Chapter 1614 - 649: Crush_2
"Mom... Mom?"
Beside a banquet table near the steps, all the members of BlackPink were present. When Jennie saw the middle-aged woman with a distinctly nervous smile behind Charles, she was visibly stunned.
Han Suying hadn’t told her that she would be coming. What made Jennie even more incredulous was that she knew the background of Charles, so her mother following behind him wasn’t surprising, but still...
Behind Charles, there were three or four other guests, yet her mother, among these people, was humbly following at the back.
In such a formal social setting, this implied that Han Suying had tacitly accepted her position as the lowest among this group.
But how could that be possible?
Apart from Charles, the others were obviously faces from Korea, and her own mother, Han Suying, was a shareholder of the CJ Group, not to mention her aunt held an important position in Cheongwadae. How many people in Korea could make her mother display such humility?
But soon Jennie got the answer from the stifled exclamations around her.
She heard Vice President Jiang Xin’s incredulous voice: "Is that... Vice Minister Wu Zhixun?"
"Vice Minister?"
Hearing Jiang Xin’s whisper, even those who didn’t know who Wu Zhixun was, were shocked just by the title "Vice Minister".
In Korea, all civil servant positions are divided into nine levels, ranked from 1 to 9. A "Vice Minister" is a level 2 official, equivalent to the senior to deputy minister level in Huaxia, a truly high-ranking official.
And Zhao Jianyou, who had just threatened Zhou Wang by tearing up inspection documents, was only a level 4 director officer, a figure already beyond the reach of ordinary people in usual settings, but compared to Vice Minister Wu Zhixun, he was two levels lower.
In a fantasy novel context, it’s like the gap between two major realms... Vice Minister Wu Zhixun could smack him dead with a single slap.
Due to the openness of government affairs, someone immediately found detailed information on "Wu Zhixun" on their phone.
"He’s the Vice Minister of the Tax Department..."
Someone quietly said.
The Tax Department?
Doesn’t that mean he’s Zhao Jianyou’s direct superior... or rather, the superior of his direct superior?
As expected, upon seeing Wu Zhixun, Zhao Jianyou, whose smirk had yet to fade, was dumbfounded, probably not expecting Vice Minister Wu to show up here.
However, he had no time to adjust his expression before someone beat him to it.
Yin Enshu, who had just been behind him from the Planning and Finance Department, hurried over in a slight panic, stumbling slightly on her high heels from moving too fast. But she dared not stop and quickly approached the group, bowing hurriedly to a dignified lady among them:
"Vice Minister Zheng, what... what brings you here?"
Another Vice Minister!
The crowd murmured in surprise.
And judging by Yin Enshu’s respectful posture, Ms. Zheng was evidently from the Planning and Finance Department, Yin Enshu’s direct superior as well.
At this moment, everyone suddenly realized that the group of Korean men and women following this unfamiliar Western youth likely had extremely high statuses.
And coincidentally, they seemed to correspond to the guests Park Jeongyun had brought along.
As if to confirm the crowd’s suspicions, Park Jeongyun, standing on the steps, hurried over after a moment of surprise, extending his hands to try and shake hands with a middle-aged man whose hair was slightly graying:
"Chief Prosecutor Lin, why didn’t you inform me you were coming? I would’ve welcomed you personally at the door."
Chief Prosecutor!
That title said it all.
Now even high-ranking officials from the prosecutorial system had appeared...
This scene, as if foreshadowing something, gave everyone an eerie feeling.
Even Park Jeongyun felt a heaviness in his heart.
Because after expressing his intention to shake hands, Chief Prosecutor Lin ignored him, his expression remaining indifferent.
But this shouldn’t be...
Even in the worst-case scenario, where Chief Prosecutor Lin, Vice Minister Zheng, and Vice Minister Wu Zhixun were all allies brought by Zhou Wang, with Park Jeongyun’s status and the support of the Park Group behind him... these people shouldn’t have such attitudes.
Besides, he clearly remembered having some rapport with Chief Prosecutor Lin at a previous social event where they had clinked glasses together.
"Oh, Zhou, wherever you are, there’s never a shortage of excitement. This is far more interesting than a stage play."
By now, Charles had swiftly climbed up the steps in a few strides, embraced Zhou Wang with a chuckle, and jested.
"Charles, I don’t know why trouble follows me wherever I go, but you know, I’m a low-key person."
Zhou Wang shrugged with feigned helplessness.
The interaction between the two undoubtedly confirmed Park Jeongyun’s suspicion that these people were indeed invited by Zhou Wang... no, who exactly was this Charles? With Park Jeongyun’s acuity, he could see that among these people, Charles seemed to be the true core.
Uncertain due to insufficient information, he couldn’t fathom Charles’s identity at all.
"So, Charles, is this the ’Gift’ you and my assistant mentioned?"
Zhou Wang laughed, "Though we only spoke on the phone, you seemed to know in advance what Park Jeongyun planned tonight."
"Yet your composed demeanor tells me you had already guessed... although I know you’d regard these people as mere clowns even without my help, Zhou, it’s truly hard to catch you off guard!"
Charles said with a hint of regret.
No, if you hadn’t helped, I’d have had to waste a powerful tool... [Wang Ruxi’s Cigarette Case] is practically Zhou Wang’s greatest trump card, allowing him to glimpse his ’peak Strength’, and naturally, Zhou Wang wouldn’t want to use it on someone like Park Jeongyun.
If it involved the entire Park Group behind him, that might barely make it worthwhile.
Zhou Wang internally scoffed, but on the surface, he still maintained his composure.
When he went to the door to greet Charles earlier, Zhou Wang had already seen the officials behind him. At the time, Charles had playfully withheld details about their identities, only saying they were "a few friends" he brought along.
Zhou Wang may not have realized it then, but upon returning to the banquet hall and seeing Park Jeongyun having roped in "official forces" against him, Zhou Wang suddenly understood.
After confirming his heir status, Charles, capable of leveraging most of the Morgan Family’s power, could almost walk unimpeded in Korea, which heavily relies on the Beautiful Country.
He just hadn’t expected Charles to be so effective, investigating Park Jeongyun’s plot that Zhou Wang had merely mentioned, and bringing so many high-ranking officials...
Watching the two casually chat and laugh, observing Chief Prosecutor Lin and others just standing by with smiles, ignoring the anxious inquiries of their subordinates, Park Jeongyun suddenly recalled something.
Right, he had invited Samsung Electronics advisor Jiang Huai to prevent any unforeseen incidents; now, it seemed only he could save the day.
Thus, filled with hope, Park Jeongyun turned, intending to have Jiang Huai step in.
But as soon as he turned, he saw Jiang Huai, who seemed to have been waiting for a while, finally seizing the opportunity, with a cautious, fawning smile, quickly approaching Zhou Wang and Charles.
"Mr. Charles, do you remember me? I’m Jiang Huai... the day before yesterday, when you and Mr. Li went to the horse ranch together, I even helped lead the horse for you."
"..."
Park Jeongyun’s heart turned completely cold.