Chapter 568: 564. Choosing Sides (Please Subscribe and Vote)

Gu Panpan looked at Liu Lu as if seeing her for the first time; she had not expected that Liu Lu, who had always seemed to have no temper at all, could actually have a side like this.

"Xiao Lu, well done," Lin Mei praised after they came out.

Liu Lu said with some embarrassment, "Aunt Lin, did I go a bit too far just now?"

"No, on the contrary, you did very well," Lin Mei said.

Liu Lu still felt a bit uneasy: "But just because of this little matter, I caused their shop to close, and also..."

Although Liu Lu had done these things just now, she had completely immersed herself in the role of the young mistress of the Zhang Family.

She could not bring shame to the Zhang Family, and even less could she bring shame to her father-in-law, Zhang Ran.

That was why she had made such a choice.

Only now was she the real Liu Lu, which was why she felt she had acted a bit excessively.

Lin Mei said: "Xiao Lu, you need to adapt to your own status now. It's not about being arrogant, but about not choosing to back down at times like this."

"Because you don't just represent yourself; you also represent the Zhang Family. Perhaps in your heart, you are still not quite used to your current status."

"I went through this period too, but once you think it through, it's actually nothing."

"Look at your father-in-law Zhang Ran; he has never asked you to do anything, nor has he forced you to change anything. This is actually the Zhang Family's care for you."

"But you also cannot truly think of yourself as an ordinary person. For example, just now, if you had chosen to back down, then I believe this matter would soon spread throughout Hong Kong, and even the Mainland."

"And it doesn't matter what everyone thinks of you then; what matters most is what they think of Brother Zhang Ran."

Lin Mei looked at Liu Lu earnestly and said: "We may not be able to help the family too much, but we also cannot let them lose face."

"I understand, thank you, Aunt Lin," Liu Lu said, taking a deep breath.

Lin Mei nodded and said: "As long as you understand, it's actually nothing, don't take it to heart."

While talking, the three of them headed back. They had finished buying what they needed, and plus, after encountering such an incident, they were in no mood to shop, so they simply returned.

Once they reached the hotel, Liu Lu told Zhang Ran about what had just happened.

After listening, Zhang Ran smiled and said: "Well done."

"As long as I didn't cause you any trouble," Liu Lu said.

"No trouble caused; you actually helped me a great deal," Zhang Ran said.

Liu Lu felt a bit embarrassed; she thought her father-in-law was just comforting her, but in reality, she had indeed helped, at least by letting Zhang Ran know that the Fang Family was standing completely on the side of the Mu Family.

Sometimes, not being able to figure out the other party's stance is very uncomfortable, especially at a time like this.

Zhang Ran needed to calculate the strength on Mu Jinyuan's side and then lay out his strategy.

If an accident were to happen, and someone with an ambiguous stance suddenly chose to side with Mu Jinyuan, that would also be a problem.

At seven o'clock in the evening, Zhang Ran arrived at the conference room again. He first looked at the blackboard; the votes on it showed that Sicheng already had four votes, occupying half of the total, which meant that with one more vote, Sicheng could become the team leader.

However, Liu Qingyan also had three votes. The only one currently voting for himself was Hou Xinming; at this moment, he decided who won and who lost.

For a time, he seemed to have become a hot commodity, with both Sicheng's side and Liu Qingyan's side vigorously trying to win him over.

It seemed he had become the big winner!

From this perspective, there were actually three winners this time: Sicheng, Liu Qingyan, and Hou Xinming.

But in reality, the true winners were still Sicheng and Liu Qingyan.

In the end, Hou Xinming had also lost; he was merely using his bargaining chip to demand more benefits for himself.

"Uncle Zhang, if Hou Xinming votes for me, then what happens after?" Liu Qingyan asked softly.

At this time, these people were all a bit tired, and their speech lacked the passion they had at the beginning.

Zhang Ran smiled: "If Hou Xinming votes for you, then you win."

Zhang Ran was once again increasing the difficulty for Sicheng, but he then continued: "Tonight, you will all accompany me to the banquet. After it ends, it will be time for the final tally. If Hou Xinming still chooses to vote for himself, then Sicheng wins; if he votes for Liu Qingyan, then Liu Qingyan wins."

Once these words were spoken, there was a hint of surprise in Liu Qingyan's eyes, and she immediately said: "Thank you, Uncle Zhang."

"You earned all of this yourself," Zhang Ran said indifferently.

Don't look at it as just a confrontation between a few people; in fact, they each represented an interest group behind them.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that they had been scheming against each other from the very beginning.

Every choice they made was not just for themselves, but also had to consider the interests of the group behind them.

Just like Feng Liumin, who was the first to vote for Sicheng; she had also chosen to do so only after careful consideration.

It involved her own interests as well as the interests of her group.

And the reason Zhang Ran made this choice was also because he had his own considerations.

Sicheng had already exceeded his expectations, but he still wanted to see if he could break through himself once more and give him an unexpected surprise.

He gave them half an hour of preparation time to tidy up.

Half an hour later, Zhang Ran's group attended the banquet.

When Zhang Ran and his group arrived, quite a few people had already come. Zhu Hongtao was the host of this banquet.

Although he had always lived in Hong Kong, he held British citizenship and even had a British noble title.

Of course, the most important thing was that many of his industries had been transferred abroad, making him a neutral party, so he was the most suitable candidate from every aspect.

"Prince Haiman, Mr. Zhang Ran, welcome, welcome," Zhu Hongtao walked over with a smile on his face.

"How has the Baron been lately?" Prince Haiman asked.

Zhu Hongtao was eighty-two this year; he was not young anymore.

"Good, my body can still hold on for a few more years, thank you for your concern, Your Highness," Zhu Hongtao said with a smile.

After a few lighthearted words, Zhu Hongtao said: "Everyone, please come in."

Zhang Ran did not exchange too many pleasantries with him; after a brief greeting, he walked inside and separated from Prince Haiman.

Today, they represented two different camps.

From the moment Zhang Ran walked in, the atmosphere of the entire venue began to change; everyone understood that this was actually a grand meeting for the division of camps.

Everyone is clear on Zhang Ran's objective, and he chose to come before the new year precisely to distinguish between friend and foe.

At the same time, some of the wealthy in Hong Kong also need to choose a side; it is not necessarily a choice between Zhang Ran or the Mu Family, as there is also a neutral faction, and that neutral faction is on the side of Prince Haiman.

Prince Haiman's arrival today is for this very purpose; he is temporarily representing the neutral faction.