These two sentences from Jiang Cheng exploded like a clap of thunder in the ears of the Xu father and son, leaving a deep shadow of doubt in their hearts.
It was obvious that Jiang Cheng's words seemed to have accidentally hit upon some crucial information.
Logically speaking, only they and the financial manager who shared the same bed would know about these matters. How did Jiang Cheng know??
Although they couldn't be 100% sure whether Jiang Cheng's words were just a wild guess or based on facts.
But regardless of the situation, given the current state of the Daheng Group, Xu Jiayin absolutely dared not take any risks.
In an instant, this secret contest between the three tycoons made the atmosphere in the venue subtle and tense once again.
The scene, which had just been heated up by Wang Shi promoting his children, plummeted back into a chilling silence.
Everyone silently put away the photos of their daughters and started doing other things, making the scene extremely awkward once more.
The group of tycoons either pretended to drink or pretended to discuss business.
No one dared to directly pay attention to the topic between Jiang Cheng and Xu Jiayin.
They were afraid of suddenly being dragged into the conversation and becoming the target of public criticism... they only dared to glance at Jiang Cheng and Xu Jiayin occasionally.
Even Yang Guo, the CEO of Guiyuan sitting next to Xu Jiayin, dared not continue introducing his daughter to Jiang Cheng. Instead, he pretended to get up to use the restroom.
Huang Sheng, who had just relaxed, felt his heart leap into his throat again.
He even regretted setting up this dinner party today, secretly cursing his bad luck.
He had thought Jiang Cheng would take the hint and stop dwelling on Xu Zhi's previous provocation.
But he didn't expect Jiang Cheng to be so vindictive, making the situation so difficult.
In an instant, Huang Sheng's face lost its earlier smugness, and his brows furrowed in worry.
Xu Jiayin's eyes quickly darted around, and then, for some unknown reason, he suddenly laughed.
He put on a smile again and said stiffly, "Although I can't sing and dance, I can sing opera! I wonder if CEO Jiang is interested? If CEO Jiang is interested, I can perform a segment for everyone."
Seeing Xu Jiayin's attitude suddenly make a complete turnaround, offering to perform for everyone.
Everyone present was utterly shocked.
Shocked as they were, no one dared to speak up.
They all couldn't figure it out.
The tense atmosphere from moments ago, why did it suddenly change again?
Did they miss something, or misunderstand that sentence??
Still, no one dared to open their mouth to agree.
Normally, when a tycoon of his stature proactively offers to perform, everyone should cheer and applaud in support.
But the scene was awkward at the moment; everyone was looking at each other, observing the dynamics of the situation.
No one dared to take the lead and start clapping.
After all, applauding could easily be misunderstood as taking sides.
Everyone understood that Xu Jiayin wasn't willingly performing, but was being forced by Jiang Cheng into a corner.
Under these circumstances, who would dare to egg him on?
Even Richest Man Wang was looking down playing with his phone, so how could they dare to speak up in agreement?
Although Jiang Cheng had a powerful background, everyone wanted to curry favor with him.
But Xu Jiayin had long been a prominent figure in the Chinese business world.
These people weren't stupid; now was not a good time to take sides.
It was better to play dumb, remain neutral, and avoid getting involved in this dispute.
Jiang Cheng looked around. Besides Richest Man Wang and Wang Congcong, who looked disdainful, Jiang Cheng naturally knew what the others were thinking.
Jiang Cheng looked at Xu Zhi, and a hint of provocation flashed in his eyes.
Immediately after, he slightly raised an eyebrow and spoke in a mocking tone.
"Singing opera, that's not bad. Fine, then CEO Xu, please perform a segment to entertain us!"
Seeing Jiang Cheng deliberately making things difficult for his father right in front of him, Xu Zhi's hands, placed under the dining table, began to clench into fists.
A surge of hatred involuntarily rose in his heart.
After receiving the reply, Xu Jiayin pursed his lips tightly.
His expression also turned extremely ugly.
He stiffly adjusted his signature Hermès belt again.
Then he stood up, straightened his expensive suit, forced a smile, and cleared his throat again.
He adopted the posture of someone about to begin singing.
Seeing this, Jiang Cheng interrupted again: "Wait! Wait! How boring is it to sing a cappella! Although I know nothing about opera, I know that to truly capture the flavor, you must have musical accompaniment! Isn't that right?"
After speaking, Jiang Cheng smiled and looked at the crowd.
As Jiang Cheng's voice faded, the scene fell into a dead silence. No one dared to make a sound. They all lowered their heads, not daring to breathe.
Just then, Richest Man Wang finally spoke: "You are right. Without accompaniment, how can it be worthy of CEO Xu?"
After Richest Man Wang finished his gloating remark, everyone present exchanged glances.
Seeing this, Jiang Cheng turned to Huang Sheng and asked with a smile, "Your hotel should have professional musicians, right?"
Seeing that Jiang Cheng was asking him, Huang Sheng's expression instantly became extremely awkward.
But facing Jiang Cheng's inquiry, he could only nod helplessly and reply, "Uh... there should be."
After receiving an affirmative answer, Jiang Cheng nodded in satisfaction and urged, "Then what are you waiting for? Quickly call people up and have them accompany CEO Xu properly."
Huang Sheng was not Jiang Cheng, even though Jiang Cheng was his partner.
He dared not do what his partner dared to do.
At this moment, he didn't even dare to look at Xu Jiayin.
He could only nod stiffly, stand up, and begin making arrangements.
Although Xu Jiayin felt aggrieved in his heart, his face was currently plastered with a brilliant smile.
To avoid looking utterly defeated, he quickly started explaining.
"My skill in singing opera was actually learned from Old Ma! As you know, two years ago, we worked together on Evergrande Football. He invested a full 1.2 billion in this team. We share the same aspirations and often sing opera together. I learned a lot from him! Today, I'll entertain everyone. If I don't sing well, please don't laugh at me."
After Xu Jiayin finished speaking, the people in the room finally dared to speak up.
After all, he had proactively found a way to save face.
At this moment, speaking up would not only help him save face but also avoid offending Jiang Cheng.
"Hahaha, we are truly lucky today! To have the chance to hear CEO Xu's opera—this trip was worth it!"
"Yes, yes, this is our honor!"
"Thank you, CEO Xu! Thank you, CEO Xu! We look forward to it!"
"I was lucky enough to see a video of CEO Ma singing opera; his skill is quite exquisite, definitely not inferior to a professional's!"
...