Rebirth: The Villainous Young Master in a Novel

Chapter 17: The Most Tragic Female Protagonist in History

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After a while, Song Shicheng reluctantly refreshed his understanding of Shen Guotao and began to worry about the pit he had dug for himself.

Being a villain wasn’t easy. Not only did he have to face off against the righteous protagonist, but he also had to contend with the villainous boss.

What was this? Carrying the role of a villain while bearing the mission of a protagonist.

After pondering for a moment, Song Shicheng suddenly said, “Uncle Ye, even if we have no choice but to agree, as my mom said, the board might not approve this project. How is Shen Guotao so confident in designing this plan?”

Hearing this, Ye Wensheng couldn’t help but look at Song Shicheng with approval. He felt that the young master’s mind had indeed become sharper after that fall, as he was able to immediately dissect this critical detail.

“This is precisely Shen Guotao’s brilliance,” Ye Wensheng analyzed with a frown. “He doesn’t care about Shen Xiaoyan, his illegitimate daughter. Using her to tie us down is like getting something for nothing. Even if the board ultimately rejects the project, he won’t suffer any losses.”

“However, in my opinion, once we agree to this marriage, he will definitely do everything in his power to support us. At the very least, he is determined to secure the senior care bases in the four major cities. And the only company with the resources and strength to undertake such large-scale projects in these four cities is Fenghua Group. But what I’m afraid of is that he might…”

Ye Wensheng trailed off, hesitating to continue.

“You’re afraid he’ll kick us to the curb once we’re no longer useful.”

Song Shicheng finished the sentence for him.

This was thanks to the logical thinking he had developed from writing urban novels for so long. Unlike fantasy novels, urban novels often involved a lot of scheming and deceit.

Back when political novels were all the rage, he had followed the trend and written two of them. At that time, he had frequently read various business and political biographies to write those novels well. He had a natural talent for understanding and imagining power struggles, which was his advantage in the urban novel genre.

Now that Ye Wensheng had laid out the facts, Song Shicheng immediately understood.

Moreover, under the surprised gazes of Ye Wensheng and Ji Jing, he deduced an even more shocking truth: “If he ultimately just kicks us aside, it wouldn’t be much of a loss. But I think his ambitions go beyond just building a few senior care bases.”

“Young Master Song, what a brilliant insight!”

Ye Wensheng couldn’t help but exclaim, genuinely impressed by Song Shicheng’s progress!

“Wait, I’m getting confused. Can you explain more clearly?” Ji Jing asked hesitantly.

“Madam, to put it bluntly, even if we agree to this cooperation and do our best to push for it at the board, if we want Shen Guotao’s support, we’ll likely have to give up a lot of benefits in this project,” Ye Wensheng said with certainty.

“And that’s just his short-term ambition. His long-term ambition might be to swallow Fenghua Group whole,” Song Shicheng added with a cold smile. “Mom, Uncle Ye, the other day at the hospital, I saw Ma Jinbiao from the Ma family coming to see Shen Guotao. It seems they’re getting quite close, probably plotting some kind of cooperation.”

Ji Jing’s face shifted through a range of emotions before she exploded in anger, not even noticing her son’s remarkable transformation. “That ungrateful, heartless bastard! Our family supported him wholeheartedly when he was starting out. Now that Old Song is gone, he’s kicking us while we’re down and even colluding with outsiders to scheme against our family. I’ll never forgive him!”

Ye Wensheng quickly gave Song Shicheng a look, signaling him to help calm her down.

“Mom, there’s no need to ruin your health over such a scumbag,” Song Shicheng comforted her. “Besides, whether we agree or not is up to us. The initiative is in our hands. There’s no need to let that old fox Shen Guotao lead us by the nose. In business terms, right now, the most important thing is to find a solution that best serves our interests.”

That said, in his view, the Song family had no choice but to agree in the end.

If they didn’t, given the current internal and external troubles, the Song family might not survive.

If they agreed, even though it was like making a deal with the devil, it would at least temporarily ease the crisis.

As for the future, they would have to find a way to revive the family business.

After all, with the Counterattack System at his disposal, any conspiracy or scheme was nothing more than a passing cloud!

Of course, to complete the system’s mission, he was more than happy to marry Shen Xiaoyan.

The only downside was that this arrangement was incredibly cruel to the female protagonist. She might just be the most tragic female protagonist in history.

Ji Jing let out a few heavy breaths and pulled Song Shicheng closer. “Son, don’t worry. No matter how difficult things get for our family, I won’t make a joke out of your lifelong happiness.”

Seeing Ji Jing’s emotional reaction, Ye Wensheng couldn’t help but feel a bit helpless.

To be honest, he wasn’t very optimistic about Ji Jing taking over Fenghua Group. Having spent over a decade as a stay-at-home mom, she wasn’t very adept at business. In the long run, she might easily suffer significant losses in this cutthroat business world.

On the other hand, the once-good-for-nothing Young Master Song Shicheng had recently given him a refreshing impression, showing signs of becoming a capable leader. If he were trained to take over, perhaps the Song family still had a chance to turn things around…

—

At the foot of Qianzhong Mountain, the most famous affluent district in Huahai City, stood rows of luxurious villas housing many celebrities and wealthy individuals. The mansions of the Song and Shen families were among them.

While Ji Jing and Song Shicheng’s car headed east toward Qianzhong Mountain, Shen Guotao and Shen Xiaoyan had already arrived at their home to the west.

As soon as they entered the living room, Shen Xiaoyan couldn’t hold back her anxiety. “Dad, what do you mean by all that? Why did you say those things earlier? Shouldn’t it be my sister who’s supposed to marry Song Shicheng?”

Shen Guotao frowned, slowly walked over to the living room sofa, and sat down before responding indifferently, “When did I ever say it was your sister? I only announced the marriage alliance between the Shen and Song families. I have more than one daughter.”

Shen Xiaoyan felt a chill run through her body, from head to toe. She almost cried out, “Dad, I’m your daughter too!”

But Shen Guotao ignored her. He took a cup of tea from the servant, used the lid to skim off the tea leaves, and said casually, “Precisely because you’re my daughter, I have the absolute right to decide your future. In any case, this matter is settled. Whether you accept it or not, you have no choice!”

Shen Xiaoyan’s body swayed slightly as she finally saw the true face of her biological father. A wave of despair washed over her, and her heart felt as if it had turned to ash.

For over twenty years, she had been treated coldly in the Shen family. Her sister, Shen Yixian, and brother, Shen Yizhu, had grown up with silver spoons in their mouths, while she had endured countless cold stares and gossip. If it weren’t for her mother’s determination to marry into a wealthy family and insist on giving birth to her, Shen Guotao, with his cold and ruthless nature, would have likely aborted her long ago.

And now, Shen Guotao was using her lifelong happiness to exchange for benefits. It was utterly cruel!

After a long silence, Shen Xiaoyan nodded bitterly and smiled. “I understand… It’s because I’m the illegitimate daughter you had with a hospital receptionist after a drunken mistake. Since I’m insignificant, you might as well squeeze some value out of me, right?”