Chapter 1: The Office's Unspoken Rules...

  This time, Bao Guo didn't take Yang Zongbao to the Yang family's ancestral home, but instead in a completely opposite direction.

  Yang Zongbao thought it was nothing, Yang's family, with a large estate, buying several houses was completely normal.

  "Where is this?" Zhou Yi looked left and right at the window.

  "Don't be like a country bumpkin, young master Zhou." Furen said, "You're not someone who hasn't heard of this before." Baoguo, driving in front, was also startled and annoyed by Zhou Yi's antics.

  Yang Zongbao secretly smiled, it seemed like Bao Guo and Zhou Yi were always at odds.

  "I knew that, of course. Furong Road is a small United Nations. It's just that for a moment I saw so many buildings of all colors and it was a bit too much." Zhou Yi didn't withdraw his gaze.

  "This is indeed true. Furen said that this area is considered a relatively famous high-end residential district. There are people of different nationalities, and most of the houses here have their own characteristics. British, French, Chinese, etc., there are many, but one thing they all have in common is that each house is extremely luxurious, with swimming pools and tennis courts being essential. The lake without edges in front was artificially created by everyone investing together." Baoguo said while driving.

  "Hmm, I know, my brother said that the developer of Furong Road was really clever. Before the housing reform, they only sold land and not houses. Individuals could build their own houses according to their own situation, but the construction cost had to be approved by the developer before work could begin. At that time, the land here was extremely expensive. I thought it was just a joke, but in just 20 short years, it has become like this." Zhou Yi wasn't completely an idiot either.

  Baoguo was relatively satisfied with Zhou Yi's answer, so his tone improved slightly: "Hmm, at the time no one thought much of it, but now without hesitation I can say that nationwide there are only a handful of houses more valuable than Fengmiao Pavilion."

  "I haven't experienced it myself, but in recent years, how many people want to buy a house here? It's basically impossible to afford. Later, other developers wanted to imitate it, but it just didn't work out. Maybe it formed a fixed circle," Zhou Yi said.

  "Hmm, Zhou's kid has a good eye for things." Baoguo drove along the main road of Furong Road.

  The Lotus Path is actually a small island surrounded by water on three sides, with artificial lakes all around. It's not entirely accurate to call it an artificial lake, as it originally had waves, but the developer dug it out and expanded it into its current vast scale. The roads on the island are very wide and suitable for running, with even jogging paths along the edges. There are hardly any shops, only a few scattered cafes, some of which are open-air.

  The quaint and irregular houses are unexpectedly harmonious. Tropical trees can be seen everywhere. In the courtyards of individuals, there are some famous sculptures or collections. However, there are no buildings higher than 15 meters. Except for some public buildings, there are no houses with more than four floors.

  "This is really too luxurious." Zhou Yi finally pulled his head back in from the car window and sighed.

  "Who is the developer here?" Yang Zongbao asked after a long deliberation.

  "You've asked the right person, Old Lady Yang." Baoguo was delighted in his heart. Indeed, he hadn't misjudged Bao Ge, who was a talented individual and had easily grasped the crux of the problem. It wasn't in vain that he had blindly trusted him.

  "Is Yang Tianming here?" Yang Zongbao asked.

  "There's nothing to hide, the old lady spent her own money on it, and others are jealous. Not for anything else, because there are several houses here that belong to the old lady." Bao Guo told Yang Zongbao everything he knew, without avoiding Zhou Yi, because if Bao Ge trusted him, then he didn't need to keep secrets, besides, the fact that this piece of land belonged to the old lady was an open secret, everyone in the village knew. Why not take this as a test for Zhou Yi? Although this young master from the Zhou family with the title of illegitimate son wasn't very capable, if Bao Ge wanted to bring him in, why not give him a chance? Moreover, looking at it now, there weren't many useful people around Bao Ge.

  "Is the old lady you're talking about the grandmother of Yang's eldest daughter?" Zhou Yi was still not an idiot.

  "Alright, later when you see the old lady don't waste words, say what should be said and not a single word more. Otherwise, if something happens, don't blame me for being impolite." Bao Guo threatened Zhou Jia Xiaozi.

  Yang Zongbao remained silent, this kid made Bao Guo knock and hit a few times. Indeed, he was his own childhood friend, and nothing could be said to penetrate.

  "So who exactly is my master?" Zhou Yi fell into a state of disbelief, unable to believe that the person he was interacting with was actually someone from the family standing at the top of the golden pyramid.

  "Your master? Bao Ge? Little kid, let me tell you, Bao Ge will be the only heir of the Yang family, the only grandson recognized by Old Lady Yang. But the process is quite perilous. You can choose for yourself, while there's still a choice." Bao Guo whistled happily.

  "This is for me to choose?" Zhou Yi wasn't a fool, but rather more perceptive than the average person. His experiences had shaped his character, and he never thought that now was the time to choose sides: "Can't you see I've already made my choice?" From the undercurrents between his uncle and aunt at home, and the ruthless struggles within the Zhou Corporation, Zhou Yi could imagine the bloodshed and carnage of the Yang family. But no matter how treacherous the future was, he had to find a way out, find an opportunity, or else he would be mediocre for the rest of his life. His master was undoubtedly the choice given by heaven. So now, Zhou Yi felt his heart racing fast, as if he was about to do something very exciting.

  "Brother Bao, I told you your judgment of people is very good." Baoguo didn't know whether it was true or not, but he drove the car into a very large courtyard with a hearty laugh.

  The car drove for a long time in the yard, and along the way, some independent houses were scattered around the four sides of the yard.

  "These are all the old lady's, but they're all empty, a total of six buildings. The interior design and decoration of each building were designed by famous designers. No one has been able to spend a night in any of them. The old lady doesn't live here often either, I don't know how she happened to come over for the New Year's holiday, and of course, I don't know what reason she also invited Bao Ge over. Do you know the reason, Bao Ge?" Bao Ge parked his car in front of a very classical two-story red-tiled green-brick house.

  Yang Zongbao suddenly felt that the building looked a bit like the anatomy teaching and research office building of his own school.

  Only after going upstairs did I realize that this house was older than I had imagined. Even the floor and stairs were made of red templates.

  "This house looks really old, it's not as new as the six houses outside." Zhou Yi followed behind with a shrinking body and feet, as if entering a haunted house.

  "You little brat, don't you have the eyesight to see that all these floors and stairs are made of red wood?" Baoguo took the opportunity to suppress Zhou Yi, which had already become a habit and entertainment for him.

  "Alright, is it upstairs?" Yang Zongbao ignored Er Xiao's noise and went upstairs.

  The red wood armrests had been used for a long time, and a layer of varnish had already formed on them, making them look smooth and shiny. The fragrance of the wood wafted into Yang Zongbao's nostrils, refreshing him. No wonder the red wood that can be made into furniture is so expensive now, it turns out to have such benefits.

  The living room on the second floor was surprisingly like a conference room, with wooden sofas all around and several doors to other rooms opening into it. Many familiar faces were seated there.

  "Zong Bao come over and sit next to me." The old lady hastily beckoned as soon as she saw Yang Zongbao's head appear from the stairs.

  Yang Zongbao sat down on the left side of the old lady with Er Xiao following closely behind.

  The old lady pulled Yang Zongbao's hand and sat down before starting the topic: "I have transferred all the property rights here to Zongbao."

  As soon as this was said, several families were delighted and several families were worried. Standing behind Yang Zongbao's back, Baoguo and Zhou Yi were of course happy. However, the opposite Shen Rou and her son were not so happy. But unexpectedly, it was not them who came out on top, but rather Lv Qinghou, a royal lawyer with a nodding acquaintance with Yang Zongbao.

  "Isn't this inappropriate for an old lady?"

  "What's wrong?" The old lady of the Yang family flashed a sharp light in her eyes and continued to wait for Lü Qinghou's next words.

  "They're all your grandsons, shouldn't you distribute them fairly?"

  I thought this lawyer was somewhat capable, but I didn't expect his reasoning to be so stupid.

  "I'm not dead yet, what right do you have to instruct me on how to distribute my property?" The old lady said calmly.

  "This can't be." Lü Qīnghóu took a look at Yang Tianming's reaction, seeing that he didn't have any movement, and continued to say: "The money used to develop this project should be given by your son Yang Tianming. So in the eyes of the law, Yang Tianming has a share, therefore..."

  "So you're saying I can't dispose of my own property as I wish?" The old lady was indignant, and everyone present except Lü Qinghou knew what she meant.

  "It's exactly what I mean." Lü Qīnghóu glanced at Shěn Róu, who was sitting there with a virtuous and gentle demeanor, her beauty beyond compare. A wave of sympathy suddenly rose in his heart: "So even if you want to transfer the property rights to Yáng Zōngbǎo, it must go through Yáng Tiānmíng's consent."

  "Oh? Is that so? What did you say to him?" The old lady didn't bother with Lu Qinghou and directly asked her son.

  "I've made up my mind."

  "Huh?"

  Lü Qīnghóu didn't expect that Yáng Tiānmíng wouldn't take a stand, but as a father, shouldn't he be fighting for his own son? In fact, Lü Qīnghóu had forgotten, everything he saw was distorted by Shěn Róu. Shěn Róu hinted to him that Yáng Tiānmíng's most beloved child was Yáng Shuò, and Yáng Shuò was the future heir of the Yáng family... That's why Lü Qīnghóu had the courage to question the old lady.

  "Now that I've decided, Lawyer Lü has also worked hard for our family and should retire. Bao Guo, you know what to do." the old lady said.

  "Alright, Attorney Lü, please go ahead." Bao Guo directly made a inviting gesture towards Lü Qinghou.

  Lü Qinghou could only leave his seat in a huff after failing to get Shen Yu's help.

  "Has your butt been wiped clean?" The old lady asked her son after everything had calmed down.

  "What's so clean about it? No big deal, just a bit of flesh at most." Yang Tianming smiled nonchalantly.

  "I told you that wolf cubs can't be raised well. It's not that I'm being petty, but even a little meat is still meat. Your meat is very valuable now. And don't just focus on the outside, we need to take care of things at home too, haven't you seen how lawyer Lü's eyes are almost bulging out?"

  No one expected the old lady's words to be so venomous and piercing.

  "Mother, I really didn't."

  "You are nothing but a hint. I'm an old man who hasn't read many books, all I know is that flies don't bother with seamless eggs."

  "Grandma, you're being too extreme." Yang Shuo stood up and supported Shen Rou's swaying body.

  "What's wrong with me? Your mother should be grateful for giving birth to a son. Disperse, disperse." The old lady waved her hand.

  Yang Zongbao was uncertain whether this remark was directed at him or not, so he sat in his seat in a dilemma.