Chapter 44

Chapter 44

Seeing Shen Liuyun's reasonable demeanor, the man casually conceded, "Alright, since Young Master Shen puts it that way, we'll at least give you some face. Our protesters are almost here, nearby."

Shen Liuyun scanned the surrounding restaurants; nothing particularly stood out, save for a Szechuan restaurant that appeared somewhat larger. "Let's go here and sit down to talk."

The man nodded in agreement. The group proceeded to the nearby restaurant, booked a private room, and waited for everyone to arrive.

Shen Muyun's phone lit up with a WeChat message from Lu Huainan: "Brother Yun, I'm off work and just happen to be on your way home. I saw you enter a Szechuan restaurant."

Shen Muyun glanced at his location. *Liar. This is the airport road—how could it be on his way? Why does he always show up?*

"Huainan, my brother and I are waiting for these protesters to arrive to discuss a resolution."

Lu Huainan, seeing the flickering screen, parked his car outside the Szechuan restaurant, got out, and walked in. "Did a Shen Liuyun book a private room here earlier?"

The front desk attendant, without looking up from her computer, replied, "Guest privacy, we cannot disclose that information."

Lu Huainan gently tapped the counter with his knuckles. "I'm their guest. I arrived in a hurry and forgot to ask for the room number. Could you please..."

The woman at the front desk lazily glanced at Lu Huainan, but the sight of him instantly perked her up. His handsome face and captivating bedroom eyes were striking.

"Well, sir, I'm sorry, but this is still guest privacy. If you truly are their guest, perhaps try calling or messaging them?"

Stonewalled, Lu Huainan casually booked a room himself. *It should be easy to find them anyway; it's not exactly mealtime right now.*

As he walked down the hallway, Lu Huainan deliberately slowed his pace, carefully listening for any sounds from the private rooms. The soundproofing was poor, allowing him to catch snippets of conversation. Coincidentally, the room he booked was right next door. He resolved that if anything happened, he would rush in immediately.

"Young Master Shen, most of our people are here. Three or four couldn't make it due to their age. Please understand."

Shen Liuyun picked up a cup, held it to the light, poured hot water into it, swirled it a few times, and then emptied it.

"Alright, let's hear it. What exactly is the issue?"

The first to speak was a middle-aged woman in a maroon tracksuit. "Young Master Shen, to be precise, this project has been ongoing for more than five years. From the initial planning to our moving in two years ago, we haven't received any benefits."

Shen Liuyun opened his tablet, reviewed the specifics of the original contract, flipped to a blank page, and began taking notes.

"The original agreement was to demolish our houses and allow us to relocate back to the same site, with our choice of floor. We, the displaced residents, were to be prioritized before any commercial sales. We all had contracts—it's written right there."

The woman handed over an old contract with worn edges. Shen Liuyun took it, examined the terms—every word of which he had personally drafted back then—and found no issues. "Yes, this seems correct."

"Two years ago, we were notified that the relocation housing was completed, and they began collecting our data. But then they started playing games, saying we had to pay the difference for any extra space before we could freely choose. We're in the city center—back then, we agreed to the relocation without asking for a single cent."

Shen Liuyun nodded, comparing it with the information his secretary had sent over. It indeed matched what the woman said.

"Where would we get the money? So they stuck us with apartments above the 25th floor. We've lived here for decades—elderly, children, people with disabilities. When the electricity fails, we have to climb all those stairs. At our age, how are we supposed to manage? And the promised square footage wasn't met either."

Shen Muyun carefully recorded the woman's words. The contract stated no less than 90 square meters, but the building information showed units above the 25th floor were only around 70 square meters, with common areas—leaving barely 50 square meters of living space.

"Young Master Shen, we're ordinary people, not like you all who can buy property wherever you want. This was our life savings. None of what was promised was delivered. This…"

A man beside her stood up agitatedly. "Your Shen Corporation is big and powerful, coming here to cheat us ordinary people. Mr. Shen, you promised within two years, but it's been three. After we moved in, the promised finished units were bare, and it was delayed for so long."

"Exactly! We thought moving in would be fine, and having a penthouse sounded good. At first, they said the top-floor penthouse was included for free. How could they go back on their word?"

Shen Muyun looked at the contract terms—word for word, it matched what these people were saying.

Shen Liuyun pressed his forehead. "Yes, it does."

"We didn't save any money, and we have none. We should've taken the compensation back then and found a quiet place to live. If it weren't for sentimental attachment, we shouldn't have believed your lies."

Shen Liuyun smiled at them. "I've noted all your concerns. There must have been issues in the process, so the company will look into it. Please be patient—this can't be resolved immediately."

The man who caused the car accident grew dissatisfied, suddenly jumping up and pointing at Shen Liuyun's nose. "You made me gather everyone here just to hear your smooth, indefinite excuses? Let me tell you, today you will resolve this, whether you want to or not!"

"Right! We demand an explanation!"

One of them was recording everything. Shen Muyun watched the crowd's demeanor, worried they wouldn't let Shen Liuyun off easily.

The lead man's temper flared. He grabbed a beer bottle from the table and smashed it. The rich aroma of beer mixed with flying glass shards. *This is bad.*

Shen Muyun immediately pulled Shen Liuyun back. "Brother, be careful."

But it was too late—a piece of glass cut Shen Liuyun's arm, drawing blood. Shen Liuyun pressed on the wound and calmly said, "Everyone, please calm down. Hurting people isn't the way. We shouldn't let something like this land us in trouble."

"Shen Liuyun, we're showing you respect by calling you Young Master Shen. To be honest, I deliberately crashed into your car. We knew your schedule. If you don't give a reasonable explanation, later..."

"Brother, why bother talking with these people? If they want a fight, why are we still talking?"

Shen Muyun picked up a beer bottle from the table and smashed it with a "bang." Shards of glass and beer foam sprayed onto everyone.

"Everyone, everyone, Shen Corporation will get to the bottom of this and give you all an explanation. How does that sound?" Shen Liuyun tried to control the escalating situation, pressing a napkin to his visibly bleeding wound.

"Muyun, calm down. This is a negotiation, not a bar fight."

The opposing side had ill intentions from the start. Someone in the crowd shouted, "We never get to see Shen Corporation's higher-ups! Taking one of you out would be worth it! Brothers, let's go!"

The private room descended into chaos. Several middle-aged women snuck out through another door, while a few men guarded the entrance.

The man who caused the accident held a piece of broken glass to Shen Liuyun's throat. "If I just slide this lightly, wouldn't it be..."

Shen Muyun's eyes reddened. He picked up a shard from the floor, grabbed a man beside him, and pressed the shard against his waist. "Do you not care about your companion's safety?"

"Damn it, forget it! If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be in this mess. Always avoiding trouble, avoiding trouble my ass!"

"Shen Liuyun, what the hell do you think you are? It's a pity that Shen Wenjin didn't come."

Shen Liuyun froze slightly. "What did you say?"

"Nothing. Your Shen Corporation owes us far more than just housing. The temporary relocation housing you arranged for us was next to a chemical plant. The stream nearby turned pink. Do you know how many of us got cancer over the years? Shen Liuyun, you still owe us lives. Are you going to deny that too?"

Shen Muyun gave a cold smile, the glass shard at the man's waist drawing blood. "According to you, if you didn't have the luck to relocate, it's our fault?"

"Shen Muyun, what the hell are you? Since when does the Shen family let you speak? We want our payout. If it's not met..."

*Thud!* The private room door was kicked open, and the man guarding it was sent flying.

Lu Huainan stood at the entrance, his expression dark as he scanned the room and began clapping. "Looks like I've arrived just in time for a good show!"

The man glanced up at Lu Huainan. "You're all the same. Young Master Lu. Tsk. Shen Liuyun, you sure know how to call for backup."

Shen Liuyun was stunned. *What is he doing here?*

Shen Muyun was momentarily stunned, then was shoved face-down onto the table, unable to move.

"I'll give you three seconds. Release the eldest and second young masters of the Shen family now, and we can still talk this out. Otherwise, none of you here will leave unscathed."

"Lu Huainan, what does the Shen family have to do with you? Why are you chasing after them like a dog? Could it be that the rumors are true—that you and the Shen family's second young master have something going on behind closed doors?"

Shen Muyun struggled hard, trying to break free from the man's grip.

"Three... two..."

Before Lu Huainan even said "one," he kicked the man in the abdomen. The man let out a pained grunt and immediately released his hold.

Lu Huainan didn't give him a chance to recover, kicking him in the leg and then stepping on his head. "Who else wants to give it a try?"

Lu Huainan pulled Shen Muyun tightly into his arms, looking at him gently. His fingers gently brushed the wound on Shen Muyun's neck. "Brother Yun, does it hurt?"