Chapter 122 - Breakthrough

they were unfamiliar with this theory. If in the past, they would definitely say, "You kids know nothing!", but now, both of them tacitly accepted it and let out a sigh: "Even so... alas, Mei Lan's co...Chapter 122: Breakthrough

Fraudulent fundraising can be a devastating disaster for both influential individuals and enterprises in terms of credibility and reputation.

The opponent chose to attack from this angle, using the extremely influential economic forum during Nan University's Homecoming Festival. Their thoughts were meticulous; their intentions were viciously sharp. Such an impactful event should become a major social topic that would be widely discussed. Following this, under the overwhelming political pressure, Senchuan Group’s entire business operations in China might face a total reshuffle and devastating blow.

Once this fraudulent donation scandal erupted into a public outrage sweeping through general opinion, Senchuan Group would be inundated with criticism from all quarters.

In the face of such an overwhelming defeat, Song Zhen's personal career prospects as the General Manager of Shanghai Region for Senchuan China were insignificant; she was merely a casualty behind the scenes.

Tao Qing, Song Zhen’s mother, and the high-level executives present from Senchuan Group all felt that things had darkened. They only thought about one terrifying outcome, yet Tao Qing tried to remain calm but her hands began trembling uncontrollably.

It was too late!

This was Tao Qing’s first thought. Once the Senchuan enterprise found itself in an unimaginable public storm of criticism, even those influential figures backing Senchuan might consider a similar conclusion.

To those who had mastered the art of reading the winds and currents to perfection, it would be impossible for them to risk their own standing by stepping forward to support Senchuan at this time.

She never imagined that the opponent’s hidden bombshell was related to Senchuan Group's charitable donation from two years ago.

Afraid of being overwhelmed in the face of Xie Sidian’s relentless questioning, Tao Qing could not hold back any longer and sprang up straight, pointing at Xie Sidian and shouting angrily, "You are slandering!" But her voice was quickly drowned out by the commotion in the auditorium.

In Su Cen's view, the opponent used a tactic to start from the donation direction, exploiting the lack of transparency regarding the details of the donations that even Song Zhen and Tao Qing might not be fully aware of, aiming to create an uproar through surprise attacks.

*At this moment, everyone in the audience, including Nan University’s administration, scholars, social elites, and entrepreneurs, was also shocked. They looked at Song Zhen on stage with mixed feelings—disgust, schadenfreude, anticipation, and sympathy.

No matter what, the present-day Song Zhen seemed like a fragile piece of porcelain that could be shattered by people's anger and accusations at any moment.

Then, Xie Siqian immediately threw out several extremely tricky "evidences", such as how a certain someone donated hundreds of thousands on a yacht in the past but this money eventually disappeared without a trace. Sengchuan Group announced that they had raised so much funding, yet the truth was that the beneficiary charity only received a negligible amount.

On stage, Song Zhen was completely dumbfounded, and even more unbelievable was that the host who should have come to smooth things over at this moment was nowhere to be found. She just stood there woodenly on stage, facing accusations and questions with needles piercing her back.

"I'm not clear about this matter for now, but we will thoroughly investigate," Song Zhen said with red eyes, barely suppressing the wetness and surge in her chest when faced with an already restless venue. Her tone had shifted from its usual dominance to weakness.

"Thoroughly investigate" Xie Siqian's voice sounded again in a sinister tone. "How do you investigate The overseas fundraising was done by your birth mother, if I recall correctly. You declared the amount of donations collected back then, but now it’s clear that a large portion has gone missing. Of course, we don’t know what this ‘going missing’ means—whether there were mistakes in certain stages or whether they flowed into your mother-daughter pockets Just as a reminder, Miss Song, this is illegal appropriation. If you can't explain where the money went, it’s fraud!"

Song Zhen felt dizzy; fortunately, her experience and poise from modeling allowed her to regain composure勉強鎮定. Holding onto the chair armrests, she slowly sat down. When she lifted her head again, she was still met with skepticism covering the auditorium.

At this moment, a group of people in dark suits of unknown origin immediately started stirring up trouble in the hall, their words laced with insults and strong provocation, filled with voices like "shameless" and "whore."

The tears that had been swirling in Song Zhen's eyes finally overflowed, streaming down her delicate face. This was the most tearful moment since she lost her pet dog as a child and after being beaten by Tao Qing at thirteen.

Tang Wu gently squeezed Su Can’s hand; seeing Song Zhen alone on stage evoked compassion in Tang Wu. Su Can responded with a gentle squeeze, taking a deep breath to relieve the pent-up frustration in his heart.

Even though he had insights from two lifetimes that allowed him to see through Xie Siqian's tactics, and even though Su Can felt sympathy for the girl on stage who was being targeted as an enemy, what could he do about it

Sengchuan Group had nothing to do with him, and he certainly wasn’t a savior. This world was cruel enough without needing someone’s sense of justice to run rampant; there were no so-called heroes who would unnecessarily step up.

"Song Zhen, your mother is shameless, your entire family is shameless!" A man next to Tang Wu in a tight T-shirt stood up abruptly as if signaled. With one hand wildly pointing at the stage, he slammed his elbow into Tang Wu’s right arm, causing her to yelp in pain and lean towards Su Can.

Su Can instantly pulled Tang Wu's compact abdomen close with both hands, holding onto her petite body. After hearing Tang Wu's cry of pain, his heart tightened; the pent-up anger inside him couldn’t be contained anymore and erupted fiercely. Before he could release Tang Wu, he kicked this man in his early thirties with a shaven head hard in the kidneys.

The man lost balance and didn't expect such an attack, falling backward onto a seat and hitting the ground sideways between two chairs, causing a small commotion.

"You f***!" The man rose to retaliate but his collar was grabbed tightly from behind. Li Pengyu immediately flipped over from the back row, pulling this person by the collar without giving him a chance to stand up and threw him out of sight.

"I'm fine, no need to come," Tang Wu saw that Su Cen was still heading out and hurriedly pulled on his clothes corner, worried that things would escalate into a fight.

"It's okay, I'll be back soon." Su Cen released her hand. Instead of kicking the guy on the ground again, he walked straight through the passage to step onto the stage.

The entire venue, which had previously been chaotic and out of control, suddenly quieted down at this moment.

Song Zhen's eyes were red, with tear marks still visible below her eyelids. Her hair was stuck to her wet cheeks. She tried her best to suppress the rising and falling of her chest as she watched Su Cen walk up calmly, unsure what he intended to do.

Regardless of the outcome, this farce should have ended here. The audience never expected a sudden turn of events.

The sound of rustling immediately began as someone clearly recognized who Su Cen was and his background. Zhang Xiaqiao and the others exchanged puzzled looks but quickly fell silent when they realized that Su Cen wouldn't act without reason, instead watching him intently to see what he would do next.

With his finger pads lightly tapping on the microphone, a series of "pu" sounds echoed. Only then did Su Cen speak into the fixed microphone: "What's going on here A group attacking an individual girl with criticism Is it impressive to follow the crowd"

This statement caused some of those stirring up trouble to lower their voices, and also prompted reflection among others who had already noticed this issue. The majority in the venue didn't harbor any deep resentment towards Song Zhen but felt extremely negative about her and the entire Sichuan Group after hearing the allegations and evidence against them, especially regarding Xie Sidian's accusations of fraud. Now that Su Cen had intervened, they calmed down.

"Student, are you not an employee of the Sichuan Company Since you're not a staff member here, what business do you have" Xie Sidian was infuriated by Su Cen's appearance but didn't dare to be too rash and thus advised him with caution against interfering.

"I just couldn't stand it. You said earlier that you had evidence that the Sichuan Group promised donations which never materialized," Su Cen stared at Xie Sidian.

"Indeed, let me clarify: I do not intend to cause trouble for Miss Song and Mr. Song here; I merely wish to question the moral integrity of public figures and enterprises in this situation."

"Then which eye did you use to see that the Sichuan Group received those overseas donations Which eye saw the donation funds being transferred into their account Where is your evidence for such claims"

Song Zhen suddenly looked up, a light of inspiration in her eyes as she stared at Su Cen.

"I know that it's common practice in overseas charitable donations to make promises but not actually donate. It was easy for you to claim someone said they would donate hundreds of thousands on the yacht, but is there proof How many people have promised large sums and then delayed or changed their contributions after making those initial promises If I say today that I'm donating a million yuan, are you sure I'll actually fulfill my promise"

Su Cen's consecutive rhetorical questions were forceful and powerful. He then looked at Xie Siqian and asked, "I want to ask you this: Do you have any evidence or records that Sangawa Group received over 10 million US dollars in donations either two years ago or within these past two years"

A fundraising donation from two years ago would likely even be unknown by the parties involved as to the final amount raised. Nowadays, most charitable donation events are just a spectacle, with many only shouting out numbers on site without actually fulfilling their promises. It's rare for them to align truthfully and consistently. This seems to be a norm, yet it leaves many speechless.

Most of the public is unaware of these internal secrets, as such charitable traps gradually emerged over the years along with social issues. Now, there’s still a layer of paper between people, everyone knows about it but no one has broken through this barrier.

Su Cen believes that from today onwards, this layer should be pierced through.

Xie Siqian fiddled with the microphone in his hand, staring at Su Cen with a somber expression.

"If not, do I have reason to believe that this is a publicity stunt by competitors, using the forum held at Nan University as an excuse to smear Sangawa Group Don't insult our intelligence!"

After Su Cen finished speaking, responses gradually came from below the stage. Soon after, these voices grew louder and more fervent.

Su Cen turned around, held Song Zhen's wrist, and whispered, "Follow me."

Then amidst a commotion, he pulled her off the stage. A few men in black suits, likely following previous instructions not to let Song Zhen leave the stage, tried to stop them. These were precisely those who had shouted the loudest earlier.

"Get out of my way," Su Cen said coldly.

"Who gave you permission to go up there privately You’re quite audacious" One of them retorted coldly, attempting to grab Su Cen. The forum at Nan University had already caused a big stir; now that it was escalating further, they were less concerned about repercussions.

Before these individuals could get close to Su Cen, Li Pengyu, towering at 188 cm and sturdy-built, appeared from behind them. He grabbed one of the men with each hand and threw him back forcefully, causing them to tumble around disorientedly.

The entire hall was almost on its feet; rows after rows stood up swiftly, akin to a bomb going off in the auditorium, creating chaos momentarily. This was the economic forum during Nan University's Returnees' Festival! Su Cen’s sudden disruption had made him extremely controversial.

Su Cen took advantage of this commotion and the path opened by Li Pengyu, pulling Song Zhen with her flowing black hair. In a moment when her mother Tao Qing was stunned, amidst cheers from Zhang Xiaqiao, Li Han, Ruan Sige, Tong Tong, and others, under the cold, piercing gaze of Xie Siqian and his group, and the exaggerated expressions of Nan University’s scholars and leaders, he rushed out of the auditorium passage into the dazzling sunlight outside.ai City at that time.From the driver’s seat to the passenger seat, Xu Zhiyu’s father and his mother with her elegant wavy hairstyle both waved to Chen Lingshan and smiled so heartwarmingly that their...