Chapter 463: 436 is not the same as before, now he has Lili.
"I remain the President for one more day, and no person can challenge my authority."
Wen Nian picked up the tea in front of him and took a gentle sip. His words weren’t just aimed at Bai Cangqiong and Zhuo Ting; they seemed to be directed at someone else as well...
Wen Liangyu and Wen Chou exchanged glances but remained silent.
"Grandfather, Father, three days from now, I would like to hold a family banquet at Wen Mansion. It’s been quite some time since the Wen Family last dined together, hasn’t it?"
"A family banquet?"
"Yes, I’ve taken a wife, and naturally, I should introduce her to the elders and relatives in the family."
"Song Lili?"
Wen Liangyu’s eyes narrowed, more dangerous than before.
"Who else?"
Wen Liangyu stood up, snorted, and walked out with his hands behind his back.
Wen Chou approached Wen Nian,
"Song Lili is unacceptable, absolutely not. This woman will be the death of you!"
"In three days, noon, I ask that Father must attend the Wen Family banquet."
"Do you want to alienate everyone for the sake of one woman?"
"Father, your words are too grave."
"Wen Nian, you know that I am your father. You can hold the banquet, but your running off to M country for a woman will be a talking point for all those within the Wen Family with an agenda. I hope you can hold your ground at this banquet."
After saying this, Wen Chou followed Wen Liangyu and left.
Wen Nian stuffed his hands into his pockets, watching the receding figures of his father and grandfather for a long time. He tugged gently at the corner of his mouth, a bitter and helpless look in his eyes.
Since he had escaped death and returned from M country, their first concern had been dealing with the rumors from the previous night, not whether he was injured or tired...
This was... his biological father, his grandfather.
He suppressed the brief rush of sad emotions.
The Wen Family was to him a cruel training ground.
He was born here, so he had to take all the lessons this ground had to offer.
His father’s strictness, his mother’s coldness, his grandfather’s desires, and the ambition and covetousness of the other members of the Wen Family...
They turned what was seemingly a glorious and preeminent clan in G country, unmatched by any, into a nest brimming with intrigue and conflict.
Even though his father, mother, and grandfather all swore that everything they did was for him, that they loved him.
As a child, Wen Nian didn’t understand; he thought their saying they loved him meant they did.
It was only after his grandfather became President and sent him to the Ruicheng Military District that he truly felt what love was.
Xiao Li’s longing and waiting for his father.
The neighbor uncle who would stand by the mailbox and the phone daily, waiting for news of a son who had died in battle.
The army wife upstairs who accompanied her child...
He found that the love between ordinary couples, the affection between father and son, and the legacy between grandparent and grandchild were completely different from what he had previously known.
He genuinely envied that sincere affection that came from the heart, without any taint of power or desire.
And so he envied it, was jealous of it, while also hoping and looking forward to it...
Alright, he felt he probably got what he wanted already, different from before...
In the future, he had Lili.
————
Just as Bai Cangqiong had initially feared, his all-in attempt to kill Wen Nian left him with no way out.
If Wen Nian didn’t die, it would be the end of him.
Qu Yu had found the source of the rumors on the very night they spread, and it was Bai Cangqiong.
Finding human evidence was not difficult, and as for material evidence, Qu Yu had been foresighted as well.
The considerable military funding supporting the M country’s rebel army couldn’t be moved unseen.
Qu Yu spent two days finalizing the channels for the fund transfers.
When the Bai Family received the news, a heavy, dark cloud loomed over the entire Bai Group.
Bai Qingtian, as the only son of Bai Cangqiong, plummeted from the most valuable heir among the rich second generation in Country G to someone everyone desperately avoided.
Mrs. Bai cried until she went blind, while the relatives of the Bai Family kicked them when they were down, disassociating themselves as much as they could.
Crimes of treason, conspiracy to murder a national leader...
These charges sealed the Bai Group’s fate—the fall of the number one conglomerate in Country G and nearly cemented the Bai family’s decline for decades to come.
The Chief Prosecutor from the Supreme Prosecutorial Office came with his team to seal off the Bai residence. Mrs. Bai wept bitterly as the household of over a dozen people descended into chaos.
But to everyone’s surprise, in spite of Bai Qingtian’s rapid fall from heaven to hell, he remained composed, uttering only two sentences,
"Heaven’s wrath is forgivable, self-inflicted disasters are not. Father has only himself to blame."
"We are not dead, why the tears?"
After those words, Bai Qingtian supported his mother and left the luxury mansion they had lived in for many years, step by step.
————
Since the civil war in Country M started, the news media seemed to never run out of sensational stories!
One drama followed another.
Mr. President revealed that he had been married for many years.
Bai Cangqiong, the Chairman of the Bai Group, was arrested on suspicion of treason and conspiracy to murder the President. The Bai’s assets were confiscated by the Supreme Court.
And soon after, Vice President Zhuo Ting faced a political review by the Prosecutorial Office.
A series of major incidents made Country G restless.
Cabinet reshuffles, the political balance shifted towards instability...public opinion erupted.
Perhaps the only one indifferent was the central figure of all the events, Mr. President.
Because he was still in the mood to prepare for the Wen Family’s banquet.
On the third day after returning to the country, Wen Nian had made decisions on most matters that needed attention; the rest was left to his subordinates to implement.
Song Lili sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Wen Nian,
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
"It’s just a dinner, what are you nervous about?"
Wen Nian held a cup of coffee, sitting on a wicker chair to one side.
"I’m afraid they will poison us!"
Song Lili said with a seriousness that seemed like a jest.
"Fine, then we’ll perish together."
Wen Nian laughed.
Song Lili stood up, walked up to Wen Nian, and, with a pivot, sat on his lap, her arms wrapped around his neck,
"Your parents really hate me."
"Why is that?"
"In their eyes, as a President, you should prioritize the country and the Wen Family. But because of me, you always do things that alarm people. Femme fatale, that’s the phrase your mother often uses to describe me."
"Oh?"
"Oh, your head!"
"Li, don’t you think ’femme fatale’ is the highest compliment for a woman?"
Wen Nian wrapped his arms around her waist and nuzzled her nose affectionately, his voice seductive.
"..."
Song Lili was momentarily at a loss for words.
"Li, you shouldn’t fear them; you should make them fear you."
Wen Nian held her hand.
Song Lili looked intently at Wen Nian, her lips pursed; she understood his meaning. Wen Nian wanted to give her status, give her power.
But...
"They are your family. Is it really okay to burn bridges with them over me?"
"The person I love most is you."