"It’s not that I wanted to come to your house!" "They knocked me out and brought me here by force!" Gao Zhitong hastened to explain, glancing toward Cen Haonan and Heizi. At that moment, Heizi was trimming his nails with a small dagger. At his feet lay Gao Zhitong’s large bag of cash, while Cen Haonan squinted at Gao Zhitong with an amused expression. Their actions, combined with what Su Xuan had just said, made the scene look like the aftermath of a kidnapping, where the culprits were about to kill the victim and split the loot. "Regardless, you’re still in my house, aren’t you?" Su Xuan said with a smile. "I... Can I just leave now?" Gao Zhitong pleaded, his face a mask of misery. "I’ll forget I was ever here, forget everything that happened between us, and I will never mess with you again! Right, I also brought five million in cash! It’s all yours, just let me go!" "The money was already ours," Heizi said with a laugh. Desperate to save his skin, Gao Zhitong immediately added, "And the car, the Maybach! It’s yours, all yours!" Tonight’s experience had completely broken his spirit. Even if someone were to lend him a huge sum of money, he would never dare to compete with Su Xuan again. In terms of wealth, Su Xuan was the boss of both Lycar and Meisi, and he owned this absurdly large mansion on Houhai Street. He was completely outmatched. In terms of connections, Dongfang Hao had threatened to level his Chang Mei Hotel with a bulldozer for Su Xuan. Cen Haonan was also clearly a good friend of Su Xuan’s; otherwise, he wouldn’t have given up five million just to smack him with a brick. And this was just a fleeting glimpse, the mere tip of the iceberg of Su Xuan’s power. If his full strength were on display, who knew how terrifying it would be? "Old Gao, you seem to be getting the hang of it now," Su Xuan said, rising from the golden-thread nanmu chair. He walked up to Gao Zhitong and smiled. "If you’d been this smart earlier, you wouldn’t have suffered tonight. As for me, I never really took a four-star hotel owner like you seriously." "Huh...?" Gao Zhitong’s mouth fell open in surprise. So offering him things on my own is ’getting the hang of it’? He never took me seriously? Wasn’t he the one who said we’d fight to the end? Suddenly, Gao Zhitong remembered something Su Xuan had said to him on the phone earlier that evening: "With you setting such a fine example, won’t anyone who wants to mess with Lycar feel they can do so with impunity?" That’s right! This was the real reason Su Xuan wanted to fight him! He’d set a bad example, and Su Xuan was afraid others would follow suit and use underhanded tactics against Lycar! That was definitely something Su Xuan didn’t want to see! That sentence also had a hidden meaning. It meant that if you don’t want to fight, that’s fine, but I need to see a change in your attitude! I need you to show some real sincerity! I need you to pay a steep price to atone for your mistake! This was also a warning to all the other hotels! Lycar is not to be trifled with! "Ah, my stupid brain!" Gao Zhitong groaned, rubbing his head in frustration. His mind had been too chaotic at the time, and he had drastically underestimated Su Xuan’s power, so he hadn’t truly considered the meaning of that sentence. He had mistaken it for a simple declaration of war. With this realization, the gears in Gao Zhitong’s mind suddenly clicked into place, his IQ soaring to a level befitting a four-star hotel owner. He hurriedly said to Su Xuan, "The money and the car are yours as my apology. And as soon as I get back, I’ll immediately draft a partnership plan with Lycar to redirect all of Chang Mei’s high-end clientele to you!" Read complete versıon only at 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱 "Furthermore, I know most of the hotel owners in our district; I’ve even brought quite a few of them to heel! I’ll call a meeting and have them divert their high-end customers to Lycar as well. I’ll warn them to behave and not to oppose Lycar. Anyone who does will be driven out of the hotel industry! From now on, we are willing to serve as nutrients for the great tree that is Lycar! Boss Su, how does that sound?" At this moment, with his submissive and deferential demeanor, Gao Zhitong almost looked endearing. His proposal was a near-perfect response to Su Xuan’s earlier challenge, and it also gave Su Xuan a graceful way to de-escalate. "What you’ve proposed is acceptable," Su Xuan nodded with a smile, "but it’s still lacking a little sincerity." Su Xuan knew perfectly well that if Gao Zhitong hadn’t taken such a beating tonight, these words would never have left his lips so easily. He needed to be taught a more permanent lesson. "Boss Su, just say the word!" Gao Zhitong said, adopting a posture of complete submission. "I heard something," Su Xuan began leisurely. "I heard that over the years, you’ve traveled all over the country to recruit several top chefs with extraordinary skills. If you give these chefs to me, then I’ll consider letting you go home and get a good night’s sleep." He had heard this from Liu Ming. After seeing off the people from Meisi, Liu Ming had told him, "Boss, if Chang Mei really goes under, you must acquire their top chefs! Lycar’s dishes, while luxurious and high-end, are a bit superficial. They lack soul! Those top chefs specialize in iconic folk cuisine from all over China. Gao Zhitong used all sorts of methods to get them to Chang Mei. They could greatly compensate for Lycar’s weaknesses and attract many more customers!" "This..." Upon hearing Su Xuan’s demand, Gao Zhitong, who had been willing to give up money and his car, actually hesitated. He truly had gone to great lengths to bring those top chefs to Chang Mei. When some refused to come, he had even resorted to despicable means, threatening their families. Many of his customers came to Chang Mei specifically for the dishes created by those chefs. It was safe to say those chefs were far more valuable to him than his car and money. Handing them over to Su Xuan would be like taking a sledgehammer to his own livelihood. The thought was agonizing. "Hmm?" Su Xuan glanced at the indecisive Gao Zhitong, his face hardening. He shouted to the outside, "Old Liu, how many days has it been since Da Bai ate meat?" Butler Liu’s voice came from outside, "It’s been a while. He’s so hungry he keeps trying to climb trees to catch sparrows." "Is Da Bai that ferocious cat?" Gao Zhitong asked in terror. "Yes," Su Xuan confirmed. "Doesn’t he only eat bamboo?" "Actually, he’s a white bear with a fur mutation." "Chang Mei has five top chefs in total! I’ll give them all to you!" Gao Zhitong blurted out immediately. "I’ll call them right now and have them report to Lycar first thing tomorrow morning!" No sooner said than done. Gao Zhitong pulled out his phone and frantically called the chefs. The chefs could hardly believe their ears. Gao Zhitong was actually letting them go? And sending them to Lycar, the super five-star hotel they had always dreamed of working at? They were leaving the darkness for the light! Moving on to bigger and better things! They were so overjoyed they wept. They immediately began packing their things, taking care to dress neatly to make a good impression on their new boss. The reason Qu Meilan had claimed they cooked without masks was simply because they didn’t want to be at Chang Mei; it was their silent protest against Gao Zhitong. They would certainly work hard at Lycar. Not only would they wear masks, but they would definitely wash their hands after using the restroom. But even then, Gao Zhitong threatened them over the phone: "If you don’t do a good job at Lycar, I might just pay another visit to your hometowns!" Su Xuan then turned his gaze to Cen Haonan. This guy has really done me a solid. I can’t let him help me for nothing...