How could there be more? And they're all from the eight great families of Lingjin City. Most importantly, the family heads themselves are leading the delegations, and they've all brought incredibly generous gifts. Since when did the humble Qin Corporation become so influential?

While everyone was still reeling in shock and confusion, Xue Maocai, the new head of the Xue Family, had already walked up to Chen Yang and Qin Qiu. He bowed deeply and said with an apologetic face, "The Xue Family was in the wrong. Our former head deserved his fate. We have come today specifically to apologize, hoping to receive your forgiveness, my lord."

He was, of course, referring to the Xue Family's collusion with the Martial Association to persecute Qin Donglai. Because of that incident, the entire Xue Family had been on the verge of annihilation! He naturally had to seize this opportunity to apologize in person.

Chen Yang waved his hand. "It's good that you recognize your mistake. Go find a seat for now."

"Thank you for your forgiveness, Lord Chen!" Xue Maocai wiped the cold sweat from his forehead before respectfully backing away.

"This..." Qin Qiu whipped her head around, staring at Chen Yang with a dubious expression. By now, how could she not see it? These people weren't here for her, nor were they here for the Qin Family. They were here for Chen Yang! Not only were they all as deferential as honored guests, but they were also acting incredibly humble.

Chen Yang just smiled. "Honey, we can talk about my business after the ceremony."

"You... who exactly are you?" Jiang Zhen no longer dared to act arrogant, asking warily as he stared at Chen Yang.

Every single person who just arrived was a top-tier powerhouse who could crush him with ease. And yet, these magnates were treating Chen Yang—that good-for-nothing—with such reverence? It was utterly baffling.

Chen Yang shot him a cool glance. "Who am I? Didn't you already make it perfectly clear? I'm just a good-for-nothing, only fit to pour your tea."

"You..." Jiang Zhen was speechless, his face flushing crimson.

Luo Sulan curled her lip in disdain. "What's there to be so smug about? I can't stand that look on your face."

Chen Yang glanced at her but said nothing.

"Lord Hu of Lingjin City has arrived to offer his congratulations! He presents a Gold Buddha, a Jade Guanyin, a pair of flower baskets, a truckload of fireworks, and twenty million in cash!"

The announcement was met with a moment of stunned silence, which was immediately shattered by a collective uproar.

"Even Lord Hu is here?"

"What in the world is going on? Has the humble Qin Corporation really grown this powerful?"

"Forget the Qin Corporation! Haven't you figured it out? All these people are here for that good-for-nothing, Chen Yang!"

"..."

Amidst this wave of discussion, Zhao Yinghu strode forward, stopping directly in front of Chen Yang. He smiled respectfully and said, "Lord Chen, I've come uninvited. I hope you don't mind."

"Thank you, Lord Hu." Chen Yang returned the fist-clasping salute.

Being called "Lord Hu" nearly made Zhao Yinghu collapse on the spot. His face turned sheet-white as he pleaded, "Lord... Lord Chen, I'm not worthy of that title. You... you can just call me Little Hu."

Qin Qiu was speechless.

Jiang Zhen was dumbfounded.

Everyone was utterly flabbergasted.

In an instant, countless people nearly fainted, their eyes rolling back in their heads. That's Lord Hu! Zhao Yinghu, the top boss in all of Lingjin City! Forget ordinary people, even the members of the eight great families have to treat him with courtesy and deference. But here... Little Hu?? Is this a joke? Setting aside his status, he's old enough to be Chen Yang's father based on seniority alone! Who in the world is that guy, to make the mighty Lord Hu act so humbly in public?

Chen Yang rubbed his nose awkwardly and waved a hand. "Alright, that's enough. Go find a seat."

"Thank you, Lord Chen." Zhao Yinghu let out a huge sigh of relief and quickly retreated.

Facing Qin Qiu's questioning gaze, Chen Yang said helplessly, "Why is he so scared of me? You'd think I did something terrible to him from the way he's acting."

"Brother-in-law, what on earth did you do to make so many powerful people act so respectful toward you?" a curious Qin Mo asked, rushing over to Chen Yang. He had been in a state of shock and awe until that moment.

"It's nothing, really. Not worth mentioning," Chen Yang said with a dismissive wave.

His seemingly casual remark nevertheless made many hearts in the crowd pound with trepidation. By this point, it was obvious to everyone that something strange was afoot. In this world, respect isn't given for no reason. One only commands such deference after achieving something monumental or beating it into them until they submit in fear.

Luo Sulan's expression flickered through several emotions as she instinctively pulled out her phone. Before coming, she had already arranged for some people to deal with Chen Yang. The plan was to have him thrown out in front of everyone. Only then could she completely shatter his dignity and humiliate him so badly he wouldn't dare stay. But now... something is clearly wrong with this situation.

But before she could even dial the number, seven or eight thuggish young men arrogantly shoved past the Qin Corporation's ushers and stormed in, seething with rage.

These were no ordinary hoodlums, however. The weakest among them was a third-rank Fist Master, and one was even a sixth-rank.

"Everyone, get the hell out of the way!" one of them shouted. He shoved people aside and flipped over a table, then planted a hand on his hip and roared, "Who's Chen Yang? Get your ass out here and face me!"

The crowd frowned. Hmm? What's going on now? Could this be the work of those pharmaceutical tycoons? No, impossible. This group is clearly just a rabble. The onlookers began to speculate among themselves.

"Who are you?" Qin Qiu demanded.

"Well now, look at this pretty little thing!" the sixth-rank Fist Master sneered, baring his teeth. "But this has nothing to do with you. Who's Chen Yang? Get out here and face me now!"

Luo Sulan lowered her head slightly. She couldn't believe they had arrived so quickly. But now... what was she going to do?

At the same time, Jin Zongquan and Sun Zhengyun, who had already taken their seats, both stood up, their brows tightly furrowed. Some blind fool actually dared to come and cause trouble?

"Who do you think you're talking to?" With his infamous temper, Zhao Yinghu shot to his feet and ordered his men waiting outside, "Throw this trash out of here!"

"Who the hell do you think you are, old man? Believe it or not, I'll kill you!"

However, the sixth-rank Fist Master had barely finished speaking when a dozen more young men rushed in, surrounding the thugs. Not only that, but several middle-aged men, who were clearly anything but ordinary, also began to close in from different directions.

They were the bodyguards of Jin Zongquan and Sun Zhengyun. The weakest among them was an eighth-rank master.

Seeing this display of force, the thug was completely dumbfounded. Weren't we just supposed to be dealing with some good-for-nothing? But this... was I set up?

GULP. After a hard swallow, the man whirled to stare at Luo Sulan. He said, his voice a mixture of anger and panic, "Didn't you tell me we were just dealing with a piece of trash?"

Luo Sulan was speechless.

Everyone stared in silence.

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