At the start, I had to choose one of four options, and I immediately picked the Brahmin from the cou

Upon hearing this news, Sun Dewang felt as if he had been punched in the stomach. He slumped into a chair and remained silent for a long time.

His thoughts drifted back to half a year ago, back in the teahouse, when Old Zhao was slamming his fist on the table, arguing with him about the equity ratio of the Linjiang project, their faces turning red with anger. And now, not long after, he was lying in the hospital receiving oxygen.

Thirty million, gone just like that.

The favors and tea money that Sun Dewang spent in Jiangyang amounted to no more than a million yuan, which was nothing compared to Lao Zhao's.

Bald Liu was filled with mixed feelings. Last time, he almost went to the Linjiang project with Lao Zhao. If Lao Li hadn't poured cold water on him at the crucial moment, who knows who would be lying in the hospital now.

The private room remained silent for a long time.

The Mercedes-Benzes with provincial license plates outside the window had already driven away, heading towards Jiangyang County. Several more cars followed suit, turning in the same direction, their taillights forming a broken red line in the night, all now surging towards Jiangyang County.

Sun Dewang stared at the strip of light for a few seconds, then suddenly threw the towel on the table, stood up, picked up his coat draped over the back of the chair, and said to the group.

"Let's go, let's go to the hospital first. Regardless of whether Lao Zhao can hear us or not, those of us who had tea with him should stand up for him."

Bald Liu didn't say anything, but he was the first to stand up and follow behind him.

Although he had some unpleasantness with Lao Zhao over the Linjiang project, those were all business matters. Now that things are like this, why bother with those things?

Old Ma also stood up. He and Old Zhao weren't particularly close, but after so many years in this circle, everyone knew that Old Zhao was a genuine person.

They didn't engage in the kind of forced buying and selling schemes like Wang Jianhui, nor did they use under-the-table contracts. They poured 30 million into the company and didn't even hear a sound; they collapsed just like that.

This poignant sense of shared loss resonated with everyone present.

This is the reality for all of them. Despite their current impressive appearance and wealth of hundreds of millions, only they know that in this invisible web, they are nothing more than shrimp that could be washed away by the waves at any moment.

The so-called net worth of hundreds of millions is mostly tied up in bank loans, steel and cement on construction sites, and uncollectible debts.

Once the financial chain breaks down, or like Lao Zhao, one falls into an abyss of no return, the once glamorous title of a wealthy person can instantly turn into a deadly noose.

The group silently left the Junyue Teahouse, got into their respective cars, and headed towards Tianshui Boai Hospital.

Although Tianshui is not a provincial capital, its level of prosperity is by no means inferior.

The best private hospital in the city is Tianshui Boai Hospital, located in the middle section of Binjiang Road. The high-rise building, which is more than ten stories high, has floor-to-ceiling glass curtain walls.

The people who come here for medical treatment are all rich and powerful. It costs several hundred yuan to register for a simple cold or fever, which is unaffordable for ordinary people. However, the hospital offers high privacy and good ward conditions, so business owners in Tianshui always choose this place for a headache, fever, or hospitalization that needs to be discreet.

At the end of the visiting corridor of the intensive care unit, Lao Zhao's wife sat slumped on a bench, her eyes red and swollen, clearly having cried for a long time.

Old Zhao is a typical example of an older man marrying a younger woman. After divorcing his first wife, he married his current wife, who is more than 20 years younger than him.

The woman's name was Duan Xue. She joined Lao Zhao's company right after graduating from university.

Because of her striking good looks and outstanding figure, she was quickly noticed by Lao Zhao and immediately transferred to his side as his personal secretary. Lao Zhao was always generous to women; designer bags, jewelry—if she liked something, Lao Zhao would buy it for her without batting an eye.

Duan Xue inherently harbors a tendency to admire the strong. Coupled with being a young girl just entering society and coming from a family that isn't particularly well-off, how could she possibly resist the fierce offensive of a mature, stable, extravagant, and influential CEO in the business world?

So the two got married and registered their marriage smoothly.

Duan Xue, who originally thought that marrying into a wealthy family would mean a life of comfort and luxury, never imagined that such a thing would happen after only two and a half years of good times.

Her mind was in a daze. She was just an ordinary art school graduate who had followed Lao Zhao since graduating from university. She had never suffered much hardship. Now, she had suddenly encountered such a big change, and she didn't know what to do.

Hearing footsteps in the corridor, Duan Xue slowly raised her head. When she saw that it was Sun Dewang and Bald Liu, the big bosses who usually called Lao Zhao their brothers, she felt like she had grasped a lifeline and stumbled towards them.

"Brother Sun, Brother Liu..."

"Sister-in-law, what exactly did the doctor say about Lao Zhao's condition?" Sun Dewang looked at his old friend in the ward, who was covered in tubes, and felt a pang of sadness. He asked in a low voice.

"The doctor said it was a sudden cerebral hemorrhage. Fortunately, he was brought in in time, otherwise he would have died on the spot in the ambulance."

As Duan Xue spoke, tears streamed down her face again, ruining her once exquisite makeup and making her look exceptionally pitiful.

"Although his life has been saved, the doctor said that his nerves have been damaged. Even if he wakes up in the future, he will probably spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair, and it is uncertain whether he will even be able to speak fluently."

Sun Dewang's heart sank. A wheelchair for the rest of his life? What difference is there between a CEO who can't even speak properly and being dead? Old Zhao's hard-earned business, built up over half a lifetime, is completely finished.

Fortunately, he also has a son.

This son is Old Zhao's son with his ex-wife, named Zhao Bin.

A few years ago, Zhao Bin was sent abroad by his father, Lao Zhao, to study business for several years. After returning to China, he couldn't stand Duan Xue, his "stepmother," who was only two or three years older than him. He had a big fight with Lao Zhao, and the father and son became very estranged. Zhao Bin simply moved out and lived on his own. It is said that he used the start-up capital given to him by Lao Zhao to start a trading company in the provincial capital with several rich second-generation heirs.

"Sister-in-law, where is Zhao Bin? His father is in the ICU. Has he been notified of such a serious matter?" Bald Liu asked in a deep voice from the side.

The company is currently surrounded by creditors. Duan Xue, a clueless woman, can't possibly handle this alone. We need a legitimate family member to step in, take charge, and stabilize morale.

Upon hearing the name Zhao Bin, Duan Xue's body visibly stiffened.

"The notification has been sent..."

Duan Xue bit her pale lips, her voice trembling violently.

"But, but he said on the phone that since his father is now the legal representative of the company, those messy external debts should be managed by me, the legal 'chairman's wife.' He said he stopped interfering in the family business a long time ago, and he never got involved in the Linjiang project from beginning to end. This matter... he doesn't care, and he has no right to care."