Chapter 8

Lin Shu didn’t have time to argue with Xu Shijia about who was better between him and Wang Yizhou.

Soon after, as the music changed, the annual event officially started.

Tianhao Law Firm, as an invited guest, had two reserved seats at the JinYan event. Lin Shu asked Xu Shijia how he got his invitation, and he said it was through a friend, a personal connection. Since that was the case, Lin Shu went ahead and arranged for Xu Shijia to sit with her at Tianhao’s table.

And of course, she couldn’t miss the opportunity to give him a bit of a lecture: “You see how important status is when you’re out in the world? With the identity of a lawyer from Tianhao, you can sit close to the stage. But if you came here as an individual, you’d definitely be stuck in the back row!”

“Oh, really?” Xu Shijia replied with a half-smile. After hearing this, still unconvinced by Lin Shu’s praise of Wang Yizhou, he glanced at Wang Yizhou’s head in the row ahead of them before turning his gaze back to Lin Shu. “So if I came here as myself, I’d be sitting all the way in the back, huh.”

Of course! Did you think you’d be sitting in the front row like Wang Yizhou?

Lin Shu was speechless.

But soon, she didn’t have the time to pay attention to Xu Shijia.

JinYan, being a top-tier MCN agency, had clearly spent big on this event. The stage lighting effects were on par with a small film festival, and they had invited several popular singers to perform. The performances were exciting, the atmosphere lively, and it truly lived up to the name “Hot Night.”

For once, Lin Shu could set work aside and simply enjoy the singing and dancing, and she was having a great time.

After the performances, Li Dewen, representing JinYan, gave a speech, officially announcing their partnership with investors like Xinhe.

Several key figures from the investors, including Xinhe, took turns saying a few words to provide ample material and photos for tomorrow’s press releases. Afterward, they left the venue one by one, accompanied by their secretaries, leaving behind their deputies or assistants to attend the rest of the event.

It was obviously unrealistic to expect these big-shot investors to stay for the entire annual event. Just having company representatives remain as a gesture was already a sign of respect.

Xu Shijia also wanted to leave, but Lin Shu stopped him with a single glance. He looked longingly at Wang Yizhou’s retreating figure, clearly wishing to exit with him.

Leaning closer to Lin Shu, he whispered, “What’s next will probably be the employee recognition and raffle. It’s not really that interesting.”

The evening proceeded as expected, but Lin Shu, eager to win over JinYan as a client, wanted to learn more about their internal structure and get familiar with the staff.

Besides, with this annual event feeling like a mini concert, Lin Shu was thoroughly enjoying herself. She couldn’t understand where the rumor about no one leaving JinYan’s annual event smiling came from. Her own smile hadn’t left her face all evening.

However, it didn’t take long for Lin Shu to realize that rumors rarely appear out of nowhere.

Once the major investors had left, Li Dewen seemed to shed his polite, professional facade, instantly transforming back into his comfort zone as an emcee.

“Brothers and sisters of JinYan, this year, thanks to everyone’s hard work, we’ve made a ton of money again! We couldn’t have done it without your efforts, and we’re also grateful to our partners for their support! Now it’s time for us to give back! I urge all our invited guests not to leave! Everyone’s guaranteed to win a prize! Don’t miss out!”

A guaranteed prize?

Could it really be that good?

Li Dewen wasn’t just making empty promises; he was really delivering.

The first name he called was a supplier:

“Let’s welcome Mr. Ji from Lingcheng Technology!”

As Li Dewen spoke, Lin Shu saw a middle-aged man in the row ahead of her stand up, looking a bit surprised.

At that moment, the spotlight focused entirely on the lucky winner, Mr. Ji.

To give credit where it’s due, Li Dewen was a professional at energizing the crowd. His emceeing, combined with the stirring background music, created an electric atmosphere.

Amid the rising excitement, Mr. Ji was ushered onto the stage, somewhat flustered by all the attention.

“Let’s draw a prize for Mr. Ji,” Li Dewen teased the crowd, keeping the suspense alive, before finally announcing, “A brand new Apple computer!”

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause.

Lin Shu was surprised. The prizes were generous—if every guest got one, she definitely felt she had come to the right event.

But that’s when the twist happened.

Just as the delighted Mr. Ji was about to leave the stage with his Apple computer, Li Dewen threw an arm around his shoulder and dramatically said, “Everyone may not know this, but I’ve always seen Mr. Ji as a brother. Over the years, Mr. Ji has had many business dealings with us, and as JinYan has thrived, Mr. Ji has also made plenty of money—so much he can’t even count it all. Mr. Ji, don’t you think we should thank the employees of JinYan for that?”

Mr. Ji looked a little awkward, but the atmosphere was so lively, and he had just won a prize, so he naturally felt the need to make a nice speech.

“Of course, I want to thank Mr. Li and JinYan for their trust, and I also thank every JinYan employee. I hope our business relationship will grow even stronger in the future!”

“Exactly! But now that Mr. Ji has thanked our JinYan employees, shouldn’t he show his appreciation?”

Li Dewen smoothly transitioned, “Hey, Xiao Chen! Xiao Chen, come on up! Xiao Chen has been in charge of serving Mr. Ji’s business needs. He’s the one Mr. Ji should be thanking the most.”

“Now, Xiao Chen missed out on his year-end bonus, not because his service to Lingcheng Technology wasn’t good enough, but because we have so many outstanding employees that we couldn’t give a bonus to everyone. But Mr. Ji, you’re completely satisfied with Xiao Chen’s service, right?”

Naturally, Mr. Ji nodded.

Li Dewen pressed on, “Exactly! Xiao Chen’s service has been impeccable! So Mr. Ji, since you’re so happy with Xiao Chen, wouldn’t you be willing to sponsor a year-end bonus for him?”

Without waiting for Mr. Ji’s response, Li Dewen turned to the employees in the audience and asked, “Should Mr. Ji give Xiao Chen a bonus? Let me hear you!”

“YES! YES!” The crowd shouted in unison.

Mr. Ji was now caught in a difficult position, unsure of how to decline.

Meanwhile, Li Dewen continued to stir the pot, “Mr. Ji is a generous man, he doesn’t play any games. Mr. Ji, tell us, what kind of prize will you sponsor for Xiao Chen? We’re live-streaming this, so let the viewers see just how generous Lingcheng Technology is!”

…

Under Li Dewen’s relentless prompting, Mr. Ji was led into one trap after another, and eventually, he had no choice but to agree to sponsor a 50,000 yuan bonus for Xiao Chen. Only then did Li Dewen finally let him leave the stage.

But that wasn’t the end of it. Afraid that Mr. Ji might go back on his word after stepping off the stage, Li Dewen even arranged for someone from the finance department to escort Mr. Ji to the ATM to withdraw the 50,000 yuan and hand it over to Xiao Chen in cash.

Next up was Mr. Lin, who had been sitting next to Mr. Ji…

…

Lin Shu watched in shock as guest after guest was called up. Though they each won prizes, the catch was that the cost of the prizes came from their own pockets—and then some! The guests not only had to pay for their prizes, but they were also forced to contribute large sums of money on top of it.

Because the entire event was being live-streamed, and Li Dewen was a master at manipulating the crowd and creating a high-energy atmosphere, the winning guests had no way to refuse. They were pressured into “sponsoring” significant sums of money for the sake of appearances.

At one point, Lin Shu even saw a guest who had tried to leave get stopped by security at the door and politely “persuaded” to return.

What she had thought would be an event full of prize giveaways had turned into a trap, where the doors were locked, and the guests were essentially being extorted!

No wonder the rumor about no one leaving JinYan’s annual event with a smile existed…

Tie Niu’s information was spot on.

There was no way anyone could leave this event happy.

Xu Shijia, also seeing this spectacle for the first time, looked equally shocked. He quietly tugged on the jacket draped over Lin Shu’s shoulder and whispered, “I just chatted with one of the influencers. Apparently, there’s a side exit we can use to sneak out.”

It was clear that if Lin Shu didn’t leave soon, she would be next.

But it was too late. Before Lin Shu could respond to Xu Shijia, Li Dewen’s eyes, like two searchlights, had already locked onto her…

“The next prize winner is our very own Lin Shu, attorney from Tianhao Law Firm!”

JinYan’s employees, well aware of the annual event’s scheme, knew that their year-end bonuses came from these well-off guests. Naturally, they welcomed Lin Shu with thunderous applause.

Lin Shu remained seated.

Li Dewen, with persuasive charm, urged again, “Attorney Lin, please come on stage!”

This time, Lin Shu didn’t refuse. She took off Xu Shijia’s jacket, looked at him, and said, “No need to leave.”

Then, under the lights and the attention of the entire crowd, she walked up to the stage.

Her opportunity had arrived.

**

Xu Shijia felt sorry for Lin Shu. She had just been promoted to junior partner and was leading her own team. Now, she had fallen into the trap set by Li Dewen of JinYan Media. She hadn’t made any big money yet, but her wallet was about to take a major hit.

Li Dewen, clearly a sly old fox who had mingled in all sorts of circles, seemed capable of pulling any trick. Lin Shu, younger than Xu Shijia, was no match for him.

Yet, despite this, Lin Shu walked toward the stage with a smile on her face.

She must be forcing that smile for Tianhao’s reputation, Xu Shijia thought.

As Lin Shu removed his jacket, her black gown looked both elegant and refined, with the delicate straps adding a playful touch to the otherwise calm black. It revealed her beautiful collarbone and shoulder blades.

In all fairness, she was far more naturally beautiful than the overly made-up influencers, and her smile was infectious.

Xu Shijia noticed a male guest in the row ahead discreetly raise his phone to snap a photo of Lin Shu. The influencers behind him murmured, “Is she a lawyer? She’s so beautiful.”

Unfortunately, her beauty wasn’t going to sway Li Dewen. As soon as Lin Shu stepped onto the stage, he was back to his usual tricks.

He formally presented Lin Shu with an Apple computer as a prize, then began to set up the next step:

“Now, everyone, this is our young and talented, not to mention beautiful, Attorney Lin. Everyone’s heard of Tianhao Law Firm, right? It’s the top firm in Rong City. The kind of law firm that handles cases worth millions or tens of millions.”

With practiced ease, Li Dewen piled compliments onto Lin Shu, “Honestly, we are honored to have Attorney Lin at JinYan’s annual event. Why? Because normally, talking to a lawyer costs by the hour! So even though Attorney Lin is young, I’m sure her income is something the rest of us could only dream about!”

“I once had dreams of becoming a lawyer, but my grades weren’t good enough. Otherwise, do you think I’d be here doing live streams? Lin Shu’s yearly income must be equivalent to ten years of mine!”

Smiling, Li Dewen turned to Lin Shu. “Attorney Lin, many of our employees had to leave school early due to poverty and start working. You’re so accomplished and knowledgeable. Why not establish a scholarship for our company? It would encourage everyone to follow your example, improving their education and legal awareness. What do you say, everyone?”

The crowd responded with a resounding cheer of “Yes!”

It was clear that this was not the first time Li Dewen and his team had cornered guests like this. They had perfected their strategy.

Lin Shu had no choice but to contribute money in this situation.

Xu Shijia couldn’t stand it anymore. He wanted to pull Lin Shu off the stage, to save her from this forced “charity.” He would cover the cost himself.

But just as Xu Shijia stood up, Lin Shu grabbed the microphone from Li Dewen.

“Everyone, Mr. Li is absolutely right. Since I’ve been given this opportunity, of course, I will donate to establish this scholarship.”

“As for the amount, it will come from the legal contract fees between Tianhao and JinYan. I hereby announce that I will donate 10% of the consulting fee paid to me by JinYan toward the scholarship fund!”

Lin Shu’s voice was impassioned, rising and falling with conviction. “Moreover, since we’re live streaming, I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about the partnership between Tianhao and JinYan. Our Mr. Li built JinYan from the ground up, which was no easy feat. In the early stages, without much help, JinYan faced some structural and contractual issues that led to legal risks.”

“I’m aware that some investors have raised concerns about JinYan’s potential legal risks and have been critical in this regard. But tonight, at this vibrant annual event, I’d like to say that while Tianhao wasn’t involved in JinYan’s past, we will be there to safeguard JinYan’s future. Investors, you no longer need to worry about JinYan’s compliance issues.”

As Lin Shu spoke enthusiastically, Li Dewen’s expression soured.

He clearly hadn’t expected someone to challenge him in his own domain. His face showed signs of embarrassment, and he repeatedly tried to grab the microphone from Lin Shu. But each time, Lin Shu deftly dodged his attempts with graceful movements.

Lin Shu then turned her sincere gaze toward Li Dewen, her attitude warm and natural, “Mr. Li is very cautious. Before choosing Tianhao, he thoroughly vetted us, and that’s how our contract was finalized. At the beginning of the event, I confirmed this with Mr. Li, and he gave his approval.”

“So, although we’re just a signature away from finalizing it, I couldn’t wait to share this great news with everyone.”

“From now on, if anyone has any legal inquiries, feel free to reach out to me or my team. Tianhao will be more than happy to serve you.”

Lin Shu’s voice was soft yet firm, each word spoken clearly. Her eyes sparkled with confidence. She was beautiful, but her posture was strong, her gaze sharp with a touch of wild determination, making it clear she wouldn’t back down.

Beautiful, but not to be trifled with.

Not someone to be easily bullied.

“Now, please give me a moment. I will immediately coordinate with Mr. Li’s administrative staff to finalize the contract. Once Mr. Li’s finance team makes the payment, I will donate 10% of the contract amount toward JinYan’s scholarship fund.”