My Virtual Girlfriend-Chapter 465: Is Zhao Xuan Still Alive?

Upon hearing Yu Qiao Qiao’s words, Chen Yan’s heart truly surged as if a river were upended.

After all, if you were to speak of his biggest secret, aside from his "Virtual Girlfriend" game, it might have been the death of Zhao Xuan.

Zhao Xuan’s entrustment of his child had been the catalyst for the rapid advancement of Chen Yan and Zhao Ying’s relationship.

It had caused Chen Yan to develop feelings for Zhao Ying beyond friendship.

However, precisely because of these feelings, Chen Yan had lost his calm and dared not tell Zhao Ying about Zhao Xuan’s death.

He was especially afraid that this carefree, silly, and straightforward girl in front of him would become silent, sullen, and even... filled with hatred.

Therefore, he could only delay as much as possible, ensuring Zhao Ying had fun at school and at his and Yu Qiao Qiao’s home, happy and carefree.

But he knew this was only a stopgap measure and that it would inevitably be exposed sooner or later.

It’s just... he didn’t expect it to be so soon.

Luckily, neither of the two girls in the room were particularly sensitive.

Yu Qiao Qiao was silly, and Zhao Ying... even sillier.

When Chen Yan saw his chopsticks fall into her bowl, she went "Heh~" with delight, picked up her bowl, and ran off, "Haha~ your chopsticks are mine! Let’s see what you’ll use to fight me!"

Chen Yan, Yu Qiao Qiao: ....

How exactly does this person’s brain work?

But Zhao Ying’s departure temporarily shifted the topic, which gave Chen Yan a sigh of relief.

He smiled at Yu Qiao Qiao and said, "Look at Brother Ying acting so silly."

He said, "I’ll go get a new pair of chopsticks."

With that, he stood up and went to the kitchen.

Back at the table with new chopsticks in hand, Zhao Ying had taken advantage of his absence to swoop back in and fight for the food.

Yu Qiao Qiao had been trying to stop her on the side, telling her to leave some for Chen Yan.

But Zhao Ying only shoveled the food into her mouth even faster.

Indeed, food fought for always seemed more delicious.

When Chen Yan sat down, he joined the fray for the food.

And so, the dinner table grew livelier.

They finished the meal amidst the buzz, and the topic Yu Qiao Qiao had brought up wasn’t mentioned again. It was as if it had never been brought up at all.

After dinner, Yu Qiao Qiao was cleaning up the table while Chen Yan and Zhao Ying sat on the sofa watching TV.

Seeing Yu Qiao Qiao busy, Chen Yan hesitated but didn’t go help.

He had more important things to do.

For the latter half of the meal, although he had been fighting for his share of food, his mind had already wandered to Zhao Xuan.

After much deliberation, he felt that dragging this out wasn’t really a solution.

Zhao Ying already wanted to contact her family, and no matter how poor her memory was, how long could she really forget?

Would he still have to play dumb and muddle through in the future?

With this in mind, Chen Yan felt that perhaps he should tentatively talk to Zhao Ying and prepare her psychologically.

Thinking this, Chen Yan pondered for a moment, then while watching the TV, he remarked as if reflecting without intention, "Brother Ying, life is only a few short decades."

"Even for those who live the longest, it’s only a century."

"Life is so short. What do you think is the meaning?"

Hearing Chen Yan’s words, Zhao Ying turned her head to look at him.

Her eyes were large and shone with innocent brightness, "What’s up? Running low on funds recently?"

Chen Yan: ....

Zhao Ying’s comment nearly made Chen Yan throw out his back.

He hurriedly said, "No! It was just a spontaneous thought."

Zhao Ying responded with an "Oh" and said, "What’s the use of thinking so much?"

"Did you eat too much?"

"I knew it. I shouldn’t have given you that last piece of braised pork."

Hearing Zhao Ying’s words, Chen Yan’s temper rose too, "I fought for that fair and square!"

Zhao Ying glanced at him, "Right. If you count scheming to have Qiao Qiao hold me while you moved the table as ’fair and square’, then you’re not wrong."

Chen Yan: ...

Chen Yan felt he couldn’t continue the conversation with Zhao Ying.

This girl was like a pufferfish.

While thinking this, Chen Yan steered the conversation back on track.

He pretended to speak casually, "What would you do... if your family members passed away?"

"Would you be very sad?"

Zhao Ying tilted her head, looking at him puzzled, then said, "You’re not going to tell me my dad’s dead, are you?"

Chen Yan: ....

For a moment, Chen Yan didn’t know how to respond.

Luckily, Zhao Ying didn’t wait for his answer.

She simply said, "My dad’s fine. I know it."

Chen Yan couldn’t help but ask, "How do you know?"

Zhao Ying pointed to her chest, "A feeling."

It had to be said, getting a glimpse into Brother Ying’s heart was much easier than He Mengxue’s. There were hardly any barriers.

However, even so, Chen Yan still didn’t quite trust Zhao Ying’s judgment.

After all... Zhao Xuan had entrusted him with over a billion and had been missing for almost a year; the upper circles knew he was dead. If he were still alive, then nothing made much sense.

And perhaps sensing Chen Yan’s feelings, Zhao Ying patted him on the shoulder, saying, "Don’t worry."

"The old man’s surely doing fine."

Chen Yan shook his head slightly; he felt Zhao Ying was being overly optimistic.

Even this made him feel that what he had done today was meaningless.

After all, Zhao Ying had guessed the truth of Zhao Xuan’s death but was unwilling to believe it.

Therefore, once she found out the truth in the future, she would probably collapse.

Sigh...

Thus, Chen Yan spent the entire evening immersed in thoughts of how to deal with the situation.

However, his mood did not arouse any suspicion from the two girls.

Yu Qiao Qiao even thought it was because Chen Yan had been on a business trip for several days and was simply exhausted.

So they didn’t play for long that night and said goodbye early.

Chen Yan initially wanted to send them home or to Yu Qiao Qiao’s house to "talk" about life with her.

But thinking of Zhao Xuan and Zhao Qingtian, he was not in the mood.

So after sending the two girls to the staircase and watching them go downstairs, he went home by himself.

Once home, Chen Yan began to contemplate the night’s events.

The issue of Zhao Ying looking for Zhao Xuan made Chen Yan suddenly realize that besides Yu Qiao Qiao, Lu Man, and Yang Rou, he held another significant grudge against Zhao Qingtian.

Given Brother Ying’s current relationship with him, calling Zhao Xuan his father-in-law wasn’t too far-fetched.

And yet, his father-in-law had been driven to death by Zhao Qingtian, so how could Chen Yan possibly let Zhao Qingtian off?

Thinking this, Chen Yan sorted out the night’s events and then called Yang Rou.

The call went through, and Yang Rou seemed to be busy talking to a girl.

From the sound of it, it seemed to be Yang Nuannuan, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time.

Yang Rou didn’t make Chen Yan wait long; after speaking to Yang Nuannuan, she said to Chen Yan, "Hello, President Chen. What do you need?"

Chen Yan asked, "Sister Rou, are you busy?"

Yang Rou seemed to move away from where she was just now and let out a slight sigh before saying, "It’s nothing."

"Do you need something from me, President Chen?"

Without Yang Rou elaborating, Chen Yan didn’t press further. He said, "Nothing much. I just wanted to ask about the information you’ve gathered on the Zhao Group’s collateral branches. How is it going?"

Hearing Chen Yan’s question, Yang Rou quickly said, "Oh. I almost forgot to mention."

"I’ve gathered it all."

"I’ll send you the materials."

After speaking, she added, "I’ve been a bit overwhelmed these last few days with some family issues."

Hearing Yang Rou mention her family issues, Chen Yan couldn’t help but ask, "Is this about Meng Xue?"

Yang Rou paused for two seconds and then hummed an acknowledgment.

But she didn’t explain further.

It seemed she believed she could handle it.

All she said was, "I’m turning on the computer now. I’ll send you the materials."

Chen Yan was curious about what had happened to Yang Nuannuan to make the usually calm Yang Rou seem a bit uneasy.

Could it be because of Zhao Qingtian?

Had the war between him, Yang Rou, and Zhao Qingtian distressed his daughter Yang Nuannuan, who was caught in the middle?

Because information was scarce, Chen Yan couldn’t analyze further.

And since it was ultimately about Yang Rou’s family affairs...

Yang Rou didn’t explain, and Chen Yan wouldn’t intervene.

With these thoughts, Chen Yan ended the call.

Within a couple of minutes after hanging up, Chen Yan’s phone buzzed.

He checked to find that Yang Rou had sent over the materials.

Chen Yan went to the study with his phone in hand.

Turning on the computer, he received the files.

Chen Yan started to peruse the materials provided by Yang Rou.

When it came to enemies, Chen Yan always preferred to deal with them in one fell swoop.

Targeting their weaknesses, leaving them without any capacity to retaliate or fantasize.

For someone like Zhao Qingtian, who loved power and beauty, the simplest way to destroy him was to strip him of everything he has now.

So, Chen Yan wanted to take advantage of Zhao Qingtian’s recent blunders made in haste to strike a real blow.

However, he could initiate this act but was unable to launch a full offensive.

He needed someone who could control the Zhao Group’s situation, someone to attack Zhao Qingtian from within.

Therefore, uniting the Zhao Group’s branches had become Chen Yan’s first task at hand.

Previously, having Yang Rou, who held grudges against the Zhao Group and remembered them well, gather information for him was for the purpose of screening potential allies.

While considering this, Chen Yan continued to review the information from Yang Rou.

The material listed the three strongest branches of the Zhao Group that were still managing to hold on.

Tianfu Zhao, Zhao Huanyu with the northern Zhao branch who was a rough and rugged man, appeared in the materials as straightforward and unconstrained by trivial formalities.

The province’s industries were outdated. Most of its resources were industrial, making it not very powerful.

However, this branch had shone during the early days of the reform and opening up. It not only controlled the Zhao Group’s main lineage for many years but was also the most original line of the Zhao family. Its status within the entire Zhao fraternity was extraordinary.

Therefore, even though Zhao Qingtian had become the Family Head, he had never made a move against this branch.

Next was the Zhao Group of the South Sea.

The head of this lineage was a woman, Zhao Xiaodie.

According to the data, this woman was very resourceful and a supporter of Zhao Qingtian’s lineage. She was his steadfast ally.

The Zhao of the South Sea was once the Family Head two generations ago and was powerful. It was with the support of this branch that Zhao Qingtian had managed to surpass the Tianfu Zhao and successfully take over.

The last one was the Tianfu Zhao.

Now, it was merely a powerful sub-branch of the Zhao’s main lineage, and at the time, it was one of the branches that Zhao Xuan supported and that had the most potential to take over.

The head of the family was ambitious and capable, named Zhao Huanyu. He held substantial prestige within the family, and his achievements were remarkable.

If it weren’t for the support of the South Sea Zhao at the last moment, maybe it would have been him who succeeded.

It was also because of his prestige in the family and the strong force of the Tianfu branch that to date, other than periodically weakening him a bit, Zhao Qingtian still retained the brand of the Tianfu Zhao sub-branch.

Looking at Yang Rou’s data, the way Zhao Qingtian consolidated power was very simple.

He repatriated the shares of various branches’ subsidiaries back to the headquarters.

He relocated the key personnel from the various branches to Tiandu, providing them with various preferential treatments.

Then, according to the value of the subsidiaries reclaimed, he allocated corresponding shares and dividend rights in the group.

The only key point was that these shares were all stripped of voting rights, which were concentrated in a Zhao-controlled company overseas.

The control of this company was in the hands of several major branches.

Since a new Family Head was elected every ten years, the winner would become the chairman and then take control of this portion of the shares.

Put plainly, Zhao Qingtian had indeed pulled all power into his own hands, but to satisfy the family and compromise,

he still maintained the original "parliamentary system" of the Zhao family.

Chen Yan felt that this was a point that could change the situation.

As long as Zhao Qingtian’s problems grew, the ally he chose might be able to use this system to strip Zhao Qingtian of his position as Family Head.

Then, the power Zhao Qingtian had pulled back into the main family’s hands would, in turn, become his catalyst.

After all, to show that he had no personal agenda,

he was the first Family Head to repatriate all branch resources back to the head office.

Without the Family Head’s authority, he would be unable to mobilize any resources, he would be nothing...

Thinking this, Chen Yan also started to consider his allies.

Chen Yan was very cautious about the choice of allies.

Given the shrewdness and means displayed by Zhao Qingtian, if he chose a foolish ally, Chen Yan felt that he would eventually be dragged down by them.

So, even if there might be some trouble later, Chen Yan could only choose someone who could control the situation.

Fortunately, he had the "Instant Camera" to predict the "capabilities" of several potential allies.

The method of verification was simple, listing the subsidiaries of the Zhao Group and their top management, crossing out Zhao Qingtian’s name, and filling in the ally’s name in the chairman and CEO slots.

In this way, with a simple comparison, the capabilities of these people became roughly clear.

Thinking thus, Chen Yan first took out the data he had organized on the Zhao Group, and then used the "Instant Camera" to take a picture.

There was no denying that Zhao Qingtian’s ability was very good.

The current market value of the Zhao Group was 1.3 trillion.

According to the system’s judgment, the market value of the Zhao Group would reach 2.2 trillion in the next five years. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

A nearly double increase in market value over five years for a company this size was extremely exaggerated.

Next, Chen Yan crossed out his own name and filled in the first candidate: Zhao Huanyu’s name.

Soon after, the Instant Photo began to change.

The future valuation of the Zhao Group changed from 2.2 trillion to 1.9 trillion.

Although it was lower than the company managed by Zhao Qingtian, it had increased by about 50%.

This indicated that this man, who had once competed fiercely with Zhao Qingtian, really had some tricks up his sleeve.

While thinking this, Chen Yan then filled in the second candidate: Zhao Xiaodie’s name.

Even though Zhao Xiaodie was an ally of Zhao Qingtian and supported his ascent to the top,

Chen Yan firmly believed that for the Zhao entrenched in internal strife, there were no everlasting friends, only everlasting interests.

Supporting Zhao Qingtian was just a clever move she made after her defeat in the competition. It didn’t mean that she genuinely supported Zhao Qingtian.

Perhaps, when Zhao Qingtian was about to fall, she had plans to rise to the top, and she would be the first to kick him while he was down.

While Chen Yan was thinking this, Zhao Xiaodie’s "potential" also emerged.

1.6 trillion.

From this, it was clear that her ability was indeed a notch below Zhao Qingtian and Zhao Huanyu. There were reasons for her defeat in the past competition.

While thinking this, Chen Yan filled in the third candidate: Zhao Fengrui’s name.

The Instant Film changed quickly.

The future valuation of the Zhao Group dropped from 2.2 trillion to around 500 billion in five years.

Chen Yan: ...

So, a company’s market value could actually decline, huh?

If not for Zhao Fengrui’s potential assessment, Chen Yan would have thought that all enterprises would only grow better and better.

But now, with this "reminder," Chen Yan suddenly realized: this competitive and screening mechanism of the Zhao was indeed terrifying.

The Family Heads born out of this kind of family infighting were mostly capable and courageous people, able to lead the family towards glory.

After all, having three out of eight people capable of managing such a large business was a very terrifying matriculation rate.

As he pondered, Chen Yan silently decided on the candidate for his ally: Zhao Huanyu.

If there was no other suitable person, Chen Yan would make contact with him and then initiate his counterattack against Zhao Qingtian.

As he thought, Chen Yan pulled up the material given to him by Yang Rou.

Besides asking Yang Rou to find some unconquered Family Heads for him, Chen Yan also had Yang Rou help him collect information on Zhao Qingtian’s generation, the Zhao progeny.

He wanted to see if there were any "big fish that slipped through the net" that could replace these candidates.

While looking through the list, Chen Yan wrote down names one after another on the document.

Most of the candidates were similar to Zhao Fengrui; once they took over the Zhao, the company went into rapid decline: this showed that they simply didn’t have the capability to control the Zhao, let alone fight with Zhao Qingtian for power within the family.

Chen Yan shook his head as he continued writing.

Even for the defeated Family Heads, it was the same. The better ones could reach 1.2 trillion, earners who could maintain their existing success; others had only 0.3 trillion, squandering the family fortune.

As he wrote, he came to the last name and, as if possessed, Chen Yan wrote Zhao Xuan’s name.

He didn’t really have any other thoughts; he just suddenly thought of Zhao Xuan.

After writing it, Chen Yan himself laughed.

After all, Zhao Xuan was already dead.

A dead man should have no effect at all, right?

But as he thought this, something miraculous happened—the Instant Film that had stopped for a while slowly began to show changes.

The valuation of the Zhao Group five years from now had miraculously reached 2 trillion.

Chen Yan looked at the number and almost thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Was it actually effective?

At that moment, he couldn’t quite understand the judgment mechanism of this tool: did this mean that if Zhao Xuan were still alive, he would lead the Zhao Group to this level?

Or...

Chen Yan couldn’t help but think of Zhao Ying saying all night that she sensed her father was fine.

Could it be... Zhao Xuan wasn’t dead?!

At this thought, Chen Yan couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

Suddenly, he felt goosebumps all over.

Were the older generations really playing this wildly?

With this thought, Chen Yan couldn’t help but want to verify it again.

———

Even though Zhao Xiaodie was an ally of Zhao Qingtian and had supported his ascent,

Chen Yan firmly believed that for the Zhao engulfed in internal strife, there were no eternal friends, only eternal interests.

Supporting Zhao Qingtian was just a shrewd move she made after losing in the competition. It didn’t mean that she sincerely supported Zhao Qingtian.

Perhaps, when Zhao Qingtian was about to fall, and she had plans to take the lead, she would be the first to kick him while he was down.

While Chen Yan was thinking this, Zhao Xiaodie’s "potential" also came out.

1.6 trillion.

From this, it was clear that her ability was indeed a notch below Zhao Qingtian and Zhao Huanyu. There were reasons for her fall in the past competition.

As he mulled this over, Chen Yan filled in the third candidate: Zhao Fengrui’s name.

Instantly, the Instant Film photo changed.

The future valuation of the Zhao Group dropped from 2.2 trillion to about 500 billion within five years.

Chen Yan: ...

So, a company’s market value can actually go down, huh?

If it weren’t for Zhao Fengrui’s potential verdict, Chen Yan would have thought that all companies could only get better and better.

But now, with his "reminder," Chen Yan suddenly realized: the Zhao’s competition and filtration mechanism was really terrifying.

Most of the Family Heads born out of such family warfare were capable and bold individuals who could lead the family to greatness.

After all, a success rate as high as having three out of eight people capable of managing such a large enterprise was extremely intimidating.

While he pondered, Chen Yan also quietly settled on his ally: Zhao Huanyu.

If there was no one else more suitable, then Chen Yan would make contact with him and begin his counterattack against Zhao Qingtian.

As he thought, Chen Yan pulled the information Yang Rou had provided him with.

Aside from having Yang Rou look for some unconquered Family Heads for him, Chen Yan also had her gather information on Zhao Qingtian’s generation of Zhao descendants.

He wanted to check if there were any "fish that slipped the net," capable of replacing these candidates.

As he examined the list, Chen Yan filled out the document with names in succession.

Most of the choices were similar to Zhao Fengrui; once they assumed control of the Zhao, the company plummeted: this showed that they simply didn’t have the ability to manage the Zhao, let alone contest with Zhao Qingtian for power in the family.

Chen Yan shook his head as he continued to write down names.

Even for several defeated Family Heads, the situation was the same. The good ones could achieve a valuation of 1.2 trillion, considered guarders of their fortunes, while others bottomed out at only 0.3 trillion, completely squandering their wealth.

Writing and writing, until finally, after crossing out the last name, Chen Yan inexplicably jotted down Zhao Xuan’s name.

He really had no other thoughts; he simply suddenly thought of Zhao Xuan.

After he finished, Chen Yan laughed to himself.

Zhao Xuan was dead, after all.

Writing down a dead man should have no effect whatsoever.

However, as he was thinking this, astonishingly, the Instant Film, which had stopped briefly, began to display changes slowly, miraculously.

The projected five-year valuation of the Zhao Group turned out to be 2 trillion.

Chen Yan stared at the number, almost believing he was seeing things.

Was it actually effective?

In that moment, he was at a loss to decipher this device’s judgment mechanism: did it mean that if Zhao Xuan was still alive, he would have led the Zhao Group to this level?

Or...

Chen Yan recalled Zhao Ying repeatedly mentioning that night that she sensed her father was alright.

Could it be... Zhao Xuan hadn’t died?!

With this thought, Chen Yan’s eyes grew wide.

He suddenly felt a chill over his entire body.

Did the older generation always play so wildly?

Thinking this, Chen Yan wanted to verify it once more.