Me! A disgraced celebrity! Starting by seeking justice for impoverished students.

Li Xue was so angry that her chest heaved and her face turned ashen.

In her view, how could an old lady who was terrified of poverty and in debt not obediently sign the papers when she saw five million?

How dare you refuse? You're utterly ungrateful!

"Isn't she afraid that she'll end up with nothing?"

The assistant stammered, "We've already discussed the pros and cons... but she said she can't let her son be branded as depressed and rebellious after he dies."

Just then, the office door was pushed open.

General Counsel Zhang Bingyan walked in with a sullen face, holding copies of the court's ruling and investigation order in his hand, his brows furrowed.

The composure I had yesterday was completely gone.

Upon seeing him, Li Xue immediately felt like she had grasped a lifeline and quickly stood up to greet him: "Director Zhang, you've come at the perfect time!"

"The private settlement fell through. Do you have any other options? How long can jurisdictional objections be delayed?"

"If all else fails, we'll appeal, dragging it out until they can't afford to keep going!"

Zhang Bingyan shook his head, put the documents in his hand on the table, and spoke with an unprecedentedly solemn tone.

"We can't delay any longer."

"The court's ruling has just been delivered; the objection to jurisdiction has been rejected, and even the appeal period has been shortened."

"Not only that..."

He looked up at Li Xue, his voice low and somewhat flustered.

"The court's enforcement officers are already downstairs at the company, carrying an investigation warrant. They are going to retrieve Han Zihe's financial statements, settlement vouchers, and cost ledgers for all his projects over the past three years this morning."

"What?!"

Li Xue's face paled instantly, and her voice rose eight octaves.

"So fast?! How can they just come to our door and demand payment?! Can't we just refuse?"

She knew perfectly well that the company's accounts couldn't withstand close scrutiny.

Han Zihe's projects have been burdened with countless unrelated administrative costs, the boss's personal expenses, losses incurred by other artists, and even traces of shady contracts used for accounting purposes.

If the court were to transfer the property intact, the consequences would be unimaginable!

Zhang Bingyan frowned, his tone heavy and muffled: "The investigation order was issued by the court in accordance with the law. We have no reason to refuse, nor dare we refuse."

"If we refuse to cooperate, the court can impose a fine directly and presume that we have unfavorable evidence, which will put us in a more passive position."

"I have instructed the finance department to immediately organize the relevant accounts and remove as many costs as possible that should not be attributed to Han Zihe."

"But time is too tight..."

He paused, his tone uncertain, "A three-year project, hundreds of accounts—it's impossible to sort them all out in half a day!"

Li Xue slumped into her office chair, her face drained of all color.

She originally thought that Jiang Chen was just a clown trying to ride the wave of popularity, someone she could easily crush.

Unexpectedly, the opponent pressed forward relentlessly, striking right where it hurt!

She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms, a ruthless glint in her eyes.

No, we absolutely cannot let him find solid evidence!

Otherwise, not only will Han Zihe lose his case, but all the bad debts the company has kept hidden for so many years will also be dug up!

At that point, not only will she be unable to hold onto her position as the director of the agency, but she won't even be able to secure her position as President Zhou.

"No, tell the finance department immediately. They must straighten out the accounts, no matter what it takes."

Li Xue gritted her teeth and said, enunciating each word clearly, "We absolutely cannot allow the court to uncover even the slightest thing they shouldn't be investigating!"

"Ring ring—"

Just then, a cell phone rang suddenly, its sharp ringtone particularly jarring in the tense office.

Li Xue glanced down at the screen and saw the words "President Zhou," her face instantly turning pale.

She took a deep breath before answering, her voice trembling slightly: "President Zhou..."

"Li Xue! What kind of work are you doing?!"

On the other end of the phone, Zhou Hongtao's roar almost pierced the receiver, causing Li Xue to instinctively hold the phone further away.

"Court officials are camped out downstairs at the company, checking the accounts! Didn't you say everything was foolproof?"

"This is what you meant by 'absolutely foolproof'?!"

"The beginning of next month is a crucial period for due diligence in financing. Now the court is coming to investigate the accounts. If the investors find out, can you bear the responsibility?!"

Li Xue's lips moved, as if she wanted to say something in her defense: "President Zhou, I didn't expect the court to act so quickly. I thought we could drag it out..."

"Stop dragging your feet! All you do is procrastinate!" Zhou Hongtao interrupted her directly, his anger flaring even more. "They're already at the finance department!"

"If any problems are found with the accounts, you're fired as director!"

Li Xue was so scolded that she couldn't lift her head. Her knuckles turned white as she gripped her phone, and she could only repeatedly reply "Yes, yes, yes," unable to utter a single word of rebuttal.

Seeing this, Zhang Bingyan frowned and gestured for Li Xue to hand him the phone.

Li Xue felt as if she had been granted a pardon and quickly handed over her phone, her eyes filled with a pleading look.

Zhang Bingyan cleared his throat, took the phone, and tried to keep his tone calm: "President Zhou, it's me, Zhang Bingyan."

"Director Zhang?" Zhou Hongtao's anger subsided slightly, but it still lingered. "What do you suggest we do now? Really let the court take all the accounts?"

"President Zhou, please don't rush." ​​Zhang Bingyan steadied his tone and slowly spoke, "In my opinion, we should fight him to the end."

"A lawsuit?" Zhou Hongtao asked hesitantly. "That Jiang Chen... I heard he won two labor lawsuits against the Pei Group. He's got some pretty shady connections."

"If we really lose, not only will we lose money, but the company's reputation will be ruined, and our financing will be further affected."

"Mr. Zhou, you've got it backwards." Zhang Bingyan lowered his voice. "Even if we lose the contract lawsuit, the worst outcome is just a refund of our share and some compensation, at most a few million. That's a drop in the ocean for the company and won't hurt us at all."

He paused, his voice carrying a hint of seriousness: "But if we keep dodging and trying to settle things privately, it will only make us look guilty."

"Jiang Chen is pressing us hard. He's currently investigating the contracts and bank statements. If he keeps digging deeper and uncovers other things, especially... the whole mess that happened before and after Han Zihe's fall, that would be real trouble."

He deliberately paused at this point.

Silence fell instantly on the other end of the phone.

Zhou Hongtao certainly understood what "that pile of things" meant.

These are all shameful things!

If these things are uncovered during the audit, it won't just be a matter of losing a few million dollars; the entire company will suffer!

A few seconds later, Zhou Hongtao's voice rang out again, now suppressing all his anger, leaving only ruthlessness and decisiveness.

"You're right. Losing money is fine, but nothing else can be revealed."

"Fight the lawsuit! Fight it with all your might! All the resources in the legal department will be allocated to you. Make sure this matter is firmly contained within the scope of a contract dispute!"

"As for the accounts, have the finance department clean them up as much as possible, and remove everything that shouldn't be in Han Zihe's project."

"We absolutely cannot let the court find out anything extra!"