Chapter 59 Suspension

"Chuchun, have you seen the news online?"

There was a hint of worry in Chen Churan's voice.

"I saw it. It's absolute nonsense!"

Cheng Zhiqiu replied in an annoyed tone.

"The company is taking a huge hit right now, and the stock price has started to drop."

Chen Churan sounded a bit hesitant, as if she found it hard to go on.

"The board of directors is under a lot of pressure. They're demanding that you be temporarily suspended."

"Suspended? On what grounds?"

Cheng Zhiqiu exploded upon hearing that.

Wasn't this blatantly making him a scapegoat?

"Zhiqiu, I know this is extremely unfair to you, but the board is under massive pressure right now. The stock keeps falling, and they need someone to take the fall..."

Chen Churan tried to explain.

"Take the fall? They think making a scapegoat out of me fixes everything? This is clearly someone trying to frame me!" Cheng Zhiqiu burned with anger.

"President Chen, you don't actually believe that online garbage, do you?"

Chen Churan fell silent for a moment, her tone carrying a trace of helplessness.

"Zhiqiu, I know you feel wronged, but the situation is very complicated, and the board..."

"Alright, save it. I understand."

Cheng Zhiqiu directly cut her off, a cold sneer forming in his heart.

It seemed Chen Churan was nothing special after all. At the critical moment, she still chose to sacrifice him to protect the company.

"Zhiqiu, let me explain..."

"No need to explain. A suspension is a suspension. Frankly, I'm too lazy to cater to that bunch of old fogies anyway."

With that, Cheng Zhiqiu hung up the phone.

Damn it, what kind of mess was this?

He had just transmigrated and hadn't even enjoyed a few days of comfort before getting screwed over like this!

Cheng Zhiqiu irritably clawed at his hair, caught completely off guard by this sudden turn of events.

Suspended?

He, a dignified master of tomb raiding, was actually being suspended?

If word of this got back, where would he put his grandmaster's face?

The more he thought about it, the more wrong it felt. The whole thing was set up like a trap specifically for him.

Those remarks at the auction had clearly been deliberately distorted, exaggerated, and then spread online to ferment.

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Cheng Zhiqiu, and an idea popped into his head.

Zhao Qiankun!

The more Cheng Zhiqiu thought about it, the more he suspected there was something wrong with that kid, Zhao Qiankun.

When he thought back carefully, the livestream incident the other day was full of suspicious points.

How could it be such a coincidence that he connected with him?

How could it be such a coincidence that all those antiques were fake?

This series of coordinated moves looked from every angle like it was aimed right at him.

"Little bastard, how dare you try to screw over your granddaddy. I'll skin you alive!"

Cheng Zhiqiu cursed viciously, pulled a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and took a fierce drag.

He had to stay in the capital.

He wanted to see what kind of medicine Zhao Qiankun was selling in his gourd.

...

Capital, Longquan Villa.

Cheng Zhiqiu stared at the grand gates of Longquan Villa.

Outside the gates stood two rows of security guards, every single one of them thick-chested and towering.

Cheng Zhiqiu rubbed his chin, pondering how to sneak in.

Bribery?

Cheng Zhiqiu pulled his wallet out of his pocket, counted the cash, and frowned.

This little bit of money would probably only be enough to fill a gap between someone's teeth, and the guards might even take it as an insult.

"Sigh, what a headache!"

Cheng Zhiqiu sighed and plopped down onto a flower bed by the roadside.

"Do they spend all of Longquan Villa's property fees just on feeding these guards? They look like iron towers. Trying to storm the place is definitely out."

He walked a full circle around the perimeter wall of Longquan Villa, hoping to find a weak spot.

After walking for ages, forget a weak spot, he couldn't even find a hole a dog could crawl through.

The walls were towering, and the top was even fitted with barbed wire.

This level of defense was comparable to a prison!

Just then, a black Mercedes slowly drove out, and the guards on both sides snapped to attention and saluted.

Cheng Zhiqiu recognized Zhao Qiankun's car instantly.

It was a black Mercedes S-Class, its license plate full of eights gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight, almost blinding him.

That little bastard had screwed him over, and yet he was still living the high life!

A nameless fury flared up instantly, and Cheng Zhiqiu spat fiercely onto the ground.

"Damn it, little punk, don't let me catch you!"

Riding a shared bicycle, Cheng Zhiqiu trailed behind Zhao Qiankun's Mercedes all the way.

Pedaling furiously, he silently cursed Zhao Qiankun's ancestors down to the eighteenth generation.

The black Mercedes had a completely unobstructed journey, while Cheng Zhiqiu followed behind like a food delivery courier.

At a traffic light intersection, Zhao Qiankun's car accelerated and bolted straight through.

Cheng Zhiqiu barely had time to react, nearly getting knocked flying by an electric scooter running a red light.

"Holy crap! Are you in such a rush to get reincarnated?"

Cheng Zhiqiu cursed loudly, his heart pounding with fright.

If he had been run over and killed here, his transmigration journey would have been way too pathetic.

When he finally caught up to Zhao Qiankun's car, he saw the sign—"Tianxiang Pavilion," a notorious den of luxury and debauchery in the capital.

Cheng Zhiqiu patted his shrunken wallet with a pang of heartache.

A single meal in there would probably force him to drink northwest wind for the next month.

He parked the shared bicycle by the roadside, his eyes darting around as he pondered how to slip inside.

Coincidentally, a taxi stopped at the entrance, and a heavily made-up, flashy woman stepped out.

Cheng Zhiqiu acted with lightning speed, grabbing the woman by the arm.

"Hey, beauty, want to share a table?"

The woman looked him up and down and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Are you out of your mind?"

Cheng Zhiqiu flashed a grin, revealing a row of white teeth.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to hit on you. I just want to hitch a ride in with you."

The woman rolled her eyes and sashayed into the restaurant.

Cheng Zhiqiu didn't get discouraged and continued wandering around the entrance.

At that moment, a middle-aged man in a suit with a protruding beer belly walked out of the restaurant, holding a briefcase in his hand.

An idea struck Cheng Zhiqiu. He stepped forward quickly, grabbed the man to steady him, and asked with a show of fake concern:

"Oh dear, sir, are you alright? Did you drink too much?"

The man was startled by the sudden approach and waved a hazy hand dismissively.

"I'm... I'm fine, I can walk myself..."

Cheng Zhiqiu wasn't about to let the opportunity slip. He threw an arm around the man's shoulders, half-dragging and half-carrying him toward the restaurant.

"Look at you, you can't even stand straight. Let me help you inside to rest."

Seeing this, two security guards rushed forward to block their path.

"Sir, do you have a reservation?"

Cheng Zhiqiu's eyes rolled as he pointed at the man he was propping up.

"This gentleman is a friend of mine. He drank too much, and I'm bringing him in to sober up."

The man mumbled drunkenly, "Right... right, we're friends..."

The guards looked suspiciously between the two of them, then glanced at the briefcase in the man's hand, and finally stepped aside to let them pass.

Once inside the restaurant, Cheng Zhiqiu unceremoniously dumped the man onto a sofa, while he himself looked around, searching for any trace of Zhao Qiankun.

True to its reputation as a den of luxury, Tianxiang Pavilion was decorated with breathtaking opulence, the crystal chandeliers dazzling enough to blind someone.

Cheng Zhiqiu pretended to act casual while his shifty eyes darted everywhere, scanning every corner.

The first-floor lobby was bustling with noise and excitement, but Cheng Zhiqiu found no sign of Zhao Qiankun.

A flash of insight told him that the kid was most likely living it up in a private dining room upstairs!

Cheng Zhiqiu pretended to head for the restroom, but instead snuck toward the stairwell, hoping to go upstairs and try his luck.

"Sir, which private room are you heading to?"

A waiter intercepted him.