The person speaking was Mr. Chen, who had strongly insisted on holding the shareholders’ meeting ahead of schedule.

“You disagree?” Gu Yancheng raised his eyes and glanced at Mr. Chen. His calm and steady tone sent chills down people’s spines.

“That’s right.”

“Since we’re already at this point, I’ll be frank.” Mr. Chen said after taking a deep breath, “I think there’s no need for me to explain why we, the shareholders, have requested to hold the shareholders’ meeting ahead of schedule. Even though you are the chairman, Gu Group doesn’t belong to you alone, Gu Yancheng. This time, just because of Old Chairman Gu’s passing, the company’s stock price has plummeted. You cannot shirk responsibility for that.”

“You are young and have mishandled the issue. As your elders, we don’t blame you. But if we shareholders had been involved in the decision-making, would Gu Group have suffered such a significant loss? Therefore, regarding this so-called new regulation that cancels the absolute decision-making rights of shareholders and only retains our dividend rights, I will never agree to it. Not only do I disagree, but I also demand an increase in the frequency of the shareholders’ meetings.” Mr. Chen firmly stated, throwing the document in his hand onto the table as if it were waste paper.

Gu Yancheng let out a cold laugh. “Is that what you wanted to say?”

“Yes, and I believe it’s not just me. Every shareholder here, except for you, Gu Yancheng, would not agree to such an absurd decision.” As he spoke, Mr. Chen confidently scanned the people around the meeting table.

When his gaze passed by Su Mei, who was sitting beside Gu Yancheng with a vacant expression and no presence, he paid her no attention at all.

“Is that so? Everyone?” Gu Yancheng’s eyes also turned to the others.

“I agree with Mr. Chen’s opinion. Regarding this regulation, I do not agree.”

Where there’s one, there’s more.

“I disagree as well.”

“Me too. Gu Group’s success today is the result of our efforts alongside your father and even your grandfather.”

“That’s right, I disagree.”

……

“Um, I agree……” Amidst the clamor in the meeting room, Su Mei very quietly voiced her opinion.

It was really, really quiet.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Su Mei spoke, everyone fell silent and turned to look at her. The meeting room became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Even Gu Yancheng, who had maintained a cold expression throughout, showed a rare flicker of surprise in his eyes.

Su Mei: “……”

The sudden silence was the most unnerving.

Sensing that the atmosphere was a bit off, Su Mei had just raised her head when she saw Mr. Chen directly across from her, glaring at her as if he wanted to swallow her whole.

“Mrs. Gu, you just inherited Old Chairman Gu’s shares and know nothing about the company. It’s better not to speak recklessly. Or do you think that shareholders shouldn’t have decision-making rights?” Mr. Chen targeted Su Mei with a stern and severe retort.

Su Mei hadn’t even processed what was happening before she found herself unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight with just one sentence.

“Uh, that, actually…… I’m not denying the shareholders’ decision-making rights in the company. It’s just that, cough, I simply think your abilities are lacking.”

Su Mei genuinely believed that the male protagonist’s decisions were quite good. Setting aside the personal grievances between the side characters and the main characters, Gu Yancheng was truly impressive. Gu Group could flourish and grow under his leadership. Su Mei could foresee this without the novel even needing to describe it.

As for this group of ‘nameless shareholders’ in the novel, wouldn’t it be better for them to happily take a backseat like her? Why did they have to come out and hinder the male protagonist?

“Pfft—” As soon as Su Mei spoke, Wang Qin, who was standing behind Gu Yancheng, couldn’t help but laugh.

“Err, it seems like the conference room’s ventilation system has been turned off. How did all this dust get in here?” Wang Qin tried hard to keep a straight face and sound serious, but the muscles on his face couldn’t help but twitch.

Ms. Su, what kind of blunt truth are you spouting……?

For the first time, Gu Yancheng, who rarely showed much expression at the meeting table, slightly curled the corners of his mouth after hearing Su Mei’s words.

“Su Mei, I’ve respected you as Mrs. Gu! But you—”

Mr. Chen was about to rise from his seat, angrily pointing at Su Mei as if he was ready to tear her apart, but he was stopped by a single look from Gu Yancheng.

“And what of it?” Gu Yancheng coldly retorted, his gaze filled with warning as he swept it over the others, who were also fuming because of Su Mei’s words.

“Haha, as fellow shareholders, why get so worked up over a minor difference in opinion?” At this moment, Zhou Zhongliang, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up.

“Speaking of which, the two of you are ‘family’. If Old Chairman Gu knew that you and ‘Mrs. Gu’ are this united like true mother and son, even in the afterlife, he would surely feel comforted.” Zhou Zhongliang looked at Gu Yancheng and Su Mei and said with a smile, reminding everyone present that Su Mei might already be aligned with Gu Yancheng.

As soon as Zhou Zhongliang’s words were spoken, not only did the gazes of everyone present toward the two change in meaning, but they also successfully disgusted both Gu Yancheng and Su Mei.

Su Mei glanced at Gu Yancheng and, as expected, saw him narrowing his eyes.

In the novel, it was written that if the male protagonist showed such an expression, it meant he was extremely angry.

Su Mei practically wished she could rush over and smash Zhou Zhongliang with the wheelchair. What nonsense about a mother-son relationship? Utterly ridiculous!

If she gets into trouble with the male protagonist because of this, Zhou Zhongliang would be primarily responsible.

“It seems that rather than focusing on the company’s affairs, Mr. Zhou is more interested in the chairman’s family matters. From this, it seems that Mr. Zhou must be very supportive of the company’s decision to cancel shareholders’ absolute decision-making rights.” Gu Yancheng said in a drawn-out voice.

Seeing Zhou Zhongliang’s expression change drastically because of Gu Yancheng’s words, Su Mei nearly jumped up to clap in approval.

See? When it comes to levels, these people weren’t even in the same league as the male protagonist!

The atmosphere remained tense for nearly a minute before Zhou Zhongliang regained his composure and spoke, “Young Chairman Gu, you’ve misunderstood my point. Public matters are separate from private ones. It’s fine for the company to set new regulations, but before doing so, shouldn’t we discuss it with everyone first?”

“Discuss? Heh.” Gu Yancheng sneered.

“I’m merely informing you.”

“Gu Yancheng, Gu Group is not a dictatorship! What right do you have to make decisions on your own?”

“Wang Qin, please inform the shareholders present whether I have this right.”

“Yes, CEO.” Wang Qin responded, pulling out a document from his folder.

“The document regarding Gu Group’s equity changes and the latest equity distribution is attached in the second file in front of you. Perhaps the shareholders haven’t had a chance to review it yet, so let me briefly explain it to you all.”

“Currently, Chairman Gu holds 54% of Gu Group’s shares, which gives him absolute decision-making power over shareholder rights and the appointment and removal of company positions.” Wang Qin said.

“Additionally,” Wang Qin glanced at Su Mei and added, “Ms. Su holds 6% of the company’s shares, which is higher than the other shareholders present, making her the second-largest shareholder of Gu Group.”

The latter part was an addition Wang Qin made on his own accord. However, seeing that the CEO did not seem displeased, Wang Qin felt relieved.

As soon as Wang Qin’s words were spoken, some people showed surprise, while others displayed dissatisfaction.

“Hmph, truly a case of the student surpassing the master.” Zhou Zhongliang said with gritted teeth.

At the same time, Zhou Zhongliang cast a cold glance at Su Mei.

If he guessed correctly, the person who had previously put up the 6% shares for sale was this Su Mei, right?

Hmph, what a performance.

Su Mei, who was caught in the crossfire: “……”

“Thank you for the compliment. If any of you are interested, feel free to take the file and review it thoroughly. Of course, if you find tending to flowers and plants more interesting, it’s perfectly fine if you don’t look at it.” Gu Yancheng said, making it clear that these individuals would be enjoying an early retirement in the future.

These words were infuriating, but among those present, who had the standing to refute them?

What was supposed to be a shareholders’ meeting armed to the teeth and ready for a storm of conflict was effortlessly subdued by Gu Yancheng.

Yield to the male protagonist’s authority, Su Mei silently cried out in her heart.

However, what Su Mei didn’t know was that while the shareholders’ meeting had settled into a calm, on the other side, the informal employee chat group at Gu Group was buzzing with activity.

Unfortunately, the topic was about her.

【Breaking News! Su Mei has become a shareholder of the company! Su Mei has become a shareholder! She is a shareholder! Important things should be repeated three times.】

【Su Mei? The one who was with the Old Chairman Gu?】

【Yes, that’s the one! The same person who caused a scene at the company before and was thrown out.】

【OMG, is that for real?! Is the news reliable? @XiaoxiaKIS】

【Absolutely true, Assistant Wang said it himself, so it can’t be false. Also, the company might release the latest shareholder list soon [Facepalm]】

【Get ready for the bombshell.】

【Do you all really need to be this shocked? Su Mei is the de facto Mrs. Gu of the Gu family. With Old Chairman Gu’s passing, it’s only natural she would get part of the inheritance.】

【Her getting inheritance is one thing, what I can’t accept is that she actually got shares in the company!】

【I can’t accept it either.】

【I can’t accept it at all! Why can that kind of woman be so lucky?!】

【Lucky? Hehe.】

【For every gain, there’s a loss. Would you be willing to ‘follow’ an old man?】

【No, I’d rather be sitting on a bike and laughing.】

【You can’t say that. If you had money, you could buy an entire fleet of bikes!】

【Look, with Old Chairman Gu’s death, Su Mei has money and she can do whatever she wants.】

【She couldn’t have planned this from the beginning, could she? [Shocked]】

【Seconded.jpg】

【Am I the only one concerned that with Su Mei becoming a shareholder, the company might be in trouble?】

【How could that be? This is Gu Group we’re talking about!】

【True, the company won’t collapse, but our lobby might be in trouble.】

【Hahahaha】

【Correct!】

【What do you mean?】

【Mingming, you just came last month so you didn’t know. Su Mei came to the company before to seize power under the banner of Old Chairman Gu’s wife. She was kicked out before she even made it to the lobby.】

【Calling it seizing power is too grandiose. It was more like a tantrum.】

【I was there at the time and secretly took photos】

【Image】

【Image】

【Image】

……

“Xinyu, Xinyu, you need to check the group chat. They’re sharing photos of Su Mei causing a scene at the company! Hehe, she looks so ugly.” In the second division of the secretarial department, Zhou Yue was excitedly tugging at Bai Xinyu while scrolling through her phone.

“But it’s really unfair. We’ve worked hard for Gu Group for years, just to end up in the second division. While Su Mei, who’s only been with Old Chairman Gu for a while, has become a shareholder and directly surpassed the results of others who have struggled for eight lifetimes.” Zhou Yue complained with a look of dissatisfaction.

“Xiao Yue, you mustn’t speak recklessly, and don’t spread rumors about Su Mei causing a scene in the lobby today either.” Bai Xinyu said, pulling Zhou Yue aside.

“Xinyu, that woman bumped into you today and caused us to be reprimanded. Why are you still defending her?” Zhou Yue’s dissatisfaction grew.

“I’m not defending her. Today, it was indeed my fault for not walking steadily. Besides, it’s now a fact that Su Mei has become a shareholder of Gu Group……” Bai Xinyu explained, though her expression wasn’t too pleasant.

Although today’s incident was indeed unrelated to Su Mei and she hadn’t used her shareholder status to make things difficult for Bai Xinyu, for some reason, Su Mei gave Bai Xinyu an uncomfortable feeling.