1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 220: Holding a press conference to turn crisis into opportunity

"Say something!"

Wu Meng, unaware of the truth, stamped her feet in frustration: "What exactly did you say to her? If you don't come forward to clarify and let others speculate, won't the rumors spread even more wildly?"

Wang Fan didn't want to answer, so he simply closed his eyes.

"Buzz."

Wu Meng wanted to ask more questions, but her phone vibrated twice at that moment, and the call that had just been interrupted rang again.

Upon seeing that it was Lin Xiyu, she hurriedly opened the flip phone and answered it.

"Mengmeng, tell Wang Fan not to worry."

Lin Xiyu's voice was like heavenly music, and it sounded especially pleasant at this moment: "Gu Bin has already thought of a way to resolve this matter. He should find a place to hide for a couple of days to avoid the limelight, and then make a public appearance once public opinion has shifted."

"Okay, I'll tell him right away."

Wu Meng was very close to Wang Fan, so he could actually hear him.

Upon hearing Lin Xiyu's voice, his eyelids twitched, and he opened his eyes.

"Xi Yu is telling you to lay low for a while."

After hearing Lin Xiyu's words, Wu Meng finally felt relieved and was no longer as flustered as before: "When you go out later, don't drive a sports car, it's too eye-catching. Avoid those reporters and find a secluded way to leave."

"I didn't steal or rob anything, what am I afraid of?"

Wang Fan pretended not to care, but in reality, he took Lin Xiyu's words to heart.

"Change cars"

Xu Si was very good at this kind of thing: "Drive straight out of the underground parking lot, and no one will notice."

When are you leaving?

Wu Meng lost interest in collecting the debt: "I'll leave with you."

"It would be best to leave now."

Xu Si glanced at Wang Fan and offered her advice: "If those reporters get impatient and force their way in, it won't be so easy to get away."

"Let's go then."

Wu Meng urged him on, not wanting to wait even a moment longer.

Wang Fan is now an investor in Xingyao Changyou, essentially a behind-the-scenes financier, and she genuinely doesn't want anything to happen to him.

"Are you coming along too?"

Seeing her so anxious and restless, Wang Fan was both annoyed and amused. He decided to tease her again: "Right now, I'm embroiled in scandals. Aren't you afraid that I'll drag you down and people will find out and mistakenly think that we're having an affair?"

"I'm truly impressed."

Wu Meng was so angry she wanted to bite him: "At a time like this, how can you still make jokes like this? Are you a pig? Aren't you afraid of being scalded by boiling water?"

"I'm wondering where I should hide for the next couple of days?"

Wang Fan smiled slyly and said, "How about this, since Liangzi isn't here anyway, why don't we make do for a couple of days? I'll stay at your place."

"Ai?!"

Wu Meng was stunned and retorted without thinking, "No, no, my temple is too small to accommodate a Buddha like you."

"If you don't let me stay, I won't pay."

Wang Fan continued slyly, "Let's see who can outlast whom."

Wu Meng sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation: "My shabby little rented room is too small; it can't accommodate two people."

Wang Fan couldn't understand: "You haven't bought a house yet? How long are you planning to keep putting it off?"

Wu Meng was so anxious she felt like she was going to vomit blood: "Is this the time to discuss whether or not we've bought a house?"

"As a friend of real estate developers"

Wang Fan gave an irrelevant reply: "You and Liangzi don't have money to buy a house, I feel like you're looking down on me."

"I'm dying."

Wu Meng let out a wail, losing all desire to argue with him any further.

"hehe."

Looking at her lifeless expression, Wang Fan finally let out the pent-up frustration he had been holding in for so long.

Accompanied by his assistant, he stood up from his chair with great ease and left the office first.

As it turns out, Wu Meng's worries were completely unnecessary.

Inside the Dingsheng Industrial Building, there is a dedicated executive elevator that goes directly to the underground parking garage.

Wang Fan got into his assistant's car and easily avoided reporters, going directly to the airport to catch the next available flight to Sanya, leaving Shanghai.

-

Gu Bin did not let those who framed him succeed, but instead turned the crisis into an opportunity.

That evening, he held a press conference at his newly established game company, cleverly avoiding the topic of the "dragon bed" incident, and instead revealing his background and his ill-fated relationship with Zhang Xiaoqian to the public.

Why did your mother commit suicide after she went to America?

One reporter's words were sharp and hit the nail on the head: "Was it because she remembered the truth about her bribery after she regained her senses that she felt guilty and committed suicide?"

"No."

Gu Bin said righteously, "I firmly believe that my mother did not take bribes. She was framed and implicated innocently. As her son, I have never doubted her. I only feel grief and heartache."

"The businessman who offered the bribe knew that my mother was not involved in the project, but he still insisted that my mother had given him special treatment. This made me very disappointed in humanity. Because of this incident, I chose to become a lawyer, wanting to use my meager strength to defend those who have been wronged and suffered."

-

"Have you ever considered that even if you have this idea, you are definitely capable of realizing your wish?"

Another reporter was sympathetic to his plight, and his attitude was noticeably more moderate: "After all, your background is easily criticized, and the fact is that your legal career suffered a major setback because of this, and you were even forced to resign."

"I thought about it."

Gu Bin frankly stated, "Even so, I still hope to provide assistance to those in need, offer them free consultations, and do my best to contribute my share."

I believe what you say.

The reporter was satisfied with his answer: "I also hope that you can keep your word, stay true to your original aspiration, and persevere."

"Thank you."

Gu Bin looked grateful and sincerely thanked him.

As the two exchanged a smile, the atmosphere at the press conference became much more harmonious, and the reporters' questions were no longer as aggressive.

I have a question.

Another reporter seized the opportunity to ask: "What is your relationship with the CEO of Dingsheng Industry? Why is he involved with the deceased perpetrator, appearing in the bar before his death? Do you know what he said that caused the perpetrator to have a mental breakdown, rush out of the bar, and be hit and killed by a car?"

There was a moment of silence at the press conference after he said this, and everyone's eyes were once again focused on Gu Bin.

"I know"

Gu Bin came prepared and had already thought of his words: "The CEO of Dingsheng Industry and I are childhood friends. We have a very close relationship. He is also one of the people who know about the hit-and-run incident."

"My wife suffered a miscarriage after being hit by a car. He was dissatisfied with the court's verdict, which is why he vented his emotions when he happened to see the perpetrator drinking at a bar and said something to him."

"He said that the baby you killed is standing right in front of you, looking at you."

-

"what!"

"Is this what you're talking about?"

"That woman has something to hide; it's no wonder she's scared after hearing this."

"No wonder it triggered a relapse."

"That makes sense. It was her own fault. She caused someone to miscarry and got her comeuppance."

“This is completely different from premeditated murder. The woman brought it upon herself, and it has nothing to do with anyone else.”

The press conference erupted in uproar. The reporters, clearly believing his words, all wore expressions of indignation. "That child, who never got to be born, never got to hear him call us 'Mom' and 'Dad.' It breaks our hearts too."

Gu Bin's brows darkened, and a hint of sadness appeared in his eyes as he thought of the unborn baby.

"Oh, what a terrible thing."

"That woman is awful."

"How could there be such a vicious woman?"

"Thinking about that child makes my heart ache."

"That's right. If anyone dares to hurt my child, I'd want to bite them to death."

Many of the reporters who came to the scene were married with children, and as mothers, I felt particularly sympathetic towards them.

"You are still young, you will have more children."

The reporter who had previously been the most friendly to Gu Bin spoke again, offering his own way of comforting him.

"No, it's not that easy."

Lin Xiyu, who had been listening from the sidelines, felt a pang of pain in her heart upon hearing these words, and her eyes instantly filled with tears.

She spoke softly, more like a murmur, but some sharp-eared reporters still heard her and asked her questions.

"The doctor said..."

Lin Xiyu burst into tears: "This miscarriage damaged my uterus, making it very difficult for me to get pregnant again."

"what?!"

"Isn't it?"

"how so."

Before she finished speaking, not only the reporter conducting the interview, but even Gu Bin was surprised and stood up from his chair, taking a few steps to stand in front of her.

"sorry"

Lin Xiyu choked back tears and sobbed, "I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid of disturbing your game development."

Don't say sorry.

Gu Bin felt extremely distressed, and his arm around her trembled slightly: "If anyone should say something, it's me. It's my fault for not taking good care of you and making you suffer so much."

My heart aches so much, it aches so much.

Lin Xiyu buried her face in his chest and poured out her sorrow: "I can't help but cry whenever I think of that child."

"Ugh."

The reporters couldn't bear to listen and sighed in unison.

"Excuse me, everyone, this concludes today's interview."

Gu Bin was no longer in the mood to deal with the group of reporters, so he gave Wu Meng and the others a look, signaling them to leave.

The reporters were all shrewd; they knew that staying any longer would only annoy people, so they all left quickly.

"Xi Yu, are you telling the truth?"

After everyone had left, Gu Bin asked again in disbelief.

His usually calm and composed face now showed an unprecedented panic and helplessness.

I hope so too.

Lin Xiyu smiled wryly: "This isn't true."

Gu Bin hugged the person tightly and closed his eyes in pain.

The oppressive atmosphere reached its peak at this moment, making people feel suffocated.

When a reporter turned around and saw this scene, he had no more doubts and left the press conference with his camera.

-

The next morning, the contents of the press conference made headlines in major newspapers.

Gu Bin's extraordinary image as a business elite has sparked heated discussions among ordinary people.

The search volume for Xinghe Changyou Games surged online, and the game "Curious Hunter" also benefited from this surge, with the number of players skyrocketing to almost its limit in a short period of time. As a result, the server load was too high, and some gameplay had to be temporarily shut down.

Li Hao and his team were very excited and worked overtime to maintain the servers and release more player resources so that more players would have the opportunity to experience and join the game.

Wu Meng wasn't idle either. She took the opportunity to call Wang Fan, who was far away in Sanya, to urge him to pay the debt and, at the same time, to tell him the inside information about the press conference.

"Damn it, I shouldn't have let her die so easily."

When Wang Fan heard that Lin Xiyu's uterus was damaged due to a miscarriage and that she might be infertile for life, he was filled with hatred and wished he could dig Zhang Xiaoqian out of her grave and make her die again.

"The person is dead, so there's no point in talking about it anymore."

Taking the opportunity, Wu Meng urged, "If you want Xi Yu to be happy, hurry up and transfer the money. Stop dawdling. That's all the value you have in her heart. Don't ruin the last bit of goodwill she has left."

"I'll have Xu Si transfer ten million to you later."

Wang Fan didn't act coy this time. Although Wu Meng's words were very unpleasant, he forcibly suppressed his anger when he thought of the suffering Lin Xiyu had endured.

"Good drop."

Wu Meng was at ease and stopped provoking him: "You're a big boss who makes a fortune every day, you go ahead and do your work, I won't bother you anymore."

"Humph."

Wang Fan couldn't stand her insincere flattery, so he let out a soft snort as a reply.

Knowing that it's wise to stop while you're ahead, Wu Meng didn't say anything more and hung up the phone.

-

At the press conference, Gu Bin publicly stated that he was willing to provide free legal consultations to people in need. After being reprinted by major newspapers, people who saw the news began to visit him.

He had a reception room set up in the company and assigned Zhao Yuncheng to handle the matter.

Zhao Yuncheng had worked with him at the law firm for a while and knew how to deal with people who came for consultations. When encountering people who were short-tempered and easily angered, he would first calm them down and then ask Gu Bin to come and meet with them.

Gu Bin is adept at managing people's hearts and minds, and with his professional knowledge, he is even more adept at handling such situations.

He can accurately judge the problems of people who come to him for business consultation, regardless of their size, and point out the best solutions for them.

Over time, he gradually gained fame among the public, and more and more people came to him for business consultations. Some people then had the idea of ​​inviting him to work at a law firm again.

-

One day at the end of September, Lin Xiyu took advantage of the weekend when school was not in session and cooked some of her favorite dishes at home to bring to his company.

"I'm sorry, I have no intention of continuing to practice law."

Gu Bin had just hung up the phone when she entered. When he saw it was her, the corners of his lips turned up slightly, and he got up from his chair to greet her.

"Is someone looking for you again?"

Lin Xiyu handed him the lunchbox, then walked to the sofa, took off her coat, and hung it on the hanger.

You should have some recollection of this person.

Gu Bin didn't hide anything and said with a smile, "Five years ago, Wang Fan was injured, and the person that the professor from Fudan University recommended to me was him."

"Your nominal senior brother?"

Lin Xiyu thought about it for a moment and remembered that there was such a thing.

"Yes, that's him."

Gu Bin nodded and placed the lunchbox on his desk.

"After all this time, he still hasn't forgotten you."

Lin Xiyu said with deep emotion, "It's clear that your junior brother has left a deep impression on him."

"Unfortunately, he asked a little too late."

Gu Bin scoffed: "If it were right after I was fired from Huanyu, I might have been grateful to him and agreed to his request. But now, I'm not in the mood to pay any attention to him anymore."