"You want me to give you money? Are you out of your mind?" Upon hearing this, Liu Gaoze’s expression turned strange, and he said with disgust:
"The research project is developed by the military, funded by the government; all the funds are allocated from above. What money are you asking me for?"
"Hehe, the official money is public funds, I can’t just meddle with that," the young man said with a weird smile, shamelessly staring at Liu Gaoze:
"I’m now asking you to give me money, and the huge Liu Group should have plenty, right!"
"What do you mean?" Liu Gaoze paused briefly, not catching on.
"Haha, let’s not beat around the bush here," the young man laughed, propping up his legs casually, and continued leisurely:
"You’ve been managing the project up until now, and now that I’ve taken over, all the previous progress and details will have to be reported by me to the higher-ups. If you don’t give me some benefits, I can’t guarantee what I might tell them, like how the former manager abused power for personal gain, embezzled national resources, and privately developed his own enterprise."
"Hao Jian, you’re full of it," Liu Gaoze slammed the table fiercely, roaring angrily:
"The laboratory’s funding is clear and transparent; everyone knows if there’s been embezzlement! And unlike some people, I don’t flaunt my Dark Group membership around town, few people outside even know I am from the Dark Group, let alone using power for personal gain."
Hearing this, Hao Jian’s face turned cold, since he had frequently flaunted his Dark Group membership to show off, until he offended Tang Ming while pursuing Lin Xue and was punished for it.
However, the Hao Family was powerful and had not only successfully extracted him but also utilized connections to make him an official member of the Dark Group. To compensate for his past mistakes, they specifically transferred him to take over Liu Gaoze’s position. If the project was completed successfully, it would be considered a great achievement.
"Liu Gaoze, don’t be ungrateful," Hao Jian said with a dark expression, touching a sore spot for Liu Gaoze:
"I’ve already reported to the higher-ups during the handover that there’s still 120 million in contingency funds in the group. What do you plan to do about that?"
"You bastard, you’re actually setting me up!" Liu Gaoze’s face changed dramatically, and he bellowed through gritted teeth:
"The group’s contingency funds only amount to 100 million, why are you falsely declaring an extra 20 million, what are your intentions?"
"Humph, my intentions are very simple, just to make you fill this shortfall of 20 million. If you’re unwilling to pay up, then just wait for the higher-ups to charge you with embezzlement and misappropriation of national property," Hao Jian coldly snorted with sarcasm. In fact, he had not yet reported the specific financial situation, and if Liu Gaoze was willing to pay, he would report the actual numbers, pocketing the extra 20 million himself. If Liu Gaoze refused, he would just wait to be penalized.
"Despicable. How could they assign a scoundrel like you to take over my position? They must be blind."
Liu Gaoze was shaking with rage at the thought of such an important project falling into the hands of such a shameless person, filling him with deep anxiety.
"Cut the crap. Are you going to pay or not?" Hao Jian yawned and continued:
"Actually, I don’t necessarily need the money. I heard you have a daughter who’s quite pretty, why not let her date me? I might consider helping you out with this deficit."
"In your dreams!" Liu Gaoze snorted coldly, resolutely saying:
"Go ahead and try to get the authorities to sanction me. I, Liu Gaoze, am righteous and unafraid of crooked shadows, even under investigation I will never yield to a lowlife like you. And you, trash, dare to covet my daughter? Take a good look at yourself in the mirror and see if you’re worthy."
"Good, very good!" Hao Jian slowly stood up, squinting his eyes as he said:
"When you’re clanging behind bars, your daughter will still come begging me to save you, and if I don’t ruin Liu Mengting, then I am not Hao Jian."
"You dare to lay a finger on my daughter, do you believe I..." Hearing this, Liu Gaoze was livid; his daughter was his Achilles’ heel and he would not let anyone touch her.
Liu Gaoze hadn’t finished speaking when the door was kicked open.
"Who wants to harm my wife?"
An angry roar came through, followed by the sight of an elder with a white beard, dressed in a loose tuxedo, storming into the office.
Recognizing the newcomer, Liu Gaoze’s eyebrow twitched, thinking trouble never comes alone!
"Who are you? How dare you barge in ?"
Hao Jian immediately furrowed his brows. If outsiders heard what he had just said, it wouldn’t be good for him.
"I’m your grandpa, was it you who said you were going to kill my wife just now?"
Yao Buji glared at Hao Jian with a murderous look.
"Who’s your wife?" Hao Jian sneered at Yao Buji, looking down on him as he said disdainfully:
"A decrepit old fool like you, your wife must be so old she’s falling to pieces. Even if you gave her to me for free, I wouldn’t be interested."
"You’ve got some nerve, youngster!" Yao Buji sneered, taking steps towards Hao Jian.
"What do you want to do?"
Hao Jian looked at Yao Buji with suspicion. Could this old man really be thinking about getting physical with me? Or is he trying to pull some scam?
"I want to kill you."
Yao Buji stomped his foot fiercely, and the smooth marble floor instantly cracked under his footprint.
Hao Jian took in a sharp breath, finally realizing that the old man before him was a formidable figure.
Seeing this, Liu Gaoze laughed. Yao Buji was a Four-star Martial Master, and here was Hao Jian acting tough in front of him. His face was probably about to be smashed to pieces.
"Don’t come any closer, I’m warning you, I’m with the Dark Group."
Seeing Yao Buji approaching, Hao Jian completely panicked and hastily took out his ID to prove his identity.
"The Dark Group means jack shit!"
Yao Buji didn’t give a damn about that ID. He got up and slapped Hao Jian in the face, but knowing the man was from the Dark Group, he didn’t go as far as to kill him.
Hao Jian spun around in place from the slap, and the moment he opened his mouth, two broken teeth flew out, his left cheek swollen like a steamed bun.
"You bastard, you dare hit me?"
Hao Jian, clutching his face, glared at Yao Buji with a vindictive look and yelled, his speech unclear.
"Not convinced, are you?"
Yao Buji snorted coldly, and with a flick of his hand, slapped Hao Jian’s right cheek, making it symmetric.
Hao Jian was directly dazed by the slap. The other man was a Four-star Martial Artist; no matter how much he held back, it wasn’t something Hao Jian could withstand.
"Dare to covet my wife, and even bully my father-in-law."
After slapping him twice, Yao Buji still didn’t feel it was enough, grabbing Hao Jian by the collar and pummeling him with fists and kicks.
In no time, Hao Jian’s screams echoed throughout the entire office.
A few minutes later, worried that Hao Jian might die in his office, Liu Gaoze hastily intervened, shouting:
"Mr. Yao, please stop hitting him, after all, he’s with the Dark Group. If something serious happened, it would cause trouble!"