Chapter 2031: No Banquet Is a Good Banquet

Although Lee Jae-jin had a sense of foreboding, he still had to attend the party.

After all, it was Lee Mi-jin's order, and since she had specifically named him, there was no way to avoid it even if he wanted to.

Moreover, Lee Jae-jin still held a sliver of hope that the mysterious Chinese man had nothing to do with this matter.

Time passed quickly.

Lee Mi-jin and Lee Jae-hyun, brother and sister, arrived at the Shilla Hotel with their bodyguards, and Lee Jae-jin also arrived with his own bodyguards.

"Chairman, Vice Chairman."

Seeing Lee Mi-jin and Lee Jae-hyun, Lee Jae-jin quickly bowed.

"Let's go."

Lee Jae-hyun remained silent, but Lee Mi-jin nodded and spoke to Lee Jae-jin.

After all, their statuses differed—Lee Jae-hyun was the chairman of CJ, while Lee Mi-jin was Lee Jae-jin's direct superior.

"Mi-jin unnie, Jae-hyun oppa, long time no see."

Lee Boo-jin personally greeted them at the door, a smile spreading across her face as they arrived.

"Boo-jin, where is Mr. Zhao?"

Lee Jae-hyun asked directly.

Lee Boo-jin smiled slightly: "He's still inside, I'm not sure of the details."

She paused, then continued: "But just now, Director Kim went to see him and heard him apparently on the phone with Uncle."

Hearing this, Lee Jae-hyun and Lee Mi-jin were startled and exchanged glances, both feeling somewhat surprised.

Zhao Fusheng was actually on the phone with their father, Lee Meng-hee.

What was going on?

The Chinese have a saying: one does not visit the temple of the Three Treasures without a reason. In their view, someone of Zhao Fusheng's caliber wouldn't invite them to dinner for no reason; he must have an ulterior motive.

Lee Jae-hyun knew very well that although he was the chairman of CJ, if Zhao Fusheng wanted to discuss business, he would more likely talk to their father, Lee Meng-hee.

Yet under these circumstances, he still invited him and his sister Lee Mi-jin—the implications were intriguing.

Could it be that Zhao Fusheng had actually been persuaded by Lee Boo-jin?

At that thought, Lee Jae-hyun's expression shifted slightly.

And Lee Mi-jin's expression turned even more grim.

Her ambition for the Shilla Hotel had long been an open secret. Her previous alliance with the Hyundai Chung family was because they had promised that if they acquired the Shilla Hotel, the Chung family would only demand a portion of the shares and would have no ambition for management rights.

But now, if Lee Boo-jin had persuaded Zhao Fusheng, wouldn't that mean that Hanxing Investment, which had remained neutral and on the sidelines, was also entering the fray?

Others might not know, but as an important member of the Lee family, Lee Mi-jin was well aware of what Hanxing Investment had gained from CJ and Samsung Group in that transaction years ago.

Moreover, the previous deal between Samsung and Future Group had required a large cash payment to acquire Twitter shares.

In other words, the amount of cash Zhao Fusheng of Future Group could mobilize was absolutely beyond ordinary imagination. If it turned into a game of who had more cash, Lee Mi-jin certainly didn't want to see that happen.

So she was eager to meet Zhao Fusheng and confirm his stance.

Was this Chinese man on Lee Boo-jin's side?

Or was he planning to wait and see?

With these doubts, Lee Mi-jin, Lee Jae-hyun, and their party followed Lee Boo-jin into the banquet hall.

The banquet hall had few guests, only a few waiters setting up tables and chairs.

"Mr. Zhao didn't invite many people. I asked, and there are only about a dozen guests, so I took the liberty of choosing this place."

Lee Boo-jin patiently explained to them.

"Thank you for your trouble."

Lee Jae-hyun nodded.

As the eldest son of the third generation of Samsung, he was the eldest grandson of the entire family, so naturally he had an inherent confidence in front of Lee Boo-jin.

Moreover, there was no conflict of interest between Lee Jae-hyun and Lee Boo-jin, so their relationship was actually quite good.

Lee Boo-jin also respected this older cousin and said with a smile: "Brother, rest assured. Besides a few heads of Hanxing Investment and Mr. Zhao's friends, there is no one else among the guests."

She paused, glanced deeply at Lee Mi-jin, and continued with a smile: "At first, Mr. Zhao didn't even plan to invite me; I insisted on attending."

"Ah?"

Lee Jae-hyun and Lee Mi-jin looked at each other in bewilderment. What did that mean?

Could it be that Zhao Fusheng really didn't intend to cooperate with Lee Boo-jin and was simply inviting Lee Mi-jin and Lee Jae-hyun for a meal?

A film collaboration?

The thought crossed Lee Mi-jin's mind, and she quickly calmed down.

After all, since Zhao Fusheng needed something from her, he certainly wouldn't help Lee Boo-jin.

That was her thought at that moment.

Little did she know, Lee Boo-jin had been misleading her from the start.

...

...

Zhao Fusheng was indeed on the phone with Lee Meng-hee, but if Lee Mi-jin had heard the content, her mood wouldn't have been so pleasant.

"Thank you, Mr. Lee."

Zhao Fusheng held the phone and said with a faint smile: "I didn't expect to encounter such a thing at the Shilla Hotel. If my bodyguards hadn't fought back fiercely, I might be in the hospital myself right now."

Hearing this, Lee Meng-hee nearly choked with anger on the other end of the line!

Just now, this guy had called him and said outright that he had almost been sent to the hospital by Lee Mi-jin's people!

God knows!

When Lee Meng-hee heard the news, he almost fainted.

What was Zhao Fusheng's status?

A super-rich man worth tens of billions. Although he kept a low profile, his assets were实实在在 there.

In terms of personal wealth, he was even richer than the Samsung Lee family.

Someone like that, wherever he went, would be treated as an honored guest.

And yet, he had almost been sent to the hospital by Lee Mi-jin's people?

Lee Meng-hee knew that if what Zhao Fusheng said was true, then needless to say, Lee Mi-jin would instantly become a target of public criticism, and even the Chinese authorities would get involved.

After all, if a super-rich man from their country had such an incident in another country, the higher-ups couldn't just turn a blind eye.

After Zhao Fusheng finished explaining the whole story, Lee Meng-hee even felt an impulse to disregard everything, grab that Lee Jae-jin, drag him in front of him, and give him a good kick.

That guy was simply a bastard!

Not counting the European and American financial groups, Future Group was now one of Samsung and CJ's most important partners, and Lee Jae-jin still wanted to lay hands on Zhao Fusheng?

Aish!

Lee Meng-hee cursed inwardly and said to Zhao Fusheng: "Chairman Zhao, you are my friend and a shareholder of CJ Group. Any disrespect to you is disrespect to me and CJ."

He had no choice but to say that at this point.

"Heh, thank you, Mr. Lee."

Zhao Fusheng nodded and said no more.

After a few more words, Zhao Fusheng hung up.

He looked at Liu Yiming: "Are all the guests here?"

"Yes."

Liu Yiming nodded: "Director Park has brought them over."

"Then let's go down."

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "I hope Ms. Lee Mi-jin won't be too surprised in a moment."

Liu Yiming felt helpless at this. His boss really had a twisted sense of humor, knowing full well that Lee Mi-jin would be shocked, yet still saying that.

But to be honest, he was also looking forward to that scene.

The two walked downstairs, followed closely by bodyguards.

At the entrance of the banquet hall, Zhao Fusheng let Liu Yiming and the bodyguards wait outside, then walked in with Director Kim.

"Chairman Zhao, long time no see."

"Hello, Chairman Lee."

"Mr. Zhao, hello."

"Hello, Ms. Lee."

As Zhao Fusheng entered, Lee Mi-jin and Lee Jae-hyun both stood up to greet him and exchange pleasantries.

But Director Lee Jae-jin was dumbfounded the moment he saw Zhao Fusheng.

Him!

How could he be here?

Chairman Zhao?

That mysterious Chinese billionaire?

The partner of Samsung and CJ?

The true owner of Hanxing Investment?

With each identity that flashed through his mind, his face grew paler.

In the end, he stood there dumbfounded, completely motionless, not even reacting when Lee Mi-jin introduced him.

"Director Lee, Director Lee..."

Lee Mi-jin frowned at Lee Jae-jin's state.

"It's fine."

Zhao Fusheng, however, didn't mind and said with a faint smile: "Let's sit down first."

With that, regardless of whether Lee Mi-jin agreed, he walked over and sat down on his own.

Since the host had said so, the others naturally had nothing more to say and took their seats.

And from start to finish, Zhao Fusheng didn't even glance at Director Lee Jae-jin.

At this point, even Lee Jae-hyun sensed something was off.

After sitting down, Zhao Fusheng smiled and looked at Lee Boo-jin: "Boo-jin unnie, please help me bring in my guests."

Lee Boo-jin nodded and stood up: "Alright."

Normally, such a task wouldn't require the Samsung heiress to do it, but Lee Boo-jin had been feeling too stifled lately, having been badly played by Lee Mi-jin and the Chung family. Now that she had a chance to see her older cousin make a fool of herself, she was more than happy to watch the show.

Lee Jae-hyun and Lee Mi-jin exchanged glances, a sudden sense of foreboding rising in their hearts.

The behavior of Zhao Fusheng and Lee Boo-jin was simply too strange.

Normally, Lee Boo-jin wouldn't be so rude, and Zhao Fusheng wouldn't be so aggressive, but here they were, doing exactly that.

This matter, this party, had exuded an extremely eerie atmosphere from the very beginning.

Less than two minutes after Lee Boo-jin left, footsteps sounded from the entrance. Soon, the door opened, and several figures appeared at the doorway.

Lee Mi-jin and Lee Jae-hyun's brows immediately furrowed.

Looking at those people, they were confused. What was Zhao Fusheng up to today?

And at that moment, Lee Jae-jin suddenly stood up, walked over to Zhao Fusheng, and made a move that no one had expected.