Chapter 532

Chapter 532 Condemned by All!

This fatty exuded the aura of a nouveau riche from abroad from head to toe, and didn’t even care that no one was smoking in the banquet hall — the cigar smoke he was releasing could be smelled from a mile away!

“This is Amare? As the big boss of Alpine Investment Bank, how can he have such poor manners?” Lin Aoxue wrinkled her brow at the smell of smoke.

Su Rui also nodded: “Truly lacking in manners, I can barely stand to watch.”

However, as he said this, a mysterious light appeared in his eyes.

As for the so-called wealthy elites present, not a single one expressed any dissatisfaction with Amare smoking a cigar in public — their faces all wore fawning expressions, each hoping to make a connection with Amare.

In their eyes, the smell of secondhand smoke was practically a delicacy.

“Esteemed Mr. Amare, welcome to Huaxia, I hope the time ahead will be a pleasant one for you.” Li Yongxing said with a cheerful smile, his English equally impressive — a fluent, authentic British accent.

“I’m having a great time, the girls in Huaxia are quite something!” Amare’s voice boomed, his laughter ringing throughout the hall.

On the surface, he really did seem like a crude fellow.

“Why does that voice sound so familiar?”

Lin Aoxue furrowed her brow slightly. The moment she heard Amare’s voice, she began carefully searching through her memories, yet couldn’t quite place where she had heard it before!

Amare’s completely uninhibited discussion of Huaxia women in such a public setting left Li Yongxing momentarily unsure of how to respond — was he supposed to discuss the figures of Huaxia women in front of all these people too?

So Li Yongxing could only reply with an awkward laugh: “Esteemed Mr. Amare, allow me to make an introduction — this is my younger brother Li Yongheng, who once led the development of the ‘Miju’ chat application.”

Amare put on an expression of sudden realization, the fleshy folds of his face quivering uncontrollably: “The Miju chat app? I know that one, Europeans and Americans are all using it to hook up!”

Indeed, the app Li Yongheng had developed was known as a “hookup tool,” which was precisely the reality Li Yongheng was most reluctant to acknowledge.

Although his original intentions had been good, no one could have predicted that a decent chat application would evolve in this direction.

The moment those words fell, everyone present was left speechless, and the expression on Li Yongxing’s face froze solid.

It was said that Amare was a man of genuine character, but who could have imagined that his genuineness would go this far!

Li Yongheng also turned beet red, thoroughly embarrassed, and quickly explained in fluent American English: “Actually, this is a public misunderstanding of Miju — it’s a comprehensive social app for meeting strangers…”

“No, this is not a public misunderstanding, it is a public expectation!” The moment this topic came up, Amare’s interest surged. He gave Li Yongheng a firm pat on the shoulder and said: “Young man, I really admire you!”

Hearing this, Li Yongxing, as the elder brother, was instantly overjoyed!

Having his younger brother earn Amare’s praise could do a great deal to advance their future cooperation with him! Li Yongheng had undeniably gotten things off to a great start!

If they could reach a cooperation agreement with the European Alpine Investment Bank this time, with a large influx of overseas capital, Li Yongxing could once again make bold moves in the stock market. With the broader market soaring, if managed properly, the assets of the Li Group stood a strong chance of doubling consecutively!

By then, taking down the major family clans would be no problem at all!

“Thank you for your appreciation, Mr. Amare, I still have a great deal of room to improve.” Li Yongheng said modestly.

As he said this, he couldn’t help but glance in Lin Aoxue’s direction — every man hopes that his moment of glory can be witnessed by the girl he admires.

However, when he spotted Su Rui standing beside Lin Aoxue, he let out a quiet sigh.

In that moment, this pride of the Li family felt an overwhelming envy of Su Rui. He even found himself wondering — if he had given up studying abroad back then and worked as a lowly pharmaceutical sales rep in the marketing department of Bikang Group, would he have had a chance at winning Lin Aoxue’s heart?

Amare, cigar still in hand, gave Li Yongheng another pat on the shoulder and lowered his voice: “Young man, I’ll be honest — that hookup app you developed really works. I’ve used it a couple of times myself.”

As he said this, he flashed a grin that every man would understand.

Li Yongheng’s face turned completely dark!

Even though Amare had supposedly lowered his voice, everyone around them heard every single word!

Some bosses had even begun entertaining private thoughts — wondering whether they should cater to his tastes and arrange a few Huaxia women for Amare to enjoy while he was in Ninghai, as a way of getting closer to him.

Even Ninghai’s wealthiest man, Li Yongxing, had entertained such a thought!

This was what “status” meant. If it had been Su Rui saying these things, everyone present would have considered him crude and beneath them, completely unfit for respectable company — but it was Amare saying it, the grand boss of Alpine Investment Bank, and so everyone found him to be a man of genuine character, straightforward and bold.

“Vulgar.” Lin Aoxue said coldly.

“Truly beneath respectable company.” Su Rui added in kind.

These two were really something else.

Their voices were not exactly quiet, and they had spoken in English!

It was clear that Su Rui and Lin Aoxue were expressing their dissatisfaction with Amare openly.

Every guest heard those words, and their gazes suddenly snapped to the two of them!

This was a European super-tycoon — not fawning over him was one thing, but why openly provoke him like this?

Li Yongxing’s expression changed in an instant, turning ice cold!

Amare was a prized guest he had gone to great lengths to invite, and the cooperation with Alpine Investment Bank was tied to the future of the Li Group. If a few words from Lin Aoxue and Su Rui made Amare unhappy enough to cancel the partnership, it would be nothing short of a devastating blow to the Li Group!

At this point Li Yongxing was already regretting having invited Bikang!

Lin Aoxue was so utterly clueless — how could someone like her ever become Li Yongheng’s wife?

“Would you two shut your mouths! What are you babbling about in here?”

Thinking of all the possible consequences, Li Yongxing completely lost control of his fury and roared at Lin Aoxue and Su Rui!

“I was only speaking the truth.” Lin Aoxue said flatly, seemingly paying no mind to the glares from those around her!

“Lin Aoxue, do you think that just because Bikang developed Trichlormethionamide you’re above it all now? Do you think there’s no one in all of Ninghai who can put you in your place? Daring to make the esteemed Mr. Amare unhappy — I’d say the two of you have a death wish!”

Having had a few drinks beforehand, Li Yongxing grew more agitated with every word. Of course, his exaggerated performance was also meant to help quell any anger Amare might be feeling.

After all, this big boss was truly unpredictable — he could decide to invest or pull out on a whim, without any warning whatsoever.

Li Yongxing had already prepared himself to do everything in his power to keep Amare in good spirits, which made his fury toward Lin Aoxue and Su Rui all the more intense: “Where are the security guards? Throw these two out! From this day forward, neither of them is ever to set foot in Huaning Club again!”

Li Yongheng stood by and watched in silence, his expression complex.

After this incident, Lin Aoxue would likely make a complete break with the Li Group!

He simply couldn’t understand why Lin Aoxue would choose to be so openly confrontational — even going so far as to provoke Amare in English!

In Li Yongheng’s view, such behavior was far too impulsive and unwise!

What this young scion of the Li family didn’t know was that this was precisely the part of Lin Aoxue he didn’t understand. Truly knowing a person is the best expression of loving them.

If two people in a relationship don’t truly understand each other, then even if they manage to be together, they are bound to eventually go their separate ways!

“Security, security, get the security guards!”

“How could they say something like that, this is absolutely outrageous!”

“Exactly, this Lin girl doesn’t know her place — does she even know who Mr. Amare is?”

By this point, people had already started echoing Li Yongxing!

Every boss who raised their voice to condemn Lin Aoxue was trying to make a good impression on the deep-pocketed Amare!

That’s just how society works — people always want to curry favor with the wealthy and powerful, and give no thought whatsoever to those they can casually trample underfoot.

The condemnations grew louder and louder, yet Lin Aoxue and Su Rui remained unmoved.

Faced with a chorus of accusations, the composure these two displayed was genuinely astonishing!

After all, everyone present was a prominent figure in Ninghai’s business world — any one of them picked at random held assets exceeding a billion, with a network of connections beyond imagination!

By offending all these people, Bikang would find every step forward in Ninghai’s business circles an uphill battle!

If they united against Bikang, the consequences would be unthinkable!

“I’ve decided to stop supplying Bikang — even if it costs me orders!”

“To let Mr. Amare vent his frustration, our company will immediately terminate our R&D cooperation with Bikang as well.”

“I’ve made up my mind too — Bikang’s cold chain logistics can find someone else to do it. With that kind of attitude, we can’t afford to serve them!”

Every single one of these words landed like a blade, cutting hard into Lin Aoxue and Su Rui!

“These are people who haven’t risen above their baser instincts.” Su Rui seemed a little concerned about Lin Aoxue’s state of mind and patted her arm. “Just ignore them completely.”

Lin Aoxue showed not the slightest fear in the face of all those stares, and said coldly: “I never gave them a second glance to begin with.”

The words were spoken lightly, yet they carried a deep and unmistakable pride!

Pride in spirit, pride in backbone! Unafraid of judgment, undaunted by power!

The composure she showed under such pressure genuinely surprised even Su Rui!

“Let’s go.” Lin Aoxue said.

Hearing this, Li Yongxing called out: “You wouldn’t leave when I told you to leave, and now that security is here to escort you out, you suddenly decide to cooperate? Security, take them away!”

At that moment, six or seven club security guards had already moved in front of Su Rui and Lin Aoxue, about to reach out and shove them!

“Hold on!”

Just then, Amare, who had been standing in the crowd smoking his cigar, raised his hand and signaled the security guards to stop!

He strode over on his thick legs, stopping about a meter from Su Rui and Lin Aoxue, his gaze sweeping back and forth between their faces before settling on Lin Aoxue’s.

At this point, Li Yongxing wore a cold, gleeful sneer — he knew that what Lin Aoxue had done had enraged Amare!

Yet Amare’s reaction turned out to be just a little different from what he had expected.

“The girls in Huaxia truly are exceptional!”

Amare offered no rebuke whatsoever, but instead expressed a heartfelt admiration for Lin Aoxue’s beauty!

Truth be told, he had never in his life laid eyes on a girl as beautiful as Lin Aoxue!

“What a vulgar and insufferable man — lecherous and vain.” Su Rui said coldly. “How does it feel having a whole crowd kneeling to flatter you?”

“Watch your mouth! Show some respect to Mr. Amare!” Li Yongxing snapped furiously!

“This feeling of… being fawned over… is perfect.” Amare waved a hand at Li Yongxing, signaling him to be quiet.

“What a shame they only know you as Amare, but not your full name.”

Su Rui smiled coldly and stepped forward, standing face to face with the grand boss of Alpine Investment Bank, and said: “Amare Stadtmeyer, I’d very much like to know — what are you planning to stir up by coming to Huaxia?”