâs no space left and are willing to refund double the deposit. Is this about the money? The wedding is tomorrow! On a holiday like May Day, there are countless weddingsâwhere can I possibly find another venue now?"
Upon hearing this, everyone erupted into an uproar. Such a situation was completely unacceptableâhow could a wedding venue be changed at the last minute? Itâs a logistical nightmare, and finding an alternative at this time was almost impossible.
"We even confirmed everything yesterday! How is it suddenly unavailable today?" Xu Yingyingâs mother asked in frustration and distress.
"They said a relative of a city official happened to book an event at the same hotel. Originally, they had reserved one hall, but since they have more guests, they decided to occupy our hall too," he explained.
"What? Even if theyâre officials, this is plain bullying!" Xu Yingyingâs mother protested indignantly.
Xu Yingyingâs anger flared too. "I donât care who this official is, and neither should the hotel. Weâre certainly not afraid of them!" For her special day to encounter such setbacks was unbearable, even for someone typically calm.
"Letâs go take a look," Li Yifei suggested, remaining composed.
"Yes, letâs all go," others echoed, standing up, including members from the other prominent families present.
With an imposing entourage, they headed to the hotel. The lobby was bustling with activity as staff hurriedly prepared for several weddings scheduled the next day.
The group went directly to the front desk. The receptionist couldnât resolve the issue and brought them to a hall where several people were engaged in conversation, including the hotel manager.
"Manager Wang, whatâs going on? We clearly booked our hall, and now youâre telling us itâs no longer available?" Xu Zhenguo confronted the hotel manager in a firm tone.
The manager immediately put on a conciliatory smile. "Mr. Xu, Iâm truly powerless in this matter. The reservations were indeed confirmed, and I have no reason to deny you. However... they insist on booking both halls. Itâd be best if you negotiate directly with them; whatever you decide, we will follow."
The groupâs attention shifted to the four individuals present: two young men and a middle-aged couple.
"Oh, youâre the ones who booked this hall? Well, let me tell you: weâve already reserved it. You should find another venue," one of the young men said arrogantly to Xu Zhenguo.
Xu Zhenguo replied firmly, "Just because you say so doesnât mean Iâll let you have it. We reserved this hall first, and I wonât give it up."
"Quite headstrong, arenât you? Do you even know who I am?" the young man scoffed disdainfully, looking at Xu Zhenguo condescendingly.
Xu Zhenguo snorted coldly. "I donât care who you areâIâm not yielding this hall to you."
The young man smirked and replied, "Oh really? Letâs see if youâre ready to retire properly. Just so you know, my uncle is Wang Shoucheng, from the Partyâs Political and Legal Affairs Commission. Iâm his nephew, and if I decide to book this hall, do you dare say no?"
Xu Zhenguo furrowed his brows, clearly surprised at the mentioned name.
Seeing Xu Zhenguoâs reaction, the young man became even more smug. "Mr. Xu, do yourself a favor this time. My uncle will remember your kindness. Who knows? He might pull some strings, and you could advance another step in your career with just a word from him."
Xu Zhenguoâs face darkened as he responded, "And what if I donât do you this favor?"
"Donât?" The young man froze for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Mr. Xu, you really have guts, donât you? Refusing my uncleâs favorâdo you understand the consequences? In this city, there isnât a single person who dares disrespect my uncle. Especially someone like youâa policemanâif you offend him, heâll have you sacked by tomorrow, leaving you without a pension. Iâd say youâre getting senile, havenât taken your meds today, have you? Haha..."